Areas of Sociology Essay

Sociology is a very broad and diverse field. There are many different topics and scopes in the field of sociology, some of which are relatively new. The following are some of the major areas of research and application within the field of sociology. For a full list of sociology disciplines and areas of research, visit the sociology disciplines page. Family. The sociology of family examines things such as marriage, divorce, child rearing, and domestic abuse. Specifically, sociologists study how these aspects of the family are defined in different cultures and times and how they affect individuals and institutions. Deviance And Crime. These sociologists, also called criminologists, examine cultural norms, how they change over time, how they are enforced, and what happens to individuals and societies when norms are broken. Deviance and social norms vary among societies, communities, and times, and often sociologists are interested in why these differences exist and how these differences impact the individuals and groups in those areas. Demography. Demography refers to a population’s composition. Some of the basic concepts explored in demography include birth rate, fertility rate, death rate, infant mortality rate, and migration. Demographers are interested in how and why these demographics vary between societies, groups, and communities. Social Inequality. The study of social inequality examines the unequal distribution of power, privilege, and prestige in society. These sociologists study differences and inequalities in social class, race, and gender. Sociologists who study health and illness focus on the social effects of, and societal attitudes towards, illnesses, diseases, disabilities, and the aging process. This is not to be confused with medical sociology, which focuses on medical institutions such as hospitals, clinics, and physician offices as well as the interactions among physicians. Work And Industry. The sociology of work concerns the implications of technological change, globalization, labor markets, work organization, managerial practices, and employment relations. These sociologists are interested in workforce trends and how they relate to the changing patterns of inequality in modern societies as well as how they affect the experiences of individuals and families. Race And Ethnicity. The sociology of race and ethnicity examines the social, political, and economic relations between races and ethnicities at all levels of society. Topics commonly studied include racism, residential segregation, and the differences in social processes between racial and ethnic groups. Military sociology looks at the military as a social group rather than an organization and examines issues related to coerced collective action, survival in vocation and combat, civilian-military relations, and interactions between other groups or government agencies. Education. The sociology of education is the study of how educational institutions determine social structures and experiences. In particular, sociologists might look at how different aspects of educational institutions (teacher attitudes, peer influence, school climate, school resources, etc. ) affect learning and other outcomes. Religion. The sociology of religion concerns the practice, history, development, and roles of religion in society. These sociologists examine religious trends over time, how various religions affect social interactions both within the religion and outside of it, and relations within religious institutions. The Internet. Sociology of the Internet includes the analysis of online communities (newsgroups, social networking sites, etc. ) and virtual worlds. Sociologists are interested in the social implications of the Internet and how virtual communities and worlds are transforming real communities and societies across the globe.

External Essay

A 12 Mitch Albom use of symbolism to portray his message†¦. to simply live life Extended Essay Alisha Waldron IB# 000-848-005 December 5, 2012 Abstract This essay is an examination of the Novel â€Å"Tuesdays with Morrie†, written by Mitch Albom in the mid-1990 and published in 1997. The research question that will be spoke upon in this essay is: How does Mitch Albom use symbolism to portray his message, to simply live life? There are many instances where Mitch, has Morrie Portray the theme to simply live life.There are many quotes that help answer my question throughout this essay. Examples of symbols used through the novel are the pink hibiscus plant, Morrie’s Bed, and the Waves on the ocean. This is the thesis of the easy that will help answer â€Å"How does Mitch Albom use symbolism to portray his message, to simply live life. Albom uses different symbols to show his message. For the pink hibiscus plant, its life a symbol that is supposed to mimic Morrie, the weaker Morrie becomes the weaker the plant becomes. He never gave up who he was and continued to â€Å"do him†.The waves on the ocean showed to never give up, because once you believe something then it will come true. He might as well just live life to the fullest. Morrie bed is the biggest symbol in the novel. He believes that once you lie in bed then you are dead. This shows foreshadowing. He avoids his bed throughout the whole story, but eventually becomes too weak and gives up. This is where he took his last breath. Word Count: 242 Table of Contents Introduction4 pink hibiscus plant6 Waves on the ocean7 Morrie’s Bed8 Conclusion. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 11 Works Cited†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 12 Introduction Authors use sy mbolism because it makes their readers actually think about their themes. It is used to give the characters or the incidents a second meaning hidden behind the visible meaning so the books are not boring, but engaging for entertainment and seriousness and pushes your mind to interact with the novel which makes it more interesting  another thing. Another reason for symbolism is to present ideas that the author is afraid to expose clearly.Saying one thing directly as is, straight forward is totally different from describing what you mean, it puts emphasis in the plot and help reading engage in the novel. Symbolism will either be associated as an object, a personality, an action or a state of affairs that gives a deeper message, rather than just blurting out the message. The author might use totally diverse matter, compare characters or things or will repeatedly use constant circumstances of affairs or object to express crucial plots, principal mood or way of thinking. Symbolism will either be refined or deliberate.It can even be used to some extent or significantly used throughout the text. Authors use symbolism after they wish to convey their messages and feeling to their story while not blurting it out directly typically this can be often be intrigued by story writers because it offers them enough area to express what they need to mention, persecute in less words. Symbols are used all throughout the whole story to help Mitch basically get his point across in a more enjoyable manner for the reader. Symbols are significant to â€Å"Tuesday’s with Morrie†, it gives the readers a since of suspense.This story takes the reader through various steps as to how to understand life itself, and by reading Mitch’s book one begins to reflect on their own life. In most cases people see death as a sad time in a person life. If you went to the doctor and you were told that there was no way that you would make it, that you only had about 2 years to live, it would be a rough time for you and your family. The last two years of your life would be hard. Every day, of the last two years of you waking up would be full of sorrow and pain.Tuesdays with Morrie is the concluding lesson between a sociology professor at Brandeis University, and also the main character, Morrie Schwartz, and one of his students that he previously taught at his college before the illness, which is additionally the author of the book, Mitch Albom. Mitch saw his professor in an interview on the broadcast â€Å"Nightline,† Mitch before long remembered of a promise he created sixteen years in the past that he wouldn’t forget him; that he would continuously imprison a connection with him.Morrie was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which â€Å"is an illness of the nerve cells within the brain and neural structure that manages the voluntary muscle movement. Symptoms usually do not develop until after age 50, but they can start in younger people. A person with ALS have a loss of muscle strength and coordination that eventually gets worse and makes it impossible to do routine tasks† such as going up a flight of stairs, getting up, out of a chair, swallowing, including juice and food, or in Morries case, â€Å"Whip [his] own ass†. â€Å"Breathing or swallowing muscles may be the first muscles affected.As the disease gets worse, more muscle groups develop problems. This does not affect the senses (sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch). It only rarely affects bladder or bowel function, eye movement,  or a person's ability to think or reason. † He soon realizes that the disease is catching up to him swiftly, and that he needs to share his perception on â€Å"The Meaning of Life† with the world before his time on earth ends. His time to be on this earth as a living human being is restricted and Mitch becomes responsive to this situation. Mitch leaves Michigan to travel to Massachusetts to show Morrie a visit after the viewing the show.Previously after having this one fantastic visit, Mitch had a desire to go to Morrie’s place once per week. Clearly this one random day was a Tuesday. Ever single Tuesday Mitch went back to see his old professor. Hebdomadally till Morrie’s death. Every week they spoke on a few totally different topics. Each topic that was said had to do with life, things that occur in one’s life. Death, love, culture, regret and also the world we have a tendency to board, among several other themes, were all enclosed in the content during this book to portray Mitch Albom’s message to straightforwardly live life.The reader feels several emotions whereas reading this book, starting from happiness to unhappiness, most likely trying to hold back the tears once reached the end of the book. Although it takes Morrie a significant amount of time to eventually pass away, this offers the book some suspense and provides readers to engage wit hin the plot. It makes the reader believe their own life and be a sign of on getting old, mercy, people, sympathy, and mentors in life, even as Mitch Albom will throughout the novel. Mitch Albom will use the symbols hibiscus plant, the waves of the ocean, and Morries bed to portray the theme to simply live life.Pink hibiscus plant An example of a symbol used in the book is the â€Å"pink hibiscus plant† As Morrie's body continues to expire; at the same time as the disease is attacking Morrie’s body, eating away, weakening his muscles, the condition of the hibiscus plant continues to die as well. The plant represents to decay of Morries insides within his body. The plant's pink petals began to dry out, and wrinkle up. The petals eventually fall off the plant leaving the plant Old, dried out, and plain. Meanwhile, Morrie’s disease continues to get worse spreading to different parts of his body.He then has no choice but to come more dependent of his me medical assi stants and on the oxygen tubes he has to be put on. Morrie can no longer live alone, but has to be assisted with just about everything he does. As his death approaches, just right around the corner, the pink hibiscus plant Morrie is becoming deceased. The death of the plant is quickly occurring just like how Morrie’s body is dying. The plant is constantly mentioned in reference of Morrie's life and for life in general. Like the plant, humans, Morrie in particular, experience a natural life cycle, this unavoidably ends in death.Morrie must accept this anticipated outcome, and Mitch must do the same. â€Å"Take my condition. The things I am supposed to be embarrassed about now — not being able to walk, not being able to wipe my ass, waking up some mornings wanting to cry — there is nothing innately embarrassing about them. It's the same for women not being thin enough, or men not being rich enough. It's just what our culture would have you believe. Don't believe it. † The words above are spoken to Mitch as some words of advice, by Morrie during one of their normal Tuesday visits. During this visit they specifically speak upon society.Slowly but surely, Morrie has grown to accept his physical inability, in the same way he has grown to accept his awaiting death. He complains that the society is wrong to believe in ordinary physical needs as a social embarrassment, and as a result he will not believe that he being handicap is discreditable. In rejecting the values of the population, Morrie creates his own society, which accommodates the physical shortcomings people in today’s society are faced with each and every day, that others find disgraceful and embarrassing. As Morrie sees it, popular culture is a dictator under which the human community must suffer.Morrie feels as though he has suffered enough already from his disease and do not understand see why he should search for social acceptance if it is not contributing to to his pe rsonal happiness. Through the novel, society is portrayed as an enormous device that removes everything from the minds of the public, and replacing the natural kindheartedness they gain at birth with a brutal greed and selfish focus. Waves on the ocean Another symbol that is used in Tuesday’s with Morrie is the waves on the ocean. I believe Mitch Albom chooses for Morrie to remember this story about the ocean to connect the waves with life itself.Morrie heard about a llttle wave. But seeing the waves in front of him collide on the shore, vanishing into nothing made the little wave seems more significant than just a wave. He is suddenly filled with fear upon the realization that he also will soon ‘crash on the shore' and, die as the wave fears he will. There becomes two waves that seems to contradict each other. It’s like one wave have confidence, or is just by his side to give him the strength to say â€Å"you will not crash, or turn in to nothing† but wil l instead return to become a small part of the larger ocean.This story gives Morrie a relief. This small wave is symbolic of Morrie, as he too is on the brink of crashing into a theoretical shore, a symbolic personification of his death. Like the wave, Morrie is comforted by the knowledge that he will soon return to something larger in the afterlife. Morrie's resemblance for the parable denotes his belief in a form of reincarnation, which he understands as fundamental part of the natural life cycle. â€Å"You see†¦ You close your eyes. That was the difference. Sometimes you cannot believe what you see; you have to believe what you feel.And if you are ever going to have people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too even when you're in the dark, even when you're falling. † These words are spoken to his class while in a flash back on one of the Tuesdays. His class was asked to demonstrate a trust fall exercise; this is when one student falls in to the arms of another student where that student must catch the student fallin. This shows if the student trusts the other student. â€Å"One student will fall straight backwards and must rely on another student to catch them. NO one can really trust anyone until on pair finnaly does the exercise without nervousness. Morrie notices that the student that completed this exercise had her eyes shut, and says that â€Å"this exercise serves as a metaphor for the secret to trust in relationships†; sometimes it takes one to close there eyes, to be blind to a situation to trust; only relying on their emotions to direct them in their final decision. The exercise was used to explain how two people in a relationship trust eachother and the two partners take risks in letting them hold their heart. There is no getting around this risk, it is required.Morrie teaches his students that â€Å"trust is blind; one can only judge whether or not to trust another based on an instinctive feeling, not because of any rational judgment or method of thinking. † Trusting someone only takes for one to shut their eyes fall back, having faith in that person to catch them. Morrie’s Bed Morrie’s bed is a symbol that is used in the story. Morrie's cliche is, â€Å"When you're in bed, you're dead. † Ironically, his saying in the end happens. During Morrie's struggle with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), he didn’t want to be in his bed, since his perception of the bed is so harsh.He believes the bed is a form of surrender. He feels he is being defeated the more time that he spends in the bed and instead, he decides to sleep on his chair located in his study. Every heard of the expression â€Å"Live Life to the Fullest? † Morrie has every intention to live his last couple of days to the fullest, but he knows that if he stays in his bed, he will be giving himself up to death by surrendering the simple happiness he gets from lounging around in his study. Mor rie refuses to let his disease defeat him. There where many memories in that were all around him in his study, like friends and loved ones pictures and books.In his study he can peek out the window. Even thiough he cannot go outside, the beauty of mother nature makes him happy. During Morrie’s final days he laid in his bed after he had accepted the fact that it was his time to go, and he prepared himself for the death that awaited him. The media is continually portrayed in  Tuesdays with Morrie  as being fundamentally evil, sucking Mitch dry, literally, of his passion and ambition, and feeding the public stories of murder and hatred that have completely wrecked the goodness of the world's general community.Even though Morrie agrees to do the show and put his story in the newspaper, it is still draining the little bit of energy that he do have. I feel like he is trying to prove to everyone that, even though on the edge of death, he is still alive and he will continue to si mply live life. Mitch, who is out of work due to a utilized strike at the Detroit newspaper he writes for, continually notices the horrific events reported by the media he for a long time has been a part of.He reads about homicides, torture,  theft, and a dozen other frightening crimes that serve to contrast the evil of the popular culture with the goodness of the world Morrie has created for himself. The O. J. Simpson murder trial also makes multiple appearances throughout the book, and provides Mitch with evidence to support  his claim that the general heavily population has become dependent on, and somewhat addicted to, media coverage of relatively meaningless stories, stories that contribute nothing to personal development or goodness as a human being.These stories are used within the Novel as motifs to pursue the evil that is surrounded around Morrie. This shows, in my opinion, how strong, mentally, Morrie really is. Even though Morrie is not as strong physically he is stil l strong mentally. He ignores all of the ignorance that is going on around him. He only focuses on one thing, which is to simply live life â€Å"The truth is . . . once you learn how to die, you learn how to live. † Morrie says this on one of the Tuesday’s to respond to Mitch's question â€Å"how one can prepare for death. His response was that every day, a person must ask the angel on his shoulder if today will be m day, my last breathes and my last words. His thinking serves as a symbol for his awareness that his death may come at any moment. The angel itself is symbolic of Morrie's awareness that his death is quickly arriving, and he needs to be prepared to accept it when it finally arrives. He hopes that Mitch will realize that this angel is on every persons shoulder during every inute of their lives, regardless of how young or old that person might be. When he tells Mitch that â€Å"one must know how to die before one can know how to live,† in other words he means that one must accept the likelihood of one's own death before he can truly appreciate what he has on earth, it will all be out of reach, giving the urge to appreciate and value what a person can have only for a limited period of time, and to use every moment of that time doing something that one will not regret when the angel sings its last note.In his quest to accept his awaiting, death, Morrie deliberately â€Å"detaches himself from the experience† when he suffers his violent coughing spells, all of which come loaded with the possibility of his last breath. Morrie looks past the fact that his death date is quickly approaching. Morrie knows that the time is coming. He is aware of his deceasing body, as his famous statement â€Å"I will eventually have to whip my own ass†. Morrie derives his method of detachment from the Buddhist philosophy that â€Å"one should not attach themselves to things, as everything that exists is temporary. In detaching, Morrie is able to step out of his tangible surroundings and into his own state of consciousness, namely for the sake of gaining perspective and composure in a stressful situation. Morrie does not intend to stop feeling or experiencing in his detachment, but instead, wants to experience wholly, for it is only then that he is able to let go, to detach from a life-threatening experience which renders him fearful and tense. He tries to look past the fact that he has been diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and simply live life.He makes little changes to his life after the new was delivered to him. He does not want to die feeling upset, and in these frightening moments, detaches himself so that he may accept the impermanence of his life and embrace his death, which he knows may come at any moment. â€Å"As you grow, you learn more. If you stayed as ignorant as you were at twenty- two, you'd always be twenty-two. Aging is not just decay, you know. It's growth. It's more than the negative that you're going to die, it's the positive that you understand  you're going to die, and that you live a better life because of it. Each of Morrie's lessons contributes to a larger, all-encompassing message that each individual, Mitch especially, should reject society’s values, but develop his own. As Morrie sees it, society is a dictator under which the human community must suffer. In his own life, Morrie has fled this socirty dictatorship in favor of creating his own culture founded on love, acceptance, and open communication. He develops his own culture as a revolt against the media-driven greed, violence and superficiality which has tarnished the mores promoted by popular culture.Morrie encourages Mitch to free  himself of this corrupt, dictatorial culture in favor of his own, and it is only when he does that he begins to reassess his life and rediscover fulfillment. Morrie reads  a quote  by one of his favorite poets, W. H. Auden, to include one of his important lessons to Mitch:† in the absence of love, there is a void that can be filled only by loving human relationships. † When love gathers, Morrie says, â€Å"a person can experience no higher sense of fulfillment. During all fourteen Tuesday visits lessons with Mitch, Morrie tells him that â€Å"love is the essence of every person, and every relationship, and that to live without it, as Auden says, is to live with nothing. † The appreciation of love, in Morrie’s eyes, in particular, as he is abiut to decease, for without the careful care of those he loves, and who love him, he would perish. Morrie has one wish before he isn’t on this earth anymore, and that is to share his story with Mitch so the world can hear it.Morrie fights for his life long enough to finish telling Mitch all the storys, and lessons to Mitch so he can share them to the world. Soon as he has completed his dying wish he surrenders and faces death, leaving Mitch to tell the world that â€Å"love brings meaning to experience, and that without it, one may as well be dead. † Conclusion In conclusion with examining the Novel â€Å"Tuesday’s with Morrie† I have found a lot of evidence from the novel that helps support my question to â€Å"how does Albom use symbolism to portray his message to simply live life? Morrie and his disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis didn’t not stop him from doing the things is had a passion for. When diagnosed he taught his students until he was weak. He didn’t just give up on life, even though he knew, soon to come, he was going to die. I have never heard of someone being happy to die. As you can see there were many symbol used throughout the novel to promote the theme to simply live life. The plant was basically Morrie through the novel. The weaker Morrie became the more flimsy the plant became.The waves on the ocean seem to stand out to me because it is a connection between the two and the wave. Mit ch realizes that one day he will be a wave. He will eventually crash and vanish in to nothing. Meaning his time to die off just like every one of us is approaching and just like that, he will be gone. This symbol is important to me because it shows that everyone’s time will come, some sooner than others. No matter your condition, health, or your actions. When it’s your time, then it’s you time, no changing.Mitch begins to realize that by the end of the waves of the ocean memory ends. The most important symbol used in Novel and in the essay is Morrie’s bed. It’s funny how the author uses foreshadowing in the novel this gave anyone a little hit of where Morrie would eventually die. Morrie believed that his bed was the evil that believed he had given up. Once you have lied in the bed then you are died. Morrie basically refused to lie in his bed simply because he didn’t want to feel defeated. To conclude the whole examination, after examining de ep into this book Morrie is not a quitter.At the end you goes down, everyone saw it coming, But he don’t go down without a fight. I have proved the Mitch Albom uses symbols in Tuesdays with Morrie to portray his message to simply live life through The Bed, The Ocean, and the plant. Word Count: 3,656 Works Cited Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson. New York: Doubleday, 1997. Print. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Grand Haven, MI: Brilliance, 1997. Print. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Rockland, MA: Wheeler Pub. , 1998. Print. Board, A. D. A. M. Editorial. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. † Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. U. S. National Library of Medicine, 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 18 Dec. 2012. Albom, Mitch. â€Å"Tuesdays with Morrie. † Tuesdays with Morrie. N. p. , n. d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. â€Å"Tuesdays with Morrie. † Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 Dec. 2012. â€Å"Tuesdays With Morrie | Mitchalbom. com. † Tuesdays With Morrie | Mitchalbom. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 19 Dec. 2012. Board, A. D. A. M. Editorial. â€Å"Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. † Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. U. S. National Library of Medicine, n. . Web. 11 Dec. 2012. ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Board, A. D. A. M. Editorial. â€Å"Tuesday's With Morrie. †Ã‚  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. U. S. National Library of Medicine, n. d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. [ 2 ]. Board, A. D. A. M. Editorial. â€Å"Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. †Ã‚  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. U. S. National Library of Medicine, 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 18 Dec. 2012. [ 3 ]. Board, A. D. A. M. Editorial. â€Å"Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. †Ã‚  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. U. S. National Library of Medicine, n. d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. [ 4 ].Albom, Mitch. â€Å"Tuesdays With Morrie. †Ã‚  Tuesday s With Morrie. N. p. , n. d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012. [ 5 ]. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Rockland, MA: Wheeler Pub. , 1998. Print. [ 6 ]. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Grand Haven, MI: Brilliance, 1997. Print. [ 7 ]. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Rockland, MA: Wheeler Pub. , 1998. Print. [ 8 ]. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson. New York: Doubleday, 1997. Print. [ 9 ]. Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie. Grand Haven, MI: Brilliance, 1997. Print.

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Decision Making at Cat Cooperation - Article Example The major problem was choosing the best supplier for one of critical subassemblies for manufacturing of its leading product TVR500 voltage stabilizer from the four short listed four vendors: Ideal; Dolphin; Boss; and Freedom. Good vendor was critical as lead time in manufacturing had increasingly become crucial criteria for competitive advantage. The company considered efficiency, power factor, losses, turn ratio and cost as main factors for choosing vendors. The decision on final vendor had become difficult as consensus from people coming from different departments like purchase, finance, manufacturing and quality could not be reached. The three qualitative factors: efficiency, power factor and losses were subjective in nature where turn ratio and cost could easily be evaluated because of their quantitative nature. The pair wise comparison of the product showed that Ideal was better in terms of efficiency and power factor with slightly more cost. But as efficiency and power factor significantly contribute to the credibility of the product, Ideal should be chosen as

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English - Essay Example It is not possible for one to like something and at the same time dislike it. Within the writings, lot repetitiveness is seen used to emphasize the point. The repeat has been done on the main idea or in the use of words. The theme of grace has been brought out as based on what pleases oneself. This means that one is willing to see grace in what he is pleased in. Therefore, the divine grace of God is beneficial to human beings, which makes them be pleased with the same. The writings emphasize that a man does not do anything, but rather what he feels he can do. Therefore, the willingness to will, and be pleased by something, comes from an individual (Miller et al, 112). There is an emphasis on the Holy Spirit’s intervention in one’s discerning of the grace of God. This is what is referred to as infusion. The influence of the spirit in an individual is done at free will. This means that the spirit can influence human beings decision at will. It helps one see the grace and be pleased by the impact the same is having in his life. Further, both human beings’ spirit (power) and God’s spirit, work together for the benefit of humankind. In addition, the influence of holy spirit’s infusion is depicted in human being’s action. Therefore, the spirit helps a man to have a habit of his behavior in order that he can acquire the same as first as possible. It most cases, it is not possible for a human being to oppose or do against what has already been infused into him. In addition, if one refuses to acquire the habit being infused, then it means the spirit of rejecting the same has as well been infused to him (Miller et al,. 34). The two forces involved include the natural powers of human being, as well as that of the Spirit. The habit the man acquires depends on the strength of these two contrasting powers. The vigor and liveliness with which one does a certain activity is what is referred to as infused grace. It is this

The technique of narrating in Samuel Johnson's Life of Savage and Essay

The technique of narrating in Samuel Johnson's Life of Savage and James Boswell's Life of Johnson - Essay Example What is common to Johnson's Life of Savage and Boswell's Life of Johnson is the strong autobiographical component. During one of their meetings, Johnson told Boswell that nobody could write the life of a man, without having lived with him. True to his words, Boswell wrote a biography on Johnson called "Life of Johnson" after having spent many years with him. In the book, we find that in more than one way, there are incidents that point to Boswell. "Life of Johnson" in some respects is a reflection of Boswell's autobiography. The reference to Johnson as a great barrister, "The world became a great court in which Johnson, its supreme barrister, scores fantastic victories - the dream of the unsuccessful lawyer Boswell"1 relates to Boswell's inner feelings Boswell had wanted to be a barrister but never got to be one. Boswell used Johnson to identify himself. Johnson lied imprisoned, wrote a critic signifying Boswell's manipulation of the character Johnson to project his inner self. On the contrary, Johnson's "Life of Richard Savage" characterizes the violent, dark life that he led. Analogical to RL Stevenson's "Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", Holmes tells us how Johnson's romantic account of Savage's early life, reflected his strong desire to experience such love and comfort that was not to be. Johnson tries to identify himself with the protagonist.

Psoriasis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Psoriasis - Research Paper Example During this era psoriasis denomination was still to be standardized and its translation from one language to another faced a huge discrepancy. Such is the case that different authors termed the ailment differently, while diverse ailments had the same names. Confusion in description and terminology of psoriasis went on for centuries. Considered the ugliest disease of the olden days, psoriasis became synonymous with all kind of people, whether a king, member of the kingly family, politician, business person or ordinary person. According early scholars, psoriasis is much similar to the tzaraat disease cited in the Bible. Psoriasis was first mentioned by a Greek physician called Hippocrates (460-377 BC). However, this did not offer formal introduction until a roman author called Cornelius Celsus described it in the first century. According to his description Psoriasis is a condition caused by staphylococcus pyogenes characterized by red patches and watery blisters on the skin. Having been kept unattended for thousands of years, this condition is became a real concern following the exhumation of the Egyptian mummies. The Greeks termed it â€Å"psora†, meaning â€Å"to itch† a reason that makes it to be considered an understatement of the centuries! During this period, majority of the medical minds found it hard to isolate the symptoms and only remained baffled with the condition. Throughout this period, people remain superstitious over the causes and development of psoriasis until Hippocrates (Father of Medicine 460-377 B.C.) replaced the superstitious mind with knowledge in curing skin ailments. Using this knowledge, Hippocrates introduced the treatment of skin ailments using tar that was added to the superstitious mix and also prescribed topical arsenic (Langley, pg34). This condition presented great problem typified with confusion with other related skin conditions believed to be contagious. Psoriasis was commonly

U02d1 Adult Learner Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

U02d1 Adult Learner - Essay Example The research title has been developed to study the meaning of ‘adults’. I have entered adulthood and I have an interest to learn about the adulthood stages of development. This assignment allows us to take a brief peek at what the future holds for us. There are several different ways of looking at the term aging. A few people tend to quantify aging in terms of numbers in terms of years. Others express aging in terms of the biological changes that an individual goes through (Stagesoflife, 2009). Another way of quantifying aging involves the social changes that occur in a person’s lives. As discussed earlier, every person goes through numerous changes and these changes in terms of biological, physical, mental, and social changes according to me form the actual meaning of ‘adulthood’ and ‘aging’ (Piccini, 2008). The study aims at gaining an answer to the question "What does adult mean?" In a case like this I would suggest the title as: â€Å"Stages of Life: A Longitudinal Study to understand Adulthood†. The main reason to choose a longitudinal study has been chosen for the research as it allows a study of the same people across the period of their life span. It also allows the researcher to study the behavioral aspects and measure the differences at every stage (Thomas K. Burdenski, 2002). I prefer to use the longitudinal research method over the cross sectional research or any other type of research, as the here I get a chance to study an individual over time and also allows me to understand why a particular thing is happening. The longitudinal study allows the researcher to touch upon various aspects of life which could have otherwise been missed out in any other form of study. Hence the study title and this choice of method are preferred for the study (Other Free Encyclopedias, 20 09). Being a part of an Adult Development course allows me to get my basics right in terms of aging and

Climate Change and National Security Essay Example for Free

Climate Change and National Security Essay That same month, the UN Security Council—at the initiative of the UK government—held its first-ever debate on the potential impact of climate change on peace and security. In October 2007, the Nobel committee recognized this emerging threat to peace and security by awarding former vice president Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change its peace prize. In November 2007, wo think tanks, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), released another report on the issue, concluding from a range of possible scenarios of climate change that, â€Å"We already know enough to appreciate that the cascading consequences of unchecked climate change are to include a range of security problems that will have dire global consequences. †2 The new interest in climate change and national security has been a valuable warning about the potential security consequences of global warming, but the proposed solutions that accompanied recent efforts have emphasized broader climate policy rather than specific responses to security threats. Because the links between climate change and national security are worthy of concern in their own right, and because some significant climate change is inevitable, strategies that go beyond long-run efforts to rein in greenhouse gas emissions are required. This report sharpens the connections between climate change and national security and recommends specific policies to address the security consequences of climate change for the United States. In all areas of climate change policy, adaptation and mitigation (reducing greenhouse gas emissions) should be viewed as complements rather than competing alternatives—and the national security dimension is no exception. Some policies will be targeted at adaptation, most notably risk-reduction and preparedness policies at home and abroad. These could spare the United States the need to mobilize its military later to rescue people and to prevent regional disorder—and would ensure a more effective response if such mobilization was nonetheless necessary. Others will focus on mitigation, 2 CSIS/CNAS, The Age of Consequences: The Foreign Policy and National Security Implications of Global Climate Change, November 2007; available at http://www. cnas. org/climatechange. 2 which is almost universally accepted as an essential part of the response to climate change. Mitigation efforts will need to be international and involve deep changes in the world’s major economies, such as those of China and India. As a result, the processes of working together to craft and implement them provide opportunities to advance American security interests.

The Cultural Homogenisation And Heterogenisation Cultural Studies Essay

The Cultural Homogenisation And Heterogenisation Cultural Studies Essay Taking a unilayered view on culture can easily result in limited equations such as homogenisation does not equal homogenisation, since homogenisation evokes heterogenisation, and both processes are occurring at the same time. Yet, by using Rams concept (2004) of the one-way institutional homogenisation and two-way symbolic heterogenisation level enables us to differentiate where homogenisation and heterogenisation are taking place. Lets consider some examples to grasp this concept. In Rams example, Falafel, Israels national dish, which was on its demise, experienced a renaissance through the arrival of hamburgers. He argues that McDonaldisation represents homogenisation on the institutional level (victory of foreign culture) and the renaissance of falafel represents heterogenisation on the symbolic level (victory of local culture). The examples of the tattoo culture in Japan (Yamada, 2009), and the Toraja culture (Volkman, 1984) exhibit a similar pattern. In the Japanese culture, tat toos have long been appreciated, particularly since earlier beginnings of the mid 18th century, when so called full body suits tattooing started. This culture has been evident in the population groups of lovers, geishas, prostitutes, and criminals. Yet, the Meiji Restauration in 1868 led to Westernisation and changed Japanese attitudes towards tattoos. What was initially viewed as spiritual and stylish suddenly changed to be viewed as abhorrent. Japanese tattoo culture, however, experienced a renaissance through incorporating American one point tattoos. In the case of the Toraja, an ethnic group in Indonesia, lengthy funeral ceremonies experienced a revival. Through improvement in mobility, thousands of Torajans immigrated to Massakar and other places in the 1930s to find jobs. Most of them were open-minded, well-educated young people that had converted into Christianity. When they came back to Toraja they did not try to eradicate traditional funeral practises and replace them with Christian or more cosmopolitan values, in the contrary they were the main promoters to revive the tradition. It is important to understand that the above mentioned revivals did not merely bring back a dying tradition. However, they brought back an old tradition with redefined meanings. This is particularly evident in the case of falafel, which lost its unique taste, is nowadays served indoor, and produced in a standardised manner. Therefore, the feelings attached to buying a falafel are very likely to have changed compared to 50 years ago. Furthermore, one-point tattoos do not bear the same spiritual meaning as full body suits tattoos, and funeral ceremonies in Toraja are nowadays more a practice to attract tourists, and showing off wealth. Put simply, they lost its spiritual meaning and authenticity. Rams concept is a very useful, differentiated concept for understanding the forces that shape cultural homogenisation and heterogenisation. Nevertheless, it is limited in its assumption that homogenisation on the institutional level is a one-way street (Ram, 2004, p. 24). Yet, it is much more a two-way street with different proportions of power as the expressive symbolic level (ibid., p. 23). Polarisation Contemporary scholars such as Appadurai (2006) and Lieber Weisberg (2002) question Samuel Huningtons theory of Clash of Civilisations. Appadurai claims that the theory is flawed since it leaves only geography, instead of emphasising ideology. He therefore suggests renaming the polarisation theory into Clash of Ideocide. Furthermore, Lieber Weisberg argue that the clash is rather within than between cultures. I prefer Appadurais, Lieber, and Weisbergs views, because they shifted the topic from the ethnic to an ideological level and acknowledge deterritorialisation, which will be discussed in the next section. Even though, Huningtons concept is flawed, he might be correct with his notion of polarisation. As an example let us consider Axelrods (1997) experiment in the field of cultural convergence, which contributed to shed some light on this debate. He developed a mathematical model, which he used to find out how many stable homogenised states remain at the end of the experiment (a r un). His model is based on the assumption that the more similar cultures are to each other, the more likely they will eventually homogenise. The number of stable homogenised regions at the end differed depending on the run. His findings indicate amongst others that polarisation increased the more cultural features (cultural dimensions) were used, because of the higher probability of being similar on one of the features. However, the more traits were attached to a feature the more stable homogenised states resulted at the end, meaning less polarisation. For instance, a feature could be the language people speak, and the traits the various alternative languages that might be spoken in that particular state. This model, however, has its limitations like any other model. In my opinion, the model correctly assumes that similar cultures are more likely to become homogenised. But it lacks to consider the inverse effect of heterogenisation, which we could observe in the examples of falafel, Toraja, and tattoo culture. Additionally, his attempt to simulate interconnectedness resulted in regional- rather than global interconnectedness. Nevertheless, the experiment demonstrates that polarisation can take place under certain conditions, and that the outcome of polarisation is ambiguous. This supports the transformalists view that the massive shake out, caused by globalisation, remains uncertain (Giddens, 1996). It is doubtful that cultures become polarised at an ideological level, as individuals have the desire to distinguish themselves from others by nature (Axelrod, 1997). However, it is conceivable that future events, which people associate with religion, could indeed lead to a Clash of Ideocide, leaving two or three clear distinguishable, unharmonisable, and antagonised cultures. Complexity of measuring culture Even though, plenty of research has been done in the field of measuring cultures, e.g. by Trompenaar and Hampden-Turner (2008) or Geert Hofstede (2003), present studies provide us with limited results. To think that we can measure cultures rests on the assumption that there is in any case a definable, lived national culture(Held, 1999, p. 369). Yet, being British or American does not define who you are: It is part of who you are (Legrain, 2003, p. 6). Furthermore, societies do not share values and interests. They are rather contradicting social structures, which are constantly trying to find compromises (Castells, 2009). The phenomenon of deterritorialisation is also particularly making it difficult to determine the trajectory of globalisation. This concept represents the uncoupling of territory and culture through world interconnectedness (Held, 1999). A few clicks suffice to connect with the world and get exposed to the foreign. However, according to Wolfgang Welschs concept of Transculturality (1999) there is nothing absolutely foreign anymore, since everything is within reach. A notion which is in accordance with Appadurais view that there is no distinct we and they anymore (2006). Yet, foreign cultures are not within reach for everyone. There exist huge inequalities between countries and within societies when it comes to internet access (Held, 1999; ITU, 2009). In this context one could ask to which extent the not-haves influence the countrys elite, which is connected to the world? And how much do foreign television programmes and homepages influence a society? To answer this question one could utilise Giulianotti and Robertsons concept regarding migration strategies (2007). It assumes that individuals use strategies to either accept or reject foreign ideas and practices. Taking that as a basis, we can conclude that individuals do not passively absorb foreign cultural traits. They either actively absorb them because of preference or convenience or actively reject them. Lets consider an example to illustrate the complexity of this subject. Think of a Norwegian businessperson who newly drinks coffee at Starbucks in Oslo. Does that tell us how American he has become, if at all? Did the meaning he attaches to coffee change in any way? From this example it should get clear that by only analysing hard facts, such as counting the number of McDonalds, BMWs, Swiss Watches, etc. in a country cannot give us a comprehensive answer of how homogenised cultures are. However, it is beyond doubt that the explicit cultural layer is influencing the implicit one; the question is rather to whi ch extent. To determine the magnitude of this influence is indeed a tough nut to crack. As we discussed earlier in this section, societies are contradicting social structures comprising people with different cultures. Therefore, one can assume that different personalities take different decisions in rejecting and accepting foreign cultural traits. Lets assume an example of a French citizen that regards himself as cosmopolitan, speaks seven languages, travels around the world but is fighting in the front line for rigorous migration policies in his country. In this case he welcomes global cultural flows to France, with the exception of unqualified immigrants and refugees, which make part of the ethnoscape one of Appadurais five cultural flows (Appadurai, 2002). In contrast, another French citizen might feel responsible to help those people in need, however, might reject any foreign ideology that is not in accordance with his religious view. Who in this case is now the cosmopolitan and who is the heartlander (Goh, 1999)? This favouritism towards particular types of global isation flows is also evident in the example of the Israeli businessperson Ezer Weizman. He was a renowned car importer with strong business connections to the US. Yet, he fought at the forefront against the three Ms: McDonalds, Michael Jackson and Madona (Ram, 2004, p. 18). The same particularistic behaviour shows the Indian elite that basically hates American lifestyle, however, sends their children to US universities and tries to pursue the American dream (Appadurai, 2006). In the Middle-East this phenomenon is called Muslim schizophrenia (Lieber Weisberg, 2002). The final example to illustrate my point, uses the case of the Russian youth who welcomes technological advances such as iPods but does not want to emulate the spiritual nature of American lifestyle (Macgregor, 2008). Conclusion This essay demonstrated the complexity of this topic and showed that polarisation, homogenisation, and heterogenisation are simultaneously shaping contemporary society. I therefore support the view of the transformalists who believe that the direction of the shake out, caused by globalisation, remains uncertain. Nevertheless, we might ask which concept is more prevalent in contemporary society. In my opinion it is homogenisation, since the homogenisation process on the structural level is very intense and the heterogenisation process, like Ram stated, rather symbolic. The homogenisation process is mainly driven by communication technology, education, human rights culture, business attempt to eliminate difference, and the desire to increase efficiency through latest technology. It can be expected that those drivers of homogenisation will continue to shape society in the future. Homogenisation, however, will neither reach its pure form nor remain static, as people want to distinguish themselves by nature and will actively reject foreign cultures. At this point, I want to emphasise that the homogenisation trend might shift in some decades towards a dominance of heterogenisation or polarisation. Issues like climate change, wars, shifts in economic and political power, and dramatic events that people associate with religion could have unpredictable outcomes.

Theme In Antigone :: essays research papers

Antigone, by Sophocles, is a play that has three major themes. All three of these themes play a very important part in this play. The three major themes are fate, love, and pride. Oedipus had killed his father, king of Thebes, not knowing it was his father and then took over Thebes. He married Iocaste, queen of Thebes (his mother), and had four children; one was a girl named Antigone. When Oedipus had figured out who he was and what he had done he moved away and cut out his eyes. Iocaste's cousin, Creon, had taken over as king of Thebes. He had made Oedipus' two sons, Eteocles and Polyneices, enemies of each other and they killed each other. Creon denied Polyneices proper burial because he was an enemy and that where this play begins.Fate is what had gotten the family of Oedipus where we begin this play. Fate is why Oedipus had killed his father, marry his mother, and then find out all about it. Fate then tortured Oedipus and he cut out his eyes. Fate had made Creon new king of Thebes and then have Oedipus' sons kill each other. Antigone's fate was to die trying to honor her dead brother and be loyal her family. In the first paragraph of the play it reads, "My darling sister Ismene, we have had a fine inheritance from Oedipus. God has gone through the whole range of sufferings and piled them all on us, -grief upon grief, humiliation upon humiliation". This tells just how bad fate had treated the family of Oedipus. Creon's fate though was to lose all of his family and live the rest of his life knowing it was his entire fault. In the end of the play Creon says, " Nobody else to share the blame. Just me... I killed you. I killed you my dear.Love is what had gotten Antigone in this problem. Her love for her brother was so great that she sacrificed her life for the respect that his deserved. Haemon's love for Antigone had made him kill himself when he found her dead body. Creon's wife's love for Haemon had made her kill herself when she found out Haemon had killed himself. In the end because of all this Creon was the one that was denied love.Pride is what had gotten Creon in the mess that he was in. His pride was so great that he couldn't even admit that maybe he was wrong.

The Trial in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee :: Kill Mockingbird essays

The Trial in To Kill a Mockingbird The trial of Tom takes up a great deal of space in the novel because it gives Harper Lee a chance to do an in-depth exploration of characters and situations. The people involved in the case are Bob and Mayella Ewell, Tom Robinson and Atticus Finch. The alleged rape of Mayella by Tom allows Harper Lee to look in detail at issues of racial and social prejudice in Maycomb. Bob Ewell is the villain of the novel and, as a result of the trial, he tries to get revenge on Atticus and his family. In the trial itself he is revealed as a very unpleasant character. We learn that he drinks and sometimes leaves his family for days, he is violent and he may even be committing incest with Mayella. Atticus establishes that he is left-handed and that Mayella was probably beaten up by a left-handed man - it seems that he, and not Tom Robinson, beat up Mayella after he saw Mayella trying to kiss Tom. Bob therefore lies during the trial and is prepared to sacrifice the life of an innocent man for the sake of his daughter's reputation. His unpleasant behaviour during the trial and his assumption that everybody will be on his side against a black man convince the reader that he is a thoroughly unpleasant character. Mayella Ewing also lies in court but for different reasons to her father. She is the only responsible member of one of the poorest families in Maycomb. She looks after herself and her brothers and sisters and even tries to bring some beauty into their lives by growing geraniums. Her family is so poor that white people will have nothing to do with her and, at that time, it was not possible for her to be friendly with black people. Scout calls her "the loneliest person in the world". Tom Robinson passed her house every day on his way to work and, according to Scout, he was probably the only person who was ever nice to her. Tom's evidence at the trial shows that she had planned to make a pass at him for a long time. It took her nearly a year to save enough money to send all her brothers and sisters into town to get ice creams.

Would You Like Ketchup With That Dollar? :: Essays Papers

Would You Like Ketchup With That Dollar? Money does not satiate the stomach, only the food it purchases can. Material possessions contain the lowest number of kilocalories-per-gram (i.e. none) when compared to fatty acids, carbohydrates, and amino acids. Power tends to be nutrient deficient (eggs, however, are quite functional). And, as of yet, science has been unable to show any effects (positive or negative) of elite membership upon the area of the brain related to hunger -- the hypothalamus. Food is the most basic and essential component of human existence, next to air, of course. In the last instance, it -- not wealth, power, or status -- matters most. Period. Yet, its sheer abundance in the core nations of the world remains unparalleled in most or all of human history. So much so, that it goes scarcely noticed anymore. In the market it is viewed as a commodity to be bought and sold, an abstraction of itself, not real or tangible. In the grocery store the abstraction, through clever marketing and advertising, becomes a heavily constructed and objectified notion of reality. Meanwhile, the consumer remains alienated and detached from one of the elements most antecedent to life and existence. I have read of some -- great Yogis of the East, who, through their enlightened communion with the Divine, are able to transcend any physical need of sustenance. But, the revelations of Sages remain lost to most of us, too caught up in the mayhem of capitalistic endeavors to even think about such mysticism. The commodification of food and the industrialization of agriculture have removed us from the cadences of nature. With time, industrial agriculture is proving more and more unsustainable, less reliable and wonderful than it is touted to be. While large agribusiness continues to strive for greater crop yields, increased mechanization, lower labor costs, more acreage, new technologies, consolidations -- maximum profits -- farmers are striving to feed their families, to keep their land, and to justify their existence as farmers. If traditional farming is not dead already, it is surely dying. Yet, there are some who refuse to allow the fields to lay forever fallow.

Postmodernism and Connection to Society

Post-Modernism and Connection to Society In a world that is constantly changing and developing, art can fluctuate throughout time. Postmodernism, is commonly referred to the movement of art, architecture, and criticism in the late 20th century. Various interpretations of culture, art, philosophy, history, economics, and fiction are widely pronounced themes and topics found in art during this era. In history, many different societies have emerged throughout time. In many third world and developing countries, as well as historical eras,Authoritarianism, or commonly known as a closed society, corruption and pluralism have been influenced into art. Political history and society is widely influenced and depicted in the art we see today. The shift during mid to late sass abstract impressionism and conceptuality, new styles showing an unprecedented degree of self-awareness on the part of the artists, as well as a rejection of Modern art's emotional and spiritual detachment from society aros e. Postmodernism is largely a psychological reaction against assumptions and values of western history. There are o hard distinctions between what is real and what is unreal, nor between what is true and what is false. A thing is not necessarily either true or false; it can be both true and false. † – Harold Painter Harold Painter states a postmodern reality can be perceived differently, that there may not be only one way of viewing things. Postmodernism begins in 1968 in Paris, when college students and professors Joined workers and revolted against repressive French institutions.Artworks during this time usually feature a reality whose existence and properties are logically independent of human nines. Larry MacAfee states that postmodernists are, â€Å"Consuming themselves in the form of images and abstractions through which their desires, sense of identity, and memories are replicated and then sold back to them as products† Postmodernist art is a visual repres entation of this â€Å"reality'. Notable postmodern artists include Barbara Kruger, Jenny Holler, Christi and Jeanne-Claude, Jeff Soon, Attacks Murrain, and Nan Golden.An Authoritarianism is a society that blindly obeys authority. Represented by no individual freedom and unquestioning obedience. Egg. Engineers Dollhouse's chancellorship in Austria contained many authoritarian elements. â€Å"limited, not responsible, political pluralism† that is, constraints on political institutions and groups such as legislatures, political parties and interest groups, a basis for legitimacy based on emotion, especially the identification of the regime as a necessary evil to combat â€Å"easily recognizable societal problems† such as underdevelopment or insurgency.Neither â€Å"intensive nor extensive political manipulation† – Juan Line Line specifies forms of authoritarianism room dictatorship states as well as totalitarian experiences. The three pieces incorporates p ostmodernism and authoritarianism. â€Å"Melting Reality' is set in an empty downtown city street. Billboards and advertisements that line the sides of the buildings seem to melt and mix in with the world around it. This piece deals with the media advertising part of a â€Å"corrupt society' theme. Society and the people in it are heavily influenced by what the media tells us.The media imposes standards for body image, beauty, and a certain physical ideal. â€Å"Melting Reality' takes tales from contemporary art and is the base piece in which the other two artworks are connected to. Inspired by the artist this painting an acrylic on canvas shows what a general overview of a â€Å"corrupt society' looks like. Media, often referred to as the fourth pillar in democracy, plays a key role in monitoring and investigating the actions of those in power and informing citizens about them. When the media however is forced to hide a story by the government as to what to report, the media be comes corrupted.Types of corruption in the media vary from bribery in the form f cash for news, staged or fake news, gift giving, concealed advertisement and advertisements to nepotism and media capture by vested private or political interests. The piece â€Å"Blurred News† is a small section taken from one of the walls in â€Å"Melting Reality'. The color contrast in â€Å"Blurred News† can be clearly analyzed as an off-cut of the first piece. Mixed medium on canvas helps the audience perceive how the newspaper can be manipulated or destroyed at will by authorities. Measles Hierarchy of Needs is the main subject of the piece â€Å"Before All†.What separates this ice, and a normal Measles Hierarchy of Needs, is the additional layer on the bottom of the pyramid representing wealth. Measles Hierarchy of Needs was made to show what a majority of society valued in life. The bottom layers are meant to be most important. While the top layers are meant to be least imp ortant when considering what you need to live. By adding an additional layer at the bottom of the pyramid, this shows that the position society is in today values wealth and power more than anything else. The work â€Å"Before All† is a mixed medium on canvas.

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The learning objectives for these BUS 1100 Introduction to Business individual assignment are as follows: 1 . To provide an opportunity for the students to learn and understand the complex nature of organizations and the major Influencing factors upon them; 2. To gain practical Insights on the workings of the various business functional areas, their roles within business, their interrelationships and Interdependence. 3.To familiarize the dents with the nature of managerial actively and roles played by a manager In an organization. 4. To enable students to work Individually and to do more readings regarding the topic tested. TASKS As the head of your College's Marketing Department, you are required to address a group of potential investors on your organization's marketing strategies. Develop an outline with the key points that you would cover in your speech, including : Profiling of the marketSegmentation and Targeting strategies Marketing Mix strategies Marks – 20 marks Number of words required = 1000 words REQUIREMENTS 1 . All facts obtained must have proper referencing using Harvard referencing system. Cut and paste from other sources are not acceptable. 2. Start each chapter on a new page; numbered the pages (at the bottom centre) except for the Cover page and Appendices; sources of tables, graphs and other diagrams must be referenced. Considered as part of the write-up. 4.No requests for extension of deadlines will be entertained except for extenuating circumstances for such matters as illness, severe and Justifiable personal problems or other factors over and above those normally experienced by students, which may have adversely affected their performance (students must show evidence and proof of extenuating circumstances). Recommended Report Format 1 . Cover page 2. Assignment instruction 3. The assignment Introduction Segmentation Targeting strategies Conclusion 4. Reference list

Ele569 2011 Exam Paper

[pic] **** 2011**** ELE569MICROWAVE ELECTRONICSDuration: 2 hours 30 minutes YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO READ THE CONTENTS OF THIS QUESTION PAPER UNTIL INSTRUCTED TO DO SO BY AN INVIGILATOR. Answer FOUR Questions. The Smith Chart is Attached. calculators arE permitted in this examination. Please state on your answer book the name and type of machine used. Complete all rough workings in the answer book and cross through any work which is not to be assessed. mportant note: thE academic Regulations state that possession of unauthorised material at any time when a student is under examination conditions is an ASSESSMENT offence AND CAN LEAD TO EXPULSION FROM THE COLLEGE. Please CHECK NOW TO ENSURE YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY NOTES in your possession. IF YOU HAVE ANY THEN please RAISE YOUR hand AND GIVE them to AN invigilator IMMEDIATELY. EXAM PAPERS CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE EXAM ROOM Examiners: Prof. Y. Hao and Prof. C. G. Parini  © Queen Mary, University of London, 2010 Question 1Answer the fol lowing questions on the Smith Chart and its applications. (a) Starting from the definition of Reflection Coefficient, explain the construction of the Smith Chart. It is NOT necessary to derive the equations for the constant impedance and constant reactance circles. [8 marks] It is a polar plot of the complex reflection coefficient. It is also known as the 1-port scattering parameter s or s11, for reflections from a normalised complex load impedance z = r + jx; [4 marks] [2marks] [2marks] (b)Consider the transmission line circuit below (Figure 1).Use the Smith Chart to find SWR on the line, the return loss, the reflection coefficient at the load, the load admittance, the input impedance to the line, the distance to the first voltage minimum, the distance from the load to the first voltage maximum. [9 marks] 0. 8 Wavelength Z0 =50 ? ZL =70+j40 ? Zin Figure 1 [pic] 1mark for each answer except for last two (2 marks) (c)A load impedance of ZL = 100-j150 ? is to be matched to a 50 ? line using a single shunt-stub tuner. Find two solutions using short-circuited stubs. [8 marks] 2 marks each for the following four answers [pic]Question 2 (a) Consider an arbitary microwave transistor with scattering matrix [S], connected to source and load impedances as shown in Figure 2. [pic] Figure 2 Derive the following equations concerning (in and (out. [pic] [7 Marks] with reference to figure 1, the refelection coefficient seen looking forward the load is [pic] while the reflection coefficient seen looking toward the source is [pic] [1 Marks] in general, the input impedance of the terminated two-port network will be mismatched with a reflection coefficient given by (in, which can be defined by the following analysis.From S parameters definition, [pic] Eliminating V2-, and solving for [pic] [4 Marks] Similarly, (out can be obtained. [2 Marks] (b) In a transistor oscillator, a one-port negative-resistance is effectively created by terminating a potential unstable transistor with a n impedance designed to drive the device in an unstable region as shown in Figure 2. [pic] Figure 2 Assuming that S parameters of the transistor in a common-gate configuration are S11=(2. 18, -35(), S12=(2. 75, 96(), S21=(1. 26, 18(), S22=(0. 52, 155(). Design load and teminating networks using a combination of one-eighth nd a quarter wavelength impedance transformers for a microwave oscillator. Please note that the stability circle can be calculated using the following equations [pic] [18 Marks] †¢ S11 is quite big, which means that the common gate transistor configuration is unstable †¢ The centre and radius of the output stability circle in the (T plane are: CT=(1. 08, 33(), RT=0. 665 [4 Marks] †¢ Since |S11|=2. 18>1, then the stable region is inside the stability circle, this gives large amount of freedom to choose (T plane. †¢ (T is selected as (0. 59, -104().Then an impedance matching network is used to convert ZT into 50Ohm match load †¢ From (T , (in =(3. 96, -2. 4(). It is obtained from [pic] †¢ Zin can be found to be (-84-j1. 9)Ohm, and then ZL(()= -Rin(()-jXin(() †¢ A matching network is chosen to match ZL with 50Ohm load [10 Marks] Based on the following equations, an impedance matching network can be designed (T is selected as (0. 59, -104(), ? T can be found as †¢ Zin can be found to be (-84-j1. 9)Ohm, and then ZL(()= -Rin(()-jXin(()=84+j1. 9 Question 3 Answer the following questions about microwave amplifiers: a)Show that for a unilateral device, where S12=0, the ( -parameter test implies that | S11 | < 1 and |S22 | < 1 for unconditional stability. Where the ( -parameter test is formulated as [pic] [8 marks] [pic] [pic] (b) Use the ( -parameter test to determine which of the following devices are unconditionally stable, and of those, which has greatest stability. [6 Marks] |Device |S11 |S21 |S12 |S22 | |A |0. 80

Breaking the Chains of Psychological Slavery

There is no such great thing to experience by any individual but to feel that he has freedom. Humankind struggle for liberty can be rooted when the world was outshined by war. These battles made possible for the more powerful forces to suppress and restrain the weak ones. One race that is known in the past that experienced great slavery and condemnation is the Africans-Americans. The history speaks for itself how these people lost their independence for a long time, thus even though the fighting was over the attitudes of being a slaves can still be reflected with their living.Cruel days had gone but it leaves a legacy of profound impact to the minds of people that they had been unknowingly past down to the succeeding generations, thus creating a chains of psychological slavery. The attitudes of a slave are still lingering in the personality of those black people even at our present times; furthermore it can be observe with their manners towards every aspect of their life such as to t heir work, personality, community, their color and their family. During the old times, work for the black Americans were a formed of punishments. They toil not for them selves but for their superiors.Forced labor is a form of slavery in that period, furthermore they have to exert immense effort in order for them to survive, with these practice they begin to hate job. They have been physically and emotionally traumatized by the whole thing, as a result they develop anger. They are still contented on being member of staff and afraid to put up on their on, thus revealing their slavery toward labor. Even though work in our present society is looked upon with pride for the reason that it becomes our bread and butter in order for us to survive, however this is not true for our black fellowmen.Being a serf to a chore, would also influence every aspect of a person. The authors identify this through connecting it with their persona and to their socialization with the population where they be long. The dilemma they’ve been through caused them to have inferiority towards them selves thus affecting their view about themselves. They lose their own confidence, neglecting their abilities, hence making them aloof to mingle with the crowd. Black Americans were isolated before in gatherings, moreover they experienced great color discrimination.Although these scenes is gone today, still the black Americans have fear to mingle with people around them, specially to the white ones. They still have fear to be humiliated because of their color and become a laughing stock by every one, thus the opportunity for friendship is lost. Another though is their attitude towards their property, during the old days, the black people were not entitled to have wealth they can have unlike the other races. They are being questioned, and sometimes what they have were taken from them for no reason at all.The social-political opportunity for them was also impossible, with these family relation w as also affected. With the hardships they have gone through they develop a great love for their family because their family is the only thing they have. The authors uncover the reality of what our fellow black American experienced. The outlooks that they have nowadays is really the residue of what they’ve been through. It leaves them an emotional shock, therefore leaving them a deep mental damage. They may not be free as what we think.â€Å"Our objectives should not be to cry stale tears for the past, nor to rekindle old hatreds for past injustices. We should seeks enlighten our path of today by better understanding where and how the lights were turned out yesterday. † (Douglass F. , Tubman H. , Crow J. , Claus S. , Blyden E. , and Lynch W. , 1996). Knowing the history is not a reason to remain in the dark, rather to make one self out to liberation. Several approaches were mentioned and can be of great help. In order for us to be free, one must know their own self.Iden tifying your strengths as well as your weaknesses is said to be the start of the emancipation process, thus recognizing these, you can devise a plan on how to improve your strong points and how to eliminate the frail one. From these steps, love for your self will rise up, as a result you will not do anything that will hurt or abuse your self in any way. Together with love, the courage and faith will follows. Confidence to fight and voice out what you think is right, and the freedom to express what is inside of your soul. The final stage is having an optimistic outlook towards life, thus believing that everything is possible to happen.Attaining positive views about one self will extend to the outside environment. Getting along with friends is now at easier; hence the door for socialization will become widely open as well as the chance to great breaks in life. The freedom from being a slave to the cruelty of life will carry out. Religion was also touch in breaking the chains of this p sychological slavery. At the end of the day, God is still the most powerful being that they can turn to. Having a deep faith to the divine power was used as an instrument to escape from captivity. However psychological confusion arises.In the midst of burdens and trouble, the only thing important to the black American was to be free. They will try and do anything that comes to their mind, furthermore they have many options to choose but the doubt of success to freedom is still there. Even God was being doubted at that time. In spite of, they still end up with a solution which is to start from their self and from then on the light of liberty can be seen. No one can put them out of the cage of slavery except their own self. The author is right that in order to be liberated from any slavery, the first step should start from the self.Believe in your capabilities, that you can be successful in any path you wish to take to. Trust, love and respect are essential to destroy the link of bein g a serf. We should not live with our past experiences, rather we should view the past as a test and from that test, there is a lesson learned that enable us to become a better individual. It is imperative for us to realize that at the final of each day, we will end up alone; therefore no one has the right to control our life but our self. Being tough and firm can make us free from the slavery of the world.

Course of Action for Owens Corning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Course of Action for Owens Corning - Essay Example This meant the company had to develop new IS capabilities and also to plan for a strong IS human resources management. It was also found that when the staffs were getting trained in SAP their requirements outside was very attractive and people were moving out of the company. Â  At the planned implementation time, the first release was done - October 1995. Second and third releases identified training as a major lacuna during the implementation phase which cost them quite some time and efforts. Not just teaching the computers and PC operation but also processes that are being adopted by the company. Release 4 was the SAP R/3 roll out at the Roof and Asphalt plants a total of 140 units where this was to be switched on by Mar 1997. This was to be followed closely by the other units of insulation and composites of North America. But then there were lots of issues relating to bugs in SAP, attrition among people and a swift implementation of switching it all on at the same time. From our analysis, we find that the issue is one of staged implementation and now they need to take a measure of putting unit after unit in order and lessons learned in one place could go on to help the rest. A plan to put all these in a phased manner needs to be worked out and implem ented with the same vigor when it was started in 1994. Â  Owens Corning was swiftly growing with its new acquisitions and there was an ongoing incorporation of new technologies that improved their working situation and the profitability of the company. The Roof and Asphalt plants divisions of OC were just over 80 units strong and the implementation of SAP R/3 was to happen in these. But the rapidly changing scenario and the acquisitions of units caused a number of changes in the company resulting in the implementation of SAP R/3 for R&A divisions alone at more than 140 locations. All this meant that the exercise is going to get tougher than planned.

Same-Sex Marriage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Same-Sex Marriage - Essay Example There is no logical or scientific basis for a constitutional amendment to forever constrain the definition of marriage by preempting state power in the area. As a preliminary matter, there exists some persuasive evidence in support of alleged biological causes of sexual orientation, some less persuasive evidence for various environmental or psychosocial causes of sexual orientation, and some unsubstantiated data suggesting the existence of a" gay gene" designated the Xq28 area of the X chromosome for males. That the evidence is not precise does not negate the fact that, as noted by Crooks & Baur, sexual orientation runs more frequently in certain families, that prenatal hormone levels affect certain features of fetal masculinazation and feminization, and that sexual orientation is often formed prior to school. It would be more accurate to suggest that we only understand sexual orientation partially rather than to state that we understand it perfectly as a voluntary choice. The former qualification is supported by the empirical data whereas the latter absolutism is simply false. In the final analysis, the data is at best speculative; none theless, public policy makers, including George W. Bush, ought to assess such divergent findings holistically in order to find out which conclusion is more probable. Public figures must acknowledge in this context that people are, to some extant, born with a certain sexual orientation; that these sexual orientations may differ in degree or change throughout the life span does not diminish the significance of the underlying predispositions. It is more probable than not that predispositions exist, that sexual orientation is not a question of pure choice, and that public policy should treat people as they are rather than how some people wish or imagine them to be. If this were not enough, the public policy debate is also complicated by the fact that public opinion also varies among and between people with different sexual orientations. As noted most prominently in separate studies conducted by Kinsey and the National Health and Social Life Survey, categorizing an individual's sexual orientation precisely is nearly impossible (Crooks & Baur, 2005). Sexual exclusivity, for both males and females, is comparatively rare; furthermore, even a bisexual orientation is characterized more by degrees than by a firm commitment to the orientation. The evidence simply does not establish any firm basis for treating homosexuals or bisexuals as a distinct type of people; absent such a legitimate or verifiable distinction, there is no overwhelming logical basis for classifying people as exclusively homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual. Arguments, therefore, which deny the need for same-sex marriages by pointing out that only a small percentage of the populatio n will be affected are oversimplifying the truer demographic realities. When one accounts for the four different types of bisexuality, in addition to narrower notions of exclusive homosexuality, the number of people affected or excluded from the marital institution increases substantially. The fact is that somewhere

Commercial Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Commercial Law - Essay Example The passing of any risk associated with preservation of the property sold or in the process of being sold is governed by Section 20(1) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 which provides as follows:- â€Å"Unless otherwise agreed, the goods remain at the sellers risk until the property in them is transferred to the buyer, but when the property in them is transferred to the buyer the goods are at the buyers risk whether delivery has been made or not.†3 The purchase of the six speed drill appears to have vested in Alex prior to dispatch by the seller since he paid for the drill via credit card over the telephone. According to Section 20(1) of the Sale of Goods Act, 1979 the property was transferred to Alex and while in transit remains at his risk. However, the drill did not conform to specifications since it was a three speed drill rather than the specified six speed drill. As a result, Alex as buyer has a right to reject non-conforming goods. The law presumes that the parties intend that the goods will fit the description as provided for in the sale of goods’ contract. If at the time of shipment the goods do not comport with the contract description: â€Å"†¦if there was a quantitative defect in the goods amounting to a breach of a fundamental term or to a breach of condition, or to a breach of an intermediate term which cause him serious prejudice.†5 A buyer is therefore at liberty to reject goods for the most part if they fail to correspond with the description of the goods sold via the contract for sale. This is possible even when the buyer does not incur any damages or loss as a result of the non-conforming goods.6 However the courts have taken pains to limit the application of this rule by effectively narrowing the ‘concept of the description of the goods.’7 It was held in Christopher Hill Ltd. v Ashington Piggeries Ltd [1972] AC 441that a statement contained in a contract may

Speed limits should stay the same Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Speed limits should stay the same - Essay Example Speed limits are used to communicate to the motorist the driving speed that they are expected to be on under the prevailing situations; these are road conditions that they are driving on, the traffic and the weather changes. The governments set speed limits for the general reasons of public safety, prevent amount of damage and injury on motorists and pedestrians in case of an accident and set grounds for punishment if one is deemed to have gone contrary to what is expected. Therefore, speed limits should remain the same and no changes made otherwise any upward change would bring about more deaths from road accidents. Increasing the speed limits will only serve to increase road accidents and speeds because lower speed limits reduce the likelihood of accidents and if they do happen, then the injuries are not severe and the deaths are minimal. It is common knowledge that when there are frequent occurrences of road accidents on a certain road, the plea that is usually made is for the spe ed limit to lowered and not the reverse. The fatality of an accident is usually higher if the driver was on a high speed especially in the case of a head on collision (Lund, 2007). This therefore goes to prove that raising the speed limit would increase the chances of road accidents and also the number of injuries and deaths reported. ... Most motorist drive at a pace that is comfortable to them, therefore raising the speed limit will not really serve to make matters any better on the road. If the speed limit is raised, the drivers that can drive faster will do so but those that are not comfortable with a high speed will drive at a lower one. It is crucial to note that increase of speed limit will not regulate traffic; actually, accidents might increase due to reduced traffic flow. One of the major causes of road accidents is the lack of uniform traffic flow because cars are not moving at the same speed (House of Commons, 2008). Car insurance rates will also be affected in the event that the speed limits are raised. With increased incidents on the road, which include, damages and injuries to people, insurance companies might be forced to revise their prices upwards. The higher figure will then help the insurance companies to deal with the claims brought to them; this in turn affects the motorists who will have to pay larger sums of money to cover their premiums. The cost of living is escalating each day, additional expenses will not be welcome by the masses. Bearing in mind that not everyone is for the idea of increased speed limits, but everyone will be affected by the increase in insurance rates, therefore the speed limit should remain the same. The speed limit should not be raised because it serves to help motorist use fuel efficiently. It is a well known fact that, driving at a constant speed leads to better fuel consumption as compared to lower or higher speeds. It is therefore logical that maintaining the speed limits as they are is more economical to motorists as compared

Breaking Out of Paris Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Breaking Out of Paris - Essay Example The stories I could tell you about one celebrity, where he liked to go, and what he liked to do once he got there: you’d be amazed. I was never going to marry any of them, I was just there for the money. I could tell as soon as I went into their house what was sellable, when the maid would be stuck upstairs all day, and how we were going to break in the back and take the lot. Jones was different. He put his hand past me, to lean on the bar, and started quoting me long lines from Surrealist pamphlets and telling me about the freedom of the individual, every few minutes ordering himself another drink, and insisting that I join him. . I don’t know where, or how, but somewhere along the line, I ended up in his room. Once he was asleep, dreams considerably assisted by the consumption of so many cocktails, I went through his things. I know, I know, and you can judge me all you want, but I don’t pretend to be anything more than what I am: a cheap tart with sticky fingers. I have some very pretty dresses though, and I like nice things. As I opened his case, I saw instantly that my first assumptions had been right, and he was not the wealthy young businessmen he pretended to be. There had to have been more than five passports in there, none of them in the name of Cadillac Jones, and each giving a different nationality. I remember staring at the pictures, watching them go fuzzy, and then I don’t remember anything until the next morning. I thought at first he had slipped me a mickey, and I reached out my hand certain that my purse would be gone. Instead, there was a note pinned to the inside: It wasn’t any trouble to get in to see him: I think he knew deep down that this would happen, and he had gone out to find the right women, the thieves and gangs, who could help him pick that lock and walk away. I had thought our meeting a coincidence. Now I know it was as carefully planned and plotted as everything else. He greeted me

Merits and potentials of adopting various Information Systems Essay

Merits and potentials of adopting various Information Systems - Essay Example This coverage led to the promotion of the luxury watercraft build by BMW and acquired by the celebrities. The company being aware of this scenario has decided to take advantage of this media promotion and expand it’s business. Strategy meetings have been organized. The decision to invest further in the business at this particular time is a wise one, and would prove to be a profitable one in the long run. However, to ensure the success of the expansion plan, certain factors needed to be critically examined and their solutions provided. In this report, the problems that could possibly be a hindrance to the growth of the company are identified, discussed and their solutions stated. The business has nine departments which are interrelated. Each department has it’s separate staff, according to the specific requirements of that department. A study was conducted identifying the areas of concern in each department. Some have more room for improvement while others have less, but it is noticeable that all need to be modernized and up to dated to face the challenges of the competitive market. The company started in late 1800 century now needs to equip itself with the modern techniques to achieve maximum profit. The identified areas of concern in each department are discussed in the following section. Discussion on the Identified Issues: It is a matter of concern for the Bank and the investors whether the company will be able to withstand the effects of expansion and would be able to deliver as desired. For this, a study of the various processes involved within the business is carried out and areas of concern are highlighted. One of the departments is the Warehouse, where deliveries from the suppliers are stored and forwarded when ordered for. The materials stored are of various characteristics. Some can be kept for longer periods of time while others are perishable. One major concern arising here is that proper and timely placements need to be made in order to save stock and ensure no delay in further processing using these materials. Secondly, there is lack of knowledge regarding the arrival time of the raw material to the warehouse. The storage capacity cannot be anticipated due to this issue as well. The manufacturing department is the core of this business setup. However, it is not the most well-managed one, according to my findings. Orders are made to the suppliers when a particular material is in demand by the manufacturing department. There is no information kept by the manufacturing department on the availability of a material or its transportability prior to the placement of it’s order (assumption). This can result in a delay in manufacturing and ultimately, delay in delivery to the customer. For a company of such magnitude and reputation, this should not be acceptable. There is also uncertainty as to the availability of skilled staff for increased manufacturing. As highly skilled personnel are required in the manufactu ring department, a provision in the form of apprentice scheme is in place to fill for any shortages. Whether the trainees would meet the shortfall if it occurs and whether there is information present

Business economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business economics - Essay Example The largest consumers of fossil fuels are the automobile industry and the electric power generation industry. Major manufacturers of the world also rely mostly on bunker fuels to run their factories. What â€Å"peak oil† means is that oil production is now on a downward slope due to declining oil production from rapid depletion of this non-renewable energy source. Oil is also an energy that has security risks involved as its source, chiefly in the Middle East, has been wracked by production disruptions lately. Economic development for the past several decades has been anchored on the assumption of cheap oil supplies but this is not true anymore. Fossil fuels or hydrocarbons have supplied the most of energy requirements for transportation and also for the production of fertilizers, plastics, fibers, pesticides, detergents and even pharmaceuticals (Abdullah, 2005:18). It is quite ironic the automobile industry is only now again reviving electric cars although the technology had been around since the invention of cars centuries ago but shelved due to the availability of vast cheap oil which precluded further development of electric and hybrid cars (Anderson, 2010:4). Market Structure – the oil industry is an oligopoly. ... To date, the only large areas still left unexplored are the large patch of ocean in the South China Sea known as the Spratly Islands group (Deffeyes, 2001:9) and the cold Arctic wastes of the North Pole (Myers, 2011:1). The global warming from climate change had made the ice glaciers retreat which now opened many new inaccessible areas to possible oil and gas exploration activities. Price Discrimination – the oil industry had been charged in the past of this bad practice as it has a complete hold on oil production and sale. There is latent price collusion among the oil producers in which one leading producer can increase its prices at will and then followed by the other producers (OPEC is an example although its pricing power has weaned recently). Other practices include setting the maximum price that the market can bear as producers in oligopolies are price-takers (ability to set the price) especially with oil becoming a diminishing commodity. Industry players are able to do this because of price inelasticity in oil demand in some markets. Government Regulations – the oil industry also stands accused of price gouging in which the players take advantage of price volatility in the international markets to their own advantage. Although many factors determine the gasoline price at the pump, it has been estimated only 85% of price changes are due to changes in demand conditions worldwide. This is further complicated by growing demand from strong powerful economies like China and India. In the United States, Robinson-Patman Act (1936) makes price discrimination an illegal practice. It is rarely enforced due to the difficulties in monitoring volatility and the many factors driving gas prices. Global Business Environment – the industrialized