Functionalism and Poverty

Bethune cookman university | Poverty: From A Functionalist & A Conflict Perspective| Social Problems – SO 132| | John Arthur Jackson, III| 9/29/2012| This assignment will analyze two different forms of social analysis and how it relates to explaining the existence of poverty. | Functionalists Perspective & It’s View Concerning Poverty As it concerns social analysis, the functionalists believe that society is a stable, and orderly system comprised of interrelated, and interdependent parts all working together to achieve homeostasis (equilibrium).As far as the individual is concerned, they view them as being shaped by society, a relatively passive people molded by their experience and interactions with society. Any change that occurs in society is deemed disruptive and the system would seek to restore balance quickly. In addition, any part that is dysfunctional is correlated to the system as a whole, and there is not one thing that stands in isolation from the other. Conc erning poverty, functionalists argue that poverty is not as apparent as the figures put it. There is a consensus that even though poverty is a social problem, it isn’t as abundant as we think it is.This consensus is come to after the functionalists take into consideration the antipoverty benefits that are available for those who experience and just like that poverty is much lower than popular belief. So in lament terms functionalists claim that if we take into account all of the available benefits that are for poor people then we would come to a conclusion that poverty is lower than estimation. As you can see, poverty from this perspective is just a way of life, and perhaps probably an incentive, encouraging everyone to work that much harder to promote overall well-being and possible social mobility.Possibly, there is an ultimate balance by the existence of poverty by depicting a clear division of power and wealth. There will always be the rich, and there will always be the p oor and thus balance. Poverty, serves to remind those who aren’t in that position to have a reason to attain or to achieve just to avoid having to conform to the problem of poverty. Also, the existence of poverty allows others to compare themselves to, just to make the contrast between the two provide certain thankfulness to their situation. As to say that, whatever they are going through couldn’t get that much worse than someone who is already in poverty.Conflict Perspective & It’s View Concerning Poverty The idea that society is just a continuous power struggle between social classes over the availability and allocation of scarce resources would be the perspective of the Conflict Theorists. The premise of their argument is that there doesn’t need to be a reason to place blame on people who find themselves in an impoverished socioeconomic condition. Logically, if we continue to place blame on the people who are living in poverty, we continue to shift the focus off of the problem and onto the individual which shouldn’t be the case.There should be a firm emphasis on the bigger societal problems that occur by the hands of the unstable capitalists and avaricious elitists who continue to perpetuate a falsified ideology for people to believe in. Conflict Theorists claim that poverty â€Å"†¦ is rooted in past and present prejudice and discrimination that keeps people of color out of the economic mainstream†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Kendall 2012). The subpar socioeconomically related living conditions that impoverished African Americans and other minorities find themselves in are just the fuel to the fire. †¦ Inadequate housing, sub-standard schools, and crime-ridden neighborhoods†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Kendall 2012) causes the high poverty rate among the aforementioned racial groups. The lacks of regulated social policies that concern the ever-present and ongoing problems of economic inequality continue to perpetuate the capitalistic ideo logy as well as subordinate the ethnic groups that face this alienation. The conflict theorists agree that the structural problems (substandard schools, inadequate housing etc. 😉 are beyond the poor person’s control.So in order to rectify this situation, it would behoove the nation’s political and business leadership to formulate a way to compensate people who are living in poverty in accordance to being able to afford the basic necessities of life. In addition, the wealthy must face a tax cut, so that the middle class can strengthen and the lower class can shrink. In other words, in order to significantly reduce the problem of poverty; conflict theorists believe that we must stop blaming the victim for being poor, but instead find a way that benefits and help the poor people become more affluent, not financially only but economically as well.

Keeping Her Nose in Front Essay

Keeping Her Nose In Front, a cartoon by Bill Leak, Highlights the constant web of lies that spiral with Julia Gillard. Through the exaggeration, symbolism and caricature, the artist attempts to provoke an amused response from readers regarding serious problems. This is encouraged to understand the lies that came from our Prime Minister. The artist represents leadership issues in Australian politics in a humorous manner. He weaves the intertextuality with the story of Pinocchio. Ultimately, readers are positioned to worry about what promise will be broken next in this effective political cartoon. The people that are portrayed in Keeping Her Nose In Front are Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd both being dressed as Pinocchio. The artist is trying to convey a negative effect on this cartoon saying that everything they promise is just a lie, in the foreground you see Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard both being dressed as Pinocchio and each frame one of the politicians says something, â€Å"THERE WILL BE NO CARBON TAX, THERE WILL BE NO LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE and THERE WILL BE POKIE REFORMS â€Å"and just like the story of Pinocchio each time he tells a lie his nose will grow and that is what happened in this cartoon. The tone of the picture is serious, talking about the leadership proposition that Julia and Kevin both stated but didn’t keep to their word. Taking a clever approach to this cartoon, the author is mixing caricature and serious issues with Julia and Kevin with the carbon tax and as well as the leadership challenge. Bill Leaks is trying to poke fun of these politics by resembling them to Pinocchio. The Author positions the audience to question what these two powerful people might say and if so will it either have a positive impact or maybe a negative impact to the Australian public. From my personal view, I think that the labour party, (specifically Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard) need to stop spinning intricate lies Throughout their own party, because this is akin to the type of backstabbing nonsense that happens every day outside of the government, and it should certainly not be happening in the political party that is trying to run the country. By explaining my personal view about this comic, I think it also explains the targets that the author was aiming for. It explains how the labour party are lying even to each other and not only the country. The target of this cartoon is in fact the country, and it is trying to emphasis on the issue that these people are the party that is leading the nation.

Critical response to ‘Z for Zachariah’ Essay

The book I read is ‘Z for Zachariah’ by Robert C. O’Brien. I enjoyed this book because it contained few but excellent characters and is full of mystery and suspense. ‘Z for Zachariah’ is about a sixteen-year-old girl, called Ann Burden who thinks she is the only person to survive a nuclear war. However, as her diary entries progress, you learn of a person in a green suit who is pulling what looks like a trailer covered with the same green material as the suit approaching Ann Burden’s valley. Later in the diary you find out that the person is a man who had been an industrial chemist before the war, working for the Government designing a suit to protect people in the event of a nuclear explosion. His name is Mr Loomis and he is wearing the only one of these suits. When Mr Loomis finally arrives in the valley, he is amazed by the fact that there is water, which appears to be safe but Mr Loomis makes one severe mistake. When he checks the water for the level of radiation with his Geiger counter he in fact checks the clean water in the stream but then goes on to venture further down the valley, where he finds Ann Burden’s home where the polluted Burden Creek is nearby. Once Mr Loomis has seen inside Ann’s house (where Ann has cleverly hidden any clues that could show the visitor that there has been people living there recently) he then proceeds towards Burden Creek in the hope of getting his first bath in probably months. However, not realising that the stream and Creek are not connected and in fact the Creek runs into the valley from over the hill where the pollution is, he jumps right in. Within a very short period of time after Mr Loomis has had his bath he became very ill, as he had been exposed to a lot of radiation. When Mr Loomis becomes sick Ann then realises she will have to help him and that is when she first shows herself. Ann’s diary entries take you through the events that happen when she is and is not in the company of Mr Loomis. My favourite part of the book is the first three diary entries. In these diary entries Mr Loomis has not yet arrived in the valley however Ann has seen smoke from over the hill for three days, which she presumes is from a human made fire because it is in a thin column that it rises. The smoke comes at the same time everyday, in late afternoon. Each afternoon the smoke is nearer to Ann’s home. I like this part of the book the most because in it you find out what it has been like for Ann being alone for so long because her family left her to look for other people and had never returned. It is interesting to read Ann’s thoughts of being excited and scared that she may in fact not be the only person left in the world. It is obvious why Ann would be excited about someone else coming into the valley but maybe not so clear why she would be scared. Ann is scared because after the nuclear explosion some radio stations had still broadcasted, but towards the end of them broadcasting the presenters seemed to be going crazy. Here is a quote from the second diary entry which will explain why Ann is scared â€Å"Suppose a car came over the hill, and I ran out, and whoever was in it got out – suppose he was crazy? Or suppose it was someone mean, or cruel, and brutal? A murderer? What could I do?† After this quote, you realise that Ann is a very sensible and careful person because she decides to move her things to a cave nearby her home and make it look as though no one has lived in her house. That way she can watch whoever is coming into her valley and if they are crazy or mean she can stay in the cave unbeknown to the visitor and wait until they leave. At the end of the third diary entry Ann has still not seen anyone but knows that they are camping at the crossroads and exploring North, South, East, West and when they come into the South they will find Ann’s valley. The most remarkable character in the book I think is Ann Burden. She is careful, mature, kind, helpful, sensible, confused, and strategic/logical. In the following paragraph I will explain why Ann Burden is all of the things I have just said: The reason I think Ann is careful is because when Mr Loomis is first entering the valley she goes to the cave to live there as she does not know if Mr Loomis is ‘safe.’ During the book ‘Z for Zachariah’ you realise that in fact even though Ann is only sixteen she is more mature than Mr Loomis who is quite a bit older than Ann. The proof that shows this, is all of the words I am using to describe her and she also thinks about having children to begin the human-race again. The words kind, helpful and sensible describe Ann well because when Mr Loomis is ill with radiation poisoning she helps him and is kind to him even though he’s a stranger. Also Ann still helps Mr Loomis after he tried to rape her – she gives him half of everything i.e. eggs, milk and chicken and lets him have the comforts of her home while she moves into the cave. It is obvious that Ann is confused, as she does not know why Mr Loomis is being so horrible to her especially when she has done everything she can to be nice to him and to help him. The last words to describe Ann are strategic and logical; I think these words describe Ann well because when she does not want Mr Loomis to find her she thinks about what he can and cannot see e.g. when she builds a fire she thinks about where and how to build it so Mr Loomis can’t see it – she also thinks about what time of the day to light it. The style of ‘Z for Zachariah’ is in diary form. Throughout the book there were not many figures of speech, however, there were a few similes, here is a quote from the book that describes Ann’s dog Faro when he has returned from the dead lands where there is radiation, in it there is a simile â€Å"as thin as a skeleton.† The structure of ‘Z for Zachariah’ is in chronological order, each event happening in an order that makes sense and makes the story more intense and interesting. During the book, there is not much direct speech as the genre of the book is in diary form so it contains more of the thoughts and feelings of Ann Burden. The themes in the book are effects of modern technology, survival, dominance, bullying, age against youth, optimism/realism, breeding, art v science and religion v atheism. In the following sentences, I will discuss the themes that occur in ‘Z for Zachariah.’ The first theme ‘effects of modern technology’ is the theme that allowed the story to occur because nothing in the book would have happened had there not been a nuclear explosion. The themes of survival, dominance and age against youth are all linked together and are in a way very similar to each other. These three themes are perhaps the strongest and most occurring ones throughout the book, I will explain why: survival of course is going to be a major issue, Ann is the one who thinks about this the most having thought of growing her own crops, so when the supplies run out in the shop she will still have food to survive, and that is just one example. Throughout the book Mr Loomis tries to be the stereotypical ‘Alpha male,’ he wants everything to be done his own way and to be done by him. For example when Ann said she would go into the town with the safe suit to collect books, even though Mr Loomis is still ill he refuses to let her go, perhaps thinking she is incapable or he could have been worried she wouldn’t come back with the safe suit, although I think the first scenario is more likely. The only time Mr Loomis seemed to let Ann do things her way is when he could not do things for himself, however, he never admitted it. ‘Age against youth’ is another strong theme as throughout the book you realise that Mr Loomis even though he is older he is not always wiser and more mature, in fact Ann is definitely the more mature of the two characters. Optimism and realism are two words that can explain Ann and Mr Loomis’ completely different personalities. Ann being the optimist who thinks that the results of an action will always be good and Mr Loomis being the realist he makes decisions based on facts and not on false hope. Throughout the book breeding is a theme, but more with Ann – she thinks towards the future and beginning the human-race again. The theme of art v science is one that occurs throughout the book. As Ann is interested in art and Mr Loomis is interested in science, a few quarrels occur between them. However, ‘quarrels’ is perhaps the wrong word because Mr Loomis always seemed to get his own way. Again, I will use the example of when Ann wanted to use the safe suit to collect some engineering and physics books for Mr Loomis; she also suggested that she get some for herself. Such as poetry. Yet Mr Loomis refused and said, â€Å"You could not go. Understand that. Keep away from the suit. Never touch it.† After Mr Loomis had given Ann his lecture, she could not understand why he had become so angry. It was alright if he wanted something but as soon as Ann wanted something to do with her interests, it was too much of a risk. Religion v atheism is a theme in the book. Ann being the religious one and Mr Loomis the atheist. I don’t think Ann is strongly religious, I just think she finds going to the church and praying a ‘comforting factor.’ Earlier I said Mr Loomis is an atheist. This means that he doesn’t believe that any god or gods exist, therefore he does not understand why Ann would want to go to the church and ‘waste her time’ praying. I enjoyed this book because there were few characters, which allowed you to get to know them better. I also liked the style of the book being in diary form because you didn’t have to read the minute by minute accounts of what is happening in the book you only get to read the exciting and more intense parts which would be written in a diary. The thing that made the book a little boring was the fact that there weren’t many different figures of speech. The length I though was too long, some parts of the book seemed to be dragged out to give it a longer length, for example when Mr Loomis is sick the book got a little boring because in the diary entries you really were only told what Ann had did that day, there wasn’t enough character interaction. One thing that I thought ruined the book was the ending, I thought it was exciting when you were told that there was hope that there could be other people still living and you wanted to keep reading and know if there was anyone else out there, but it just stopped. Taking the entire book into account my opinion is that it is quite good as I think it gives a good insight into what could happen if there is a nuclear explosion – it is realistic.

Jack Ryan and Palisades Produce Essay

The workplace is littered with ethical dilemmas no matter where you work. For Pacific Trust the primary ethical issues that need attention are Jack Ryan’s negligent behavior toward his work with the Palisades Produce contract. His negligence caused him to be faced with lying to his superior or taking responsibility for his mistakes. The necessity for a course of action to help Jack comes partly from the underlying issue of Stephen Wood’s misconduct within the Middle-market Group. Jack Ryan had been closely working with Palisades Produce for over a year and in his excitement over finally landing them as a client, Jack did not closely read over the stipulations in the contract set forth by Gretchen Marks, Senior Banker in Risk Management. These stipulations were that Jack would obtain monthly Borrowing base reports from Palisades Produce. The Borrowing base reports show the bank how much collateral a company has to cover how much they are requesting to borrow from the bank. Without these reports, a bank could lend out money to companies that could not pay it back. Jack’s first step was to inform his boss, Stephen Wood, of the mistake he made. The response from Wood was for Jack to lie to Gretchen Marks by obtaining and submitting Borrowing base reports of the last four months at the current time as if Jack had always had them. This is clearly an unethical and unwise course of action for anyone to do. Since Jack has not seen the Borrowing base reports, he does not know if Palisades Produce has any flaws in their records or insufficient collateral. Such flaws would cause Pacific Trust to get into trouble by lending out money they could not get back. After leaving Wood’s office, Jack should have reported to Gretchen Marks to inform her about his mistake in not obtaining the Borrowing base reports. If Jack decides to follow the advice of Stephen Wood in order to maybe save his job, then he will most likely lose his job along with Stephen Wood. Covering up a mistake made in the business world can have dire consequences for any parties involved. The Borrowing base reports could be flawless; however, if there is an inconsistency at all with the reports, Gretchen Marks will inquire as to why Jack never brought such inconsistencies to her attention in the month they arose. This would immediately indicate that Jack had lied about when he obtained the Borrowing base reports, putting Pacific Trust and himself in a bad situation. Pacific Trust could not only fire but also sue Jack for his negligence if it did cause harm to the bank. In this case Palisades Produce would most likely leave Pacific Trust since Jack, the person responsible for courting the company, would no longer be with the bank. This course of action is definitely risky for Jack Ryan; he may lose his job either way. However, this is the only course of action likely to allow Jack to keep his job. Gretchen Marks could respect the honesty and responsibility of Jack and help him with the reports, allowing him to keep his job. The person partially responsible for Jacks ethically dilemma is Stephen Wood. Wood has been known to behave inappropriately in the workplace. Wood plays favorites and helps only those employees who do things his way. His use of derogatory language toward female employees on top of his temper issues should have been reported to a higher-up already. The attitude displayed by Wood shows that he is willing to make unethical decisions and having someone like this in your company is a liability. Jack does not have to reveal that Wood was going to help him with a cover-up, but Jack or one of the other subordinates of Wood should have filed a formal complaint on Stephen Wood’s behavior. Since Jack is a rising star within the company and Wood is highly regarded within the company, a complaint coming from Jack might carry more weight and consideration with the senior bank managers. This could sever the close relationship Jack has with Wood; however it would lead to a more effective and peaceful work environment. The reason Wood should be reported instead of being left alone is that since Wood was willing to do unethical things with Jack, he would probably attempt to do other unethical things if he has not already done so. These courses of action for the ethical dilemmas present in this case have the least negative impact. Jack taking responsibility will either hurt himself or hurt nothing at all if the Borrowing base reports are flawless. If they are not, Jack’s career and possibly Palisades Produce’s involvement with Pacific Trust will be damaged. Filing a report against Stephen Wood for workplace misconduct would allow all of the subordinates to work together in a more peaceful and effective environment because there would not be division amongst the employees based on loyalty.

Evaluation of Airport Security Measures Essay

Response and especially quick response to stresses may results to major loopholes and possible risky omissions. Mainly, this occurs due to lack of enough time to holistically evaluate the immediate issue at hand and possible local and international pressures. Since September 2001, US transportation systems security on terrorist attacks assumed vast urgency that saw major changes in the sector’s operations. The Congress passed the Airport Security Federalization Act of 2001 as the main platform for restoring the overall sanctity and integrity of the airports to secure the fast dwindling consumers confidence both locally and internationally. 1. Describe implementation issues of the airport security measures which were approved by Congress shortly after the incident on September 11 (i. e. Airport Security Federalization Act of 2001). To begin with, the act required that all the airport security screening personnel be federal employees and an estimated 20, 0000 new federal workers had to be hired. Smaller airports were required to employ local law enforcement agencies to provide security. However, ensuring that the transport funding needs are effectively identified and comprehensively prioritized is still a major challenge. Putting the security measures under the federal considerations in all the airports rose with a great deal the funds required by the new department of homeland security. Arguably, the Act did not immediately establish the direct input of the airports where the new security teams were deployed. With the current economic downturn, the Department of Homeland Security has expressed one of its operations setbacks as lack of enough funds to sustain these operations (Alexander & Seth, 2004). To add to that, effective harmony and coordination in the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Transport has proved to be a hard nut to crack altogether. As indicated earlier, bulk of the employees in airport systems were transferred to the Department of Homeland Security which has created an extended system of response to the major problems by the expanded panel (Marcus, 2004). Notably, scholars have indicated that September 11 Terrorist attack resulted from long time known vulnerabilities that indicated failure to pro-actively address them. Though an immediate operation system was established for running the airports, there was lack of clear long term focus on the management of the airports under the combined system. Ensuring the overall competence of the staff via high quality and staffing competence emphasis for the expanded workforce has been a major challenge since the passing of the Act (Robert et al, 2008). Arguably, the Department of Transport acknowledged of possible future stresses from the large demand for training and capacity building for the employees. This formed an extension of the prior challenges on funding and coordination between the private sector, the Department of Transport and the Department of Homeland security. Monitoring and supervision of this massive and highly integrative workforce widens the gap further due to the variance in approach (Robert et al, 2008). Whereas the private entities are direct after effective implementation of the law under al conditions, the private parties are after maximal profits which could compromise the whole agenda due to considerations of risk taking in a capitalistic setting. 2. Describe gaps in airport security, which were not addressed by these measures Arguably, the Airport Security Federalization Act of 2001 had major gaps that have seen slow implementation of its demands and reduced capacity to achieve the overall objectives. The main aim of the laws is to enhance better operations and maximum returns to the public and the government. However, the massive screening measures established never appreciated the difficulties that people go through to be cleared for flights. This has raised concerns locally and globally. To add to that, the law requires that only Americans can serve in the airport screening personnel (Subcommittee on Homeland Security, 2008). This was a major gap in promoting non professionalism and closing out innovations from the global outsourcing arena. Notably, laws preventing entry into the Cockpit have existed with little success in US and other countries. However, the Act emphasizes on the rule as a major preventive measure. This indicates possible disaster in waiting as it is entirely dependent on consciousness of the crew on board. To add to that, the act requires that the cockpit be equipped with stun guns for emergency purposes (Robert et al, 2008). However, this is another major loophole with analysts urgently calling for its reconsideration. Presence of ammunitions should be under a highly trained federal air marshal. Arguably, arms in the cockpit act as a possible supply to the terrorists after lacking possible ways to get theirs on board.

Robbie the Reindeer – Evaluation of the scene in the woods

We have been looking at the animation ‘Robbie the Reindeer'. This is an evaluation of the scene when Robbie and Blitzern are fighting in the hover car in the woods. The scene starts off with Robbie on a rocket chasing after the evil Blitzern who is getting away on a hover car. The animators show movement with the trees rushing by. The camera angle change from low shots of Robbie on the rocket to fast panning shots of Robbie flying past on the rocket. There are SFX of the wind rushing by and the rocket and the cars engines. The music is getting louder and louder to build tension. The music is quite fast and has a definite beat so that we can feel the tension. The strong beat could represent the tension before an army goes into battle or even the racing heartbeat of Robbie and Blitzern. Another good thing that I noticed was that the Reindeers ears even flapped in the wind. The fight starts and there is a struggle. Blitzern has Robbie down and says, ‘ Now is when you die'. Just as he says this we see Donner, Robbie's girlfriend' in the background. She has been shot out of a cannon and is fast approaching. It is a low shot and Donner looks like she is about to come and crash into the camera. Just as she is about to hit the camera the angle changes to a side view and we see her crash into the Car. She then pulls herself up and stands tall. She starts having a go at Robbie for not being a good boyfriend and all the usual things. While she is saying this Robbie is trying to explain whilst being strangled by Blitzern. Blitzern finally stops fighting Robbie and Says to Donner, ‘How do you expect us to have a fight with you going on like that!?' He then tries to sort out Donner and Robbie's problems. The music has stopped by this time and all we can hear it the engine on the car and the wind rushing by. Robbie and Donner sort out their differences and Robbie asks Donner to marry him. As this is happening the music fades back in but in a more romantic mood. Just as Donner is about to accept Blitzern cuts in and says ‘ Oh, how sweet, But Now is when I KILL YOU!' as he says this, the music gets louder and more dramatic. It is ironic that he says this as he has just helped them get engaged! It is a low camera angle looking up on Blitzern to make him look big and powerful. Then the camera changes to look on Donner. She is standing up with her hands on her hips in an intimidating fashion. The angle is again low looking up to her. She says ‘No one, but No one hurts my Fiancà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½!' The camera zooms into her face and we can see that she is very angry. The music has changed again and is still dramatic and tension building but not as loud because it is more feminine. She punches Blitzern and he is wrapped around a tree branch and shoots off up into the sky. The music is now in a triumphant style because Robbie and Donner have won. Blitzern then falls to the ground and bounces in to the jail, which is already, crammed full of his rabbit helpers. Then we see that the Park has been turned into a Viking Disco Park. We see a DJ on the decks playing Robbie Williams' Rock DJ tune. This is linked to Robbie the reindeer's name and also the music is very contemporary and happy.

Labor Economics Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Labor Economics - Article Example This should be done even if inflation exceeds the central bank’s target 2%. As Mr. Ball is proposing keeping the short-term interest rate near zero, the Fed is expected to start raising their benchmark short-term interest rate from near zero if the US economy continues to improve. In fact, the Fed’s updated economic forecasts show that unemployment is expected to fall from 5.5% to as low as 4.8% by the end of 2017. Mr. Ball’s thinking is that the Fed can do more by pushing the unemployment rate lower than 5%, albeit temporarily, to create more jobs. Bringing the unemployment rate below 5% could enable some discouraged workers to re-enter the labour market, the unemployed find work, and the involuntary part-time workers find full-time jobs. He proposes that the interest rates be kept near zero well past the end of 2015. The article notes that the Fed officials are worried that the period Mr. Ball is proposing for keeping the interest rates near zero is too long and the inflation could rise too high or fuel detrimental financial bubbles. But the president of Chicago Fed, Charles Evans, agrees with Mr. Ball’s views and states that raising the rates too soon would cripple the economic recovery and thus the Fed should keep them low until early 2016. The article reports that Mr. Ball notes that the Fed can afford to err on the side of too much stimulus rather than too little of it in order to guard against a deflationary spiral. He therefore warns against raising the short term interest rates in 2015 terming such move as imprudent. I agree that keeping the interest rates near zero will drive the unemployment rates lower than 5% and therefore keeping it low will be beneficial. The kind of unemployment the US is currently facing is majorly a cyclical inflation as the recession put most people out of jobs. While interest rates are an

Relation between Rap Music and Violence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Relation between Rap Music and Violence - Essay Example Rap music is a form of art which reflects the real life situations. The influence of rap music on teenagers is a hotly debated topic in America. Some people believe that rap music can create violent character and attitudes among teenagers while others strongly oppose this argument. Lots of studies have been conducted in America in order to measure the influence of rap music on deviant behaviours of teenagers and young adults. Findings of different studies again failed to reach a consensus in concluding whether rap music inject violence or not. This paper briefly analyses the rap music influences on teenagers. â€Å"After studying 522 black girls between the ages of 14 and 18 from non- urban, lower socioeconomic neighborhoods, researchers found that compared to those who never or rarely watched these videos, the girls who viewed these gangsta videos for at least 14 hours per week were far more likely to practice numerous destructive behaviors. (Kirchheimer) The above research also concluded that the rap music listeners may hit the teachers three times more than an average teenager. Moreover these teenagers may have multiple sex partners and quiet often more volatile to the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases, drug and alcohol addiction.

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

Megans law - Research Paper Example here are also cases in which it is applied permanently, so that whenever the individual moves, they have to notify local police and law enforcement that they have done so. Failing to register or update in this manner is considered to be a felony under Megan’s Act. This law was put into action after the murder of Megan Kanka, a young child. After this child was murdered by a sexual predator who was living nearby (the parents professed to have no idea), her parents circulated a petition that gained almost 500,000 signatures (Megan’s, 2010). The law was passed, and New Jersey, Kanka’s home state, was the first state to enact Megan’s Law. Overall, Megans Law provides two information services that are made available to the public: notification of sex offender registration, and notification of the community. As noted above, â€Å"The details of what is provided as part of sex offender registration and how community notification is handled vary from state to state, and in some states the required registration information and community notification protocols have changed many times since Megans Law was passed† (Megan’s, 2010). Many people support Megan’s Law because it appears to be a no-nonsense, zero-tolerance, tough-on-crime policy. They also feel more at ease when they know that sexual offenders have to register with local authorities, so that the community can have more information. From the total harm perspective, Megan’s Law can be supported from the position that it decreases the total harm to society by making vital information about child sexual predators available to parents and families. Community notification and involvement is seen as positive in most media and scholarly presentations of the law, and generally, the law-abiding public can be seen to increase in their information access and comfort level, due to the law. However, there are also possible dark sides to Megan’s Law. That some states use the law to notify about not just

Policy, politics and public management-A look at the impacts of Essay

Policy, politics and public management-A look at the impacts of judiciary on real estate - Essay Example In the current analysis, residential and open space property in New Jersey classes are grouped together as residential, and commercial, industrial and personal property classes are grouped together as commercial. Statewide, residential new growth accounted for 53 percent of new growth; commercial accounted for 47 percent. These ratios were fairly consistent over the three years. An annual update policy is not appropriate or even possible, in every community. For example, a city or large town with a full-time assessing staff is clearly better equipped and more able to keep assessments up-to-date than a smaller community with a part-time assessment presence. The many technological advances in the tools available to assessors, however, make an annual update policy more attainable in many communities. A number of cities and towns have invested in geographic information systems (GIS) that can quickly bring complex real estate market trends into sharp focus. Powerful PC database and analys is tools have significantly reduced the effort required to perform assessment ratio studies and other analyses necessary to evaluate assessment levels and determine appropriate trending factors. Does a governmental agency's denial of a development permit constitute a "taking" of real property The Supreme Judicial Court recently answered this question in the negative and rejected a propert

MAGE genes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

MAGE genes - Essay Example Although no MAGE homologous sequences have been identified in Caenorhabditis elegans, Saccharomyces cerevisiae or Schizosaccharomyces pombe, MAGE sequences have been found in several vegetal species, including Arabidopsis thaliana. A database screening was performed to identify all of the recorded members of both classes of human MAGE genes. This report provided an overview of the MAGE family and proposed a general nomenclature for all of the MAGE genes identified thus far. The MAGE-D genes were particularly well conserved between man and mouse, suggesting that they exert important functions. In addition, the genomic structure of the MAGE-D genes indicates that one of them corresponds to the founder member of the family, and that all of the other MAGE genes are retrogenes derived from that common ancestral gene. MAGE-A1 belongs to a group of germline-specific genes that rely primarily on DNA methylation for repression in somatic tissues. In many types of tumors, the promoter of these genes becomes demethylated and transcription becomes activated. MAGE-A1 acts as a transcriptional repressor. MAGE -A1, the first characterized cancer-germline gene, belongs to a family of twelve genes located on the X chromosome in region q28 (5,6). Genes of the MAGE family have their entire coding sequences located in the last exon, which shows 64 to 85% identity with that of MAGE 1 (De Plaen et al., 1994). (An exception is MAGE D2, 300470). The coding sequences predict the main structural features of all MAGE proteins, in contrast, the promoters and first exons of the MAGE genes show considerable variability, possibly enabling the same function to be expressed under different transcriptional controls. In their annotation of the DNA sequence of the human X chromosome and the predicted proteome, Ross et al. (2005) noted that the MAGE domain was present in 32 genes. In comparison, only 4 other MAGE genes had been reported in the rest of the genome: MAGE F1 (609267) on chromosome 3, and MAGE L2 (605283), NDN (602117), and NDNL2 (608243) in the proximal portion of the long arm of chromosome 15. The MAGE gene products are members of the cancer-testis (CT) antigen group, which are characterized by their expression in a number of can cer types, while their expression in normal tissues is solely or predominantly in testis. This expression profile had led to the suggestion that the CT antigens are potential targets for tumor immunotherapy. Ross et al. (2005) stated that the X chromosome gene set they described contained 99 CT antigen genes, including novel members of the MAGE, GAGE, SSX, LAGE, CSAGE, and NXF families. Ross et al. (2005) predicted that approximately 10% of the genes on the X chromosome are of the CT antigen type. The remarkable enrichment for CT antigen genes on this chromosome relative to the rest of the genome may be indicative of a male advantage associated with these genes. Recessive alleles that are beneficial to males are expected to become fixed more rapidly on the X chromosome than on an autosome. If these alleles are detrimental to females, their expression could become restricted to male tissues as they rise to fixation. The CT antigen genes on the X chromosome are also notable for the ex pansion of various gene families by duplication. This degree of duplication is perhaps an indication of selection in males for increased copy number. In this

Juvenile Criminal Responsibility, Liability to the Death Penalty and Essay

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Language of Thought and Fodor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Language of Thought and Fodor - Essay Example This paper is based on his book titled The Language of Thought, as it seeks to prove that Fodor was right in saying that the nature of human thought requires the existence of a language of thought that is not one's native language. At the very onset, it is imperative to highlight the main features of the nature of human thought. Human thought is that course or process which enables a human being to make rational choices and recognise symbols. This process goes beyond language, according to Fodor. It is contained in the laws of nature and the reaction that a human instinctively offers in the study of these laws. Here, it is imperative to speak about language so as to compare and contrast the two before proving Fodor's theory. (Fodor, 1975) The knowledge of a language is akin to the art of knowing about an entire culture, nation and people. Language may be defined as a form of expression that reveals a person's identity and gives him or her a sense of belonging. But how does a language structure a person's experiences To begin with, the role of language in one's life is one that fulfils the need to belong. This sense of belonging springs from one's immediate environment where there is focus on the language one speaks along with complementary elements like accent, nuances and other such features that form the general social and cultural terrain of the particular place. Language offers people first hand knowledge of a variety of symbols that one comes to associate with a place. This in turn generates a more enriching quality to one's experiences. (Mercer, 1996) In knowing and learning a language, whether by birth or subsequent settlement, there is a certain amount of satisfaction that helps contribute to one's sense of identity. This also has certain mental implications as it shows the person's basic aptitudes, besides brining him or her face to face with the challenges of implementing the language. This makes a person draw from experiences of the past, learn from present experiences and contribute to future experiences, which will shape his or her overall life experiences. This also renders a certain amount of creative and communicative competency to a person and his or her sense of confidence with which he or she carries out interactions with people. If Fodor is to be believed, then the competency of a person comes from being able to effectively use language to portray what is within. For this, it is imperative to portray the most elementary human thought in a language that transcends words, diction and pronunciation. This connects langua ge with experience. (Fodor, 1975) In this regard, it is necessary to shift focus to the process of learning of a language and garnering communicative competency. This process is important in every individual's life as the knowledge comes only after learning. The very process of learning is a journey throughout which an individual is brought face to face with experiences. These experiences form his or her general perspective on things. In this way, there is a certain level of competency which in turn, springs from the areas and experiences that a person finds comfortable to deal with. Learning a language is a crucial part of describing how a language shapes a person's experiences. (Girvin, 2000) Learning a language has always been a great challenge. While this is a matter of creating awareness, it is also a matter of creating certain comfort level that will trigger communicative com

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Strategic Analysis and Choice - Essay Example In 1994, BMW acquired Mini. (Seidel, 2004) It was in 1998 when BMW decided to acquire Rolls-Royce Motor for  £340 million. Volkswagen outbid the said amount at the price of  £430 million. However, since BMW was a supplier of engines and other components to Rolls-Royce, BMW was given the right to carry the name of Rolls-Royce name and logo. (Think Quest, 2006) As a sign of BMW competency and success as a luxury car manufacturer, BMW’s most recent financial report revealed that the company has reached a total gross profit of â‚ ¬5,422 million as of 2005. (BMW Group, 2005) Established back in 1989, Lexus was launched by Toyota Motor Corporation with the purpose of creating a world-class luxury car brand. (Edmunds.com, 2007) Since then, the company has been known for its innovative engineering and meticulous quality. For many years, the company is very much focused in developing new models and other related technological innovations. Despite the fact the Lexus has only been in the global automobile industry less than 20 years, Lexus has been considered as one of the big winners of the European car market back in 2006. (Edmondson, 2007) The company was able to increase its sales by up to 72% in 2006 with 36,662 car units within 15 European Union countries. (Edmondson, 2006) Back in 2005, Lexus together with Toyota was able to sell a total of 964,208 units as compared to BMW’s 632,396 sold units throughout Europe. (Edmondson, 2006) To give us a better insight regarding the main purpose of Michael Porter’s competitive advantage model, the researcher will discuss about the arguments of different authors concerning the accuracy and the main use of this model. For the purpose of this study, the researcher will determine each of the company’s strength aside from using Porter’s model as part of analyzing its corresponding competitive advantages.

Mandatory Soft Body Armor Safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Mandatory Soft Body Armor Safety - Essay Example Organizational theory gives a conceptual framework on how organizations should be structured and how people will be integrated into it for effective performance. The basic objective of a theory is to explain the nature of organization and help to predict how it would behave under various circumstances (Tosi p 6). OT analyzes the structure and process of the organization by describing the effects of different variables on the behavior of people of the organization. It therefore gives a theoretical basis for managers to be able to predict the behavior and therefore design the organization to influence their behavior to meet the goals of the organization. A highly centralized and formalized (mechanistic bureaucracies) type of organization would be best suitable when various tasks to be performed is well-understood, unchanging and how to best execute is clearly spelt out. On the other extreme there may be organizations which do a high level of non-routine tasks (research), where there is no well defined or right way of doing defined, but has to be done through innovation and intuition. These may require highly decentralized organizational struct ures with empowered teams with powers suitably delegated. Contingency theory gives insight to managers on design of organization when facing different situations. Management decision making at various levels be it corporate strategy level decision making (how to design organizational process), functional level such as marketing (how to align operations with its strategy), IT and communications (how to design information systems) and Human Resources (how to fix compensation structure, training) will all need a conceptual understanding of organizational theory. Decision making on organizational structure and design, be it for the entire organization or for specific functional areas, can be made better, if concept of organizational theory is well understood. Organizational Behavior Organizational Behavior is concerned about the individual in the organization within the context of an organization. Human capital is an important resource in the organization and a manager has to get the best from it he needs to understand human behavior in organisations. Concepts of individual personality, traits, and abilities will help management in their decisions at the time of recruitment, promotion and making career development plans for its employees. It will help management decide on the best fit for various positions. Enlightened managers understand that an employee, very often, perceives management action affecting him as something quite different from what management intended it to be. An appreciation of one of the concepts of OB, perception, will help a manager to understand such situations better and come out with better decisions. Attitudes can significantly influence the behavior of person at work. Management is constantly worried about attitudes of its workers towards its policies and decision making on pay, compensation and rewards. Positive employee attitude is a

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Business plan for a new business - Essay Example here are still people who are willing to invest part of their earnings in maintaining their gardens because they understand that a neat, planned and lush green lawn is a status symbol and adds pride to their property. The mission of Ladybird Lawn Care is to offer its customers a valuable source for maintaining their lawn and landscaping needs. We believe in exceeding the expectations of our customers by delivering superior quality and innovation. We strive to develop and retain long term relationships with our customers and employees. To be known as the premium landscape and lawn maintenance company in the city of New York; and to expand our operations worldwide. Honesty, innovation and dependability form the foundation for building strong customer relationships. The internal environment of Ladybird Lawn Care considers treating its employees with respect and care which makes their job enjoyable; as a result, the company flourishes. Ladybird Lawn Care is owned by Marina Rivera who is the CEO of the company. He holds the vision that maintaining lawns is equally important as maintaining customer loyalty and employee commitment. Ladybird Lawn Care is a USA based lawn care business which will initially provide service to customers in the city of New York and later expand to the suburbs. The company makes sure that the products it uses to treat lawns are organic and free of harmful chemicals. At Ladybird Lawn Care, the employees are highly trained and best quality lawn care equipments are used to exceed customers’ expectations. Ladybird Lawn Care has established its first office in New York. The target market of the company includes lawn owners that fall between the age group of forty to sixty five. The customers are educated and have an income level slightly above average. These customers are usually busy employees or business owners who believe that a well organized lawn reflects their social status but do not find enough time to manage the lawns on their

Dell Inc Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dell Inc - Case Study Example Dell has successfully entered the Chinese marketplace and holds 7% of the market. Dell is forth in sales in China followed closely by IBM and Hewlett-Packard. Dell lags behind Legend, Founder, and Tongfang. Dell's greatest challenge has been competition from local venders who can market a product at a fairly low price. Corporate governance consists of a board of directors. The board has several committees with a different board member chairing each. "The Board of Directors is responsible for oversight of and supervision of the overall affairs of the company" (Dell, 2007). Dell's Asia Pacific Region President is Bill Amelio and Kevin Rollins is the CEO. The Dell Executive Leadership Team is chaired by Michael Dell. Mr. Dell founded the company in 1984 with $1000 and big ideas. He leads a team of 13 other highly qualified executives that share the same goals and objectives for Dell. Mr. Dell and his team have been exceedingly successful building the company and expanding its business to the global marketplace. Dell's leadership has made it a competitor in the Chinese market. The market for computer products and services in China is very competitive. With the large increase in ownership of computers has come an increased usage of the internet. As China moves to withdraw tariffs on computer products the demand for these products will rise. Chinese businesses and individual consumers will continue to seek out and buy these products. B./C. Industry Environment/Summary of External Forces The computer industry is full of potential competitors. With China's withdrawal of tariffs and barriers to trade the market in China for personal computers and components will be more and more competitive. The market remains competitive in China because, in addition to brand name computers, the market includes clones (generic non branded computers) that can be purchased at lower prices. Currently Dell's sales in China make up only 10% of its overall sales. U.S. sales are at about 69% of overall sales. Dell's major competitors in China are Legend (27% of market share), Founder (10% of market share) Tongfang (8% market share), IBM (5% market share) and HP (3% market share). Dell's current market share in China is 7%. With the raising of tariffs, Dell, and other foreign competitors, will be able to compete on a more level playing field for customers. III. Internal Environment (Strengths and Weaknesses) E. Corporate Structure and Corporate Culture The company is lead by a board of directors. Each director provides oversight of different segment of Dell. Dell's Asian Pacific Region is led by Bill Amelio. Dell's Chinese market for personal computers uses the direct selling method that cuts out the 'middleman'. The inventory system used by Dell is called the "just in time" model that keeps inventory levels at a 6-day supply rather than stocking up and having a larger inventory in the warehouses. Inventory is replenished as needed. Inventory costs are kept to a minimum thus Dell can pass on the savings to its customer. Chinese customers can expect Dell's products to be lower priced than its competitors. F. Organizational Activities Analysis Dell uses a direct business model. The company has made it a

Fleet Risk Management and Nigerias Transport System Dissertation

Fleet Risk Management and Nigerias Transport System - Dissertation Example The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of this country, along with recommendations for which the firm Risk Frisk Ltd. can introduce its software, the FleetRiskProfiler, which can help in the effective management of the transport system. Risk Frisk aimed to help organisations solve management problems and provide avenues for normal self-management. Before it makes its entry, the firm has to conduct a detailed study of the country that will touch on the risks, the causes of failures, possible costs, and find solutions for the problems. There are a number of transport firms operating in Nigeria in which Risk Frisk can conduct a joint venture in the implementation of the software FleetRiskProfiler. This paper used secondary research in acquiring data and information about Nigeria, ABC Transport, the local firm in which Risk Frisk Ltd. can conduct joint venture and other aspects of internationalisation and small-and-medium enterprises. Nigeria has many problems with its trans port system. Analyses of some lo

IMPROVING PRODUCTIVITY THROUGH PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS (CPM, ASPA, Research Paper

IMPROVING PRODUCTIVITY THROUGH PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS (CPM, ASPA, TCMA, IG, ETC.) - Research Paper Example Increasing productivity does not merely mean to give the output or product in the industry in a very minute time rather it is the collection of number of quantitative and qualitative determinants which ensure the productivity. The first determinant to measure the productivity is the quality of the product that is produced by the work force. If the requirements of the customers are being met in the optimal way and the satisfaction graph of the client is increasing then definitely the work force, machinery and managerial group of that organization will be called as productive (Bradford, 1997). Increasing productivity through professional organization has been an emerging phenomenon of the present time as every organization cannot sort out the way to ensure the increase of productivity within or outside the premises of the work place. There are certain factors which have to be analyzed prior to the start of the process of increasing and augmenting productivity. The Professional associat ions make sure that the productivity factors are increased according to the demand and needs of the customers and the peculiar requirement analysis is done in order to fulfill the requirements of the organization and individuals (Alchian & Demsetz, 1972). The productivity factor largely depends upon the input given at the start. The input can be in the form of hired workforce, raw materials and hardware. The professional associations make sure that the productivity is increase by taking the perspective of the ratio and proportion of the input and output terms so that the efficiency also remain the focus of the organization. For example if the firm will produce the output of a very good quality within very less time then no doubt the productivity will said to be greater in the acute terms but the fact of the matter is that the efficiency is lessened because there is not inculcation of the cost effectiveness of the company and the company will shut down within a very less time frame. The productivity has to incur the production cost and the budgeting factors of the locality. The professional associations take all the stakeholders on board in order to make sure that no party is outside the hierarchical structure so that the productivity can be increase in a very effective and nominal way. There is a diverse choice of productivity increasing options in the modern world because the professional organizations are being deployed by almost every organization of good repute. One of the most acclaimed and renowned professional associations that are known for their great performance in helping to increase productivity of organizations and individuals are American society of administrative professionals (ASAP). This association helps the individuals and organization to work on different aspect of the professional and social life to increase and improve the productivity. As far as the professional services are concerned they conduct different training programs, webinars, w orkshops and seminars in order to educate people about nurturing their skills and building interpersonal relationships so that the

Comparative politics 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Comparative politics 4 - Essay Example The petroleum is excavated in areas of Niger Delta, which also happens to host most of the oil industries and part of the Nigerian slum population. The exploration of the petroleum, commonly addressed as the ‘black gold’, and the growth of the petroleum industries have led to specific issues that the citizens feel need to be addressed, for the peace and development of their nation. The existence of petroleum not only benefits the Nigerians, but also negatively affects them; hence it is an overwhelming blessing in terms of economic development and investment, but also a curse due to environmental degradation, corruption, and human violation among others within the people. How Nigeria Benefits Economic development: The Nigerian economic performance has been shaped up through sale of petroleum products. It generates most of its revenue from the exportation and domestic sales of the oil products, compared to other goods from other sectors. According to Balouga, onshore oil e xploration has greatly improved the nation’s daily production capacity, to approximately 2.3 million barrels on a daily basis, and eventually raised her proven reserves to nearly 37 billion barrels ( 2012, 23). In the Nigerian economy, more than ? of the gross earning comes from petroleum sales, domestically and internationally (especially through trading with the US and European nations). The oil industry contributes to Nigerian GDP, though not entirely all of the industry’s value added products get to be retained in Nigeria, due to the numerous involvements of foreign operators in the industry. In addition to the ratio of the GDP, the government collects huge amounts of tax from the foreign and local companies operating in oil industries, influences the purchasing power of the society through spending on goods and services, and enhances foreign exchange reserve (Odularu 2008, 11-13). Crude oil and natural gases are major sources of energy in the country, providing th e industries and refineries with a readily and cheap energy source for its smooth operations. Although the economy has experienced slow and minimal growth compared to other oil producing countries and competitors, it is evident that oil money continues to transform the nation. Investment and employment: Since the discovery of crude oil, the numbers of companies established in Nigeria have grown immensely, boosting the oil industry more than other sectors such as agriculture and fisheries. These include several joint venture companies like Shell (the largest), which produces about 50 percent of Nigeria’s oil, and the other joint ventures being operated by Chevron Texaco, Exxon Mobil, TotalfinaElf and ENI/Agip (Odularu 2008, 8). These are many investors that directly work in Nigeria’s oil industry; others are indirect investors, who participate in economic development. According to Balouga, â€Å"investment in Nigeria’s oil industry currently amounts to about $18 billion annually† and is anticipated to increase over time (2012, 25). Over time, refineries have been established after 1950, increasing the ability to refine their products. First and second Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries have developed to enhance their processing capabilities, even though they operate below their expected capacities. The Nigerian population continues to benefit from the employment opportunities in oil companies, from the basic activities

Instructional strategies & approaches 2 Essay Example for Free

Instructional strategies approaches 2 Essay According to Barbara Gross Davis, author of Tools for Teaching (1993), students learn best when they participate actively in the process. A lot of research has been made on collaborative learning, or learning in groups, and it has been proven that no matter the subject matter, students learn more this way. Working in groups help students learn and retain more about what is taught to them than when they are taught using other means. Davis enumerates three general types of group work. The first type is informal learning groups. These groups aren’t permanent and may be done in a single session. An example of this is asking the students to turn to their seatmate and discuss a particular question. In any case, this kind of grouping may be done in a class of any size at any time to check the level of understanding of the students, give them a way to apply what they have learned or to have a change in the learning pace. The second type is formal learning groups, which can be organized to do specific tasks like writing a report, doing a lab experiment or making a project. The tasks can be completed in one session or over a few weeks, until the students have finished the activity and are given a grade. The last type of group is a study team. Such groups are usually long-term, like a whole semester or course, and have permament members wherein each member is responsible for helping each other to complete course requirements and assignments and to provide support and encouragement. A student with a study team can ask his teammates to update him on classes or activities he might have missed. Study teams are valuable in courses that have a large class size and a complex topic. With that in mind, it is then appropriate to inquire as to how to group these students so that they would learn the most. Davis cites examples on how one could group the students: the teacher can assign randomly so that a mix of different students are in one group; the teacher can let the students choose their groupmates; the teacher, himself, forms the groups taking into account the students’ differences; or the teacher asks the students first on their preferences and then makes assignments. Whichever the case, Davis argues that these types of grouping have their own advantages and disadvantages and can be used depending on circumstance. After all, the teacher cannot assume that just because the students have been grouped and asked to work cooperatively, that they would actually do so. It should always be remembered that a group is composed of different individuals with different personalities, skills, concerns, temperament, etc. Thus, the teacher should be flexible, yet firm, and always ready to give assistance. In addition to considering the combination of students in a group, its size should also be given equal attention. According to researches done by Cooper (1990), Johnson, Johnson, and Smith (1991) and Smith (1986) as cited by Davis, groups with a maximum of five members would work best since a larger number would decrease the opportunity for the group members to actively participate. They also add that the group size should be smaller if the members are less skillful and time available for the group work is shorter. Furthermore, the level of the task should also be considered. Simple tasks like solving a math problem or planting a seedling would be enough for small groups. On the other hand, complex tasks, such as a chemistry experiment that would require students to research and report, are better done by a bigger group (Knowles, 2005). Of course, students are individuals that have different learning abilities. Some teacher group the class according to these abilities. According to the Westchester Institute for Human Services Research (2002), ability grouping is the practice of dividing students according to their perceived learning capacities. The two most common ways of grouping via ability is within-in class grouping and between-class grouping. The former refers to the division of students with the same abilities into small groups. This is usually seen in Math or Reading classes. Between-class grouping refers to division of students into varying courses or classes according to their achievement. In a nutshell, ability grouping caters to the difference between students. Each group formed with this strategy may be using different materials that are unique and will address their needs. In general, research shows that within-class grouping produces better results than mixed ability grouping. Within-class grouping can promote faster learning since the students are learning with people of the same level and pace. Thus, fast learners can cover more topics without being dragged by the slow learners. On the other hand, as learning progresses it is only appropriate that the task difficulty also increase, and in line with that, the group composition and number. A more difficult task would require a larger group to execute successfully. Thus, if a class was previously divided into smaller groups, the teacher can merge these groups to form a larger group. In relation with this, the teacher should again consider the composition of the groups. Ideally, it is better that the group be as heterogenous as possible but should also contain a fair number of the assets, those with previous relevant coursework or language proficient, and liabilities, those with negative attitudes toward the course or language problems, in a class. Whole group instruction is usually used when introducing a new topic, new materials or new strategies to the whole class. In this way, the teacher can build a common experience between the students which can later be an avenue for further exploration of the topic and improvement in their problem solving and other skills (Valentino, 2000). On the other hand, group or collaborative learning cannot always be used despite its good results. Since topics have to be discussed within a certain timeframe, it is very hard to use collaborative learning often since such strategy really takes a lot of time. Thus, for courses that covers a broad, complex topic, like general chemistry or physics, it is advisable to make the students form a study team. For example, in chemistry, experiments may be done by a whole group. They can perform one experiment and help each other analyze their data and understand what they just did. In such a setting, not only will it minimize the concerns of the teacher, it would also help those students who come to class unprepared. At least, with group mates, there would still be an avenue for them to cope with the lesson. Also, Also, collaborative learning would be beneficial if the class size is large. As mentioned earlier, a heterogenous group is ideal. A teacher would want to distribute those who’ve already understood the topic or are fast learners among those that are still coping or having some difficulty. What the teacher can do, then, is determine the students that could be classified among the two groups. Generally, the teacher can determine the ‘assets’ and ‘liabilities’ by observation, diagnostic tests or group dynamics activity or by asking other teachers and his students. Such a technique would ensure that someone in the group knows what’s happening in class and possibly give assistance to his groupmates. In conclusion, group or collaborative learning is very beneficial to students. However, the success of such activities would depend on the composition and size of the group, as well as the level of learning of the students. The teacher should know when to use this strategy and he should be well prepared, organized and flexible when doing so. References Davis, BG. (1993). Collaborative Learning: Group Work and Study Team. Tools for Teaching.Retrieved August 16, 2007, from http://teaching. berkeley. edu/bgd/collaborative. html Knowles, P. (2005). Thoughts on Student Grouping: Teaching Decisions. Retrieved August 16, 2007, from http://www. netc. org/[emailprotected]/classrooms/peter/working/grouping. html Valentino, C. (2000). Flexible Grouping. Retrieved August 31, 2007, from http://www. eduplace. com/science/profdev/articles/valentino. html Westchester Institute for Human Services Research (2002). Ability Grouping. The Balanced View: Research-based information on timely topics. Vol. 6, No. 2.

Cultural Anthropology Social Organization Essay Example for Free

Cultural Anthropology Social Organization Essay In the United States the practice of serial monogamy, where one goes through a series of marriages then divorce; and unwed parenthood seem to have replaced the cultural traditional marriage. (Nowak Laird, 2010) Single parent families and the accompanying socioeconomic circumstances usually warrant social intervention from state agencies and that places a strain on public funds. The fact is, every single parent household is unbalanced. In the household where both parents are present the children usually benefit because each parent brings; not only a gender based perspective to the relationship and child rearing cultural traditional practices; but he/she also brings a level of stability that is not easily quantified. Stable marriages are usually founded upon the couple’s religious beliefs, kinship traditions of stable relationships, friendship, trust, similar backgrounds, traditional values as well as kindred cultural practices that include gender role expectations. Persons in stable marriages tend to understand each other’s moods and idiosyncrasies; so they are able to co-exist and live as friends. In the film, people adhere to the traditions of their kindred, they hold them sacred and they marry their own kind. It might seem bizarre to the outsider but it is normal behavior for their kinship. Arranged marriages are basically bilateral agreements between two families. The groom’s family gives the bride’s family a bride wealth of livestock, jewelry land and other valuables depending on the traditional culture of the tribe. The bride wealth forms a part of the wealth of the bride’s kinship. The groom basically has to pay the bride’s family for the loss of her labor. (Nowak Laird, 2010). The women accept and submit themselves to the cultural traditions of their kinship. They have no choice in the arrangements. In the film, the women are hard workers. They take care of the men, children, fields, livestock wash the clothes, cook but the most bizarre was the Indian polyandrous family; the woman was married to three brothers. The children in this family do not know their biological father; and it is normal behavior so nobody really cares about a DNA match. It is also interesting to note that the wife in the feature film is illiterate and she knows no other way of life. The family is stable and the brothers look out for each other. This arrangement is economical as all the wealth is kept in the groom’s kinship. As strange as it may sound, this marriage seem to be more successful than the marriages of choice; in that the wives know there roles and stick to their list of duties. On the other hand, in marriages of choice, after a few years have passed, the wives tend to place pressure on the husbands to change into their likeness and to be what they, and their families want them to be. Arranged marriages are basically bilateral agreements between two families. The gang/crime family is a rather incredible one. I prefer to consider it as a social group with its own set of operational tenets but not a family. Rference Nowak, B., Laird, P. (2010). Cultural Anthropolgy, San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education Inc.

The Black Death and the World it Made Essay Example for Free

The Black Death and the World it Made Essay The Black Death or The Black Plague, as it is known in history, was the worst disaster in medical history to date considering it proportionately (more than 40 percent mortality rate). It was so devastating in its effect that within 3 years time (1347-1350) the whole Europe was made aware of its dark presence in spite of the disadvantages of that period in terms of media coverage. The Plague had proven itself to be no respecter of person when it visited and touched every family from those of the highest in the ladder of society to the lowest – royal families, monasteries, and farms. This medieval history is highly significant especially when looked at through the lenses of high technology twenty first century. The threat of mass killings as posed by Bio-Chemical warfare, Mad-Cow-Disease (MCD), Bird-Flu-Virus (BFV), etc. , is so pertinent that a close look once again at the historic Black Plague merits anybody’s concern especially those bothered by the threat. What everybody knows about this event in man’s history is only mere fraction of what really occurred. Cantor dug deep into what are new scientific discoveries and the aid of historical research to give a wide-angled and more panoramic vista on the experience of the people of their day. Overview Well-known medievalist Norman Cantor relates the story of the renowned Black Death afresh with an eye of a Chronicler. In his book In the Wake of the Plague, Cantor narrates the story of the pandemic and its widespread effects with an intention, not only to retell and revive what happened during the spread of the plague, but to inform and quicken the modern reader of the possibility of it happening again in the same proportion that it transpired in the 14th century, or maybe exceeding the mortality rate it has incurred then, if the world behaves indifferently to the prospect. In the Book, the Black Death was viewed from its wide-ranged effect (in Europe’s population) to its effect to families and individuals. The usual memory etched in the minds of people with regards to this medical disaster is that of gloomy period where the whole population just dropping dead for reasons which no man could ever explain in rational or understandable terms. The issue instilled, because of lack of scholarly approach to this episode in the history of medieval Europe, was the survival aspect. That all the people at that time needed to do was to keep themselves alive. Although this was part of the overall picture, this isn’t complete leaving some important details untouched. Norman Cantor, on the other hand, is so keen, in that, he not only has given the overall scenario of the Plague in his book but also the important and compelling details of it. For example, he narrated the early death of princess Joan of England who died at a very young age. He also tells of the death of the newly consecrated archbishop Thomas Bradwardine of Canterbury. As told in the Book, the archbishop’s rather untimely death had deep ramifications especially to the improvement of religion and science. This is compelling in that it opened the eyes of the then world to all of the possibilities of how the plague was being transmitted, from serpents to cosmic dusts. The many repercussions such as, to the economy, the overall psyche of the people in their respective locale during this period is suggested by Cantor to have their lasting effect that have reached as far as to our generation today. He suggested that it might have made the world what it is in these days of technological advances. True, scholars today have keener minds in their different fields in particular the medical field. In the very first chapter, the conference of medical practitioners and specialists was used by Cantor to jumpstart the flow of his thesis on the wide-ranging effects of the plague. Many incidents come to life. Cantor talked about Abbot Thomas, for instance, who plays a part in the historical accounts. Thomas of Birmingham or Abbot Thomas (1349), who was then at the time of the Plague, the abbot of Halesowen, was a local resident of the town whose family was native and well-known to the place; well-known enough to have named after them the city of Birmingham. The epidemic’s impact on the abbey managed by Thomas can be seen when he referred to the â€Å"harm† on the abbey’s income brought about by the â€Å"recent events† in his petition to the bishop. In spite of all these, Abbot Thomas was fortunate and had some advantages from the other lords because the abbey and the lands in Halesowen that he was managing were mostly of high quality. What is amazing of all is the argument of the author that in spite of the colossal devastation and the terrifying effects of the Plague, it had resulted in some beneficial outcome which created a new world of possibilities bigger than the destruction itself. Cantor asserted that, as often was the case in the past, the termination of the old order meant the beginning of the new generation which is more scientific in its thinking. After the Black Death, there arose an intellectual revolution. There were explosions and breakthroughs in different fields: artists had invented window protection with beautiful art designs which was calculated to block the supposed airborne virus, painters responded and painted their great paintings, and the peasants that survived the Plague flourished where they started all over again; in fact, they were Europe’s first class farmers. By and large, Black Death marked an economic change throughout Europe. It triggered what Cantor referred to as â€Å"turbo-capitalism. † Indeed, from ashes comes beauty. If what most of the advances in the west today were generated and can be traced back to one of the darkest of Europe’s history – the Plague, one may say with all truthfulness that even in natural disasters where no person has the power to control, a change for the better might be brewing. Critique Since In the Wake of the Plague was written by Norman Cantor with the advantages of the 21st century scholarship, it has the understanding and the insights that the medieval years were primarily deprived of. The calculations of Norman Cantor are all possible and can be explained, as he had done in the Book, through scientifically proven facts especially that we have all the benefits of latest discoveries in medicine. To see the Plague through the kind of perspective that the author has narrated in his book is exactly something that one can expect from a 21st century medieval scholar. In spite of some negative feedbacks that some critics have given to the book, I will give generously my two thumbs up. The Book certainly deserves to receive a five star category. It is written in a totally different approach than the former works on the Black Death. Cantor has endeavored to share his knowledge of the period and has given us details which otherwise cannot be known had it not been for the fact that a real historian has divulged them. Cantor turned from one topic to another in this book and thus able to keep those without thorough knowledge of the Plague interested till the end. Though his style of jumping from topic to topic may be viewed by some critics to be disorderly in terms of format or arrangement, they are incidental and may be looked at as his personal style. He began with the disease’s biomedical survey and pointed to the many problems with the prevailing beliefs about the Black Death’s cause, its nature and transmission. He even went to suggest that the likely cause of death was anthrax, as in many cases the same and similar symptoms were present. Indiscriminately, the Plague hit the different classes of people in many regions. In the Book, there were stories of families and individuals, making the overall narrative more personal, intimate and gripping. Looking at it in a nuclear point of view, the Plague is the 14th century counterpart or equivalent of imminent nuclear war. It makes us think seriously of the global threat of nuclear hoarding of some nations. If the calculations of Cantor in the book was accurate, then the threat of some renegade nations hoarding and multiplying anthrax and other biological/chemical materials are imminent and dangerous. In the Wake of the Plague is a book that can free many who until now view the Black Death through the mist of the many superstitions that primitive minds have made out of it. Cantor’s approach in this book is to make the past history relevant. He saw the outbreak of Mad-Cow-Disease, Foot and Mouth Disease, AIDS, and the Bird-Flu Virus happened in the middle of the 14th century when the Plague ravaged Europe. The author even believes that our world today might face a similar catastrophe in the near future. In a prophetic sense, the book has given us information and a warning. The threat of another pandemic is not far since the symptoms of what the medical world has been seeing in the recent outbreaks of diseases were the same signs that 14th century people had seen. Even the manner of transmission is deemed somewhat similar by the author. The author indirectly warned and indicated that if there will ever be another plague as devastating as the Black Death of the Medieval period, it will happen only through one of the possible causes which Cantor identified; it will be whether brought on by natural causes, or by bio-terrorism. Reference: 1. Cantor, Norman F. 2001. In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World It Made. HarperCollins Publishers

IT Applications and Groupware Essay Example for Free

IT Applications and Groupware Essay Groupware Technology uses software that collaborate the work of different groups. It is based on internal networks and centralized storage space. The purpose is to facilitate fast communication without physical contact. Groupware includes email, workflow, calendaring, instant messaging and conferencing. Implementation Strategies The three main strategies for effective implementation and use of groupware are as follows: Understanding the Organizational Requirements This is the most important part for implementation any technology or group in an organization. Different organizations require different groupware products as they have different requirements. (Hills) A groupware that is good for one organization might turn out to be a disaster for another. Therefore it is necessary to understand the requirements of the organization before implementing any new technology. This involves the study of underlying business processes and work flows, mapping them and then identifying gaps and areas which need improvement or need to be automated. The goals of the company, its organization structure and size are important factors in evaluating what is best for the company. Large companies with great number of employees require higher level of collaboration as compared to small companies and therefore need more complex technology. The communication structure within the organization is also an important factor. Some organizations follow a strict and formal structure of conversing while others rely on less formal way. Thus the communication style needs to be understood before implementing technology to automate it. Lastly the new technology must blen d well with the existing systems. Most of the organization do not follow a sharing culture and people like to work independently and are reluctant to share information. Implementing Groupware technology in such an organization will not be effective as people would oppose any change that will be threat to their existing culture. The solution lies in first changing the organization culture and then implementing the new technology. The company should promote a collaborative culture that encourages people to work in teams and share their work and ideas. (Hills) Managing and Training People People are an important asset of any organization. If their needs and requirements are not satisfied then any change introduced in bound to fail.   Unless the technology is accepted by the users, any investment in that technology would be a complete failure. People usually oppose change because they like doing the things they have always been done. Therefore it is important to understand their concerns, problems and interactions before implementing the groupware technology. They need to be assured that the new technology is not to replace them but to make their work more efficient and fast. Employees most fear the loss of control and privacy as groupware makes everything available to everyone through a centralized system. These fears can be overcome by making people a part of implementation process and involving them as much as possible. Moreover people do not like to follow standard operating procedure and follow the more convenient methods. Thus the actual work practices need to be studied and incorporated in the groupware systems. (Hills) The success of any investment in technology depends on how readily it is accepted by the users. Therefore whenever a new technology is introduced the user must be trained to use it. They must be made to feel secure and assured that the technology is to improve their work. Organizations must hold training and interview sessions to cover all their needs and to involve them in the implementation process as much as possible. The purpose and benefits of the new groupware technology must be well communicated. 3. Using the Right Technology and Tools Once the organization and people requirements are well understood, the organization knows which technology is suitable for them. However other than the organizational structure and people, the technology infrastructure of the organization is also an important factor. There are four main factors to consider:  · Internal Network Structure The groupware technology is meant to provide a shared environment through collaboration and therefore require good understanding of the existing network technology. Network delays, User interface, audio/video quality, notifications and concurrency control are vital considerations since they all affect the user experience. (Brinck, 1998) If the existing Networks of the company are not up to the standard and face considerable delays and suffer from slow response time then implementing any new technology would do no good but will actually make things worse. Therefore organizations must upgrade their technology infrastructure including internal networks to utilize full benefit of the new technology.  · Collaborative tools One of the challenges in the collaborative environment is the tracking of shared documents. In a shared environment documents are used by multiple people and there exist multiple copies of the same document in different places. This makes hard to identify which the final version of the document. So Tracking and Version Control tools in groupware keep a record of all changes in a document and present the user with one final version. Features like Digital Signatures also help in tracking documents by storing information about who holds the document at what time and what changes were made. (Miller, 2005)  · Maintaining Privacy and Control Since collaborative systems allow sharing of information, thus Privacy and Security are the two major challenges faced by organizations implementing groupware. However some information is private and needs to be protected. The collaborative environment of groupware technology allows all information to be available to everyone at all time. This may lead to unauthorized access of information. One way to protect confidential information is to gives users control over what information they want to share. Also enforcing controls over what information a user can view saves private information to be seen by users who do not require it.   (Brinck , 1998)  · Consistency and Concurrency In groupware systems, one document is viewed by multiple users. Therefore it is important that consistency is maintained and all users view the same type of information. For example if one user has red color for a particular document and the other user has a blue color for the same document then this will create confusion. All users must be view the same data. To avoid this misunderstanding users must now what information is private and what information is shared. It is also important that users are provided customized view as all users don’t require everything. However customization requirements must not conflict with consistency. Every user must know how others are viewing the information. (Brinck, 1998) Concurrency is coordinating multiple tasks that are done at the same time. In a shared environment one document can be accessed by multiple users. This causes problems like one person accessing the document for all the time, unauthorized access and conflicting changes made by all users. To avoid such issues techniques like floor control, locking and merging is used. In this only one person can control over who accesses the document and for what time. The person who wants to access the document locks it so that other users can just view it without modifying. Similarly all users can edit the document during the time it is locked with them. In the end all the changes by different users are merged together so that the users have one final document at the end. (Brinck, 1998) Conclusion Technology infrastructure including the internal networks of the organization is important  issue that needs attention for any new technology implementation. However the social impact  cannot be ignored. It is highly required for successful implementation that the technology fulfills  the needs of users and is accepted by them.

Forms of Political Violence

Forms of Political Violence Nihad Safarli Political violence: revolutions and terrorism Political violence has become a part of a daily life of each person living on the Earth. Almost everyone- politicians, mass media, scientists, taxi drivers.and etc. is talking about this. In this paper I will analyze the reasons of its popularity by investigating its origins and the factors which trigger off political violence. Based on the theoretical framework created by the knowledge I’ve amassed before, mainly my paper is focused on two prevailing forms of political violence with what this term often is being associated –revolutions and terrorism. I will try to find out more precious definition of revolutions and clarify which historical events can be conceptualized as a revolution, also try to ascertain the main cause of terrorism. Theda Skocpol’s article â€Å"France, Russia, China: A Structural Analysis of Social Revolution† provided quite good definition of revolution , although in my opinion her study is so tightly squeezed that doesn’t fit to all cases in the history. I want to criticize Skocpol’s conceptualization of social revolutions .After reviewing the definitions given by S.Huntington and Lenin she combined the content of them and applied it for analysis of revolutions in particular states. According to the author, revolution is a very rapid and fundamental transformation of social conditions and class structures and can be achieved through uprising of the lower class. The main difference of social revolutions from other forms of conflicts and transforming processes is that they attended by class insurrection, political and social transformations in social structure. But even rebellions with the same characteristics cannot be considered as revolutions as they don’t aim to make structural changes. Skocpol used a comparative historical method, in order to analyze cautiously the history of some modern revolutions, use the data gathered from the cases to make generalizations. Limitation of this method is that it is good to compare only similar cases. For example, comparison of Russian and German revolutions could be appropriate as a lot of common factors had an impact on revolutions, such as forfeit of war. But for France war ended up with a victory and overall situation was different from Russia which makes difficult to compare French and Russian revolutions applying comparative method. Scokpol thought that trouble Russia felt during World War I caused the revolution as its economy couldn’t respond to such huge pressure yielded by military expenditure. But the main thing is not how â€Å"a boxer was punched, the main thing is how he will he be able to stand this† Not only rapid industrialization but also lack of capacity to respond to this rapid process, played an essential role. The challenging part of this definition is about the phrase- â€Å"very rapid†. The â€Å"blurred† part about social revolution word is due to vague starting point and the end. For instance, the Russian revolution: did it begin exactly in 1917? Or may be seeds of revolutions were spread before? For defining the paradigm of rapid change, we should know whether that revolution ended exactly in October 1917 or not? Main missing point here is that we don’t know during which period should structural transformation happen to be called revolution. Probably I can conclude that periods called revolutions, transformation happened much more rapid now carried the qualitative character. If we accept social revolutionas a fundamental transformation of society, we should define what is fundamental about it. The author mentioned it dimly: changes in the social structure, accompanied by class uprisings; second, political and social transformation.Butwhich changes in the social structure does she mean? It is known that social structure changes continually. A person is a unit of society. In that sense birth and death of a person is also a change in social structure. Consequently, were talking about peculiar types of transformations in society. Skocpol wrote that the changes in society are attend by class uprisings. The fact that two events in society took place at the same time doesn’t mean that one is a result of another one. In contrast with her idea I can state that the social changes happened during social revolutions are definitely the outcomes of insurrection. The nature of a social revolution can be best evaluated by the outcomes which are accomplished immediately after an insurgency by downtrodden class below. For instance, the nature of the French revolution can be best estimated by process befall after the overthrow of the king. However, it is possible to discuss the upheavals of the downtrodden classes, but also about counter-revolutionary upheavals. Symbolically, we can call them rebellions. Best example is the rebellion of Franco, as result of which a civil war has begun in Spain. Consequently, I can claim that the upheavals of the downtrodden are the inherentsegment of a social revolution. Another point regarding social revolutions which wasn’t clarified in the article is about achievement of ultimate goal. Should the notion revolution be used for the instances when the downtrodden are finally nullified, or are not able to hold on to the power? Was 1905 events a revolution if to take into account that resistance of revolution was broken and it didn’t manage to accomplish its goals? Skocpol considers political revolutions different from social revolutions.As an outcome of the latter, the form of the government ( and the government itself) is changed but the social structure and the property relations remains intact. Actually, political revolutions even doesn’t fit the term â€Å"revolution† from Skocpol’s perspective. As a conclusion of article we can define social revolutions as: a) an outcome , but also an origin of a scientific revolution, b) entails qualitative and quantitative transformations which become inalterable, c ) the downtrodden class can try to make changes any times before succeeding, d) representatives of this class come to government, e) social revolution continues in the consequent transformations in society. Terrorism as another widespread form of political violence can be analysed and also defined in different contexts such as religion, war, crime an etc. Some aspects of terrorism are going to stay outside of the outlook you used to study this term. I focused on the M.Chrenshaw’s article and can say that I appreciate the outlook she used in her article to describe the causes of terrorism. The main perceptible and important moment is that she didn’t used â€Å"populist reasoning† , like education level of terrorists or their physiological status, for justifying her arguments which I think makes her article a high-quality paper. But I still want to challenge some points she made regarding the causes of terrorism. Chrenshaw took modernization and grievance as one of the origins of this form of political violence. Modernization as a precondition can be taken as a factor only in states with less developed and conservative societies with stereotypes and taboos where new technological innovations are being impose by globalization wave. Conservative people has some distrust to new lifestyle, policies and don’t want to give up their traditional life. But I don’t agree with the statement, in a sense that, Chernhaw missed intervening variable .It is not modernization itself causes terrorism, rather it is just content of human character to resist to transformations and adjust to new way of life. That’s why revolutions which are rapid changes in social structure preceded with terror either by state in order to impose changes on people or by group of people for stopping that change. Even reactionary changes can lead to revolution. In other sense, revolution is a good condition for terrorism to rise. The article publish in Foreign Affairs journal states that After Tunisian uprising , which usually depicted as revolution( but just a political revolution according to Skocpols definition) , al Qaeda got greater operational freedom of action, its followers probably will try to stir up and benefit from new uprisings in order to fight for their political goals. (Byman, 2011). The similar trends are noticed in all places where revolution happened. As a direct condition for terrorisms grievance is very important an I think that it is the factor which is a condition for other direct causes to emerge .Grievance can be conceptualized as a real or assumed wrong or other cause for discontent or protest. I appreciate Crenshaw’s argument about grievance and want to develop it more, that terrorists are driven by grievances about international political issues within particular regions and the world. They nourish a radical will to sacrifice innocent civilians because they ardently dream to expose their feelings and the only way of realizing them is terrorism.Off course, there can be various reasons why people nurse grievance. Some people are religious, some are nationalistic ad etc. Most probably â€Å" popular reasons† described as causes of terrorism such as education and poverty level therefore is not sufficient to explain the motives of terrorism.There isn’t any concrete formula of grievance as in different soci eties there are people who are ready to devote his life to some goals. If to exclude one origin of grievance, many other factors will serve as an origin to nurse grievance in a violent way.That’s why it is hardly possible to prevent the emergence of grievance but is possible to prevent terrorism by fighting against institutionalized terrorist groups. Because terror institution is a safe environment where grievance can be directed to violence path while that radical feeling can be used in favour of humankind as well. But what about variables like poverty and lack of education – which are the explanations often articulated by mass media and politicians? In reality more highly educated people are those who are aware of their rights and freedoms and persistent enough to fight for their political intentions to be carried out. For instance, results from public opinion polls on support for attacks against Israeli targets conducted in the West Bank and Gaza Strip indicate that support for violent attacks does not decrease among those with higher education and higher living standards. (Krueger, Alan B. Jitka Maleckova., 2003)High education level in the country promises many favourable things for its people, but analysis of the facts suggests that it doesn’t bring about complete consensus and welfare in a society.If we want to look at the terrorism from the â€Å"window of education† we should concentrate on its content, rather than merely educational level of the country. Terrorism and Revolution also other forms of political violence don’t have clear border by which we can easily identify them. Because all this terms are socially contracted. For example, Babek for Azerbaijanis is a hero, but for Arabs he was just a rebel, for Italians Juli Sezar is a hero but for French people he is an enemy conquer, Attila for Turks is a great hero but for Europeans he is a wild , cruel barbarian king who occupied their territory, English troops in Baku in early 20th century were considered as enemies during Soviet times , but friends after independence . The same is true for terrorism. For someone somebody can be a terrorist, for another one he can be a fighter for freedom. This socially constructed character of political violence makes it difficult to define and its analysis depends on the context. Bibliography Byman, D. (2011). Terrorism After the Revolutions.. Foreign Affairs. Krueger, Alan B. Jitka Maleckova. (2003). Education, Poverty And Terrorism: Is There A Causal Connection?. Journal of Economic Perspectives.