Essay about Ethnography Ainu - 2155 Words

Ethnography: Ainu Worldview The Ainu, Japan’s native aboriginal people, are very much an isolated people, living now only in the northern island of Japan, Hokkaido. They number, as of a 1984 survey, 24,381, continuing a rise from a low point in the mid nineteenth century due to forced labor and disease, and have largely left their old ways and integrated into standard Japanese society, though even the majority of those still reside in Hokkaido. The animistic religion of the Ainu is firmly enmeshed with every other aspect of the culture. Family and Kinship Most Ainu organize in groups of nuclear families, the nuclear family being the basic social unit (Encyclopedia). Some groups, however, have extended families, but are†¦show more content†¦During the 70s Ainu revival, many intellectual Ainu saw an opportunity to spread their ideas and oral traditions in print, and were not ignored, providing financial support for the Ainu arts (Dab 10). Politics As an indigenous and oft-oppressed people, forced back by the Japanese for centuries from their native lands to only the Northern part of Japan’s Northernmost island, the Ainu did not focus on politics outside of their community, especially in Japan’s blindly homogenous culture. â€Å"After World War II, the first Ainu political part, the Sinei Undo, had formed and though it only counted 5% of Ainu among its members it was the largest political association of Ainu at the time, and had branches in the major Ainu communities† (Dabb 10). In their settlements, Ainu usually have a single male decision-making leader per settlement, who makes his decisions with the advice of the elders in the settlement (Encyclopedia). The elders are opposed by shamans, who, frequently being female, allow for more of a sexual balance of power in the settlement. A few groups of small settlements are under the control of larger settlements, but this is uncommon. The political leader of a community is always the host of a bear ritual, which usually attracts the leaders of the nearby settlements (Encyclopedia). Language Ainu language has, like the Ainu themselves, a past wrapped in mystery. Of the known language families, such as Indo-European, the basis of English,Show MoreRelatedTattoos : a Permanent Mark on Pop Culture Essay6526 Words   |  27 Pagescommunication among spies. Markings identified the spies and showed their rank. Romans marked criminals and slaves. This practice is still carried on today. The Ainu people of western Asia used tattooing to show social status. Girls coming of age were marked to announce their place in society, as were the married women. The Ainu are noted for introducing tattoos to Japan where it developed into a religious and ceremonial rite. In Borneo, women were the tattooists. It was a cultural traditionRead MoreEssay on Birth: The Beginning of Life2455 Words   |  10 Pagesmale-dominated field of anthropology. Until quite recently in the history of anthropology, our views of social organization consistently ignored the many and varied places of women in society, resulting in a distorted theory and an impoverished ethnography (Jordan 5). By exploring childbirth, one can gain insight into the lives of women in any culture. Parturition in non-human primate societies Childbirth is inherently natural. All non-human primates experience childbirth, as they are all mammalsRead MoreThe Myths of Cultural Globalization Essay3502 Words   |  15 Pagesand what they actually do or mean is often a very different matter. Good ethnography combines detailed empirical research with larger political and philosophical questions. The anthropologist, who goes into the field for an extended period of time (on average 12-18 months), attempts to take the perspective of the people he/she studies and represent his/her findings to a wider audience. The resulting ethnography is a translation, shifting between the perspective of the cultural insider andRead MoreAgrarian Magic: 20 Theories on the Origin of Religion8239 Words   |  33 Pagesquestions about religion, and while we cant evaluate the veracity of religion’s claims, we can attempt to understand its functions. The methods of comparative religion, comparative mythology, with interdisciplinary analysis throughout the fields of ethnography, neuroscience, psychology, sociology, anthropology, history, and linguistics have made a lot of progress in the last 100 years, with a boom of database-driven analysis in the last decade. There are a number of theories attempting to explain the

Clifford Geertz s Definition Of Religion - 807 Words

3) Clifford Geertz’s definition of religion is an accurate reflection of the basic tenet of religion. Geertz argues that religion is based solely on the concepts of symbols and the impacts that symbols have on the practitioners of the religion. Geertz demonstrates that symbols give a meaning to life. The symbols give practitioners something to hold onto at all times. Geertz’s definition of symbols and their impacts fits the use of symbols in many religious practices including the religions of the Huichol Indians and the Amish sect of the Protestant Christian church. In the first part of the Geertz’s definition, he states that religion is â€Å"a system of symbols which acts†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . All religions are made up of symbols. In the Amish church, the symbols include the baptism and living in a traditional way. For the Amish, baptism â€Å"symbolize[s] a commitment to both God and fellow believers† (Robinson, 2015). By being baptized, the adult member of t he community is making a lifelong commitment to live a simple life for God in the way of the Amish. For the Huichol, Ramon states, â€Å"Now I will tell you of the maize and the peyote and the deer†¦ They are our life. They are ourselves.† (189). For the Huichol, the symbols represent a unity complex that are the centerfold of their religion. Religion is made up of symbols, and the Amish Christian and Huichol religious complexes demonstrate that concept. In the second part of the definition, Geertz states that symbols â€Å"establish powerful,Show MoreRelatedClifford Geertzs Focus on the Power of Religion1160 Words   |  5 PagesClifford Geertz has focused more on the symbolic power of religion. He has talked about the fact that it is the symbolic power of religion that has a strong influence on the people. It is the religion, in accordance to Clifford that helps the people in understanding the place that the people have in the world. The actions that are undertaken by the people are also defined by the religion. Based on the arguments that have been given by Clifford, it can be added here that there is a great effect ofRead MoreDefining Religion1029 Words   |  5 PagesWhen searching for the meaning of the term religion one most go a long way in making an extensive search to actually form a definition that can fit such a broad word. There is no one definition that can satisfy all religions and remain true to all religions throughout its answer. There are many different views and definitions of the word and it is very hard to come up with a reasonable definition that sums such a massive expression up. Religion when used as a single word is almost impossible to defineRead MoreReligion And Its Impact On Religion Essay1199 Words   |  5 Pageswe have defined religion as a system of believes particularly belief in a God or gods. The problem with this is that we categorize too much under the umbrella of religion that does not fit under this cate gory; as Craig Martin argues in, A Critical Introduction to the Study of Religion, â€Å"The colloquial use groups together dissimilar things. All of those things we call ‘religions’ simply do not share a set of core properties†. We tend to define Catholicism when asked to define religion. Many very educatedRead MoreAnalysis Of Meanings And Concepts Of Culture Essay1422 Words   |  6 PagesThe analysis of meanings and concepts of culture The objective of this essay is to present and analyse the main definitions of the word culture through different social and historical processes, starting from the ancient times to the most modern times. Starting from the etymology of the word, the term culture derives from the latin word colà ¨re, that means to farm the land, and only after, this meaning was extended to the term cultus, that stands for a literate man, and there is a connectionRead MoreReligion And Religious Forms Of Religion1016 Words   |  5 Pagesthe course of this term, we have studied several different philomaths of religion and several different approaches to the study of religion. As we studied these approaches, many aspects of religion have been recurring in several scholars’ definitions of religion and approaches to the study of religion. I have endeavored to encapsulate what I believe to be the most paramount aspects in my definition, which is as follows: Religion is a community that shares notion in some supernatural force and apportionsRead MoreReligion, Politics, And Politics Essay2149 Words   |  9 Pages Religion and politics have been inextricably intertwined since the creation of culture and civilization. However, the academic tradition often times has been to focus on the importance of placing religion and politics into two distinctly separate systems. I, however, argue that it isn t as black and white as that. In many of the readings we have been assigned this quarter thus far, religion and politics have gone hand in hand mutually benefiting one another. As shown in these readings, religionRead MoreCommunication, Religion, And Culture1809 Words   |  8 Pagesindividual s life. Those facets are communication, religion, and culture. Communication, as a field of study, is arguably one of the most extensive and elaborate topics. Regardless of the station of life, the sector of work, or complexity of establishment, communication is used. Communication is necessary for life to function. Not only that, but it is especially necessary for life to function well. With this in mind, it becomes easier for one to recognize it s importance. In the same way, religion canRead M oreDo Religion, Spirituality And Health Concepts Have Any Relationship?1632 Words   |  7 PagesDo religion, spirituality and health concepts have any relationship? This this the question that comes to mind when measuring influence of religious identity and participation in health and illness responses. A lot of controversies were noted due to lack of consensus when researchers attempted to define and conceptualize religion (Koenig, King Carson, 2012). Online search through publications such as, online dictionary, CINAHL Plus, E-Journal yielded distinctive, but unrelated results. Merriam-WebsterRead MoreCultural Diversity Of The World2024 Words   |  9 Pagesalso represents a place of spirit, full of traditions, rituals and rites for the Baganda people. A culture is dependent on a particular person or group, in a particular time and in a particular place, and in many cases embodies a shared ethnicity, religion, political belief or generation. These particularities can create a culture group but are contingent as a subset to the larger culture of the world. The discourse on what culture is has been debated within multiple disciplines, such as ecologyRead MoreOhio State Football as a Religion? Essay2320 Words   |  10 Pagescelebrated in some traditions of religion. However, it is arguably, what essentially happens at an Ohio State Football game on nearly every Saturday in Columbus, Ohio. Saturdays in Columbus are like Holy Days in most religions and create a liminal space in the university area. Through its use of myths, rituals, devotion of the fans, and use of space as well as time, Ohio State Football seems to be more then just a sport to many people, it seems to be a religion. In this paper I will aim to show

Maestro and Pleasantville free essay sample

In Pleasantville, Ross conveys his purpose through distinctively visual images expressed through cinematic techniques such as colour and juxtaposition. Throughout the film, it is clear that Ross uses a distinct use of juxtaposing colour to reveal his thoughts about how one can change through new experiences. This is portrayed in scenes in the film such as Skip’s first sexual encounter and Betty Parker’s first sexual pleasures In Maestro, it is through Paul’s experiences throughout the novel, that the reader can sense his changed perceptions of characters such as Keller.Paul’s perception of Keller changes dramatically throughout the novel, the younger Paul reveals Keller as a â€Å"boozer† however the older, mature Paul kisses him, and reveals him as a â€Å"Great Man†. Paul’s changed perception of Keller is also conveyed through the recurring use of adjectives when Goldsworthy writes â€Å"The red glow of his face – a boozers i ncandesant glow† as it reveals Paul’s lack of respect for him, and immature, judgmental nature as the first thing he notices about Keller is his alcoholic habits. It is also noteworthy, as Paul is portraying Keller with unflattering adjectives, which also reveals his immaturity at the time. Throughout the novel Goldsworthy repetitively uses distinctively visual images to portray Keller through Paul’s eyes, which makes the Paul’s change of perception more powerful. It is at the conclusion of the novel, after Paul gains knowledge of Keller’s past, he reveals sensitive, mature feelings towards Keller as he refers to him as a delicate â€Å"handful of frail bird-bones†, aâ€Å"frail papier mache body†. But perhaps the strongest sign of Paul’s changed perception of Keller is revealed as Paul kisses Keller, who is now â€Å"weightless, emptied of life and mind and thought† once he had died.This is deemed important as it overrides every single bad comment Paul had ever said, as the reader is now focusing on the present Paul’s sympathetic feeling of Keller, rather than his arrogant, disrespectful perception of Keller in his past. In the novel Maestro, it is clearly evident that Goldsworthy conveys his purpose by creating a memoir styled novel. Through this the reader can experience Paul’s distinctively visual portrayals of Keller, and how his perception changed over the course of his life.In the film Pleasantville, Siblings, Jennifer and David enter the sitcom world of Pleasantville while fighting over a TV remote. Once in Pleasantville, Jennifer had taken the role of Mary-Sue Parker, and David – Bud Parker, introducing new emotions, knowledge, experiences and overall; change to the people of Pleasantville. Gary Ross uses distinctively visual images to reveal his personal perception on change, and how it can be influenced by new experiences. Specifically, Ross uses the experiences of the characters Skip (the basketball jock in love with Mary-Sue) and Betty Parker (the mum of Mary-Sue and Bud) to convey his view.Ross combines characterization with a variety of cinematic techniques to successfully convey this purpose, however the use of colour, juxtaposition and symbolism all contribute greatly into making the film distinctively visual. The first scene where Ross’s purpose is clearly evident arises after Skip’s first sexual experience with Jennifer. In the image, a red rose has salience due to the emphasis of colour and the vectors created by created by the white picket fenc e and surrounding shadows. It is in this scene where Ross’s purpose is revealed, as the addition of colour to the rose is symbolic of the change Skip had just encountered. The addition of colour in this scene is significant as Skip, and Pleasantville, were both unable to identity what â€Å"colour† was as Pleasantville’s society has never experienced â€Å"change†. In this scene, Ross has used distinctively visual images to convey his purpose, the juxtaposition of colour and symbolism create salience towards changes in Pleasantville, and altogether, create Ross’s purpose. The second distinctively visual scene where Ross conveys his purpose is the burning tree scene. This occurs outside the Parker’s house once Jennifer had raised Betty’s sexual consciousness, teaching her to explore her inner esires.. As this was a new experience for Betty Parker it was symbolized by the addition of colour in the world of Pleasantville. In this scene, the tree, burning on the left, is given life to flaming, illuminant oranges and yellows representing Betty Parker â€Å"set light† to her new found experience. As colour was incorporated in this scene it also symbolizes Betty’s change in attitude towards herself, her husband and the world. Overall this scene too, conveys Ross’s purpose as the world of Pleasantville changed, due to the inclusion colour after Betty’s new experience.Composers Peter Goldsworthy and Gary Ross are both successful in using distinctively visual images to convey their purpose. In the novel Maestro, Goldsworthy uses distinctively visual elements conveyed through literally techniques to create his view on how ones perception can change after gaining maturity. However in the film Pleasantville, Ross created distinctively visual images through the use of cinematic techniques such as colour and symbolism to reveal how one can change after being exposed to new experiences.

Experiment to investigate the effect of temperature on respiration in yeast Essay Example

Experiment to investigate the effect of temperature on respiration in yeast Essay In my experiment I used the following I used the following apparatus:* Test tube* Delivery tube* Thermometer* Beaker (300ml)* Beaker (100ml)* Yeast* Glucose* Tripod* Bunsen burner* Heating mat* Measuring cylinder* StopwatchIn my experiment I am investigating how temperature effects the respiration in yeast.MethodIn my experiment I first of all gather the above apparatus. I will fill the three hundred mills beaker with water and then place my test tube inside of it, the test tube will contain, so many parts glucose and so many parts yeast, but both parts have to add to twenty-five mills. (Each time so that it will be a fair test). The test tube will have a rubber bung on the top of it, which is attached to a delivery tube, and the other end of the delivery tube was in a smaller beaker, which is filled with water so that I could count the bubbles.Once this was set up, I heated the large beaker; the water heated, which heated the yeast then gave off gas through the delivery tube, which created bubbles in the smaller beakers water.This process was carried out I then heated the water In the larger beaker to 40 degrees then started the stopwatch for thirty second then recorded the bubbles, I did this each time going up in stages of ten degrees up to hundred degrees.I predict that the bubbles will increase until a certain time where the process wont stop producing until the glucose particles have collided with all the yeast particles the they can not collide anymore this is when the bubbles stop producing, they start colliding because temperature does increase the rate that particles move in.The things that I will measure are as follows:* Beakers* Yeast* Glucose* Time* Temperature* VolumeIn order for me to measure the glucose, yeast I will use a measuring cylinder. Measuring cylinder is the best thing for this kind of small measuring I chose this method because it is precise and easy to use.The quantities that I will change will be the glucose and yeast because then I can find out which is the formula that will produce the most bubbles. I also could of changed the time, but I didnt because I ran out of time unfortunately, this would of told me more on how temperature does effect on respiration in yeast, because instead of the 30 seconds I would of done 40 seconds, which I think would of lead to me find out that a lot more bubbles are produced and then recording this in o graph and basically going in to futher detail and invertigatiomnIn order to keep the experiment a fair one I will carry out the following:* Keep all measurements the same as the previous experiment/s.* Time limit the same.* Record all results the same also.So that my experiment is safe I will* Put my stool under the desk.* Wear goggles.* Clear desk.Table of first readings second readingsTemperatureBubbles/min19621923102412261528163125342435273736383841424344444548465248534055265918613630650680691700750800861900TemperatureBubbles/minute19621923102412261428253124342735363738384241 4443454446484852255318553591610630640650681690700750800860900The things that may make my experiment inaccurate could be:* Time* Temperature* Measurement* Same apparatus.In my experiment I didnt make any mistake to my knowledge, I put my stool under my table, wore goggles, and cleared my desk so that that I would be safe from any chemicals that may spill.The measurements I used added up to twenty-five for example: five mills glucose and 20 mills yeast. (These changed each time)The average amount of bubbles= 532 % 29 = 18. 3 bubbles (1.dp)The first set of results told me that: between o% and 18% there wasnt a change in the respiration of yeast and glucose, but when it reached 19% the respiration began to increase rapidly up to the peak point of 48% with 46 bubbles. From 48% it then started to decease quickly until it hit the bottom at 63% with no bubbles where it stayed at a result of 0 bubbles all the way to a 100% where I could clearly see there wasnt going to be a change so I ended the experiment.The second set of results told me: between 0 and 18% there was no bubbles produced, but from 19% to 56 % bubbles increased from 3 to 48. From 48% to 62% bubbles decrease to 0 and stayed this was until the experiment was over.From my tables and graphs I have learnt that 19 % is the point where yeast and glucose begin to respirate. And around 62 % is where the yeast begins to run out and gradually stops producing bubbles. I think the yeast runs out because the glucose can no longer feed it or the other alternative is the glucose runs out because the yeast thrives on it which causes the yeast not to respirate and there for the process the ends.From what the graphs and tables told me, it has proven my prediction wrong.My result I think were good and told me what I think is the right answer, I think now I have done the experiment that I should have done more experiments and really proven my conclusion with more than a few graphs.The thing that didnt seem to fit which happ ened in both cases of my experiments was that once the temperature had reached 62 % (which was the end of the respiration) it didnt have any bubbles then when it reached about 70 % it produced a bubbles I think this is because the yeast still respirates a bit, and produces its final bubble?My results did help me solve my problem because the temperature did effect the respiration in yeast (as I stated above).I think my results are fairly reliable but not as reliable, as If I would have done them more than twice.If I was going to do my experiment and whole investigation again I would the only thing I would change would be more results. So I would have a firmer conclusion. Also because my formula added up to 25 mills I think I would increase that to about 50 mills and see if this made any difference. If I were going to increase the concentration to 50 mills I think my prediction would be that instead of the peak temperature being around 62% I think I t would be around 100%. I thought t his because it would take longer for the yeast to respirate.There were a number of things that were inaccurate in my experiment the first one being the temperature, I wasnt sure if I was supposed to start the stopwatch then record the bubbles for 30 seconds or time 30 seconds then record the bubbles. Looking back now on my experiment I see that I should of changed my water every time, i.e.) once I have recorded the bubbles for 10 degrees then change the water and then heat it too 20 degrees and record it.

A Lavishing Welcome-- Odyssey essays

A Lavishing Welcome Odyssey essays For years hospitality has played a huge role in the lives of many, whether they be travelers or not. Through Homers The Odyssey this statement proves to be true; hospitality affects the travels of Odysseus throughout the entire work, both to his benefit and not. Many types of hosts are presented throughout this novel, some differing greatly, but they all have an effect on Odysseus in some way. From the start of the story you get a sense of how travelers are treated in most places. When we first meet Odysseus he is being treated as a king in the land of the Phaeacians. The Phaeacians were the perfect hosts to Odysseus giving him all that he needed and helping him along his way. They sat listening to the tale of his journey for quite some time and immediately offered to help him find his way back to Ithaca. This is what every traveler hopes to come across when finding themselves stuck in an unfamiliar area. Unfortunately for Odysseus this wasnt always the case. Some of the hosts Odysseus came across seemed wonderful and welcoming on the outside, but in all reality hurt his case more than anyone else. Calypso was a perfect example of the importunate host. She treated Odysseus well, spoiling him and letting him live a life of lavishing riches, but she wanted this to be all he knew of life. A perfect host would treat Odysseus well, just as Calypso did, but this perfect host which Calypso was not-would let Odysseus leave whenever he was ready and willing. Calypso never felt a desire to let Odysseus leave and did all she could to ensure that he was stranded with her. None of this is to say that Odysseus didnt like the life he was living. It was quite possible that he enjoyed himself throughout this extravagant life, but he still yearned for his home. Calypso wasnt the only one who played the role of an importunate host; Circe fulfilled this role as well. Unlike Caly ...

Abandoned People in Of Mice and Men Essay Example

Abandoned People in Of Mice and Men Essay Example Abandoned People in Of Mice and Men Essay Abandoned People in Of Mice and Men Essay Essay Topic: Of Mice and Men Steinbeck had already displayed a variation of the lonesome existence of the farmhands with the more common attitude towards George, Lennie, and Candy. In Chapter Four, this contrast becomes more pronounced. Crooks, Candy, and Lennie being the three mentally or physically disadvantaged â€Å"outcasts† on the farm discuss their dream of living a superior lifestyle. There seems to be a strong relation to socialism, which brings forward views of prejudice, freedom, and racism. Curley’s wife is reintroduced as well, leaving the four of them alone together. These characters are similar in the way they are secluded from society because of their impairment. Crooks is physically handicapped due to his skin color. Since he is not white he is looked upon as weak and inept. He does not have a proper bedroom and is stuck in a barn by himself every single day. To add to that, Candy is also physically handicapped. He is not able to do certain things because of his missing hand and does not feel needed on the farm. His dog was his only companion, but he loses him and has no one else to rely on. Curley’s wife is socially handicapped. She is perceived as a tramp because of her gender. There are not any other women for her to talk to, and that makes her seek attention. Last but not least, Lennie is mentally handicapped. He cannot think for himself and is unable to process basic concepts. To sum it up, all of them have some sort of handicap, whether it be mentally, physically, or socially. Although they are undeniably similar, they are also exceedingly different. For instance, Crooks is the only character who is left out on a daily basis. He cannot go anywhere without harsh words being thrown at him or feeling hated completely. On the other hand, Lennie is mocked simply because of his mental illness. At least he has someone to look after him, which is George. He can go places, but people feel the need to make their own entertainment from pushing hi

Kurdistan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Kurdistan - Research Paper Example While the political waves have promised to grant this state some form of political freedom, it is clear that it has a long way to go in the journey towards its independence. In the Middle East, Kurdish people claim one of the longest histories. The Kurdistan land was founded back in the year 2400 BC and the Kurds occupied the same geographic region that they occupy today. However, the population in this land has changed since there hass been massive foreign invasions and immigrants into this region. The current face of the Kurdish people has been changed by not only the people surrounding them but also those that have entered in this region in the course of history. One of the historical times that the Kurds mark is the time that they fall under the rule of the Ottoman. The Ottoman Empire considerably suppressed the Kurdish people and this had socioeconomic impacts in this land. Since 1843, during the Ottoman rule, a massive Kurdish uprising underpinned the political consciousness of this community. In the year 1908, the Kurdish people responded to oppression by attempting to form a national Kurdish movement. During the period of the First World War, there was a great struggle to redefine the boundaries of the Kurdistan land. Treaties were being formed by the respective governments to divide the minority communities such as Kurdistan. However, the government of Iraq and Turkey refused to give up the Kurdish land due to the presence of Oil wells in this region. They felt that this would be a great economic loss for the country. At the end of the Second World War, the Kurdish people formed the Mahabad Republic of Kurdistan, a body that gave this land independence from the other countries. However, this independence was short-lived as Iran, with the support of US and Great Britain destroyed this land and executed its leaders. This was a great blow for the land as it reduced the hopes of reconstruction and left the and under no

Switzerland Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Switzerland - Research Paper Example Depiction and Delineation Switzerland is considered to be one of those exceptional countries that are found to be the richest nations by both their economy as well as their beauty. This federal republic is situated in the heart of Europe (Middle Europe) and has been circumscribed by countries including Austria, Germany, Italy, and Liechtenstein. The foundation of Switzerland is an outcome of the concordance of people with diverse racial, cultural and religious origins. This fact reveals the secret of diversity observed throughout this country. It was established as an independent state by the Federal Constitution in 1848. Several great and notorious places are fancied by tourists including the Matterhorn, the Eiger, and the Jungfrau for their exclusive allurement subsumes French, Germans and Italians respectively. The major languages which are being used in Switzerland as national languages include French, German, Italian, and Romansh. However, Romansh does not equally match the stat us of other three languages. The hallmark souvenirs of this country are found to be the Swiss cheese and Swiss chocolate. Commerce and Industries Switzerland is found to be one of those exclusive countries that have the most stable economies in the world and has remained a leading financial and business hub. Along with the stability of its own economy, it has also been proved to be a safe harbor for financiers and business groups. The country has served as a safe heaven not only for depositors, but also for investors to place their funds in different businesses. On the basis of this, it is found that the country’s economy, holistically, is based mainly upon foreign investments. There are various kinds of industries which attract entrepreneurs for business progression (Robinson & Schweizer, 2006). The principal industries running in Switzerland are in the manufacturing sector producing either raw material or finished products, or they are involved in producing innovative high quality finished goods, for instance, watches. After manufacturing industries, industries for machineries and chemicals are dominant over other industries by rank. One of the chief as well as the oldest industries found in Switzerland is the food processing industry embodying processed cheese, condensed milk, baby food and, most substantially, the Swiss chocolate products. They are followed by another oldest industrial sector – the textile industry which is found to be mandatory for raw fabrics. However, the paper and plastic industry has also gained substantial elevation in the commerce of Switzerland. If skimmed economically, then Switzerland has achieved the honor to be one of the economic countries with topmost revenues along with the least rate of retrenchment (Switzerland, 2013). Government The government of Switzerland is considered to be divided into three principal levels: †¢ The Confederation. †¢ The Cantons. †¢ Communes. The Confederation, which is a lso been termed as the federal government, principally deals with the administration of taxes, customs, army, foreign relations, lawmaking of currency, and confederacy communication. The government comprises seven associates possessing comparable rights, and each of them is considered to be foremost in their respective departments. However, decisions are supposed to be adjudicated by voting of the seven members. Nevertheless, these associates are not considered permanent as they are customarily reinstated after four years by the Federal

Competing with Information Technology Essay Example for Free

Competing with Information Technology Essay Chapter 2 introduces fundamental concepts of competitive advantage through information technology and illustrates major strategic applications of information systems. Information Technology (IT) professionals must understand how to use IT systems and technology to deliver a competitive advantage to the organization. Information systems and technology should provide more than a cost savings benefit to organizations. Today, IT solutions are expected to provide the means to surpass a competitor’s performance. As discussed in Chapter 1, the role of IT professionals is changing. Currently, there is an evolving term, business technology, which is used to describe the emerging role in IT. IT professionals are becoming more and more integrated with the business operations of an organizations. The Real World Case Study 4, IT Leaders: Reinventing IT as a Strategic Business Partner, describes how one organization is reorganizing to better utilize IT to increase business benefits and contribute to a competitive advantage. It is important for an IT organization to utilize IT to reduce the cost of running the business, grow the business, or develop new services to change the business. To position an organization to better provide its products and services, an understanding of the competitive forces is needed. Michael Porter identifies five threats that require business strategies ensure that an organization can out-perform other competitors. They are: 1. Rivalry of competitors within its industry 2. Threat of new entrants 3. Threat posed by substitute products that might capture its market share 4. The bargaining power of customers 5. The bargaining power of suppliers To counteract these threats, competitive strategies must be developed to address the potential risks an organization may encounter as it strives to maintain its position on the market place. The competitive strategies are: 1. Cost Leadership Strategy 2. Differentiation Strategy 3. Innovation Strategy 4. Growth Strategies 5. Alliance Strategies 6. Other Strategies These strategies can be used either individually or in a combination to position an organization to better compete for the future. An example of an organization that is utilizing IT to change how it does business and remain economically viable in the future is the online magazine Cross Talk. In the 1990’s, Cross Talk was printing and mailing the magazine to subscribers. With a decrease in funding, this organization had to develop ways to reduce costs, deliver its services to its subscribers, grow its subscriber base, demonstrate its value above other on-line content providers, and justify why it should not be eliminated. Cross Talk is now available at its new website in either an online digital flipbook format or PDF version—CrossTalk is now completely electronic. This change reduces their carbon footprint and allows them to bring the journal to their readers in their preferred and most convenient format. This is also CrossTalks first step towards reaching new reader devices and enhancing the suitability of the journal for our increasing electronic readership. Customer Value Customer value has become a driving force in the world economy. A key success factor for many organizations is developing customer value by increasing customer loyalty, anticipate their future needs, respond to customer concerns, and provide top-quality customer service. One example is Southwest Airlines. Not only have they automated ticket sales via the Internet, Southwest also sends special offers regarding discounts available at my destination, emails to remind customers that the trip is around the corner, text alerts if a flight is delayed, and offers incentives to fly with them. It seems that Southwest Airlines provides a personal assistant to help make the travel experience more enjoyable. Think about how some of your favorite businesses are creating customer value for you. Internet Technologies Many organizations use Internet technologies to create a strategy to offer fast, responsive, high-quality products and services tailored to a customer’s individual preferences. Internet technologies make customers the focal point of customer relationship management (CRM) and other e-business applications. New technologies such as wikis and blogs are also being incorporated as a means to provide enhanced customer experience. Such communications enable continual interaction with customers by creating a cross-functional collaboration with customers in product development, marketing, delivery, service, and technical support. Television is taking advantage of this capability. TV news shows are reading and answering emails and some reality TV shows allow views to vote for their favorite contestant, preferred ending, or favorite commercial. Using the Internet technologies, business units are better able to shape and offer products and services. Value Chain The value chain is another concept that helps to identify opportunities for strategic information systems. It views an organization as a series of basic activities that add value to its products and services. In this framework, activities are organized into primary and support processes. From the business understanding gained by analyzing an organization’s value chain, the IT organization can determine where to best apply IT systems and technology. The following value chain graphic provides an example of how and where information technologies can be applied to specific business processes to gain a competitive advantage in the market place. Value chain offered by information technologies. Business Reengineering Often times, to remain competitive, an organization must consider more than just where and what IT systems and technology solutions should applied. An organization must look at how it actually does business and then reengineer its business processes. Business reengineering requires an organization to re-design how it does business by eliminating stove-piped, silo organizations and functions, develop an improved understanding for opportunities for information sharing, and instituting enhanced stewardship regarding an organizations data and business processes. Agile Companies The rate of change is increasing and organizations must be able to quickly respond to changing market trends. Standardized, long-lived products and services are giving way to globalized, niche markets which offer products that are individualized and short-lived. To become an agile organization, an organization must consider the following strategies. 1. Provide a solution that customers perceive as a solution to an individual problem. This allows the product to be priced based on value rather than cost to produce. 2. Cooperate with customers suppliers, and other companies to quickly bring the product to market. 3. Thrive on change and uncertainty. 4. Leverage the individuals and knowledge of the processes. Become entrepreneurial in spirit. Knowledge as a Competitive Advantage To remain competitive, organization must become a learning organization. Organizations must be able to capture the knowledge of the organization, learn from this knowledge, and then use it to enhance its offerings. Knowledge Management Systems facilitates an organization’s ability to capture and then utilize its knowledge. Understanding and being able to utilize this unstructured date is key to developing and maintain a competitive advantage. Information capture includes processes, procedures, patents, reference works, best practices, etc. This integration of knowledge helps an organization become an innovative and agile provider of high-quality products and customer services, and potentially a more formidable competitor in the market place. Leaders in information technology are expected to be not only a technology professional but also a business professional. Many are tasked with finding emerging business opportunities, driving growth, encouraging innovation, and engaging customers. This provides a tremendous opportunity for you to step up and co-create and ultimately shape the future business vision. Collaborating with the business will not be enough—you dont just provide the technology but jointly own the success and failure of business initiatives. IT Portfolio Management and Governance An emerging trend is enhanced IT Portfolio Management and Governance as a means to effectively apply IT systems and technology to business needs. According to Richard Spires, DHS CIO, in his blog post entitled Getting Program Governance Right Helps Ensure Success on the federal CIO Council Web site: Complex IT systems encompass at least a half-dozen stakeholder organizations that must be synchronized, including the strategy organization, the business or mission owner of the system, IT, finance, procurement, security, and privacy. Ensuring all key stakeholders are involved in key decisions is an essential element to assuring genuine alignment. Program Governance Boards provide guidance, decision-making, and oversight of one or more programs. The function of the Program Governance Board is not to usurp the authorities of the Program Manager (PM), but rather to provide a forum by which the PM can bring key issues and trade-off decisions to an informed, empowered body that has a vested interest in that program’s success and views the PM as a trusted advisor and true subject matter specialist. IT organizations must determine where to invest time, people, and money in current and new IT systems and services in order to enhance the value of products and services. To do this, many organizations are categorizing offerings into individual portfolios and establishing a strong governance structure to guide the selection and investment into solutions. Enterprise Architecture Organizations are establishing an Enterprise Architecture (EA) to inform, guide and constrain the investment decisions made by governance boards regarding IT systems. The Federal CIO Council defines EA as: Enterprise Architecture is a strategic information asset base, which defines the mission, the information necessary to perform the mission and the technologies necessary to perform the mission, and the transitional processes for implementing new technologies in response to changing mission needs. An enterprise architecture includes a baseline architecture, target architecture (sometimes referred to an as-is and to-be), and a sequencing plan. An EA identifies which processes and IT systems to standardize and integrate. The benefits of an EA are reduction in IT Costs, improved IT responsiveness, guides the proper selection of IT solutions to ensure the accomplishment strategic business outcomes. The components of an enterprise architecture is described in the figure below: Various layers of an enterprise architecture. (Source: NIST) Conclusion How does your organization determine how to invest in IT? You might see if one of your organization’s senior executives is available for a 30 minute meeting to discuss how the organization determines what technologies to invest in as a corporation. Think about questions to ask. Some examples might be: how is an business need identified? How are IT investments justified? Who are your competitors? If you work for an IT consulting firm, you might as how the company decides what contracts it will bid on. It can be said that our use of IT systems and technology is equivalent to when we were using rotary telephones. As you complete your Masters Program at UMUC, remain watchful of emerging trends in the IT industry, how it will be utilized to gain a competitive advantage, and what impact it will have on the skills needed by an IT professional and the organization structure required to take advantage of the advancements in technology. Trends currently occurring that may be worth watching are: cloud computing, software as a service, virtualization, social networks, and mobile computing. It is through developing learning as a life-long habit, remaining aware of trends in the industry, and understanding the impact that technology has on a company’s ability to compete that you, as an individual, will be able to keep your skills current, agile, and competitive.

Implementation Factor Affecting E-governance in Uttarakhan

Implementation Factor Affecting E-governance in Uttarakhan Jitender Kumar Sehgal, Dr. Priti Dimri, Krishna Nand Rastogi Abstract e-Governance is the utilization of Internet and the world wide web for delivering government Information and services to the citizens and the other organizations. Uttarakhand is one of the leading states in implementation of e-Governance but still there are lot of challenges in effective and efficient implementation at rural level or hilly areas. This paper highlights the factors that are affecting the implementation of e-Governance in Uttarakhand it also includes a survey which takes all the factors into an account and before starting a actual survey a preliminary study conducted in order to evaluate feasibility for this questionnaire was done which confirms its acceptance. Keywords: E- governance, Common Service Centers, M-Government Introduction E-Governance refers to approach â€Å" How government utilized IT, ICT, and other web based telecommunication technologies to improve and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery in public sector. Government of Uttarakhand has implemented a number of projects implementation of e-governance. The website of almost every government department has been launched so as to provide as their services online, for this purpose Government of Uttarakhand has launched www.uk.gov.in where we can access a short description of a particular government department and its related website links. The description of 46 departments is available on this website. In addition to large no. of Common Service Center (CSC) are also provided for convenience of rural and hilly areas of citizens . But there are some hurdles due to which hilly area/rural area citizens are not able to access e-Governance services. In this survey an attempt to collect the factors that affect the implementation of e-Governance is done so that the necessary actions can be made for its efficient and effective implementation. Common Service Centers The CSC is a strategic cornerstone of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), as part of its commitment in the National Common Minimum Programmed to introduce e-governance on a massive scale. The CSCs would provide high quality and cost-effective video, voice and data content and services, in the areas of e-governance, education, health, telemedicine, entertainment as well as other private services. A highlight of the CSCs is that it will offer web-enabled e-governance services in rural areas, including application forms, certificates, and utility payments such as electricity, telephone and water bills. The Scheme creates a conducive environment for the private sector and NGOs to play an active role in implementation of the CSC Scheme, thereby becoming a partner of the government in the development of rural India. The PPP model of the CSC scheme envisages a 3-tier structure consisting of the CSC operator (called Village Level Entrepreneur or VLE) the Service Centre Agency (SCA), that will be responsible for a division of 500-1000 CSCs and a State Designated Agency (SDA) identified by the State Government responsible for managing the implementation over the entire State. M-Government M-Government, is the extension ofe-Governmentto mobile platforms, as well as the strategic use of government services and applications which are only possible using cellular/mobile telephones, laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) andwirelessinternet infrastructure. M-Government is now evolving on four dimensions transforming e-Government services directly to the mobile platform, providing access to mobile technologies and application for the field workers of the public sector, enabling smart / flex working and providing citizen services any time, any where. Analysis Factor This survey considers all the factors affecting the services of e-governance at urban and rural or hilly areas. It includes major factors and all those factors are taken as question which can be answered in two different ways (yes or no) according to which we take better services and form government and suggests some specific points to government of Uttarakhand for better implementation of e-governance services. According to the survey the respondents can be classified into two categories are as follows: Rural/ Urban Citizens Hilly areas citizens Category Factors General Questions Do you access internet in your daily life? Do you have internet connection? Is there any CSC in your village ? Do you have electricity in your village? Do you have proper road facility in your village? E-governance Have you heard about e-governance and its services? Do you prefer to use governance services online? Is the access to government links or websites (c.1) Easy? (c.2) Time Saving? (c.3) Accessible from Home? (c.4) Secure and safe? Common Service Centre (CSC’s) (a) Have you ever visited CSC centre? (If Yes, Please attempt the following) (b) Where do you access CSC ? (b.1) In your city or village (b.2) Nearby your city or village (b.3) Is it easy to access that CSC (If No, Please mention the reason/reasons) (b.4) Distance to be travelled in KM (b.5) Is Proper road facility available (b.5) Is the travel expensive? (b.6) Is there any Misguidance by agents (b.7) Is the procedure Complicated ? (b.8) Are all the staff members of CSC centre available at your visiting time? (b.9) Which medium of instructions are used by the staff? (b.9.1) Hindi (b.9.1) Garhwali (b.9.1) English (b.10) Do you think the staff members at the centre are well trained? (b.11) Are the staffs co-operative? (b.12) Do the staffs ask for more money than the prescribed fee? (b.13) Are you satisfied with the cooperation of the CSC staff on duty? (b.14) Is there any delay in submission of forms at the counter? Common Service Centers Facilities (a) Do you know common service centre provides following services? (Check Yes if already known) (a.1) Issue of Birth Certificate (a.2) Issue of Death Certificate (a.3) Issue of Licenses (a.4) Issue of Dependent Certificate (a.5) Issue of Bus Passes (a.6) Issue of Dependent Certificate (a.7) Issue of Unmarried Certificate (a.8) Issue of ID-Card (a.9) Registration of Vehicle related services (a.10) Issue of Affidavits (a.11) Submission of Passport Applications (a.12) Issue of No Objection Certificates (a.13) Services to Pensioners (a.14) Issue of Marriage Certificate (b) Do you know the procedure to get the services from Common Service Centre? (c) Which services have you ever accessed from CSC centre? (c.1) Issue of Birth Certificate (c.2) Issue of Death Certificate (c.3) Issue of Licenses (c.4) Issue of Dependent Certificate (c.5) Issue of Bus Passes (c.6) Issue of Dependent Certificate (c.7) Issue of Unmarried Certificate (c.8) Issue of ID-Card (c.9) Registration with Road Transport Office(RTO) (c.10) Issue of Affidavits (c.11) Submission of Passport Applications (c.12) Issue of No Objection Certificates (c.13) Services to Pensioners (c.14) Issue of Marriage Certificate (c.15) Issue of Bus/ Train Passes. (d) Do you know that you can check the status of your queries at website of CSC centre? (If Yes, attempt the following) (d.1) Are you satisfied with the services provided by CSC’s centre? (d.2) Do you think some other services should be available at CSC centre ? If Yes, Please mention: E-Governance in Hilly Areas (e) According to you, what are the reasons due to them e-Governance is not successful implemented in Hilly Area? (Please tick from the given factors) (e.1) Illiteracy (e.2) Digital Divide (e.3) Improper Infrastructure (e.4) Shortage of funds (e.5) Government policies (e.6) Available at Short Distance (e.7) Not proper road to reach the CSC (e.8) Cost involved to visit a CSC (e.9) Non-existence of kiosks in Villages. Helps in Controlling Corruption (f) CSC is helps in controlling corruption? (If Yes, Please choose from the reasons given below) (f.1) Single window system to apply (f.2) Applying directly to CSC (f.3) Work completed with in a time period (f.4) Government officials are responsible for their assigned work (f.5) No person will have to come face to face Interaction with a government officials Which helps in to reduce corruption. General terms about Uttarakhand (g) General terms about Uttarakhand, are you already familiar? (g.1) Population 10,086,292 (g.1) Literacy rate is about 78.82% (g.2) Rural population is 69.77%. (g.3) Urban population is 30.23%. (g.4) Number of CSC centres at Uttarakhand level is 1641. (g.5)Name of Project Consultant:- Unit A – M/s Nekton IT India Private Ltd. (NIIPL) Unit B – M/s Reliance Communication Ltd Unit C – M/s Reliance Communication Ltd (g.5) Roll out of CSCs as under in – Unit A (Dehradun, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag and Tehri ) 706 Unit B (Haridwar, Chamoli,Pauri Garhwal, Almora, Bageshwar) 1394 Unit C (Nainital, Pithoragarh, Champawat, Udham Singh Nagar) 704 (g.6) Total cost of implementing a CSCs is about Rs 2.56 crores Role of Uttarakhand Government (h.1) All government services will be put online. (h.2) Common service centres will be opened throughout the state to give single window for all government work. (h.3) State Data Centre would provide many functionalities like Central Repository of the State, Secure Data Storage, Online Delivery of Services, Citizen Information/Services Portal, State Intranet Portal, Disaster Recovery, Remote Management and Service Integration etc. (h.4) The e-District project is developed to improve the efficiency of the various Departments under the district-level to enable seamless service delivery to the citizen . (h.5) Uttarakhand State Wide Area Network (UK-SWAN) UK-SWAN project is almost in the final stage of completion by 13 establishing around 135 POPs in all the Districts, 84 Tehsils and 95 Blocks in the state. (h.6) Many Uttarakhand departments like Forest Department, Police Department, Finance Department, Tourism Department and Cooperative Department etc. are taken up for formulation of MMPs initially. Some projects are as- Gyanotkarsh (low-interest/easily repayable loans to all government employees and teachers for purchase of computers for the home segment), Aarohi (distribution of Computers in schools), Shikhar (Computer education through colleges), Shiksha (Provide training to teachers of government/ non government schools) Conclusion Improvement in the e-Governance services in rural or hilly areas is needed for its overall effective and efficient implementation. This questionnaire also helps to find some factors are considered due to which rural or hilly area people are not able to access e-Governance services and setting the stage for the transformation from e-Government to m-Government. References: Home.nic.in/projects/e-district-uttarakhand www.uk.gov.in Egov.elesonline.com/2013/03/e-governance-in-dev-bhoomi Itda.uk.gov.in/pages/displays/995-csc http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/uttarakhand.html http://itda.uk.gov.in/pages/display/995-csc http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Wide_Area_ Network https://sites.google.com/site/uttarakhandswan/ Appendix A questionnaire on survey of Implementation Factor That Affect E-Governance In Uttarakhand. Please take few minutes to fill out the questionnaire. 1.Name: 2.Gender: Female: 3.Age: 18-25 25-35 35-45 45-55 55-65 65-70 4:City/Village: 5:State: (b.10) Do you think the staff members at the centre are well trained? (b.11) Are the staff co-operative? (b.12) Do the staff ask for more money than the prescribed fee? (b.13) Are you satisfied with the cooperation of the CSC staff on duty? (b.14) Is there any delay in submission of forms at the counter? Common Service Centre Facilities (a) Do you know that common service centre provides following services? (Check Yes if already known) (a.1) Issue of Birth Certificate (a.2) Issue of Death Certificate (a.3) Issue of Licenses (a.4) Issue of Dependent Certificate (a.5) Issue of Bus Passes (a.6) Issue of Unmarried Certificate (a.7) Issue of ID-Card (a.8) Registration of Vehicle related services (a.9) Issue of Affidavits (a.10) Submission of Passport Applications (a.11) Issue of No Objection Certificates (a.12) Services to Pensioners (a.14) Issuance of Marriage Certificate (b) Do you know the procedure to get the services from Common Service Centre? (c) Which services have you ever accessed from CSC centres? (c.1) Issue of Birth Certificate (c.2) Issue of Death Certificate (c.3) Issue of Character Certificate (c.4) Issue of Licenses (c.5) Issue of Dependent Certificate (c.6) Issue of Bus Passes (c.7) Issue of Dependent Certificate (c.8) Issue of Unmarried Certificate (c.9) Issue of ID-Card (c.10) Registration with Road Transport Office (RTO) (c.11) Issue of Affidavits (c.12) Submission of Passport Applications (c.13) Issue of No Objection Certificates (c.14) Services to Pensioners (c.15) Issue of Bus/ Train Passes (d) Do you know that you can check the status of your queries at website of CSC ? (If Yes, attempt the following) (d.1) Are you satisfied with the services provided by CSC’s ? (d.2) Do you think some other services should be available at CSC ? If Yes, Please mention: E-Governance in Hilly Areas According to you, what are the reasons due to them e-Governance is not successfully implemented in Hilly Area? (Please tick from the given factors) (e.1) Illiteracy (e.2) Digital divide (e.3) Improper infrastructure (e.4) Shortage of funds (e.5) Government policies (e.6) Available at Short distance (e.7) Not proper road to reach the CSC (e.8) Cost involved to visit a CSC (e.9) Non-existence of kiosks in Villages. Helpful in Controlling Corruption (f) CSC is helpful in controlling corruption? (If Yes, Please choose from the reasons given below) (f.1) Single window system to apply (f.2) Applying directly to CSC (f.3) Work completed within a time period (f.4) Government officials are responsible for their assigned work (f.5) No person will have to come face to face with government officials which helps in reducing corruption.

Consequently Mayflower

There were several dfferent classes of people who settled in the colonies of North America. They all experienced hardships along the way, though some experiences were milder than others. One perspective of someone who had a decent experience. was William Bradford. He was one of the leaders among the group of religious, freedom-seeking people, called Pilgrims, who arrived in America on the Mayflower. Their trip was not as smooth as It seemed though. Their ship had gotten off-course several times, as a result of the violent storms that took place.Consequently, in spite f the patent (which had originally granted them to settle in Virginia), they ended up settling their colony in what they called Plymouth (Massachusetts). This lead to a series of conflicts between the group of land-seeking people and the religious people. The land-seeking people argued that they were not bound by the terms of the patent, and thus no one had the power to control them. As a compromise, Bradford and the oth er leaders created an agreement called the Mayflower Compact, which stated that members of the colony had to form a civic body politic, and obey by the laws for the good of the colony.Bradford later went on become governor of the Plymouth Colony. Another perspective, is of Olaudah Equiano, who served as an African slave and came to the America not by choice, but by force. Born in Africa to a village chief, Equiano was suppose to follow in his father's footsteps. However, at age 11 he was kidnapped and loaded Into a crowded slave ship with Inhumane conditions. After barely surviving the poor conditions of the trip, Equiano was first taken to the Barbados, and then to Virginia to work in a plantation. Less than a month later, he was sold to an English naval officer.After traveling the world as the man's servant for seven years, he was fortunate to have been able to buy his way out of slavery. HIS fate was lucky, compared to others who would, along with their children. never know freed om again. Lastly, a slightly better experience of settling in the colonies would be Matthew Lyon, who was one of the many indentured servants who voluntarily agreed to trade their freedom for a trip to America. Lyon was a fourteen year old at the time, but his intelligence allowed him to persuade the ship captain to say he was eighteen (through bribery), which lessened his service time to three- ears.However, because of his cleverness, he once again was able to shorten his service time. After a year of service, he convinced a farmer to give him two bulls, promlslng to pay off the debt when he was free. With the bulls now In his possession. he was then able to sell the bulls to his master in exchange for his freedom. From the on, he was free, and after working off the debt he owed the farmer, Lyon went on to first become a ironworker, then an officer in the army, and eventually, the legislator of Vermont.As you can see, there were many different types of people with a wide ange of pe rspectives, who settled in the colonies of North America. BY Pinklover1967 There were several different classes of people who settled in the colonies of North were milder than others. One perspective of someone who had a decent experience, Their trip was not as smooth as it seemed though. Their ship had gotten off-course 11 he was kidnapped and loaded into a crowded slave ship with inhumane slavery. His fate was lucky, compared to others who would, along with their children, promising to pay off the debt when he was free. With the bulls now in his possession,

Mixed Ability Grouping

MIXED ABILITY GROUPING Ana Redondo I/ INTRODUCTION: The main purpose of this module is to present to you some general evidences of different researches about method of mixed ability grouping versus other forms of organising pupils in MFL teaching and learning perspective. II/CONTENT 1/ Political context (in England and Wales) * 1944 the educational system in Britain streamed into diferent types of secondary schools, student with special educational needs being educated in special school. Since 1980s central government break up the Local Education Authorities by introducing Local Management of School * 1991-1993, chidren with special education needs into mainstream school, private school: 20-25%, conprehensive school being skew. * Throughout 1990, setting had proved to be effective in many secondary schools for mathematics, science and language. Pupils grouping are cosidered under such pressures: Student’s achievements (examination results), policy and society, local needs and parental choice. / Mixed ability grouping * In the title clerly indicates: ‘Mixed ability grouping’ also refer to a group in which children of varied ability are taught together rather than being set apart. * -No group of pupils is ever homogeneous. Differences in areas: ability, gender, self-concept, self-estem, ethnic background. a. Advantages of Mixed abilitiy grouping * Mixed ability grouping provides all pupils with equality of opportunity and reduces the negative results often associate with homogeneous grouping. It avoids the problems associated with allocating pupils to homogenous groups. * It promotes a good relation among pupils, between teachers and pupils. * Reduce competition and the labelling of pupils. * Low ability pupils are supported more benefit. b. Disadvantages of mixed ability grouping * It is hard to ensure that higher ability Ss are stretched sufficiently. * The meeting the needs of high and low ability pupils can result in failure. Teachers need to be sensitive to aware the differences of in order to set appropriate work, maximize learning outcomes and avoid conflicts between teaching and learning. * Mixed ability grouping makes unrealistic demands on teachers' pedagogical skills. * The majority of the class is often poorly supervised. Mixed ability grouping pose particular difficulties in MFL. 3/ Other forms of organisind pupilss – MFL teaching and learning perspective * Students have multiple intelligences, there for, some are better at certain things than others. Homogeneous groupings are likely to alow teachers a greater opportunity to meet the individual’s needs of students. * Homogeneous groups of pupils can achieve more efficiently in MFL. * Homogeneity of teaching groups- when classes share a greater similarity of learning qualities and characteristic, allows the techer to carry out their teaching more effectively. * It is difficult to allocate students to the appropriate group, no stigma is attached. Both ‘mixed ability grouping’ and ‘ability grouping’ have advantages and disavantages.III/CONCLUSIONS * I suggest here to consider ‘homogeneous groups’ and ‘within -class groups’ as pragmatically feasible options. Seated group work, collarborative project work, co-coperative learning, flexible learning, task-based learning or carousel work can all be applied in various different ways to ensure academic and social learning. (Ana Redondo) * The grouping of pupil is only one of several factors affecting the learning environment of the classroom. The quality of instruction and the curriculum are central. (Halam, 1996:2)

What to Do if Youre Charged With Plagiarism in College

What to Do if You're Charged With Plagiarism in College Plagiarism- the act of passing off someone elses work as your own, no matter where you found it- is pretty common on college campuses. If one of your professors or an administrator realizes what youve done, you may be charged with plagiarism and put through some kind of campus judicial system. Figure out the Process Do you have a hearing? Are you supposed to write a letter explaining your side of the story? Does your professor simply want to see you? Or could you be placed on academic probation? Figure out what youre supposed to do and by when and then make sure it gets done. Make Sure You Understand the Charges You may have received a strongly worded letter accusing you of plagiarism, and yet youre not totally clear on what exactly it is youre being accused of. Talk with whoever sent you the letter or your professor about the specifics of your case. Either way, make sure you are crystal clear on what youre being charged with and what your options are. Understand the Consequences In your mind, you may have been up late, writing your paper, and absentmindedly cut and pasted something from your research that you forgot to cite. In your professors mind, however, you may have not taken the assignment very seriously, showed disrespect to him or her and your fellow classmates, and acted in a way that is unacceptable at the college level. What is not very serious to you may indeed be very serious to someone else. Make sure you understand what the consequence are, therefore, before you are unpleasantly surprised at how your sticky situation just got a lot worse. Respect and Participate in the Process You may not think the plagiarism charge is a big deal, so you toss the letter aside and forget about it. Unfortunately, however, plagiarism charges can be serious business. Respect and participate in the process so that you can explain your situation and reach a resolution. Figure Out What Youve Learned so It Doesnt Happen Again Plagiarism charges in college can be dealt with lightly (essay rewrite) or severely (expulsion). Consequently, learn from your mistake so that you can prevent getting yourself into a similar situation again. Having a misunderstanding about plagiarism, after all, can only happen once. The next time you receive a letter, folks are much less likely to be understanding since youve already been through the system. Learn what you can and move forward toward your ultimate goal: your diploma (earned by you and your own work, of course!).

Technology in the classical era Essays

Technology in the classical era Essays Technology in the classical era Essay Technology in the classical era Essay provides a strong need for public Infrastructure in the way of the necessity for flood prevention construction. This view is only on of many other possible views we could have heard from, ranging from: the common wealth, all the way to royalty. Though the point of view of this document was clearly that there was an obvious necessity for a flood prevention plane, some of the other views we could have heard room Like say the royalty for Instance, may have not really noticed that there was a need for a flood prevention plane because they TLD have to live with the destruction that the floods caused. The Han official may have put up a request that flood planes be built because a lot of soldiers are not well housed and so they are on the lower grounds with the common wealth people and have experienced the floods first hand, so he would be looking out for his soldiers, keeping their moral up, and over all Just keeping as many alive as he could. He could have also been trying to pep their moral up In the sense that if there was a flood prevention plan, there would be no need for the soldiers to worry about their family and their loved ones, seeing that all the foot soldiers were not wealthy people nor did they come from wealthy families, compared to the majority of the generals and officers. Document six, written by Plutarch, a Greek-born Roman citizen and high official, describes the construction of roads in the second-century B. C. E. Under the rule of political leader Gauss Gracious as he anxiously built roads not only for utility but also for beauty. It explains the Importance of bulling the roads to Gallus and how well mapped out It was, as the saying goes, All roads lead to Rome. It displays how the dedication of one aspect of an empire can impact society so greatly, it shows how much of a necessity order is. Plutarch may have described the road construction in extensive detail because it was something tremendous back then, something that was thought of as high quality. Document eight describes the process of turning stream water into drinking water and the enormous stretch of the many uses It has. The governor of Britain, Frontline, also a roman general, may have spoken of the aqueducts and viewed them as some of the few monumental structures that were actually useful, or at least had a use, unlike the pyramids and such. For the attitudes towards tools and men being in workshops, the views were accumulating towards the view that workshops were not for the clever nor for the gentlemen. Page Break In document five, Cicero, and upper-class Roman politician leader In the first century workshops dont have, and never will have anything enlightening about them. This splays the fact that the attitudes are very much original and from a direct source. Cicero may have said that it was a vulgar and non-enlightening choice to work in a workshop because those sort of Jobs are never clean, are all hands on, attract the common folk, and because gentlemen are not supposed to those sorts of hands on things, it brings them lower, they should have someone do it for them. Document seven describes what the speaker speculates about who invented tools, seeing them as nimble and sharp but neither great nor elevated. The whole point of this comment is the fact that it revolves around the idea of an opinionated and varied attitude of the speaker. Seneca, and upper-class Roman philosopher and adviser to Emperor Nero in the first century C. E. May have said that the person was neither great nor elevated because a great of elevated person would Just have someone else do it for them, its not the fact that he made tools that made the work more efficient than by hand, its the fact that he was even doing that work in the first place. Most advancements are done in the best interests of both parties, though a couple advancements could hinder one side but help the other. In document two, it is clear that the advancement only helped one side. The government replaced the workers hand crafter sturdy and long lasting tools with cheaply made brittle tools made in prison camps. Ultimately, it hindered the government too because it took efficiency away from the workers in the same given amount of time. This advancement decreased efficiency of the workers and productivity levels, but made it a lot cheaper for the government and therefore gained them a bit more wiggle room with income, which in turn hindered the entire process, which ties into the two categories of advancements in the thesis. Human Guan, a Han government official, may have said that now the salt and iron is sold at high prices and that some of the poorest peasants now had no choice but to work there, because, it shows how great of an impact a governments choices can have on people. Document three on the other hand, was a very beneficial advancement, employing nature to do mans work. It increased productivity and there for helped all parties. Human Tan may have spoken of this in such a supportive way because it not only helped productivity, but it also elevated the empires stature. In document four, It Shih has created a water powered blowing engine. It definitely helped them on their way to establishing their name in the top empires. The writer may have spoken of the new invention so well, because it was an enormous advancement back then. On the other hand, It might help to hear from the working class because those are the people that actually used the tools, They have first hand experience and they also know the efficiency of the new tools compared to the old tools or the times before the advancements compared to the mime after the advancement. It might also be helpful to hear from foreigners because if the tools are efficient, word will have reached the foreign countries about the advancements, and if they have heard of them, it proves that they really are good tools. It might help to hear from women because they will hear to complaints of their husbands who use the new tools or they will hear the gossip from other wives and so it gives you almost a 3-D perspective instead of a 2-D one because now you see all the sides of the situation instead of Just the black and white.

Mergers and Acquisitions Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 9500 words

Mergers and Acquisitions - Dissertation Example The aim of the study is to reveal the impact of merger and acquisition on the performance of companies in UK which will be achieved by analysing the financial performance of sample companies involved before and after M&A. The study will analyse the financial statements of randomly selected companies before and after merger so as to reveal the true impact from such merger or acquisition. The study begins with an introduction and initial discussion of background followed by a detailed literature review. The research methodology is designed so as to facilitate analysis of secondary data collected from reliable online sources. The findings section discusses the research findings which is then analysed so as to critically analyse the research findings with research objectives and to what extent does the findings answer research questions. After the interpretation of findings, the research finally ends with conclusion and recommendations. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Chapter 1: Introductio n 6 1.1. History and Background of the Research 7 1.2. Objectives of the Research 8 1.3. Aims of Research 9 1.4. Research Problem and Research Questions 9 Chapter 2: Literature Review 10 2.1. Types of Mergers 11 2.2. Motives for mergers 12 2.3. Empirical Studies 16 2.3.1. Event Studies 16 2.3.2. Accounting Studies 16 2.3.3. Clinical Studies 17 2.3.4. Executive Surveys 17 Chapter 3: Research Methodology 17 3.1. Research Problem 18 3.2. Primary Research 19 3.3. Secondary Research 19 3.4. Data Collection 20 3.4.1. Primary Data Collection 21 3.4.2. Secondary Data Collection 22 3.4.3. Justification of Secondary Data Collection 22 3.5. Sampling and Sample Size 23 3.6. Data Analysis 23 Chapter 4: Findings of the Research 24 4.1. Overview 24 4.2. Financial Statement Analysis of Companies BEFORE Merger and Acquisition 25 4.2.1. Performance Analysis of Acquirer Company - Barclay Plc (Before M&A) 25 4.2.2. Performance Analysis of Acquired Company - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc (Before M&A) 30 4.3. Financial Statement Analysis of Companies AFTER Merger and Acquisition 35 4.4. Results of Findings 40 Chapter 5: Analysis of Findings 42 5.1. Brief Overview of Findings 42 5.2. Reasons for Merger 43 5.3. Consequences of M&A 45 Chapter 6: Conclusion 46 Chapter 7: Recommendations 48 References 53 Appendices 57 Table 1 – Financial Statements of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (Before Merger) 57 Table 2 – Financial Statements of Barclays Plc (Before Merger) 58 Table 3 – Financial Statements after Merger and Acquisition 59 Chapter 1: Introduction In today’s world the primary objective of a firm is to survive the cut-throat competition and one way to do that is to make more profits and add value to shareholders’ wealth. The ladder of success for any firm is ‘growth’ which can be achieved either by expanding existing resources or introduction of new products and services. Another way of achieving growth is through merger and acquisition (M &A). The former is also known is organic growth where the firm uses its own resources (retained earnings, reserves and surplus, or equity capital) for financing growth. The later is also known as inorganic growth where the acquirer firm buys the assets and liabilities of the target(s) as on a given date (Sherman, 2010, p.1). Thus, M&A are external growth strategy that gains popularity mainly

Oil spill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Oil spill - Essay Example The author proceeds to state that oil contamination is extremely harmful to the environment and numerous numbers of sea birds, mammals and other sea creatures fall prey to oil spill. However, there is no one to one correspondent between the volume of the spill and sea life lost. Often the nature of the pollution is long term and affects sea life even after many years of the spill. Unless addressed with due importance it would surely trigger environmental catastrophe. However, the author has not mentioned that not the immediate direct action but the indirect action in terms of habitat loss (Center for Biological Diversity, 2014; National Wildlife Federation, 2012) would also affect the sea life and environment. Again sea and ocean water floats from one nation to another nation and from one continent to another continent; hence it is an environmental problem that is locally initiated but with global impact. Furthermore this local problem might risk the global economy; as an example the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. It might also affect tourism and fishing and thereby pose economic and cultural threat (The Levin Institute, 2014). Considering these facts and the potential danger associated with the same; the author calls for more prompt research and development geared towards finding a technologically advanced, efficient and meaningful method to clear the ocean and sea water in case there is any oil spill. Center for Biological Diversity (2014), End Offshore oil drilling now, retrieved on August 1 2014 from: National Wildlife Federation, (2012), How Does the BP Oil Spill Impact Wildlife and Habitat?, retrieved on August 1, 2014 from:

Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Justice - Essay Example The need for justice is necessitated because of claims made by an individual or groups on the other on the ground of misconduct or unfairness. Crime is one of the prevalent forms of such misconduct and hence it calls for the development of a special branch of the judiciary system which is known as the criminal justice system. The extent of the crime rate has been on the rise and continues to be so presently. However, the question that comes up is whether justice has been able to reach each of the victims and has led to the happiness of the society through its regulation. The answer to this question is well –known to all. Daily reports of crime show the extent to which such activities have increased and how the perpetrators go about moving freely in the society. This does not imply that the concepts of justice has changed, it only reflects the underlying inability of the concerned authorities to impart it. Justice is a social order that keeps individuals safe from crimes such as thefts, murders, assaults and abuses. In the macro sense, it protects countries from wars, terrorism and other types of ‘unjust’ activities. Justice also ensures a person’s freedom and autonomy in making choices. However, the role of justice in taking actions comes into play when such freedoms are misused by those individuals. (Kelsen) Criminal justice has been formulated to control incidents of crime as a part of the justice imparting system. The role of justice is not only to give the seeker his due rights but also to create an environment that is not conducive of crime. That is to explain that it does not only punish the perpetrator and thus gives justice to the victim, it also has a duty to transform the perpetrator to avoid recidivism. Further, in the eyes of justice, every one is equal. Justice does not show biases and favoritism. Thus, the punishing of a criminal is the duty of justice not for the sake of the

Visual arts Essay Example for Free

Visual arts Essay Visual arts which make use of unusual media and technique, such as collage or origami, tend to both benefit from and be challenged by the medium and technique involved. A viewer is apt to react first to the medium and technique and perhaps, because of this, thematic or expressive ideas may be perceived as secondary to the impact of a given work. For example, a piece from the Origami NOW! exhibition such as Eric Joisels Pangolin is very effective at eliciting a response of admiration and even surprise of wonder at the technique involved in sculpting (or more properly: folding) paper into the shape of a convincingly realistic animal form which suggests an armadillo. On the other hand, although the animal offers a meaningful gesture, as though it is eating or drinking, the overall impact of the piece fails to gain any truly expressive or meaningful energy. It is simply a technically admirable piece. By contrast, Joel Coopers Gemini, is a deeply expressive piece which evokes stone relief carvings in origami. The faces are, themselves, primitive and expressive, but the thematic impact of the piece is much deeper than the surface level facial expression of the pieces central figures. The piece derives important impact from its sub-text of transference: ancient stone to ephemeral paper, which makes a statement about human civilization and history and the ephemerality of human monuments, and arty itself, while simultaneously elevating the ephemerality of the medium and technique (origami) to a sympathetic relationship to ancient art and antiquity. Yet another piece, Spike Sphere, by Thomas Hull, straddles the line between expressiveness and technical precision without ever falling precisely on one side or another. In effect, Hulls piece is the most harmonious of those examples of origami on exhibition at PEM. The overt impact of Hulls piece is that of geometrical expressionism, using a complex geometrical shape to express theme. In my opinion, Hulls Spike Sphere is meant to represent no less than the entire human cosmos in a single figure of origami. I said human because the piece reflects a particularly human concept of wholeness as in other geometrical abstractions: globes, the atom, stars, galaxies and even some scientific models of the multi-verse. Hulls figure is spherical and colored like a budding flower, but spiked suggesting pain, danger, emotional response. This precise configuration of human emotion and abstract form, coupled with organic coloring and an holistic gesture elevates Hulls piece to the highest levels. This work is a masterpiece which reveals the origami, as a medium, embodies much more than the stunned admiration for technique and cleverness associated with folding paper creatively and expressively. Reference Anonymous, PEN. Origami Now! www. pwm. org, 2008. accessed 6-12-08 http://pem. org/exhibitions/exhibition. php? id=65

Nutrition Essay -- Health Nutrition Pyramid Diet

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Table of Contents Nutrition Therapy  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1 Nutrition Consult  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1 Meal planning  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2 Body Weight Considerations  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2 Psychosocial support.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3 Calorie Intake  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4 Nutrient Composition of the Diet  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4 Fat Intake  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  5 Carbohydrate Intake  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6 Sucrose  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6 Fructose  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6 Vitamins and Minerals  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7 Alcohol Intake  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7 References  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8 Nutrition Therapy The most fundamental component of the diabetes treatment plan for all patients with type II diabetes is medical nutrition therapy. Specific goals of nutrition therapy in type II diabetes are to:[1] Achieve and maintain as near-normal blood glucose levels as possible by balancing food intake with physical activity, supplemented by oral hypoglycemic agents or insulin (endogenous or exogenous) as needed Normalize blood pressure Normalize serum lipid levels Help patients attain and maintain a reasonable body weight (defined as the weight an individual and health-care provider acknowledge as possible to achieve and maintain on a short- and long-term basis) Promote overall health through optimal nutrition and lifestyle behaviors. Because no single dietary approach is appropriate for all patients, given the heterogeneous nature of type II diabetes, meal plans and diet modifications should be individualized to meet a patient's unique needs and lifestyle. Accordingly, any nutrition intervention should be based on a thorough assessment of a patient's typical food intake and eating habits and should include an evaluation of current nutritional status. Some patients with mild-to-moderate diabetes can be effectively treated with an appropriate balance of diet modification and exercise as the sole therapeutic intervention, particularly if their fasting blood glucose level is < 200 mg/dL. The majority of patients, however, will require pharmacologic intervention in addition to diet and exercise prescriptions. It is important to note that ... ...ng insulin or sulfonylureas are susceptible to hypoglycemia if alcohol is consumed on an empty stomach. Therefore, these individuals should make sure to take any desired alcohol with a meal. Patients with diabetes and coexisting medical problems such as pancreatitis, dyslipidemis, or neuropathy may need to reduce or abstain from alcohol intake. References American Diabetes Association. Medical Management of Non-insulin-dependent (Type II) Diabetes, 3rd ed. Alexandria, Va: American Diabetes Association; 1994:22-39. American Diabetes Association. Diabetes 1996 Vital Statistics. Alexandria, Va: American Diabetes Association; 1996. Davidson MB. Diabetes Mellitus: Diagnosis and Treatment, 3rd ed. New York, NY: Churchill Livingstone; 1991:35-93. Henry RR. Protein content of the diabetic diet. Diabetes Care. 1994;17:1502-1513. Mudaliar SR, Henry RR. Role of glycemic control and protein restriction in clinical management of diabetic kidney disease. Endocr Pract. 1996;2:220-226. American Diabetes Association. Clinical practice recommendations 1995. Position statement: nutrition recommendations and principles for people with diabetes mellitus. Diabetes Care. 1995;18(suppl 1):16-19.

Cipd Developing Yourself as an Effective Hr Practitioner

Understanding customer needs As an HR practitioner it is important to indentify the needs of customers and prioritise the needs of each. Three examples of different customer and a need for each: 1. An employee enquiring about their holiday entitlement for the next holiday year 2. Payroll department require new employee details the day before the cut off period 3. Manager who requires the sickness absence report for an employee who has triggered a disciplinary hearing scheduled for the following week In order to be able to prioritise the needs of each customer it is suggested that urgency and importance be considered for each one.Reviewing the customer needs the order of priority would be task two, three and one. This order of priority has been selected because task two is required urgently and can be dealt with swiftly. Gathering the information for task three is important and can be time consuming so it is essential that this task is completed. Task three is not a high priority as i t is for the next holiday year and can be answered at a later stage. Effective communication â€Å"To be effective, communication needs to be clear, easily understood and concise.Information should be presented systematically on a regular basis and be as relevant, local and timely as possible. † Armstrong 2012 There are various channels of communication and the method needs to be considered to ensure it is appropriate for the recipient. Communication methods: Emails There are advantages to using emails; it is a convenient way to convey information to a wide audience. Information can be sent quickly and any time of the day. However the disadvantages are that it can be open for interpretation of information or tone.It is impersonal and there’s no guarantee that the recipient has read the email. Team briefings Team briefing can be an effective way of communicating information to a targeted audience. It can work well to provide key details that can be filtered from the top to the bottom. Though briefings can be time consuming and the target audience may become complainant. Information must be concise and enthusecatley presented for team briefings to be effective. Text Messages Recently a growing form of communication for organisations.It is time efficient way of sending information to a large number of reciepntants. It is cost effective and more likely to reach the receipatnt as they are likely to check their mobile telephone several times throughout the day. Unfortanaley text messages can be open for interpretation of tone or mood. It can also be inappropriate for some organistation communication. Effective Service Delivery Delivering service on time – it is vital for any organisation to ensure service is delivered on time.It is essential to keep a good relationship with your customers, provide the service that you have agreed and what is expected from a HR practitioner. Ensuring the needs are met will build trust from customers. Delivering s ervice to budget – to ensure service is delivered to budget it is a necessatity to manage time and work load. A balance of customer needs is required. Policies and procedures need to be followed to remain in budget. Dealing with difficult customers – a number of factors must be considered when dealing with difficult customers.The problem must be clarified; this will then allow the HR practitioner to identify solutions to solving the problem. Pros and cons need to be weighed for each option and the outcome implemented. Handling and resolving complaints – when handling and resolving complaints it is important to stay calm, communicate well and positively try to help the customer. Conclusion In conclusion an effective HR practitioner should ensure services are provided are timely and effectively. Consideration of customer’s needs, communication and service delivery are essential.

Inaccessibility: Fiction and Miller

Inaccessibility Brook Thomas in his essay Preserving and Keeping Order by Killing Time in Heart of Darkness extends J. Hills Miller’s â€Å"unveiling† (Miller 220) of Conrad’s narrative. Miller’s essay Heart of Darkness Revisited demonstrates how Heart of Darkness â€Å"belongs to the genre of the parabolic apocalypse† (Miller 217). Thomas responds to Miller’s unveiling â€Å"a lack of decisive unveiling in Heart of darkness† (Miller 220) by reading â€Å"historically the narrative that Conrad weaves† (Thomas 239) so that we might be able â€Å"to come closer to a truth† (Thomas 239).Thomas presents the possibilities of decisive unveiling, which Miller claims, Heart of Darkness lacks. Miller’s questions what makes Heart of Darkness an apocalyptic parable? Subsequently Miller analyzes Conrad’s narrative â€Å"in light of these generic classifications† (Miller 207). Thomas is cautious in interpreting Co nrad’s narrative and questions the possibility of being able to glimpse into an essential truth by placing the text in historical context.Thomas quotes Miller, to synthesise â€Å"Conrad’s fiction in the context of the history of ideas† (Thomas 242), and later on takes up Miller’s suggestion in the evaluation of The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcissus† by Conrad to demonstrate that there can be â€Å"decisive unveiling† (Miller 220). Although Thomas does not mention Miller’s essay Heart of Darkness Revisited he quotes Miller’s The Disappearance of God and Poets of Reality. In addition to Thomas quoting Miller, both critiques adopt similar approaches in their essays.One of the first passage they quote from Heart of Darkness is Marlow informing us â€Å"the meaning of an episode was not inside like a kernel but outside, enveloping the tale which brought it out only as a glow brings out a haze, in the likeness of one of these misty hal os that sometimes are made visible by the spectral illumination of moonshine† (Heart of Darkness p. 20) both critiques examine Conrad’s writing and his purpose of writing.Miller’s analysis is that Conrad presents to us the description of â€Å"two kinds of stories: simple tales and parables† (Miller 208) and that Marlow’s stories â€Å"like the meaning of a parable- is outside, not in† (Miller 208) and goes on to say that the parable is inaccessible. Thomas quotes this passage to agree with Miller that â€Å"there is no guarantee that we will penetrate to the essential truth† (Thomas 239) at the same time suggest the possibility to glimpse truth â€Å"if we read historically the narrative that Conrad weaves† (Thomas 239).I am convinced that Thomas complicates Millers argument. Miller quotes Marx to define a parable like â€Å"the use of real life condition to express another reality or truth not otherwise expressible† he then compares the parable used from the Bible to demonstrate how Conrad’s fiction functions as a parable. Miller proves Heart of Darkness to be a parabolic apocalypse.In reference to the earlier passage from Heart of Darkness of the haze, Miller compares the image of the haze and illumination Conrad creates, with the â€Å"case of Jesus’ parable of the sower† (Miller 210) as Conrad uses â€Å"realistic and almost universally known facts as the means of expressing indirectly another truth less visible† (Miller 210). Miller further explains that Conrad’s parable becomes not just a way to examine Marlow’s story, consequently to examine Conrad’s narrative itself.Miller quotes Wallace Stevens that â€Å"there is no such thing as a metaphor of a metaphor† and moves on to use the Bible and Conrad’s The Nigger if the â€Å"Narcissus† to demonstrate inaccessibility of Heart of Darkness. Using the parable of the sower Mille r explains: â€Å"If you understand the parable you do not need it. If you need it you cannot possibly understand it† (Miller 210). Likewise Heart of Darkness based on the facts of History and Conrad’s life is used to express â€Å"the evasive and elusive truth underlying both historical and personal experience† (Miller 210) being a parable would fail to illuminate one who does not see the darkness.Miller picks out the passage of Marlow’s narration of life sensation and the impossibility of communicating life sensation sets it against the image of the halo in the mist to show us that Heart of Darkness â€Å"is a revelation of the impossibility of revelation† (Miller 212). The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcisusus† is used by both critiques to examine Conrad’s purpose of writing but interpretations of both critiques differ. They both quote similar passage of Conrad proclaiming his attempt to make his readers see and â€Å"that glimpse of tru th for which you have forgotten to ask†.Miller picks out the â€Å"double paradox† of seeing darkness in terms of light and the two sense of see one as physical vision and second the unveiling the invisible truth. Like the parable of the sower Miller states the Heart of Darkness does not accomplish in makes the reader glimpse truth. This analysis differs from Thomas analysis of the same quotation from The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcisusus†. Firstly Thomas uses this quotation to synthesis Conrad’s narrative and history, that Conrad re-envisions the way ineteenth-century historians that to â€Å"discover truth we had forgotten was to reconstruct it historically† (Thomas 248) linking the reading of the narrative with historical context. Secondly Thomas quotes The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcisusus† where â€Å"Conrad explicitly compares his work as an artist to the work of civilization† (Thomas 254) here Thomas links reading Heart of Darkness fo r the Conrad’s writing and focus on work. While Miller narrows the reading of Heart of Darkness and the inaccessibility of the narrative, Thomas points various ways to allow the narrative to be accessible.Miller examines the similarity between a parable and apocalypse genre through the notion that both â€Å"is an act of unveiling† (Miller 207). Again Miller uses the Bible to demonstrate how Heart of Darkness follows the genre of the apocalypse. Miller compares Conrad’s narrative structure of how the â€Å"reader of Heart of Darkness learns through the relation of the primary narrator, who learned through Marlow, who learned through Kurtz† (Miller 214) to â€Å"the book of Revaltion, God speaks through Jesus, who speaks through a messenger angle, who speaks through John of Patmos, who speaks to us† (Miller 214).This speaking through one next farther is what characterizers Heart of Darkness as the genre of the apocalypse. Miller synthesis of Heart o f Darkness as a parabolic apocalypse is what leads to his conclusion to the lack of decisive unveiling in the novel. The â€Å"ventriloquism† (Miller 214) of having a voice behind a voice and deprives the novel a voice of authority. Miller proves how the novel fits in the generic classification and identify the writing of Conrad to unveil as deeper truth but points out that the problems of the parable and apocalypse in making the Heart of Darkness inaccessible.Thomas acknowledges this inaccessibility but presents us with possible accessible reading through the synthesises he suggests. Thomas quotes Conrad’s Notes on Life and Letters and follows through Conrad’s stand that â€Å"fiction is history† and by placing Heart of Darkness in the context of history we can attempt to glimpse a truth. Thomas presents that Conrad weaves a story that â€Å"that proves to be truer that history† (Thomas 242). Thomas introduces British modernist novelist James Joyc e, D.H Lawrence, Virginia Woolf and E. M. Foster linking them with the â€Å"Jacques Lacan’s revision of Hegel† (Thomas 243) and some recent critiques concept of â€Å"the other†. By using the modern novelist to illustrate encounter between east and west Thomas synthesises Heart of Darkness as an encounter of Europe’s another with the other within itself. Thomas goes on to demystify the Eurocentric history and draws on modern thinkers Friedrich Nietzsche for poststructuralist thought and Sigmund Freud for psychoanalysis.Thomas states â€Å"for critics like Miller trying to cope with the loss of confidence in the Eurocentric view that is dramatized by Conrad’s narrative† (Thomas 244) but Thomas asserts that Conrad’s narrative help identify the condition for poststructuralist thought. And Freud as Thomas states â€Å"Conrad’s narrative [of] Africa eludes all attempts of the Western mind-especially a male mind – to underst and it†. However Thomas points out the problem of simply accepting this reading denying the encounter with â€Å"the other† the non – European, if it is reduced to a function of understanding Europe.Thomas goes back to close read and from the novel and looks at The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcisusus† to examine Conrad’s purpose. How Thomas moves beyond Miller in his analysis is by examining the â€Å"breaks and gaps† (Thomas 251) within the narrative. Miller almost alludes to the encounter of the other within Europe â€Å" the end of the Western civilization, or of Western imperialism, the reversal of idealism into savagery† (Miller 218) but goes on to show that the ironies in Marlow’s narrative is impossible to read with a clear meaning.Miller begins with Marx by using his definition of parable conversely Thomas ends with Marx in examining work and how it is â€Å"work, then, that constructs the lie of civilization† (Thomas 255). Thomas refers back to Conrad’s The Nigger of the â€Å"Narcisusus† examines a passage and draws Miller into the discussion pointing to the task of the writer to be a workman of art to provide a glimpse of truth to the man caught in labour. Work then links with Conrad’s narrative and the breaks and gaps from which Thomas suggests to draw a definitive unveiling.Thomas ends with a more radical envisioning one which allows â€Å"the other† to be represented not one suppressed in an understanding of Europe while Miller ends that his analysis of the novel has made his a witness pushing the truth further away as he adds on to the voices. As compelling as Miller’s close reading and comparison with the Bible, Thomas's extension of Miller’s discussions makes Thomas argument more convincing as he presents an additional step of not just looking into Conrad’s narrative but also the breaks in it.Reference Miller, J. Hillis. â€Å"Heart of Da rkness Revisited. † In Conrad Revisited: Essays for the Eighties, edited by Ross C. Murfin, pp. 31-50. University: The University of Alabama Press, 1985. Thomas, Brook â€Å"Preserving and Keeping Order by Killing Time in Heart of Darkness. † In Conrad Revisited: Essays for the Eighties, edited by Ross C. Murfin, pp. 31-50. University: The University of Alabama Press, 1985.