Compare and contrast gender roles in the movies Battle of algeris and Essay

Compare and contrast gender roles in the movies Battle of algeris and mother of india - Essay Example particularly highlights this trend is when three National Liberation Front (NLF) women fighters change their appearance to be able to leave the Casbah and attack the French colons by planting bombs. The names of the three women fighters are Djamila, Hassiba, and Zohra. Originally, they are wearing burqas. Their plan is to enter the French colonies without making them realize where these women belong. In order to achieve this plan, they transform themselves into Western women so as to Europeanize themselves. They remove their burqas, cut their hair and dye them, and wear Western outfits. This way, the women fighters are perceived as part of the party in power whereas they are actually functioning as revolutionaries. This is how gender roles have been passed and used to the liberation fighters’ advantage. One factor that makes this movie unique in comparison to other movies based on women’s action is that the women fighters have been shown in the high femme drag in Battle of Algeris unlike the conventional movies on women’s action in which the female action heroes are presented in leather jackets, or military outfits with little to no makeup. The sexualized presentation assists the women fighters in placing the bombs. In this way, the women fighters essentially subjugate their gender identities, and penetrate the enemies’ world for a bigger cause. This scene deals with the gender as well as the racial representation in direct association with the technology used for war. There is a growing trend among women to become the suicide bombers, and the reasons for this are fairly understandable and intrinsically linked to their gender roles and perceptions. One of the most important factors that increases women’s eligibility to become the suicide bombers is the fact that the societal and cultural norms oblige men not to touch the women. The women fighters in Battle of Algeris took benefit of this norm and slipped through all the checkpoints and yet were not

Cars Enslave Us Rather Than Liberate Us Essay Example for Free

Cars Enslave Us Rather Than Liberate Us Essay How much effort do you put in travelling to school or workplace each week? Created in 1870, cars have been one of the most useful and spectacular inventions of human beings. The society we live in has recently became completely reliant on these fuel-burning vehicles. It is widely discuss whether cars are a blessing or a real nightmare that may lead people astray. As a young driver, I firmly believe in the liberating power of cars. Not only do they facilitate life, but also encourage to broadens one’s horizons, which may be justified in the following essay. To begin with, cars allow people to travel from place to place with no limits. Basically, they give a perfect opportunity for those who live in the suburbs and have no access to the public transport. Living far away from the city requires the involvement of other people, typically parents, who drive their children to various places. Otherwise, how would they be able to develop and participate in some additional activities, like volunteering or learning to play the violin? It is important to stress that these ingenious machines may give people the fantastic experience of travelling round the world without worrying about covering long distances having a place to sleep when one is on the way! Furthermore, cars have an unquestionable advantage over the means of public transport. Given the choice between walking in the rain to get to the bus station or taking a car and driving directly to one’s destination, who would not prefer the latter? Rarely do people claim that cars are less convenient or luxurious that buses owing to having the air-conditioning system or soft seats. What is more, there is little possibility of getting stuck in the crowd or being exposed to delay or robbery. Surprisingly, people who travel with the use of public transport are more likely to be late and to demonstrate continual anxiety. On the other hand, cars are very expensive to maintain. They burn a lot of fuel and, therefore, force people to be more restrictive about their expenses. However, public transport is not free too. For a five-member family, it is quite more beneficial to have a car since it not only saves money, but also a lot of free time that can be spent on more pleasant activities. To conclude, living without a car appears to have a lot of serious disadvantages. It strikes me that these vehicles save a lot of time and do not put any demand to subordinate to timetables. To my mind, they liberate us rather than enslave us.

Copernicus Essay -- essays research papers fc

Nicolas Copernicus Nicolas Copernicus 1473-1543 Physics February 8, 2000 Nicolas Copernicus Nicolas Copernicus 1473-1543 Copernicus was born in Poland in 1473, he started his education at Cracow University. There he studied mathematics and optics. From here he went to Italy, where he was appointed as a canon in the cathedral of Frauenburg, where he spent a comfortable academic life studding. Copernicus had some small hobbies while at the cathedral, he painted, and frequently translated Greek poetry into Latin. One other hobby that just wasn't small enough to be called a hobby to most of us was astronomy. He made investigations quietly and alone, without any help. He observed from a turret on a protective wall around a cathedral, he also looked with his naked eye rather than with a telescope. He was one of the founders of modern astronomy. Copernicus died in 1543 of a cerebral hemorrhage. In 1530 right before Copernicus died he managed to published his work, De Revolutionibus. Which said that the earth rotated on its axis once daily and traveled around the sun once yearly. This might no sound very controversial but at this time the church and its followers believed in the Ptolemiac theory, which stated that the universe was a closed space bounded by a spherical envelope beyond which there was nothing. (Landry 1999) Copernicus’s works went against the church, and most scientific beliefs. This may be one reason why Copernicus didn’t publish his work until his deathbed. Another ...

The Host Chapter 50: Sacrificed

The Seeker scrutinized my face while Mel and I fought. No, Wanda, no! Don't be stupid, Mel. You of all people should see the potential of this choice. Isn't this what you want? But even as I tried to look at the happy ending, I couldn't escape the horror of this choice. This was the secret I should die to protect. The information I'd been desperate to keep safe no matter what hideous torture I was put through. This was not the kind of torture I'd expected: a personal crisis of conscience, confused and complicated by love for my human family. Very painful, nevertheless. I could not claim to be an expatriate if I did this. No, I would be purely a traitor. Not for her, Wanda! Not for her! Mel howled. Should I wait? Wait until they catch another soul? An innocent soul whom I have no reason to hate? I'll have to make the decision sometime. Not now! Wait! Think about this! My stomach rolled again, and I had to hunch my body forward and take a deep breath. I just managed not to gag. â€Å"Wanda?† Jeb called in concern. I could do it, Mel. I could justify letting her die if she was one of those innocent souls. I could let them kill her then. I could trust myself to make an objective decision. But she's horrible, Wanda! We hate her! Exactly. And I can't trust myself. Look at how I almost didn't see the answer†¦ â€Å"Wanda, you all right?† The Seeker glared past me, toward Jeb's voice. â€Å"Fine, Jeb,† I gasped. My voice was breathy, strained. I was surprised at how bad it sounded. The Seeker's dark eyes flickered between us, unsure. Then she recoiled from me, cringing into the wall. I recognized the pose-remembered exactly how it felt to hold it. A gentle hand came down on my shoulder and spun me around. â€Å"What's going on with you, hon?† Jeb asked. â€Å"I need a minute,† I told him breathlessly. I looked straight into his faded-denim eyes and told him something that was most definitely not a lie. â€Å"I have one more question. But I really need a minute to myself. Can you†¦ wait for me?† â€Å"Sure, we can wait a little while more. Take a breather.† I nodded and walked as quickly as I could from the prison. My legs were stiff with terror at first, but I found my stride as I moved. By the time I passed Aaron and Brandt, I was almost running. â€Å"What happened?† I heard Aaron whisper to Brandt, his voice bewildered. I wasn't sure where to hide while I thought. My feet, like a shuttle on automatic pilot, took me through the corridors toward my sleeping room. I could only hope that it would be empty. It was dark, barely any light from the stars trickling down through the cracked ceiling. I didn't see Lily till I tripped over her in the darkness. I almost didn't recognize her tear-swollen face. She was curled into a tight, tiny ball on the floor in the middle of the passageway. Her eyes were wide, not quite comprehending who I was. â€Å"Why?† she asked me. I stared at her wordlessly. â€Å"I said that life and love go on. But why do they? They shouldn't. Not anymore. What's the point?† â€Å"I don't know, Lily. I'm not sure what the point is.† â€Å"Why?† she asked again, not speaking to me anymore. Her glassy eyes looked right through me. I stepped carefully past her and hurried to my room. I had my own question that had to be answered. To my great relief, the room was empty. I threw myself facedown on the mattress where Jamie and I slept. When I'd told Jeb I had one more question, that was the truth. But the question was not for the Seeker. The question was for me. The question was would I-not could I-do it? I could save the Seeker's life. I knew how. It would not endanger any of the lives here. Except my own. I would have to trade that. No. Melanie tried to be firm through her panic. Please let me think. No. This is the thing, Mel. It's inevitable anyway. I can see that now. I should have seen it long ago. It's so obvious. No, it isn't. I remembered our conversation when Jamie was ill. When we were making up. I'd told her that I wouldn't erase her and that I was sorry that I couldn't give her more than that. It wasn't so much a lie as it was an unfinished sentence. I couldn't give her more than that-and stay alive myself. The actual lie had been given to Jared. I'd told him, just seconds later, that I didn't know how to make myself not exist. In the context of our discussion, it was true. I didn't know how to fade away, here inside Melanie. But I was surprised I hadn't heard the obvious lie right then, hadn't seen in that moment what I was seeing now. Of course I knew how to make myself not exist. It was just that I had never considered that option viable, ultimate betrayal that it was to every soul on this planet. Once the humans knew that I had this answer, the one they had murdered for over and over again, it would cost me. No, Wanda! Don't you want to be free? A long pause. I wouldn't ask you for this, she finally said. And I wouldn't do it for you. And I sure as hell wouldn't do it for the Seeker! You don't have to ask. I think I might have volunteered†¦ eventually. Why do you think that? she demanded, her tone close to a sob. It touched me. I expected her to be elated. In part because of them. Jared and Jamie. I can give them the whole world, everything they want. I can give them you. I probably would have realized that†¦ someday. Who knows? Maybe Jared would have asked. You know I wouldn't have said no. Ian's right. You're too self-sacrificing. You don't have any limits. You need limits, Wanda! Ah, Ian, I moaned. A new pain twisted through me, surprisingly close to my heart. You'll take the whole world away from him. Everything he wants. It would never work with Ian. Not in this body, even though he loves it. It doesn't love him. Wanda, I†¦ Melanie struggled for words. Still, the joy I expected from her did not come. Again, this touched me. I don't think I can let you do this. You're more important than that. In the bigger picture, you are of much more value to them than I am. You can help them; you can save them. I can't do any of that. You have to stay. I can't see any other way, Mel. I wonder how I didn't see it sooner. It seems so completely obvious. Of course I have to go. Of course I have to give you yourself back. I already knew we souls were wrong to come here. So I don't have any choice now but to do the right thing, and leave. You all survived without me before; you'll do it again. You've learned so much about the souls from me-you'll help them. Can't you see? This is the happy ending. It's the way they all need the story to finish. I can give them hope. I can give them†¦ not a future. Maybe not that. But as much as I can. Everything I can. No, Wanda, no. She was crying, becoming incoherent. Her sorrow brought tears to my eyes. I'd no idea that she cared so much for me. Almost as much as I cared for her. I hadn't realized that we loved each other. Even if Jared had never asked me for this, even if Jared did not exist†¦ Once this path had occurred to me, I would have had to proceed down it. I loved her that much. No wonder the success rate for resistant hosts was so low here on Earth. Once we learned to love our human host, what hope did we souls have? We could not exist at the expense of one we loved. Not a soul. A soul could not live that way. I rolled myself over and, in the starlight, I looked at my body. My hands were dirty and scratched, but under the surface blemishes, they were beautiful. The skin was a pretty sun-browned color; even bleached in the pale light, it was pretty. The nails were chewed short but still healthy and smooth, with little half moons of white at the bases. I fluttered my fingers, watching the muscles pull the bones in graceful patterns. I let them dance above me, where they became black fluid shapes against the stars. I ran them through my hair. It was almost to my shoulders now. Mel would like that. After a few weeks of shampoo in hotel showers and Health vitamins, it was glossy and soft again. I stretched my arms out as far as they would go, tugging against the tendons until some of my joints cracked. My arms felt strong. They could pull me up a mountainside, they could carry a heavy load, they could plow a field. But they were also soft. They could hold a child, they could comfort a friend, they could love†¦ but that was not for me. I took a deep breath, and tears welled out of the corners of my eyes and rolled down my temples into my hair. I tensed the muscles in my legs, felt their ready strength and speed. I wanted to run, to have an open field that I could race across just to see how fast I could go. I wanted to do this barefoot, so I could feel the earth beneath my feet. I wanted to feel the wind fly through my hair. I wanted it to rain, so that I could smell it in the air as I ran. My feet flexed and pointed slowly, to the rhythm of my breathing. In and out. Flex and point. It felt nice. I traced my face with my fingertips. They were warm on my skin, skin that was smooth and pretty. I was glad I was giving Melanie her face back the way it had been. I closed my eyes and stroked my eyelids. I'd lived in so many bodies, but never one I loved like this. Never one that I craved in this way. Of course, this would be the one I'd have to give up. The irony made me laugh, and I concentrated on the feel of the air that popped in little bubbles from my chest and up through my throat. Laughter was like a fresh breeze-it cleaned its way through the body, making everything feel good. Did other species have such a simple healer? I couldn't remember one. I touched my lips and remembered how it felt to kiss Jared, and how it felt to kiss Ian. Not everyone got to kiss so many other beautiful bodies. I'd had more than some, even in this short time. It was just so short! Maybe a year now, I wasn't completely sure. Just one quick revolution of a blue green planet around an unexceptional yellow star. The shortest life of any I'd ever lived. The shortest, the most important, the most heartbreaking of lives. The life that would forever define me. The life that had finally tied me to one star, to one planet, to one small family of strangers. A little more time†¦ would that be so wrong? No, Mel whispered. Just take a little more time. You never know how much time you'll have, I whispered back. But I did. I knew exactly how much time I had. I couldn't take any more time. My time was up. I was going anyway. I had to do the right thing, be my true self, with what time I had left. With a sigh that seemed to come all the way from the soles of my feet and the palms of my hands, I got up. Aaron and Brandt wouldn't wait forever. And now I had a few more questions that I needed answered. This time, the questions were for Doc. The caves were full of sad, cast-down eyes. It was easy enough to slip unobtrusively past them all. No one cared what I was doing right now, except maybe Jeb, Brandt, and Aaron, and they weren't here. I didn't have an open, rainy field, but at least I had the long south tunnel. It was too dark to run flat out the way I wanted, but I kept up a steady jog. It felt good as my muscles warmed. I expected I would find Doc already there, but I'd wait if I had to. He would be alone. Poor Doc, that was usually the case now. Doc had been sleeping alone in his hospital since the night we'd saved Jamie's life. Sharon had taken her things from their room and moved them to her mother's, and Doc wouldn't sleep in the empty room. Such a great hatred. Sharon would rather kill her own happiness, and Doc's, too, than forgive him for helping me heal Jamie. Sharon and Maggie were barely a presence in the caves anymore. They looked past everyone now, the way they used to look past only me. I wondered if that would change when I was gone, or if they were both so rigid in their grudge that it would be too late for them to change. What an extraordinarily stupid way to waste time. For the first time ever, the south tunnel felt short. Before I thought I'd gone halfway, I could see Doc's light glowing dimly from the rough arch ahead. He was home. I slowed myself to a walk before I interrupted him. I didn't want to scare him, to make him think there was an emergency. He was still startled when I appeared, a little breathless, in the stone doorway. He jumped up from behind his desk. The book he was reading fell out of his hands. â€Å"Wanda? Is something wrong?† â€Å"No, Doc,† I reassured him. â€Å"Everything's fine.† â€Å"Does someone need me?† â€Å"Just me.† I gave him a weak smile. He walked around his desk to meet me, his eyes wide with curiosity. He paused half a step away and raised one eyebrow. His long face was gentle, the opposite of alarming. It was hard to remember how he'd looked like a monster to me before. â€Å"You are a man of your word,† I began. He nodded and opened his mouth to speak, but I held one hand up. â€Å"No one will ever test that more than I will test it now,† I warned him. He waited, eyes confused and wary. I took a deep breath, felt it expand my lungs. â€Å"I know how to do what you've been ending so many lives to discover. I know how to take the souls from your bodies without harm to either. Of course I know that. We all have to, in case of an emergency. I even performed the emergency procedure once, when I was a Bear.† I stared at him, waiting for his response. It took him a long moment, and his eyes grew wilder every second. â€Å"Why are you telling me this?† he finally gasped. â€Å"Because I†¦ I am going to give you the knowledge you need.† I held up my hand again. â€Å"But only if you will give me what I want in return. I'm warning you right now, it won't be any easier for you to give me what I want than it will be for me to give you what you want.† His face was fiercer than I'd ever seen it. â€Å"Name your terms.† â€Å"You can't kill them-the souls you remove. You must give me your word-your promise, your oath, your vow-that you will give them safe conduct on to another life. This means some danger; you will have to have cryotanks, and you will have to get those souls onto shuttles off-planet. You have to send them to another world to live. But they won't be able to hurt you. By the time they reach their next planet, your grandchildren will be dead.† Would my conditions mitigate my guilt in this? Only if Doc could be trusted. He was thinking very hard as I explained. I watched his face to see what he would make of my demand. He didn't look angry, but his eyes were still wild. â€Å"You don't want us to kill the Seeker?† he guessed. I didn't answer his question because he wouldn't understand the answer; I did want them to kill her. That was the whole problem. Instead, I explained further. â€Å"She'll be the first, the test. I want to make sure, while I'm still here, that you're going to follow through. I will do the separation myself. When she is safe, I'll teach you how it's done.† â€Å"On who?† â€Å"Kidnapped souls. The same as before. I can't guarantee you that the human minds will come back. I don't know if the erased can return. We'll see with the Seeker.† Doc blinked, processing something. â€Å"What do you mean, while you are still here? Are you leaving?† I stared at him, waiting for the realization to hit. He stared back, uncomprehending. â€Å"Don't you realize what I'm giving you?† I whispered. Finally, comprehension slammed home in his expression. I spoke quickly, before he could. â€Å"There's something else I'm going to ask you for, Doc. I don't want to†¦ I won't be shipped off to another planet. This is my planet, it truly is. And yet, there's really no place for me here. So†¦ I know it might†¦ offend some of the others. Don't tell them if you think they won't allow it. Lie if you have to. But I'd like to be buried by Walt and Wes. Can you do that for me? I won't take up much space.† I smiled weakly again. No! Melanie was howling. No, no, no, no†¦ â€Å"No, Wanda,† Doc objected, too, with a shocked expression. â€Å"Please, Doc,† I whispered, wincing against the protest in my head, which was getting louder. â€Å"I don't think Wes or Walt will mind.† â€Å"That's not what I meant! I can't kill you, Wanda. Ugh! I'm so sick of death, so sick of killing my friends.† Doc's voice caught in a sob. I put my hand on his thin arm, rubbed it. â€Å"People die here. It happens.† Kyle had said something to that effect. Funny that I should quote Kyle of all people twice in one night. â€Å"What about Jared and Jamie?† Doc asked in a choked voice. â€Å"They'll have Melanie. They'll be fine.† â€Å"Ian?† Through my teeth. â€Å"Better off without me.† Doc shook his head, wiping at his eyes. â€Å"I need to think about this, Wanda.† â€Å"We don't have long. They won't wait forever before they kill the Seeker.† â€Å"I don't mean about that part. I agree to those terms. But I don't think I can kill you.† â€Å"It's all or none, Doc. You have to decide right now. And†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I realized I had one more demand. â€Å"And you can't tell anyone else about the last part of our agreement. No one. Those are my terms, take them or leave them. Do you want to know how to remove a soul from a human body?† Doc shook his head again. â€Å"Let me think.† â€Å"You already know the answer, Doc. This is what you've been searching for.† He just kept shaking his head slowly back and forth. I ignored that symbol of denial because we both knew his choice was made. â€Å"I'll get Jared,† I said. â€Å"We'll make a quick raid for cryotanks. Hold off the others. Tell them†¦ tell them the truth. Tell them I'm going to help you get the Seeker out of that body.†

Drama †Blood Brothers Response Essay

Blood brothers is a story which was written in 1981 as a school play and included a range of themes which help the audience understand and feel for the story rather than just watching it. The themes in this play include poverty, innocence, love, games, belief and superstition. I feel that the key themes that control the play are chance and society of the time and I feel that most of the story circles around these themes and most events are caused by these themes. To emphasize the themes in the play, we created a three minute version of the play which consisted of still images, narration and stylised movement. We decided to split the play into four sections which were: baby years, childhood, 14 – 17 years and 20+ years. We decided that we would show the giving away of the baby as this allows the rest of the story to flow. If it wasn’t for this specific scene, the story wouldn’t have happened as the giving away of one twin is a significant event in the play. This also allowed us to add emotion to our piece as this is one of the several events which separate people into two opinions. For the second section (which was childhood) we included images of them first meeting, playing games, both of the mothers separating Mickey and Eddie and Mrs Johnstone giving the locket to Eddie. My group and I felt that these were also important events in the play; in fact one of the main themes in the play is games which relates to the robbery and overall shooting of both twins later on. For 14 -17 years, we decided to show both children being suspended from school, the meet up between friends with the devil narration on top which we thought allowed our piece to flow making it easier to understand. At the last stage, 20+, we performed four still images which included an unemployment scene, Linda’s pregnancy, Eddie and Linda being together and finally the shooting with the second half of the images having the mad man narration over the top: ‘There’s a mad man running round and round You know the devil’s got your number You know he’s right beside you He’s screamin’ deep inside you And someone said he’s callin’ your number up today Today Today TODAY!’ This piece of narration was used in our three minute version of the play as we thought that it summed up a lot of the happenings in this age group and is a constant theme throughout the play. I found that the best way to tell this story within the three minutes was to use different techniques which allowed expressing and stressing of several moments in a play making it more effective. In our three minute version, this included levels, space and marking the moment. One example of these entire three put together was when both boys got expelled. We had the class sitting down at the back while the teacher was standing up straight looking down on one pupil who was higher than the class but lower than the teacher. This made use of levels, space and also marked the moment by focusing on the locket. We decided to make the giving away of the baby the most significant point in the play. This is because the whole of the story centres on this point, and if it wasn’t for this event, none of the other events would have happened. To mark this moment, we used narration which was originally placed over the point where Mrs Johnstone was only considering giving the baby to Mrs Lyons. ‘How quickly and idea, planted, can Take root and grow into a plan. The thought conceived in this very room Grew as surely as a seed, in a mother’s womb’ This piece of narration allowed us to realise how the event they are seeing came into being. We found that forum theatre was a very useful technique to bring Mickey’s monologue to life. Forum theatre was used to change the way we said lines and how to put expression, feeling and life to the lines which in turn make the monologue a lot more vibrant and interesting. The way we performed forum theatre was to have someone acting out a verse of the poem. We then got the audience to comment and suggest improvements. We then acted the verse out again and repeated the process until we were happy with it. Below is the verse we performed. ‘Y’ know our Sammy, He draws nudey women, Without arms, or legs or even heads In the baths, when he goes swimmin’. But I’m not allowed to go to the baths, Me Mam says I have to wait, ‘Cos I might get drowned, ‘cos I’m only seven, But I’m not, I’m nearly eight.’ We started off with the beginning of the verse being said in a very secretive way although it was put in the category of secret in a child which meant that it had to be told; something I had felt many a time when I was a young child which also meant my body was slightly crouched and slightly tense. I used the same experience to ‘goggle’ at what Sammy was able to do when he went swimming. Then disappointment kicks in when I hit ‘But I’m not allowed†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ as my voice goes slower and my body slumps and when the mother comes on I re-enact a rather rude hand motion usually used when someone is too talkative while the mother reads her quote. The last line is said in a way of self-pity making the character feel sorry for himself which I have felt many times when I was a young child and feeling as if my parents were deriving me of all of the world’s pleasures. In this monologue I learnt that Mickey was a character who always wanted more and wanted something someone else had that he hadn’t which is an apparent characteristic of Mickey throughout the play. It also helped me realise that it was more than just a greedy feeling as the feeling was a lot deeper and it was if the world had forgotten about him but not the others who lived in the world around him. As I said before, forum theatre had helped me find these characteristics as it helped shape what had been written. It was as if there were a lot of muddled thoughts and both me and the audience were helping to piece it together properly so we could both get an idea on how the character was really like and how the character really felt. For individual spontaneous improvisation, I acted as Mrs Johnstone where I was looking at both babies and playing with them as if it were my last time with both of them. Of course, at the time my character would have not known which baby would have been taken and because of this, I acted in a way as if it were the last time for Mrs Johnstone to see both of them. My thought track for this piece was: ‘I can’t believe this is happening’ and it would have been hard to come to terms with something which could potentially change somebody’s life, especially when it is your own son. This decision was both challenged and supported by a technique called a conscience corridor which we used to find the pros and cons of giving the baby away which was then fired to somebody stepping into the shoes of Mrs Johnstone. Feeling the confused and mixed feelings, it gave us a chance to make our own decision as if we were that character. Some pros included having money, less stress, a better life for your son, less work. Some cons included the guilt of your child being bought, splitting up a natural bond given to both children, more stress as you worry and having to cover it up from the outside world. The conscience corridor was put into action by splitting the class in half and putting them up as two sides to create a human ‘corridor’. We then got a member of our class to walk up while each person in the ‘wall’ said the pros and cons. When the person in the middle finishes walking up through the corridor, he/she tells us his/her decision. In this situation, I wrote a diary entry as Mrs Johnstone. I typed my diary entry up below ‘I can’t believe it is happening. So close to the time where one of my beloved babies would be given away to my employer. I am sure that I am doing the right thing – I can’t afford to give them both a good life and Mrs Lyons does want a baby so badly. Even so, I feel I am breaking a natural bond given to them both which makes me unsure on whether I should do it. I am in a situation which I would never wish on any mother.’ Overall, I found that explorative strategies helped us understand Blood Brothers as it allowed us to see what usually are hidden thoughts and feelings of characters. It also allows us to get into character and realise how events and other actions are performed by the character.

Ionic Radius Definition and Trend

Ionic Radius Definition and Trend The ionic radius (plural: ionic radii) is the measure of an atoms ion in a crystal lattice. It is half the distance between two ions that are barely touching each other. Since the boundary of the electron shell of an atom is somewhat fuzzy, the ions are often treated as though they were solid spheres fixed in a lattice. The ionic radius may be larger or smaller than the atomic radius (radius of a neutral atom of an element), depending on the electric charge of the ion. Cations are typically smaller than neutral atoms because an electron is removed and the remaining electrons are more tightly drawn in toward the nucleus. An anion has an additional electron, which increases the size of the electron cloud and may make the ionic radius larger than the atomic radius. Values for ionic radius are difficult to obtain and tend to depend on the method used to measure the size of the ion. A typical value for an ionic radius would be from 30 picometers (pm, and equivalent to 0.3 Angstroms Å) to 200 pm (2 Å). Ionic radius may be measured ​using x-ray crystallography or similar techniques. Ionic Radius Trend in the Periodic Table Ionic radius and atomic radius follow the same trends in the periodic table: As you move from top to bottom down an element group (column) ionic radius increases. This is because a new electron shell is added as you move down the periodic table. This increases the overall size of the atom.As you move from left to right across an element period (row) the ionic radius decreases. Even though the size of the atomic nucleus increases with larger atomic numbers moving across a period, the ionic and atomic radius decreases. This is because the effective positive force of the nucleus also increases, drawing in the electrons more tightly. The trend is particularly obvious with the metals, which form cations. These atoms lose their outermost electron, sometimes resulting in the loss of an entire electron shell. The ionic radius of transition metals in a period does not, however, change very much from one atom to the next near the beginning of a series. Variations in Ionic Radius Neither the atomic radius nor the ionic radius of an atom is a fixed value. The configuration or stacking of atoms and ions affects the distance between their nuclei. The electron shells of atoms can overlap each other and do so by different distances, depending on the circumstances. The just barely touching atomic radius is sometimes called the van der Waals radius since the weak attraction from van der Waals forces governs the distance between the atoms. This is the type of radius commonly reported for noble gas atoms. When metals are covalently bonded to each other in a lattice, the atomic radius may be called the covalent radius or the metallic radius. The distance between nonmetallic elements may also be termed the covalent radius. When you read a chart of ionic radius or atomic radius values, youre most likely seeing a mixture of metallic radii, covalent radii, and van der Waals radii. For the most part, the tiny differences in the measured values shouldnt be a concern. Whats important is understanding the difference between atomic and ionic radius, the trends in the periodic table, and the reason for the trends.

Aggregates and Social Aggregates in Sociology

Aggregates and Social Aggregates in Sociology Within sociology, there are two kinds of aggregates that are commonly used: the social aggregate and aggregate data. The first is simply a collection of people who happen to be in the same place at the same time, and the second refers to when we use summary statistics like averages to show something about a population or a social trend. The Social Aggregate A social aggregate is a collection of people who are in the same place at the same time, but who otherwise do not necessarily have anything in common, and who may not interact with each other. A social aggregate is different from a social group, which refers to two or more people who interact regularly and who have things in common, like a romantic couple, a family, friends, classmates, or coworkers, among others. A social aggregate is also different from a social category, which refers to a group of people defined by a shared social characteristic, like gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, age, class, etc. Every day we become part of social aggregates, like when we walk down a crowded sidewalk, eat in a restaurant, ride public transit with other passengers, and shop in stores. The only thing that binds them together is physical proximity. Social aggregates sometimes figure into sociology when researchers use a convenience sample to carry out a research project. They are also present in the work of sociologists who conduct participant observation or ethnographic research. For example, a researcher studying what happens in a particular retail setting might take note of the customers present, and document their demographic makeup by age, race, class, gender, etc., in order to provide a description of the social aggregate that shops at that store. Using Aggregate Data The more common form of an aggregate in sociology is aggregate data. This refers to when social scientists use summary statistics to describe a group or a social trend. The most common type of aggregate data is an average (mean, median, and mode), which allows us to understand something about a group, rather than considering data that represents specific individuals. Median household income is among the most commonly used forms of aggregate data within the social sciences. This figure represents the household income that sits exactly in the middle of the household income spectrum. Social scientists often look at changes in median household income over time in order to see long-term economic trends at the household level. We also use aggregate data to examine differences among groups, like the change over time in median household income, depending on ones  level of education. Looking at an aggregate data trend like this, we see that the economic value of a college degree relative to a high school degree is much greater today than it was in the 1960s. Another common use of aggregate data in social sciences is tracking income by gender and race. Most readers are probably familiar with the concept of the wage gap, which refers to the historical fact that women on average earn less than men and that people of color in the U.S. earn less than white people. This type of research is produced using aggregate data that shows averages of hourly, weekly, and annual earnings by race and gender, and it proves that despite legalized equality, interpersonal discrimination on the basis of gender and race still works to create an unequal society. Updated  by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Admissions

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Admissions Are you interested in attending the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire? They accept 78Â  percent of all applicants. See more about their admissions requirements. The University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire is a public university and member of the eleven comprehensive universities in the University of Wisconsin System. The city of Eau Claire is located in Western Wisconsin about an hour and a half from the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro region. The attractive 333-acre campus sits on the Chippewa River, and the region is well-known for its natural beauty. Undergraduates can choose from about 80 degree programs with nursing and business being two of the most popular majors. Academics are supported by a 22 to 1 student/faculty ratio and an average class size of 27. Student life is extremely active with over 250 student organizations including several fraternities and sororities. On the athletic front, the UW-Eau Claire Blugolds compete in the NCAA Division III Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). The university fields ten mens and twelve womens intercollegiate sports. Will you get in? Calculate your chances of getting in with this free tool from Cappex. Admissions Data (2016) University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Acceptance Rate: 78Â  percentTest Scores: 25th / 75th PercentileACT Composite: 22 / 26ACT English: 21 / 26ACT Math: 21 / 26ACT Writing: - / -What these ACT numbers meanCompare ACT scores for Wisconsin collegesCompare SAT scores for Wisconsin colleges Enrollment (2016) Total Enrollment: 10,747Â  (10,085 undergraduates)Gender Breakdown: 38Â  percent Male / 62 percent Female93Â  percent Full-time Costs (2016-17) Tuition and Fees: $8,812 (in-state); $16,385 (out-of-state)Books: $400Room and Board: $6,984Other Expenses: $3,704Total Cost: $19,900 (in-state); $27,473 (out-of-state) University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Financial Aid (2015-16) Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 82Â  percentPercentage of New Students Receiving Types of AidGrants: 59Â  percentLoans: 61 percentAverage Amount of AidGrants: $3,406Loans: $7,296 Academic Programs Most Popular Majors: Accounting, Biology, Business Administration, Elementary Education, English, Finance, Kinesiology, Marketing, Mass Communication, Nursing, PsychologyWhat major is right for you? Sign up to take the free My Careers and Majors Quiz at Cappex. Retention and Graduation Rates First Year Student Retention (full-time students): 84Â  percent4-Year Graduation Rate: 30Â  percent6-Year Graduation Rate: 68Â  percent Intercollegiate Athletic Programs Mens Sports: Football, Tennis, Track and Field, Wrestling, Cross Country, Swimming, Ice Hockey, Golf, BasketballWomens Sports: Soccer, Softball, Tennis, Track and Field, Cross Country, Ice Hockey, Gymnastics, Swimming, Basketball, Golf Explore Other Wisconsin Colleges and Universities Beloit | Carroll | Lawrence | Marquette | MSOE | Northland | Ripon | St. Norbert | UW-Green Bay | UW-La Crosse | UW-Madison | UW-Milwaukee | UW-Oshkosh | UW-Parkside | UW-Platteville | UW-River Falls | UW-Stevens Point | UW-Stout | UW-Superior | UW-Whitewater | Wisconsin Lutheran If You Like UW - Eau Claire, You May Also Like These Schools University of Minnesota - Duluth: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphMinnesota State University - Mankato: ProfileWinona State University: ProfileNorthern Michigan University: ProfileUniversity of Minnesota - Twin Cities: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphUniversity of Iowa: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT Graph University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Mission Statement mission statement from uwec.edu/acadaff/policies/mission.htm We foster in one another creativity, critical insight, empathy, and intellectual courage, the hallmarks of a transformative liberal education and the foundation for active citizenship and lifelong inquiry. Data Source: National Center for Educational Statistics

Gender Inequality Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Gender Inequality - Research Paper Example Gender inequality in the workplace particularly has disastrous effects on the overall organization because the more stressful the working environment is the less effective is exhibited by employees. Between the years 1940 to 1995, a large number of women entered the labor force but unfortunately their exposure resulted in a whole new set of inequality problems. Unfortunately, inequality is also prevalent in the US government where men hold more than 85% of the elected positions and about 95% of the corporate executives are also males. On the other hand, women occupy two-thirds of the poor adult population. A substantial amount of the women population is still insecure because of problems such as sexual violence, occupational inequalities and feminization of poverty, continues to threaten them. We have encouraged women to pursue occupations once reserved only for their counterparts yet we have not encouraged men to follow traditional roles performed by women. Therefore, women continue to withstand the burden of undertaking family up bringing which inevitably limits the role they can play in the outside world. Therefore, it signifies that women are capable of contributing extensively towards economic and social development but their traditional responsibilities limit their capabilities. Despite the gender disparities that exist in our society, most of us do not consider it a serious problem and this is the very reason why the paradoxical legacy of inequality continues to plague our nation. (Rhode 2000). Our youth and adults feel comfortable discussing certain sexual issues such as sexual preferences, sexual relationships and sexual deviance but we feel uncomfortable discussing sexual inequality and its implications. In most conversations, the topic of sexual inequality is treated as an intruder which in most cases us unwelcomed. Ironically, most women’s rights activists fail to realize the fact that it’s about time we stopped discussing inequality, instead we need to act now and wage a war to eliminate it. On the other hand, we have only a handful of activists working to elevate the position of women which is another reason why the problem of gender inequality is so deep rooted. Despite the fact that women are continuously subjected to juvenile and benevolent sexism, only a quarter of the American women population believes that

Minimum Wage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Minimum Wage - Essay Example Minimum wage increases as only a short-term benefit to the poor. Prices will quickly adjust for this increase as companies raise prices to make up for the increased wages they must pay. They need to keep profits the same or raise them...so a rise in employee wages will equate to a rise in prices. Supporters of living wage laws say that the current minimum wage simply does not keep up with the cost of living. Allowing employers to pay less than a living wage is just cost-shifting to the public at large, forcing the government and private charities to fill in the gap between low pay and survival. Many economists supports that the minimum wage is a matter of social justice which helps reduce exploitation and ensures that workers can afford basic necessities of living. Supporters deny claims of causal links between the minimum wage and adverse impacts upon employment, and suggest that in any event, greater social benefit derives from the minimum wage. Raising the minimum wages of employees increases the economic efficiency of the economy where labor markets exhibit a high degree of market power on the part of employers. As Kash explains, (Montag 51) "The minimum wage goes up in one place, but doesn't change right next door.

Self-Reliance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Self-Reliance - Essay Example Conformity, consistency, and regret are three of the barriers to self-reliance (â€Å"Self-Reliance†). People tend to conform to societal expectations and in an attempt of doing so, lose track of their personal goals and desires. Consistency is stated as a barrier to self-reliance because it deprives an individual of the opportunity to experience new things in life, challenge the beliefs inculcated into him/her by others which is required to make informed decisions, and develop more skills. Consistency is repetition and it is a barrier to creativity and innovation, hence also a barrier to self-reliance. Regret is a barrier to self-reliance because it is regressive in effect and does not make any valuable contribution to an individual’s life. It is good to regret but only to the extent that the individual realizes where he/she has done the mistake so that it can be corrected in the future. Regretting about things that the individual cannot do anything about is not produc tive. I can relate to Emerson’s viewpoint on the barriers to self-reliance. I love meat but in an attempt to conform to the expectations of most members of my family who are true vegetarians and consider it ethically unjustified to eat meat, I have remained a vegetarian going against my nature for a long time. I do physical workout quite often. I have noticed that I need to keep changing the ways I do physical workout in order to maintain my interest in the exercise. The same kind of exercise done repeatedly becomes boring. Likewise, consistency in anything creates the room for boredom. My grandfather died a few years ago. I often regret not having spent much time talking to him while he was alive. This regret and realization has made me more caring and loving toward the elderly. I have used my regret in a constructive way to achieve self-reliance rather than letting it become a barrier to that. Steps I can take to achieve self-reliance include taking measures to remove the barriers to

Nursing Practice Theory Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nursing Practice Theory - Research Paper Example There exists a relationship between grand theories, middle range theories, and nursing practice theories in that, all these discuss about nursing as a profession and provide a guide for nursing practice. Grand theories are general concepts and are representative of a wide range of nursing practice. They, therefore, have the broadest scope. They use statements to show relationship otherwise known as assumptions to show the basis of their philosophy. Grand theories form the basis for expansion of other theories, research and development of new standards. The focus of grand theories is on the â€Å"phenomena of concern to the discipline such as person as adaptive systems, self-care deficits, unitary human beings, human becoming, or health as expanding consciousness† (Parker & Smith, 2010). Grand nursing theories are visions to be used in nursing practice. However, the limitation of these theories is that, they cannot be universally tested; hence, they have limited capabilities in guiding, explaining, and foretelling about specific situations in nursing. This is because; these theories were developed by scholars who were thinking way above their time. Middle range theories are derived from concepts of grand theories. These theories are narrow in scope as compared to grand theories, and they offer an effective bridge between grand theories and the description of specific nursing phenomena. These theories are of advantage in the sense that, they are more applicable to nursing practices and situations. This theory allows testing of theory through research, devising strategies for nursing practice, and developing tools for nursing practice. As a result of this, middle range theories are more efficient and proficient as compared to the other theories. As a result of covering a wider scope, middle range theories are applicable in many health care institutions and other health quarters. Nursing

Answer the following exam questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Answer the following exam questions - Essay Example and peace process, which led to the spawning of two more radical splinter groups: Continuity IRA (CIRA), and the Real IRA (RIRA) in mid to late 1990s. The IRA, sometimes referred to as the PIRA to distinguish it from RIRA and CIRA, is organized into small, tightly-knit cells under the leadership of the Army Council. The IRA’s militant activities have comprised of bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, punishment beatings, extortion, smuggling, and robberies. Prior to the cease-fire agreement in 1997, the group was involved in terror campaigns in various places in Northern Ireland and England, including senior British Government agencies (and its officials), innocent civilians, police forces, and the Royal military installations. While the rationale for their activities is quite genuine, the group has also attracted criticism for its rigidity. For example, the IRA has not been willing to adopt non-violent methods for pressurizing its oppressive neighbour. For example, the group’s refusal in late 2004 to allow photographic documentation of its decommissioning process was an obstacle to progress in implementing the Belfast Agreement and stalled talks. The IRA is also criticized for funding its operations through criminal means. Every year millions of dollars are added to its coffers through robberies and other crimes. Unless the IRA puts an end to such deviances, its mission is unlikely to succeed. The IRA does not pose a direct threat to Australian citizens or Australian national interests. But in an indirect way, with the refusal of Canberra to detach itself from American and British neo-colonial ambitions, Australia can face a backlash. Already we saw an instance of this in the Bali bombings of 2002. With the IRA’s links with the Palestinian Liberation Organization, ETA and the Colombian militant group FARC, Australia is vulnerable to terror attacks from these organizations, if its foreign policy framework does not change. It is also no surprise

To what extent can organisations minimise counterproductive or deviant Essay

To what extent can organisations minimise counterproductive or deviant behaviour - Essay Example prompt counterproductive and deviant work behaviors, discuses effects of these factors, and pinpoints diagnostic techniques as well as potential approaches for negating these behaviors. Counterproductive and deviant behaviors are employee behaviors, which violate organizational goals, rules, and policies, among other aspects of an organization. These deviant behaviors may be deliberate or unintended, and rise from a variety of underlying motivations and causes. In organizations, deviant workplace behavior is a prevalent, costly phenomenon, and includes several negative acts that employees exhibit to harm the organization and co-workers. These negative outcomes affect production, relationships, and properties. Interactions among employees or between employees and workplace environment also cause counterproductive and work deviant behaviors. In view of this, an employee is likely to exhibit counterproductive and deviant behaviors because of his/her personality or traits. Corporate envi ronment such as lax supervision and social context can also result in deviant and counterproductive behaviors. These behaviors include verbal and physical aggression, intentional improper work, absenteeism, theft, delays, and others. Organizations have the responsibility to counter these behaviors by use of appropriate strategies and techniques. Fodchuk (2007, p. 31) states that counterproductive work behaviors and organization citizenship behaviors are prompted by factors categorized into triggers, internal control, opportunity, and propensity. Triggers are external events, or perception of an individual concerning a particular event in an organization such as physical and emotional exhaustion, withdrawal behaviors, procedural justice, and supervisor abuse. Opportunities are circumstances or perceptions of situations that aid the exertion of counterproductive and work deviant behaviors by hindering desired outcomes, or rendering negative consequences relatively tolerable and less

Answer the following exam questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Answer the following exam questions - Essay Example and peace process, which led to the spawning of two more radical splinter groups: Continuity IRA (CIRA), and the Real IRA (RIRA) in mid to late 1990s. The IRA, sometimes referred to as the PIRA to distinguish it from RIRA and CIRA, is organized into small, tightly-knit cells under the leadership of the Army Council. The IRA’s militant activities have comprised of bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, punishment beatings, extortion, smuggling, and robberies. Prior to the cease-fire agreement in 1997, the group was involved in terror campaigns in various places in Northern Ireland and England, including senior British Government agencies (and its officials), innocent civilians, police forces, and the Royal military installations. While the rationale for their activities is quite genuine, the group has also attracted criticism for its rigidity. For example, the IRA has not been willing to adopt non-violent methods for pressurizing its oppressive neighbour. For example, the group’s refusal in late 2004 to allow photographic documentation of its decommissioning process was an obstacle to progress in implementing the Belfast Agreement and stalled talks. The IRA is also criticized for funding its operations through criminal means. Every year millions of dollars are added to its coffers through robberies and other crimes. Unless the IRA puts an end to such deviances, its mission is unlikely to succeed. The IRA does not pose a direct threat to Australian citizens or Australian national interests. But in an indirect way, with the refusal of Canberra to detach itself from American and British neo-colonial ambitions, Australia can face a backlash. Already we saw an instance of this in the Bali bombings of 2002. With the IRA’s links with the Palestinian Liberation Organization, ETA and the Colombian militant group FARC, Australia is vulnerable to terror attacks from these organizations, if its foreign policy framework does not change. It is also no surprise

Netflix case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Netflix case study - Essay Example Netflix is facing stiff competition from other players such as You Tube, Video on Demand and iTunes that offer cheaper and reliable movie products (Thompson 138). A key success factor in the future movie industry is the ability to control and dominate the various movie distribution channels such as the Apple iPhone distribution channels, internet distribution channels and rental channels. The ease of access, pricing and size of content library are key success factors in the new movie rental industry since customers require convenience and wide-variety of entertainment content. Netflix should invest in proprietary software that will allow the customer easy-of-use and recommend movies depending on prior customer streaming or search terms on the movie library (Thompson 142). The success of Netflix will require the company to manage its costs in order to reduce the rental business costs and continue focusing on technology to deliver the movies to the customers. According to 2012 survey, many consumers asserted that unlimited internet streaming offered better customer value than pay-per view option. Long-term partnerships with electronic manufacturers will improve the market reach and enable Netflix acquire new customers in its streaming option business (Thompson 144). Netflix is facing the threat of pirated streaming library and stiff competition from more innovative movie rental providers such as Apple’s iTunes, Blockbuster, Amazon Instant video and You Tube. (Thompson 142).

Langston Hughes Salvation Essay Example for Free

Langston Hughes Salvation Essay Some people may believe that salvation comes to those who deserve it. Others may believe that salvation comes to those who seek it. Still, there are those who believe that salvation is not a privilege but is rather a free gift for all. But for Langston Hughes, it appears that salvation for him is not what it seems to be. Apparently, Langston projects the image that a childs innocence may be a way of looking at salvation in such a way that our basic senses and sensibilities are put back to their simplest and uncorrupted state, devoid of fear from non-conformity from dogma and filled with eagerness to experience what is real. Perhaps Langston Hughes is attempting to channel across the message that adulthood or perhaps our matured state, so to speak, has dictated so much of what we believe in that we forget that we were once innocent beings eager to absorb what the world was willing to give us. This is the point where I would like to agree with Langston Hughes. In the many events in our lives that shape who we are and what we want—apart from the things that we want to want—our daily experiences have largely contributed to our personality and character. Sometimes an encounter with an atheist will strike your faith and religious beliefs and be put aback into a state of doubt, weighing odds at both ends and figuring out if your faith is strong enough to resist the temptation of atheism. Or perhaps an encounter with a tribesman living in a far-off, desolate forest may change the way you look at life, especially in terms of material possession. Whether or not we have already encountered these things, it can hardly be doubted that our personal experiences shares a large role in shaping our identities as individuals. As we grow, we start to acquire more of these experiences. Not surprisingly, our earlier knowledge is replaced with fresher ones, relieving ourselves of the burden of having to carry the weight of obsolete beliefs as we go on with our lives. This is the point where Langston Hughes may very well agree: we have grown to a point that we can remember all but one—our state of innocence. It does not surprise me at all to see individuals busy with the complexities of life. After all, people change and so are the things we experience. The evolution of humanity, apart from the scientific sense, has paved the way for more of these complexities. And sometimes we are prompted to lie or to deceive ourselves out of innocence in order to blend together with our environment. In order to convince other people, Hughes lied which made others reaffirm their belief in salvation. No doubt the believers would believe all the more in cases where their beliefs are reaffirmed at least by what they see. But sometimes—in fact, many times—what they see is not the one we or others see. In the end, we are confronted with the startling feeling of self-deception after convening and bending to what others believe in. We mourn over our mistakes and hope to convince ourselves that all will be well although it simply cannot be the case after our actions have been committed. Salvation is such a broad concept that it simply cannot be confined within the closed spaces of churches and congregations alone. If, indeed, salvation is free for all then why must there be a need to encroach ourselves into religious orders? And for God or Allahs name, where among these hundreds, if not thousands, of religious dominions are we to find salvation? Langston Hughes Salvation embodies these important points and the rest of what has been said here. Maturity betrays us in such a way that our innocence is hindered from allowing us to view the world outside the box detached from whatever it is that ties us to dogma, delusion and self-proclaimed salvation. Reference Hughes, L. (2007). Salvation. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://www. courses. vcu. edu/ENG200-dwc/hughes. htm

Lion Nathans Strategy and Position

Lion Nathans Strategy and Position SWOT ANALYSIS: SWOT analysis of Lion Nathan Brewing reflects its competitive advantage over other brewery companies. This SWOT analysis gives a picture about individual strengths of Lion Nathan, the weaknesses of the company, any opportunities presented for future, and threats from other brewing companies. All of these elements are of specific importance in assessing a companys core competencies and developing a plan for future achievements. STRENGTH: In the year 1999, Lion Nathan was considered to be one of the international brewery companies with its area of operations covering three main geographic locations around the world, namely, New Zealand, China, and Australia and now being mostly New Zealand and Australia. Being its area of operation restricted in the earlier days, this enabled Lion Nathan to attract a huge group of people and so gave the company a chance to experiment new products. Lion Nathan now has an excellent broad base portfolio and it offers a wide range of alcoholic beverages. Its massive portfolio is able to satisfy all the demands of its customers. It has captured a large proportion of market segment in Australia and New Zealand. It is mainly engaged in the production and marketing of alcoholic beverages of wine, beer, and spirits in New Zealand and Australia, although its products are sold globally. Lion Nathan takes it pride in being a part of Australias and New Zealands most favored brands like like XXXX, Speights, Tooheys, Steinlager, Hahn, Lion Red, Wither Hills, James Boags, Bacardi and St Hallett. It is mainly known for selling premium beers in these areas. Lion Nathans main area of focus has always remained innovation and finding out new opportunities in order to achieve growth. Its innovation has led to increasing consumption among the mass. Lion Nathans new product XXXX Summer Bright Lager is a low-carb drink which is undoubtedly the lowest-carb beer in the Queensland market. Its new innovation has helped the company to top the market in Australia and with the overwhelming response, they attracted more and more group of customers across the country and its national distribution is above their expectations which is outselling Corona its competitor. It also relaunched Italian beer and snatched away the customers of Coca-Cola Amatils Peroni brand. It was a like a kick off to the its competitors. Lion Nathan also launched a new product Steinlager Pure which is a smooth flavoured l ager which consisted all natural ingredients of New Zealand and was completely preservative free which was a highly compelling export proposition which is now New Zealands biggest selling classic lager. Even Lion Nathan is certain to become the second largest wine distributor after it took over the brands of Pernod-Ricard. It will sell 12 major brands of Pernod-Ricard. WEAKNESS: Lions operations are limited only to Australia and New Zealand and so its economy is far below expectations as compared to its competitors. OPPORTUNITIES: The Asian beer market is said to be very strong. It is predicted that China will occupy one quarter of the beer consumption worldwide. There is a reduction in import tax on foreign made alcohol in China. Consumers in China focus mainly on premium-style beers and so this is an opportunity for Lion Nathan. China is experiencing a steady growth rise. Also, the Asian beer consumption is expected to grow 5% between 2009 and 2015. THREATS: The global beer market has declined to a growth of 0.5% due to the regional differences. Also vehement competition in the beer market can take away significant proportion of Lions market share. PEST ANALYSIS: POLITICAL FACTORS: The Australian Government has figured out the alcohol abuse as one of the major problem among youngsters in the Australian society. It has therefore imposed an excise charge on beer. This charge is imposed according to the alcohol content in the beer. Also, customs duty applies to all imported products. This duty is also levied according to alcohol content. For beer with alcohol content less than 1.15% the charge is 5%. Industry sources have now made an assumption that the governments strict charges on beer is likely to cause the price of beer to go high as there is 10% GST levied on the service component. The same thing was repeated in New Zealand. The excise charges on beer were revised in New Zealand due to which the price of beer went up. Lion Nathan experienced a price rise of 4% due to this revised taxation policy. ECONOMIC FACTORS: According to the Australian Drug Foundation, the alcohol manufacturers will no longer be able to advertise or sponsor sport within the next 10 years. Also, the alcohol industry has continued to act in bad faith by avoiding its own rules in areas such advertising to children through sports sponsorship, promoting responsible drinking, etc. This is likely to harm the economic background of the company. Advertising wine and spirits on social networking sites will be restricted. SOCIO-CULTURAL FACTORS: Beer consumes in Australia tend to follow a myth that low-carb beer helps in weight management. About 74% of the Australian population seems to believe this which builds up a strong social background of Lion Nathan. The 2011 Rugby Match in New Zealand provides a huge flock of tourist before and during the match with cheers to Lion Nathan TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS: Lion Nathan has been always a follower of technology and innovation. It believes in meeting its consumers demands. It has found the new QR code technology which helps its consumers in selecting the right wine for the right occasion. Each QR code is linked with a specific wine, and each scan will pull up a mobile-friendly site replete with information on each wine. Scanners can watch videos about the wine in question, get video tours of wineries, discover food pairings, read up on harvest and tasting notes and check out reviews. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS: the companys demand for beer is affected by the climatic conditions. The cool winter led to a decreased demand for beer while the summer boosted the consumption of beer. LEGAL FACTORS: In the year 2009, Lion Nathan did file any legal action for anti-competitive behavior or anti-trust or trade practices. Lion Nathan has had never experienced any sort of non-compliance with health and safety measures and regulations. The company has always complied with the laws. CORE RESOURCES AND ITS COMPETENCIES: Competitive advantage is the strength of Lion Nathan. The beer brand broad portfolio is the core resource of the company. This portfolio gives the company a chance to outweigh other brewery companies. Also, it is Lion Nathans most valuable asset which reflects its performance. Lion Nathan has always remained committed to its brand. It spends most of its revenue by investing in the brand equity of its already existing core brand. It always tries to divert its customers to focus on its core brands as a national focus and encourages them to buy premium products. In Australia, Lion Nathan holds around 75% of group assets and 80% of operating profits. Lion Nathans beer market share is experiencing stability of more than 44% including its most recently acquired Boags brands. In New Zealand, Lion Nathan is countrys leading brewer and now considered the second largest wine distributor with its market share of more than 50%. The strategic focus of manageme nt is to maximimise the performance of Lion Nathans existing core business which involves increasing the returns from Australias and New Zealands beer business and also maximizing the value in fine wine business. Lion Nathan also aims at grabbing opportunities in spirits and ready to drink spirits markets and international wine export markets. Lion Nathan is considered to be a policy leader in areas related to alcohol taxation, liquor licensing, and responsible consumption. It regularly contributes and participates in government and community discussion on all alcohol related issues. Lion Nathan is also an active participant in tax and investment issues that impact the broader trans-Tasman business community. COMPANIES CURRENT STRATEGY AND ITS IMPLICATIONS: Lion Nathan entered the soft drink, restaurant and sales promotion businesses but sold all this because it aimed to concentrate on promoting its beer business. Today, Lion Nathans strategy is to concentrate on the alcohol business, aiming to become a comprehensive alcohol beverage company. Geographically, it concentrates on Australia and New Zealand. Although LN started out in the soft drinks with the Pepsi brand, it sold off that segment in 1998 because it did not contribute to profits to a degree that can be reflected in the EBITDA margin. The company also tried restaurant business, seeking synergy effect with beer-similar to Anheuser-Busch, which bought a bread company. However, Lion Nathan withdrew from this business as well when it did not contribute sufficient profit to the company. These examples suggest that diversification for Lion Nathan has always been undertaken to generate short-term profitability to make shareholders happ y; in the end, however, the company always return to its original beer business which generates the highest earnings. Recently, Lion Nathan made one interesting decision concerning the companys international operation. In spite of the recent craze in the business world to penetrate and prosper in the Chinese market, Lion Nathan actually exited from that market in 2005. Since exiting the Chinese market, Lion Nathan concentrated its resources on the Oceanic market. Growth Strategy: Lion Nathan strongly believes in sustainable long-term growth strategy in order to achieve top-line growth and bottom-line results. Its operational skills are the core competences that it has which can provide the foundation for a growth strategy. Lion Nathan has strong competencies in distribution, innovation, premium brands It successfully manages the growth strategy with its growth skills, especially its skill of new product development. One-Stop Shop Strategy: Lion Nathan offers a variety of services to its customers. Its main idea is to provide convenient and efficient service and also to create the opportunity for the company to sell more products to clients and customers Social Media Strategy: Lion Nathan has also adopted Media strategy to promote its long-neck bottles of Toohey Extra Dry (TED). These TED bottles were tucked in boring non-descript brown bags. Lion Nathan launched a program named TED696 and created designer bags with the help of street artists and designers. These design opportunities were given to public who took over the ownership of the new brand with their innovative designs. Even MTV was involved in it to celebrate the winning design. The media strategy of Lion Nathan worked so well that the sales of longneck TED bottles reached 500,000 sales just in the first 8 weeks of competition. Complete Brand Strategy: Lion Nathans success is mainly dependents on its wide range of brands. Its people help in generating huge amounts of profit and boast a portfolio of Australians and New Zealanders favourite brands. Lion Nathan invests mainly in brands and upgrade their breweries. Lion Nathan has invested 8 to 10% of their revenue income in innovation which goes hand-in-hand with their brand strategy. Culture Strategy: Lion Nathans culture strategy focuses its main attention on creating a sense of purpose, vision and values, developing a leadership capability to model the desired behaviors, and reinforcing those behaviors through appropriate processes and systems. Lion Nas values-based model consists of 10 core behaviors, which are hardwired into all HR processes, including remuneration, performance, and talent management. Lion Nathan believes in promoting a healthy drinking culture. Lion Nathan as a whole works in order to change the unhealthy drinking behaviour and has supported campaigns to prevent alcohol misuse and minimise the potential harm associated with it. Its investment strategy has the aim of facilitating wellbeing of people and identify the major areas of alcohol abuse. RECOMMENDATIONS: Strengthen the companys brand name among mass marketers through intense price competition: Recently, mass merchandisers like the chain big supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworth, have emerged following integration of the retail industry. Each state in Australia has its own popular brands, and there are strong regional preferences. Lion Nathan that are popular in each area, such as Tooheys in New South Wales and XXXX for Queensland, but in each case their popularity in other states is not as high. It is important to extend recognition of these brands nationally because a national brand will stimulate sales to the big national chain retailers. Strengthen the premium beer category: LN does not have a strong presence in the premium beer category, despite the companys high market value. It is important to promote premium brands such as Hahn Premium and James Squire, and internationally known Becks. Lion Nathan began brewing Kirin Ichiban, brewed only by the first wort in the brewhouse process at the Malt Shovel Brewery in May 2003 in response to surging growth in the premium category. This is one brand to be nurtured in the Australian premium beer category. Extend to other alcohol beverages: Price controls on beer, including price increases by the two-company monopoly, seem to be wavering. Recent diversification in market indicate a shift from beer to either wine for older people or RTD for the younger generation. In particular, the price difference between premium beers and RTDs is getting closer. Also, the population increase, largely due to Asian immigrants who typically do not drink much alcohol compared with Australians, has not increased beer consumption. To cope with this situation, LN must seek additional business in other kinds of alcoholic beverages, as a substitute for the beer business. Slightly more than 8% of Lion Nathans revenue in 2006 was derived from the wine business since the company entered that segment in 2000. A new threat to the duopoly: SAB Miller, one of the biggest players in the world, is planning to enter the Australian beer market in cooperation with Coca-Cola affiliate, Coca-Cola Amatil. When this occurs, it will take advantage of Coca-Colas huge channel, which is reportedly 3 times larger than that of beer. This means it is highly likely that SAB Miller will gain market parity in a short period of time. It is necessary for both Fosters and Lion Nathan to establish strategies that will build high entry barriers immediately. Lion Nathans future strategies are translated to the bundle of competencies. Lion Nathan should build sustainability in the beer business first, and then become a comprehensive alcohol beverage company by extending into the wine and RTD segments so that diverse customer preferences are met. This strategy is supported by 3 factors. (1) an expectation that major floating shareholders want Lion Nathan to hold its beer business as a cash; (2) Australias duopolistic beer market share, although it is becoming less stable; (3) the simple distribution system.

Free College Essays - Anger in the Work of D. H. Lawrence :: Biography Biographies Essays

Anger in the Work of D. H. Lawrence D. H. Lawrence was probably a very angry man. His writings are full of extremely intense feelings of anger and hate which do not seem to belong. This anger is usually connected to love, but can be classified by what other emotions it is also linked to. For example, in "Second Best," there is no real reason for Anne to feel great fury, yet she does towards the mole. Anne somehow equates the mole with a barrier to her success in love, so she hates it. In "The Shadow in the Rose Garden," the intense anger is connected to jealousy. The husband is extremely jealous of his wife's prior involvement with Archie. In "The White Stocking," the anger is also associated with jealousy. Ted does not like the fact that Elsie has been accepting gifts from Sam Adams. The sisters in "The Christening" have intense resentment towards their youngest sister Emma, who ruined the family reputation. This translates into anger directed at her and the world in general. Lastly, the title character and the Orderl y in "The Prussian Officer" have a love-hate relationship, except one hates, the other loves. The Orderly, as recipient of unwanted love, feels great resentment and anger towards the Officer, so much so that he kills him. Lawrence uses anger as an all-purpose front for and manifestation of deeper negative feelings. For this reason, the anger often seems unnecessary and out of place. Its common occurrence, however, allows us to treat it as a motif. In all of the stories above listed, there are characters involved in intensive love relationships. In "Second Best," "Shadow" and "Stocking," there are either married couples, or soon to be. "The Christening" has a family, and "The Prussian Officer" involves a gay officer. There is something dysfunctional about all of these relationships, however, and the anger exposes it. There is no reason for anger if there is not something wrong, so we know that there is underlying unrest in, Ted and Elsie's marriage, for example. The anger is supposed to hint at trouble, then it is up to the reader to discern from clues in the rest of the text the particular irregularity in the story. In "Shadow" and "Stocking" the anger is among husbands and wives. The two stories are basically equivalent in message and structure: wife has hidden secret from husband, husband finds out, responds with jealous rage. Free College Essays - Anger in the Work of D. H. Lawrence :: Biography Biographies Essays Anger in the Work of D. H. Lawrence D. H. Lawrence was probably a very angry man. His writings are full of extremely intense feelings of anger and hate which do not seem to belong. This anger is usually connected to love, but can be classified by what other emotions it is also linked to. For example, in "Second Best," there is no real reason for Anne to feel great fury, yet she does towards the mole. Anne somehow equates the mole with a barrier to her success in love, so she hates it. In "The Shadow in the Rose Garden," the intense anger is connected to jealousy. The husband is extremely jealous of his wife's prior involvement with Archie. In "The White Stocking," the anger is also associated with jealousy. Ted does not like the fact that Elsie has been accepting gifts from Sam Adams. The sisters in "The Christening" have intense resentment towards their youngest sister Emma, who ruined the family reputation. This translates into anger directed at her and the world in general. Lastly, the title character and the Orderl y in "The Prussian Officer" have a love-hate relationship, except one hates, the other loves. The Orderly, as recipient of unwanted love, feels great resentment and anger towards the Officer, so much so that he kills him. Lawrence uses anger as an all-purpose front for and manifestation of deeper negative feelings. For this reason, the anger often seems unnecessary and out of place. Its common occurrence, however, allows us to treat it as a motif. In all of the stories above listed, there are characters involved in intensive love relationships. In "Second Best," "Shadow" and "Stocking," there are either married couples, or soon to be. "The Christening" has a family, and "The Prussian Officer" involves a gay officer. There is something dysfunctional about all of these relationships, however, and the anger exposes it. There is no reason for anger if there is not something wrong, so we know that there is underlying unrest in, Ted and Elsie's marriage, for example. The anger is supposed to hint at trouble, then it is up to the reader to discern from clues in the rest of the text the particular irregularity in the story. In "Shadow" and "Stocking" the anger is among husbands and wives. The two stories are basically equivalent in message and structure: wife has hidden secret from husband, husband finds out, responds with jealous rage.

John Searle’s Argument on Strong Artificial Intelligence

John Searle in his paper â€Å"Minds, Brain and Programs† presented the strong critics of the strong intelligence. First of all in the paper Searle differentiates between different types of artificial intelligence: weak AI, which is just a helping tool in study of the mind, and strong AI, which is considered to be appropriately designed computer able to perform cognitive operations itself. Searle conducted Chinese room experiment, the primary goal of which is to prove that machines cannot posses the states of conscious awareness, like perceiving, understanding or knowing (Searle, 1980).According to Stevan Harnad, in his research Searle actually does not argue about artificial intelligence at all but in fact he attacked the main positions of computationalism, â€Å"a position (unlike ‘Strong AI') that is actually held by many thinkers, and hence one worth refuting† (Harnad, 2001). Shortly, Chinese Room thought experiment can be described the following way. Searle p laces himself on the place of the computer. He supposed that he had to process a batch of Chinese characters with the help of the definite program and produce the output.Searle is completely unfamiliar with Chinese; he can’t even differentiate Chinese characters from Japanese ones. He could only distinguish them by their shapes. Searle was able to process those symbols due to the fact that the rules were given in English. That enabled him to operate with the Chinese characters. In some time as the person learns the rules better, processing the Chinese words becomes easier and the answers are more correct.So, people who ask questions in Chinese and receive answers are sure that the person knows the language as the answers are just undistinguishable from the answers of native speakers of Chinese. The conclusion is that obeying definite rules Searle can process Chinese questions and give correct answers to them without even knowing a word in Chinese. â€Å"Nobody just looking a t my answers can tell that I don't speak a word of Chinese†, Searle writes (Searle, 1980). The same thing is with computers. They are in fact in the same position as Searle.Computers don’t have mind, they don’t think in Chinese, but they are manipulating with symbols just as Searle did. That’s why people might have the impression that computers can possess intelligence. However, this work of Searle was not a complete explanation on the problem of artificial intelligence. It was just a beginning and it raised the wave of critics and argument. On the one hand almost all researchers couldn’t but agree with the Searle’s statement that he was able to give correct answers to the questions without knowing the word in Chinese.But still there were a number of people who considered that Searle’s experiment couldn’t be judged as a valid critics of the artificial intelligence. All the replies can be roughly divided into the following main g roups (Cole, 2004). The first group argued the Searle’s experiment by identifying, who it is who speaks Chinese. The second group of critics researches the way how meaningless symbols can become meaningful. The third group of scholars believes that there is a need to redesign the Chinese room along the lines of a brain.Finally the last group of scholars considers that there are numerous points which testify to the fact that Searle’s argument is completely misleading. So, as it was already mentioned the first argument was concerned with the mind source. This group of researchers was interested in the question where the mind was since the person in the room wasn’t speaking Chinese. The main issues under research were main ontological controversies of mind and body and simulation and reality (Cole, 2004; Hauser, 2005; Hearn, 2007). The group of the researchers attempting to answer this question fell into several categories.The first category proposed systems reply (Searle, 1980; Cole, 2004, Hauser, 2005; Russel & Norvig, 2003; Dennett, 1991; Hearn, 2007, Crevier, 1993), which believes that since the person is not the one who possesses the knowledge of Chinese but the answers are still correct, it is the system, comprising the man, batch of words and rules for processing the words, which comprehends Chinese. The person in the room is just a part of this â€Å"understanding† system, which implies that the fact that the person does not understand and does not know the Chinese language is completely irrelevant.However, Searle was able to answer this critical response saying that the man can be the whole system in case he memorizes all the rules for processing the Chinese words and will keep them in his mind. However, this won’t change the fact that he does not understand Chinese (Searle, 1980). The other point on which Searle argued this response was that critics are in fact missing the point as they on the one hand were trying to f ind the mind, but on the other hand point that it belongs to some â€Å"system†, which is a room.But this doesn’t make sense as the room itself has nothing to do with the mind. It can be true only on the point when the critics explain this from the metaphysical point of view, which means that the mind is something that appears or â€Å"emerges† in the room and continues to exist there (Harnad, 2005; Searle, 1980; Crevier, 1993). The other response, which belongs to the group of â€Å"mind finders†, is virtual mind reply (Cole, 2004). This seems to be a more correct reply, which sticks to the idea that there is some Chinese-speaking mind in the room but it is virtual.It was argued that computing machinery possesses the ability to â€Å"implement† another computer, which implies that any computer can simulate other machines step-by-step, performing the functions of both. Cole even argues that a program can be created, which in fact is able to impleme nt two minds at once. So, despite the fact that there exists only one man in the room and one system, the number of â€Å"virtual minds† can be unlimited (Cole, 2004).However, Searle’s response was that such a mind is nothing but a simulation by itself: â€Å"No one supposes that computer simulations of a five-alarm fire will burn the neighborhood down or that a computer simulation of a rainstorm will leave us all drenched†(Searle, 1980). This statement was argued by the supporter of the virtual mind idea, Nicholas Fearn, in the following way: â€Å"When we call up the pocket calculator function on a desktop computer, the image of a pocket calculator appears on the screen. We don’t complain that â€Å"it isn’t really a calculator†, because the physical attributes of the device do not matter† (Fearn, 2007).Anyway, the following conclusion can be made: on the one hand these scholars were able to argue the Searle’s statement that â€Å"strong artificial intelligence† is false due to the fact that the man in the room doesn’t understand Chinese, which implies that nothing in the room understands Chinese (Cole, 2004). On the other hand the scholars still failed to prove the existence of the strong AI as they couldn’t prove that the system or virtual mind understands Chinese. Searle maintains that â€Å"the systems reply simply begs the question by insisting that system must understand Chinese† (Searle, 1980).The other groups of scholars, who argue Searle’s work, were concerned with finding the meaning. Their replies are generally referred to as robot and semantics replies. The main concern of these scholars is to argue the Searle’s work at the point of intentionality and syntax-semantics controversy. For the person in the room Chinese characters are just meaningless â€Å"squiggles†, however, if the Chinese room can really comprehend Chinese words, there should b e the source of the meaning. Thus, this group of scholars was trying to find the connection between the symbols and the items they symbolize.According to the proposed replies to these questions, several categories could be differentiated. First one is robot reply (Searle, 1980; Cole, 2004; Hauser, 2006; Hearn, 2007), which states that if the program is placed in the robot instead of the room nobody would doubt that he understands what he’s doing due to the establishment of the â€Å"causal connection† between the symbols and things, which are represented by them. According to Hans Moravec â€Å"If we could graft a robot to a reasoning program, we wouldn't need a person to provide the meaning anymore: it would come from the physical world† (in Crevier, 1993).However, Searle argued this idea by stating that there is no difference who operates the words, as the person in the room is just following the rules without understanding what the words actually mean. Searle further says that â€Å"he doesn’t see what comes into the robots eyes† (Searle, 1980). The second group proposed derived meaning theory (Hauser, 2006; Cole, 2004), which there is a connection between the room and the world through Chinese speakers and programmers, which implies that the symbols the person works with are already meaningful in general, which does not necessarily mean that they should be meaningful to him.However, Searle argues that symbols can only possess derived meaning, which depends on the conscious comprehension of Chinese speakers and programmers outside the room, which does not at all mean that the room by itself possesses the ability to understand by itself (Cole, 2004). The other semantic replies were concerned with the commonsense knowledge idea (Dennett, 2007), which states that the meaning of symbols could be derived from the background of the commonsense knowledge, which serves as a â€Å"context† providing meaning for the symbols.S earle argument was based on the idea that although the background does exist, still it can’t be built in programs. So, it is obvious that Searle supports the viewpoint that there is no difference in the amount of knowledge written into the program and the connection of the later with the world. Still the person is the only one, who operates in the room and his actions is purely syntactic, which do not provide him with the meaning of the words, thus, the main Searle’s statement is that â€Å"syntax is insufficient for semantics†(Searle, 1984; Searle, 1989).However, it should be admitted that there is some sense in the virtual mind theory, saying that even though the symbols mean nothing to Searle, they acquire their meaning from the virtual mind, which is connected with the outside worlds through Chinese speakers and programmers, which implies that it is irrelevant whether these symbols mean anything to Searle. The third group of scholars argued Searle’s w ork on the point that it the system needs to be redefined.Thus, according to brain simulator reply (Searle, 1980; Cole, 2004; Hauser, 2006; Churchland & Churchland, 1990.) the program is sure to understand Chinese in case it is a simulation of the interaction of the neurons in the brain of a speaker of the Chinese language. Searle argues this reply saying that this type of simulation is unable to reproduce such basic features of the brain as its causal and intentional states, saying that â€Å"human mental phenomena are dependent on actual physical-chemical properties of actual human brains† (Searle, 1980). He further states that only brains can cause mind (Hauser, 2006).According to the brain replacement scenario (Russell Norvig, 2003; Cole, 2004; Moravec, 1988; Kurzweil, 2005; Crevier, 1993,) the scholars maintain that in case one small computer is able to simulate the work of one individual neuron, this won’t cause that much difference to the system in general, howe ver, in case all the neurons are replaced, we would create digital computer stimulating the brain. This means that if we support Searle’s point of view this will lead to the disappearance of the whole conscious awareness (Searle, 1992; Russell & Norvig, 2003).Combination reply (Searle, 1980; Hauser, 2006) supported the idea that in case there is a robot created on the basis of brain simulation, which is linked to the world in the way that it has the causal power of the real brain, it is able to think. Connectionist reply (Cole, 2004 Hauser, 2006) has much in common with the brain simulator reply and believes that the real comprehension is possible in case there is a massively parallel connectionist architecture. So, basically these arguments can be divided into two main groups.The first one believes that Searle is true in this Chinese room experiment, however, in case some changes are made in the room or the program, it can acquire mind and consciousness (Cole, 2004). The sec ond group considers that redesigning should be made in order to see at which point Searle is wrong. Searle argues that machines still are unable to understand anything even if they are redesigned. The other argument is that in case there is a need of a robot body or a connectionist architecture are necessary, this would mean that we can’t speak any longer of strong AI (Searle, 1980; Harnad, 2001).According to Searle â€Å"I thought the whole idea of strong AI was that we don't need to know how the brain works to know how the mind works† (Searle, 1980) So, as far as we can see Searle’s argument of the strong artificial intelligence has its grounds. It is thoroughly based and well-considered. There was a lot of argument on his Chinese room experiment, however, hardly any critic was able to prove that Searle was completely wrong at some point.References:1. Churchland, Paul and Churchland, Patricia. (January 1990). Could a machine think?. Scientific American 262: 32 -39.2. Cole, David. (Fall 2004). The Chinese Room Argument, in Zalta, Edward N. , The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.3. Crevier, Daniel. (1993), AI: The Tumultuous Search for Artificial Intelligence. NY: BasicBooks.4. Dennett, Daniel. (1991). Consciousness Explained. The Penguin Press.5. Fearn, Nicholas. (2007). The Latest Answers to the Oldest Questions: A Philosophical Adventure with the World's Greatest Thinkers. New York: Grove Press.6. Harnad, Stevan. (2001). What’s Wrong and Right About Searle’s Chinese Room Argument. in M. & Preston, J., Essays on Searle’s Chinese Room Argument, Oxford University Press.7. Harnad, Stevan. (2005). Searle's Chinese Room Argument, Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Macmillan.8. Hauser, Larry. (1997). Searle's Chinese Box: Debunking the Chinese Room Argument. Minds and Machines, 7: 199-226.9. Hauser, Larry. (2006). Searle's Chinese Room, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.10. Kurzweil, Ray. (2005). The Singularity is Near. Viki ng Press.11. Moravec, Hans. (1988). Mind Children. Harvard University Press.12. Russell, Stuart J. and Norvig, Peter. (2003). Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River. NJ: Prentice Hall.13. Searle, John. (1980). Minds, Brains and Programs. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 3 (3): 417-457.14. Searle, John. (1983). Can Computers Think? , in Chalmers, David, Philosophy of Mind: Classical and Contemporary Readings, Oxford.15. Searle, John. (1984). Minds, Brains and Science: The 1984 Reith Lectures. Harvard University Press.16. Searle, John. (January 1990). Is the Brain's Mind a Computer Program? Scientific American 262: 26-31.17. Searle, John. (1992). The Rediscovery of the Mind. Massachusetts: M. I. T. Press.

‘Harmonium’ and ‘Manhunt’ Essay

The speaker’s attitude towards his father in ‘Harmonium’ is honest and realistic. The speaker names the brand of his organ â€Å"Farrand Chapelette† and he names places such as ‘Marsden’ in Yorkshire possibly having a connection of where he and his father grew up. This makes the poem a lot more personnel and therefore the poet manages to gain sympathy from the reader. The use of honesty makes the poem a lot more sentimental whereas in ‘Manhunt’ the wife keeps their background quite discrete. Although the poem does explore the physical and mental effects of dealing with war injuries, it doesn’t include the wars in which he’s participated in and any other personnel information. The poem ‘Manhunt’ is a lot less specific than ‘Harmonium’, which makes it relevant to many other war victims. The husband in Manhunt is not open to his experiences of the past. The speaker in ‘Harmonium’ uses colloquial language to create a friendly, warm, conversational tone. In ‘Harmonium’ Simon Armitage uses language like â€Å"bundled off to the skip† to try and say that the Harmonium is broken. In the poem Manhunt the speaker uses a more compassionate tone, which makes the poem touching. This is created when she unravels the list of her husband’s injuries with each injury getting worse and more heart-breaking. Both of the poems use imagery to convey their feeling to their loved ones through images. In the poem ‘Harmonium’ the speaker’s father is portrayed as a broken ‘Harmonium’, which helps the reader visualize the physical and mental state of the child’s father. In the poem ‘Manhunt’ the husband is continuously referred to images reflecting his health. He is described as having a ‘fetus of metal beneath his chest’ giving the reader a visual image of the metal bullet buried beneath his skin. In the poem ‘Harmonium’ Simon Armitage uses parallelism to intensify the relationship between father and son. He does this by repeating ‘and he, being him†¦.and I, being me† this shows how the son will take the place of his father as time goes on. However in the poem ‘the Manhunt’ the speaker  links herself to her husband. Her husband is described as being the victim of a Manhunt and the poem explains how she is trying to regain her husband’s trust and confidence the idea that the husband is involved with this Manhunt is repeater throughout the poem. The wife is described as ‘widening her search’ to regain her husband; this links to the title ‘Manhunt’. In the poem ‘The Manhunt’ the speaker uses lots of sensational, loving verbs in the poem, reflecting the intimacy of husband and wife, and keen devotion from the wife hoping to heal her husband. The wife says that she is able to ‘climb the rungs of his broken ribs’, a closely observed detail of her hands exploring the altered body of her husband. The idea of the ladder is reflective of the effort involved in the wife’s gradual search for answers. This demonstrates the wife’s confidence when she speaks. However, in ‘Harmonium’ the speaker uses indefinite descriptions such as ‘shallow or sorry’ and ‘phrase or word’; this shows that the speaker is not very comfortable and confident about talking about his father, this suggests that he might be regretful or resentful of his past decisions. The writer feels inadequate. The poem ‘Harmonium’ has four stanzas of different lengths. The first stanza describes the harmonium ready to be throwed away. The next is a closer investigation of the instrument, with detailed descriptions of its parts. The third stanza considers the history of the instrument. The final stanza, which describes carrying the harmonium from the church, is concerned with the relationship between the speaker and his father. However in ‘The Manhunt’; the poem consists of a series of unrhymed couplets. This creates a sense of fragmentation, which matches the feelings of the soldier’s wife as she try’s to understand the man her husband has become. The poem describes the phases of a wife’s search for answers from her injured husband who has recently returned from a war zone. The poem ends when the search is closed. In conclusion the speaker’s attitudes in both poems are quite similar since they are both by Simon Armitage however the spea ker in ‘Harmonium’ takes a more honest and realistic approach with a colloquial tone than the discrete, unspecific, compassionate speaker in ‘The Manhunt’.