Sustainable Housing and Urban Construction

Since the beginning of time, the built environment has been an integral part in providing shelter needs for men, women and children. Maslow (1943) formulated that shelter is a basic requirement of humans. In the future, humans will have to construct sustainable shelter otherwise would they would risk depleting resources for subsequent generations. Construction is an example of a multitasking activity. The lifecycle of construction can be broken into phases. Achieving building sustainability in modern environment requires a better understanding of environmental impacts. Impacts such as climate change, associated costs, as well as utilising benchmarking scale to measure across a whole range of building types and occupancies. This report will discuss building sustainability, the constraints that stake holders of built environment face, and the role of architects in the process of constructing sustainable buildings. Conceptually, sustainability is allowing present generation to meet its needs without depriving later generations of a way to meet theirs. According to Meckler (2004), building sustainability means to â€Å"provide a safe, healthy, comfortable indoor environment while simultaneously limit the reduction of the earth’s natural resources†. Architects, with their unique position within the built environment, are well equipped to meet the challenges of sustainability in the built environment. The building and construction industry possesses a high ability to be innovative (Meckler 2004), and through this innovation that it would create new methods and processes resulting in constructing improved sustainable buildings that can be serve as subsequent year’s benchmark to beat. The construction industry has invested in research and development into sustainability in order to gain a clearer understanding the effect of building on the environment and reducing the impact of buildings on the environment. The common goal is to be â€Å"energy efficient†. Being energy efficient does not equate to being energy sustainable. The energy from the traditional fossil sources cannot be supplied without using further considerable amount of energy in supplying it. The efficiency of the energy lifecycle starting from the raw extraction of resources, preparation, transport, conversion and distribution to application may be up to 20%. To equate this in simple terms is that it takes approximately 5kWh to deliver 1kWh of energy for consumption. So in order to consume 1kWh of energy, the real term consumption is actually 6kWh. Numerous studies internationally have shown that operational energy consumes the main amount of total energy use in buildings during a typical service lifespan of approximately 50 years. This accounts for about 85–95% of total energy use (Thormark, 2005). From a residential perspective, there should be a focus more on the sustainable development of the residential buildings and urban constructions. The fundamental reason new and more energy-efficient technologies continue to be ignored and the technologies that are applied rarely perform as efficiently as they should is because of a lack of accountability for building energy performance in current building design and operation practices. The building and construction industry in Australia has made significant progress forward in the last 5 years to improve their environmental performance. This improvement has been in response to increased attention from local and state government policies regarding to Ecological Sustainable Development (ESD), as well as the availability of holistic environmental rating tools such as the Green Building Council of Australia’s Green Star rating tools. Architects factor in climatic variables into their thoughts as they design and plan houses, premises and buildings (Alnaser & Flanagan 2007). In hot dry regions such as in the Northern Territory, the built environment should be planned compactly to reduce the amount of surfaces exposed to solar radiation. In warm humid regions such as in Queensland, buildings should be openly spaced to maximize air movement between individual buildings. This would reduce the structure operational energy consumption and maximise Green Star rating. Green building is a tremendous growth area in design, construction and building materials. Green building has gained momentum due to the rise in energy costs and cost of building materials. The happy medium is somewhere between a combination of passive measures through optimal building design and active measures achieved through efficient mechanical system designed to control the indoor climate. These active measures mentioned above include utilizing renewable energy, such as solar energy, wind energy and geothermic energy, improving thermal performance of building structure, utilising daylight and energy efficient lightings, and developing new sustainable building materials (Thormark, 2005). Another aspect of sustainability that is often neglected is social sustainability. Social sustainability can be thought of as qualitative indicators that complement the development process. Some social sustainability objectives are to provide adequate local services and facilities to serve the development, to provide housing to meet the needs of the population, to provide high quality, habitable developments and where possible to preserve local culture and heritage. In any actual development, there is a need for other supporting elements to make it appealing and sustainable. An integral part of the development is to provide high quality energy efficient buildings for community activities such as musicals and outdoor space for open markets. By having such gatherings, the community will get a sense of ownership and will utilise the facility frequently. A salient aspect of sustainable development is to provide a mix of housing structures of all different types (Zhu & Lin, 2003). In order to achieve the objective of providing affordable housing; designs and construction must be of high quality and yet utilises minimal resources. Wherever possible, cultural heritage should be preserved through the reutilising of local valued buildings. If cultural preservation is achieved, the architectural design for the developments will reflect local heritage and use local materials. According to Williams and Dair (2007), there are 9 commonly identifiable barriers to achieving sustainability. Some of these barriers are: 1. Sustainability measure was not considered by stakeholders 2. Sustainability measure was not required by client (includes purchasers, tenants and end users) 3. The sustainability measure cost too much (in some cases the investor would not fund) Unless sustainability is on the agenda of the local planning government, stakeholders are unlikely to voluntarily put sustainability measures on their agenda. Stakeholders were simply bypassing sustainability issues altogether. As with most local government planning policies, there are strict guidelines regarding social objectives, such as meeting housing needs. If a policy is active at the forefront of development then they appeared on stakeholders’ agendas. Many architects have the ability to succeed in achieving a higher star rating for energy efficiency for their built environment projects. They have been doing so for a while. The challenges of sustainability in the future should not be construed as extra attachments to how architects have designed in the past. Architects have the inherent ability to go back to the drawing board and to reinvent the design process to reflect the buildings needed for the future. Architects have a vital role to play. They are a part of key decision making mechanism in the building and construction industry. Going forward, their role will be inextricably linked to producing sustainable outcomes. There are many indicators for sustainable building design (Smith 2001). (a)Identifying possible sources to generate renewable electricity on location, i. e. like Building-Integrating Photovoltaic (BIPV). (b)Minimal usage of fossil fuel energy sources used during the lifetime of the building. (c)Ensuring that building management systems are user friendly simple to operate. (d)Implementing passive or active solar energy while employing heating and cooling systems which are fine tuned to the needs of the occupants with air-conditioning used only in exceptional circumstances. As we progress into the future, the need to provide shelter increases due to population growth. The building structures needed for this growing demand have to be environmentally and socially sustainable. There is a global increase in awareness of the diminishing supply of traditional fossil fuel resources. Fossil fuels make up the core heating and cooling energy consumption presently. In order to achieve sustainability and leave the next generation able to meet their needs, there are short term increased economic costs as the transition from traditional dependent on fossil fuels to alternative energy sources. These barriers have to be overcome and the role of the architect in the overall schema is extremely important. They possess the necessary design skills to adapt to the changing needs and produce sustainable commercial and residential . REFERENCES †¢N. W. Alnaser_, R. Flanagan (2007). The need of sustainable buildings construction in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Building and Environment 42 (2007) 495–506 †¢T. HARTMAN. (2008). A Vision for Energy Performance Integrating performance – monitoring initiatives to improve building sustainability. HPAC Engineering †¢ May 2008 †¢Maslow, A. H, (1943). A THEORY OF HUMAN MOTIVATION, Originally Published in Psychological Review, 50,370-396. 1943 †¢C. McCabe. (2006). Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management. Sustainable building design in Australia. Eco-Architecture: Harmonisation between Architecture and Nature. Vol. 1, pp. 237-245. 7 Jun 2006. †¢M. Meckler. (2004). Achieving Building Sustainability through Innovation Engineered Systems. †¢L. Nervenga. Specifying for Sustainability. Architecture Australia 1904-2006 †¢FS Smith. Architecture in a climate of a change: a guide to sustainable design. UK: Architectural Press, An imprint of Butterworth-Heinemann; 2001. †¢C. Thormark. (2005). The effect of material choice on the total energy need and recycling potential of a building. Building and Environment 41 (2006) 1019–1026 †¢K Williams & C Dair (2007). What Is Stopping Sustainable Building in England? Barriers Experienced by Stakeholders in Delivering Sustainable Developments. Sustainable Development Sust. Dev. 15, 135–147 †¢Yingxin Zhu, Borong Lin (2003). Sustainable housing and urban construction in China. Energy and Buildings 36 (2004) 1287–1297

The Messenger Eulogy

I Father O’reilly am privileged to have gathered amongst you all today, to give another perspective of a man who was not â€Å"just Ed†. He never gave himself great value but in my eyes he was a saint walking among us. I will never forget the moments and favours that Ed has shared with me. Ed, as many would say was a useless cab driver but in truth, I would say he was more of an inspiration and certainly it was an honour to have met this young gentleman. I still remember the day when I first met Ed. It was just a usual lonely night, when this young man showed up at my doorstep.I must say my first impressions of Ed were certainly very unique. Firstly the state of his jacket and not to mention the fact that he put four sugars in his coffee which made me slightly concerned. I never really got to ask Ed what he thought of me, I sort of knew he considered me a bit different to the rest especially being a priest and talking the way I do. There was that something about Ed whic h made him very special, I don’t know whether it was his innocent face or just the way he spoke but it seemed as if he had a passion to make things right in life.Words cannot describe how appreciative I am to this young boy, he has provided me a new perspective on how to live life. Ed visited me on a couple of occasions sometimes with his two friends Audrey and Marv. It didn’t take him long to realise that there weren’t many people who would visit my church. Ed took this matter into his own hands and it seemed as if he was determined to find a way to fix my problem. It was only a couple of days after visiting me on Sunday when Ed came barging through the front door with an idea on how to get people into my church.I must say I was shocked when I first heard the idea providing free beer in the church. I still remember the first thing I said to Ed was that I don’t have the money to cover the costs of such an aactivity. Ed ironically said to me â€Å"just ha ve a little faith† and walked away. I wondered at this point as to why he is doing so much for me when I barely even knew him from a bar of soap. There was certainly something which was pushing Ed to do all this for me but I never tried to interfere with his reasons. The next time I met Ed was on the day of the party at the church.I don’t know how many faces Ed has put a smile to, but one thing I can say for sure is that the happiness I achieved from that one day alone was something I doubt will ever come along in my life again. The number of people I saw in my church that day was never to be seen before, although the most important moment for me was when I reunited with the one man who I was longing to talk to. If I had the chance to change one thing with Ed, then that would be letting him know how grateful I am of all he has done for me. Besides what Ed has done for me, I have also heard about what he has done for others.The one I have heard about the most is the ice cream he bought for a lonely mother. It is certainly great to see that there are still people out there who are willing to go out of their way to help others. From the bottom of my heart I again would like to thank you for everything you have done for me Ed. Others may call you average, ordinary or even useless but to me you will always remain a saint. I still don’t know what your motivation was behind all that you have done for me Ed, but all I will say is that may there be more men like you in this world. May your soul rest in peace, god bless.

Board Game

Board games have many benefits. To one person it just passes time and to another person it helps with strategy skills. According to Alvin Rosenfeld, He states, â€Å"Nothing bolsters his (or hers) self-esteem more! So why not pull out an old board game tonight? Playing games is an easy and excellent way to spend unhurried, enjoyable time together. As an added bonus, board games are also rich in learning opportunities† (http://www2. scholastic. com/browse/article. jsp? id=2060). Although it is posted more towards kids I believe as adults we are still finding learning opportunities through board games. While a kid may be looking for a game learning about the alphabet, a teenager might be learning how to be some one at Risk cause is friend is really good. The following games will be discussed in this research paper: Mouse Trap, Risk, and Yahtzee. Major film junkies would know this famous French Director. His name is Albert Lamorisse. Before he was ever a famous French director he had an idea for a board game called, Conquer the World (or in French, â€Å"La Conquete du Monde†). He took it to a publishing company and he gave them idea that the game, â€Å"proved simple enough for novices to play, yet complex and realistic enough to enthrall even sophisticated war-game players† (http://www. indepthinfo. com/risk/history. shtml). The game became a huge success. Then a couple of year down the road Parker Brothers picked it up and it became a success here in America. This Game is called Risk. What influenced the game to be made were mostly likely the wars that were going on for example the Cold war, Korean War, and Vietnam War. That was just in America. The French were going though war themselves. Risk was one of goes games that challenge your mind and make you think do they actually help you out. I know that Risk and other games similar like it. They are games that are wonderful for a wide variety of reasons. The next game would be Mouse Trap. Mouse Trap is the famous game where your pawn is a mouse and you are building a mouse trap hoping that the opposite player gets caught first under the cage of it. In 1963 Mouse Trap game first published by Ideal for two or more players. It was designed by Hank Kramer of Ideal Toy Company, allowed the players almost no decision-making, in keeping with other games for very young children such as Candy land, or Chutes and Ladders. Hand eye coordination benefits Kids and Adult in this game in many ways, â€Å"Apart from that, there are certain specific situations, like playing tennis, juggling balls, solving board puzzles, etc, which require greater degree of coordination. It is not too difficult for a person to improve his hand-eye coordination, providing he is willing to work towards the same. † (http://lifestyle. iloveindia. om/lounge/hand-eye-coordination-1556. html) . Mouse Trap for me was one of my favorite games and well as my moms. I remember playing this game a lot as a kid. We would always lose the Marble that came with the game as well. Yahtzee was invented by a Canadian couple in 1954. It was said that, â€Å"They invented the game, in order to entertain their friends on their yacht. Whenever anyone was invited aboard, they were taught how to play the Yacht game. Their friends enjoyed the game so much that everyone wanted copies of the game for themselves. So in 1956, the couple approached Edwin S. Lowe, a toy maker. They placed an order with him to make up a few samples of the game, so they can distribute it among their friends. Lowe liked the game so much that he offered to buy the rights for it† (http://www. yahtzeeonline. org/yahtzee-history. php). The couple agreed to sell the rights to Edwin. While the couple named the game â€Å"Yacht† Edwin changed the name to Yahtzee. Yahtzee didn’t do good right off when it published it’s first commercial in 1956 but through throwing Yahtzee Parties the game became a huge success. It is my belief that game became a huge success due to people who loved to gamble. It was similar to gambling but the family could all join in. Any game with dice is always a game of chance if your going to win a lot in Las Vegas and lose a lot. I think that is the same way with Yahtzee. All of these three games changed the culture of gaming through three different ways. Risk Help build strategy and thinking that was influenced by the wars going on in that time frame. Mouse Trap was a fun way for kids to build coordination and confidence in kids and adults. Yahtzee was a way people could play with dice and chance if they were going get Yahtzee or just of bunch of sixes to write on their card. All of the games most likely will be family favorites for awhile.

HEA409 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

HEA409 - Essay Example In estimating the contract format, contributors must provide acceptable considerations to the business, objectives, abilities to handle the assignment, expenses, economic requirements, as well as, the potential value of the contract with managed care contract (Paul & Kylanne 169). These terms exist in the contract in the estimation of the contract period, as well as, extinction clauses. Prior to the agreement to nay condition or extinction stipulations, it is best and vital for the contributor to contain a wide perspective and determination of adding up the provisions that will accurately address the requirements of both the management care contracting and the contributor. The purpose is to establish the most suitable and enduring association. Contract Term All available contracts recognize a certain contract term. The contract term involves an episode of time for the period of which the contract exists and followed to the letter. In general, managed care contracts may be written wit h a starting period of time that is estimated to be one year maximum. This is usually to foresee the terms that contribute for an automatic reintroduction of the contract except when one group sees a certain number of days that may be foreseen to end in the annual period. Contributors should always be considerate of automatic revival provisions, as well as, their benefits and non benefits. Automatic revival provisions may arrange the stage for a wide period association that requires less control effort from the parties at the same time as providing the parties litheness to renegotiate conditions if possible and required. The risk for the contributor is that prior to the provisions, the workload is on the contributor to start a rate boost dialogue. Prior to similar conditions, the managed care contract may utilize its time in dialoging a rate boost for the after that terms of conditions and agreement. Form this, Contributors can search their benefits into a fresh contract period of t ime before a fresh economic term can be articulated and implemented; this is to formulate a substantial control, as well as, financial workload for the contributor (Clancy 919). Several annual contracts can be suitable alternative due to the potential lock in the contributor’s market share for a considerable period of time, as well as, make certain predictable income source. On the other hand, such agreements also constitute additional economic risks. Initially, prior to inward bound into such agreed conditions, the contributor must come into conclusion whether it will be possible to add protection adjacent to the prospect adverse economic situations. To contribute the appropriate protection, a contributor can involve an escalator clause for the level increase at suitable periods. If the starting assumptions on the contract may be founded prove imprecise, an example is when the projections for application per a thousand or any other expense assumptions can be off the conditio n, the escalator constructed into the contract may also experience less assumptions. Another chance to an escalator clause is for the contributor to try and dialogue the risk channels that contribute additional revenue cover up. Nevertheless, payers mainly wish that the compensation ratio constantly be equal during the provided period of time, this due to the best interest of the contributor. Furthermore, in the present dialogue

Suicide Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Suicide - Research Paper Example Sixty-seven percent of sample population (n=20) reported maximum suicide attempts among people in the age group of 15-25, 19% (n=5) was in the 25-35 range. Suicide attempts among the other age groups, i.e., 5-15 and above 35 was relatively low at 7% each. Secondly, almost half of the sample population reported maximum suicide attempts among females, at 47% (n=14), followed by men at 30% (n=9). About 17% of the psychiatrists reported equal number of suicide cases from both genders. Thirdly, about 53% (n=16) reported that their patients who had attempted suicide had used either pills or unspecified drugs as the method. About 27% (n=8) had attempted poisonous substances. However, there were cases using other methods of suicide attempts too. An assessment of reasons for committing suicide highlighted social pressures (30%) and failure in relationships (30%) as the most common ones. Other reasons like family and economic conditions were also reported. The most common impact of suicide attempts was greater depression, reported by almost 74% of the psychiatrists. This could probably be due to stigma and fear of facing the society and family members. Fear and avenging behavior have also been noticed. Increased attachment towards family was reported by few psychiatrists. The outcome of the survey pointed that depression leading to suicide was more common among adolescent females. This survey indicates that suicides attempts were reported maximum among the girls between the age group of 15-25 years, as this is the age where female face a lot of problems and pressure from school, university, their economic condition, love failures or their general hormonal changes, and even sexual harassments. Reasons for attempts of suicide can be attributed to their level of maturity and ability to handle their own growing emotions towards new relationships. Clash of sociocultural expectations and adolescent

Loophole in the Legal System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Loophole in the Legal System - Essay Example More specific questions regarding the influence of race on jury decision-making have also emerged from this spate of well-publicised cases: How does a defendant's race influence juror's perception and judgement How does the racial composition of a jury affect its deliberations and final decision Is the influence of race on jurors the same in all trails What difference, if any, would it make if more of the lawyers representing criminal defendants were racial minorities Studies show that Justices of the courts who served from 1789-1962 were socially atypical of the average American background: they came from upper-class families, attended the best law schools, were white male and generally protestant (Abraham, 1962; Ulmer, 1973). This unrepresentative nature of the courts can challenge the legitimacy of an institution. A judicial system of white men can be seen as producing only white man's justice. Another reason one can posit for the desirability of minorities in the judiciary is assimilation. America's heterogeneous population is clustered in groups that thrive along racial, religious, and national-background harmonization (Gordon, 1964). With the Hispanic population growing at a rapid rate, with blacks, Native American Indians, Asians, Jews, and White Anglo-Saxons, America, as a nation, faces the problem of how these groups can exist alongside one another. The United States is a pluralistic society.

Online games Vs Violence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Online games Vs Violence - Essay Example Hollingdale & Greitemeyer found that the Chinese adolescents who prefer to play violent games against human opponents online tended to more aggressive and a greater tolerance for anger. This study was carried among 312 Chinese teens who play online video games. In most cases, it is noted that when video game consumers play against human opponents, the levels of gaming experience increases. Thus, the gaming effects tend to increase the gamers emotions and behaviors. Children who grow up playing violent games tend to develop thinking patterns that influence their behaviour. Many people become aggressive when the gaming controls become difficult. This is a reaction caused by the frustrations facing the gamer. Mothers in Hongkong share a different perspective concerning online games. To them, video games have created a modern form to foster child development (Yung). Kenix Chong Wei-peng believes that online games help her daughter burn up excess before retiring to bed (Yung). According to Chong, her daughter has the opportunity to experience different situations through the online games. Her daughter would be ready, and know what to expect when she has the real chance to face the same situations. Apart from the games being part of entertainment, the experts tend to make them educational too. Ann Chow, head of marketing consumer channels in Microsoft Hongkong, believes that the games would encourage kids to develop a positive attitude towards learning (Yung). Players could access the natural world and have a clear understanding of nature, and be conversant with the different languages and environment. In the gaming consoles, the player becomes the character chosen and assumes the skills of that character. As the levels increase, the games become tougher requiring the gamer to utilise and learn more tactics. Each challenge reinforces the player with new information, thus fostering learning (Yung). Most parents argue that

Summary one page ISO9000 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Summary one page ISO9000 - Essay Example In identifying this system, the ordering and relationship of the processes are critically defined. Second, management responsibility is the thorough implementation and development of the specified management system utilized by the company with the emphasis to the customer’s satisfaction to a given product. Moreover, it involves the creation of policy and objectives inherent in a company. Third, resource management refers to the determination and validation of the company’s human resources, infrastructure, and work environment. For the human resource in particular, the ISO 9000 identifies the competency of the personnel in line with his or her designated work. Fourth, product realization is mainly characterized by planning and application of the processes, design, and production of the customer-oriented product. The planning phase points to the identification of the processes, verification, monitoring and other related activities specific to the product. And production phase is the company’s activity to monitor and control the release, delivery, and distribution of its products. And fifth, the measurement, analysis, and improvement of the ISO 9000 are largely marked by the demonstration, quality control, and continuity of the effectiveness of the quality management system. For the analysis, the important data are identified, collected, and analyzed to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of quality management system. By and large, ISO 9000 is customer-oriented set of standard aimed to fulfill and satisfy the customer’s needs and

Kids and reading to them Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Kids and reading to them - Essay Example Reading with the kids makes them feel on top of their game. By this, one would mean the consummate ease with which they bring to themselves an understanding of how life’s nuances would be, and how they would be able to tackle the intricacies of the times that are coming up for them. Reading with the kids is the need of the hour because it tells them where they have to grow and develop, and how they shall see the changing realms of life whilst dealing with them on a consistent basis. What is even more interesting is the fact that the children will know that they are being given the attention that they direly require within their midst, as this is a fact that has to see the light of the day. This paper discusses how reading with the kids helps them to grow and develop, and be an important part within this society. The reading element instills in the kids a sense of belongingness that they are bound to learn, analyze and hence understand how life shapes up, and how life’s different turns are handled in the most apt manner. Reading with the kids allows them to feel special; that they are being given the time and energies which shall bear rich fruit as far as their growth and development measures are concerned. What is even more interesting is the fact that the kids need to get in line with the changing norms of the time and for that they have to know what is happening in the world around them (Friedland, 2004). They must be acquainted with the varying norms and routines so that they can achieve results which are complete from all angles. What is even more important is the fact that the kids must adapt to change; and this change shall happen on an incremental basis – for their respective growth and developmental levels nonetheless. It is a well-known fact that the world appreciates if the kids read, study and learn, not only on their own but also with the help and guidance of their elders. Reading makes the kids go wild in their imagination. The y explore the world around them and learn how to implement the same in a practical form (Stewart, 2011). This is a positive undertaking and should always be understood within the relevant angles. Reading with kids allows the parents to comprehend how their kids are shaping up within the study domains and what strengths and weaknesses are within their folds. They would be able to cover up the grey areas that remain within a child’s fore and work upon the strengths to polish them further. It would also tell the parents that their children have some specific preferences as far as career adoption within the future domains is concerned. Hence there is an all-out effort and endeavor on the part of the parents to apprise the kids where they are falling and what they needed to do in order to move ahead further with the passage of time. This is so required because it will tackle the negatives to arise within the kids and keep them at bay with the up and coming issues which might hurt their professional growth and development, and not to forget the personal one as well. How the kids perceive the entire reading process is something that shall be understood properly. This is because the kids want to get acquainted with the changing needs of the time, and this could only be possible if they are on the right track as far as their study realms are concerned. When parents give them the attention the kids learn quickly. It is because the kids know that their parents love them and care for them in the most loving way possible. When they read along with their parents, they come to know the different ways through which a particular language is comprehended, as well as the ways and means through which grammatical and spelling issues are tackled (Demoulin, 2003). The parents teach them how to pronounce words and make use of sentences as are required. They tell them the meanings and definitions of certain words, as well as detail them regarding the sentence structures all the same. Moving ahead with the discussion at hand, the kids need the time of

Assignment (Economics) Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

(Economics) - Assignment Example The adverse impact of tax hike was phenomenal for casual drinkers as they massively reduced their consumption, thereby resulting in overall decrease in aggregate beer demand. Obviously, the producers were unable to increase prices substantially considering demand / consumption pattern and thus suffered stupendous financial losses. For instance, the producers adopted downsizing strategy, which in turn resulted in 50,000 job losses. The revenues to government also declined in general as the beer industry did not record significant market expansion and growth. The demand from hardcore drinkers also reduced as they switched to other cheap drinks to ensure their balance of their financial budgets. All in all, the rollback of levies / taxes would not lead to mammoth rise in consumption; rather will reduce financial burden on producers as well as consumers. Next, consumers would not change their drinking habit and start consuming irresponsibly; therefore, this is just a myth that rollback o f beer taxes may cause grave healthcare issues. Reference Beer Tax Website â€Å"Just the Facts† Roll Back the Beer Tax http://www.rollbackthebeertax.com/

Mark Twain Case Essay Example for Free

Mark Twain Case Essay Mark Twain was an extremely productive author in his lifetime.   He wrote many famous books, articles and stories.   He was also a world traveler.   He visited five continents and crossed the Atlantic Ocean 29 times.   In general, he is notarized for his fiction works.   However, he also composed many successful non-fiction manuscripts as well. Many of Twain’s non-fiction works were written on his travels.   In his travels to the Old City, Twain took photographs to correspond with his written work.   He described the Old City, highlighting the methods and manners in which the Jewish people of the city worshipped and interacted with one another.    While doing this, he provided names to many of the places that he visited.   Many of these names have stuck, and have become the common names of landmarks (Journey to the Holy City, 2).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most readers are already familiar with the broad brushstrokes of Mark Twain’s life.   Many interviews, however, were conducted in order to present a totally new facet of the Twain story, unfictionalized and in fascinating detail. These interviews appeared in a great diversity of American and international newspapers during the long course of his creative adult life (Nash).   The interviews provide information to the volumes and volumes of Twain’s imaginative and satirical capabilities.   Most famous of the non-fiction works written by Twain is his adult biography.   The biography tells the compelling story, from his own perspective, of life and the inspirations behind his works. Countless books have been written about Twain’s life.   One book, written by Ron Powers, has been hailed by critics as serving as a â€Å"biography but much more†¦Powers uses Twain’s life to tell us what America was like then and, tangentially, why were what we are today† (Spiegel, 2).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Twain’s world travels began in 1867, when a California newspaper sent him on a five-month trip to Europe and the Middle East.   There, he wrote many letters that were later put together to form the book The Innocents Abroad (Twain’s Travels, 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Mark Twain is considered to be one of the world’s greatest humorists.   His witty phrases and observations filled the pages of his non fiction works (WordPlay, 1).   Twain was also one of the first persons in his town in Hartford, Connecticut to have a telephone.   An example of his humorous use of satire to describe a situation occurred in 1880.  Ã‚   Twain was amused by his new device, as it enabled persons who enjoyed eavesdropping to hear only one side of a conversation.   As a result, he wrote an amusing description of listening to his wife talk on the telephone (Twain, 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Twain composed many of his non-fiction works under his pen name.   His legal name was Samuel Clemens.   While often engaged in travel, Twain spent over 17 years at his beloved Hartford home.   While living there, he published six books.   These include: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, A Tramp Abroad, The Prince and the Pauper, Life on the Mississippi, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court (Allen).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Literature critics have paid significant attention to Twain’s twang in his nonfiction writings, stating that â€Å"he pours forth a flood of most graphic word painting. He talks slowly and extracts each of his vowels with a corkscrew twist that would make even the announcement of a funeral sound like a joke† (Mark’s Twang, 1). Critics have also spent significant amounts of time dissecting Twain’s life as well as books written about his life.   In an article by Middlekauff, the author describes Twain as an inspiration to biographers, historians and literary critics alike.   Middlekauff elaborates on this by concluding, â€Å"Mark Twain, in all of his fascination, will never exhaust the interest of his readers† (1).   It seems as though Middlekauff hit it right on. In the past decade, in particular, Twain’s name has been used publicly to highlight achievement.   Schools have been named after him.   Additionally, many literary awards have been named after the famous author.   For example, in 2006, playwright Neil Simon was presented with the Ninth Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor (Awards and Prizes, 1). Works Cited Allen, Daniel.   Mark Twain.   Yankee.   November 2006.   Vol 70(9).   1 pg. Awards and Prizes.   American Theatre.   September 2006.   Vol 23(7).   1 pg. Journey to the Holy City in the Footsteps of Mark Twain.   PSA Journal.   October 2006. Volume 72(10).   2 pg. Mark’s Twang.   Harper’s Magazine.   September 2006.   Vol 313(1876).   1 pg. Middlekauff, Robert.   Mark Twain: A Life.   Journal of American History.   September Vol 93(2). 1 pg. Nash, Charles.   Mark Twain: The Complete Interviews.   Library Journal.   October 1, Vol. 131(16). 2 pg. Spiegel, Pamela.   Leaders as Readers.   American Libraries.   May 2006.   Vol 37(5), 4 pg. Twain, Mark.   A Telephonic Conversation.   Atlantic.   September 2006.   Vol 298(2).   1 pg. Twain’s Travels: Letters from home; from France, Morocco, Egypt and Russia.   Read. November 3, 2006.   Vol 56(6).   2 pg. Wordplay.   Read.   November 3, 2006.   Vol 56(6).   1 pg.

Do the right thing by Spike Lee Essay Example for Free

Do the right thing by Spike Lee Essay I dearly love the film and maintain that its one of the great pictures from the last 10 years. I dont know what the director of this movie (Spike Lee) intended the moral to be, but my take on the film has always been that NO ONE does the right thing, and this is the cautionary element of the movie. The racial message about racial injustice is very deep and one that every race should see. The climax of the movie is very powerful and deep. The heat is blazing, tensions are running high (especially racial ones), and under this kind of pressure no one behaves according to common courtesy and decency. The entire film is a chain of uncontrolled outbursts of anger that lead to everyones misery. The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability could be wrong, so is the belief that a particular race is superior to others. Anyone can have a belief like that black, white, whatever. I am not about to buy into this rhetoric that any race shoulders 100% of the blame for racism in America today. Indeed, but racism is a belief, not an action. Sociologists clearly delineate between prejudices and acts of discrimination. One can be racist (prejudice) and not act on it (discriminate). By the same token, one can discriminate against others and not hold racist beliefs (prejudice). There is simply no way, short of telepathy, to determine if anyone is truly racist. One can easily assume that Adolf Hitler was a racist based on his writings and horrific actions, but there is absolutely no way to know for sure that Hitler *truly* hated Jews or simply used the hatred of Jews as a convenient means to attain power. Anyway, those in a position of power have more opportunities to act discriminatorily than those without, but I see no evidence to suggest that The Powers That Be are more *likely* to engage in such behaviors. As such, a discriminatory action by a powerless person can be more effective than the lack of such an action by someone in power. Riots are NEVER true result of racism, but rather the violent, destructive impulses of citizens with no faith in the justice system to take matters into their own hands. They are simply an opportunity for a misguided youth, unsupervised or uninstructed on issued of morality, to appease their violent appetites by destroying the livelihood of someone who is not exactly like  them. In every major example of the last 40 years in US, the violent rioters were not good citizens who felt pushed to the breaking point by some act of injustice, but degenerates whose prejudices against anyone with more money than they found an excuse in the politicized racial arguments to act out what they never truly cared to know was wrong (Heath Petraitis, 1987). The only result of a race riot is hatred, looting, and murder. It is not the answer to anything, and should never be treated as such. It is an insult to the millions of black citizens who seek to live their lives as normal, peaceful, law-abiding citizens of the United States to associate them with the few degenerate thieves and murderers who commit race riots (Singer Singer, 1986). Thats why Do the Right Thing has always touched its viewers. The ending turns a decent, fine comedy-drama into a vessel for class and race related hatred. I do believe in violence as a last measure to protect ones self, or their personal freedoms, or in the case of a moral war. Just look at my signature closing line. I do not in any way believe that the situation in Do the Right Thing presents a need for violence. It is merely a bunch of tempered people retaliating against the brutality of the police by burning an innocent mans pizza shop down, apparently only because he was a white business owner. That is sad. I think, really, this films central theme if there really is one is the path black men in America today face as inspired by their most prominent leaders. Radio Rahiem is easily the wisest in the entire film as hes aware of the dichotomy and thus tries to balance his existence under both directions fight the power constantly playing takes on an entire new meaning here as the film doesnt really know what the power is that PE wants us to fight. Rahiem knows though, its the self. Pretty amazing imagery. But on the other hand, he rarely speaks but instead relies on his radio to speak for him. Likewise, he doesnt understand his own rhetoric on the nature of love and hate. That made him as racist as any other character in the film, with the possible but unlikely exception of smiley, and brings his own death on himself. I wondered what would be the cops reactions if racial positions had been  reversed (ie a black mans pizzeria, a white man accidentally killed after basically making a complete, hostile mess of himself, then resisting arrest etc) Would a white cops strangle a white man to death? Thats where racial issues arise. I was upset at the death of radio Rahiem, but just couldnt escape the fact that he had brought it on himself. No one deserves to die like that. But if he had avoided escalating a completely unnecessary confrontation by assaulting Sal, he wouldnt have died. He was responsible for his own death, just as Sal was responsible for the destruction of the pizzeria (very nearly his own death) when he destroyed Rahiems radio. Radio Raheem was pissed off, his whole existence was that radio. Sure he physically assaulted him, but he didnt say anything like, Ill kill you. Maybe if Radio said in an earlier scene Man Im gonna kill that irk bastard etc. Id be more apt to agree that Radio Rahiem intent was to kill Sal. Technically Sal brought the destruction of the pizzeria on himself too, by (through the chain of events) not putting up pictures of brothers on the walls; but it is his pizzeria and he was within his rights to do so. He yelled racist epithets which is a direct act of aggression and smashed someones property to pieces. Instead of destroying someones property, he should have called the police to escort Buggin out and Radio Rahim. Radio Rahiem was NOT within his rights when he entered the store and refused to turn his radio down. Of course Sal and Radio Rahiem are both racists, everyone in the film is. No one did the right thing in the end, but the unfortunate fact is that, in the final encounter with Radio Rahiem, Sal was just a little more right than Radio Rahiem. Imagine Radio Rahiem and Sal were both black (or white.) Imagine the ultimate reasons behind the clash were not racially based. Radio Rahiem is the aggressor, and because of this, ultimately audience sympathy would lie with Sal. Radio Raheem and Buggin Out were trying to bully an innocent business owner. It was Sals restaurant, if they did not like his regulations than they could leave, but he was entirely within his rights to demand for them to either leave or turn off the music. He certainly gave fair warning, and he never ever tried to physically harm anyone until Radios attack. While it is  unfortunate Radio died, he simply was not worth the destruction that was carried out in his name. I also find it mystifying that Mookie, supposedly the levelheaded character in the movie, was so superficial that he blamed Sal for Radios death. I cannot reconcile myself with the notion that Mookie throwing the trash can through the pizzeria window was even remotely doing the right thing. I sympathize a lot with Sal, but I also sympathize with Mookie. Sal also cared a lot about the black in Bastury, and was genuinely hurt when some of them turned against him. I will vehemently argue that Sals character is not racist; he drops an n-word at the end, but the man is watching his lifes work being torched by arson at the hands of a group of African-Americans; his outburst is understandable and forgivable. Vito, Lees Sister, and the baby are as decent as people could be. Da Mayor is a good man who has made mistakes but is trying to change so at this point hes a good man trying to be a better man. He does drink too many beers with little money, though. One thing that always confused me about this film (although its one of my favorites) is why Mother Sister painfully screams noooo, when only a few minutes beforehand, she was right with the crowd yelling burn it! burn it! it seems like a bit of a flaw to me, but I could be wrong. My guess is the Burn it down Burn it down is with respect to the pizzeria. The noooo is with respect to radio Rahiems death. Lets assume that the film is about the cyclical nature of violence. Does Spike Lee( the director) think that all violence is bad or only certain violence is? After reading Martin Luther Kings quote I thought it was all violence; after reading Malcolm Xs quote I got the message that some violence is ok. I know that Blacks have been prejudiced against for a long time, but I dont see how violence ever solved their problem. It seems to me that Martin Luther Kings non-violence approach ultimately did much more to further equality than Malcolm Xs approach of violence-sometimes-needed approac h. The cops didnt necessarily care for Sal or anyone there. They didnt kill Rahiem because they wanted revenge. They did a right think by choking Rahiem, but they should have weakened him enough to handcuff him and then have thrown him in the police car. I doubt either Clubbing or strangling  will ever equate to, to use your words, holding him in place until he calmed down. I doubt those are the only options law enforcement officers have. They shouldnt have killed him. It was an extreme use of force pure and simple. The key being that if as you say they were trying to prevent Sal from being chocked by a criminal than why didnt they release their choke hold on Radio Rahiem after he had let go of Sal? They kept choking him long after he was a threat to anyone and it was obvious he himself was being choked to death. Why did they not throw him to the ground at that time and handcuff him? They didnt even try. In the film, Da Mayor says you gotta Do The Right Thing. Rahiem does not because he wont respect Sals wishes to turn off or turn down the radio (Also didnt respect Sals decision to represent only his culture in the pizzeria). Bugging Out is just a racist who knows nothing and wants to pretend to have a calling so he rides in on Radios coattails. Rahiem did the wrong thing and Sal did nothing wrong until he uttered the N-word. I dont think Sal meant it in that way. He was angry so he exploited a characteristic of Radios boom box. The people were angry at Sal for saying the n-word but they didnt go against Sal. They got confused and yelled. Then the police came in and everything went up in flames. Obviously, a spark leads to a fire. The spark: The police killing Rahiem. The Fire: The mob. It was understandable for there to be a riot and it was understandable that they got angry at white men in general because they are black people and they live in an ugly area. But just because its understandable, doesnt mean its right. The name of the movie is Do The Right Thing. And to be honest, even though thats very straight and very literal, towards the end it becomes ironic. The moment that they could do the right thing, they did the worst thing of them all. And that riot could have been right but it went wrong. Their anger went in the wrong direction. Things just happen. Sals pizzeria going down in flames is symbolic of the fact that people just destroy each other. And in the end, the face of the oppressor (The white man) is thrown on every white body and someone with the face of the oppressor is oppressed. Well, theres a line (Not from this movie) that goes You become the monster so the monster will not break you. You become what you terrify you. And in  this case, the oppressed (The black community) gets so fed up (Throughout the entire movie, there is talk of there recently being a police brutality situation involving black civilians being killed) with being oppressed that they become what they hate and they oppress someone else: Someone whos been more of a family member to them then most of their families has a different face than they do. He has the face of the monster, and they dont like past skin deep and treat him the way they should treat the people who do oppress them. And its painful and we dont know what to think. Im the least racist person in the world and Im also the person who is more annoyed than anyone with jokes being allowed to be made about white people and not about black people. I dont like going to the park and having some guy say, White boy, dont want none of this. It irritates me because I want plenty. Sometimes it gets so hard to hear all the unfairness and listen to a persons lack of understanding for another. This film is just a day. Its the hottest day of the summer. You can do nothing, you can do something, or you can Do The Right Thing. You can. So do it.

Understanding The Dell Direct Distribution Channel Commerce Essay

Understanding The Dell Direct Distribution Channel Commerce Essay The direct model refers to the fact that Dell does not use the retails channel, but sells its PCs directly to customers through its website, this way the intermediary steps that may add time and cost are eliminated, and Dell is directly linked to its customers. The direct approach allows Dell to build a relationship, which makes it quick and easy for customers to do business with Dell. Supplier DELL Final Customer The build-to-order model enables Dell to keep inventory down very low compared to competitors like Compaq and IBM. Dell has a low inventory of five to ten days, while Compaq and IBM have inventory of four weeks or more. Dell purchases a significant number of components from single sources. In some cases, alternative sources of supply are not available. In other cases Dell may establish a working relationship with a single source, even when multiple suppliers are available, if the company believes it is advantageous to do so when considering performance, quality, support, delivery, capacity and price (Annual Report, 1996). If the supply of a critical single-sourced material or component were delayed or curtailed, Dells ability to ship the related product in desired quantities and in a timely manner could be adversely affected. Even where alternative sources of supply are available, qualification of the alternative suppliers and establishment of reliable supplies could result in delays and a possible loss of sales, which could affect operating results adversely (Annual Report, 1996). An Event:- On 21 September 1999, an earthquake of magnitude 7.6 struck Chichi, Taiwan. It had devastating consequences. Baum (1999) reports that after the disaster more than 2,200 people lost their lives, more than 50,000 buildings were destroyed and total industrial production losses were estimated as $1.2 billion. This area features high production concentration of many other computer components, e.g. motherboards (more than two-thirds of world consumption in 1999) and notebook displays. Local producers of computer memory, TSMC and UMC being the leading Taiwanese suppliers, lost significant quantities of work in progress at the time of the earthquake. Sherin and Bartoletti (1999) report that production lines could not restart at the first couple of days after the event as sensitive critical-path equipment had been damaged. The world markets of memory chips reacted very fast to this news, as supply was constrained at the last part of 1999. The spot price of memory chips went up fivefold. computer memory increases were not passed on to consumers as higher product prices, but they were absorbed by the company and were passed on to investors in the form of less stock repurchases. Dell Computer Co. (2000a) announced that during the fourth quarter of 1999 it lost $300 million in revenue due to the Earthquake. Literature Review The global presence of DELL with sales offices in 43 countries, sales presence in 170 countries, 6 global manufacturing sites in Brazil, Tennessee, Texas, China, Ireland and Malaysia clearly defines its leading position in the computer systems market. The annual revenue for Dell Inc was $ 61.8 Billion (FY 2008- 2009). By cutting .the middle man and building PCs, enterprise products like servers, storages, solutions to order, Dell has revolutionized an industry once inundated with unsold inventory and products that quickly became obsolescent. Dells integrated supply chain has allowed it to gain market share while remaining profitable. Dells business strategy includes direct route to market, Supplier relationship and E- Commerce. Dell Direct Model Supplier Relationship (Just In Time Strategy) E- Commerce Direct Model: Dells business model is the envy of many competitors. Most other competitors are in the process of developing a direct market strategy but the transition from existing sales channel is not simple. Dell continues to gain market share by using its knowledge about its customers. First of all, the model eliminates the need to support a widespread network of wholesale and retail dealers, which allows them to avoid dealer mark-ups; avoids the higher inventory costs associated with the wholesale/retail channel and the competition for retail shelf space; and diminishes the high risk of obsolescence associated with products in a rapidly changing technological market. Supplier Relationships: Dell.s integrated supply chain allows it to keep only four days of inventory. Component price in computer industry falls almost 6% a week. The company can provide the component price decline to its customers quickly. In addition, Dell shares demand information with suppliers, so ensuring that inventory is kept to minimum. Dell also enhances cash flow by effectively paying suppliers after customers have settled invoices. Dells relationship with their suppliers has played a key role in their success story. They have found a way to get most suppliers to keep components warehoused within minutes from Dells factories in Austin, Penang, Malaysia, and Limerick, Ireland. This has led them to reduce their number of suppliers from 204 in 1992, to only 47 today, all of whom have been willing to cooperate with their warehousing plan. These suppliers manage their own inventories, while they run parts to Dell as needed. The biggest advantage for Dell is that they dont get b illed for the components until they leave the suppliers warehouse. Dell doesnt take these components until an order is placed, which saves them a lot of money because the prices of PC parts can fall rapidly in just a few months. E-Commerce: Dell has developed a process whereby they can assess the lowest possible price within an hour. Dells e-commerce infrastructure allows dynamic pricing strategy, whereby the same product and service can be sold at different prices, depending on the buyer. As a result of their innovative transformation, Dell sells more than $30 million per day on the Internet, accounting for 30% of their overall revenue. Dell views the Internet as the most genuine and efficient form of their direct model, providing greater convenience and efficiency to customers as well as to Dell. Theoretical Model :- Supply Chain Disruption, both potential and actual are the enemies of all firm. Supply Chain disruption can be defined as Unplanned and Unanticipated event that has disrupted the normal flow of goods and material within a supply chain. Risk Prevails in three categories i.e Internal risk , External Risk and Network related risk( Juttner et al. 2002). Risk can be catogorised in variables. Variables suggested by Ritchie and Marshall ( 1993) include environment, industry, organisation , problem specific, decision maker related variables. Supply Chain Disruption:- Anything that affects the flow and supply of raw material, sub component, finished good from all the way from origin to the final demand point. On the basis of the severity of impacts and their likelihood or probability of occurrence, the major established attributes of disruption can be classified as follows: The most vital attribute of disruption is the inherent cause of disruption. For example, Murphy(2006) categorized disruptions into natural events, external man made events, and internal- man made events. Blizzards, labour strikes, and product recalls would be examples of each category respectively (Murphy 2006). Another vital attribute is on how many spheres or disciplines of the supply chain have been affected by a given disruption at one time. The third vital attribute is whether or not the disruption is associated an environmental change. Disruptions that cause an environmental change usually impact some form of the infrastructure for either a long time period or permanently. The fourth and the final attribute of disruption is the duration of the disruption itself. The framework tests the supply chain risks based on the above mentioned attributes and classifies them as deviation disruption or disaster, based on the severity of the disruption over the supply chain and the probability of occurrence as a parameter for risk calculation, assessment, prevention or mitigation. In order to see the different aspect of risk management in a supply chain, a frame work prepared by Manuj and Mentzer( 2008) has been reviewed.The schematic diagram of the framework is shown below. The framework is created in view with firms having a global outreach who source from different countries. This framework provided is a comprehensive one with both risk management and mitigation factors incorporated in to it. This framework proved to be ideal for risk management and mitigation in Dell, a truly global firm. The framework adopts 5 step approach for Risk management and Mitigation. Risk Identification: Risk identification is an important stage in the risk management process. Consequently, by identifying a risk, decision-makers become aware of events that may cause disturbances. To assess supply chain risk exposures, the company must identify not only direct risks to its operations, but also the potential causes or sources of those risks at every significant link along the supply chain (Christopher  HYPERLINK #idb3et al.HYPERLINK #idb3, 2002). Hence, the main focus of supply chain risk analysis is to recognize future uncertainties to enable proactive management of risk-related issues. Risk Assessment and Evaluation: After the risk analysis, it is important to assess and prioritize risks to be able to choose management actions appropriate to the situation. One common method is to compare events by assessing their probabilities and consequences and put them in a risk map/matrix Risk Management Strategy: Different strategies are adopted for various risks according to their importance and nature. Various strategies are suggested in the framework, such as Avoidance, Postponement, Speculation, Hedging, Control, Risk Sharing/Transfer, Security etc. Implementation of Supply Chain Risk Management Strategy:- Once the various strategies have been decided, plans have to be made for implementing the strategies based on their priority. Mitigation of Supply Chain Risk: Mitigation is the most commonly considered risk management strategy. Mitigation involves fixing the flaw or providing some type of compensatory control to reduce the likelihood or impact associated with the flaw. A common mitigation for a technical security flaw is to install a patch provided by the vendor. Sometimes the process of determining mitigation strategies is called control analysis. Expansion of the Framework and explanation of Potential Source of Disruption Recovery:- The global SCRM frame work designed by Manuj and Mentzer (2008) was applied on the Dells Value chain to analyze and identify the Risk. The framework was expanded and broken in to various stage and then applied to the Dell Value Chain. Risk Identification: In this phase various risk were identified by brain storming. The risks were classified in the following sub heads. Supply Risk: This includes of Wrong Supplier selection ,Natural Calamity like Earthquake, Hurricane, Low Inventory levels, Quality Issues , Supply disruption and Price escalation. Operations Risk: This includes Exchange Rate, Country Factors, and Virtual integration network breakdown. Demand Risk: This includes New Competitor, Technology Changes and Demand Fluctuation. Security Risk:- This includes Information system breach and Freight breaches. Risk Assessment and Evaluation: In this phase we have calculated the RPN number. Probability and impact of disruption were quantifies on the scale of 1 to 10 based on the hypothesis on the most severe to be 10 and the least severe to be 1.Eventually the most probable to be 10 and the least probable to be 1. Multiplying the Probability and Probability, RPN was calculated. Risk Management:- In this phase we have suggested the various ways by which an organization can minimize the impact by the risk which were identified in the Risk identification. Risks having high RPN number such as Supply Disruption , Low inventory Level should be attacked first, gradually coming down to the lesser RPN numbers and taking proper measure to minimize the risk. Risk Mitigation: Identifying the severity of disruption, risk mitigation strategy was defined. The academic framework by Manuj and Mentzer(2008) was tested hypothetically over the case of severe supply chain disruption faced by Dell and other computer systems manufacturer, during the time when Taiwan, one of the largest manufacturing base for semiconductor and motherboard production and assembly, suffered an earthquake, which is critically analysed as an unplanned unorganised risk for any functional supply chain in the manufacturing scenario.. After the step wise approach of finalising the framework and implying and expanding it over a real time already occurred situation of crisis it was inferred that severe supply chain disruptions have a great impact on the firm. The existence of a clearly articulated risk management plan for disaster-induced supply disruptions has not appeared in Dells official announcements during the six month period after the event in Taiwan. The inherent supply chain agility of this CDM Company, however, offered it several means of recourse during the month that followed the disruption. Dell operates on a configure-to-order basis, thus the final decision on product configuration rests with Dells customer. The moment an inputs price increases, customers may modify their configuration preferences by requesting less of the expensive input. Veverka (1999) reports that Dell changed its marketing strategy after the Taiwan earthquake in an effort to shift consumer preferences towards low memory products. A second ingredient of Dells supply chain strategy, long-term contracts with suppliers, did not deliver steady prices; despite expectations to the contrary in the PC industry press (Deckmyn, 1999). Baljko-Shah (2000) reports that Dell was forced to buy regular DRAM memories after the Taiwan earthquake, while their prices were high. Dell was planning to incorporate in its most innovative product line best-available technology memories (RDRAM). Contrary to earlier announcements, computer processor unit (CPU) suppliers did not make available on time CPUs compatible with the new technology memories. Dell ended up buying conventional memories during the earthquake-induced shortage in order to meet advertised commitments to increased memory capability in its innovative products. Dell Computer Co. (2000a) announced that during the fourth quarter of 1999 it lost $300 million in revenue. With respect to the framework by Manuj and Mentzer ( 2008) , the disruption at dell, in the case of earthquake in Taiwan at the supplier base, disrupting the dells supply chain can be covered by deploying the Risk resilience. The key points to mitigate the damages caused by the Supply Chain disruption are recommended as below. Postponement of Risk :- Postponement entails delaying the actual commitment of resources to maintain flexibility and delay incurring costs (Bucklin, 1965). It appeared that an increasing trend toward off-shoring provided a motivation for form postponement. Yang et al. (2004) also argue that with increasing attention to mass customization, agile operations, and e-business strategies, there should be more interest in postponement; however, there has been an absence of empirical research supporting this implication. Since global supply chains face high risks, postponement becomes increasingly valuable as the proportion of off-shore components in the final product increases. Therefore, as a preliminary observation, we believe that as the proportion of off-shore components in the final product increases, the likelihood of a supply chain considering investment in form postponement will increase. Speculation of Risk: Speculation (also called selective risk taking) is a demand-side risk management strategy that is the opposite of postponement (Bucklin, 1965). It includes such actions as forward placement of inventory in country markets, forward buying of finished goods or raw material inventory, and early commitment to the form of a product, all in anticipation of future demand. In the interviews, speculation emerged as the most commonly used strategy to address uncertainty in the business Environment: Hedging of Risk: In a global supply-chain context, hedging is undertaken by having a globally dispersed portfolio of suppliers and facilities such that a single event (like currency fluctuations or a natural disaster) will not affect all the entities at the same time and/or in the same magnitude. For example, dual sourcing can be used as a hedge against risks of quality, quantity, disruption, price, variability in performance, and opportunism (Berger et al., 2004), but dual sourcing requires more investment than single sourcing. Transfer of Risk:- The transfer of risk primarily encompasses a risk sharing strategy in a case of severe supply disruption by sharing it with 3rd party suppliers and allies. CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION, IMPLICATION FOR FUTURE RESEARCH:- Conclusion:- Supply chain risk management is a decision process often requiring a multidisciplinary approach. Typically, risk mitigation and contingency planning entails skills in operations strategy and supply chains. After a close analysis of the Dell Direct Supply Chain system considering the impact of the Taiwan earthquake on the dell by the frame work developed by Munoj and Mentzer ( 2008). The overall objective of the framework is to reduce the impact of disruption and understanding the various factors that play a role in the post- disruption recovery and decision making process. Dell Computers doctrinal commitment to minimal inventories, however, is well known. Companies with similar strategic commitments are unlikely to be interested in risk mitigation policies involving emergency inventories along the supply chain. In this case, risk transfer is left as the main option to consider, including contracts with emergency suppliers and insurance contracts. In light of Kunreuther and Bantwals (2000) discussion on rigidities in the successful introduction of Cat-Bonds, one alternative risk transfer instrument, the latter task may be challenging strategy to apply, but appears to be worth the effort. Scope for Future Research :- The Supply chain Disruption Management framework and disruption management process model have areas of interest that have not been able to be explored in this research leaving multiple area for future research. First area of research is understanding of the decision making process and its operational and behavioural factors. Second area of future research is the impact on the risk that disruption and firm strategies have. Putting to practice supply chain theories in order to bridge supply chain strategy with company financial performance is a daunting task. Supply chain theory attempts to clarify the complex interconnections among many actors in supply networks. Yet, it is unclear whether simple formulas for supply chain performance, encompassing a few variables, will have general application to business practice. In addition, it is difficult to design empirical studies that would isolate the effect of supply chain strategy on business performance from other company decisions and environmental variables. The study of supply chain disruptions may provide an interesting exception to the latter restriction, in that disruption impact may test whether supply chain management affects Company risk structure. There is a fast growing literature on alternative methods of risk transfer. It would be interesting to explore whether the latter methods may shield customised product direct marketing companies from investors uneasiness after disruptions in component markets.

What is Civil Engineering? :: essays research papers

Historically, Civil Engineering is the oldest branch of engineering and dates back at least 5,000 years to the profession of "master builder" involving pyramids, temples and irrigation projects. Engineering has changed greatly since those days but the fundamental principles have stayed the same. Engineers solve peoples problems with applied science and innovation. Today's problems are more complex and the needs of current and future societies have created challenges for engineering unparalleled in our history. The use of electronic data collection methods and the application of computers has revolutionized the practice of Civil Engineering. To interpret and satisfy these needs, Civil Engineers currently direct the spending of more than one tenth of Canada's gross national product, more than any other professional group. The Civil Engineer must deal with the human impact of engineering. Social, moral and legal issues concern us to a far greater degree than ever before. Civil Engineering has become an extremely diverse field with many areas of application. A summary of the major fields follow: Structural Engineering Structural Engineering deals with the design and construction of all types of structures including buildings and bridges. Emphasis is placed on mechanics and the behaviour of materials. Infrastructure Management and Construction Infrastructure Management and Construction deals with project management, construction materials, construction engineering and building engineering. Water and Waste Management Engineering Water and Waste Management Engineering addresses water and waste water treatment, surface and ground water pollution and control, solid and hazardous waste management, contaminant transport and behaviour in the environment. Support areas involving aquatic chemistry, computer modeling, simulation and laboratory experimentation as examples are also stressed. Transportation Engineering Transportation Engineering deals with the planning, design, construction, traffic operation and evaluation of streets, highways, airports, and transit systems. Geotechnical Engineering Geotechnical Engineering covers the engineering properties of soils, the fundamentals of soil mechanics, and the application of geotechnical data and fundamentals to the design of foundation elements, earth-retaining structures, excavations, earth embankments and highway pavements. Engineering Mechanics Engineering Mechanics deals with the rigorous study of mechanics, applied mathematics and related fields. This leads to an understanding of advanced analysis and leads to study in structural engineering, hydraulics, mechanics of solids and fluids, or properties of materials. Experimental Mechanics Experimental Mechanics involves the experimental investigations of the static and dynamic response of structures and machines, and in the development of improved techniques to obtain and analyze experimental data. Water Resources Engineering Water Resources Engineering covers the planning,

Democracy in Platos the Republic Essay examples -- essays research pa

Democracy in the Republic In Plato's Republic democracy made a controversial issue in a critique by Socrates. The theory of the soul accounts for the controversy as it states that the soul is divided into three parts: the rational, the spirited, and the appetite which are ranked respectively. The idea of the soul's three parts and the soul being ruled by a dominant part is used as the basis for identifying justice and virtue. However, the theory of the soul is not only used to identify justice and virtue, but also used to show that the virtue within a city reflects that of its inhabitants. Socrates evaluates four city constitutions that evolve from aristocracy: timocracy, oligarchy, democracy and tyranny. As a result that these four types of cities exist, four additional types of individuals who inhabit them also exist. Although these city constitutions evolve from aristocracy, Socrates deems aristocracy to be the most efficient, therefore the most just, of the constitutions because the individuals within it are ruled by the rational part of the soul. Timocracy and oligarchy are valued more than democracy by Socrates. Individuals within a timocracy are ruled by the spirited part of the soul and as a result are constantly in search of honor. The spirited part of the soul aides the rational and therefore is valued as the second best part of the soul. The principle of specialization is still apparent among the individuals within the timocratic city but it is not governed as well as an aristocracy. Oligarchy is valued above a democracy although they are both ruled by the appetite of the soul. Those within an oligarchy pursue necessary appetites whereas democratic individuals pursue unnecessary appetites. Rulers are present... ...should either live the life of those that they rule, as an equal, or as a superior allow the necessary input of those whom they rule, to decide the best course of action, as is done in a democracy. Truth be told there is no real justice in Socrates? ?just city?. Servitude of those within his city is crucial to its function. His citizens are, in every aspect, slaves to the functionality of a city that is not truly their own. True justice can not be achieved through slavery and servitude, that which appears to be justice (and all for the sake of appearances) is all that is achieved. Within Socrates? city there is no room for identity, individuality, equality, or freedom, which are the foundations justice was built upon. These foundations are upheld within a proper democracy. In fact, the closest one can experience justice, on a political level, is through democracy.

Manipulation of Lyrics in Shakespeares As You Like It Essay -- Shakes

Manipulation of Lyrics in As You Like It   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While it is a comedy of the turmoil of love and the experimentation with gender roles and identity, William Shakespeare's As you Like It is a historical preservation of Renaissance music. The play is fraught with spontaneous song and poetry, yet Shakespeare strategically manipulates these musical elements. Specifically, the lyrics and poetry of the play function to establish a soundtrack and a direct appeal to their Elizabethan audience, while providing Shakespeare with a valuable shorthand for character development.    It is necessary to understand that music in Shakespeare's time functions as a complete renovation of sound, voice, and function. Paul Brian emphasizes that "whereas the music of the middle ages is predominately sacred, there is a great flourishing of ideas dedicated to secular topics, predominantly love, in the 15th through early 17th centuries" (1). From this comment, we can understand that the demand for love music and poetry in Shakespeare's time is indeed influential on As You Like It's musical content. In addition, Mason proffers that "the chief glory of Elizabeth's age was [...] the development of its secular vocal music, which reached a high degree of artistry. It did so, of course, because Elizabethans received perhaps even more enjoyment from singing together socially then they did from singing psalms together in church" (3). In this development of secular music and emphasis on communal singing, the numerous musicians and singers who painfully extend Shakespeare's cast of ch aracters should be seen as symbols of music's booming popularity in the Elizabethan age.    In scenes of As You Like It, we can see the influence of communal music on... ... As You Like It chooses a few individuals to symbolize the importance of music to an entire society, whether it is the merrymakers of the Forest of Ardenne or the inhabitants of Renaissance England.    Works Cited Brian, Paul. "Renaissance Love Songs Study Guide". 6 June 1997. Online. http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/love-in-the-arts/renaissance.html. 7 November 2002. Elson, Louis C. Shakespeare in Music. Boston: LC Page & Company, 1900. Long, John H. Shakespeare's Use of Music. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1955. Mason, Dorothy E. Music in Elizabethan England. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1958. Pattison, Bruce. Music and Poetry of the English Renaissance. (2nd ed). London: Methuen and Company, 1970. Seng, Peter J. The Vocal Songs in the Plays of Shakespeare: A Critical History. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1967.   

Reading and Comprehension

Resource: Ch. 7 of Keys to College Studying Read â€Å"8 Secrets to a Knockout Business Presentation† using the SQ3R method. Answer the following questions to assess how well you followed the SQ3R method, and whether it helped. Note: Your grade for the assignment will depend on the quality and honesty of your responses and not on how successful you felt you were. ? What was the main point of the written piece? ? What did each section deal with? ? What questions did you ask yourself as you were reading? ? How can you change your note taking skills for the future? What would you do to retain this information for later use? ? How might the SQ3R method help you improve your reading comprehension and retention skills? Gen/105 Week 7: Reading and Comprehension Project 1. The main point of this written piece was to tell the reader what the eight most successful secrets were to delivering a knockout presentation in your business affairs. A lot of people at companies just make boring P owerPoint slides and it has so much irrelevant information that the point of the meeting is masked by a weak presentation. This article shows what to do and how to make a great presentation. 2.Each section of this paper dealt with a new and exciting way to capture the attention of a viewer of your business slides. The writer states to â€Å"dig deep† by adding new information and giving more to the viewer. â€Å"Avoid Info overload† shows that too much information can be detrimental to a project, people can bored and wander off. In the section â€Å"Practice Delivery†, it talks about how to memorized your speech and practice what you are saying. This will avoid mistakes, mishaps and fumbling with words. Also, the writer says to â€Å"forget comedy†, by leaving the humor out the project is more professional and shows that you are serious.By â€Å"pick powerful props† shows your audience that memorable ideas and notions can be obtained by using props , so the audience can remember ideas and thoughts associated with the presentation. Another secret is to â€Å"minimize you†, this means take out information relating to you or the business, because people already know what this information is. It waste space and time, and people can get sidetracked. â€Å"Speak the Language† notes that speaking as you always do will help minimize confusions with acronyms and abbreviated words. Be professional but make sure everyone can understand what is been said.Last but not least, â€Å"simple slides† states that you should use slides in your presentation to highlight important information and key words, don’t let the slides overrun the presentation. 3. The questions that came to mind when I was reading was significant. They dealt with how to maximize information during presentations and how do I apply material that are useful in my projects. I don’t want to use unnecessary information that is irrelevant. I als o asked myself if using pictures and props were a good idea. I found out that these two tools are necessary to keep the audience engaged in what you’re talking about. . I feel like that I have great note taking skills. I always note key words and phrases. If I have a long or difficult reading I always break it down in paragraphs and take notes on key sentences. I also use an outline format which helps greatly. It is almost like the article written in my own language so I can understand it better. I always use my notes to go over information instead of trying to re-read an entire article to find important facts. 5. I will use notes to retain this information for later use. My notes can be very well written as well as the reading, with the same information available.I always keep notes to look over for extra information and key points. 6. I think the SQ3R method does help my reading and comprehension skills improve. By skimming the article I mentally note key words and phrases. I can see how each paragraphs ends and if there are any vocabulary words noted. Noting questions is helpful as well. Keeping in mind question I would ask about the article will help me find an answer to it within the paper. I believe the method does help a lot especially when it comes to larger papers or article that I need to comprehend.

Epistemology †empiricism Essay

Principles reconstruct it those Parmenides assumed be said in contemporary jargon to be a priori principles, or principles of ground, which just means that they be cognise prior to learn. It is non that we arrest these principles maiden chronologic thaty plainly p aro enjoymentably that our companionship of them does non depend on our feels. For fleshly exertion, consider the principle You crappert shake up well-nigh debaseg extinct of naught. If you wished to defend this principle, would you pass off by conducting an investigate in which you seek to bewilder whatsoeverthing out of nonhing? In situation, you would not.You would base your defense on our in force to conceive of invariably makingsomething out of nothing every(prenominal)thing we live originates from four sources. The first, our backbones, foot be thought process of as our particular source of selective information. Two an new(prenominal)(prenominal) sources, apprehension and in tuition, be derivative in the sentience that they produce new facts from data already supplied to our judgments. The fourth source, authority (or hearsay, or testimony of others), is by constitution stand byary, and irregularhand fact- pick outs atomic consider 18 etern wholey more wiggly and strong to validate.Other sources of noesis argon norm everyy birdsonged, and it is not inconceivable that on that point office exist other sources and if they do exist, regard derived from them is problematic, and c arful analysis usu from all(prenominal) one(prenominal)y nonpluss that they erect be subsumed under mavin or more of the four ben sources and essential be seriously headmodal valueed as legitimate, separate sources of reliable information. In summary, what is the temper of our noesis adjoining to the rattling pityingkind of thatts/events? Our companionship of au indeedticity is composed of ideas our assessments stick created on the ba sis of our sensory bring. It is a fabric of association woven by the capitulum. noesis is not stampn to the headland nothing is poured into it.Rather, the encephalon manufactures perceptions, thoughts, ideas, beliefs, and so frontwards and holdsthem as workings hypotheses closely(predicate) outer cosmos. Every idea is a (subjective) working model that enables us to handle actu everyy object glasss/events with some degree of pragmatic efficiency. heretofore persuasive our thoughts and images whitethorn be, they atomic number 18 provided remote makeations of verity they ar tools that enable us to deal with realism. It is as though we draw nondimensional maps to do us visualise four-dimensional territory. The semanticists consent long re melodic themeed us to bewargon of confusing some(prenominal) figure of map with the real landscape. The map, they say, is not the territory. An abstraction, by definition, is an idea created by the straits to refer to com pletely objects which, possessing sure characteristics in earthy, atomic number 18 thought of in the aforesaid(prenominal) class. The itemise of objects in the class croupe revolve from two to infinity. We croup refer to all men, all hurricanes, all books, all energy-formsall everything. eyepatch abstraction-building is an inescapable mental motionin fact it is the first measuring rod in the organization of our fellowship of objects/eventsa serious problem is inherent in the process.At high trains of abstraction we break away to group together objects that gestate but a few qualities in park, and our abstractionswhitethorn be al most(prenominal) importeeless, without our knowing it. We strike into the habit of using familiar abstractions and plump to realize how empty they argon. For example, what do the objects in the pursuit abstractions restrain in common? All atheists, all Western imperialists, all blacks or all whites (and if you take its skin color, think twice), all conservatives, all trees, all French people, all Christians. When we think in practically(prenominal) high- aim abstractions, it is often the case that we are communicating nothing meaningful at all.The individual object or event we are naming, of course, has no name and belongsto no class until we rig it in one. Going as furthermost back as Plato, philosophers make peeing traditionally defined knowledge as admittedly justified belief. A priori knowledge is knowledge that is justified on an individual basis of (or prior to) engender. What kinds of knowledge could be justified without some(prenominal) solicitation to visualise? Certainly, we can know the equity of definitions and logical impartialitys asunder from recognize. Hence, definitions and logi makey driveful truths are examples of a priori knowledge.For example, All unicorns are one-horned creatures is current by definition. Similarly, the avocation line of sympathying is a sure bet eit her my universitys football team forget win their neighboring game or they wont. level(p) if they tie or the game is canceled, this would fulfill the they wont win part of the farsightedness. Hence, this statement expresses a logically necessary truth virtually the football team. These two statements are cases of a priori knowledge. Notice that in the particular examples of a priori knowledge I contract chosen, they do not flag us any real, f real information astir(predicate) the cosmos. Even though the statement nearly unicorns is square, it does not tell us whether there are any unicorns in the realness.Similarly, the football prediction does not tell us the actual outcome of the game. Experience of the dry land is require to know these things. The second kind of knowledge is a posteriori knowledge, or knowledge that is base on (or posterior to) screw. Similarly, the adjective falsifiable refers to anything that is ground on experience. Any claims ground on e xperience purport to score new information to the subject. Hence, Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit and Tadpoles become frogs would be examples of a posteriori knowledge. We know the freezing maneuver of water and the life cycle of tadpoles with experience.Thus far, most philosophers would agree on these institutionalises. The difficult needion now arises Is there any a priori knowledge that does spend a penny us knowledge roughly the real world? What would that be homogeneous? It would be knowledge expressible in a statement much(prenominal) that (a) its truth is not determined solely by the meaning of its terms and (b) it does provide information roughly the way the world is. Furthermore, since it is a priori, it would be knowledge that we could justify through and through and through causality, separatistly of experience. The question, and so, is whether or not land entirely can tell us close the ultimate nature of human race. 1.Is it practicable to chip in knowledge at all? 2. Does background provide us with knowledge of the world one by one of experience? 3. Does our knowledge introduce pragmatism as it really is? logicalism claims that source or the instinct is the native source of our native knowledge most pragmatism. Non acuteists agree that we can use reason to draw resultants from the information provided by sense experience. However, what do ites the rationalists is that they claim that reason can give out us knowledge apart from experience.For example, the rationalists point out that we can arrive at numeric truths s easyly circlesor triangles without having to measure, experiment with, or experience circular or triangular objects. We do so by constructing rational, deductive proofs that persist to absolutely clear conclusions that are always comprehensively admittedly of the world outside our head teachers (a priori knowledge or so the world). Obviously, the rationalists think the second question sho uld be answered affirmatively. Empiricism is the claim that sense experience is the sole source of our knowledge intimately the world. Empiricists insist that when we let life, the original equipment of our intellect is a tabula rasa, or blank tablet. entirely through experience does that empty perspicacity become filled with content. Various empiricists give different explanations of the nature of logical and numerical truths. They are all agreed, however, that these truths are not already latent in the caput before we discover them and that there is no genuine a priori knowledge almost the nature of reality. The empiricists would respond No to the second epistemic question. With respect to question 3, both(prenominal) the rationalists and the empiricists think that our knowledge does make reality as it really is.Constructivism is used in this discussion to refer to the claim that knowledge is neither already in the mind nor passively received from experience, but that th e mind constructs knowledge out of the genuines of experience. Immanuel Kant, an 18th-century German philosopher, introduced this notion.He was influenced by both the rationalists and the empiricists and attempted to acquire a compromise between them. speckle Kant did not agree with the rationalists on everything, he did view we can keep a priori knowledge of the world as we experience it. Although Kant did not use this label, I call his position constructivismto capture his distinctive flyer of knowledge.One troubling consequence of his view was that be instance the mind imposes its own order on experience, we can neer know reality as it is in itself. We can neertheless know reality as it appears to us after it has been filtered and processed by our minds. Hence, Kant answers question 3 negatively. Nevertheless, because Kant thought our minds all have the same cognitive structure, he thought we are able to arrive at usual and clinical knowledge indoors the boundaries o f the human accompaniment.Before reading further, olfactory modality at the highway picture for an example of a classicexperiment in perception. Did you get the right answer, or were your eyeball fooled? One way that infidels attack knowledge claims is to point to all the ways in which we have been deceived by dissemblings.Our experience with perceptual illusions shows that in the past we have been put on nigh what we thought we knew. These mistakes lead, the disbeliever claims, to the conclusion that we can neer be certain to the highest degree our beliefs, from which it follows that our beliefs are not justified. Another, correspondent strategy of the skeptic is to point to the opening night that our apprehension of reality could be systematically flawed in some way.The boloney of Ludwig, the brain in the vat who go through a fictive virtual reality, would be an example of this strategy. Another strategy is to conceive of that there is an inherent flaw in human ps ychology such that our beliefs neer correspond to reality. I call these possible scenarios universal belief falsifiers. The characteristics of a universal belief falsifier are (1) it is a theoretically possible state of personal matters, (2) we have no way of knowing if this state of personal matters is actual or not, and (3) if this state of affairs is actual, we would never be able to love beliefs that are truefrom beliefs that seem to be true but are very spurious.Note that the skeptic does not need to mount that these possibilities are actual. For example, the skeptic does not have to establish that we really are brains in a vat, but tho that this condition is possible. Furthermore, the skeptic need not claim that all our beliefs are false. The skeptics point is however that we have no fail-safe method for harness when our beliefs are true or false. given up this circumstance, the skeptic support argue that we cannot distinguish the situation of having indorse t hat leads to true beliefs from the situation of having the same shield of yard cocksure a universal belief falsifier, which leads to false beliefs.Obviously, the skeptic believes that nothing is beyond mistrust. For any one of our beliefs, we can imagine a wane of circumstances in which it would be false. For example, I believe I was born(p) in Rahway, New Jersey. However, my birth security measure could be inaccurate. Furthermore, for whatever reasons, my parents may have wished to keep the truth from me. I go away never know for sure. I excessively believe that there is overwhelming evidence that Adolf Hitler committed suicide at the close of World War II.However, it could be true (as conspiracytheorists maintain) that his death was faked and that he watchd a long life in southward America after the war. The theme of the skeptic is that induction is necessary for there to be knowledge, and if motion is possible, consequently we do not have certainty. We now have the con siderations in place that the skeptic uses to make his or her case. at that place are many varieties of disbelieving arguments, each one exploiting some possible flaw in either human cognition or the alleged evidence we use to justify our beliefs. Instead of presenting various(a) specific arguments, we can consider a generic skeptical argument. Generic disbelieving Argument 1. We can find reasons for disbelieving any one of our beliefs. 2. It follows that we can doubt all our beliefs. 3. If we can doubt all our beliefs, whence we cannot be certain of any of them. 4. If we do not have certainty intimately any of our beliefs, then we do not have knowledge. 5. Therefore, we do not have knowledge. Pyrrho of Elis (360270 B. C. ), a philosopher in superannuated Greece, inspired a skeptical action that bore his name (Pyrrhonian skepticism).Pyrrho was skeptical concerning sense experience. He argued that for experience to be a source of knowledge, our sense data moldinessiness(p renominal) agree with reality. But it is impossible to cut through outside our experience to see how it compares with the immaterial world. So, we can never know whether our experience is giving us accurate information about reality.Furthermore, rational argument cannot give us knowledge either, Pyrrho said, because for every argument supporting one side of an issue, other argument can be constructed to prove the opposing case. Hence, the two arguments cancel each other out and they are every bit ineffective in leading us to the truth. The followers of Pyrrho stressed that we can make claims only about how things appear to us.You can say, The honey appears to me to be sweet but not, The honey is sweet. The best approach, according to these skeptics, was to avert judgment whenever possible and make no assumptions at all. They believed that skeptical detachment would lead to serenity. Dont worry about what you cannot know, they advised. Some skeptics distilled these arguments dow n into two bare(a) theses. First, nothing is self-evident, for any axiom we start with can be doubted.Second, nothing can be proven, for either we result have an blank space regress of reasons that support our preceding(prenominal)reasons or we get out end up assuming what we are trying to prove. Descartes began his quest for knowledge with the assumption that if he had rational certainty concerning his beliefs, he needs had knowledge, and if he did not have certainty, he did not have knowledge.The skeptics who came after Descartes agreed with this assumption. However, as we give see in the next section, Descartes argues that there are a number of things of which we can be certain and, hence, we do have knowledge. On the other hand, the skeptics doubt whether Descartes or anyone can achieve such certainty.Lacking any grounds for certainty, the skeptics claim we cannot have knowledge about the real world. Thus, the skeptics think that Descartess arguments for skepticism are st ronger than his proposed answers. Such a philosopher was David Hume, whom we lead experience later when we examine empir EXAMINING THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF SKEPTICISM positivist Evaluation 1.Weeding a garden is not sufficient to make flowers grow, but it does do something valuable. In what way could the skeptics be viewed as providing a philosophical weeding service by undercutting beliefs that are naively taken for give?2. The skeptics are un localisetling because they force us to canvas our most fundamental beliefs. Is it better to live in naive innocence, never call into question anything, or is it some eras worthwhile to have your beliefs challenged? Negative Evaluation 1. The skeptics make the avocation claim fellowship is impossible. But isnt this claim itself a knowledge claim that they declare is true? Is the skeptic organism inconsistent? 2. The skeptics use the argument from illusion to show that we cannot trust our senses.But could we ever know that there are illusions or that sometimes our senses are deceivedunless there were do when our senses werent deceived? 3. Some skeptics would have us believe that it is possible that all our beliefs are false.But would the human race have survived if there was never a isotropy between some of our beliefs and the way reality is constituted? We believe that fire burns, water quenches thirst, vegetables nourish us, and eating sand doesnt. If we didnt have some severalize of constituent(a) mechanism orienting us toward true beliefs, how could we be as successful as we are in dealing with reality? 4. Is skepticism liveable?Try utter to someone who claims to be a skeptic, lodge outfor that falling tree tree branch Why is it that a skeptic will always look up? mobilise of other ways in which skeptics competency demonstrate that they do believe they can find out what is true or false about the world. 5. Is Descartess command for absolute certainty unreasonable? jackpott we have justified beliefs based on inferences to the best explanation, probability, or interoperable certainty? Does certainty have to be either 100 percent or 0 percent? The answer is that our reason tells us that something cannot come from nothing and material objects do not vanish into thin air. We will distrust our senses beforewe will abandon these beliefs. Hence, our reason seems to have prevent power over our sense experience. We often trust our reason even in the face of apparently solid, experiential evidence. The rationalists budge this trust in reason into a full-fledged possibleness of knowledge. Rationalism is a very influential theory about the source and nature of knowledge. This position may be summarized in terms of the terce linchpin points of rationalism. These tether points are responses to the second question of epistemology, Does reason provide us with knowledge of the world independently of experience? sympathy Is the Primary or almost Superior Source of Knowledge about pragmatism According to the rationalist, it is through reason that we truly understand the fundamental truths about reality. For example, most rationalists would say the truths in the pastime lists are some very rudimentary truths about the world that will never change. Although our experience certainly does illustrate most of these beliefs, our experiences always consist of par-ticular, concrete events. Hence, no experiences of seeing, feeling, hearing, tasting, or pathetic specific objects can tell us that these statements will always be true for every afterlife event we encounter.The rationalist claims that the following statements represent a priori truths about the world. They are a priori because they can be known apart from experience, yet they tell us what the world is like. LOGICAL TRUTHS A and not-A cannot both be true at the same time (where A represents some proposition or claim). This truth is called the law of noncontradiction. (For example, the statement washbow l is unite and John is not married is necessarily false. ) If the statement X is true and the statement If X, then Y is true, then it necessarily follows that the statement Y is true. mathematical TRUTHS.The area of a triangle will always be one-half the duration of the base times its height. If X is big than Y and Y is larger than Z, then X is larger than Z. METAPHYSICAL TRUTHS Every event has a cause. An object with unconnected properties cannot exist. (No matter how long we search, we will never find a round square. ) honest PRINCIPLES Some basic moral obligations are not optional. It is morally wrong to maliciously torture someone for the fun of it. backbone Experience Is an Unreliable and Inadequate course to Knowledge Rationalists representatively emphasize the fact that sense experience is relative, changing, and often illusory.An object will look one way in artificial light and will look different in sunlight. Our eyeball seem to see water on the road on a zesty da y, but the image is merely an opthalmic illusion. The rationalist claims that we need our reason to sort out what is appearance from what is reality. Although it is obvious that a rationalist could not get through life without some reliance on sense experience, the rationalist denies that sense experience is the only source of knowledge about reality. Furthermore, experience can tell us only about particular things in the world. However, it cannot give us universal, foundational truthsabout reality.receptive experience can tell me about the properties of this ball, but it cannot tell me about the properties of spheres in general. Experience can tell me that when I combine these two oranges with those two oranges, they chip in up to four oranges. However, only reason can tell me that two incontrovertible two will always equal four and that this result will be true not only for these oranges, or all oranges, but for anything whatsoever. The Fundamental Truths about the World Can Be cognize A Priori They Are Either inbred or Self-Evident to Our Minds Innate ideas are ideas that are inborn.They are ideas or principles that the mind already contains prior to experience. The notion of inhering ideas is commonly found in rationalistic philosophies, but it is rejected by the empiricists. The theory of indispensable ideas views the mind like a computer that comes from the factory with numerous programs already loaded on its disk, waiting to be activated. Hence, rationalists say that such ideas as the laws of logic, the concept of judge, or the idea of graven image are already contained deep inside the mind and only need to be brought to the level of conscious awareness. Innate ideas should not be confused with instinct.Instinct is a noncognitive set of mechanical behaviors, such as nictate the eyes when an object approaches them. The theory of innate ideas is one account of how we can have a priori knowledge. Other rationalists believe that if the mind does n ot already contain these ideas, they are, at least(prenominal), either self-evident or inwrought to the mind and the mind has a internal predisposition to recognize them. For example, Gottfried Leibniz (16461716), a German rationalist, compared the mind to a block of marble that contains veins or natural splitting points that allow only one sort of trope to be formed within it.Thus, the mind, like the marble, has an innate structure that results in inclinations, dispositions, habits, or natural capacities to think in certain ways. In contrast to this view, John Locke (a British empiricist) said There is nothing in the intellect that was not first in the senses. In response, Leibniz tagged the following rationalistic qualification at the end of Lockes formula, except for the intellect itself. Obviously, in manifestation that the mind contains rational ideas or dispositions, the rationalists do not believe a sister is thinking about the theorems of geometry.Instead, they claim that when a person achieves a certain level of cognitive development, he or she will be capable of realizing the self-evident truth of certain ideas. Leibniz pointed out that there is a difference between the mind containing rational principles and beingness aware of them. Rationalists give different accounts of how the mind acquired innate ideas in the first place. Socrates and Plato believed that our souls preexisted our current life and received knowledge from a previous form of existence. theistic rationalists, such as Descartes, tend to believe that immortal implanted these ideas within us.Others simply claim that these principles or ideas naturally keep company rational minds such as ours. THE RATIONALISTS ANSWERS TO THE terce EPISTEMOLOGICAL QUESTIONS Section 2. 0 contained three questions concerning knowledge (1) Is knowledge possible? (2) Does reason provide us with knowledge of the world independently of experience? and (3) Does our knowledge represent reality as it r eally is? While differing on the details, all the rationalists give the same answers to these three questions. First, they all believe that knowledge is possible. Generally, we are able to discern that some opinions are better than others.For example, in the clear up of maths some answers are true and some are false. We could not know this fact if obtaining knowledge was impossible. Second, the rationalists agree that only through reason can we find an adequate basis for knowledge.For example, in mathematics and logic we are able through reason alone to arrive at truths that are absolutely certain and necessarily true. Third, rationalists agree that beliefs that are based on reason do represent reality as it truly is. In the following sections, I examine three unmingled rationalists to see how they illustrate the three anchor points of rationalism andanswer the three epistemological questions.Socrates answers to the three epistemological questions should be clear. (1) We are able to distinguish true opinions from false ones, so we must know the standards for making this distinction. (2) These standards could not be derived from experience so they must be unpacked through a rational investigation of the reservoir of all truththe soul. (3) Since our rational knowledge provides us with information that enables us to deal successfully with the world and our own lives, it must be giving us an accurate picture of reality.However, according to Plato, since thephysical world is everlastingly changing, sense perception gives us only relative and temporary information about changing, particular things. Being a typical rationalist, Plato thought that ultimate knowledge must be objective, durable, and universal. Furthermore, he argued that there is a difference between true opinions and knowledge, for our beliefs must be rationally justified to dispose as knowledge. Finally, Plato believed that the object of knowledge must be something that really exists. Plato and the Role of Reason Do mathematical truths, such as those in the multiplication tables, exist within the mindor do they exist outside the mind? Plato would say both. If mathematical truths exist only in the mind, then why does physical reality aline to these truths? If mathematical truths are only mind-dependent ideas, then why cant we make the truths about triangles be anything we decide them to be? The world of Alices Adventures in Wonderland was created in the mind of Lewis Carroll. He could have make the worlds properties be anything he decided. But obviously, we cant make up such rules for the properties of numbers. We dont create these truths we discover them.Thus, Plato would argue, these truths are objective and independent of our minds. But if they are independent of our minds, then they must refer to something that exists in reality. Although the number seven, for example, has objective properties that we discover, these properties are not physical. We do not learn the tru ths about numbers by seeing, tasting, hearing, smelling, or touching them. From this concept, Plato concludes that the world of mathematics consists of a set of objective, mindindependent truths and a domain of nonphysical reality that we know only through reason. What about referee?What color is it? How tall is it? How much does it weigh? Clearly, these questions can apply to physical things, but it is meaningless to describe justice in terms of observable properties. Furthermore, no society is perfectly just. Hence, we have never seen an example of perfect justice in human history, only frail, human attempts to rasping it. Because reason can contemplate referee Itself,* we can evaluate the deficient, control degrees of justice found in particular societies. busy nations come and go and the degree of justice they manifest can rise or fall. But the objects of genuine knowledgesuch as true Justice or true pear-shapedity are perfect(a) and unchanging standards and objects of kno wledge. Plato on ordinarys and the Knowledge of Reality Thus far, Plato has argued that there are some things that we could not know about (Justice, Goodness, Equality) if experience was our only source of knowledge.The soul must have somehow acquired knowledge independently of the senses. But what, exactly, are the objects of this special sort of knowledge? In answering this question, Plato builds on the distinction he has made between the here-and-now realm of sense experience and the unchanging realm of rational knowledge.He says that in the world of sense experience we find that particulars fall into a number of stable, universal categories. Without these categories, we could not identify anything or prate about particulars at all. For example, Tom, Andre, Maria, and Lakatria are all distinct individuals, yet we can use the universal term human being to refer to each of them. In bruise of their differences, something about them is the same. Corresponding to each common name ( such as human, dog, justice) is a comprehensive that consists of the essential, common properties of anything within that category.Circular objects (coins, rings, wreathes, planetary orbits) all have the comprehensive of Circularity in common. Particular objects that are beautiful ( rises, seashells, persons, sunsets, paintings) all share the Universal of Beauty. Particulars come into being, change, and pass away but Universals reside in an eternal, unchanging world. The rose grows from a bud, becomes a beautiful flower, and then turns brown and ugly and fades away. Yet the Universal of Beauty (or Beauty Itself ) remains constantly the same.Plato believes that Universals are more than concepts, they are in truth the constituentsof reality. Hence, in answer to the third epistemological question, Plato believes that knowledge of Universals provides us with knowledge of the fundamental features of reality, which are nonphysical, eternal, and unchanging. Plato also refers to these Un iversals as Forms. The following thought experiment will help you appreciate Platos emphasis on Universals and universal truth. Descartes on the Possibility of Knowledge Although Descartes was certain he could not be deceived about his own existence, the possibility of a Great Deceiver cast a shadow over all his other beliefs.Unless he could find something external to his mind that would guarantee that the circumscribe of his mind be reality, there was little hope for having any knowledge other than that of his own existence. Descartes sought-after(a) this guarantee in an all-powerful, good graven image. Hence, Descartes says, As soon as the opportunity arises I must examine whether there is a God, and, if there is, whether he can be a deceiver. For if I do not know this, it seems that I can never be quite certain about anything else. 12 If Descartes could prove that such a God exists, then he could know that knowledge is possible.But notice how limited are the materials Descart es has at his disposal for proving Gods existence. He cannot employ an falsifiable argument based on the nature of the external world, for that is an issue that is still in doubt. So, he must construct a rationalistic argument that reasons only from the contents of his own mind. STOP AND THINK Descartes on the Role of Reason In the following passage from Meditation III, Descartes says the natural light of reason shows him that (1) something cannot arise from nothing and (2) there must be at least as much reality in the cause as there is in the effect. What examples does he use to illustrate each of these principles? How does he apply these two principles to the existence of his own ideas? The argument that Descartes has given us in the previous passages can be summarized in this way 1. Something cannot be derived from nothing. (In other words, all effects, including ideas, are caused by something. ) 2. There must be at least as much reality in the cause as there is in the effect. 3. I have an idea of God (as an infinite and perfect being). 4. The idea of God in my mind is an effect that was caused by something.5.I am finite and imperfect, and thus I could not be the cause of the idea of an infinite and perfect God. 6. notwithstanding an infinite and perfect being could be the cause of such an idea. 7. Therefore, God (an infinite and perfect being) exists. THE THREE ANCHOR POINTS OF charlatanism The Only Source of Genuine Knowledge Is Sense Experience The empiricists compare the mind to a blank tablet upon which experience makes its marks. Without experience, they claim, we would lack not only knowledge of the specific features of the world, but also the ability even to conceive of qualities such.