Christian and islam Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Christian and islam - Research Paper Example It is possible for members of a particular religion to identify and define themselves against other people who are not in that religion. The dilemma arising in this case is how outsider may be connected to the salvation offered by that particular religion. Does the religion’s purview of salvation include or exclude people outside that religion? Different authors and scholars may suggest different answers to this question. In an attempt to seek both individual and collective salvation, different religious arguments arise to explain differences between one religion and another. Inclusivist, exclusivist and universal pluralism are common positions explaining difference between Christianity and Islam. From an inclusivist perspective, both Christianity and Islam have teachings and beliefs that are true. Though Christians believes that their faith is true, inclusivists believe that other religions are partially true. As an absolute religion, Christianity does recognize that other religions can provide salvation. It only tells of the unique word of God, incarnate in Death of Jesus on the cross and provide a social context for salvation. It teaches that to accomplish salvation God assesses people behaviors on earth. God applies results of the death of Jesus and resurrection to everyone regardless of the religion. Therefore, God makes it possible for anyone to earn salvation including people from other religions. This opinion is not accepted by everyone especially the conservative and evangelical Christians who believe that religious inclusivism contradicts the teachings of the bible. These critics find support from Acts 4:12 that emphasizes on the point that salvation is for no one else other than Christians. Is there any form of inclusivism in Islam? According to Hick (2005), the concept of people of the book has some elements of

Referee report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Referee report - Essay Example The study found that M & As provides a positive impact on systemic risks for the transfer function estimation based on aggregate Z-score. Other evidence from the history and empirical findings favoured the efficiency hypothesis as opposed to the hypothesis of the imminent failure. The authors assessed how Banking system over relying on merger guidelines based on Herfndahl-Hirshman Index might curb the possibility of increasing risks associated with M & As. The understanding of risks and stability for banks undergoing merger and acquisition has drawn immense attention hence widely published in the banking empirical literature. The area of study is important for strategies in the banking sectors as well as the investors to devise methods that assess the possibilities of securing risks or attaining stability after merger and acquisition. Most of the empirical and theoretical framework was relevant with the exception of a few materials and concepts used by the author. However, I believe the area studied is very important. Therefore, I wish to illustrate and give my personal views as follows: 1. I am not sure whether the probabilistic model proposed and developed by the author as a mean of analysing the relationship between the systemic stability and the merger of banking system can provide the function it was proposed to offer. 2. The reason relates to the description of the model. The authors assert that the model uses a theoretical framework in establishing the differences between the imminent failure hypothesis and the efficiency hypothesis. One would wonder how they measured the levels of failure in the banks. Using financial distress, and bank failure as the indicator is relative and not objective. 3. Besides the model uses the assumption that when banks have low levels of probability for failure, they are likely to experience reduced systemic crises, and contagious bank runs, which were not substantiated appropriately as would be expected (Carlton and

Child Labour Essay Example for Free

Child Labour Essay Considerable differences exist between the many kinds of work children do. Some are difficult and demanding, others are more hazardous and even morally reprehensible. Children carry out a very wide range of tasks and activities when they work. Not all work done by children should be classified as child labour that is to be targeted for elimination. Children’s or adolescents’ participation in work that does not affect their health and personal development or interfere with their schooling, is generally regarded as being something positive. This includes activities such as helping their parents around the home, assisting in a family business or earning pocket money outside school hours and during school holidays. These kinds of activities contribute to children’s development and to the welfare of their families; they provide them with skills and experience, and help to prepare them to be productive members of society during their adult life. The term â€Å"child labour† is often defined as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development. It refers to work that: †¢is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to children; and †¢interferes with their schooling by: †¢depriving them of the opportunity to attend school; †¢obliging them to leave school prematurely; or †¢requiring them to attempt to combine school attendance with excessively long and heavy work. In its most extreme forms, child labour involves children being enslaved, separated from their families, exposed to serious hazards and illnesses and/or left to fend for themselves on the streets of large cities – often at a very early age. Whether or not particular forms of â€Å"work† can be called â€Å"child labour† depends on the child’s age, the type and hours of work performed, the conditions under which it is performed and the objectives pursued by individual countries. The answer varies from country to country, as well as among sectors within countries. The worst forms of child labour Whilst child labour takes many different forms, a priority is to eliminate without delay the worst forms of child labour as defined by Article 3 of ILO Convention No. 182: (a) all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict; (b) the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances; (c) the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties; (d) work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. Labour that jeopardises the physical, mental or moral well-being of a child, either because of its nature or because of the conditio ns in which it is carried out, is known as â€Å"hazardous work†. Action against child labour IPEC has worked to achieve this in several ways: through country-based programmes which promote policy reform, build institutional capacity and put in place concrete measures to end child labour; and through awareness raising and mobilization intended to change social attitudes and promote ratification and effective implementation of ILO child labour Conventions. These efforts have resulted in hundreds of thousands of children being withdrawn from work and rehabilitated or prevented from entering the workforce. Complementary to this direct action throughout has been substantial in-depth statistical and qualitative research, policy and legal analysis, programme evaluation and child labour monitoring, which have permitted the accumulation of vast knowledge base of statistical data and methodologies, thematic studies, good practices, guidelines and training materials. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Companies are increasingly concerned with child labour in their supply chains. They view it as inconsistent with company values, and a threat to their image and ability to recruit and retain top employees, as well as to the sustainability of their supply chain. And there often is cause for concern: many child labourers work as part of supply chains. They are involved in the production of cash crops and manufactured goods that are exported directly, as well as in the production of goods that serve as inputs into final products; final assembly or finishing of these products often takes place in the importing countries. They are also involved in domestic supply chains. Despite the challenges of tackling child labour in supply chains that are often long and complex, leading companies have used social dialogue, international labour standards, a collective approach, and a commitment to addressing the root causes of child labour to effectively address the problem. IPEC has a long history of facilitating and supporting these efforts. The 2016 Roadmap for Eliminating the Worst Forms of Child Labour by 2016, adopted at the Hague Child Labour Conference in May 2010, calls for special efforts to made to tackle child labour in supply chains, in recognition of the vital role that enterprises must play to reach the 2016 goal. Social dialogue The main goal of social dialogue is to promote consensus building and democratic involvement among the main stakeholders in the world of work. Labour law, industrial relations and social dialogue are at the core of ILO member States economic and social organization. Since its foundation, social dialogue is a transversal hub of the ILO’s action and a constitutional mandate. The Declaration concerning the aims and purposes of the International Labour Organisation states that â€Å"the effective recognition of the right of collective bargaining, the cooperation of management and labour in the continuous improvement of productive efficiency, and the collaboration of workers and employers in the preparation and application of social and economic measures †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Sound industrial relations and effective social dialogue are a means to promote better wages and working conditions as well as peace and social justice. As instruments of good governance they foster cooperation and economic performance, advance social and industrial peace through negotiated solutions to important economic and social challenges and boost stability and economic progress, thus helping to create an enabling environment for the realization of the objective of Decent Work. The ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization[-0] (2009) to put the emphasis on that â€Å"social dialogue and the practice of tripartism between governments and the representative organizations of workers and employers within and across borders are now more relevant to achieving solutions and to building up social cohesion and the rule of law through, among other means, international labour standards. The Global Jobs Pact adopted by the International Labour Conference of 2010 states for its part, that â€Å"Social dialogue is an invaluable mechanism for the design of policies to fit national priorities. Furthermore, it is a strong basis for building the commitment of employers and workers to the joint action with governments needed to overcome the crisis and for a sustainable recovery. Successfully concluded, it inspires confidence in the results achieved†. Social dialogue as defined by the ILO includes all types of negotiation, consultation or exchange of information between, or among, representatives of governments, employers and workers, on issues relating to economic and social policy, including child labour, and to terms and conditions of work and employment. It can exist as a tripartite process with the government as an official party to the dialogue, for example in the development of public policy – including national action plans on child labour or lists of hazardous work. Or it may consist of bipartite relations between trade unions and management (or trade union organisations and employers organisations), Dialogue can be informal or institutionalized and often it is a combination of the two. It can take place at the global, regional, national, sectoral, enterprise or workplace level. The enabling conditions of social dialogue In order for social dialogue to take place, the following must exist: †¢strong, independent workers and employers organizations with the technical capacity and the access to relevant information to participate in social dialogue; †¢political will and commitment to engage in social dialogue on the part of all the parties; †¢respect for the fundamental rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining; and †¢appropriate institutional support. The role of the state For social dialogue to contribute to the elimination of child labour, the State cannot be passive even when it concerns bipartite relations between employers and trade unions. It is responsible for creating a stable political and civil climate which enables autonomous employers and workers organizations to operate freely, without interference or fear of reprisal. Even when the dominant relationships are formally bipartite, the State has a role in providing essential support for the process through the establishment of the legal, institutional and other frameworks which enable the parties to effectively engage in the promotion of decent work and the elimination of child labour. THE UTILITARIAN VIEW Jeremy Bentham would have supported child labor laws based upon his utilitarian philosophy. The central idea is that people should behave so as to produce the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Child labor produces a very small amount of happiness for the family of the children involved, but causes considerable suffering as well and prevents the children from obtaining educations or fully enjoying their childhoods. It also creates a class of disenfranchised ignorant citizens with short life expectancies and who are of very little good to society. There is nothing about child labor that could be supported by a utilitarian philosopher. But the argument wouldnt be based on the evil of child labor. Thats a religious concept of morality that is quite different than the pleasure principle on which utilitarianism relies. Many things can bring happiness in the sense Bentham and J.S. Mill intended this notion to be understood. Pleasure is one source, but so is the satisfaction which derives from work, from sharing with others, from having a family, from community service, etc.. The main criticism of utilitarianism is that it substitutes an hedonic/aesthetic standard of behavior for an ethical/prudential standard. It defines what is good, the moral concept, in terms of what brings happiness, an hedonic/aesthetic concept. Those who are addicted to notions like good and evil and sin, most of whom are religious folks, dont find any validity to Benthams viewsespecially since they are quite obviously man made rules of conduct and not revealed words of god. Child Labour According to utilitarian theory child labour is morally worn in that it does not beneficial to everyone, the children suffer and in some cases they are not paid, further these children should be attending school or performing school related duties other than working, there is a need to educate and train these children in order to prepare them for the job market and employing them before they complete their education will mean that this is violating their rights. Children are normally not aware of their rights and are forced to undertake hard work. Employers prefer to employ children because they provide cheap labour and also they are easy to control, children are also seen to be more obedient than adults, they therefor employe the children for the purpose of cutting down costs and also because children are easy to control because adults are related with initiatives which include protests and formation of trade unions. The utilitarian theory which states that morally right actions are those whose outcome maximises benefits to the persons performing them supports child labour in developing countries, this is because the children achieve financial dependence from their parents and also have a chance to earn money to achieve what they like. Support child labour in the developing countries where child benefit and also the parents whose financial burden is reduced, in developed countries where children work to support their family it is morally right to engage children in such employment opportunities but it must be noted that child labour should not violate their rights to education. The concern stems from children being separated from their families, exposed to serious hazards and illness or even left to feed for themselves- often at a very early age. Utilitarianism based upon maximising good or pleasure and minimising bad and pain. Unlike, egoism that centres on a person excessive or exaggerated sense of self-interst. Prepare a balance sheet weighting the pros and cons. Child labour should be stopped on the basis, the tasks children are involved in are difficult and demanding, others are hazedous and morally reprehensible.The emotional pain kids go through easily exceed the advantage of using such a force. Solutions: Reducing, rising poverty, through broad-based economic and social development, automatically replacing child workers with their parents, increasing familys income, as parents are more highly paid. The social welfare of children can also be lined to the social and economic position of women. As womens income improves, so does the situation of her children. Women whom invest in their children, food, water, clothing and schooling, can immediately combat child labour. The rehabilitation of child labourers with household benefits and essential services. In providing families, whose parents and guidance work for the organisation with shelter, food and health care, households are more likely to send their children to school. Deontological theories: Referring to theories of duty, stating that when making decisions about actions one has to consider the duties and the rights of the others. According to the theory the involvement of children at work is wrong, one because it endangers the children both physically and mentally. Children are supposed to go to school and receive necessary training in order to prepare them to become employees. Child labour according to the Deontological theories violates the natural law of nature, this is because children are yet to be adults where the children are young and do not know their rights, involving them at work places will results into the violation of their rights because most employers tend to exploit them by forcing them to undertake hard work and even not pay them, they further know that children are easy to control than adults and that children will obey, the adults workers know their rights and will not be exploited and they will organise demonstration and even form trade unions that fight for their rights. Virtue ethic theory: Child labour is wrong because in most countries law have been set that children should not work and therefor anyone employeing or letting their children work is violating these laws. Education for children The legislator of a regime/community must make the education of the young his objective above all. Since there is a single end for the city as a whole, it is evident that education must necessarily be one and the same for all, and that the superintendence of it should be common and not on private basis. The importance of a common education shaping each citizen so as to enable him to serve the common good of the city. one ought not even consider that a citizen belong to himself, but rather that all belong to the city, for each individual is part of the city. Aristotles includes physical education, reading and writing, drawing and music as subjects which the young potential citizens must learn. The aim of this education is not productive or theoretical knowledge. Instead it is meant to teach the young potential citizens the practical knowledge the kind of knowledge that each of them will need to fulfil his telos and perform his duties as a citizen. We must figure out how to live together through the use of reason and speech, discovering justice and creating laws that make it possible for human community to survive and for the individuals to live virtuous lives. Aristotles on slavery! Aristotles has said that slavery serves the interest of both the master and the slave. If the work that comes from their bodies is the best that can come from them for he is a slave by nature who is capable of belonging to another. They are incapable of fully governing their own lives, and require other people to tell them what to do. Such people should be set to labour by the people who have the ability to reason fully and order their own lives. Slaves get the guidance and instructions tht they must have to live, and in return they provide their master with the benefit of their physical labour.

Science Or Promote Scientific Misunderstanding Media Essay

Science Or Promote Scientific Misunderstanding Media Essay The media are the technologies used to send the news or information to everyone through mass communication. There are several types of media such as broadcast media, print media, and internet media. What are print media? Print media is a medium that using printing process to produce the text and images with ink on the paper using a printing press to send the information to people. The example of print media are newspaper, books, magazines, newsletters, leaflets and so on. Various kinds of media have become a vital sources for informing citizens including scientists about recent development of science 1. The mass media also a main component in controlling the rise and fall of social issues and the science-policy interface 2. Generally, 49 % of European reads science articles in newspapers and magazines either regularly or occasionally in the European commission 2007 survey 3. Besides, the survey also shows that the print media such as press, newspapers, and magazines are rated as seco nd trustworthy media to communicate the science 4. The print media play an important role to inform the way public understand science 5. Newspapers are an important sources to understand the science, medical reporting and the critical role of reliable information 6. They transmit the risk messages not only via the advertisements but also newspaper articles using a format that are conducive and easy to understand by the public. Many scientists view that media including print media is a pipeline to transmit the scientific messages to the public 7. Print media actually a way to stimulate public engagement in science. This is because the media like newspaper and magazines always published an accurate, short and free scientific article to help the public understanding about science development 8. The study had shown that the average length of an article in a newspaper is less than 600 words 9. Holliman, R. (2004). Media coverage of cloning: a study of media content, production and reception. Public Understanding of Science, 13(2), 107-30 Miller, D. (1999). Risk, Science and Policy: definitional struggles, information management, the media and BSE. Social Science Medicine 49, 1239-1255. Special Eurobarometer 282- summary. (2007). Scientific research in the media. European Commission. Special Eurobarometer 282, 1-42 (p.22). Wilkie, T (1996). Sources in Science: Who can we Trust? The Lancet, 347, pp. 1308-1311. Hargreaves, I., Lewis, J., and Speers, T. (2002). Towards a better map: Science, the public and the media. Economic and social Research Council. Nelkin, D. (1991). AIDS and the News Media. The Milbank Memorial Fund, New York University. Health, Society and the Milbank Quarterly, Vol. 69(2): 293-307. Tyler, T., Cook, F. (1984). The mass media and judgments of risk: Distinguishing impact on personal and societal level judgments. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 47, 693-708. Hargreaves, Lewis and Speers, 1-54 (p. 14). From there, print media promoting enthusiasm and engagement in science, its the media to encourage the public to find out the details of scientific study from other sources because there usually has citation of journals or scientists name in the articles. For example, the public can just google search using the scientists name or any citations shown in articles to find more information on a scientific knowledge. For example, an article 10 had published the finding of male contraceptive pill, let the public know the progress of scientists in finding the way to solve the problem of men especially for those want to control and plan the right to have a baby. From this article, the people will know whats going on in scientific fields for free and also attracted public who interested in male contraceptive pill to look out the details from other sources with the help of the researchers name mentioned in the articles. Although its just a short article, but it includes all the purpose or aim of the research, the research regarding contraceptive pills that had been going through in the recent and past, the researchers that involved and citation of a journal published. So, this was a good articles to stimulate the public engagement in science development with just a couple of minutes. The figure 1 shows a short part of an article published involving most of the criteria mentioned above.Capture.PNG Figure : A cut from an article 11 However, newspapers also a major source of risk information where the public mitigated the impact of an issue and access to their own information networks. So, print media is a risk communication tool to engage the public 12. Media help to make the risks more visible when an issue raises the public controversy 13. Controversy has always treated as a driving force for the advancement of scientific knowledge 14. The articles especially from newspapers are attempting Martin, D. (2009). Contraceptive pill for men a step closer after scientists isolate infertility gene. Daily Mail Online. Available from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1166861/Contraceptive-pill-men-step-closer-scientists-isolate-infertility-gene.html [Accessed 3 April 2009] Martin, sentence 10-14. Wakefield, S. E. L. and Elliott, S. J. (2003), Constructing the News: The Role of Local Newspapers in Environmental Risk Communication. The Professional Geographer, 55: 216-226. Campbell, P. (2011), Boundaries and risk: Media framing of assisted reproductive technologies and older mothers. Social Science Medicine, 72 (2): 265-272. Holliman, R., Thomas, J., Smidt, S., Scanlon, E., and Whitelegg, E. (eds) (2009a). Investigating science communication in the Information age: Implications for Public Engagement and Popular media. Oxford, Oxford University Press. to reflect balance, to show the pros and cons of one scientific issue. This can let the public take a scientific issue more clearly on its gain and lose. Through the print media like newspaper or magazines, press or journals, the public can have their critical reading and help to develop more opinion or feedback to a science technology. The more feedback from the public, the space for a technology to improve will be more wider. Another example is the article published recently 15. In this article, an accurate and short details of the progress of every scientist who take part had been published. The benefits of this research also stated clearly and the most important part is it mentioned this research still in progress and will be used only if the safety is confirmed. The main idea that we can see from this article is this article told the public the future research will be done by researchers (refer figure 2). Therefore, this is a good opportunity for the readers to argue whether they will support or oppose the new findings or the future researches. So, this is an effective way to raise engagement between the readers and the researchers in scientific development. A controversial or misunderstanding may start if the findings did not state clearly. Capture1.PNG Figure : A small pieces of article 16 Public perceptions are very important in shaping and changing the reaction of both individuals and social institutions to an issue 17. The amount of media coverage in science could directly reflect the interest of the public and also influence the number of public attention to the development in science 18. The media coverage and science education always treat as sources that can influence public opinions, attitudes and reaction to science 19. Actually some of the articles published in print media are an effective way to convince the reader to support the scientific research. A positive reaction of the public can raise the scientists and media profile in order to ease them to get more job opportunities , funding and also policy invitation. The other way round, if a scientific finding is opposed by the public, the scientist will be ignored or blamed which can influence their profile. Therefore, the public actually an important person to control the life of a scientist. Baker, D. (2012). Scientists find a way to kick-start infertile sperm dramatically increasing pregnancy chances. Daily Mail Online. Baker, sentence 14-17. Nelkin, p293-294 Carolyn L. F. (2012) . Science and Engineering Indicators 2012: Science and Technology: public attitudes and Understanding. Arlington VA: National Science Foundation (NSB 12-01). Royal Society (1985). The Public Understanding of Science. Royal Society, London. For example, an article about the human cloning where the progress and the decision of the authority person or organization had been stated 20. This article stated the aim of a scientists work on human cloning so that the readers can understand clearly (refer figure 3). The advantages of human cloning had been stated clearly to convince the reader so that the public will support their research which indirectly convince the authority to agree and make it legally on their research. One research can go smoothly and more success with the help of the public and also the authority. This is because it is an effective way to popularize the name of scientists and the publisher to attract more funding, the main barrier to scientists to continue their research. Well, these also an article that is shown science in a positive light which help in the development of advance science.Untitled.png Figure : A combined of few cut pieces of article 21 Books also a kind of print media that are tremendously important in science. They provide substance and structure for scientific communities in the world. Science books actually also a tool to share experiences and interact with the public. Books raise the public discussion because they play an important role in providing information, engaging different level of people and also contribute discussion of public. First, the books important in the development of science itself where it drives the science communication that involves feedback among different types of communication 22. Moreover, books are an effective way to recruit people younger generation to participate in science and the books also play an important role in the public debate which all the public issues can be discussed 23. Diary Mail. (2004). Unethical human cloning could get green light. Dairy Mail Online. Available from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-306817/Unethical-human-cloning-green-light.html. [Accessed 16 June 2004] Diary Mail, sentence 6, 12, 17 25. Holliman, R., Thomas, J., Smidt, S., Scanlon, E., and Whitelegg, E. (eds) (2009b). Practising science communication in the Information age: Theorizing Professional Practises. Oxford, Oxford University Press. Holliman et al., 2009b, Chapter 6. For example, the book Molecular Biology of the Gene written by James Watson is an important and use as a textbook worldwide 24. This book gathered together the field of molecular biology and taught the public the origin and basic techniques in the field of molecular biology. It not only educated public with more scientific knowledge but it also lets the public know what exactly the human formed by. So, science books actually a good facility to create a group of people with similar perspectives, tools and training. In addition, some of the books are in fact making arguments. For example, Evelyn Fox Kellers The feeling for the Organism, a biography of Barbara McClintock, was the part of debating about the nature of science and whether the masculine science different from feminine science in the late 20th century 25. Many questions are raised and debate among the reader and even also the author as well. But, through this argument, the reader can understand and gain more the knowledge an d also to identify clearly their role in scientific development. The news in the print media are used as building blocks for the public to understand science and to make sense of an issue. While, the print media also bring some negative impact to the development of science. There is always very little scientific information in print media. If a science stories are interested and stick in the public mind, the public will start to make some informed guesses of those issues and this finally can bring to the misunderstandings 26. Moreover, some of unsuitable headlines had been used when published in print media especially newspaper. Headlines is very important either in attracting the reader to read more on the article or lead to the misunderstanding by the reader. Some of the people especially for those who are busy and get to know the news and development of science by just read through the headlines.33.PNG Figure 27 For example, with the headline above (figure 4), What will the reader think especially the male reader when they look at this headline? Of course many will think is that men have no role in creating a baby. By just looking at the headline, the reader especially the men will feel they had been ignored by science society and is a useless person in creating a child. It brings to the misunderstanding which might influence the development of science. Although the research is beneficial to help those infertile people who wish to have their own child instead of using the sperm from a donor, but the reader might continue misunderstood of the development of artificial sperm due to the unsuitable headline. Some of the readers will continue to stick in the headlines even the contents are clearly presented or explained. So, headlines are important to influence the reader reflection. Watson, J.D. (1965). Molecular Biology of the Gene. W.A. Benjamin, New York. Comfort, N.C. (2001). The Tangeld Field: Barbara McClintocks Search for the Patterns of Genetic Control. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. Hargreaves, Lewis, and Speers, 1-58, pg 5. Marsh, B. (2001). We can create babies without men, claim scientists. Dairy Mail Online. Available from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-79711/We-create-babies-men-claim-scientists.html. [Accessed 22 October 2001]. In addition, the print media also have been suggested as a poor medium in reporting the risks associated with diseases 28. Besides, some of the publishers will distort the fate of scientific findings to attract more readers. This also promotes the scientific misunderstanding because print media was one of the trust media by the public 29. Every person relies on the media sources including print, television, and the internet to learn and respond to health risks on personal and also society level 30. Much of scientific information on the development and infectious diseases came from the mass media. For example, the West Nile Virus and avian influenza 31. Although these diseases are the headlines in print media this recent year, but the diseases still spreading and causing death. But, the articles presented are in a low degree of precision and therefore the information provided have limited usefulness to the readers 32. The poor explanation and the least content level in print media will bring to the misunderstanding as well. The reader might misunderstand that scientific issues are not important which will turn one issue more seriously and incurable at the end. In conclusion, print media is an important medium to stimulate the public engagement in science. It has actually brought more gain to the scientists who responsible for the work, the reader and also the publisher. The scientists and the publisher can attract more career development, funding invitation and also became well-known after publishing a successful article which is supported and accepted by the public. While the reader will gain more scientific knowledge of the print articles. Although the print media is an important tool to communicate or informing the public about the development of science. It is an inevitable tool of science communication that promotes the misunderstood of the science. Evensen, D.T., and Clarke, C.E. (2012). Efficacy information in media coverage of infectious disease risks: all III predicament?. Science Communication, Vol. 34(3): 392-418. Hargreaves, Lewis, and Speers, 1-64, pg 29-31. Evensen and Clarke, pg 394-398. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2008). Questions and answers about avian influenza (bird flu) and avian influenza a (H5N1) virus. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/qa.html. Roche, J.P. and Muskavitch, M.A.T. (2003). Limited precision in print media communication of West Nile Virus Risks. Science Communication, 24(3): 353-365.

Haunting Confession of Revenge and Murder in The Cask of Amontillado Es

The haunting confession of revenge and murder Edgar Allan Poe’s â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† is a horror story about revenge and murder that occurred half a century ago. Through the haunting confession of the narrator, Montresor, the reader is able to feel what Fortunato had endured half a century ago. In this tale of revenge and murder the dark, damp, and bone-filled catacombs provide a contrast to life during the â€Å"madness of the carnival† (553). Through the acts, thoughts, and words of the protagonists Montresor, the reader is able to feel the psychological torment that Fortunato is about to endure. The first line in the story Montresor said â€Å"The thousand of injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could, but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge† (553). Revenge remains a constant theme through the entire story. Montresor went to great lengths planning the revenge and murder of Fortunato. He knows that during the carnival everyone will be dressed in costume, mask, and drinking. No-one will be able to recognize them. Montresor himself put on a â€Å"mask of black silk† (554) and a â€Å"roquelaire† (554). He has also made certain that his attendants’ would not be at home, to be sure that there are no witnesses to his horrendous act. Just about everything Montresor says is ironic. He says just the opposite of what he means. He keeps inquiring about Fortunato’s health, Fortunato says that he â€Å"shall not die of a cough† (554). Montresor agrees with him, he knows what will ultimately be the death of Fortunato. Montresor deviously leads Fortunato to the vaults â€Å"down the long and winding staircase, requesting him to be cautious† (554). Montresor opens a bottle of wine and makes a toast to his friend’s â€Å"long life† (555). As For... ...rfeited† (33). Montresor has inquired about Fortunato’s health throughout their walk to the catacombs. It is too late for him to change his mind so all that is left to do is seal him in. Poe creates a horror story of a psychological revenge and murder that occurred fifty years ago. Montresor is able to recall with clarity the details of his crime. Does he feel remorse for what he has done to Fortunato? The reader would think that he does, Montresor seems to be making the haunting confession from his death bed. The last thing that Montresor says to Fortunato is â€Å"In pace requiescat† which means â€Å"In peace may he rest† (557)! This is what Montresor wants for himself, this is why he is confessing to his sins. Works Cited Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Cask of Amontillado." Reading and Writing about Literature. Phillip Sipiora. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2008.

Affirmative Action Essay -- Affirmative Action Essays

What can be done about the majority of higher paying jobs going to the white males, and the issue of racial/sexual discrimination in both the workplace and in education? To this, the government already has its so-called solution†¦ affirmative action. Affirmative action forces businesses and colleges to hire a certain number of minorities including women, so as to fill a government assessed quota. The solution is not to get even with the white males by disregarding either their hard work through high school to achieve the grade to get into their desired college or their superiority over a competitor for a job position just because the competitor happens to belong to a minority group. Affirmative Action was created to make up for past prejudices in an effort to create more equality between majorities and minorities. It requires businesses to hire a certain number of blacks, Asian, Latin-American, and women so that it will create more opportunities for people of minorities. Colleges also require a less severe requirement for those of a minority party because the number of the people that did fit the requirement would not fit the quota. Thus, many more deserving majority Americans were denied jobs and acceptance to college because the quota had to be met. Firstly, Affirmative Action promotes the hiring of less skilled workers, thus creating reverse discrimination. It upsets employers, forcing them to choose the best employee from a limited pool of minorities, not just si...

Should Illegal Immigrants Be Allowed to Receive Social Services

Immigration is a large and controversial topic as far as the United States is concerned. However, there is one subject in question that isn’t quite openly addressed and up for discussion, as say border control. American citizens face many difficulties dealing with the admission of people in the United States illegally. The primary obstacles facing the system today include overcrowding in schools, availability of jobs and the unnecessary usage of Americans’ tax dollars. Unless every immigrant pays taxes, I do not believe they should receive health and social services. Some people argue that although illegal, immigrants still pay taxes (Carabelli 2-3). Numerous immigrants get false Social Security numbers in order to find jobs. Having these Social Security Numbers, employers are able to withhold all types of taxes. According to the internal revenue service, â€Å"†¦ about 6 million unauthorized immigrants file individual tax returns each year [thus confirming] estimates that between 50 percent to 75 percent of unauthorized immigrants pay federal, state, and local taxes† [ (Carabelli 3) ]. However, according to the united States General accounting office, a report they did shows that even if illegal immigrants do pay taxes, benefits provided to them cost more than they contribute, causing the United States a huge loss of money [ (Carabelli 4) ] Referring to Table 1, California spent a total of $1,770 million dollars on education, incarceration, and emergency services for illegal immigrants. In contrast, California only received $732 million in tax money from them. California lost $1038 million dollars. Also, Florida spent $461 million dollars in education, incarceration, and emergency services, losing $184 million dollars (Carabelli 4). (Carabelli 118) California tried to keep a handle on the costs of illegal immigrants by refusing to give social services to them. Illegal immigrants in the state were not supposed to be allowed state funded health care, public education, and other benefits. Some people had issues with this proposition; supporters of it made a point that Californians are suffering from the existence of illegal persons in their area and the violence they cause. Legal citizens have every right to safety and protection against these people who have entered the United States illegally from the government [ (Carabelli 6) ]. One of the biggest issues having to do with education is overcrowding in schools [ (Crisis 1) ]. In California, there have been reports of overcrowding to the point that schools are forced to reject students. Some people say there is a deficiency of teachers, but the truth is there are just too many immigrant students [ (Crisis 1) ]. According to usimmigrationlawyers. com, â€Å"The share of students in the U. S. ho are immigrants or the children of immigrants has tripled in the past 30 years; in 1970, they were only 6. 5 percent of the student body† [ (systems 1) ]. Immigrant students overwhelm around fourteen percent of schools by up to twenty-five percent. To accommodate overcrowding, a lot of schools have come up with alternatives to classrooms such as, portable classrooms, and using other facilities like cafeterias [ (systems 1) ]. Sometimes, having class in foreign rooms or places can be a distraction to students, especially if there are other things going on around them. Many towns and cities have resorted to building new schools because of the amount of students they are gaining [ (systems 1) ]. It is hard to keep track of exactly how many illegal pupils are in the school systems and determine the correct amount of funding needed. Some programs used to help educate non- English speakers; help to keep count as to how many there are [ (Carabelli 9) ]. However, other programs aren’t made specifically to meet the needs of Immigrants. Many schools find the need to hire bilingual staff to help immigrants. They also purchase special tools such as books and computer programs [ (systems 1) ]. One source of education, English Language Learner, needs extra funding to help it function correctly. This makes the teaching of immigrants more expensive, especially in areas where immigrants are dense [ (Carabelli 9) ]. One solution that has been brought to the table many times is amnesty. President Reagan signed the Simpson-Mazoli Act in 1986, which forgave about 2. 7 million immigrants for entering illegally, and allowed them to stay [ (Mcmanus 1) ]. The reason for this generous agreement was the hope that it would stop more illegal aliens from coming into the United States. This accord didn’t exactly help the problem. In fact, it became more intense, and more illegal aliens crossed the borders into our country [ (Mcmanus 1) ]. Since the big amnesty in 1986, the US has let about three million additional immigrants in. The authorities responsible for allowing them to stay neglect to admit it was them who did it because it attracted more newcomers [ (Mcmanus 1) ]. Even if the United States attempted amnesty again, it would fail for the exact same reason. Granting them amnesty is giving them what they want and in the long run, that costs the US more money than just deporting them. During the Second World War, many immigrants came across the borders to take the jobs of those who were a part of the army. When the war ended, service men came back to find that most of their jobs were taken, immigrants were committing many crimes that ruined the communities, and their millions of children were enrolling in school causing them to become overcrowded [ (McGrath 1) ]. A lot of people say that immigrants do all of the dirty jobs no Americans would do. However, a study done shows that if Americans were paid a reasonable, average wage, they would indeed choose to do those jobs as well [ (Immigration:Jobs) ] It is fair to say that immigrants have distorted the way people see jobs today. It used to be that citizens would do construction, bricklaying and other strenuous job like those, now it is not uncommon to find a Hispanic or other immigrant doing those jobs. Employers lowered pay for illegal immigrants because most of them are willing to do work for any amount. Which, in turn, makes the employer happier because they can hire more help for less so of course they would rather have undocumented workers than legal citizens. (Immigration:Jobs) One immigration case the Supreme Court had to face, dealt with schools in Texas turning away immigrant children. In 1975, Texas lawmakers chose to ban the use of state education funds to pay for the education of illegal immigrant students [ (Unmuth) ]. Some schools turned away all illegal immigrants; some accepted them but forced them to pay tuition. One man brought his family to the United States to get them a better education and his children were turned away because they were illegal [ (Unmuth) ]. The family chose to fight this in court with a couple of other people and won with a 5-4 vote. The spokeswoman for the Federation for American Immigration reform stated that people do not want to watch any child be denied an education, but they want to find a way to stop parents from coming over illegally in the first place. Many taxpayers are feeling as though they are being used; they are forced to pay taxes that support and pay for services and education or illegal beings in the United States. The Tyler vs. Doe case has ensured that all people, illegal or not, will be guaranteed an education. Also, under the fourteenth amendment, all illegal immigrants are promised equality and every civil right a natural citizen has (Unmuth). Asking natural citizens of the United States most will admit they do not like the fact that Illegal Immigrants receive benefits paid for by our taxes. Only one out of every four people believes it is okay for immigrants to receive food stamps and Medicaid [ (Staff 2) ]. Also, only eighteen percent are okay with illegal immigrants getting public housing. A little fewer than eighteen percent of citizens that took this poll decided that illegally admitted people should be allowed state grants for college. The goal for the senate is to come up with something to fix border control so more illegal immigrants cannot enter and catch people that employ illegals to stop providing them with jobs. With these laws in hand, hopefully immigrants will stop wanting to enter the United States [ (Staff 2) ]. So far, the United States has not found an effective way to prevent people from entering illegally. The first step that should be taken is being stricter with the borders. Currently, we have a fence along the US-Mexico border to attempt keeping people from crossing. It is 335-350 miles in length along the approximately 1969. 13 mile long border. That leaves around 1,619-1,634 miles of border un-blocked, wide open for crossing. Congress has ordered for the fence to be extended. Considering the fact that there are plenty of issues with land ownership, there are many problems with law faced with extending the fences. In addition to the fences, along the border we have several different types of electronic security systems. There are cameras and sensors that are monitored twenty-four hours a day by border patrol (Practice). Another strategy is worked from the inside. We are trying to prevent illegals from wanting to come over. This is preventing employers from hiring them in the first place. The United States uses a program called â€Å"E-verify†. It helps employers confirm that the people they are hiring are legal citizens. So far, â€Å"A study conducted in May 2008 by the Center for Immigration Studies estimates that the illegal immigrant population of the United States may have dropped by about 11 percent from the previous summer. It suggests that the total illegal immigrant population went from 12. 5 million in August 2007 to 11. 2 million in May 2008. † (Practice). According to writer Roger McGrath, there should be no problems deporting Illegal Immigrants back to their countries. In 1954 the US held a large deportation sending around two million immigrants back to their home countries [ (McGrath 1) ]. He says it was â€Å"done swiftly and cheaply by a relatively small force, proving that arguments we hear today about such an operation being logistically impossible are nothing more than a mask concealing a lack of political will†. I believe that the United States’ immigration problem will never be one hundred percent resolved. We can try building fences, or walls but there is always a way around, under or through those. We can try upping security along the borders with cameras and sensors, but there is a way to seem invisible to those. The matter of fact is that we have to come up with laws that make it impossible to get benefits, impossible to get a job and places to live. If we have to play dirty to get what we want, so be it. The American people worked hard to get where we are today and even with that, we struggle. Illegal is illegal we can’t make excuses to get out of our lives neither should they. I feel bad for those struggling in other countries, we have our problems too. The United States tries to help out other countries as much as they can, it is hard. So why should Americans have to pay for them to come into our country and live? Works cited http://www.usillegalaliens.com/impacts_of_illegal_immigration_jobs.html http://athens.usembassy.gov/dcm_immigration.html

Environmental and Consumer Influences Analysis Essay

People should not be locked into the use of one or two categories of products, therefore companies have to expand their brands to fit into the lives of consumers. People are unique and so are the preferences of their needs and wants. A basic product such as laundry detergent that so many consumers use on a continuing basis can be affected solely by the consumer. There are many factors that influence consumer purchases, psychological and social being the main facts. Everything from motives, perception and attitudes contribute to the influence consumer behavior toward the products. I want to explore three external factor traits and the effects they have on a social, ecological and cultural consumer plain. Cultural The factors that influence consumer behavior toward laundry detergent purchases are personal and from family among other. It is almost guaranteed that whatever detergent that was used in the house during their childhood will be the detergent they buy in their adult age. Ironically they can choose from more than 80 different laundry detergents in the United States. Personality also can have an impact on choice, however which brand they decide to purchase is what they will purchase on a consistent basis, is generally a recognizable order and regularity to cultural behavior. When dealing with consumers from two different cultural backgrounds are married then they have to make a compromise. This in turn creates a new cultural purchasing desire for the next generation. From the perspective side of it when growing up the thought and idea of laundry soap does not appeal to you. All you know is that your clothes are clean and they smell good. As you  get older your perspective changes and you take notice of the brand use and how effectively it works. Once out on your own you either, stay with the product you grew up with or you make a change. It is your attitude toward the long history of the product you use, more importantly you trust in your parent’s judgment as to why they chose the product they used so therefore you use it without really noticing. Tide and Gain has a great way of advertising toward good wholesome family values. This in itself is why they both are the top leading brands in sales. These two products among others have also learned from extensive studies to not only tap into the social aspect of the customer, but to also look into the social aspect relevant to the environment. Detergents now reach out and advise to the environmental side of a new social group. In other words being more environmental friendly, this along with the psychological need helps to create the feeling of doing more for the environmental needs of the world and still holding true to family values. Consumers feel empowered when they go to the store to purchase the detergent for his or her family. Each consumer has buying power and that power determins which brand is worth the money he or she has earned. Manufactures know and understand this hence why they try to market toward the emotional, historical or strongest social grouping to keep that market interested in staying loyal to that brand. Social As consumers we are either pressured or constantly being influenced as to what, when and how we should spend our money. Marketers have learned to advertise on most if not all social media, plus word of mouth. Detergent fits into social marketing with young people cause most of the time clothes are washed in a Laundromat or dorm type atmosphere. When at first the consumer was influenced by cultural and family. Being with his peers can create a different reason for purchasing detergent. If a particular brand is still testing on animals or still using harmful chemicals for the environment, the consumer through social understanding might make a different choice in the detergent they use. Price perception plays a part in the choice also. Consumers want to know that there hard earned money is being spent on fair and reasonable products. Marketers take this into effect when advertising. A consumer’s attitude toward something that might be overpriced and did not work will not be apt t o make the same purchase  again. This experience affects expectations, and interest. When conversation comes up as to what detergent you use a negative experience will result in notifying shoes within their social group as to why not to use product so and so. I know it seems far fetch that the younger generation sits around and talks about laundry detergent. However in the middle class families do talk about things like this. This external factor affects consumer behavior in many ways, considering that America is actively changing. Society has undergone a constant change in response to the development of new technology. Laundry detergent has changed its formula to meet the needs of a socially environmentally aware society, and so has new washing machines. Ecological The ecological factors that affect consumer behavior are physical and social surroundings. The physical surroundings of the consumer at the time of purchase can affect the brand purchase if the store does not offer the brand of choice. Then the consumer can choose another brand that they feel is close enough to the brand they normally purchase. This is why most stores now carry a store brand that is located close to the leading brand. Pricing plays a part also, with prices increasing and the economy still trying to make its way back into good standings. It no longer seems reasonable to pay high prices for a product when you get a similar product that does the exact same thing but at a lesser price. Then we look again at the environment effects of the way we shop. We now have more environmental friendly detergents, being able to use cold water rather than hot water. We also have less chemicals and better machines to efficiently get more out of the laundry detergent we use. Conclusion The factors that influence us as consumer to purchase the products we do connects to our psychological and social being. Our motives, perception and attitudes contribute to the influence of goods we consume. Marketers study our behavior toward products to see what mostly influence us to spend the way we spend. It is our external factor is that have the most effects. How we engage in our social environment draws from our cultural background, this also gives way to our ecological consumption of goods. References Household Care. (2012). Retrieved from Proctor and Gamble: http://www.pg.com/en_US/brands/household_care/index.shtml Laundry Products: Laundry Detergents. (2012, March 12). Retrieved from The United States Environmental Protection Agency: http://www.epa.gov/dfe/pubs/projects/formulat/formpart.htm#101 Psychological Factors. (2012). Retrieved from Medical onditions: http://medconditions.net/psychological-factor.html Bagozzi, R. P., Gurhan-Canli, Z., & Priester, J. R. (2002). The Social Psychology of Consumer Behaviour. Philadelphia: Pearson. Cherry, K. (n.d.). What Is Personality? Retrieved from About.com Psychology: http://psychology.about.com/od/overviewofpersonality/a/persondef.htm Cherry, K. (n.d.). What Is Social Psychology? Retrieved from About.com Psychology: http://psychology.about.com/od/socialpsychology/f/socialpsych.htm Chapter 5: Perception and Individual Decision Making. (n.d.). Retrieved from California State University, Sacraimento: http://www.csus.edu/indiv/s/sablynskic/Ch5OBE150.htm Schiffman, L. G., & Kanuk, L. L. (2010). Consumer Behavior. Upper Saddle River. NJ: Pearson.

George

Both cases had resulted in the growing number of third parties which have a legal right to sue auditor for negligence. In other word, auditor's liability to third parties has Increased. The defendants had all relied on the accounts In taking and calculating the price of shares in the knitwear company. In the case of Thomas Ltd. , Ð ²?56,100; in the case of Goode, E,500; and, in the case of Gordon, El ,500. Thomas Limited purchased 16,000 ordinary shares in Kinkier in November 1973 which shares were formerly held by a Mr. Saurian, a director of Kinkier. That purchase was at E;10 per share.In addition Thomas purchased a fresh Issue of Kinkier shares, namely 15,000 at El ;50 per share. It Is pleaded for all three pursuers that in making these purchases they relied upon balance sheets and accounts prepared and audited by the defenders. Thomas, they also plead that they relied upon advice given by Mr. Mainframe at meetings held prior to the conclusion of the agreement to purchase the 31, 000 shares. It is said that the audited accounts prepared by the defenders for years prior to 1975 had been highly misleading and inaccurate. Mr. Mainframe, acted negligently and Incompetently In the preparation and auditing of Skinner's accounts.Instead of trading profitably the said Kinkier Knitwear Limited had in fact been trading at a loss both before and after the purchase of the said shares, figures which were of particular significance to Thomas were those of the trading profits and losses. This failure was, in my view, because of slack and careless auditing methods. The pursuers averred-?†The defenders completely failed to make any check on the said Kinkier Knitwear Limiter's system of tock control or the basis of valuation of the stock. As a result the stock figures provided In said accounts were seriously Inaccurate. â€Å"For some years the defenders had failed to carry out normal checks of credit and debit balances. The defenders had completely failed to make prov ision in said accounts for a doubtful debt reserve which they ought to have done. They failed to carry out the normal checks to establish that debts stated by the Company to be due were in fact due as any competent auditors would have done before certifying the said accounts. Competent auditors making the appropriate checks In carrying out an audit of the said Kinkier Knitwear Limited and preparing said accounts would have discovered these inaccuracies and noted them in said accounts.The figure could well have been much higher because a number of old debts found to be still on the books when the check was made in 1976 or 1977 did not carry the date when they were incurred. The figure of E,662 Is, therefore, a minimum. I have the Impression from the fact that Mr. Mainframe made no attempt to circularities any debtors for the 1973 audit or even to go ay be due more to good luck than to good Judgment on his part. I am therefore satisfied that the accounts to 31st March 1973 were neglig ently prepared by the defenders and negligently audited by Mr. Mainframe.When weighed against what was said by the pursuers' witnesses, and accepted by me, to be the methods of an auditor exercising reasonable care and skill his methods were sadly wanting. =>Len the end of the day these Justifications came down to this that the shareholders, to whom his firm owed certain duties as auditors, were all directors and in particular to the inconsideration that he was a close personal friend of Mr. Lennox whom he had known since childhood and not only trusted him but also trusted other staff of the company.I consider that it follows and that it should now be regarded as settled that if someone possessed of a special skill undertakes, quite irrespective of contract, to apply that skill for the assistance of another person who relies on such skill, a duty of care will arise. =>=>He knew that auditors' certificates, when they were â€Å"clean† certificates, were commonly relied on by s hareholders, potential investors, and potential lenders.In the whole circumstances I consider that Mr. Mainframe should have foreseen before he certified the 1973 accounts that these accounts might be relied on by a potential investor for the purpose of deciding whether or not to invest. To these, the latest audited accounts of the company would be of very great importance in influencing them whether or not to invest and at what price. L, therefore, consider that in respect of Thomas and Mr. Gordon, both being in the class of persons who were potential investors, Mr. Mainframe owed a prima facie duty of care in the auditing of the 1973 accounts.

She Touched the Little Box in Her Pocket and Smiled

She touched the little box in her pocket and smiled†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Anne was playing all by her self as usual. Nobody bothered to play with her, for she was poor, so no one knew about her imaginative personality. Anne was used to it. she was roaming around the school alone, when she caught the sight of something shining. She ran to it-it was a little golden box with some carvings on it. She picked it up, trying to imagine what there was inside†¦.. an alien? Maybe some money†¦ or chocolates?Or better still†¦ a tiny alien which would grow and grow and begin to eat people! Anne put the box into her pocket. She decided to keep her little secret to herself; to open the school afterschool. after a boring history lesson, the final bell rang. Anne rushed home and locked herself in her rom. She took out the box. She was afraid to open it ,though. What if it had a bomb in it? She finally summoned all her courage to open it when she was disturbed b a soft knock on her door. It was her mother. Anne please come and lay the table for tea, because I’m tired and my head feels hot, â€Å" she said Anne groaned and thought it would not make a difference if she did not do it. They did not have enough to buy food, anyway, so it was just biscuits and tea. She was impatient to open her box. But she went down and laid the table, and waited for her father, a poor tailor, to come back home. When he came, he sat down immediately, exhausted from walking. He opened his newspaper and began sipping his tea. A jewelry case, belonging to Mr. mason, containing a diamond ring, was lost on her way home. Whoever returns it will get a reward,† he read aloud Anne opened the box that night. The next day, Anne went to school skipping. Her class had to write essays. She chose the topic â€Å"if I were a millionaire† to write on. The other children laughed at it. â€Å"you? A millionaire? † they asked She touched the little box I her pocket and smiled. It was Mr . Mason’s jewelry case with the ring inside

Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism

A number of years ago, I enrolled in a "preacher-boys" class at a fundamentalist university in the South. The only requirement of the course was to witness to seven people every week and write a brief report on each contact. The teacher of the course- and the founder of the university- was an old-time Southern evangelist who wanted his preacher-boys to be evangelists. The teacher’s method of evangelism had three steps: tell people they are sinners, tell them about Christ, and lead them to salvation. This approach may have converted some people, but statistics would probably show that many of those conversions didn’t stick- which is one of the reasons mainline churches are not attracted to hit-and-run evangelism. Mainline churches are, however, becoming increasingly interested in practicing evangelism. The recurring question for such churches is, What kind of evangelism? In response, I would recommend a liturgical approach to evangelism, one that is based on the evangelical practices of the church in the third century. Liturgical evangelism, which is being revived in the Catholic Church, is also an evangelism that emphasizes the ethical side of the gospel. It is this kind of evangelism that will, I believe, take hold in many mainline Protestant churches. Third-century liturgical evangelism consisted of seven steps- four stages and three rites of passage. This process was designed to bring the converting person to Christ and into the church through a series of seven successively deeper commitments. These stages can be described under the headings of inquiry; rite of entrance; catechumenate; rite of election; purification and enlightenment; rites of initiation; and mystagogy. The ethical content of evangelism appeared in all seven stages. Here is how it worked: A person who evidenced interest in the gospel was brought to the pastor and elders of the church. An inquiry into or a formal presentation of the gospel took place ... Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism A number of years ago, I enrolled in a "preacher-boys" class at a fundamentalist university in the South. The only requirement of the course was to witness to seven people every week and write a brief report on each contact. The teacher of the course- and the founder of the university- was an old-time Southern evangelist who wanted his preacher-boys to be evangelists. The teacher’s method of evangelism had three steps: tell people they are sinners, tell them about Christ, and lead them to salvation. This approach may have converted some people, but statistics would probably show that many of those conversions didn’t stick- which is one of the reasons mainline churches are not attracted to hit-and-run evangelism. Mainline churches are, however, becoming increasingly interested in practicing evangelism. The recurring question for such churches is, What kind of evangelism? In response, I would recommend a liturgical approach to evangelism, one that is based on the evangelical practices of the church in the third century. Liturgical evangelism, which is being revived in the Catholic Church, is also an evangelism that emphasizes the ethical side of the gospel. It is this kind of evangelism that will, I believe, take hold in many mainline Protestant churches. Third-century liturgical evangelism consisted of seven steps- four stages and three rites of passage. This process was designed to bring the converting person to Christ and into the church through a series of seven successively deeper commitments. These stages can be described under the headings of inquiry; rite of entrance; catechumenate; rite of election; purification and enlightenment; rites of initiation; and mystagogy. The ethical content of evangelism appeared in all seven stages. Here is how it worked: A person who evidenced interest in the gospel was brought to the pastor and elders of the church. An inquiry into or a formal presentation of the gospel took place ...

The purpose of the research Essays

The purpose of the research Essays The purpose of the research Essay The purpose of the research Essay The purpose of the research work is to specifically understand the concept of knowledge management, its difference in large enterprises and small enterprises, 7 different categories of knowledge (knowledge about customers, about company’s products/services, intellectual property rights management, about markets, about competition, about processes and methods, about regulatory environment), the criticality of knowledge creation and key challenges for knowledge-intensive SMEs(the identification, capture, storing, mapping, dissemination and creation of knowledge) from different perspectives and for different purposes.Methodology This paper uses a survey method to collect primary data to study knowledge creation and categorization in automotive components manufacturers. Knowledge creation is gaining importance but Ramp;D spending as a percentage of turnover is very low. International automotive components manufacturers have a better perception about knowledge creation compared to Indian firms. The key challenges for knowledge intensive SMEs are the identification, capture, storing, mapping, dissemination and creation of knowledge.Knowledge management is an integrated and complex social process which has culture, people, finance, technology and organizational structure at its core. Research study finds that innovators are more likely to experience growth than non innovators. The methodology of the research is based on 3 surveys conducted namely for international experts, Indian experts and auto component manufacturers.International experts were asked to give their views on knowledge creation and categorisation in knowledge management in international auto components SMEs whereas Indian experts were consulted for knowledge management in Indian auto co mponents manufacturers. Experts’ gave their views on the automotive components industry as a whole, thus giving a picture of the overall industry, which the researcher labels as macro perspective. Automotive components manufacturers responded to what is happening within the company, which the researcher calls as micro perspective.Findings The findings of the three different survey groups have been summarised in the tables below: Table 1 Rating of knowledge provided by government/associations (international experts) Criteria| Minimum| Maximum| Mean| Standard Deviation| Relevance| 1. 00| 6. 00| 3. 2857| 1. 54066| Latest| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 2857| 1. 20439| Timely| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 1429| 1. 23146| Table 2 Rating of knowledge provided by government/associations (Indian experts) Criteria| Minimum| Maximum| Mean| Standard Deviation| Relevance| 2. 00| 6. 00| 4. 2222| 1. 39443|Latest| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 3333| 2. 00000| Timely| 1. 00| 6. 00| 3. 6667| 1. 80278| Table 3 Importance of ranking of knowledge Importance ranking of knowledge types| Mean rank| Knowledge about markets| 2. 89| Knowledge about customers| 2. 34| Knowledge about new technologies| 3. 29| Knowledge about processes and methods| 3. 64| Knowledge about products/services| 4. 84| Knowledge about partners/alliances| 6. 16| Knowledge about regulatory environment andstandards| 4. 93| Table 4 Ramp;D Spending (% sales) Spending on Ramp;D| Response percentage|Less than 0. 5%| 41. 2| 0. 5-1%| 23. 5| 1-1. 5%| 5. 9| 1. 5-2%| 11. 8| 2-2. 5%| 5. 9| More than 2. 5%| 11. 8| Table 5 Knowledge by government/industry associations (automotive components manufacturers) Criteria| Minimum| Maximum| Mean| Standard Deviation| Relevance| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 3125| 1. 66208| Latest| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 0000| 1. 50555| Timely| 1. 00| 5. 00| 3. 3125| 1. 57982| Table 6 Test Results | Rating of knowledgeprovided by govt/associations – relevance(1 ? Very poor to7 ? Excellent)| Rating of knowledgeprovided by govt/associations  œ latest(1 ?Very poor to7 ? Excellent)| Rating of knowledgeprovided by govt/associations – timely(1 ? Very poor to7 ? Excellent)| Mann-Whitney U| 23. 000| 18. 500| 26. 000| Wilcoxon W| 68. 000| 63. 500| 71. 000| Z| -0. 936| -1. 406| -0. 607| Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed)| 0. 350| 0. 160| 0. 544| Exact Sig. (2 *(1-tailed Sig. )]| 0. 408| 0. 174| 0. 606| Conclusion The spending on Ramp;D as a percentage of sales is quite low. The government and industry associations need to create awareness and sensitization programs for knowledge creation.It can be done through workshops, seminars specifically for top management for developing management talent as most of the ACMs are owner managed who lack management or technical education. These programs can also be used for convincing management for investments in innovation. This can be done by starting knowledge initiatives in few units like Knowledge Cells’ in association with ACMA, SIAM, CII . These efforts can be further substantiated by recognizing the firm with the Best Practices’ and creation of awards for Best Knowledge CEO’ and Best Knowledge Company’.Analysis shows that a select group of innovative SMEs are initiators of breakthrough innovation. They are often but not always high-growth SMEs. New firms represent a significant proportion of all patents filed by businesses, but this share varies strongly. Industry associations and governments need to have re-appraisal of their practices and make their working more useful, fast and updated. Government and industry associations should play an active role for creating the

American History X Essay Example

American History X Essay Example American History X Paper American History X Paper American History X BY saku2300 Summary: American History X Derek Vinyard is paroled after being in prison for three years. The reason for prisoning is because of the murder of two thieves, who tried to steal his truck. Through a flash-back, his brother Daniel Danny had, we learned about Dereks life. Derek was a leader of skinheads in L. A. and their white Nazi gang violently terrorized the opposite races. Dereks actions had a very big influence on his younger brother, Daniel, who looked up to him and tried to follow in his brothers footsteps. Dereks time in prison opened his eyes and made him realize that in every race there can be ood and bad. He somehow got enlightened and saw another road in his life. He Just had to convince Danny, that there is another way to live, and another way to look at things. That way he wouldnt end up as he did, Just because of all his hatred and ignorance. Dereks father got killed by a minority while he was in duty, which is why Dereks vision started to blur and he believed everything he got told from his dad. At the end, Dereks message was clear, and it finally reached Danny. Overall Characterization: Vinyard family. The movie American History X tells us the story of a torn apart family, by racism, atred and blindness. The two main characters in the Vinyard family who are wreaking havoc between their families are the two brothers, Derek and Danny. These two become the focused characters in the movie. Character analysis of: Derek Vinyard. Derek is a skinhead in the age of 20-30s and is very serious in his beliefs. Hes a well- educated and smart man whos blindly being brainwashed and drawn into this world of racial hatred. His childhood was based on lies, because of his father who tried to convince him about the minorities Negros/Thugs being bad people and a menace to society. After hearing the trash-talk from his father, he turned out to be a little skeptical who he hangs out with. After his father got killed, by drug dealers, Derek believed in everything he got told and therefore started to form his own gang which concludes the beliefs of Nazis and dedicated his life to the Nazis. Tattoos, skin bald, toughness and raised head full of confidence, those are the marks of the skinhead members lead by Cameron Alexander and Derek Vinyard. They have their own rules and form for Justice for racial people. The motivation that drove Derek into the world of racism was mainly his fathers fault. In the beginning of the first flash-back its shown how everyone is sitting at the table, eating dinner. By that time his father was alive, and we get to know how his personality and what his thoughts were like. Young Derek got interviewed about how he feels after his fathers death, where he speaks up from his heart about the parasites in his society, Well, this countrys becoming a heaven for criminals, so what do you expect? Decent hard-working Americans like my dad are getting rubbed out by social parasites. All of Dereks hatred and sadness, all of his emotions are unleashed into wrath against the parasites of the society. He mentions his fathers work, how he used to be such a good person, a firefighter, a savior, whos murdered by a minority. The reporter questioned him about the meaning of Parasites and he replied Blacks, browns, yellow, whatever. His hatred is slowly started to build up from this point, where he blames the racial problems to be the reason for his fathers death. He killed two thugs who tried to steal his car, by shooting one of them and making the other putting his mouth on the curb. Characterization and tale of: Daniel Danny Vinyard. Daniel Vinyard acts as the narrative of the story both at the start and at the end of he movie. Daniel is the younger brother of Derek, who also seems to be following his older brothers footsteps. Daniel is a stubborn teenager with bad habits, but when he really takes his time, he has potential to be something. Hes a skin head Just like his older brother, who he really idolizes and sees him as a hero. Daniel is trying to be just like Derek, and therefore hes trying to impress him by showing him these racist actions, and how tough he is. After his older brother got thrown in Jail, Danny started to hang out with Dereks old friends, one of them was Seth. Seth was very racist and isliked every race except the white people. He tried so hard to influence Daniel to hate every single race except the white, by videotaping him and asking him questions, such as Who do you hate Danny, why.? When Daniel answered his question, and saying some of them are alright, Seth raised his voice and said that none of them was right, and they are a bunch of freeloaders. Derek came back home after 3 years, and told Danny about his new epiphany. Danny freaked out and did not believe anything, and thought he was crazy. Daniel went to Camerons party, which Derek strictly told him not to. He witnessed Derek causing chaos and threatening veryone, and then he took Danny and ran off. Daniel was an arrogant and stubborn child, had a temper and always wanted to show his White power against the black people. Daniel opened his eyes once Derek told him the truth, and everything he had experienced. The last quote he used to finish his essay was: We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. 0 http:// www. goodreads. com/quotes/31631 -we-are- be

Was Mao Zedong Correct to Argue Political Power Grows out of the Barrel of a Gun

Was Mao Zedong Correct to Argue Political Power Grows out of the Barrel of a Gun Introduction â€Å"Ideology is the most elusive concept in the whole of social science†, this quote captures the difficulty in defining an ideology (McLellan 1995). We can identify ideologies based on the words used to describe them. People subscribed to the capitalism ideology will use words that express freedom of commerce and market price determination among other aspects of the ideology (Sargent 2009).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Was Mao Zedong Correct to Argue â€Å"Political Power Grows out of the Barrel of a Gun†? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More According to Glebov, Mao Zedong referred to the forceful nature in which leaders have to impose their ideologies on populations when he said, â€Å"political power grows out of the barrel of a gun† (1979). Mao Zedong was the leader of the Chinese Communist Party that assumed power after an arms struggle. According to Mao, the only way to gain power is to prove you are stronger and defeat the opponent in war (Glebov 1979). Mao Zedong, the Little Red Book and Cultural Revolution Mao Zedong was born in 1893 to peasant parents in China and served in the revolutionary army of china in 1911 (Spartacus Educational n.d.). Mao was a poet and political leader besides being the founder of the Peoples republic of China based on his ideologies of flexible pragmatism and visions viewed as utopian. Mao wrote extensively speeches, essays and poems and published 40 poems (Liukkonen 2008). His sayings and attributions are captured in an anthology called the Little Red Book that became the main text of the Cultural Revolution. The Little Red Book is also referred to as the Chinese Bible or Mao Bible (Sachsenmaier n.d.). Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution in 1996 while serving his last decade as the Chinese People’s Party leader. He wanted to shift the Chinese ideology development to take a more communist approach. His main aim was to make all social systems in China less elitist, an end he pursued through mobilization and staging of revolutions using urban youths (Fortunecity.com n.d.). He also set up a coalition of loyal leaders to work besides him. The cultural revolution demonstrated the forceful nature needed to change ideological systems in place; however, the cultural revolution brought bureaucratic timidity in the government, as policy makers knew a system change outplaces all previously done work and personnel. During the revolution, in fighting within the Chinese Peoples party led by Mao factions and his successor Lins factions caused the return of normalcy in the Chinese society to delay further (Fortunecity.com n.d.). The attempt by Lin to hijack the leadership of the ideological transformation of the Chinese society from Mao was thwarted after Lin died in 1971 he aborted his plot to assassinate Mao. Shortly after Lins death, his loyal military command was destroyed. The death of Lin as the front crusader of the Mao ideology left the Chinese people feeling used in the political power game.Advertising Looking for essay on political sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Mao was interested in preserving his ideology through a suitably groomed successor to fill the gap left by Lin. During the period after Lins death and before Maos death, political backing shifted back and forth from Jiang Qing and the Zhou-Deng group. The two factions had separate ideologies of xenophobia and a pragmatic foreign policy respectively (Fortunecity.com n.d.). During the 2-year period before Maos death in 1976, the radicals favoring Jiang Qing staged chaotic campaigns to criticize the ideologies and policies of Zhou and managed to convince Mao that such policies would eventually topple him out of power. In order to safeguard his political power and ideology embodied in the Cultural Revolution, Mao sanctioned a formal propa ganda using posters to discredit the Zhou-Deng group and later succeeded in purging the group in April 1976. The Mao ideologies were defeated after his death in September 1976 when a combination of military leaders, police and political leaders purged Maos leading followers (Fortunecity.com n.d.). How political ideologies work Political parties form political ideologies; however, they become autonomous after formulation. Once formed, other political groups are free to adopt the political ideologies. While political ideology reflects specific elements in a political party, it also forms a notable variable that adds to the growth and operations of a political system. Political ideologies allow power to be legit and make it an authority. This happens when a community adopts them. What constitute ideologies are myths and symbols. Therefore, ideologies are modifiable (Cohen 1969). Today, forceful assumption of power by political group is not common as it was in the 1960s. Most developed and developing countries of the world have adopted a democratic system of government that bases its politics on either democratic capitalism or democratic socialism. The rise of democratic government systems has meant that political groupings have to participate in an election process and win in order to assume power of ruling a country. This fact might imply to the reader that there is no longer a need for a forceful takeover of political power as was in the case during Mao Zedong’s political party takeover as the new government of China. Although literally the fact is true, there are hidden aspects of forceful realization of political power. It would be an understatement to say that current use of the gun to get political power is not as fierce as it was when Mao Zedong wrote the little red book (Gearon 2006).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Was Mao Zedong Correct to Argue â€Å"Political Power Grows out of the Barrel of a Gun†? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is a mistake to equate democratic elections with a change of ideology. Democratic elections allow participation by parties that subscribe to the democratic ideology; therefore, the elections only serve as rotational changes on the people in power. Different political parties hold different elements of the same democratic ideology. Therefore conflicts or oppositions arise that result to varied opinions and support during elections (Cohen 1969). The formation of a political system that governs everything in a nation is what Mao Zedong referred to as power. A political system does not change after an election as noted in the previous paragraph. In addition, there are no defined ways of changing a political system. Such a system exists because of political ideologies and followers of a specific ideology feel that there exists no other ideology true as theirs. One cannot therefore expect to approach an established system a nd change it without facing resistance. Since political systems allow individuals to rule over others, and that those holding the political ideology in place will not take lightly any thought of replacing their political system. The adversity that arises out of the firmness of the existing political system, to maintain status quo, warrants only one last option of a political system change, violent force (Glebov 1979). Ideologies are mere belief and powerless unless they are mass accepted. They become respectable and worthy of considering when already there are a number of people subscribed to the ideology. Without political power, ideologies appear to be utopian thoughts. Proponents of political ideologies without political power describe their ideologies in terms of an ideal time when the ideologies will come into place and govern everyone’s way of living. Before the communist party seized power in China, it embodied ideal communist ideologies. Its leader, Mao Zedong, appear ed as an idealist. This was simply because the party envisioned a time when everyone was equal and all resources shared equally for the good of all citizens. Such an ideal environment based on the communist principles has never materialized (Sargent 2009). In the current world, democratic ideologies are shaping up most political systems. The idea of a rule by the majority has won favor across the world. Previously, purely communist systems are allowing democratic ideas to infiltrate their base ideologies. As a result, former communist systems are now showing characteristics of a social democratic system. The rule of the majority whether actualized or implied might have won over other ideologies because of the might held in the majority. It is plainly evident in any society that when the majorities are in favor, the minority out of favor have little they can do other than join the majority (Sargent 2009).Advertising Looking for essay on political sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More How Political Ideologies Retain their Power The democratic ideology operates as a dictatorship of a few over the majority. Even though democratic system claims to be a rule of the majority, closer look at the system reveals that once elected into power, political parties and politicians run the country in the best way that will ensure they win the next election. The policies and strategies they adopt when running the country ideally should assist to boost the economy in such a way that living standards improve. Citizens are in favor with the party when the economy is doing well. However, other than the economy, other social welfare factors dictate the favorability of a political party among the citizens of a country. These include other non-political ideologies such as religious ideologies and economic ideologies. In order for a political party to stay in favor with the majority of the citizens, it has to ensure that none of the unfavorable ideologies grows among its citizenry (Mill er 1981). To achieve the ideal setting where there is no ideological opposition, political parties campaign for and come up with laws that ban or restrict the ideologies identified as enemies of maintaining the status quo in the political system. Other than outright bans, and in an effort to remain democratic, such restrictions pass through the provided systems of changing laws. In most democratic systems, these are parliament, and the state. Judiciary forms a dispute resolution mechanism in the case where citizens feel aggrieved by the actions of the government. However, the extent to which the citizenry can disown laws through the judiciary is limited to confinement with the country’s constitution (Miller 1981). The countries constitution forms the principle pillar that holds the political system together. The constitution governs all that is lawful and unlawful in the country. Amendment of a constitution only happens when the majority is in favor in democratic systems. In other systems like communism, and monarchies the rulers have the power to change their countries constitutions. Since monarchies and communist political systems already infer power to their rulers to change constitutions as it suits them, it has never occurred that a ruler has changed the overall political system from one ideology to another. In most cases, rulers only include changes that strengthen their rule as well as expand their territories. On the democratic constitution change issue, prohibition of differing ideologies ensures that amending the constitution to come up with laws biased against the existing political ideology is impossible (Miller 1981). In all social institutions, the ruling class enjoys better living standards than the non-ruling class. Such a disparity arises out of the human need to satisfy their basic wants before they consider that of others. The satisfaction of needs and wants of the ruling class blinds them to the plight of the poor non-ruling class. T his happens because the ruling class does not face the daily challenges that the non-ruling class go through. In most cases, the rulers separate their residents from the rest. As societies advance, more social class stratification emerges. New social tensions appear out of class differences. The poor view that the rich are wealthy because of exploiting them, while the rich feel that their political power rests on their ability to be rich and therefore see the poor as a threat. When the poor are not the majority in such a system, a status quo may exist for a defined period until the poor become the majority (Gearon 2006). When the poor are the majority, they possess enough mass will power to inverse the social class setting of resource allocation. In such societies, where the poor majority want the power to have a say in wealth creation while the rich minority do not want to let go their political power that comes with the wealth, tensions erupt in to violent struggles. The emergence of a leader among the revolvers is a mere consequence of populations to being organized under one leadership and does not infer that the leader is the originator of the new ideology fought for by the population. For example, Mao Zedong led the 1949 war of china that led to the China Communist Party claim to power; however, he was not the originator of the communist ideology. Mao followed the ideas expressed by Lenin who fought a similar war leading the poor majority to capture power in Russia (Glebov 1979). As previously noted the barrel of the gun in current world political setting is money. Ruling political parties are able to maintain the political system by having a tight control of what their citizenry access to in terms of ideology. While the majority touts democracy as freedom for all, in actual practice it is a mass obedience of a political ideology that makes any differing belief questionable and in some cases punishable. Democratic systems allow indirect forcing of belief s upon their electorate. Such forceful ways used by the ruling class ensure that there is little or no opposition to their regime (Miller 1981). Conclusions To sum up, political ideologies form the basis of forming political systems. Political systems offer the rulers power over their citizenry. A considerable large population has to subscribe to an ideology for it to have a meaningful influence. The nature of belief is that its believers view each as the truth; therefore, the only way to replace political ideologies is to overthrow the regimes holding on to that ideology. Such an accomplishment is only possible through use of violent force. Mao Zedong was right arguing, â€Å"Power grows out of the barrel of a gun† (Glebov 1979). Reference List Cohen, A 1969, Custom politics in urban Africa: a study of Hausa migrants in Yoruba towns, University of California press, Berkeley, LA. Gearon, L 2006, Freedom of expression and human rights: historical, literal and political contex ts, Sussex Academic Press, Portland, OR. Glebov, V 1979, Maoism, words and deeds, Sterling, New Delhi. Fortunecity.com, n.d., The Cultural Revolution. Web. Liukkonen, P 2008, Mao Zedong (1893-1976). Web. McLellan, D 1995, Ideology, 2nd edn, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis. MN. Miller, A S 1981, Democratic dictatorship: the emergent constitution control, Greenwood Press, Santa Clara, CA. Sachsenmaier, D n.d., The Little Red Book. Web. Sargent, L T 2009, Contemporary political ideologies; a comparative analysis, Wadsworth, Belmont, CA. Spartacus Educational, n.d. Mao Zedong. Web.

Some Thoughts on Dashes

Some Thoughts on Dashes Some Thoughts on Dashes Some Thoughts on Dashes By Maeve Maddox A reader wonders about the use of dashes to replace colons: More and more I see dashes (of various sorts) used to do the work you say that the colon should do: introduce a word, phrase, clause, list, or quotation after a complete sentence. Is either acceptable? I can’t find an example of a dash used to introduce a quotation, but its use in place of a colon to introduce a word, phrase, clause, or list is common: â€Å"Nonetheless,† he added, â€Å"just having these recordings is not going to be sufficient† to make any definitive conclusions about the cause of the crash- a process that could take weeks, if not months.† Now students’ needs are anticipated by a small army of service professionals- mental health counselors, student-life deans and the like. Coming at the end of a sentence in this way, the use of a dash is not as jarring to me as its increasingly popular use to replace commas or parentheses within a sentence: The study’s authors hypothesized that material gains made through early agricultural success- a proxy for wealth- gave smaller groups of related men the reproductive upper hand for generations. Boko Haram has widened its efforts from capturing foreigners- who can be ransomed off for big bucks- to targeting mass numbers of young women and children who can  be put to other uses. Commas or parentheses would do just fine in each example. The choice to replace commas or parentheses with a dash should be made with a clear understanding of the effect desired. Explanatory information meant for readers who may need help with a concept can go in parenthesis: The study’s authors hypothesized that material gains made through early agricultural success (a proxy for wealth) gave smaller groups of related men the reproductive upper hand for generations. Information relevant to the sentence, but of secondary importance can go between commas: Boko Haram has widened its efforts from capturing foreigners, who can be ransomed off for big bucks, to targeting mass numbers of young women and children who can  be put to other uses. Dashes are appropriate when the purpose is to startle the reader with an unexpected interruption that provides a peripheral thought: His chisel was one of the weapons used- not that he could help that, poor fellow- and no doubt you will want to ask him questions. The dash is an attention-getting punctuation mark that can be used to change the tone of a sentence. Dashes are like the unexpected chords in The Surprise Symphony: they jerk the reader into wakefulness. They are most effective when not overused. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Addressing A Letter to Two People50 Idioms About Arms, Hands, and FingersEach vs. Both