Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Does Language Play Roles Of Equal Importance In Different Areas Of Essay

Does Language Play Roles Of Equal Importance In Different Areas Of Knowledge - Essay Example There are four Ways of Knowing perception, emotion, reason, and language.The question each and every other way of knowing is controlled by means of language is a statement that needs more investigation as well as reflection.  There are four Ways of Knowing perception, emotion, reason, and language. One is supposed to use the Ways of Knowing and the Areas of Knowledge to acquire, perceive, and apply knowledge.The question each and every other way of knowing is controlled by means of language is a statement that needs more investigation as well as reflection.  Knowledge can be said to be informed that the brain has received that meets a certain set of criteria. When someone states that they know something they must also believe that, that something is so. Language always is known for its words. And a language also requires a lot of easy words to be spoken every where. If language is spoken in extremely different places in a huge area that shows this language is has a big word capac ity and a great deal easier than the other languages to comprehend. Words are determining the quality of language and so are important in every area of knowledge. Words seem to be so simple for a look but that is not really true.   A word is a unit of language that carries meaning and consists of one or more morphemes which are linked more or less tightly together and has a phonetical value. In general, a word will have a root or stem and zero or extra affixes. Words can be joint to make phrases, clauses, and well-structured sentences.

Monday, October 28, 2019

Plea Bargain Essay Example for Free

Plea Bargain Essay â€Å"The plea bargain was a prosecutorial tool used only episodically before the 19th century† (Dirk Olin, 2002) Plea bargaining has assumed a significant role in the criminal jurisprudence of the United States. A majority of criminal cases in the United States are settled through plea bargaining rather than a conducted jury trial. This paper details some of the basic details relating to plea bargaining in the American criminal judicial system. Background A plea bargain usually implies a deal offered by a prosecutor as an incentive for the defendant to plead guilty. Plea bargaining thus can be construed as pre-trial negotiations between the accused and the prosecution during the process of which the accused agrees to plead guilty in exchange for certain concessions in the sentence or charges as offered by the prosecution. There is no specific or perfect definition of ‘plea bargain’ has so far been evolved. According to Black’s Law Dictionary plea bargaining is â€Å"the process whereby the accused and the prosecutor in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the case subject to court approval. It usually involves the defendants pleading guilty to a lesser offense or to only one or some of the counts of a multi-count indictment in return for a lighter sentence than that possible for the graver charge† However, in practice plea bargaining is often considered as the mutual acknowledgement of the strengths and weaknesses of the both the defense and prosecution sides in the midst of the tedious process of the trial of the cases and the potential outcome of the trials rather than a mutually satisfied arrangement. Plea bargaining may be attempted at any time; usually it occurs on a pre-trial stage; but in some cases may be undertaken during the conduct of the trial before the verdict is rendered. There is a possibility that plea bargain may be negotiated after a trial has resulted in a ‘hung jury’. Under such circumstance the parties may negotiate a plea bargain instead of going through the process of another trial. In some common law jurisdictions like England and Wales, Victoria, Australia plea bargaining is undertaken to such an extent that the prosecutors and defense can mutually agree that the defendant will plead guilty to certain of the charges and the prosecution drops the rest of the charges. (Legal Pundits) However no bargaining can take place in respect of the penalties that can be levied and the courts proceed to decide the appropriate penalty in such cases. Types of Plea Bargains If in the judicial system every case is allowed to go to trial the courts would find it difficult to try and decide on all the cases. Plea bargaining allows the prosecutor an opportunity to obtain guilty pleas in cases which otherwise would go to the stage of trial by the courts concerned. There are two areas in which plea bargain negotiations can be undertaken. They are:  · Charge Bargaining – in the case of ‘charge bargaining’ the defendant is allowed to ‘plead guilty for a lesser charge’ by the prosecutor. Alternatively the defendant may plead guilty of only some of the charges that have been filed against him. This type of plea bargaining is the most common type. Usually the prosecutor in consideration for a plea of guilty to the committing of a lesser charge will dismiss the higher charge. For example in return accepting guilty plea for ‘manslaughter’ the charges of a first degree murder may be dismissed with the approval of the court. Similarly a defendant who has been charged with the crime of ‘burglary’ may be allowed to plead guilty of ‘attempted burglary’ where the sentence may be less.  · Sentence Bargaining – this involves the agreement for pleading guilty for the charges stated in consideration of a lighter sentence. Under this process the prosecution is saved of the time and efforts to go through the process of trial and proving the case. It also provides the defendant to opt for a lighter sentence which would otherwise have been stronger if a trial is conducted and verdict given. Typically all the sentence bargains are to obtain the approval of the trial judges. This type of plea bargaining is being limited by many of the jurisdictions. Sentence bargaining usually happens in some of the high profile cases where the case is being followed effectively by the media and the prosecutor does not want any reduction of charges in the case. In addition to the above there can be another area of plea bargaining known as ‘Fact Bargaining’ – which is the least used process of negotiation with the defendant for admitting certain of the facts of the case. The defendant is given the concession that the prosecution will not bring certain other facts in to evidence if some of the other facts are confirmed by the defendant. This process saves the efforts of the prosecutor the need to prove certain facts in the course of trial. Process of Plea Bargaining There are three essential components which form the basis for making the plea bargains valid. They are; (i) a waiver of rights to the knowledge of all involved, (ii) the waiver should be a voluntary one arrived at using a process of negotiation and (iii) the presence of a factual basis which can support the charges to which the defendant has chosen to plead guilty. Plea bargaining takes place through telephonic conversations or is being attempted at the office of the prosecutor in the court room. Normally the judges do not take part in the process of plea bargaining. But in rare circumstances a judge becomes a party to the plea bargain process. Once the process of bargaining is completed it is placed on record by judge in the open court. At the time of placing the plea bargain on record it is necessary that the defendant is present in the court. It must be noted that the prosecutor is not given the authority to compel a court to accept the plea bargain agreement entered in to by the parties. The prosecutor can only recommend the acceptance of any plea bargain and it is for the court to decide on accepting the plea bargain arrived at. The court will go through the process of satisfying itself through available proofs that the abovementioned three essential elements of plea bargain are present. Only on satisfying about the presence of these elements the court will accept the plea bargain arrangement as recommended by the prosecution. Plea bargaining cannot be considered as a simple process that can be attempted in any case. â€Å"In effectively negotiating a criminal plea arrangement, the attorney must have the technical knowledge of every element of a crime or charge, an understanding of the actual or potential evidence that exists or could be developed, a technical knowledge of lesser included offenses versus separate counts or crimes, and a reasonable understanding of sentencing guidelines† Merits and Demerits of Plea Bargaining Despite the often pointed out criticisms there are certain distinct merits the process of plea bargaining has. It is often the case that more than 90 percent of the criminal cases are decided on the basis of negotiated pleas. This leaves only a meager percentage of the criminal cases going through the process of judicial trial. It provides the judges considerable saving in time in conducting the trials as the judges already hold overcrowded dockets. Further the judges with a view to avoid overcrowding of the prisons are always in favor of negotiated plea bargains. They are receptive to the ‘processing out’ of the criminals who are not likely to get much longer jail terms at the end of the trial. Similarly for the prosecutors since there caseload becomes lighter they can efficiently discharge their functions. The other important aspect of plea bargain is that the process assures a sure ‘conviction’ even the charges accepted are lesser than the originally stated ones. In some of the cases the prosecutors are made to spend considerable time and efforts in defending cases which finally the cases are lost as happened in the case of murder trial of O.J. Simpson. Plea bargaining enable the prosecutors to use the process to obtain damaging testimony against another defendant in the case. This ensures that the prosecutor is sure of at least one conviction even if for a lesser charge and the chances of booking the second defendant also against the testimony of the first defendant obtained through plea bargain. For the defendants plea bargaining provides the opportunity to bargain for a lighter sentence on reduced charges. If the defendant is represented by a private counsel appointed by him the defendant would be able to save considerable costs on conducting the trial. This also provides the opportunity for getting a record of lesser criminal offenses against him. There are certain drawbacks of the plea bargaining process; when the police are involved in the process it may amount to coercion. When the court is involved in the process it may be considered as impartiality on the part of the court. Involving the victim in the process may involve corruption and the rejection of the guilty plea by the accused may result in more hardship to him. (Soura Subha Ghosh) US Supreme Court Cases According to Article III Section 2 (3) of the Constitution of the United States â€Å"The trial of all crimes, except in Cases of impeachment, shall be by Jury† However it has not been held that it is unconstitutional to go through a process of plea bargaining to avoid the judicial trials. On the contrary there are a number of court decisions at the highest levels which have taken up the issue of ‘plea bargaining’ for serious discussion and ruling. The constitutional validity of plea bargaining was addressed by the US Supreme Court only when the process has become an integral part of the criminal judiciary. (eNotes.com) In the case of United States v Jackson (1968) the Court had raised a question on the validity of plea bargaining to the extent that whether the process has burdened the right of the defendant to go through a process of jury trial. In this case the issue was the consideration of a statute that imposed a death penalty only after a jury trial. In this case in order to avoid the death penalty the defendant continued to waive the trials and was eager to negotiate for plea bargaining for a reduction in sentence.   In this case the judge noted that the statue had needlessly encouraged guilty pleas. In the case of Brady v. United States, 397 U.S. 742 (1970) the Court had noted that the plea bargaining process had benefitted both the parties to the case and had thus defended the system. The Court made it known that the remark in the Jackson case was to stress the need for the guilty pleas to be intelligent and voluntary. In Santobello v New York, 404 U.S. 260 (1971) the Court observed that the plea bargaining is an essential component of the administration of justice and thus had justified the constitutional acceptability of the plea bargaining process. The Court added that [as long as it is] properly administered, [plea bargaining] is to be encouraged. North Carolina v Alford, 400 U.S. 25 (1970) can be cited as a landmark case relating to the sphere of plea bargaining. In this case Alford pleaded guilty to a second degree murder prior to trail in the wake of the fact that otherwise he would be sentenced to death penalty on a jury trial in the presence of strong evidences. He was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment. Later on he appealed that his plea bargain was involuntary and was motivated by the fear of death penalty. The appeal court allowed the appeal and reversed his conviction. His argument was on the basis of that the plea bargain violated the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution which states that no person shall be compelled in a criminal case to witness against himself. However the Supreme Court held that a guilty plea representing a voluntary and intelligent choice considering the alternatives available to the defendant cannot be construed that the defendant was compelled (in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the constitution) to follow the guilty plea to avoid the possibility of death penalty. The Supreme Court ordered for the reversal of the appeal court decision and reinstated the sentence of Alford. The term ‘Alford Plea’ thus has come into usage to signify those cases where the defendant tenders a guilty plea and later on denies that he has not committed any crime. There is an express prohibition of ‘Alford Plea’ in certain states and some of the States allow a limited use of the plea. Breaking the Plea Bargain Deal A plea bargain is regarded as a contract between the prosecutor and the defendant and as such both the parties are obligated to perform their parts of the contract without fail. The prosecutor has the authority to revoke the plea bargain if the defendant does not carry out his part of the contract. On the other hand if the prosecutor breaks a deal with the defendant then the defendant has the right to claim for setting aside the plea. Alternatively the defendant may require the court to intervene and instruct the prosecutor to carryout the plea bargain. â€Å"This may happen if the prosecutor has agreed not to authorize additional criminal charges against the defendant in return for the guilty plea, yet subsequently files the charges† (Aaron Larson, 2000)

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Wittgensteins Dilemma :: Philosophy Science Language Papers

Wittgenstein's Dilemma Either language can be defined or it can be investigated empirically. If language is defined then this will be mere tautology. If language is investigated empirically then this will lead to a substantial yet contingent truth. The cure for this dilemma for Wittgenstein in his Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus was to submit the doctrine that the structure of language cannot be said but only shown. This doctrine is vague and misconceived. In this essay, I will show that it is vague and misconceived and, consequently, why it does not cure his dilemma. Wittgenstein stated in the preface of his book that he had solved the problems of philosophy. That these problems had been formulated by the misuse of the logic of our language by philosophers. What philosophers had been saying could simply not be said. Their philosophy was beyond the scope of what could be said and was therefore nonsense. By plotting the limits of language, Wittgenstein expected to be able to deal with the problems of philosophy finally. Outside the limits of what can be said lies nonsense, so any theory of language must occur within these limits. Wittgenstein thought that the nature of language could tell us what can and cannot be done with it. He believed this because he deduced that language had its own limits fixed within its structure. So, in his theory of language, he revealed the structure of language to entail these limits of language which were also necessary truths. However, this meant that they would also be empty tautologies! Wittgenstein believed that language disguises thought and therefore the nature of propositions would reveal the nature of the language that represents it. So, Wittgenstein based his theory of language on the nature of propositions. Within the nature of propositions, Wittgenstein found a satisfactory account of logical necessity. This lead to the fact that the limits of language were logically necessary. In this essay, I shall give an account of Wittgenstein's theory of propositions and show that his elementary propositions are in fact divisible. I will outline his 'picture theory' and show that the consequential 'doctrine of showing' is vague and misconceived. I shall submit my own theory of the tautology as a possible cure for the above dilemma. Numbers appearing after quotes refer to the numbered passages in the Tractatus. To begin, then, some detail of Wittgenstein's theory of propositions is needed in order to see how the important 'atomic' propositions idea came about.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Public, Private and Mixed Goods

Goods are tangiable items which satisfy human wants and needs. Humans find them important and desirable so they make efforts to acquire them. In modern economies goods are classified into three main categories namely,1. pure private goods 2. pure public goods 3. mixed(quasi/public) goods and they are outlined in the passage below. Pure private goods These are all the goods produced by private companies whose aim is to make a profit and they are used exclusively for the satisfaction of private needs for example food,clothing and property.They are not free goods,they come with a price and cannot be substituted with other goods. One of the features of pure private goods is that they are produced by private firms whose main aim is to make a profit. These private firms identify individuals’ private needs for example clothing and then they undertake intreprenuerial activities to satisfy them while at the same time earning profit. Private firms compete against each other in order to get a higher market share and consequently this results in high quality goods being produced. The second feature is that these goods are distributed in the market against a price.Access to these goods is not free but implies a cost called a price which the firms charge on consumers. The price is established by the free interplay of market forces,demand and supply. The market brings together producers and consumers who are both willing and able to buy the goods. Pure private goods are also financed out of private revenues. For the costs which the firms incur,they pay out of their private funds which are usually the proprietor’s capital and retained profits. When these are not sufficient,they can get some bank loans. These goods are also excludable.Only those indviduals who pay for them get to consume them. Those without income,with different tastes and preferences as well as those incompatible with some technical features of the products are denied the chance to consume them. Someone who cannot afford a car may opt for public transport or bicycles,and thus,he is excluded from using the good (car). They are also rivalrous. An increase in the units of goods consumed results in an increase in cost. An example is an increase in demand for bread,for a bakery to produce the additional loaves to meet demand,the costs of electricity,rent and labour will also increase.Pure public goods These are goods produced and distributed by state owned companies or public institutions whose scope is to provide goods and services in a way that is both accessible and affordable to all. They can be consumed by individuals or companies but do not lead to a reduction in the consumption volume of others for example street lighting. Pure public goods are produced directly by the government or private firms under lease. The state sees these as very important and should be provided to all so it remains the sole provider to ensure these are available to everyone at low and affordable prices.An example is justice which is soley provided by the government. At times it leases some private firms to provide some strategic services for example garbage collection. Unlike pure private goods,their provision is financed out of compulsory tax revenues. These come in different forms for example income tax and coperate tax which individuals and companies pay respectively. This income is then channelled towards the provision of pure public goods for example construction of public roads. However,the income collected this way may not be enough so the difference is paid out of the state budget.These goods are distributed through the public budget. The government identifies the public needs and makes priorities as to which ones can be satisfied first according to the ammount of resources at hand and the importance of certain goods to the public. For example,a leaking sewer pipe in a city maybe repaired first before constructing a new road since public health is more important. Pu re public goods are also non-excludable meaning that not any single member of the society can be denied the consumption of these goods for example police services. Because of this,they remain entirely in the hands of the government.Everyone benefits whether or not they make contributions through compulsory taxes and cannot deny these utilities. The degree of exclusion for these goods depends on the technical features and resources available to the producer. An example is the government failing to construct a road in a certain location due to inadequate construction resources. The consumption of these goods is non-rival,meaning that their costs do not increase due to an increase in the number of the consumers. This comes about since by nature,the products cannot be divided for example national defence.It is not possible to provide defence for a certain group of people and isolate the rest but instead,it is collectively enjoyed and the cost of providing defence does not increase due t o an increase in national population. Mixed (quasi public) goods Mixed goods are the halfway house between public and private goods. They are like private goods in that they are rivalrous and excludable but they provide significant non-rivalrous non-excludable external benefits for which preferences are not revealed by the market mechanism for example health,education and fire service.Individual ownership claims to these goods are minimal. A feature of mixed goods is that they are collectively enjoyed for example education. When a person is educated he receives a benefit from this, which is expressed in terms of higher earnings and improved job prospects. However, the community as a whole also benefits from the individual's education, in that his productivity is enhanced, which is good for everyone. Mixed goods are also produced by the government and or by private firms for example education.The government owns some educational institutions at low or zero costs while others are priv ate and profit making. The government provides the basic education to individuals and those who want to advance or to get superior services have to enrole into private institutions and they pay a higher price for the srevices. These goods are also distributed through the budget or market. For the part which the government is responsible for producing,it distributes them through the state budget by means of prioritising public needs and moderating the resources available.It also seeks to ensure that they are provided at affordable prices. Private companies also distribute goods according to their own private resources and they do this through the market. Mixed goods are also financed from sales’ revenues and other revenue generating activities. Private firms get their income from sales turnover and they use it to produce more goods and services. However,government parastatals may have lower revenues since their prices should be low and affordable to all unless if they privatis e or lease to private companies.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

The Killing Lincoln Essay

Mr.. Fallopian Essay Killing Lincoln The novel, Killing Lincoln, and author Bill Reilly have been berated by critics and reviewers due to its historical inaccuracies implanted throughout the read. Many are turned off by the false information given yet there are others who enjoy it because it adds a little kick to the book. Am one of those who believe that even though there are a plethora of errors in the novel, it is an enjoyable read. The novel is an enjoyable and entertaining read, yet there are a vast number ho do not believe so.Killing Lincoln has been banned from one Of the Ford's Theatre bookstores while the others still continue to sell it (Horopito). In my opinion, feel that is a little absurd. Reilly states that there were several meetings held in the oval office before the oval office was even constructed. Yes that is incorrect because it was not constructed until the Taft administration, but it is a minor detail. It does not take away from the bigger picture and importance of why the book was written in the first place.His next mistake was citing that the Ford Theatre was burned in 1 862 instead of 1861. Does one year make that big of a difference to all those historians out there? The peephole in the state box door was carved by Harry Ford, manager of the Ford's Theatre, not Booth but by stating that Booth had carved the peephole, it keeps the readers on their toes and more interested. It spices things up. That's what books are meant to do. Attract and hook readers into the novel. That was Reality's goal.Not to just write another story book, but to write one that could be informational while entertaining at the same time even though that means making the slightest mistakes to keep it entertaining. Reilly has many people attacking him for his errors. Christian Science Monitor's Jackie Hogan ambushes Reilly because she believes that he made Lincoln look like too good of a person instead of speaking the truth about him to make a good story. She says th e book is â€Å"sensationalists, suggestive, and overly simplistic† (Horopito).Oriel's purpose of the book was to write a good story and through extrapolating his novel became more compelling. If he were to include all of the facts about Lincoln, his book would be no different than any other novels on Lincoln, Booth and the assassination. I believe Reilly and Martin Dugan did an excellent job writing this novel. Besides the minor inaccuracies, the novel is a very entertaining and an eye opening read. That was their intention when they first started to write the book and that is, in my opinion, what they did.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Increase Your Traffic + Get Better Results With This Content Distribution Strategy Template

Increase Your Traffic + Get Better Results With This Content Distribution Strategy Template If youve been working on search engine optimization  or any form of promotion for your content, you might have come across the term â€Å"content distribution†. You’ve just spent loads of time and money to produce an amazing whitepaper, video, or other content types†¦ Now, it’s a waiting game as all those readers come rushing in to read your amazing content piece, right? If only it were that easy. Just because you’ve finished the content, doesn’t mean you’re done. In some ways, the hard work is just beginning. Now you’ve got to promote it, and in a world where there are 4 million blog posts published on the Internet every single day, your content distribution strategy has to be on point. This post breaks down the best ways to promote your content, how to create a distribution strategy, and why its so important to your marketing. Recommended Reading: How to Write White Papers People Actually Want to Read (Free Template) The Best eBook Template to Generate More Subscribers (+ Easy eBook Ideas) Download This Content Distribution Template But first, check out this content distribution template. You’ll find an easy-to-follow template to track your entire content distribution strategy from start to finish. It’s also easily customizable for each of your projects to make sure that you’re promoting each content item in the best way. What is Content Distribution? While it's a term thrown around in numerous marketing circles, it can have numerous meanings. As distribution has become more important to the success of content today, it’s important to understand the nuts and bolts of content distribution as a term. Content distribution  is the act of promoting content through any means by companies and brands to provide content to its targeted audience. It breaks down into three different areas, owned channels, earned channels and paid content. These three channels provide the fundamentals of how you distribute the content appropriately. Owned Channels These channels are the foundation of your entire online presence. It's any medium that you create and control. Common examples would be your website or an app you've developed. But these days, your social media page, your blog, or even a YouTube page, are all classed as owned channels. Without sufficient content on your own channels, your brand is not able to build, which can limit your ability to convert customers. To make the most of your own channels, you can break your techniques down into three individual components. The content:  Content is key to your entire operation, and the distribution of content can include blogs, e-books, infographics, as well as videos. Videos have been vital in improving promotion, especially search engine optimization, as videos generate a 41% higher click-through rate  than plain text. Posting and sharing of information:  The bread and butter of engaging with potential and existing customers. By posting information and sharing it via social media platforms, you can build a following and tempt new custom in. This helps to direct traffic to your website as well as using social media to get your content to a broader audience. Marketing via email:  While social media is a great way to engage with your customers, email marketing is a great way to make the most of your existing contacts and to convert them onto your latest products. Earned Channels Earned channels are essentially the equivalent of word of mouth. If the content that you post on your owned media is picked up by third-party sites, this results in organic search engine rankings. The most significant driving forces behind earned media boil down to two things: Search engine ranking:  The rankings can be determined by numerous components, but primarily it's about a good SEO strategy. Search engine optimization  is such an evolving beast that to make earned media shareable by third parties, the content working in conjunction with ranking on the first page are the two components that need to be in tandem with each other. The content distributed by the brand:  no matter how you dress it up, the content has to be good enough to warrant mentions, reposts, recommendations, and shares. Paid Channels The paid channels refer to the external marketing approaches that, as you would suspect, results from a paid placement. It can be argued that paid media appears to be unnecessary, especially in comparison to earned and owned channels, but this third aspect works with the other two channels to help a business grow significantly. Ultimately, paid media is one of the best and quickest ways to get traffic. Think of a stagnating business that's not able to establish its brand. By investing in paid media to display content across social networks, you are getting exposure in a way that would not happen if you were to go through organic methods. For example, a promoted post may very well be a new customer’s first experience of your brand. This results in increased traffic and this traffic can be easier to track than other organic methods. As social media can provide appropriate statistics on the leads or clicks your page content gets, this can give you instantaneous feedback as to whether this method is working for you. And as the three most prominent areas of paid media are branded content, display ads, and PPC  advertising, it's likely you are already making headway through the paid channels anyway. But by using paid channels in conjunction with earned and owned channels, you are supporting your brand with that all-important trifecta of content distribution. Why Content Distribution is Important Content and its success is all about planning and preparation. You could argue that it's about the type of content you create, but content distribution and great content are two sides to the same coin. Recently, 56% of marketers  stated they outsource one part of their marketing strategies, which has resulted in an increased need for help in content creation. And as 78% of marketers have reported that their business has improved due to better content creation, this shows that enhancing the content through these three channels has improved marketing in numerous ways. To improve your marketing capabilities, you cannot rely on one aspect of your content distribution. Breaking it down into these three essential components, and following them to the letter, will result in a brand that is evenly distributed. Content is king, and as content distribution becomes highlighted as one of the biggest marketing opportunities that brands don't utilize, harnessing these three different areas can push a struggling business into more prominent quarters. Many brands may make the most of one or two areas of this trifecta, but, if you recognize that you're not making the most of all of them, this will soon become apparent. So many brands make the most of PPC or plunge their efforts into search engine optimization, but to be competitive and to maintain an edge, content distribution is the missing ingredient. For those brands looking to improve their strategies, looking to keep on top of trends, and make the most of marketing tools, ensure your content distribution is at the forefront of your marketing strategy. How to create a #content distribution strategy with a free template.How to Create a Content Distribution Strategy Step-by-Step Providing relevant content at the right time to the people who need it is an integral part of digital marketing, but it won’t happen by accident. To achieve an effective content distribution, you need to follow a step-by-step strategy. List Your Target Distribution Channels Your target distribution channels are the sites, organizations or entities from which you disseminate content. Content marketing distribution channels may include social networks, your website, a partner blog, a podcast or some other digital medium. Before you begin your content distribution strategy, therefore, it’s worth writing down a list of all the ways you’ll distribute your content with a brief justification for why. Guest Posts on External Websites Guest posts on external websites have two functions: to promote your content  to a new audience and to create links to your site for SEO purposes. These articles can introduce your content to people who wouldn’t ordinarily see it and who might benefit from it in the future. Before posting on external sites, think about whether they attract visitors who could benefit from your product. Here’s an example of a guest post on Convince Convert by . Another strategy for guest posting is to reach out to bloggers of articles that already exist on your target keywords. You can ask the author to add a section about your tool/product with a link back to your website. Online Communities Online communities are any place on the web where people gather to interact. Distributing content through these channels (Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, Reddit, forums, etc.) can be effective because communities naturally generate interest and engagement. Ideally, you want to create shareable and â€Å"commentable† content that produces a buzz. Be careful with this tactic however, you want to genuinely helpful and not promotional. Here’s an example of a discussion on Reddit regarding Facebook advertising. This would be a good opportunity to link to a content piece from your blog that helps solve the poster’s problem. External Podcasts External podcasts  can be an excellent vehicle for distributing content to a new audience. Many media firms, like the BBC and the Wall Street Journal, give space to businesses on their podcasts to speak about what they do. This example is from the Wall Street Journal is inspired by the popular column which commuters can turn to for insights on business, the economy, markets, and politics. The content on podcasts is usually newsworthy and topical. It can be a great way to increase brand awareness and reach new audiences that are not aware of your product or service. Internal Blog Posts Blog posts on your own site are an opportunity to tell your audience more about yourself and provide them with real value. Coca-Cola  - the world’s premier soft drinks brand - has one of the top company blogs in the world. It talks about its approach to corporate responsibility, its plans to make the business more sustainable, and how the company operates internally. The blog is a great tool to get readers engaged in content and up-to-date with trends. Internal Videos Internal videos are videos that companies make for the benefit of their colleagues. Although most businesses focus on external videos - or those that are customer-facing - internal videos can have tremendous value for training and teaching staff about the company values. Walmart  has been using internal videos to distribute content for many years to teach new hires about the importance of warehouse safety and correct lifting techniques. Webinars Webinars  are interactive online seminars where a company imparts information and then invites guests to ask questions and give feedback. ARK Invest  is an investment broker with a focus on future technology. The firm hosts monthly webinars where it explains to customers why it is investing in certain sectors (like robotics or genetics) and how they think the market will adjust to new technological changes in the future. Investors can then ask questions about why the firm is investing their money in a particular way. Demos Demos of how a product works are a great way to get information across to customers. Although demos are usually explicitly promotional, this doesn't mean that they can't be used to educate customers about the powerful benefits of a new product. In 2018, Google demoed  its new product, Duplex, which is an AI voice bot that can conduct basic conversations on a user’s behalf (for instance, book a table at a restaurant). At Google I/O 2018, the company demonstrated the product live, showcasing it’s audience the benefits directly. Infographics Infographics  use a combination of pictures and text to convey information or statistics readably. Supply Spy, a firm that helps users research Amazon products, has an infographic which breaks down the complicated topic of Amazon seller fees into manageable chunks, helping to make the subject more approachable. Guides Shopify is a platform which provides a range of utilities to budding online retailers, such as website design and payment facilities. Setting up an online store can be a complicated business, so Shopify provides guides  for all sorts of things, such as how to sell on eBay, small business marketing on Twitter, selling products on Amazon, and how to grow an e-commerce business with email marketing. Social Media Channels Pizza Hut  is one of the most interesting examples of a company that uses social media distribution effectively. Rather than use its Twitter feed to advertise money-off coupons (which seems to be the default position of many other pizza chains), it uses social media to celebrate the product that it sells. By doing this, it creates much more engaging, likable and sharable content and video. Email Email marketing has the highest ROI of any form of digital marketing, according to  Litmus Software. Many companies use email to distribute special offers and deals tailored to their customers, but the most successful email campaigns tend to be those that communicate genuinely exciting information. Evans Cycles, a cycling firm based in the UK, sends customers a combination of special offers and informational videos on how to look after their bicycles. Ebook Ebooks are in-depth resources that companies can provide their customers to cement their authority in a particular field. Ebooks demonstrate to customers that a business has substantial expertise, making them a preferred source of reliable information. Deloitte  is a professional services company that provides tax advice, management consultancy and strategy advice to firms all over the world. Its work is detailed, so it often uses ebooks to complement the work that it does with firms. The company’s clients can get bespoke advice direct from consultants and then refer to ebooks if they need a refresher once consulting is finished. A Better Way to Plan Your Content Distribution Strategy Sure the content distribution tracking spreadsheet included in this blog will do the job†¦ But, let’s be honest, the last thing most marketing managers need is another spreadsheet to add to their ever-growing list. The good news is, there’s a better way. Your entire team can collaborate, plan and execute their content distribution strategy with . No spreadsheets, no manual updating, no status updates. Just one amazing hub to plan it all. Here’s how it works: To start, add a new marketing project in by clicking the plus sign on your project kickoff date. Then choose the option entitled â€Å"marketing campaign† on the list. Next, add each individual content promotion and distribution item to your marketing campaign. Once you’ve added all the individual content distribution tactics, you’ll see a visualization of every element on your calendar. Everyone on your team will know exactly what is going live and when, and their tasks for each tactic. Goal Setting Goal setting is an essential aspect of your overall content distribution strategy, whether you’re trying to reach people through social media tools, external blogs, your website. But how do you set effective content distribution goals? Decide on The Nature of Your Goals Some organizations create content for the sake of creating content, thinking that it will put them at an advantage. But any experienced digital marketer worth their salt will tell you that the only way to drive things forward is to make sure that you're clear on why you’re distributing content in the first place. You may want to distribute content for the following reasons: Generate more leads Increase your conversion rate Improve awareness of your brand Increase customer retention To educate your audience Get more traffic to your website The content distribution strategy you choose will depend on your overall goals. A plan designed to improve awareness of your brand will be very different from one that hopes to increase customer retention or upsell customers on various products. Some businesses  try to be smart and align content with multiple goals, hoping to kill many birds with one stone. Companies create content that they expect will improve their ranking in search engines, generate a buzz on social media, increase awareness of their brand and boost leads. But trying to tick all the boxes rarely works and you may find that your content is less useful in certain channels than it would be had you stuck to a specific strategy. For example, you might create a wordy blog to help you rank for specific keywords in Google search.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Dispositions Essay Essay Example

Dispositions Essay Essay Example Dispositions Essay Paper Dispositions Essay Paper I found it easy to peg these six as my strongest and weakest points and thought through of how to issues each and every one of them. Am a very accepting person, Im the first person to introduce myself to the new kid in class, and often found myself giving tours to many new kids when was in high school. Ive listed adaptable to change as one of my weakest points because of how accepting am. Was the first person my best friend came out to; I find people have a degree of comfort with me. I think this is important in the area of childhood education because not all kids fit in with the majority, bullying develops where some children feel excluded in activities and as the trusted adult in the tuition, having a level of comfort with me will help them feel more safe and included. I also feel this helps with accepting situations along with people. As much as I dont adapt to changes, I will accept the situation. Believe that will be successful in early childhood education because am imaginative and problem solving. This comes in handy with any situation involving children, when babysitting it easily helped me develop games to keep them entertained while also teaching them important lessons. Children are filled with imagination already and it seems to fade away earlier and earlier with very generation. I also listed self confident about abilities, meaning I am not. Enlisted my mother to help me pick out my traits because I couldnt decide them on my own accurately. Im told constantly how smart I am but also how I hold it inside, hold myself back. That being said, a lack of self confidence never helped anyone get anywhere. My plan when it comes to this weakness is with this course, want to start trusting myself and what decisions I make. My last strength is that Im patient with others; this comes in handy when it comes to children. Children are not patient beings at all; I dont know how they survive all year waiting for Christmas. That being said some children arent as fast to learn things in school, such as special needs children, and being patient with them will be positive to both of us. Some children do feel rushed and overwhelmed in school and I believe being patient with them will only help further their education and help them succeed. My last weakness is trusting Of others, this was another trait I enlisted my mother for, she tells me Im too trusting of others and I agree. I have always been the trusting one, someone people can count on even when I cant count on them. I believe everyone deserves a second chance and my plan to fix this to develop a thicker skin when it comes to trusting. Not to say trusting someone is a bad thing, when it comes to early childhood education, trusting your children is great and the children you teach trusting you is even better. I believe I have many positive traits but the strongest ones would be that am very accepting, imaginative, problem solving and patient. With all of those strong traits I have overall weak traits including that I am not very adaptable to change, am also not very self confident in myself or my abilities and Im over trusting of those Of whom might not deserve it. Hope to improve on my weakest traits by improving myself and my education. Feel as my weakest traits stem from myself and that I can only change by changing and loving myself. I have explained how each and every trait is helpful in the world of early childhood education, even the bad traits. In conclusion, I can only get better by furthering myself and my education.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Definition and Tips for Business Writing Best Practices

Definition and Tips for Business Writing Best Practices Business writing is a  professional communication tool (also known as  business communication or  professional writing) corporations and other professional entities use to communicate with either an internal or external audience. Memorandums,  reports,  proposals,  emails, and a variety of other business-related written materials are all forms of business writing. Tips for Effective Business Writing The purpose of business writing is a transactional one. Of course, the content of business writing relates to a business entity but it also relates to a specific and purposeful transaction between the writer and his or her audience. According to Brant W. Knapp, author of A Project Managers Guide to Passing the Project Management Exam, the best business writing can be understood clearly when read quickly. The message should be well planned, simple, clear, and direct. Fast Facts: Basic Business Writing Goals To Convey Information: Forms of business communication, such as research reports or policy memos, are written to disseminate knowledge.Delivers News: Professional writing is often used to share recent events and accomplishments with both internal and external audiences. Call to Action: Business professionals use writing in an attempt to influence others for numerous reasons from selling merchandise to passing legislature.Explains or justifies an Action: Professional communication allows a business entity to explain their beliefs or to justify their actions. The following tips, adapted from Oxford Living Dictionaries,  form a good foundation for business writing best practices. Put your main points first. State exactly why youre writing the correspondence upfront. One exception to this rule is for sales letters. Reminding the recipient of a past meeting or a common connection you share is an acceptable way to open as it may influence the recipient to be more amenable to your intended aims.Use everyday words. Using words such as about rather than concerning, expect rather than anticipate, and part instead of component will make your writing less stilted.Know your audience. Unless its aimed at an industry-specific audience, dont fill your writing with lots of technical jargon. (Specifics can be attached separately.) Adjust your tone to suit your intended reader. For instance, a letter of complaint would have a far different tone than a letter of reference. Finally- this should go without saying- never use derogatory or sexist language, and actively work to  eliminate gender-biased language from any form of business communication.Use contractions when possib le. Business writing has undergone a shift from formal to a more accessible style so using we’re not we are, and we’ve not we have  is the way to go. Even so, you dont always have to use a contraction. A good rule of thumb is that if a contraction improves the sentence flow use it; if the sentence is more persuasive without it, use two words. Use active rather than passive verbs. Active verbs allow the reader to comprehend quickly and to understand more completely. For example, The decision has implemented to suspend production, leaves the interpretation of who made the decision to call it quits open. On the other hand, the meaning of, Weve decided to suspend production, is clear.Write tight. Again, using the example above, choosing the word decided rather than made the decision makes reading easier for the audience.Don’t be a slave to rules in every situation. Again, this is a case of knowing your audience. If your aim is to make your writing conversational, its fine to end a sentence with a preposition now and then, especially to improve flow and avoid awkward construction. That said, while many businesses have their own in-house style guides, elementary rules for style and grammar must be observed for your writing- and you- to be considered professional. Sloppy writing, poor word choices, or an unearned overly f amiliar attitude can come back to haunt you. Keep your font choices simple. Stick to a nice, clean type style such as Helvetica or Times New Roman and limit the number of fonts you use in correspondence. Your goal is something that legible and easy to read.Dont overuse visuals. According to sources at Technical Business Writing, Graphic displays should make up no more than 10 to 25 percent of the business writing. Too many graphics become confusing and often detract from the message you want to convey. A few, powerful, well-placed graphics will accomplish more to get your point across than something that looks like a bad attempt at scrapbooking.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Roc of Ages Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Roc of Ages - Essay Example To my surprise, my first period teacher revealed the identity of the mystery man when she announced that she was sure we had all met the doorman, Roc. "Don't try to skirt the dress code" she explained. "And don't be late. Roc likes punctuality". According to the school board classification Roc was the custodian, but as time passed she said we would come to view him as much more than just a simple janitor. She had no reservations in informing us that Roc was not only here to restore order to the mess left behind by students with social skills still stuck in elementary school, but he was also here to teach a class that wasn't offered in any classroom. That subject was humility, humanity, and modesty. I panicked. I wasn't even prepared for biology, much less a class taught by a one armed custodian, not even on my schedule as to where or when it met. As the first year progressed, I did however, have many opportunities to attend Roc's classes. He was assistant coach for the football team, throwing and catching with one arm as great as Johnny Unitas. He held class in the hallway, on the football field, and at the front door. I was surprised to learn he had a degree in animal psychology and was always willing to be a tutor for any needy student.

Friday, October 18, 2019

The Assault on Reason by Al Gore Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Assault on Reason by Al Gore - Essay Example Extrapolating this to â€Å"The Assault on Reason† by Al Gore, the basic premise is essentially the same. The practice of politics that is an affront to reason and instead preys upon my insecurities and fears often leads to sections of society, by their nature of being less privileged, vulnerable to further exploitation. In a society where there is a premium on high skilled jobs filled by people with college degrees and access to sophisticated programs of skill development, the marginalization of certain ethnic communities happens in a â€Å"double whammy† fashion. First, these communities are not able to put themselves through college or pay for acquiring specialized skills. In a further affront, they are pushed down the chain as a result of non availability of jobs that can employ them. Thus, they not only are left out of the race but go down the â€Å"food chain† as well. This is just one instance of how the current political and economic structure favors a pr ivileged few at the expense of the majority. If Al Gore were to re-write his book, he can draw lots of inspiration from Prof. Young’s framework and this paper looks at how the ideas of Gore as well as Young have a certain convergence as far as the theme of oppression is concerned. Essentially, both Al Gore and Prof. Young have the same theme of state power and power of the elite employing the methods of control and influence. While Prof. Young has provided a framework of oppression listing the five faces, Al Gore details the practices of state and elite control over the masses. The difference here is one of theory (Young) and practice (Gore) that may be explained by the fact that while Prof. Young’s was an academic study, Al Gore’s book was made for a wider target audience and written in a style that is easily understood by the lay reader. Each chapter of Al Gore’s book is a detailed description of the ways in which the mainstream media, the

Weka programme Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Weka programme - Essay Example It is a free software issues under GNU General Public License. Weka stands for Waikato Environment for Knowledge Analysis. It is the software which allows businesses to extract useful information out of large databases. This is the process of data mining which is a field that analyzes large sets of data and discovers patterns and methods for the management, processing, and inference considerations of the data. Weka software offers businesses a collection of learning tools and schemes that may be used for data mining (Witten, 2011, p. 132). There are four applications in the program which are accessible; these are Explorer, Experimenter, KnowledgeFlow, and Simple CLI. The first section of the software is to open the database or the dataset and make the edits as the user wishes. These edits include the filtering of data contents, changing of attributes, and visualizing the result in a bar chart. The available data can also be classified according to the set of rules which are predefined and can perform a complete analysis of cost-benefit that would display automatically the threshold curve and the cost matrix (Witten, 2011, p. 132). Moreover, the program also has many tools for the data clustering, attributes evaluator, and association rules. In addition, businesses also use it for the data plotting allowing the user to view and analyze the point graphs individually for each possible attribute combination. Businesses also use the weka programme as it is suitable for the development of new machine learning schemes. The user simply has to configure the experiment by choosing the type: classification or regression. Then the desired data set and algorithm has to be chosen and then it is ready to be run. The results of this procedure can be saved in CSV format or ARFF or as JDBC database. A data file can also be analyzed or tested through the program as it allows the user to choose the comparison field and the sorting criteria on

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Critical inquiry about an aspect of visual culture, about the idea Essay

Critical inquiry about an aspect of visual culture, about the idea change on culture - Essay Example However, through many of the traditions of Mardi Gras exploitation of foreign manufacturing is taking place. The film Mardi Gras: Made in China is a documentary that shows how one of the most sexualized, but constant traditions of Mardi Gras is contributing to the exploitation of Chinese factory workers. The baggage that existed in approaching this topic consists of knowing that there are Chinese workers involved in creating the visual culture of Mardi Gras, creating bold and gaudy beads that are used for a consumer exchange of nudity for cheap products. However, the full understanding of what it means to be a Chinese factory worker was not known before doing research for this project. In watching the documentary Mardi Gras: Made in China the visual presentation of culture by contrasting the wasteful and hedonistic culture of Mardi Gras compared to the austere culture of the factory workers was startling. Young women in Mardi Gras debase themselves by showing their breasts to get che ap beads, a party atmosphere infectious and transforming them into performing this ritual. In China, the stark reality of the young women who work in these factories opens up the eyes of the viewer to what it means to create these beads that are used so carelessly. ... 11). The simple understanding of Mardi Gras is that it is a celebration that comes before the Catholic period of Lent. Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, which refers to the tradition of eating rich, fatty foods before Ash Wednesday which begins a period of fasting and reduced pleasure in food. While Mardi Gras itself is celebrated in many cultures and just on that specific Tuesday, in New Orleans it is celebrated for the two weeks before lent which falls in February. The tradition was brought to New Orleans by the French who settled the region. The official colors of the festival, introduced in 1872 by the Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff, are purple which signifies justice, green which signifies faith, and gold which signifies power (Hale, 2007). Mardi Gras is ripe with tradition. Large scale parades are sponsored by ‘krewes’ which are racially and gender specific, making up the rich ethnically diverse history of New Orleasns. The parades are highly visual events with cheap beads , doubloons, and other items thrown each day from the floats. The air is filled with colorful items flying through the air and being caught by people in wild costumes that rival those on the people who populate the floats. Collecting these items during the celebration leads to disposing of them as trash at the end of the celebration. Mardi Gras is a time when sexual and social beliefs are suspended and people begin to behave in hedonistic ways. One of the traditions of Mardi Gras is that in exchange for showing their breasts and sometimes more, men will give women strings of beads. This commoditization of nudity in exchange for the collection of beads creates a

Philip Morris USA v. Williams. Brief facts Case Study

Philip Morris USA v. Williams. Brief facts - Case Study Example At initial trial the jury awarded her $821,485.50 as compensatory damages and $79.5 million as punitive damages in the case. However, the trial court on an appeal reduced the amounts to $521,485.50 and $32 million respectively. On an reverse appeal the Oregon Court of Appeals reversed the trial courts decision and upheld the earlier amount awarded by the jury as compensation. The Supreme Court of United States granted certiorari in the case, vacated the Court of Appeals judgment and sent back the case to the same court of appeal to reconsider the amount of punitive damages awarded in the case. In particular Supreme Court referring to the due process clause of the fourteenth amendment declined to grant punitive damages to individuals who were not part of litigation. In a third appeal before the Supreme Court by Philips Morris the court remanded the case back for re-trial. The basic issues before the jury, trial court, court of appeal and the supreme court were varied. The Court had to decide that if compensatory and punitive damages are made out in the case and if they are maintainable and to be awarded then to what extent. Ans. The basic jurisdiction in this lied till the Court of Appeal in the state of Oregon. ... Ans. The case had been in the litigation process for ten years. 3. What is jurisdiction in relation to this case Ans. The basic jurisdiction in this lied till the Court of Appeal in the state of Oregon. The deceased and the plaintiff belonged to that state. After that on further appeal and review petitions the case was tried by the Supreme Court of United States. 4. What is the relationship between the court system, litigation process, and jurisdiction Ans. There is a threefold relationship between the court system, litigation process and jurisdiction. If we take the example of the present case then we see that the deceased and the Plaintiff(his wife) lived in the State of Oregon, so the jurisdiction of the district court lied in there case. Jurisdiction is of three types. Personal, Territorial and Subject matter. In this case the territorial jurisdiction was made out. The Court system is divided according to the jurisdiction of a State. First it's the trial Court of the State, then the Court of Appeal and further it can also be Supreme Court. The litigation process is said to be started from the trial Court and can go up to Supreme Court till the final decision has not been arrived at. References www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/03/AR2008120303377.html

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Critical inquiry about an aspect of visual culture, about the idea Essay

Critical inquiry about an aspect of visual culture, about the idea change on culture - Essay Example However, through many of the traditions of Mardi Gras exploitation of foreign manufacturing is taking place. The film Mardi Gras: Made in China is a documentary that shows how one of the most sexualized, but constant traditions of Mardi Gras is contributing to the exploitation of Chinese factory workers. The baggage that existed in approaching this topic consists of knowing that there are Chinese workers involved in creating the visual culture of Mardi Gras, creating bold and gaudy beads that are used for a consumer exchange of nudity for cheap products. However, the full understanding of what it means to be a Chinese factory worker was not known before doing research for this project. In watching the documentary Mardi Gras: Made in China the visual presentation of culture by contrasting the wasteful and hedonistic culture of Mardi Gras compared to the austere culture of the factory workers was startling. Young women in Mardi Gras debase themselves by showing their breasts to get che ap beads, a party atmosphere infectious and transforming them into performing this ritual. In China, the stark reality of the young women who work in these factories opens up the eyes of the viewer to what it means to create these beads that are used so carelessly. ... 11). The simple understanding of Mardi Gras is that it is a celebration that comes before the Catholic period of Lent. Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, which refers to the tradition of eating rich, fatty foods before Ash Wednesday which begins a period of fasting and reduced pleasure in food. While Mardi Gras itself is celebrated in many cultures and just on that specific Tuesday, in New Orleans it is celebrated for the two weeks before lent which falls in February. The tradition was brought to New Orleans by the French who settled the region. The official colors of the festival, introduced in 1872 by the Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff, are purple which signifies justice, green which signifies faith, and gold which signifies power (Hale, 2007). Mardi Gras is ripe with tradition. Large scale parades are sponsored by ‘krewes’ which are racially and gender specific, making up the rich ethnically diverse history of New Orleasns. The parades are highly visual events with cheap beads , doubloons, and other items thrown each day from the floats. The air is filled with colorful items flying through the air and being caught by people in wild costumes that rival those on the people who populate the floats. Collecting these items during the celebration leads to disposing of them as trash at the end of the celebration. Mardi Gras is a time when sexual and social beliefs are suspended and people begin to behave in hedonistic ways. One of the traditions of Mardi Gras is that in exchange for showing their breasts and sometimes more, men will give women strings of beads. This commoditization of nudity in exchange for the collection of beads creates a

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

How Personal Can Ethics Get Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

How Personal Can Ethics Get - Essay Example 953). Two very different individuals may carry with them two entirely different perspectives of the world. These perspectives possess a viable potential to influence the individuals’ preferences concerning a variety of considerations in the organizational workplace. One area of an organization which is undoubtedly influenced by personal differences and (related differing preferences) is ethics. S.J. Reynolds (2006) finds that â€Å"individual differences can interact with issue characteristics to shape moral awareness† (qtd. Trevino, Weaver, & Reynolds, 2006, p. 954). As such, two different people may perceive an ethical dilemma differently. For example, one person may perceive the existence of nepotism in the workplace as a coincidence in which an employer’s relatives happened to be best suited for a job. Another person may perceive the existence of nepotism in the workplace as a breach of ethics in which fair hiring principles are abandoned in favor of personal interest. Whereas the former may derive their opinion from a personal experience in which a family business proved fruitful, another may harbor grievances concerning high levels of unemployment effecting his or her family, community, or self. The former maintains an ethical preference for directly helping one’s friends and family, while the latter maintains an ethical preference for indirectly helping one’s friends and family by maintaining fair and equal hiring practices. An organization containing both hypothetical individuals is subsequently shaped and form by the shifting dynamic of their conflicting ideals. Discuss how organizational policies and procedures can impact ethics. The ethical preferences of members of an organization are shaped by individuals’ predisposed positions on varying issues as well as externally imposed policy and procedure. As such, an organization’s policies and procedures can impact criterion for ethical dilemmas as well as e thical results substantially. Wotruba, Chonko, and Lo (2001) identify three primary functions executed by codes of ethics in an organization. First, codes of ethics can demonstrate a concern for ethics by the organization. In this manner, an organization may elect to create a code of ethics in an attempt to convey a general awareness and reverence for ethical observation and conduct in the workplace. For example, a company might create a code of ethics which is read and understood by its newly hired employees during their training in an effort to effectively communicate that the company is aware of ethics and embraces ethics as a high priority in the workplace. Second, codes of ethics can â€Å"transmit ethical values of the organization to its members† (Wotruba, Chonko, and Lo, 2001, p. 59). This function is substantially more specific than the former function, which seeks to convey a simple, general awareness of ethics as an existent priority within the workplace. Instead, ethical values transmitted to members of an organization by the organization are designed to create a better understanding of what an organization is and what values it holds most dear. For example, a service-oriented organization might include â€Å"putting the customer first† as an ethical priority in the w

Monday, October 14, 2019

How Technology is changing our online life Essay Example for Free

How Technology is changing our online life Essay It is hard to imagine life without email nowadays. The only efficient means of communication, with efficient meaning that the message is delivered within seconds, is either through the cellular phone or through email via the internet. It is even more impossible to imagine how people could work under circumstances that denied them access to the latest communication technologies or even technology at all. Yet somehow, there was really a time when people where not at the beck and call of their cellular phones and a time when nobody really felt the urge to keep checking the mailbox every five minutes for fear of missing an email. There was a time when people actually drove to the store or entered a store and talked with the attendants before buying something. Ordering shoes and bags or other electronic items was done by going to a shop and not by going online and surfing online as it is done today. Friends and lovers were met and made by going to social functions and parties instead of by checking out somebody’s myspace profile or advertising on online personals. While those practices are still being done by certain individuals, the growth of the internet and the wide array of services that it offers have dramatically altered the manner by which people interact with one another and also the manner by which individuals lead their daily lives. The convenience and accessibility that the internet offers makes it an ideal replacement for all the previous time and energy consuming endeavors. With the number of people who are connected to the internet growing everyday, it is but a natural consequence that more and more services are being offered online ranging from dating, shopping, research and entertainment. In understanding how this newfound online lifestyle has changed our lives, it is important to understand the lures that are online that make it such a tempting alternative to doing this the time consuming and energy expending tasks. The internet provides everything online. Everything a person can desire or want is available online. Romance can be found through chatting or through online personals while intrigue can also be found on popular blog spots. Food is readily available for order online and so are clothes and other items. In short, there is nothing that cannot be found online and all a person needs to do is point and click. This is the lure of the online life and this is the reason why more and more people are leading the online life. It is convenient. It is time saving. It does not require one to expend a lot of energy. In certain cases, it also allows a person to work more efficiently and become more productive. From the standpoint of privacy, the internet offers virtual anonymity to anybody who goes online. All of this is offered online thanks to the great improvements in electronic and communications technology. As the developments in the electronics and communications technology continues to improve and advance, it will no longer be far off to imagine a world where nobody is walking the streets and everyone is hooked up to their computers interacting with each other in a world where they can be their own gods and dictate their own destinies without even breaking a sweat. Instead of just seeing an image of another person online, it may actually be possible to experience the sensation of feeling and touching that person. This all may just be future talk but one thing is certain. Today’s society has become so dependent on the benefits that technology has brought in making online life possible that we have come to a point of no return where we can no longer imagine life without it. If you think otherwise, turn off your cellular phone and unhook the jack of your computer and see how long you can survive without it.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Self Efficacy Education in Military Leaders

Self Efficacy Education in Military Leaders Integration of self efficacy education in development and training of South African military leaders. Introduction Twenty first century military leaders across the world face unusual challenges as organizations put in great effort to adapt to the ever accelerating rates of change internally and to the external environment within which they operate. Such rapid evolution in modern challenges does not only require equally evolved and revolutionary knowledge, skills and abilities of leaders, but more importantly it requires the self-conceptualizations of their leadership capabilities and psychological resources to meet the ever increasing demands of their functions. Given such complex challenges, it would be hard to imagine anyone following or being positively influenced by a leader who does not welcome or accept such challenges. Yet, there is not much being done in developing and educating current and future leaders within the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) about such leadership efficacy. Leadership efficacy is a specific form of efficacy associated with the level of confidence in the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with leading others. It can thus be clearly differentiated from confidence in the knowledge, skills, and abilities one holds in relation to their function in the organisation. In this essay, it is argued that self efficacy education is paramount in training and development of modern and future leaders as the current conditions require leaders to continually rise to the occasion so as to meet complex challenges as well as have the necessary social and psychological aptitude to positively influence their foll owers and the organizations culture, climate, and performance. In order to be able to mobilize groups toward collective performance, leaders need the capability to exercise high levels of personal agency and create similar levels of agency in those individuals they are leading by proxy[1]. For the purpose of this essay, agency refers to acts done intentionally. Bandura[2] also states that central to leadership and its development, efficacy is the most pervasive among the mechanisms of agency and provides a foundation for all other facets of agency to operate. Efficacys relevant and comprehensive nature in meeting todays leadership challenges is captured by Lester et al in a statement that efficacy beliefs affect whether an individual will think in a self-enhancing or self-debilitating way, how well they motivate themselves and persevere in the face of difficulties, the quality of their well-being and their vulnerability to stress and depression, and the choices they make at important decision points[3]. There is a differentiation that can be made between leading behaviours of individual leaders and the leadership effects, which the essay explains as the resultant positive influences displayed in a group which the leader is a part of. The essay suggest that there is potentially great value in building a more comprehensive understanding of the contribution of leader efficacy in building collective leadership efficacy within a group. By pursuing this linkage, the essay intends to connect the literature on leader efficacy with the larger body of research on organizational behaviour to facilitate the discussion on the collective efficacy formed through the interactions between leaders and subordinates. Beyond this the essay will motivate that the strategy for developing South African military leadership should consider leaders efficacies for taking on the challenges of development and performance. Thus the motivation for integration of self efficacy education in development and training of military leaders and subsequent followers. Why self efficacy education in leadership development Self-efficacy has been the most widely studied form of efficacy and has received considerable attention in the fields of cognitive and social psychology through extensive theory building and research. Bandura2 defines self-efficacy as beliefs in ones abilities to mobilize the motivation, cognitive resources, and courses of action needed to meet situational demands. The believe that one can be the master of ones own destiny, whether as an individual or as an organisation is essential for future leaders in or out of the military environment. Lacking a sense of self efficacy means that people consider themselves subject to anything but their own ability to master the situation. They blame the elements, the environment, fate, foreigners, providence, history, economics or even God. The culture of dependency that has developed out of this is also a culture of intellectual poverty and lack of self esteem which leads people to seek and expect handouts, direct self explanatory orders and inst ruction from higher authority at every situation or task. The leader who brings a sense of efficacy to a situation is the one who restores people to a belief that they themselves control their own destiny and takes responsibility for their actions. Borne along by this conviction, the leader imparts it in words and deeds, inspiring followers to work together to achieve a new transformed reality. The leader draws inspiration from the meditation on the plight of the followers; they respond by endorsing and confirming the essential rightness of the mission, it is what subordinates desire the most. The finest exemplars of military leadership efficacy can be seen in General Collin Powell, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, Major General Archer Lejeune to name a but few. Efficacy transforms a situation and this means more than effectiveness. Efficacy changes the whole picture to the point of even breaking the frame. To be effective is to be the cause of the result, but this is within given circumstances, it is not transformative. Lester et al3 proposed that positive psychological states such as efficacy directly promote effective leader engagement, flexibility and adaptability across the varying challenges characterizing complex organizational contexts. This is because higher levels of self efficacy provide the internal guidance and drive to create the agency needed to pursue challenging tasks and opportunities successfully. To this end McCormic et al[4]. concluded that leader self-efficacy, may be one of the most active ingredients in successful leadership, and team performance, and that it clearly contributes to leadership effectiveness. Development of Self-efficacy in leaders How leader efficacy influences a leader may differ depending on whether the efficacy is conceived in the preparatory context during learning and training situations or job performance situations. In his social cognitive theory, Bandura2 suggested that the optimal strength of self efficacy differs between the learning of a skill, which he called preparatory efficacy, and performing in the situations for which development is targeted, or job performance efficacy. Bandura further argued that though there is a positive linear relationship between performance efficacy and performance, the relationship between preparatory efficacy and learning is more complex. Machida and Schaulbroeck[5] explains that preparatory efficacy is different from an individuals beliefs about their general ability to learn, which is termed learning efficacy, the efficacy construct in focus here is ones efficacy for executing and completing a task during preparatory situations. Bandura2 explains that when individuals are highly efficacious in completing tasks and demonstrating skills in the preparatory or learning process, they often have little incentive to invest further effort into learning the skill. Though leaders efficacy about leading others during the actual execution of leadership roles might need to be higher for peak performance, leaders efficacy in leading others during leader development and preparatory phase might need to be lower so as to facilitate greater motivation to persist in learning and practicing the skills. The studies conducted by Machida and Schaulbroeck5 claim that there is a negative relationship between self-efficacy and learning. It seems likely that people who are too confident in their leadership abilities will not seek to invest their time and energy in developing their leadership ability as would individuals who have a more realistic sense of the scope of leadership activities. Machida and Schaulbroeck5 further proposed that the concept of efficacy performance spirals and has self-correcting cycles. According to these authors, an efficacy-performance spiral is a phenomenon in which increases or decreases in one variable of performance causes a similar change in the other variable of self efficacy which ultimately leads to a self-reinforcing trend in performance. Thus by amplifying upward efficacy performance spirals, individuals become complacent as they see their performance and their confidence improve despite lack of exploring alternative task strategies or increasing other preparatory activity such as by experimenting with new behaviours. This perspective supports Banduras argument that there are advantages to possessing lower level of self-efficacy in the context of completing a task during preparation and learning or development of skills2. Bandura argued that self-efficacy is a fluctuating property that changes constantly; however, he has not discussed what would be the ideal or preferred patterns of change in self-efficacy to maximize learning in the preparatory phases, such as leader development activities. Machida and Schaulbroeck5 proposed the concept of efficacy spirals in relation to organizational performance and collective efficacy. For optimal learning, leaders may need to maintain a self-correcting cycle by seeking to adjust their self-efficacy, increasing it or decreasing it in ways toward the objective of motivating investments in preparation. Another implication of efficacy performance spirals is that when leaders are learning to lead, repeated and uninterrupted failure, which will tend to decrease self-efficacy and encourage downward efficacy spirals, should be avoided. Such failure patterns are demoralizing and can even lead to a cycle of learned helplessness wherein the individuals come to believe that they have no control over performance improvement. For developmental tasks to be sufficiently challenging for development to occur, a high probability of failure must be inherent, however, to avoid situation whereby learners engage themselves in downward efficacy spirals, a self-correcting cycle must be encouraged by exposing the learners to possibly less difficult tasks and reminded of their developmental progress. During the development activities, leaders baseline self efficacy must ideally be set at a moderate level. As leaders encounter developmental challenges, their self-efficacy can and should fluctuate from this baseline self-efficacy level in the self-correcting cycle of efficacy change. Based on Banduras arguments concerning preparatory self-efficacy, it is believed that maintaining the motivation for learning during the process of leader development requires that ones baseline leader self-efficacy is not too low or too high. Thus, when individuals are developing their skills as leaders, it is critical that they are aided in maintaining a moderate level of self-efficacy to engage the self-correcting cycle of efficacy changes most effectively. Development of Self-efficacy in South African military leaders Having discussed the distinction between preparatory and performance efficacy, it is important to keep in mind that both preparatory and performance leader efficacy must be viewed in reference to the specific task of leading others in the defence organization. According to Bandura2 learning self-efficacy is not self-efficacy about performing a task during learning nor is it about how the individuals perceive his or her abilities in comparison to their peers rather, it refers to confidence about ones ability to learn a skill and accomplish a task. In his review of numerous studies, Bandura2 stated that the most potent antecedent to developing self-efficacy is mastery experiences based on past performance accomplishments. However, Bandura2 also made clear that prior success alone does not raise self efficacy. Development is influenced by how the individual interprets the success and the context that performance occurred in. This suggests mentoring that helps leaders make meaning of their prior leadership experiences is important in influencing development. Lester et al3 suggested that leaders identity construction occurs through social interaction, through claiming and granting of leadership. Individuals claim leadership through stepping up and attempting to influence others. Others then grant leadership through affirming and supporting that leaders attempts. Through this reciprocal process, individuals begin to see themselves as capable leaders, reinforcing a leader identity. It is therefore suggested that mentorship be incorporated into leadership training to foster leaders identity construction and grant affirming support. As experienced role models, mentors can be powerful sources to provide such external endorsement. The primary role of mentors must be to provide psycho-social support to learners, helping them to diagnose their prior actions, cast those actions in a positive light, and to serve as a source of validation for the learners. Machida and Schaubroek5 proposed that strong manifestation of a leaders identity ultimately requires endorsement from others, including ones mentor, peers, or followers. Furthermore, as mentors increase learners sense of competence, self-esteem, and efficacy, it can be expected that a spiral effect would occur as noted earlier. Specifically, it is expected that the learners would feel more encouraged and safe to explore their leadership than those without a mentor, and thus, increase attempts to claim leadership in th eir groups, thereby increasing leadership claim episodes. Mentorship relationships are expected to be the most effective method as role modelling exhibited by the mentor to the learners will influence development of leader efficacy beliefs by the learners. Mentors will primarily be expected to act as role models who will walk learners through prior or future leadership behaviour and performance, helping them to cognitively replicate and learn aspects of successful performance. Selected mentors should be attractive role models that serve as the prototype upon which learners may identify and base their future development. The mentor must be a role model to the learner such that respective learners begin to believe that they too can develop toward and achieve performance levels similar to their mentor and role model.. According to Bandura1 leader efficacy can also be developed through modelling, whereby learners study and observe competent and relevant role models successfully performing similar tasks, or cognitively model leadership experiences through study and envisioning successful performance by past leaders. The impact that modelling and in-depth observations hold is influenced by the attractiveness of the role model to the learners, the level of similarity between the observed model and the learners characteristics relevant to the task, and how similar the observed tasks are to those tasks the learners may be expected to perform. Bandura1 also notes that social persuasion ,which constitutes a primary role inherent in mentoring is another way of developing self efficacy. In congruence to Bandura, Lester et al3 explains that even when feedback is negative like discussing an incident of poor performance, mentors can provide feedback in a positive manner, highlighting what was learned and how that feedback can then be used to enhance future performance. What is critical in this factor is that mentors must instil in the individual learners the importance of growing and developing from all sorts of feedback, which is expected to influence thelearners efficacy regarding his or her leadership. This approach is also in line with evidence provided by Lester et al3, showing how individualized consideration associated with transformational leadership positively relates to leader development and performance. Another process of developing self-efficacy is according to Bandura1, psychological, physiological, and emotional arousal. In this instance, mentors would be required to serve in the role of inspiring learners to motivate their development. Such stimulation can, according to Machida and Schaubroeck5 be generated through inspirational motivation or creating an idealized vision for the learners as well as through sources of emotional infection, whereby mentors enthusiasm is transferred to learners and stimulates them to advance their development of leader efficacy. Organized mentorship programs are known to be effective in developing various positive outcomes in learners, the essay suggest that mentorship programs targeting the primary sources of efficacy identified by Bandura as discussed above would be particularly effective in raising learners leader efficacy and performance. It is further suggested that these discussed sources of efficacy be made to be innate in the role of any eff ective mentor and mentoring relationship. It is clear by now that this essay proposes that mentoring will increase learners leader efficacy more so than the traditional group based training for leadership development. Based on the research and theory reviewed above, it is suggested that by developing a more individualized   training relationship between the mentor and learners, the promotion of positive trajectories of leader development in the SANDF will be improved. A mentoring program will have a more positive impact on leader efficacy development and performance enhancement than the generalized, ready-made leader training interventions being practiced in the SANDF today because of the degree that the mentors will connect to their individual learners needs, abilities and aspirations. An individualized focus will help target learners specific needs and capabilities, enhancing efficacy development. It seems reasonable to expect that one on one mentoring, on average, will provide more consistent opportunities for the mentor to employ the four methods identified by Bandura1 for developing self-efficacy and to adjust the leader development intervention to the exact needs of the learners, thus enhancing learners efficacy and performance. Conclusion The essay described the multifaceted role of self efficacy in leader development. Furthermore the essay visited self efficacy related concepts proposed in the psychological literature, including preparatory self-efficacy, efficacy spirals and performance self-efficacy and has made suggestions about ways in which these concepts can be integrated into the current context of leader development in the SANDF. Judgments concerning leadership abilities as conveyed by mentors and interpreted by budding leaders as they experience successes and failures are essential for the development of highly effective leaders for the future. It is perhaps a clichà © that leaders are constantly required to learn and develop in this rapidly changing world. Coming to grips with this truism however requires a developmental process that comprehends the distinctions between leaders preparatory situations and their performance situations, identifies the personal and contextual factors that influence efficacy beliefs of leaders, and finally integrates a multifaceted perspective of leader efficacy in a way that promotes continuously positive learning trajectories. It is hoped that the essay will encourage training of practices that more effectively balance the needs for SANDF leaders to perform in the short term with the imperative that they learn and are adaptive in the longer term as well as inspire further res earch in the subject matter. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bandura, A. Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W. H. Freeman. (1997). Bandura A. Self efficacy in changing societies. New York: Cambridge University press. (2002) Lester PB, Hannah ST, Harms PD, Vogelgesang GR and Avio BJ. Mentoring impact on leader efficacy development: A field experiment. Academy of management learning and education, review 10,no3(2011) Machida M and Schaubroeck J. The role of self efficacy beliefs in leader development. Journal of leadership and organisational studies, review 18, no 459(2011) McCormic MJ, Tanguma J and Lopez-Forment AS. Extending self efficacy theory to leadership: A review and empirical test. Journal of leadership education, Review 1, no2(2002). [1] Bandura A. Self efficacy in changing societies. New York: Cambridge University press. (2002) [2] Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control in McCormic MJ, Tanguma J and Lopez-Forment AS. Extending self efficacy theory to leadership: A review and empirical test. Journal of leadership education, Review 1, no2(2002) [3] Lester PB, Hannah ST, Harms PD, Vogelgesang GR and Avio BJ. Mentoring impact on leader efficacy development: A field experiment. Academy of management learning and education, review 10,no3(2011) [4] McCormic MJ, Tanguma J and Lopez-Forment AS. Extending self efficacy theory to leadership: A review and empirical test. Journal of leadership education, Review 1, no2(2002). [5] Machida M and Schaubroeck J. The role of self efficacy beliefs in leader development. Journal of leadership and organisational studies, review 18, no 459(2011)

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Albert Einstein :: essays research papers

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein was born on March 14,1879 in Ulm, Wurttemberg, Germany.He died April 18 1955 in Princeton,NJ.When Einstein was five years old his father showed him a compass.He was very impressed by the behavior of the needle of the compass,which kept pointing in the same direction no matter which way the compass was turned.He later said he felt that "Something deeply hidden had to be behind things". After public school in Munich and in Aarau,Switzerland,Einstein studied mathematics and physics at the Swiss Polytechnic Institute in Zurich.He graduated in 1900.From 1902 to 1909 he worked as an examiner at the Swiss Patent office in Bern.This job as patent examiner gave him a lot of free time,which he spent doing scientific investigations.He became a Swiss citizen in 1905.Einstein liked music also.He listened to classical music and played the violin.He supported zionism and was asked to be the president of Israel when president Chain Weizmann died in 1952.He decided not to except,saying that he wasn't right for that position.Einstein was never concerned about money.Publishers from all parts of the world offered him huge amounts of money for an autobiography.He never accepted any of their offers.Einstein was married twice.He was seperated from his first wife after he arrived in Berlin.During World War I he married his first cousin,Elsa.She shared his life with him until she died in Princeton in 1936.He had two sons from his first marriage.He also had two stepdaughters from his second marriage.In 1933 while Einstein was visiting England and the United States the Nazi government of Germany took his property and deprived him of his positions and his citizenship.Even before this happened he had been asked to direct the school of mathematics in the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton,New Jersey.He accepted this position and he directed the school for the rest of his life.Einstein became an American citizen in 1940.After he took the job he moved into a two-story house at 112 Mercer St. in Princeton.He lived and worked there until he died. Albert Einstein is best known for his theory of relativity,which he first advanced in 1905 when he was 26 years old.Einsteins theory revolutionized scientific thought with new conceptions of time,space,mass,motion,and gravitation.Einstein laid the basis for splitting the atom by treating mass and energy as exchangable and not distinct.Einsteins famous equation E=mc2 {energy equals mass times the velocity of light squarred} became a important foundation in the development of atomic energy.Einstein arrived at his theory by means of highly involved mathematical calculations and equations.Einsteins theories were used in making the atomic bomb.He helped in it's making in another way also.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Need for speed Essay

The desire to innovate and to improve is one of the most precious human feelings because it is this very same desire that has paved the road to progress in society. At the outset, the first trains were useful but not efficient enough that people could ride on them: only goods and commodities could be transported. One of the reasons why is because safety and comfort weren’t a top priority for the railroad owner; he or she just wanted to maximize his or her profit. Then, James Watt and his steam engine came about and rocked the world into the Industrial Revolution, a time when railroads were constantly being built all over Europe. Cities grew, economies boomed and busted, and economies and cultures became intertwined so that a small business man who lives in Lille, France or Barcelona, Spain had to travel to Ukraine or Italy for a business deal as quickly as possible (as quickly as possible since now, as opposed to the relaxed and laid back past, time is money). So engineers were needed to devise a train that could travel at very fast speeds while keeping energy consumption as low as possible. The Japanese started the race for faster high speed trains with their â€Å"bullet trains†, the French countered with the TGV, and many other companies came out with their own high speed trains: Acela, Eurostar, and the Shinkansen, among others [3]. The increase in competition benefitted the consumer, the individual needing to get across the continent because now he or she had a choice between different trains, each known for a specific accommodation. For example, TGV was an electric train so the energy consumption of the trains is very low. However, it is little noisier than other lines so the trade off is subjective to the person’s taste. Eventually, all the train lines would try to balance energy consumption, safety, speed, and comfort in order to provide the smoothest trip they could possibly offer. [4] In essence, aerodynamics is the interaction of air on an object [7]. In the case of high speed trains, the aerodynamics of the train depends on many factors: â€Å"aerodynamic drag, pressure variations inside train, train-induced i ¬ow, cross-wind effects, ground effects, pressure waves inside tunnel, impulse waves at the exit of tunnel, noise and vibration†. [8] Ultimately, finding solutions to these problems will result in a faster and smoother train ride, so it becomes imperative to identify the factors that affect each of these so one can manipulate them, if possible, to one’s needs. However, having so many factors that affect the aerodynamics of a train, one can truly begin to see how complex this problem is for engineers since every change made to the train or the tracks could cost the companies owning them a huge amount of money for even the smallest of changes. Specifically, the invention of the high speed train has revolutionized long distance ground transportation since it has provided people with a much faster way to travel, sometimes cutting a seven hour long trip to three hours! However, to reduce such a trip so significantly, the path from city to city (in this place Boston to Washington D. C. ) must be as direct as possible [2]. This means that in some cases a tunnel must be built through a mountain to allow for a high speed train to pass through the mountain and get to its destination as quickly as possible. In terms of high speed trains, there are many different types, each with its advantages and disadvantages. For example, the world renown TGV It has huge advantage in that it can use the same railroad lines as local trains so the cost of making railroad tracks is reduced. However, one of the disadvantages is that using these same train tracks, just the mere fact that the TGV uses the same tracks as local trains means that the TGV limits the size and specifications of local trains because the wake of the TGV causes a wind tunnel that affects the trains behind it. [1] [2] In terms of what the future has in store, trains haven’t even started to reach their limit. From regular train to the high speed train, the speed was increased. The TGV is an obvious example of this transition given that it broke the record for the fasted train, maxing out at 357 mph. The next step is along the lines of the Japanese Maglev; taking friction out of the equation, the Maglev has the ability to greatly reduce the drag and the vibration in the train, thus making the train that much faster. In the foreseeable future, there is a concept that would take the Maglev above and beyond its achievements so far: an â€Å"evacuated tube† is a massive vacuum in a tube stretching for miles and miles. Interestingly, if this method is designed and works, it may potentially reap the benefits since the beginning. This occurs because air drag takes such a significant amount of energy out of the system (the system being defined as the train) that minimizing it to a negligible level could immediately save millions upon millions of dollars [8] [9]. On the other hand, there are changes that have been made to the train itself rather than to the environment surrounding it. The Japanese Hayabusa’s nose is angled and sleek so it can eliminate tunnel boom, the sound of a train leaving a tunnel. Tunnel boom is caused by a fast train pressurizing the air in front of it as it goes through a tunnel until it comes out of the tunnel with the pressurized air and makes a very loud sound. Trains in the past had a smaller tunnel boom that occurred right before the train left the tunnel (the sound of a train coming from inside a tunnel); however, now that the trains are that much faster, they catch up to the pressurized air and come out together, creating constructive interference, to make a bigger sound [5]. Furthermore, the French Alstrom developed an upgraded TGV called the AGV. What was interesting about how the French upgraded the TGV is that they took the power system of the TGV and completely transformed it; now it has the capacity of generating higher speeds at a fraction of the original TGV energy consumption. Don’t forget that the TGV was designed as an electric train, so to have a power system that can do more with less energy is a huge advancement! [5] In conclusion, the fact remains that the fast paced society of today has geared people to want to do everything more quickly. Following this train of thought, it makes sense that high speed trains are the future in transportation. Throughout history, people have shown a want, a need for speed. Works Cited [1] Fox News. Associated Press. http://www. foxnews. com/story/0,2933,263542,00.html (accessed July 15th, 2012) [2] Plumer, Brad. The Washington Post. http://www. washingtonpost. com/blogs/ezra-klein/wp/2012/07/16/amtraks-151-billion-high-speed-rail-plan-are-there-cheaper-options/ (accessed July 15th, 2012) [3] European Railway Server. TGVweb. http://www. trainweb. org/tgvpages/history. html(accessed July 17th, 2012) [4] http://www. buzzle. com/articles/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-maglev-trains. html [5] Railway-Technology. com. On Track. http://www. railway-technology. com/features/feature117829/(accessed July 15th, 2012). [6] James, Randy. Time U. S. http://www. time. com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1892463,00. html (accessed July 16th, 2012) [7] Bopp, Rudolf; Hagenah, Bernd. Gruner. http://www. gruner-gmbh. at/aktuelles_gmbh_at/pdf_pool/D_HAB_Porto. pdf [8] Raghunathan, Raghu S. ; Setoguchi, T. Progress in Aerospace Sciences. Aerodynamics of high-speed railway train http://ompldr. org/vMXlsOA/Aerodynamics_HSR02. pdf [9] Hoffman, Carl. Popsci: Trans-Atlantic Maglev. http://www. popsci. com/scitech/article/2004-04/trans-atlantic-maglev.