Letter From Friends Essay

We arrived at our destination a few days back, you might have heard of it. It’s that ranch near Soledad, I think u worked about 5 mile south of here a few months back. Lennie and me are doing alright, we’re working hard and saving money. Lennie still big stupid and low most probable the way you remember him, you know him. Hr still wants to stroke and pet those stupid rabbits. Cos of that he got us kicked out of weed. All the dumb bastard wanted to do was feel that little girls dress. We had to hide in a ditch for a few hours, but luckily we slicked out at night. We travelled for days looking for work until I found out this one This ranch we’re working at is okay, but I have my worries about some people. My main worry is that tart of a wife Curley has, whenever she around us men she loves flirt. So when Curley see this he goes mad and try to pick a fight like he did with Lennie but Lennie busted his hand, but any way likes to fight over nothing. So we told him if tell the boss what happen we would tell everyone what Lennie had done to his hand. We met lots of people. I have already told you about Curley and his tart of a wife. There’s the boss who is no too pleased with us cos we came late and there’s Slim who everyone respects. There’s also Candy with his dog who is not like everyone cos it’s old and smelly, but especial by a man called Carlson who today killed the dog by shooting it. And there’s that good Negro Crooks who is called Crooks cos he got kicked by horse and it made him cripple. Our bunkhouse is bull crap cos the bed bad. I suppose it better then sleeping on the floor. But the worst thing is that the bottles of insecticides are put in the room. So the room stinks, but it does keep flies away. That fool Curley worries me cos all he want is it fight. He always wants to pick on some for no reason. If it’s not Lennie, it’s me or its some one else he want to pick on. I think if no one stops him or he don’t stop even though Lennie busted his hand. I’ll tell Lennie to kill him, I swear to ya will! Pete do ya remember that dream that we had, it could it could come true cos of that man called. Candy. Me and lennie were talking about the dream and he was listening, then we stared talk about the dream with him. So candy wants to be apart of it. His even got $450 dollars and he said he will put it towards the ranch. So I said ok. It will be so great not having a boss to tell ya to work or out of his ranch. Do ya remember about that promise we made to each other. That one where, if one of us got a ranch the other would work on it. So I’m going to keep my promise and ask you to come work on this ranch if we get it. Lennie wants to say hello. He just reminded. O yea did I tell ya Lennie going to get a puppy of that man, Slim. Write back please. Hope to hear from u soon!

The Heroic Journey of Aladdin: the Diamond in the Rough

The same hero wearing a different mask appears throughout great literature and films. The â€Å"hero’s journey† motif, as Joseph Campbell, the acclaimed American mythology professor and famous author identified, has been present in all cultures since the first documented stories. From Odysseus and the other great figures of the ancient Greek myths to the more modern character of Frodo in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the audience essentially accompanies the same hero throughout a series of stages and obstacles that compose the original heroic journey.The hero’s journey can be particularly followed in the various animated Disney films that give existence to some of the most loved heroes of all time. For instance, the successful film, Aladdin, released in 1992 and directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, brings to the public the interesting journey of a young man on a quest to find himself. The character of Aladdin fits the profile of the hero as he embarks in th e hero’s journey unintentionally but proves to have undergone a complete maturation of character while attaining valuable insight about his true nature and worth by the end of the adventure.The film Aladdin narrates the emotive love story of a poor young man who falls in love with the beautiful princess Jasmine and begins a meaningful journey to conquer her love. Aladdin, a â€Å"street rat,† as he is often called by those who know him, is a true â€Å"diamond in the rough, whose worth lies far within† that has great potential but has not been given the opportunity to shine yet (Clements, Musker). Because of this reason, he is the only one who can enter the Cave of Wonders.He does so to retrieve a magic lamp for Jafar, the Sultan’s evil vizier. This event initiates the departure of the hero’s journey as Aladdin’s encounter with Jafar disguised as an old prisoner signifies the call to adventure. Even though Aladdin is not aware that this is t he beginning of his journey, from this point on everything will change. The young man becomes trapped inside the cave with his inseparable pet monkey, Abu, where they encounter one of two supernatural aids, a magical carpet that becomes their close friend.Inside the cave they also find the lamp and its friendly magical inhabitant, the Genie, the most important supernatural aid, who also becomes Aladdin’s essential guide. The moment Aladdin makes the first wish out of the three the Genie grants him; he crosses the first threshold. Simultaneously, he enters the belly of the whale since from this point on Aladdin abandons the life of poverty and crime, which he is accustomed to for a life of wealth and royalty. This begins his adventure into new territory as playing prince becomes more complex than expected.At first Aladdin embarks in the heroic journey’s initiation merely for the material rewards and the opportunity to abandon his difficult life in the streets of Agrabah , but along the way he learns to appreciate his true self and comes to fit Campbell’s prototype of the hero. Aladdin’s objective for going on the journey is to win the heart of Jasmine, who he has deeply fallen in love with since their first encounter at the marketplace or the meeting with the goddess. The love Aladdin and Jasmine share motivates him to begin and continue on the journey in hopes of marrying her.Once Aladdin has already initiated the journey, the evil Jafar becomes â€Å"the woman as temptress† in his life. Jafar continues to place obstacles in Aladdin’s path physically by: first trying to kill him in the Cave of Wonders, then by attempting to drown him in order to stop him from courting Jasmine as Prince Ali, and finally attempting to murder him as a giant cobra. Most importantly, Jafar psychologically tempts Aladdin to give up several times and interferes with his mental quest by recurrently making degrading comments that obstruct Aladdi n’s ability to recognize his strength and value.The initiation phase in Aladdin continues with the atonement with the father. In this step, Aladdin has an argument with the Genie, who has become a mentor, much like a father figure. The Genie criticizes Aladdin’s change in character. He feels that Aladdin’s transformation into Prince Ali has altered his personality. Aladdin has become arrogant and selfish. This argument results in Aladdin’s realization and reawakening of his true self as he recognizes he must stay true to his convictions. This epiphany allows Aladdin’s true self to focus on the ultimate boon, which is marrying Princess Jasmine, what he originally begins his journey for.Aladdin concludes his journey with the return, which successfully brings him to the freedom to live. Aladdin experiences the refusal of the return earlier in the story when he lets his insecurity overcome him. After he has had the chance to experience life as Prince A li, Aladdin says, â€Å"the last thing I want to be now, is be myself† (Clements, Musker). He refuses to return to his normal life where the Genie cannot wish all his troubles away. The Genie is also an important part of the rescue form without stage in Aladdin’s journey. At this point Aladdin’s vulnerability as well as the Genie’s appreciation for him are evident.Aladdin is captured by Jafar and thrown in to the bottom of the river with a rock tied to his feet. Without the Genie’s aid this would have been the end of the hero’s journey. Most importantly soon after this incident the Genie rescues Aladdin from himself and his selfishness when he makes him realize that he is only concerned about his own well being. Finally, Aladdin’s quest ends with his attainment of the freedom to live. By this point the young hero has learned to accept himself and is willing to renounce to his own happiness for the joy of others.The protagonist of Alad din experiences the many stages of the hero’s journey in order to realize his true potential as well as come full circle in terms of character. In the beginning of the film, the viewer meets Aladdin and can immediately recognize his innate good nature. Early on in the movie, Aladdin’s generosity and compassion become evident when he gives up his only meal of the day to two poor children he finds rummaging though the garbage for something to eat. Not late after this, he saves the same two children from Prince Achmed’s whip.At this point, Aladdin does not realize his worth and this is why he must â€Å"take off on a series of adventures beyond the ordinary to discover some life giving elixir† (Campbell 127). The life giving elixir, as Campbell puts it in The Power of Myth, is Aladdin’s realization of his self worth, which becomes essential for his happiness. The journey tests Aladdin’s physical abilities numerous times, but it is from the psyc hological trials that Aladdin gains the most insight. Aladdin’s experiences along the journey affect his good character but eventually lead him to the ultimate level of maturity.Before going on the quest Aladdin does not know himself, and thus, â€Å"he is that mystery which he is seeking to know† (Campbell 15). However, Aladdin is not successful in staying true to his nature along the journey. Aladdin becomes caught up in the life of luxury and comfort that the Genie grants him. He begins to live in a lie and adopt an arrogant and selfish attitude. Aladdin had promised the Genie earlier that he would utilize his third wish to free him from his life as the lamp’s slave, however he becomes unable to stay true to that romise because of his selfishness and insecurity. He is afraid to be himself and feels he needs the Genie to maintain the fantasy life he has created. This is why the hero’s journey ultimately represents the â€Å"pattern of life, growth, and experience† (Harris) for Aladdin. The journey serves as a revelation for accepting one’s self and renouncing to one’s own satisfaction for the interest of others. As Aladdin follows the steps in Campbell’s hero’s journey, he ends the adventure by reaching the ultimate realization.The tale comes full circle as the journey polishes the diamond in the rough that embarked on the journey to produce a man who is aware of his potential and utilizes it for the benefit of others. At the end of the story, Aladdin’s complete maturation of character becomes undeniable as he gives up his happiness by renouncing his third wish to marry Jasmine for the Genie’s freedom. Of course, Disney could not end the adventure with the young man’s disillusionment, the Sultan changes the law, and Aladdin is able to marry the Princess because of his merit.

Report Restaurants Essay

In the past 10 years, the term „Going Green† gains not only public and media attention but also encourages companies and business to change their ways of running. The question you would probably ask now is why? Lets first concentrate on this simple question, what is going green? Going green is the idea of change which would influence in decreasing pollution saving animals and overall our planet. The environment awareness keeps on growing and growing every single year. Now lets concentrate on „why? †. An ordinary person, lets say his name is Ben, heard about the concept of going green, he liked the idea and he tries to change a little bit his daily routine. Ben doesn’t want to flip his life around a idea, but he tries to save energy, water maybe recycle from time to time. It makes him feel good about himself. What he doesn’t realise is that by changing his way of thinking and acting he just became a part of one of the highest growing markets. Over 80% of people go green each year. Not everyone will keep on doing it. Lets take a random European country, Poland. Poland has over 40 million citizen’s, 32 million decide on going green, more than half of it drops down and doesn’t continue, we are left with 12-16 million, 22% of these people can afford a stay in a 4-5 star hotel, resort, now we are left with 3,3 million. Now answer yourself a question, when Ben goes on holidays with his withe to another city in Poland, which Hotel would he chose? The one that didn’t turn green, but still is a really good hotel with a nice view at the city or a hotel that supports his way of life and will make him feel better about himself. Its 3,3 million individuals which would probably pick the hotel that decided to change a little bit the ways of running. Going green is not only an advertised way of helping mother earth but can also can become a competitive advantage. Advantages Can become a money saving opportunity. Microsoft proved that turning off a computer or putting it into sleep mode after its been used can help the company in saving up to $90 per computer, within a range of a whole year. Imagining how many computers there are in a large corporation or a hotel. Lets say there are 250-300 computers in a hotel that is owned by a hotel branch, a single hotel saves up to $22,000 per year. Hilton right now owns 530 hotels. If they decided to implement such a small change they could save up to 11,6 million dollars. Going green can become a competitive advantage. Customers seem to chose products or services of the companies that tend to care about the environment over the same quality product or service from a different company. A company That decides to go green can count on so called tax benefits. Government tends to support companies which show evidence of implementing methods that would be beneficial to environment. Cutting Tax costs is one of the ways the government can support companies. This only happens when a company can cut their energy costs by 50%. Employee motivation. Employes tend to be more loyal to the companies which tend to care about the environment. Workers can also be more committed by participating in the activities which could help in maintaining sustainability. A repetition of that kind of activities can help the companies in recruiting better quality employes. The fact of implementing extra tasks to daily operation of a business can be a factor that will motivate employees and can make their work more efficient. Disadvantages The initial cost of going green can be very high. usually smaller businesses cannot afford to turn to go green. Solar panels for example are very expensive. We can notice the brake even after 3 years or more. Going green is more of a long term investment. In some cases switching to green methods can raise the value and the prices of services or products. Because of relatively high costs of implementing green methods some companies may be forced to higher the prices of products or cut costs in any other way to brake even quickly. In some cases customers can notice that a company is going only green to increase the good image of the company. Or says that they are green and at the end they sell unfriendly products to the environment. This is called „Green Washing†.  If a consumer notice that the company is green washing than they can suffer really bad publicity. Conclusion Many famous companies are deciding to go green. Companies such as Mc Donald’s, Starbucks, or Coca-Cola decided on going green. Hotel wise it is also a good idea. This action can bring new customers and can also make consumers loyal. it means that customers would be likely to come back to our hotels. It could help in building up a wide customer base which could help our company in raising advantage over our competitors. A company that decides to implement the whole concept of going green, has to be careful and maintain this way. Because if the public finds out that a company is saying that they went green, and doesn’t actually change anything, it can bring a lot of trouble to the company. It can build a bad image that is hard to erase. I am for going green. As it is becoming more and more popular sooner or later companies will have to go green.

The assignment for this week is to answer the the following questions

The for this week is to answer the the following questions from the textbook - Assignment Example It allows both the partners to gain maximum benefits creating a win-win situation for them. As the term implies, partnering is beneficial for both parties involved. The main objective of partnering is to improve quality of the business. It results in the betterment of important areas such as manufacturing process, the products itself, relation between the consumers and suppliers and in turn the customer contentment. Together these things increase the effectiveness of the business. A perfect example of the disadvantage of not having a partnering is the green Volvo case. Volvo manufactured a lot of green cars which could not gain the public interest and had almost no sales. To quickly sell this model, the marketing and sales departments started heavy promotions such as large discounts and rebates. What they did not do was to inform their suppliers of the case. So when the Volvo suppliers saw the green cars sell at such a speed, they doubled the manufacturing of the green cars. The result was loss of a lot of money and resources. We can say that partnering removes the invisib le wall that exists between the manufacturer and customer and the supplier and manufacturer. Some of the advantages also include reduced costs and increased speed of the whole working process. Nowadays people avoid going into the manufacturing business alone. Most companies tend to partner with their suppliers in order to form a mutually valuable working relation. Rick Hughes, the chief purchasing officer of P&G, a consumer goods company, talked about their strong regard for partnering with suppliers ‘We expect the best from our business partners, and we are focused on growing long-term relationships that are sustainable, innovative and create joint value’(Jusko, 2011). There are however some requirements that should be met by a supplier to be able to partnering. In order to form a successful supplier partnering, the supplier personnel should interact with the

Research philosophies and principles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Research philosophies and principles - Essay Example For tourism research, this becomes important as it alters the data and conclusions which are drawn with the tourist research and the ideologies and philosophies which are approached from this. The result is a variety of different results that create diversity of thought in how tourism is approached. Genres of Heritage Authenticity The first article described is based on the evaluation of authenticity on heritage environments. The heritage environments are known to shift because of the exceptional, referential and influential components which are associated with this. The sociological relationship to the sites is what partly determines the authenticity of the site as opposed to it being a space which holds multiple meanings. The epistemological approach used with this particular study included a set of definitions and philosophies from past researchers. This included the defining of ethnicity, cultural attributes and the meaning behind the heritage sites and what this was inclusive of . This is combined with the artifacts that are in the region, including cultural activities and the different elements that define the authenticity of a specific site. The epistemological ideologies combine with ontological approaches which are based on the definitions of a heritage site and the categorization that the author creates from the research. The theories combine with the understanding of the current study, which examines the Greek area of Mount Athos to define the different theories of heritage and how this changes with the approaches taken. The methodological views expand on this to define the genres of authenticity into different categories, specifically which relate to the needs with tourism and the influences which are created. From observation of the different heritage sites, conclusions are drawn which relate back to the theory and which divide the heritage sites by levels of authenticity (Konstantinos, 2011). Forecasting Tourist Arrivals The second methodological a pproach is with the article on â€Å"Forecasting Tourist Arrivals.† This study looked into how to move toward the short – term implications of future tourism demand as well as how this led to macroeconomic shocks. The philosophy was one which defined that tourist demand had a large impact on the macroeconomy and which was based on the scope, duration and magnitude of the particular implication. The epistemological basis of this particular study was based on looking at the Growth Domestic Product (GDP) and looking at the literature which focused on how the demands and arrivals dramatically affected the macroeconomy. The concepts of price competitiveness, tourism demand and the knowledge of how to indicate future arrivals were all considered with this approach. The ontological approach combined with this by looking at how the short – term predictions for tourism was directly affected by how one responded to the macroeconomy and the shifts which were made. Models w ere combined with this, including ARIMA, MAE and RMSE, which defined the average number of changes and predictions as a part of the tourism. The methodology looked at the consumer price indexes and consumer confidence indicators with tourism in Greece while comparing this to the macroeconomy and unemployment trends. The impulse response function combined with this to create an understanding to the tourism arrivals which was able to predict the future trends for the

The development of the Digital economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

The development of the Digital economy - Essay Example These are very different from each other and are different from the earlier end products of industrialisation. The digital economy comprising of information, computing, and communications - is now the primary driver of economic growth and social changes. It has reached a stage where it is no longer possible except to adapt and enhance oneself to the digital economy to avoid being left behind. A better understanding of these adaptations help in more efficient decision making that translates into better solutions in research, products, or services. The health of any economy has gone from the dependence on farming in the agrarian age to the industrial end products in the industrial age to the current digital or information age. The time period of growth seems to be accelerated and considering that the digital age only began with the invention of the ENIAC computer about less than four decades ago, the world as seem to have progressed in leaps and bounds. Then, Tim Berners-Lee and some others joined to pioneer another great step: the Internet. The Internet has become a critical component of the digital economy and the most influential. The impact of its power cannot be estimated. Internet commerce, which is arguably the most significant component of electronic commerce ("e-commerce"), includes consumer retail and business-to-business transactions; online financial services; media; infrastructure; and consumer and business Internet access services. Recent industry research shows that over one million people in the UK became Internet users for the first time during the third quarter of 1998. Fifteen per cent of the adult population in this country have now visited the World Wide Web. This puts it some two years behind the US, where web users now represent 37 per cent of the adult population, but ahead of Germany (ten per cent) and France (eight per cent). The Issues Economic Implications Every economy is now affected by the emergence of the digital economy. It has changed all the aspects of business, social and cultural entities. The Internet, a main component of the digital age has brought about significant changes in the way business is conducted and the way people work and live. Lowered costs and increased productivity have heralded rethinking strategies in all aspects of the society. Dependency and undue influences of the digital economy has given rise to speculations of how far out these can go without backfiring on the basic aspects of life. Globally, it has seemed to widen the gap between the developed and developing nations while at the internally it has seemed to widen the gap between the rich and the poor due to the accessibility of the infrastructure. Changes in Organizations Information technology has brought with it changes in the organisational performances, policies and people. Information technology has the potential to change the structure and performance of organizations and human enterprise. It has enabled companies to go global with ease and hence forth opened up the borders of the workplace. While it has created a new dimension of

Leaving Canada - What tax issues should a Canadian leaving Canada Article

Leaving Canada - What tax issues should a Canadian leaving Canada consider so that they become non-resident for Canadian tax pur - Article Example Therefore, once a person moves out of Canada, they would want to break all ties with the country, thus making them non-residents. Being a Canadian non-resident means that one is allowed to pay less (or no) taxes to Canadian Revenue Agency. In order to achieve this non-payment of taxes, one must ensure that he establishes new residence in the country he migrates to, and sever all residence ties with Canada. This is because, as â€Å"Tax for Canadian Expats† provides, the Canadian tax agency can only consider someone as a non-resident after they have been living out of Canada for 24 months. According to â€Å"Emigrants and Income Tax 2011†, one can sever residential ties with Canada by selling or leasing out his Canadian homes on a long-term basis and establishing permanent homes in his new country (4). Secondly, one can have his spouses and dependants, if any, leave Canada and join him in his destination countries. A Canadian expatriate can also dispose of any property h e has in Canada, surrender his driving license, credit cards, and health insurance (ibid). If one does not sever his residential ties with Canada, then he is liable for the taxation of his overseas income. Tax obligations to Canada After a person leaves Canada and severs all residential ties with the tax agency, there are a number of source incomes that are liable for taxation under the Canadian law. According to â€Å"Leaving Canada Checklist† the payers in Canada are allowed to a withholding tax rate of 25 per cent (5) on some income sources. Some of the income sources liable to this taxation include rental payments, annuity payments, retiring allowances, and dividends. An emigrant is obligated to pay tax on these types of income sources and can, therefore, not file any return claims. However, as â€Å"Tax for Canadian Expats† provides, an expatriate who receives income from such sources as real estate and timber operations may decide to pay taxes using a different t axing method then ask for a refund on some of the withheld tax. In addition, an emigrant has tax obligations to Canada if they owed the country any taxes prior to their departure. A person can also file for a refund if they paid excess taxes to the Canadian tax agency. According to the provisions of â€Å"Emigrants and Income Tax 2011† such returns should be filed on or before the 30th day of April, the year after the expatriate moved out of Canada (7). Tax obligations to the new country of residence Most countries have a system of taxing the incomes of their residents. This means that a person migrating from Canada to another country will most probably have to pay taxes on their income in the destination country. Accordingly, â€Å"Tax for Canadian Expats† advices that such a person should ensure that these taxes are paid for by their employer, by insisting on a written contract specifying that the company is responsible for the payment of such taxes. The employee sho uld keep records to show that they have paid those taxes, by obtaining copies of tax returns filed on their behalf by the recruiting company (ibid). Proof of payment of taxes in a foreign country enables an emigrant to request for the deduction of Canadian tax

Drug Testing in High School Athletics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Drug Testing in High School Athletics - Essay Example The researcher states that despite the fact that some critics give low credit to the drug testing policy in high school, it is morally right to carry out the activity. It serves the country a long-term goal of fighting against drug abuse that is very common in high schools. The government has an obligation to ensure that its citizens learn to observe culturally acceptable values by instilling discipline to children when they are in schools. The students will grow up knowing that the law disallows drugs and substance abuse. However, the parents have an upper hand in ensuring that their children do not end up in drug dens but because of their tight schedules and prioritization of career and professional development, they do little. The teachers and the government are left with the hard task of making eliminating the bad behavior from the students. There, the government has an ethical obligation to carry on with the program despite the critics and controversies surrounding the issue. Th e thought of prevention is better than cure is a valid statement when it comes to drug testing in schools. The government together with school’s administration will acquire valid findings to aid in making sound decisions. A school’s management can establish rules and regulations regulating the usage of drugs among their students. This means that before a student is admitted, they are asked to ensure they drug and to certify their will abide by the law. A strict penalty the school can demonstrate is to expel students found abusing drugs.

Biology - Down's Syndrome Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Biology - Down's Syndrome - Term Paper Example Despite the alleged incurable nature of Down’s syndrome, it is possible that the fields of pharmacology and medicine have surely come up with ways to alleviate its symptoms as well as to be able to learn further about the disease. In fact, research through the medical and scientific databases on the latest scientific breakthroughs concerning Down’s syndrome resulted in the discovery of five journal articles relating the most recent breakthroughs on the disease. Review of Literature The study of Bradeau et al. conducted in Paris, France in 2011 is entitled â€Å"Specific targeting of the GABA-A receptor ÃŽ ±5 subtype by a selective inverse agonist restores cognitive deficits in Down syndrome mice.† Based on the results of this study, one reason why there is an altered brain function among individuals with Down’s syndrome is that there is a chemical imbalance between inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters. One inhibitory transmitter, GABA or gamma-aminobutyric acid seems to occur in large amounts in the nervous system of Down’s syndrome patients and thus causes a relatively great amount of inhibition of certain cognitive functions among them. The study then utilized GABA-A antagonists in order to treat such chemical imbalance and the result was positive. As a result, the subjects of the experiment, Ts65Dn mice, or mice with Down’s syndrome, demonstrated restored cognitive functions. The specific chemical GABA-A antagonist, which is a ?5-subtype or ?5IA, was used to restore memory and learning functions n rats. The ?5IA subtype of GABA-A antagonist is different from its other subtypes because it is non-convulsant, which means to say that the other subtypes may cause convulsions if tested on humans. Other subtypes also caused certain changes in the tissues of the brain, liver and kidney of the experimental mice, but ?5IA did not. The study of Braudeau et al. was particularly important to the medical community as well as to families of Down’s syndrome patients because this new particular chemical or drug – GABA-A antagonist ?5IA subtype – may actually improve learning and memory problems among patients suffering from Down’s syndrome. Nonetheless, the drug has not yet been tested in humans for fear that although it may not cause convulsions in rats, it may still do so in humans. Moreover, the study was unique in itself because although it has been known that Down’s syndrome pa tients suffer from imbalanced inhibition and excitation at the cellular level, there had been no non-convulsant drug that promised any good cure until now. Another study, the one conducted by Perluigi and Butterfield in Kentucky, USA in 2011 is entitled â€Å"Oxidative Stress and Down Syndrome: A Route toward Alzheimer-Like Dementia.† This study involved the discovery of the physiological causes of the almost natural development of Alzheimer’s Disease among Down’s syndrome patients as early as their middle age. Although there are already genetic physical and mental abnormalities in a newborn child with Down’s syndrome, these pathological problems get worse as the patient gets older and thus may have a great chance of developing into Alzheimer’s Disease later on in life. The study found out that the causes of such development were â€Å"altered free radical metabolism† and â€Å"impaired mitochondrial function† (Perluigi & Butterfield, 2012). These two cellular processes,

Business & Organizational Ethics Essay Example for Free

Business Organizational Ethics Essay Course Description: This course is designed to develop an understanding of the theory and practical application of ethical issues facing business and organizational leaders/ in the 21st century. Students will explore a variety of ethical paradigms and will become actively engaged in the evaluation and in-depth examination of critical topics in management today. This course is organized in a seminar format and with 6 in-person and two virtual meeting times focusing on a specific topics in each session. Course Texts: Selected Readings Provided by instructor Whitworth’s Educational Principles: Whitworth’s educational principles are grouped broadly into three categories as described on pages 7 and 8 of the Whitworth University catalog: 1. The knowledge that students will gain 2. The skills we believe are needed to work effectively in the world 3. The  faith and values that our community seeks to reflect This course is designed to integrate all three of these principles through the process of learning, practicing and applying knowledge in the area of business ethics. Students will gain knowledge and skills needed to understand basic accounting and its application in an ever-changing business environment through study, practice and application. The integration of ethics and values in a manager’s role in business will be addressed specifically in the course content. Program Mission and Outcomes: The mission of the Whitworth School of Business is to develop ethical global professionals. This course will provide a platform on which students will be able to demonstrate competency through the ethical application of managerial concepts in a â€Å"real-world† setting. The learning outcomes for students completing Graduate Studies in Business state that one should be able: 1. to understand the sources and uses of data and to know how to evaluate and use data and other information; 2. to think and function independently as professionals, and in particular to be able to foresee and solve problems; 3. to understand the legal, economic, business and organizational cultures and environment that frame their professional work. 4. to communicate well, both within and across cultural and national barriers, and work effectively in teams of diverse individuals; and 5. to begin to integrate their spiritual and ethical values with their chosen professional vocation. Course Outcomes: At course conclusion student will be able to: Critically evaluate complex business situations from multiple perspectives Understand and clearly articulate their personal ethic and maintain that when confronted with business world realities Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of current major issues in business/organizational management understand the practice of management from an â€Å"other† moral centered framework demonstrate strong writing competence essential for professional management/leadership Assignment Guidelines: All written assignments must be typed (double-spaced), stapled and have numbered pages. I expect all writings to be turned in on or before the due date. Assignments handed in after the date on which it is due will not be accepted unless you can demonstrate extenuating circumstances. Written assignments will be evaluated for clarity, construction and appropriate format. Unless the assignments states differently, all assignments and oral participation will be evaluated on the basis of the student’s comprehension of the course materials plus the student’s ability to articulate and to support an informed and critical personal analysis of the issues presented. Graduate students are expected to come prepared to class, as active participation is essential to learning in this course. To encourage this, I will typically call on several students to answer questions concerning assigned readings. Attendance: Attendance is essential to satisfactory completion of this course, as a major part of learning in an Ethics course occurs in classroom participation and discussion. Absences of any kind cannot exceed 25% of class meetings or an â€Å"F† in your final grade will result. Academic Dishonesty: Please note that I take seriously the college’s policy on the need for academic honesty in all your work. I refer you to the current college catalog, and the current Student Handbook, where guidelines on plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty are spelled out. Any form of dishonesty in an assignment will lead to a zero on the assignment, and I reserve the right to give a grade of F for the course as well. Special Needs: Whitworth University is committed to providing its students access to  education. If you have a documented special need that affects your learning or performance on exams or papers, you will need to contact the Educational Support Office (Andrew Pyrc – ext. 4534) to identify accommodations that are appropriate. Statement on Classroom Behavior: The University takes seriously its commitment to maintaining civility and mutual respect in the classroom. Please refer to the current Whitworth University catalog for more information on university policies and classroom behavior expectations. Course Content: The course consists of 8 sessions (Mondays Sept 29, Oct 6, 8(Wed), 13, 15(Wed), 20, 27, Nov 3). Two of these sessions (Wednesdays Oct 8 and Oct 15th) are allotted for team and project work, in-person or virtual. Each in-person session will focus on specific topical areas in business/organizational ethics. I will provide selected readings for each of these topical areas and generally spend the first part of each class period discussing these readings as well as related subject material. Additionally, working in teams, you will research contemporary literature relating to your assigned subject area and present a written summary as well as lead class discussion on the assigned class date. Reflection papers Four 5-6 page reflection papers will be submitted on the following dates: Oct 6, 13, 20, and 27. These are short essays in which you will present your thoughts and reflections on what you have learned in the course. They may be reactions to readings or insights you have picked up in discussions or lectures. These papers are to be typed and double spaced in essay format. Written assignments will be evaluated for engagement, clarity, and academic polish. APA style is expected. Late assignments will not be accepted. Personal Ethic Most adult learners have a fairly established moral/ethical belief system, although few have taken the time to analyze and articulate it. In this  paper, you will integrate information obtained in class as well as readings to describe and support what might be described as â€Å"your personal theory of ethics† or â€Å"the basis for your personal ethic† or â€Å"How do I know the difference between right and wrong?† This paper should be 8 10 pages in length (in essay format) and will be evaluated for clarity, comprehensiveness and persuasiveness. The paper is due the last night of class (Nov 3). Team Research and Presentation Students will work in teams and research current contemporary literature regarding a specific topical area within business and organizational ethics and present a summary of their findings to the class (and lead class discussion) according to the attached schedule. Each team will produce an annotated bibliography and a summary paper. This paper will be done in APA format and will be between 2500 – 3500 words in length. Your presentation to the class will follow the attached schedule, but the completed paper and annotated bibliography will be due the last night of class (Nov 3).

Impact of E-Technology on E-Learning

Impact of E-Technology on E-Learning Table of Contents (Jump to) Introduction Application Core Technology Competitors and Market data Future trends and Conclusion References and Bibliography Introduction The term Electronic-Technology (Also referred to Information Communication Technology) or E-Technology originates from the fact that most of these technologies are electronically facilitated. E-Technology has become a commonplace entity in all aspects of life (Carr, 2003). Across the past twenty years the use of E-Technology has fundamentally changed the practices and procedures of nearly all forms of endeavour within business and governance (Oliver, 2002). Every organisation is looking to use the numerous advantages offered by these new evolving technologies and enhance their organisational prospects, be it business houses (E-commerce), banks (E-banking), educational institutions (E-learning, E-Training) etc. For the purpose of this report we will concentrate on the educational use of E-technology in the form of E-Learning. People have always had a need to learn from people who aren’t in their immediate vicinity (Dede, 1995). In the early days, for example, guilds provided opportunities to be trained by skillful teachers and learn from experts. People traveled great distances to learn from the best. Today’s technologies allow us to do similar sharing but at a distance. Early models of such learning were known as correspondence study and were text-based because books and paper were the technology that was available at the time. As technologies change and expand, the options for learning expand with them. Because of the ongoing technological evolution and progress, it can and will be harnessed for learning. These new technologies that can be used for learning purposes are collectively better know as E-Learning technologies. There seems to be no agreement on a unified view on the definition of e-learning as per the literature. The author of this report will use the definition of e-learning as proposed by NCSA: â€Å"E-learning is the acquisition and use of knowledge distributed and facilitated primarily by electronic means. This form of learning currently depends on networks and computers but will likely evolve into systems consisting of a variety of channels (e.g., wireless, satellite), and technologies (e.g., cellular phones, PDA’s) as they are developed and adopted. E-learning can take the form of courses as well as modules and smaller learning objects. E-learning may incorporate synchronous or asynchronous access and may be distributed geographically with varied limits of time.† (NCSA, 2000) Applications A growing body of research supports that E-learning technologies, if appropriately used in the classroom, may allow students to create knowledge in a creative way by giving them opportunities to explore, interact, problem solve, and collaborate (Clarkson et al, 1999). Kirschner and Selinger (2003. p.6) elaborates by mentioning that these technologies offer the potential to: meet the learning needs of individual students; to promote equality of opportunity; to offer high-quality learning materials; and to increase self-efficacy and independence of learning amongst students of all ages. In the U.K., the Department of Education and Employment (DfEE) now known as Department for Education and Skills (DfES), believes that ICT can provide new levels of learning support and mentioned that: â€Å"We believe the ambitious and imaginative use of technology will be a central element in improving personalisation and choice across the system† (DfES, 2004, p.88). Some of the widely used appl ications of E-Technology in the form E-Learning in an educational setting are given below. Data – logging and Graphing: In data-logging activities, learners need only to make decisions about what parameter to measure, in a suitably designed experiment, and to select the appro ­priate sensor, to be able to record high-quality data. Bartons (1997) comparative study of graphing using computer and non-computer methods has highlighted the flexibility afforded by the computer approach. Real-time plotting has time advantages over manual methods, in particular in encourag ­ing pupils to focus on trends and patterns rather than individual data items. Spreadsheets and other types of software that provide graphing facilities enable pupils to explore the presentation of data in different graphical forms, and to look for trends and patterns in data. Obtaining and transmitting knowledge: The facility of computers to archive large quantities of information and to permit its ready retrieval was of potential educational benefit for conveying knowledge. Software that is designed to exploit these properties includes multimedia resources such as CD-ROM (O’Bannon, 1997) and web-based materials accessed through internet browsers . Presenting and reporting: The presentational tools provided by word processing, desktop publishing, web-based and other specialized presentation software offer pupils powerful tools for presenting and sharing their ideas with others. As well as deciding what information they may wish to report, pupils can decide on styles and formats for presenting their ideas. This allows for a degree of creativity and exploration in the search for the most appropriate and effective format. We believe that the creative processes involved in producing reports and presentations help pupils to develop and secure their understanding of science. Core Technology E-learning technologies are available in a variety of types and forms. Electronic learning has existed before the Internet came into existence. It was known as computer-based training (CBT), where training materials, some were even interactive, were stored in floppy disks and later in CD-ROMs (Schittek et al, 2001). The CD-ROM version still exists today. The current Web-based form of E-learning is merely an enhanced version, capitalising on the latest computer technologies to incorporate the capability of multimedia and global accessibility of the Web. The technologies could include hardware (e.g. computers and other devices); software applications; and connectivity (e.g. access to the internet, local networking infrastructure and video conferencing) (Toomey, 2001). The capacity of these new technologies to support learning in a creative way through experience of simulations, problem solving, investigating and handling information is considerable. With E-Learning, there is opportunity for high level interaction among students, the lecturers and the computer-mediated material. Teaching is flexible because as it can be conducted synchronously or asynchronously, contact is dynamic and can be as variable as the student or the lecturer desires and communication can take place through a variety of modes, such as email, chat, bulletin boards, etc all facilitated by the computer this can be viewed as distributed learning. It is general knowledge that the most widely used of the E-learning tools in the education sector is electronic communication tool (Email). Academic teaching staffs are making themselves available for 24 through the use of email and bulletin boards. Bates (2000) notes that the use of electronic communication for most lecturers actually increases their contact with students, which can be very beneficial for the students. Lecture notes and other teaching resources are placed on the internet for students to access, and linking useful web sites to these resources enables students to navigate through relevant resources. Academic staff also employs published classroom resources that are directly linked to the internet. Learning or Course management systems are used to create an online environment which houses a multitude of resources – such as course outlines, listed resources, internal email, bulletin boards, discussion forums, synchronous communication and so on. Presentation soft ware’s (PowerPoint etc) are also being widely used to enhance classroom teaching. Compared to preparing a â€Å"Chalk and talk† lecture, the preparation of appropriate presentation software requires more time although it may save time in comparison to preparation of detailed overhead transparencies. However, if one has to concur on a single technology that has resulted in the exponential growth of E-learning, it has to be the internet. The World Wide Web has made it possible for people to access primary sources of information on demand. Mastery of this tool has become essential in order to gain access to an ever-growing body of recent and up-to-date knowledge available electronically. The rate of job change has also caused a rethinking of the skills required for lifelong learning, such as skilful use of ICT. The potential is there for these new technologies to attract a more competitive market, thus making the institution a more financial and viable entity (Bates, 2000). Competitors and Market Data Government along with Industry leaders have identified the potential of E-Learning and this is clearly evident from the amount of investment made governments and the companies. For example the UK government has, â€Å"Programmes to invest an additional  £81m over three years awarded from HEFCE and HEFCW have been earmarked to support central objectives of the DfES’s E-strategy, the Science and Innovation Investment Framework: 2004 – 2014, and ‘Reaching Higher’, the Welsh Assembly Government’s strategy for the higher education sector† (JISC, 2006). The following figure shows the amount that has been set aside for E-learning which is an around 20% increase from the previous investment. The industry is not left far behind either. Organisations view learning increasingly as a competitive advantage rather than just another cost factor (Urdan Weggen, 2000). The industry is to a greater extent divided in two major groups. One that provides centralised learning management systems (LMS) with the most commonly used applications and the other group of companies are the ones who provide bespoke E-learning systems as per the requirements of their clients. The ability to sustain and compete in this growingly competitive market is evident from the increasing number of mergers that we have seen in the past few years especially in the LMS sector. The following table shows a recent market state after the mergers and comprise of the big players in the LMS or E-learning sector. Even though the bespoke E-learning market is growing every day the companies are not as big as the LMS vendors. However, this is a positive sign and it enables small sized organisations to integrate affordable E-Learning solution into their business provided by these companies rather then the ones provided by the LMS vendors which are hugely expensive. Commercial and social impact There is absolutely no doubt that these E-Learning technologies are having a massive impact at commercial as well as social level. Some of them are mentioned below: Online Social Communities – The asynchronous and synchronous communication ability of E-Learning systems has enabled institutions to cater for a variety of users by removing the barriers of time and distance. Users who are normally geographically disadvantaged have access to a variety of educational resources not usually at their disposal (Bates, 2000). This, in a way has lead to the evolution of online social networks (‘Myspace’, ‘second life’ etc). These networks are having an enormous social impact on the society in a positive way to a greater extent. Social networks are playing a instrumental role in learning environments as a major conduit of resource and knowledge exchanges (Cho, Stefanone, Gay, 2002) and as a source of social support and socialisation for distributed learners (Haythornthwaite, 2002). There are abundant discussions emphasising the value and the impact of social networks in the studies of organisational learning (Nahapiet Ghosh al, 1998), knowledge management (Cohen Prusak, 2001), and distance learning (Haythornthwaite, 2002). Pedagogical Improvement and staff renewal – Teaching staff are able to preset information using a variety of tools in order to better relate to the content to the concrete realities of a given field of study. Innovative hands-on learning experiences are also made possible for students through computer simulation software. Asynchronous communication technologies are used outside the classroom to enrich classroom learning through discussion groups, mentoring and coaching (Burg Thomas, 1998). The challenge of teaching with ICT has led to revitalizing teaching practice for academic staff (Bates, 2000). Cost-effectiveness – According to Chute, Thompson and Hancock (1999) the potential financial savings associated with E-learning can be significant when compared to traditional methods. E-Learning can improve the cost-effectiveness of the operation of educational institutions in variety of ways. One way is by the ability to reach different students and in greater numbers. Academic teaching staff can be freed from many routine activities by replacing certain activities with appropriate technology (Deden Carter, 1996). Leading firms such as CISCO, Motorola, IBM and Ford are already reaping benefits associated with E-learning with some of them having cutting costs in the range of a whooping 30 to 50 percent (Greengard, 1999). Future Trends and Bibliography Although the growth of E-Learning is considerable there are those who are sceptical about its potential. Cuban (2001) argues that although governments are spending substantial sums of money to develop and implement educational policy to fund E-learning; research reveals that these new technologies are often oversold and underused (Cuban 2001, cited in Kirschner and Wopereis 2003). Also, with respect to E-Learning being a driving force behind educational innovation and reform, research indicates that the role of E-Learning is not as profound as one would expect (Kirschner and Wopereis 2003, p. 107). This may be because ICT is too often used as a modern and efficient substitute for existing learning and teaching materials and seldom as a vehicle for innovation and transformation of education (Kirschner et al 1995, cited in Kirschner and Wopereis 2003, p. 107). This has prompted the government to shift its attention from technology to pedagogy as shown below. Whether or not someone is keen on using technology for learning, the fact is that it’s here to stay. Technology has become an essential way to handle the education, training, and retraining needs of an expanding knowledge society. According to a recent report on job skills, 50 percent of all employee skills become outdated in three to five years. In addition, experts say the percentage of jobs that fit into the category of â€Å"knowledge workers† is rapidly increasing (Moe Blodgett, 2000). Even jobs that were traditionally thought to require fewer skills, such as retail sales, now commonly require computer skills and the ability to keep pace with product changes. Many blue-collar workers regularly use computers and databases in their work. We simply don’t have the capacity to support today’s educational and training needs by using traditional methods alone. References Barton, R. (1997). ‘Computer aided graphing: a comparative study.’ Journal of Information Technology for teacher education. 6(1), 59-72. Bates, A. W. (2000). Managing technological change Strategies for college and university leaders. San Fransisco: Jossey Bass. Burg, Jennifer J., and Thomas, Stan J. Computers Across Campus. Communications of the ACM 41, 1 (Jan. 1998), 22-25. Carr, N.G., (2003). IT doesn’t matter. Harvard Business Review cited by McCredie, J., 2003. Does IT matter to higher education? Educause Review 38 (6), 14–22. Cho, H. Stefanone, M. and Gay, G. (2002), Social information sharing in a CSCL community, Proceedings of 2002 ACM CSCL conference, Lawrence Elbaum Associates, Boulder, USA (2002), pp. 43–53 Chute, A,G., Thompson, M. M., Hancock, B W. (1999). The McGraw-Hill handbook of distance learning. New York: McGraw-Hill. Clarkson P, Dunbar A, and Toomey R (1999) Whole School Reform and the use of ICT. An evaluation of the Navigator Schools Project (Cited in Toomey R (2001) Information and Communication Technology for Teaching and Learning. Schooling Issues Digest 2. Canberra: Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs.) Cohen, D. and Prusak, L. (2001) In good company: how social capital makes organisations work, Harvard Business Press, MA, Boston (2001). Dede, C (1995). The Transformation of Distance Education to Distributed Learning. [Online] Available http://www.hbg.psu.edu/bsed/intro/docs/distlearn/ [Accessed on 06/02/2007] Deden, A. Carter, V. (1996). Using technology to enhance students skills. New Directions for Higher Education, 96, 81-92. DfES (2003) ‘Fulfilling the Potential’ Transforming teaching and learning through ICT in schools, available at http://www.dfes.gov.uk DfES (2004), Five Year Strategy for Children and Learners, July 2004. http://www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/5yearstrategy/docs/DfES5Yearstrategy1.rtf DfFE (1998) Teaching: High Status. High Standards. Requirements for courses of Initial Teacher Training. Annex B: Initial Teacher Training National Curriculum for the use of Information and. Communications Technology in Subject Teaching (quoted in Pachier N (1999) Theories of Learning and ICT in Leask M and Pachler N (eci) (i 999) Learning to Teach using ICT in the Secondary school New York: Routledge. Greengard, S. (1999). Web-based training yields maximum returns. Workforce, 78(2), 95-96. Haythornthwaite, C. (2002) Building social networks via computer networks: Creating and sustaining distributed learning communities. In: K.A. Renninger and W. Shumar, Editors, Building virtual communities: learning and change in cyberspace, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (2002), pp. 159–190. JISC, (2006), Annual Review of Joint Information Systems Committee, UK, Available at http://www.jisc.ac.uk/publications/publications/pub_ar06.aspx [Accessed on 07/02/07] Kirschner P and Selingcr M (2003) The state of affairs of Teacher education with respect to Information and Communication Technology Technology Pedagogy and Education 12 / J / pp. 5-1 Kirschner P, Hermans H J and De Wolf H C (1995) Onderwijsvernieuwing en Informatie Technologie (Educational Reform and Information Technology) (Cited in Kirschner P and Wopereis I (2003) Mind tools for teacher communities: a European perspective Technology Pedagogy and Education 12 (I) pp. 105-124. NCSA (2000), e-learning – A review of literature, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, Available at learning.ncsa.uiuc.edu/papers/elearnlit.pdf, [Accessed on 08/02/07] OBannon, B. (1997) CD-Rom Integration peaks student interest in inquiry Computers in the Schools 13 (3/4) pp. 127-134. Oliver, R. (2002). The role of ICT in higher education for the 21st century: ICT as a change agent for education. Available online at: http://elrond.scam.ecu.edu.au/oliver/2002/he21.pdf. Accessed [08/02/07] Schittek M, Mattheos N, Lyon HC, Attstrom R. (2001) Computer assisted learning. A review. Eur J Dent Educ. 2001 Aug;5(3):93-100. Toomey, R. (2001). Information and Communication Technology for Teaching and Learning. Schooling Issues Digest 2. Canberra: Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs. Urdan, T. A., Weggen C. C. (2000). Corporate e-learning: Exploring a new frontier. WR Hambrecht Co.

Gender Inequality in the Workplace

Gender Inequality in the Workplace An ultimate matter of social scientists has been why women continue to lag behind in men salary, promotion and authority. Gender inequalities in the labour market have received considerable attention by researchers over the past twenty years. Since the colonial period, Mauritius has been regarded as a patriarchy society with a high rate of marriage. Overwhelming evidence suggests that gender segregation exists in more occupational categories and the number of women segregation is greater than the number of male segregation. Gender socialization is one of the factors responsible for the reinforcement of gender inequality since childhood. The society continues to transmit the traditional gender roles to the individual through the various agencies of socialization. The different institutions of socialisation play an integral part in shaping the adulthood of an individual. Since childhood, women learn to be submissive and men authoritarian. Furthermore, wage gap, organizational power and employment opportunities have narrowed somewhat but disparities remain in the country. According to the gender statistics in 2011, it has been found that a lesser proportion of men in employment and for female activity rate it was 43.7% against 75.5% for men. Even though women are higher than men in terms of population, they are still at the disadvantage of the corporate ladder. Despite many law Acts against discriminations; many workers are faced with sex discrimination which affects them in the labour market. Studies in Mauritius on the labour market have laid more emphasis on gender equality rather than gender inequality. Therefore, this study will aid to shed light on the other side of the coin where occupational gender segregation is discussed. Aim of the study: The study aim to analyse gender inequality within the workplace of Mauritius. Objectives of the study: To find out how gender socialization process reinforces gender inequality. To analyse how sex discrimination affect workers. To discuss the different components of gender segregation. To identify which gender is more prone towards inequality at the workplace. Gender inequality and occupational segregation Gender can be identified as set roles, and behaviour patterns that differentiate women from men in socially, culturally and relations of power (Women Information Centre, 2005). However, radical feminism sees patriarchal roots as creating inequality between men and women. Radical feminism views patriarchy as separating rights, privileges and power principally by gender, and as a consequence oppressing women and privileging men. In general, radical feminist disagree against political and social institutions for the reason that they are closely linked to oppression. As a result, radical feminism is likely to be convinced that political activities support cultural change that promotes patriarchy. Radical feminism is against patriarchy, not men. To compare radical feminism to man-hating is to presume that patriarchy and men are inseparable. Anker (1997) distinguished two main explanations for why occupational gender segregation should is a continuing concern: first, it is a major foundation of labor market inflexibility and economic incompetency. Second, it is detrimental to women in the sense that segregation brings about harmful views of both men and women as a result, affecting womens status, income, education, skills (Anker 1997). The important outcome related with occupational gender segregation is the segregation of the payment methods and the continual sex discrepancy in earnings with women on the inferior edge. The proportion of the gender wage gap is to 5 to 40 percent attached to workplace segregation is seemingly advanced than the amount by career break 15 percent and equivalent worth wage upgrading 5 percent. Theories of gender inequality There are two types of segregation: horizontal segregation, which occurs when there is a concentration of women and men in a determined fields and occupations, and produces disparity in terms of career, pension and vertical segregation, which take place when there is a focus of women and men in determined degrees and levels of responsibility or positions, and produces disparity on salaries. Theories explaining the existence of occupational segregation by gender can be categorized into three broad groups: the neoclassical and human capital theories, institutional and labour market segmentation theories, and non-economic and gender theories. The neoclassical human capital model Neoclassical economics believes that workers and employers are normal and that labour markets function efficiently. The neoclassical economic view explains occupational segregation between individuals or groups by different human capital investment, or by different choices in the tradeoff between pecuniary and non pecuniary job rewards. According to the human capital theory, men are paid more than women because men usually have more human capital. The term human capital refers to qualities of individuals that employers consider useful, like level of education and years of experience. Females are considered to have a lesser experience than males due to careers break up in effect of motherhood. Some economists who support this theory put forward that womens are not dedicated towards their jobs and hence, they have to undergo through a series of difficulties. For example, they have less chance to have a permanent job, be promoted to superior and better paid occupation. In this model, wage gender inequality is maintained because men collect more human capital in the competitive free market. But opponent of this theory like Witz (1993) contends that even when female work constantly with no professional rupture, they still terminate in inferior and poor-grade employments. Institutional and labour market segmentation theories The initial point of Institutional and labour market segmentation theories is the notion that institutions, such as unions and large enterprises, join in determining who is employed, fired and promoted, and how much employees are paid. Institutional theories are also based on the belief that labour markets are divisional in certain ways. The famous institutional theory is the dual labour market approach. Dual labour market theory consists of two labour markets. The primary labour market consists of high wage, job security and better chance for promotion. The secondary labour market includes lower paid occupation with little job security and poor working condition. According to this theory, women earn less than men because they are disproportionately employed in secondary labour market. Dual labour market is the outcome of the strategies used by company boss to get hold to the varieties of workforce they necessitate. Companies are ready to propose superior rewards to retain primary sector workers. It is somewhat a short step to become accustomed to the model of dual labour markets to occupational segregation by gender, with one labour market segment consisting in female professions and the other in male occupations. This segmentation entails moderately low wage rates in female occupations because many women workers are overcrowded into a small number of female occupations. On the other side of the coin, male occupations, benefit from reduced competition within a broad set of occupations and, consequently, tend to enjoy relatively high wage rates. If females, but not males, are crowded into low earnings jobs only due to discrimination, then the gender composition of a job becomes an index of labour quality for males and, to a small degree, for females (Hansen and Wahlberg 2000). On the other hand, Veronica Beechey in 1986, identified some limitations of this theory, firstly, certain women in blue-collar employment are given low salary even if their occupation is alike to primary area males employment. In addition, this model cannot clarify the reasons why women are less promoted than men, even when employment in same occupation. Gender theories The central image of the gender theories is that womens disadvantaged status in the labour market is mainly due and is an evidence of patriarchy as well as females subordinate position in the society and in the family. In many societies, men are regarded as the sole breadwinner and women are accountable for household chores and child care. Anker (1997) explains, this division of responsibilities and male domination are vital for influencing females to accumulate less fewer human capital in contrast with men prior the labour workforce. That is, why girls receive less education than boys, and is less likely to pursue fields of study such as sciences, but is more talented for literature or languages study. The same influences are also instrumental in explaining why women acquire less labour market experience, on average, because many of them withdraw from the labour force earlier, and many others have discontinuous labour experiences. This theory further show how female occupations mirror common stereotypical roles. For example, womens caring nature, skill and experience in household work, greater manual dexterity, greater honesty and attractiveness can qualify her for occupations such as nurses, doctors, social worker, teacher, maid, housekeeper, cleaner, etc. while womens lesser physical strength, lesser ability in math and science, and lesser willingness to face danger can disqualify her for occupations such as engineer, mathematician, driller, miner and construction worker. Gender socialisation as a medium for encouraging gender inequality Crespi (2003) see socialisation as a logical route with its objective to construct gender personality. The gender socialization process is a further composition of socialization. It is all about the way children of different sexual categories are socialized into their gender roles and learn what male or female character is. According to many sociologists, there exists difference between sex and gender. Sex is the biological classification and gender is the outcome of social construction of separate roles of males and females. According to Lorber (2005), masculinity and femininity is not inborn that is children are taught these traits. As soon as a child is identified as being a male or female, everybody start treating him or her as such. Children learn to move in gendered ways through the support of his environment. As the child grows up, he develops his identity, know how to interact with others and learn the role to play in the society. There are many drivers involved in the socialization process which transmits the traditional gender role to the children and henceforth leading to occupational segregation later on. One set of gender socialization occur between parents and the offspring. Parents are considered to be the primary agency in the process of socialization. They are inclined to interact with boys and girls in discrete styles. For example, a one year old baby is considered to have no sex difference however; parents are likely to act with boys and girls in dissimilar ways. They react to boys, when they seek interest by being aggressive and girls when they use gestures. As such interaction have long term effect on girls and boys communication styles, leading boys to more assertive styles and girls with more emotive styles in adulthood. This communication styles can aid to inequalities between male and female in the workplace. Male tend to be dominant in terms of authority and women submissive in whatever status they hold in the organisation. Ann Oakley (1972), studies mention four central avenues in which socialization into femininity and masculinity roles occur. Firstly, apply diverse physical and verbal manipulations to the child. For example, dress up children according to their sex, girls in pink and boys in blue color clothes. Secondly, draw the child concentration towards gender-identified toys. This is known as canalization whereby, boys and girls are given certain toys, clothing and other objects often culturally identified more with one gender than the other. The games of the boys tend to advance physical interest whereas for the girls it leads to physical closeness and mother-child talk. Thirdly, employ different verbal explanations to similar behavior. In professional careers, women might find that they might are identified with different standards for the same behavior, being called assertive, for example, for behavior at work that in men is admired for being aggressive. In childhood it is the same case, a boy is cheered for being active, where as a girl is reprimanded for being too rough. Or a girl is complimented for being gentle, but a boy is criticized for not being competitive enough. Finally, encourage or discourages certain stereotypical gender-identified activities. For example, girls are asked to help mother with sewing, cooking, ironing, and the like. Boys are to help dad to do yard work, shovel snow, takeout the trash, and so on. The classification of girls with indoor domestic chores and boys with outdoor chores becomes training for stereotypical gender roles. According to Oakley (1972), the socialization route aid to the preservation of male domination and female subservience. The roles learn through the above process shape adult behaviour and hence, contribute to the reproduction of differences in behavior of males and females. School is the agency where conscious socialization happens. The education system is the main part of gender socialisation process. Looking through books from the very beginning gender stereotypes is present and reinforced. The small kids see women being represented in pictures in their books as with babies in their hands or women in domestic chores or at the high end women nurses, women teachers. At the same moment, men are usually soldiers, playing some prestigious physical games and leaders. These images often direct to further divisions between man and woman. The hidden curriculum is known for reinforcing the traditional model of how girls and boys look and act through the use of course material. For example, teachers strengthen gender roles by encouraging boys and girls to develop different skills. According to Thorne (1993), children also split themselves along gender lines in the lunch room, declaring different space of the playground and often sanction individuals who go against gender roles. The school location can be strong context for gender behaviors. For example, the cafeteria is a strong context where boys and girls separate tables if given choice. Likewise, on the playground, boy and girl groups take over spaces. The children of Different World project found that in societies where all the boys and girls go to school together, identical gender interaction was very high during free play, thereby follow-on in more gender segregation than was generally found in homes and neighborhoods. Generally the mass media are one of the most influential instruments of gender socialization because television, magazines, radio, newspapers, video games, movies, and the Internet are present in almost everywhere around the globe. As a social institution, the mass media reinforce traditional gender roles. Magazines pointing towards females bring light to the importance of physical appearance as well as finding, pleasing, and keeping a man. While boys and mens magazines focus on significance of physical appearance, financial success, competitive hobbies, and attracting women for sexual encounter. These supposed masculine and feminine characteristics and behaviors are reinforced across the media system, from video games and movies that show athletic heroes rescuing thin and busty damsels in distress, to television programs that depict women as housewives, nurses, and secretaries and men as lawyers, doctors, and corporate tycoons. Print media also play an important role in socialization. In childrens literature, for example, boys typically are the protagonists, who use strength and intelligence to overcome an obstacle. Girls are included in stories as being naturally passive followers of the male leader or helpers eager to support the male protagonist in his plan. This state of affairs is undergoing change, however. An increasing number of television shows, movies and books have crafted new visions of masculinity and femininity. It remains to be seen if these images take hold and affect gender socialization processes. Gender inequality in the local context Mauritius is a remote small open island economy. In geological time, it is a very young island, which emerged from waves of volcanic eruptions in the Indian Ocean over the last eight million years. A high degree of concentration and interpenetration of finance, agro industrial and merchant characterizes the economic structure of the country. The structure of formal employment consists of deep gender imbalance against women. The Economic and Social Indicators (ESI) on gender statistics represents women and men in the Republic of Mauritius. In 2011, Mauritius ranked 63rd out of 146 countries compared to 2008 it was ranked 46th out of 138 countries according to the Gender Inequality Index of the UN. Before 1950s it has been found that women were in fewer number than men in Mauritius. However, the female population has been growing rapidly such that in the 50s there were almost equal numbers of men and women. As from 1990, women have been increasingly outnumbering men over the years. The sex ratio in the population, declined from 100.2 in 1972 to 97.3 in 2010 and it is expected to decrease further to reach 95.8 in 2050. In 2011, it has been found that a lesser proportion of women than men of working age (16 years and above) were active, that is, in employment or looking for work. The economic activity rate for women was 43.7% against 75.5% for men. The active population stood at 582,800 with 363,600 men and 219,200 women compared to 2010, women was 43% compared to 76% for men, the active population stood at 581,300 with 362,400 men and 218,900 women.Men and women have a similar pattern of economic activity during their life that is less active at the younger and older age groups. The activity rates for both are highest in the age group 30 to 45 years. Some 191,800 women held a job in 2011 and accounted for 35.7% of the Mauritian employed population. It has been found that female employees were more qualified than male, with 22% holding a tertiary qualification against 17% for men. There were an almost equal proportion of working men and women having a School Certificate but 7.4% women had a Higher School Certificate compared to 5% for men. Both men and women had a high proportion of their working population in the tertiary sector (covering trade, hotels restaurants, transport and other service industries), 68% for men and 57% for women. The secondary sector (covering manufacturing, electricity water and construction) accounted for one third of the working men and one quarter of the working women. While women represented some 40% of the employment in the manufacturing sector, they comprised less than 1% of the construction industry. Women were more likely than men to be employees, with 85% of the employed female in that employment status compared to 78% among the men. They were also much less likely than men to head their own business; while 21% of working men were employers or own accounts workers, only some 11% of women held that status. On average an employed woman works 38 hours, 6 hours less than a man. However, women heading their own business and those contributing in the family business worked respectively 7.5 hours and 8.2 hours less than their male counterparts. Both female and male were found spending less hours in the agricultural field than in other areas of the labour market. However, women worked 10 hours less than men in that sector. Women worked 8 hours less in public administration, 5 hours less in hotels restaurants and 3 hours less in manufacturing, trade education sectors. Women as well as men tend to work fewer hours at the older age. The difference in hours worked by women and men varies across ages; it increases with age to reach a peak of 8.3 hours at the age group 45 to 49 years, and decreases thereafter. In spite of being fewer in the labour force, women are over represented among the unemployed. Unemployed women numbered 27,300 in 2011 compared to 18,800 men. Female unemployment rate stood at 12.5%, much higher than the rate of 5.2% for male. Unemployment rate is higher among women than men at all ages, except for the elderly. The difference in unemployment rate is more pronounced at the very young age.Among unemployed women with previous work experience, 22% left their last job due to marriage, childbirth and household responsibilities. Another 13% women were unemployed following closure of establishment. The main sectors where the unemployed women worked previously are manufacturing (29%), trade (25%) and hotels and restaurants (10%). On balance, there has been a dramatic change in the occupational and sectoral distribution of the labour market since, with the rising share in the manufacturing, and a declining share in agricultural and domestic service. Employers preference for women because of their natural and culturally defined attributes, as well as their adaptability, productivity and acceptance of lower wages in the past are some of the reasons accounting for the predominance of female labour mostly in the EPZ sector in Mauritius. Despite increase in employment over the last couple decades, we can still see that there still exists gender disparity in the labour market. In addition, with increased occupational opportunities enjoyed by women, they are still faced with the burden of household responsibilities for example, as mentioned above, woman works 38 hours, 6 hours less than a man. This show woman career is still constrained with household occupations. The factors which have promoted labour force are: fertility reduction, increased life expectancy, economic hardships and wider aspirations beyond the confines of family and home. However, the main factors constraining higher participation of female Mauritian in the labour market are resistance by own family members, inability to make arrangement for childcare, housework exigencies, nurturing within the household, reproductive responsibilities and difficulties in managing the interface between home and work. Therefore, women hit a class ceiling as far as the management in concerned. Such is generally the case despite higher academic achievement than men. This secondary role is also reflected in their working conditions and their position in society and family. While the concept of equity and equality should be established in the world of work, women have to be provided with wide opportunities and can be further encouraged to develop their aptitude and potential optimally. Globalization in Mauritius can also be considered as a threat for widening difference between men and women in the labour market and further creating gender inequalities. Trade expansion has increased womens access to labour market, however, it worth pointing out that the vast majority of these jobs are low salary and low-skilled. In the light of existing gender inequalities, a widening gap between men and women in terms of access to economic resources and benefits to be derived from globalization can be foreseen. Mauritian Law protecting against discrimination in workplace The Constitution of Mauritius is regarded as being the supreme Law which clearly protects this philosophy of equality at Chapter 2 Section (3) and (16) which imparts for non discrimination as follows: Section 3 It is hereby recognized and declared that Mauritius there have existed and shall continue to exist without discrimination by reason of race, place of origin, political opinions, colour, creed or sex, but subject to respect for the rights and freedom of others and for the public interest each and all of the following human rights and fundamental freedoms. Section 16 Protection from discrimination Subject to subsections (4), (5) and (7)-no law shall make any provision that discriminatory either of itself or in its effect. Subject to subsections (6), (7) and (8)- no person shall be treated in a discriminatory manner by any person acting in the performance of any public function conferred by any law or otherwise in the performance of the functions of any public office or any public authority. The Government of Mauritius has also passed law to eliminate all forms of Gender Discrimination and sexual harassment in certain areas of public activity under Sex Discrimination Act No. 43 of 2002. This act protects a worker from all forms of inequality in employment related to recruitment, selection, training, on grounds of gender, marital status and family responsibilities. Gap in literature It has thus been seen that gender inequalities is apparent in all societies and many research has been done with the aim of improving the condition of people at work. In Mauritius, however, gender inequality is relatively a concept which is ignored despite many laws exist to eliminate any sort of discrimination. The measures undertaken by the government still remain at initial stage. There exists little research concentrating in the field of gender inequalities in the workplace of Mauritius. The gap in the literature is little because it has focused on only one dimension of gender inequalities. In Mauritius, however, the concept of gender inequalities in the labour market is buried. As a matter of fact, research is urgently required to determine the all the factors leading to occupational gender segregation and also find ways to improve the conditions of employees at work. CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Methodology is influenced by the purpose of the study and it is based on the best strategy to respond to the research questions. The objective is to provide insight into the methodologies used as well as into the reasons and pertinence of their use. Research design is a plan as to what data to gather, from whom, how and when, and how to analyze the data obtained. It is a systematic plan to coordinate research steps to ensure the efficient use of resources and to guide the research according to scientific methods; again, it is a plan to be followed to meet the research objectives, and is the framework within which to solve a specific problem. A research design describes a logical manner in which individuals or other units are compared and analyzed; it is the basis for making interpretations of the data. The purpose of a design is to ensure that the relation between independent and dependent variable s is not subject to alternative interpretations. It is the clue that holds all of the elements The project will employ questionnaire to identify the different causes of gender inequality within the workplace. The present research is mainly based on a survey method and the major means of gathering data from a questionnaire. Questionnaire is a medium for collecting and recording information about a topic of interest. It is consists of a list of questions and include clear instructions and space for answers or administrative details. This study will employ a quantitative research method. In this study the data will be collected by the use of self-administered questionnaires. Self- administered questions will be used in order to accurately gather the required survey data from selected respondents to meet the researchers informational objectives, to present as positive an image of market research as possible to the respondents such that they will not feel negative toward the survey but welcome it and future surveys. The questions in the questionnaire describe the situation in which the respondents experienced discrimination and the way in which he believes discrimination took place. Self-administered structured questionnaires are more cost effective to administer than personal interviews. They are relatively easy to administer and analyse. Most people are familiar with the concept of a questionnaire and it reduces the possibility of interviewer bias. They are convenient since respondents can complete it at a time and place that is convenient for them.

Our Day Out by Willy Russell :: English Literature

A major theme in ‘Our Day Out’ is the lack of education and opportunity for young people in the inner city. Using scenes from the play, show how Willy Russell makes the audience aware of this theme. Introduction. The play that I am writing about is called ‘Our Day Out’ and it was written by Willy Russell. The main theme of the play is to tell the reader what life was like for people (mainly children) in Liverpool in the 1970s and what their education was like. During the 1970s 100 000 jobs were lost in Liverpool because the docks had been closed and all of the factories were closing down. The unemployment went up, the streets got dirty, there was no money in education and the only thing that the kids could do was play on the streets and get into trouble. I think that this is like the play by Willy Russell because all the factories were closing down, the docks had been closed and there was rubbish all over the streets. It’s also the same because all the kids had given up on life and their teachers had given up on them ever getting a job. The play is about under achieving children who have been given the chance to go on a trip to Conwy Castle in Wales. Their teacher knows that there is no hope for them and they don’t want to learn anything. She is also a soft teacher so the headmaster decides to send a strict teacher along with her. As well as the castle they also went to the zoo, the beach and the funfair. Part 1: Carol at the school gates. Carol’s use of language shows how there is a lack of education and opportunity in Liverpool at this time by the way that she says words like â€Å" Agh, ey, wanna, t’, and goin’ †. She also repeats words and pauses a lot. This shows that she might live in a rough background where people use abbreviations, slag a lot and have poor communication skills. Carol is suppose to be funny because she acts like she is smart and a normal person when she knows that she’s not and this makes her sound even more pathetic. It is also because she agrees with Les when he says ‘There all backwards round here’ and she always asks stupid questions. Carol is fooling her self about living in a nice place because she has no basic skills to get a job and buy a house in. Part 2: At the zoo. When Ronson is stood at the bear pit he is trying to say that even

Surrealism and Salvador Dali Essay -- Art Artists

Surrealism and Salvador Dali   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Surrealism is defined as an art style developed in the 1920's in Europe, characterized by using the subconscious as a source of creativity to liberate pictorial subjects and ideas. Surrealist paintings often depict unexpected or irrational objects in an atmosphere or fantasy , creating a dreamlike scenario ( www.progressiveart.com 2004). The word Surrealism was created in 1917 by the writer Guillaune Apollinaire. He used it to describe two instances of artistic innovation ( Bradley 6). In 1924, in the Manifeste du Surrealisme which launched the surrealist movement, the writer Andre Brenton and his friend Philippe Soupault adopted the word,â€Å"baptized by the name of Surrealism the new mode of expression which we had at our disposal and which we wished to pass on to our friends.† Brenton adopted the word Surrealism to describe the   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2 literary and artistic practice of himself and his â€Å"friends.† Some examples of Surrealist art are; M.C. Escher’s â€Å"Drawing Hands,† Salvador Dali’s â€Å"The Persistence of Memory,† (1931) , and Salvador Dali’s â€Å"Remorse.† (1931)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of Dali’s more famous paintings, â€Å"The Persistence of Memory,† was first shown June 1931 at The Pierre Cole Gallery in Paris. Essentially the soft watches demonstrate that one aspect of the paranoiac critical method is it’s capacity to link objects to qualities normally associated with other, completely different , elements .Dali painted the setting first, a deserted landscape at Port Lligat where he and Gala had bought a fisherman’s hut the previous summer. in the foreground the self-portrait motif reappears in the form of a foetus abandoned on a beach. This refers to Dali’s professed memories of intrauterine life and suggests the trauma of birth. A watch sagging across the foetus and another hanging from a plinth evoke the feelings of timelessness associated with the experience or pre- birth. The title of the painting thus refers to prenatal memories and it’s subject is â€Å"the horrible traumatism of birth by which we are expunged from paradise†. The title   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3 also refers to Gala’s response when Dali asked her whether in three years ti... ....salvadordalimuseum.org/ All material displayed or broadcasted from this website are under strict copyright regulations.  © Copyright 2002 - The Salvador Dalà ­ Museum - All Rights Reserved. http://www.artchive.com/artchive/D/dali.html Text from "ART20, The Thames and Hudson Multimedia Dictionary of Modern Art.† Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge Grolier Inc. Danbury Connecticut, 1993 . issue #18. Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge Grolier Inc. Danbury Connecticut, 1993 . vol. 1 issue #5. Etherington-Smith, Meredith The Persistence of Memory: A Biography of Dali. N.Y. , Da Capo Press, 1995.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   13 Andrews, Wayne The Surrealist Parade N.Y. , New Directions Publishing Corp. , 1988.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Bradley, Fiona Surrealism Cambridge university Press. United Kingdom, 1997. Waldes, Teresa Great Modern Masters Dali Harry n Abrams inc Publishers. Spain, 1994. Stich, Sildra Anxious Visions Abbeville Publishers. N.Y., 1990. WWW.NYTIMES.COM copyright 2005. WWW.ProgressiveArt.COM copyright 2005.

Our Crazy World †Technology, Iraq and Hiv/AIDS Essay

Our world today is a crazy one, in many ways. It is so different to what it used to be. The advancement of technology, coupled with such things as HIV/AIDS or terrorism and America’s retaliation (and the Iraq War), combines to form a mind boggling, and somewhat depressing environment for one to live in. With DVD’s and DVD players, Playstations 1s and 2’s, and even ‘old fashioned’ things such as videos, cd’s, and computers, technology easily confuses the innocent bystander. Then there is the bad side of technology (although some would argue that computers and DVD’s are the bad side): chemical warfare, weapons of mass destruction and so on. Why do people create such things? I suppose the answer is greed. As a perfect example we have Saddam Hussein. He kills and suppresses his own people presumably because of greed) and then openly ‘defies’ America (I say sarcastically). Then on the other hand there’s Bush. He’s not exactly evil (or is he?), but he is greedy and moronic. He announces that America is ‘gonna’ kill Saddam and free the Iraqi people, meanwhile he’s thinking that he has Iraq and it’s resources, and is one step closer to global domination. There are rumours of his belonging to the Illuminati, a secret organisation which ‘controls our thinking’ and is aiming to take over the world. So, who does one support in the Iraq situation? Which incoherent miser? My answer to that is rather than side with anyone, one can either totally ignore it, or decide to side with peace. The wonderful thing is that, being neither an Iraqi nor an American (I am in fact South African), I am able to express my distaste for these two particular people without being shot, as Iraqis would have during the war, or possibly outcast as an American. However, Americans would have no reason to ostracize me unless they actually like and support Bush, for I don’t dislike Americans, I dislike greedy and  lying people who exploit a situation to their own good. Just look at the situation: big powerful Bush gives Iraq a whole bunch of weapons of mass destruction (to his own advantage) and then a few years later he complains that Iraq is a threat so he decides to play soldiers and take it all back again, killing a few people in the process. All that negativity about Bush probably makes me sound pro-Saddam, which I am definitely not. To me, he is the epitome of evil. If it came down to it, I think I would be happier if Saddam was killed rather than Bush. Of course there is also the deeply depressing part of our crazy world, HIV/AIDS. While we know for sure that someday Saddam and Bush will ‘hit the bucket’, AIDS may never go away (not to be pessimistic or anything). Unless a cure is found, it seems the only way to stop AIDS is education in prevention. And then people actually have to care enough. It may seem strange to some people, but living in Africa I know what can happen. Some witch doctors actually prescribe having intercourse with a virgin to cure AIDS. One thing that really gets to me is when people say ‘Oh, AIDS isn’t that bad, it’s good population control.’ I then usually ask them if they would have the same view if someone close to them contracted AIDS. Would they simply tell their dying loved one that they are sorry she/he has AIDS, but there are simply too many people on this planet and her death is not really that much of a loss anyway? That usually gets them thinking. So, what are we to do, with all this confusing and depressing†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢stuff’ (for lack of a better word)? It may not sound so wonderful, but I guess we should just plod on and hope it all gets more understandable and less depressing!