Reporting Panics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Reporting Panics - Essay Example One of such factors that readily come to mind is the issue of technology, which has come to enhance both the efficiency and effectiveness of the work of journalists (Winslow, 2011). One important thing about journalism is that it is not all journalists who do the same kind of work. This is perhaps the world is highly diverse and so news that must be picked from different sectors of it must be diverse. As much as the work of every other type of journalist is very important and respectable, it may be valid to argue that science journalism or science reporting in general is particularly important. This could be because of the importance that science as a concept in today’s world carries (Slosson, 2010). Regardless of the importance of their work and the factors that have been said to make journalism, and for that matter science journalism more advanced, there continues to be some criticisms against journalists for distorting science news. In this paper, it will be argued and agreed with that this claim that journalists distort science news simply overlook the various factors that shape the reporting of science. By this, reference is being made to the fact that the writer will argue that there are several factors that hinder accurate science journalism that critiques of science reporting have not critically considered. Should some of these factors be given serious consideration, the best that can be done would be to resolve those factors so that the way will be paved for science journalists to be more accurate with their work rather than distorting science news. This is because there is sufficient evidence to the effect that journalists have gone every breadth to ensure that their w ork is highly esteemed and comes with the reputation it deserves (Slosson, 2014). Whiles the paper discusses the various factors that shape the reporting of science, the role that journalists themselves can play, as well as scientists can play in making science reporting

The Enthalpies of Combustion Essay Example for Free

The Enthalpies of Combustion Essay Standard enthalpy change of combustion is the energy change that occurs when 1 mol of fuel is completely burnt in oxygen under standard conditions. However, it is impossible for substances to be burnt under standard conditions. The enthalpies of combustion are different depending on the number of carbons and hydrogens in each substance. For example, the enthalpy combustion for methane is -890 kJ mol-1, however the enthalpy change of combustion for ethane or propane will be greater because more bonds are involved and therefore more bonds are broken and made. All combustion reactions are exothermic because energy is given out to make bonds. Figure 1: Exothermic reaction Before you start doing calculations for enthalpy change of combustion you firstly need to balance the equation. For example: Methane CH4 (g) + 2O2 (g) 2H2O (g) + CO2 (g) Also it is important to note when making a combustion reaction balanced equation that the state symbols for all the substances are gaseous even water. Moreover, it is only in a combustion reaction that you use halves in an oxygen molecule. An example for octane is: C8H12 (g) + 12.5O2 (g) 8CO2 (g) + 9H2O (g) Method for the enthalpy of combustion for various alcohols 1. Set up a tri pod and place tiles around it. 2. Fill up a metal calorimeter with 200 cm3 of water and place on the tri pod. Also, place a thermometer on the container. 3. Record the reading on the thermometer of the temperature of the water. 4. Weigh the spirit burner containing the alcohol you are going to use and again record the reading. 5. Place the spirit burner containing the alcohol under the tri pod and quickly as possible take the lid off and light a match on it. 6. Wait till you will see a 15 degree increase on the thermometer. 7. When you see a 15 degrees increase, place the lid back on the alcohol and stir the water well with the thermometer until you see there is no change in temperature. 8. Weigh the alcohol and record the reading. Also record the reading of the temperature after it has increased. 9. Repeat steps 1-8 for all different alcohols. Results obtained from experiment Methanol Ethanol propan-1-ol Butan-1-ol Pentan-1-ol Enthalpy change of combustion (kJmol-1) 379.80 1071.23 1332.62 1715.82 2110.04 Enthalpy change of combustion = (1/moles of alcohol burned) x enthalpy released during the ex. True results of alcohols that should be obtained Methanol Ethanol propan-1-ol Butan-1-ol Pentan-1-ol Enthalpy change of combustion (kJmol-1) -890.30 1559.70 2219.70 2876.50 3509.10 From the results I obtained I can make a conclusion that the results were not very close to the true, this is because the experiment could not done under standard conditions like the other and therefore because of that some heat was lost to the surrounding. While I was carrying the experiment I realised that a black substance began to form underneath the colorimeter (container where the water was put in and heated up) which was carbon, meaning there was incomplete combustion. This therefore effected the results I obtained because the combustion experiment was not complete. Evaluation Experimental errors In any experiment, errors are made which are unavoidable. We can work out the errors of the equipments that were used in the experiment to find out which has the most effect. It is then best to convert these errors in to percentages because it is easier to see which has the most effect on your results and which has the least percentage error. Percentage error = error / reading x 100. A balance has a precision error of 0.005. Next I will turn it to a percentage error. The balance was used to weigh the spirit burners of the 5 alcohols before using it in the experiment and after it was used to heat the water up. Methanol Ethanol propan-1-ol Butan-1-ol Pentan-1-ol Initial mass of spirit burner / g 198.56 188.80 180.66 212.75 189.62 Percentage error/ % 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.002 0.003 Methanol Ethanol propan-1-ol Butan-1-ol Pentan-1-ol Final mass of spirit burner / g 197.41 188.16 180.09 212.08 189.08 Percentage error / % 0.003 0.003 0.003 0.002 0.003 Looking at the results above for the percentage errors, I can conclude that the balance did not effect the results I obtained as it gave me a small percentage error that was less than 1%. This ensures me that the measurements of the spirit burners that I obtained using the weighing balance where very accurate. Procedural errors * A thermometer was placed on the colorimeter and when reached to 500c and recorded the highest temperature by siring until there was no increase in temperature. * Keep lid on spirit burner to endure the alcohol did not evaporate to obtain a accurate measurement of the mass of alcohol combusted. * Draft exclusion made using insulating tiles. This is so less heat and temperate near the spirit burner that is lighted is relatively kept constant and not effected by air coming from window or heat from radiator.

Does Britain Have an Underclass?

Does Britain Have an Underclass? What is an underclass and does it exist in Britain today? The idea of the existence of an underclass isn’t by any means new. Charles Murray is perhaps the best known researcher who has studied the underclass both in the US and Britain. Murray arrived in Britain in 1989 from the US where he suggested that a huge underclass had already emerged and he wanted to compare Britain to the US. He described in his 1990 paper â€Å"the Emerging British Underclass† that it was spreading â€Å"like a plague through our social fabric†, concluding that Britain does indeed have an underclass and predicting that by the year 2000 it would have grown to dramatic proportions. This essay shall examine the theory of underclass by Charles Murray and some alternative opinions by his critics in order to exemplify what a complex subject the underclass is. Murray’s prediction of an existing and indeed expanding underclass will also be examined. It is impossible to examine the concept of underclass without looking at an example of class theory of which there are many. Just one has been selected, that of Runciman (1990). He suggests that there are seven classes in British society the upper class, three middle classes (upper, middle and lower) two working classes (skilled and unskilled) and an underclass. Runciman describes the underclass as those who are â€Å"excluded from the labour market entirely† (cited in Marshall, 1997). This could be because of disability, being in debt, or through lack of skill and are highly likely to be women or/and in the ethnic minorities. These are not causal factors. The main feature of the underclass is long term unemployment. Murray (1990) agrees that long term unemployment and it’s increase is the cause of the underclass along with the rise of single parenthood. Welfare benefits are too easily available for these groups he argues, thereby creating a â€Å"culture of dependency†. Murray’s definition of â€Å"underclass† is not concerned with the degree of poverty but a type of poverty and supports the view that the underclass are defined by their behaviour. They devalue the work ethic and are often associated with anti social behaviour and crime. He argues that the provision of welfare benefits for single parents have contributed towards the decline of the traditional nuclear family. Murray focuses on illegitimacy seeing it as a different â€Å"problem† from divorce, separation or widowhood. He sees that children who have only ever known one parent from birth are more likely to be in the underclass than those who have, at some point, experienced having two parents. He co ncluded that illegitimacy was more common in households that were poor than rich and also in white families more than black or Asian (although he doesn’t see â€Å"race† or ethnicity, or gender as a contributory factor). He makes a distinction between the short term unemployed and those who are long term â€Å"economically inactive†. The reliance on benefits and devaluation of work perpetuates from generation to generation, thereby forming early socialisation into the counter-culture referred to as the â€Å"underclass†. The class theory of Runciman and the meaning of underclass according to Murray are not the only theories in existence. The complexity of it means one fixed definition cannot be attributed to it. Critics of Murray suggest that there is a tendency in his work to blame the underclass themselves, whereas societal factors need to be considered. Glasgow (1980) argues that the economy has failed to provide equal opportunities. Inequalities mean that some groups are excluded. Field (1989) blames the Thatcher government for rewarding the rich and punishing the poor and suggests that social problems are interconnected. One particular part of Murray’s theory that has attracted criticism is the focus on illegitimate1 children. Brown (cited in Lone Parent Families, Ed: Donnellan, 2004) argues that it is unfair to label illegitimate children as being in the â€Å"underclass†. In many cases of divorce or separation, the absent parent doesn’t contribute financially at all or con tributes very little, thereby placing their child and former partner amongst the groups that are not so well off . Statistics have shown that single parenthood has risen in Britain supporting Murray’s prediction. Britain has the highest rate of teenage pregnancies in Western Europe, the second highest in the world. The figures for the number of illegitimate children in 1988 in Britain was 25.6%. The 2001 census showed that as many as one in four children are being raised in a single parent family. 90% of single parents are women. Single teenage parents are most likely to be amongst the poorest. Child care facilities are expensive and working hours may not be flexible. Studies have shown that if they do find work they may start at the very bottom of the ladder in part time or temporary positions with few benefits, perhaps only earning slightly more than they would on benefits. If they do try and get themselves out of hardship, it would prove incredibly difficult. Finding work does not necessarily mean that someone will be out of poverty. Murray fails to mention the elderly, often seen in Britain as outside of mainstream society, despite what their position was during their working life. Field (1989) cites the underclass as consisting of single parents, the long term unemployed and the frail, elderly pensioner. Many critics of Murray argue that income and wealth need to be equal to give the elderly better lives. Efforts have been made such as free eye tests, free television license and winter fuel payments. However, this help is not available to all pensioners and those in social policy would like to see a return to a link between pensions and earnings (which was abolished in 1980) which would help lift the elderly out of poverty (source: the Joseph Rowntree Foundation website). Government policies have been implemented to try and alleviate problems. Charles Murray eventually stopped providing Government with possible policies because of pessimism about their capabilities to change things. Figures for February 2006 showed that the employment rate was 74.5% but this figure was down by 0.4% over the year. 51% of those unemployed were women. However, the number of job vacancies had decreased. Those taking part in Government schemes such as the New Deal are not included in unemployment figures. Critics suggest that the Government create these schemes so that unemployment figures drop but putting people into poorly paid work will not lift them out of the underclass. Preston (2005) emphasises that the benefit system for those not working is inadequate and often inaccessible (for example to asylum seeker families) so therefore doesn’t provide the security Murray suggests it does. It is impossible to give an adequate definition of what the underclass is as it is very much a disputed concept. Ideas of what the underclass actually is have been mentioned here, notably Murray who suggests that the British underclass is a subculture in itself and tends to blame the people within it rather than societal circumstances. Critics blame inequalities in education, job opportunities, housing and so on. It can be concluded that there are sections of society that could be termed the â€Å"underclass†, desperately needing Government to create policies to help them out of poverty and that those outside the mainstream society are growing asylum seeker families are certainly excluded from mainstream education and a chance to work adding to those living in poverty in this country. In this respect, Murray was right in that those living in poverty has grown. Social scientists and policy makers however do not always agree on who actually makes up the â€Å"underclass† . Word count: 1252 References Brown J (2004) Quoted in Lone Parent Families Ed: Donnellan, Scotland, Independence Educational publishers Field, F , (1989) Losing out: The Emergence of Britain’s Underclass, Oxford, Blackwell Marshall G (1997) Social class and underclass in Britain and the USA (an essay from Social Differences and Divisions Ed: Braham P Janes L (2002) Oxford, Blackwell in association with the Open University) Murray C (1990) The Emerging British Underclass cited in Morris L (1993) Dangerous classes, London, Routledge Preston G, (2005) Quoted in Child Poverty Action Group Manifesto: Ten Steps to a Society Free of Child Poverty, CPAG (white paper) Internet source Joseph Rowntree Foundation (online) Social Exclusion Unit: Breaking the Cycle: Taking Stock of Priorities for the Future, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, 2004 Internet source

The Evolution of Childhood in Europe and America Essay -- Exploratory

The Evolution of Childhood in Europe and America Somewhere around the beginning of the seventeenth century, the perception of the nature of childhood -- its duration, its perceived purpose, its requirements, its quality -- changed rather significantly in the Eurocentric world, a period Valerie Suransky identifies as a watershed for the modern notion of childhood (1982, p. 6). Actually, two things seemed to have happened: first, the idea of childhood as a separate developmental stage began to arise; second, the idea of who was deserving of childhood also began to broaden. The pattern was similar in Europe and America, with some minor variations which resulted from geography, religion, etc., but the differences are inconsequential. Generally speaking, the factors which influenced this change are the view of the nature of humankind, the development of industry, urbanization, parents themselves, and the women's movement. According to Sharar (1990), childhood in Europe during the Middle Ages was a concept pretty much limited to members of the upper-class. Children of the lower-classes generally had a rather extended infancy period -- to about age seven -- but were then, essentially, tossed into the adult world. With the advent of Calvinism, and protestantism in general, in the late 1500s, the focus shifted, perhaps because of the rise of a middle class, perhaps because of the new religion's focus on the individual. In the Protestant view, in which humans were viewed as innately evil, soiled by original sin, children were also considered moral agents, and therefore in need of shaping. Given this idea, it was reasonable to stifle children's natural impulses by physically punishing those impulses, to set them in... ...973). Tools for conviviality. NY: Harper and Row. Platt, Anthony. (1982). The rise of the child-saving movement. In Chris Jenks (Ed.) The sociology of childhood: Essential readings (pp. 151-169). London: Batsfords Academic and Educational Ltd. Rose, Lionel. (1991). The Erosion of childhood. NY: Routledge. Sharar, Shulamith. (1990). Childhood in the middle ages. London: Routledge. Strickland, Charles. (1984). The Rise and fall of modern American childhood: Reflections on the history of childhood in the twentieth century. Atlanta, GA: Emory University, Department of History. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED248977) Suransky, Valerie. (1982). The erosion of childhood. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Welter, Barbara. (1966). The cult of true womanhood: 1820-1860. The American Quarterly, 18. 151-174.

Inventory Systems Summary

Forecasting is a planning tool meant to help management in their attempts to cope with the uncertainty of the potential events. Forecasting with indices is used for numerous reasons, especially in business. There are two common methods of forecasting, there is the quantitative method and then there is the qualitative method. The quantitative methods are based on more numerical data; these are typically statistical methods done by collecting data. Team D has computed a forecast based on the Summer Historical Inventory Data with an explanation on how the results were detained.The University of Phoenix has found Itself in a lot of trouble with the law, with law suits being filed against them left right and center; an overwhelming amount of crystals has been aimed at the Institution from the employees to students, who Indicate there Is trouble brewing In the Institution. In this paper we will look at how the trend of admissions has been affected and predict the future of registrations in this university (Summer Historical Inventory Data).According to Institution of education sciences (2010), the year 2000 University of Phoenix had 4,783; the enrollment after this sky rocketed and in fall 2006, the total number of students enrolled were 165,373, in 2007 fall, the number of students was 224,880, in 2008 fall the number was 301 323, In the fall of 2009, university of Phoenix had one of the highest enrollment rates in North America with the online program having an intake of 380,232 students.Projection statistics all indicate that enrollment of students Is on the Increase as the years pass by, the need for education Is growing ND all factors considered like gender, age and attendance all show that the likelihood of a fall In enrollment in universities granting degrees Is highly unlikely. University of Phoenix has been no exception to the rule as by 2009 the numbers have been increasing (Institution of education sciences, 2010).The rate of part time students NAS particu larly Increased, as many people opt Tort tans Upton as opposed to being full time students. The university has experienced changes in administration and has really focused on getting more and more students; the methods they have seed however have raised eyebrows as it is one of the highest profit raking institutions and burdens students with heavy loan repayments (Scott, 2009).While there have been concerns raised about the university, as far back as 2006, the numbers have kept rising especially because the offer classes online, though their many campuses and other hybrid programs online, such schedules are flexible and appeal to many who may not have the time to attend campus regularly; Students can get their associates, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees (Online degree reviews, 2011). Opinions from many people who have been through the university are however likely to affect the enrollment rates.In 2011, the general enrollment has gone down by about 30% by most statistics a nd with the malpractices that are coming to light this rate is likely to continue, as the needs of the students do not seem to be met adequately and many end up feeling they got a raw deal (Scott, 2009). University of Phoenix has certainly perfected the art of getting the numbers to the school with many people employed to ascertain this, however the problems begin to how after the students begin school as they most often do not get the full details of what they are getting themselves into (Online degree reviews, 2011).

Prominence of Computer Security and Forensics The WritePass Journal

Prominence of Computer Security and Forensics INTRODUCTION Prominence of Computer Security and Forensics INTRODUCTIONResearch Enterprises of ForensicsJob availability segments for forensic studentsImportance of securityAnonymous toolsTypes of forensicsServices of forensicsAvailable Job Opportunities by studying computer security and forensicsThe techniques gained by studying computer security and forensic courseMobile ForensicsAnalysis of call data recordsDescription of Audio and VideoAudio AnalysisVideo AnalysisData RecoveryConclusionReference:Related INTRODUCTION Forensics and related courses are fast flattering current career of the students. It has a global reputation for excellent in the development of the techniques of forensics. The forensics is the investigation process which is related to the police services. Many students are focused in forensics some of the area are the following Criminology Toxicology Questioned Documents Odontology Pathology /   Medical Examiner Physical/ Forensic Anthropology Forensic psychiatry/psychology Many opportunities are waiting for the students who are pursuing forensics science and other related courses. The main criteria in the forensic science are Chemistry -analysis of paint, chemicals counting fire investigation and reconstruction of accidents. Biology  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is associated to crimes in contradiction of people murder, assault and rape cases. Drugs and toxicology. Research Enterprises of Forensics Consulting with people on the front appearances and document their problems. Eavesdrop to law enforcement and relate our own knowledge of computer forensics according to those problems. Learn current investigating techniques and suggest alternatives, measuring the alternatives in real world and reporting the results. Pay attention to the sufferers and give them a good solution to analyse what happened to them and report it appropriately. Job availability segments for forensic students Law enforcement Financial Consulting   and Academic. Forensics courses develop the unique skills which means a person cannot handle the networks without any knowledge of it and for example a computer engineer cannot survive in the forensic field just because he can knows only about the system management. So the above are the sectors for the computer forensic students. Importance of security Security is the most important thing in everyone’s day to day life. A mail can be hacked by fetching the original information and it is replaced by a fake data to cheat people with the help of some software’s. A fake websites are there by collecting the personal bank information of an individual person, it happens like a   person is asked to buy some stuffs by sending them a portal of the bank information to be filled and after sometime that pages are fetched and hacked by some frauds . These are all the techniques used to hack the personal information and trouble them so computer security is there to give some surety to the companies by protecting the secrets of each and every person’s information. Anonymous tools It could be used to create an unidentified data form the original data. Forensic researchers will be having packet dumps, email messages, document files, disk images, etc.., Types of forensics Disk forensics Network forensics RAM forensics Phone forensics Document forensics and Software forensics Services of forensics Examining the evidence of hacking Analysing of electronic mail, chatting capability and deleted files for worker annoyance. Checking the computer system for the evidence of IP address theft Examining the erased internet action and server log files for evidence of unauthorised activity of a person. Investigation into the denial of data systems and computer strategy Extracting the evidence for non-computer concerned with investigations. Producing reports to the industrial courts. Observing the common employees misusing the computer Developing the software’s to solve some specific problems. Available Job Opportunities by studying computer security and forensics In detecting and investigating the cyber related crimes In using tools of forensics Handling the cyber-crimes with intelligence of tackling them Finding the loss of account and recovering them The techniques gained by studying computer security and forensic course Trouble shooting the operational issues: Finding the incorrect physical location of the network and resolving the problem in the correct way in the host. Log monitoring: Analysing log entries and correlating log entries from multiple systems. Recovering data from the system: Fetching the lost data that has been hacked by anyone or modified with help of tools etc Mobile Forensics Mobile devices are terribly increasing in the recent trend. Many communication protocols like Bluetooth, WiFi and 3g allow the free data transfer across international restrictions. Users are allowed to transfer the data, browsing and send and receive e-mail with attaching files. Analysis of call data records The records of the call data has been showed below Date of call Time of call Call duration Number making the call (originating) Number receiving the call (terminating) IMEI International Mobile Equipment Identity CI Cell site identity number Description of Audio and Video Audio Analysis Audio can be recorded in high diverse range including mobile phones, dicta phones, covert recording devices, cameras and mobile phones CY4OR is a full enhanced and transcription service in the forensic audio and video suite. Video Analysis The propagation CCTV equipment on virtually every street corner, outside business buildings and even for domestic properties is increased for some evidence are available for inspection. This type of evidence is seriously trusted upon in court but often needs improving to ensure that is obviously presented. CY4OR’s practiced video team uses formal of the art equipment to enable the augmentation, de-multiplexing  and restoration of material. Data Recovery Data recovery is the process of recovering data from damaged, failed, corrupted, or inaccessible secondary storage media when it cannot be accessed normally.  Data can be retrieved from storage media such as hard disk drives, storage tapes, RAID, CDs, DVDs, and other electronics. Recovery may be required due to physical damage to the storage device or logical damage to the file system that prevents it from being mounted by the host operating system. Conclusion The skills that are gained from computers security and forensic course include the broad knowledge of forensic principles, procedures, tools and techniques to handle the problems. So it develops the skills required by the employers and fulfills them.   Apparently there is more possibility of new techniques as well as advancements yet to develop in the area of forensics because â€Å"computer security and forensics is only a journey but not a destination† student who currently learns will say many things new to this world by studying this course. Hence this paper briefly explains about the required skills by the employers to work in the forensic field and also in pertinent sector by attaining this course. Reference: cy4or.co.uk/forensic-services/mobile-device-forensics www.intaforensics.com www.krollontrack.co.uk

Iron Cage - Max Webers Theory of Rationality

Iron Cage - Max Webers Theory of Rationality One of the theoretical concepts that Max Weber, founding sociologist, is most well known for is the iron cage. Weber first presented this theory in his important and widely taught work,  The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, however, he  wrote in German, so never actually used the phrase himself. It was American sociologist Talcott Parsons who coined it, in his original translation of Webers book, published in 1930. In the original work, Weber referred to a  stahlhartes Gehuse, which literally translated means housing hard as steel. Parsons translation into iron cage, though, is largely accepted as an accurate rendering of the metaphor offered by Weber. Understanding Webers Iron Cage In  The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber presented a carefully researched historical account of how a strong Protestant work ethic and belief in living frugally helped foster the development of the capitalist economic system in the Western world. Weber explained that as the force of Protestantism decreased in social life over time, the system of capitalism remained, as did the social structure and principles of bureaucracy that had evolved along with it. This bureaucratic social structure, and the values, beliefs, and worldviews that supported and sustained it, became central to shaping social life. It was this very phenomenon that Weber conceived of as an iron cage. The reference to this concept comes on page 181 of Parsons translation. It reads: The Puritan wanted to work in a calling; we are forced to do so. For when asceticism was carried out of monastic cells into everyday life, and began to dominant worldly morality, it did its part in building the tremendous cosmos of the modern economic order. Simply put, Weber suggests that the technological and economic relationships that organized and grew out of capitalist production became themselves fundamental forces in society. Thus, if you are born into a society organized this way, with the division of labor and hierarchical social structure that comes with it, you cant help but live within this system. As such, ones life and worldview are shaped by it to such an extent that one probably cant even imagine what an alternative way of life would look like. So, those born into the cage live out its dictates, and in doing so, reproduce the cage in perpetuity. For this reason, Weber considered the iron cage a massive hindrance to freedom. Why Sociologists Embrace Webers Iron Cage This concept proved very useful to social theorists and researchers who followed Weber. Most notably, the  critical theorists associated with the Frankfurt School  in Germany, who were active during the middle of the twentieth century, elaborated on this concept. They witnessed further technological developments and their impact on capitalist production and culture  and saw that these only intensified the ability of the iron cage to shape and constrain our behavior and thought. Webers concept remains important to sociologists today because the iron cage of techno-rational thought, practices, relations, and capitalism   now a global system   shows no signs of disintegrating anytime soon. The influence of this iron cage leads to some very serious problems that social scientists and others are now working to solve. For example, how can we overcome the force of the iron cage to address the threats of climate change, produced by the very cage itself? And, how can we convince people that the system within the cage is  not  working in their best interest, evidenced by the shocking wealth inequality that divides many Western nations?

What to Do When Asked to Give Away Your Work

What to Do When Asked to Give Away Your Work Received a little bit of feedback from last weeks post on the flip side of free, but not as much as I wouldve thought. Which tells me something . . . more people are giving it away than I thought. Twice this past weekend, I heard authors rant about how little they were making, and how their incomes had plummeted in the last few years. They were red-hot about their publishers being the culprits. While many publishers are known for inserting questionable, strangling, taking-advantage clauses in a contract, I do not hold them totally to blame. Thats too easy, and its not completely true. It is true that publishers will take advantage. Their job is to make money publishing, not be friends with authors. I dont care how much you might love your publisher, sooner or later, youll feel slighted. And theyll just keep on keeping on, not ruffled in the least. While its nice to have a great working relationship, dont make the mistake of seeing it as anything but that. The problem is that writers are accepting less and less for their work. So publishers and editors become more than happy to pay less. They lower the rates, and authors kneel and accept without negotiation. And new writers are coming in thinking thats the norm. Can you see the shifting paradigm? That goes for ebook sales, literary journals, writing for magazines, and royalties. Anyone who has started trying to publish in the last three years thinks today is the norm. And because they make nickels and dimes from sales, they treat it like the income it provides: a hob I want to go back to what FFW stands for: writers making money not writers accepting what they can get. Come on, people. Ask for more. These days you can indie publish, for goodness sake, if they dont pay you what you deserve. Readers do not understand any of this and dont care. They dont have to care, and they dont have to understand. I dont care about how much a worker makes who builds my car or stocks my grocery store. But still, readers think writers who publish are making gobs of money. We are not going to change that thought, so dont try. Our payment issue  is an internal issue, not the reading publics. I spoke to one author whose husband is a musician, where its as bad as or worse than writing. She suggests declining the offers to give away work. When someone asks for free books from you, thinking you get tons of them for free, decline and suggest a library or a bookstore that offers a loyalty discount. When an editor of a publication asks for your work for free or an embarrassing figure like 1/2 cents per word, remind them you must be compensated for your work because you practice a profession, not a hob Now . . . to the hob Writing for a hob I use this additional example when I speak to writers about earning a living: Ill be a whore to whoever will pay me for my work. I will not give it away for free. However, Id rather be a call girl than a street walker, and get paid more of what Im worth.

Resilience Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Resilience - Assignment Example Cases of terrorist attacks are being put as a story of the past with several methods to fight terrorism attacks being put in order. Moreover, disaster resilience is vitality. The federal government has been in the front hand, encouraging community resilience as a way to ensure a productive nation. A resilient nation is a prosperous nation. Resilient people, organizations, and even countries are blessed with such an outlook that they can change course and soldier on, even after misfortunes. Resilience is the will to recover from or adjust easily to misfortunes or change. Usually the affected becomes successful, strong or healthy after something bad happens. It’s always the goal of any country, organization or to bounce back to the normal state especially when hit by either calamities or economic downfalls. Measures have been put in place to ensure that these countries, organization or firms adopt resilience. Rather than making failure overcome them, they rise from their ashes a nd move forward. Sportsmen and women are advised to be resilient during training and competitions as in the end; it produces positive results. Resilience is quite different from resistance though the two share numerous similarities. Resilient people, organizations, and even countries are blessed with such an outlook that they can change course and soldier on, even after misfortunes. Resilience and resistance have quite some similarities and differences. Psychologists have identified that positive attitude and being optimistic makes one be resilient.

Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Proposal - Essay Example s showed correlations between violent video games and aggression (Gentile), poor social skills (Kutner and Olson), racism (Anderson, Buckley, and Gentile 8), and poor academic achievement (Bryant). Although the causative nature of violent video games is not yet widely accepted, several studies depict that the more time children spend in playing these games with crude language, the more verbally and physically aggressive they become (Anderson, Buckley, and Gentile; Fink). Bad language in violent media is a critical factor, because it can arouse negative thoughts and images, which can drive aggression (Fink). There could be a connection between listening to and speaking crude language, even if it is just â€Å"fantasy† or make-believe play for these games, and actually feeling and being more aggressive against others. These relationships between playing violent media and poor social and academic skills are not surprising, since the military has used violent video games to desensitize and to train soldiers to kill (Gentile). If the military can use violent media to prepare these soldiers for combat, it is not impossible for the same conditioning to happen for young children, whose moral, intellectual, and psychological stages are not prepared to understand the difference between â€Å"playing† and real-life aggression and violence. This is a proposal for a paper determining the impacts of violent video games on the youth, especially those kinds which contain profane language. Profane language pertains to cursing and treating other people verbally with disrespect. The topic of this proposal is violent video games with crude language. These are games that some adults normally play for fun and recreation. These games are also commonly made for adult audiences. They are not supposed to be played by adolescents, especially by younger children. In reality, however, children and teenagers have easy access to these games. Their parents may not be aware of the ratings on these

PTSD sources analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

PTSD sources analysis - Essay Example Some people overcome this problem over time while others continue to be affected in their lifetime. Veterans especially Army and firefighters are the majority group likely to get PTSD. It has been found that people involved in combat situations are highly likely to have mental health problems due to what they encounter. After surviving in combat zones, many veterans have been seeking help in mental health care to overcome PTSD. However, they receive little or no medical attention for their life after they leave the army.4 Some of the problems that soldiers are forced to live with include anxiety, stress, and nightmares while others take their life after failing to get the necessary attention to PTSD. Because of this reason, the Veteran Affairs, set aside 300 million dollars for veteran mental health, but not all this amount will be spent.5 In fact, The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report that faults the â€Å"Department of Veterans’ Affairs for failing to fully spend a promised $300 million since 2005 to fill gaps in mental illness treatment for veterans and returning troops.†6 The lack of support system in places of mental health care is due to lack of qualified medical professionals and resources.7 Moreover, there is lack of qualified mental health professionals in the field of mental health specializing in the recognition and treatment of PTSD. For example, many troops and veterans have not been screened for neurological and psychological injuries due to lack of physicians and inadequate medical screening process.8 A report published in Jan 2009 by the organization IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America) states â€Å"Instead of screening troops through a face to face interview with a qualified mental health professionals, the DOD relies on an ineffective system of paper work to conduct mental health evaluations.†9 The report also mentions, â€Å"Mental health support for troops in Iraq is actually declining;

Reflective Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Reflective Journal - Assignment Example In my opinion, the perception of Total Quality Management (TQM) is essential to consider by an organisation, as in recent times, customers have increased their expectations towards availing their respective desired products. To fulfil the sophistication in products that would raise customer satisfaction, project management must have to introduce TQM concept. Justifiably, if customers do not accept the exact service that they want, they seek for other alternatives and thus create a worsened situation for any particular project. There usually lay several chances for having customer’s dissatisfaction in terms of cost as well as quality along with service. From the basis of discussion, I would like to state that when a project results into cost-effective with minimum quality as well as fulfil all the desirable characteristics from customers’ perception, they become satisfied and after that, such project could be wrapped rapidly (Frame, 2002). For instance, in terms of an on line product like a dress material, a customer may select the material through online marketing site of a company and likewise order that particular item. The site would provide opportunity to the customers like cash on delivery and free shipping. Three days later after ordering, the product would reach to customers’ destination. If there does not exist any such problem in the product, the customer should be happy and remain satisfied with the product and likewise provide the purchasing costs without any hesitation. However, I think these circumstances would change if the product does not contain the same colour or the expected material does not get matched with the delivered product. By considering the above stated circumstances, the customer could refuse to accept the product and the management should recreate the whole process again for gaining the satisfaction level of such customer. After smooth completion of the process, the online company could be able to receive cash

China and Mao Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

China and Mao - Essay Example This is because there were frequent power struggles between different parties such as Hua Guofeng and Deng Xiaoping, who presented different ideologies on how China should progress. The reason for the differences in opinion and power struggles lies in political and economic state of the country, where Mao’s policies included controlling the economy of the nation, while reformists worked towards changing and bringing everything back to the people hence the different factions (Eastmarsh, 1980). With the above, reforms began trickling in as power was returned to the people and the leaders were denied of certain powers, where absolute decision making no longer lay with them. Instead, democracy started taking root as Deng, and communism ceased to be a full recognizable system and became a concept that was used to show how different the Chinese system of politics is different from that of the western world (Eastmarsh, 1980). Free speech has always been a social concern in China, where freedom of expression is not widely practiced to date following the declaration of Mao’s â€Å"hundred flowers speech† which was then used against scholars who came up with schools of thought differing from those of his government (Allen, 2011). This is because the scholars were met with violent and extensive suppression, including re-education. After Mao’s death, free speech continued to be a problem because it only indicating the possibility of social unrest, in which case different ideas critiqued the government and political leaders negatively. As a result, freedom of speech has been widely denied to the Chinese people to date. Another way in which free speech remains elusive is following Mao’s declaration of â€Å"hundred flowers speech†, which was used as an offensive strategy to lure out scholars who were against government policies. This made the

Latino film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Latino film - Essay Example In later scenes, to cope with the hardships and growing hostility from her husband, she ends up throwing her husband out of her home. Even after this rough and hard decision, she still had to manage her life with the growing wave of revolution around her. The movie revolves around the typical life of a Cuban woman who had to deal with all the hardships and struggle despite being the fragile part of the society without any support from her husband and family. Many people underestimate the power of women during the times of war and revolution. During the wave of feminist movement in 1960 women played their roles as efficient workers and home makers at the same time. On the other hand, comparing the movie with another Hollywood’s revolutionary film, Salt of the Earth, triggered the critics to look into a different direction for its content and subject. The latter movie holds the same revolutionary wave with women in the leading roles as it has been depicted in Portrait of Teresa. The character of Esperanza was supported by showcasing the rapidly growing women’s movement. The character of Esperanza is shown coping with the troubles of unionism, leftists and at the same time, the emerging wave of feminism. In both the movies a strong wave of feminism can be felt. However, in the Portrait of Teresa, the movie revolved around the struggles of one woman whereas in Salt of the Earth, the subject of the movie projects the struggle of Esperanza with her sisters. But their struggle for sexual equality is the central idea that has been projected in both the movies. Women have been portrayed as the strongest gender as compared to men despite social barriers and minimum exposure to the world outside. Both the characters had to bear the same strenuous household responsibilities and later with their keen participation in the movement, they had to bear the disapproval of their involvement in the movement from their husbands. The theme of both the movies revolves ar ound one thought - how to survive the struggle for your rights in a subjugated society filled with gender discrimination and bias. Both of the women are tied to fulfill their gender roles assigned to them by their societal traditions with little room to be accepted as anything other than a typical homemaker. Teresa’s resentment over inequality and growing anger over her husband’s ill treatment clearly project the time when women were gaining empowerment and awareness of the unfair living conditions and treatment. Similarly, in Salt of the Earth, Esperanza holds the same state of mind, when she was greatly undermined by her husband’s judgmental statement and strikes back in a bitter tone, â€Å"Have your strike. I’ll have my baby, but no hospital will take me, because I’ll be a striker’s wife. The store will cut off our credit, and the kids will go hungry . . . and then they’ll come and take away the radio† (Salt of the Earth, p .10). Even at this point, her husband scorns her while chastising for fear of losing the radio and being more self-concerned. Women are emotionally vulnerable but deep down inside they tend to project the stronger side of their personality, especially in times of stress. All in all, the movie Portrait of Teresa is a poignant movie which depicts the contradictions which exist in the male dominated Cuban society, no matter how much the Cuban Revolution and its ideals have attempted to bring women to the

Reflective Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Reflective Journal - Assignment Example In my opinion, the perception of Total Quality Management (TQM) is essential to consider by an organisation, as in recent times, customers have increased their expectations towards availing their respective desired products. To fulfil the sophistication in products that would raise customer satisfaction, project management must have to introduce TQM concept. Justifiably, if customers do not accept the exact service that they want, they seek for other alternatives and thus create a worsened situation for any particular project. There usually lay several chances for having customer’s dissatisfaction in terms of cost as well as quality along with service. From the basis of discussion, I would like to state that when a project results into cost-effective with minimum quality as well as fulfil all the desirable characteristics from customers’ perception, they become satisfied and after that, such project could be wrapped rapidly (Frame, 2002). For instance, in terms of an on line product like a dress material, a customer may select the material through online marketing site of a company and likewise order that particular item. The site would provide opportunity to the customers like cash on delivery and free shipping. Three days later after ordering, the product would reach to customers’ destination. If there does not exist any such problem in the product, the customer should be happy and remain satisfied with the product and likewise provide the purchasing costs without any hesitation. However, I think these circumstances would change if the product does not contain the same colour or the expected material does not get matched with the delivered product. By considering the above stated circumstances, the customer could refuse to accept the product and the management should recreate the whole process again for gaining the satisfaction level of such customer. After smooth completion of the process, the online company could be able to receive cash

Latino film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Latino film - Essay Example In later scenes, to cope with the hardships and growing hostility from her husband, she ends up throwing her husband out of her home. Even after this rough and hard decision, she still had to manage her life with the growing wave of revolution around her. The movie revolves around the typical life of a Cuban woman who had to deal with all the hardships and struggle despite being the fragile part of the society without any support from her husband and family. Many people underestimate the power of women during the times of war and revolution. During the wave of feminist movement in 1960 women played their roles as efficient workers and home makers at the same time. On the other hand, comparing the movie with another Hollywood’s revolutionary film, Salt of the Earth, triggered the critics to look into a different direction for its content and subject. The latter movie holds the same revolutionary wave with women in the leading roles as it has been depicted in Portrait of Teresa. The character of Esperanza was supported by showcasing the rapidly growing women’s movement. The character of Esperanza is shown coping with the troubles of unionism, leftists and at the same time, the emerging wave of feminism. In both the movies a strong wave of feminism can be felt. However, in the Portrait of Teresa, the movie revolved around the struggles of one woman whereas in Salt of the Earth, the subject of the movie projects the struggle of Esperanza with her sisters. But their struggle for sexual equality is the central idea that has been projected in both the movies. Women have been portrayed as the strongest gender as compared to men despite social barriers and minimum exposure to the world outside. Both the characters had to bear the same strenuous household responsibilities and later with their keen participation in the movement, they had to bear the disapproval of their involvement in the movement from their husbands. The theme of both the movies revolves ar ound one thought - how to survive the struggle for your rights in a subjugated society filled with gender discrimination and bias. Both of the women are tied to fulfill their gender roles assigned to them by their societal traditions with little room to be accepted as anything other than a typical homemaker. Teresa’s resentment over inequality and growing anger over her husband’s ill treatment clearly project the time when women were gaining empowerment and awareness of the unfair living conditions and treatment. Similarly, in Salt of the Earth, Esperanza holds the same state of mind, when she was greatly undermined by her husband’s judgmental statement and strikes back in a bitter tone, â€Å"Have your strike. I’ll have my baby, but no hospital will take me, because I’ll be a striker’s wife. The store will cut off our credit, and the kids will go hungry . . . and then they’ll come and take away the radio† (Salt of the Earth, p .10). Even at this point, her husband scorns her while chastising for fear of losing the radio and being more self-concerned. Women are emotionally vulnerable but deep down inside they tend to project the stronger side of their personality, especially in times of stress. All in all, the movie Portrait of Teresa is a poignant movie which depicts the contradictions which exist in the male dominated Cuban society, no matter how much the Cuban Revolution and its ideals have attempted to bring women to the

Summarise and Compare the Evidence for the Development of Agriculture Essay Example for Free

Summarise and Compare the Evidence for the Development of Agriculture Essay The two continents provide a very different insight into the development of agriculture. America with its slow alterations, for example the gathering that continued and the consistency of crops remaining in their natural habitat until much later for example the May grass. South West Asia reveals a different approach where although still gradual development the use of tools and grinders support the discovery of cultivation and domestication leading this continent towards villages and eventually civilizations with trade and travel as its force for change as early humans emulated and adapted. The southwest begins its agricultural shift in a position of power in comparison to the Americas. Varying plants and animals that could eventually be domesticated. The south west was ideal for hunting and gathering producing much flora and fauna with the 250mmr of rainfall. Significant changes occurred around 1100-9600 BC with the Younger Dryas cooling the terrain. Dependency on hunting may have proven a hardship and cultivation being more labour intensive yet reliable as means of control appears to have defined beginning as the environment returned and stabilised . By 6000BC agriculture proved successful and became widespread. This marked the beginning of the Neolithic villages and the eventual culture shift to ceramics and religion. North America had a later progress, the beginnings of cultivation began in Mesoamerica and may have spread north by migrates who imprinted their knowledge. Larger amounts of maize were discovered in smaller apparently less developed sites in South west north America showing an already developed cultigens in foreign terrain. South west Asia also saw a large spread out from the ‘hilly flanks’ referenced by Flannery. North America had limited cultigens in comparison to south west Asia. The Americas having s examples such as quash, maize, beans sump weed , sunflowers and beans. Asia produced wheat, barley, rye and an assortment of wild animals residing on the hilly flanks that could be successfully domesticated such as sheep and goats. South west Asia’s key produce was the Rye revealed by studies into the Jordan valley and Syria during the intensified cultivating years of the Neolithic period around 8800 BC. Leading to a population growth which does not become obvious in north America as nomadic living continues and although cultigens were successfully developed a dependency on hunting and gathering was favoured. Squash was used as floats for fishing and so thinner membranes were preferred later their touch exterior was preferred when needed as bowls. An example of change by humans. Social exchange features in both areas although it appears that the feasting theory is better supported by southwest Asia as Americas show a reluctance to settle and created lineages. At Carlston Annis, South west north America a much later site entering the woodland period provided human faecal matter that proved a major dependency on wild foods especially from the woods. It would appear that after thousands of years of cultivation with travel and trade the hunter gatherers still relied on the foods. This reluctance does not appear in southwest Asia. The manipulation of crops and animals provide direct link to the first semi-sedentary farmers called the Natufians in the late Epipaleolithic 12,000-9600. Material remains and cultural traits are in key areas, subsequent layers of deposits reveal long and repeated occupation. Stone implements as morters for grinding . The Natufians had also left the shelter of the cave to build their own structures ( Dorothy Garrod 1898-1968). The late Paleoindians relied on rock shelters and created major earthworks as shown at Koster in Illinois and Eva in Tennessee. Eva showing links to the earlier Paleo-Indian with its recognisable toolkit found in the archaic site ( The human past 2005). In conclusion these very different crops led to a very different pace of change between the two continents. Asia’s steady but sure cultivation started a fast pace route to civilisation that of which the Americas did not. The Americas environment allowed for small agriculturists with irrigation sites such as at La capas dating 1250 BC. A slow development in contrast to Asia. However the burials at Eva do mirror the evidence found in burial sites such as Ohalo 11: where burials have grave goods and signal some status. Hinting that cognitive development may have evolved just as Asia’s had but the need for agriculture was less intense therefore a later necessity for the north Americans. Bibleography The Human Past Chapter 6 Trevor Watkins, Chapter 9 David L. Browman, Gayle J. Fritz, Patty jo Watson. David j Meltzer 2005 2009 Thames and Hudson Limited .http://www. archaeology. org/9707/newsbriefs/squash. html http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Neolithic_Revolution#Agriculture_in_the_Americas Part 2 Do you think changing climate was the key force accounting for the development of agriculture? The two continents America and Asia have a stark difference in the development of agriculture. Evidence of semi-sedentary living can be traced in Southwest Asia 20,000 years at Ohallo II. A ‘boom’ effect fallows the Younger Dryas , this climatic alteration coincides with villages such as Akrotiri . Great expansion also occurs in Israel and Jordan. Neve David is one example that existed in the heart of the Epipaleolithic and so must have been able to sustain and domesticate during this climate. Sites also developed during the drier, cooler Younger Dryas such as the Natufians and Abu Hureyra. The early Helocene was a moist climate, so the recovery of forestry may have provided more room for expansion given the tight years previously. Theories such as Demographic explanations for the development of agriculture, the oasis theory and hilly flanks all can coincide with the climatic alterations and suggest reasons for the expansion and successful development of agriculture. The oasis theory can be supported by the die back of forestry during the Younger Dryas, it can also be supported by the rising of sea levels at the end of the last Global Maximum. Space may have forced humans, plants and animals in closer proximity and therefore utilized each others recourses. Plants also showed a willingness to adapt to human interaction such as Barley developing a tougher rachis and animals co-existing to live off waste for example. The Americas give a good example of co-existing with its reluctance to give up the hunter gatherer way of life completely. The woodland eras caves provide remains that show wild foods were widely depended on and storage was key, rather than constant agriculture. Tools were designed for nomadic lifeways although were capable of processing cultivated foods such as Maize and Gourd. Although the nomadic life style of the north Americans the delayed acceptance of agriculturist means suggest a degree of free movement therefore the oasis theory may not be relevant in the Americas as with southwest Asia. The demographic theory details a supply and demand scenario. Southwest Asia’s many aceramic Neolithic settlements can support this theory as they grew and often extinguished themselves for example Catalhoyuk. Slash and burn techniques cleared forests and settlements meant birth rates were higher. The Helocene climate may have assisted in the population increase providing a reliable source of nourishment. Stable temperatures meant that earlier developed techniques could be used in abundance in contrast to earlier erratic climates that did not allow certain plants to reach full potential Plants put more energy into seed growing that wood fibres they adapted to the climate and so humans can be seen to have adapted also to suit the plants suggesting the evolutionary theory that he switch to agriculture was a natural development. Population increase remained low in north America and so the climatic revival appears to have no effect as such. The Hilly Flanks theory suggests a nutritious beginning of which the climate was able to sustain the ideal potential domesticates. This theory limits the geographical opportunity of the development of agriculture therefore suggests that climate change may have not been a key point in the development of agriculture as it appears to have occurred alternatively in a key area instead. This is supported by the agricultural development in Mesoamerica and the spread to the North. Examples being Squash in North America already showing signs of domestication even though new to the area. The feasting theory can be linked to the expansion and demographic theory and serves as an explanation for larger settlements leaving many artefacts such as grave goods and evidence of trade and travel. Catalhoyuk abundance and appreciation of goods is not match in early North America although appreciation of shells and beads are apparent. Travel and trade may have been possible due to the Holocene stable climate that was not possible previously and therefore and good candidate for techniques being emulated and therefore spreading, the Natufians for example. In conclusion the climatic was a key force in the development of agriculture, however as part of other key developments. No one theory explains the diversity in agricultures beginnings or its geographical variety. Climate does play an important role in providing these developments but alternative key forces such as the region, terrain, flora and fauna appear to dictate the place, success and timing of such developments, not the climatic situation alone. Humans domestication of animals features mainly in Asia, North America reveals very little. This would suggest that region and continent had more to dictate in the development of agriculture providing a ‘recipe’ rather than one ingredient that spurred a global change

A critical review of Porters competitive strategy

A critical review of Porters competitive strategy Title: A critical review of Porter's competitive strategy in relation to his five forces model in comparison to other perspectives. â€Å"All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.† Sun Tzu, Chinese General Introduction Strategy originates from military and warfare and according to Stephen Cummings; the word itself has its origins from the Greek word ‘stratos’ which meant ‘army’ (Cummings, 1993, pp 133 – 135). A number of ancient generals and scholars have defined the character of strategy. Some famous ones are Sun Tzu, the Chinese general in the 2nd century BC and Sextus Frontinus, the Roman general in the first century AD. Frontinus has defined strategy as â€Å"everything achieved by a commander, be it characterised by foresight, advantage, enterprise or resolution† (Cummings, 1993, pp 133 – 135). Another Greek military commander Xenophon very aptly defined strategy as â€Å"knowing the business which you propose to carry out† (Cummings, 1993, pp 133 – 135). The importance of clear intent, seeking advantage over adversaries, objectives of survival and expansion, and utilisation of given resources with inherent strengths and weaknesses in a manner that successfully leverages the advantage, are as relevant to a business organisation as to military. Aligning resources to objectives to gain advantage to maximum limits requires strategic thinking. This process can be either logical or creative. Strategy formation itself can be deliberate or emergent. Strategy operates at various levels and contexts. It can operate in a combination of business level, corporate level or network level in industry context, organisational context or international context (Wit and Meyer, 2004, p.14). There are diverse models on strategy and strategic management. However all models focus on the importance of aligning the dynamics of a business system to the dynamics of its environment for meeting its long-term objectives. The goal of strategic management is to gain competitive advantage. According to Wit and Meyer, a business system is the configuration of resources (inputs), activities (throughput) and product/service offering (output) and this configuration is the cornerstone of gaining competitive advantage (Wit and Meyer, 2004 p. 231). There are two broad models on business level strategy. One involves market orientation and the other is focussed on resources. One revolves around the outside-in perspective, while the other is inside-out perspective. Both deal with the ability of a form to acquire competitive advantage (See Appendix I and II). One such prominent strategy model is Michael Porter’s Five Forces model. This assignment critically evaluates Porter’s Five Forces model and compares it with alternative models. Sustainable Competitive Advantage It is important for competitive advantage to be sustainable. But what exactly is competitive advantage and what makes it sustainable? According to Wits and Meyer, â€Å"a firm’s has a competitive advantage when it has the means to edge out rivals when vying for the favour of customers† (Wit and Meyer, 2004 p. 244). Michael Porter argues that competitive advantage is sustainable â€Å"if it cannot be copied, substituted or eroded by the actions of rivals, and is not made redundant by developments in the environment† (Porter, 1980). Wits and Meyer interpret that sustainability is determined by competitive defendability and environmental consonance. Porter’s Five Forces Model The five forces model involves market orientation and is an outside-in perspective. The model proposes that the starting point in determining an appropriate competitive strategy is to understand two dynamic factors, (1) the long-term profitability that determines the attractiveness of the industry in which the firm operates; and (2) the position that a firm occupies within an industry vis-à  -vis its competitors. Porter concludes that neither all industries are equal in attractiveness, nor are all firms equal in achieving levels of profitability with in their respective industry. But these positions change and therefore cannot fully determine competitive strategy. On the other hand, a firm can actually shape both (1) the industry attractiveness as well as (2) its competitive position. By understanding of what he calls as the â€Å"rules of competition† a firm can create an effective competitive strategy that can alter the balance in its favour. According to Porter, five competitive forces determine the rules of competition. These are: The barriers to entry for new competitors The threat of substitutes The bargaining power of suppliers The bargaining power of buyers The magnitude of existing competition As can be understood that all the above forces have a direct or an indirect impact upon how the prices and the cost that make up business operations within the industry. What’s more, the level of investment required by a new comer to get into the industry is also portrayed by these forces. The intensity as well as the importance of these forces varies from industry to industry. But irrespective of the nature of industry the collective strength of these forces â€Å"determines the ability of firms in an industry to earn, on average, rates of return on investment in excess of cost of capital† (Porter, 1985). For example, for an industry with low entry barriers, the magnitude of competition will be higher. Similarly, availability of substitutes deflates the price within the industry. Bargaining power of buyers brings down prices and as a consequence the margins for firms within the industry. Bargaining power of the suppliers has a direct impact on cost and availability of raw materials. For an industry, which is intensely competitive, the margins once again come under pressure. The UK supermarkets are clearly operating in an intensely competitive industry albeit with a certain degree of control over their suppliers. However, this is not entirely true for the airlines industry, which is not only highly competitive, but also has a low control over its suppliers, especially for its most important raw material – the petrol prices. Therefore the pressure is on both ends – the cost as well as the price. Each industry has certain economic and technical features that make up its structure. Industry structure is susceptible to change over a period of time. It is important for a firm to understand the factors that could change the industry structure. It is this understanding that can enable a firm to build an effective competitive strategy that can alter the structure of an industry. Porter argues that a successful strategy is the one that can alter the rules of competition to create a position of advantage for the firm. He states that the merit of the five-forces framework lies in the fact that it â€Å"allows a firm to see through the complexity and pinpoint those factors that are critical to competition in its industry, as well as to identify those strategic innovations that would improve the industry’s – and its own – profitability† (Porter, 1985). A strategy has a potential of altering the industry structure in a negative manner as well. It can bring about price sensitivity, competitive backlash or lowering of barriers that protect the industry and ensure its profitability. A good example of this is the low-cost airlines where pricing is treated as the strategy. ‘Smart’ companies take a long-term perspective while making strategic choices, so as not to destroy the industry structure. Industry leaders whose strategic choices can easily alter the industry structure, due to their size and bargaining power, are sensitive to the fact that an altered structure can have a negative impact on the firm’s own growth therefore a leader needs to show an approach that protects the industry structure, rather than destroy it. The importance of industry structure Two key areas are touched by industry structure. These are: Buyer needs, and Supply/demand balance Buyer needs: Serious firms treat the task of satisfying buyer needs as their core objective. The effort is always to create value for their customers. However, industry structure determines how profitable this effort turns out to be. For instance, two industries that create an equally high value for their customers may have different returns. Entry barriers, threat of substitutes, bargaining power of buyers and suppliers as well as intensity of competition, all these forces influence industry profitability vis-à  -vis customer value creation. Supply/demand balance: This also has an impact on the industry profitability and at the same time is influenced by industry structure in the long term. Entry and exit barriers exert influence as also capacities. For example, in some industries, even a little excess capacity can lead to price wars and therefore lower the profitability. This is being witnessed in the airlines industry. Competitive strategies The objective of understanding industry structure lies in the need to build a sustainable competitive strategy which results in a position of advantage relative to its competitors. The starting point is in value chain analysis that helps a firm to determine the activities which contribute to creating superior value. The goal is to achieve profitability higher than the industry average. Porter argues that based on this analysis, a firm can have one of the three competitive strategies: Cost leadership – by which a firm leverages its scale to bring down the cost of doing business and then passes the benefit to its customers. This is achievable only for firms that display one or more of such features – (1) they operate on a large scale, serving multiple segments and perhaps even operating in complementary industries; (2) have proprietary technology; (3) have â€Å"preferential access to raw materials† (Porter, 1985). What’s more, cost leadership advantage is not at the expense of differentiation and is pursued by seeking cost advantage from multiple operational areas such as marketing, finance, human resources, in addition to production and supply-chain. Porter states that â€Å"a cost leader must achieve parity or proximity in the basis of differentiation relative to its competitors o be an above-average performer, even though it relies on cost-leadership for its competitive advantage† (Porter, 1985). An example is Tesco. Differentiation: This strategy is aimed at achieving uniqueness on attributes that determine consumer preference. According to Porter, this strategy can emerge from product differentiation, distribution system, and/or marketing approach. This allows a firm to charge premium price and can result in a loyal customer base. However care must be taken that the premium price is more than the cost of differentiation as well as is sustainable in long run. Once again, pursuing this strategy does not mean that a firm can ignore the cost element, which is a vital contributor to its bottom-line. An example of this could be Waitrose. Focus strategies – cost focus / differentiation focus: These strategic choices are for firms with narrow target segment. These are achievable only if the â€Å"target segments â€Å"either have buyers with unusual needs or else the production and delivery system that best serves the target segment must differ from that of other industry segments† (Porter, 1985). These are generic strategies across industries and the manner in which these are executed also varies for different industries. Internet and the Industry Structure In recent times, Michael Porter’s five forces model has expanded in scope to include internet and its influence industries. In his article â€Å"Strategy and the Internet† published in Harvard Business Review in 2001, Porter argues that Internet â€Å"tends to influence and alter industry structures in ways to dampen overall profitability, and it has a levelling effect on business practices, reducing the ability of any company to establish an operational advantage that can be sustained.† He states that the seemingly low cost of doing online business is actually artificially depressed as it does not account for many key activities such as inventory and warehousing which are needed to deliver value to the customer. But he also determines that internet has increased the possibilities for firms â€Å"to establish distinctive strategic positionings† that traditional information technology tools could not offer. He concludes that including internet offers a new dimension to a firm’s operations and is unavoidable as a tool in carrying out business. But if real economic value is to be created then internet initiatives must be integrated with the traditional competitive strategy as â€Å"internet per se will rarely be a competitive advantage† (Porter, 2001). Alternative model: Strategy from inside-out This perspective is exactly opposite to Michael Porter’s Five Forces model. Models based on this perspective are focussed on internal strengths and capabilities for devising a competitive strategy rather than scouring external opportunities. The starting point is an assessment of firm’s resources or competences that have been acquired over a period of time. What’s more, if one such resource is not existing within, then how to acquire it? Market positioning is sought in alignment with a firm’s resource based strategy. â€Å"Selected market positions must leverage the existing resource base, not ignore it†¦.for success resources should be leading and markets following† (Wit and Meyer, 2004, p. 252). Two main models have been proposed by leading practitioners of management: Competence based view; and Capabilities based view This viewpoint does not consider just physical resources, but also intangible resources or competences that get uniquely composed within an organisation during its operational span. These could vary from competence in Internet-driven supply-chain management to offline quality process. Firms seeking leadership position make sure that its core competences or capabilities are upgraded on a periodic basis so that competitive advantage is maintained. This is termed as the dynamic capabilities view (Teece, Pisano and Shuen, 1997). It is emphasised that a firm needs to take a long-term view of its competences and take all actions to strengthen these competences. This perspective does not advocate an ad-hoc approach that results in building up of unrelated competences. On the flip side, the challenge is in dismantling of existing competences and building of new competences as market demand changes. One good example of this is the mass-production mastered by American automobile companies could not be transformed swiftly into lean production practiced by Japanese firms such as Toyota, leading to erosion of market share and competitive advantage for giants such as General Motors and Ford. â€Å"†¦companies experience that that their core competences can be their core rigidities, locking them out of new opportunities† (Leonard-Barton, 1995). The perspective is further refined by Miller, Eisenstat and Foote (2002) as they propose the terms â€Å"asymmetries† and â€Å"capability configurations.† According to them, a firm’s asymmetries are it’s â€Å"skills, knowledge, processes relationships, proper ties, or outputs an organisation possesses or produces that its motivated competitors are unlikely to acquire or copy in a cost or time-effective way† (Miller et al 2002). However these can be of disadvantage to a firm unless â€Å"carefully fostered and directed†¦.by leveraging them via an appropriate market focus, companies may be able to aspire realistically to attain competitive advantage† (Miller et al 2002). This is the essence of â€Å"capability configuration† which is a system of reinforcing elements incorporating core capabilities and the organisational design infrastructures†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Miller et al 2002). They argue that the development process of inside-out strategy is emergent and iterative in nature and is characterised by trial and error. Three imperatives suggested by them for deriving sustainable competitive advantage out of an capabilities model are that firms need to: (1) â€Å"discover asymmetries and their potential†; (2) â€Å"create capability configurations – by design†; and (3) â€Å"pursue market opportunities that build on and leverage capabilities† (Miller et al 2002). Conclusion Both perspectives have their supporters. It is for a firm to decide the perspective that it wants to take for building its competitive strategy. It is suggested that the inside-out perspective has more depth. The argument is that although market-orientation and ability to capitalise on external opportunities are critical factors in a firm’s success, both (1) market-sensing and (2) customer-linking are distinctive capabilities that get cultivated within a firm over a period of time (Day, 1994). At the same time, Barney (1991) argues that resources become the foundation of competitive advantage only once they meet four conditions. They should be â€Å"(1) valuable, (2) rare, (3) difficult to imitate, and (4) difficult to substitute† (Barney, 1991). Appendix I: Outside-in versus inside-out perspective Source: Wit and Meyer, 2004, p.255 Appendix II References: Barney, J.B. (1991); Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage; Journal of Management, Vol. 17, No. 1, 1991, pp.99-120 Cummings, S. (1993); Brief Case: The First Strategists; Long Range Planning, Vol. 26, No. 3, June pp. 133 – 135 Day, George S. (1994); The Capabilities of Market-Driven Organisations; Journal of Marketing, October 1994, Vol. 58, No. 4, pp. 37-52 Leonard-Barton, D. (1995); Wellsprings of Knowledge; Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA Miller, Danny; Eisenstat, Russel and Foote, Nathaniel (2002); Strategy from the inside out: building capability-creating organisations; California Management Review, Vol. 33, No. 3 Porter, M.E. (1980); Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analysing Industries and Competitors; New York: The Free Press Porter, M.E. (1985); Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance; New York: The Free Press Porter, M.E. (1996); What is Strategy’; Harvard Business Review, Vol. 74, No. 6, November-December, pp. 61-78 Porter, M.E. (2001); Internet and Strategy’; Harvard Business Review, March; accessed from Harvard Business Publishing online http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/hbsp/index.jsp Prahalad, C.K. and Hamel, G. (1990); The Core Competence of the Corporation; Harvard Business Review, Vol. 68, No. 3, May-June, pp. 79-91 Teece, D.J., Pisano, G. and Shuen, A. (1997); Dynamic Capabilities and Strategic Management; Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 18, No. 7, August, pp. 509-533 Wit, Bob De and Meyer, Ron (2008); Strategy: Process, Content, Context – An International Perspective; Thomson, 4th Edition Brief 211514Page 1 of 8

Controversial Advertising Essay -- Subversive Advertising Media Market

Introduction Advertising texts and images seem to be the most visible and ubiquitous icons of consumer society. The Advertising industry indeed has simultaneously become one of the most powerful and apparently most uncritical institutions of today as well as this, people seemingly have accepted billboard advertising as an usual part of their environment. Nevertheless there sometimes develop certain advertising campaigns undergoing general ideas about what ads are supposed to show and they hence provoke controversial public debates. So called controversial advertising has often been claimed to somehow subvert conventional advertising’s practice by the audiences, justice, advertisers, companies, advertising industry’s self regulating institutions and so forth. This now rises the question how far industrial advertising as an institution that has to promote consuming goods, can be subversive. This essay will work out, that advertising hardly can be subversive, because it is to much characterised by its function. It nevertheless firstly is necessary to formulate a working-definition of subversion, a notion that has been used in very different senses, before two example-cases of controversial advertising can be investigated. The integration of ad-alien contents within the Benetton-campaign then will be analysed as a form of aesthetic subversion to subsequently question exactly the image’s ad-alien and supposed subversive form and content. Thus, it will be shown that Benetton’s subversive potentials are overshadowed by their functions as advertisements. This works second part will look at two campaigns developed for French Connection. By investigating two campaigns it will be shown that the only form of subversion that might be claimed for advertising could possibly be described as a temporary phenomenon of charming subversion. Controversial advertising : subversive avant-garde or variations of conformity? The notion „subversiveâ€Å" has been associated with political issues and revolutionary activities intending to change the entire political, economic and hence societal order by slowly destroying the present system from its core. Simultaneously the notion has been used in a less ubiquitous sense, that might be more appropriate for this work’s purpose. Vogel for example in Film as a Subversive Art established the notions of Subversion of Form and Subve... ...ox, Henri, A. (1994): Disturbing Pleasures - Learning Popular Culture. London, Routledge. Jà ¤ckel, Michael (2002)(no title given) URL: http://www.uni-trier.de/uni/fb4/soziologie/faecher/amk/folien/ss02/folien4_m.pdf (Visited 12.12.03) McLuhan, Marshall (1968): Die magischen Kanà ¤le. Understanding Media. Dà ¼sseldorf, Wien: Verlag der Kunst. McLuhan, Newton P. (1996) Care Fakers URL: http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/02.01.96/corp-care-9605.html (Visited 12.12.03) Tinic, Serra A. (1997): Unitied Colors and United Meanings: Benetton and The Commodification of Social Issues. URL: http://joc.oupjournals.org/cgi/reprint/47/3/3.pdf (Visited 12.12.03) Toscani, Oliviero (1995): Die Werbung ist ein là ¤chelndes Aas. Kà ¶ln: Bollmann. Vogel, Amos (1997): Film als Subversive Kunst. Kino wider die Tabus -von Eisenstein bis Kubrick. St. Andrà ¤-Wà ¶rdern: Hannibal. White, Roderick (2000): Advertising. Fourth Edition. Glasgow: McGraw-Hill. Wilson, Neil (1995): A Study Of The Relationship Between Benetton And Its Franchisees And The Impact A Controversial Campaign Can Have On The Association And On Company Sale. Aberystwyth: University of Wales, Centre for Business Studies.

Art and All in Our Mothers Gardens Essay -- Search Our Mothers Garde

Art and All in Our Mothers' Gardens      Ã‚   Alice Walker uses Virginia Woolf's phrase "contrary instincts" to describe the creative spirit that her female ancestors revive spirit that her female ancestors revered while working and living in oppressive conditions.   Her mother had a difficult life, but she managed to keep her creative spirit alive.   She held onto what she could in the simplest ways.   Where there was a will there was a way.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Walker explains that her mother, though tired and overworked, did express and feed her creative spirit.   She planted incredible gardens, and still does, with various blooming plants.   She adorned the house with flowers from the garden.   Walker likens her mother's garden to magic.   Friends and strangers visited the garden regularly and would ask to stand or walk amongst her mother's art.   Her mother's garden represents an undying love of beauty and creation, symbolizing the weaving of her creative spirit with nature's hand.   Envision the roots in the garden woven together, creating a network of support for the other plants.e other plants.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When Alice Walker went in search of her mother's garden it became a journey about uncovering her own true self.   Her mother was her strength and her role model.   Walker discovered that she found herself while searching for her heritage, and in the process she excavated her authentic self.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Imagine bla... ...e of art, you must open yours of art, you must open yourself up to the possibility that you might not like what the artist is trying to convey.   It's about taking a risk.   This is not going to be easy to do.   In fact, it will be very hard, but it is a risk we must take.   Once you have decided to dismiss something based on first impressions, you are doing yourself a grave disservice.   When you decide to take that leap and challenge yourself, you will then understand your truth, without hesitation.    Works Cited Walker, Alice.   "In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens." Major Modern Essayists. Second Edition.   Ed. Gilbert H. Muller with Alan F. Crooks.   Englewood Cliffs:   Prentice Hall, 1994. 329-337.

Study of Knowledge

Epistemology – The Study of Knowledge Jeff Castro PHI 200 Dr. Akins February 4, 2013 Epistemology – The Study of Knowledge The study of knowledge has always been the journey toward truth and understanding. Epistemology deals with the creation and distribution of knowledge in certain areas of inquiry. Humans should be free to gain, study and question knowledge and claims without repercussions in any social, cultural or religious setting. As we move forward in our understanding of life, religion and nature, we have changed our way of thinking through philosophy.We are less ignorant and uneducated about the truths of the world and how we as human beings perform in it. Knowledge and the confirmation of knowledge can be confirmed by propositional and procedural knowledge or knowledge by acquaintance. Propositional knowledge is expressed in declarative sentences or indicative propositions of one’s knowledge based on the known or knowing that. If someone says â€Å"all birds have feathers† they are stating or asserting a proposition that is factual or somewhat factual. Procedural knowledge is the knowledge used in the performance of a task, such as knowing how to replace brakes on a vehicle.It is learned knowledge through doing that act. Knowledge by acquaintance is experience based knowledge learned through casual interaction, such as knowing a place or person well (Mosser, 2010). Knowing for certain is always questionable because everything can be challenged. For the three identified ways of attaining knowledge, the most challenged one is propositional knowledge. Propositional knowledge receives the most skepticism because of the statements it brings forward, like â€Å"I believe that†, â€Å"I know that† and â€Å"I think that† (Steup, 2005). These statements are based on one’s beliefs, thoughts and ideas which can be questioned.If knowledge is based on one’s beliefs or opinions it will bring challenges , but remember an individual’s ideas based on beliefs or opinions should respected. We are certain of the other two due to experiencing or performing acts to solidify the knowledge. But then still can be questioned because of different procedures or experiences can still result in a different or validation of an outcome or answer. To justify what we really know is inherited, learned or experienced. We cannot really be certain of our knowledge because we can be tricked or limited by our sense that provides us this information to confirm or deny what we know or learn.Knowledge at one point is imperfect, but the truth at that point and is reinforced by the progress of science to be an absolute truth to some degree and as Vladimir Lenin says, â€Å"There is no impassable boundary between relative and absolute truth. † (Bogdanov, 1908). The normal order of the world is how we perceive it through our senses. It can play tricks on us and deceive through illusions that the min d receives from sight, sound, taste and touch. How humans recognize what is real and not real through their senses is known as empiricism (Mosser, 2010).Empiricists view that there is no such thing as innate knowledge, but instead knowledge is received from experience. On the argument side you have rationalism which view knowledge to be innate. It argues that the knowledge of God, mathematics and science cannot be explained by the senses (Mosser, 2010). But this does contradicts how we learn, because without the senses how do we learn mathematics, science or the knowledge of God (the bible). Innate knowledge is derived from the mind, but requires other things to support or build the mind, the senses.Let’s break down the five senses (vision, sound, touch, smell and taste) and try to understand what can be limited and why. Vision can be received or altered based on the ability to distinguish objects, the depth or field, color, contrast, or even color blindness. Sound can be aff ected by the volume or pitch that is received by the ears. Touch can be affected by your haptic perception and how sensitive one’s outer skin is. Smell and taste can be affected by our bad habits (smoking and drinking), disease or medications. So the limitations of one’s senses can fool and be limited by our own doings and by the aging process (Gwizdka, 2010).Cognitive relativism is the idea of the knowledge we hold of the real world requires assistance from our mental/mind to build and support and that things being the truth or false are relative to a society, group or individual. I also realize that there are cognitive bias, notational bias and culture bias, which prevents us from seeing or analyzing something objectively with our senses (empiricism) which we cannot discount. So to really assert a position of truth would depend on who interprets it based on moral, ethical, or social view (Slick, 2012).Friedrich Nietzsche developed perspectivism which supports cogniti ve relativism in that there are many possible perspectives to determine any possible assessment of the truth to be determined. This means that there is doubt and uncertainty about how we see the world and the truth about it based on perspectives. The limits to human perception or cognition are bounded by each individual and how they can comprehend or process what they are receiving. The processing of the knowledge can be expanded upon through the use of one’s innate knowledge.We limited ourselves based on what we only know and what is in front of us. If we can make sense of the world beyond what our senses take in we would be much better off, but remember it is all based on one’s perspective of faith, ideas, thoughts and knowledge. Skepticism is originally was defined as someone who simply looked at things and now it is someone who doubts claims. Skepticism forces claims to be justified (Mosser, 2010). When assessing epistemology on the bases of what is known and the u nknown we will still question everything for it is uncertain that we really know the truth about something.Yet there will still be limits on what we question because some are based on faith, which is an individual’s belief in their religion. There are several types of skepticism: moral, religious, metaphysical and scientific. Each identifying a particular area to question or doubt, but what I find most questionable or intriguing are the religious skepticism or theological skepticism which examines faith-based claims and scientific skepticism or empirical skepticism which uses the scientific method of examining claims.Religious skepticism does not mean one would be either an Atheist or Agnostic. These skeptics question religious authority, but are not anti-religious just because they question specific or all religious beliefs or practices. One of the first religious skeptics was Socrates, he questioned the legitimacy of the beliefs during his time of the existence of various g ods and this led to his trial and execution. Scientific skepticism seek proof through deductive argument before accepting any knowledge in any area, such as health claims, environmental claims, parapsychology, etc.Carl Sagan originated scientific skepticism and was a world-famous astronomer and astrophysicist well known for supporting the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence (SETI) and questioned that there was more than earth in our and other vast universes. There is also a sub-set of scientific skepticism which is call activist skepticism who seek to expose or prove false publicly what they see as the truth behind extraordinary claims (Klein, 2000). Socrates claimed that he knew one and only one thing: that he knew nothing, which was in line with being a Pyrrhonist.He questioned everyone who claimed to have knowledge, hoping to learn from them, but he never claimed that gaining knowledge was impossible and never claimed to discover any knowledge. As such proof of never record ing anything to prove or disprove his knowledge (Mosser, 2010). Sagan wrote in his publications â€Å"Too much openness and you accept every notion, idea, and hypothesis—which is tantamount to knowing nothing. Too much skepticism—especially rejection of new ideas before they are adequately tested—and you’re not only unpleasantly grumpy, but also closed to the advance of science.A judicious mix is what we need. † (Sagan, 1995). Both men were skeptics who believed in questioning and challenging claims and exhibited a fascination with discovery. I believe it is in our nature to question everything to ensure we have validated the claim, but as Sagan has stated there is a fine line before tilting it too far to the left or right. I believe the two skepticisms try to get at the answer of how humans came to being. The religious skeptic will question all religions by comparing claims and questioning why to find the ultimate truth of our existence and our tr ue meaning.The scientific skeptic will require proof in the way of science before accepting knowledge to be true (Munchin, 2011). By taking the two and trying to analyze and form a more complete set of questions to develop a more sensible truth or theory behind the human existence would possibly help me understand or rationalize the questions of â€Å"why† and â€Å"how† in my mind. But I understand there are limits to what I chose to believe as my ideas or perceptions (Shogenji, 2011). The decision between right and wrong is relative to one’s society or cultural background.Relativism in the Muslim world would be a death sentence (honor killing) and we would see it as radical relativism. It is easily defendable in their culture and country because it is viewed as a norm or way of life, but not so within most other countries. It is all about perspective because we to at one time burned people at the stake for being witches. Ignorance and lack of education or know ledge made it defensible and accepted at that time. So is radical relativism defensible, it is all about an individual’s or country’s perspective, religious beliefs and culture to decide one way or the other (Mosser, 2010).The basic understanding of philosophy and how it affects our lives is sometimes transparent to most people because they only do without thinking. We have gotten so busy with our tethered lives we do not take the time to question why something is true or not, we move around like mindless beings. Epistemology gives us that way to question and seek knowledge to validate truth and to hope to truly understand the â€Å"why† and â€Å"how† of our lives and everything in and around us.Humans should be free to gain, study and question knowledge and claims without repercussions in any social, cultural or religious setting. But this is an ongoing battle to be free from repercussions or persecution of our thoughts, ideas and actions when publicall y projected. Some countries and cultures still lash out in the way of medieval and barbaric manner at anything that does not fit their way of life and interactions, but it is all relative and it still falls within the study of philosophy.Choosing to accept this or not, based on beliefs, ideas and religion is your choice, but to understand and have a greater degree of insight of knowledge and truth is true epistemology. References Bogdanov, A. (1908). Absolute and Relative Truth, or the Eclecticism of Engels. Retrieved from: http://www. marxists. org/archive/lenin/works/1908/mec/two5. htm Gwizdka, J. (2010). Human Perception & Cognition. Retrieved from: http://comminfo. rutgers. edu/~jacekg/teaching/ITI230_HCI/2006_4f/lectures/Lecture3. pdf Klein, P. (2000).Contextualism and the Real Nature of Academic Skepticism. Retrieved from: http://www. jstor. org. proxy-library. ashford. edu/stable/pdfplus/3050570. pdf? acceptTC=true Mosser, K. (2010). A Concise Introduction to Philosophy. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Munchin, D. (2011). ‘Is theology a science? ’ Paul Feyerabend’s anarchic epistemology as challenge test to T. F. Torrance’s scientific theology. Retrieved from: http://search. proquest. com. proxy-library. ashford. edu/cv_756002/docview/894110952/fulltextPDF/13C00235777679CB0A0/4? accountid=32521 Sagan, C. 1995). Wonder and Skepticism, Vol 19, Issue 1. Retrieved from: http://www. positiveatheism. org/writ/saganws. htm Shogenji, T. (2011). Internalism and Externalism in Meliorative Epistemology. Retrieved from: http://search. proquest. com. proxy-library. ashford. edu/cv_756002/docview/1111853938/fulltextPDF/13C06554AFF58193594/1? accountid=32521 Slick, M. (2012). Cognitive Relativism. Retrieved from: http://carm. org/secular-movements/relativism/cognitive-relativism Steup, M. (2005). Epistemology. Retrieved from: http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/epistemology/