Piaget Theory of Children Cognitive Development Essay

Much of the research since the late 1950s on the development of role taking and moral judgments has its roots in the research conducted by Piaget in the 1920s. One thrust of Piaget’s theorizing in his earliest writings dealt with the proposition that children progress from an egocentric to a perspectivistic state. He proposed that children younger than 6 or 7 years of age do not clearly differentiate between self and others or between thoughts (the psychological) and external events. A consequence of the failure to differentiate the self from others is that the child is unable to take the perspective of another person. For instance, in communicating with others the child is unable to take into account the requirements of the listener. A consequence of the failure to differentiate thoughts from external events is that the child attributes an objective reality to internal mental events such as dreams. A major developmental transition was posited to occur when the child shifts from an egocentric state to one in which the self is differentiated from others and there is the ability to take another’s perspective. (Angela M. O’Donnell, Alison King, 1999) However, the most extensive research in a social domain undertaken by Piaget during this early period dealt with children’s moral judgments. Those were also the only studies on moral development to be done by Piaget. Three specific aspects of Piaget’s moral development theory had a substantial influence on later research. One was the characterization of moral development as a process of differentiating moral from nonmoral judgments. The second was the proposed interrelations between â€Å"general† cognitive orientations and moral judgments. And the third was the proposed relations between changes in perspective-taking abilities and changes in moral judgments. (Jacques Montangero, Danielle Maurice-Naville, Angela Cornu-Wells, 1997). Piaget proposed that children progress through two moral judgment levels (following an early premoral phase), the first being labeled heteronomous (generally corresponding to ages 3 to 8 years) and the second labeled autonomous. In the heteronomous level, the child has unilateral respect for adults (regarded as authority) and morality is, therefore, based on conformity. The right or good is seen by the child as adherence to externally determined and fixed rules and commands. The young child’s morality of conformity and unilateral respect becomes transformed into a morality of cooperation and mutual respect. The basis for the autonomous level is the emergence of concepts of reciprocity and equality. At this level, rules are viewed as products of mutual agreement, serving the aims of cooperation, and thus are regarded as changeable. (Gwen Bredendieck Fischer, 1999). In formulating the levels of heteronomy and autonomy, Piaget studied children’s judgments about several specific issues, including rules, punishment, intentionality, lying, stealing, and distributive justice. A brief description of the levels can be provided by considering some of the studies of children’s thinking about rules and about intentionality in situations involving property damage, deceit, and theft. The definitions of the moral levels were derived, in part, from the way Piaget had framed children’s general cognitive capacities. Two presumed characteristics regarding the increasing differentiations that occur with development were relevant. One proposed characteristic was the child’s egocentricism, the failure to clearly distinguish the self’s perspective from that of others. A second relevant feature was the young child’s failure to differentiate the physical world from social and mental phenomena; young children confuse the subjective and objective aspects of their experience. (Richard I. Evans, Eleanor Duckworth, 1973) According to Piaget, one concrete manifestation of young children’s inability to differentiate perspectives and to differentiate the physical from the social is their attitudes toward social rules. It was proposed that children at the heteronomous level view all social rules as absolute. The inability to take the perspective of others leads the child to assume that everyone adheres to the same rules. There is a failure to comprehend the possibility that rules may be relative to the social context or to an individual’s perspective. In turn, there is an inability to clearly distinguish physical from social phenomena that leads to a confusion of social regularities with physical regularities, such that social rules are seen as fixed in much the same way as are physical regularities. For instance, Piaget maintained that children regard rules of games as unchangeable; they believe it would be wrong to modify the rules of a game even if they were changed by general consensus. (Harry Morgan, 1997) Another manifestation of the young child’s cognitive confusions is that judgments of right and wrong are based on the material consequences of actions, rather than the actor’s intentions or motives. Piaget examined the relative importance that children attribute to intentions and consequences in situations involving material damage, lying, and stealing. Younger children, it was found, attribute greater importance, in judging culpability, to amount of damage (e. g. , breaking the 15 cups accidentally is worse than breaking one cup intentionally), whereas older children attribute more importance to the intentions of the actor. Similarly, younger children assess the wrongness of lying or stealing, not by the motives of the actor, but by their quantitative deviation from the truth or the amount stolen. In judgments about theft, for instance, children judging by consequences would say that stealing a larger amount to give to a very poor friend is worse than stealing a lesser amount for oneself. (R. Clarke Fowler, 1998). In contrast with the heteronomous level, at the autonomous level respect is no longer unilateral, rules are not viewed as absolute or fixed, and judgments are based on intentions. Piaget proposed that these changes are stimulated by the increasing interactions with peers (such as in school) and the decreasing orientation to relations with adult authority that usually occurs during late childhood. Relations with authorities (parents, teachers, etc. ), he maintained, are likely to lead to conformity and an attitude of unilateral respect on the part of the young child. That is, the child feels that the authorities are superior and that their dictates are right by virtue of their superior status. In order for the shift from a heteronomous to an autonomous orientation to occur the child must more clearly differentiate the self from others and, thereby, be able to take the perspective of others. Relations with adult authorities who impose external rules upon the child are likely to reinforce a heteronomous orientation, whereas relations with peers are more likely to stimulate attempts to take the perspectives of others. Therefore, through increasing interactions with those he or she can relate to on an equal footing, the child is stimulated to view his or her own perspective as one among many different perspectives. In the process, mutual respect replaces unilateral respect for authority and the bases of a sense of justice — reciprocity, equality, and cooperation — emerge. Rules are then regarded as social constructions, based on agreement, that serve functions shared by the participants of social interactions. The increasing awareness of others’ perspectives and subjective intentions leads to judgments that are based on intentionality rather than consequences. (John H. Flavell, 1963) In addition to the connections to general cognitive capacities, Piaget’s characterization of moral judgments was a global one in that development was defined as entailing a progressive differentiation of principles of justice (ought) from the habitual, customary, and conventional (is). In essence, the claim was that concepts of justice do not emerge until the autonomous stage. Thus, the heteronomous morality of constraint and unilateral respect is a morality of custom, convention and tradition, while autonomous morality of mutual respect and cooperation prevails over custom and convention. Prior to the development of concepts of justice, therefore, the child must progress through the â€Å"simpler,† conformity-based conventional orientation. In sum, Piaget proposed a model of development as the differentiation of domains of knowledge. Only at more advanced stages are moral judgments and knowledge of the social order (or even morality and physical law) distinguished. It is precisely on this basis that Piaget thought it was methodologically valid to examine children’s concepts of rules of marble games as a means to understanding their moral reasoning. (Christopher M. Kribs-Zaleta, D’Lynn Badshaw, 2003) Piaget’s professional career has been devoted to exploring the possibilities of a psychological theory of relativity. In this approach neither the subject, who knows, nor the object, which is known, have absolute status. Each is conditioned on the other within a continually changing framework. Change occurs through interchanges of actions and reactions. Actions of the subject are like probes equivalent to statements by which the subject says: â€Å"I think you, the object, are such and such. † When acted upon, objects act back, revealing who and what they are. Morton Ann Gernsbacher, Sharon J. Derry, 1998) Piaget’s contribution to the study of knowledge has been to escape the philosophic traps of subjectivity and objectivity. The former makes knowledge a self satisfying concoction where, for the sake of consistency, the subject creates concepts of objects and reality. This position tends toward error through failure to come to grips with the facts of reality. It puts the subject in control of deciding what reality is and, in the extreme, allows distortion for the sake of maintaining the subject’s version of how things ought to be. Objectivity errs at the other end and, in its extreme, denies self-initiated definition, making the subject only a valid recorder of reality. Distortion can occur either through exposure to odd circumstances or through breakdowns in the subject’s recording devices. The position of relativity seeks solution to both problems. Its clearest expression is found when both subject and object are given defining powers in their interactions. There is double agency, with the object telling what it is just as forcibly as the subject reveals itself through its actions. (Hans G. Furth, 1987) With interactions as the basic reality, the context of knowledge is dynamic. It is also the means to knowledge insofar as subject and object are able to extract orderly relations from their interactions. These relations among actions and reactions color definitions of both agents. They are the medium for knowing and provide the terms by which subject and object attain their forms. This is why, for example, Piaget argues that space, number, and the like, remain open to redefinition throughout development. Numbers are not things to be grasped but are products from relations abstracted from subject-object interactions. True relations become expressed through numbering operations, which coordinate actions of the subject as well as reactions of objects. It appears that Piaget’s approach is unique among contemporary psychological theories by its treatment of relations as the topic of knowledge. Relations are primary, with subject and object being their products. For other theorists, these terms are reversed; subject and object are posited and relations come secondarily. In Piaget’s scheme, neither subject nor object ever gets to know one another with certainty. Together they can work only toward relations that are reliable. Validity is always a relative matter, depending on current relations, which remain open to further redefinition. (Arthur J. Baroody, Alexis Benson, 2001) This point no doubt has stymied most attempts to bring Piaget’s work into the mainstream of psychological theories. It is like the essential key without which notes may sound similar but actually render a different song. The stumbling block is evident, for example, in the many ways phenomena originally generated by Piaget’s position have undergone alteration when considered from the view of more familiar theories. Conservation provides the most telling illustration. Few, if any, of these alternative explanations deal with or care to deal with the phenomenon as a conservation of a subject-object relation. The more common explanation states that number or amount is conceived as constant through physical changes in the object. Within Piaget’s framework, the physical changes are said to remain constant; they are understood as but two versions of a single relation. The relation is between number- or amount-making actions, with their products made ostensible in the reactions of cubes, chips, or clay. Leslie Smith, Julie Dockrell, Peter Tomlinson, 1997) There is a tendency among contemporary theorists to credit Piaget with having shown that children are cognitively active and control rather than being controlled by external objects or other persons. This emphasis has clouded the fact that objects and persons are not benign, simply waiting for children to transform them into this or that concep tion. In order to put relations in clear relief, it is helpful to give these things their proper due in knowledge. It helps even to anthropomorphize their role. Objects are as active as children. They move, change shape, enlarge in size, fall off tables, roll, and otherwise respond when they are contacted. Each reaction is reciprocal to something children do. In the case of conservation, to use an example often cited by Piaget, the child who plays with pebbles in his or her back yard may come to understand number making operations because the stones react as they do to his or her manipulations. That which remains constant in making a row, then a circle, then a tower, and next two columns is only the relation among these actions from the child and the several reactions of the pebbles. (Leonora M. Cohen, Younghee M. Kim, 1999). It is now possible to outline the meaning of relations in the social domain where knowledge is based on interactions between the child and other persons. The following sketch highlights the general points of the theory. (a) Children enter the world as actors, seeking order and regularity. This search describes their inherent motivation for knowledge. b) Children look for order first in their own actions by attempting to find that which is repeatable and reliable in execution of actions. (c) Insofar as actions make contact with other things, or persons, effects of actions are not solely under the control of the child. These things react in reciprocity to the actions exerted upon them and together the action and reaction produce effects that differ from those that would result from either alone. (d) This fact of double agency naturally widens children’s focus from action to interaction. Because other agents act in reciprocity to children’s actions, children are forced to seek explanations for change and order in the interplay between actors. The foregoing points can be summarized as follows. Suppose the child intends that an action have a particular outcome or effect. The child then executes the act in accordance with this intention. Suppose also that the act engages another person who adds to the original act with a reaction. The coupling of these actions may have an effect that is different from the child’s intention or anticipation in performing the original act. It would be futile to seek order either in the child’s or the other person’s parts, alone. This is why for Piaget, the child is led to seek a solution in the coupling and arrives at the conclusion that the actions of persons are reciprocally related. This is also why Piaget contends that naive egocentrism ends most probably during the child’s first year. To maintain an egocentric posture, a child would have to deny the facts of reciprocity made evident through the thousands of interactions experienced in everyday dealings with other persons. Joy A. Palmer, Liora Bresler, David E. Cooper, 2001) (e) Thereafter, the child’s search for order turns to identifying the forms of reciprocal relations that occur in interpersonal interactions. (f) Piaget suggests that there are two such forms. One is a direct and symmetrical reciprocity where one’s action is free to match or counter the other’s action. The second is a reciprocity of complement where one’s action must conform to the dictates set down by the other’s action. g) These two forms describe the basic relations in which people order themselves as actors with respect to other persons, who are also actors. They provide the epistemic unit from which self and other achieve definition. (h) For Piaget, development proceeds as these relations are structured and restructured. They give rise to social and moral conceptions that pertain to the self, other persons, possible relations among persons, and principles of societal functioning, both practical as well as ideal. (Gavin Nobes, Chris Pawson, 2003)

Confucianism vs Daoism Dbq

Due to Its backgrounds and the reason as to why Confucianism was produced, the religion Idea stresses more on the politics and ethics, Instead of religion and the theoretical world since focusing on such things would simply be a waste of time and energy that could be spent on more productive jobs. Likewise, Confucianism also promotes a seem-murderous way to gain offices. â€Å"Superior individuals†, known as Jinni, can have a say in how to run the state. Additionally, Confucianism also insists on the studying of the ancient Chou Dynasty exist that not only were used for tools in government, it also became widespread as a teaching device.Taoism, on the other hand, was created for a completely different reason. Rather than being created for a completely different mindset, Taoism was created to solely reject the attempts to change events that were deemed to come to pass, such as rebellion or internal strife. It was almost the exact opposite of Confucianism, which could be said to be actively trying to change the events. Not surprisingly, the â€Å"Dad† part of the Taoist to â€Å"The Way' which preaches for harmony ND peace. In fact, the Taoist were so intent of keeping harmony and peace that the even said that attempting to control the world around them would lead to chaos.Therefore, this also meant that the Taoist strictly forbidden schools and also ones ambition to improve. Ironically, despite Taoism and Confucianism were as different as water is to oil, for some way, the intellectuals from the Chinese warring states era were able to mix both into their lives. While other religions, such as Christian, Muslim, and Judaism, cannot mix at all, lest one be declared a heretic, Confucianism came a public doctrine, while Taoism became part of an Intellectuals past time pursuits.Both Taoism and Confucianism were extremely development In Ideology and cause of development, however, both were still Incorporated In the dally lives of Intellectuals of the war ring states era of Chinese history. Confucianism vs. Taoism Db By Jinxing at the same time, Confucianism and Taoism were developed for different reasons Fuzz. Confucianism was developed as a way for government to rule the largely small, city state like kingdoms during the Warring states era.Due to its backgrounds and the reason as to why Confucianism was produced, the religion idea stresses more on the politics and ethics, instead of religion and the theoretical world since focusing on productive Jobs. Likewise, Confucianism also promotes a semi-meritorious way to gain became a public doctrine, while Taoism became part of an intellectuals past time pursuits. Both Taoism and Confucianism were extremely development in ideology and cause of development, however, both were still incorporated in the daily lives of intellectuals of the warring states era of Chinese history.

Fish Out of Water Essay

Every person has grown up adhering to specific set of standards, traditions and rules of conduct. People also conform to the underlying system and mandates of the society. These characteristics define the culture of the person; however, people do not follow a single culture with its set of laws and standards. Every person has its own cultural characteristics because each individual is reared in different societies with its own embedded culture and traditions. The difference in culture is often referred to as cultural relativism which means that every culture is equal and no culture is superior to others. Every culture has its own set of â€Å"systems of morality, law and politics† (â€Å"Cultural Relativism – Illogical Standard†). It is believed that every culture is valid and equal. Cultural relativism attempts to explain that the various aspects of culture such as religion, ethics, aesthetic and beliefs are subjective and largely depends on the individual within a particular cultural identity (â€Å"Cultural Relativism – Illogical Standard†). Given that each individual has grown up within a defined set of culture, there will be a point in a person’s life that he or she will experience being somehow out of place when put in a different crowd with new set of people. This may be called as a â€Å"fish out of water’ sensation. This means that a person feels uncomfortable with the surroundings and activities going on. We tend to experience this kind of feeling around people who are unknown to us, especially when hindered with a lot of communication and cultural barriers. An example of a fish out of water experience is attending a wedding ceremony conducted in pattern of a different culture. I was once invited in a wedding of my colleague who married a person from another culture. Unfortunately, the groom is the only person I knew in the whole crowd. He married a Korean and they followed a Korean wedding ceremony. It was a very uncomfortable situation for me because the Korean culture is very different from western culture and tradition. The two countries are separated by hundreds of miles of land and ocean and located at both ends of the world. Korean wedding is really a weird thing for me. First, Korean weddings mean joining of two families instead of two individuals, so most Korean weddings are composed of families of various generations. I was therefore intimidated to mingle with other people, especially to the members of the Korean families while my colleague is largely participating on the ceremony. Korea is a unified country and its people tend to look alike, think alike and act alike. There is strength in the people of Korea. Koreans may be residing in the United States and somehow follow some of the western trends. But they have retained some of the important rites and tradition of their culture. Koreans are also individuals from the eastern hemisphere where people are not so liberal. People tend to be conservative and sensitive on some issues unlike westerners that are open-minded and can cope with every type of conversation. Some issues are still taboo to Koreans. Issues of gender and sexuality are only some of the issues that Koreans are quite sensitive with. Communication is also a barrier and makes me feel more of the â€Å"fish out of the water. † Problems in communication and relating with others are some of the encountered problems in being out of place in an event or situation. Some people are having difficulty relating to others, especially those who belong to another culture. Cultural diversity is also characterized by difference in communication styles and attributes. The experience really tested my communication skills. First, I do not know anyone but the groom and he was busy on the ceremony. Starting a conversation is a little awkward for me because I do not want to offend people on something that I would say. There are only a few white men who attended the wedding and interrupting their on-going conversation may be rude and awkward. Most of the attendees are Koreans which have a different communication style. Koreans are quite covert and have the tendency of not showing themselves to others. In short, they are not initiators of conversation and communication with other people. Their actions are also firm and delicate and they move with grace. Language differences may also be a problem. Some of them speak native Korean language that may hinder our understanding of one another. It is quite hard to initiate a conversation with people from different cultural identity for the fear of misunderstanding and conflict. They also have their personal beliefs that they may be sensitive about. Intimidation is also a problem in starting interpersonal communication with other people. Fish out of water sensation is a feeling that a person may feel while dealing with events and situations where they feel different and deviant. However, overcoming this feeling is quite easy. First, you will never really get to know people when you do not approach them. Communication is always the key, along with politeness and respect. Overcoming this particular feeling in events that may make you feel uncomfortable will provide a good opportunity to learn other cultures, traditions and practices that may be helpful for you in relating with people of the same cultural identity the next time you encounter them. It will also be a good opportunity to become knowledgeable in intercultural communication which is vital in today’s global society. Work Cited â€Å"Cultural Relativism – Illogical Standard. † 2009. Cultural-Relativism. com. 26 March 2009 .

Phylum Porifera Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Phylum Porifera - Essay Example The sponges were considered to be plant-animal classification until 19th Century because they were not able to move, especially during their adult life where they attach themselves to a rock. However, this paper aims to evaluate in a critical aspect about the notions that Phylum Porifera is paraphyletic rather than monophyletic. The essay achieves its purpose by providing credible sources to demonstrate the comparative knowledge of morphology and embryologoy in an effort of evaluating the suggested hypothesis. The paper demonstrates the suggestions of the notion in respect to bilaterian’s ancestors. The sponges are among the simplest animals in the Kingdom Animalia. Their feeding system is unique among other types of animals. However, the evolution of animals is believed to transform the sponges from their earlier form of multi-cellular organisms to the present day animals. As earlier mentioned, it is learnt that Poliferans had an early branching event, which resulted to their separation from other metazoans. The sponges differentiate themselves from other animals in different nature such as lacking digestive, nervous, and circulatory systems. On their side, they adapt themselves by maintaining the constant flow of water through their pored bodies in order to get oxygen and food, as well as removing waste from the body. In addition, their shape of the body is adaptive to maximal reliability of water flow though their central cavity, where it uses a hole called osculum to deposit the nutrients. Most of the sponge species feed on the food particles or bacteria in the water, where some of them host micro organisms for photosynthesizing processes to act as endosymbionts. Such associations ensure there is maximum production of oxygen and food in the water, as compared to what they consume. However, some sponges that live in environment with small or no food have become carnivores since they mainly prey on

Annual report analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Annual report analysis - Essay Example It shows that company was not performing as good as it is performing in the current year and it is coming back to its real best. Ans 3 Working capital is basically is a ratio which indicates after deducting liabilities from its assets mean current assets. So it is originally the sign of strength of the company. If any company has large enough working capital after paying off all of its liabilities that means it is still in position to run its operations. Working capital and current ratio are directly related because both indicate the strength of the firm after paying off its liabilities. Yes, definitely because the larger the working capital firm has after deducting its liabilities the larger the chances that it can pay off its liabilities gracefully. Ans 8 After overall analysis of the firm, figures suggest that firm is not doing well enough work in the form of its profitability area. The firm is not enough to eliminate its expenses and that is why all of its ratios represent very poor figure of their profitability scenario. Almost all the ratios are giving a very poor picture of the company's standing in the industry. It has been the situation in all three years and they are still not putting effective to overcome this problem. ans 11 After analyzing the company's debt and debt equity ra... 2003 0.21 2004 0.4 2005 0.34 Ans 6 The price earning per share is 0.4. Ans 8 After overall analysis of the firm, figures suggest that firm is not doing well enough work in the form of its profitability area. The firm is not enough to eliminate its expenses and that is why all of its ratios represent very poor figure of their profitability scenario. Almost all the ratios are giving a very poor picture of the company's standing in the industry. It has been the situation in all three years and they are still not putting effective to overcome this problem. Ans 10 The Company's debt ratio and debt equity ratio are as follows: Debt ratio debt equity ratio 05 0.618 1.618 04 0.164 0.197 03 0.043 0.045 02 0.064 0.068 ans 11 After analyzing the company's debt and debt equity ratio it has been noted that the company is using its investments very efficiently and the industry average of ratio should be around 0.1 - 0.5 Ans 12 ROI is the earnings on the investments that are originally brought by company's borrowings (equity) ROI and ROE are interrelated in a manner that the company invests its borrowed money to earn profits. Financial leverage takes the form of borrowing money and reinvesting it with the hope to earn a greater rate of return than the cost of interest. Leverage allows greater potential return to the investor than otherwise would have been available. The potential for loss is greater because if the investment becomes worthless, not only is that money lost, but the loan still needs to be repaid. Ans 13 The Company's debtor turnover ratio is as follows: 3 69.3 4 78.8 5 122.16 Ans 14 After analysing the

What Culture Fears do the Antagonists of Ridley Scott's Alien Movie Review

What Culture Fears do the Antagonists of Ridley Scott's Alien Represent - Movie Review Example The main actors of the film are Sigourney Weaver (Ripley), Tom Skerrit (Dallas), Veronica Catwright (Lambert), John Hurt (Kane), Ian Holm (Ash), Bolaji Badejo (Alien), Yaphet Kotto (Parker) and Harry Dean Station (Brett) (IMBD). The movie holds many symbolic cultural and economic representations of the 1970s essentially through the portrayal of the antagonists. During 1970’s the Feminist movements were wide spread. Women in America were fighting for Equal Rights Amendment in US constitution. Over 1000 people were involved in the Equal Right Amendment Extension march of 1978. In this background Alien shows the gender role reversal in the form of tough female protagonist (Ripley) who finally slays the alien at the end. Again in a scene from the film, Ash refers to the alien creatures as Kane’s son thus implying him to be a mother. The success of the film was due to its embodiment of feminism. During that time in America, sexually transmitted disease was wide spread. It af fected nearly 40% of sexually active individuals of that time. In the movie this issue was also addressed. The Alien was born through the penetration of the host Kane and Ripley made it a point to use quarantine for fear of infection. Ash, the android in the movie signifies the way how technology is getting beyond human control. The movie released a short time after the partial nuclear meltdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania and this event changed the way how people viewed this movie. In 1979 America experienced second oil crisis because of disrupted production and Iranian revolution and so there was a continuous oil price increase and there was a fear among the people that there would be no more oil or gasoline left. The movie portrays this fear of the people and shows that the crew’s mission was to bring mineral ore from distant places in the galaxy and to return them to earth (Alien: Film analysis). There are many sexual imageries and connotat ions in the film. Alien  screenwriter Dan O’Bannon spells it out himself: "One thing that people are all disturbed about is sex... I said 'That's how I'm going to attack the audience; I'm going to attack them sexually. And I'm not going to go after the women in the audience, I'm going to attack the men. I am going to put in every image I can think of to make the men in the audience cross their legs. Homosexual oral rape, birth. The thing lays its eggs down your throat, the whole number† (Dietle). The human crew members who invaded the alien ship are in effect the ‘man sized sperm crawling’ through it. The birth of the alien holds another story. The filmmakers presented the birth in a violent manner and it was representing the men’s ignorant ideas about pregnancy and birth (Dietle). Alien is not just a sci-fi monster movie. The distinct part of Alien is the way in which the alien encounter is destabilized by an inclusion of provoking themes like hig h technology and human sexuality. James H. Kavanagh interpreted the film within a Marxist framework. Judith Newton has reappraised the film in the light of contemporary feminist discourse and Barbara Creed had applied Freudian concepts of sexuality to it (Pimley, 3). Although the film employs a familiar and traditional scenario, the themes of technology and sexuality explored in Alien anticipate the new wave, displaying a newfound interest and concern for the human body that would become a defining feature of 1980s science fiction. It was to be a decade during which the boundaries

Exploration of the Mississippi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Exploration of the Mississippi - Essay Example This made their population drop hugely after the Spaniards visit (Geoghegan 1). In 1564, the ruler of Spain got news that French colonists had started a settlement at Fort Caroline. Fort Caroline was part of Spains terrain in the New World. The Spaniards felt this as a direct threat to their land that they had claimed in North America. The Spanish ruler wasted no time, and he decided to send Pedro Menendez along with his private army to destroy the small French colony (Shea 23). The only defense the French had was a tiny fort which they had set up on the St. Johns River in Florida. The Spanish warriors, because of this, took only little time to wipe out the tiny colony (Shea 23). A few of the French people, however, managed to escape by sea. The tiny French colony of Fort Caroline lasted only a year. This was the beginning of the fight between Spain, Great Britain as well as France over the possession of the region that would form the Mississippi. Immediately after the destruction of Fort Caroline, the Spaniards set up Fort St. Augustine, in 1565 (Gilmary 56). A period of about 130 years from De Sotos trek went by with no further exploration of the Mississippi. In 1673, Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette, who were French explorers, traveled down the Mississippi to the mouth of the Arkansas River. The same trail took place nine years later by a different French explorer, Robert Cavelier de La Salle. Salle claimed all the land close to the river for France. He named that vast area as Louisiane. This translated to English is Louisiana. He gave it the name Louisiane in honor of his ruler, King Louis IV. The Mississippi River played a vital role in the settlement of this wilderness region. After Salle, French settlers started to arrive and build forts along the Gulf Coast. The Gulf Coast is presently the stretch from Louisiana to Florida. It also includes the Surgeres

Private law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Private law - Essay Example Shah was also disappointed when his application to obtain his academic qualifications for an award in respect to first degree was rejected. This is an example of humiliation and discriminatory approach to demean immigrant students in relation to educational qualifications. Refusal to admit qualified students to pursue their first-degree award is punishable by law. Additionally, LEA refused to award a first degree putting into consideration mere facts that Shah had failed to prove to them beyond reasonable doubt that he was an ordinary resident of the United Kingdom. These are the facts that made Shah sue LEA. The point of argument in this case is that this student believes discriminatory treatment for immigrants is still carried out in the UK without considering the domicile statutes and jurisdictions of the land. This student says that L.E.A misdirected them by putting the judgmental laws into their own hands. This educational body misleads themselves in relation to wrong application of the test of respect of ordinary residences. To begin, education in the recent past has been globalized with various races seeking education wherever they want in the world. Therefore, this implies that as much as Shah may be an immigrant in the UK, his freedom and rights to education must always be aptly upheld. Per se statutory jurisdictions especially in relation to the Rome Statutes acknowledges right to education whether a person is an immigrant or ordinary citizens of a given state (Sendall 123). This implies that L.E.A breached the law when it failed to honour Shah by giving him a mandatory award o r even a failing to consider his alternative application. The fact of this case as it stands is that out of the five students, none of them had no right to abode in the United Kingdom. However, they deserved an explanation as to why they were not academically honoured and why their

Best Practices Position Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Best Practices Position Paper - Essay Example The way organizational culture changes in the wake of the adoption of the best practices is one significant aspect that comes under serious reckoning. It raises eyebrows since the company has an automatic shift within its work methodologies and it wants to emulate the best amongst the business. This imitation is not for the sake of copying workflow by workflow but to attain higher levels within the management regimes when the talk goes out loud regarding the organizational cultural domains. This means that the way employees dress up, do their chores and interact with the clients and customers is in direct proportion with the ways the best practices have been doing for a considerable period of time. (Taylor & Labarre, 2006) Also there is a great deal of check and balance mechanism being conducted so that the mistakes could be avoided and if the same are committed in essence, efforts are made to re-do them in the correct way. The best practices lead to the benchmarks that already exist within the related industries and are indeed deemed as the very best amongst their concerned areas of service. It is necessary for the best practice human resource management to have performance management systems in place before any advancement could be envisaged at some point in time within the future. Once these performance management systems are installed and in place, we can have a proper check and balance mechanism as concerns to the people who are working in the company. Performance management systems make use of the fact that performance is increased on the part of all concerned and there is no shortfall as concerns to commitment, dedication and devotion when at work. What this performance management system does is to ensure that the right people get the bonuses, incentives and so on as well as point out the ones who have fallen short on the company’s expectations over a period of time. This would help in giving them rewards and incentives which will

English - Tablet vs. Laptop Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

English - Tablet vs. Laptop - Essay Example The latest in this competition is the laptop and the smaller more stylish tablet. Will the tablet drive the laptop into oblivion? Many variables come into place in that debate. This article views the debate from the standpoint of a tablet; a stylish, portable media device replacing a laptop, a portable computer. In the process of doing so we will initially examine the difference between the two based on the below factors. Price Portability Features From this evaluation, the essay hopes to provide (to also provide) a reasonable explanation as to why a tablet is not a computer. Competitiveness of Laptop and Tablet in Pricing Price is a very important factor for any product from a consumer point of view. It is dependent on many factors and is relative to usage. When we examine price based from the standpoint of functionality alone and we can see that laptops have an edge over tablets on this aspect. Pricing details of the Laptops: Laptops vary in prices and can be customized accordingly . Laptops are definitely cheaper than tablets due to a few reasons. One of the main reasons for this is that Laptops have been in the market for a long time and have been evolving to meet consumer demands. Today, the commercial side of laptop making is not only restricted to original design makers, thus, the need for competitive pricing has risen. You can get a net book with all the basic computing needs for as low as $350. The price range varies depending on features and this can be tailored according to usage needs and consumer needs. When tailoring a laptop to meet the usage demands based on memory and features, the price paid for one laptop can sometimes buy two tablets. However, when we get to this price point from the standpoint of a computer versus a portable media device, Laptops win. The Cost Front of Tablet: Tablets are costlier than laptops but it is worth the price as it provides impeccable facilities. The technology of a tablet has been under experimentation for a reall y long time. The tablet as we know came in 2010 when Apple Inc. released the Ipad, which was more media centric than PC centric. One of the main reasons for this has been to justify the price with the functions. The difference between the two is explained below. Since 2000, Microsoft has been experimenting along the lines of a tablet PC that works on a different Operating System (OS) as compared to a regular laptop. A tablet uses a lot of specialized technology in its venture to offer sophisticated features and increase portability while not reducing the PC experience. However, it has not been possible so far to create a PC tablet that can justify the price. The current tablets do not justify the price when looked at from the standpoint of the limitations in that particular functionality. Which Comes Best in Portability The need for portability is probably one of the driving factors for technological innovations. Here again the focus is on functionality and we can see that while tab lets are definitely more portable that even the smallest laptops they do not have all the functionality that a laptop as a computer can offer. What are laptops in Portability factor? Laptops are meant to be portable but are not that great when compared with tablets’ portability. With the fight to make things as pocket sized as possible, there are now new laptops that are small and lightweight, without too much compromise on screen resolution. When looking at portability we also have to look at it from the standpo