Alternative Means of Transportation

Guilherme Cesa Academic Writing Sara Rayfield 04/18/2012 Instead of Horns, Voice Today, most of the big cities centralize interests in improving and encouraging the private means of transportation instead of public. Driving a car can be very comfortable and pleasant, but it causes serious problems. Because of this, we all must change our mind about the ways we move daily and find different ways for locomotion. Mobility is a very exciting thing; the feeling of freedom that it gives can be very rewarding.An example of that is the way society found to punish people: we put them in a prison and do not allow them to move for days, months or years. It is evident and natural that everybody needs to move around daily, whether it is to go to work or go to the supermarket. The most popular way of personal transportation in modern society is the car. A car represents much more than just a way of transportation. The idea of having a car these days transcends the basic idea of mobility; an automo bile represents status and wealth while using alternative ways for transport such as bus, train, or bicycle are depreciated by society as being worse.Looking at how society chooses to move within its territory can reveal a lot of things about what type of society it is. Giving priority to cars means not prioritizing the greater good; it is a selfish way of thinking. More cars being driven means more roads and parking lots, fewer public spaces and green areas, more traffic jams, and pollution. On the places that were supposed to have sidewalks, we now see a wide avenue, the park turned into a parking lot. Gradually, the cities are becoming a place adjusted for the cars instead of the dwellers.As many of the problems that vehicles may cause, the most discussed nowadays is the global warming. The air pollution made by cars and fossil fuel dependents increase the moisture level of the air, which causes the greenhouse effects. The pollution forms a layer around the atmosphere that makes the heat be reradiated from the surface to the atmosphere, causing the global warming. However, hope still exists for Planet Earth by the limitation of usage and dependency on fossil fuels.Besides the main problem that cars cause for the environment, cars nowadays are much cleaner than before, the problem is that we have a lot more cars being driven on the streets and polluting the earth. In addition, cars demand a large amount of raw material to be made and they produce a lot of waste. While driving the automobile, it is not only polluting gas that is being produced, it also affects the ground and water when the tires wear out and fluids, such as battery oil and gasoline, spill from the car.Alternative forms of transportation such as walking and bicycling for short distances, and train, subway, trolley, light rail, bus, and car pooling for longer distances may be a good solution to solve a lot of problems. It will not only help in the amount of pollution in the atmosphere but also would bring benefits in other aspects of our lives; we would save money, it would reduce other types of pollution such as water, land and noise, it would give us a better quality of life, we would spend less time in stressful traffic and the cities would become a more pleasant place to live in.Of course it is very difficult to convince people not to use their cars since we have an inexistent public transportation program; no buses, no trains, no bike lanes, and bad sidewalks. Once the authorities start improving the methods of transportation as well as promoting them, people will begin to see the advantages of changing one to another. Studies from the company EMBARQ have shown that cities can reduce up to 30% of the vehicular traffic over the next 3 to 5 years if improving the public transportation.A good example that this improvement can cause big effects in cities is the Los Angeles Metro promotion; their urban transportation system authorities are making an innovating campaign fo r the city. In order to reduce the traffic, clean the air and make their lives less stressful, Los Angeles’ transit authorities start trying to convince people about the benefits of using public transportation. The way they found to do so was improving as much as possible the service quality offered for metro and buses lines, making them cleaner and more comfortable.Then they worked to improve the image of it and get people out of their cars. They made buses appear more attractive with colorful paints and redesigned the metro stations with paint arts and music. At least, they started working on a marketing campaign to convince people to use their services and encouraging Angelinos to leave the car need. Another facet of public mobility that could replace the use of cars is cycling and walking. Better sidewalks and bike lines as well as providing free bikes rentals as many cities in Europe do would attract more people to use these means of transportation.Walking and cycling ca n be a very pleasant way to move from one place to another in short distances and the gains that it causes are numerous. It gives people a slower-pace routine, and using legs to ride a bike or walk is a very good exercise that improves a lot the body and mental health, it is free and can help to save a lot of money in gasoline and transport fares. It is also a pro-environment way of transportation that does not pollute, it helps to make a more attractive and green city where people can interact with others and with the city environment around them.As a conclusion, changing one way of transportation to another is an action that takes long to happen and it takes a lot of effort both from authorities and citizens. However, if it be done, it will bring positive results for the whole society. The cities would become a better place to live, with streets populated by people and not by cars. Work Cited Network, EMBARQ. â€Å"LA Metro: Promoting Mass Transport† Vimeo. 04 January 2010. Web. 19 April 2012. Pawley, Martin. â€Å"The War Against Car† Open Democracy. Globalization Transport. 8 May 2012. Web. 19 April 2012.

Science Fiction and Empire on Environmentalism

One of the main aspects of science fiction that sets it apart of almost all other genres is its ability to influence the direction of humankind. By stimulating a reader’s thoughts of the possibility of different futures, not only does science fiction serve as a popular source of entertainment, but it also encourages one to analyze the possible prospective effects of the generation’s powerholders’ and their decisions.As a science fiction writer himself, Isaac Asimov once said, â€Å"Intelligent science fiction writers attempt to look at world trends in science and technology for plot inspiration and, in doing so, they sometimes get a glimpse of things that later turn out to be near the truth† (Asimov, page 79). Through the use of empires as the powerhouses of society, SF books like War of the Worlds and Foundation dig deep into the question of what would happen if societies continued to allow the progression of destructive and commercial technologies.Frank Herbert’s, Dune, also questions the future of the universe while shining a spotlight on the clash between humanity and the environment. By providing a glimpse of the future as a product of current technological change, science fiction helps an audience examine which way they want to shape the progression of human kind, and therefore provides a unique service to the world. Since the beginning of time, the purpose of technology has been to enable one to do something that otherwise would be impossible.Technology is an incredibly powerful tool, but with great power comes great responsibility. Serving as a symbol of power, positive technological development will generally distinguish a good empire from an evil one, in both the real world and the world of science fiction. In the novel The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells, a Martian invasion leaves a previously invincible British Empire in ruins. The aliens violently expressive a total disregard for human life and the environment of earth. Weapons, called Heat-Rays are used against the humans and completely destroy everything in their way.These laser guns were a good prediction of future military technologies, resembling those of mass destruction known today. The book’s use of mass destruction of both the human race and the environment draws attention to our own planet’s possible future if nuclear weapons were ever to be placed in the hands of enemies with merciless hostility. Perhaps one of the most famous SF writers of all time, Isaac Asimov has also expressed his distaste for destructive technologies. â€Å"The Earth faces environmental problems right now that threaten the imminent destruction of civilization and the end of the planet as a livable world.Humanity cannot afford to waste its financial and emotional resources on endless, meaningless quarrels between each group and all others. There must be a sense of globalism in which the world unites to solve the real problems that face all gro ups alike† (Asimov, page 5). However, his book, Foundation, serves as an interesting contrast to the imperialistic warfare from The War of the Worlds. Focusing on a trend that the ideal progression of civilization may one day reach, this book introduces a pacifistic society in which violence is considered the last refuge of the incompetent.However, the environments depicted in Foundation are inconsistent with Herbert’s conception that a peaceful universe will also be rich in ecology. Given that violence was spoken as a thing of the past, and taking into consideration the environment of planets like Trantor consisted of civilization under a steel dome, this may further imply that violence and mass destruction have already taken their toll on universe of that time. This may suggest that total destruction of nature, by evil technologies, was what finally convinced humanity to become a pacifistic universe.Asimov’s use of ecology as a sacrifice made in order for peace among mankind questions if future pacifism will be possible before the misuse of technology annihilates Mother Nature forever. Conserving the environment seems to be a popular theme in SF, especially after the publication of Dune in 1965. This book depicts a future universe where even though a nuclear holocaust of the human race is not an issue, other powerhouses’ affairs continue to dominate in priority over the environment of planets. Dune encompasses an interesting parallel that would almost exactly predict current issues.Global wide controversy that major industrial accidents have significantly negative impacts on global environmental degradation is one of the main concerns among environmentalists today. These risks include human induced climate change, ozone depletion, and the loss of biodiversity, and if remain ignored will lead to the inhabitability of earth. Dune’s harsh desert environment may not have been a result of human interference with nature, but the f ailure to proliferate a lush green ecosystem, because of an empire’s concern of profit off the spice trade, does express concerns of global industrialization.This planet, originally known as Arrakis, is described as the empire’s wasteland, while at the same time being the most valuable planet in the universe. This inverse relationship between commercial gain and ecological richness advocates a need for major change in the distribution of power in a globally economy, especially aiming to put a halt to exploitation of earth’s natural resources by industrial power-head’s. Dune ultimately criticizes commercial empires for valuing profit over concerns for ecology, and above all pressures for change that will benefit the common good of humanity. What distinguishes us human beings from all the less advanced forms of life on earth is that, having at last become conscious of the challenge of survival, we have consciously undertaken to shape our own future. This re quires us to look ahead, even beyond the span of any single generation† (4). This quote, published by the Council of Foreign Relations in a journal for Foreign Affairs, surprisingly has no intentional relationship to SF. It does, however, coincidentally represent not only the current impact of science on progression of humanity, but also embodies the underlying theme of Foundation.Foundation is focused around a character named Hary Seldon, who uses the science of Psychohistory to predict the future of mankind. While conducting his research, Seldon discovers that the Galactic Empire, which is currently in power, will soon fall, and a new empire will not arise for thirty thousand years. Knowing that the time between empires will be nothing but barbarism, Seldon initiates a plan to create a compendium of all human knowledge, called the Encyclopedia Galactica, that will ultimately decrease the time of the dark age to one third of its original prediction.Seldon’s goal to imp rove the quality of life for the people of the collapsing empire, through knowledge, is significantly similar to environmentalists’ research efforts to prevent the demise of earth’s ecosystems. Considering that crisis aversion through science has very much come to life, it can be concluded that SF can, to some extent, predict the future. A nuclear physicist, by the name of Dr. Ron Nielson, coincidently posses many of the characteristics of Seldon in Foundation, almost as if Hary had come to life. In 2005, Dr. Nielson published a book called The Green Handbook: Seven Trends Shaping the Future of Our Planet, which he described as an essential reference for anyone who cares about the future of the planet. It surveys not only the deterioration of our physical environment but also economic, social, and political trends that give an understanding as to how these critical issues can be addressed. There are many similarities between Dr. Nielson and Hary Seldon, but the most me aningful quality would be that both scientists advocate change in humanity for a cause that they will not be alive to redeem the benefits of.Unlike industry officials, who are only interested in immediate commercial gain, these two men embody the characteristics of a true SF hero; one who protects of the progression of the future of humanity. The hero of Dune, Paul, is a character of interesting complexity that also strives to change trends in the ecology of his planet, much like Dr. Neilson. Paul is different from his family and social class in the sense that he feels a great connection to the environment, similar to those of the native people of Arrakis, called Fremen.The Fremen dream of a surreal utopia in which the harsh desert environment is metamorphosized into a lush self-sustainable ecosystem, in which the scarcity of water is no longer an issue. With the help of the Fremen and an ecologist named Kynes, Paul is victorious against his greedy rival, the Baron Harkonnen. Paul e xhibited characteristics exactly opposite of the Baron’s ruthlessness. When a sandstorm endangered workers in the spice mines and a large shipment of spice, Paul did not hesitate to sacrifice the spice for the lives of his people.The book places a special stress on the absence of a sense of altruism and respect for nature in the antagonist’s character and empire. Herbert’s characterizations, that embody the struggle of good versus evil, are suggestive that drastic policy changes must be met by either a change in morals and values of the people in charge, or a complete overthrow of authorities by advocates who have righteous intentions for the future of mankind. The association of the word ‘utopia’ with the notion of nature makes the theme of environmentalism even more obvious in this novel.The novel is strongly suggestive that environmental problems of today cannot be ignored any longer. Frank Herbert and Dr. Neilson share a common objective of advo cating environmentalism through their writing. The difference is that Herbert incorporates it into fictional pieces of literature, while Neilson chooses a more scientific and direct path of expression. Herbert’s use SF literature, to push for a green movement by society, shows how SF can be used as a tool to improve scientific literacy and knowledge of future concerns associated with our current usage of technology. Science fiction ses a blend of entertainment and science to create, what some might, call more effective means of scientifically educating an audience. The impact of science fiction does not just stop at a mere introduction of scientific problems to the public. Plots of science fiction often offer possible plans of action to induce change and progression in a positive direction. In both Dune and Foundation, government or politics was used to bridge the gap between what was happening and what needed to happen. In these novels, as well as in real life, possesion of high political power is almost always a requirement for initiating radical change.In Dune, Paul inherited his father’s position and power. By joining forces with the Fremen, Paul became the leader of a mini-empire in hopes to put an end to the exploitation of the planet’s resources by the evil Harkonnens. It was not until Paul was named the new emperor of the universe, however, that his plans to change the planet into a garden paradise could finally begin. Dr. Neilson chose to end the preface of his book encouraging policy-makers, decision-makers, and journalists to use their influences and lifelong experiences to help steer away from the future taking an undesirable course of events.However, this encouragement does not give a concise solution the problem he lists in The Green Handbook. Applying concepts from the three SF books being analyzed, the process to change the course of the seven trends that Neilson feels are slowly degrading our planet, a high position of pow er among policy changers must first be obtained. A book by Michael Howes, called Politics and the Environment: risk and the role of government and industry, gives intense incite to what further needs to be done to save our planet.This book focuses on meeting the challenge of undoing environmental risks with more technical innovation and economic reform. It also shines a light on the roadblock that people who deny that there is any serious risk are causing, mainly those who benefit from industry. The struggle between those interested in commercial gain and those who attempt to advocate change to benefit the environment is realistic problem often portrayed in SF. Dune, Foundation, and War of the Worlds all express a common concern for what impacts destructive technologies, like weapons and exploitative industries, may have on the future of mankind.These books also seem to preach that good motives and compassion for humanity are qualities of good empires, while evil ones are still focu sed on the use of violence and greed. The power placed in the hands of the most influential people of the empire is also a symbol of responsibility of those to always make decisions for the greater good of humanity. Governments of today’s nations could effectively avert future ecological crisis on earth by balancing power scientists and big industry officials. The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom† (Asimov, pg 13). By taking a glimpse into the future, politicians that value the earth’s well-being can be the change needed to save the planet, ultimately making them heroes like Paul and Seldon. In this case, science fiction may also be useful tool in impacting the public to push for changes from politicians. The ability of the genre of SF to really impact the future of technology makes it the most relevant type of literature in current time.

Spirituality In Sport Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Spirituality In Sport - Essay Example We take for granted our present identity, the one that our surroundings (parents, family) have given us. But the quest for spirituality helps us discover our true identity and instills hope and faith in us (Russel, 2006). The Divine path unites us with our true identity after we decide to delve in the realm of spirituality. All religions are based on spirituality and no matter how modern we may get, we always want to know our religion’s teachings for matters of our interest, though we might not abide by the religious teachings. These matters can be our passions like music and sports. It is interesting to find out what religion has to say about sports and if there is any linkage between spirituality and sports. Something which is spiritual, touches us deeply from within, gives us peace and motivation to go on. All the successful athletes went for their passion because they found contentment and peace in the sport of their choice. It is difficult to perceive a relationship betwe en sports and spirituality (though it exists for sure), because violence, aggression and anger is seen in sportsmen while they are battling to win the game. As per a renowned psychologist, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (who happens to be a chess player as well), sports let us be in a state of ‘flow’. This is an active state where a sportsman is just focused on the game and does not heed his surroundings. This flow state is an active state because both our mental and physical energies are devoted to just one thing: the game. Also, we are so engrossed in sports that during playing, all our worldly worries seem to drift away and we find an escape from daily tensions and stress. Other activities such as watching television are passive because they do not require one to be directly involved and concentrate solely on one thing (Taylor, 2002, Spring). Athletes drift into a passionate trance, where they relax and find serenity as sports soothe the nerves, no matter how strenuous they might be. Flow is very much similar to the dharana state of yoga which literally means concentration. The similarity is justified; because sports require 100% concentration otherwise one slipping can make you lose. Once in a state of flow, there are chances that it might deepen and the sportsman moves into a state very much similar to dhiyana (meditation state of yoga) and all of a sudden, the player’s performance improves so much that he can turn the game around. But in dhyana (referred to as the Zone by sportsmen), everything slows down so that the player is better able to think and then charge at the opponents. The zone is a transient phase and only the most professional and expert sportsmen are able to fall in it and give their best shot (Taylor, 2002, Spring). Sometimes, extraordinary and phenomenal things tend to happen that leave a mark in the minds of the spectators who are totally awed after experiencing a great feat, when players are in the state of dhyana; for ins tance runners feel as if they are airborne, light and highly energized during ‘tipping’ (dhyana-like state). Some sportsmen also claim that during such a phase, they can see through their bodies. These are psychic experiences and the players manage to give commendable performance during them; but there are chances that a lot of people will question the validity of these experiences. But only a genuine sportsman can verify whether these experiences are really spiritual or make-believe. After dhyana, sportsmen sometimes enter into samadhi (state of union with the divine), where they feel extremely elated: hence we can conclude that sports are a spiritual practice as it corresponds to the three states of yoga dharana, dhyana and samadhi (Taylor, 2002,

Relationship between Organizational Culture, Leadership Behaviour and Essay

Relationship between Organizational Culture, Leadership Behaviour and Job Satisfaction - Essay Example Approaches to Research In my career as a student, I have had a little scope to perform researches and therefore had limited knowledge in the field. From this particular module, emphasising on the various approaches used in a research purpose, especially those regarding cultural issues, I was able to come across multiple facts which will surely help me in my future endeavours in the field of academic researches. Research is defined as the expansion of knowledge and/or the use of existing information as a resourceful way in generating new concepts. From my learning, I understood that the collected data are implemented or used in the research process through certain approaches which are often regarded to be the strategies or steps through which the collected data are used systematically. In my study to this particular module, I learnt that the approaches to research, especially those concerning cultural differences, are categorised into four different phases such as separation, encultur ation, assimilation and integration or pluralism while elaborating on the issue. With regards to my module learning, I was able to define the separation approach as a process to identify the individualistic behaviour of restraining own cultures and desires from being influenced by others. Through enculturation approach, I have been able to notice those groups’ practices in which the members keep hold of their primary rules and behaviours, without incorporating other sets of value system from differing ethnic rudiments (Kim & et. al., 2009). Similarly, with the help of assimilation approach, I gained knowledge regarding certain measures to cooperate with the superior culture in order to gain confidence from them for future career developments. From the discussion with regards to integration or pluralism approach, I learnt that it reveals the strategies of managing the cultural diversification and therefore I would categorise the approach as a more practical and objective-orien ted one (Berry, 2011). After gaining an in-depth knowledge regarding the approaches, I can state that the integration, often regarded as pluralism approach, is the most realistic research method which motivated me to work in a group with different cultured members. I also learnt that research focusing on the identification and evaluation of cultural differences are often based on theoretical pursuits, such as those inscribed by Trompenaar and Hall. The theoretical explanation presented by Hall upon the cultural differences helped me to understand the levels or dimensions present within the culture. The theory focuses on the cultural differences in terms of social level, personal freedom and time management as well. From the lecture class, I was also able to gather adequate information that along with the levels of culture, the personal attitude related to liberty and time management also leads to diversification of culture within the environment (Nardon & Steers, 2004). I further le arnt that from a similar perspective, Trompenaar presented the theoretical concept stating the differences of culture with the help of seven dimensions. From the Trompenaar’s theory, I learnt that five of the factors deal with the people’s relationship amid the society and the remaining two factors helped me to indicate the time management

Early childhood education- case analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Early childhood education- case analysis - Essay Example This paper makes a conclusion that teachers develop a curriculum from observing the children and noting down their developmental skills, interests and other possibilities they can discover on their own within the parameters of safety. This curriculum envisions implementation in an environment organized by teachers to be rich in possibilities and provocations that challenge children to explore, problem-solve, usually in small groups while the teachers act as keen observers or recorders of the children’s learning. Teachers get to balance their role by sometimes joining the circle of children and sometimes objectively remaining outside the loop. In doing so, children are allowed feelings of success as they manage to be architects of their own learning. This exercise of analyzing the case helps teachers be more aware of the learning that goes on during play, link it to theory, and guide these children to pursue their interests in a safe and conducive environment. This paper talks that children had the freedom to communicate with whoever they wanted in the environment. Children relate to others on their own. Imogen felt the need to share the information she learned from her exploration with her friends. The learning environment provided the children with opportunities to explore and to learn for themselves. Learning ensues in a conducive environment that offers interactions with peers and supportive adults. Piaget contends that children learn a lot from interactions with the environment, at the same time, Vygotsky theorizes that children learn through conversations and involvement with peers and adults. ... dges (2008) explains that the play-based curriculum of Te Whaariki provides children with several opportunities to express, represent, explore and extend their numerous interests (Strands 4 and 5, all goals). She offers that a socio-cultural approach can bring out children from the comforts of their own culture; hence, the quality of teaching relationships should encourage and extend such interests of the children to venture into the real world. Allowing Imogen to pursue her interest in caterpillars and equipping her with the knowledge and skills in this area gave her confidence to show her â€Å"expertise† to her peers (Principle of Empowerment, Strand 3, all goals, Strand 4, goal 4). What was impressive was the adults’ approach in the children’s learning as they threw stimulating questions at the children to deepen their explorations and discoveries. This is consistent with Te Whaariki’s belief that young children need adults who can provide them with th e resources, challenges and support they need for their widening interests and problem-solving capacities (Principles of Family and Community and Relationship) (MOE, 1996). Hedges (2008) advises teachers to be more responsive to the â€Å"here and now†. They need to loosen the reins of control over curriculum planning and share the construction of learning experiences with the children. This empowers children to learn for themselves and not just to respond to what the teacher offers (Principle of Empowerment, Holistic Development, Strands 3 and 5, all goals). Malaguzzi (1993) concludes that teachers should be researchers that think and produce a true curriculum centered on children’s needs. Teachers develop a curriculum from observing the children and noting down their developmental skills, interests and other

Classroom Management Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Classroom Management Project - Essay Example A proper communication system is established with the parents to inform them continuously about their ward's performance and conduct. A classroom should be designed in such a way, that it is enthralling and at the same time more informative to the students. The sense of comfort should be instilled into every student by the classroom atmosphere. The classroom should contain facilities which provide good comfort to the students and atmosphere should be made informative through charts and bulletin boards. A proper place to sit, a place to have fun and a place to do learning activities has to be specifically allocated. The class room should provide an atmosphere of learning. The students should be allowed to enjoy their learning. The educational system adapted should kindle their inquisitiveness to learn new things and at the same time allow them to come out with their own ideas. Equal importance should be given to non academic activity which identifies student's area of expertise and interests. From teachers perspective each and every corner of the room should be visible to the teacher's eyes. They must be able to provide equal attention to every student in the classroom without any consideration of where they sit. Considering the design of class room from a student's perspective, their average height should be taken into account and seating arrangements should be suitably planned. The light arrangement in the classroom should be in such a way that it provides a soothing sight of the board and other charts to the children's eyes. Classroom rules The rules in a classroom form the bridge between the student and the teacher. So, framing the rules of a classroom for third grade plays an important part in management planning. Rather than conventional rules, these rules should make students understand their mistakes and rectify them. Rather than punishing for not adhering to the rules the students should be taught the goodness that comes by following the rules. Rules have to be designed so as not to instruct children on not doing certain things but to create a positive environment. Based on this concept, several rules can be put forward. Some are, Maintain silence while teacher is teaching. Listen to the class. To be friendly with classmates. Follow properly the instructions the teacher gives. In this contest the teacher plays an important role in bringing these rules into practice. It cannot be brought in only by means of force as these students belong just to the third grade. It can only be done by student specific means which can be adapted only if the teacher starts understanding their students. At this young age, each child should be taught about the consequences of their action. This would help them lead a disciplined life later on. When a child misbehaves or disobeys any of these rules, he or she must be given minimal punishment and a lot of advice so as to correct himself. Further the teacher must take into account the intensity and the frequency of the mistake before deciding on the punishments. The teacher must also discriminate between common and uncommon mistakes. Common and high intensity mistakes can be punished in front of others so that those mistakes would not influence other students. In nut shell, the teachers play more important role in

Employment Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Employment Relations - Essay Example The activities of the firm concerns with the products while the union concerns with the aspect of a service. These two goals may coincide and clash in various circumstances. To begin with, the labor unions are beneficial in protecting minority groups (Shelley & Cleveley 2007, p. 69). Minority groups offer a wide area of looking at the same. For instance, disabled individuals who take part in the labor force may experience a bias out of their scenario. If they do attain an adequate voice of addressing their concerns, large companies would assume that their companies are progressing. Apart from direct exploitation, minority groups would suffer from unintentional inadequate attention from the management. Firms may entail processes and regulations that compromise on minority workers’ situations. Trade unions are hawk eyed entities that assess companies in terms of very single operation. In certain instances, companies may have work operations that assign hectic and low paying assi gnments to certain workers. Such scenarios are handed down from previous systems and they may continue to occur under the unconsciousness of the management. An example would relate to bias against certain races in terms of job assignments. The trade unions would discover about such minority groups and investigate their plights. It is crucial to highlight that certain minority groups arise out of hypothetical situations. It might be visible after some period that minority groups develop out of departments that they work in the same. In addition, trade unions help in minimizing disputes that may arise out of workers and the employers. In this sense, the trade unions eliminate trivialities that may arise out of employees and their management. In notable instances, the management of firms may make assumptions about employees. This might relate to the view of employees as a group that operates on peer pressure. In this sense, the peer pressure would lead to unreasonable demands that push the firms out of their balance. This suggests that trade unions are intermediary rather than constraining forces to firms. It is crucial to highlight that disputes place employees out of firms. In turn, it constrains employees from growth in their careers. In addition, employers are likely to misperceive the actions of employees. Spotted employees may earn unconstructive reputation with their firms. This suggests that the affected employees are likely to receive limiting comments from their employers. In the end, it would be difficult for the employee to earn the trust of other firms. In addition, trade unions avail safe working environments for employees. The work environment might be a limited but an unsafe environment for the health of employees. The work environment should be a platform whereby both the employees and their firms respectively achieve their objectives of wages and products. In the achievement of the two divergent objectives, the work environment may digress and i njure employees. Harm is a diverse term that comprises both physical and psychological aspects. In physical harm, firms may entail work environments that injure the health of workers. For instance, there are manufacturing companies that involve in the production of harmful chemicals and products. In such a scenario, it is vital to provide protective mechanisms for workers. Alternatively, the firm would employ machinery that excludes employees from the core manufacturing processes that entail emission of toxic substances

DISCUSSION REPLY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DISCUSSION REPLY - Essay Example Supporters of the Replacement Model do not believe that interbreeding was common or likely and would not be relevant on an evolutionary level (Clarke, 1-2). There is no perfect theory. The only disagreement that I have with this theory is that it so staunchly argues that interbreeding is not a factor in the origins of modern humans and their populating of the planet. I think that may be a bit short sited. This would be entirely believable if the distinction between the African stock was vastly superior to the products of evolution that has occurred in Europe and Asia. However, if there were enough similarities and interaction it seems inevitable that inbreeding would most certainly occur. This favors the Partial Replacement Theory (Clarke 2-3). However, either perspective is stronger than the idea that all human developed only in Africa and is solely the result of mass migration. Most people have been taught that Neanderthals were the quintessential â€Å"cave-man.† Slow moving, slower thinking, and died off due to an inability to adapt, allowing Homo sapiens to become the ultimate dominant species of Hominid. However, modern researchers are changing that perspective and putting the myth to rest that Neanderthals were slow-witted and little or no real interaction with the African Modern humans migrating into Europe and Asia. Recently remains were discovered that confirm that inbreeding between did occur between Homo sapiens and Neanderthal. This lends credence to the theory that Partial Replacement took place. Neanderthal is presently being found in the modern populations of human beings throughout Asia and Europe at a ratio of %1to %4 presences of Neanderthal ancestry (Viegas 1). The skeletal remains found date back 30,000 to 40,000 years ago; they belong to an individual who shows cranial signs of inherited traits of their mixed heritage. For example, the lower jaw is neither jutting as in

Einstein doesn't like it Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Einstein doesn't like it - Assignment Example It discusses probabilities of phenomenon and it is impossible to visualize such particles that form the probabilities. However, the Newton laws of motion were different from the quantum laws as they worked on visibility of motion. The three laws of motion presented by Newton were the remarkable discoveries of that time. Another contribution to the world of science was Newton’s law of Gravity that was a breakthrough in the field of physics. On the other hand quantum mechanics argues that it is not possible to know enough about the present so as to accurately predict the future. It is an impossible task that cannot be achieved even with sheer dedication in terms of time and technology. For example, if an object is moving at a certain speed in a certain direction we can determine its position at a certain time period based on its speed and direction. However, in the subatomic realm we can only approximate where the particle would be at a certain time and the more we narrow our focus on one particle the difficult it gets to approximate the other particles’ movements. Thus the entire discussion in this chapter concludes that Newton physics predicts events whereas quantum mechanics focuses on the probability of events. The two fields differ in their focus on the basic unit of observation but they both hold great significance in the field of

Abolition of African American Slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Abolition of African American Slavery - Essay Example From this paper it is clear that  the educated and elite blacks deserved equal rights of citizenship since they could contribute to the growth of the country. The blacks also used various political and judicial platforms to advocate and fight for this right of citizenship. Also, the tireless efforts of the blacks and the abolitionists played a key role in structuring and supporting the black freedom.   When the non-violent strategies that were used by the abolitionists failed, those that were enslaved and those that were free considered the use of radical actions.As the report discusses  since 1864, the blacks used the National Black Convention Movement to fight for their right to vote and full representation in the American affairs. One aspect of the history is abolition. In the history of Black Americans, there was the formation of the abolitionist movement. The aim of the group was to allow emancipation of all slaves after racial discrimination and segregation. Advocating fo r immediate emulsification made the difference between moderate antislavery advocates and abolitionists. Abolitions due to race were mainly encouraged by regional favor during second great awakening. This activity prompted many people to advocate for emancipation with the consideration of their religion. The idea on abolishment became prominent in other churches and political beginnings in the start of 1830s. This mainly contributed to the division of the region to the north and south and fueled the occurrence of the cold war.

History and Principles of Education Essay Example for Free

History and Principles of Education Essay The principles which should control educational methods are to be sought in human nature. During a considerable period of early man life, life is helpless and ignorant and without strength and knowledge necessary it is difficult to maintain an independent existence (Painter, 1904). Therefore it is in this fact that renders education a necessity. Function of Education The function of education is to give the processes of physical and mental growth which assist and direct a person during the formative periods of childhood and youth. The end of education is complete human development which is attained by leading the several parts of man’s nature to a harmonious realization of their highest possibilities (Davidson, 1990). Aim of Education Education aims at developing a noble type of manhood and man has various duties to perform in the world which need special training and a wide range of knowledge. Education also aims to develop its subjects for their place in the established order of things. Its object is to impress upon each generation traditional ideas and customs and hence prepare it to take its place, in the established order of society. Elements of Education The two elements of education which are inseparable are development and acquisition of knowledge. Without development the individual lacks strength to grapple with the problem of life and without knowledge the person remains a cipher in society. (Painter, 1904) History of Education For the purpose of education villages in the ancient times had their schools, districts their academics, departments their colleges and principalities their universities. The wealthy in China made education respectable and popular as it opened the only road to political ambition as all officers of government had to study and pass examinations. The ancient classical nations, Greece and Rome are earliest representatives of European civilization as they contributed to Christianity and modern science and invention. Modern nation achievement and importance now demand recognition. Science has developed and made contribution to modern progress and commerce and invention has largely broken down narrow national prejudice. The history of education has left people with complete records of thoughts and achievements which have been incorporated in education. In education they mark an obvious advance upon the defective systems of the orient (Anthony Benson, 2003). In Greece, in the history of education two cities, that is, Sparta and Athens used records to complete a system of education which was developed. During this heroic age of Troy education possessed a single character which was patriarchial. The fathers trained the sons to physical strength and the mother trained the daughter on household duties and domestic virtues. Greece had a supply of luxuries for the market place and along with their wares; merchants also provided abundance of stories about customs and local traditions which formed part of education. Cultural patterns from distant lands were accepted and assimilated into their own as Greek civilization sought to assimilate the best from foreign lands and accepted views of people even if they were differing. The Greek knew literature, art, poetry, drama, music, rhetoric which was included in education (Anthony Benson, 2003). Education from the Reformation to the Present Time The reformation of the 16th century is the greatest event of education in modern history. It opened the literacy content of Greece and Rome which provided a new culture of education. The costly method of copying books by hand increased the sources of knowledge and brought it within reach to a lot of people who are readers. The Roman education was dominated by the family in the 753-272 B. C. and the father held the role of supreme authority. The family was the unit of the roman constitution, the custodian of ancestral tradition and the focal point of religious and educational activities. Cicero, one of the men in Rome, held Greek literary and philosophical education which he thought was useful and necessary in the basic educational curriculum of every roman citizen for them to be a contributing member of society. This way many roman citizen understood both classic Greek and Latin as well as Christian education hence it was a fine blend of both education systems ( Rowman Littlefield, 1976) Christian education led to increase in schools like county schools, town schools, Latin schools and university in protestant countries due to religion. The relation of Christianity to education came about when education of paganism was thought imperfect as it was controlled by the wrong principles and did not look at the worth of individual in all its fullness. Christian education is indebted to the Old Testament people which provided on how to live in a rightful way (Graves, 1915). After Jews returned from exile they established schools for the education of their children. In the early Sumerian civilization the Sumer’s achievement were the development of the system of writing and the formal system of education. The subjects of instructors were originally catechism and singing but reading, writing and arithmetic’s were added later. The 18th century witnessed a new movement which was characterised by human education which based its educational principles on nature only. Here education was important as in the mind of the enlightened philosophers it prepared people to live according to the principles of nature which used scientific methods. Education in 19th Century The field of knowledge had widened and was within reach by 19th century. Pestalozzi is an educational reformer since the reformation who did much to popularise education by devoting his life in the educational world. He was distinguished for learning and became the medium through which all that was best educational theory obtained permanent recognition. Principles of Education The principles of education intend to provide a foundation on how to develop and teach courses which should have long impacts on individual lives, as teaching and learning is the reason of a learning institution. These principles will guide the learning institution into the future. The learning institution should maintain a learning environment that values the process of learning as much as the knowledge taught. This environment should encourage independent thinking and divergent activities which inspires students and elevate them. The learners should be inspired to develop independent, interdependent life long learning strategies, nurture their aspirations, imagination and confidence and possess self determination with a realistic assessment of ones attitude and inclinations. Education should promote effective expression in many forms for making public meaning and personal skills for individuals to be able to communicate with others effectively. Education should increase knowledge and thinking of an individual to be able to think critically and conduct discipline inquiry in order to understand complexity and simplicity of ideas and to prioritise and make decisions. Reform and education innovation most be addressed in the context of universal principles of human nature as the goal of education is success. Curriculum of education should be vigorous with standards alighted and necessary resources, professional teachers and maintain the assessment and accountability system to be effective. Opinion Education is a vital part in human development and it is important in our day lives. The principles of education have to be followed for there to be effective learning. The learning institutions should hire staffs that have the relevant skills for knowledge to be administered fully. Education has evolved through many centuries through the Roman, Greek and Christianity ages. An individual who has educations should be able to solve problems because that person has analytical skills and problem solving skills which are acquired through education. Education is still evolving as new ways of learning are being discovered and the introduction of technology has made it easy for people to learn through programs which facilitate e-learning hence education is a continuous process. Reference Christian Education; Principles for The Twenty-First Century, Kregel Publication, ISBN 0825420237. Frank Pierrepont Graves, (1915) A Student’s history of Education, Macmillan Co. Francosco Cordasco, (1976) A Brief History of Education; A handbook of Information on Greek, Roman, Medieral, Renaissance, Rowman and Littlefield, ISBN 0822600676. Franklin Verzelius Newton Painter, (1904) A History of Education, D. Appleton and company. Michael J. Anthony and Warren S. Benson, (200) Exploring the history and Philosophy of Thomas Davidson, (1900) A History of Education, Constable.

Project Mayhem Essay Example for Free

Project Mayhem Essay The movie is not entirely Marxism-themed, it promotes justice and anti-capitalism. It adheres to oppose globalization as a benchmark criteria and the face of development. It showcases the effects of globalization and integrates the propositions of inevitable opposition to the concept. However, its attempt to oppose the concept merits failure. (Author’s Full Name) (Instructor’s Name) (Course Title) (Date Submitted) The cinematic realm of Marxism: Fight Club (based on the novel by Chuck Palahniuk) Fight Club (1999, FOX), Chuck Palahniuk’s book-turned-film, is a movie which centers on the struggle to overcome alienation. Alienation serves as one of the films central themes and depicts how alienation can be a struggle especially when dealing with one’s self. Edward Norton, simply called as Jack, is the narrator of the film. He is the protagonist of the movie. Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) is Jack’s own alter-ego. Jack can be described as an insomniac being, tired of his prescribed job. He finds self-fulfillment through choosing only designer furniture products, and in support of groups raising health-related issues. He quickly identified with Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter), who like him is finding some things to do to meet his needs. But Marla has been so much like an imitation of jack, and so he tries to find for other venues where he could be. Tyler and jack, as both character reflecting one’s struggle, discovered a rush emotion during one time they fought. They were playful the whole time, but brutal against one another. It is in that moment that the concept of fighting held a different meaning. Fighting, as they experienced, has made them feel the pain and anger in a more vocalized manner. It gathered attention and awe as they observed their audience, thus, fight club emerged. Fight club became an organized and frequent event, an event which received a welcoming enthusiasm for its audience. Jack, his character and struggles were exemplified in the film. But Tyler, being his alter ego was also highlighted in the film. The awareness of their existence grew into the film’s conflict, and evoked a schizophrenic character that portrays a character with various emotional details. On the other hand, Jack is ultimately overcome by the transcendence of both. For most critics, the film may instill a sense of 19th century German philosophical view of the concept of alienation. The film, although treated as a movie with fictional characters and settings, has a touch of connection with some of the greatest philosophical views about man’s existence. In this research paper, it shall attempt to uncover the relationship between the characters and the movie per se, with the probable concept of alienation and Marxist ideologies. Using various texts as sources, the paper shall evaluate if such concepts are related to the movie, and what it brings in its entirety. Hegel in his book entitled the Phenomenology of Mind (1807) explored the philosophical views of alienation and the conflict between masters and slaves. The concept of alienation as described by Hegel depicts an emotion when individuals feel isolated from the rest of the society. However, when one becomes isolated from his true self, the concept of alienation brings an individual towards much more complex level. The paper shall explore the concept of alienation as it progress with its analysis. Following the prominent idealism strongly held in the Marxists view, the kind of alienation described in Marxist concept maintains that alienation is deeply embedded in capitalism. Beginning with Jack, we became to realize ho capitalism is greatly construed in his character, his view of the world, and the system he follows in his life. For one, his profession entails cost benefit analysis for a major automobile company. But more than the superficial and the obvious form of capitalism shown through Jack, capitalism evolved in several categories wherein it guides his self-being, and defines who he is as a person. Capitalism is depicted through Jack and his consumerist views. Jack, as narrator, asks, â€Å"What kind of dining room set defines me as a person? † and confesses, â€Å"I loved that condo. Everything, the lamps, the chairs, the rugs- was me (Fight Club, 1999, Script available from crosswind. net)†. If one analyzes the situation more deeply, we begin to realize Jack’s character being that of a person epitomizing a consumer, one who sees everything as a price tag. As Jack’s self-consciousness, his awareness grows, and again the conflict arise when his world-view is realized to be hollow and a continuous pursuit of self fulfillment. â€Å"We were raised by television to believe that someday well all be millionaires and movie stars and rock stars but we wont. And were learning that fact that this madness begins to be seen as a form of slavery: [we are a] whole generation [of] slaves manipulated by advertising to chase cars and clothes, working jobs they hate, just so they can buy things they dont really need. † (Fight Club, Script available in crosswinds. net) Just beneath the surface of these consumerist categories, a more conflicting character is drawn. The abject feeling of being a nobody, of having no destiny other than being a mindless drone in the hive of society. Jack knows what his problem is. He knows, but it seems that he himself does not know how to cure it. When Jack described his condition, he mentioned, â€Å"I am helpless. I am stupid and weak and all I do is want and need things. I am my little shit job. I am my condo and my Swedish furniture† (Fight Club, 1999, Script available at crosswinds. net) He knows he has a problem and that is one of the crucial steps towards finding his cure. Jack decides to turn to his alter-ego, Tyler. The entry of Tyler Durden into the life of Jack marks his subconscious desire to depart from his dull, meaningless existence (Kerr, 2006 p. 1). Fight Club is born out of Jack’s need to replace come into terms with his feelings and world-views. The club caters to those members of the society simply neglected and ignored, and whose life, like that of Jack, is one monotonous day after day of catering to a society that does not care about them. The capitalist system of working, the drive to realize larger profits in less time and capital required has reduced work to drudgery and creation is replaced by production (Marx, 1844). The introduction of the assembly line in the 1900’s changed the means by which work is approached. In the years before, jobs still produced a sense of personal fulfillment and growth. Products were hand made, with each year of making improving the experience of the creator and thus the quality of the product. However, in today’s capitalistic world, the mantra of specialization of tasks has reduced work to an activity of repetition and ultimately boredom. Cubicle workers, those that work in an assigned work place no larger than an elevator room leave work everyday with no sense of personal fulfillment, just a degree of satisfaction that the work required to get the next paycheck was done. Work in the capitalist society has become a pursuit of the means to subscribe to the material goods that the society says defines the life of a person (Ta, 2006 p. 70). No longer does the sense of personal achievement and pride in one’s work, and the struggle to achieve mastery in one’s job exist; it has been replaced by a sense personal repression, just to achieve a status in the capitalist world. Hegelian and Marxists theories have influenced some of the works of greatest philosophers of all times. One of them is Immanuel Kant. Kant did not only attempt to define and explain the concept of perception on one’s self, but defined and categorized structures in how we perceive our world, how we are also perceived by the world, and how we must be able to perceive ourselves. Kant contradicts Hegel’s separate and hidden world, with a world independent from our perception and awareness. Instead, the world is to use a common metaphor, projected by the subject (Hegel, 1955). If we follow Hegel’s logic, we can attribute disunity from one subject reflected to the other. Thus, when we aim to unify ourselves with the world, and our self consciousness, Hegel describes the phenomenon as a true self-knowing freedom (Hegel, 1955). The Solution: Fight? (Bliss) In the establishment of Fight Club, the protagonists embrace and face pain and fear head-on, as it were, through organized fighting, which produces a kind of bliss (Iocco, 2007 pp. 56-62). People who participates in the Fight Club are those who does not care about society norms and values, those people venting emotions brought about by alienation, and people who are in need to feel some kind of real human nature. Fight club participants are aware of their problems; they all feel oppressed from where they come from. This character provides a contrast with Jack’s character. People who watch and fight in the club are those who are anti-capitalist and anti-consumerist. Tyler’s philosophy in other people maintains these two antagonistic world views. In the world of the fight club, no class or levels were regarded, their own adapted new world view grants no difference with superiors and inferiors. The Fight Club also tackles the repression of basic primal masculinity and physical aggression. The capitalist society views itself as the epitome of civilization and thus frowns upon acts which are deem barbaric (Tuss, 2004 p. 99). Fighting, the act of physically confronting another person with the desire to inflict pain has been seen as a taboo and repressed act in today’s civilized world. The movie shows how hard it is to pick a fight in a basic corporate and suburban setting, and it shows that it is, of all people, a priest, which dares subscribe to physical violence. The capitalist world and the industrial revolution have ushered in a slightly different view of manhood. In early days, manhood was dictated by physical prowess and courage, the better to defend one’s family and to provide for them (Tuss, 2004 p. 94). However, in today’s environment, the primary currency of survival is money, and those perceived of as successful and manly are those who can provide and control with their money and bureaucratic authority. In analyzing Hegelian dialect, the logical progression of arguments is characterized with a starting passage from the proposed thesis. The thesis, will then be used to form an anti-thesis, developed into a higher synthesis which validates arguments and eliminates the partial truths (Hemling, p99). In this paper, we shall progress following these thoughts: capitalism is our thesis, our developed anti-thesis is Fight Club, and the higher synthesis contrasting it with the partial truths, maintains that either one can be regarded solely as a final thesis of anti-thesis. The fight club and ultimately project mayhem are just short-tem processes to add details of the struggle in the film. They are not regarded as solutions. They must and will end in order to give way to a higher synthesis. The fight club has this effect in the roles of fighting in the movie. Fighting is after all the main conflict and expression of conflict in the movie. One, fighting is a struggle to be recognized, acknowledged, and known. Second, fighting confronts fear. When fear becomes abolished, then the condition of freedom can be met. According to Hegel, as cited by Benzaquen 1998, self-awareness is only through other people’s mediation. The film did not only show this through fighting, but also through Jack. We mentioned earlier how Marla Singer becomes a reflection of Jack’s character, and when he realized this, he finds other places where he could get his fix, somewhere where he is the only one known. Just like what Kelly 1966 mentions, the story of self-consciousnesses whose need for recognition leads to mutual struggle. The personal character and the world dominating view must find its own characteristics. Their relationship is mutual, wherein if one s lost, the other is found. Both characters are a reflection of one’s own identity, thus it is difficult to settle their own difference. In a way they engage to compete with each other to gain independence, and remain essential towards their true identity. The assumption of both subjects is that the other one is not real. In this struggle, one attempt to emerge as the winner, even aim for the destruction and the death of the other while attempting to save his. This exact expression is what victory conjures annihilation towards the other. When one mediates, a person will be more likely to conquer his self-consciousness, and eventually gain recognition. Hegel describes this situation through a master-slave relationship. He explained that a master and his slave share a complementary relationship. A master is superior, highly independent of his slave. A slave is the inferior, highly dependent of his master. This complementary relationship exists because as the slave labors for his master, he affirms his status being an unessential. In the same context of the subjection of a slave to his master, the goal of the inferior is to achieve independence through his recognition by the master. However, as this mutual relationship follows through, the master begins to develop his own dependency towards the servant’s and his services. This is significantly an act of his consciousness. When the master becomes dependent for both the recognition and the work, he is no longer independent of his consciousness. Through this, he becomes subjective to his servant. The exchange of roles seen in this example is a turning point in the identities played by both the servant and the master. Thus, the reversal of consciousness and roles becomes different actions towards the self (Kellt, 1966) As the identity and role change, the reversal will also apply in the consciousness and identity of the servant construed by it. Consequently, when the servant has experienced this change, his labor or service becomes his preconditions of true freedom. Citing Hegel, Kelly (1966) explains that the reversal will yield a consciousness repressed within it, and modifies into a real and true independence. The second precondition towards self-freedom is done through the servant’s recognitions of his independent and self-consciousness. As depicted in the film, fear is achieved through fighting, and ultimately, to death. The essence of risking one’s life in a fight is essential to gain freedom. It is like fighting in a war, were strongly-held beliefs are fought for in exchange of sacrifice of one’s life. The true measure of an individual, as Kelly (1966) insists, must recognize his true independence and self-consciousness. In this analysis, we constitute fear as something profoundly essential to reach true freedom. A servant meets this requirement more than the master because his own existence is governed by fear and submission. Essentially, his role as a servant constitutes his fearful quality. But to get Hegel right and, I think, to understand the film, it’s important to see that the process does not end here. If we adopt the method of drawing a higher synthesis without the impartial truths, we regard the struggle as a realization of the self-consciousness which resolves the mutual conflicts. The real resolution according, to Helmling in his â€Å"Immanent Critique and Dialetical† paper, maintains that mutual recognition and respect, and not domination, will resolve conflict between roles. In the film, time and time again, we recognize the quality of struggle to attain freedom. As Marla emphasizes, â€Å"Dying people are so alive† (Fight Club, Script available in crosswind. net) Without absolute fear, we have in Hegel’s words only an attitude that does not get beyond the attitude of bondage, since it is still inherently a determinate mode of being, like that of a thing, rather than of a Person (Kelly, 1966). Fight club evolved into what is known in the film as Project Mayhem. The group now becomes an organized, large-scale group, aiming to relieve oneself with oppression. Jack reacts to this development with rejection of capitalism he is comfortable with during the beginning. Although Jack as a changed character ultimately opposed the corporate power which constitutes a social system derived with name, levels, and classes, Project Mayhem is in itself living in that kind of role and through Tyler’s role and guidance, Project Mayhem unified itself against The Oppressive Establishment. The effect of the Fight club yields two varying characters for each individual. One, as Jack narrates, â€Å"Who you were in fight club is not who you were in the rest of your world. You werent alive anywhere like you were alive at fight club. But fight club only exists in the hours between when fight club starts and when fight club ends. † (Fight Club, Script available in crosswinds. net) This kind of dual life for members may be unavoidable, as long as Fight Club is a club, available only to a limited number of members. We shall consider the second reason as an impartial truth. Duality of personality is recognized in the film. It is a character recognized and honored by Fight Club. A Rousseau philosophy kicks in this analysis. Rousseau mentions that the savage and harsh life in the world ultimately results to voidance of comforts and amenities it presents. Ta (2006, p. 6) explains, just like as capitalism grows secretly within the world system and dominates, a counter-movement would lead to an equally terrible disaster bound to happen. In lien with this though, we realize that fear, rooted in one’s pursuit to achieve freedom, enables a person to truly live. When the need for recognition of freedom is made, unity and self-consciousness desires emerge. However, if we realize that one should die in order for the other to live and achieve true freedom, it will probably be easier if either Jack or Tyler risks their life, or even both. But using Hegel’s dialectic, this option will not yield us with an advantage because both the presented thesis and the anti-thesis are negated by synthesis done in the higher level. Both share a mutual relationship with and without the other. In order to bring the equality derived from fight club to the oppressive capitalist society, it was necessary to move unto the next stage. Project mayhem aims to change the society at large, by disrupting the economic base and superstructure interaction. In all societies the Economic foundation or base of the society determines the shape and form of the rest of society, its superstructure (Marx, 1844). In a capitalist society the economic base, the industries and modes of production as well as the basic ethos of capitalism serve to shape the superstructure, the laws, arts, culture, and society. And it is this laws, and culture and society that affirm the righteousness of the economic base, and the capitalistic ideology (Marx, 1844). Project Mayhem tried to change this interaction as an alternate superstructure which is anti to the one prevalent in society. With their alternate base, the notion of a man as part of something larger, of equality and opposition to capitalistic ideals, they have produced an alternate society, an alternate culture, which is the fight club at its early stages and evolved into project mayhem. In order to legitimize their own base-superstructure, they must disrupt the existing capitalist one, and since most of their members are the drones, those whose specialized jobs make society run, the task becomes infinitesimally easier. In the capitalist world of specialization of tasks, it becomes easier to sabotage industries and societal process by simply removing or influencing key individuals. Since the society is reliant on the accomplishment of its members of its specific tasks, removal of this accomplishment would lead to an inevitable chain reaction by which change could be accommodated. Thus those of the lower classes, with their specialized class, are able to deny their masters and oppressors the services which they are supposed to do, effectively making them realize how the upper classes of society are reliant on the lower ones. Worker bees can leave Even drones can fly away The queen is their slave. -Jack (Fight Club, Script available in crosswinds. net) This disruption of the basic principle of class division between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat is in Marx’s view the inevitable destiny in capitalism’s ultimate evolution to Marxism. However, the evolution to Project Mayhem is also anathema to Marxist principle of equality. Whereas Marx promotes equal individual welfare, the removal of individuality upon becoming a part of Project Mayhem and its subsequent restoration upon death is a direct contradiction of Marxist ideals. The members were looking out for the interests of the project, without the Project looking out for them, violating a Locke agreement. In order to attain the transition from capitalism to communism, the proletariat must first unite and overthrow the bourgeoisie. A revolution is inevitable. Leninist Marxism provides a revolution of a united proletariat must be spearheaded by leaders committed to the cause, in Fight Club’s Case, Tyler Durden. The withdrawal of the proletariat everyman mentality, of Jack, is replaced with Tyler’s violent, but clear sighted leadership as to how to impose the tenets of Fight Club into the society. Thus comes the inevitable criticism of Leninist Marxism, as the proletariat becomes unaware of the direction they are heading, with only their leaders knowing the full extent of the revolution. This cell mentality is reminiscent of capitalistic society, and is only legitimized as being the only method that could ensure capitalism’s downfall, an argument used by terrorist organizations worldwide. The end of the film allows for the death of Tyler Durden and the reawakening of Jack. This symbolizes the end for the violent personality needed to instigate the transitory revolution and the return to the everyman, the individual. The success of project mayhem’s plan to bomb the city’s financial district is in itself the catalyst by which the transition picks up on. The success of the anti-thesis in countering the capitalistic society and its subsequent end brings to the forefront a glimpse of the synthesis after. The destiny of Tyler Durden, as with all revolutionary leaders is to lead the revolution, and then give the reins to the proletariat, Jack. Thus Jack’s shooting of himself in order to remove Tyler Durbin is in itself an acceptance of the fact that Tyler’s work is done, and that it is now time to go back to compassion as means for societal revolution. Fight Club is an anti-capitalist movie. It shows us what capitalism has done to affect our perceptions of masculinity, our self-esteem and our take on civilization. It exhibits how people can become lost and alienated in their society and ultimately even within themselves. In order to provide an anti-thesis to capitalism, Fight Club used Marxist themes in order to show how one could respond and fight capitalism. It shows how those classes marginalized by capitalist society can turn the tables on it and use the specialized tools given to them to disrupt the base and superstructure interaction within and promote the tenets obtained from the Fight Club. The movie exhibits Marxism not as an end unto itself but simply as an option, as a means on how to provide a fighting chance to those individuals reduced to meaningless roles in a capitalist society. Works Cited Fight Club, a screenplay by Jim Uhls, directed by David Fincher, and based on a novel by Chuck Palahniuk; Fox. 1999 (Script available at http://www. crosswinds. net/~filmhouse/scripts/fight_club. html. ) Benzaquen, Adriana S.. â€Å"Thought and Utopia in the Writings of Adorno, Horkheimer, and Benjamin† Utopian Studies, Vol. 9 Issue 2, p149, 13p. 1998 Bilton, Alan. An Introduction to Contemporary American Fiction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2002. Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich, Phenomenology of Mind. Trans. J. B. Baillie, 2nd. ed. Macmillan, New York, pp. 25-58. 1955. Hegel. Introduction to the Philosophy of History. Trans. J. Sibree, Dover Publications, New York, 1956.

Result Analysis using Fast Clustering Algorithm

Result Analysis using Fast Clustering Algorithm Result Analysis using Fast Clustering Algorithm and Query Processing using Localized Servers. P.Jessy Abstract—This paper identifying records that produces compatible results using Fast Clustering Selection Algorithm. A selection algorithm may be evaluated from both the efficiency and effectiveness points of view. While the efficiency concerns the time required to find a record, the effectiveness is related to the quality of the record. The selection algorithm fetches the result with the help of register number. The Selection algorithm works in two steps. In the first step, the register number fetches the result from the server. The record for every individual will be obtained by hit method. The sender sends the request to the server. In the second step, the most representative record that is strongly related to target classes is fetched from database. The record fetches from the database by the register number. The string generation algorithm is guaranteed to generate the optimal result k candidates. We analyses the results of students using Selection Algorithm. We need to de fine compatible operation analogs by introducing max-min operation min-max operation. It automatically collects data from the web to enrich the result. The analysis of result for huge students make more time. The accuracy of the result has to be considered. We need to fetch the result individually by their register number. It leads to time inefficiency. In a proposed system, we obtain the result for a group of students. The Selection method fetches the result for a student according to their register number which is entered in between a range. The result for the student automatically fetched from the server. Once the result for the candidate has been fetched from the server, it stored in the client database. Then we sort the result of the student as group. It increases the accuracy and makes the efficient one. It reduces the burden of the people who analyze the result. The result analysis is performed within a short period. We can generate the report based on the GRADE system. Our experimental evaluation shows that our approach generates superior results. Extensive experiments on large real data sets demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness. Finally we sort the results of students using FAST CLUSTERING SELECTION algorithm. Index Terms FAST, Minmax Maxmin Operation. INTRODUCTION Students play a major role in Educational field.Students are evaluated under different categories: By choosing their institution, studying well, gaining good knowledge, and getting good marks. Result analysis of each student paves the way for their higher education as well as their improvement in future. Percentage marks prior to the grade scheme were converted into grades for ease of comparison. The reliability of the new scheme was again studied using statistical analysis of data obtained from both the old and new schemes. Some assessment schemes use a grading category index (GCI) instead of actual mark for each assessment criterion. GCIs usually have a smaller number of options to choose from when awarding results. For example, the GCI may gave eight levels with the highest being awarded to exceptional students and the lowest being awarded to students of inadequate performance. This reduced level of categories has been shown to result in less variability between assessors compare to systems which use marking ranges between 0 and 100. The Results of the students are analyzed using Fast Clustering Selection Algorithm. In this paper, we are analyzing the results of students using clustering methods with the help of filtering by introducing max-min operation min-max operation.The filter method is usually a good choice when the number of records is very large.The SELECTION algorithm works in two steps. In the first step, the register number fetches the result from the server. The record for every individual will be obtained by hit method. The sender sends the request to the server. In thesecond step,themost representative record that is strongly related to target classes is fetched from database.It consists of three components: query generation, and data selection and presentation.This approach automatically determinesinformation. It then automatically collects data fromthe web .By processing a large set of data; it is able to deal with more complex queries. In order to collect result, we need to generate informative queries. The queries have to be generated for every individual student.It increases the time to fetches the result and inefficiency. In order to overcome this, the queries are generated along with unique identification number i.e. register number. Based on the generated queries, we vertically collect image data with multimedia search engines.We then perform reranking a nd duplicate removal to obtain a set of accurate and representative results. 2. RELATED WORK Selection can be viewed as the process of identifying and removing as many irrelevant and redundant record as possible. This is because: (i) irrelevant records do not contribute to the predictive accuracy, and (ii) redundant features do not redound to getting a better predictor for that they provide mostly information which is already present. Selection focused on searching for relevant records. Irrelevant data, along with redundant data, severely affect the accuracy. Thus, selection should be able to identify and remove as much of the irrelevant and redundantinformation as possible. QUERY GENERATION To collect result from the web,we need to generate appropriate queries before performing search. We accomplish the task with two steps. The first step is query extraction. We needto extract a set of informative keywords from querying. The second step is query selection.This is because we can generate different queries: one fromretrieve, one from display, and one from the combinationof retrieve and display. In query generation, given an input string Qi, we aim to generate the most likely koutput strings sothat can betransformed from Qi and have the largest probabilities. DATA SELECTION AND PRESENTATION We perform search using the generated queries to collect the result of the student. The result of the student is fetched from the server by three processes. Before query generation, the register number for the students is fetched from the database. The register numbers are grouped based upon the department. The register number for each group is partitioned and stored as arrays of objects. In query generation, the register number is added with the query and it performs the request to server.The results are built upon text based indexing. Therefore, reranking is essential to reorder the initial text-based search results. A query-adaptivereranking approach is used for the selection of the result. We first decide whether a query is text related or image related, and then we use different features for reranking. Here we regard the prediction of whether a query is text related as a classification task.We can choose to match each query term with a result list. But it will not be easy tofind a complete list. In addition, it will be difficult to keep the list updated in time. We adopt a method that analyzes results. Thus, we perform a duplicate removal step to avoid information redundancy. The result which is fetched from the server may increases the time if there is large amount of data. To increases the time efficiency we need to process the query in a different manner. The results are grouped with the help of group id. EVALUATION OF QUERY GENERATION The generated query is first passed as a string to the server. The server searches the result with the register number. Once the result is found for the particular register number, the server sends the respond to the query client.Theresult received for a particular student is stored in the database with help of the register number. The results can be printed for a group of students by simply selecting the results from database with the group id. The group id is set for a group of students based upon their department id. The department id is a unique constraint for the identification of the record. In query generation the records are fetched from the server and stored in the client database by the department id and group id. EVALUATION OF RERANKING We use the query adaptive ranking to perform query classification and thenadopt query-adaptive reranking accordingly. It is our proposedapproach and it is denoted as â€Å"proposed†. After reranking, we perform duplicate removal and irrelevant removal of result. 3. ALGORITHM AND ANALYSIS The proposed FAST algorithm logically consists of two steps: (i) removing irrelevant record, (ii) removing redundant record. 1) Irrelevant records have no/weak correlation with target concept; 2) Redundant records are assembled in a cluster and a representative data can be taken out of the cluster. ALGORITHM For every result Calculate the average queue size(avg) ifminth { Calculateprobability pa With probability pa: ifregister no. is valid and if the result is not already fetched { Mark the result Send request to the sender and save the result } else Drop the request to the server } else if maxth Store the result in database Send acknowledgment to the server. Fig.1. gives the flowchart of the algorithm FAST Algorithm The FAST algorithm fetches the result of the student with the help of the register number. T F T F Fig.1. Flowchart of the algorithm FAST Algorithm The algorithm checks whether the given register number is valid or invalid. The register number is a collection of college code and student code. The college code is used to identify the result of the particular college. The FAST algorithm calculates the probability of finding the result of the student from the server. Then it identifies the results from the server using the request and response method. The avg SELECTIVITY OF RANGE QUERIES Selectivity estimation of range queries is a much harder problem. Several methods were available. However, they are only able to estimate the number of records in the range. None can be efficiently adapted to estimate the number of results in the range. One naive solution is to treat information as record by removing the irrelevant information. This clearly increases the space consumption significantly (and affects the efficiency) since the number of points is typically much larger than the number of existing nodes. When generating the query workload for ourdatasets we had to address two main challenges. We had to generate a workload,with an attribute distribution representing the user interests in a realistic way. Second, we had to create queries of theform attribute-value. Query reformulation involves rewriting the original query with its similar queries and enhancing the effectiveness of search. Most existing methods manage to mine transformation rules from pairs of queries in thesearch logs. One represents an original query and the other represents a similar query. 1) Select the length of the query l by sampling from a uniform probability distribution with lengths varying from 1 to 3. 2) Select an attribute A1 using the popularity that they have on the vector 3) Select the next attribute A2 using the co-occurrence ratio with the previous attribute A1. 4) Repeat from Step 2, until we get l different attributes. DATABASE SIZE EFFECT We check the effect of the size of the database on the precision of attribute suggestions and thenumber of query matches. We consider subsets of the database of documents of different sizes. As expected the proposed strategies increase their quality when weincrease the data size. The size of the result is based on the method of us storing it. We storing the data which is retrieved from sever to the client database which increases the time efficiency and minimum storage capacity. The results are stored in the database by the student register number which requires less storage and increases the efficiency of accessing the information. 4. CONCLUSION In this paper, we have presented a clustering-based selection algorithm for result analysis. The algorithm involves (i) removing irrelevantrecords, (ii) removing redundant record. We can do the result analysis but it makes more time to get the result of every student. For that we are using a selection algorithm which removes the redundancy of the result and using it we can fetch the result of large group of people. We have adopted a method to remove duplicates, but in many cases more diverse results may be better. In our future work, we will further improve the scheme, such as developing better query generation method and investigating the relevant segmentsfrom the result. 5. REFERENCES [1] Chanda P., Cho Y., Zhang A. and Ramanathan M., Mining of Attribute Interactions Using Information Theoretic Metrics, In Proceedings of IEEE international Conference on Data Mining Workshops, pp 350-355, 2009. [2] Y. Du, S. Gupta, and G. Varsamopoulos, â€Å"Improving On-Demand Data Access Efficiency in MANETs with Cooperative Caching,† Ad Hoc Networks, vol. 7, pp. 579-598, May 2009. [3] Biesiada J. and Duch W., Features election for high-dimensionaldataÅ‚a Pearson redundancy based filter, AdvancesinSoftComputing, 45, pp 242C249, 2008. [4] Garcia S and Herrera F., An extension on â€Å"Statistical Comparisons of Classifiers over Multiple Data Sets† for all pairwise comparisons, J. Mach. Learn. Res., 9, pp 2677-2694, 2008. [5] C. Chow, H. Leong, and A. Chan, â€Å"GroCoca: Group-Based Peer- to-Peer Cooperative Caching in Mobile Environment,† IEEE J. Selected Areas in Comm., vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 179-191, Jan. 2007. [6] Demsar J., Statistical comparison of classifiers over multiple data sets, J. Mach. Learn. Res., 7, pp 1-30, 2006. [7] L. Yin and G. Cao, â€Å"Supporting Cooperative Caching in Ad Hoc Networks,† IEEE Trans. Mobile Computing, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 77-89, Jan. 2006. [8] Butterworth R., Piatetsky-Shapiro G. and Simovici D.A., On Feature Selectionthrough Clustering, In Proceedings of the Fifth IEEE internationalConference on Data Mining, pp 581-584, 2005. [9] Fleuret F., Fast binary feature selection with conditional mutual Information, Journal of Machine Learning Research, 5, pp 1531-1555, 2004. [10] Dhillon I.S., Mallela S. and Kumar R., A divisive information theoretic feature clustering algorithm for text classification, J. Mach. Learn. Res., 3, pp 1265-1287, 2003. [11] Forman G., An extensive empirical study of feature selection metrics for text classification, Journal of Machine Learning Research, 3, pp 1289-1305, 2003. [12] Guyon I. and Elisseeff A., An introduction to variable and feature selection, Journal of Machine Learning Research, 3, pp 1157-1182, 2003. [13] M. Korupolu and M. Dahlin, â€Å"Coordinated Placement and Replacement for Large-Scale Distributed Caches,† IEEE Trans. Knowledge and Data Eng., vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 1317-1329, Nov. 2002. [14] Das S., Filters, wrappers and a boosting-based hybrid for feature Selection, In Proceedings of the Eighteenth International Conference on Machine Learning, pp 74-81, 2001. [15] Dougherty, E. R., Small sample issues for microarray-based classification. Comparative and Functional Genomics, 2(1), pp 28-34, 2001. [16] S. Dykes and K. Robbins, â€Å"A Viability Analysis of Cooperative Proxy Caching,† Proc. IEEE INFOCOM, 2001. [17] Bell D.A. and Wang, H., A formalism for relevance and its application in feature subset selection, Machine Learning, 41(2), pp 175-195, 2000. [18] Dash M., Liu H. and Motoda H., Consistency based feature Selection, In Proceedings of the Fourth Pacific Asia Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining, pp 98-109, 2000. [19] Hall M.A., Correlation-Based Feature Selection for Discrete and Numeric Class Machine Learning, In Proceedings of 17th International Conference on Machine Learning, pp 359-366, 2000. [20] Baker L.D. and McCallum A.K., Distributional clustering of words for text classification, In Proceedings of the 21st Annual international ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in information Retrieval, pp 96- 103, 1998.

The Rise of Democracy in Britain Essay -- British Politics Papers

The Rise of Democracy in Britain The dynamic course of the nineteenth century set off a revolution within the realm of British politics. Foreign influence and domestic transformation created a situation where individual interests were forced into the public sphere for political reconciliation. The shift towards democratic government was largely unscripted because Britain had no written constitution to guide its path. Thus, Britain’s pursuit of democracy was not prescribed by any rules or written precedents. Instead, it was the outgrowth of an immediate national responsibility to fulfill the demands of the disenfranchised. Britain’s journey towards democracy cannot be explained without taking into account the many factors that spurred its development. The forces responsible for advancing democratic government in Great Britain were the diverse products of a unique set of evolving social, economic, and political structures. To understand the forces that propelled Britain towards democracy in the nineteenth century, one must first look back to the preconditions that fostered contemporary social change. The development of democratic government and the rise of capitalism are intrinsically linked. Necessary to the ideology of capitalism was the notion that the free individual was making a personal investment of labor or service and receiving the means with which to purchase property in return. Thus, a person of property was politically invested. Industrialization, however, changed the economic climate that had defined the way politics operated prior to the nineteenth century. Suddenly, society contained groups of people who were worki... ...tension that pushed forward the original reforms of 1832. This spirit of public demand for political representation would be essential in propelling the future advances of British democracy. As the political demands of the middle and working class came into the public sphere for the first time, the second track of political change arose. Political organizations placed their goal at giving public demands a parliamentary voice. The subsequent evolution of political parties and interest groups shaped the composition of Parliament and its attitude towards reform. In the final analysis, the influence of the public and the interests of the parties that had developed to represent their needs came together to push through the great nineteenth century reforms that later stood as buttresses to the structure of British democracy.

Transitioning a Child To Daycare Essay -- Child Development

When a parent leaves their child off at a daycare, they often wonder why their child who was happy and content before they arrived cries and screams when their parent leaves to go to work. This is a very hard transition for infants, which is why it's our job as infant toddler teachers to make the transition as comfortable and relaxing as possible. The reason children feel this way when their parents leave is because they are in what Piaget calls the sensorimotor stage, and are in the beginning of object permanence meaning that an infant realizes something is their even though they cannot see it. This is very important because, before an infant can experience object permanence often refereed to as separation anxiety, they only think about what is in their view at the time, therefore they think about the present rather than the future. The infant feels like the parent left them with a stranger, and they are not coming back. As a teacher you can help decrease this by communicating with the parents, and allowing the infant to get used to the environment, and asking parents not to s...

The Growth of Nora in A Dolls House :: A Dolls House Essays

The Growth of Nora in A Doll's House In the play " A Doll's House", written by Henrik Ibsen, Nora, the main character of the play, decides to abandon her husband, her home and her children in order to find herself. She finally realizes she has to leave when confronted with a problem in her relationship with her husband, who keeps treating her like a doll, reflecting the childish treatment she always received from her father before. She finds the strength to leave with her childhood friend Kristine, who has led a hard life, and has the wisdom to guide and support her. Nora leaves the role of the doll child and doll wife she played her whole life, and becomes an independent self-thinking adult, when she realizes that the world is different than she always thought it was, and that she herself is not who she thinks she is. Nora lives in a dream world, a child fantasy, where everything is perfect, and everything makes sense. She thinks that the world would never condemn a woman who tries to save her husband's life or protect a dying father. When confronted by Krogstad, who tells her it is against the law to sign someone else's signature, she responds: " This I refuse to believe. A daughter hasn't a right to protect her dying father from anxiety and care? A wife hasn't a right to save her husband's life? I don't know much about laws, but I'm sure that somewhere in the books these things are allowed." Nora simply does not understand the ways of the world, and the final realization that she is in real danger of risking hers and her husband's reputation, and worse, makes her snap out of the childish dream she had been living. Kristine, Nora's childhood friend, is the wisdom and support Nora needs to grow up. Kristine is a woman who has been in the real world, unlike other wives of Torvald's friends. At the same time, Kristine is a friend from Nora's childhood, a person who she can tell her problems to and relate to in some way. Also, unlike everyone else who surrounds Nora, Kristine tells her the truth, she does not pamper her.

Likert Scales

A Closer Look at the Age, Peers and Delinquency Relationship Daniel P. Mears and Samuel H. Field Western Criminology Review 4 (1), 20-29 (2002) Introduction: Research Summary: Two suppositions were explored. First, a communal association between delinquent peer-groups and the significance of age as it is influencedamong older youth. The second (keeping in the direction of the theoretical focus), epitomized that substance-abuse-related offenses would have a greater correlation in the relationship between delinquent peers and age. For each violation dependent variables were used, with each offender asked the specific amount of times the offense was committed in the past year. â€Å"The mean values for the offenses, range from a low of . 05 for burglary to a high of 24. 00 for the use of marijuana. † (Mears & H. Field,2002). The analysis with regard to the deviant self-reported acts uncovers the fact that there is a significant age/peer interaction for each violation, omitting hitting someone. The principal finding to note is,†that the expected pattern of age/peer interactions is most evident for using marijuana; getting drunk; and, to a lesser extent, selling illegal drugs, using prescription drugs, burglary, and the offense index. The steady progression in the increasing effect of peers for these offenses can be seen by noting the size and direction of the increase in the interaction coefficients from one age to the next†(Mears & H. Field,2002). For the crimes of: cheating, damaging property, stealing items less than $5, and more than $50, and hitting someone, the nature and tenacity appear to be less apparent. With regard to these offenses, the effects of the â€Å"influence-of-peers-relationship,† seem to lessen. The researchers gave additional analysis to examine the effects of the linkage between heightened delinquency that may be reinforced by increased influence of peers and reducedtime spent with the family model. When included, the variables of peer influence and family time left no discernible significance on the interaction of the age/peer association. Personal Opinion regarding Research: The authors did look at relevant and pertinent data. Samplings from the study were taken from households across United States, as evidenced by the NYS Wave 3 data, and adolescents were selected from the ages of 13-19. The NYS data was used, â€Å"because of its considerable methodological attention given to the NYS and because of the general agreement as to their reliability and validity† (Mears & H. Field, 2002). Mandatory steps were taken to ensure the offenses were of high variances, by creating the index and standardizing individual offense counts. Standardizing the individual offense was necessary to ensure that offenses with high variances (e. g. , using marijuana) did not overly influence the resulting index† (Mears & H. Field, 2002). I found the article to be informative as well as interesting. Mears and fields, speculative evidence suggesting that increased exposure to delinquent peers exerts a unique impact on the inclination of older youth to engage in drug offending (using marijuana, getting drunk, selling ille gal drugs, and using prescription drugs), was very compelling to me. There are many studies and much evidence to suggest that substance abuse is embedded within peer interactions. Adolescents are expected to participate in drug-related deviant acts, with marijuana and drunkenness at the forefront. It was equally interesting to see how the aging peer influence played into this study. Conclusion: While there does seem to be an interactive relationship existing between age and delinquent peer associations (for some offenses). The research was directed more to the drug-related offenses and the relationship between age and delinquent peer associations. The researchers pointed out that with thisinteractive age/peer relationship, delinquency increases with peer influence among older youth. The data from the NYS was pertinent, relevant, and convincing. The findings open other areas for further investigation, such as â€Å"age/peer interactions using longitudinal data. † (Mears & H. Field,2002). Although, I found the data to be factual and valid, I did take note that the data from wave one was collected in 1976, and the data collected from the third wave (present study), was collected in 1978. The only recommendation I would have is to perform similar analysis on current data to add a stronger foundation to Mears and fields, 2002 findings. (Mears & H. Field, 2002) Mears, D. P. , & H. Field, S. (2002). A Closer Look at the Age, Peers, and Delinquency Relationship. Retrieved from Excelsior College Virtual Library Web site: http://Retrieved from http://wcr. sonoma. edu/v4n1/mears. html