English and English Literature Coursework Dubliners Essay

â€Å"These stories are all about escape and how characters are unable to escape.† In the light of this quotation, I am going to discuss Dubliners, with close detailed reference to two of the stories, â€Å"Eveline† and â€Å"The Boarding House.† There are many similarities between these two stories, as well as contrasts. In â€Å"Eveline,† her father is a drunkard and is also the head of the house, whereas in â€Å"The Boarding House,† Polly’s father, â€Å"was a shabby stooped little drunkard† who lives separated from his family. Polly’s father has been cut-off from her life, and Eveline’s mother is dead. The similarity here, is that each child has had one of their parent’s cut off from a period of their life. Eveline wants to escape to Buenos Aires, to get away from her poverty in Dublin. Mr Doran wants to escape from the prospect of marriage. This brings us to one of the main points of the book, the characters inability to escape. Eveline has been given the chance to escape from her life, where â€Å"she had to work hard both in the house and at business.† Poor Eveline, however, finds that she is unable to move forward. She lacks the courage and strength to make that leap that will free her of her oppressive situation. . She’s sees her lover as a possible source of danger: â€Å"All the seas of the world tumbled about her heart. He was drawing her into them: he would drown her.† Instead of an uncertain but hopeful future, her paralysis will make a certain and dismal future that may well repeat her mother’s sad life story. In Mr Doran’s case, the theme of powerlessness is conveyed his situation. As with many other characters in Dubliners, various social pressures, like his job and his reputation, combine to rob him of choice. Mrs Mooney wants her daughter to escape her current poverty and the possibility of a working life for marriage, while Mr Doran wants to escape the tying down of marriage and enjoy his ‘free’ life. Mr Doran nonetheless cannot escape. At the end of â€Å"The Boarding House†, â€Å"Mrs Mooney tells Polly, â€Å"Come down, dear. Mr Doran wants to speak to you.† The reader is struck by the tremendous irony of the situation, since it is clear that Mr Doran does not really want to speak to Polly. He has been bullied and terrified into proposing marriage to her. These simple words are the hallmark of Mrs Mooney’s accomplishment. Frank wants to take Eveline away, but Eveline is unsure. â€Å"It was hard work-a hard life-but now that she was about to leave it she did not find to a wholly undesirable life.† Polly wants to settle with Mr Doran, but Mr Doran is unsure, however he does not have a choice: â€Å"What could he do now but marry her or run away? He could not brazen it out.† Mr Doran has the choice to run away, but this is not an option for â€Å"Dublin is such a small city: everyone knows everyone else’s business.† Both Frank and Mr Doran can be seen as saving the two girls from poverty. Mr Doran and Eveline are both described as helpless. Mr Doran himself says, â€Å"I felt helpless,† while Eveline is described as â€Å"passive like a helpless animal.† At the end of each story, an iron railing is mentioned. Eveline â€Å"gripped with both hands at the iron railings,† using them as an anchor, preventing her from drowning into the seas of the world. The railings help Eveline think of thoughts which keep her from leaving. Polly uses the iron railings as an anchor to clear her thoughts. â€Å"There was no longer any perturbation visible on her face.† Both Mr Doran and Eveline feel that it is their duty to stay and face the consequences. Mr Doran â€Å"longed to ascend through the roof and fly away†¦ yet a force pushed him downstairs step by step.† Eveline finds that she is paralysed by the needs of her father and her promise to her mother â€Å"to keep the home together as long as she could.† â€Å"Eveline† starts a series of stories dealing with various kinds of marriage and courtship. In â€Å"Eveline,† marriage presents the possibility of escape. â€Å"The Boarding House† gives us marriage as a social convention and a trap. â€Å"Two Gallants† reduces marriage and courtship to its animal. â€Å"Two Gallants† gave us men taking advantage of a young woman. â€Å"The Boarding House† gives us a more respectable social setting, but the basic cynicism about love and relationships between the genders remains. The economic conditions are also expressed in â€Å"Eveline† and â€Å"The Boarding House†. To save money in â€Å"The Boarding House,† pieces of broken bread are collected to help make Tuesday’s bread-pudding. The sugar and butter is kept safe under lock and key.† In â€Å"Eveline,† there is an â€Å"invariable squabble for money on Saturday nights.† Eveline’s dead mum controls her while Mr Doran is controlled by Mrs Mooney. Mrs Mooney and Eveline’s mum are both very different people in the sense that Mrs Mooney is strong and independent and Eveline’s mum is weak and dependent. Eveline’s love for Frank leads her to escape whereas Mr Doran’s love for Polly leads him to confine his life with marriage. Eveline is forced into making her decision to stay by duty to her family. Mr Doran has put himself into his situation and it driven further by Mrs Mooney. Both Eveline and Mr Doran have occupational restrictions. Mr Doran â€Å"had been employed for thirteen years in a great Catholic wine-merchant’s office and publicity would mean the loss of his sit.† All his hard work would be gone for nothing. Eveline, however, is oppressed by her employer and â€Å"would not cry many tears at leaving the Stores.† One of the striking elements of â€Å"The Boarding House† is Mrs Mooney’s silence. Her daughter’s respect is not really a concern, because she knows about the affair from the start. What matters to her is trading on her feigned outrage to get a social arrangement that will benefit her daughter. Mrs Mooney manipulates the weaker Mr Doran, using his concern for his job and his fear of scandal. The story concludes with the fact that Mr Doran has spoken to Mrs Mooney and now wants to speak to Polly. This probably suggests a proposal of marriage, and the trap is implied in the final line: â€Å"Then she remembered what she had been waiting for.† Marriage is the price which Doran must pay in order to keep his job, since â€Å"Dublin is such a small city: everyone knows everyone else’s business† The stages-of-life structure continues in â€Å"Eveline†. In previous stories like â€Å"The Sisters† and â€Å"Araby†, children had been main characters. Eveline is an adult, a young woman old enough to get married. Joyce gives us the terrible poverty and pressure of her situation. The weight of poverty and family responsibilities bear down on this young woman heavily and her financial situation is far worse than that of the three boy narrators of the previous stories. She is trapped in an ugly situation, responsible for her siblings and the aging father who abuses her. In conclusion, it can be said that Joyce presents the themes of escape and paralysis in Dubliners. They show how Joyce sees the city of Dublin.

Customer Service Essay

1. The key concepts and topics in this course that have made me a stronger candidate to continue in the business world would be what I have learned from the units dealing with: Diversity, Customer Behavior, Customer Loyalty, and Exceptional Service: I have learned that customer comments, good or bad should always be taken into consideration, addressed and handled appropriately. Comments can provide insight to the thought process of the customer and it could help improve not only the customer service department but the product as well. The success of a company relies on the customer. Relationship Building and Solving Customer Problems: Satisfied customers will remain customers until there is a better option offered to them. Loyal customers establish an emotional connection with a business and/or company. Their loyalty is motivated by their experience with the products and the service. Customer service is what a company or business provides; customer loyalty is the result of the service. Extraordinary approaches to customer service is to go beyond the customer’s satisfaction, and make every attempt to surpass the customer’s expectations every time. A company earns customer loyalty by molding the shopping experience to the needs of the customer. Customers have a tendency to patronize companies that interactive with them in a positive, meaningful, personal manner. Many companies offer their customers loyalty programs such as; reward programs. This method can ensure a company keeps their current customer base and entices possible new customers. The Impact of Communication Styles on Customer Services:  A business cannot afford to lose customers because of a lack of customer service, but many do. Customers remember how they are treated and pass the word along, good or bad. Once a customer has been treated poorly they are likely not to return to buy from that business again, even if that business has what they need. When customers are satisfied, it is probable that they will spend more on the product or service and keep returning to that business. Customer service representatives (CSRs) play a big role in keeping, and bringing customers to a business. That is why it is essential to train customer service representatives in effective communications styles and skills because they are the liaison between the customer and the business. The CSR’s communication skills can impact the decision of a customer’s loyalty and the right communication style can be helpful in avoiding conflicts. Communication styles are methods in which a particular individual converses with another individual. Great service requires effective communication styles, and skills. Having a combination of these elements will guarantee that the right message is conveyed in a way that ensures the customer receives and understands it correctly and as intended. 2. Discuss how this course has affected you in your professional development as a student and as a person as well as encouraging you on your academic path. This was a very beneficial, educational and informative class. I have chosen the legal  field, more specifically, paralegal studies. I currently work for a bankruptcy law firm and I have learned a great deal since I have been employed there. I have 30 plus years work experience and a great work ethic. With what I have learned in this class, my work ethic, and common sense, I believe I will be successful as a paralegal. I have learned the importance of maintaining professionalism. This class has reinforced my desire to continue in the legal field and has helped me in interacting with clients, co-workers and the attorneys I currently work with. My skills in listening, communicating, observing and relationship building have improved by taking this class. I would recommend a class in customer service, regardless of the professional field one decides to enter into. I believe it would be very insightful and valuable.

Business Case Assessment-Marketing in Healthcare Research Paper

Business Case Assessment-Marketing in Healthcare - Research Paper Example In addition, the short and long term projections have also been listed along with the evaluation of the plan. The procedure that is used for evaluating the coronary as well as the peripheral disease is regarded as cardiac imaging. The investigations that are performed under cardiac imaging include Electrocardiography (EKG or ECG) stress tests and resting echocardiograms tests among others. Tests regarding specific vascular diseases such as carotid arterial, extremity arterial as well as the renal arterial are also performed under the cardiac imaging process. The other benefit of cardiac imaging center can be identified in terms that the non-toxic dye used for the purpose of imaging does not affect the kidneys of the patient. Through this process, the researcher can view the heart from a 360-degree angle which was earlier considered to be impossible with catheterization. Moreover, in comparison to the traditional means, the process of cardiac imaging is painless along with being cost-effective as well. The cardiac imaging procedure is also considered to be risk free with almost no complicati ons (Restrepo & Bardo, 2010). Based on these virtues of cardiac imaging, the demand for such processes has increased substantially over the past years. Considering these aspects and the increasing number of people being affected by such diseases, the primary intention of the plan would be to facilitate a wider reach of the treatment. Hence, the strategic goal of marketing the product will be to serve an increasing customer base with the assistance of efficient medical practitioners. However, as the product tends to focus on the health issues concerning the society, making further contributions to the overall well-being of the community, sales and revenue generation will not be treated as a primary objective. In addition, greater significance will be rendered towards fund allocations from various governmental and private sector

An investigation into the impact of control management practices on Essay

An investigation into the impact of control management practices on employee performance at British Airways - Essay Example From a future-oriented perspective, control can be seen as the â€Å"exercise of influence over the actions and decisions of others† (Camillus, 1986:9). The remedial perspective has of late been set aside as old-fashioned. The future oriented perspective has more relevance today. Early research (Antony, Dearden and Vancil, 1972:2) had concluded that every control system essentially has four elements, namely, a detector or sensor, an assessor, an effector and a communications network. These respectively are linked to measuring problems, determining the importance, altering behavior and transmitting information to all those who are concerned (Antony, Dearden and Vancil, 1972:2). Management control was defined by Antony, Dearden and Vancil (1972:6) as â€Å"the process by which managers influence other members of the organization to implement the organization’s strategies† (Antony, Dearden and Vancil, 1972:2). This is only a primary level definition when compared to the advanced thoughts involved in the current management studies. A recent management theory book (Macintosh and Quattrone, 2010:3) has drawn attention to the phenomenon that half of the world thinks control is undesirable and against freedom and the rest believe that the world is in c haos and needs to be more in control. As management theoreticians went on having a deeper understanding of this concept, a consensus was evolved where bureaucratic control is replaced by intelligent control (Leitch, 2008:8). Today control management systems are designed so as to â€Å"give each person the benefits of effective and helpful supervision while information about control performance is moved efficiently upwards and used† (Leitch, 2008:101). Control management now involves setting the standards for effective performance, evaluation of performance according to those standards and altering behavior to better the performance if any lacuna is found. If the standards are not being met, there have

Qualitative Characteristics of Financial Information Essay

Qualitative Characteristics of Financial Information - Essay Example The information is not just useful for the capital providers but also to the other user groups such as government, regulatory bodies etc. The next level of conceptual framework is the fundamental concepts i.e. qualitative characteristics of financial information and elements of financial statements. The third level is the implementation level, which contains recognition, disclosure and measurement concepts through principles, assumptions and constraints (Appendix 1). The qualitative characteristics of financial information are an important part of the total conceptual framework because they act as a bridge between the first level and third level of the framework. However, the definition of quality threshold of materiality and the conflicts between prudence and neutrality, and relevance and reliability has always been debated. In addition to the discussion of these constraints, this essay presents the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting 2010 provided by IASB as to how the new framework has placed these characteristics. ... The Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting 2010 or commonly referred to as Framework 2010 states the objective of financial reporting that is to provide the financial information related to the reporting entity that can be helpful to investors and creditors in making appropriate decisions (McConnell, 2011). Therefore, in order for the financial information to be useful, it must possess some characteristics such as materiality, prudence, neutrality, relevance and reliability. An information is considered material if its misstatement, modification or omission can influence the economic decisions of the users, taken on the basis of that information. Materiality depends on the magnitude of the error in circumstances when the misstatement or omission has taken place. The financial statements are prepared in an uncertain environment due to many events such as useful life of fixed assets, collectability of doubtful receivables, and warranty claims. These uncertainties are recognized b y exercising prudence while preparing the financial statements. Prudence means making careful judgement in making estimates in the uncertain conditions, so that the income or assets are not overstated and expenses or liabilities are not understated (IASC Foundation and IASB, 2008, p.25). Neutrality means that the financial information should be free from any bias and does not influence decision making in order to achieve predetermined outcome. Financial information is useful if it has the quality of influencing decisions by helping the users in evaluation of past, future and present events related to the reporting entity. The past information regarding the financial position and performance is frequently used for predicting the future performance and position. Information is

The Native American experience of faith Research Paper

The Native American experience of faith - Research Paper Example However, the definition of faith has been discussed in various contexts. Although, anthropologists have failed to collect accurate information of the immigration of these people as they started settling in America slowly and gradually. Native American Faith is completely different from other spiritual beliefs as they are supposedly characterized by animism and panentheism (not to be confused with pantheism).Animism is a belief that all physical objects present in the universe have a soul.Panentheism considers God and the world to be inter-related with the world being in God and God being in the world.The Native American faith stresses strongly on the significance of spirituality; being in a deep-rooted connection with nature and inner-self, whereas Pantheism can be defined as the belief in God being in the world and vice versa. Moving on, the development of Native American religion has taken root in the form of practices such as conducting ceremonies after slaughtering an animal, bel iefs in spirits and shamanism. This religion has derived from Christianity and religions like Longhouse Religion, Waashat Religion, Indian Shaker Religion, Drum Religion, Earth Lodge Religion, Ghost Dances, Bole-Maru Religion, Feather Religion and Peyote Religion are some Native American Religions (Worldreligionday, 2013). Native American Religion doesn’t believe in the distinction of myth and ritual, they believe that rituals bring fulfillment and contentment to their spiritual beliefs. Hence, the importance of rituals in their faith has been greatly emphasized. In this manner, this faith is completely different from western theological beliefs. As this religion has many tribes, they have their own rituals and spiritual practices which are distinct from other tribes, although, they have many mutual features with other tribes, such as particular dances and songs which have passed on to them through their

Noncoercive paraphillias Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Noncoercive paraphillias - Essay Example When the item is not present it likely leads to erectile dysfunction. This must be causing distress in the individual’s life to be diagnosed. This disorder tends to start in adolescence and is usually chronic (DSM, 2000). This disorder involves cross dressing. Usually it is a male dressing in women’s clothing. While dressed as a woman he usually masturbates imagining himself as both partners in the sex act. This is not to be confused with a gender identity disorder. These individual prefer heterosexual relationships when they are not cross dressing. Generally the desire to cross dress diminishes with age or it may turn into gender dysphoria (2000). Sexual Masochism involved an individual being humiliated, beaten, bound or made to suffer in some while during sexual intercourse or masturbation. This is all done to the paraphiliac either by himself or by having a partner help perform the acts. One very dangerous behavior involved in this is hypoxyphilia which is depriving them self of oxygen with can and has caused death (2000) Sadism is when the paraphiliac derives sexual excitement form the psychological or physical suffering of a victim. Some individual with paraphilia are bothered by their sadistic fantasies which may happen during sexual activities but they do not act upon. These fantasies generally involve having complete control over their victim. At times a masochist and a sadist may join in consenting behaviors. Some can, however, perpetrate these fantasies upon others and when that happens they generally do not stop until caught (Weinstein & Rosen, 2004). It is thought that this behavior is related to childhood experience. It may also be related to a neruopsychosociological need for heightened arousal. It may be an escape from rigidly controlled everyday roles, a punishment for sexual activity or guilt relief. Domination in known to relieve feelings of inadequacy

Tactics to reconstruct the completed buildings due to shifting of Case Study

Tactics to reconstruct the completed buildings due to shifting of project layout by the government agency - Case Study Example As the 5 individual buildings were privately owned and the external road works was under the auspices of the government, it means that the real situation at hand had to do with an amicable private-public sector engagement. A major climax of the private-public sector engagement came about when the client who is on the government side issued notice to the contractor to re-establish the settings of the all the 5 buildings to ensure that they do not conflict with the external road. It is important to note that construction had also started for all the buildings. Once the notice was received by the contractor to re-establish the settings of the road, he engaged with the owner and informed him about the demolition, a situation that merited claim for additional time and cost for the project. As a person tasked with the responsibility of Senior Contracts Administrator, I had a role of reporting to contractors Project Manager. This means that my role was very crucial in ensuring a successful engagements and negotiations between the owner and the contractor. The private-public sector engagement widened the stakeholder base of the project, giving rise to both external and internal stakeholders. Externally, representations from the GRA, beneficiaries of the external road, financiers and third party quality control administrators on the project were all stakeholders. Internally, the project owner, people living in the community, contractor, all employees under the cont ractor, including project manager, and other internal auditors and inspectors were part of the project’s stakeholders. Given the nature of the stakeholders, the stakeholder theory which sees the true ownership of a project as belonging to all people who may be directly or indirectly affected by the project applied. As part of the principles of construction and

Operating System and Microsoft Corporation Essay Example for Free

Operating System and Microsoft Corporation Essay Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational software corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services related to computing. The company was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen on April 4, 1975. Microsoft is the worlds largest software maker measured by revenues.[3] It is also one of theworlds most valuable companies.[4] Microsoft was established to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800. It rose to dominate the personal computeroperating system market with MS-DOS in the mid-1980s, followed by the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems. The companys 1986 initial public offering, and subsequent rise in its share price, created an estimated three billionaires and 12,000 millionaires from Microsoft employees. Since the 1990s, it has increasingly diversified from the operating system market and has made a number of corporate acquisitions. In May 2011, Microsoft acquired Skype Technologies for $8.5 billion in its largest acquisition to date.[5] As of 2012, Microsoft is market dominant in both the PC operating system and office suite markets (the latter with Microsoft Office). The company also produces a wide range of other software for desktops and servers, and is active in areas including internet search(with Bing), the video game industry (with the Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles), the digital services market (through MSN), and mobile phones (via the Windows Phone OS). In June 2012, Microsoft announced that it would be entering the PC vendor market for the first time, with the launch of the Microsoft Surface tablet computer. In the 1990s, critics began to contend that Microsoft used monopolistic business practices and anti-competitive strategies includingrefusal to deal and tying, put unreason able restrictions in the use of its software, and used misrepresentative marketing tactics; both the U.S. Department of Justice and European Commission found the company in violation of antitrust laws. Microsoft is the undisputed leader in the market for operating systems (Sheremata 1997). The Microsoft Corporation has produced the vast majority of operating systems for all personal computers (PCs); moreover, operating systems that Microsoft has created are Windows95, Windows 3.1, and DOS. They also have produced the leading spreadsheet and word processors for both Windows and Macintosh operating systems. They own 85% of the market share with their office software Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Microsoft Exchange, and Microsoft Access. Not surprisingly, most of us have used some if not all of these products and/ or services provided by the Microsoft Corporation. How did the Microsoft Corporation develop into a software monopoly? For the most part, one or several combinations of the following forge monopolies: an amalgamation of smart business decisions, mistakes by competitors, and at times some shady tactics that a company might employ to become a market leader and monopoly of today. Microsoft had its beginning during the 1970s when IBM was the computer hardware giant of the industry. In 1975 Microsoft was the producer of programming languages for MIPS Altair 7500 (Conigliaro1996). In 1981, Microsoft purchased an operating system for an Intel based 8086 chip from a small company named Seattle Computer Products and redesigned its product to sell it to license it to IBM for its new personal computer (PC) (Conigliaro1996). The redesigned product was released under the name MS DOS 1.0. IBM being a monopoly at that time in the hardware department, by allowing Microsoft to provide the operating system to its PCs, then an outside source, relinquished control of the software industry to this up-and-coming powerhouse. Microsoft retained the right to license their operating system to other manufacturers and helped spur the massive IBM clone industry. Microsoft became one of the leaders in the computer industry during the 1980s with the help of technologies that help provide PCs for an information hungry age and with Microsoft providing the operating systems for a high percentage of the PCs sold. By the late 1980s, Microsoft controlled the operating system market; versions of MS-DOS ran over 80% of personal computers (Conigliaro1996). However, Microsoft did not control any of the application markets, this honor went to Lotus, which at the time had the top spreadsheet, 1-2-3 and WordPerfect had the leading word processors, WordPerfect. When Microsoft introduced Microsoft Windows 3.1 in the 1990s, it locked in Microsoft in the driver seat for what is now the software monopoly that exists. Soon after, Microsoft introduced Excel 3.0 for Windows and Word for Windows 2.0. Lotus and WordPerfect did not realize the effects that Windows 3.0 would have on the industry and did not plan ahead for the evolution (Gleick 1995). The claim has also been made that Microsoft used its control over the operating system and graphical user interface markets to help growth in the applications market. Some executives spoke of the â€Å"Chinese Wall†, that is some of the developers learned to take advantage of the operating system before other companies could who did not have the access (Gleick 1995). They were also accused of when introducing new technology called object linking embedding (OLE) in Windows, they would provide the technology to Excel 3.0 developers to incorporate it into Excel before the technology was available to other companies. Making it possible for applications on a system to work with other applications made by Microsoft before competitors could have a chance to compete and provide the same or a comparable application. With the introduction of Windows 3.1 (an update on 3.0) and Microsoft having the edge, Microsoft’s Excel, Word and Office started to dominate the application market. The dawn of Microsoft the monopoly empire was on the horizon. In the 1990s Microsoft began to diversify with its dominance over the application and operating systems it began to get into producing products for multimedia, business operation systems, and now even games and online services. They have been accused of shady business practices when they attempted to purchase Intuit, the software company that owns Quicken, the world’s most popular personal finance manager. And Microsoft’s pairing Windows 95 with The Microsoft Network, both moves are threatening to new competitors because of the barriers they create. They also generate risks to innovation and competition through the entire industry. Microsoft has used its power as the leader in the market with operating systems to grow into the power that it is now. A combination of good business tactics, regretful business choices by competitors, and finally Microsoft using its new power has made Microsoft untouchable by competitors. We have several examples of monopolies in our past as a nation, and we have found that monopolies have a tendency to stiffen innovation. With computer systems innovation is important to continue and stay ahead of the market. The example we can think about is IBM, when IBM split its business it opened the door to several new businesses that have only helped society. Is Microsoft going to help society if it is ordered to split? We can only wait and see. By making Microsoft split it will open the door to new ideas from small entrepreneurs that might have the next great operating system. # Microsoft has long enjoyed Olympian profit margins, using its monopoly power to maintain prices on its software even in tough times. But now, amid a terrible downturn and rising competition, CEO Steven A. Ballmer is shifting to a scrappier approach. He is cutting prices on a variety of fronts, from flagship Windows and Office products to newfangled Internet services. The idea is to accept lower margins in some businesses but boost overall earnings by going after a grab bag of growth opportunities. These range from expanding its share of big companies software purchases to lowering the price of Office software so consumers in emerging markets pay for it rather than pirate it. With the outlook so cloudy, were focusing on gaining share in those areas that are most critical, says Stephen A. Elop, who heads the business division. On July 13, Elop demonstrated the new Office 2010 in New Orleans. While Microsoft expects most customers to pay for the program the way they always have, less powerful, ad-supported versions will be available free on the Web. The company is also charging a monthly fee for online applications, such as the e-mail program Exchange, which is about a third as profitable as selling the software on CDs. And on Oct. 22, Microsofts new Windows 7 PC operating system will go on sale in stores for $40 less than the $240 it charged when it launched its Vista program in 2007—the biggest price cut on a new version of Windows in years. All of these moves amount to a risky experiment in price elasticity. By lowering prices, the company hopes to increase sales of existing products while making fast headway with new ones. If the company can gain enough market share to cover its massive costs in Web services and Internet search—notably, its vast data centers—every extra dollar will be pure profit. Im not saying it will be easy, says Ballmer. But we have great opportunities to grow total profit dollars. ONLY $29 IN CHINAMicrosoft is cutting the price of Office and offering the free versions of Word, Excel, and other programs to head off competition from Google and other rivals that offer similar software at little or no cost. Microsoft has so many promotions for Office that its effective price is $100, down from $150, and even lower in such countries as Brazil and India. But the experience is sparking optimism at Microsoft about the new strategy. The company says unit sales of Office surged 415% in the second half of last year. The most aggressive price cut has come in China, where Microsoft says 95% of Office installations have been pirated. Since it began testing a $29 offer in China last September, sales have soared morethan 800%. The low price was like taking firewood from under the cauldron of piracy, says Liu Tianxiang, a vice-president with Beijing Federal Software, a Chinese software distributor. He figures Microsoft has sold 80,000 copies of Office in China since the trial started. Now Microsoft intends to make the low price permanent. Not surprisingly, Microsoft continues to hunt for ways to offset price cuts. It hopes to boost the bottom line by encouraging Windows 7 software users to upgrade more often. Since the program CD will come loaded with multiple versions, users who buy the cheaper Starter edition can easily pay later to get premium features. Of course, that risks annoying users—when rivals such as Google are trying to lure customers with cheaper alternatives. But in the current economy, theres no risk-free way to stay ahead.

About the Future Essay Example for Free

About the Future Essay Basic research will show that legalizing this plant can benefit our country whether you smoke it or not. A simple lesson in supply and demand will show that legalizing marijuana would create a significant drop in price due to the elimination of the risk factors of growing and also selling paraphernalia. When the alcohol prohibition ended, the price dropped to a third of its prohibition cost. A study done by the Task Force on Cannabis Regulation to the Center for the Study of Drug Policy-Regulation and Taxation of Cannabis Commerce reveals that legalization could open up a tax revenue stream for governments. Licensing, taxing, and fees could generate up to 7 billion dollars a year not including the taxes on sales of paraphernalia, recreational establishments and new industries according to a study by the Congressional Budget Office with state sales tax being the factor in determining basic revenue In 1972, after reviewing the scientific evidence, the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse concluded that while marijuana was not entirely safe, its dangers had been grossly overstated. Since then, researchers have conducted thousands of studies of humans, animals, and cell cultures. None reveal any findings dramatically different from those described by the National Commission in 1972. In 1995, based on thirty years of scientific research editors of the British medical journal Lancet concluded that the smoking of cannabis, even long term, is not harmful to health. Marijuana is a good medicine for sick patients therefore it should be legalized because most patients say that marijuana helps them feel better. For example, patients use marijuana to fight symptoms caused by their sickness. Doctors and nurses all had patients who had used marijuana to fight nausea and who have reported good results. That is saying that marijuana is an effective way to help fight off bad symptoms. Marijuana is a good medicine to help get rid of bad feelings. Drug education and prevention programs reduced marijuana use during the 1980s. Since then, our commitment has slackened, and marijuana use has been rising. By expanding and intensifying current anti-marijuana messages, we can stop youthful experimentation. There is no evidence that anti-drug messages diminish young peoples interest in drugs. Anti-drug campaigns in the schools and the media may even make drugs more attractive. Marijuana use among youth declined throughout the 1980s, and began increasing in the 1990s. This increase occurred despite young peoples exposure to the most massive anti-marijuana campaign in American history. In a number of other countries, drug education programs are based on a harm reduction model, which seeks to reduce the drug-related harm among those young people who do experiment with drugs. Cigarettes and alcohol are more dangerous than marijuana, which it should be legalized. A lot of research has been done to prove it. Cigarettes are horrible for health and alcohol causes many bad things to happen. This quote shows how marijuana is less harmful then tobacco and alcohol. Experts do believe that moderate marijuana use is relatively less harmful to the user than either tobacco or alcohol. Cigarettes and alcohol are legal and cause more of health problem then marijuana. Moderate smoking of marijuana appears to pose minimal danger to the lungs. Like tobacco smoke, marijuana smoke contains a number of irritants and carcinogens. But marijuana users typically smoke much less often than tobacco smokers, and over time, inhale much less smoke. As a result, the risk of serious lung damage should be lower in marijuana smokers. There have been no reports of lung cancer related solely to marijuana, and in a large study presented to the American Thoracic Society in 2006, even heavy users of smoked marijuana were found not to have any increased risk of lung cancer. Unlike heavy tobacco smokers, heavy marijuana smokers exhibit no obstruction of the lungs small airway. That indicates that people will not develop emphysema from smoking marijuana. Marijuana is a remarkably safe and non-toxic drug that can effectively treat about 30 different conditions, he tells Web MD. I predict it will become the aspirin of the 21st century, as more people recognize this.

The Sleeping Barber Problem Philosophy Essay

The Sleeping Barber Problem Philosophy Essay This report includes concurrent programming and deadlocks that were created and analysed throughout the report. There are two parts that include in the report; The Sleeping Barber Problem and The Dining Philosophers. The report includes every method that was used to complete both parts; this includes explaining and describing. For my references I used a couple of websites to help me understand more about the concept. Introduction In this report I have included two parts these are as follows: The Sleeping Barber Problem The 1st part of my assignment is about a barber shop. I have written a program to simulate the use of a monitor to coordinate the operation of the barber and the clients. The barber shop includes only one barber that works.  The living room is divided into a waiting room with a fixed number of chairs and a table with comics, and a workroom where the barber cuts hair of a customer.  Incidentally this work room serves as bedroom when it was not customer as our barber has the nasty habit of partying all night, so it catches up on sleep lost when the room is quiet.   When a customer arrives, it opens the door to the salon.  If no space is available, it remains outside. Otherwise it will sit in an empty chair.  At the opening of the door chime sounds to awaken our Venetian barber if he had bitten a nap.  When the barber releases a client, it does not have the right to sleep if there is room in the world.   When the barber finished cutting a customer, it pays 10 francs. Then he leaves the room.  The barber takes the next customer, if he goes to bed   and so on. The Dining Philosophers The 2nd part of the report is about one of Dijkstras more delightful contributions is his problem of the Dining Philosophers. It illustrates many of the subtle problems inherent in concurrent programming. The Sleeping Barber Problem Approach to the program and Analysis The barber shop has many different types of solutions as many different types of program languages can be used to solve the problem. I had many different types of thought, but then came to a stage and chose to use Java coding as I have more experience in this program. The threads Our program will be divided into two types of threads.  On one side there will be the barber, represented by a single thread looping constantly to see if a customer expects, take care of him if necessary or when going to bed.  On the other side there will be a thread per client, which simulate the physical customer.  He will try to return to the store, will sit if he can, will shave and disappear.   While our program will have one barber, there may be as many customers as men on the planet (or at least memory space).  Threads so customers will stack until the space become available in the waiting room, and then the barber takes care of them. I will now show what each the barber and customers role are inside the program: What is the barber? The thread symbolizing the barber will be unique.  It will START s launch, customer foremost and will loop on itself for eternity.   Heres what our barber is to spend his life on: Is there anyone in the waiting room?  If so I take care of his case, if I not go to bed and have a nap When a client I do is enter the slaughterhouse; I cut hair I get my money then he leaves Obviously, when you get to the end we re-loop. This re-loop is done as many different actions are taken therefore its needed in Java programming. What is the customer? Here are the actions that realize the thread symbolizing each client.  If there are multiple clients, identical threads will compete: I look in the salon to see if theres room to spare.  Whether I go or I expect; When Im inside I sit on a chair I expect that the barber is free; I get up from my chair (and thus frees up) and I enter the room; I let his beard trimmed; When he finished, I pay and I get home. Read comics if seat available at waiting room Looking at the size difference between the action list of the barber and the customer, we note that the customer is more things.  In fact, the customer must manage additional resources from the barber the free space in the waiting room when present at the exhibition entrance. Resources Writing and explaining how the program will be running plays a big role in having a successful program. I have to know what type of resources and the needs of the program I need to make it work perfectly. The needs: Firstly it is clear that we will have a semaphore on the number of seats available in the waiting room.  It will limit the number client can find the room simultaneously.  When a client is present supernumerary the thread will wait for the release of the resource (the chair).   Now we must manage the sleep of the barber.  We need a semaphore blocking the barber when there is no client.  It must be incremented to the arrival of each client and initialized to zero.   Must thread the barber and the customer have a time in common when haircuts takes place.  There are a myriad of  bitouilles  possible, but the simplest is to have two semaphores: one for the clients arrival, the second for his departure.   Heres how the four semaphores will be used in our  virtual barber: places Number of seats available in the waiting room of the exhibition upon arrival of a client, it performs a  wait  on the semaphore.  If the number is zero free space on his arrival, he will wait for a client releases a chair.  The client makes a  post  when he managed to enter the room of the barber (so it rises from the chair). salle_vide The semaphore  salle_vide  corresponds to a value equal to the number of customers in the waiting room.  it is 0 when the latter does not have any customer.  The barber performs a  wait  on the semaphore and crashes (goes to sleep) when the room is empty. room This semaphore is initialized to 0.  Any customer arriving in the waiting room waits for the release of this resource.  He was released by the barber when it is ready to receive a clients piece of work. Out The purpose of this semaphore is very similar to the previous one.  The client performs a  wait  is over and the barber freeing this resource by a  post  when he finished shaving the customer.  While the semaphore before the start synchronization shaving, it synchronizes the end. I will now present a summary of the evolution of each of these semaphores during the passage of a client in the salon.  I guess the room is empty before it happened and that no other client comes while he is there.  I do not dà ©crierai lock operation, it is quite explicit.   places salle_vide room out action initial state 8 0 0 0 exec (hand) barber lying 8 (0) 0 0 b:  wait (salle_vide) arrival of a customer (8) (0) 0 0 c:  wait (squares) the client asseoie 7 + (0) 0 0 c:  post (salle_vide) the client waits 7 0 (0) 0 c:  wait (piece) Client Home 7 0 + (0) 0 b:  post (piece) between the customer 7 0 0 0 c:  post (places) shaving client 8 0 0 (0) c:  wait (outside) the barber shaves 8 0 0 (0) b:  sleep () it releases its customer 8 0 0 + (0) b:  post (outside) Semaphores framed by a pair of parentheses mean that  wait  has been done on this resource and a thread is blocked, waiting for the release of this resource.  + Means that the  post  has been taken. Program Organisatized Our program virtual the barber  has three global variables: Four semaphores The lock to the body The value of the fund It also has two functions:  proc_barbier  and  proc_client  respectively procedures barber and client.  The main program (main) deals first initialize the semaphore and lock.  Then it creates the thread corresponding to the barber.  It goes straight to bed since no customer has yet been created.  Simulating client threads are created one by one dynamically when the user presses the I entry.  If he lets his finger pressed the button a few seconds can quickly create a large number of clients.  The results of the application are sent to standard output (stdout). Instructions for use:  On a fast station this small program can quickly make mistakes.  Under the Linux operating system the machine uses the kernel call  clone ()  to create a new thread, which has the effect of creating a new process.  In my tests I found (after falling asleep myself on the  entry   key) with more than 200 client process waiting for my poor barber. There are two main methods used inside the program this includes the following; Barber; while(1) { P(Customers) //wait for C and sleep P(accessSeats) //mutexprotect the number of available seats NumberOfFreeSeats++ //one chair gets free V(Barber) //Bring in a C for haircut V(accessSeats) //release the mutexon the chairs à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. //here the B is cutting hair This green highlighted writing is showing the comments of the codes.} //while(1) Customers while(1) { P(accessSeats) //mutexprotect the number of available seats if ( NumberOfFreeSeats> 0 ) { //if any free seats NumberOfFreeSeats //sitting down on a chair V(Customers) //notify the B V(accessSeats) //release the lock P(Barber) //wait if the B is busy à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. //here the C is having his hair cut } else { //there are no free seats V(accessSeats)//release the lock on the seats //C leaves without a haircut } }//while(1) The Dining Philosophers The example below shows a solution where the forks are not explicitly represented. Philosophers can eat if you eat any of its neighbors. This is comparable to a system where the philosophers who cannot get the second fork must leave the first fork before they try again. In the absence of locks associated with the forks, philosophers must ensure that the decision to start eating is not based on stale information on the state of the neighbors. Eg if philosopher B sees that A does not eat, then turns and looks C, A could begin eating while B looks at C. This solution avoids this problem by using a single mutex lock. This lock has nothing to do with the holders, but with the decision procedures that can change the states of the philosophers. This is ensured by the monitor. The test procedures, collection and observation are local offensive to monitor and share a mutex lock. Note that philosophers who want to eat do not hold a fork. When the monitor allows a philosopher who wants to continue eating, the philosopher acquires again the first fork before picking up the second fork now available. When done eating, the philosopher will signal to the monitor that both forks are available now. Note that this example does not address the problem of hunger. For example, the philosopher B can wait forever if meal periods of philosophers A and C always overlap. To also ensure that no philosopher is hungry, you could keep track of the number of times that a philosopher cannot eat when hungry neighbors leave their holders. If this number exceeds some threshold, the state of the philosopher could change to Hunger, and the decision procedure for collecting holders could be increased to require that none of the neighbors go hungry. This further reduces dependence coincidence. The lifting of the threshold for the transition to the Hungry reduces this effect. In 1984, K. Mani Chandy and J. Misra proposed a different solution to the problem of dining philosophers have considered arbitrary reagents (numbered P , P) compete for an arbitrary number of resources, unlike Dijkstra solution. Also fully distributed and does not require any central authority after initialization. However, violates the requirement that the philosophers do not speak to each other (due to the prompts). For each pair of philosophers who compete for a resource, create a fork and give it to the philosopher with the lower ID. Each holder may be either dirty or clean. Initially, all forks are dirty. When a philosopher wants to use a set of resources (ie eating), must obtain the holders of its neighbors that fall. When a philosopher with a fork receives a request message, keeps the fork if it is clean, but leaves when it is dirty. If you send the fork, the fork cleans before doing so. After a philosopher is done eating, all his forks become dirty. If another philosopher had previously requested one of the forks, clean the fork and sends it. This solution also has a large level of coincidence and has solved a problem arbitrarily large. It also solves the problem of hunger. The clean / dirty labels serve as a way to give preference to process more hungry and a disadvantage to processes that just eat. One might compare its solution one where the philosophers are not allowed to eat twice in a row while others use forks between. Their solution is more flexible than this, but has an element that tends in that direction. In their analysis take a tiered distribution preferred holders and their states clean / dirty. They show that this system can describe an acyclic graph, and if so, the operations in their protocol cannot convert that one cyclic graph. This ensures that the deadlock cannot occur. However, if the system is initialized to an absolutely symmetrical, like all philosophers holding their forks on the left, then the graph is cyclic in the beginning, and its solution cannot prevent a deadlock. Initializing the system so that the IDs below philosophers holders have dirty ensures that the top graph is acyclic. Implementations of a typical philosopher I will now be commenting on some of the implementations of a typical philosopher: Figure 2.2 1 typicalPhilosopher() //Name 2 { 3 while ( true ) // while loop used 4 { 5 think(); //typical philosopher is thinking 6 7 pickUpLeftFork(); //typical philosopher picks up the left fork 8 pickUpRightFork(); //typical philosopher pick up the right fork 9 10 eat(); //typical philosopher is now eating 11 12 putDownLeftFork(); //typical philosopher puts down the left fork 13 putDownRightFork();//typical philosopher puts down the right fork 14 } // end while 15 16 } // end typicalPhilosopher Figure 2.3 1 typicalPhilosopher()//Name 2 { 3 while ( true ) // while loop used 4 { 5 think();//typical philosopher is thinking 6 7 pickUpBothForksAtOnce(); //typical philosopher picks up both folks 8 9 eat();//typical philosopher is now eating 10 11 putDownBothForksAtOnce();//typical philosopher puts both folks down 12 } // end while 13 14 } // end typicalPhilosopher Figure 2.4 1 typicalPhilosopher()//Name 2 { 3 while ( true ) // while loop used 4 { 5 think();//typical philosopher is thinking 6 7 while ( notHoldingBothForks ) //while loop used so that typical philosopher cant pick up both folks at once 8 { 9 pickUpLeftFork();//typical philosopher pick up the left fork 10 11 if ( rightForkNotAvailable ) //he picks up the left for in the previous if he hasnt got the right fork available 12 { 13 putDownLeftFork();//typical philosopher puts the left fork down 14 } // end if 15 else //if else statement used to make it work properly 16 { 17 pickUpRightFork();//typical philosopher picks up the right for 18 } // end while 19 } // end else 20 21 eat(); 22 23 putDownLeftFork();//typical philosopher puts the left fork down 24 putDownRightFork();//typical philosopher puts the right fork down 25 } // end while 26 27 } // end typicalPhilosopher Figure 2.5 1 typicalPhilosopher() 2 { 3 while ( true ) 4 { 5 think();//typical philosopher is thinking 6 7 if ( philosopherID mod 2 == 0 )//if the remainder is not 0 it performs action if 0 then performs the action 8 { 9 pickUpLeftFork();//typical philosopher picks up the left fork down 10 pickUpRightFork();//typical philosopher picks up the right fork down 11 12 eat(); 13 14 putDownLeftFork();//typical philosopher puts the left fork down 15 putDownRightFork();//typical philosopher puts the right fork down 16 } // end if 17 else 18 { 19 pickUpRightFork();//typical philosopher picks up the right fork 20 pickUpLeftFork();//typical philosopher picks up the left fork 21 22 eat();//typical philosopher is eating 23 24 putDownRightFork();//typical philosopher puts the left fork down 25 putDownLeftFork();//typical philosopher puts the right fork down 26 } // end else 27 } // end while 28 29 } // end typicalPhilosopher As you can see from the above figure of the typical philosopher different types of condition and statements were used. These statements and conditions allow the program to implement different types of actions. Conclusion Recommendation

Japans Economic Growth and Americas Vulnerability Essay -- Economy

Japan's Economic Growth and America's Vulnerability For years after the end of the second world war, the Japanese suffered from an inferiority complex. This was the result of the American aid to Japan which helped to rebuild their country. Soon the Japanese started producing goods, small stuff at first, like junky toys in the earlier years - but then came better items, much better items. Now it is the Americans that suffer from the inferiority complex, not familiar with being economically vulnerable and not entirely in control of their destinies. Who to blame - the Japanese of course. If Americans can not learn to compete with the Japanese, then there is going to be some serious trouble because the economic problem will not just "go" away. When Japan lost World War II, six million Japanese had to return home from the colonies Japan lost. These people had to be fed, clothed and housed. The outlook for Japan's recovery did not look very hopeful. The Americans had no intention of helping the Japanese, but the communist victory in China changed this, because the Americans wanted to stop the further advance of communism. Americans started to help Japan out by not making them pay reparations for war damages and opened Japanese trade to other countries. The Americans dissolved the powerful family businesses which opened business to more competition and in the countryside, they took land from the landlords and gave it to the tenant farmers. By the time American occupation ended in 1952, Japan had returned to prewar levels of production. With their recovery now ensured, Japan embarked on a period of great economic growth which is growing at a faster rate every day. The Japanese are now at the ... ...may not last. I believe that they can either become more like the Japanese, giving up the lifestyles so grown accustomed to, by working harder for less money, or learn to live with not always being on top of the world economy. It is always hard to change, but sometimes you have to. Bibliography 1. "Cocksure Japan Loses Confidence", Cook,Peter. From the Globe and Mail Newspaper, May 2, 1992 2. "Japan to Rethink Bullish Marketing Abroad", From the Toronto Star, April 27,1992 3. "The Ties that Bind", Territh, Edith. From the Business Community Magazine, September 24, 1992 4. "Japan Hits Hard Times", Hillenbrand, Barry. From Time Magazine, March 23,1992 5. "Japan in the Mind of America", Morrow,Lance. From Time Magazine, February 10, 1992 6. "The Rise of The Global Village", Baldwin Spiran Stuart Cregier. Pages # 188-190 Copyright 1992 ??

Emancipation :: essays research papers

Emancipation has been defined as the pursuit, expansion, and security of freedom. I believe that most people including myself would say successful emancipation has taken place when freedom has been pursued, expanded upon, and secured. What makes peoples views of emancipation different is not its definition, but what is freedom? Freedom shows a lot of faces throughout the times and environments studied in both the Haitian and Jamaican Revolutions. Freedom for myself is a peace of mind. I feel that a person who wakes up with a peace of mind has experienced successful emancipation. Successful emancipation does not mean that everything is perfect and the way it should be. Perfection does not exist in this world; everything has its flaws and downfalls including emancipation, justice, and freedom. I think we all work towards the day we have established who we are and find comfort with our role in society. I also feel it is hard for us to be as thoughtful and passionate about emancipation as the slaves of these times were. Our minds can’t conceive the true feeling of what is like to be treated like something other than a human being. I feel our lifestyles are far beyond a slave’s view of what emancipation is. Slaves in both Haiti and Jamaica did not rebel in order to live a lifestyle we live today. They were willing to settle for far less than we have today. Slaves were willing to die in order to experience what they felt was successful emancipation. Successful emancipation for slaves was not be confounded to land or owned by whites. Slaves simply wanted the opportunity to work their own land, start families, and enjoy life. Although most people in Haiti and Jamaica of African descent were slaves, there was a small minority of free people, which consisted of mulattos and free blacks. Even though these free people witnessed first hand the experienced of slavery the compassion and empathy for it was definitely disappointing. Their understanding of emancipation was totally different than that of slaves. The free people already experienced and had what slaves desired and viewed as emancipation. Free people had their own land to farm, build houses on, and start families. Thus giving them a totally different perspective on emancipation and freedom. Despite free people had their own land, they still were not close to sharing the same rights as the whites.

Jack Sparrow Ca

Jack Sparrow Character Analysis. The Pirates of the Caribbean film series is one of the most popular film series to run its course through theaters in recent years. Action, adventure, and romance are some of the things we come to expect when we sit down to watch these amazing film adventures. But one of the things we can rely on most is the presence of Captain Jack Sparrow. While Sparrow was conceived to be only a supporting character, he proved to be popular after he was added into Disney’s theme park ride that spawned the movie series.Of course, a character as â€Å"far out† as Captain Jack had to be played by someone equally out-there: Johnny Depp. First we’ll talk about how Depp got into the role of Captain Jack and then I will analyze how Jack is portrayed as a character. In 2001, Depp was at Walt Disney Studios looking to do a family film. However, the fact that the Pirates theme park ride was going to be adapted into a film caught his attention first.Depp looked at the movie adaptation as a chance to revive his favorite movie genre,  and he was even more pleased when he found out the script fit his personality perfectly: a quirky pirate looking for adventure and in the end, showing he has a soft side. Depp was cast on June 10, 2002. Producer  of the series Jerry Bruckheimer  said that Depp was â€Å"an edgy actor who will kind of counter the Disney  Country Bears  soft quality and tell an audience that an adult and teenager can go see this and have a good time with it. When the cast got together for their read-through of the script, Depp surprised everyone by portraying the character in an off-kilter manner. After Depp did some research of his own on 18th century pirates, he compared the swashbucklers to modern rock stars and said he would base his performance on  Keith Richards. In a comic follow-up, Richards would later appear in two cameos as Jack's father,  Captain Teague, in  At World's End  and  On Stranger Tides. Director Gore Verbinski and Jerry Bruckheimer had confidence in Depp, in part because Orlando Bloom would be playing the traditional â€Å"hero† character in the series.Depp also improvised the film's final line, â€Å"Now, bring me that horizon†, which was writer Ted Elliot’s favorite line. Disney executives were, at first, confused by Depp's performance. Some even asked him whether the character was  drunk  or gay. Michael Eisner  even proclaimed while watching the events unfold, â€Å"He's ruining the film! †Ã‚  Depp actually fought back and responded, â€Å"Look, these are the choices I made. You know my work. So either trust me or give me the boot.   Some industry insiders also questioned Depp's casting, as he wasn’t known for working in a traditional studio setting and had even been called an unconventional actor. Depp's portrayal as Captain Jack Sparrow was critically acclaimed. Alan Morrison said â€Å"Gloriously over-the- top  Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ In terms of physical precision and verbal delivery, it's a master-class in comedy acting. †Ã‚  Roger Ebert  also found his performance â€Å"original in its every atom. There has never been a pirate, or for that matter a human being, like this in any other movie  Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ his behavior shows a lifetime of rehearsal. Ebert also praised Depp for moving away from the how Captain Jack was written. Depp won a  Screen Actor's Guild  award for his performance, and was also nominated for a  Golden Globe  and an  Academy Award for Best Actor, the first in his career. Film School Rejects  argued and wrote, â€Å"That because of Pirates, Depp has become as much a movie star as a  character actor. Johnny Depp returned as Jack Sparrow in  Dead Man's Chest, the first time the actor ever made a sequel. Drew McWeeny  stated, â€Å"Remember how cool  Han Solo  was in  Star Wars  the first time you saw it?And then remember how much cooler he seemed when  Empire  came out? This is that big a jump. †Ã‚  Depp received an  MTV Movie Award  and a  Teen Choice Award  for  Dead Man's Chest, and was also nominated for an  Empire Award  and another  Golden Globe. For his performance in  At World's End, Depp won an  MTV Movie Award  for Best Comedic Performance, as well as a  People's Choice Award, a  Kids' Choice Award, and another  Teen Choice Award. He has signed on to reprise the role for future sequels. Captain Jack appeals to us as moviegoers because he brings out our inner-most sense of adventure.We want him to succeed and we feel like we are right there when he takes us on an adventure. The first time we meet Captain Jack in The Curse of the Black Pearl he is sailing into Port Royal on a dinghy-like boat that is sinking to the ocean floor the during the whole scene. He eventually walks onto the dock from the crow’s nest, acting if nothing ever happened. He immediately pays off a dock worker in order to skip the mandatory ID check required to enter the city. This is what we love from a character; someone who makes the best of his situation and finds a way to get into the crowd.In the real world, we would never considering acting like Jack does. But in the movies, his adventure-seeking nature is something we crave. Despite all of the moral faults of Sparrow, the audience still finds him loveable. This is all thanks to Johnny Depp’s masterful portrayal. Depp was able to create a very human, multifaceted, believable character. What’s even weirder is that Jack is not the typical pirate that peaks our interests. He is not bulky, muscular, or very intimidating. His actions at some times are very effeminate.Although he used his brain more than brawn, the films will show us that he is very athletic on his own. Sparrow also shows us that it doesn’t matter who our friends are. Just look at his crew while he is commanding the Black Pearl. It is the most rag-tag group of pirates you will ever see. It even included a woman in the first movie, something that was very taboo for Captains to have in their crew at the time. Another bright spot on Sparrow is that he uses everything that is available to him. He may not be the best swordsman, but if there is anything that could possibly be a weapon near him, he will use it.Anything you can think of really; whiskey barrels, horses, even him fighting on a water-wheel that generates power. In Dead Man’s Chest Jack was found to be the accepted leader of a tribe of Caribbean natives. He somehow mastered their language and was living in the lap of luxury until he found out that he was going to be a human sacrifice. Things like this are what draw us to The Captain. His wild and crazy adventures may come to an end someday, but he will always be memorable to me and definitely left a mark on the movie world.

Bankers Perception on Islamic Banking

Shari’a supervision plays an essential role in the governance of IFIs. It has different forms at macro and micro levels. (Chris Pierce, 1988) Deposits are strictly not considered as loans in the Islamic sense. If it is in the form of money, then he has an obligation to pay Zakat out of it. If these deposits are indeed loans, then it is the banks which should pay zakat on them. In reality,the banks make the depositors pay the zakat , which is injustice. (Alexandra R, Hardie & M. Rabooy, 1991) M. Norain, Ariffin, & M Adnan explained the perceptions and awareness among bankers in Islamic banks is essential to enhance corporate social responsibility. M. Norain, Ariffin, & M Adnan explained that to fulfill the Islamic needs of the society, proper policies have been developed so that there will be no recurring problems in the future relating to the banking system and investment. M. Norain, Ariffin, & M Adnan suggested that Islamic organizations, Islamic banks are accountable to Alla h and to the communities in which they operate and have a duty to be transparent in all their activities. Ethical investment now recently become an issue in the West, and it is very important in the Islamic world and Islamic Banks must work on these principles which fulfill the needs and commitment to the bankers. (Alexandra R. Hardie and M. Rabooy 1991) a serious question arises that whether Islamic Banks are keeping to the rules about partnerships. In this context some scholars believe that the working partner in mudaraba should not mix the capital of the various suppliers of funds; if this is done then the problem is very serious for the Banks, (Alexandra R. Hardie and M. Rabooy, 1991) Malaysian banks experience economies and annual productivity change on a big scale. The latter productivity estimates indicate that full-fledged Islamic banks have overcome some of these cost disadvantages with passage of time. Mariani Abdul-Majida, David S. Saalb,* and Giuliana Battistic (2010) The separation of Islamic from conventional banking services may allow managers to better focus on improving the cost efficiency of Islamic banking where as in the short run, the new Islamic banks will suffer manyr transitional problems. Mariani Abdul-Majida, David S. Saalb,* and Giuliana Battistic (2010) M. Khan & A. Mirakhor (1991) describes economic system which is based on Islamic principles is permanently have the prohibition on the payment and receipt of interest. This restriction makes Islamic banks different from financial institutions in many ways. Islamic banking system in Pakistan was adopted in such a manner to leave the intermediation role of the banking system undisturbed. Where as the banking system in Iran is used as an instrument for achieving the goals and objectives of the Islamic revolution. M. Khan and A. Mirakhor, 1991) Islamic Law prohibits charging interest. financial instruments used by Islamic banks are not based on profit-and-loss sharing (equity) but, debt like instruments are a rational response by Islamic banks to their contracting environments and debt becomes the dominant instrument. (K. Aggarwal & Yousaf, 2000) Egypt's Islamic banks, while observing certain Islamic precepts in their operations, in order to improve their status, these banks fulfils their social mission by enabling their customers according to Islamic needs. Elizabeth Mayer, 1985) Use of existing Islamic financial instruments such as zero coupons bonds, paper for trade finance and unitised securities. There is a need to encourage secondary market development so that instruments can be traded effectively. (Rodney Wilson, 1991) The scope for development of Islamic financial products is vast enough, such products can play a major role not only facilitating the muslim countries but widely promoting the economic advancement. (Ro dney Wilson, 1991)

Retrenchment Strategy Essay

Since the beginning of the US financial crisis in 2007, regulators in the United States and Europe have been frustrated by the difficulty in identifying the risk exposures at the largest and most levered financial institutions. Yet, at the time, it was unclear how such data might have been used to make the financial system safer. This paper is an attempt to show simple ways in which this information can be used to understand how deleveraging scenarios could play out. To do so the authors develop and test a model to analyze financial sector stability under different configurations of leverage and risk exposure across banks. They then apply the model to the largest financial institutions in Europe, focusing on banks’ exposure to sovereign bonds and using the model to evaluate a number of policy proposals to reduce systemic risk. When analyzing the European banks in 2011, they show how a policy of targeted equity injections, if distributed appropriately across the most systemic banks, can significantly reduce systemic risk. The approach in this paper fits into, and contributes to, a growing literature on systemic risk. Key concepts include: * This model can simulate the outcome of various policies to reduce fire sale spillovers in the midst of a crisis. * Size caps, or forced mergers among the most exposed banks, do not reduce systemic risk very much. * However, modest equity injections, if distributed appropriately between the most systemic banks, can cut the vulnerability of the banking sector to deleveraging by more than half. * The model can be adapted to monitor vulnerability on a dynamic basis using factor exposures. About Faculty in this Article: Robin Greenwood is a Professor in the Finance unit at Harvard Business School. * Author Abstract When a bank experiences a negative shock to its equity, one way to return to target leverage is to sell assets. If asset sales occur at depressed prices, then one bank’s sales may impact other banks with common exposures, resulting in contagion. We propose a simple framework that accounts for how this effect adds up across the banking sector. Our framework explains how the distribution of bank leverage and risk exposures contributes to a form of systemic risk. We compute bank exposures to system-wide deleveraging, as well as the spillover of a single bank’s deleveraging onto other banks. We show how our model can be used to evaluate a variety of crisis interventions, such as mergers of good and bad banks and equity injections. We apply the framework to European banks vulnerable to sovereign risk in 2010 and 2011.

Ethics and Placebo Trials Essay

Placebo trials are experimental trials that involve the administration of a substance that does not really have any effect on the individual’s system. This means that it is a neutral trial that will have neither positive nor negative effects on the physiology of the person it is administered on. Whatever positive benefits may be derived out of placebo trials are merely therapeutic and may arise from the potency of the power of suggestion. These trials are most often used in randomized control trials in investigating the effectiveness of a specific treatment. (Miller and Brody, 3) However, with the rise of the use of such trials, there have been many more questions raised. Are these placebo control trials indeed necessary? What ethical issues are raised with the implementation of placebo trials? The debates regarding the ethicality of placebo trials in investigative research continue to rage across the scientific community. The discussion has become so complex that the sides taken regarding the matter have evolved to more than just â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no† to the question of placebo ethicality. There have been numerous aspects of placebo trials that have undergone the scrutiny of those directly involved with fields utilizing these trials. The main aim of this paper is to understand the obligations of medical practitioners who are employing placebo trials in their own scientific investigations of the effectiveness of various treatments. What ethical standards should these individuals, physicians and the like, take into consideration when conducting investigative researches with placebo trials? Glass and Waring The main problem with a physician’s utilization of placebo trials for investigative purposes is the fact that they are part of the profession that involves the assurance of optimal health for their patients. Some of the researchers and critics exploring the ethical holds on medical practitioners with regards to placebo trials have looked at it from a legal standpoint. Glass and Waring (582) indicate that they have foundâ€Å"no legal precedent allowing physicians to ‘opt out’ of their professional obligations because they are researchers in addition to being physicians†. It is emphasized that the physician must do all in his power in order to insure that the client receives all possible modes of treatment that would maintain or enhance his or her health. As a researcher, the physician is viewed as a fiduciary, a person delegated with power that will be used for the benefit of another person and who is held legally against the highest standards of conduct. The physician-researcher as a fiduciary, then, has a moral ascendancy over his or her patient-subject. (Glass and Waring, 578) This means that a placebo trial that would involve having the physician-researcher observe the null effect on the health of a patient-subject and at the same time have knowledge of the betterment of the health status of patient-subjects in the other experimental trials. (Glass and Waring 579) Thus physician’s are now ethically compromised and even legally liable for their utilization and continuation of the placebo trial. Knowing that there is a treatment that could improve the health of those in the placebo arm of the experiment but not applying that treatment on the participants in that arm indicates their sacrifice of the health of those participants for the scientific progress afforded by research data. The ethical responsibility of the physician-reseracher, therefore, is in the fact that clinical studies of treatment effectivity make use of participants who have been diagnosed with the specific medical condition hoped to be treated by the experiment’s procedure. Hawkins Hawkins (484) states that the true problem faced by physician-researchers is a moral one. The moral norms and societal dictates placed upon those in the medical profession involve the fact that they need to be able to give a sick person all the possible chances of being treated. However, Hawkins (484) points out that this moral responsibility is limited. She states clearly â€Å"researchers do not owe effective treatment to everyone around them. † (473) The obligations of a physician to his or her patient are enclosed within a given framework, that of the physician-patient relationship. In order for such a relationship to be established, the physician must come into agreement with the client that he or she will indeed act as one half of that relationship. The same agreement must be made on the part of the client. Although this agreement may not be explicit, it is nevertheless positively acknowledged by both parties. (Hawkins, 476) There is, according to Hawkins, no ethical dilemma in a physician-researcher’s use of placebo trials. Just because these researchers have had medical training and have taken a medical oath does not mean that they are always in the role of a physician. These are individuals that have many other different roles as fathers, mothers, non-practicing physicians, friends and the like. The role they take as a researcher, therefore, does not mean a continuation of their role as a physician. (Hawkins, 479) The obligations of an individual in the role of a researcher is separate from his or her role as a physician thus their obligation in placebo trials involves simple assurance that the participant will not be harmed by the procedure that will take place. Miller and Brody Some critics of placebo control trials state a weakness in therapeutic obligation of physician researchers as the main grounds of contestation of the ethical foundations of the said trials. Miller and Brody (8) state that even when based on the principles of clinical equipoise, an ethical basis of assigning participants in different experimental arms which involves disagreement among experts as to the effectiveness of either arm, therapeutic obligation is still a weak attack against the ethics of placebo trials. The individuals who knowingly participate in experiments with placebo arms are not exploited as long as no harm befalls them. Also, they are aware that they enter the experimental set-up as participants in a research and not as patients of the researchers who happen to also be physicians. (Miller and Brody, 5) Miller and Brody thus state that â€Å"placebo trials are not unethical just because they withhold proven effective treatment†. (6) It is thus seen that the responsibility and obligation of the researcher with regards to the ethicality of placebos is not in their therapeutic obligations as physicians. However, this does not mean that placebo trials are completely ethical. This also does not mean that researchers are devoid of ethical obligations to their participants assigned to placebo arms of the investigative experiments. The ethical obligation of the researcher in placebo trials is the same as that of researcher in any clinical trials. This involves the proper acquisition of informed consent from the participants. Also, researchers must be able to assure the fact that participants will not be exploited or put in harmful situations. Miller and Brody also insist that researchers must first establish that the investigation has scientific merit and that scientific merit is increased with the implementation of the placebo trial. (8) Analysis and Argument All three articles assessed above have merit and, at the same time, also have faults. Glass and Waring (582) stating that no legal precedents were found that indicated physicians were no longer tied to their professional obligations is faulty. In much the same way that a lawyer does not have to give counsel to every jaywalker he or she sees, the physician likewise does not have professional obligation over individual’s whose relationship to him is simply that which exists between researchers and participants. I also disagree with Hawkins’ statement that morality is what binds the physician thus the use of placebo trials is not unethical. What is ethics but a concept in the realm of morality? Yes, there are standards and regulations with regards to ethical conduct. However, as a whole, ethics is based on morality thus a moral problem is, in fact, an ethical problem. The middle ground taken by Miller and Brody also seems to be misled. A placebo trial is not equivalent to other clinical trials. It involves factors that are not present in other trials, such as the exposure of the participants to neutral treatment. In other clinical trials, there is still exposure to some form of treatment thus there is an effort to aid the participant. I believe, however, that physician-researcher’s obligations to the patient-participant, is limited solely to the relationship of researcher and participant. The role taken by the individual is not that of a physician but that of a researcher. The participants are also aware that they enter into the experiment not as patients but as participants. Although they are not given the chance to undergo possibly effective treatment, it is not the moral obligation of the researcher to insure that they do. Even if, for example, a person persists to smoke, I am not morally or ethically obligated to make sure that he or she stop. Placebo trials are valid research designs and should not be stopped simply because of a feeling that it is unfair to those who, in the first place, willingly submitted themselves to the experiment’s conditions. Works Cited Glass, Kathleen G. , and Waring, Duff. â€Å"The Physician/Investigator’s Obligation to Patients Participating in Research: The Case of Placebo Controlled Trials. † The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 33 (2005): 575-585 Hawkins, Jennifer S. â€Å"Justice and Placebo Controls. † Social Theory and Practice 32 (2006): 467- 496. Miller, Franklin G. , and Brody, Howard. â€Å"What Makes Placebo-controlled Trials Unethical? † The American Journal of Bioethics 2(2002): 3-9

Abandonment provisions authorize the premature termination of a contract

Abandonment provisions authorize the premature termination of a contract Abandonment provisions authorize the premature termination of a contract, and occur through various scenarios within real estate. Abandonment-Landlord/Tenant California real estate law permits landlords to use abandonment as a reason to terminate the lease of a tenant. Most lease agreements contain provisions which state the length of time a tenant has to pay rent before a landlord can claim abandonment.Generally, If a tenant falls behind on payments more than 14 days, the landlord can draft and send a letter to the tenant of the intent to evict the tenant.If the tenant does not respond to the letter within 15 to 18 days, the landlord has the right to terminate the lease.If the landlord sends the letter using certified mail (confirmed with a receipt of arrival from the post office), the tenant has 15 days to respond to the letter. If the landlord sends the letter using standard mail, the tenant has 18 days to respond to the letter.If the landlord establishes abandonment of the property, the landlord can:Lease the property to another tenant Open the doors of the property without violating the tenants right of privacy Obtain legal representation to recover rent that has not been paid Leased property that is abandoned by the tenant of a lease can be confiscated by the landlord. Common actions that are inconsistent with continuous use of property include:Lessee fails to make rent payments Lessee removes personal property off property If lessee files a change of address with the post office In the three scenarios above, the land owner has the right to assume use of property. Abandonment of a Prescriptive Easement The granting of the easement occurs if the party claiming the property has used the property for five continuous years. If the party that holds the easement right abandons the property for five years, his or her right to the easement terminates. Abandonment in Insurance Contracts Insurance contracts can have abandonment provisions as well. If a homeowner’s property becomes severely damaged or destroyed (i.e. from a fire), and the cost of refurbishing or rebuilding outweighs the total property value, then the homeowner is allowed to abandon the property while recovering compensation from the insurance company. The property is then taken over by the insurance company. Abandonment in Bankruptcy Proceedings A trustee in a liquidation bankruptcy may elect to abandon a debtor’s property. If a particular property is of low value or rife with encumbrances, thus not worth selling off, the trustee may choose to abandon that property. The trustee would then have to file a notice of abandonment, which may be challenged by a creditor who believes the trustee has made an inaccurate evaluation of the property’s worth.

Failure as an effective teacher Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Failure as an effective teacher - Essay Example It is a tricky fact to realize, but a simple example makes this fact easily comprehensible. As babies, none of us were able to make our step without a number of attempts and failures preceding our ultimate success of walking with a sense of pride. As children we never used to think too much about the failures that we underwent, because we were too busy to think about failures due to our thirst for success, i.e. the ability to walk. As we reflect on it today, we realize that our several attempts and failures to walk were merely stepping stones to our success in achieving it. In the process of achieving our success, we also gained some essential experience which led us to our success, and such experience was caused by our failures in the attempts. Therefore, it is an essential fact of life that failure is the most effective teacher one can get in one’s life, which ultimately leads one to success. Failure is the best and most effective teacher in life, because one can reach the ultimate success through the experience that one gains in every failure of life. Life is not a bed of roses and is, of course, a mixture of failures and successes. The real winner in life is the one who can accept this reality and makes use of the failures as stepping stones to success. It is through embracing failures wholeheartedly and learning from such experiences that one achieves success in life. The attitude of Thomas Alva Edison, who said â€Å"I have not failed; I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work†, is what we require to learn from the great teacher called failure and experience. Although failure may seem to be a harsh teacher sometimes, it will ultimately prove to be the most effective teacher who not only leads one to success, but also provides the vital experiences in life. Failure and success are like two sides of the coin and we should consider failure as a teacher who can guide us to success. As aforementioned,

ERP Systems For Small And Medium Size Companies Research Paper - 1

ERP Systems For Small And Medium Size Companies - Research Paper Example Additionally, because of globalization an e-commerce arrangement bringing changes rapidly, and small and medium size businesses as well refurbish their industry. Since the sizes of corporations are growing with the passage of time. In this scenario, the traditional business practices would not be helpful for the organizations to adopt these changes as well as the disharmony among business and information systems in their corporation can happen. Thus, at the present, majority of businesses utilize of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems for improving business performance (Park & Lee, 2006) and (Turban, Leidner, McLean, & Wetherbe, 2005). This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of some of the important aspects of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) technology based platforms for the small and large size business organizations. In this prospect, this research will cover the analysis of various major ERP technologies, their corporate implementation and possible advantages and d isadvantages. This paper will discuss SAP business by design, SAP business One and SAP All-In-One, Oracle’s PeopleSoft and Microsoft ERP system. ERP systems for Small and Medium Size Companies Without adopting ERP technology based arrangements and systems large size corporations cannot survive in today’s ever-increasing competitive world. In fact, ERP technology based systems allow the large scale organizations to work as an enabler instead of a differentiator. Additionally, this difference is apparent in the fraction of big businesses making use of the ERP systems. In view of the fact that in only United States more than 90 % organizations make use of Oracle to manage their business functions. Thus, given the diffusion of ERP marketplace for large scale corporations, adequate client growth in the huge firm marketplace turns out to be minimal for ERP vendors. In this scenario, ERP software suppliers and their business partners are able to generate and uphold revenues b y offering support and upgrades however actual growth is possible by expanding their business into new marketplaces. In addition, with the implementation of ERP software into the business, corporate expansion requires, more and more efficient computing and networking facilities, rising significance of information usage inside companies, and continuously technically trained employees, however, the current ERP systems suppliers are currently focusing sales expansion on the small and middle sized business (SMB) marketplace. On the other hand, at the present, more and more small and middle sized businesses are gaining a competitive and information edge over their competitors by implementing latest ERP systems. Therefore, business sectors suggested by SMB’s have to now recognize the importance of ERP systems as their marketplace landscapes turn out to be growing competitive (Crumley, Fain, & McFadden, 2010). SAP Business One Application The SAP Business One system puts together th e entire fundamental business purposes across the business; comprising sales, financials, inventory, customer relationship management and processes

The Kalahari Typing School FOr Men, General Book Report Essay

The Kalahari Typing School FOr Men, General Book Report - Essay Example Makutsi, then set out to demonstrate why women are much better at detective work than men because they notice the little things, pay attention to what other people are saying with more than just their words and have a much more developed sense of normal human psychology. Mma. Ramotswe does this by helping one client find equitable means of making amends for mistakes of his past and another client find out whether her husband is being unfaithful. In both cases, it is because of the particularly feminine touch she brings to her profession that they are solved to such positive ends. There is a dual plot to the novel in the story of Mma. Makutsi, who starts the business mentioned in the title. Mma. Makutsi needs to earn more money to help support her family as well as to meet her own needs. With the opening of the other detective agency in town and Mma. Ramotswe’s recent adoption of two children, one of whom is confined to a wheelchair, Mma. Makutsi knows she cannot ask for additional money from her employer. Through a wonderful demonstration of brainstorming, Mma. Makutsi realizes that men need office skills as much as women if they are to be successful in business, but that men are often sensitive about being shown up by women, so they don’t take the classes they need. From this thought, she develops the concept of the Typing School for Men and uses further intelligent thought to make her concept become reality. Experiencing immediate success with her business, Mma. Makutsi is surprised to find romance in her classes as well. This is where the tw o stories overlap as Mma. Makutsi’s new boyfriend turns out to be the husband Mma. Ramotswe is seeking for one of her clients. Through both of these plotlines, which interweave at several points, the importance of using tact and a judicious sense of morality in finding solutions that are positive for all of the individuals involved. While Mr. Molefino stole something valuable from a family he

The Collapse And Recovery Of Societies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Collapse And Recovery Of Societies - Essay Example He argued that geography had a large role in determining which societies advanced and which stagnated. By advancement, this does not pertain to a Eurocentric thinking, but one where a greater value was placed on societies that were able to defend themselves from the colonization attacks of the Europeans. After all, numerous societies that did not withstand the technology, resources, and diseases of the European conquistadores mostly died out centuries ago. Societies collapsed because of environmental and human-made constraints and problems, and they recovered because of the ability of humans to be flexible and to adapt to their conditions, sometimes to the extent of being inhuman to other human beings. Environmental limitations delayed the growth of societies or led to their collapse. Diamond compared and contrasted the availability of plants and animals that can be domesticated in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. He learned that countries with highly advanced societies ha d more domesticated animals and plants. Of the fourteen animal species that can be domesticated, 12 are native to Eurasia (Diamond, 2005, episode 1). South America domesticated the llama, while the farmers of New Guinea domesticated the pig. But pigs cannot plow farm lands, and by the time the Europeans arrived at Papua New Guinea at the 20th century, New Guinean farming depended on their hands (Diamond, 2005, 1). As for the distribution of domesticated plant species in the world, many of them are native to Europe and Asia, such as wheat, barley and rice. Only two plant species are native to Tropical Africa (sorghum and yams), only one is native to the Americas (corn), and one in Papua New Guinea (taro). Australian natives had no domesticable plant available to them (Diamond, 2005, 1). The distribution of natural resources proves that geography consequently affected the interests and activities of the people. Human-made problems contributed to the collapse of civilizations. The sect ion â€Å"Recovery in China: The Ming Dynasty† described the descent of the Mongol’s Yuan dynasty. Some of their major problems are economic and political by nature. Financial mismanagement disabled the state from supporting public goods and services. In addition, political division produced factions among Mongols. Soon, the Mongols left China altogether in a state of financial and political ruin. In the case of the Incas, their civilization died because of the steel technology of the Europeans, among other factors. In Episode 2 of Guns, Germs, and Steel, Diamond (2005) explained the geographical advantages of the Europeans. Geography provided Europe with rich sources of iron and wood, and a climate that suited high-temperature metallurgy (Diamond, 2005, 2). Geography helped the communication of ideas and technologies too. Gunpowder travelled thousands of miles, where it originated from China and exported to Spain (Diamond, 2005, 2). At the same time, the competition i n Europe resulted to a kind of â€Å"medieval arms race† (Diamond, 2005, 2). Pizarro's conquistadors already accessed the latest and best weapons technology: guns and swords (Diamond, 2005, 2). The Incas, on the contrary, did not work on iron as a weapon and did not have access to gun power (Diamond, 2005, 2). Warfare technology did not reach their isolated territories too (Diamond, 2005, 2). Hence, the Incas faced the problem of poor access to resources and knowhow regarding warfare technology. Through the â€Å"steel† part of the colonization process, a hundred conquistadores were enough to wipe out tens and

Are we free or determined Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Are we free or determined - Research Paper Example On the contrary, when people talk about freedom to do something, it is constructive freedom (Fromm 12). It is, therefore, reasonable to argue that freedom can as well be determined by the objective of the people at a particular time. On the other hand, to be determined is the opposite of being free. Being determined primarily means that the people cannot act out of free will since they are controlled by some socio-political systems. This paper seeks to address the question on freedom and human determination in light of the views of Descartes Rene, Erich Fromm, and James Rachels and Stuart Rachels. In his 1994 book, German-born psychologist and prominent sociologist Erich Fromm looks into the dynamic link between man and the concept of freedom. Fromm addresses the concept of freedom from both the positive and negative side. The sociologist gives the relationship between man and freedom a psycho-sociological approach. His point of reference is the promotion of Nazism in German and Euro pe at large. According to the psychologist, the negative sense of freedom refers to any freewill associated with emancipation. Emancipation involves struggles by a nation to overcome undesirable management by some government or social organization. The struggle colonies were involved in during the freedom struggle is the most apt illustration of this freedom. According to Fromm, this freedom can be disastrous if it does not contain significant aspect of the positive sense of freedom (Fromm 21). In his opinion, Fromm thinks that fighting for emancipation is not a way of running away from trouble but rather a way of moving from one trouble to another. This way, human beings are said to be running away from freedom because doing away with an unwanted government will lead to the creation of another rule that is the same as the former. The sociologist explains that the manner in which Adolf Hitler rose to power can be explained by the struggle for emancipation, without bearing in mind wh at exactly is suitable for a country (Fromm 34). By Hitler rising to power, the Germans had not solved a problem. In any case, they had left a terrible situation and plunged their country into more serious problems. The rise of capitalism made human beings realize that they could work independently to determine their futures. They realized that they were being transformed into slaves whose work was to meet socio-economical duties. At this point, people stopped thinking of the idea of going to a state office, which was characterized by unnecessary red tape management, as being viable. It is at this point that human beings began focusing on self employment and identity management. According to Fromm, it is during this time that people realized the need for open and liberalized thinking. Employing such individualized ideas affected people’s perceptions of religion (Fromm 56). People began to develop individuated thoughts about the Supreme Being. It is for this simple reason that up to this day, some people still question the existence of God. Still, the churches and other religious institutions influence people’s thoughts on the existence of God and various religious doctrines. Fromm explains that the human race is not free. Like Rachels and Rachels in their book Problem Form Philosophy, he argues that the human race is influenced and determined by various socio-political structures and systems. The sociologist