Civilized, Primitive, and the Perceptual Lens Essay

To say that any culture, region, or country is civilized or primitive is purely subjective to the person stating the opinion. Each individual, whether educated or uneducated, will have a different view on the definition of those two terms; a view that is influenced by the perceptual lens, or bias, that the individual has developed through various experiences over their lifetime. Nonetheless, how do subjectivity and the perceptual lens manipulate the terms of ‘civilized’ and ‘primitive’ in relation to the humanities? The answer is as unique as the individual giving it. Subjectivity often refers to the interpretation of an experience by an individual, in contrast with objectivity, which is a knowledge and fact-based belief system. The thoughts or opinions brought on by the experience are what help support the idea of a perceptual lens. Other influences of the perceptual lens can include, but are not limited to: religion, race, gender, environment and education . Because of the bias of an individual, there is a possibility of more than one sharing the same thoughts and opinions on an idea; however, it is difficult to say that two individuals share the same point of view on every aspect of life and society. At this current moment in time, the influence of late twentieth and early twenty-first century American pop culture effects the view many young Americans have on society, whereas the weight of mid twentieth century culture changes the bias of older Americans. It is because of these changes in culture that the terms of ‘civilized’ and ‘primitive’ cannot be given a tangible definition, but merely guidelines as to the form it is supposed to follow. Civilization is often a term so broad that it is easier to refer to a society as being â€Å"civilized.† To be defined as civilized, one must have: a form of urban life, involving the building of permanent settlements; a system of government; distinct social classes, defined by wealth and occupation; specialized skills and tools for the production of goods and the rise of trade; a form of written communication; and a shared system of beliefs whose officials play a significant role in the community (Cunningham and Reich, 3). By using the perceptual lens in conjunction with these guidelines, it can be inferred that to be civilized is a baseline for social groups as well as societies. When thinking of the word ‘civilized,’ ideas such as fine arts, hygiene, education, history, language and family all help us define the expression, and for each individual the ideas are unique to how they were raised and how they view the world. For those who view civilized through a twenty-first century lens, to be civilized is purely used to make advancements in society and as a tool for survival. In America, we have all the basic distinctions to be defined as civilized, with a few exceptions, such as a singular shared system of religious belief. Yet, it could be said that with the freedom to choose a religion based on your own values and to share those values with others would be in place of a singular belief system. In contrast, to be ‘primitive’ is to lack all of a majority of the basic distinct ions that reinforce what a society is at the core. Although, to be primitive can also be seen as a lack of survival skills needed to sustain a society. Some thoughts that come to mind with the term ‘primitive’ are: barbaric, dirty, uneducated, lack of a ruling body or government, and without a written language. However, those thoughts solidify the idea of a perceptual lens, a true subjective view on civilization and how the concept was taken in by an individual. As an advanced society, America has proven itself to be primitive in the way it often treats other nations that refuse to see ideas and beliefs the way in which they are seen here. For example, the countries of Afghanistan, Iran, and Iraq are often viewed as primitive and barbaric nations, due to the constant civil war that rages between religious sects in each region, and as a nation of great influence, America has bullied its way into the system with the goal of changing the social structure of each nation. Yet, all of these countries have the basics standards to be defined as civilized; each has a system of government, a shared belief system, permanent cities, social classes, agricultural and textile trade, and written language. Another example of use of the perceptual lens and the term ‘primitive’ would be the Neanderthals. Made out to be unintelligible people by all forms of media, Neanderthals were, at that point in time, extremely intelligent. Nearly 200,000 years ago, Neanderthals’ began to practice elaborate burial rituals, which could be proof of a deeply seated belief in the afterlife of the deceased’s soul, supporting the beginnings of a spiritual belief system. Thus, a society which is constantly referred to as primitive was actually quite civilized considering the evolutionary advances at the time. Though this is only one view on civilized, primitive, and how the perceptual lens effects the definition of the terms, it is an insight to how subjectivity changes the most basic of information taught to us at an early age. Societies follow the six distinct characteristics that define them as civilized, yet even the most advanced, civilized societies can be defined as primitive in the actions that are made by those who govern over them. 1. Cunningham, Lawrence S., and John J. Reich. Culture and Values: a Survey of the Humanities. Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006.

Dashain: The Festival of Nepal

Dashain Festival of Nepal INTRODUCTION Dashain is the biggest festival in Nepal. Dashain is celebrated by Nepalese people with great excitement. It is normally in the month of October but sometimes in late September. This festival is the longest and the most important of all festivals in Nepal. It falls in the best time of the year when fruits, vegetables and other foods are in plenty. And, all animals are well fed and healthy. It is said that Dashain is a celebration of the victory of the gods over the wicked demons.More sophisticated people think it as a message that good will always wins over bad in the end. And, we all should stand on the side of the good even when the bad side may look to be stronger. THE PREPARATION Before the first day of Dashain starts, people clean their houses, clean up the barns, paint white and red colours on the walls, paint the windows, repair the Aangan, repair the barns and trails in the villages, and paint the temples, schools and shelters with white clay. They buy new clothes, lots of food and spices.Then the celebration begins. THE FIFTEEN DAYS OF DASHAIN The fifteen days are said to mark the various events in the war between the gods and the demons. These fifteen days of Dashain are celebrated as follows: * Day 1: Ghastapana:Â  It is the first day of moon and represents the start of the battle. All weapons and tools in the households are gathered, cleaned and put in a room where Goddess Durga’s worship is commenced. Seeds of corn and barley are planted in a large planter of leaves and kept in dark in the worship room.These seeds would have grown to be yellow seedlings (Jamara) by the ninth day, when they are offered to Vishwa Karma and to all worshippers on the tenth day. * Day 2-7: Dwitia to Saptami:Â  Represent the continuation of the battle. * Day 8: Ashtami:Â  Animals are sacrificed in the temples of Goddess Durga asking for her help to win the battle. * Day 9: Nawami:Â  People worship Durga in mass. Everyone goes to temple of Durga. Also Vishwa Karma (god of creativity) is worshipped at the room where all tools and weapons were kept and the tools are finally released from the room.All machinery like sewing machine, cars, carts and grinding mills are stopped and offerings are made to Vishwa Karma asking to protect from accidents and mishaps. This day signifies that everyone gets ready for the final battle. * Day 10: Vijaya Dasami:Â  Goddess Durga defeats demon Mahishasur. Good finally wins over the bad. Victory is celebrated with exchanges of blessings and best possible food one can afford. Elders in the family give blessings to the young and put Tika and Jamara on their forehead. People are supposed to pay honor to and get blessings from the all surviving elders in the family clan.All people seem to be on the move as they try to visit as many relatives as possible to collect the most possible blessings. * Day 11-14: Ekadashi – Chaturthi:Â  These days are for visiting elders tha t were too far to visit on the tenth day. Also if some difficulties prevented us from reaching home and elders. So Tika continues throughout Dashain. * Day 15: Purnima or Kojagrat Purnima:Â  Dashain ends on the day of full-moon. On this day, people stay at home and rest. Laxmi (the goddess of wealth) is worshiped on this date. People are now ready to work and acquire virtue, power and wealth.In Dashain, you want a tika from an older person in your family or from anyone. You want to receive blessings from as many wellwishers as you can. First you start in your family. The oldest person in your family gives Tika and blessings to the youngest then the second youngest and so on. Anticipation, fun, hope, blessings and friendship come to you in Dashain, especially when you are close to your relatives and friends, and not in a far-away land and alone. You still write to your relatives or call them if you can and get thier thoughts and blessings even when you are far-far-away!

A Streetcar Named Desire †Commentary Essay

In the play, A Streetcar Named Desire, written by Tennessee Williams, Blanche the protagonist who is mentally fragile and depends on her sister’s help to overcome various adversities as her husband’s passing away and her paying many debts decides to move to New Orleans, where her sister lives. Throughout the play, Blanche, who is from a southern part called Laurel, strives to conform to society’s norms and attempts to ï ¬ nd a man to marry her; but she is incapable of feeling involved in the scenery and as a consequence of that, she loses her mentality at the end of the play. In this speciï ¬ c passage, Blanche returns from a date with the character Mitch who desires to marry her to please his ill mother. Through this particular scene, Williams initiates to develop the relationship between the aforementioned characters to reveal that their relationship depends merely on mutual beneï ¬ ts rather than feelings. In this particular scene, Williams establishes the codependent relationship between Mitch and Blanche, which is founded on mutual loneliness and the desire to be with anyone, to demonstrate that society employs pressure on each and every individual to conform to its norms. Initially, Williams assigns the elements of punctuation to highlight that the characters Blanche and Mitch are forced to have a relationship that only depends on the desire to be with anyone because of gender stereotypes that society puts forth. For instance, the playwright utilizes the element dash to demonstrate that Mitch and Blanche awkwardly hesitate to approach each other. Mitch states the line â€Å"Can I – uh – kiss you – good-night?†, and Blanche states the line â€Å"The one that says the lady must entertain the gentleman – or no dice!†. The dashes in these two quotes convey that both Mitch and Blanche appear to be hesitant and forced to be in this relationship. They tend to be indecisive about whether to ï ¬ nish their sentences or not. The characters’ uncertainty draws a conclusion that they feel irresolute about whether they should comply with gender stereotypes of society or not. Additionally, Williams supports the aforementioned claim by utilizing another element of punctuation called ellipsis. Blanche states the line â€Å"I liked the kiss very much. It was the other little – familiarity – that I – felt obliged to – discourage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The utilization of ellipsis in this sentence once again proves that the characters constantly complete their sentences with hesitation and that they are uncomfortable talking to each other. Their constantly hesitating shown by these elements is due to the fact that in this particular setting, gender stereotypes are put forth by society which commands individuals to marry anyone to be regarded as â€Å"normal† by the others. Blanche and Mitch, who do not actually bear feelings for each other, choose each other to comply with these rules, but as a consequence of this situation, they appear to be forced to have this relationship in order to conform to gender stereotypes in society. Through the elements of punctuation, Williams remarks that Blanche and Mitch are forced to be together and that their co-dependent relationship is founded on the pressure that the norms of society exert. Furthermore, the playwright utilizes the elements of characterization to reveal that the relationship between Blanche and Mitch depends rather on the pressure exerted by society than on emotions. Williams depicts Blanche’s state in this scene through employing direct and indirect characterization which put forth the conclusion that Blanche feels compelled and exhausted to have her relationship with Mitch. For instance, the playwright employs direct characterization in the stage direction to depict that Blanche has â€Å"utter exhaustion† in her â€Å"voice and manner†. This direct characterization reveals that Blanche becomes disappointed in the quality of the date that she and Mitch return from. As a result of this disappointment, she reï ¬â€šects her exhaustion in her voice regarding that Mitch is not similar with the man whom she desires to have. Williams additionally utilizes direct characterization to regard Blanche’s personality as â€Å"neurasthenic†. This description conveys that Mitch’s manners aggravate her due to the fact that his manners are inadequate compared to those of the man whom Blanche desires. Hence, these examples of direct characterization prove that Blanche, who becomes dissatisï ¬ ed with Mitch’s qualities feels obliged and compelled to have a relationship with Mitch because the norms of society force her to marry anyone to be regarded as â€Å"normal†. Moreover, Williams employs indirect characterization to indicate that Blanche strives to conform to the norms of society through having a relationship with Mitch. For example, Blanche states the line â€Å"The one that says the lady must entertain the gentleman – or no dice!†. Through this instance, the playwright highlights that women in society are regarded as â€Å"worthless† without conforming to gender stereotypes. Blanche states that if she does not â€Å"entertain† her â€Å"gentleman†, she will have â€Å"no dice†. The conclusion drawn from this point is that women in society cannot endure unless they satisfy their men. Hence, Blanche regards Mitch as her last option and conforms to gender stereotypes of society through having a relationship deprived of emotions. Through the elements of characterization, Williams conveys that Blanche and Mitch has an artiï ¬ cial relationship on behalf of complying with gender stereotypes of society . Subsequently, Williams accounts the elements of ï ¬ gurative language to mention that Blanche and Mitch are coerced to be in a co-dependent relationship because of the constraint that gender stereotypes of society apply. Williams implements the element of allusion to address the aforementioned message. For instance, Mitch bears, upside down, â€Å"a plaster statuette of Mae West†. In this example, the statuette of Mae West is an allusion to the sexual desire between the couple regarding that Mae West is known as a sex symbol. However, since Mitch carries the statuette â€Å"upside down†, this signiï ¬ es that there is something wrong with the sexual connection between Mitch and Blanche. Indeed, the statuette refers to the lack of sexual tension between the couple due the fact that their relationship depends only on a mutual beneï ¬ t which is to be accepted by society. The playwright employs the allusion of â€Å"Mae West† to illustrate that there is not any sexual desire between the couple regarding that their relationship does not harbor any emotion. In addition, the playwright employs the allusion of â€Å"the Seven Sisters† to remark Blanche’s loneliness. â€Å"The Seven Sisters, also referred as the Pleiades, were the seven daughters of the Titan Atlas. They became a group of stars.† Although Blanche has a sister, she is indeed mentally unsupported because of her sister’s lack of consideration. Being compared to the Seven Sisters, she adores â€Å"the Seven Sisters† for their unity, feels lonely and seeks to be with anyone to comply with the rules of society. Hence, she decides to rely on Mitch who is her last option. This allusion once again proves that Stella and Mitch build up an unnatural relationship deprived of feelings in order to conform to the norms of society. Williams implements the elements of ï ¬ gurative language to establish the relationship between Blanche and Mitch which merely depends on the desire to be with anyone and the pressure put forth by society. In summation, Tennessee Williams applies the elements punctuation, characterization and ï ¬ gurative language to develop the artiï ¬ cial relationship between Blanche and Mitch, which originates from the desire to be with anyone, in order to illustrate that society compels each and every individual to obey its norms. Through these elements, Williams eventually clariï ¬ es that this imitated relationship arises from the enforcement exerted by the gender stereotypes of society.

HEALTH AND BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

HEALTH AND BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES - Lab Report Example as no difference found in the motivation of two groups, but the groups with the fewer choices were more satisfied with their decision and they also reported less difficulty levels. Do you have more variety of this product? I think we should visit the corner shop because my friend was telling me that they have a wide collection. I can apply for only a few colleges†¦ I wish I could apply for more college. How many times we have heard or used these sentences or similar kinds of statements. The importance of choices in our lives is very important and it is often realized. People always variety as they feel that it helps them in their decision making process. There are no two thoughts on the fact that choices are very important for us. The effect that choices have on our lives is misinterpreted or misunderstood many a times. Too many choices may not be as beneficial for us as we think they are. It is found that excess of choices can decrease the motivation to buy (Iyengar & Lepper, 2000). Psychology informs us today that choice between two desirable options can lead to dissatisfaction and stress (Huffman, 2008). These results are not in line with the common notion regarding choices. The ability to choose from a variety of alternatives is considered necessary for a better decision. Studies have also suggested that choices are very necessary for human beings and they increase the life satisfaction of people (Deci & Ryan, 1985). These studies have contradicting results and they may confuse a lay man. These results have also added obscurity on the subject of variety and choices to some extent. It is important to understand that variety is very important for people and their survival. However too many choices can lead to dissatisfaction and decrease in motivation. The problem with too many choices is that it increases the stress level of the people as they want to choose the best option (Moushart, 2008). Too many choices actually hinder in decision making by confusing

Emergency Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Emergency Management - Assignment Example thor is trying to enhance our understanding of how the emergency management system works and how our agency fits into the network, which will help us to function effectively and apply our knowledge on emergency management. The author seeks to present an integrated emergency management system that we can adopt (FEMA, 2011). In doing so, the reading uses key concepts that include emergency, emergency management, hazard, and threat to support the author’s reasoning. The emergency concept refers to any incident, whether natural or manmade, that requires responsive action to protect life or property (FEMA, 2011). Indeed, an emergency entails a natural or artificial disaster that requires a collaborative response from the government agencies, individuals, and organizations using the available resources within the shortest possible with an aim of saving lives and protecting the destruction of property. The recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa is an example of an emergency concept. Indeed, the fact that the United Nations and Western African countries have called for a coordinated global approach towards containing the Ebola outbreak defines the emergency concept. The reading raised the questions listed below. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa is a current event that defines emergency management. CNN published the current event titled, â€Å"WHO: Ebola outbreak in West Africa an international health emergency† on Fri August 8, 2014 (Karimi & Gigova, 2014). The article states that global health experts like WHO declared Ebola outbreak in West Africa as an international health emergency that requires a coordinated global approach (Karimi & Gigova, 2014). The outbreak is affecting Nigeria, Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone. The outbreak requires emergency management because of the eminent effects of the disease, the prevalence of the disease, and the inability of the affected nations to contain the outbreak. The outbreak has killed 961 people by August 8, 2014 and the

Rural Poverty Alleviation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Rural Poverty Alleviation - Essay Example In a large and diverse country like India, it is not surprising to experience the kind of hardships and obstacles that appear to hinder every attempt at large scale alleviation of poverty in general and rural poverty in particular. India is a vast democracy of myriad tradition and culture. She is also multi-lingual and in the grip of traditional customs and religious beliefs. Influential politicians, religious leaders, film stars and iconic sportsmen don the mantle of role models and guides. The television perfectly and effectively keeps everyone pre-occupied with live performances and programs, leaving the common man and woman, boy and girl with little time for serious issues of life and responsibilities. Lest I am branded as pessimist, let me hasten to add that India has achieved the targets of rural poverty alleviation to an appreciable extent in the six decades after independence. By and large, there is more prosperity in villages now than before. Government schemes like Jawahar Rojgar Yojana, Drought Prone Area Programs (DPAP), Panchayati Raj, land reforms, etc. have been designed with the common man in the rural backyard in mind. The rural folk enjoy a better transport and communication system, they are politically, economically and academically more aware, and successive five-year plans, especially from the sixth five-year plan onwards, have bestowed more privileges and benefits on them. (8th Five Year Plan) Statistics of the National... Government schemes like Jawahar Rojgar Yojana, Drought Prone Area Programs (DPAP), Panchayati Raj, land reforms, etc. have been designed with the common man in the rural backyard in mind. The rural folk enjoy a better transport and communication system, they are politically, economically and academically more aware, and successive five-year plans, especially from the sixth five-year plan onwards, have bestowed more privileges and benefits on them. (8th Five Year Plan) Conversely, however, the sheen in these progressive schemes and undertakings lost their shine with corruption at every level, powerful hold by vested interests, political compulsions and exploitation. Statistics of the National Rural Employment Program and Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Program (RLEGP), showing the extent of finance involved in rural employment programs in the Seventh Five Year Plan, are reproduced below: Performance of NREP in the Seventh Five Year Plan Year Resource availability (Rs. crores) Expenditure: (Rs. crores) Employment Generation (in million mandays) Manday Cost(Rs.) Wage-Non- Wage Ratio 1985-86 593.08 531.95 316.41 16.81 60:40 1986-87 765.13 717.77 395.39 18.15 60-40 1987-88 888.21 788.31 370.77 21.26 59:41 1988-89 845.68 901.84 394.96 22.83 57:43 Performance of RLEGP in the Seventh Plan Year Resource availability (Rs. crores) Expenditure (Rs. crores) Employment Generation (in million mandays) Manday Cost (Rs.) Wage/Non- Wage Ratio 1985-86 580.35 453.17 2.47.58 18.30 57:43 1986-87 649.96 635.91 306.14 20.77 57:43 1987-88 648.41 653.53 304.11 21.49 58:42 1988-89 761.55 669.37 296.56 22.57 58:42 (Source: 8th Five Year Plan) Disillusionment with Rural Life Mass migration of people from hinterland and rural areas into cities and, to a lesser extent, towns and

The Product Life Cycle in Relation to the Diverse Activities and Essay - 3

The Product Life Cycle in Relation to the Diverse Activities and Interests of Various Stakeholders - Essay Example The paper tells that the principal stakeholders include the shareholders, securities exchange, and players in it, employees, government, competitors, suppliers, creditors, agents, dealers, environment, and customers of a business among others. The Product Life Cycle refers to the theory, which management applies to facilitate businesses understand the product’s eventual life expectancy and being able to know the standing in a life of a product at a given time. Most products undergo four principal phases in the life namely: the introduction, growth, mature or decline phases. Identifying of the phase of the product cycle enables respective stakeholders to derive strategies intended to improve the performance of the respective products. It is, however, hard to identify the exact phase in which a product belongs in the product lifecycle as a rise or fall in market performance sends mixed results. It is also not clear if stakeholders can accurately predict when the product will go into the subsequent stage of its life cycle. It is also hard for a business to ascertain when the market for a given product will reach market saturation. The management may thus get to know this during saturation and after saturation. The product life cycle model assumes all products have a life limit, which might not be the case since during the saturation phase the product starts slowing down with little or no significant growth. It is significant to note that, businesses are required to work strategically to make profits, employ many people, pay taxes to the government pay dividends to shareholders, improve wealth, and be responsible to the community.

Napoleon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Napoleon - Essay Example kled was huge, and Napoleon Bonaparte was very effective in shadowing the revolutions ideologies for the leading segment of his calling while also mounting to immense supremacy himself. As Bonaparte Napoleons supremacy within France and then into Europe augmented, Napoleon started to deviate from the French revolutionary principles and created establishments identical to those the French revolutionaries had tried to abolish. Napoleon, as a freebooter, changed his principles from radical to reactionary to reformist reliant upon what befitted him at that moment. This paper will attempt to show the extent to which Napoleon’s domestic policies were based on the 1789 French Revolt’s principles. The 1789 French revolution changed the direction of French as well as much of Europe’s history, the ancient feudal organism was obliterated and the organization of the French’s society was profoundly altered rendering to the ideologies of equality, fraternity and liberty. Privilege was split as the basis of society; the ruling class was not excused from tax system. In addition, the country’s populace practically demolished feudalism. Previously excepted people were engaged in political affairs for the very first instance, the voting public was stretched out, and the lawful code was transformed. Many complaints held by labor force as well as the bourgeoisie‘s followers were resolved, and hope was restored amid the radicals that lasting transformation could be created for the social system of France and Europe too (Lyons 34). In the period from 1789 to 1799, numerous attempts were formulated to institute a constitution, which would put in the principles of the radicals. Constitutional empire from 1789 to 1791 collapsed because of differences amid Louis XVI and the radicals concerning the Church that came under attack owing to its previous exclusion from duty, as well as counter-revolutionaries who presented a major threat to the revolt (Stiles 104). The dangerous

Btec hnd in business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Btec hnd in business - Assignment Example The market forces including cultural changes that have impacted Giorgio Armani have been touched upon. Finally an attempt has been made to gauge the impact of globalization, international trade and WTO on the functioning of Giorgio Armani Group. 2.0 Introduction The Giorgio Armani Group is a leading player in the luxury and fashion goods market. The group is privately owned and is vertically integrated. The behemoth designs, manufactures, distributes  and retails its products through a network of close to 500 stores in 46 different countries of the world (Armani, 2013). Since its inception in 1975, the Giorgio Armani Group has grown by leaps and bounds through a series of important alliances, relevant acquisitions and rolling out licenses. Its teaming up with Reebok to manufacture high-end fashion shoes under the brand name EA7 is one such example of sound business tie-ups. The group’s product portfolio includes a vast array of lifestyle and fashion items including apparel, accessories, cosmetics, eyewear, fragrances, home furnishings, jewellery, shoes and watches (Armani, 2013). Giorgio  Armani is the founder of the vast empire that bears his name. The group comprises of the Giorgio Armani S.p.A, the parent  company and many other subsidiaries. ... Jeans, A/X Armani Exchange, Armani Junior, Armani Teen, Armani Baby, Armani/Casa, Armani Beauty, Armani Hotels, Armani/Fiori, and Armani/Dolci (Armani, 2013). 3.0 Mission, Vision, Strategy and Goals The group’s mission is to ‘create  clothes and accessories  that aspire to a kind of perfection that transcends fashion’. The group’s vision is to dominate the world of fashion in the long run. The Giorgio  Armani Group pursues its mission and vision by investing in technology and infrastructure that enables it to manufacture new product lines and create new divisions to handle its ever expanding portfolio of products and services. The fashion house strives to create an ambience in its retail stores that that ingeniously give a boost to the displayed products (Annunziato, 2001). Today, Armani is one of the strongest brands in the world. It enjoys the enviable position of being one of two Italian companies along with Prada to find place in the top 100 brand s drawn up by Interbrand and Business Week (Galbraith, 2004). The long term strategic goal of the group is to keep its luxurious image intact. The group has diversified into various other industries but it the customers still see it as the epitome of luxury and fashion. As a strategy, the Armani Group keeps a tight control over all aspects of its business, be it manufacturing, distribution or retail. The apparel maker has limited the Emporio Armani merchandise to  Emporio Armani  stores because of the issue of control (Business World, 1998). The group has bought back factories from licensees to ensure tight control over production. In fact, Mr Giorgio Armani is known to be a hard task master who takes decisions on his own. While he listens to suggestions and takes feedback, the ultimate decision rests in his hands

Alfred Hitchcock Essay Example for Free

Alfred Hitchcock Essay For every Hitchcock’s story come suspense, drama, terror and exhilarating scope of life’s spectacular event. Alfred Hitchcock who was an English made the word â€Å"mystery and suspense† attached to every story he has to tell. He has been a productive writer, director and an ever mysterious of a man himself ever since he was young man in the 1930’s. His passion for storytelling and direction always catch the ever hungry public for horror, suspense and drama. AH revolutionizes filmmaking with deep mystery and a shady touch. He started writing and filming since the movies was in black and white. Here are some of those who made it to the editors and reviewer’s desk along with the reference. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). An adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and starred by Harrison Ford. Spielberg admits that one of the most significant director that inspired in doing this suspense and adventure film was Alfred Hitchcock. He always quoted Hitchcock in making this movie and telling the media that Hitchcock influenced really inspire him in coming up an adventure film full of action and suspense.   The story goes Archeology Professor Indiana Jones escapes death from poison dart, lots of falling and breaking of bones. A large boulder even nearly pinned him to a pulp. This is just to get an old Indian idol for his collection. He ended up being beaten by Belloq for the prize. Belloq, his old arch enemy is always on his tail and as he is, always determined to fight to the last to any precious thing they can catch. Confronted with many enemies and obstacles he failed to have the idol but instead getting back alive. Back to the university he was told that an old archeological society established by the Nazi was in Cairo for a mission to lay hands on the Ark of the Covenant which Indy assumed is the real resting place of the lost Ark.   The Ark is where the 10 commandments are kept. Indy as an archeologist discovered that the Ark is keeping a powerful energy which if fall in the wrong hands could cause disaster with the world. Being in love with adventures he went away straight to Cairo picking up his girlfriend and friend on his way. Danger is everywhere from Nazi thugs in their every way to poisonous snakes on the Ark’s hiding place. Belloq being bold and daring as Indy was hired by the Nazis to lay their hands on the Ark. Being able to get the Ark, the Nazis hired Belloq to steal the Ark from him. Belloq succeeded again in having the Ark. Together with his friends Indy who is determined with his every action launches another neck-breaking move to get the Ark back and finding himself fighting for his life again especially when he dealt with a giant German thug. The Nazis having the Ark have to drive again to Cairo to make the ritual in opening up the Ark. With the path full booby traps and enemies the Nazis are determined to stop Indy from his track doing all their things to kill him. He however survived and be able to stop the Nazis with their black intention. This movie was now a classic but the director behind it has made history up to our modern world of cinema. Spielberg was hailed as one of the most productive and genius director of all time. And he owes it partly from the influence of Hitchcock and his style (Pallison). In the Mood for Love (2000). The story is based in Hong Kong and the year is 1962. It is a story of love, infidelity and integrity which catapult into betrayal and immorality. Two people met at the wrong place and at the wrong time which made the film more intriguing to watch. Two married couples met and live in a neighborhood and the beginning was a friendship. Having spouses who are always on the run for business have inadvertently discovered that their spouses have a clandestine affair. Ironically the two cheated souls met and work for the same project. Knowing they both have been deceived with their spouses, the two main characters have their very own chance of vengeance. But the vows which they promised were holding them back. In effect the drama of keeping the love back and fighting for their rights of being cheated added to the emotion in this movie. Infidelity is the name of the game and the characters Chow Mo-Wan (Tony Leung) and Su Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung) were very much convincing and make this drama more heartfelt. Directed by Wong Kar-Wai, who was considered Hong Kong’s cult director is one of the famous directors in Asia and now making a name in the world of directorship.   He admits his literary influences and cinematic skills from the likes of Martin Scorsese to Alfred Hitchcock.   Doing this movie, Director Kar-Wai thought that this is just an easy film thinking that there are only two main characters in the whole film. But realizing that the story relies not only on the main characters but with the details of describing the whole sentiments of the film it was developed into a subtle and one of the most romantic film ever made by an Asian director (Teo). Raising Cain (1992). A psychological thriller that tells the story of a father who seems to be psychologically insane even to the point of torturing his own son for the sake of his own mad experimentation. It is a disturbing film not be recommended to be watched by the innocent mind. Playing as the killer in this movie is John Lithgow who is very effective in this movie brutally torturing and murdering children for the sake of his experiments. Director De Palma has indeed put the proper angle for every scene to put the movie in its incredibly moving and thrilling effect. Although the movie has been rated R by many critics and disturbingly enough for the common people. This movie depicts some of the grossly-event that from time to time happening in our world today. Children are the victims in this movie and that really happens. In reality women are also the main victims because of their vulnerability. Brian de Palma is now on his fifth decade as a director. He is the most visible American director working to such ardent, usually violent and passionate movies. He is critically acclaimed to be one of the most suspenseful and exciting director of all time because of his dedication to art in producing films that are always exciting, intriguing and mockingly curious. He is explicit with every angle in his camera, fluent in the description of movements, and stylish with his combination of elegance and violence. Admittedly getting influenced by Hitchcock, he deliberately put the audience holding their breath and letting a shriek of terror whenever a piece was delivered (Barry). Twilight (19989). Starring Paul Newman who was once a former drunk, a private investigator and a cop who is about to retire. He now lives in with a couple who had a runaway daughter. Harry Ross (Newman) helped in finding and bringing her back but almost died when she accidentally shoot him instead. Bringing her back alive and him wounded, the couple managed to keep him as a bodyguard, a house help, and even a member of the family. Being alone and retired his bonding with the family has grown. Unknowingly, Jack (Gene Hackman) who owns the house has secretive scenarios unknown to the family. When Jack discovered that he is dying of cancer, he asked Harry to deliver a package to a certain woman named Gloria Lamar. Being confident with his friend’s request to simply deliver a package made his world turned upside down. Unfortunately the package was discovered and contained elements that lead to blackmail and murder which involved Jack. The sudden twist of this movie has a gripping and suspenseful events which on first viewing was such so simple and melancholic. In the later part of the movie and understanding all of the twist, the climax of the movie has been revealed. Directed by Robert Benton. Benton was considered one of the most popular and productive film makers of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. His ever changing style in making his film has made him great and it is clearly shown in his films. Together with Newman in making this film they tried to make this movie more like a Hitchcock thriller with the style of other great directors. This film has made it and considered one of the top-earner films of the modern era. Benton has always tried to copy Hitchcock style of suspense and thrilling cinematography and it does not fail in every film he made (Williams). From the best classics that Hitchcock written or directed to the last movies in the last decade of his career Hitchcock has always been firm with his films to produce those hair-raising, thrill getting and full suspense films. He has already made a historical and symbolical symbol to filmmaking which our present film makers are now making his movies and style their reference and guidelines. From the budding director to a movie great filmmaker, Hitchcock would always come up as the â€Å"one† who made filmmaking an entertainment industry. He started his own style in black and white cinematography and silent movie and yet he was able to bring his audience with surprise and terror. Until today there are critics who are hoping to see a trace of Hitchcock’s suspenseful part for every movie they evaluate. In the kingdom of movie industry, people knew him to be a prolific and mysterious writer without the love for popularity and lights on him. For a movie fan who loves his movies he will always be the silent, mysterious man behind those cameras ready to frighten you out of your wits, hold on to your seats and gasp at the sudden flash of a surprise before your eyes. Before you knew it, your eyes are widened with shock and exhilaration envelops you. You are watching a Hitchcock movie and be prepared.. Work Cited Barry. A Fine Suspense Thriller.   (2001). Pallison, Arnauld. Hitchcocks Influences on Spielberg: Raiders of the Lost Ark as Example. 2006. Teo, Stephen, ed. Wong Kar-Wai, Auteur of Time 2005. Williams, Kent. Film Review Twilight. 1998.

Are Offender Profiles Useful in Police Investigations?

Are Offender Profiles Useful in Police Investigations? In recent years, there are more and more people have become increasingly fascinated by offender profiling because of the influence of media. An example of this is the well-known criminal profiling film The Silence of the Lambs, which is based on the Thomas Harris novel of the same name. Some television shows such as Millennium, Profiler and The X-Files are also based around the premise of criminal profiling. However, Hicks and Sales (2006) emphasize that these portrayals encourage the view of profiling as an art rather than a science though these profilers have academic backgrounds and law enforcement experience. The prevalence of offender profiling has grown over the past three decades (Snook, Eastwood, Gendreau, Goggin and Cullen, 2007), although studies suggest that profiles have been found to be most effective as an additional tool, not as a solution to specific crimes (Wilson, Lincon and Kocsis, 1997:2). Using offender profiling would appear to be more beneficial than relying so lely on traditional methods of detection (Ainsworth, 2001). In addition, it is important for police detectives to know which crimes are connected in order to collate and compare the information between these related cases (Egger, 1984 as cited in Rossmo, 2000). This essay will discuss the underlying assumptions of both offender profiling and case linkage, and then argue the usefulness of these practices in criminal investigations. Offender profiling has been defined by different authors using different terminologies such as specific profile analysis, psychological profiling, criminal profiling and criminal personality profiling. However, the underlying concept of definitions remains the same (Jackson and Bekerian, 1997). Beauregard, Lussier and Proulx (2005) state that offender profiling provides some descriptive information about behaviours and personality of an offender by analysing crime scene characteristics, which can narrow suspects and finally solve the cases. Muller (2000) describes the information which the criminal profiler uses is often taken from the scene of crime, and profilers will take into account some factors such as previous crime scene, weapons, behaviours and words to the victim and the geographic patterns of crime. Davies (1992 as cited in Beauregard et al., 2005) emphasizes that offender profiling is an investigative tool which focus on the analysis of offenders behaviour and accordingly infers some of the criminals personal characteristics. In Europe, offender profiling is defined as attempting to produce a description of the perpetrator(s) of a criminal offence on the basis of analysis of characteristics of the incident and other background information (Stevens, 1995: 10), and this definition is adopted by the Association of Chief Police Officers Behavioural Science Investigative Support Sub-committee in UK (Ainsworth, 2000). Although the actual process of profiling differs from one profiler to another, the aim remains the same: to deduce the behaviour, personality, and physical characteristics of the offender (Muller, 2000). According to Holmes and Holmes (1996), profiling has the following three main goals: assessing the offender from social and psychological aspects, the evaluating suspected offenders relevant possessions, and consulting with law enforcement officials about some strategies when interviewing offenders. The process of constructing a profile of an unknown offender typically includes three stages (Snook et al., 2007). Firstly, collecting crime scene data by police officers is needed and then the data will be forwarded to a profiler; secondly, the profiler starts to analyze the data which stems from the crime scene; and the last step is the predictions about the personality, behaviours, and demographic characteristics of the likely criminal (Snook et al., 2007). Snook et al. (2007) also describe that the processes of analyzing crime scene data can be classified two types: clinical and statistical in nature. Clinically oriented techniques are based on the profilers intuition, knowledge, experience, and training, in order to generate predictions. Comparing these with statistically oriented techniques, the latter predictions are based on descriptive and inferential statistical models which derive from the result of analysing offenders characteristics who have committed similar crimes previously (Snook et al., 2007). It would seem that profiling can offer more accurate results in some kinds of offence (Stevens, 1995). Hazelwood and Burgess (1995) claim that some serial rapes, murders, arson, child abusing are extraordinarily appropriate for profiling. Ainsworth (2000) suggests that murder and some serious sexual offences are the most common crimes for using offender profiling. In addition, Ainsworth (2001) comments that such serious, personal contact crimes involve attacks on strangers are the most difficult cases to solve for the police. Wilson et al. (1997) also point out that profiling is most useful in serial offences, because profilers can extrapolate and compare data from the various crime scenes. However, the FBI holds the point that property crimes and robberies probably are not suitable for profiling because sometimes these offences cannot reflect the personality of offenders (Ainsworth, 2000). Police forces are always required to focus their investigative efforts to identify crimes which committed by the same offender, because the majority of the crimes come from the minority of offenders (Woodhams and Toye, 2007). Woodhams and Toye (2007) believe that case linkage can be used to examine the likelihood of a series of offences being committed by the same unidentified offender when lacking suitable physical evidence, such as DNA evidence. Crime analysts analyze crime scene actions to consider whether there are some similarities in behaviours which committed by a common offender (Woodhams and Toye, 2007). In addition, Holmes and Holmes (2002) suggest that linkage analysis can identify connections between similar crimes committed by different offenders. Alison, Bennell, Mokros and Ormerod (2002) state that offender profiling rests on two key assumptions in order to make profiling be possible. The first one is the behavioural consistency assumption, which means if serial offenders commit similar offences, they must exhibit behavioural consistency. According to Alison et al. (2002), the variation in behaviour an offender shows must be less than the variation in behaviour by different offenders. The second assumption relies on what Mokros and Alison (2002) have termed the homology assumption, which requires that similar offence behaviour of two offenders will match similar characteristics (Goodwill and Alison, 2007). In addition, the process of case linkage also rests on two key assumptions. The first one is the offender consistency hypothesis, the same with the first assumption of profiling. The second assumption of case linkage is that there is variation in the way different criminals commit crimes (Woodhams, Bull and Hollin, 2007). Thus, for it to be possible to link crimes which committed by the same offender, criminals must behave in a stable but distinctive manner (Woodhams et al., 2007). In terms of the behavioural consistency assumption, it has been hypothesized that each person has a cognitive-affective personality system which would affect the behaviour produced in a given situation (Mischel and Shoda, 1995 as cited in Woodhams and Toye, 2007). This theory implies that when people encounter situations which have a similar psychological meaning to them, they will produce similar behaviour (Woodhams and Toye, 2007). Salfati and Bateman (2005) studied 94 variables relating to serial homicide offences which were obtained from police case files of the Homicide Investigation and Tracking System (HITS) database in Seattle, Washington of USA. They state that serial homicidal offenders are consistent across the series of homicides in their crime scene behaviours. Bennell and Canter (2002) analyzed 86 solved commercial burglaries committed by 43 offenders, they demonstrated that commercial burglary offenders are consistent in their burglary behaviours. Moreover, Santtila, J unkkila and Sandnabba (2005) studied 43 serial stranger rape cases which occurred in Finland during the years 1983-2001, they confirm that rape has a consistent thematic structure (Santtila et al. 2005: 102) instead of being a haphazard collection of behaviours. Whether offenders show more consistency in some criminal behaviour than in others also has received great scrutiny. Researchers group the specific offender behaviours into domains, comparing with others in order to investigate whether offenders show greater behavioural consistency across their series of crimes (Woodhams and Toye, 2007). Grubin, Kelly and Brunsdon (2001) imply that behaviours within the domains of control and escape are less dependent on the situation and the victims behaviour, thus, the control and escape behavioural domains show greater behavioural consistency comparing with the sex and style behavioural domains. Besides that, Bennell and Canter (2002) found that target selection and entry behaviours showed relatively consistent comparing with property stolen by studying the sample of commercial burglaries. However, Goodwill and Alison (2007) stress that the situational determinants of an offence can cause enormous variation in the way of committing the offence. In addition, Goodwill and Alison (2007) also hold the point that the behavioural inferences made about an offender across a crime series are especially vulnerable to violating (Goodwill and Alison, 2007: 824) the consistency condition. Similarly, Snook, Cullen, Bennell, Taylor and Gendreau (2008) emphasize that offender profiling approaches are based on the lacking empirical support typologies and are often based on an outdated understanding of human behaviour. In terms of the homology assumption, perhaps the empirical evidence to support this assumption is a little weak. Mokros and Alison (2002) studied the cases about the number of 100 British male stranger rapists which had some similarities in the crime scene actions. They tested whether increased similarity in offence behaviour coincided with higher resemblance in characteristics and previous convictions. The characteristics they examined including age, ethnicity, employment, education, marital status, and criminal record. They concluded that in their study, there was no evidence could prove the assumption of homology according to the relationships between crime scene and rapists characteristics. Hà ¤kkà ¤nen, Puolakka and Santtila (2004) analysed the number of 189 arsons in Finland from 1990 to 2001 by using non-metric multi-dimensional scaling procedure. In order to find the associations between crime scene actions and criminal characteristics, they divided the crime scene actions into four types: expressive-object, instrumental-object, expressive-person and instrumental-person. In terms of criminal characteristics, they also divided into four types: adolescent, self-destructive arsonist, serial arsonist and criminal. As a result, they found that offenders who committed different types of arsons with some similar characteristics. Obviously, their study failed to offer strong empirical evidence to support the homology assumption. Similarly, Doan and Snook (2008) examined the number of 87 arsons and 177 robberies, and compared the different types and the various criminal characteristics. They stressed that the evidence is low to moderate to support the homology assumption. Furthermore, Goodwill and Alison (2007) declare that the homology assumption may be in effect in some cases but not others. Furthermore, they argue that the homology assumption may be dependent on the extent to the behaviours which influenced by situational, psychological or interpersonal fac tors. In terms of the second assumption of case linkage, some studies have investigated that crimes committed by the same offender can be differentiated from crimes by different criminals. Bennell and Canter (2002) studied 86 solved commercial burglaries, they found that 43 offenders had distinct behavioural features. Bennell and Jones (2005) reported that various linking features exist in different burglaries, and this research also supports the assumption of inter-offender behavioural variation. However, the above studies indicate that the process of case linkage is not perfect and the linkage accuracy appears to vary with crime types (Woodhams et al., 2007). In contrast, Woodhams and Toye (2007) used measures of predictive accuracy which called areas under the curve (AUCs), and they found that there was high predictive accuracy in their study of burglary. It tends to be the case that both the findings of offender profiling and case linkage will be greatly useful for solving the offences in criminal investigations. Offender profiling can inform the prioritization of suspects possessing specified characteristics (Oldfield, 1997 as cited in Woodhams and Toye, 2007: 60), and case linkage can combine police investigative efforts and information from different crime scenes (Grubin, Kelly and Brunsdon, 2001). Besides that, profiles can also be used in providing interviewing skills or approaches for detectives to the potential suspect (Gudjonsson, 1992), and it is important for the trial process, because profiles can provide useful suggestions for prosecutors by assessing the accused, witnesses and juries (Wilson et al., 1997). Furthermore, Holmes and Holmes (2002) stress that linkage analysis systems not only can locate possible suspects from records of similar past offenses, but also can provide maximum information for psychological and geo graphic profiling efforts through confirming similar crimes. In spite of the usefulness of profiling and case linkage, Ainsworth (2000) is worried about that people may be over-optimistic for profiling because it has attracted such widespread public interest. Wilson and Soothill (1996) hold the point that a profile will rarely solve a crime or catch a criminal by itself, but it is designed to be an aid to the investigating police. Profiling experts also state openly that offender profiles are merely another investigative aid, they have never meant to lead exclusively to the apprehension of offenders (Ressler and Schactman, 1992 as cited in Wilson et al., 1997: 8). Furthermore, Jackson and Bekerian (1997) stress that offender profiles do not solve crimes and the answers they are offered are not solutions, accordingly, profiling should be viewed as a tool which can be extremely helpful in offering some strategies, supporting information management, and improving case understanding. Similarly, Gerberth (1995 as cited in Holmes and Holmes, 2002: 1 4) asserted that Criminal profiling is an excellent law enforcement tool. However, it is just one of many tools and does not replace good investigative techniques. Although psychologists have offered very detailed and accurate profiles in a number of famous cases (Canter, 1994), profiles do not always have dramatic and successful results (Ainsworth, 2000). To date, there have been few accurate and systematic tests to examine the exact usefulness of profiling even though some profiles have been proved to be accurate and have led to the conviction of offenders (Ainsworth, 2000). Studies suggest that although criminal profiling is being utilized by police agencies around the world, there is no strong evidence can show that the profiling is reliable, valid, or useful (Snook et al., 2007). Accordingly, many researchers are reluctant to accept criminal profiling is reliable and valuable. For example, Godwin (1978 as cited in Holmes and Holmes, 2002) asserts that profiling has little effect in solving crimes, and he even describes profiles themselves are dull and tedious. Similarly, Levin and Fox claim that profiles are of little use in identifying th e murderers, unfortunately, this tool, no matter how expertly implemented, is inherently limited in its ability to help solve crimes (Levin and Fox, 1985 as cited in Holmes and Holmes, 2002: 275). Snook et al. (2007) conducted a narrative review and analysed the published literature, they concluded that the criminal profiling relied on weak standards of proof and profilers were not better than other groups in predicting the characteristics of an unknown criminal, they even declared that the profiling was extraneous and redundant in investigations. Similarly, Snook et al. (2008) argue that criminal profiling has the potential to mislead criminal investigators, hinder the apprehension of guilty criminals and lead to wrongful convictions. It would seem that profilers can provide more accurate profiles than nonprofilers even though some of the above researchers are reluctant to see profiling as a useful tool. Pinizzotto and Finkel (1990) examined profiles which conducted by professional profilers, detectives, psychologists, and students for a series of cases. Their study found that the profiles offered by the profilers were more accurate than by all of the other groups in most cases. In the sex offender case, the profilers significantly offered more accurate items such as the gender, age, and education of the offender. In addition, their study also shows that profilers can offer richer and more detailed reports (Pinizzotto and Finkel, 1990). However, with regard to the homicide case, the detectives were significantly more accurate than the profilers in the items such as the offenders employment and residence. Kocsis and his research team compared the accuracy of professional profilers, psychologists, self-identified ps ychics, college students, and various groups of law enforcement officers. They found that the profilers provided the actual offenders in the largest number of correct predictions (Kocsis, 2003), with the accuracy rates ranging from 46 per cent to 70 per cent (Kocsis and Middledrop, 2004). However, there was a notable amount of variability within the profiler group, Kocsis and Middledrop (2004) observed that some profilers were much more accurate than others, even though the cause of the variation was still unclear, whether it was due to overall differences in the profilers skills or to specific aspects of the cases. The popularity of profiling is often seen as a measure of its success (Wilson et al., 1997). Copson (1995) shows that in UK, 29 profilers have been responsible for providing 242 instances of profiling advice between 1981 and 1994. However, Snook et al. (2008) claim that profilers always overemphasize the number of correct predictions rather than the proportion of correct predictions. Although there have been very few pieces of research which have tested both the accuracy and usefulness of profiles in live criminal cases, Copsons study Coals to Newcastle? Part 1: a study of offender profiling is one of the few studies (Ainsworth, 2001). Copsons (1995) study demonstrates that 82.6% of respondents reported that the advice they received had been useful, though only 14.1% of officers reported the profiling advice had assisted in solving the case and only 16.3% of respondents reported that the profiling advice had opened new lines of enquiry. Besides that, there are more than 50 per cent o f respondents said that the advice had offered new information for the case. In Copsons (1995) study, 126 officers (68.5%) reported that they would seek profiling advice again definitely in similar circumstances, though less than 50 per cent officers reported that they would definitely use the same profiler again in the similar situation. In addition, Pinizzotto (1984 as cited in Wilson et al., 1997) found that from 192 requests for profiles, actually only 17 per cent were used to help identify the suspects, however, 77 per cent of the respondents reported that the profiles had helped to focus on the investigation. Furthermore, in the earlier survey, Douglas (as cited in Snook et al., 2008) demonstrated that in USA, 46 per cent solved cases of the 192 instances were attributed to the offender profiling which provided by the FBI. Similarly, Jackson, van Koppen, and Herbrink (1993 as cited in Snook et al., 2008) showed that in Netherlands, five sixths of surveyed police officers reported some degree of usefulness about the profiling advice which provided by an FBI trained profiler. Another research shows that in USA, a significant portion of police officers hold the point that offender profiling has its value (Trager and Brewster, 2001 as cited in Snook et al., 2008). Similarly, Torres, Boccaccini and Miller (2006) surveyed forensic psychologists and psychiatrists through the Internet in order to examine their experiences and opinions about profiling. They found that approximately 40 per cent of these professionals feel the criminal investigative analysis is scientifically reliable or valid, and 86 per cent believe that offender profiling is a useful law enforcement tool (Torres et al., 2006). Ainsworth (2000) points out that many senior detectives do not trust the usefulness of offender profiling which provided by profilers. Copson (1995) explains that the negative views taken by senior detectives may come from the misunderstanding of profiling. Copson and Holloway (1997 as cited in Ainsworth, 2000) show that profiling helped to solve only 16 per cent of the crimes in which it was used, and identified the offender in less than 3 per cent of cases. In contrast, Ainsworth (2001) emphasizes that we should look into these figures in a little more detail because normally profiling would only be considered when the case was too difficult to be solved. Another reason is that organizations such as the FBI are reluctant to offer the figures about the successes and failures of the profiles they provide (Muller, 2000). Brittons implication that a large amount of cases have been solved by routine police work, not by offender profiling (Britton, 1997 as cited in Ainsworth, 2000). Howe ver, Canter argues that profiling has advantages in terms of the resources especially for some particular crimes comparing with that the police throw more and more resources at the crime hoping that something will turn up (Canter, 1994: 21). When evaluating the usefulness of profiling, it is necessary to take into account if the profile is seen in isolation or merely as one part of more general guidance which a psychologist might provide to investigators (Ainsworth, 2000:119). Muller (2000) also emphasizes that although some profiles may lead the wrong directions to the investigation, this may only be a problem if the police place a greater amount of faith in the profile than they do in their own investigative skills (Muller, 2000: 259). Another problem should be concerned is that when evaluating the accuracy of a profile, police officers are excessively subjective (Kocsis, 2003). Smith and Alison (2001 as cited in Kocsis, 2003) found that police officers were unable to discern the difference in the amount of accurate information in two profiles, and they tended to interpret ambiguous statements by their own subjective intentions. Kocsis and Hayes investigated the perceptions of police officers concerning the utility and accuracy of the profile, also found that perception of the accuracy of a profile is quite likely to be associated with the readers perception regarding the identity of its author (Kocsis and Hayes, 2003 as cited in Kocsis, 2003: 129). Kocsis and Middledorp (2004) examined a sample of 353 participants in order to explore Kocsis and Hellers findings that the relationship between ones belief of a profile and the perceived accuracy of that profile. Kocsis and Middledorp (2004) found that there is a posit ive relationship between belief and perceived accuracy. They point out that the extent accuracy which participants perceive depending on their beliefs in profiling. Ainsworth (2001) also suggests that the dangers of the self-fulfilling prophecy should be concerned because police officers have the cognizant sense that any psychological profile may fit some individuals, which leads to the inaccuracy. Psychologists will tend to be focus on the probabilities of offence; in contrast, the police officers tend to operate in terms of guilt or innocence (Ainsworth, 2001). It would seem that it is difficult to assess the accuracy and the value of profiles. One important issue should be considered is that whether profiling can bring new information to an enquiry or whether the profiling can confirm those cases which the police already suspected (Ainsworth, 2001). Ainsworth (2001) implies that in many cases, it is difficult to discern the new material because there may be an overlap between the information which the profiler offers and that which has already been collected by the police. In some cases, although the profilers advice may not be seem as the new information, profilers input may help police prioritize the information which they are considering (Ainsworth, 2001). Moreover, the value of profiling may depend on different cases. For example, profilers can offer deeper insights of some more serious forms of mental illness and some sexual assault cases than non-experts and some police who have little previous experience about those cases (Ainsworth , 2001). In conclusion, the future of psychological profiling and case linkage appear promising, research seems to be supporting the underling assumptions of these practices even though there have been few systematic and accurate studies to test the exact usefulness of offender profiling and case linkage. In terms of the homology assumption, the empirical evidence is especially weak to support it. Profiling as an additional tool plays an important role in criminal investigations, especially in serial offences. Studies suggest that profilers can provide more accurate profiles than nonprofilers. Case linkage provides a good way to collate and compare the information between related cases, thus, investigative efforts can be combined and officers can avoid the repetition of investigations. Most police officers would seek profiling advice and case linkage because of the agreement of their usefulness. However, over-optimistic vision of profiling and case linkage should be concerned because they do not always have dramatic and successful results even though many solved cases were attributed to offender profiling and case linkage. Finally, profiling and case linkage are useful tools and cannot replace the other good investigative techniques.

Origin And Applications Of Formwork Construction Essay

Origin And Applications Of Formwork Construction Essay Formwork is the term given to either temporary or permanent moulds into which concrete or similar materials are poured. In the context of concrete construction, the false work supports the shuttering moulds. Most of the buildings which are made to stand for a long time are made of concrete and mortar. These building materials are strongest and most suitable but at the same time they are a bit tedious to deal with. They do not acquire the desired shape and need help of some sort of support or any frame which can be detached as the concrete solidifies. Actually concrete is a material without any shape. For most applications the shape matters, and concrete has to be molded or formed. ORIGIN Concrete has been in use for the thousands of years. The dome of Pantheon in Rome is made of lightweight concrete, and the under face shows the moulding effect of formwork used two millennia ago. But it was only at the end of nineteenth century that the use of concrete became common, with the invention of reinforced concrete. Some of the earliest examples of concrete slabs were built by roman engineers. Because concrete is quite strong in resisting compressive loads, but has relatively poor Tensile strength, these early structures consisted of arches, vaults and domes. To mold these structures, temporary scaffolding and formwork built in the future shape of the structure. These building techniques were not isolated to pouring concrete, but were and are widely used in Masonry. Because of the complexity and the limited production capacity of the building material, concretes rise as a favored building material did not occur until the invention of Portland cement and reinforced concrete. Pantheon Dome SIGNIFICANCE The construction industry forms the largest single sector in any economy. In the USA for example the construction sector is responsible for 14% of the GDP (US National Statistics Bureau). Formwork is the single largest cost component of concrete buildings structural frame. The cost of formwork exceeds the cost of concrete or steel and in some situations the formwork costs more than the concrete and steel combined. For some structures, placing priority on the formwork design for a project can reduce the total frame cost by as much as 25%. This saving includes both direct and indirect costs. Formwork efficiencies accelerate the construction schedule, which can result in reduced interest costs during construction and early occupancy for the structure. Other benefits of formwork efficiency include increased job site productivity, improved safety, and reduced potential for error. Concrete is a material without shape. For most applications the shape maters and the concrete has to be molded or formed. Formwork is one of the integral parts of construction industry. This is the basic of any architectural structures on which the whole building is made. The formwork is basically used to hold the whole structure until the whole building is capable to stand on its own. Even we use some solid iron rods in buildings but the concrete need some time to bind with that for a firm structure to stand as and in the desired shape. CLASSIFICATION OF FORMWORKS Under this section of the study we will get in depth of four aspects of each and every type of the form work. These four aspects would be: Analysis of various components of formwork. Safety aspects of formwork. Economy aspects of formwork. Selection process of the material of formwork. The formworks are broadly divided in four categories based on the material, of which it is made. This categorization is as follows: Timber Formwork. Metal Formwork. Plastic Formwork. Fiber Formwork. TIMBER FORMWORK This is the oldest kind and most basic formwork used in the construction industry. Its moisture resistant property makes it utilizable in this industry. Though it is easy to manufacture the timber formwork but it is time consuming when formwork is to be prepared for big structures. It is relatively cheap and easy to shape as required. It is relatively light in weight for handling, but it is of limited durability. ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS COMPONENTS: Sheathing is supported by horizontal members called joists or runners. Joists are made from dimension lumber spaced at constant intervals that are a function of applied loads and type of lumber. It is a recommended practice to round down the calculated joist spacing to the lower modular value. Joists are supported by another set of horizontal members perpendicular to the joists, called stringers. The stringers are supported by the vertical members called shores. In all wood conventional formwork [ i.e. 4 4 in. or 6 6 in.]. Shores are rested on heavy timbers called mudsills, to transfer the vertical loads to ground. In case where a slab on grade exits, shores are directly rested on them. Once the bottom of the beam is constructed and leveled, one side of the beam is erected first with the holes drilled in it for installing the tie roads. Tie rods are steel rods that hold the two sides of beam together. After the first side of beam form is erected, the reinforcement is placed inside the beam and then the other side of the beam is erected. Tie rods are then inserted into all holes on both side of the beam. The tie rods function is to resist horizontal pressure resulting from the freshly put concrete and thus keep the sides of the beams in their proper location. SAFETY ASPECTS FOR TIMBER FORMWORK: Though Timber formwork is the basic formwork but it has some drawbacks relating to the safety which prove to be harmful for the structure to be build and the laborers. The following safety aspects must be considered while dealing with the Timber Formwork. Care should be taken in presence of Moisture: The biggest disadvantage of Timber Formwork is that the timber get softens when it is wet. If the moist is too much then timber soften up to a extent that it can be poked with the help of nail tip. Though dry timber is hard enough to bear the stress developed by concrete but it is not the same when it get wet. When timber comes in contact with moisture, the methanol molecules get activated and are responsible for weak intermolecular bond and thus softening. This problem is commonly known as Wet Rot. Care should be taken in presence of mini organisms and micro organisms: Biggest threats to any wooden structure and article are Termite and Fungus. Both of these organisms live on almost every type of wood as parasite and cause damage to huge quantity of wood. As far as Timber formwork is considered the damage occurs mainly in damp and dark regions of storage. Termites eat the wood from the inner side making it hollow and weak within. The wood thus left is so weak that it can be broken with bare hands. The damage caused by fungus is known as Dry Rot. Dry-rot fungus is often thought of as a building cancer, rampaging through buildings and rapidly destroying any timber in its path. The fungus, which thrives in moist unventilated conditions, will penetrate brickwork to get to more timber and can cause widespread destruction of structural timbers, skirting boards and door frames, and wood flooring. In short, the fungus can be thought of as living in masonry and eating wood, and because t he fungus thrives in damp, unventilated conditions, it can occur in the areas of a property that are not often seen, such as floor voids, or behind timber paneling, so damage may be extensive before the attack is discovered. Fire Safety: We already know that wood is flammable and porn to fire if considerable precautions are not taken specially for those constructions sites which are near by to a gas station or any such location. Fires on construction sites have, for many years, been recognized as a serious problem for construction companies and insurers, but less of a public safety issue since there are relatively few fire deaths in such incidents. However, the trend for ever-taller buildings, particularly in the Gulf and Far East, has resulted in a number of significant fires during construction which have caused deaths and demonstrated the difficulties facing fire brigades when tackling such incidents. On several occasions, helicopters have had to be used for fire suppression and rescue. Insurers have long had concerns about the potential for loss on tall building projects, and these fires have demonstrated that their concerns are well founded. Causes can involve electrical risks, hot work, smoking, rubbish burning, overheating equipment and escapes of gases or flammable liquids all of which are well recognized and should be amenable to normal fire safety measures. DIFFERENT TYPES OF TIMBER FORMWORK Plywood: plywood has some strength in both directions, but because the outer veneers give greater strength in the direction of their grain, the sheet should always span that way. Plywood is a few millimeters thick used as lining material, which is fully supported from behind. With thickness of 12-19 mm the strength of plywood itself can be used, and the framing members spaced out the economical distances. There are three main types of poly wood: Finnish Birch American Softwood Tropical Hardwood Sheets are normally 8ft by 4ft except for Finnish Birch, the outer grain runs in the length of the board. The first two types are produced to appropriate national standards. Hardwood ply comes from a variety of tropical countries so obtaining reliable data about them is difficult. Block board: Stripes of timber are made into a panel with veneers on both sides. The glue should be of high quality else the surface may not be flat enough as the stripes tend to show through. Block board is made up of a core of softwood strips. These strips may be up to about 25mm wide. The strips are placed edge to edge and sandwiched between veneers of hardwood. The sandwich is then glued under high pressure. Block board is not suitable for outdoor use because the glues used are interior glues. It is important to ensure that the core runs lengthways in order to achieve maximum strength. The core can be joined by hands or by machine. There are only few small core gaps or even no core gaps in machine-made core. But core gaps are common in man-made cores. Machine-made core is much better than man-made core. Block board is sold in sheets of 2440 x 1220mm and are normally 30mm thick. Screws and nails may be used to attach block board but you have to ensure that you make contact with th e strips of softwood and not the gaps between the softwood strips. Chipboard: Small chippings are pressed into sheets. As with all boards depending significantly on plastic as the matrix, the stiffness is poor, and a greater thickness than plywood is frequently needed. It is heavier than plywood but give better finish. Gluing together wood particles with an adhesive, under heat and pressure makes chipboard. This creates a rigid board with a relatively smooth surface. Chipboard is available in a number of densities: -normal, medium and high-density. METAL FORMWORK This kind of Formwork is the most suitable formwork for high rise buildings. This system is eco friendly and proves to be more economical on long run due to good durability. In the conventional metal system, joists and stringers are made of aluminum or steel supported by scaffold-type aluminum or steel shoring. In todays construction practices, joists and stringers are made of aluminum and are supported by scaffold-type movable shoring system. This formwork is built out of prefabricated modules with a metal frame (usually steel or aluminum) and covered on the application side with material having the wanted surface structure (steel, aluminum, timber, etc.). ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS COMPONENTS: In this system, steel joists and stringers have the advantage of supporting greater spans and fewer joists and stringers. The main problem with using steel as joists and stringers for forming concrete slabs is their heavy weight, which makes it difficult for one person to handle. A standard steel W-section is used because its wide flange makes it easy to connect stringers with shore legs. A composite action open-web steel joist, supporting beams and girders, and reinforced concrete slab interconnection. Upper apex portions of the steel joist webbing protrude through the upper chord members of the joist and through apertures provided in the sheet metal formwork placed over such joists prior to the pouring of the concrete slab. The improvement relates to a continuous round rod secured near the apex of each projecting web member parallel to the longitudinal axis of the joist and a reinforcing wire mesh draped between said rods, thus permitting greater spacing between said joists, whereb y said protruding apex portions, said rods and said draped wire mesh will be encased within the slab to act as shear interconnection and reinforcement devices therein, to secure the joist and formwork together, to enhance the locking of the concrete slab to the protruding joist apex portions, and to the supporting beams through the joist end connection welded to the beam or girder, and to reinforce said concrete slab. This improvement makes optional the use of wedge members forced between such protruding joist apex portions. SAFETY ASPECTS OF METAL FORMWORK Though there is no need worry for any fungal or organic decay to the metal formwork but still there are same issues which must be paid attention to, relating to corrosion and careless handling. Now lets discuss these issues one by one. Corrosion: the corrosion problem may occur to any formwork if it is not maintained in proper way. Any part of formwork may be corroded due to direct contact with moisture. This direct contact is either because of lack of proper oiling techniques or due to standing water. If even an inch or even a centimeter is left out of oiling then it proves to be dangerous for the formwork. Many times it happens that water is leaked out and left standing. This tends to corrode the dipped part of formwork. Rusting of formwork also leave stains over the concrete unit. These stains if thick, crystallize later and pose a threat to plater layer. Mishandling while assembling: There have been several cases causing accidents of laborers at the site due to mishandling of the formwork. These accidents occur while lifting, if the load is not properly tied or hydraulic jack is not applied properly. Other reason responsible for on site accidents is loose screws and bolts which lead to collapsing of the erected formwork. Electricity: If the site location is nearby any sort of electric network then the metal formwork should be handled with utmost care. A safe distance should be maintained and if possible any such network or device should be avoided in nearby vicinity of the site. DIFFERENT TYPES OF METAL FORMWORK Extruded Aluminum Joist: The first component of the conventional metal system is the aluminum joist. The extruded aluminum joist takes the shape of a modified beam with a formed channel in the top flange in which a wood nail strip 2 by 3 in. is inserted. Tha plywood deck is then nailed to the nail strip. Aluminum Beams (Stringers):The purpose of stringers is to transfer the loads of the surface panel to scaffold. Extruded aluminum joists can also be used as stringers unless the loading is too excessive, in fact it is good practice to avoid using a mixture different beam types. Aluminum beams are commercially available for the lengths ranging from 4 to 30 ft. Aluminum Scaffolding Shoring: The aluminum scaffolding shoring system has been available for several years as a substitute for the steel scaffolding shoring system. The system consists of several frames connected together by cross bracing. Aluminum shoring is lighter and has load carrying capacity equal to or greater than steel shoring. Load carrying capacity of aluminum shoring can reach up to 36,000 lb. Fig 10 Aluminum Scaffolding Shoring Post share: A Post Shore is a single member made of steel or aluminum and support stringers. Post shores can be used to replace, or in combination with, scaffold shoring. Post shores can also be used re-shoring after striping of formwork elements. ECONOMY OF FORMWORK The concrete subcontractor must achieve 3 goals in his formwork workmanship: Quality formwork must be designed and built so that the resulting cast concrete attains the desired size, shape, position and finish. Safety formwork must be designed built strong enough to support all dead and live loads without blowouts, collapse, danger to workers, and risk of damage to the structure. Economy formwork must be designed, built and re-used in an effort to save time and money for the general contractor and the owner. Now as far as the economical aspect of formwork is concerned let me make you aware of the fact that formwork share a considerable site budget. If we design the formwork intelligently and plan its use, then we can save a lot of money. As metal formwork is more durable and reusable as compared to the wooden formwork, it should be used. There are several advantages which make metal formwork a better option.

Public Subsidies for Sports Facilities Essay -- Sports Athletics Ameri

Public Subsidies for Sports Facilities America is in the midst of a sports construction boom. New sports facilities costing at least $200 million each have been completed or are under way in Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Nashville, San Francisco, St. Louis, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, D.C., and are in the planning stages in Boston, Dallas, Minneapolis, New York, and Pittsburgh. Major stadium renovations have been undertaken in Jacksonville and Oakland. Industry experts estimate that more than $7 billion will be spent on new facilities for professional sports teams before 2006. Most of this $7 billion will come from public sources. The subsidy starts with the federal government, which allows state and local governments to issue tax-exempt bonds to help finance sports facilities. Tax exemption lowers interest on debt and so reduces the amount that cities and teams must pay for a stadium. Since 1975, the interest rate reduction has varied between 2.4 and 4.5 percentage points. Assuming a differential of 3 percentage points, the discounted present value loss in federal taxes for a $225 million stadium is about $70 million, or more than $2 million a year over a useful life of 30 years. Ten facilities built in the 1970s and 1980s, including the Superdome in New Orleans, the Silverdome in Pontiac, the now-obsolete Kingdome in Seattle, and Giants Stadium in the New Jersey Meadowlands, each cause an annual federal tax loss exceeding $1 million. State and local governments pay even larger subsidies than Washington. Sports facilities now typically cost the host city more than $10 million a year. Perhaps the most successful new baseball stadium, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, costs Maryland residents $14 million a year. Renovations aren't cheap either: the net cost to local government for refurbishing the Oakland Coliseum for the Raiders was about $70 million. Most large cities are willing to spend big to attract or keep a major league franchise. But a city need not be among the nation's biggest to win a national competition for a team, as shown by the NBA's Utah Jazz's Delta Center in Salt Lake City and the NFL's Houston Oilers' new football stadium in Nashville. Why Cities Subsidize Sports The economic rationale for cities' willingness to subsidize sports facilities is revealed in the campaign s... ...vernments still pay for investments in supporting infrastructure, and Washington still pays an interest subsidy for the local government share. And the Charlotte case is unique. No other stadium project has raised as much private revenue. At the other extreme is the disaster in Oakland, where a supposedly break-even financial plan left the community $70 million in the hole because of cost overruns and disappointing PSL sales. Third, despite greater citizen awareness, voters still must cope with a scarcity of teams. Fans may realize that subsidized stadiums regressively redistribute income and do not promote growth, but they want local teams. Alas, it is usually better to pay a monopoly an exorbitant price than to give up its product. Prospects for cutting sports subsidies are not good. While citizen opposition has had some success, without more effective intercity organizing or more active federal antitrust policy, cities will continue to compete against each other to attract or keep artificially scarce sports franchises. Given the profound penetration and popularity of sports in American culture, it is hard to see an end to rising public subsidies of sports facilities.

Marriage in the Renaissance and Shakespeares As You Like It Essays

Marriage in the Renaissance and As You Like It      Ã‚   The concept of marriage has been considered to be a sacred and traditional part of life since the beginning of relationships between human beings. The rules of these intimate relationships were set up in accordance with church law. Such rules consisted of the conventional/typical marriage and the ritual of marriage (ceremony). William Shakespeare examines the customs of marriage practice of the Renaissance time period in his work As You Like It.    Marriage at the time focused on a heterosexual relationship between a man and woman. Kirsti S. Thomas, explains that marriage did not concern the true love element that exists in the typical marriages of today. At the time of Shakespeare, she states that marriage "served to transfer wealth or property and to continue the family line" (2). Marriages were the result of socially and economically oriented environments, similar to the caste system in India. According to a web source specializing in Renaissance weddings, such couplings of "...arranged marriages of the upper class were decided when the bride and groom were young, usually ten to eleven years. Lower class marriages had similar motives, however they were the result of pregnancies " (3). Generally, the marriage had to have full consent of at a family member or parental guardian. There were many ordinances and specific codes of conduct that had to be followed before a wedding was to take place. Thomas describes one of these ordi nances with having two guidelines, "In order to be recognized by the church, one of the partners must give consent and the priest must say the formula, 'we join together in this holy matrimony...'" (6). Courtly love did exist, and was encourage... ...t.   Consentual marriage was between a man and a woman. The ritual of a marriage ceremony was more secular and inter-linked with the Catholic church. Throughout the characters in the play, those themes are illustrated.    Works Cited Coulton, G.G. Life in the Middle Ages. Cambridge University Press. 1967. P. 83 Davis, William Steams. Life of a Medieval Barony. Harper and Row. New York. 1951. P. 109-112. Greensblatt, Stephen.   The Norton Shakespeare Oxford Edition. W.W. Norton and Co. New York. 1997. 1591-1656. Thomas, Kirsti S/ "Medieval and Renaissance Marriage: Theory and Customs". Medieval and Renaissance Wedding Page. http://www.drizzle.com?~celyn/mrwp/mrwed.html. Ed: Kuehl B.J. 1995. Date Accessed: 14 October 2002. http://www.renaissance-weddings.net/ Renaissance Weddings. 2001. World Web Design, LLC. Date Accessed: 14 October 2002.

To My Dead Homie

Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you and describe that influence. My life changed in September of 2009 when I met my good friend Nate Thomas. It all began in the Halls of Roman Catholic High School. I had dreamt of the day I could finally wear purple and gold with pride and represent Roman. However, my first day of school was very different than expected. In middle school, I was used to being known by fellow students and teachers throughout the hallways, in the cafeteria and on the basketball court, but at Roman I had to start all over.I was in unfamiliar territory and in need of immediate guidance and friendship. On my first day, I was unloading books out of my locker, when a 4 foot 2 fellow freshman arrived at the locker next to me to do the same. We introduced ourselves and realized, regardless of our noticeable height difference, that we shared many things in common. From that moment, Nate became one of my best friends and someone I could count on for anyt hing. Nate was born with pulmonary tricuspid atresia, which basically means he was born with the complete absence of the tricuspid valve.Aside from Nate’s height, no one could tell he had a congenital heart disease. Nate was not only at every Roman basketball game, but could be heard cheering the loudest in the gym. He never once complained about his illness, but rather embraced each day as a gift with a positive spirit. When I faced obstacles or setbacks, Nate was quick to offer guidance not judgement. One of the biggest setbacks for me occurred on the basketball court. As a junior, I was excited to be an upperclassman and help contribute to a talented varsity team.However, to my dismay I was put on the Junior Varsity team. At first, I was discouraged, angry, and an overall miserable person. I thought â€Å"How could they do this to me? I had forever dreamt of being a member of the Varsity team. † My initial reaction of negativity and pity for myself is not something I am proud of as I look back on my experiences. After confiding in Nate about not making Varsity, he asked me â€Å"How much do I enjoy playing basketball and what was I willing to do to prove I deserved to be on the Varsity team? I realized that was his way of telling me to â€Å"get over it and work harder. † Nate made me realize that all obstacles challenge us and help us grow stronger whether it be mentally, physically or both. I ended up playing both Junior Varsity and Varsity my junior year because of my work ethic and drive to compete with the best. I credit this to Nate and his ability to make every situation a positive one. As I embark on my senior year at Roman, I begin to reflect on the person I have become today and continue to grow into.Nate’s guidance, advice and friendship is something I will never forgot nor take for granted. His genuine kindness and happiness is something I hope to emulate throughout the years to come. Some would say Nate lost his fig ht against this illness on August 13, 2012, but I think through his passing he has left an even greater legacy on us all and now continues watching over us and pushing us to live life with his same positive spirit and drive to be the best we can.As I look back on my 3 years at Roman and think about things I considered setbacks, I am able to see the bigger picture. Yes I was devastated about not initially making the Varsity team, but I now realize it was the bigger picture of not giving up and working hard in a positive way to achieve my goals, which was Nate’s advice. So while yes Nate and I were the same age and met as two Freshman on the first day of school, he was wise beyond his years and someone I call my friend, mentor, brother, but most of all my hero.

Ethnocentrism Definition Essay

What is ethnocentrism? Are ethnocentric values reflected in mass media? If so, provide examples. If not, why not? Ethnocentrism is when one places a culture, values, and views over that of another culture. This can be associated with American popular culture as the message with any popular trend tends to be a popularity contest. Quite often products are sold based off the insinuation that it is better than any other product out there. For instance, a popular recurring fad is the Michael Jordan shoe, Air Jordans. These shoes have been around for years and have earned its popularity through many communities. The shoe is so popular and exclusive that older shoes from the past are re-launched for those that were unable to get them on the original launch date. The message that is present within the advertisement is that wearing Air Jordans makes you ‘cooler’ than anyone else not wearing them. This can too be applied to any other name brand item such as cereal. General Mills has a message out there that you get more nutrients from their cereal over any brand. This may also be associated with religious and different ethnic groups when one believes that their religion is better than the other based off of their own values and beliefs. Being ethnocentric can definitely drive a wedge between relationships as it is a form of prejudice. One should practice being more receptive of other cultures and beliefs to help avoid conflict and form personal connections with individuals within another culture.

Body Mass of Earthworms Essay

Earthworms play an important role in the turnover of organic matter in soil and maintaining a good soil structure (Lavelle, 1988). Physical properties in soils improved by earthworms include improved aggregation, stability, and porosity. The soil biological and chemical properties of soils that may be modified include nutrient cycling (mainly nitrogen and phosphorus), organic matter decomposition rates, and chemical forms of nutrients in soil and their availability to plants. They also change the soil pH, organic matter dynamics in terms of quality and quantity, microbial and invertebrate activity, and diversity of the microflora and fauna (Lavelle et al., 1998). Therefore, they are essential for plant growth especially in an extensive agricultural system, such as organic farming, which is based on nutrient release from turnover of organic matter. Earthworms can also be used as a source of protein for animal feed which had been reported to increase the growth of fish, chicken and piglets (Guerro, 1983; Jin-you et al., 1982; Edwards and Niederer, 1988). The mean amounts of essential amino acids recorded in earthworms are found to be very adequate for a good animal feed. Moreover, earthworm tissues contain a preponderance of long-chain fatty acids, many of which cannot be synthesized by non-ruminant animals and an adequate mineral content (Edwards and Niederer, 1988). Recently, the enzymes derived by the earthworms, lumbrokinase or earthworm fibrinolytic enzymes (EFE) which has anticoagulant (blood thinner) property is extensively being used in pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Following these valuable application of earthworms, the management of earthworm communities provides a promising field for innovation in agricultural practises. There are many factors affecting the growth and body mass of earthworms that need to be considered during cultivation of earthworms. The soil moisture obviously has an effect on the growth and activity of earthworms. Earthworms lose moisture through their cuticles, so they are very dependent on soil moisture. When soil moisture is optimum, earthworms increase in mass and in their activity if food sources are available (Lee, 1985; Edwards and Bohlen, 1996). Another important factor is the additions of organic matter in the form of farmyard manure which have been found to increase earthworm populations under favourable soil conditions (Lofs-Holmin, 1983a; Hansen, 1996). Several studies found that the mass of earthworms were the highest in manured soil compared to unfertilized and mineral fertilized soils (Hansen and Engelstad,1999; Marhan and Scheu, 2005). The purpose of this study is therefore, was to identify the optimum soil moisture and level of fertilizer that can be used to increase the body mass of earthworms, Pheretima sp. during cultivation. The worms of the genus Pheretima are indigenous to Southeast Asia (Edwards and Lofty, 1972), and widely distributed in tropical rainforests with strongly acid soils. There were two treatments being tested in this experiment. In the moisture content treatments, four different levels of moisture level in soil were compared. As for the fertilizer treatment, the goat manure was added at two different levels and was compared with an unfertilized control. Aim The aim of this experiment was to investigate the effects of moisture content and fertilizers on the body mass of earthworms, Pheretima sp. under laboratory conditions. Any observed difference in body mass may then indicate the optimum soil moisture and fertilizer content which can improve the mass rearing of this species for commercial use. Materials and Methods Study site The study was carried out in the Animal House which is located at Level 8 of Building 3, Monash University, Sunway Campus commencing from 19th April 2010 to 10th May 2010 (22 days). The rearing conditions for Pheretima sp during the study consisted of containers (paper cup) held in continuous darkness at room temperature (25oC). Experimental design The earthworms, Pheretima sp. were obtained from a shop in Klang Valley. Each test container (paper cup) was inoculated with a sample size of five worms (n=5). Before the experiment commences, the initial body mass (Mi) of the worms in each containers was weighed using an analytical balance. Then, each container was added with 500 g of clay-brown soil which was obtained from the Green House of Monash University. Treatments used in this experiment are combinations of two factors, the level of fertilizer application and water application. The treatments were within a Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with 3 replications. All replications of treatments are assigned completely at random to independent experimental subjects. The relationship between three different levels of fertilizer treatment and four different levels of moisture treatment as they relate to the changes in the body mass of earthworms was examined with a split-plot factorial ANOVA, where fertilizer was a between group factor, and moisture content was a within group factor. This resulted in 12 (4 treatment level x 3 replicates) moisture containers in each (three) groups of different level of fertilizer, which made a total of 36 experimental units.