Thursday, October 31, 2019
Discuss the role of hydrocholoric acid in protecting the body from Essay
Discuss the role of hydrocholoric acid in protecting the body from disease.Explain signs and symptoms associated with low gastric acidity - Essay Example Moreover, chronic conditions such as asthma, allergies and gallstones have been implicated in the reduced acid secretion (Ahmed 34). Most common age related factors, that causes impaired digestion, is the decline in the hydrochloric acid production in the stomach. This thus shows that hydrochloric acid plays a crucial role in the gastrointestinal tract. Digestion of food substances starts when food enters the mouth and progresses as the food is passed to the stomach, small and large intestines. When food reaches the stomach, gastric secretions are released which consist of; HCL, pepsinogen and a mucus layer that acts as a protective layer. The amount of HCL increases as digestion of food progresses. The ph of the stomach is maintained by HCL at 1 and 2.Apart from the digestion, the HCL helps in protection of the body against diseases (Barney 78). HCL plays a vital role in the protection of the body from pathogens. It does so by maintaining a sterile environment in the stomach, this is through protection against pathogens that are ingested during food intake. Pathogens cannot achieve overgrowth in the small intestines due to the action of this acid hence the gastrointestinal tract remains free of pathogens. Research has also shown that a common pathogen in the stomach, E coli is inactivated in the stomach when acidity is high at 1.5to 4.Inactivation of this organism thus eliminates possible E coli infection (Forleo 125). Low acidity of the stomach leads to fast invasion of microorganisms from the colon and bacterial colonization and overgrowth of bacteria hence leading to infection. Thus, hydrochloric acid is vital in body defense. Researchers have also found out that reduced levels of hydrochloric acid leads to infection by H. pylori which is one of the most common pathogen that cause chronic bacterial infection. It also causes gastritis, gastric carcinoma, gastric ulcers and B-cell gastric carcinoma. This acid also
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
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 competitorââ¬â¢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 1990ââ¬â¢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 versionââ¬âCrossTalk 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 customerââ¬â¢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 organizationââ¬â¢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 organizationââ¬â¢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 enoughââ¬âyou 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 programââ¬â¢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 organizationââ¬â¢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 companyââ¬â¢s ability to compete that you, as an individual, will be able to keep your skills current, agile, and competitive.
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Introduction To Business Strategy Of Cricket Marketing Essay
Introduction To Business Strategy Of Cricket Marketing Essay Organizational strategy gives an idea about the organization that what the organization want to achieve and the they the processing to achieve their wants. It basically includes the purpose of the organization. Its considering that goals and objectives, and the plans and methods to achieve. A strategy also involves the determination of the entire basic long term goals as well as objectives of the organization.Ã At the same time, it adopts the courses of action that is necessary and the allocation of all the resources needed to achieve the goals. A business strategy is a report that shows the plans of the entire business. It is a plan that is often used so that they can attract financing from big investors as well as creditors. This is a plan designed to give information regarding a new venture so that they can convince financial backers to invest in the said business. It describes the market opportunities that the business intends to develop, the process on how they are going to do it and the resources that are required to make it possible. Business strategies demonstrate the following roles: 1. It is applied to encourage people to invest in an organization. 2. It is also a tool used to assure creditors about the credit worthiness of the organization. 3. Another role is to persuade banks to lend or perhaps invest money. 4. Last, but not least, business strategy helps you stay focused on the important for your business in order to achieve your goals. It saves your time, energy and money. And since this is necessary, a strategy needs to: Show the lender or the investor that they have a big chance of being repaid and that they will be getting good returns on their investment. Build the necessary confidence for the firm and the capabilities of the owner. Show the investors that there is a very good market for the service or product that you offer. Show you a clear picture where youre heading and how to get there. A good business strategy is the base ingredient for a successful business. However, there are many different kinds of business strategies. The best business strategy should be able to guide your company into a direction wherein the expected internal pressure due to business continuity meets the great demand of the fast changing world for the revolutionary business plans. There are basically three types of strategies in which business holders must concern themselves: 1. The plain strategy or the strategy in general. This refers to how a specific objective will be achieved. The strategy in general mainly concerns the relationship between the results we want to have and the resources that are currently at our disposal. 2. Next is the corporate strategy which defines the market and the business wherein a certain company will operate. Corporate strategy is usually decided through the context of being able to define the companys mission and vision. This is the same as being able to recognize what the company does, why it exists in the first place and what it intends to become in the future. 3. The last type is the competitive strategy which describes a given business the basic that is needed for it to be able to compete. This type of strategy is centered on the companys capabilities, its strengths and weaknesses. This is used in relation to the market characteristics as well as the corresponding abilities, strong points and weaknesses of the competitors. Definition Johnson and Schools define strategy as follows: Strategy is the direction and scope of an organization over the long-term: which achieves advantage for the organization through its configuration of resources within a challenging environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfill stakeholder expectations. Cricket The game Cricket is I have selected for this assignment. Cricket is a sport, which is played between two teams of eleven players each by bat and ball. There are 15 players in one team but only eleven can play. A cricket match is played on a grass field (ground), in the centre, there is a pitch of which is a flat strip of ground 22 yards long. At each end of the pitch, there is wicket of a set of wooden stumps. A player from the fielding team (called the bowler) drive forward a hard, fist-sized cork-ball in from one wicket towards the other. The ball usually bounce once before reaching a player from the opposing team (called the batsman), who defends the wicket from the ball with a wooden Bat. The batsman, making runs between the wickets, with the help of non-striker till he is not given out. Non-striker is standing in near the bowlers wicket and plays an inactive role, to make runs. The other members of the fielding team stands in various positions around the field as fielders. The match is won by the team that scores more runs at the end of the match. Cricket was established before approximately hundred years ago in England. Cricket is the most popular sport in the South Asia, such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka,. It is also a major sport in other countries such as England and Wales, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Bermuda, and West Indies. Batting and bowling are the main factor of the cricket. The aim of the batting team is to score runs as much as possible. When both batsmen successfully move to their respective opposite ends of the wicket one run scored. The aim of the bowling team is to get each batsman out or dismissal and prevent the score of batting team. Dismissals are achieved in a different ways. The most directive way is that the bowler bowl the ball in such a way that it escape the batsmans guard and hits the stumps, unload the bails. While the batsmen are trying to get run and the fielders may to knock stumps by the ball before the batsman has reached the crease which is nearer to the stumps. Other way is that while the fielding side catches the ball before it touch the ground. Once the batsmen are not attempting to score any more runs, the ball is dead and is bowled again (each attempt at bowling the ball is a ball or a delivery). When a batsman dismissal on zero (0) run, called duck out, while batsman di smissal without facing a single delivery, called diamond duck out. The game is divided into overs there are six delivery of balls in each over. At the end of an over, the batting and bowling ends will be change and the bowler will replaced by another bowler of the fielding side. The two umpires also will change positions at this time, and sometimes the fielding positions also may be changed by the captain. When one batsman is given out by the umpire, he will replace by the another batsman to lineup his team. When the tenth batsman is given out, the innings of the batting team will end i.e. all out, since there are always must be two batsman on the pitch. ( in limited overs Cricket, the innings end either when the batting team is all out or the fix number of overs are bowled by the fielding. This type of cricket called as One-day-International. At the end of an innings the two teams exchange roles, the fielding team becoming the batting team and batting team becoming fielding team. The team which has score more runs at the end of the completed match, that team win the match. There are different types of the completing the match for illustrate there may be restrictions on the number of overs. The number of balls in each inning etc. A draw is not an uncommon result in Test cricket, if the team that is last to bat has not scored enough runs to win but has not been dismissed before the end of the play. Cricket is just a game between two teams, which are fighting for win. In cricket there are three types of format i.e. One Day International (ODI), Test Cricket, 20-20 cricket. In ODI there are limits 50 overs per an innings. Both team is bat and bowl alternately. Each team can play only one inning per match. Earlier there are 60 overs in an innings but now its decease up to 50 overs. Test Cricket is the five days game. There are 90 overs of limit in one day or one day ( 8 hours play ). In earlier there are six days game but now its decrease up to the five days. Both team can bat and bowl two time i.e. both team can play two innings. While in 20-20 cricket there are only 2 overs in an innings. This type of cricket recently started in 2007 to play. Pestle analysis It is very important that an organization considers its environment before beginning the marketing process. Environment analysis should be continuous and fees all aspects of planning. The organization al marketing environment is made up of : The internal environment e.g. staffs, office technology, wages and finance etc. The micro-environment e.g. external customers, agents and distributors, suppliers, competitors etc. The macro-environment e.g. political forces, economic forces, social cultural frces and technological forces. P Political Factors E Economic Factors S Social Cultural Factors T Technological Factors Pestle analysis of Cricket 1 Political Factors The political arena has huge influence upon the regulation of cricket and spending power of charm and other games. Now a days political affairs are increasing in the sports. The lead member of selection committee, selecting his state players for the team, though there are other guy is expected for that place in team. Some time selection committee selecting the players by receiving money i.e. corruption. 2 Economic Factors Economic factor is strongly affecting this game. People/players need to consider their economic power/budget. Economic factor is most affecting factor of the sports. If you want to increase our skills and ability and potentiality highly, you have to pay the high rates of fees. In India, many youngsters are good cricketer, but due t their financial problem they are not able to pay high fees. Even if you want to play in major tournament like Rangy Trophy and Tulip Trophy, there is also u have to pay lot. 3 Social Cultural Factors The social and cultural factors influences on games vary from country to country. Its important that such factors are considered. This factor is not more affecting in India. In the earlier, when cricket was discovered, many number of families are not ready to accept this game because its not our game. But today whole the situation is change. Cricket is most popular game in all over the world. 4 Technological Factors Technological is vital for competitive advantage, and is a major driver of globalization. In earlier, there are no more safe guards for the batsmen, so its very tough for them and to play. But now a days, different sports companies are providing their best safe guards for the batsmen such as, helmeted, hand gloves, thumped, allured etc. So, its providing safety to the players and preventing their injuries. Five forces 1 internal game plan Every team have to clear their internal game plans. Batsmen are trying to scoring as much as they can, and bowlers are trying to take wicket and preventing the scoreboard. Here captain is play an important role, he has to change the game plan when its needed. So he should prepare and be ready with alternates plans. Fielders are also helpful to preventing competitors score. 2 External game plan Team should know the strangeness of their competitors. They should not under estimate their competitors. Every team should make proper game plan against their competitors. They should analysis on their competitors, and find out their strong nesses and weaknesses. 3 Environment Environment is most affecting factors in this game. They should know about the environment, where is they are going to play game. Different country are mostly playing in their country and also they are getting their coaching and trainings. Thus different teams are habitual to play in different environment e.g. in Asian Cricket teams such as Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan are likely habitual in high tempera where as the western or Wales country like England, Australia, New Zealand etc are likely habitual to play in cold weather. So when ever they are on tour to another country they should manage and settle their self in different weather. 4 Technology Technology is also important for players. Players can give their best performance by better technologies. Now-a-days new bats, are better than old, safety gourds are providing better safety rather than old on. Training is needy when new technology comes and players are unaware about it. So they need proper training of it that how to use it. 5 Training Training is one of the important factor. Every players or team members need training. Without training they cannot give their best performance. Selection committee prefer those players who are well trained by the technicians and coach. There is one guy who is regularly following them and notice their improvement, he is call as a coach. Success Factor The team has to make game plan for the match. Moreover they should make alternate game plans for the match. Alternates plan very useful when its needed. Batsmen are comes on the field to maximize the score as much as they can, bowlers are comes on the field to get wickets and prevent the score of competitors. Fielders are helping bowlers by their fieldings and preventing the competitors score. Team analysis For team analysis I have selected two teams. One is India and another is Australia. Both team are good, but only one team can win the match. In India, there are very experience players such as, Sachin Tendulkar, Veranda Sewage, Zaire Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh. Sachin hits 48 ODI and 51 TEST Century with 44 batting average approximately. He made more than 29000 runs in Cricket ( include ODI and TEST). Sewage well known for his classic outstanding starts. Sewage likely hitting the balls to pulling the scoreboard fastly. Harbhajan Singh and Zahir Khan are leading bowlers of India. Both were taken more than 200 wickets in ODI and Test respectively. Moreover, there is one guy who is leading the whole team i.e. MS Dhoni. He is good batsman. He always keep their mind cool in every stressfully situation. He take their own decision to win the match. Yuvaraj Singh and and Suresh Riana also can be hard hitter. They both are strong while they are on field. Other side, in Australia there is a one leading captain named Ricky Pointing. He won two times World Cup tournament for his team. There are very good batsman such as Shane Watson, Mike Hussey, David Hussey, Michael Clark, Cameron White. etc. They are very good batsman and all are able to change the game. Shane Watson is always keep his strike rate high that means team run rate is also high. Michael Hussey, Michael Clark and Cameron White can be hard hitter when its needy for team. Moreover there are Doug Bollinger, Brett Lee, Michael Johnson are good bowlers. While there talenders also can bat well. They all can good fields, while they are on ground. Conclusion Plus points are not necessary to win the match. May be some times a team has to lose the match though they have more plus points rather than their competitors. Some times their one mistake can be cause of your lost. Though only one team can win the match, which one will give their best performance in in stressfully situation.
Friday, October 25, 2019
Homosexual Adoption Rights Essay -- Legal Issues, New Jersey, Foster C
New Jerseyââ¬â¢s statewide parenting legislation espouses a progressive stance on the matters of same-sex parenting and child care in the processes of adoption and foster parenting. The Garden State allows for same-sex adoption; allows single homosexuals to adopt; and allows second parent same-sex adoption (ââ¬Å"Same-Sex Adoption Laws,â⬠n.d.). New Jersey has passed progressive laws and policies that prohibit discrimination charged against gay individuals in the adoption process (Sudol, 2010). New Jersey state law also bans discrimination against gay individuals in the foster parent process (2010). New Jersey Statutes Annotated 9:3-43 enables for any person to adopt permitted the said person(s) pass a background investigation and meet adoption criteria for eligibility(N.J.S.A. 9:3-43). Unmarried joint adoptive parents petitioning to adopt a child can do so because of N.J.S.A. 9:3-43. In re Adoption of two Children by H.N.R., 666 A.2d 535 (N.J. Super. 1995) permits second pa rent adoption; this statute exercises the possibility for an individual to petition for shared rights of custody with a parent who already possesses legal parental custody of a child. Several states prohibit joint adoption due to unmarried status. This statute is favorable for unmarried parents seeking to adopt in New Jersey. This New Jersey statute provides for an overall tolerant atmosphere for queer individuals and couples looking to adopt or become foster parents. In summary, laws and policies regarding same-sex adoption vary from state to state. The three common forms of adoptive guardianship are individual (single) parent adoption, joint adoption, and second parent adoption. Firstly, the most traditional type of adoptive parents is the single parent adoption. T... ...loving individuals and couples are being denied the chance of giving orphans a loving home. The numbers of orphans increasing in foster care services are disproportionate to the number of foster parents willing to adopt them. This fact alone without a shadow of a doubt calls to question the involvement federal government to revise law and policy to integrate the needs of same-sex parents and the growing orphan problem in the United States. The investigation of same-sex parents continues to produce evidence suggesting that children growing up in same-sex households report feeling more tolerant of other groups. The quality of parenting and family functioning are not inhibited by the parentââ¬â¢s sexual orientation. Lastly, children raised by same-sex parents do not exhibit psychosocial and emotionally disruptive behaviors (Children Welfare Information Gateway, 2011).
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Al-Fatiha
AL-FATIHA:The essential exacting significance of the articulation ââ¬Å"al-Fati?ahâ⬠is ââ¬Å"The Opener,â⬠which could allude to this Surah being ââ¬Å"the opener of the Book. It is the main part (surah) of the Quran. Its seven verses (ayat) are a petition for the direction, lordship and benevolence of God. This section has a basic part in Islamic supplication(prayer). It is also known as â⬠mother of the bookâ⬠. It is the Mecci Surah of the Holy Quran . THEME:Allah has taught in this Surah to mankind to offer prayer to Him, who is the Lord of this universe before seeking guidance and Who alone can grant it. The reader should have a firm belief that the Creator of the universe is the source of all knowledge and the study of Quran can provide him guidance. Islam requires a man to begin everything with the name of Allah. By doing this he will keep himself far from detestable and wrong deeds. knowledge and the study of Quran can provide him guidance. Allah is the Master, Owner, Sustainer, Provider, Guardian, Sovereign, Ruler, Administrator, Organizer and master of day of judgement and we are answerable to him. VIRTUES:There are numerous ethics related with this Surah. Hazrat Abu Saeed al-Khudri describes: ââ¬Å"While on a voyage we stopped at a place. A young lady came to us and stated: ââ¬Å"The head of this clan has been stung by a scorpion and our men are absent, is there anyone among you who can recount something upon him to treat him?â⬠Then, one of our men obliged her despite the fact that we didn't believe that he knew any such treatment. In any case, our companion went to the boss and discussed something upon him and the boss was cured. Immediately, the boss gave him thirty sheep and gave every one of us drain to drink. When he returned, we asked our companion: ââ¬Å"Did you know anything to present upon him to cure him?â⬠He stated: ââ¬Å"No, I just recounted Umm al-Kitab (i.e. Surah Al-Fatihah) upon him.â⬠We said that don't do anything until the point when we achieve Madinah and ask the Prophet with respect to this (hone and rewardwhether the sheep were legitimate or not for us). TAFSSER:In the Name of Allah: The first ayah of the Surah Al-Fatihah is: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Most Merciful. This phrase is known as the bismillah. It is good to recite it before doing any action.The Meaning of the letter Baa The Baa in the Arabic dialect can have three unique implications:With ââ¬â With/for the sake of Allah.Seeking help ââ¬â Seeking assistance from the name of Allah.Seeking favoring ââ¬â Seeking favoring with the name of Allah.The Meaning of al-Rahman and al-Raheem Both these names are gotten from a similar root letters: raa, haa, meem; which intends to show kindness.They are hence comparable in significance and both are associated with Allah's (SWT) Mercy. The way that Allah (SWT) notices two of His Names which show to do with Mercy, as opposed to Might and Power or so on, demonstrates exactly how critical this Attribute is. The distinction between al-Rahman and al-Raheem is that al-Rahman alludes to Allah's (SWT) Mercy to all of c reation. It is His Mercy which is stretched out to the two devotees and skeptics; creatures, and everything that exists.All Praise is due to Allah The second ayah is: All praise be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. The Meaning of Hamd and the Difference between Hamd and Shukr :Hamd means praise and also thankfulness. Shukr is done with the tongue, the limbs and the heart; whereas hamd is done with the tongue only. It is also said that hamd is more general than shukr. In hamd, it contains the meaning of shukr (thankfulness) as well as madh (praise). The Meaning of Rabb Rabb is usually translated as Lord but it is much more encompassing than that. It also includes the meaning of Nurturer, Sustainer, Cherisher and so on. The Rabb is the creator, king, master and the one who controls everything. The Meaning of ââ¬ËAalameen:Some of the differing views about it are that it refers to:Everything which exists other than Allah ta'alaMankind and the jinnThose things which have an intellect, and they are four: mankind, jinn, angels, and devilsThose species which have souls The best view is the first one.The Beneficent, The Most Merciful: The third ayah is: The Beneficent, The Most Merciful. (Al-Fatihah: 3) The explanation of these two names has already been given. Why then is it repeated? This is to once again emphasis the importance of the quality of mercy. Master of the Day of Reward: The fourth ayah is: The Only Owner of the Day of Recompense. (Al-Fatihah: 3) The Meaning of Maalik : Malik means king, and it refers to ââ¬Å"mulkâ⬠ââ¬â the dominion of a person. He will judge us all, that He is so absolutely powerful, that on the Day of Judgement no one will have the power either to resist the enforcement of punishments.You (Alone) We Worship: The fifth ayah is: You (alone) we worship and You (alone) we ask for help.â⬠We Worshipâ⬠implies we comply. Love is acquiescence and self-dishonor. It intends to lower yourself before Allah (SWT) and to submit to His Will. Apparently it is self-dishonor, yet as a general rule, it is brilliance and beautification. This ayah asserts the Lordship of Allah and confirms that love is because of Him.Guide us on the Straight Path:The sixth ayah is: Guide us on the Straight Path. This ayah is a dua which we make to Allah (SWT). We ask Him to show us the Straight Path and to guide us on it, so that we will get His Guidance which draws us closer and nearer to Him. The Meaning of Sirat:Sirat is a road or a path. There are conditions that it must be straight. It must reach the goal and it must be the shortest route to get there. It must also be wide and spacious enough for everyone who wants to travel it. The Meaning of Mustaqeem:Mustaqeem is derived from istaqaama, which means to be straight, upright, correct. The Path of Thoseâ⬠¦:The seventh and final ayah is: The path of those you have blessed, not of those with anger on them, nor of those who are astrayâ⬠. Who are the people who have been blessed by Allah (SWT) and whose Path we ask to guide to? This is explained by Allah (SWT) in another ayah where He says: Whosoever obeys Allah, and the Messenger, they are with those whom Allah SWT) has favored, the Prophets (AS), the sincere, the martyrs and the righteous, and these are the best company. Impact of surah on Muslim lives:This surah Is one of the most important surahs of Quran. A Muslim needs to recite it in every prayer 5 times a day. If a Muslim follows it to its core their lives ill become easy. This surah explains us how merciful and kind Allah Almighty is and he is the only one to worship and seek help from.If we understand it and apply in our lives then we will lead true and right life, as we will know we are answerable to God on the day of judgement then we may try to restrain from evil deeds and activities. We will always speak truth no matter what because we are only afraid of Allah and on one else.This is a dua we make everyday and so it will protect us and surely and will show us right path.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Women of Different Eras
Shops was a woman of Ancient Greece that history sees as a mystery. Her life is a mystery because not much is known about her or her poems that she wrote because only bits and pieces are left of her works. During this period, women were not known to be well educated individuals like Shops, only men. Women were to be caretakers of the house and bear the man's children. Shops went ââ¬Å"against the grainâ⬠and made a name for herself as a well-known lyric poetess, which means her poetry was made Into songs and played with a musical Instrument called a lyre.Furthermore, Shops poems were connected to emotions and feelings from her heart when she wrote. It did not matter If she wrote her poems to a woman or a man. Society took this and ran with her emotions and labeled Shops as a lesbian. Society is still the same then as it is now, speculating that a person is gay or lesbian because they only have ââ¬Å"girlfriendsâ⬠. It is still called stereotyping. It was not taken into con sideration that Shops was married and had a daughter. Also no evidence was presented to prove this allegation.On the other hand, Muralist did not have such a time being stereotyped because he was not labeled like Shops. Like Shops, Muralist was a mystery because her real name was not known. During the Hein Period, ââ¬Å"real names of noblewomen were not usually known; Muralist Skibob was actually the author's nickname in court circles In The Tale of Geniiâ⬠(Anta, 2008, Para. 7). Women of the Hein period also had a social position to uphold for the sake of family, something In Ancient Greece would not even been heard. A woman would not be seen outside the house or for that matter even give her point of view on a situation.Noblewomen from Japan and women from Ancient Greece had another difference in their time periods. Ancient Greece women did not have law that required them to have their face covered if they were not in the presence of their own family. The noblewomen were to be a mystery to the men they were to marry, even if it was an arranged marriage between the fathers of the families. In Ancient Greece the fathers also arranged their daughter's weddings to an ideal suitor. Another similarity that both eras have is polygamy for the men in their marriages. The men of Japan had many wives and their wives would live with her parents.In Ancient Greece the men also had many wives, but would ravel from house to house to be with the different wives. Mural was considered the first famous novelist In Japan. Like Shops she wrote with her heart her stories In her novel ââ¬Å"The Tale of Cancelâ⬠. It took Mural several years to finish her masterpiece. An educated woman in Japan was believed to be studied and knew Japan prose which is a form of writing they were also more popular with the women of the courts than the men. Even though Shops and Muralist were from different time periods, both ladies were successful authors of poems and novels.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Essay Sample on Values and Beliefs of the British Artists
Essay Sample on Values and Beliefs of the British Artists Since the late 1980ââ¬â¢s British artists Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst have been both admired and hated for their highly controversial work. This essay will focus on their values and beliefs as artists and how these messages are conveyed in their artwork. For theà purpose of this essay I have defined values as worth in usefulness, highly regarded and important to the possessor, and beliefs as the feeling of certainty that something exists or is true. It is the mental acceptance of and conviction in the truth, actuality or validity of something. Hirst 31, received the Turner Prize in 1995. He aims to shock as well as portray his personal beliefs in a very original and obscure manner. Eminââ¬â¢s work includes the famous embroidered tent Everyone I slept with(1995) and My Bed(1998). The Sensation shows in London and New York sparked up major controversy and outrage with Emin and Hirst being the centre of scrutiny. This attention emerged to debates about the role of art and the extent that it has stretched to. This shows how these artists will put their reputation on the line and allow themselves to be scrutinised and judged in order to inflict upon society what they value and believe in. Despite the outrage Sensation was successful and it was the publicââ¬â¢s dislike of these works that heightened their appeal. This exhibition did prove that art in any form is the highest form of expression. To gain a valuable insight into the meaning and significance of an artwork one must consider the cultural context in order to understand direct and indirect portrayals of values and beliefs. It is sometimes hard to understand these values and beliefs when you are faced with highly grotesque works from the likes of Hirst and Emin. Some works that appear extremely disturbing have been described as ââ¬Å"optimistic, life affirming and celebratingâ⬠. So one wonders what values a maggot infested cowsââ¬â¢ head represents? Unlike Hirsts opinionated work about immortality and death, Eminââ¬â¢s art is representative of her emotions and life experience. She has been said to produce autobiographical art, raw pieces that form a sort a confessional. Stating ââ¬Å"There should be something revelatory about artâ⬠her works serve as a way in which her intimate feelings and insecurities are expressed. Over the years there has been a debate of how values and beliefs are placed within an artwork. Her artwork titled My Bed is a recreation of the scene she spent four days contemplating suicide and this shows where her values lie. It is a way of dealing with her trauma such as her abortion, rape, drinking and it is her beliefs about these very issues that come through in her works. One such example is a patchwork embroided about the death of a baby featured in her latest exhibition You forgot to kiss my soul. Although the portrayal of what you believe in is important the general idea of art today dictates th at the meaning is not fulfilled without the interaction of the viewer. This is important because these artworks are so complex they can be interpreted in various ways and individuals do perceive them differently. As is expressed in various critics articles within contemporary visual culture today ââ¬Å" the meaning of an artwork is often seen as fluid- because it is not fixed to one viewpoint, time or place.â⬠When asked about the cowsââ¬â¢ head Hirst initially commented that his intention was ââ¬Å" to make people feel like burgersâ⬠. The belief that is portrayed through the maggot infested cowââ¬â¢s head is the concept of life and death. The maggots represent the concept of decay and the inevitability of death . But as mentioned above Hirst sees his work as optimistic. The artist uses the disturbing content to make the viewer indulge in everyday items and in life itself which he/she may take for granted. This idea of death and carnage is enforced in many works such as This Little Piggy Went To The Market, This Little Piggy Stayed Home(1996). This particular piece is of a bisected pig in formal mounted on an automated track. Not only did this piece outrage viewers but it forced them to stare death in the face. ââ¬Å"When death becomes art, we canââ¬â¢t avert our eyes. I hope it makes people think of what they take for granted. Like smoking, like sex, like love, like life, like advertising, like deathâ⬠¦I want to make people frightened of what they know. I want to make them question.â⬠The themes of death and decay is explored in more detail in Lost Love, Love Lost and in other works with rotting animal parts. This is a contrast between Emin and Hirst. Hirst seems to indulge in a range of themes that are global whilst Emin is more self-absorbed using art as a way of finding closure and expressing the pain, emotion and events in her life. It seems as if when she portrays events such as photographs of the destruction of paintings due to her abortion, she is putting the pain in a gallery and using this as a way of dealing with what goes wrong and is inevitable. One of her early exhibition My Major Retrospective, also enforces this as it shows a story of tradgedy, pain and sexual abjection. Her art is mainly about disclosure and she explores this in diverse ways. To convey their values and beliefs both Hirst and Emin take objects out of context and as Hirst says ââ¬Å"relocates meaningâ⬠. Emin does this through My Bed. In his works titled Holidays/no Feelings(1989) and Party Time(1985). Hirst conveys his feelings on issues such as smoking by using an ashtray with a massive ciggarette landfill. He portrays his beliefs about chemical dependance, preservation, and disease through an installation titled Pharmacy. Despite their strange subject matter both artists seem to be on a quest of producing pieces that make their existence worthwhile and somehow in their eyes justify this increasingly ââ¬Å"unjustâ⬠world. Hirst uses poetic titles that contrast with the content of his works in order to confuse the viewer just as Marcel Duchamp did in 1910 with his ready-mades. ââ¬Å"I really like those long clumsy titles which try to explain something but end up making it worse, leaving huge holes for interpretationâ⬠. It is artsââ¬â¢ advantage to be highly capable of recording the artistsââ¬â¢ beliefs, and both Hirst and Emin use this to their advantage to ââ¬Å"express their phylosophy of lifeâ⬠. Hirstsââ¬â¢ works ranging from the spot paintings to the animal parts are not intended to be aesthetic or amusing but rather confrontational. The painting may seem innocent and pleasant but relates to drugs/pills. In contrast Eminââ¬â¢s work is a little amusing as well as tragic due to her outlook on life and eccentric personality. They allow their reputation and personality to become part of every piece. While Emin dramatisizes and is more outrageous Hirst seem to not care what anyone thinks of him. ââ¬Å"I donââ¬â¢t give a f**** about what people say, and it is precisely this attitude that adds to the controversy and appeal for many. Their work, their personalities and in turn their values and beliefs are so outrageous they have art buyers like Saatchi offering to buy artworks tha t he hasnââ¬â¢t yet layed eyes on. Both Hirst and Emin use existing objects but also experiment greatly with mixed media. Hirst believes that it is far more important to assemble objects in order to achieve a meaning rather than assuring people that you can draw well. It is these viewpoints that challenge the boundaries of art. Sometimes they challenge them so far that people initially react in a violent manner. Hirstââ¬â¢s Away From The Flock which featured a preserved lamb was vandalised at an exhibition when someone threw ink into the tank. Similarly Eminââ¬â¢s My Bed was also vandalised at an exhibition. In the past artists would have been outraged but this just adds to Hirst and Eminââ¬â¢s popularity and artistic status. Living in a world where most are conforming Hirst based a piece titled Isolated Elements Swimming in the Same direction for theà purpose of understanding. As expressed by his mother this does mirror society and it is a very sad thing. He does not only reflect his personal valus but als o societyââ¬â¢s. Even though their art is critisized their popularity is soaring. The fact that they are so popular shows that the public does to an extent identify and accept their values and beliefs. Through controversy emerges diverse material and due to this BritArt has never had a larger audience. Debates do arise and some do get very serious and this shows how important the art genre really is. Whether it is controversial or conforming art for some has always been a successful way out. ââ¬Å"The art worldââ¬â¢s about money but art is about lifeâ⬠. Based critics articles on Emin and Hirst I have come to realise that people thrive on controversy and are challenged by this work. It is the artists beliefs and values that clash with societys restricted values and beliefs. What these artists are aiming to do is not only project their unique personality but also push society in a different direction to see things in a different way. This is why work that was branded ââ¬Å"conceptual bullshit â⬠(Kim Howells) is now being recognised not for its content but for its success in changing the concept of art. Once branded as ââ¬Å"crapâ⬠these artists have come to dominate British Conceptual art and be very influential as individuals. This is ideally the reason as to why these artists succeed as much shock. You can order a custom essay, term paper, research paper, thesis or dissertation on Values topics at our professional custom essay writing service which provides students with custom papers written by highly qualified academic writers. High quality and no plagiarism guarantee! Get professional essay writing help at an affordable cost.
Sunday, October 20, 2019
How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing
How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing How to Revise, Edit and Proofread Your Writing By Ali Hale Whatever sort of writing you do, itââ¬â¢s important to revise and edit your work ââ¬â especially if you write academic essays, or articles or short stories that youââ¬â¢ll be submitting to editors. However much time you took over the piece on the first draft, youââ¬â¢ll always find a few mistakes to correct. This is the method that Iââ¬â¢ve used for years when writing essays or short stories, to ensure theyââ¬â¢re as good as possible before a lecturer or editor gets to see them! Do nothing (for a day or two) Set your work aside for a period of time ââ¬â donââ¬â¢t hit ââ¬ËSaveââ¬â¢ on the first draft then start again straight away on the second pass. Youââ¬â¢ll come to the work afresh if you leave it alone for a while. As Michael said in Write First, Edit Later: Let your writing sit for a while. It may make more sense if you sleep on it. Or, it may make less sense after you have slept on it. At least youââ¬â¢ll know which. For essays, try to allow at least a day. Short stories can sometimes need longer ââ¬â your mind will carry on mulling over the ideas whilst youââ¬â¢re doing other things. And many novelists advise putting your novel aside for at least a month before starting the revision process. Revision Read over your whole piece quite quickly. Circle any typos and mistakes that you spot, but concentrate on overall flow. If its an essay, check for any gaps in logic or any sides of the argument you might have missed. If its a short story, do any passages drag ââ¬â or go too fast? Print out the first draft, and read through the whole thing, concentrating on the overall flow of the piece. Circle any typos or mistakes that you notice, but focus on the big picture. If itââ¬â¢s an essay, are there any logical missteps, points youââ¬â¢ve not backed up, or angles to the argument that youââ¬â¢ve missed? If itââ¬â¢s fiction, do any scenes drag or go too fast, and are there any plot holes or inconsistencies of characterisation? This is the stage to sort out any big problems. I often rewrite the whole thing (especially when working on fiction), starting afresh with a blank document on the computer. If youââ¬â¢re better than me at getting it right first time, you may not need to do that ââ¬â but you could find yourself cutting out whole paragraphs, adding in new material, and changing the direction of the piece. After youââ¬â¢ve done this, you might want to ask a friend, classmate or colleague to read the piece. Tell them not to look for tiny errors like typos or clumsy sentences at this stage: ask whether they think itââ¬â¢s broadly OK, or if they have any reservations about the overall direction of the article or story. Editing and proofreading Once youââ¬â¢ve sorted out the big picture, you can start fixing any individual sentences and words. Again, itââ¬â¢s a good idea to print out the document and do this on paper: I find I miss errors on screen (especially typos which are valid words, such as ââ¬Å"theyââ¬â¢reâ⬠for ââ¬Å"theirâ⬠). Look out for: Typos and misspellings (a good tip here is to read backwards! Youââ¬â¢ll go much more slowly, focussing on every individual word). Clumsy sentences and confusing or misleading phrasing (try reading your work aloud). Unnecessary words (check for the ones in Five Words You Can Cut). Commonly misused or confused words (thereââ¬â¢s a whole list of these in the Misused Words category). If youââ¬â¢re not 100% sure about a spelling, double-check with a dictionary: try Merriam-Webster for clear, succinct definitions. When you canââ¬â¢t quite find the right word, using a thesaurus can help (again, Merriam-Webster is good). Do you have a great tip for revising and editing your work? Or do you have a horror story about an occasion when you handed in a first draft with a glaring error..? Share your experiences in the comments below! Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Homograph ExamplesExpanded and Extended50 Synonyms for ââ¬Å"Villainââ¬
Saturday, October 19, 2019
An Analysis of Hermann Ebbinghausââ¬â¢s Introduction to Cognitive Psychology
An Analysis of Hermann Ebbinghausââ¬â¢s Introduction to Cognitive Psychology Psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus was the pioneer of Cognitive Psychology, which has a long past with a very short history. The part of human thinking has always been an elemental focus of interest. An Even ancient philosopher such as Aristotle was interested in understanding the mechanics of how our minds work. Psychology can be generally defined as the study of mental processing as well as behavior. Cognitive Psychology is defined the same, just without the behavior. This is why behaviorism is a study set apart on its own, which can be compared and contrasted with Cognitive Psychology. Although Cognitive Psychology will observe some behavior, it is only as a segway to understanding the mental processing that goes on ââ¬Å"under the hoodâ⬠. These intricate processes include attention, remembering, understanding language, and even solving problems. Even though these processes require a complex amount of thinking, we rarely stop to ââ¬Å"thinkâ⬠about us actually thinking. P sychologist John B. Watson suggested that we separate psychology from consciousness to be able to focus solely on the behavioral perspective. Many experimental methods researching measurements, observations, and repeatability, which Cognitive Psychology is unable to use. These methods are some of the most instrumental in developing research conclusions that have led to some of the most important breakthroughs in history. Watsons approach was later termed, Behaviorism, this dismissed the scientific aspects of psychology while emphasizing the study of observable stimuli with observable responses. This has led to Behaviorism also being called S-R Psychology. In many instances, you cannot observe the same experimental methods and arrive at the same conclusions as you could with Cognitive Psychology, even though Cognitive Psychology does observe little behavior explain why the brain processes the way it does. Behaviorist does not discard the need for consciousness, they do however reject the idea that it is meaningfully studied. In both psychologists, their intent is to fully understand the mind and all it inhabits. Cognitive Psychologist just believes that studying the actual processing of the mind is how you can arrive at the answer. Behaviorist believes that human behavior is the key element in fully understand the way our brains work and function. They both do agree, however, that without either the c onsciousness or the behaviors they would come to a ââ¬Å"standstillâ⬠in their research. Most of our research that has been conducted in regards to attention is characterized by the terms of pre-attentive and post-attentive processing. Pre-attentive processing is generally characterized as happening quite quickly, mainly before the attention has been focused on the stimuli. One could say that it refers to arriving at the conclusion before one starts thinking. Thoughts that occur pre-attentively are also considered as synesthetic experiences. Pre-attentive and post-attentive processes contrast in the way that we think about objects. With post-attentive processing, we may actually count objects if there are more than a small amount, or focus on something longer than if we thought about it pre-attentively. In the example of counting sheep pre-attentively, if you see two, chances are that you did not count in your head, one and two. You automatically just saw the two sheep and you r brain processed them as the number two. Post-attentively you would most likely have this occur if there were seven sheep, counting each until you reached the number seven. These processes of counting are referred to as Subitizing, which means quick and effortless. You can see this example when you are counting the two sheep, which seemed quite easy compared to counting numerous sheep. Subitizing is actually faster than counting and if the items are less than three, it is virtually unaffected over time. (Schwartze) The process where we strategically direct our attention in response to situational demands is executive attention. Many describe the nature of executive attention as becoming an object in direct focus recently with many researchers struggling to specify what we might call ââ¬Å"cognitive controlâ⬠. For example, when you are simply doing homework you may be reading research while typing, along with having music playing in the background. We are able to direct our attention to many different things depending on the relevance or the importance of the subject. The Stroop effect is present when we see a colors word printed out in a differen t color than the word printed. For example, the word blue printed out in pink ink, this would make it very hard for us to say the word pink when we look at it since we tend to read the word. We must slow down and pronounce the word as the color of the ink instead of the word printed, this is relevant to executive attention because we must focus on the color instead of mindlessly reading the word. In regards to the measure of our control on where we focus this attention, this is referred to as the operation span. The operation span can assess a personââ¬â¢s ability to keep track of multiple forms of information. This can go hand in hand with the inhibition effect that inhibits you from processing certain information. The inability to control your attention or to focus it on our homework instead of listening to the background music that was previously stated. (Fernandez-Duque) One original example of a perception of agency is when people visit a hypnotist. They believe their action s are not from their own choice but rather from being hypnotized to do so. This has actually been proven to be a hoax, so the person unknowingly decides to do those actions. People have this feeling that they are not in control and in the case of a hypnotist telling you to do something your metacognition of agency is quite poor. Your metacognition of agency might be quite high if you are doing an activity such as painting. You know you are making strokes with the paintbrush and what colors you are painting with. Knowingly you choose where to paint and even the subject you are going to paint. This is an example of being in complete control of what you are doing while consciously knowing that you are the one doing it. (Carr)
Friday, October 18, 2019
Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2
Project - Assignment Example The payoffs on the covered call position are related to the short put standing, the premium is the same as of the naked put (Kendrick, 2012). General electric trade shows the highest potential yields since it has bid premium of $1.14 that yields 12.23% and GE decreased its dividend to $10 from a high of $31 per quarter. Letââ¬â¢s look at the scenarios of pay offs at GE in a minimum span of six months, One has an alternative of 100 shares at the price of $18.79 and sells the shares in January at $19.00 call at $1.14 per share and after minimum number of days receive $114.00, later on prior to expiration collect $30.00 with almost three times the original expected yield. Is a risk management strategy for investors that involve use of shares and stocks to guard against the unrealized gains loss. It reduces the investorââ¬â¢s possible gain from the security he owns but is also a form of insurance. In the market the GE has provided certain basis from which investors can make proper analysis, example of which we use here. An investor purchased a stock of $12 that now is rated at a worth of $24 but has not put it on sell, the unrealized gains can be rated at $12. The investor can as well purchase a put option for the underlying stock if he still believes that he is not ready to sell but is also keen not to lose the gain of twelve. The investor can be able to increase the put option gain if the prices continue to rise and losses when they fall as illustrated in the graph. An option can be said to be a strategy that is used by investors in trading. It involves a simultaneous purchase and sale of two options that are categorized under the same type but have different expiration dates. The two are sold at different strike prices. The payoffs are shown by the narrowing and albeit, widening of the differences that exists between
Business Process Analysis and Measurement Paper (Wal-Mart is the Essay
Business Process Analysis and Measurement Paper (Wal-Mart is the organization) - Essay Example Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is the major retail organization in the United States which has been given number one rank on the Fortune 500 Index by Fortune Magazine (Hayden, Lee, McMahon, & Pereira, 2002). The Wal-Marts massive and great size, makes it wields incredible power and economic king. It has driven lesser retailers out of commerce; forced companies to be well-organized, frequently leading these suppliers to move industrial jobs overseas; and changed the methods that up till now large and established organizations were using. Wal-Mart has existence or death decisions over all the customer supplies industries that survive in the US, for the reason that it is the number-one supplier-retailer of the majority of customer goods, they sell not only toys, clothes, and shoes as well as home applications, electronic goods, sporting products, food, bicycles, groceries (Anderson, 2003). Wal-Mart has long been attached in worldââ¬â¢s economy. The stores have facilitated customers to carry ou t most of their shopping in one convenient place, for that reason cutting down the quantity of time needed to carry out our shopping contrasted to going all over city to shop for what customers want on everyday basis. In recent times, people have been arguing whether Wal-Mart is in actual beneficiary or not to the financial system, and regarding the method it delights its employees. One group of such type calls its self the Wal-Mart watch and they are a set of widespread persons that share similar visions on how Wal-Mart is damaging to the economy and how poorly it treats its workers On the other hand there are community who almost beg Wal-Mart to approach to their city or town and construct a Wal-Mart shopping center (Bianco & Zellner, 2003). This section is presents the detailed analysis of the main four processes that the Wal-Mart uses to determine process performance in their daily business. The basic and most important intention and Wal-Mart are not direct competitors for the
Oil Spills Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Oil Spills Crisis - Essay Example According to the Shell Company, the volume of oil spilled was about 216 tones. The oil was leaked at a distance of approximately 180 km from Aberdeenââ¬â¢s Scottish port. This oil slick covered an area of more than 37 sq km. The recent oil spill has done a lot to tarnish the image of the Royal Dutch Shell in the eyes of the public. The Royal Dutch Shell has conventionally remained out of the focus of campaigners. The company has traditionally maintained a desecrated reputation whether the campaigners were concerned with environmental health and safety, human rightsââ¬â¢ violation or climatic change. ââ¬Å"In September 1993 the TGWU (transport and general workers union) launched a nationwide boycott of Shell petrol stations due to union derecognition at their Shell haven refinery in Essexâ⬠(Corporate Watch, n.d.). The recent oil spill furthered peopleââ¬â¢s hatred for the company, and this can have serious implications upon the profitability of Shellââ¬â¢s business. The crisis was very damaging as oil spill exposes the marine life to numerous health hazards. Oil spill contaminate the water and reduce the content of oxygen in it that is vital to the existence and survival of the marine life. In addition to that, the contaminated water can not be used for any kind of purpose. Discussing the hazardous consequences of this massive oil spill, RSPB Scotlandââ¬â¢s director, Stuart Housden said, ââ¬Å"Thousands of young razorbills, puffins and guillemots are flightless and dispersing widely in the North Sea during late summer, so they could be at serious risk if contaminated by this spillâ⬠(Housden cited in Crisis Boom, 2011a). Similar oil spills have caused irrecoverable loss to the birds and marine life in the past. In the past, about 1000 crude oil barrels were leaked as a result of the rupture of pipeline of the ExxonMobil oil into the Yellowstone River. The picture given below speaks 1000 words about the same and portrays the deleteriou s effects of oil spills on the animals and birds that have marine habitat. This bird complains about the effects of BP oil spill upon its health and life. The effect of BPââ¬â¢s Gulf oil spill (Crisis Boom, 2011b). The company took urgent measures to stop the oil spill. ââ¬Å"Work continues to stop the oil remaining in the flowline from leaking. We estimate the current rate of leakage is less than five barrels a dayâ⬠(Crisis Boom, 2011a). In an attempt to take precautionary measures and avoid similar situations from arising in the future, Shell Companyââ¬â¢s spokesman said that the company is managing a leak identified in the flow line which goes into the platform of the Gannet Alpha. In order to identify the sub-sea leak after a light sheen was seen, the company made use of a vehicle that is operated with remote. The spokesman further said that the company has considerably stemmed the leak and its efforts are directed at isolating it further. To reduce the risk, the co mpany has shut the seub-sea well and has also depressurized the flow line (The Guardian, 2011). These were the emasures the Royal Dutch Shell Company primarily took to improve its image in the public eye as well as to save the environment from any damage in the future. The company openly narrated its efforts. This overt expression was basically meant for the public in general and the critics in particular so that they may realize that the company
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Assignment 1 & 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
1 & 2 - Assignment Example Major organizations have established public relation department which focuses on how to impress the society. As much as strategies are usually applied to improve the public relation, ethics and company policies are the major influences. For example, if a child loses their life in a school compound, the public reaction towards the school would be very negative. The society will view the institution as an enemy to the community. With years the public relations are becoming difficult to improve. The societyââ¬â¢s priorities towards organizations and institutions are increasing. This may be attributed to increased business ventures and the exposure to information. In schools the situation is the same. In the modern century schoolââ¬â¢s public relations should also be improved (Kowalski, 2010). 1. The implementation of PR is faced by several shortcomings. These shortcomings are based on understanding, accepting and acting. These barriers tend not to help in the influencing of the publicââ¬â¢s perception towards the institution. Barriers to accepting are the barriers that prevent the public from accepting the PR implementation policies. According to Kowalski (2010) this barrier may be influenced by both internal and external factors. On internal factors, the institution may by having problems in influencing an ethical environment. The internal causes are mostly influenced by the conduct of the staff and administrators. If the institution has an appropriate PR implementation strategies and the conduct of the administrators is unethical, the public may find it difficult to accept the PR implementation policies. External factors are based on the fact that the public is exposed to many similar competitors. The institutions incentives may be not good enough to fulfill the pr iorities of the public hence they fail to accept any PR offering. A barrier to acting is the barrier that prevents the public from fulfilling their part as
Exploring gender difference in social anxiety Term Paper
Exploring gender difference in social anxiety - Term Paper Example There is a major lack of data relative to the effect of gender on social anxiety. The aim of this study is to investigate the gender difference in social anxiety using results from both self-report questionnaire and experimental setting. The hope is to bring to light information that can be crucial to use to aid those suffering from social anxiety. This study contains one central question that needs to be addressed: ââ¬Å"Is there a gender difference in the experience of social anxiety?â⬠A part of this study also explores whether or not individual experience of social anxiety is fully uncovered by self-report questionnaires. It intends to investigate how male gender roles affect their responses to the questionnaires. It is possible that males tend to underreport their fear and stress than females. This fact alone causes some false information to be conveyed in this area. There is not only an issue with differences in prevalence and clinical samples, the gender experience of social anxiety in men and women also lack discussion. The majority of studies that are completed on social anxiety and social phobia are based on self-report questionnaires. These do not always reveal what the individual with anxiety is actually experiencing, their highs and lows and other crucial information. In considering this topic I suggest that the current findings in gender difference in social anxiety are biased due to gender socialization. The experience of social anxiety provoking situations is the same across genders. Men on an average are equally likely to experience high social anxiety as women. There are a large number of theories and studies done on gender behavioral and psychological differences. For example, the evolutionary neuroandrogenic theory promulgated by Ellis predicts that phobia in general is more common among females than
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Oil Spills Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Oil Spills Crisis - Essay Example According to the Shell Company, the volume of oil spilled was about 216 tones. The oil was leaked at a distance of approximately 180 km from Aberdeenââ¬â¢s Scottish port. This oil slick covered an area of more than 37 sq km. The recent oil spill has done a lot to tarnish the image of the Royal Dutch Shell in the eyes of the public. The Royal Dutch Shell has conventionally remained out of the focus of campaigners. The company has traditionally maintained a desecrated reputation whether the campaigners were concerned with environmental health and safety, human rightsââ¬â¢ violation or climatic change. ââ¬Å"In September 1993 the TGWU (transport and general workers union) launched a nationwide boycott of Shell petrol stations due to union derecognition at their Shell haven refinery in Essexâ⬠(Corporate Watch, n.d.). The recent oil spill furthered peopleââ¬â¢s hatred for the company, and this can have serious implications upon the profitability of Shellââ¬â¢s business. The crisis was very damaging as oil spill exposes the marine life to numerous health hazards. Oil spill contaminate the water and reduce the content of oxygen in it that is vital to the existence and survival of the marine life. In addition to that, the contaminated water can not be used for any kind of purpose. Discussing the hazardous consequences of this massive oil spill, RSPB Scotlandââ¬â¢s director, Stuart Housden said, ââ¬Å"Thousands of young razorbills, puffins and guillemots are flightless and dispersing widely in the North Sea during late summer, so they could be at serious risk if contaminated by this spillâ⬠(Housden cited in Crisis Boom, 2011a). Similar oil spills have caused irrecoverable loss to the birds and marine life in the past. In the past, about 1000 crude oil barrels were leaked as a result of the rupture of pipeline of the ExxonMobil oil into the Yellowstone River. The picture given below speaks 1000 words about the same and portrays the deleteriou s effects of oil spills on the animals and birds that have marine habitat. This bird complains about the effects of BP oil spill upon its health and life. The effect of BPââ¬â¢s Gulf oil spill (Crisis Boom, 2011b). The company took urgent measures to stop the oil spill. ââ¬Å"Work continues to stop the oil remaining in the flowline from leaking. We estimate the current rate of leakage is less than five barrels a dayâ⬠(Crisis Boom, 2011a). In an attempt to take precautionary measures and avoid similar situations from arising in the future, Shell Companyââ¬â¢s spokesman said that the company is managing a leak identified in the flow line which goes into the platform of the Gannet Alpha. In order to identify the sub-sea leak after a light sheen was seen, the company made use of a vehicle that is operated with remote. The spokesman further said that the company has considerably stemmed the leak and its efforts are directed at isolating it further. To reduce the risk, the co mpany has shut the seub-sea well and has also depressurized the flow line (The Guardian, 2011). These were the emasures the Royal Dutch Shell Company primarily took to improve its image in the public eye as well as to save the environment from any damage in the future. The company openly narrated its efforts. This overt expression was basically meant for the public in general and the critics in particular so that they may realize that the company
Exploring gender difference in social anxiety Term Paper
Exploring gender difference in social anxiety - Term Paper Example There is a major lack of data relative to the effect of gender on social anxiety. The aim of this study is to investigate the gender difference in social anxiety using results from both self-report questionnaire and experimental setting. The hope is to bring to light information that can be crucial to use to aid those suffering from social anxiety. This study contains one central question that needs to be addressed: ââ¬Å"Is there a gender difference in the experience of social anxiety?â⬠A part of this study also explores whether or not individual experience of social anxiety is fully uncovered by self-report questionnaires. It intends to investigate how male gender roles affect their responses to the questionnaires. It is possible that males tend to underreport their fear and stress than females. This fact alone causes some false information to be conveyed in this area. There is not only an issue with differences in prevalence and clinical samples, the gender experience of social anxiety in men and women also lack discussion. The majority of studies that are completed on social anxiety and social phobia are based on self-report questionnaires. These do not always reveal what the individual with anxiety is actually experiencing, their highs and lows and other crucial information. In considering this topic I suggest that the current findings in gender difference in social anxiety are biased due to gender socialization. The experience of social anxiety provoking situations is the same across genders. Men on an average are equally likely to experience high social anxiety as women. There are a large number of theories and studies done on gender behavioral and psychological differences. For example, the evolutionary neuroandrogenic theory promulgated by Ellis predicts that phobia in general is more common among females than
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Plato&Socrates Excellence in Virtue Essay Example for Free
PlatoSocrates Excellence in Virtue Essay ââ¬Å"Socratesââ¬â¢ positive influence touches us even todayâ⬠(May 6) and we can learn a great deal about him from one of his students, Plato. It is in Platoââ¬â¢s report of Socratesââ¬â¢ trial a work entitled, Apology, and a friendââ¬â¢s visit to his jail cell while he is awaiting his death in Crito, that we discover a man like no other. Socrates was a man following a path he felt that the gods had wanted him to follow and made no excuses for his life and they way he lived it. The passage I have chosen from Platoââ¬â¢s Apology is the main passage to which Socrates believed in until his death and gave the basis for his life and they way he chose to live his life. It is this passage that makes clear all of Platoââ¬â¢s writings and perhaps why even in living his own life he chose emulate and follow Socrates and ultimately became one of his better-known students. To prove this, the paper is organized into four sections. In the first section, I will give the key passage, along with some textual context to give background details. In the second section, I will provide some relevant biographical/historical information about the author and the time period for when the text was written. In the third section, I will provide a detailed analysis meaning and arguments of my key passage and in the fourth section; I will explain the meaning of three passages that support the key passage of the paper. However, before we can move any further into this process, I will present my key passage on which this paper is based. key passage. ââ¬Å"As long as I have breath and strength I will not give up philosophy and exhorting you and declaring the truth to every one of you whom I meet, saying as I am accustomed, ââ¬ËMy good friend, you are a citizen of Athens, a city which is very great and very famous for its wisdom and power-are you not ashamed of caring so much for the making of money and for fame and prestige, when you neither think nor care about your wisdom and truth and the improvement of your soul? ââ¬â¢ If he disputes my words and says that he does care about these things I shall not at once release him and go away: I shall question him and cross-examine him and test him. If I think that he has not attained excellence, though he says that he has, I shall reproach him for undervaluing the most valuable things, and overvaluing those things that are less valuable. This I shall do to everyone whom I meet, young or old, citizen or stranger, but especially to citizens, since they are more closely related to me. This, you must recognize, the god has commanded me to do. And I think that no greater good has ever befallen you in the state than my service to the god. For I spend my whole life in going about and persuading you all to give your first and greatest care to the improvement of your souls, and not till you have done that to think of your bodies or your wealth. And I tell you that wealth does not bring excellence, but that wealth and every other good thing which men have, whether in public or in private, come from excellence. â⬠(Baird Kaufmann 29-30). In this passage Socrates is our speaker and he is presenting his defense against the charges that have been brought against him by Meletus, Anytus, and Lycon. The charges they have brought against Socrates are for corrupting the youth and worshipping gods other than the ones all other Athenians worshipped at that time in Ancient Greece. This passage is one of many times that Socrates brings to light the fact that what he has been doing by going around questioning people about their beliefs is commanded by the gods and that he should not be put to death for doing what has been asked of him. Socrates presents many times that what he is doing in trying to get people to not just question what they believe, but to work on the improvement of their souls. He believes and so states in the passage that wealth and fame do not bring excellence to a personââ¬â¢s life, but you become a better person first by improving your soul and that is actually where excellence can be found. Once a person has done this then they can concern themselves with other matters. Stating that you first turn your attention inward and then outward to the larger society could sum up the general message of Socrates. While he does not explicitly say this one could reasonably interpret from Socrates defense that he believes the reason for the charges that have been brought up against him are due to a lack of understanding by the Athenian public of his mission and purpose as well as the authority he has to do it. This is what he is attempting to do in this passage, explain what he has been doing and that the god of all Athenians commanded him to do this work and that he has done nothing wrong. historical/biographical information. Though Socrates ran no formal school, one can find in any number of books on Plato, that he was a student of Socrates in Ancient Greece. According to Baird and Kaufmann Plato probably first began following Socrates sometimes in his twenties, though one cannot be sure of the exact date (4). The Apology, along with Crito, are just a number of texts written by Plato on the teachings and beliefs held by Socrates. ââ¬Å"The Apology is generally regarded as one of Platoââ¬â¢s first and as eminently faithful to what Socrates said at his trial on charges of impiety and corruption of the youthâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 5). The time of Socrates trial was around 399 B. C. in Athens, Greece and ââ¬Å"many contemporary scholars maintain that Platoââ¬â¢s Apology was writing within the first two to three years following Socratesââ¬â¢ trial and executionâ⬠(Brickhouse Smith 1). The charges against Socrates were corruption of the youth and worshipping some other god rather than the ones commonly held to be believed in by other Athenians. It is important to note as reported by Brickhouse and Smith that, ââ¬Å"Athens had only just concluded the Peloponnesian War. The effects of the war had been disastrous on her economy; factions blamed each other for her defeats, and suspicion and power-mongering were rifeâ⬠(19). By this very fact they were looking for someone to blame for their problems and Socrates was an excellent choice. It should come as no surprise ââ¬Å"that Athenians looked for the guilty among thinkers like Socrates. After all, by their very nature and regardless of their particular persuasions, such intellectual challenge established wisdom and traditionâ⬠(Brickhouse Smith 19). Then the charges brought against Socrates and his trial were a course of action that the Athenians could see nothing wrong with at that time. Socrates was definitely a man before his time. Socrates was placed on trial for the questioning he did of others because he was pushing people in their long-held beliefs, which probably gave rise to fear. Even though Socrates felt justified in his actions many did not hold that same theory. In fact, May states, ââ¬Å"most people would be quite irritated if someone criticized their moral beliefs. Imagine conversing with someone who continually pointed out the weakness in your beliefsâ⬠(5). There are very few people that when pushed into why they believe what they do can generally come up with a concrete answer as to why they believe that way. In my opinion, much of what people believe in is based on tradition; either from your own family or culturally and many times occurs as a combination of both. Platoââ¬â¢s dialogues are perhaps a fair representation of Socratesââ¬â¢ teachings however, he does not give a consistent portrait of Socrates (May 20). May goes onto say that ââ¬Å"character ââ¬ËSocratesââ¬â¢ is portrayed differently in some of Platoââ¬â¢s dialogues because in some of them. Plato is writing in order to chronicle the historical Socrates, whereas in others, Plato uses the character ââ¬ËSocratesââ¬â¢ as a mouthpiece of his own philosophical positionâ⬠(20). ââ¬Å"Although Plato originally started to write his dialogues in order to chronicle the historical Socrates, he eventually started to write dialogues that were devoted to Platoââ¬â¢s actual philosophical viewsâ⬠(20). It was this writing that caused Plato to formulate his own views in an attempt to answer some of the questions that Socrates had posed along the way (May 20). Regardless of which Socrates is speaking the message however is the same in that excellence can be found in virtue over any other thing a person may possess. In addition, Socrates did not do any writing himself so all we have to go on is what Plato presented to us in his various texts. anaylsis In this passage, Socrates is telling the Athenian jury that he is innocent on the charges brought against him and why he is innocent. This passage is of extreme importance of understanding and interpreting Platoââ¬â¢s writings because it is a theme that is repeated throughout his works. Our character Socrates feels that people should be more concerned with the perfecting their souls more than anything else in their life. He believes that in his quest to help people find their way he is actually doing as the gods dictated. Socrates also states that the only reason his is wise is because he knows that the only thing he does know is that he does not know anything worth knowing (Brickhouse Smith 129). In fact he so states in his defense when he says ââ¬Å"I am wiser than this man; neither one of knows anything that is really worth knowing, but he thinks that he has knowledge when he has not, while I, having no knowledge, do no think that I have, I seem, at any rate, to be a little wiser than he is on this point: I do not know what I do not knowâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 24). Socrates believes that it is really the gods that are wise and humans do not possess any wisdom. He believes that the best a human can do is to work on improving their souls and it is through this action that a person can achieve a life of excellence. In fact, in a later section of the Apology, Socrates even states, ââ¬Å"an unexamined life is not worth livingâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 34). That statement speaks to the true nature of Platoââ¬â¢s writings and how he wanted to impress upon others to live a better life. May even supports this idea when she states, ââ¬Å"Socrates claims that the meaning of Apolloââ¬â¢s oracle that humans cannot possess wisdom. Remember, Socrates does not believe that even he possesses wisdom, as he believes that real wisdom is the property of Godâ⬠(44). While taking into account the turbulent times of Athens one could easily understand why that anyone questioning ââ¬Å"the establishmentâ⬠would gain much notoriety and attention. While repeatedly Plato reports that Socrates felt he was doing gods work others were not as easily persuaded. Change is never welcomed by a society, because change means the known is questioned and people are stretched in ways they had not anticipated. One can find numerous examples of this throughout time ranging from slaves being released to live as free men, the flight of Kitty Hawk, Hitler, and even as recent as the presidential race of 2008 which was highlighted by frequent reports that Barak Obama was a terrorist. All of these things created change in the world around them and opened up countless avenues to others while many people stayed behind too scared to move forward. Reeve states that, ââ¬Å"Socrates presents himselfâ⬠¦ as someone who questions others in the matters of virtue and who examines or refutes them by mean of an elenchus when they have answered inadequately. â⬠(x) An elenchus is Socratesââ¬â¢ characteristic method of inquiry and refutation some might consider it badgering (Reeve x). He also presents himself as a servant of Apollo whose mission has been divinely inspired and it is not simply to question people. ââ¬Å"But to get them to care about virtue and their psyches ââ¬â their souls ââ¬â above everything else. â⬠(Reeve x) Even in his later work of the Crito, in which Crito comes to visit Socrates in prison offering him a chance to escape, Plato does not have Socrates change his beliefs and escape to a foreign land. ââ¬Å"In the Apology, Socrates claims that a human being has only one thing to consider namely whether one is acting rightly or wrongly (28c). This is repeated in the Crito when Socrates states that his duty to consider just one question, whether it would be right to escape or wrongâ⬠(May 78). As he continues to examine the option before him Socrates cannot come up with any reason why it would be right for him to escape and that to do would be morally wrong and go against everything he has stood for his entire life. The selfish action of escaping would have disastrous results and wipe out years of Socrates work. One can easily see how Plato has carried the message of Socrates throughout his writing and used it to his benefit. In order to be considered wise by Plato, a person needs to examine their beliefs and knowledge to better their soul before any other task is undertaken. It is this that will last far longer than any wealth, power, property or prestige that is attained. Because as Socrates says ââ¬Å"I spend my whole life in going about and persuading you all to give your first and greatest care to the improvement of your souls, and not till you have done that to think of your bodies or your wealthâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 30). supporting passages. This is the first of three passages that supports the fact that the passage quoted at the beginning of this paper and ultimately makes clear all of Platoââ¬â¢s writings and gives further insight into Socratesââ¬â¢ life. ââ¬Å"But then I again proved, not by mere words but by my actions, that, if I may speak bluntly, I do no care a straw for death; but that I do care very much indeed about not doing anything unjust or impious. That government and all its power did not terrify me into doing anything unjustâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 31). This passage comes from Apology shortly after the key passage in which Socrates is defending himself against the charges of corrupting the youth and worshiping false gods. In this passage he is telling how that when ordered by the government to bring Leon the Salaminian to them so that they might put him to death he chose to live by his values even though he was defying the government. He goes onto to explain that it is a personââ¬â¢s actions that mean more than the mere words they utter. He states how that even in the face of death he chose not to anything unjust or impious, but to live according to the gods decree for his life. He goes on to say that if the government of The Thirty had stayed in power he would have certainly been put to death, but he did not care one way or another. He is saying in no uncertain terms that he will not be coerced or bullied into doing anything that goes against the will of god. The position that he takes shows that he is strong-willed and a man who is true to his word and that even if this current group of Athenians puts him to death he will not fight them unnecessarily. This passage relates to the key passage by showing that by following oneââ¬â¢s beliefs and doing what is right and just helps to lead a person closer to excellence in virtue and to living a better life. The second passage also appears in the Apology and comes after Socrates has been found guilty by the Athenians of the crimes of which he was accused and now is speaking about what a suitable punishment might be for him. ââ¬Å"And if I tell you that no greater good can happen to a man than to discuss human excellence every day and the other matters about which you have heard me arguing and examining myself and others and that an unexamined life is not worth living, then you will believe me still lessâ⬠(Baird Kaufmann 34) Plato is once again writing in reference to the first idea presented by Socrates that in order to be great people should first improve their inner self and not worry about things outside of themselves until they have reached that point. It is only by doing this that a person can achieve an excellence in their virtue far greater than any material possession or status one may achieve. Socrates is again stating that he has only been doing what the gods have asked of him and that he has been attempting to impress upon others the importance of personal virtue rather than material gain. He is again stating how he personally did that and was only attempting to get others to see the world as he saw it. In fact, Socrates believes that death is not justice in his case, but since he has lived his life as a pauper that he should be sentenced to life in the prytaneum, which is the town hall of Ancient Greece used to house distinguished visitors and guests (Dictionary.com). He states in there he would be forced to live a life in complete opposite of what he has known since it would be rich and lavish and in addition he would receive three full meals a day. This according to Socrates is the polar opposite of the way he has been living and would actually be a punishment to him since it goes against what he has been doing. This passage relates to the key passage by not only re-stating what was said previously, but provides further evidence that Socrates was committed to the cause of excellence even after he was sentenced to death. This third passage comes from Platoââ¬â¢s Crito when Socratesââ¬â¢ friend Crito visits him in prison. ââ¬Å"Are we to start our inquiry from the premise that it is never right either to act unjustly or to repay injustice with injustice to avenge ourselves on any man who harms us, by harming him in return? Or do you disagree with me and dissent from my premise? I myself believed in it for a long time and I still believe in it. â⬠(Baird Kaufmann 43) Crito actually bribes a guard in order to be allowed into Socratesââ¬â¢ prison cell and Socrates is not at all pleased by that action because it is an unjust act. The purpose of his visit is to convince Socrates to escape and continue to live a free man. Crito informs him that many people are willing to help him escape and continue his work of helping others in another country where he will be free from the narrow-mindedness of the Athenians who have sentenced him to death. While many people would jump at an opportunity to escape and continue to live their lives, even if it meant being a fugitive, Socrates refuses. But here again we see that Socrates is adamant about his position. In the above passage he states that it is wrong to escape because it would mean going against everything for which he has stood and argued for his entire life. He feels that it would a mistake to escape and repay an injustice with an injustice; there is no virtue in that action. He believes even as his death nears that what he has stood for; looking for excellence in virtue and by becoming a better person by looking inward first to improve the soul, that he is correct and nothing will veer him off his course. This passage ties to the key passage by showing how through his actions Socrates believed that living justly and rightly were more important than living a life where a person would simply exist because they were following the dictates of others and not living, as they truly believed. conclusion In conclusion, the key passage from Platoââ¬â¢s Apology that I have discussed here is the critical point of all his writings. In the key passage as well as the three supporting passages I discussed one can see how living a life of excellence as found through virtuous actions was the central theme throughout his writings. One can easily see why Plato would have chosen to be a student of Socrates and spend a great deal of his writing career recalling the events of Socrates life and death. At the time of his writings and Socratesââ¬â¢ death, Athens was in need of a good and moral hero and Plato chose Socrates to help others learn that success was measured not by material goods but through good actions based on right motives. Works Cited Baird, Forrest E. and Kaufmann, Walter. From Plato to Derrida. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. 2008. Print. Brickhouse, Thomas C. and Nicholas D. Smith. Socrates on Trial. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1989. Print. Dictionary. com. n. d. n pag. Web. 22 Nov. 09. May, Hope. On Socrates. Belmont, California: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2000. Print. Reeve, C. D. C. Socrates in the Apology: An Essay on Platoââ¬â¢s Apology of Socrates. Indianapolis, Indiana, 1989. Print.
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