Free Essays on Final Thoughts

The main topics of the â€Å"Final Thoughts† section of our readings deals mainly with oppression. The first reading in this section is titled â€Å"Can White Heterosexual Men Understand Oppression?† written by Cooper Thompson, whom is in fact a white, heterosexual male, himself. Thompson elaborates on oppression of women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, black people and basically anybody who is not a white, heterosexual male themselves. Thompson goes on to claim â€Å"I began to hear and read about the privileges I get as a man, as a white person, and a heterosexual. I was able to see how oppressed persons – particularly women, people of color, and lesbians and gay men – are denied some of the rights I have†. He goes on to state that â€Å"heterosexual white men in this society tend to have a dualistic view of the world: we are either right or wrong, winners or losers. There is only one truth, and we will fight with one another to determine whose truth is right. To understand oppression requires that we accept others’ experiences as truthful, even though they may be very different from ours.† In many ways I disagree with the claims made by Cooper Thompson. I am a white, heterosexual male myself and I can think of numerous times that I myself have been oppressed. Now maybe my oppressions were not to the level or extent of many of the oppressions of minorities, but I do believe that white, heterosexual men do have a good understanding about oppression. Also, when Thompson claimed that white heterosexual males are either winners or losers and so on and so forth, he is merely describing all of man’s desire and drive to be number one, and this can tie back into many previous readings and postings. At an early age, boys are taught to be competitive and are taught to want to win. Losing was seen as something a girl would do and it would jeopardize one’s masculinity. I believe that this trait of e ither winning or losing, or bein... Free Essays on Final Thoughts Free Essays on Final Thoughts The main topics of the â€Å"Final Thoughts† section of our readings deals mainly with oppression. The first reading in this section is titled â€Å"Can White Heterosexual Men Understand Oppression?† written by Cooper Thompson, whom is in fact a white, heterosexual male, himself. Thompson elaborates on oppression of women, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, black people and basically anybody who is not a white, heterosexual male themselves. Thompson goes on to claim â€Å"I began to hear and read about the privileges I get as a man, as a white person, and a heterosexual. I was able to see how oppressed persons – particularly women, people of color, and lesbians and gay men – are denied some of the rights I have†. He goes on to state that â€Å"heterosexual white men in this society tend to have a dualistic view of the world: we are either right or wrong, winners or losers. There is only one truth, and we will fight with one another to determine whose truth is right. To understand oppression requires that we accept others’ experiences as truthful, even though they may be very different from ours.† In many ways I disagree with the claims made by Cooper Thompson. I am a white, heterosexual male myself and I can think of numerous times that I myself have been oppressed. Now maybe my oppressions were not to the level or extent of many of the oppressions of minorities, but I do believe that white, heterosexual men do have a good understanding about oppression. Also, when Thompson claimed that white heterosexual males are either winners or losers and so on and so forth, he is merely describing all of man’s desire and drive to be number one, and this can tie back into many previous readings and postings. At an early age, boys are taught to be competitive and are taught to want to win. Losing was seen as something a girl would do and it would jeopardize one’s masculinity. I believe that this trait of e ither winning or losing, or bein...

Paper Crafting Assistance from the Professionals

Paper Crafting Assistance from the Professionals â€Å"What is an English essay?† While this sounds like the easiest thing on the planet, we often get asked this question. As a student, you know the drill! There’s no way you will evade crating an English paper. This is just one of those essays that you have to write at one point in your academic life. Are you confident that you have the necessary skills to complete this paper? Do you even have the time to write this paper by yourself? Are you certain that you will ace this paper? Most students cannot craft their papers for varied reasons. First, they lack time to handle their assignments because they are tied up with other responsibilities, such as studying for exams, going to class, and completing other papers. Probably, they just want to relax and have a good time with friends. Other students are not skilled enough to complete these papers by themselves. 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Our guide is intended to make life easier for you. We have compiled a list of guidelines and tips that can help you while writing an English essay. Make use of them to increase your chances of getting a good grade in your assignment. The Guide on How to Start an English Essay Now that your professor has handed you an assignment, you are conflicted on how to begin an English essay. The first thing that you need to understand is what you are being asked of. Do you understand what the question or topic expects of you? There are important terms that you have to look out for since they act as guidelines on how you should come up with your response to the topic question. Comprehending what is expected if you will not only enable you to structure your paper properly, but it will also show you the direction in which you should take your research to answer the questions effectively. 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Make the most out of them if you hope to attain an excellent grade: Planning Will Come in Handy Even if it will seem like a waste of time, especially when you’re caught up with other academic responsibilities, it is always important that you brainstorm for a while before starting your paper. This will enable you to come up with the best-supporting ideas, instead of those that just come into mind, then position them in your paper accordingly. Make sure that your best supporting idea which makes the strongest case, and the one that you have the most knowledge on coming first. Even if you have the best-written paper, you can fail because you placed your arguments ineffectively. Aim for Variety Make use of vocabulary and sentences of varying complexity. Stop using the same words over and over. Constant Practice Good writing cannot happen overnight. Constantly practice mastering the art of crafting good English essays. 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Corporate governance - Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corporate governance - Law - Essay Example According to Andreasson (n.d. P 2) corporate governance in emerging markets is a critical issue where companies are constantly struggling for investors to raise capital base. About the scope of governance, Abdulla and Valentine (2009, p89) point out that â€Å"corporate governance includes all types of firms and its definitions could extend to cover all of the economic and non-economic activities† p 89. This needs to be embraced by the UK in its bid to improve its corporate governance. One way by which the UK can improve its corporate governance as shall be discussed in diversity is by incorporation of corporate governance and the complexity theory which encompasses many approches integrated into the governance system. Because the perception that the stakeholders about a company is an elastic issue that depends on the corporate image created by the company there has been experienced varying business performances by corporations in the financial and stock markets. This has led to the new wave seeking to transform the way legislative and procedural policies are made and employed by companies to stay afloat in the internal and external market. Therefore board actions on corporate management need effective monitoring so as to avert the corporate failures resulting from traditional corporate strategies as experienced in the UK capital markets. Their short-term policies are feared to be the main reasons for the low efficiency and low return on invested capital yet the companies largely depend on public equity financing amidst their many financial access options (DoB 2010, p 10). A look at the Bitish policies on company opertations shows an emphasis on the accountability of the directors to the shareholders while they set the policies for the company (FRC 2010, p9-11). However the weakness in the Companies Act 2006 which allows for freedom by companies to adjust corporate rules using their constitutions remotely diminishes the corporate sense of the shareholder s who are the main contributors of investment through public equity funds. This calls for real improvement that will address the weaknesses that have led to failure of many corporate organisations which lies in the role played by the company directorate (Kiarie 2007, p2). Kiarie identifies the non-specificity of the management roles in the companies especially the non-executive directors (NEDs) whom she says must play an important role in checking the power wielded by CEOs based on their independance and autonomy. This is possible if the companies willingly offer relevant and sufficient information other than the one the NEDs solicit for use in decision making and judgment. Therefore the NED should be part of the shareholder pressure on the corporate board that would enhance the value of the firm in form, of policies and strategies (Brenner, 2008 p 3-5). It is realised that most companies are reluctant to freely disclose their portfolio in the bid to cut on costs and keep competitor s at bay a fact that has made the shareholdders and the NEDs in darkness on the exact positioning of the company in the corporate market in what Brenner calls â€Å"free rider problem† p 5. This in a way has been the reason for mixed responses from stakeholders ranging

Conference paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Conference - Research Paper Example The discussion of this paper focuses on the different cultural perspectives and how this influences the personal and social interactions of the students and scientists’ perceptions. Personal interaction is the manner in which individuals interact with each other in a group or a community through communication. The language of people to a great extend determines how an individual interact with each other. There is high power vested on personal relations, with communication playing a vital role in unifying the members of a particular group (Eby & Allen, 2012). Communication plays an important role in ensuring a smooth running of events in a group or community. Language as a form of communication unites the people speaking the common language. Differences in communication and language could be a source of conflict. It is believed that language classifies people into different social and is responsible for people’s ethnicity and social grouping. Social interaction is the way in which two or more people who are mutually oriented interact with each other through acts, actions, or practices (Argyle, 2007). The behaviour of these people affects each of the parties’ subjective experiences or intentions. Parties involved in this form of relationship should be aware of one another and put each other into consideration. Such a relationship requires the parties to behave towards each other, portraying the mutual consent of the existence and presence of the other person. Trust is essential to the success of the social interaction, and secret spying on the other party without their consent is likely to bring issues into the relationship. The behaviour of the parties influences the success of social interaction. According to Nganga & â€Å"University of Wyoming† (2006), people need to be aware of their cultural influences as they relate to one another in the society. Students of different backgrounds and cultures sharing the same learning facilities need to

Friedrich Nietzsche Essay Example for Free

Friedrich Nietzsche Essay Existentialism provides a moving account of the agony of being in the world. The spirit of existen- tialism has a long history in philosophy. But it be- came a major movement in the second half of the 20th century. Existentialism is not a systematic body of thought like Marxism or psychoanalysis. Instead, it is more like an umbrella under which a very wide range of thinkers struggled with ques- tions about the meaning of life. Much of the appeal and popularity of Existential- ism is due to the sense of confusion, the crisis, and the feeling of rejection and rootlessness that Euro- peans felt during World War II and its aftermath. Existentialism’s focus on each person’s role in cre- ating meaning in their life was a major influence on the Phenomenological and Humanistic traditions in psychology and on the â€Å"human potential† move- ment that emerged from them. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) said, â€Å"Conquer your- self rather than the world. †. To modern existential- ists this means that the World itself has no real meaning or purpose. It is not the unfolding expres- sion of Human Destiny or a Divine plan, or even a set of natural laws. The only meaning is that which we create by acts of will. To have a meaningful life we have to act. But we should act without hope. Acting is meaningful but it doesn’t create meaning that lasts beyond the acts themselves or beyond our own lifetime. You are what you do – while you are doing it – and then nothing. (Very depressing. ) In The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus (pronounced â€Å"Kam-moo†) (1913-1960) describes life as a kind of hopeless, endless, uphill labor. Hence, the only true problem is that of suicide. Yet, he rejects nihilism; for the human being must fight and never accept defeat. The problem is to be a saint without a God. The last judgment takes place everyday. The human being must do his best, try for what he can within the confinements of his situation. Camus describes Sisyphus condemned by the gods to push a stone up a hill over and over, only to have it roll back down each time he reaches the top. A task that can never be completed. But he finds meaning in the fact that Sisyphus at least gets to decide each time whether to carry on or end it all. Camus says, The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a mans heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy. Although there can never be any meaning in Sisy- phus’ task, there is meaning is choosing each time to continue. Despite encompassing a staggering range of phi- losophical, religious, and political ideologies, the underlying concepts of existentialism are simple: Mankind has free will. Life is a series of choices, creating stress. Few decisions are without any negative conse- quences. Some things are irrational or absurd, without explanation. If one makes a decision, he or she must follow through. Notes on Existentialism by Tanweer Akram. The fundamental problem of existentialism is con- cerned with the study of being. The human beings existence is the first and basic fact; the human be- ing has no essence that comes before his existence. The human being, as a being, is nothing. This nothingness and the non-existence of an essence is the central source of the freedom the human being faces in each and every moment. The human being Notes on Existentialism Compiled for PSY 345 (Fall 2004) Existentialism Notes 2 has liberty in view of his situation, in decisions which makes himself and sets himself to solves his problems and live in the world. Thrown into the world, the human being is con- demned to be free. The human being must take this freedom of being and the responsibility and guilt of his actions. Each action negates the other possible courses of action and their consequences; so the human being must be accountable without excuse. The human being must not slip away from his re- sponsibilities. The human being must take deci- sions and assume responsibilities. There is no sig- nificance in this world, this universe. The human being cannot find any purpose in life; his existence is only a contingent fact. His being does not emerge from necessity. If a human being rejects the false pretensions, the illusions of his existence hav- ing a meaning, he encounters the absurdity, the fu- tility of life. The human beings role in the world is not predetermined or fixed; every person is com- pelled to make a choice. Choice is one thing the human being must make. The trouble is that most often the human being refuses to choose. Hence, he cannot realize his freedom and the futility of his existence. Basically existence is of two types: authentic and inauthentic forms of existence. Authentic existence is contrasted with dynamic and is the being-for- itself, rising from the human beings bad faith, by which the human being moves away from the bur- den of responsibility, through this beliefs in dogma and by regarding himself as subject to outside in- fluences and his actions to be predetermined. There is a striking contrast between the authentic and the inauthentic forms of being; the authentic being is the being of the human being and the inau- thentic being is the being for things. Yet, authentic being is only rarely attained by the human being; still it is what the human being must strive to gain. The inauthentic being-in-itself is characteristically distinctive of things; it is what the human being is diseased with for his failure to see himself as and act according as a free agent and his impotency to reject bad faith. Things are only what they are. But the human being is what can be. Things are deter- mined, fixed, and rigid; the human being is free; he can add essence to his life in the course of his life and he is in a constant state of flux and is able to comprehend his situation. The human being does not live in a pre-determined world; the human be- ing is free to realize his aims, to materialize his dreams; hence, he has only the destiny he forges for himself because in this world nothing happens out of necessity. The human being hides himself from freedom by self-deception, acting like a thing, as if he is a pas- sive subject, instead of realizing the authentic be- ing for the human being; this is bad faith. In bad faith, the human being shelter himself from re- sponsibility by not noticing the dimensions of al- ternative courses of action facing him; in bad faith, the human being behaves as others demand of him by conforming to the standards of accepted values and by adopting roles designed for him; in bad faith, the human being loses the autonomy of his moral will, his freedom to decide; in bad faith, the human being imprisons himself within inauthentic- ity for he has refused to take the challenge of re- sponsibility and the anxiety that comes along with his freedom. Anxiety ascends from the human beings realiza- tion that the human beings destiny is not fixed but is open to an undetermined future of infinite possi- bilities and limitless scope: The emptiness of fu- ture destiny must be filled by making choices for which he alone will assume responsibility and blame. This anxiety is present at every moment of the human beings existence; anxiety is part and parcel of authentic existence. Anxiety leads the human being to take decisions and be committed. The human being tries to avoid this anguish through bad faith. But the free human being, in his authenticity, must be involved; for his own actions are only his, his responsibility is to himself, his being is his own. The human being must be com- mitted. To be committed means not to support this in place of that, but to attach a human beings total- ity to a cause; it is the human beings existential freedom that leads to total commitment. Existentialist thinkers begin from the human situa- tion in the world; the condition of despair, the modes of existence, the human beings tendency to avoid authentic existence, his relation to things, his own body, and to other beings, with whom he can- not come into genuine communication, and the sufferings of life. Starting from the study of being, each existentialist thinkers originate their own doc- trines, with their own emphasis on particular as- pects. Very often their viewpoints is conflicting and sometimes contradictory; yet this philosophi-cal attitude of being, as a whole, can be described as the existentialist movement, which stresses upon the being of the human being. Existentialism Notes 3 Additional Notes on Existentialism Existentialism, philosophical movement or ten- dency, emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice, that influenced many diverse writers in the 19th and 20th centuries. Major Themes Because of the diversity of positions associated with existentialism, the term is impossible to define precisely. Certain themes common to virtually all existentialist writers can, however, be identified. The term itself suggests one major theme: the stress on concrete individual existence and, consequently, on subjectivity, individual freedom, and choice. Moral Individualism Most philosophers since Plato have held that the highest ethical good is the same for everyone; inso- far as one approaches moral perfection, one resem- bles other morally perfect individuals. The 19th- century Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, who was the first writer to call himself existential, reacted against this tradition by insisting that the highest good for the individual is to find his or her own unique vocation. As he wrote in his journal, â€Å"I must find a truth that is true for me . . . the idea for which I can live or die. † Other existentialist writers have echoed Kierkegaards belief that one must choose ones own way without the aid of universal, objective standards. Against the traditional view that moral choice involves an objective judgment of right and wrong, existentialists have argued that no objective, rational basis can be found for moral decisions. The 19th-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche further contended that the indi- vidual must decide which situations are to count as moral situations. SubjectivityAll existentialists have followed Kierkegaard in s tressing the importance of passionate individual action in deciding questions of both morality and truth. They have insisted, accordingly, that per- sonal experience and acting on ones own convic- tions are essential in arriving at the truth. Thus, the understanding of a situation by someone involved in that situation is superior to that of a detached, objective observer. This emphasis on the perspec- tive of the individual agent has also made existen- tialists suspicious of systematic reasoning. Kierke- gaard, Nietzsche, and other existentialist writers have been deliberately unsystematic in the exposi- tion of their philosophies, preferring to express themselves in aphorisms, dialogues, parables, and other literary forms. Despite their antirationalist position, however, most existentialists cannot be said to be irrationalists in the sense of denying all validity to rational thought. They have held that rational clarity is desirable wherever possible, but that the most important questions in life are not accessible to reason or science. Furthermore, they have argued that even science is not as rational as is commonly supposed. Nietzsche, for instance, asserted that the scientific assumption of an orderly universe is for the most part a useful fiction. Choice and Commitment Perhaps the most prominent theme in existentialist writing is that of choice. Humanitys primary dis- tinction, in the view of most existentialists, is the freedom to choose. Existentialists have held that human beings do not have a fixed nature, or es- sence, as other animals and plants do; each human being makes choices that create his or her own na- ture. In the formulation of the 20th-century French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre, existence precedes essence. Choice is therefore central to human exis- tence, and it is inescapable; even the refusal to choose is a choice. Freedom of choice entails com- mitment and responsibility. Because individuals are free to choose their own path, existentialists have argued, they must accept the risk and respon- sibility of following their commitment wherever it leads. Dread and Anxiety Kierkegaard held that it is spiritually crucial to rec- ognize that one experiences not only a fear of spe- cific objects but also a feeling of general apprehen- sion, which he called dread. He interpreted it as Gods way of calling each individual to make a commitment to a personally valid way of life. The word anxiety (German Angst) has a similarly cru- cial role in the work of the 20th-century German philosopher Martin Heidegger; anxiety leads to the individuals confrontation with nothingness and with the impossibility of finding ultimate justifica- tion for the choices he or she must make. In the philosophy of Sartre, the word nausea is used for the individuals recognition of the pure contin- gency of the universe, and the word anguish is used for the recognition of the total freedom of choice that confronts the individual at every mo- ment. Existentialism Notes 4 History Existentialism as a distinct philosophical and liter- ary movement belongs to the 19th and 20th centu- ries, but elements of existentialism can be found in the thought (and life) of Socrates, in the Bible, and in the work of many premodern philosophers and writers. Pascal The first to anticipate the major concerns of mod- ern existentialism was the 17th-century French phi- losopher Blaise Pascal. Pascal rejected the rigorous rationalism of his contemporary Rene Descartes, asserting, in his Pensees (1670), that a systematic philosophy that presumes to explain God and hu- manity is a form of pride. Like later existentialist writers, he saw human life in terms of paradoxes: The human self, which combines mind and body, is itself a paradox and contradiction. Kierkegaard Kierkegaard, generally regarded as the founder of modern existentialism, reacted against the system- atic absolute idealism of the 19th-century German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel, who claimed to have worked out a total rational understanding of hu- manity and history. Kierkegaard, on the contrary, stressed the ambiguity and absurdity of the human situation. The individuals response to this situation must be to live a totally committed life, and this commitment can only be understood by the indi- vidual who has made it. The individual therefore must always be prepared to defy the norms of soci- ety for the sake of the higher authority of a person- ally valid way of life. Kierkegaard ultimately advo- cated a â€Å"leap of faith† into a Christian way of life, which, although incomprehensible and full of risk, was the only commitment he believed could save the individual from despair. Nietzsche Nietzsche, who was not acquainted with the work of Kierkegaard, influenced subsequent existential- ist thought through his criticism of traditional metaphysical and moral assumptions and through his espousal of tragic pessimism and the life- affirming individual will that opposes itself to the moral conformity of the majority. In contrast to Kierkegaard, whose attack on conventional moral- ity led him to advocate a radically individualistic Christianity, Nietzsche proclaimed the â€Å"death of God† and went on to reject the entire Judeo- Christian moral tradition in favor of a heroic pagan ideal. Heidegger Heidegger, like Pascal and Kierkegaard, reacted against an attempt to put philosophy on a conclu- sive rationalistic basis—in this case the phenome- nology of the 20th-century German philosopher Edmund Husserl. Heidegger argued that humanity finds itself in an incomprehensible, indifferent world. Human beings can never hope to under- stand why they are here; instead, each individual must choose a goal and follow it with passionate conviction, aware of the certainty of death and the ultimate meaninglessness of ones life. Heidegger contributed to existentialist thought an original em- phasis on being and ontology as well as on lan- guage. Sartre Sartre first gave the term existentialism general currency by using it for his own philosophy and by becoming the leading figure of a distinct move- ment in France that became internationally influen- tial after World War II. Sartres philosophy is ex- plicitly atheistic and pessimistic; he declared that human beings require a rational basis for their lives but are unable to achieve one, and thus human life is a â€Å"futile passion. † Sartre nevertheless insisted that his existentialism is a form of humanism, and he strongly emphasized human freedom, choice, and responsibility. He eventually tried to reconcile these existentialist concepts with a Marxist analy- sis of society and history. Existentialism and Theology Although existentialist thought encompasses the uncompromising atheism of Nietzsche and Sartre and the agnosticism of Heidegger, its origin in the intensely religious philosophies of Pascal and Kierkegaard foreshadowed its profound influence on 20th-century theology. The 20th-century Ger- man philosopher Karl Jaspers, although he rejected explicit religious doctrines, influenced contempo- rary theology through his preoccupation with tran- scendence and the limits of human experience. The German Protestant theologians Paul Tillich and Rudolf Bultmann, the French Roman Catholic theologian Gabriel Marcel, the Russian Orthodox philosopher Nikolay Berdyayev, and the German Jewish philosopher Martin Buber inherited many Existentialism Notes 5 of Kierkegaards concerns, especially that a per- sonal sense of authenticity and commitment is es- sential to religious faith. Existentialism and Literature A number of existentialist philosophers used liter- ary forms to convey their thought, and existential- ism has been as vital and as extensive a movement in literature as in philosophy. The 19th-century Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky is probably the greatest existentialist literary figure. In Notes from the Underground (1864), the alienated anti- hero rages against the optimistic assumptions of rationalist humanism. The view of human nature that emerges in this and other novels of Dostoyevsky is that it is unpredictable and per- versely self-destructive; only Christian love can save humanity from itself, but such love cannot be understood philosophically. As the character Alyo- sha says in The Brothers Karamazov (1879-80), â€Å"We must love life more than the meaning of it. † In the 20th century, the novels of the Austrian Jew- ish writer Franz Kafka, such as The Trial (1925; trans. 1937) and The Castle (1926; trans. 1930), present isolated men confronting vast, elusive, menacing bureaucracies; Kafkas themes of anxi- ety, guilt, and solitude reflect the influence of Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, and Nietzsche. The in- fluence of Nietzsche is also discernible in the nov- els of the French writers Andre Malraux and in the plays of Sartre. The work of the French writer Al- bert Camus is usually associated with existential- ism because of the prominence in it of such themes as the apparent absurdity and futility of life, the indifference of the universe, and the necessity of engagement in a just cause. Existentialist themes are also reflected in the theater of the absurd, nota- bly in the plays of Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. In the United States, the influence of exis- tentialism on literature has been more indirect and diffuse, but traces of Kierkegaards thought can be found in the novels of Walker Percy and John Up- dike, and various existentialist themes are apparent in the work of such diverse writers as Norman Mailer, John Barth, and Arthur Miller. Conclusion Existentialists make endless claims. They never bother to show how they reached their claims or if these are, indeed, true. The existentialists when he pretends to present a representation of reality pro- vides no cognition; unverifiable assertions may well express powerful and even necessary emo- tions and passions, but thats best left to the arts and literature. Existentialism is a highly passionate philosophy and, from the outset, seems to aim at a dynamic and fashionable life-style. Also it is mostly unsys- tematic and pays little attention to logic or science. Whatever one makes of its metaphysical claims, one cannot deny that existentialism was able to provide a moving account of the spirit of the con- temporary world and the nausea and frustration of survival. Indeed, it is basically for its richness in psychological insight and its impact on culture that existentialist philosophy will continued to be stud- ied.

Databases, Forms, and Reports Essay -- Database Organization Design Es

Databases, Forms, and Reports This paper will discuss databases, forms and reports. Why has the use of databases increased dramatically? What factors should be considered when designing a database and why? How would you go about designing forms and reports from scratch? In conclusion, a summation will be given along with closing thoughts. Database Usage A database is an organized collection of information or data. It is a collection of organized information in which a computer can easily select and display different fields of data. Databases have been in use since the earliest days of electronic computing, but the vast majority of these were custom programs written to access custom databases. Unlike modern systems which can be applied to widely different databases and needs, these systems were tightly linked to the database in order to gain speed at the price of flexibility. As computers grew in capability this tradeoff became increasingly unnecessary, as a number of general-purpose database systems emerged. With the implementation of relational and object-oriented databases, companies found that the use of databases were much more productive and cost effective. Productivity and cost effectiveness being two of the main factors as to why the use of databases has increased dramatically over the years. Most recently there has also beco me a growing interest in using company data to improve business performance. Queries around business performance analysis were the top datab...

Diversity of human potential Essay

Gardner meanwhile developed the concept of multiple intelligences to reflect diversity of what human beings can do. He argued that there aptitudes or different propensities including linguistics, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences. Learning as a social behavior Bandura’s social learning theory extends the concept of the human potential and noted the role of obtaining competencies through the process of response consequences or observational learning which is essentially imitation or modeling. Modeling according to this theory has four components. Attention, the first component is perception of the significant attributes of a particular behavior. Retention is the next component or coding or committing the behavior to memory. Motor reproduction is the ability to reproduce the modeled behavior. The fourth component is motivational or reinforcements – the necessary push to do set of actions associated with the particular behavior (Bandura, 1975). The three basic psychological concepts outlined above just about cover the domain of psychology and points us to the direction that although there are individual competencies or potentials what happened if these individuals co-exists at particular setting. Bandura posited learning would be impossibility without a social setting even assuming the individual has the potential to learn (Bandura, 1962, , 1975). Accounting for variations. Levels of permanence and variability defines features of the individual like body shape which is relatively permanent than mental recognition or perception which could change quickly which may be internal or influenced by external factors. If modeling is a way of learning accounting for changes through time would be the next step, which is progression. In the case of suicide which has very strong negative association Kolb’s experiential learning cycle model would be helpful and may provide an expanded understanding on how groups or social networks form. This is very important as it has been shown modeling or experiencing losing someone because of suicide is a difficult phase which has proven significant as shown by Bearman and Moody, in terms of suicidal ideation or making the person who committed suicide a model figure (Bearman & Moody, 2004). Kolb identified four phases which has interesting interrelationships if taken not as phases but states of mind which is simultaneously being processed. Psychological diversity would be immense because of possibilities of dominance of each of the state of minds. Concrete experience (CE) and abstract conceptualization (AC), for example could be taken as off tangent to each other as experience could be taken as activity which is cyclical in itself but abstraction and conceptualization (AC) is progressive. Human potential may have been the same in the past 300 years but the explosion of knowledge because of science and technology what Bruner may call as powerful amplifiers. Reflective observation (RO) and active experimentation (AE) meanwhile in context of CE and AC could explain possible changes or how situations develop. To tie these all up is talking about the process cognition. As applied to understanding of the complex act of committing suicide, we see that actual experience or feeling the pressure from the environment as continuing until the final act. It is easy to understand what clinical psychologist would point out that suicidal tendencies should be seen as a form of mental illness an irrational behavior wherein the mind or the will has ceased to function. Kolb’s model is posited on the positive or rational thinking and development towards a higher plane of competence and learning as the rule or trend of human behavior. But still we could use Kolb’s and others thinking on human development as operative albeit the outcome is generally considered unacceptable. A lot of cases tends to point out there are risky social situations which may push some people into progressive stages until the act of committing suicide. For this we explore the sociological perspectives.

Japan Invades China (1931-37)

Japan invades China (1931-37) Japan’s main objectives of invading China in 1931 were to destroy communism and poses control over neighboring areas on the Asian continent. It was believed such a control was necessary to be able to issue possible military threats and inquire the natural resources needed to insure Japan’s economic independence. â€Å"By defeating Russia in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, Japan acquired possession of Russia’s Liaodong Peninsula Leasehold, which she renamed the Kwantung Leased Territory, and the South Manchurian Railroad† (BJorge, 2011).After Korea was captured in 1910, Manchuria was filled with mineral wealth, gorgeous farmland, and potential value as a defensive Korea from both China and Russia. In the 1920s, many of the Kwantung army believed Japan should take over Manchuria just like they did in Korea. Plotting began to conquer Manchuria with direct military action which led to the first invasions of China in th e 1930s. (BJorge, 2011) The plan was made to be easy; a railroad on the Southern side of Mukden was made to explode to give the Kwantung an excuse to attack the nearby Manchurian army stations and the storage of weapons in the city.Once that was complete, the Kwantung army was easily expandable until all of Manchuria was captured. The government officials of Tokyo tried to stop the plot, but the Kwantung army attacked before the warning was issued. The bomb was set off on September 18, 1931 and the Kwantung army started moving into action. (BJorge, 2011) China turned to the League of Nations for support. At the time, the nationalist government did not want a war with Japan and either did the Japanese government and therefore ordered the Kwantung army to fall back and negotiate a reasonable solution.But the Kwantung army refused and continued attacking other cities and ended up sending troops into Manchuria. The Kwantung army was very powerful because of their popularly Japanese citi zens. Even though it was unacceptable for the Kwantung army to disobey, the separation of Manchuria from China would be in Japan’s favor. (BJorge, 2011) In May 1935, Japan’s Tinainjin fort demanded all Guomindang military units and officers to leave the Hebei state. Jiang Jieshi was still dedicated to his goal of destroying his communist enemies. Japan, it seemed, was well on the way to achieving her goal of separating north China from Nanjing government administration† (BJorge, 2011). In October 1935, the Japanese prime minster wanted China to accept Manchukuo to join with Japan to build up north China’s economy. This proposal was seen as impossible for the reason of the anti-Japanese anger in China. The anger forced Jiang to end his anti-communist cause. (BJorge, 2011) On the night of July 7, 1937, some Chinese fired shells where the Japanese troops were planning at the Marco Polo Bridge, which is about ten miles from Beijing.Japanese thought a missing s oldier was caught by the Chinese and the Japanese officer ordered a search. On July 8, when his requested was denied, he bombed the city. Chinese tried to attack the Japanese but failed. Several days later, five divisions were made in Japan by the Japanese War Ministry, four divisions were sent to southern Hebei, and the Japanese troops from Manchuria attacked northern China. Then on July 19, an agreement was signed, by the Chinese general Song Zheyan, to withdraw troops from Wanping. Six days later a fight broke out close to the Marco Polo Bridge and Japanese troops detained the bridge.On July 28, the Chinese evacuated to save themselves before it was too late, while Japanese forces captured Tianjin two days later. That was the day Jiang decided that he will lead Japan and fight to finish the operation until the end. (Beck, 2007) On August 11, Jiang Jieshi moved 80,000 men into Shanghai. China tried to air force bomb the Japanese warships, but ended up missing and killing hundreds of civilians in Shanghai. At the end of August the Chinese forces tried to fight and attack the Japanese in Shanghai, but were unsuccessful and turned back to the defensive side in September and October.The Chinese lost 250,000 soldiers compared to 40,000 Japanese soldiers. In November, thanks to French priest Jacquinot de Bessage, some Chinese civilians were given a place to live after losing their home. (Beck, 2007) The Shanxi capital Taiyuan fell on November 9. In late September, the Communists won at Pingxingguan successfully killing about 500 Japanese and gained a hundred equipment trucks. They would have retrieved more, but the remaining Japanese destroyed their equipment and committed suicide. Beck, 2007) The Japanese broke through enemy lines in Shanghai and Chinese began withdrawing toward Nanjing on November 11. Jiang felt the world was on his side, even though the League of Nations did not take any action, and the signing of the non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union h ad no impact. But Japan was well on their way of completing their mission; the forces took over Beijing in September, Shijiazhuang in October, Taiyuan in November, Qingdao in August, and Jinan in December. (Beck, 2007) The former warlord Tang Shengzhi was ordered to hold Nanjing.The Japanese were promising the civilians to treat them well as their follow Chinese soldiers were killing and robbing people to take everything they could to escape. Jiang refused to stop fighting and the Japanese began bombing on December 10. Before the Japanese army arrived, half of the population had already left Nanjing. â€Å"The Presbyterian missionary W. Plumer Mills had learned of Bessage’s neutral zone, and the Americans and Europeans organized a safety zone that included Nanjing University, Ginling Women’s Arts and  Science College, the American embassy, and Chinese government buildings† (Beck, 2007).On November 22, the International Committee was made for the Nanjing Safety Zone. Three days later Adolf Hitler was asked to negotiate with the Japanese government to respect the neutral zone for the noncombatants. After all of that was settled, the Japanese continued their bombing to the military targets. More than one hundred thousand people were protected in the Safety Zone. (Beck, 2007) On December 12, Tang Shengzhi abandoned Nanjing and the Japanese troops entered the city the next day.For the seven weeks after that they killed about 30,000 Chinese soldiers, thrashed most of the civilians not in the safety zone, and burned most of the city. Between 20,000 and 80,000 women were raped or taken as slaves. It was estimated more than 200,000 Chinese civilians were exterminated by Japanese soldiers in Nanjing after the war. The Japanese dragged and murdered some of the ex-soldiers in the Safety Zone. â€Å"Jiang and Yan Xishan approved the Communist base in the Jin-Cha-Ji border region on January 22, 1938, but that was the first and last Communist base beh ind enemy lines that the Nationalists recognized† (Beck, 2007).The outcome of this invasion was terrible on China as the Chinese’s soldiers tried to fight to survive but were weaken and about 30 million Chinese civilians were forced to leave their homes and live in regions of their country unfamiliar to them as immigrants. Japan believed the invasion was going to be quick and easy, but they found themselves stuck in an unexpected marsh as China refused to surrender and the invasion turned into the beginning of the second Sino-Japanese War. Since it was too late to escape this battle, Japan reacted to the outbreak of war in Europe, which in time led them to attack the United States.With this action, Japan made China become part of World War II and with the defeat, Japan was forced to give up everything they gained in China since 1931. With the result of the war, the Japanese failed their main objective for the reason that the communist’s strength grew greater than it ever was. This marked the end of Japanese expansion. Reference List Beck, S. (2007). China at war 1937-1949. Retrieved from http://www. san. beck. org/21-5-ChinaatWar1937-49. html Benton, G. (2012). The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino–Japanese War of 1937-1945. China Journal, (67), 189-191.BJORGE, G. J. (2011, November 13). China, invasion of (1931, 1937–1945). Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary. wiley. com/doi/10. 1002/9781444338232. wbeow112/pdf Burrell, R. S. (2011). The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945. Naval History, 25(2), 78. Cho, A. (2011). In a Sea of Bitterness: Refugees During the Sino-Japanese War. Library Journal, 136(15), 88 Falk, S. (2011). Varied Fare. Army Magazine, 61(6), 73-74. Farrell, B. P. (2011). Book Review: The Battle for China: Essays on the Military History of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937—1945.Edited by Mark Peattie, Edward Drea and Hans van de Ven . Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. 2011. xxv+614 pp. US$65 hbk. ISBN 978 0 .. War In History, 18(4), 566-568. doi:10. 1177/09683445110180040809 Historical Boys' Clothing. (2005, February 05). Second sino-japanese war: Japanese invasion of china (1937-45)). Retrieved from http://histclo. com/essay/war/ww2/camp/pac/china/w2c-inv. html History Learning Site. (n. d. ). The japan. Retrieved from http://www. historylearningsite. co. uk/china_war. htm Wikipedia. (n. d. ). Second sino-japanese war. Retrieved from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Second_Sino-Japanese_War

7 Ways to Get Promotedâ€Beyond Just Working Hard

7 Ways to Get Promoted- Beyond Just Working Hard Think you can just slog away as diligently as you can and then everything else will fall into place? Think again. Just putting your head down and working hard is not enough. Don’t just imagine some omniscient presence is watching your performance at every turn and taking note of how well you’re doing. Here are a few concrete things to do to put yourself in a position to be promoted, beyond just showing up and working hard.1. Do something significant.So many rookies ask for a raise or a promotion without having done anything to earn it. Sure, they’ve worked hard. But they haven’t done the kind of specific work needed to grow as a leader or apply their talents and skills in a targeted way to help the company with what it needs most. Rise above. Then ask for a raise.2. Keep track of your successes.You should keep a running document of your accomplishments. Project start and end dates, significant milestones, quantifiable results, and thanks or congratulatory notes. This will be your arsenal when the time comes to prove your worthiness for promotion.3. Log professional development.Anytime you participate in a professional development activity- and you should be doing this!- log it. Keep track of courses, dates, names, contacts, etc. And file any new licenses or certificates you achieve, as well.4. Build a support team of mentors.You can’t get where you want to go without help. It takes a village- or, really, a team. Build bridges between you and your colleagues, supervisors, peers, managers, etc. Think about the ecosystem in which you’re operating. Learn its quirks and learn to thrive as a member of that climate. The best thing about scoring good mentors is that you might just land yourself a sponsor or ally who might be in the decision-making room when you aren’t and can make your case.5. Think ahead.Long before your review, sit down with your boss and make sure you know what tangible goals you should be working tow ards. Make sure you know the metrics you’ll be judged on when it comes time for promotion. Make a list of desired (or required) achievements. Then make sure your review is scheduled when it’s supposed to happen. If your first review comes and goes with no promotion, make sure you ask your boss what you’d need to do in the next six months to get there.6. Don’t wait to lead.Leadership opportunities won’t necessarily come to you. You have to seek them out. Lead a project, chair a committee, take charge of something. This will give you the exposure and visibility you need. Then just make sure you’re doing excellent work and maintaining your new role as leader.7. Branch out.It’s not just all about your company. Make sure to stay current. Network, interact, and yes, even interview at different companies in your field. Your employer isn’t the be all and end all. Anything could happen. Staying fresh and connected to the greater industr y not only means you’ll land on your feet if any shake-ups or lay-offs come around, but also that you will be seen as more valuable when the promotions start coming around.

Free Essays on An Observation

I observed a 4-year old program. A. When I got there they were eating lunch and they all seemed to be very active there were 3 boys that were quite riled up and the teacher handled it by splitting them up and just talking in a quiet voice. They then lined up after eating and emptied their trays and milk cartons and walked to their lockers and put their lunch bags in them, by themselves. When we got to the classroom they had a bit of free play time and I observed quite a bit of sharing and cooperating for the most part. And they all cleaned up after themselves. When the teacher sang the clean up song. They then got out their carpets (pieces of carpet that had their names on the back) and put them on the floor and sat on them waiting for the teacher to start circle time. They did the calendar by having the leader come up and point to the numbers on it and they then told him what number came next. Next they said the days of the week and counted the children. After counting the children the teacher held up owls with a c hild's name on it and the children knew almost all the names by recognizing the letters in the name. After that was all done they read a weekly reader. This was very interesting they were able to pick out the right fire truck on the pages when the teacher said the name of it. And listened very attentively. They then colored and played some more and the ones who were coloring colored firedogs to bring to the fire station with them when they went. I watched as the children played and decided what they wanted to do. Some wanted to play with blocks and others wanted to play house, and they were asking others to play with them. This classroom was very open and not very demanding. I thought that the children had a lot of fun while playing and learned a lot also. Like for instance they learned the important rules of fire safety because the teacher had set up a fire station work area. And also by playing together with blocks or... Free Essays on An Observation Free Essays on An Observation I observed a 4-year old program. A. When I got there they were eating lunch and they all seemed to be very active there were 3 boys that were quite riled up and the teacher handled it by splitting them up and just talking in a quiet voice. They then lined up after eating and emptied their trays and milk cartons and walked to their lockers and put their lunch bags in them, by themselves. When we got to the classroom they had a bit of free play time and I observed quite a bit of sharing and cooperating for the most part. And they all cleaned up after themselves. When the teacher sang the clean up song. They then got out their carpets (pieces of carpet that had their names on the back) and put them on the floor and sat on them waiting for the teacher to start circle time. They did the calendar by having the leader come up and point to the numbers on it and they then told him what number came next. Next they said the days of the week and counted the children. After counting the children the teacher held up owls with a c hild's name on it and the children knew almost all the names by recognizing the letters in the name. After that was all done they read a weekly reader. This was very interesting they were able to pick out the right fire truck on the pages when the teacher said the name of it. And listened very attentively. They then colored and played some more and the ones who were coloring colored firedogs to bring to the fire station with them when they went. I watched as the children played and decided what they wanted to do. Some wanted to play with blocks and others wanted to play house, and they were asking others to play with them. This classroom was very open and not very demanding. I thought that the children had a lot of fun while playing and learned a lot also. Like for instance they learned the important rules of fire safety because the teacher had set up a fire station work area. And also by playing together with blocks or...

How Can Social Change Be Brought About, Especially in a Totalitarian Essay

How Can Social Change Be Brought About, Especially in a Totalitarian Society Like the One Nafisi Describes - Essay Example In order to break the silence or discover possibilities to exercise their free will, individuals must strive to resist to such pressures on individual level. If only people realize what a deadly solution silence is, they would never choose to resort to it. It is a manifestation of the weakness and inability of individuals to stand for their basic human rights. In order to fight the system, Nafisi had to create a little world of her own with a like-minded group of students in order to evade the restrictions of the totalitarian regime they were living in. The classic literary works they studied together opened new vistas for their inner struggles to break the silence and to stand for their rights and this is how they survived in such suffocating circumstances with little efforts. â€Å"†¦ like Lolita, we tried to escape and to create our own little pocket of freedom.† (Nafisi, 435) They developed a strong bond during their struggle to keep their spirits alive and to carve o ut a little space for themselves and also learnt how to handle unfavorable circumstances. This is what Gladwell says about the Power of Context: â€Å"†¦ the Power of Context says that what really matters is little things.†(242) If people wait for radical social changes to take place, they must start by taking the first little steps themselves. Nafisi and Gladwell argue that environment plays an important role in shaping human behaviors. People tend to think and act differently under different circumstances and they even develop different perspectives of life in different situations. It was for this reason that reading Lolita in Tehran became an altogether different experience. â€Å"This then is the story of Lolita in Tehran, how Lolita gave a different color to Tehran and how Tehran helped redefine Nabakov’s novel, turning it into this Lolita, our Lolita.†( Nafisi, 420) Gladwell also emphasizes upon the strong impact of environment on human actions. Our b ehaviors undoubtedly reflect our familial and educational backgrounds, mentalities, and genetics- but most importantly they are shaped and governed by the environments we live in. We pick up cues from the environment and act or react accordingly. â€Å"The impetus to engage in a certain kind of behavior is not coming from a certain kind of person but from the feature of the environment.† (Gladwell, 238) In totalitarian regimes, it is incumbent upon individuals seeking social change to voice their concerns. The environmental factors might be discouraging and disheartening, but it is within human powers how they behave in particular situations. It is important to have will power, voice and the determination to express yourself through sensible and methodological actions. Social change can be brought about on the grassroots-level of totalitarian societies by instilling a general awareness about free will and the right to exercise it through words and actions. Rampant and radical movements can be easily undermined by such political systems by force; however, awareness about basic human rights seeps in the deepest layer of societies over the years. Such changes evolve slowly out of the dire need of the citizens to express their free will. In a totalitarian society like the one Nafisi describes, individuals are forced to redefine their behaviors particularly in public. People are forced to practice such customs in which they do not believe in; and they are expected to act and behave like the tools of a totalitarian system. If given an opportunity to

Ethics in Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethics in Business - Essay Example Whenever there is discussion about saving or preserving ecosystem, majority concentrates about land and very few people pay attention to sea and species living in it. The attention of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and towards preserving fish and limiting annual catch limit is worth appreciating, as very few people pay attention to this aspect of the ecosystem. It is really very important for balanced Ecosystem. This proposed regulation will certainly affect people in fisheries business as with the implementation of this regulation Annual Catch Limit will be fixed, and people in fisheries business will be able to catch fish up to the specified annual catch limit only. 2) The proposal is to make changes to 5 fishery ecosystem plans in order to create a method or rule to specify annual catch limit (ACLs) & accountability measures (AMs) (Sutinen Jon G., 2005). The suggested proposal will be helpful in balancing eco system and mainly concentrates on the problem of over fishing. The proposal specifies that fishery management plan of every council must contain a method to specify annual catch limit, to prevent over fishing. Accountability measures are also needed to diminish or correct any surpass of annual catch limit.