General Electric Medical Systems, 2002 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

General Electric Medical Systems, 2002 - Essay Example In 2002 when Joe Hogan took up the reins he faced a difficult situation of having to decide whether GEMS should continue its policy of being a Global Products Company (GPC) or modify the concept to ‘In China for China’. GPC required that the manufacturing activity of the entire range of products be concentrated in places, including China, where this could be done at the lowest cost while maintaining standards and supplies made to the entire global market. The alternative would mean that the production in China would be meant exclusively for the Chinese markets. GEMS also had to decide whether it would continue concentration on excellence in engineering or move to new areas of genomics and healthcare information which would bring it into competition with smaller software companies but has to be done if GEMS has to be part of the emerging technologies that might, one day, make its existing lines of business obsolete and redundant. Analysis of the market situation revealed that the population of advanced countries was increasingly becoming older needing higher spending on healthcare making double digit growth in healthcare related industry possible. However the low per capita spend on medicine and diagnostics in emerging economies like China and India opened doors for a huge opportunity for GEMS both for new equipment as well as for reconditioned equipment marketed under its Gold Seal program. Other countries in Eastern Europe and Latin America were also emerging as large markets with opening up of their economies and development of their soft infrastructure. China was predominantly a low-end equipment market and had allowed the use of used equipment also. The market segmentation was high-end products, sold mainly in the US, Japan and other developed countries contributing 45%, mid-tier products 35% and the low-end making up the balance 20%. However it was the cheaper products that had the maximum potential for growth due to

Applications of Geographic Information System Essay Example for Free

Applications of Geographic Information System Essay ABSTRACT This paper discusses the application of GIS as a tool in monitoring biodiversity with special reference to Pakistan. The major advantages of satellite data are that the large and inaccessible areas can be covered using a standard approach, with a uniform level of detail and at relatively low coast. Networked information like GIS and Remote sensing not only provides speedy answers to scientific problems and issues, but also broadens planet of possible questions on the conservation and sustainable utilization of biological diversity. Simply we can say that the GIS is associated with two different functions for a geographical perspective on biodiversity data and other environmental issues. (1) It contains a powerful reference base (geographic location), i.e. maps of natural vegetation (endemic, multipurpose, and threatened), soil, land cover, topography, hydrology, bird migration, distribution of fauna and flora, etc. (2) GIS is a powerful and effective way of communicating a large variety of information. In developing countries GIS is used so as to make possible the sustainable development, conservation, management and monitoring of biodiversity. In Pakistan the application of GIS in various fields is still not very common. Talking about its usage for biodiversity conservation, management and monitoring, it is just 5-7 years back. Departments like wildlife department of Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhton Khawa, Baluchistan and Gilgit-Baltistan and various NGOs like IUCN, WWF-P, SUPARCO are using this satellite based technology for conservation, management and monitoring of various ecological characteristics like distribution of flora and fauna, the population and the status of flora and fauna, the health of wetlands, national parks, game reserves and wildlife sanctuaries. In addition to this GIS is also use now a days in Pakistan for land use purposes but this work so far done is not enough to come through the circumstances face by our planet specially the tropical and sub tropical countries like Pakistan. Therefore, in Pakistan there is a need for more comprehensive approaches  that deal with new remote sensing technologies and analysis in a GIS-environment, and that integrate findings collected over longer periods with the aim of prediction. It is also imperative to collect and integrate data from different disciplines. These are essential in the spirit of sustainable development and conservation, management and monitoring of natural resources. Keywords: geographic information system (GIS); biodiversity; monitoring. INTRODUCTION Geographical Information Systems A Geographical Information System (GIS) is a system of hardware, software and procedures to facilitate the conservation, monitoring, management, etc by manipulation, analysis, modeling, representation and display of geo-referenced data to solve complex ecological and environmental problems. GIS functions in a systematic way as: data entry, data display, data management, information retrieval and analysis. The main function of an Information system is to improve one’s ability to make decisions. A geographic information system is an information system that is designed to work with data referenced to spatial or geographic coordinates. GIS is both a database system with specific capabilities for spatially referenced data, as well as a set of operation for working with any type of data as well. The three basic types of GIS applications which might also represent stages of development of a single GIS application are as under (Ramachandran, 1993, Ramachandran et.al., 1997, 1998). Inventory Application The first step in developing a GIS application is making an inventory of the features like flora and fauna for a given geographic area. The emphasis at this stage is the updating of simple data retrieval (Ramachandran, 1993, Ramachandran et.al., 1997, 1998). Analysis Application After the inventory stage, complex queries on multiple layers can be performed using spatial and aspatial analysis techniques. Management Application More advanced spatial and modeling techniques are required to support the decisions of managers and policy makers so that they can better monitor the issues. This means that the shifting of emphasis will be from basic geographic data handling to manipulation, analysis and modeling in order to solve real world problems (Ramachandran, 1993, Ramachandran et.al., 1997, 1998). There has been a revolution in the availability of information and in the development and application of tools for managing information during the past 4 to 5 years (Harison 1995). Geographic information system (GIS) is an important tool for monitoring biodiversity, which accommodates large varieties of spatial and aspatial (attribute) data. The information programmed in a GIS is used to target surveys, measurements and monitoring schemes. Various types of data on species and habitat distribution from different dates allow monitoring of the location and the extent of change. A GIS is actually a spatially referenced database that allows multiple layers of data to be created and displayed together as computerized maps. Data sources may includes aerial surveys, satellite data, existing maps, field surveys and expert knowledge. GIS is such an efficient technology that it enables the standard formatting of all maps used, no matter what their source is. The major advantages of satellite data are that large and inaccessible areas can be covered using a standard approach, with a uniform level of detail and at relatively low coast. Biodiversity means the variety of life in this universe and its definition as given by The Convention on Biological Diversity is: â€Å"The variability among living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are apart, this includes diversity within species and of ecosystems. More simply, the biodiversity is the variety of the world’s organisms, including their genetic makeup and the communities they form. Biodiversity is dynamic: the genetic composition of species changes over time in response to natural and human-induced selection  pressures; the occurrence and relative abundance of species in ecological communities changes as a result of ecological and physical factors (Box 2)†. (Elzinga et al. 2001) defined monitoring as, The collection and analysis of repeated observations or measurements to evaluate changes in condition and progress toward meeting a management objective Monitoring is actually the repeated surveys or measurements taken by means of some standardized procedure so that the predetermined objectives or values be analyzed or interpret. Thus, the biodiversity monitoring is the estimation of diversity at any location more than one time so as to draw inference about any change that has occurred or is likely to occur (Wilson et. al 1996). The attributes of biological diversity that can be assessed at each level of ecological organization were identified by (Wilson et.al 1996). The attributes that could be monitored include the identity, distribution, and proportions of each type of habitat, and the distribution of species within those habitats at landscape level and at ecosystem level, richness, evenness, and diversity of species, guilds and communities are important. Abundance, density and biomass of each population may be of interests on species level and at the genetic level, genetic diversity of individual organisms within population is important. It is very important to assess and interpret biodiversity at all these levels of organization by using various approaches at several spatial and temporal scales (Noss and Cooperrider 1994). DISCUSSION GIS plays an important role as a tool for environmental conservation, management and monitoring, with the current greater concern for sustainable use of resources, and conservation, management and monitoring of biodiversity. Simply we can say that the GIS is associated with two different functions for a geographical perspective on biodiversity data and other environmental issues. (1) It contains a powerful reference base (geographic location), i.e. maps of natural vegetation (endemic, multipurpose, and threatened), soil, land cover, topography, hydrology, bird migration, distribution of fauna and flora, etc. (2) GIS is a powerful and effective way of communicating a large variety of information. In developing countries GIS is used so as to make possible the sustainable development, conservation, management and monitoring of biodiversity. These  countries not only hold a large part of universe’s biodiversity (particularly from tropical coastal ecosystems), but they are also the most vulnerable to environmental degradation. Remote sensing studies relevant to the field of sustainable development in tropical developing countries were provided by Calzadilla P ´erez et al. (2002), Dahdouh-Guebas et al. (2002b), De La Ville et al. (2002), Jayatissa et al. (2002), Kairo et al. (2002), Sulong et al. (2002) and Verheyden et al. (2002). Records of species and other ecological characters or habitat can be stored in a database and mapped to show where they occur and this geographic information can be used to target surveys and monitoring schemes (Marqules Austin, 1991). Spatial and aspatial data from different dates allow monitoring of the location of change (where) to be identified and the extent (how much) measured. The aspatial data include tables of measurements, species and habitat, attributes, images, videos, so und, etc while the spatial data include maps, satellite imagery and aerial images. The taxonomic, ecological and cultural variables required for assessment and monitoring of biological diversity and their corresponding information scales were showed by Davis et al. (1990). A GIS-based approach for the analysis of biodiversity was developed by Walker Faith (1993) and according to this approach species lists for different geographic locations with other geographic data describing the locations of nature reserves and geographic variations in environmental conditions were linked. The analysis modeling applied to environmental data are the recent developments in GIS (Aspinall, 1995), notably predicting the distribution of wildlife species under present and changed environmental conditions, understanding the interaction of habitats and other aspects of ecological infrastructure within landscapes, and interpreting and monitoring biodiversity for use in management. Networked information like GIS and Remote sensing not only provides speedy answers to scientific problems, but also broadens the planet of possible questions on the conservation and sustainable utilization of biological diversity (Canhos et al., 1998). The above examples indicates the monitoring assessment of the status and trends in biodiversity using GIS. In Pakistan the application of GIS in various fields is still not very common. Talking about its usage for biodiversity conservation, management  and monitoring, it is just 5-7 years back. Departments like wildlife department of Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhton Khawa, Baluchistan and Gilgit-Baltistan and various NGOs like IUCN, WWF-P, SUPARCO are using this satellite based technology for conservation, management and monitoring of various ecological characteristics like distribution of flora and fauna, the population and the status of flora and fauna, the health of wetlands, national parks, game reserves and wildlife sanctuaries. In addition to this GIS is also use now a days in Pakistan for land use purposes. According to this GIS based studies Garstang et al. (2003) categorized Wetlands of Pakistan into four broader ecological categories i.e., Montane and Alpine region, Semi-arid region, Arid region and coastal region. The Wetlands Survey Programme Section (WSPS) of Pakistan Wetlands Programme is responsible to carryout nation-wide wetlands’ surveys on birds, mammals, fish, micro macro invertebrates, reptiles and amphibians, vegetation, and water quality, therefore, by using GIS all these biodiversity data along with their observers’ details and observation conditions are being maintained in a web-accessible database deployed at National Council for Conservation of Wildlife (NCCW), Islamabad. Pakistan Wetlands Inventory (PWI) data model integrates or collects the Wetlands Survey Programme and Wetlands GIS programme (Qamer, 2007) and the boundaries of all the protected wetlands were mapped into GIS format using government record, field data and GIS maps. CONCLUSION In Pakistan there is a need for more comprehensive approaches that deal with new satellite based programmes like remote sensing technologies and analysis in a GIS-environment, and that integrate findings collected over longer periods with the aim of prediction. It is also imperative to collect and integrate data from different disciplines of biodiversity. This is very essential in the spirit of sustainable development and conservation, management and monitoring of natural resources. In addition to this the use of GIS and other satellite based systems can save our time due to their fast actions and data taken is also considered more authentic and reliable. REFERENCES Boyd, D.S., Foody, G.M. An overview of recent remote sensing and GIS based research in ecological informatics. Ecological Informatics(2010), doi:10.1016/J.ecoinf. 2010.07.007 Qamer, F. M., Saleem, R., Hussain, N., Akram, U. Raza, S. M. (2008). Multi-scale watershed database of Pakistan, 10th International Symposium on High Mountain Remote Sensing Cartography (HMRSC X), September 8-11, 2008 Katkmandu, Nepal. Walker, J.S., Blaschke, T., 2008. Object-based Land covers classification for the Phoenix metropolitan area: Optimization vs. transportability. International Journal of Remote Sensing 29 (7), 2021_2040. Qamer, F. M. (2007). Pakistan Wetlands Inventory Data Model an approach based on Asian Wetlands Inventory, ISO 19115, and Information Model for Biological Collections guideline.† In: proceedings of Student Conference on Conservation Science, University of Cambridge, March 2007, Cambridge, UK. Walker, J.S., Briggs, J.M., 2007. An object-oriented approach to urban forest mapping in phoenix. Photogrammetric Engineering Remote Sensing 73 (5), 577_583. Tucker, G., Bubb P., de Heer M., Miles L., Lawrence A., Bajracharya S. B., Nepal R. C., Sherchan R., Chapagain N.R. 2005. Guidelines for Biodiversity Assessment and Monitoring for Protected Areas. KMTNC, Kathmandu, Nepal. Zhang, Q.F., Molenaar, M., Tempfli, K., Shi, W., 2005a. Quality assessment for geospatial objects derived from remotely sensed data. International Journal of Remote Sensing 26 (14), 2953_2974. Zhang, Q.F., Pavlic, G., Chen, W.J., Fraser, R., Leblanc, S., Cihlar, J., 2005b. A semiautomatic segmentation procedure for feature extraction in remotely sensed imagery. Computers Geosciences 31 (3), 289_296. Zhang, B.-L., Song, M., Zhou, W.-C., 2005c. Exploration on method of auto classification for main ground objects of Three Gorges Reservoir area. Chinese Geographical Science 15 (2), 157_161. Garstang, R., Omer, S., Ashraf, S., Arshad, M., and Shafiullah, M. (2003). The Protection and Management of Pakistan Wetlands Project, The Pakistan Wetlands Project Document. Calzadilla P ´erez, A., Damen, M.C.J., Geneletti, D. and Hobma, T.W.: 2002, ‘Monitoring a recent delta formation in a tropical coastal wetland using remote sensing and GIS. Case study: Guapo River delta, Laguna de Tacarigua, Venezuela’, in F. Dahdouh-Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 201–219. De La Ville, N., Chumaceiro Diaz, A. and Ramirez, D.: 2002, ‘Remote sensing and GIS technologies as tools to support sustainable management of areas devastated by landslides’, in F. Dahdouh-Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 93–112. Dahdouh-Guebas, F., Zetterstr ¨om, T., R ¨onnb ¨ack, P., Troell, M.,Wickramasinghe, A. and Koedam, N.: 2002b, ‘Recent changes in land-use in the Pambala-Chilaw Lagoon complex (Sri Lanka) investigated using remote sensing and GIS: conservation of mangroves vs. development of shrimp farming, in F. Dahdouh- Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 93–112. . Jayatissa, L.P., Guero, M.C., Hettiarachchi, S. andKoedam, N.: 2002, ‘Changes in vegetation cover and socioeconomic transitions in a coastal lagoon (Kalametiya, Sri Lanka), as observed by teledetection and ground truthing, can be attributed to an upstream irrigation scheme’, in F. Dahdouh-Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 93–112. Sulong, I., Mohd-Lokman, H., Tarmizi, K. and Ismail, A.: 2002, ‘Mangrove mapping using Landsat imagery and aerial photographs: Kemaman District, Terengganu, Malaysia’, in F. Dahdouh-Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 93–112. Verheyden, A., Dahdouh-Guebas, F., Thomaes, K., De Genst, W., Hettiarachchi, S. and Koedam, N.: 2002, ‘High resolution vegetation data for mangrove research as obtained from aerial photography’, in F. Dahdouh-Guebas (ed.), Remote Sensing and GIS in the Sustainable Management of Tropical Coastal Ecosystems, Environment, Development and Sustainability 4(2), 113–133. Elzinga, C. L., D. W. Salzer, J. W. Willoughby, and J. P. Gibbs. 2001. Monitoring plant and animal populations. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Abingdon, UK. Ramachandran, S., Devasenapathy, J., Sundramoorthy, S. and Krishnamoorthy, R. (2000a). Satellite Remote Sensing Application in Coastal Zone Management, In: Marine Remote Sensing Applications. Institute for Ocean Management, Anna University, pp. 87-90. Ramachandran, S., Ramesh, S. and Krishnamoorthy, R. (2000b). Application of Remote Sensing and GIS in Coastal Lagoonal Ecosystem: A Case Study from Pulicat Lake, Southern India, In: Marine Remote Sensing Applications. Institute for Ocean Management, Anna University, pp. 333-343. Dev Bahera, M.(1999): Remote sensing and environment. Employment news : 26 th June 2nd July 1999. Hussin. Y.A, Mahfud, M. and Zuhair Michael Weir (1999). Monitoring Mangrove Forests using Remote Sensing and GIS. GIS development proceedings, ACRS. Ramachandran. S, Sundramoorthy, S., Krishnamoorthy, R., Devasenapathy , J. and Thanikachalam, M. (1998). Application of Remote Sensing and GIS to Coastal Wetland Ecology of Tamilnadu and Andaman and Nicobar group of Islands with special reference to Mangroves. Current Science, 75(3) :101-109. Ramachandran. S, Krishnamoorthy, R., Sundramoorthy, S., Parviz, Z.F., Kalyanamuthiah, A. and Dharanirajan, K. (1997). Management of Coastal Environments in Tamilnadu and Andama n Nicobar Islands based on Remote Sensing and GIS approach. MAEER’S MIT, Pune Journal, IV (15 16), Special issue on Coastal Environmental Management, pp. 129-140. Gupta, B.N. and Biswas Sas (1997) : Biodiversity characterization at land scape level using satellite remote sensing. Paper presented in a workshop, Biodiversity characterization using remote sensing project of National Remote sensing agency, Hyderabad, sponsored by department of space and biotechnology, Govt. Of India organized by NRSA at Hyderabad, India. Scott, J.M., Tear, T.H. Davis, F.W. (1996). Gap Analysis: A Landscape Approach to Biodiversity Planning. Maryland, USA, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Harrison, J. (1995). Finding the information Stein, B.A. (1997). Designing information systems to support biodiversity conservation. In: Hawksworth, D.L., Kirk, P.M. Clarke, S.D. (Eds), Biodiversity Information Needs and Options, pp. 5–20. Proceedings of the 1996 International Workshop on Biodiversity Information. CAB International.on. Parks, 5: 12–19. Aspinall, R.J. (1995). Geographic information systems: their use for environmental management and nature conservation. Parks, 5: 20–31. KMTNC/ACAP/BCDP (1994): Final Draft Report. King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation, Annapurna Conservation Area Project, Biodiversity Conservation Data Project. March 1994. Ramachandran. S. (1993). Coastal Zone Information System – Pilot project for Rameswaram area. Report submitted to Department of Ocean Development. Govt. of India, 40 pp. Scott, J.M., Davis, F., Csuti, B., Noss, R., Butterfield, G.C., Anderson, H. Caccio, S., D’Erchia, F., Edwards, T.C., Ulliman, J. Wright, R.G. (1993). Gap analysis: a geographic approach to conservation of biological diversity. Wildlife Monographs, 123: 1–41. Walker, P. Faith, D.P. (1993). Diversity: a software package for sampling phylogenetic and environmental diversity. Division of Wildlife and Ecology. Australia: CSIRO. Wilson, E. O. The Diversity of Life (Norton, New York, 1992). Marqules, C.R. Austin, M.P. (Eds) (1991). Nature conservation: cost effective biological surveys and data analysis. Australia: CSIRO. Davis, F.W., Stoms, D.M., Estes, J.E., Scepan, J. Scott, J.M. (1990). An information systems approach to the preservation of biological diversity. International Journal of Geographic Information Systems, 4: 55–78. Scott, DA (comp) (1989). A Directory of Asian Wetlands. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland, and Cambridge, United Kingdom. Wilson, E. O. F. M. Peter (Eds.). (1988) Biodiversity. Washington, D.C.: National Academy of Sciences Press.

The Benefits of Sin Revealed in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Lette

The Benefits of Sin Revealed in The Scarlet Letter      Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Nathaniel Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter, each of us is born with "original sin" we have inherited from the misdeeds of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. As Eve bit hungrily into the apple from the Tree of Knowledge, starving for wisdom, little did she know that the entire human race would thereafter be tainted by her "sin." Hawthorne and many others believe that ever since, human beings have been inclined to evil, more likely to disobey than to act in a godly manner. This is a faithless, cynical view of humanity, but one perhaps justified by the actions of Hester Prynne and the Reverend Dimmesdale. Sin seems to be an inevitable factor in their lives; though they are good people, their sin boils up and nearly destroys them. Do they make a conscious choice to sin? Or does their sin simply take control, as it is bound to do in all human beings? Perhaps this leads to a greater question of fate and free will, but in the end, the one thing they can really chan ge in their lives is the way they deal with sin, how they attempt to atone for it - and whether they view the affair they had as sinful in the first place.    Puritan society in the Massachusetts Bay Colony was a system based on religion. The Bible and the law were intertwined and could not be separated, not even in the minds of the people. Therefore it was difficult to argue that there were any laws at all that were worth having, if they were not spelled out explicitly in the Bible. Hester had committed adultery and given birth to a bastard child, and there it was, in the Ten Commandments: Thou shalt not commit adultery. And so she was punished. The Puritans nodded and were satisfied, comfortabl... ...., C.E. Frazer, ed. The Nathaniel Hawthorne Journal 1975. Englewood: Indian Head, 1975. Coxe, Rev. Arthur Cleveland. "The Writings of Hawthorne." Church Review 3 (1851): 489-511. Gartner, Matthew. "The Scarlet Letter and the Book of Esther: Scriptural Letter and Narrative Life." Studies in American Fiction (1995): 131-144. Hawthorne, J. (1886, April). "The Scarlet Letter." The Atlantic Monthly [On-line], pp. 1-20. Available: http://wwww.theatlantic.com/unbound/classrev/scarlet.html Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: St. Martins, 1991. Loring, G. B. (1850). "The Scarlet Letter and Transcendentalism." Massachusetts Quarterly Review [On-line], pp. 1-6. Available: http://eldred.ne.mediaone.net/nh/loring.html Scharnhorst, Gary. The Critical Response to Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. New York: Greenwood, 1992.   

Religion, Morality, and the Good Life

Religion, Morality, and the Good Life Does morality depend on religion? Many believe the fundamental aspects of morality and religion join to form the basis on how one chooses to live their life. Some would define morality as a system we humans use to distinguish between what is right and what is wrong. Morality could derive from a number of different factors including, religion, culture, and upbringing. Those that believe that morality derives from religion or God’s commands trust in the Divine Command Theory.The Divine Command Theory is the idea that morality is dependent on God; that one’s moral obligation be determined by their obedience to God’s commands. This theory has been and probably will continue to be controversial to many. Morality must have a purely secular foundation. Although religion might not be the concrete basis for morality, it is certain that religion is needed sometime when dealing with specific aspects of morality. There are 2 types of mor ality, justified and unjustified. Justified morality is common sense and does not require intense interpretation.For example, â€Å"Do not steal† is a justified moral command because when one steals they are bringing evil to someone and that is immoral. Unjustified morals are much harder to find reason for than justified morals which can be easily justified by common knowledge. â€Å"Do not have sex before marriage,† is an example of an unjustified morality. It is difficult to explain why doing the act is immoral. This moral standard is irrational in that there is no reasonable answer why one should not do this act in order to remain moral.Religion comes in handy when dealing with grey areas of morality. Those grey areas are known as the unjustified moral commands or unjustified morality. Given the example for an unjustified moral command, one could answer the question â€Å"Why should I not do this in order to remain moral,† by saying it is immoral to have sex before marriage because God commanded us not to because he will punish one who does not follow his commandments. There is no central harm because if this action but one’s self-interest or fear of God’s wrath will keep one from committing this immoral act.The use of God and religion to justify these issues is only useful when dealing with a God-fearing and moral person. Although using religion with morality, in this case, may cause one to agree that morality needs religion and that the Divine Command Theory explains why, it does not justify that religion is the basis for morality. Are right and wrong actions commanded by God? The Divine Command Theory states that good and bad are created by God, not by humans. It has been illustrated that the Divine Command Theory cannot be logically true.The Divine Command Theory states that if God commands â€Å"A,† his commands by itself are sufficient to make â€Å"A† good. â€Å"A is good† just means â€Å"A i s commanded by God. † God’s commands are good simply because God commands it. If there were no God, or if God did not issue any commands, then there would be no such thing as moral right or wrong. However, if actions are good on their own without influence from God, then the Divine Command Theory is false because it is naturally commanded that we do things which are good and avoid those in which we know to be wrong.One’s belief in the existence of a god or gods may cause one to believe that morality assumes God’s existence. Their beliefs seem to give their lives purpose and clear understanding. In Genesis 1:27 it says, â€Å"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. † (NIV) According to Christianity, God created us in his likeness as to fulfill the plan or purpose that he had intended for us. With this idea, the Catholic Church developed the concept of natural law.This natural law concept stated that by working out what one’s purpose is, we will be able to see how we should act and/or behave; it would be apparent in the way in which we have been designed. Within the Catholic Church, the Pope’s condemnation of homosexuality is an example of the natural law theory at work. The natural result to sex is conception, and any other sexual act that is not available to this possibility would be an immoral rejection to the plan God had intended for them. It is obvious that this natural law approach to ethics can cause controversy.It might be perceived as a poor imitation of morality in that it fails to provide justification for many basic moral principles. The supposed link between God and morality provides the idea because God is omnipotent and our creator; we have an obligation to obey his commands. With him being our creator, we owe him our existence. Many ask the obvious question, â€Å"Why do we have this obligation? † Although this view has n ot stood up to reflection, people once believed that children owed the act of obedience to their parents only because children depended on their parents. This view is remarkably similar to the reasoning given for feudalism.In feudalism, in exchange for the protection of the lord, the vassal would give some sort of service to the lord. The obligation between the lord and the vassal regarding the fief or land forms the basis of the feudal relationship. The weakness in this political system was that the vassals never agreed to this plan. By answering the above question in saying that our obligation to obey God’s command is because obedience is morally right, the assumption has been made that morality exists independently of God. Why things are right in the first place is justified and explained by the Divine Command Theory.The Divine Command Theory shows an apparent resemblance to the natural law approach as discussed just before. Rather than focusing on features of his assumed creation as with the natural law theory, the Divine Command Theory implicates a focus on God’s orders. An obvious example of God’s orders would be the Ten Commandments. The most common objection to this approach is that it makes morality seem somewhat subjective. It implies the theoretical likelihood of rape being right simply because God commands this. Some may say that God would never command such an act as rape. God has not, in fact, commanded that rape is good.Assuming that the Divine Command Theory is, in fact, true, it would see God’s goodness in that he will not do anything wrong. But it does not follow that he won’t be unjust or cruel. As long as he is not violating any of his commands, no matter what God does, he will not be doing anything wrong. God is omniscient and morally perfect. Surely this gives us exact reason to why we ought to obey his commands. God’s moral perfection, after all, guarantees that he will issue only those commands that he thinks are right. His overall insight and expertise assures that he will never be wrong in what he believes is right to command of us.It sees God as the highest possible moral guide, giving us reason to always obey his commands. Although this is correct, it does not support the Divine Command Theory. To argue this point is to assume that the greater moral quality is dependent of God’s will, in which the basis for what he commands is. Some thinkers like Immanuel Kant and John Newman, just to name a few, have argued that a sense of conscience is evidence of God. With morality and religion being independent of one another, the independence is considered to be compatible with the existence of God.If we accept that the existence of conscience assumes a being to whom we owe responsibility, God would seem like the only candidate. He is the only person with omnipotent power to see and judge our every action. Newman furthered this thought by asking why people would feel guilty if they did not think they were being watched. In conclusion, there is something wrong with every way of linking morality to religion. I am not claiming that religion cannot have things to say about morality or that it is incapable of helping people do what is morally right.Instead, my claim is that ethics is enhanced with a religiously neutral foundation. Religion can be defined a set of practices independent of a belief system. Religion is the way in which you worship. Some people have participated in religious worship for a while without giving a great deal of thought to a belief system. Morality can be based on religion, but it also can be independent of one’s religion or faith. Although it is possible to hold a religion and not hold to any strong moral principles and vice versa for holding just moral principles, many people hold religious and moral principles.As with Christianity, religion is doing what you are told to do regardless of what is right, and morality is doi ng what is right regardless of what you are told to do. Although morality and religion are used at times to justify one another, they are not dependent of one another. . Works Cited â€Å"Genesis 1 NIV – The Beginning – In the beginning God – Bible †¦ † Bible Gateway. Web. 15 Apr. 2013 . â€Å"The Internet Classics Archive | Euthyphro by Plato. † The Euthyphro. N. p. , n. d. Web. 15 Apr. 2013

Major Problem of teenagers today Essay

Evangeline Pilar Beed II-B Informative Speech Plan Title: Major Problem of teenagers today. Specific Speech Purpose: To inform my engl.III audience what are the major problems of teenagers today. Statement: There are 5 major problems of teenagers today. Introduction I. .Attention Step: are you one of the teenagers who have a problem? You may program for it! In connection with this, I would like to take this opportunity to tell you about the recent finding on the major problem of the teenagers today. Read more: Speech about youth generation essay II. Clarification Step: Body I. Internet and Gaming Addiction a. Younger generations, unlike their parents’ generations, often socialize, hang out, and communicate online, rather than in person. They prefer to text rather than talk on the phone, and often prefer to socialize on Twitter or Facebook rather than in the local bar, on the street or at the town square. b. The digital divide: The younger generation has been referred to as being one of â€Å"Digital Natives† while the older generation has been referred to as one of â€Å"Digital Immigrants.† c. Unlike the older generation, young people are highly capable of effective multitasking, which is sometimes seen by the older generation as a lack of attention and focus. d. Some young people spend much too much time in front of a computer screen, spending up to 20 hours a day, seven days a week. e. Spending countless hours a day, every day, on gaming or perusing the Internet can interfere with young people’s emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual development. II. Violence In Media a. T.V. influences behavior. If it didn’t, Nike, Budweiser, Pepsi, etc. would not invest billions of dollars in advertisements. b. Violence on T.V. occurs in most programs and even more so, in cartoons. III. Bullying Online and At School a. Bullying is an ongoing pattern of harassment and abuse. It can be done directly by physical or verbal attacks or indirectly by exclusion, spreading rumors, etc. b. Cyberbullying is a growing problem among Middle and High School aged students. While it also occurs among College-aged students, for the most part young people have matured past cyberbullying at that point c. Bullies seek power through aggression and direct their attacks at vulnerable victims. In-person bullies often lose their popularity in high school and have a high likelihood of having a criminal record as adults. IV. Violent Culture a. There is a direct link between the way in which we use power with our children, our significant others, our neighbors and our environment and what we teach our children about violence. b. Cultures in which young children regularly receive loving touch have lower incidents of violent crimes. V. Violence At Home a. One of the main reasons that children become violent is because they are exposed to violence in their own homes, whether it is directed towards them or towards others. b. Violence at home can be of a physical nature, or it can be expressed verbally or through neglect and abandonment. Abusive homes and violent neighborhoods are stronger predictors of adult violent behavior than violence in the media. Most abusive parents were physically or sexually abused as children.

Free Essays on Spotted Owl

ENVR 100 INTERNET ASSIGNMENT Website 1: â€Å"Brighter future for Spotted Owl in British Columbia† 31-10-2002 birdlife.net/news/news/2002/10/705.html Fact 1: Interfor says it will withdraw operations from designated Spotted Owl management areas. Fact 2: There are currently fewer than 25 breeding pairs of Spotted Owls in south west BC. Explanation: Interfor logging company has planned to stop logging in some areas that are home to some of the last remaining Spotted Owls of BC. Although environmentalists feel this is a step in the right direction, the logging company plans to follow the BC Government’s Spotted Owl Management Plan which has apparently been criticized in the past for itself contributing to a population decline of over 70% in the last seven years. Research on the Northern Spotted Owl has documented its dependence on coastal old-growth forests and the majority of old-growth in this owl’s range has already been logged. Those owls that remain are in some jeopardy as their populations will continue to decline as long as long as old-growth forest logging continues. Website 2: â€Å"Spotted Owls Going Extinct in Canada† 17-09-2002 forestethics.org/html/eng/434.shtml Fact 1: The plight of the owl is an indicator of both the poor health of BC’s forest ecosystems and the unwillingness of federal and provincial governments to protect endangered species. Fact 2: Eighty-seven per cent of spotted owl habitat loss is due to industrial logging. Explanation: A report was released by Sierra Legal Defence Fund, Western Canada Wilderness Committee and Forest Watch of British Columbia about how the Spotted Owl is on a fast-track to extinction due to BC Forestry practices. Our forest ecosystems are in bad shape as we continue to log what is left of our old-growth forests. These same old-growth forests are home to a much endangered species of BC, the Spotted Owl. ... Free Essays on Spotted Owl Free Essays on Spotted Owl ENVR 100 INTERNET ASSIGNMENT Website 1: â€Å"Brighter future for Spotted Owl in British Columbia† 31-10-2002 birdlife.net/news/news/2002/10/705.html Fact 1: Interfor says it will withdraw operations from designated Spotted Owl management areas. Fact 2: There are currently fewer than 25 breeding pairs of Spotted Owls in south west BC. Explanation: Interfor logging company has planned to stop logging in some areas that are home to some of the last remaining Spotted Owls of BC. Although environmentalists feel this is a step in the right direction, the logging company plans to follow the BC Government’s Spotted Owl Management Plan which has apparently been criticized in the past for itself contributing to a population decline of over 70% in the last seven years. Research on the Northern Spotted Owl has documented its dependence on coastal old-growth forests and the majority of old-growth in this owl’s range has already been logged. Those owls that remain are in some jeopardy as their populations will continue to decline as long as long as old-growth forest logging continues. Website 2: â€Å"Spotted Owls Going Extinct in Canada† 17-09-2002 forestethics.org/html/eng/434.shtml Fact 1: The plight of the owl is an indicator of both the poor health of BC’s forest ecosystems and the unwillingness of federal and provincial governments to protect endangered species. Fact 2: Eighty-seven per cent of spotted owl habitat loss is due to industrial logging. Explanation: A report was released by Sierra Legal Defence Fund, Western Canada Wilderness Committee and Forest Watch of British Columbia about how the Spotted Owl is on a fast-track to extinction due to BC Forestry practices. Our forest ecosystems are in bad shape as we continue to log what is left of our old-growth forests. These same old-growth forests are home to a much endangered species of BC, the Spotted Owl. ...

How to Find and Use AP Score Calculators

How to Find and Use AP Score Calculators SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips What is the best way to use AP score calculators? In this post we will discuss how to get the most out of them – and when you shouldn’t use them at all. Where Do I Get an AP Score Calculator? Before we talk about the best ways to use score calculators, you need to learn where to find one for your particular AP class! Each AP test uses a different scoring system. There are no â€Å"official† AP score calculators released by College Board, so teachers and test prep companies have to make their own. To get an AP score calculator, first talk to your teacher – AP teachers often have a formula they use for grading practice tests. If your teacher doesn't have one or you're self-studying, get a prep book for your AP class. Prep books written for individual tests will always have a score calculator. Finally, look online – many websites have approximate score calculators you can use for each AP class. A word of caution: all score calculators are approximations since the scaling of an AP test changes year to year to keep the difficulty level the same. For example, 100 points could be enough for a 5 one year, but in the next year it would only get a 4. We’ll talk about how to compensate for that below. Our Calculator Example: AP English Language and Composition Throughout this post we’ll be using AP English Language and Composition as an example as we talk about score calculators. It’s the most popular AP test currently. Over 500,000 students took it in 2014! There are 55 possible multiple choice points (1 point per question) worth 45% of your score, and 3 essays (worth 9 points each) for 27 possible points worth 55% of your score. This is the calculator we are using: (Multiple Choice Score x 1.23) + (Essays x 3.05) = Total Score That total score is translated to the final composite AP score of 1-5 like so: 5: 104-150 4: 92-103 3: 76-91 2: 50-75 1: 0-49 It seems a bit complicated, but once you get used to the formula it’s easy to use, and it can help you design a target score for the AP test. Using this calculator, we'll now explore the do's and don'ts of using AP score calculators. Do’s Of Using Score Calculators Grade Your Practice Exams With Them We highly recommend taking the extra step of grading any practice AP tests you take. Getting a predicted 1-5 AP score is a great way to get a snapshot of how you’re shaping up to do on the test. So instead of just getting a free response and multiple choice raw score, you can put those scores in context and get an idea of how much they need to improve before exam day. To use AP English as an example, if you took a practice exam and got a 30/55 on multiple choice and 12/27 on the essays, you might be discouraged. But using the calculator, you find you get a final score of 73 – which is just a few points away from passing! Which isn’t so shabby for a practice test. So instead of feeling disappointed, you can figure out exactly how much you need to improve to pass your next practice test. You can also get a sense of how much score improvements will help you. To use our example, you might realize â€Å"If I go from a 4 to a 6 on all my essays, I could not only pass, but get a 4 overall!† (If you got 30/55 on multiple choice and 18/27 on the essays, you would get a total score of 92, which would just barely get you a 4.) This helps you create manageable improvement goals. Remember, you don’t need to get every single point on an AP test to get a 5. And you certainly don't need every single point to pass. Come Up With a Detailed Target Score AP score calculators allow you to understand both the multiple choice and free response scores you need for certain final AP scores. This can help you decide where to focus your studying efforts. You might go for all-around improvement, or you could target your studying on just the free response or multiple choice. On AP English Language, if you’re going for a 5, you could go for near-perfect essays and have more wiggle room on multiple choice, or go for nearly-perfect multile choice and aim for middle-of-the-road essays. For example, if you get 8s on all your essays and 35/55 on multiple choice, you would get a 5 total score, which is pretty comfortably a 5. On the flipside, if you got 6s on your essays and 50/55 on multiple choice, you would also get a 5 total score. This allows you to play to your strengths on the AP exam and not overwhelm yourself trying to be perfect at everything. If you're a strong writer, you could aim for 8s on your essays and not worry about making your multiple choice score perfect. Or if you're great at taking multiple choice tests, you could aim for a 50 on multiple choice and try and make your essays decent. In short, you don't have to burn yourself out if you use a score calculator to set target scores for each section. Go For Consistency Don’t take one practice exam, calculate a 5 using the score calculator, and stop studying. Use the score calculator every time you practice, and make an effort to take at least two or three full-length practice exams before the real thing. Also try your hardest on practice free response questions and multiple choice sections your teacher may assign in class. Why? Especially when it comes to essays, you could be in trouble if you’re hit with an essay that you’re not well-equipped to answer. If you stop studying after you get a 5 on one practice test, you won't be prepared for whatever the AP test throws at you. Only by practicing consistently can you be adequately prepared or whatever questions appear on the AP test. By practicing a lot, you make sure that 5 is all-but-guaranteed, not just a fluke. In short, practice makes perfect – or at least it makes 5s! Don’ts of Using AP Score Calculators Don’t Use Them Too Early in the Year Don't worry about practicing for AP exams in the fall! There is no point in taking and grading a practice AP exam early in the year. That would be like taking a final exam for a class before winter break! You still have a lot to learn, so taking an exam early on would just stress you out. The score calculators are best used to inform you how you’re shaping up to do on the exam, so using them too early will demoralize you. You shouldn’t expect yourself to be able to tackle the AP exam before the first semester is over! Especially on the hardest exams. Wait until the first semester is over before taking practice exams and grading them. Don’t Panic If You Don’t Get the Scores You Want in Practice Even though it can be frustrating to get a 1 or 2 on a practice exam, don't despair. Remember that you’re practicing to find your weak points and improve them. Getting a low score in practice can be good because it shows you mistakes you are apt to make so you can learn from them. Think of it this way: any mistake you make while practicing is one you won’t make on the real thing as long as you study. Even if you get a 1 or a 2 on a practice exam, that doesn’t mean you’re doomed to fail on the real thing. The key is to analyze your mistakes so you can learn from them and improve for the real AP exam. Don’t Assume AP Score Calculators are 100% Accurate Simply put, they’re not! As we discussed above, they can only approximate your real score. Since AP tests are equated each year so scores are consistent, a raw score that’s good enough for a 5 on one exam could only be good enough for a 4 on another. This means when setting target scores, be generous. For example, if you’re going for a 5, don’t just practice for the lowest possible raw score that could work according to your calculator – aim for many points above that! For AP English, we would set the 5 threshold 10 points higher, 4. We would set the passing threshold (a score of 3) at 86 instead of 76. By doing this, we leave wiggle room for year-to-year test scaling differences and unexpected mistakes you might make on the exam. Bottom Line AP Calculators are an excellent tool to help you get the most out of your AP exam practice and set smart target scores. Just beware of using them too early, and don’t let them make you complacent! What’s Next? Learn more about AP: how long exams are, how they’re scored, and how many AP classes you should take. Also studying for the ACT/SAT? Get the latest tips from our expert writers on each section: SAT Math, Reading, and Writing, or ACT English, Math, Reading, and Science. Did you already take the ACT/SAT? Find out if you should retake the exam. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Teaching in Public Schools Differs from Private Schools

Teaching in Public Schools Differs from Private Schools School choice is a hot topic concerning education especially when it comes to public vs. private schools. How parents choose to educate their children is highly debated, but teachers have options when it comes to choosing a job? As a teacher, landing your first job is not always easy. However, you must ensure that the schools mission and vision align with your personal philosophy. It is important to understand that teaching in public schools does differ from teaching in private schools. Both offer the opportunity to work with young people on a daily basis, but each has their advantages and disadvantages. Teaching is a very competitive field, and at times it seems like there are more teachers than there are jobs available. Prospective teachers applying for a position in a private school should know the differences between public and private schools that will impact how they do their job. Understanding those differences is important if you have an either/or opportunity. Ultimately, you want to teach at a place where you are comfortable, that will support you as both a teacher and a person, and that will give you the best opportunity to make a difference in the lives of your students. Here we examine some major differences between public and private schools when it comes to teaching. Budget The budget of a private school typically comes from a combination of tuition and fundraising. This means that the overall budget of a school is dependent on how many students are enrolled and the overall wealth of the donors who support it. This can be challenging for newer private schools and an overall advantage for an established private school that have successful alumni willing to support the school. The bulk of the budget of a public school is driven by local property taxes and state education aid. Schools also get some federal money to support federal programs. Some public schools are also fortunate to have local businesses or individuals who support them through donations, but this is not the norm. The budget for public schools is typically tied to their state’s economic status. When a state goes through an economic hardship schools, receive less money than they typically would. This often forces school administrators to make difficult cuts. Certification Public schools require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and a teaching certificate to be a certified teacher. These requirements are set by the state; whereas requirements for private schools are set by their individual governing boards. Most private schools typically follow the same requirements as public schools. However, there are a few private schools that do not require a teaching certificate and in some cases may hire teachers without a specific degree. There are also private schools that only look to hire teachers who hold an advanced degree. Curriculum and Assessment For public schools, the curriculum is mostly driven by state-mandated objectives and for most states will soon be driven by the Common Core State Standards. Individual districts may also have additional objectives based on their individual community needs. These state mandated objectives also drive the state standardized testing that all public schools are required to give. State and federal governments have a much smaller influence on the private school curriculum. Private schools can essentially develop and implement their own curriculum and assessments. One of the major differences is that private schools may incorporate religious curriculum into their schools whereas public schools cannot. Most private schools are founded based on religious principles, so this allows them to indoctrinate their students with their beliefs. Other private schools may choose to focus more on a specific area such as math or science. In this case, their curriculum will focus more on those specific areas, whereas a public school is more balanced in their approach. Discipline The old saying goes that kids will be kids. This is true for both public and private schools. There are going to be discipline issues in either case. Public schools typically have more major discipline issues such as violence and drugs than private schools do. Public school administrators spend the majority of their time handling student discipline issues. Private schools tend to have more parental support which often leads to fewer discipline issues. They also have more flexibility than public schools when it comes to removing a student from a classroom or removing them from school altogether. Public schools are required to take every student who lives in their district. A private school can simply end their relationship with a student who continuously refuses to follow their expected policies and procedures. Diversity A limiting factor for private schools is their lack of diversity. Public schools are much more diverse than private schools in many areas including ethnicity, socioeconomic status, student needs, and academic ranges. The truth is that attending a private school cost too much money for most Americans to send their children too. This factor alone tends to limit diversity within a private school. The reality is that the majority of the population in private schools is made up of students who are from upper-middle-class Caucasian families. Enrollment Public schools are required to take every student no matter their disability, academic level, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, etc. This can also have an adverse effect on class size especially in years where budgets are thin. It is not uncommon for there to be 30-40 students in a single classroom in a public school. Private schools control their enrollment. This allows them to keep class sizes in an ideal 15-18 student range. Controlling enrollment also is beneficial for teachers in that the overall range of where students are academically are much closer than a typical public school classroom. This is a very important benefit for both students and teachers in private schools. Parental Support In public schools, the amount of parental support for the school varies. It is typically dependent upon the community where the school is located. Unfortunately, there are communities that do not value education and only send their kids to school because it is a requirement or because they think of it as free babysitting. There are also many public school communities who value education and provide tremendous support. Those public schools with low support provide a different set of challenges than those with high parental support. Private schools almost always have tremendous parental support. After all, they are paying for their child’s education, and when money is exchanged, there is an unspoken guarantee that they intend to be involved in their child’s education. Parental involvement is very important in the overall academic growth and development of a child. It also makes a teacher’s job easier in the long run. Pay A surprising fact is that public school teachers are typically paid more than private school teachers. However this does depend on the individual school itself, so it may not necessarily be the case. Some private schools may also offer benefits that public schools do not including tuition for higher education, housing, or meals. One reason that public school teachers are typically paid more is because most private schools do not have a teacher’s union. Teaching unions fight hard for their members to be fairly compensated. Without these strong union ties, it is difficult for private school teachers to negotiate for better pay. Conclusion There are many pros and cons a teacher must weigh when it comes to choosing to teach in public vs. private school. It ultimately comes down to individual preference and comfort level. Some teachers would prefer the challenge of being a teacher in a struggling inner city school and others would prefer to teach in an affluent suburban school. The reality is that you can make an impact no matter where you teach.

Commiuncation in business- case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Commiuncation in business- case study - Essay Example The case study content will be highlighted first where the client is described in detail and key terms will be described in detail and these include motivation as well as culture. The overview of the situation will be discussed in detail and the last part will specifically focus on suggestions about recommendations as well as solutions about how a team leader might use these theories to motivate their employees. Terms of reference In my capacity as a human resources consultant, Google Inc has approached me to offer advice about how it can improve its operations with regards to motivation of its employees across cultures. Basically, Google Inc is a multinational public company that specialises computer services and internet search corporation based in California. According to its official website, Google operates one of the biggest internet search engines in the world and it develops a number of internet based services and products. The organisation operates more than one million seve rs in data centers around the world and it has more than 200Â  000 employees worldwide. Against this background, they have approached me to offer advice about how they can improve their operations across cultures given that they operate in different countries with diverse cultures in a bid to ensure that these employees are satisfied with their work. The organisation is primarily concerned with obtaining information about how the leaders can motivate their employees across cultures. The concept of motivation plays a very pivotal role in as far as viability of the organisation is concerned. Employees form the back bone of each organisation given that they are the ones who actually perform all the work. In this given case, the leaders of Google ought to know that there is every need to satisfy the needs of the employees for their own good with regards to growth of the organisation. Motivation in this case is not only limited to financial gains but it extends to include other psycholo gical benefits. These will help create a sense of belonging to the organisation whereby retention of key staff can be possible. In this regard, this client has consulted me with the main aim of ensuring that the company continues to grow since it is their aim. The organisation is also concerned with establishing the impact of culture on its operations. Operating in diverse cultural backgrounds is not an easy feat given that people from different countries have different values that determine the way they behave. These values ought to be taken into consideration the reason why Google has sought advice from an expert in this area. Different people have different values and these ought to be taken into consideration so as to ensure that the organisation achieves its goal of remaining a leading internet service provider globally. Culture also plays a pivotal role in an organisation as it is mainly concerned with establishing the expected standards of operation within the organisation. T he leaders of Google have also approached me to get information about leadership in the organisation as this

Social Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Social Justice - Essay Example A review of these arguments in favour of and against death penalty shows that death penalty is, indeed, an efficacious mean of punishing criminals guilty of serious and heinous crimes. This paper, therefore, evaluates the debates in favour of and against capital punishment and presents a coherent and logical debate in favour of death punishment. In the presentation of the arguments in favour of death penalty, Stephen Toulmin’s model of argumentation is applied (Stephen Toulmin, online). The application of the Toulmin’s model of argumentation helps in presenting the arguments in a coherent and logical manner. There are three main arguments in support of death penalty as an effective mean of punishing the offenders who are guilty of crimes of high magnitude. The first argument is based on the claim that death penalty deters crime. Death penalty as a deterrent mean to further commission of crime is one of the main reasons why death penalty is practiced in many jurisdiction s. As a mean of punishing the criminals for their offences, death penalty deters further commission of crime in two ways. ... SA in an attempt to find out whether, really, capital punishments lead to reduction in crime rate, it was found that, there is, indeed, a strong correlation between death penalty and the rate of crimes, especially crimes of high magnitude like murder ( Arguments for and against Death Penalty, online). The study showed a significant reduction in crime, in places where death penalty is practiced as compared to other places where different means of punishing such criminals is practiced. But, apart from the studies that tend to support the view that death penalty can lead to reduction in crime, it is also, a matter of common sense that, when the people who are committing crimes are abolished or killed, then the rate of crimes will significantly reduce because they will not have another opportunity to commit the crimes. The second reason why death penalty leads to reduction in crime is due to the fact that by killing the offenders of serious crimes, other people with the intent to kill wi ll be afraid of doing so for fear of the consequences that would befall them(Goel, 2008). People, naturally, fear severe punishments, especially death, and so, when the law prescribes death penalty for serious crimes, then many people, utterly out of fear for the death, will refrain from committing such crimes. Although there are some studies contradicting this fact, arguing that death penalty does not deter criminals from committing crimes( Arguments for and Against Death Penalty, online) there are contrary studies supporting the view that death penalty instils fear among the criminals and, therefore, prevents them from committing crimes. But it is a fact that some people commit crimes due to psychological problems and for these kinds of people, death penalty cannot prevent them from

Wk9(31) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Wk9(31) - Essay Example I asked him why he thought these things were not fair and I encouraged him to give it more meaning for him. 3. "It makes me feel very good". This is a phrase that many people say but that was difficult for my friend because he does not know how he feels most of the time. He has other health issues so I encouraged him to talk about how the other health issues relate to his use of medicinal marijuana. 4. "Youre kiddin me! " Another phrase like #1 but it is used when my friend wants to communicate a fact that he finds intriguing and at the same time amazing. He would say this in relationship to my requests about the legal ramifications of his using the marijuana. At the end of the conversation I paraphrased what he had said to make sure that I had all the "facts" correct. My friend said that he had a good conversation and was happy that he could help me with my school project. The difference between eliciting a comment and giving meaning to something a client says is best served by examples. When one is eliciting a comment from a client, the therapist is asking for more information about something specific. As an example, a client may be talking about their daughter and how they are angry with them. The therapist might ask, "so you are pretty upset with your daughter for [blank]". The client will most likely say something like, "yes, I am." This example shows how one might elicit a comment from a client. On the other hand, the therapist may state, "tell me more about that." In this way, the therapist is asking for more information about the reasons why this individual is so angry at their daughter and asking for a deeper meaning than, "because she wont listen to me". Ivey, Ivey, & Zalaquett (2010) suggest that when you use eliciting or reflection you are using whichever one is appropriate for the specific situation you are in (p. 324). When I would ask a client about the fact that she is upset with her daughter, I would

Examine the economic issues surrounding the introduction of plain Essay

Examine the economic issues surrounding the introduction of plain packaging of cigarettes. Should this policy be introduced - Essay Example Plain Packaging of Cigarettes The plain packaging of this tobacco product is alternatively known as homogenous or generic packaging. The standardised packaging system of this form involves removal of all the lustre out of the presentation of the product. The branding for the cigarettes which is expressed mostly through the colours, the logos and the trademarks needs to be removed from the pack of cigarettes that finally reach the customer. The packaging should be done with a plain brown cover with the name of the brand printed in a uniform style in a predetermined size. Thus there is very little flexibility on part of the companies in presenting the products to the end users. Along with that the packs also contain mandated information about the ill effects of the product and the legal disclosures like the tax stamps. This concept of plain packaging had been proposed in countries like New Zealand, Canada and Australia since the end of 1980s (Voon, Mitchell, and Liberman, 2012, p. 12). These attempts were taken with the main motive of reducing the amount of consumption of tobacco in the countries. There have been various researches done during these years to determine the outcome of the introduction of plain packaging of tobacco products. ... Economics of Plain Packing of Cigarettes For any normal good, the change in the price of the product will have an effect on the quantity of the product consumed. When the prices increase people would consume less of that product. This is however not true in case of products which are addictive in nature. Even through the prices increase the quantity of the products consumed would not decrease. Thus the price elasticity of demand for the products would be zero. The economics of the plain packaging has been explained with the help of the following graphs. The demand for cigarettes would be an inelastic demand curve (Tucker, 2010, p. 140). This is because even though the prices of the cigarettes change the demand would remain more or less constant this is because people generally get addicted to tobacco and they cannot control the amount that they consume even on the increase of the price (Baumol and Blinder, 2009, p. 108). That means the smokers are insensitive to price changes. In the left panel of the graph the demand and supply curves have been drawn. (Perloff, 2011, p. 33) Now on the introduction of the plain packaging of the cigarettes the product will lose its appeal to the prospective smokers. As a result the smokers would be demanding less amount of cigarette. Therefore there would be a shift in the demand curve for cigarettes. In other words the number of smokers would reduce. However, the demand curve would remain inelastic because this reduction in demand would not be as result of the change in the prices but the reduction in the level of desire of the consumers to smoke. The demand for this product would remain restricted to those people who are addicted to smoking. Thus even if the supply curve

H.W Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 8

H.W - Essay Example At least, security glasses, scientists jacket, long jeans, shut toe shoes, and gloves are obliged when working with particularly risky substances. Business mixtures, trademarked items and so forth should be joined by a part of the Office of Environmental and Occupational Safety if the compound constituents are not promptly identifiable from the name of the item or from the data on the items bundling label. Contaminated Personal Protective Equipment and garments must be discarded or disinfected before expulsion from the assigned work territory. While little spots of sullying may be cleaned in the lab, horribly sullied protective outer layers might need to be discarded as dry risky waste. Quick measures must be accessible to keep the conceivable spread of sullying in the occasion of a little spill of an Particularly perilous substance. Permeable materials and clean up materials ought to be accessible in all research facilities sufficient to hold and clean people and supplies and zones. Any known spills must be held and disinfected at the earliest opportunity. In the occasion of a substantial spill that is past a lab bunches prompt reaction abilities, the accompanying strategies ought to be taken after: Specifically risky substances must be put away in an assigned range and utilized as a part of a way that will minimize the danger of unintentional discharge (e.g., topped firmly, utilization of concoction safe optional regulation, at whatever point conceivable). Lab staff ought to expel chemicals from capacity just as required and return them to capacity when handy. Extra prerequisites for the safe stockpiling of a particular synthetic may be found in the makers directions. At the point when transporting chemicals past the quick the earth, compartments ought to be secured from breakage by utilizing a jug transporter or other compelling regulation. Research centers and rooms

Examine the economic issues surrounding the introduction of plain Essay

Examine the economic issues surrounding the introduction of plain packaging of cigarettes. Should this policy be introduced - Essay Example Plain Packaging of Cigarettes The plain packaging of this tobacco product is alternatively known as homogenous or generic packaging. The standardised packaging system of this form involves removal of all the lustre out of the presentation of the product. The branding for the cigarettes which is expressed mostly through the colours, the logos and the trademarks needs to be removed from the pack of cigarettes that finally reach the customer. The packaging should be done with a plain brown cover with the name of the brand printed in a uniform style in a predetermined size. Thus there is very little flexibility on part of the companies in presenting the products to the end users. Along with that the packs also contain mandated information about the ill effects of the product and the legal disclosures like the tax stamps. This concept of plain packaging had been proposed in countries like New Zealand, Canada and Australia since the end of 1980s (Voon, Mitchell, and Liberman, 2012, p. 12). These attempts were taken with the main motive of reducing the amount of consumption of tobacco in the countries. There have been various researches done during these years to determine the outcome of the introduction of plain packaging of tobacco products. ... Economics of Plain Packing of Cigarettes For any normal good, the change in the price of the product will have an effect on the quantity of the product consumed. When the prices increase people would consume less of that product. This is however not true in case of products which are addictive in nature. Even through the prices increase the quantity of the products consumed would not decrease. Thus the price elasticity of demand for the products would be zero. The economics of the plain packaging has been explained with the help of the following graphs. The demand for cigarettes would be an inelastic demand curve (Tucker, 2010, p. 140). This is because even though the prices of the cigarettes change the demand would remain more or less constant this is because people generally get addicted to tobacco and they cannot control the amount that they consume even on the increase of the price (Baumol and Blinder, 2009, p. 108). That means the smokers are insensitive to price changes. In the left panel of the graph the demand and supply curves have been drawn. (Perloff, 2011, p. 33) Now on the introduction of the plain packaging of the cigarettes the product will lose its appeal to the prospective smokers. As a result the smokers would be demanding less amount of cigarette. Therefore there would be a shift in the demand curve for cigarettes. In other words the number of smokers would reduce. However, the demand curve would remain inelastic because this reduction in demand would not be as result of the change in the prices but the reduction in the level of desire of the consumers to smoke. The demand for this product would remain restricted to those people who are addicted to smoking. Thus even if the supply curve

The Impact on the Automobile Industry in China after Joining the WTO Essay

The Impact on the Automobile Industry in China after Joining the WTO - Essay Example In the end, the entry of China into the WTO was considered a positive thing by most, although there are certainly those with contradictory opinions. The efficacious qualities that China gained by entry into the WTO; an aid to the economy, and the opening up of China’s markets for more international trade and investment (to name a few). The aim of this paper is to discuss more thoroughly on these points and more, and to offer a more in-depth and comprehensive point of view on the situation of the impact on the automobile industry in China after China’s accession into the WTO. â€Å"Since the beginning of economic reform and its opening to the outside world, China’s economy has been growing at a rate of nearly 10 percent annually and its external trade has expanded by more than 15 percent a year. In 1999 China’s trade volume reached $360.7 billion, ranking 9th in the world, with export volume reaching $195 billion. China has emerged to become an important player in world trading system.† (Zhai & Li, 2000). Negotiations over China’s accession into the WTO immediately provoked a debate between â€Å"†¦pessimists who believed that opening the economy would lead to a flood of imports and a de-nationalization of manufacturing industry, and those who believed that it would spur rationalization of state-owned enterprises, lock in domestic reforms, attract foreign investment, and open the way for trade expansion.† (Noble et al). The aim of this paper is to thoroughly realize and discuss these interests and more, in order to come to a clearer and more understanding point of view on the particular situation. In order to do this, the following questions must be addressed: The WTO (World Trade Organization) is an organization which consists of 123 signatory countries. Established on January 1, 1995, and based in Geneva, the WTO replaced the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) as the most primary legal and institutional foundation among the

The question of love in Romeo and Juliet Essay Example for Free

The question of love in Romeo and Juliet Essay The theme of love is evidently explored with Shakespeares play of Romeo and Juliet, using his abilities, the author manages to introduce many obstacles or other influencing elements that has a great impact on the development of love between the two young lovers. There are two basic levels in the play, the behaviour of society within Verona and the private, love orientated interaction between Romeo and Juliet. The social culture of Verona has stood as an uncontrollable influence upon the relationship of Romeo and Juliet, especially concerning the feud between the two families of the Capulets and the Montagues. The existence of this feud is not the immediate reason for the destruction of the lovers, yet it is one of many characteristics within the plot that together is considered an influence that hindered the relationship. Increasing the scale of this elements impact on the relationship, is the fact that it doesnt simply involve the two immediate families as even the servants take part in the feud, clearly proven within the first scene. The conflict appears to be one that is inflicted upon the whole public of Verona as represented by an unnecessary quarrel between the servants of the households within the first scene. This scenes constant references and implications of physical action and the actual deed being undertaken show the unprompted and impetuous behaviour of the people. GREGORY: The quarrel is between our masters and us their men SAMPSON: Tis all one (Act I, Scene I) Their world of hate and inexplicable grudges introduces the high level of intolerance and ignorance of the destructive society of Verona to the audience at the beginning of the play, aiding hindrance to the relationship between the star-crossd lovers. However, once the play has initiated, the speed of the action accelerates further and further, thus the people behaving more unreasonable and with further impulsiveness. It is this factor that increases the impact of the occurrence in the plot, therefore emphasizing their impacts on Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare has also involved a love triangle, between Romeo and Juliet. As he involves a wealthy prince named Paris, whom is arranged, by her parents, to marry Juliet despite her devoted feelings to Romeo. However, Paris appears as a wooer to Juliet and not an emotional and individual lover, and Shakespeare clearly shows this within the initial two lines of Paris, that he is not a lover as true as Romeo of honourable reckoning are you both. Despite these obvious obstacles that Shakespeare has emphasized before introducing the lovers to the audience, love is still found between the two. Within act one, scene five, the language and form of the dialogue shared between the two supposed enemies changes, and becomes poetic and flattering, showing that their private interactions are totally different from the public life. Romeo and Juliets first conversation is composed of a sonnet. Shakespeare has successfully managed to use this poetic approach to explore matters beyond a dramatic performance and involve the audience emotionally, enabling them to imagine themselves as the recipients of the poem. The language used additionally creates an intimate perspective of love between them. When Romeo first sees Juliet, his plans are of a physical nature, Ill watch her place of stand/ And, touching hers, make blessed my rude hand (Act I, Scene IV). The acting of touching Juliets hand is a linguistic representation of touch, a tactile sign. Further emphasized within the pilgrim sonnet, using a semantic use of words, attention is brought to reference of touch once again Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is prugd. The use of a formal convention of a sonnet and the emphasis of contact and physical intimacy create a new atmosphere. The next time the lovers meet is on Juliets balcony, where Romeo has trespassed on Capulet ground potentially causing a lot of danger, of which is Juliet is highly aware of If they do see thee, they will murder thee (Act II, Scene II). Romeo attempts to console Juliets fears through declaration of their being stronger than the physical power of Capulets kinsmen there lies more peril in thine eye than twenty of there swords. Romeo tries to prove his love to Juliet by using a vow, again a conventional form of speech, yet Juliet immediately interrupt him and explains that no any convention but his gracious self can guarantee his true love. Romeos use of conventional language to Juliet arouses skepticism in the audience is this really true love, or just a sign of immaturity? JULIET: O swear not by the moon, thinconstant moon, That monthly changes in her orb, Lest that thy love prove likewise variable (Act II, Scene II) Romeo and Juliets characters are quite contradictive. Romeo, a more experienced lover, so overwhelmed with supposed love yet shows passivity and immaturity; though Juliet, completely inexperienced with love, behaves more skillfully and cautiously constantly aware of the danger that accompanies their love. This simple contradiction may possibly have stood as a hindrance to the development of love. Additionally within this scene, one must realize that Romeo displays his ignorance of the situation and fails to consider such as part of reality with loves light wings did I oerperach these walls. Romeos inability to distinguish reality from that of a surrealist perspective corresponds to the contrast between night and day. The time of day influences the relationship greatly, as I believe both Romeo and Juliet recognize. During the day while light is still shone upon the grounds, the feelings are running high, but night is possibly considered the time of calmness and ease, where love may take place. After the fateful quarrel occurring in act three, scene one, Juliet longs for the night, possibly relating such a time of day to satisfaction of feelings, especially in terms of Romeo Come night come Romeo come thou day in night (Act III, Scene II). I believe this is further emphasized after realizing that the lovers last meeting was the wedding-night before Romeo was exiled; their parting shows that to them, day is a foe to their love acting as a significant hindrance to the development of their love. JULIET: O now be gone, more light and light it grows ROMEO: More light and light: more dark and dark our woes (Act III, Scene V) Another addition to nights seemingly appearance to uphold peace and love, acting as obstacle of relationships development, is Romeos brief display of skepticism. As previously stated Romeos inability to distinguish reality from that of a surrealist perspective corresponds to the contrast between night and day as explained in the previous paragraph, as he feels that his love to Juliet is isolated away from ordinary life I am afeard, being in night, all this is but a dream. The use of language through the poetical conventions and the action of the first half of the play, clearly show that the plot rides upon two contrary levels. The concept of love is again questioned, if there is a love concept within this play surely it represents a rival idea to the ordinary aristocratic life of Verona, thus making the concept of love plainly a rival to the real world. Yet confusion is introduced when thinking that the intimate interaction and representation of love between Romeo and Juliet, seemingly being the rival of the real world, actually occurs within this real world. The two supposed rivals of love and society regularly alternate and this happens without a change of place. Thus the two rivals of love and society remain incompatible with exception of being unified in the individuals Romeo and Juliet and in time and place of setting but is their really a unification within Romeo and Juliet? I dont believe these two rivalling themes of love and society can neither coexist or be unified as they are incompatible, nonetheless can not be separated as they take place in one physical world. Therefore, if both levels are absolutely incompatible, a solution must be inevitable hence the tragic death of the star crossd lovers. Yet their deaths may have been this seemingly inevitable solution, as Romeo realizes after hearing of Juliets apparent death that the real world does not provide any room for the realization of their love. Therefore death is regarded the only place of reconciliation and it was in all ways. I dont think Shakespeare wished to provide a didactic message to the audience, yet wished to show how the conflict between love and society lead to Romeo and Juliets death. I believe the point of the play was not how love arose out of hatred and then triumph over it in death, but that it does. The plot shows that society and death are powers or forces that influenced the lives of Romeo and Juliet. Love was the basis upon the significant decisions made within the play; therefore power of love additionally belongs to these forces. In terms of the two rivalling themes, society regarded their love as a failure; yet the lovers defiance of society proved to be a great success in terms of the power of love.

Illegal Downloading Of Movies Media Essay

Illegal Downloading Of Movies Media Essay Looking at the story of Jerome Bixbys The Man from Earth movie piracy might not be a threat to the movie industry, but a chance to promote and finance small-budget independent films. The producers of this movie approached internet piracy in a different way, as they embraced internet piracy and thanked illegal downloaders for helping to spread the buzz about the movie (Morozov, 2007). When Eric Wilkinson, the producer of the movie, found out that their movie was posted on a popular piracy blog called Releaselog, he did not do the most common thing, meaning to sue the downloaders, but thanked the Releaselog community for piracy because they were actually helping sales. (Morozov, 2007). Living in a world full of user-generated content, the downloaders gave the movie great ratings on IMDb (The Internet Movie Database) that resulted in ranking increase from 11.235th to 5th and furthermore ranked 1st in the categories independent and science fiction film (Morozov, 2007). Consequently sales increased as the movie got a great promotion. In addition to that, the producer posted a comment on Releaselog asking for voluntary donations for The Man from Earth resulting in additional generated money. Using The Man from Earth as an example, it becomes obvious that movie piracy actually inherits benefits for the movie industry as Jeanne Rose says in her article Movie Piracy: What Seems Evil is Actually Beneficial to the Entertainment Business. By gaining more web attention, people get informed about a movie they under most circumstances would have never heard of. People might use illegal copies of movies to check if the first minutes are interesting for them, to see the movie later in the cinema or on DVD (Rose, 2011). Additionally to that, parents might have a look at the content of the movie to see if it is appropriate for their children to see. Looking at the fact that a trip to the cinema with the whole family is expensive, it is a great thing for parents the check the movie beforehand. (Rose, 2011). One might say that instead of illegal downloading movies to check them for content you could simply watch the movie trailer, but facing the reality, trailers do often represent t he movie in a more positive way then the actual movie is or hide specific scenes to keep the tension in the movie itself. A new study about piracy created by a coalition of academic researches called Social Science Research Counsel shows a different perspective on the situation than industry-sponsored studies usually do. In general piracy studies tell their readers that the movie industry is suffering because of decreasing sales, as many people simply download a movie instead of going to the cinema or buying/renting the DVD. Looking at the fact that these studies are financed from movie companies, it becomes pretty obvious that they will not tell about other reasons than piracy. The new and independent study gives a different perspective on the whole situation: Given the fact that people in general suffer from a bad economy, but also low prices on digital technology and high prices on media goods are the reason for decreased sales in the movie industry (Ernesto, 2011). Visiting the cinema with your family involves spending a lot of money. Imagine living in a low-economy country like South Africa, the pr ice for a DVD in relation to the price in the US or Europe is five to ten times higher (Ernesto, 2011). Even though the movie industry spent huge amounts of money in anti-piracy education, the authors of the study could not find no significant stigma attached to piracy in any of the countries examined (Ernesto, 2011). International movie fans often have a problem to supply themselves with the latest movies or TV shows in a legal way. Being a movie fan in some countries like Germany is very hard, as you have to wait a long time before you can actually see a movie in original tone in a legal way. Using Germany as an example, every movie shown in the cinema is translated and synchronized in the German language. This consequently leads to three different ways to see a movie in the original tone: Going in a different country to see the movie, wait for the DVD release which is often 1 year after the initial release in the United States or download the movie illegal. Facing these three ways it becomes obvious which way is the most common. Looking at legal online stores like iTunes it is illegal to create an US account as a European citizen to purchase your favorite TV show episodes legally. Looking at the situation from a different point of view shows that movie piracy may have benefits for the movie industry. Movie piracy in terms of small budget independent films is able to promote them due to user generated content websites like IMDb, which actually results in more sales. It is also helpful for people to have a better first-look on a movie to decide whether they want to spend their hard earned money on a movie or not. In addition to that people in many countries are excluded from seeing movies when they are originally released which results in unhappy cineastes. Combining these different ideas with the fact that most studies are movie

Hegel vs. Kant :: Spanish Essays

Le point de dà ©part de la philosophie critique de Kant est la philosophie rationaliste de Leibniz-Wolff . Par l’influence de Hume et de Rousseau, qui, selon ses propres termes, le mit  «sur le droit chemin », et provoqua chez lui une  «rà ©volution de la rà ©flexion », Kant sort de son  «sommeil dogmatique » en matià ¨re de contenus et de mà ©thodes, et à ©labore sa propre mà ©thode de rà ©flexion philosophique. L'expression  «critique transcendantale » qualifie le mieux la mà ©thode d'investigation philosophique de Kant. La philosophie rationaliste qui à ©nonce que â€Å" Ce qui nous (gà ¶tà ¼rmek) au savior exacte est les connaissances et les lois a priori† synthetisà © avec la critique de causalità © de Hume et les oeuvres de Rousseau donne la nasisance de cette philosophie critique. Sa volontà © de tracer les frontià ¨res dans tous les matià ¨res est lià © à   la qualità © critique de sa philosophie. â€Å"Critique† est à ¢â‚¬Å"la sà ©paration† dans une autre terme. Son livre â€Å"Critique de la Raison Pure† publià © en 1781, fond la base thà ©orique de critisisme. Cette oeuvre argumente pour â€Å"norte savoir ne puisse jamais transcende l’experience mais il est quasi a priori† et suit un schà ¨me de raisonnement: L’examination des elements du savoir (transcendantale elementaire) , l’examination de la mà ©thode (transcendantale mà ©thodique) en à ©tant sensible (transcendantale à ©sthetique). Elle cherche à   â€Å"araà ¾tà ½rmak les frontià ¨res et la construction du savoir humain†. Cette mà ©thode transcendantale est la mà ©thode qui examine le savoir en soi mais pas le savoir orientà © à   tel ou tel objet.Elle cherche aussi à   trouver la nature exacte des interets ou buts de la raison et la moyenne de puovoir rà ©aliser ces interets. Kant sà ©pare ce que Leibniz confonde : Les jugements analytique et synthetique   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Les jugements a priori et a posteriori(empirique) Les jugements analytiques expliquent seulement les concepts ( le jugement â€Å"les objets occupent une place† ne donne pas une information puisque â€Å"occuper une place† constitue la dà ©finition meme de l’objet) mais ceux qui sont synthà ©tique à ©largissent notre connaissance ( le jugement â€Å"cet objet est lourd† à ©tablit une relation entre le concept d’objet et d’etre lourd) Les jugements analytiques sont a priori mais les jugements synthetiques peuvent etre à   la fois a priori et empirique. Ce problà ¨me de â€Å"pouvoir etre a priori† pour les jugements synthà ©tiques definit le thà ¨me principale de â€Å"La critique de la Raison Pure†.Kant appelle ces jugements synthà ©tiques a priori, la seule source du savoir exacte. à l synthà ¨tise l’idealisme allemand avec l’empirisme et philosophe sur un chemin empiriste rationale.

Communication implications for quality control, outsourcing and consumer relations Essay

1. INTRODUCTION: Quality control and product safety are key challenges for companies that manufacture in third-world countries. In the event of a safety or quality control crisis, corporations must respond quickly and efficiently using clear crisis communication and image repair strategies. By studying the Mattel recall case, we see how a multinational corporation restored its reputation amongst multiple stakeholders; it also implemented policies and processes to divert or lessen future crises. The lessons learned from Mattel demonstrate the importance of transparent communication practices and may guide companies facing similar communication challenges. The teaching notes will firstly introduce the purpose of the Mattel case study, followed by a brief synopsis. Students will next learn relevant theories and principles from which to understand Mattel’s corporate communication response, particularly strategic crisis communication theory (SCCT) and issues management principles. Students will then compare Mattel’s communication response to the industry best practice principles as outlined by Page and suggest a revised, more suitable and effective course of action. 2. PURPOSE OF CASE STUDY: Upon completion of this case study, students should demonstrate that: 1. Issues develop over time, not overnight. 2. Through environmental scanning, crisis anticipation and strategic communications planning, corporations can minimize the damage done by emerging and sustained crises. 3. Prompt corrective action can remedy the current crisis and avert future crises and criticism–in the event that a crisis recurs. 4. Companies can turn a crisis into a long-term competitive advantage if it is handled properly from the outset. 5. Outside influences may affect a corporation’s image. Communicators must demonstrate preparedness to deal with external effects. 6. In the event of a crisis, a corporation must address (and prioritize) a number of audiences with tailored messages, for example investors, customers, the media, government and the industry. 7. Initial responses to a crisis will remain present throughout a communications campaign, for better or worse, and must be planned carefully. For example, Mattel’s shifted blame to Chinese manuf acturers. This backfired and has remained a controversial point since. 8. Successful cross-cultural communication is essential for corporations operating in foreign countries. 3. SYNOPSIS: Beginning in August 2007, America’s largest toy manufacturer, Mattel, announced the first of what would become a series of five recalls involving 21 million toys. The majority of the recalls were caused by poorly designed magnets fashioned in the United States, while a smaller number were due to toxic lead paint applied by slipshod Chinese suppliers. On the one hand, Mattel’s various publics, such as parents, investors and the government, have harshly criticized the toymaker; on the other hand, analysts and industry experts have praised it for its quick response and stringent safety inspection systems, which are purportedly the industry’s tightest. Regardless, the case draws attention to the quality control challenges facing companies that outsource manufacturing to developing countries. Students, through discussion of the case study and the attached study materials, will analyze the positive and negative approaches of Mattel’s corporate communications res ponse. They will critique the response’s suitability to the level of crisis, and suggest possible alternatives. They will consider the unique communications challenges facing a corporation that operates in an international, cross-cultural arena. 4. TEACHING COMPONENTS: 4.1 Assignments, Activities and Study Materials: Students will read the case before class. They will browse Mattel’s website, paying particular attention to the recall page (http://service.mattel.com/us/recall.asp) and the Investors and Media pages (http://www.shareholder.com/mattel/default.cfm). They should review Mattel’s history, financial information, corporate governance documents and social responsibility pages. For additional information, students should visit toy industry websites such as Toy Industry Association (www.toy-tia.org) or consumer action group sites like Healthy Toys (www.healthtoys.org). Students should carefully read the news releases in the case appendix. 4.2 Relevant Theories: Students must understand the key theories informing Mattel’s crisis and response strategies. Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT): SCCT posits that each unique crisis requires a unique response tailored to the events and characteristics at hand. It is based on convergent research from Coombs, Benoit, Benson and Hearit that aims to minimize or deflect all possible negative outcomes such as lost sales or low stock prices.[?] In order to determine the best strategy, corporate communicators must assess the reputational threat of the crisis. This is a two-step process. The first step is to determine the nature of the crisis.