Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Capitalismâ€a Propaganda Story Essay

Michael Moore is the Leni Riefenstahl within recent memory. Or on the other hand, maybe he would be better portrayed as a Bizzaro World Leni Riefenstahl, in light of the fact that while she propped up with purposeful publicity the political forces of her time, Moore utilizes similar procedures to cut down the forces within recent memory, be it GM (Roger and Me), the weapon campaign (Bowling for Columbine), the administration (Fahrenheit 911), the human services industry (Sicko), or free endeavor (Capitalism: A Love Story). In this most recent portion in his proceeding with arrangement of what’s amiss with America, Michael Moore focuses on his greatest objective to date, and the outcome is a catastrophe. The narrative isn't close to as amusing as his past movies, the music choices appear to be thought up and level, and the alters and changes are ungainly, wooden, and not close to as compelling as what we’ve generally expect from the debut documentarian (Ken Burns in any case) within recent memory. Also, above all, the film’s focal proposal is terrible to the point that it’s not off-base. To begin with, let me admit that despite the fact that I have couldn't help contradicting the vast majority of Michael Moore’s governmental issues and financial aspects all through his profession, I have altogether made the most of his movies as gifted and powerful show-stoppers and purposeful publicity, never neglecting to giggle †or be genuinely upset †at all the spots crowds are prompted to do as such. My willing acceptance of difficult ideas mistrust that empowers me to take such a great amount of joy from works of fiction, doesn't generally work well for me when maneuvered into the story bend of a narrative. Therefore it is that with his past movies I have left the venue rankled at very similar things Moore is †¦ until I focused in and did some reality checking of my own, so, all in all Moore’s theories unwind (with the conceivable special case of Bowling for Columbine, his best work as I would see it). In any case, with Capitalism: A Love Story, Moo re’s propagandistic props are so straightforward and created that I always was unable to suspend mistrust. What was particularly goading about Capitalism: A Love Story was the treatment of the individuals at the base finish of the financial range. The film is moored on two ousting stories created to pull at the heart strings. One family recorded the expulsion procedure themselves and sent the recording to Moore in trusts he’d use it (many are called, few are picked), and the other was shot by Moore’s group. The message of both is conveyed with a sledge hammer: Greedy Evil Soul-Sucking Bankers (think Lionel Barrymore’s disgusting Mr. Potter in It’s a Wonderful Life) are hurling out onto the avenues of America poor guiltless families who are survivors of conditions not of their creation. Why? To start with, on the grounds that this is the thing that Greedy Evil Soul-Sucking Bankers accomplish for the sake of entertainment on ends of the week. Two, on the grounds that the financial emergency caused exclusively by said brokers has made it incomprehensible for families to make the installments on those subprime credits they were fooled into taking by those equivalent investors, who themselves were suckered into a Ponzi-like plan concocted by Alan Greenspan and his Wall Street/Federal Reserve mates to reclaim the homes completely claimed by (first) the older and afterward poor people. In the fine print that the investors painstakingly slipped past the old and the poor for these subsequent home loans and subprime advances, the agreements said that the rates on factor rate credits could go up, and that the house was insurance for the advance with the end goal that if the advance installments are not made the house is dependent upon abandonment and repossession by the bank (which is the thing that the financiers are trusting occurs). In Michael Moore’s perspective, a goodly bit of the American individuals are uninformed, uneducated, dumbfounded pinheads too moronic to even consider realizing the major rule of an advance: you must have guarantee to make sure about the advance! No security, no advance. You state to the broker â€Å"I might want to take out a loan.† The financier says to you â€Å"what do you have for collateral?† What occurred in the lodging blast was that investors loosened up their gauges for what they would require for security (and pay, resources, and so on.) in light of the fact that (1) the administration instructed them to do as such and vowed to cover their misfortunes in the event that it didn’t work out, and (2) they needed to get more cash-flow; and borrowers needed to partake in the money cow that everybody was draining, from singular house flippers searching for a speedy buck, to customary families needing additional money for redesigning, educational cost, or whatever, to contract monsters needing corporate extension. And all were driven by a similar intention: avarice! Truly, covetousness. Those removed families knew entirely well what they were doing when they unreservedly decided to climb onto the lodging air pocket and have a good time with it. I have an a lot higher perspective on the American open than does Michael Moore. I don’t think the American individuals are so idiotic or uneducated that they didn’t recognize what they were doing. This wasn’t advanced science. It was even on TV, the ne in addition to ultra of mainstream society! I well viewed An and E’s TV arrangement Flip This House, and perusing each one of those magazine articles and make easy money books on the best way to make a fortune in the land market, and thinking â€Å"wow, everyone’s getting rich aside from me; how might I get in on the action?† What I felt is, I’m certain, what heaps of individuals felt. I investigated making sure about a second home loan on my home so as to assemble a second home on a lacking segment of my slope property, and afterward offering it to turn a clean benefit. Everybody was doing it. What could turn out badly? All things considered, first of all I thought, imagine a scenario where it takes more time to fabricate the home than I anticipated. We as a whole skill moderate development activities can be. Would I be able to make the installments on the second home loan for an extra a half year to a year? Furthermore, imagine a scenario in which I couldn’t sell that subsequent home. Would I be able to make the installments on the new credit uncertainly? Imagine a scenario in which my salary diminished rather than expanded, similar to it was at that point (and, in this way, did †¦ significantly. What's more, what might occur on the off chance that I couldn’t make the installme nts? The appropriate response was self-evident, and it wasn’t in the fine print: I could lose my essential home. Disregard that! Making a benefit on a subsequent home would be decent, however losing my first home would hurt well more than twice as much as causing a benefit on the subsequent home would to feel great. That’s a fundamental guideline of hazard avoidance: misfortunes hurt twice as much as increases feel better. Presently, I’m not so much a hazard disinclined person (I surrendered a protected vocation as a school educator for a shaky profession as an author and distributer), yet even I could see the inborn dangers included when the home you live in could be removed. My slope remains sagebrush and wild grass. Shouldn't something be said about the individuals on the opposite finish of the financial range †the brokers and Wall Street head honchos? Why aren’t they being expelled. Presently, given that I’m a libertarian, you may anticipate that me should go to the safeguard of Corporate America. Not really. Here I am in finished concurrence with Michael Moore that, as I’ve been stating since the day it was first articulated, â€Å"too enormous to fail† is the extraordinary fantasy within recent memory. None of these goliath partnerships †GM, AIG, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, et al. †ought to have been rescued. Truth be told, they ought to have been permitted to come up short, their stocks go into the can, their representatives hurled out on to the plated lanes of lower Manhattan, and their CEOs scattered to fill in as welcome assistants at Walmart. They bet and lost on every one of those protections, packaged protections, subordinates, credit default trades, and other â€Å"financial tools† that I’ll wager not one out of many Wall Street specialists really gets it. On the off chance that you truly have confidence in free venture, you should acknowledge the opportunity to lose everything on such bets. These CEOs and their corporate flunkies are simply government assistance sovereigns who hold fast to the aphorism â€Å"in benefits we’re industrialists, in misfortunes we’re socialists.† Sorry folks, you can’t have it the two different ways without tainting your ethics, which you have, alongside the legislators you’ve paid off, coaxed and in any case forced to your offering. The arrangement? I have my very own few proposals, yet Michael Moore’s arrangement is past odd: supplant free enterprise with majority rules system. Uh? Supplant a financial framework with a political framework? Indeed, even the à ¼ber liberal Bill Maher was astounded by that one when he facilitated Moore on his HBO appear. How does a majority rule government produce autos and PCs and web crawlers? It doesn’t. It can’t. Private enterprise: A Love Story, closes with a striking film cut that Moore found of President Franklin Roosevelt perusing from his never proposed second Bill of Rights (he passed on not long after and the report kicked the bucket with him). Remembered for the rundown are: The privilege to a valuable and profitable employment in the ventures or shops or homesteads or mines of the country; The option to gain enough to give satisfactory food and apparel and diversion; The privilege of each rancher to raise and sell his items at an arrival which will give him and his family a fair living; The privilege of each representative, huge and little, to exchange a climate of opportunity from uncalled for rivalry and mastery by syndications at home or abroad; The privilege of each family to a not too bad home; The privilege to sufficient clinical consideration and the chance to accomplish and appreciate great wellbeing; The privilege to satisfactory assurance from the monetary apprehensions of mature age, affliction, mishap, and joblessness; The privilege to decent training. That’s pleasant. To this rundown I would include a PC in each home with remote Internet get to. I’m sure we could all consider a lot more things â€Å"under which another premise of security and flourishing can be built up for all †paying little heed to station, race, or creed,â�

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Kant and the Horseman in the Sky Essay

I accept that Immanuel Kant would see Carter Druse’s activity of shooting his dad as good. Kant was an ethicist that accepted that profound quality depended on the job, that morals is total, not contingent, and depends on reason, not sentiments. (Pojman, Vaughn 309) That is actually the difficulty that Ambrose Bierce composes Carter Druse into in the short story A Horseman in the Sky. I feel there are a few pieces of the story that flip to and fro between being good and not being good or possibly the better words would be that it is unexpected on numerous levels. The story starts with Carter Druse being alluded to as a criminal for being snoozing on his post: Â'The cluster of shrub in which the criminal lay’ (Pojman, Vaughn 356) yet some may contend that a child shooting his dad is indecent and criminal regardless of in wartime or not. With regards to Kantian reasoning and philosphy, I think it is the ideal case of setting aside feelings and putting together a choice soley with respect to reason and obligation. It’s amusing that what Â'rouses him from his condition of crime’ (Pojman, Vaughn 358) is the pony that his dad is on. He delays to shoot the aggressor due to the magnificence of the scene; the pony, the valley, and the sky. Carter Druse contemplates on the off chance that it is so horrendous to murder the adversary during war. (Pojman, Vaughn 358) Kant felt that it was obligation to the It is unexpected that Carter Druse’s choice to not get the Legions together with his dad could be viewed as a double-crossing of obligation to his dad and to his Deontological ethicist which depends on the job.

Saturday, August 15, 2020

My Makerspace Re-education From the Ground Up

My Makerspace Re-education From the Ground Up (0) Sunday is my writing day. The buzz I get from black coffee does something magical for my imagination first thing in the morning and I can usually get two solid hours of writing in before I even look up. That is how it has always worked for me. Until this morning. My bibliography laid open on the screen and all of my printed research was meaningfully annotated and marked. I really was proud of my ADHD-self. I did a quick inventory of the articles I had in my bibliography, and one of the articles was missing. A minor setback. It was still early so I printed and sat down to read it. Not even a page in, I realized that I was in trouble. In less than 200 words, the article authors smacked me upside my head and literally changed my entire point of view of the makerspace movement. My new point of view changed the entire trajectory of this article. Message-less and purposeless, I did what any good writer would do. I went shopping. How did this happen? How have I gone all this time without really knowing about this? What have I been reading? Why does no one cite these studies in what I do read? These were all questions swimming through my head as I traversed the Staten Island Mall. Then, it happened. Somewhere between SuperDry and Sephora, I had a paradigm shift in my idea of the purpose of an educational makerspace. That made all the difference. Talk about retail therapy. I am going to admit something that I’m somewhat ashamed to share, but up until the moment I read that article, I truly did not understand the Maker Movement at its foundation. I know makerspaces can be done properly, but I feel the meaning and purpose of the educational makerspace is getting lost among the many tools, toys and technology for makers and slick gimmicks from companies hawking their wares. It feels so commercial and flashy. I am thirsty for research. This article is meant as a re-introduction to the makerspace. I will review articles that I think are important to school librarians; articles that describe the philosophy and brief history of educational makerspaces. I will also talk about how we can meet the learning needs of K-5 students through makerspaces. It is true. As an emerging area of study, the body of empirical research in makerspaces for children and youth is small but growing. Makerspaces for youth have been explored principally from the perspectives of learning, sense making, or the competencies or training needs of the adults who work in makerspaces. There is a gap in the literature in terms of critical, technical practice and young people (Bowler, 2015). Although the pool of research is small, the work is mighty and worthwhile. I would like to see more professionals interacting with the research that has been started by scholars and school librarians to create a new iteration for their population or referencing the practices and findings of seminal researchers in the maker movement in their projects. The Magical Article The article Part 1 of Making and Educational Makerspace by Kurti, Kurti and Fleming was the one that turned my head. It included the best definition of “makerspaces” I have found. “The maker movement is built on the foundation of constructionism, which is the philosophy of hands-on learning through building things. Constructionism, in turn, is the application of of constructivist learning principles to a hands-on learning environment. The maker education is a branch of constructivist philosophy that views learning as a highly personal endeavor requiring the student, rather than the teacher, to initiate the learning process. In this philosophy of learning, teachers act as a guide for inquiry-based approaches to the development of knowledge and thinking processes.” Constructionist learning is when learners build mental models to understand their world. Constructionism advocates student-centered, discovery-learning where students use information they already know to build new knowledge. In this way, learning is a reconstruction rather than a transmission of knowledge. This type of learning happens best in groups and through project based experiences. Constructionist learning involves students drawing their own conclusions through creative experimentation and the making of real-world objects with teacher as facilitator or guide. The part of this article that really struck me was the attention the authors paid to the feel of an educational makerspace versus commercial makerspace. Feel is a hard thing to qualify, but then again, do you not always know when teaching is going well because it just feels right. The authors broke down this nebulous idea by attaching a student’s feeling to his/her attraction to the space and inspiration to use it. As the article puts it, a makerspace without makers is just a workshop full of lonely tools. Creating an invitation for children to be curious is one of the most important considerations in the educational makerspace environment. If a child feels curious about something, she/he will be drawn to it. This curiosity is an enormous motivator to the learning process. Closely linked to curiosity is wonder. Wonder is a fast-fading ethic in our culture, yet the awe that comes from the unexplained is a very necessary component in curiosity (Kurti). A sense of wonder has been lost in schools, suffocated by a regular battery of assessments, data collection and paperwork, so we owe it to children to provide an oasis where their curiosity and wonder can roam unfettered by rules, standards, and tests. To drive home their point, the authors likened a teacher/librarian in a makerspace to a master strategist in the army. The tools/materials are the army, not the students. Yes, you read correctly. The teacher, as master strategist arranges the tools in such a way that the students are gently guided by the tools/materials to construct their own learning for authentic purposes. A well-planned makerspace will allow students to learn without even knowing they are doing it. This article hit all the right notes for me but its focus on individuality changed my view completely. I long for the days of Marlo Thomas when we were Free To Be You and Me. The Makerspace unleashes children to be themselves and come up with solutions and ideas that are uniquely their own, unblemished by prescribed notions and fixed parameters of classrooms and fight against a ‘one-size-fits-all’ mentality of learning.   This article offers 3 guiding principles of an educational makerspaces. It’s OK to fail Let’s give the word failure the update it needs. Failure is an adjustment. Failure is a step toward success. Curious children that are inspired to wonder grow into innovators, inventors, artists, and scientists. No invention, work of art, or experiment has a single iteration. These projects were only accomplished because of prior failures. Children need to know that in an educational makerspace, failure is encouraged. Breaking things is not a cardinal sin Innovation is imperfect. Although it is important that kids are safe, when creating they may occasionally break something. We must be as okay with broken tools as we are with failure. Putting negative ideas into one’s head about treating tools and materials with kid gloves inhibits children from the joy of discovery. Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate In education, working in a team is paramount. The makerspace is no different. In it, children work together, focusing on the areas in which they excel, and sharing their knowledge with one another to solve a challenge. The challenges presented should be too great for any one person to solve solo; it should promote collaboration as the best way for children to work and achieve the best outcome. Meeting Learning Needs in the Makerspace Prior to writing this article, I viewed makerspaces as something that could possibly supplant the true meaning of libraries, and that is to foster a love for pleasure reading and knowledge. While my feelings about the purpose of libraries at their core remains steadfast, my appreciation for the benefits that a makerspace can bring to a school library have increased ten-fold. This is education at its finestunderstanding gained through inquisitive tinkering, participatory experience, and hands-on learning. And this leads one to ask: Why not embrace them? Though prescribed standards seem to be at odds with the core principles of the makerspace, we operate in a time of standardization. For example, let’s look at the AASL’s Standards for the 21st-Century Learner which has guidelines for today’s inquisitive and curious learner (Gustafson). According to the section Standards for the 21st-Century Learner in Action, in today’s world, “Acquiring knowledge alone does not guarantee that this learning will be applied. Learning in the twenty-first century also requires a capacity to learn that reflects a range of dispositions: to be curious, resilient, flexible, imaginative, critical, reflective, and self-evaluative” (AASL 2009, 40). Meeting Needs: Makerspaces and School Libraries by Ellen Gustafson highlights some examples of of the AASL Standards that speak to the work that happens inside makerspaces. Many students, when given free rein in a makerspace: Display initiative and engagement by positing questions and investigating the answers beyond the collection of superficial facts (1.2.1) Demonstrate adaptability by changing the inquiry focus, questions, resources, or strategies when necessary to achieve success (1.2.5) Use both divergent and convergent thinking to formulate alternative conclusions and test them against the evidence (2.2.2) Demonstrate leadership and confidence by presenting ideas to others in both formal and informal situations (3.2.1) Demonstrate motivation by seeking information to answer personal questions and interests, trying a variety of formats and genres, and displaying a willingness to go beyond academic requirement (4.2.2) Maintain openness to new ideas by considering divergent opinions or conclusions when evidence supports the change, and seeking information about new ideas encountered through academic and personal experience (4.2.3) (AASL 2007). I personally would not hold students accountable to the above (or any other) standards. I would not even make the standards known to students. I see standards as an impediment to the creative process. In my view, standards are an anathema to makerspaces. The beauty of the makerspace is that I am sure students more consistently hit benchmarks through independent creation rather than through prescribed curriculum, any day of the week. Kids have enough standards and educational jargon in the classroom. The makerspace is the chance for pure and unabashed fun. So back to our outcome-obsessed culture. The best thing to come out of researching this article can be summed up in one word. Hope. Hope that the word fun will become part of educational parlance. Hope that curiosity, imagination and individuality will take their rightful place as the main course and not just a side-order to learning. And hope that we teachers and librarians take very seriously the makerspace, because it has the potential to revolutionize the way kids learn in the library and in the classroom, but not without our due diligence to understand the movement, read the research and implement it thoughtfully. - A reference list of APA citations for this article can be found linked here. They were created using , which can also help students create citations in MLA format for free. Try it out today!

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Quartz Triboluminescence

Many minerals and chemical compound display triboluminescence, which is light produced when chemical bonds are broken. Two minerals that exhibit triboluminescence are diamond and quartz. The procedure to produce the light is so simple, you should try it right now! Feel free to use diamonds, but be aware the light is produced when the crystal lattice is damaged. Quartz, on the other hand, is the most abundant mineral in the Earths crust, so you should probably start with that. Quartz Triboluminescence Materials You need any form of quartz, which is crystalline silicon dioxide (SiO2). You dont have to sacrifice perfect quartz crystal points for this project! Most gravel contains quartz. Play sand is mostly quartz. Go outside and find two semitranslucent rocks. Chances are good they are quartz. How to See the Light First, make sure the quartz is dry. The phenomenon occurs when the crystal lattice is torn apart by friction or compression. Wet quartz is slippery, so its presence will compromise your efforts.Gather your materials in a darkened location. It doesnt need to be pitch black, but light levels need to be low. Give your eyes a couple of minutes to adjust to make it easier to see the flashes of light.Method 1: Firmly rub together two pieces of quartz. See the flashes of light?Method 2: Strike one piece of quartz with another. Now, you may also get actual sparks using this method, plus you may chip off splinters of rock. Use eye protection if you go this route.Method 3: Walkthrough dry sand. This works well at a beach or in a sandbox, but the sand must be dry or else the water will cushion the crystals.Method 4: Crush a piece of quartz using pliers or a vise. This method is especially nice if you want to take a video of your project.Method 5: Do what the Uncompahgre  Ute did and fill a tr anslucent rattle with bits of quartz. Shake the rattle to see the glow. The native tribes used rattles made of rawhide, but a plastic bottle works fine, too. How Quartz Triboluminescence Works Triboluminescence sometimes is called cold light because no heat is produced. Material scientists believe the light results from a recombination of electrical charges that become separated when crystals are fractured. When the charges get back together, the air is ionized, producing a flash of light. Usually, materials that display triboluminescence are displayed an asymmetrical structure and are poor conductors. This is not a hard-and-fast rule, however, since other substances display the effect. Its not restricted to inorganic materials, either, since triboluminescence has been observed between vertebral joints, during blood circulation, and even during sexual intercourse. If its true the light results from ionization of air, you might expect all forms of triboluminescence in the air to produce the same color of light. However, many materials contain fluorescent substances that release photons when excited by the energy from triboluminescence. Thus, you can find examples of triboluminescence in just about any color. More Ways to See Triboluminescence Rubbing together diamonds or quartz is not the only easy way to observe triboluminescence. You can view the phenomenon by pulling apart two pieces of duck tape, by crushing wintergreen candies, or by pulling the Scotch tape from its roll (which also produces x-rays). The triboluminescence from the tape and the candies is a blue light, while the light from fracturing quartz is a yellow-orange. Reference Orel, V.E. (1989), Triboluminescence as a biological phenomenon and methods for its investigation, Book: Proceedings of the First International School Biological Luminescence: 131–147.

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Immigrant Discrimination The United States - 2286 Words

Immigrant discrimination is simply put the discrimination by natives against immigrants from other countries. In this article I am also going to go into some depth on discrimination on transplants from other areas (people who have relocated to another area of the country.) Immigrant discrimination is a major issue in the United States. There is a reason the United States is considered the melting pot of the world. There are people from all walks of life in our country. There are approximately forty six million immigrants in the United States. These foreign people account for approximately sixteen percent of the entire population as a whole in the U.S. We have more immigrants living here than any other country in the world, and it is not even close. The number of immigrants living in the U.S. is absolutely astounding. The United States accounts for approximately twenty percent of the world’s population of immigrants. We lead Russia (The second leading country on this list) by a wide margin. Russia has about 11 million immigrants in their country. That only accounts for about 4.8 of the world population of immigrants as a whole. Most of whom are legal citizens of the United States and have the proper identification to show their right to reside in the U.S. Many of whom are temporary residents. Although Many of these immigrants are illegal, and are living in the united states without being registered with the proper paper paperwork, and having the proper documents to obtainShow MoreRelatedSocial Injustices Of The Uni ted States1535 Words   |  7 PagesThousands of immigrants moving to America during the turn of the nineteenth century have faced extreme diversity on their quests to fulfill their American dreams. Immigrants faced a multitude of hardships and battled prejudices that were rampant throughout America during this time period. 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Poverty and limited resources are also problems that arise when it comes to deciding whether to leave their country or not. One of the biggest issues that comes with these immigrants is that they go through without documentation, therefore, becoming labeled as illegal immigrants. While couple of the people I int erviewed received education back in their own countries, the economic situationsRead MoreEssay On The American Dream1004 Words   |  5 PagesDream: Is it Only a Dream? From the moment colonists stepped foot on American soil, freedom flowed through their skin. The new country would bring endless opprotunities to anyone who wished to pursue their dreams. Through years of effort, the United States was born and along with it a sense of equality and meaning. Today, America has much to stand for. Although times were rough along the way, the American dream is one of being free and having a voice. 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Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Komatsu vs Catterpilar †Comparative Essay Free Essays

string(281) " effective operating 605 branches worldwide, low dependence on debt and excellence at servicing/repairing equipment and supply parts anywhere around the globe and especially locations where these dealers were a major marketing asset and important entry barrier to its competitors\." These key success factors can be categorized in three different roofs namely, manufacturing or production, distribution and brand image. First, manufacturing higher quality products was crucial since machine dependability and reliability was important for contractors. Many construction companies all over the globe operated under severe cost and time constraints and companies’ main target was to schedule machine use efficiently and minimize downtime. We will write a custom essay sample on Komatsu vs Catterpilar – Comparative Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now High capital and energy costs made some construction companies to use their machines longer. Consequently, providing the replacement and spare parts on short notice and continuous Improvement of the parts were essential. Also, profit margins for parts ND attachments were significantly higher than for whole machines which encouraged most suppliers to pay more focus on providing these parts to their customers on a timely manner. Moreover, the ability to manufacture product capacity ahead of demand was Important. For Instance, Caterpillar’s excess capacity policy served not only as deterrence to competitors but also as a mechanism enabling company to respond to the industry’ wide swings in demand. This also helped companies to successfully maintain their low cost manufacturing position through higher scale of volume. In addition, a full and diversified product line was necessary or companies to gain completive advantage over others. Also, the ability to be a shock absorber provided some companies flexibility and ability to adapt to cyclical downturns more easily than others. Spare parts were much less prone to cyclical downturns and the vast variety of machines In the field provided a baseline of business. Next, heavy Investment In product quality and upgrading programs Like Total Quality Control (ETC) led to higher quality and efficient equipments where research and development programs provided the ability to produce great quality products with the use of new technology to meet customer needs and new trends. Second, distribution of high quality products and worldwide service through dealers was another vital factor. Internationally, the MME manufacturers sold through dealers, who provided direct and after-sales service. Although the sales were made direct, it was often the dealers who provided marvelous service to customers. The worldwide network of dealers was very crucial because these dealers were capable of providing service and spare parts backups to customers in no time. Being able to service and repair equipment and supply spare parts anywhere around the globe on a timely manner was a powerful strategy for the construction companies to be nominative. For Instance, 100 Independent dealers handled Comates products and were backed by the company’s computerized parts supply system, which guaranteed a replacement part within 48 hours anywhere in the world. Also, the typical overseas 1 OFF were a major marketing asset and a valuable entry barrier in this industry. Third, brand image was another essential factor to attract loyal customers and respected dealers. Reputable name for high quality products and services in the construction industry provided the companies a competitive advantage over others. For instance, Caterpillar had built an unmatched reputation for its quality and services in the construction equipments where its loyal network of dealers in North America, Europe and Latin America were the important source of its strength. A survey conducted in the late asses showed that the reputation of a manufacturer and capability of its loyal dealers were the most critical factors that customers would take into consideration when selecting a supplier. With a great reputation and highly loyal network of dealers a manufacturer had a better opportunity to dominate the MME construction industry successfully. As for Caterpillar Kumquat’s nominative position in 1985, Caterpillar was the largest player in the MME industry with a market share of 43% worldwide, while Comates was the second largest player with a market share of 25% worldwide and 60% in their home country Japan. They both face competition from other established players like Clark Equipment, J. J. Case, International Harvester, Fiat-Allis, and John Deere, as well as specialized local players in North America and Europe. Generally, profit margins were substantially higher for parts and attachments than for whole machines. With the benefit of a labor cost advantage relative to U. S. ND European competitors, and of the postwar Japanese construction boom, Comates has managed to focus on extensive advertising, lower price and higher quality of their products to maintain their competitive position. Their products were priced 30% to 40% below the equivalent Cat products, allowing them to increase their market share very promptly; their cost reduction plans consisted in reducing the cost by 10% while still maintaining and improving product quality. Simplification was about reducing the number of parts. Value Engineering† re-designed the products to save cost and to increase added value, maintain low-cost ND high productivity. Moreover, Comates noticed that the Japanese domestic construction industry was leveling off in the sass’s, and elected to aggressively expand abroad, developing several exclusive dealer networks where it saw potential future growth like in markets like USSR, China, Western Europe, North American, Asia, and Latin America. In Europe, as part of their geocentric strategy, their marketing subsidiary handled distribution and provision of field service. Comates used internal yen/dollar exchange rate to make them more profitable at the worst-scenario rate. In order to better compete against Cat’s product line made of more than 120 products, Comates increased their product line as well, always applying total quality control to ensure the highest quality in every aspect of operations, and always making sure to incorporate the latest technology thanks to its own RD laboratory – since these are some of the key successes factors in the industry – and launched customized lines with focus on markets with needs that were different from the Japanese market. Consumers’ confidence was increased by the product’s longer durability and double Engel of warranty period compared to Cat’s, and by their efficient assistance service networks, another key industry key success. Caterpillar’s competitive position in 1985 relied on their huge reputation due to high quality products backed by effective operating 605 branches worldwide, low dependence on debt and excellence at servicing/repairing equipment and supply parts anywhere around the globe and especially locations where these dealers were a major marketing asset and important entry barrier to its competitors. You read "Komatsu vs Catterpilar – Comparative Essay" in category "Essay examples" Hence, Caterpillar was able to charge a price premium of up to 20% over competitive products, while maintaining the low cost manufacturing position. Heavy investments were constantly made in RD to assure product leadership, as well as widespread advertising in specialized magazines like the prominent Engineering News Record, since these are industry key success factors. Manufacturing wise, Cat was highly integrated backward – nearly 90% of its products were substantially the same and parts were made in-house, which facilitated flexibility and quality control. Therefore, their products were sophisticated, durable, reliable, and constantly adapted – they boasted 120 different machines serving almost as many market segments. Enabling all this depended on hiring high quality human capital, who was receiving higher wages than Comates, and who were trained continuously such as having to read newsletters emphasizing the importance of increasing productivity to meet foreign competition. Dealers were regularly taken care of as well: Cat helped them maintain inventory, and conducted regular training programs for them and product demonstrations for their customers. Based on the current state of Caterpillar, specific actions are needed to be taken immediately to help regain some of the sales and profits lost in the last three years. After extensive research, our group’s initial recommendation is to not overreact. It is important to realize that this company has had an outstanding amount of success based on its classic strategic position instilled throughout the company of high- quality products and effective service. The company still has a 43% share in the industry and although this figure has dropped in recent years, it is still very respectable. Throughout Caterpillar’s entire history, it now has four years where it incurred losses, which would be considered very successful by many companies worldwide. With that said, three of those four years of losses have happened these past three years so some changes are necessary to bring the company back to acceptable amounts of sales and profitability. The first order of business it to eliminate the recent communication issues with our customers. For years our differentiation strategy has led to our products being known for their exceptionally high-quality and reliability. Over the last half of the decade, the disconnection between Caterpillar and their consumers has become alarming. When our major competitor is sending out personnel to specific countries, specifically Australia, in an attempt to better understand their individual needs and create a product to cater to those needs. We have been charging a premium on all of our products and without any real value-added features. A bulldozer in America is the same bulldozer in India and in Australia. To maintain our differentiation strategy, we need to create individual products that cater more to the needs of specific customers. A Comates dealer is quoted as saying â€Å"When you are selling against number one, you need some price advantage. But we tell contractors we can give them 10% more machine for 10% less money. That’s not selling price in my book†. That is a clear indication that we to send our employees to the construction sites to find out specifically what they need to succeed. The biggest task for construction companies are managing time. They are forced to meet deadlines and use their resources correctly. We have to take the same mentality, and create products that not only allow them to meet their deadlines in a more efficient way, but for us to utilize our resources in the most appropriate way. One final point to this topic comes from the current global economy we are in. Distressed economies and weak currencies are not likely to buy products eased on reputation alone. Our price premium can be a hindrance to these developing economies and unless we differentiate ourselves with product lines that appeal to their countries needs, it is unlikely they will choose us. Local differentiated products are the key to the future success of our company. The second order of business is to take a good hard look at our company financial. The most alarming statistic we found was that Caterpillar has to sell $6. 8 Billion dollars a year in products Just to break-even. In 1983, we would have had to command 63% of the market Just to break-even ($6. /$10. 95 – Ex. 1 Comates). Our recommendation would be to reduce the production levels in the U. S. And spread it out across the globe. Although we have reduced the number of facilities in the U. S. In recent years, our current production levels are still too high resulting in high labor costs and foreign exchange issues and ultimately lower profits. The consistency of the company has been great, â€Å"All CAT products were the same, no matter where they were made†. This leads us to believe that the company can see the same type of success it has seen in the past while saving on costs. We have been hurt badly over the last couple of years because 68% of our non-U. S. Sales were manufactured in the U. S. And the U. S. Dollar has appreciated around 40%. This has resulted in our company receiving fewer profit margins in overseas sales, which is a major concern because our margins were much higher in the U. S. Before the recession (20% to 7%). Based on our recommendation, we would utilize the assembly plants we created in years past in countries around the globe and enhance their capabilities. This would allow for Caterpillar to maximize their production levels in certain areas of the world, as well s utilize the first recommendation and customize machinery as it pertains to a certain area of the world. This would not only lower export costs and mitigate foreign exchange risk, but it would also lower our exceptionally high labor rates to a more respectable level. When our labor costs are two-thirds of overall costs of the product, something needs to change. By increasing production in countries such as China, Japan, Indonesia, or India our company could lower the overall cost and gain a much higher margin based on our current differentiation strategy. Lastly, this would help eliminate some of the excess capacity issue the industry is currently experiencing. When the industry was experiencing great times, our capacity levels were less than 75% which could mean two things: either we have the capability to produce more if demand increases or we have too much capacity for the current industry environment. Clearly, we have seen that we had too much extra capacity which has resulted in our closing of ten U. S. Plants. By implementing this recommendation, we can gain more respectable levels of around 95% capacity as we enter the maturity stage of the industry. A third recommendation we would make involves the use of How to cite Komatsu vs Catterpilar – Comparative Essay, Essays

Monday, May 4, 2020

George Orwell is one of the most famous authors of dystopian fiction Essay Example For Students

George Orwell is one of the most famous authors of dystopian fiction Essay George Orwell is one of the most famous authors of dystopian fiction. He skillfully incorporates many literary devices, symbols and themes in a unique blend that is all his own; this demonstrates his style. As a satirist he attempts to convey his feelings about many issues using his unique style. One can find a reoccurring style in two of his most famous books: Animal Farm and 1984. Orwells style is one that is used frequently throughout his literature. Authors often utilize these types of literary devices in their writing to ridicule or satire the society around them, or to provide a warning against what could potentially happen to the world. In each of these two novels he attempts to accomplish a certain goal. In 1984 Orwell warns against leaders who are hungry for power. These people would not hesitate to deprive individuals of everyday freedom if it meant prolonging their control, he also warns against excessive censorship. Similarly, George Orwell uses Animal Farm to warn against the deceitfulness that accompanies communism, fascism, socialism and Marxism. George Orwells techniques are plentiful and he uses his genius to express his message. Political purpose is his main reason and theme that reoccurs within both Animal Farm and 1984. Although his intent is to influence people, he disguises his thoughts and opinions in his incredible stories. He uses Animal Farm as a cute little story in which there is a much deeper meaning and he uses Winston Smith as a representative of himself and his ideology. Understanding the ideology behind such symbolic works are the first steps to grasping the style of George Orwells work and thus symbolism becomes his greatest asset in his quest to inform the world. George Orwells use of political purpose, although a very broad term, plays a huge role in both Animal Farm as well as 1984. Orwells political views, especially his distrust of mass media, are characterized through Winston Smith in 1984. Spending time working for the British Broadcasting Company BBC, Orwell was exposed to a lot of stretched truths and negative propaganda. This led to a huge distrust for those in power aa well as the distrust in the information distributed to and received by the general public from them. Orwell discusses how history is changed by whoever is in power. Orwell hated totalitarianism, mainly because of its lies, and so he saw it as the enemy. If any person or powerful group finds a fact damaging or conflicting with their goal, that person can easily change it by the way in which it is reported. A certain degree of truthfulness was possible so long as it was admitted that a fact may be true even if you dont like it. Revising history. He is supporting his ideas with an example familiar to most. Orwells own distrust is apparent in his creation of the Ministry of Truth. It is here where Winston, the main character, is employed forming propaganda and changing past facts to comply with whatever lies Big Brother, the government, is telling the people. Orwells political opinions are voiced in Winstons role in the government. Orwells characteristic thoughts, opinions and political views are also expressed through Winston Smiths own views and writings, serving as an almost direct representation. Although Orwell published his opinions in books and essays and Winston wrote in a diary, they both believed strongly in their opinions and views. Orwell was against totalitarianism and used Winston to reflect that stance when he wrote against INGSOC English Socialism. INGSOC is the policy by which the government of Oceania, where Winston lived, was run. Although both Winston and Orwell recognize their objective is hopeless, they still cling to the hope that maybe through their words and descriptions, they might, even for a moment alter anothers thinking. Orwell writes: Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written directly or indirectly against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand itWhy I write. Orwell wanted to expose the truth. Winston and Orwell both seem to be understood. Winston writes in his diary, Until they become conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious 1984 61. Orwells motive was not to create some wonderful, entertaining work, instead, he seeks to reveal lies and make his views known by exposing them to the public Why I write. In his essay entitled Why I Write Orwell explains one of his main reasons for writing with political purpose. He has a desire to alter peoples political opinions and to change the world. Orwell needed to have a purpose in life, as did Winston. A boring, redundant lifestyle was not enough for Winston; he felt the need to make a difference. He became obsessed with the government, politics and his rebellion against them. Orwells opinions, and goal to expose the truth to the public was voiced constantly through Winston Smiths character. Another device that Orwell uses is historical impulse, or a desire to see things as they are, to find out true facts and store them up for the use of posterity. In a peaceful age I might have written ornate or merely descriptive books, and might have remained almost unaware of my political loyalties. As it is I have been forced into becoming a sort of pamphleteerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Then came Hitler, the Spanish Civil War, etc. By the end of 1935 I had still failed to reach a firm decision. The Spanish war and other events in 1936-37 turned the scale and thereafter I knew where I stood. Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it. It seems to me nonsense, in a period like our own, to think that one can avoid writing of such subjects. Everyone writes of them in one guise or another. It is simply a question of which side one takes and what approach one follows. And the more one is conscious of ones political bias, the more chance one has of acting politically without sacrificing ones aesthetic and intellectual integrity. Why I write As Orwell himself stated in his essay Why I Write, the influence of history and the present has an inevitable influence on a writer of any time. Orwell is placing Winston Smith in the situation of instances and events that he has personally witnessed. These obvious institutions of his comparisons throughout these works are truly a reflection of the current events occurring at some point in his life and his approval or disapproval concurrent with them. Animal Farm begins by introducing Mr. Jones, the master of the farm, who is too drunk to shut the portal in the henhouse. The owner of Manor Farm also forgets to milk the cows, a physically serious mistake, and is irresponsible toward the rest of his animals. One of the cows breaks into the store shed and Mr. Jones and his helpers try to fight off the hungry animals. A minute later all five of them were in full flight down the cart track that led to the main road, with the animals pursuing them in triumph. Then, almost before they knew what was happening, the Rebellion had been successfully carried through Jones was overthrown, and the Manor Farm was theirs. Animal Farm 13 Yet with the revolution successful, there are greater dangers than the threat of invasion and counter-revolution. The ultimate corruption of the revolution is foreshadowed. They raced back to the farm building to wipe out the last traces of Jones hated reign he reins, the halters, the degrading nosebags, were thrown onto the rubbish fire which was burning in the yard. So were the whips. Animal Farm 21 Although it resembles the Russian Revolution and the rise of Stalin, it is more meaningfully a representation of all political revolutions, where the revolutionary ideas of justice, equality, and alliance shatter in the event. Orwell paints a harsh picture of the political 20th century, a time he believed marked the end of human freedom. To avoid such a government, the pigs establish a set a regulations by which all were to abide by. The Seven Commandments: A Doll's house EssayDespite the priority in the necessity for food and warmth, the pigs exploit Boxer and the other common animals by making them take on backbreaking labor to build the windmill, which will ultimately earn the pigs more money and therefore increase their power. The pigs declaration that Snowball is responsible for the windmills first collapse represents psychological manipulation, because it prevents the common animals from doubting the pigs abilities and unites them against a theoretical enemy. The ultimate conversion of the windmill to commercial use is one more sign of the pigs betrayal of their fellow animals. From a symbolic point of view, the windmill represents the enormous modernization projects undertaken in Soviet Russia after the Russian Revolution. The main purpose of satire is to attack, assault, harass, intensely criticize, and otherwise demean the specific subject. This plays a huge role in the technique that George Orwell uses in his novels. Satire becomes intertwined with irony in his attempt to portray his disapproval of the fascist and communist nations. This is brilliantly carried out in the classic piece of satire, Animal Farm. The main targets at the focus of this political satire are the society that was created in Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, and the leaders involved in it. George Orwell successfully denounces these targets through satirical techniques such as irony, fable, and allegory. The immediate object of attack in Orwells political satire is the society that was created in Russia after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. The events portrayed in Animal Farm obviously and continuously refer to events in another story, the history of the Russian Revolution. In other words, Animal Farm is not only a charming fable and a bitter political satire; it is also an allegory. The main subject of this allegory is Stalin, represented by Napoleon the pig. He represents the human weakness of any revolution. Orwell believed that although socialism is a ideal, it could never be successfully adopted due to uncontrollable sins of human nature. For example, although Napoleon seems at first to be a good leader, he is eventually overcome by greed and soon becomes power-hungry. Of course Stalin also did this in Russia by leaving the original equality of socialism behind, this gave him all the power and luxurious living while the common pheasant suffered. Orwell explains: Somehow it seemed as though the farm had grown richer without making the animals themselves any richer except of course for the pigs and the dogs. Animal Farm 68 The constant topic of satire is to point out the frailties of the human condition, and this is one of Orwells central themes in Animal Farm. This shows that it is not necessarily the system that is corrupt or faulty, but the individuals in power. Old Major, with all his good intentions, took no note of the crucial fact that even though his ideas were legitimate and moral, corrupt individuals found ways and opportunities to take advantage those ideas to suit their own selfish desires. So, Orwell successfully points out the weakness of his satirical targets by using the technique of allegory. Another main satirical technique used to condemn these targets is the use of fable, or storytelling. A fable is a story, usually having a moral in which beasts talk and act like men and women. Orwells characters are both animal and human. The pigs, for example eat mash, real pig food, but with milk in it that they have grabbed and persuaded the other animals to let them keep a human action. The dogs growl and bite the way real dogs do, but to support Napoleons drive for political power. Orwell never forgets the delicate balances between how real animals actually behave and what human qualities his animals are supposed to represent. Hypothetically speaking, if Orwell hadnt used the technique of storytelling, and had deliberately painted an objective picture of the evils he describes, the real picture would probably be very depressing and extremely boring. As an alternative, he offers us a parody of the situation. The primary reason for this abstraction was to move readers from the concrete reality. So even as he entertains one through a cute setting, he provides readers with a serious image of his intended targets. It is written for entertainment, but contains harsh and important comments on the Russian revolution and its leaders, offering a false setting with real people. Part of the storys humor lies in the straightforwardness with which the characters are drawn. Each animal character is a type, with one human trait, or two at most. He usually associates the traits with a particular kind of animal. Using animals as types is also Orwells way of keeping his hatred and anger against exploiters under control. He keeps his sense of humor by reporting calmly In future, all questions relating to the working of the farm would be settled by a special committee of pigs. Animal Farm 45 The story of Animal Farm is told in a plain, basic style. The sentences are often very concise and sparse Old Major cleared his throat and began to sing. It was a bitter winter. Animal Farm 78 The story follows a single line of action, calmly told, with no digressions. Orwells style, said one critic, has relentless simplicity and pathetic tenacity of the animals themselves. There is a kind of tension in Animal Farm between the sad story the author has to tell and the lucid, almost light way he tells it. This is very ironic, because the content of the story is very different from the style. One expects the story to be like every other fable youve read, complete with cute characters, predictable plotline, and happy ending. But because of the nature of the content in Animal farm, the content is completely incongruent to the style. Another irony that occurs in Animal Farm is when pig becomes man. In that Old Major at the beginning assumes that man is the only enemy of the animals. He emphasizes that animals must never imitate man, especially his vices. Gradually in their life-style and their indifference to the animals, the pigs exploit the animals much more than Jones ever did. This irony particularly depicts how low the pigs had actually become, and how Stalin had made things much worse than it had originally been under the Czars rule. This further enhances the satirical aim of condemning the target. Through satirical techniques such as irony, fable, and metaphor, George Orwell paints a brilliant picture of the evils in Communist Russia in his book Animal Farm. He is very effective in doing so and condemns his targets through every thread of his book including the characters, the themes, and even the style. He does so simply, yet expressively, and is very successful in achieving the satirical aim of condemning his targets. George Orwells themes and styles are evident by his use of political purpose, concise syntax, symbolism and general appeal. He skillfully incorporates many literary devices, symbols and themes in a unique blend that is all his own, or his style. Understanding Orwells ideology behind such symbolic works are the first steps to grasping the style of George Orwells work and thus symbolism becomes his greatest asset in his quest to inform the world. Each of the above characteristics can be seen profoundly in the famous dystopian novels Animal Farm and 1984. George Orwell presents a warning for all who read his works by presenting his opinion. He strongly believes that the direction the world is heading is by no means beneficial to anyone, save the individuals in power. Every piece of literature has a purpose and George Orwells purpose is strictly political. The overruling statement his attempt to arouse the people who sit around accepting the injustice played upon them. His goal is to prevent the world from making a horrible mistake by sacrificing our God-given human rights in return for authority, control and power.