Illegal Immigrants

For years now, the issue concerning illegal immigrants in the United States had been the subject of a heated debate. It has not only polarized Americans but has even elicited some rather emotional reactions from some sectors of society.   There are those who favor granting legal status to illegal immigrants. Some, however, vehemently oppose the idea, claiming that legalizing undocumented aliens could be the worst catastrophe that could happen to the United States of America. A review of the arguments presented thus far, however, would lead one to the conclusion that the best bet for the country would be to grant legal status to the illegal immigrants now residing in the country. In the first place, these people – some of whom have already been in the country for more than two decades – have been great contributors to the economy, performing jobs that White Americans either do not want or cannot fill. As Griswold (2004) said, the economy of the country is endlessly creating low-skilled jobs which could not be filled by American workers. He cited two reasons: first, Americans are getting older because of a rather low population growth rate, and low-skilled jobs usually demand younger, hardworking, manual workers; second, Americans, who have lately become better educated, are now going for the high-skilled, higher-paying jobs, leaving not enough manpower to tend to the low-skilled jobs. Even American businessmen appreciate the availability of these illegal immigrants for such low-paying jobs. Another argument in favor of legalization is its humanity and kindness. Once these people acquire legal status, they could work for better economic condition. Their legal status would enable them to move freely and look for better jobs which would enable them to acquire more benefits like health insurance and pension plans. In other words, legalization would eventually humanize these illegal immigrants. After what they have done and continue to do for the national economy – doing the dirty jobs that Americans simply cannot do – they certainly deserve to be treated like human beings (Griswold, 2004). Reference Griswold, D. (2004). Legalization is the way. Cato Institute. Retrieved November 8, 2007 from http://www.cato.org/research/articles/griswold-041024.html   

Jun Assignment Mpa for 2012-13

IGNOU M. A in Public Administration Solved Assignment Dec 2012 Presented by http://www. IGNOU4Ublog. com TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENT (TMA) Course Code: MPA-011 Assignment Code: Asst/TMA/2012-2013 Marks: 100 This assignment consists of Sections I & II. There are five questions in each section. You have to answer a total of five questions in about 400 words each. It is necessary to attempt at least two questions from each section. Each question carries 20 marks. Section-1 consists of questions from Units 1 to 10 and Section-II consists of questions from Units 11 to 21. Section – I . Examine the views of F. W Riggs on Society-Administration relationship. Solution: Coming soon†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. ———————————————————————————————– 2. ‘State’s role needs to be examined in the context of its Liberal and Marxist perspectives’. Discuss. Solution: The liberal conception of the state is of a limited organization that represents popular will. The state plays a minimal role in the directing of society and economic affairs, but can play a significant supporting role in modern liberal (social liberal) theories.Classical Liberals favor a minimal state that only provides for basic services such as defense, enforcing contracts and protecting property rights. Social liberals accept more roles for the state, primarily in the economic sphere, such as regulation of capitalism in order to protect consumers and workers, welfare programs to help the poor and disadvantaged in society and public services that benefit everyone. To liberals, the state plays a supporting role in society, and is usually left to operate in the political and social spheres.Marxists conceive of the state as an institution of capitalism that can be transformed to benefit the working class, as the state is the only institution that is capable of organizing and managing the economy on a large scale. The state would be radicalized in that the workers and people would control it through direct democracy or council democracy. The state becomes an integral part of the economy in that it owns the means of production in the phase of socialism.Marxists see the state as becoming unnecessary when the productive forces develop and authority on the state level is no longer required, leading to the disappearance of the state and social class. This society is called communism, where the means of production is owned communally but operated and managed by cooperatives. Socialism is an economic system whereby either the state or worker cooperatives own and control the means of production, strategic resources and major industry.The principle of socialism is to organize the economy in a rational manner that avoids the pitfalls of capitalism and the free market through plan ned or state directed economic systems. Socialism can also utilize the market mechanism to distribute goods and services in the form of market socialism, while the state or public retains ownership of major economic institutions. The revenue generated by the state economy would be used to finance government programs, potentially eliminating the need for taxation.A private sector for non-heavy industry can exist in a socialist system, but the state, public or cooperative sector would play the dominant role in the economy. To socialists, the state is a part of the economy and the state plays a dominant role in structuring economic and political affairs. ———————————————————————————————– 3. Explain the Neo-liberal Perspective of State. Solution: Neoliberalism is a co ntemporary political movement advocating economic liberalizations, free trade and open markets. Neoliberalism supports the privatization of nationalized industries, eregulation, and enhancing the role of the private sector in modern society. It is commonly informed by neoclassical or Austrian economics. The term neoliberal today is often used as a general condemnation of economic liberalization policies and advocates. Neoliberalism shares many concepts with mainstream schools of economic thought. The term â€Å"neoliberalism† was coined in 1938 by the German scholar Alexander Rustow at the Colloque Walter Lippmann. The colloquium defined the concept of neoliberalism as â€Å"the priority of the price mechanism, the free enterprise, the system of competition and a strong and impartial state. To be â€Å"neoliberal† meant that â€Å"laissez-faire† liberalism is not enough and that – in the name of liberalism – a modern economic policy is required. A fter the colloquium â€Å"neoliberalism† became a label for several academical approaches such as the Freiburg school, the Austrian School or the Chicago school of economics. During the military rule under Augusto Pinochet in Chile opposition scholars took up the expression again without a specific reference to any theoretical revision of liberalism.Rather, it described a set of political and economic reforms being implemented in Chile and imbued the term with pejorative connotations. In the last two decades, according to the Boas and Gans-Morse study of 148 journal articles, neoliberalism is almost never defined but used in several senses to describe ideology, economic theory, development theory, or economic reform policy. It has largely become a term of condemnation employed by critics of liberalizing economic tendencies. And it now suggests a â€Å"market fundamentalism† closer to the â€Å"paleoliberals† as opposed to the primary meaning.This leaves some con troversy as to the precise meaning of the term and its usefulness as a descriptor in the social sciences, especially as the number of different kinds of market economies have proliferated in recent years ———————————————————————————————– 4. ‘The nature of social participation is ever changing’.Elucidate Solution: Whether we live in the crowded bustle of an inner city or in a quieter, less populated rural area, most of us are part of the community in which we live. Social participation refers to people's social involvement and interaction with others. Activities such as volunteering, making donations, participating in sports, and recreational activities are all forms of social participation. While Canadians may differ in why, how, and how much they ge t involved, most would agree that social participation improves their own and the community's well-being[1].Measures of social participation include participation in political activities and participation in social activities. Measures of factors that influence social participation include social networks, sense of belonging, and level of trust. Highlights 54. 6% of Canadians – 58. 3% of men and 51. 7% of women – reported being involved in at least one political activity in 2002. Involvement in at least one social activity group, such as professional associations, or cultural, educational, and hobby organizations, was reported by 61% of Canadians in 2003. In 2003, the great majority of Canadians (93. %) reported having some close friends or family members. However, 6. 3% of Canadians reported having no close friend or family member. In 2003, the vast majority of Canadians had a â€Å"somewhat or very strong† sense of belonging to Canada (88%), to their province (81%), and to their community (70%). A little more than half of Canadians (56%) in 2003 believed that others could be trusted. The level of trust was highest among individuals aged 45 to 64 years old (59%) compared with other age categories. Footnotes There is no agreement on how to best define ‘community. For example, and the 2003 General Social Survey on Social Engagement (Statistics Canada, cat. no. 89-598-XIE) leaves the definition open. Generally, the term ‘community' refers to the people and institutions that are in proximity to our place of residence. However, it can also include a more global sense of community, where charitable donations to an international charity can benefit people of other countries. ———————————————————————————————– 5. Ans wer the following questions in 200 words each: ) Concept of ‘Hind Swaraj’ Solution:The concept of swaraj, or self-rule, was developed during the Indian freedom struggle. In his book Hind Swaraj (1909), Gandhi sought to clarify that the meaning behind swaraj was much more than simply â€Å"wanting [systems of] English rule without the Englishman; the tiger's nature but not the tiger. † The crux of his argument centered on the belief that the socio-spiritual underpinnings of British political, economic, bureaucratic, legal, military, and educational institutions were inherently unjust, exploitative and alienating.As Pinto explicates, â€Å"The principal theme of Hind Swaraj is the moral inadequacy of western civilization, especially its industrialism, as the model for free India. † Gandhi was particularly critical of the deeply embedded principles of ‘might is right' and ‘survival of the fittest'. On another level, the call for swaraj represents a genuine attempt to regain control of the ‘self' – our self-respect, self-responsibility, and capacities for self-realization – from institutions of dehumanization.As Gandhi states, â€Å"It is swaraj when we learn to rule ourselves. † The real goal of the freedom struggle was not only to secure political azadi (independence) from Britain, but rather to gain true swaraj (liberation and self-rule). Gandhi wanted all those who believed in swaraj: (1) to reject and wholly uproot the British raj (rule) from within themselves and their communities; and, (2) to regenerate new reference points, systems, and structures that enable individual and collective self-development.This regeneration was to grow from the strengths, perspectives, wisdom and experiences of people living in village India, rather than from cities in Britain, America, and even in India for that matter. Understanding the real ‘Self', and its relation to communities and society, is critical to the project of attaining swaraj. How is this relevant for us today? We feel that South Asia (along with the rest of the world) is experiencing a tremendous crisis, one overwhelming in its scale and pace of growth.While it is easy to get caught up in the symptoms of this crisis (the brutal violence, the enormous inequities, the extinction of cultures and languages, the degradation of the environment), it is equally, if not more, important to understand its roots. We must creatively analyze the content and the consequences of our current economic, political, social, and educational systems, without reverting to a romanticized past of so-called untouched or pristine traditions.From these critical reflections, we must generate new spaces, systems, and processes – based on moral and holistic visions of human potential and human progress – which can lead us out of the global self-destruction which engulfs us. Throughout it all, we must consider and negotiate our own role s, while asking ourselves how we are either working for solutions or contributing to making the crisis worse. Thus, today, we recognize Gandhi's concept of swaraj integral to three parallel action-reflection agendas for the 21st century: ———————————————————————————————– ) Citizen’s Charter Solution: Citizen’s Charter is a document which represents a systematic effort to focus on the commitment of the Organization towards its Citizens in respects of Standard of Services, Information, Choice and Consultation, Non-discrimination and Accessibility, Grievance Redressal, courtesy and value for money. This also includes expectations of the Organization from the Citizen for fulfilling the commitment of the Organization.The Citizen's Charter was a British p olitical initiative launched by the then Prime Minister, John Major, on 22 July 1991, less than a year into his premiership. [1] It aimed to improve public services in the UK by: Making administration accountable and citizen friendly. Ensuring transparency and the right to information. Taking measures to cleanse and motivate civil service. Adopting a stakeholder approach. Saving time of both executant and the clientele One part of the initiative was the granting of â€Å"Charter Marks† to those public bodies meeting defined standards. ———————————————————————————————- Section – II 6. Examine the role of Bureaucracy in policy monitoring and analysis. Solution: Bureaucrats put government policy into practice, and therefore the federal bureaucracy has a large impact on policymaking. In order to get their policies passed, the president and Congress must work with the bureaucracy. Controlling the bureaucracy can be difficult for the following reasons:Size: The president cannot monitor everyone or even every group within the bureaucracy, so much of what bureaucrats do goes unmonitored. Expertise of bureaucrats: The people who administer policy often know much more about those issues than the president or members of Congress. This expertise gives the bureaucrats power. Civil service laws: Firing bureaucrats, even for incompetence, is very difficult. Clientele groups: Many federal agencies provide services to thousands of people, and those people sometimes rally to defend the agency.Policy implementation: When Congress creates a new program, it does not establish all the details on how the policy will be implemented. Instead, Congress passes enabling legislation, which grants power to an agency to work out the specifics. Although the agency must stay within some bounds, it has a great deal of latitude in determining how to carry out the wishes of Congress. Power of Persuasion Presidential scholar Richard Neustadt has argued that the president’s primary power is that of persuasion.The president must lobby or persuade bureaucrats. But trying to convince members of the bureaucracy that their goals fit with the president’s goals is a time-consuming and often frustrating process. For this reason, many presidents have seen the bureaucracy as an obstacle to getting their agendas approved. Rule-making The federal bureaucracy makes rules that affect how programs operate, and these rules must be obeyed, just as if they were laws. The rule-making process for government agencies occurs in stages.After Congress passes new regulatory laws, the agency charged with implementing the law proposes a series of rules, which are published in the Federal Register. Interested parties can comment on the rules, either at public he arings or by submitting documents to the agency. After the agency publishes the final regulations, it must wait sixty days before enforcing those rules. During that time, Congress can review and change the rules if it desires. If Congress makes no changes, the rules go into effect at the end of sixty days. Federal regulations affect many groups of people, who have often challenged those regulations in court.Because litigation is a slow and expensive way to change regulations, Congress passed the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990 to limit the need for litigation by opening the rulemaking process to those affected by it. The act encouraged federal agencies to engage in negotiated rule-making. If an agency agrees to the proposed regulations, for example, it publishes the proposals in the Federal Register and then participates in a negotiating committee overseen by a third party. Agreements reached by the committee are then open to the normal public review process.Parties to negotiated rule-making agree not to sue over the rules. ———————————————————————————————– 7. Write a note on the nature and characteristics of good governance. Solution: Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making.It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society. Participation Participation by both men and women is a key cornerstone of good governance. Participation could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or representatives. It is important to point out that representative democracy does not necessarily mean that the concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into consideration in decision making. Participation needs to be informed and organized. This means freedom of association and expression on the one hand and an organized civil society on the other hand.Rule of law Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also requires full protection of human rights, particularly those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force. Transparency Transparency means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement.It also means that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily understandable forms and media. Responsiveness Good governance requires that institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe. Consensus oriented There are several actors and as many view points in a given society. Good governance requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in society on what is in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved.It also requires a broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for sustainable human development and how to achieve the goals of such development. This can only result from an understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of a given society or community. ——————————————————————————————â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 8. Explain the meaning of Ethics, underlying its ‘foci’ and ‘loci’. Solution: Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.Major areas of study in ethics may be divided into 3 operational areas: Meta-ethics came to the fore with G. E. Moore's Principia Ethica from 1903. In it he first wrote about what he called the naturalistic fallacy. Moore was seen to reject naturalism in ethics, in his Open Question Argument. This made thinkers look again at second order questions about ethics. Earlier, the Scottish philosopher David Hume had put forward a similar view on the difference between facts and values.Studies of how we know in ethics divide into cognitivism and non-cognitivism; this is similar to the contrast between descriptivists and non-descriptivists. Non-cognitivism is the claim that when we judge something as right or wrong, this is neither true nor false. We may for example be only expressing our emotional feelings about these things. [2] Cognitivism can then be seen as the claim that when we talk about right and wrong, we are talking about matters of fact. Normative ethics Traditionally, normative ethics (also known as moral theory) was the study of what makes actions right and wrong.These theories offered an overarching moral principle one could appeal to in resolving difficult moral decisions. At the turn of the 20th century, moral theories became more complex and are no longer concerned solely with rightness and wrongness, but are interested in many different kinds of moral status. During the middle of the century, the study of normative ethics declined as meta-ethics grew in prominence. This focus on meta-ethics was in part caused by an intense linguistic focus in analytic philosophy and by the popularity of logical positivism.Virtue ethics Virtue ethics describes the character of a moral agent as a dr iving force for ethical behavior, and is used to describe the ethics of Socrates, Aristotle, and other early Greek philosophers. Socrates (469 BC – 399 BC) was one of the first Greek philosophers to encourage both scholars and the common citizen to turn their attention from the outside world to the condition of humankind. In this view, knowledge having a bearing on human life was placed highest, all other knowledge being secondary.Self-knowledge was considered necessary for success and inherently an essential good. A self-aware person will act completely within his capabilities to his pinnacle, while an ignorant person will flounder and encounter difficulty. ———————————————————————————————– 9. ‘The solution to governance challenges lies in civil soci ety movements’. Discuss. Solution: Until recently, the study of development process until recently has centered largely on the triangle of states-markets-international institutions.For the last decade, mainstream development discourse has adopted the notion of ‘civil society' as simultaneously the site of ‘citizens' collective action' as well as a set of actors to be incorporated in the planning, implementation and evaluation of development projects. This notion of ‘civil society' has tended to focus exclusively on NGOs. This course provides a more political understanding of ‘civil society' by examining social movements in relation to civil society and to the development project itself. It begins by current theories of ‘civil society' and ‘new social movements'.It then assesses the impact of nationalist and socialist movements on shaping the development agenda of nineteenth-century European and late-colonial states, and how social movements from the 1950s-1980s interacted with national governments in blocking, changing or advancing the development agendas of states (e. g. , Gandhian movements in India, the housing rights movements in urban Latin America, and the movements against minority rule in Southern Africa). The course focuses on contexts (e. g. democratisation, globalisation, etc. ), sectors (e. g. environment, agriculture), spaces (e. g. ural, urban) and agents (e. g. women). Subsequently, the course addresses the issue of ‘global civil society': issues of ‘globalisation' and transnational networks of solidarity created in response to it, for example, the movements against ‘sweatshop labour', the Zapatista movement in Mexico, and movements against transnational companies and institutions of global governance (WTO, World Bank, IMF etc. ). ———————————————————†”———————————– 10. Answer the following questions in 200 words each: a) Concept of New Public ManagementSolution: New public management (NPM) denotes broadly the government policies, since the 1980s, that aimed to modernise and render more effective the public sector. The basic hypothesis holds that market oriented management of the public sector will lead to greater cost-efficiency for governments, without having negative side-effects on other objectives and considerationsSome modern authors define NPM as a combination of splitting large bureaucracies into smaller, more fragmented ones, competition between different public agencies, and between public agencies and private firms and incentivization on more economic lines. 2] Defined in this way, NPM has been a significant driver in public management policy around the world, from the early 1980s to at least the early 2000s. NPM, compared to other pub lic management theories, is oriented towards outcomes and efficiency, through better management of public budget. [3] It is considered to be achieved by applying competition, as it is known in the private sector, to organizations in the public sector, emphasizing economic and leadership principles.New public management addresses beneficiaries of public services much like customers, and conversely citizens as shareholders. In 2007, the European Commission produced a white book on governance issues whose objective was to propose a new kind of â€Å"relationship between the state and the citizens,† reform governance, improve public management and render decision-making â€Å"more flexibleSome authors say NPM has peaked and is now in decline ——————————————————————————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ ) Business Process Engineering Solution: Business process re-engineering is a business management strategy, originally pioneered in the early 1990s, focusing on the analysis and design of workflows and processes within an organization. BPR aimed to help organizations fundamentally rethink how they do their work in order to dramatically improve customer service, cut operational costs, and become world-class competitors. 1] In the mid-1990s, as many as 60% of the Fortune 500 companies claimed to either have initiated reengineering efforts, or to have plans to do so. BPR seeks to help companies radically restructure their organizations by focusing on the ground-up design of their business processes. According to Davenport (1990) a business process is a set of logically related tasks performed to achieve a defined business outcome. Re-engineering emphasized a holistic focus on business objectives and how processes related to them, encouraging full-scale recreation of pr ocesses rather than iterative optimization of subprocesses.

A Brief Overview of the Interralatedness of the Three Gospels

Introduction: Coming to Terms with the Problem Most everyone who reads the Synoptic Gospels observes similarities that exist among them; their passages are very similar in content and structure which would make one think the authors borrowed material from each other or perhaps at all the same sources. However they are equally different in content and structure. This brings about the problems with the Synoptic Gospels commonly called the â€Å"Synoptic Problem. † Looking for a solution that is reasonable and defensible, we will look at biblical history, early church history, and the content of the Gospels themselves.As I answer these questions, and bring an overview to the synoptic problem, and provide a defense of the Fourfold-Gospel Hypothesis as the most reasonable and dependable solution to the problem. A General Description of Synoptic Relationships Synoptic Gospels fall into three separate categories: wording (vocabulary), order (structure), and parenthetical material. Re lationships and Content Consider the following verse from the passage in Matthew 19 about the children coming to Jesus.Matthew 19:14 Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the Mark 10:14 the children come to me, do not hinder them; for such belongs the Luke 18:16 Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the Matthew 19:14 kingdom of heaven. † Mark 10:15 kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom Luke 18:17 kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom Matthew 19:15 And he? Mark 10:16 of God like a child shall not enter it.†And he took them in his arms and Luke 18:17 of God like a child shall not enter it. † Following Swanson’s method of underlining the similarities, one can see there are definite similarities between the Gospels. There are however differences, the italicized words shown in Mark and Luke show the difference in formatting. The parenthetical materials in the Synoptic Gospels writers create the relationship in the content.Stein states that â€Å"it is highly unlikely that two or three writers would by coincidence insert into their  accounts exactly the same editorial comment at exactly the same place†. The Gospels themselves show the phenomenon of similarity and divergence within the structure. Much of the history and teaching of the Synoptic Gospels is contained in pericopac (literary units comprised of one argument or thought) and these pericopae often appear in the same order in all three Gospels, and yet there are obvious differences. Carson and Moo explain this problem well: All three Synoptic Gospels roughly follow the same order of events, even when there is no clear chronological or historical reason to do so.Each evangelist, however, omits material found in the other two, each contains unique incidents, and some of the events that are found in one or both of the others are put in a dif ferent order. The Investigative History of Synoptic Relationships The history of the investigation into the relationship between the Synoptic Gospels is divided into two great epochs: the early Church in the modern church era. The Early Church According to Dugan in his notes a History of Synoptic Problem, many are taken accounts to writing of the life of Jesus of Nazareth including Luke in Luke 1:1-4.Tatian (c. 110-172) put the four Gospels together in his famous book Diatessaron. Tatian worked to fit the four Gospels into one bound book. Ammonius in the third century took Matthews Gospel and broken it paragraphs. He also took the other three Gospels and rearranged their content. Augustine (AD 354-430) produced works called On the Harmony of the Evangelist. Augustine’s work was typical of many harmonies of Gospels purchased early years of the church. Modern synopsis was produced in 1776 by J. J. Griesbach. The Modern ChurchNo attempts were made to parallel the Gospels except for Ammonius until the eighteenth century. The archetype of the modern-day synopsis is Griesbach. From the eighteenth century there’s been an explosion of study and investigation into how the Synoptic Gospels relate to each other. Many criticisms have reason over the Synoptic Gospels from oral traditions to reaction criticism. Proposed Solutions for the Synoptic Problem Forming a hypothesis around the first three Gospels; while looking at the exact agreement within them and yet the wide divergence of what is written in them.There are four principle explanations of the Synoptic Problem. Common Dependence on One Original Source The German critic Gotthold Lessing proposed a solution to the synoptic problem using type of proto-Gospel that has since been lost as a common source for the Gospel writers. This source is referred to as â€Å"Ur-gospel† and it seemed to have been written in Arabic or Hebrew. Lessing understood Luke’s prologue to be a narrative.J. G. Eichho rn and others took the Ur-gospel and modified it to include some possibly â€Å"lost Gospels as the sources for the synoptic Gospels† Common Dependence on Oral Sources  J. G. Herder in 1797, proposed his hypothesis stating the oral summaries of the life of Christ. Gundry believes that the Ur-gospel theory lacks credibility with the relationship between the Gospels. Gundry explains: †¦ Most modern scholars doubt that transmission by word-of-mouth could have retained so many and such minute verbal resemblances as exist among the synoptics, especially in the narrative, which is not so likely to have been memorized verbatim as possibly the words of Jesus were memorized.Common Dependence on Gradually Developing Written Fragments  F. Schleiermacher originally suggested this theory in 1817, suggested that the church began to collect fragmented writings from the apostles. These fragmented writings became the source of material for the Synoptic Gospels. This cannot be true th ough. There is more evidence now than ever that there was simply sharing of material between the synoptic writers. Interdependent This group of proposed solutions assumes that â€Å"two of the evangelists used one or more of the other Gospels in constructing their own.†There were other material that could have been used during this period of time; however the apostles writing at the same time borrowed text from each other to write their own Gospels. The third hypothesis worth mentioning is the Augustine proposal. The Augustine Proposal The Augustine proposal says the Gospels were put into the Canon according to their composition. Some proposal says that Matthew was written first, then Mark, Luke, then John. Augustine is the first theologian from the west to make the connection between Mark and Matthew’s Gospel, and assuming that Luke borrowed documents from both to write his Gospel.Augustine’s theory of interdependent was the predominant theory until the eightee nth century when several other proposals began to surface. The Two-Gospel and Two-Source hypothesis are the most widely accepted theories today. The Two-Gospel (Griesbach) Theory In 1789 J. J. Griesbach published a paper in which he proposed the order of synoptic compositions of Matthew, Luke, and Mark each writer’s previous writers work. Griesbach says Matthew wrote his gospel first, Luke used Matthews Gospel to write his, and Mark used both Matthew and Luke’s Gospel to write his Gospel.Orchard has taken Griesbachs’ theory to a new level. Orchard has done research in the area of the Two-Gospel Theory and believes that Marks Gospel is a composition of Matthew and Luke’s Gospel. The Two-Source Theory This is by far the most widely accepted solution to the Synoptic Problem. Their primary sources of Synoptic Gospels. Markan believes that Mark’s Gospel was written before Matthew and Luke, and â€Å"Q† a saying source. Mark parallels Matthew 97. 2% of the time, while Luke parallels Matthews’s gospel 88. 4% of the time.Mark awkwardly wrote suggesting that it was the first gospel written and that my fuse was written later, using Mark’s primary source, correcting the difficulties with the language. It would be easy later on in expressions that might be misunderstood. With Matthew and Luke having so many verbal language agreements with Mark it would indicate that Mark was written first and they at least collaborated or used the same material when writing the Gospels. The â€Å"Q† becomes a factor when looking at Markans assumption that Matthew and Luke used Marks Gospel yet writing independent of each other.The two source theory is by far the most widely accepted explanation of the Synoptic Problem. With this theory Matthew and Luke used Marks Gospel as their narrative source and Q for their material. However there appears to be a better explanation of the synoptic problem. The Fourfold -Gospel Hypothesis t akes in both the initial evidence the external evidence. The Fourfold -Gospel hypothesis is the most dependable and reasonable solution to the synoptic problem. The fourfold-Gospel Hypothesis: A Most Reasonable and Defensible Solution Scott McKnight makes and observation surrounding the Synoptic Problem.Literary levels connect Matthew Mark and Luke and they are highly mutually dependent on each other. Mark can be considered the middle factor. Benard Orchard gives a logical conclusion to the Synoptic Problem. Orchard states: â€Å"†¦ The historical and patristic evidence, the internal critical evidence for mutual literacy dependence, and the â€Å"scenario† necessary to show how the tendency between the first and the second lines of the argument can be satisfactorily resolved.†With the Fourfold-Gospel Hypothesis, Matthew Rocha particularly Jewish church in acts 1-12, Luke wrote second to provide the gospel to a Hellenistic church that was in a missionary expansion with Paul in acts 13-28, while Mark was last Gospel written and records Peter preaching in Rome. External Historic and Patristic Evidence With fourteen different patristic witnesses on Blacks list that support the theory that Mark wrote last and used Matthew and Luke. According to the Patristic witnesses Matthew wrote second and John wrote last.Paul helped Luke write his Gospel either second or third. According to historic evidence in the early church, Matthew wrote first, second, and Mark). Lea and Black disagree with Markan saying: â€Å"however popular Markan priority may be today, it seems to fly in the face of the statements of the earliest church fathers, who are almost unanimous in asserting that Matthew predated both Mark and Luke. † Internal Evidence Markan states Mark was written first due to the shortness of the Gospel.As Matthew and Luke wrote their Gospels more accurate information was available then when Mark wrote his Gospel. Mark writes about five periods of C hrist’s ministry. Mark’s writing style is also simple and primitive compared with Matthew and Luke. Mark writes much of Peter’s preaching. â€Å"All that internal literacy criticism can do is to show that an existing text could have originated in more than one way. † When looking for reasonable and dependable solutions one must choose â€Å"the source theory that best reflects the actual historical circumstances† for this solution of the SynopticProblem. When looking historically and biblically as a scenario to Mark’s writing the Fourfold- Gospel Hypothesis represents Mark’s writing well. The Scenario of Mark’s Writing In Jerusalem and Palestine during the final stages of the formation of the early church there was almost exclusive focus on preaching of the Gospels to the Jews. Matthew predicts Jesus is the fulfillment of the Jewish prophecy. A need arose as the gospel progressed from Palestine to the Jews of Diaspora and then to the Gentiles. The need for a universal Christ and less Jewish Christ and a more Hellenistic Gospel.This would be Luke’s account it is â€Å"directed toward those Hellenistic congregations founded by the apostle Paul on his missionary journeys. † Mark binds Matthew and Luke’s Gospels together. Black explains Mark’s gospel: â€Å"because secondary chapter, Luke needed the approval of an eyewitness apostle proper accreditation in the church†¦ Peter himself was apostolic eyewitness they provided the accreditation for the gospel of Luke by personally comparing it with the Gospel of Matthew as he gave his own oral version of the stories common to both, at which he himself had been present in person.†Peter uses both Luke and Matthew’s Gospels to preach from, giving accreditation to both Gospels. Paul had been using Luke and Matthews’s gospel and with Peter using them and accepting them it gave a stamp of approval for Paul so no one c ould accuse Paul of wrong-doing. Looking at the Synoptic Problem the Fourfold- Gospel Hypothesis is a dependable solution because it takes into account the biblical writing the Gospels, evidence in the writing of the early church fathers, the internal evidence of the Gospels. All three Gospels speak to their own time period.Conclusion This brief overview of the Synoptic Problem has defined the problem by definition. The source relates to the Synoptic Gospels can be seen as a problem. It is difficult to determine the true source of the Synoptic Gospels. They have been part of the canon and church history for centuries. The Synoptic Gospels are part of the big picture, it is divinely inspired, and the inerrant Word of God. The historical evidence would lead one to believe the Fourfold- Gospel Hypothesis is the most reasonable way to make the picture fit.

Writing Assignment #2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Writing Assignment #2 - Essay Example This is because; absorption of U.s domestic demand for goods by exporters in China and Oil exporting countries has widely suppressed domestic job creation in the U.S. In 2011 and 2010, the increasing trade deficit with China led to 2.8 million jobs displacement in the U.S (Bordon 2011). Other factors that have led to the shrinking of the manufacturing sector include rising technological changes, which have increased labor productivity, forcing firms to hire few workers. It is incorrect for the Business and Industry Council to blame imports alone for the international imbalance that have led to manufacturing crisis. Manufacturing crisis refers to the long-run trend of failing employment in the manufacturing sector in the United States. The macroeconomic policies that China has adopted of currency devaluation, increasing U.S dollar holding and, subsidies advancement to a range of industries are some of the major causes of the high trade deficit. By 2011, China had accumulated $3.26 trillion in foreign reserves in U.S treasuries. In Chinese auto-parts industry, both domestic and foreign owned plants have received $27.5 billion in government subsidies. In 2006, 58.2 per cent of China’s exports were from foreign firms operating in China. These firms are taking advantage of the subsidy policy and availability of cheap labor in China. China and other low wage rate countries enjoy availability of cheap labor, relative to their counterparts in the U. S and other developed countries. This is the area where they have a comparative advantage in manufacturing. Global economists have argued that the main cause of the U.S. trade deficit is saving-investment disproportion as opposed to the common idea of Chinese Yuan devaluation (Hall and Lieberman 913). The economists propose that the country’s policy makers need to focus more on how to solve saving-investment imbalance. The main cause of the U.S. deficit is basically excess consumption and low saving rate among

The Ebola Virus Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Ebola Virus - Research Paper Example The Ebola virus, Sudan and Zaire subtype in particular, were first discovered in an equatorial province west of Sudan and the nearby region of Democratic Republic of Congo formerly Zaire in 1976. The discovery was made after serious epidemics were reported in the village of Yambuku located in the northern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nzara village in the Southern Sudan. The Reston virus was discovered in the western pacific in 1989 during an outbreak of simian hemorrhagic fever virus (SHFV), while the Cote d’Ivoire species of virus were discovered in 1994 in a Tai forest in the country of Cote d’Ivoire (Peter, 2009). Some of the early symptoms characterized by the Ebola virus include: headache, sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and sore throat. Vomiting, diarrhea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function often follows at an advanced stage of the disease, and in some cases both external and internal bleeding have been reported. Resear ch findings have shown low counts of white blood cells and platelets and platelets, as well as elevated liver enzymes (Ryabchikova, 2004). The Ebola Virus is said to be transmitted by direct contact with body fluids of infected individuals or blood, secretions. Transmission of Ebola has been linked to burial ceremonies where mourners have had direct contact with the body of the deceased person who suffered from this virus. The cause of infections of Ebola virus in humans has resulted from the human handling of infected non-human primates such as the chimpanzees, gorillas and consumption of forest antelopes either dead or alive or both. These cases have been reported and documented in the Cote d’Ivoire and the Democratic republic of Congo. The transmission of the Reston species, however, is because of handling the cynomolgus monkey (Bausch, 2011). Health care workers have not been left behind in the infection chain, and they have largely been infected in the line of duty. This is through treating the Ebola patients at a close contact, without following standard infection control precautions, and inadequate nursing procedures has always been the case in most African countries. The incubation period for the disease is put at a minimum of two days and maximum of 21 days (Ryabchikova, 2004). The natural reservoir of the Ebola Virus is still unknown to humans, despite the extensive studies directed to its course. All that is known is that it seems to reside in the rainy forests of the African continent and the western pacific, and although non-human primates have been the source of infections for human, they are believed to have been directly infected by the natural reservoir or some transmission chain in the natural reservoir. Some of the virulent factors that have led to Ebola infections in humans are linked to direct contact with chimpanzees, monkeys, guinea pigs, gorillas and porcupines in the rainy forests of Africa. However, there have been speculations that bats have played a role in maintaining the Ebola virus in the tropical forest since they caught the infection and did not die from it. This case forms one of the many hypotheses developed to explain the origin of the Ebola virus (Peter, 2009). Ebola virus test are extremely biohazard risk and are only conducted under maximum biological containment conditions. Diagnosis of the Ebola can be done under specialized laboratories where

Factors Affecting the Rise of Military Rules in South-American Essay

Factors Affecting the Rise of Military Rules in South-American Countries in 20th Century - Essay Example This essay presents a thorough analysis of various preconditions for the rise of military rule in most of South-American countries in the 20th century. The rise of military governments of Chile, Brazil and Argentina can be attributed to a series of events in the local and international politics, starting from the times when Europeans left these states which ended on the emergence of Cold War and the Cuban missile crisis. During the 19th century, South America remained isolated from the rest of the world because of many reasons; however the 20th century observed a reversal of this trend and the governments and people of South America wanted to end this isolation and started looking out for means through which they could interact with the world for the collective benefit of all. The economic growth triggered in the northern part of the land mass encouraged the states in the south to follow the footsteps but their pursuit of economic stability was always hindered by political instability and social immobility . As a result civil wars, political assassinations, coups and military rules became the hallmark of the politics of this region during the middle of the 20th century. The power struggle in world politics after the Second World War also contributed to the instability of the region. The possession of lands in the hands of a very small minority of people was the reason behind the slow economic growth because the cheap labor never forced the landowners to look for modern methods of agriculture and increasing production.

The Impact of Organisational Learning on the Creation and Coursework

The Impact of Organisational Learning on the Creation and Communication of Knowledge - Coursework Example This essay approves that communication of knowledge within an organization is important due to various reasons. It allows knowledge to be dissipated from the ones that already possess the knowledge to those employees that are new in the organization. When employees retire, their positions are taken up by new recruits. Almost all organizations are concerned about the issue of retention of knowledge within the organization after their valuable and most experienced employees retire. It is crucial that the level of knowledge with which work was done by the previous employees, should not deteriorate on their replacement. This purpose can be fulfilled only if there is smooth flow of knowledge with the organization. This report makes a conclusion that organizational learning refers to the change that occurs in an organization due to the knowledge acquired by the members of the organization through experience gathered with passage of time. Although this is the most common explanation of the term, ‘organizational learning’ is defined in various ways by researchers. These definitions are affected by the mission and vision of the organizations that have been considered for the research and also the perspectives and pre-accumulated views of the scholars. Hence organizational learning has essentially become an interdisciplinary topic. Research on this topic draws elements from a number of fields and also outcome of this research makes extensive contribution to these fields leading to development of these fields, such as, theory of organizational behaviour, sociology and social psychology, cognitive psychology, information systems, engineering, economics, and strategic management. The pape r by Argote and Spektor (2011) provides a theoretical framework that helps to analyze the process of organizational learning and the level of knowledge gained on performance by employees. Purpose of the study The interdisciplinary nature of the study related to organizational learning makes it a topic of interest for research scholars. The paper selected for critical reviewing deals with this topic and presents an elaborate framework of study on organizational learning, covering the variations in the definitions of the term, the existing theory on this topic and analysis of this theory, importance of organizational experience in creating organizational learning and the process of organizational learning that includes creation, retention and transfer of knowledge. This purpose fits the paper very well since it has been published in the journal named Organization Science. This is because the journal aims at bridging the gap that exists between different disciplines and advancing the k nowledge that evolves from this process (Argote and Spektor, 2011). This paper has been presented with the view that the results would stimulate further research in future on this topic. Since it is a broad topic, there is wide scope of future research and researchers might find out new avenues to link the study of this topic with disciplines that have not been studied before with regard to organizational learning. Nature and extent of the issues Studies on â€Å"organizational learning and knowledge† (Argote and Spektor, 2011, p. 1124) are getting diversified due to the inclusion of a wide variety of ways in which knowledge is being created in present times and is being communicated. The authors of â€Å"Organizational learning: From experience to knowledge† have identified the themes that are currently emerging in this field. This paper sets the scope for further research on these themes and develops the platform that would enrich the researchers’ understandin g of the core topic. In this paper, it has been emphasised that creation of new knowledge and its smooth transfer across all levels of the organization is as important as proper retention of knowledge. In this paper transfer of knowledge is used synonymously with the notion of communication of knowledge. Proper learning through experiences is central to organizational prosperity (Taylor and Greve, 2006). It leads to greater understanding of the vision of the organization, fulfilment of the promises it has made towards its shareholders and the society and an overall improvement in organizational practice (Greve, 2003). Communication of knowledge within an organization is important due to various reasons. It

Marketing and the Apple global organization Research Paper

Marketing and the Apple global organization - Research Paper Example The history of Apple Inc. dates back to the early 1970’s when Steve Jobs along with Ronald Wayne and Steve Wozniak established the technology firm. Apple is presently headquartered in California, USA. The company together with its subsidiaries develops and markets laptops, portable music players, desktop computers, mobile communication devices and several other gadgets. Apple has a global presence and functions with around 370 Apple exclusive stores. As of 2011 the company employed 60,400 people throughout the world (â€Å"Apple Inc.†). Some of the evident products that have made Apple one of the biggest technical giants of the world are I-Phone, I-Pad, I-Pod and various software products. The Mac OS X in the software category has been able to revolutionize the computing experience of the users. If reports are to be believed, within few years from now the company will be launching I-car, a four wheeler car with unique style and design resembling the official logo of App le. From the days of its inception Apple is highly sensitive towards its marketing strategies. The company tactically develops its business strategies for the purpose of retaining and gaining customers. This is the reason why we find Apple launching new products in every 2-3 years. Apple mainly distributes its product through whole sellers, retailers and Apple owned exclusive stores. The company has large number of competitors in direct and indirect form. Hewlett Packard, Dell, Google and Research in Motion Limited are the direct competitors of the company (â€Å"AAPL Competitors†).... In this article the author discussed about the unique marketing initiatives of Apple Inc. Furthermore the article highlighted some interesting facts about the company. In the introduction part of the article the author demonstrated about the hype that Apple creates before launching a product in the market place. To cite an instance it showcased how the brand loyal customers of Apple spend a night outside an Apple store, just for the purpose of buying the new product from the company. The article offered a number of unique marketing strategies of the company. Some of the evident among them are as follows: - Apple has been long facing issues with the product knowledge of its sales staffs. This problem made it more complex for the company to notify the potential customers about the unique features that it offers. Hence the company decided to open ‘a store just for Apple’ or an Apple exclusive store. In this article it has been also highlighted that the products of Apple com es in the form of a complete package, so that users do not have to search for any add-ons. In accordance to this statement the author mentioned the example of I-Pod and free music via Apple I-tunes. The product strategy of the company has been also emphasized in this article. Apple uses a varied product strategy, in which they offer various portable gadgets at a low cost to the consumer, with a feeling that these customers may consider buying an Apple computer in the near future. The author also clearly explains about the extensive research and development that the company carries out for the purpose of offering quality products. Furthermore in the article few promotional

New Venture Development Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

New Venture Development Business Plan - Essay Example It is a private company incorporated in Hong Kong. There is a shift towards consumption of organic foods in China, especially in Hong Kong city because of extensive campaigns urging people to embrace organic products. Increasing population, high number of food poisoning scares as well as need for healthy eating is driving demand of organic vegetables and fruits to the roof in Hong Kong. Therefore, organic products markets is growing rapidly and is promising higher returns to investors. The business is a limited private company owned by a single person. The owner of the company contributed HK$106,000 and borrowed HK$60,000 to finance start-up and part of the working capital. Table of Contents 4.4 Regulatory requirements 8 4.5 Industry challengers 9 5.0 Customer 9 5.1 Understanding the customer 9 5.2 Target customer profile 10 6.0 Competition 10 6.1 Competitor Analysis 10 6.1.1 Direct Competitors 11 6.1.2 Indirect Competitors 11 6.2 Competitive analysis 11 6.2.1 Competitive Advantages 11 6.3 Entry and Growth Strategy 12 7.1 Objectives 13 7.5 The Product 14 8.1 Overview 15 8.2 Pricing strategy 15 8.3 Sales Tactics 16 8.4 Advertising and Promotion 16 8.5 Marketing Communications Strategy 16 9.0 Operations Plan 17 10.2 Personnel Plan 19 11.1 Start-up Summary 20 11.3 Breakeven analysis 21 11.4 Balance Sheet 21 11.5 Income Statement 21 11.6 Cash Flows 21 13.0 References 23 14.0 Appendixes 24 1.0 Introduction The organic vegetable and fruit market has been growing steadily in Hong Kong. This is because disposable income of people in China, especially Hong Kong is steadily increasing. In addition, in recent years, there have been incidences of food poisoning caused by chemical components in food and more people are shying away from chemically processed food. They are becoming more health conscious and are spending thousands of dollars to purchase organic products, especially food. Therefore, the market segment for organic vegetables and fruits is promising. 2.0 The orga nic vegetable concept After working in a grocery shop for over one year, Tim Chan discovered that most consumers in Hong Kong were turning to organic foods especially vegetables and fruits because they were consumed on daily basis. This is because of rising concerns of food poisoning and danger posed by processed and non-organic food to people’s health as informed by the media and health care practitioners. Four in every eighty consumers who visited the food store where Tim Chan worked asked for organic fruits and vegetables. Therefore, Tim Chan identified a growing opportunity to run an organic food store that specialized in vegetables and fruits sourced locally and from western countries. 3.0 Opportunity Rational China is one of the fast growing and lucrative markets in the world with a huge business promise to thirsty entrepreneurs and business persons. As disposable income increases in urban China, people are more preoccupied with higher standard of living and are turning to organic products, especially food to achieve better health status. China’s Urban and rural population spent between 37.9% and 43.7% of their disposable income on food (Lu ,2010). The market for organic food is big and unquenchable. According to (NTZE 2010), the supply of organic foods in China, especially Hong Kong is very low and there is need to increase supply. In addition, food and grocery market segment is expected to grow by 6.6% and 6.1% in 2011 and 2012 respectively. High demand for organic frui

Life Situations Represented through Graphs Essay

Life Situations Represented through Graphs - Essay Example The total amount paid in electricity bills for the last 10 months was $384, meaning that The average amount of electricity bill per month was $384/10 = $38.4 During 5 of the last 10 months, the electricity bill was above average of $38.4 and for the remaining 5, it was below the average amount. In terms of trend, the monthly electricity cost for the house increased from October 2010 onwards and reached a maximum of $49 in December 2010 before starting to decrease again. It has been decreasing since then. The graph is non-linear as no three successive points lie on the same line; although, the overall graph looks like a half sine curve with a clear peak during December 2010 and January 2011. The months of December 2010 to February 2010 had very high electricity bills compared to other months. In other words, the winter months had much higher electricity bills compared to spring and fall. This means that the consumption of electricity is rather seasonal. This seems natural as there is no heating required in the house during spring and fall, while the heating appliances are kept on during the winter months, which increases the consumption of electricity. It is likely that this trend would continue over the years although the peaks and the troughs in the graph can be brought lower by using energy efficient devices. References Glencoe. (n.d.).

Competing with Information Technology Essay Example for Free

Competing with Information Technology Essay Chapter 2 introduces fundamental concepts of competitive advantage through information technology and illustrates major strategic applications of information systems. Information Technology (IT) professionals must understand how to use IT systems and technology to deliver a competitive advantage to the organization. Information systems and technology should provide more than a cost savings benefit to organizations. Today, IT solutions are expected to provide the means to surpass a competitor’s performance. As discussed in Chapter 1, the role of IT professionals is changing. Currently, there is an evolving term, business technology, which is used to describe the emerging role in IT. IT professionals are becoming more and more integrated with the business operations of an organizations. The Real World Case Study 4, IT Leaders: Reinventing IT as a Strategic Business Partner, describes how one organization is reorganizing to better utilize IT to increase business benefits and contribute to a competitive advantage. It is important for an IT organization to utilize IT to reduce the cost of running the business, grow the business, or develop new services to change the business. To position an organization to better provide its products and services, an understanding of the competitive forces is needed. Michael Porter identifies five threats that require business strategies ensure that an organization can out-perform other competitors. They are: 1. Rivalry of competitors within its industry 2. Threat of new entrants 3. Threat posed by substitute products that might capture its market share 4. The bargaining power of customers 5. The bargaining power of suppliers To counteract these threats, competitive strategies must be developed to address the potential risks an organization may encounter as it strives to maintain its position on the market place. The competitive strategies are: 1. Cost Leadership Strategy 2. Differentiation Strategy 3. Innovation Strategy 4. Growth Strategies 5. Alliance Strategies 6. Other Strategies These strategies can be used either individually or in a combination to position an organization to better compete for the future. An example of an organization that is utilizing IT to change how it does business and remain economically viable in the future is the online magazine Cross Talk. In the 1990’s, Cross Talk was printing and mailing the magazine to subscribers. With a decrease in funding, this organization had to develop ways to reduce costs, deliver its services to its subscribers, grow its subscriber base, demonstrate its value above other on-line content providers, and justify why it should not be eliminated. Cross Talk is now available at its new website in either an online digital flipbook format or PDF version—CrossTalk is now completely electronic. This change reduces their carbon footprint and allows them to bring the journal to their readers in their preferred and most convenient format. This is also CrossTalks first step towards reaching new reader devices and enhancing the suitability of the journal for our increasing electronic readership. Customer Value Customer value has become a driving force in the world economy. A key success factor for many organizations is developing customer value by increasing customer loyalty, anticipate their future needs, respond to customer concerns, and provide top-quality customer service. One example is Southwest Airlines. Not only have they automated ticket sales via the Internet, Southwest also sends special offers regarding discounts available at my destination, emails to remind customers that the trip is around the corner, text alerts if a flight is delayed, and offers incentives to fly with them. It seems that Southwest Airlines provides a personal assistant to help make the travel experience more enjoyable. Think about how some of your favorite businesses are creating customer value for you. Internet Technologies Many organizations use Internet technologies to create a strategy to offer fast, responsive, high-quality products and services tailored to a customer’s individual preferences. Internet technologies make customers the focal point of customer relationship management (CRM) and other e-business applications. New technologies such as wikis and blogs are also being incorporated as a means to provide enhanced customer experience. Such communications enable continual interaction with customers by creating a cross-functional collaboration with customers in product development, marketing, delivery, service, and technical support. Television is taking advantage of this capability. TV news shows are reading and answering emails and some reality TV shows allow views to vote for their favorite contestant, preferred ending, or favorite commercial. Using the Internet technologies, business units are better able to shape and offer products and services. Value Chain The value chain is another concept that helps to identify opportunities for strategic information systems. It views an organization as a series of basic activities that add value to its products and services. In this framework, activities are organized into primary and support processes. From the business understanding gained by analyzing an organization’s value chain, the IT organization can determine where to best apply IT systems and technology. The following value chain graphic provides an example of how and where information technologies can be applied to specific business processes to gain a competitive advantage in the market place. Value chain offered by information technologies. Business Reengineering Often times, to remain competitive, an organization must consider more than just where and what IT systems and technology solutions should applied. An organization must look at how it actually does business and then reengineer its business processes. Business reengineering requires an organization to re-design how it does business by eliminating stove-piped, silo organizations and functions, develop an improved understanding for opportunities for information sharing, and instituting enhanced stewardship regarding an organizations data and business processes. Agile Companies The rate of change is increasing and organizations must be able to quickly respond to changing market trends. Standardized, long-lived products and services are giving way to globalized, niche markets which offer products that are individualized and short-lived. To become an agile organization, an organization must consider the following strategies. 1. Provide a solution that customers perceive as a solution to an individual problem. This allows the product to be priced based on value rather than cost to produce. 2. Cooperate with customers suppliers, and other companies to quickly bring the product to market. 3. Thrive on change and uncertainty. 4. Leverage the individuals and knowledge of the processes. Become entrepreneurial in spirit. Knowledge as a Competitive Advantage To remain competitive, organization must become a learning organization. Organizations must be able to capture the knowledge of the organization, learn from this knowledge, and then use it to enhance its offerings. Knowledge Management Systems facilitates an organization’s ability to capture and then utilize its knowledge. Understanding and being able to utilize this unstructured date is key to developing and maintain a competitive advantage. Information capture includes processes, procedures, patents, reference works, best practices, etc. This integration of knowledge helps an organization become an innovative and agile provider of high-quality products and customer services, and potentially a more formidable competitor in the market place. Leaders in information technology are expected to be not only a technology professional but also a business professional. Many are tasked with finding emerging business opportunities, driving growth, encouraging innovation, and engaging customers. This provides a tremendous opportunity for you to step up and co-create and ultimately shape the future business vision. Collaborating with the business will not be enough—you dont just provide the technology but jointly own the success and failure of business initiatives. IT Portfolio Management and Governance An emerging trend is enhanced IT Portfolio Management and Governance as a means to effectively apply IT systems and technology to business needs. According to Richard Spires, DHS CIO, in his blog post entitled Getting Program Governance Right Helps Ensure Success on the federal CIO Council Web site: Complex IT systems encompass at least a half-dozen stakeholder organizations that must be synchronized, including the strategy organization, the business or mission owner of the system, IT, finance, procurement, security, and privacy. Ensuring all key stakeholders are involved in key decisions is an essential element to assuring genuine alignment. Program Governance Boards provide guidance, decision-making, and oversight of one or more programs. The function of the Program Governance Board is not to usurp the authorities of the Program Manager (PM), but rather to provide a forum by which the PM can bring key issues and trade-off decisions to an informed, empowered body that has a vested interest in that program’s success and views the PM as a trusted advisor and true subject matter specialist. IT organizations must determine where to invest time, people, and money in current and new IT systems and services in order to enhance the value of products and services. To do this, many organizations are categorizing offerings into individual portfolios and establishing a strong governance structure to guide the selection and investment into solutions. Enterprise Architecture Organizations are establishing an Enterprise Architecture (EA) to inform, guide and constrain the investment decisions made by governance boards regarding IT systems. The Federal CIO Council defines EA as: Enterprise Architecture is a strategic information asset base, which defines the mission, the information necessary to perform the mission and the technologies necessary to perform the mission, and the transitional processes for implementing new technologies in response to changing mission needs. An enterprise architecture includes a baseline architecture, target architecture (sometimes referred to an as-is and to-be), and a sequencing plan. An EA identifies which processes and IT systems to standardize and integrate. The benefits of an EA are reduction in IT Costs, improved IT responsiveness, guides the proper selection of IT solutions to ensure the accomplishment strategic business outcomes. The components of an enterprise architecture is described in the figure below: Various layers of an enterprise architecture. (Source: NIST) Conclusion How does your organization determine how to invest in IT? You might see if one of your organization’s senior executives is available for a 30 minute meeting to discuss how the organization determines what technologies to invest in as a corporation. Think about questions to ask. Some examples might be: how is an business need identified? How are IT investments justified? Who are your competitors? If you work for an IT consulting firm, you might as how the company decides what contracts it will bid on. It can be said that our use of IT systems and technology is equivalent to when we were using rotary telephones. As you complete your Masters Program at UMUC, remain watchful of emerging trends in the IT industry, how it will be utilized to gain a competitive advantage, and what impact it will have on the skills needed by an IT professional and the organization structure required to take advantage of the advancements in technology. Trends currently occurring that may be worth watching are: cloud computing, software as a service, virtualization, social networks, and mobile computing. It is through developing learning as a life-long habit, remaining aware of trends in the industry, and understanding the impact that technology has on a company’s ability to compete that you, as an individual, will be able to keep your skills current, agile, and competitive.

The Current Legislation Essay Example for Free

The Current Legislation Essay 1.1: Identify the current legislation and codes of practice relevant to the promotion of equality and valuing of diversity. In every school, they will have a set of policies which will put in place in order to set out the procedures and guidelines in order to ensure that equality is within the school. These policies are extremely important within a school as this will allow all staff and students to understand the importance of equality and so that they take into account rights off all different individual and different groups within in the school for example religion. These policies will work to in ensure inclusion and equality and not only cover teaching and learning within a classroom but with all different other needs, such as aspects of school life. It can be seen as an important part of a role to have an understanding on the relevant legislations and the purpose these have been set into place. This will enable you to have a greater knowledge into your role and the responsibility of actually following these legislations and policies. Through having an understanding on these roles, it will also give you a greater knowledge on legal duties of the school. Legislations are put in place on purpose to support different factors. Here are a list of a range of different legislations, which form a basis of government statutory codes of practice and frameworks and school policies and procedures relating to equal opportunity and inclusive practice. Equality act 2010: This new act sets out legal duty of all public bodies to provide equality and opportunity for all people. Special educational needs and disability act 2001: This act makes it impossible and unlawful for any educational provider to discriminate against pupils with special educational needs or a disability. Human rights act 1998: This act ensures that every individual has right to take legal action of their right have been affected. Education act 1996: The purpose of this act is that schools have responsibilities towards children with special educational needs and it is required from them to provide additional resources, equipment and support to meet their needs. Children act 1989: the purpose of this act is the duty of local authorities, including schools to provide services according to the needs of children and to ensure their safety and wellbeing. Children act 2004: sets out the legal duty to provide effective and accessible services for all children and underpins the 5 every child matters outcomes. Disability discrimination act 1995: this act protects the rights off all those people who have disabilities. It places legal duty on schools as well as any other organisation, to eliminate barriers to ensure that all disable people can gain equal access to services provided. Disability discrimination act 2005: the purpose of this act is to ensure every school has to produce a disability equality scheme and an access plan. It is about every school having a plan on how to accommodate children with disabilities as well as parents who have the same. Race relations act 2000 (amendment): all organisations have to promote good relationships between people from all different races.

The Influences Upon Steven Berkoff

The Influences Upon Steven Berkoff Upon studying Steven Berkoff as a practitioner I have always profoundly noted that his theories are very hard to define due to their ever changing and versatile nature. The lack of official documentation on Berkoffs theories makes it especially hard to fully comprehend what exactly the Berkovian performance style involves and dictates. Fortunately he has written a few journals which chronicle the rehearsal and creative process he has gone through for his various productions. Among these publications is Mediations on Metamorphosis (1995), a journal of Berkoffs time spent in Japan directing the tenth major production of Metamorphosis, and Coriolanus in Deutschland (1992) which chronicles the rehearsal process for his 1988 production of Coriolanus in Munich, Germany. However, these journals are primarily autobiographical and lack much theoretical context. In 1969, Steven Berkoff presented the debut of his adaptation of Frank Kafkas Metamorphosis at the Round House Theatre in London. Thi s production was significant because Berkoff serving for the first time as writer/adapter, director, and actor in a full-length project presented an aesthetic which would become identified as his artistic trademark. Metamorphosiscombined elements of Brechtian Epic Theatre by using actors to purposefully represent characters rather than become them; Antonin Artauds Theatre of Cruelty by breaking from traditional theatre texts and asking the actors to bare their inner thoughts as if they were human-sacrifices to create ritualistic theatre; Jean-Louis Barraults total-theatre by using all possible means to uncover the meaning conscious or otherwise of the play; and Jacques Le Coqs theories of mime, movement, masks, and ensemble, by using the performers to create the environment. Berkoff has also been seen to incorporate some of the visual techniques used in Kabuki, a highly stylized, highly rhythmic classicalJapanese form of theatre. Kabuki music rises about the body of the actor. I t does not impose itself upon the actor, but instead gives musical and rhythmic expression to his movement, and in doing so increases the flow of theatrical expressiveness toward the audience. (1974, p.113) Another aspect of Japanese Kabuki is evident in Berkoffs dealings with masks and face paint. Even though Berkoff appropriated production styles from others and adapted the spoken words from a novel, the end result was uniquely Berkovian. In Mediation of Metamorphosis (1995) Berkoff seems to somewhat challenge someone to define his style when he writes, More than ever I feel my work develop into a kind of school, not by rigid formula but by learning certain techniques which expand your ideology and communication skills. (1995, p.137) There are themes that have undeniably remained relatively constant throughout Berkoffs work, themes that can be seen as somewhat of a base to the Berkovian theoretical framework. These themes I speak of are routed mainly in the belief that the actors instincts should be trusted over all else and the job of theory is to help evoke these instincts. Berkoffs common themes of extensive physical expression, transformation, and over-exaggerated experimental emphasis upon the spoken word should therefore be used as a means to evoke and exaggerate the ac tor instincts when dealing with the character. The atmosphere is in the sound which should come from the throats of the actors. Therefore their sound can control and amplify their situation, since people make sounds as well as moving and speaking. This is total and human, and in this way you return to the actor his mimetic gifts and his oral expressiveness. At the same time one is seeing the situation in human terms, as a story told to us by players. (Gambit, 1978, p.17) Berkoff believes actors should create their own sounds and so breaks traditional mime conventions. Like many of Le Coqs students, Berkoff freely changes the pure form of mime to create his own individual style. Surprisingly Le Coq encourages this practice as it essential to his belief in allowing the actor to work as an individual, believing it is important to be open and not to copy the style of someone else because you will never be as good as he is. Each is better in his own style (Lust, p.106).In drawing from this extract it is clear that I believe Berkoff is often sometimes regarded too highly for originating his performance style when thinking in particular about his instruction of individual development. Most of his performance style is derived from Le Coq who has been proven to have firm roots in the practice of Commedia delle Arte. It seems that most of the Berkovian individuality stems from his Berkoffs own mannerisms. InModern and Post-Modern Mime, Thomas Leabhart summariz es the influences upon Le Coq: Lecoqsschool is one of those theatres that, rather than being a rsum of what has happened, has helped young performers find new directions and so revitalize the theatre. Lecoqs whole vision of the theatre is like Copeaus, remain on the fringes of the commercial theatre, not wanting to give themselves to it as it exists. They, like their teacher, work apart, preserve their artistic vision, nurture their strength, and steadily increase their power to influence the course of theatre history. (1989, p.101-102) Like Lusts definition of postmodern mime, Leabharts summary of Le Coqs influence is applicable to Berkoff. Previously in 1973, Berkoff and The London Group declared their own mission statement: To express drama in the most vital way imaginable; to perform at the height of ones powers with all the available means. That is, through the spoken word, gesture, mime and music. Sometimes the emphasis on one, sometimes on the other.(Theatre Quarterly, 1978, p.39) This philosophical statement is an ideal example of the constants that have remained throughout Berkoffs subsequent career; stylised movement, mime, exaggerated vocal work, direct address, asides, and improvisation are components of nearly every Berkovian performance. Berkoff expects actors to willingly sacrifice themselves physically and emotionally, ready to perform whatever tasks are necessary to illuminate the text. When dealing with texts, as a director, Berkoff does not seek to produce a literal reproduction of texts on stage. It rare to see Berkoff relying on the intent of the author, instead he uses the texts to relay his own ideas on stage. He hasnt denied this. He said himself said that his version of Hamlet (1979) was a dissection of the play (I am Hamlet, 1989), and his staging of Agamemnon was attempted as an analysis of the play rather than a realistic rendering. (2007, p.123) Berkoff predominantly always sees the set as his own responsibility as he believes that it is vital in accordance with his desired aesthetic and theoretical projection. Most of the time he is seen to use minimalist sets usually consisting of one stationary prop, a sofa or a table for example. He believes that any mental environment desired can be created using mime and so it is unnecessary for excessive use of props. Many of his works have been performed in tight close quarter environments with extensive use of glaring light and shadow which seek to emphasize the physical presence on stage. Forever on a quest for vitality Berkoff is very prone to break theatrical conventions, resulting in a style of heavily a contradictory nature. These contradictions are a spouse of his determination to see how I could bring mime together with the spoken word as its opposite partner, creating the form and structure of the piece (1995, p.53). Characteristics such as this can be easily traced to his training with Jacques Le Coq, whom Thomas Leabhart, author of And Post-Modern Mime (1989), as modern teaching mime to talk. (1989, p.101) To fuse these opposites, Berkoff relies on mime, a traditionally silent form, yet he cherishes the spoken word; his productions are very over-the-top energy wise yet depend on great subtlety; the actor should never show himself to be self-conscious yet his presented self is very much so; Berkoff carefully choreographs movement yet he encourages improvisation. Other sources of Berkovian theory is rooted in interviews and short articles (some of which Berkoff has written) which have been printed in various journals. One the most significant of these articles titled Three Theatre Manifestos. (1978) In an interview present in the Three Theatre Manisfestos (1978) Berkoff outlines his philosophy which, according to him, has changed little through the years; he summarizes his theories by stating: In the end there is only the actor, his body, mind and voiceThe actor exists without the playhe can improvise, be silent, mime, make sounds and be a witness. (1978, p.11) Another extract from Three Theatre Manifestos depicts Berkoff sounding remarkably similar to Antoni Artaud and his Threatre of Cruelty: Acting for me is the closest metaphor to human sacrifice on the stage; (1978, p.7) other echo the thoughts of Brecht By describing the accident, the witness becomes the accident; he is there reliving it. (1978, p.11) The visual elements of a Berkovian production are strikingly stark. Classical Greek theatre, Japanese Kabuki, and Vsevelod Meyerholds constructivism, are particularly influential on Berkoffs visual aesthetic.By mixing minimal sets with very theatrical costumes, masks, and lighting, the visual focus is on the actor. Though the costumes draw attention to themselves, they serve to emphasize the performer and help to create the environment and the characterization. To draw a conclusion on Berkoffs authenticity in theatre one must take at look at his work in a broader sense. Berkoffs contribution and influence upon theatre is clear, but his place as a name in history in questionable. Berkoffs performance aesthetic will undoubtedly always exist in various different forms but whether he will be credited with association is a question for future historians. However because his work is thoroughly grounded in the works of many famous theatre names his style will undoubtedly be incorporated into many future artists works knowingly or not. Bibliography: Berkoff, S (1995) Mediations on Metamorphosis, London: Faber and Faber Berkoff, S (1978) Three Theatre Manifestos.Gambit vol.32 p.7-21 Berkoff, S (1989) I am Hamlet. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, Interview with Anthony Claire.Anthony Claire Show. BBC Radio, London. N. dat. Berkoff, S (1996) Agamemnon and The Fall of the House of Usher. Oxford: Amber Lane Press Elder, B (1978) Doing the Inexpressible Uncommonly Well. Theatre Quarterly, p.37-43 Ernst, E (1974) The Kabuki Theatre, Hawaii, University of Hawaii Press Leabhart, T (1989) Modern and Post-Modern Mime. New York: St. Martins. Lust, A (2000) From the Greek Mimes to Marcel Marceau and Beyond: Mimes, Actors, Pierrots, and Clowns: A Chronicle Of The Many Visages Of Mime In Theatre. Kent, Scarecrow. Keefe, J (2007) Physical theatres: A Critical Reader, London, Routledge

African Elephant :: essays papers

African Elephant The common name is the African Elephant, the scientific name is Loxodonta Africana, the phylum is Vertebrata, the class is Mammalia, the order is Proboscidea, and the family is Elephantidae. The Closest Relatives to the African Elephant are: the Asian Elephant, mammoths, primitive proboscidean (mastodons), sea cows, and hyraxes. Scientists believe that the African Elephant evolved from one of its closest relatives, the Sea Cow. The geographical location and range of the African elephant covers all of central and southern Africa. In Ethiopia there are isolated populations that exist around Lake Chad in Mali and Mauritania. Also in Kenya, Rhodesia, Tanzania, Zambia, Uganda, Zaire, and in National parks located in South Africa, as well as several other countries. African Elephants, originally, were found in all of the Sub-Saharan African habitats except desert steppes. Elephants still occupy diverse habitats such as: temperate grassland, tropical savanna and grass lands, temperate fores t and rainforest, tropical rainforest, tropical scrub forest, and tropical deciduous forest despite their drastic decline in numbers. However, their migratory patterns and habitat use have changed, due to the fact that they are restricted to protected areas. The elephant can exist in many types of environments but it prefers places that have many trees and bushes, which the elephant needs both for food and shade. They also like warm areas that have plenty of rainfall. This ensures plenty of food, shade, and water. The elephant prefers a habitat of mixed woodland and grassland which gives them an opportunity to eat a variety of vegetation. African Elephants are considered herbivores, they are both browsers and grazers; they will eat rough sticks, stems and leaves of plants as well as grasses, sedges, and fruit. Their favorites are mangoes, berries and coconuts. An elephant eats up to 500 pounds of vegetation every day and drinks up to 50 gallons of water daily. Elephants must consume these giant quantities of food, due to their poor digestive system. The small intestine is 82 feet long, the large intestine 21 feet long, and the rectum adds a further 13 feet. The problem with the digestive tract lies in their gut; elephants have too few symbiotic bacteria. These are the organisms which help break down the cellulose of plant cell walls by producing enzymes called cellulases. The most remarkable feature of the elephant’s digestive system is its 5 feet long appendix, bigger than the stomach.

A Solution to E-Waste Essays -- Recycling Electronics

Over the past decade there was a profound development achieved in the sphere of high technologies production. Now the scale of electronics market becomes wider and spins up day by day with a cyclic launch of new electronic appliances with enhanced features. â€Å"According to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), consumers were expected to purchase 500 million units of consumer electronics in the US in 2008.† (Electronics Takeback coalition, 2010) Consequently, a clear tendency toward rapid substitution of electronic appliances can be observed. A high rate in electronics upgrading shortens their lifespan and results in following stockpiling of needless gadgets, which become a part of municipal waste. These end-of-life electronic devices are often called â€Å"electronic waste, or e-waste†. As Brett H. Robinson (2009) claims, now worldwide production of e-waste reaches approximately 20-25 million tons being discarded every year with the largest proportion in Europ e, the United States and Australasia. Hence, the problem of e-waste disposal management grows into a serious global challenge. As it was reported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2.6 million tons of electronic waste were generated in 2005 and only estimated 330,000 tons were recycled. (Kim A. O'Connell, 2007) Thereby a very small percentage of electronic waste undergoes recycling process, as a considerable part is stockpiled in landfills or incinerated with the rest of solid municipal waste. This essay will present main points of e-waste management issue, analyze possible approaches to the problem, such as export to developing countries for re-use, takeback and recycling programs, or so-called extended producer responsibility. Finally, the essay will sum up w... ... Waste Age 88-92 Robinson, B.H. 2009. E-waste: an assessment of global production and environmental impacts. Science for the total environment 408(2): 183-191. http://www.kiwiscience.com/JournalArticles/STOTEN2009.pdf (accessed January 4, 2011) Stephenson, J.B. 2008. Electronic Waste: Harmful U.S. exports flow virtually unrestricted because of minimal EPA enforcement and narrow regulation. United States Government Accountability Office, http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d081166t.pdf (accessed October 28, 2010) Umesi, N.O. and S. Onyia. 2008. Disposal of –ewastes in Nigeria: an appraisal of regulations and current practices. International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology 15(6): 565-573. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?hid=22&sid=33791215-436d-410f-a19b-47492b147141%40sessionmgr14&vid=7 (accessed January 4, 2011)

Simple Harmonic Motion Essay -- essays research papers

OBJECT:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The objective of this lab is to obtain the spring constant by using the simple harmonic motion of the spring-mass system. Once the spring constant is obtained it is to be compared to the spring constant obtained by Hooke’s Law. PROCEDURE: 1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Using a meter stick measure the distance from the attached point of the spring to the end of the spring, at this time there is to be no mass on the spring. Once this measurement is obtained the elongations can be calculated by subtracting the new measurements from this first measurement. 2)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Add a weight to the spring and record the distance. The new distance is to be subtracted from the first distance. 3)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Using the same weight pull the mass down an additional 20cm. Once the spring is elongated it is to be let go. When the spring is released from it’s elongated position the stopwatch is started. Once the spring has returned to it’s original starting position 25 times the timer is to be stopped and the time is recorded. Once two times are taken for every weight increment they are to be averaged together. 4)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Steps 2 and 3 are to be repeated eight times using a new weight each time. 5)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When all eight trials are done the spring is to be weighed and recorded. SAMPLE CALCULATIONS Mass used in each trial, in kilograms: - 50 g / 1000 g = 0.05 kg Elongation...

How does Frost tell the story in ‘The Wood †Pile’? Essay

In the poem ‘The Wood – Pile’ Robert Frost uses a very tight structure, it is a sum of one stanza which he has used in other poems such as â€Å"Out Out -†. This poem is first person narration, which is another thing that a lot of Frost poems share in common, the setting of the poem is introduced in the first line of the poem ‘the frozen swap’ this releases visual imagery straight away. The last two words of the first line of the poem ‘gray day’ Frost uses internal rhyme the theme of the poem is nature it is set outside and it also it involves tree’s and birds Frost tells the story using this as the stake and the prop is natural resources and the wood-pile is society and because we are using nature up, it is soon going to collapse. Line four of the poem â€Å"No I will go on farther – and we shall see† here the person in the poem is conveying a journey which is long, it is as if this person is trying to prove something to themselves, Frost uses this to tell the story in ‘The Wood-Pile’ showing how this poem is moving forward it is an expedition. ‘The hard snow held me, save where now and then’ the words used here come across as very harsh as snow is normally soft not hard, this inflicts the change in the nature in the area of where the narrator is it always uses visual imagery so the picture of the woods is shown. ‘A small bird flew before me’ A technique that Frost uses is anthropomorphism which is used for the bird, as he shows him as if it is his â€Å"last stand†. Whilst the bird is being spoken about, the narrator Is distracted by a piece of wood , Frost uses this to tell the story displaying how you can be distracted easily causing you to forget about the previous, this is conveyed very well within the next few lines as the bird is forgotten of and something new has become a sudden interest, ‘And then there was a pile of wood for which I forgot him and let his little fear carry him’ here it is clear that wood has been discovered, foreshadowing there is more to the wood adding onto the whole story of the poem. ‘It was older sure than this year’s cuttings or even last years or the years before’ the wood has been cut up and left, we know this as it has been chopped, this gives a mystery to the poem as it immediately involves somebody else, the person who had chopped the wood, another mystery is why the wood has been left, Frost tells the story as it leads a wondering into how humanity can spend so much time creating a structured order only to abandon it. The last line of the poem related back to the ‘frozen swamp’ ending the poem at where it had begun.