Mapping Your Conflicts Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mapping Your Conflicts Project - Essay Example In â€Å"Eye to Eye† the conflict is a pretty typical and unavoidable part of living together. The dynamics are that of jumping to conclusions, indirect communication, a lack of listening skills, and partial avoidance. Past fears, future implications, and present attitudes are part of the problem, and â€Å"holes† in the couple's communication styles back end the conversation. Their mutually restrictive behavior patterns will eventually cause the conflict to escalate. Keywords: conflict resolution, Hocker-Wilmot, conflict assessment, arguments and misunderstandings, conflict management Conflict Resolution – Seeing Eye to Eye Nature of Conflict The triggering incident of â€Å"Eye to Eye† has a history. On a particular morning, a newly married couple is deciding how to spend their day. She exhibits excitement about spending the day with her husband, but he seems preoccupied. The first dynamic happens when she relinquishes power by giving in when he says â⠂¬Å"let's see how the day goes first.† Her attention turns to the immediate need—household chores. She mentions it, awaits a response, but does not get it. In her mind, the lack of response means that their marriage is headed in the same direction as her parents, whom she says had plenty of 'loud discussions' over house work.

Dramatic devices in ‘An Inspector Calls’ Essay Example for Free

Dramatic devices in ‘An Inspector Calls’ Essay J.B Priestly presents his play ‘An Inspector Calls’ with contrasting views of responsibility and guilt within the Birling family and the Inspector. He utilizes a variety of dramatic devices throughout the play to create tension between the characters. One of the many dramatic devices he applies is when the Birling family are interrupted by an inspector while having a celebration. Inspector Goole is a firm socialist, he strongly believes wealth should be shared equally between all people, for example Eva Smith. He sticks up for the poorer classes rights to freedom of life. I suggest Priestly communicates his views through the character of the Inspector as he has fixed feelings about fairness and equality of everyone. He states ‘With privileges comes responsibility’ showing the understanding of those who are well to do should take responsibility for those who are less fortunate. The Inspector is a powerful character in this play. He intimidates the Birling family and makes them seem dense. â€Å"He speaks carefully, weightily and has a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses before actually speaking.† He looks sternly in to their eyes before interrogating them. This makes the characters feel insecure and agitated, giving the impression of being responsible or guilty of something. Goole is very confident and can come across naive. He speaks like he knows everything about the Birling family and tries to drain the truth out of them. This shows the inspector has a function within the Birling household, he is there to make the family realise they need to take responsibility for their actions. He shows a contrasting view of responsibility to what the family believe. They don’t consider taking responsibility as must. Goole displays no emotion and is calm throughout the whole play. When Mrs Birling says â€Å"you seem to have made a great impression on this child† He replies â€Å"coolly† and also â€Å"the inspector will take offence† He responds â€Å"cutting in calmly† Where as Mr Birling becomes very distraught towards the inspector and wants to receive a reaction from him. He sharply informs the Inspector â€Å"I Don’t like that tone† I imply Birling doesn’t think responsibility is something that he should require within him. But Shelia is diverse she is very distressed. Her character develops into disturbance when the inspector reveals the news about Eva’s death. She illustrates remorse towards Eva, by projecting responsibility and becoming saddened. Shelia is one of the few characters in this play who takes responsibility for her actions. She realises they have to change their attitude in life and tries to convince her parents, but doesn’t succeed. â€Å"The point is, you don’t seem to of learnt anything† â€Å"it doesn’t much matter who it was who made us confess† (flaring up) â€Å"between us we drove that girl to commit suicide† The inspector takes control of the pace, he demonstrate leadership within the Birling family, taking one query at a time. â€Å"Massively taking charge† Priestly does this to keep the audience on their toes, creating apprehension. This is another dramatic device in its self. Priestly interoperates the opposite views in the characters of Mr Birling and Inspector Goole. They are both dominant and prevailing. Mr Birling tries to take power of his home but Goole is much more controlling and takes power of the event. This shows there is a battle between the two. Mr Birling is a capitalist, he judges that man should look after himself and take no responsibility for others. This proposes he’s a selfish person and is out for himself only. He articulates â€Å"you’d think everybody has to look after everybody else.† This implies he is highly against socialism and refuses to take responsibility for his community. Mr Birling is extremely unaware of the consequences he will suffer for the reason of his self indulgent attitude. He likes to impress people, â€Å"I speak as a hard headed business man who has to take risks and know what he’s about†. He expresses his thoughts with no consideration, to determine how he assumes how important and dependable he is. But the Inspector presents Birling as if he has no importance to the community. He interrupts Mr Birling and his speeches numerous times. When Birling states â€Å"that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own and-† Priestley creates a dramatic devise by generating sound. â€Å"There was a sharp ring of the door bell† I propose he does this to confirm how self absorbed Mr Birling and his speeches are, or how he judges what Birling utters is erratic and immoral. The inspector physically challenges Mr Birling’s beliefs about responsibility using these interrupting sounds. Throughout this play Mr Birling doesn’t change his beliefs, his attitude and nor his actions. He refuses to take responsibility for what he had done to Eva’s life, how he began the chain of events leading to Eva’s tragic death. I believe Priestly formed a domino effect in these events, one leading to another, until the final stage, with Eva’s life at the finishing point. I suggest Mr Birling is set in his ways; he has just the one view of everything, a selfish view. He chooses his views to evolve them around himself and his life, trying to make himself more important. He desires people to think of him as a leader, a role model. He wishes they where devoted to him. On the other hand, Shelia’s attitude and actions change drastically towards the end of the play. At the beginning she was a spoilt child but now she has become a young woman. She realises, unlike her father, that everybody has responsibilities. She is the key character that is moral with the most truth and decency; she faces the facts and knows she has to change her behaviour. But she is ashamed of her parents and concerned they won’t. â€Å"I remember what he said, how he looked and how he made me feel. Fire and blood and anguish, and it frightens me the way you talk.† This gives me an impression of Hell; this is why Shelia is changing, she doesn’t want to repeat the dreadful experience she has had that evening. I imply J.B Priestley’s point in this play â€Å"An inspector calls† is People need to realise they have to change their attitude towards general things in life or people will suffer consequences.

Big Mamas Funeral :: Mama Funeral

Big Mama's Funeral Gabriel García Márquez story, Big Mama's Funeral, is a story filled with fantastical scenes and events much in line with Don Quixote and Candide. The introductory paragraphs of Big Mama's Funeral and Candide sound so similar in voice the two authors could be mistaken for the same. In Candide, one finds a series of episodes that are so far from the truth and yet perfectly explainable. The story of the fate of Dr. Pangloss, the death and resurrection of Cunegund and of her Jesuit brother, and the story of the old woman with one buttock are farcical in the same way as the episodes in Big Mama's Funeral. In Don Quixote, we find a man, for the most part average, who wishes to become a knight-errant. In his quest is as series of happenings so ridiculous they are nothing short of tabloid-style sensationalism, or drug induced hallucinations. In Big Mama's Funeral, we are told the story of the death and funeral of Big Mama. In the events of her life and the days proceeding and proceeding her death we find events and stories of the past that are truly fantastical. In the annals of her past we find that in her family the "uncles married the daughters of their nieces, and the cousins married their aunts, and the brothers their sisters-in-law, until an intricate mesh of consanguinity was formed." Here, García Márquez takes the simple act of incestuous relationships, which do occur, and elevates them to an extreme level. This is the writing style of García Márquez and the two aforementioned writers, Cervantes and Voltaire. Big Mama's Funeral :: Mama Funeral Big Mama's Funeral Gabriel García Márquez story, Big Mama's Funeral, is a story filled with fantastical scenes and events much in line with Don Quixote and Candide. The introductory paragraphs of Big Mama's Funeral and Candide sound so similar in voice the two authors could be mistaken for the same. In Candide, one finds a series of episodes that are so far from the truth and yet perfectly explainable. The story of the fate of Dr. Pangloss, the death and resurrection of Cunegund and of her Jesuit brother, and the story of the old woman with one buttock are farcical in the same way as the episodes in Big Mama's Funeral. In Don Quixote, we find a man, for the most part average, who wishes to become a knight-errant. In his quest is as series of happenings so ridiculous they are nothing short of tabloid-style sensationalism, or drug induced hallucinations. In Big Mama's Funeral, we are told the story of the death and funeral of Big Mama. In the events of her life and the days proceeding and proceeding her death we find events and stories of the past that are truly fantastical. In the annals of her past we find that in her family the "uncles married the daughters of their nieces, and the cousins married their aunts, and the brothers their sisters-in-law, until an intricate mesh of consanguinity was formed." Here, García Márquez takes the simple act of incestuous relationships, which do occur, and elevates them to an extreme level. This is the writing style of García Márquez and the two aforementioned writers, Cervantes and Voltaire.

Tour de France Drug Abuse Essay -- Substance Abuse Essays

The question of drug use among athletes in what was previously considered by the unknowing public to be a rather pristine sport, cycling, is important in that it will affect all future Tours and will place them and the athletes under scrutiny. To begin with, in Europe until the 1998 scandal occurred, despite a few exceptions, cycling was considered a drug free sport. The 1998 drug scandal tarnished the Tour de France and the reputation and image of other sports. The media response to the scandal took differing positions on what should be done next to clean up cycling. The scandal also affected advertisements, sales, and without question the 1999 Tour and Lance Armstrong. Since even the most naà ¯ve fan no longer trusts the cyclists, drug-testing procedures have been instituted. Also, the question now arises regarding medications used by seriously ill cyclists. Certainly, future Tours will be significantly affected. The Union Cycliste Internationale and other sports officials are left with several burning questions; do they seek a better testing system? Clearly, they must protect athletes and the image of sports even though it is costly. Do they perform uniform versus random drug tests? Both are necessary to keep athletes and trainers accountable. In fact, the 1999 Tour promoted both forms of testing (Fife 208). If they do random tests, how do they enforce them? On this point, committees and sports federations are still debating. For years cycling, a grueling, yet glamorous sport in Europe, has been fighting drug use and abuse. Despite a few exceptions, cycling had the reputation, in Europe and in France, of being a clean, pure sport, compared to others, until the 1998 scandal occurred. The question of drug use among athletes in what was previously considered by the unknowing public to be a rather pristine sport, cycling, is important in that it will affect all future Tours and will place them and the athletes under scrutiny. A Clean Reputation: The History of Drugs in the â€Å"Tour de France† In 1967, Tommy Simpson, a British cyclist, died during the Tour de France because of the amphetamines that he took. Succeeding years brought embarrassments: In 1978, the Belgian Michel Pollentier was suspended while leading the Tour de France after he was caught concealing a clean urine sample to trick testers. Furthermore, in 1988, the Spaniard Pedro Delgado won the T... ...cess Story: Tour de Lance; Armstrong’s miraculous comeback from cancer to a Tour victory is worthy of an exclamation point, not a question mark.† The Los Angeles Times; Los Angeles, Calif.; 26 Jul. 1999: 1. Lemonick, Michael D. â€Å"Le Tour des drugs.† Time; New York; Aug 10, 1998: 76. MacAuley, Domhnall. â€Å"Drugs in Sport.† BMJ: British Medical Journal, 313.7051, 7/27/96, 211. Online. EBSCOhost. 16 Nov. 1999. http://www.EBSCOhost.com. Neff, Craig. â€Å"Drug sweep.† Sports Illustrated; New York, 9 Aug. 1999: 71 Pelkey, Charles ed. â€Å"Etxebarria takes Pau; Armstrong answers drug charge.† Velo-News, 21 July 1999. Phillips, Ian. â€Å"Armstrong Extends Tour Lead U.S. Star Bristles at French Media’s Drug Innuendos.† Seattle Post- Intelligencer; Seattle, Wash.; 15 Jul. 1999: E2. Velo-News. The sensational 1998 Tour de France: Conquests and Crisis. Boulder, Colorado: VeloPress, December, 1998. â€Å"Virenque admits to seeking drugs.† Velo-News Interactive. Velo-News; 11 May 1999. â€Å"Virenque released after admission.† Velo-News Interactive. Velo-News, 11 May 1999. Wilson, Stephen. â€Å"Doping Incidents Shake Sports from Swimming to Track & Field.† Seattle Post- Intelligencer, Seattle, Wash.,.1 Aug. 1998: E6.

Marketing Communication Analysis on Apple (Emphasis on Ipod and Iphone)

Marketing Communication Analysis On Apple Name: Bokeny Kornel In this report I will analyse the marketing communication activities of the multinational corporation Apple, with great emphasis on the current top-selling products thereof: the iPhone, and the iPods. I will deal with the iPod and the iPhone, since the marketing communication used to promote these products is the most notable. The report will include several images, so that the reader can experience the products’ design and the corresponding advertisements for each product. Company overview Since the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984 with the 1984 Super Bowl commercial to the more modern ‘Get a Mac' advertisements, Apple has been recognized in the past for its efforts towards effective advertising and marketing for its products, though its advertising has been criticized for the claims of some more recent campaigns, namely 2005 Power Mac advertisements, and iPhone ads in Britain. Apple is an IT company founded in 1975 by Steve Jobs (the current leader), Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. The company's currently best-known hardware products include Macintosh computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the new iPad. In its early years, Apple only manufactured computers, but for the sake of greater success, it further expanded to the consumer electronics market. It was even called â€Å"Apple Computer, Inc. † for thirty years, but the word â€Å"Computer† on January 9, 2007, to show that the company’s main products are not computers anymore. Now in 2010, Apple is considered to be one of the largest technological corporations in the world by revenue. Apple periodically holds a so-called â€Å"Apple event† where information about new and future products is revealed by Apple’s superiors. The event’s host is usually Steve Jobs. Apple’s computers have their own operating system called the MAC OS, which is fabled for its performance and ease of operation. The iPod is praised for being small but powerful, because of its impressive storage capacity. The iPhone is the present top-selling product, which is a smart phone combined with a portable media device. It is considered to be an epoch-making technical product by many tech-fans. The latest product which is the iPad, is a new type of device, unique on the market. It is a tablet PC, which meant to be somewhere in-between PDA-s and notebooks. The Logo The first Apple logo which designed by Steve Jobs depicts Sir Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree. {draw:frame} {draw:frame} {draw:frame} This early logo was almost immediately replaced by the well known rainbow apple (2nd picture) because of marketing communication issues. Jobs insisted the logo to be in colour to humanize the company. The reason for the vivid colours was to transmit positivity to the customers and to represent the fact that the monitor is capable of reproducing images in colour. The Apple logo was designed with a bite so that it would be recognized as an apple rather than a cherry. In 1998, with the series of the new iMac, Apple discontinued the rainbow theme and began to use monochromatic themes, almost identical in shape to its previous rainbow logo. The iPod Apple’s former flagship product the iPod had a unique marketing campaign. The iPod was a mere mp3 player but through the outstanding marketing communication it became a must-have for portable music device fans. The advertisements showed black silhouettes of dancing people with an iPod in their hands, which stood out because of its white colour. The vivid background emphasised the figures even more: {draw:frame} {draw:frame} When the concept of the iPod and its advertisement was first introduced to the heads of Apple, it was laughed at. Later, when the product was released and the advertisement campaign was launched, it proved to be the biggest success in the history of Apple. Of course some people did not see the advertisements or did not react to it in buying the product, but there were other sources of advertisement in Apple’s mind. The iPod began to turn up in music videos, in the hands of famous stars. The increase of demand was immediately palpable after the premier of 50 cents’ music video of the song P. I. M. P. The singer here can be seen listening to a white iPod with white headphones. Although the Apple logo is not visible in the clip, the screen of the device is showed for a couple of seconds, displaying on the top the word â€Å"iPod†. In a few years, Apple has reached considerably big brand recognition, so whenever someone sees the small â€Å"i† at the beginning of the products name, he or she will immediately know that it is an Apple product. Apple is known for using a lot of slogans; the most of these were concerning the iPod. The first models’ slogan was â€Å"1,000 songs in your pocket† (2001). At that time, the iPod had the largest storage capacity on its market. This evolved further, but Apple returned to this slogan because these large numbers always catch potential customers’ eyes. After some years: â€Å"10,000 songs in your pocket† (2004) and in the present: â€Å"Your Top 40,000†³ (2010). Apple also used some creative, humorous slogans such as: â€Å"*Do not eat iPod shuffle† (2005) This Easter egg slogan was attached as a footnote to claim that the iPod shuffle was about the size of a pack of gum. After a lot of complaints about the lack of colour variety, Apple introduced the iPod shuffle in more colours, and a new slogan: â€Å"Put some color on† (2006). {draw:frame} The iPod’s strengths The iPod made a huge impact on the market, not only influencing other portable music devices, but the favourable brand perception had also increased sales of Macintosh computers. The iPod gives the company access to a whole new series of segments that buy into other parts of the Apple brand. The iPod has created a large group of aficionados who will stick to Apple products in the future; this will mean a stable minimum number of buyers to Apple’s future products even if these products are not that successful. Analysts say that the sound quality produced by the iPod is perfect as well. The music files can also be downloaded from iTunes, Apple’s online music store. The downloadable music has created a steady flow of capital for Apple. The iPod’s weaknesses It was reported that the Apple iPod Nano may have a faulty screen. The company has commented that some of its product has screens that break under impact, and the company is replacing all defective items. This is in addition to problems with early iPods that had faulty batteries, whereby the company offered customers free battery cases. The main complaint was that battery life is insufficient. There is pressure on Apple to increase the price of its music download file, from the music industry itself. Many of these companies make more money from iTunes (i. e. downloadable music files) than from their original CD sales. Apple has sold about 22 million iPod digital music players and more than 500 million songs though its iTunes music store. It accounts for 82% (and rising) of all legally downloaded music in the United States. The company is determined, but if it gives in to the music producers, it may be perceived as a commercial weakness. {draw:frame} The iPod’s opportunities The iPod had great opportunities to expand on the market, but consumers now demand more complex products, such as a cell phone combined with the iPod. Since Apple’s IT experts are of the bests, the iPod has a great chance of evolving into a smart phone (which happened 2007, when the iPhone was released, but this will be discussed later). Since music phones are becoming more and more popular, the iPod must adapt to the changing market. According to Steve Jobs the iPod will become smaller and smaller with time. The iPod’s threats As mentioned above, the market of mobile phones and portable music players is merging into one huge market of multi-purpose media devices. If the iPod does not adapt to the situation, it will surely be forgotten, since the demand for music players without any other special capabilities is falling. The huge number of competitors may also hinder the iPod’s success, as other IT companies have innovative ideas as well. The iPhone Observing the success of the iPod, Apple decided to move on. Marketing communication ceased for a period of time, but there were rumours about a new, groundbreaking product. This of course caused a big hype among Apple fans and potential Apple fans as well. In my opinion the information was leaked out on purpose by Apple, to get the attention of the customers. IT turned out, that this new product is a cell phone. Later, the iPhone was officially introduced on one of the â€Å"Apple events†, and the device’s features were reviewed. â€Å"Introducing the iPhone. Apple reinvents the phone†, and â€Å"The internet in your pocket† were the first slogans for the iPhone, which drew even more customers to Apple. On the date when the iPhone was finally released to the public, one kilometre long queues could be seen at Apple stores. The launch was a success, but later some information was revealed about the conditions of using the iPhone. The iPhone was exclusively available on one provider only: AT, and there was a monthly fee to use it. When Steve Jobs was asked about this, he only replied that â€Å"this is the price† which was a really bad step in terms of marketing communication. Many people decided not to buy the product after hearing about the conditions of its usage. In response to this, Apple launched a massive marketing campaign, advertising all over the big cities. {draw:frame} {draw:frame} Due to the the iPhone’s limited availability, hackers and software developers began to work with illegally unlocked devices. After half a year, Apple launched the Appstore in response, to decrease iPhone piracy. The Appstore gave the opportunity to programmers to write their own applications legally for the iPhone, and to publish it in the Appstore, where it will be available for download for a price of course. A new marketing campaign was launched with the slogan: â€Å"There’s an app for that†. With this, Apple tried to persuade customers that the iPhone can indeed do anything. In the television ads, questions were listed like: â€Å"do you want to shop online? †, â€Å"do you want to watch television? † and â€Å"do you want to use messenger? † etc. and the answer to all questions was â€Å"there’s an app for that†. This was a very convincing advertisement in my opinion; this device was like a small computer according to the ads. With the successful marketing communication and the Appstore, sales of the iPhone, began to rise again. Alongside with the Appstore, a new iPhone model was launched, the 3G, which now even had 3G mobile internet alongside Wi-Fi. With time, the Appstore proved to be a huge success; in nine months, the number of downloads has exceeded 1 billion. {draw:frame} As new applications needed more and more power, the two iPhone models seemed to be incapable of handling certain games and software. Customers, especially software developers complained about the lack of a graphical accelerator, and low processor speed. Apple decided to launch a new, third device; the iPhone 3GS. Many people wondered what the â€Å"S† could mean in the device’s name, and it was later stated that it stands for â€Å"super†. The device finally included a graphical chip, and a faster processor. The new iPhone deserved a new slogan, and Apple came up with this: â€Å"Meet the fastest, most powerful iPhone yet† and â€Å"The first phone to beat the iPhone. † The purpose of this slogan in advertisements was to ensure software developers and technically-conscious users that this model is indeed faster and stronger than its predecessors. I personally was not satisfied with the advertisement; I rather wanted a comparison between the new and the older models. When AT made a new contract with Apple, they have decided to cut down prices. Apple began to promote this by a new slogan: â€Å"Twice as fast, for half the price†. It seems that Apple’s marketing team is particularly talented in creating slogans. Switching slogan is always a hard decision in a company, since it might put brand recognition back a bit, but with Apple’s huge brand recognition it is feasible. I personally find these slogans pretty informative, and I especially appreciate those ones that are humorous to some extent. {draw:frame} The iPhone’s strengths The iPhone has several features that add to the strength of the product. These include its unique look and feel accompanied by a mobile operating system. It has phone sensors that work with the multi-touch screen, which is a new patented technology. The iPhone has a really flexible operating system (I even saw a video where someone could run windows 98 on the phone). These new features are presented to a large and loyal user base that Apple has gained over the years. Additionally, marketing was given support from all over the internet, saving the company a huge amount in advertising fees. Finally, the fact that the iPhone is first device in this area of computer phones is one of its greatest strengths. The iPhone’s weaknesses Like every new product, there are is a set of weaknesses. The first iPhone is not a 3G device and will not work in technologically advanced countries such as Japan and Korea. All of their phones are 3G compliant. Several of the iPhone features are also not particularly impressive. These include the fact that it has a subpar camera, standing at about 2 megapixels as well as its memory not being removable. The phone is priced currently around 500 to 600 dollars and most consumers are happy with their current mobile device; essentially, this phone is aiming at the high end consumers. Apple’s choice of distribution channel has also been because only Cingular and Apple stores are allowed to sell iPhones. Finally, its purpose is to be questioned; does the phone fulfil corporate duties or is it just an entertainment system? {draw:frame} The iPhone’s Opportunities There is quite a demand for a better mobile computing experience. The iPhone tries to combine both powerful computing as well as entertainment into one system. People have also noted that the Mac OS applications for desktop can be easily adapted for the iPhone. The emergence of Wi-Fi networks is pushing for there to be visitor fees instead of having a provider lock in users. It is very likely for the device fees and pay-per-view system to take flight, eliminating the month to month subscription fee. {draw:frame} The iPhone’s threats The majority of threats come from other companies including Nokia, Sony, and Google with their respective products. Smart phones are one popular example that stands to compete against the iPhone. The largest competitor according to most users is Google’s Android. It has similar features as the iPhone, but availability is much higher and the phone itself is cheaper. The other big threats are the hackers. Apple suffers great losses because of â€Å"jailbroken† devices (When an iPhone is â€Å"jailbroken†, the user can get any application from the Appstore for free and can run any third party applications). Conclusion In conclusion, Apple offers some very high quality technical products, though at a relatively high price. The company’s marketing communication is working quit well, Apple advertises on all important media intermediaries, including television, the Internet, and on streets as well. At this rate they would have immense promotion costs, but they can lower it by putting emphasis on Internet-advertisements via websites. {draw:frame} {draw:frame} They try to maintain a positive, humanlike image, which ensures customers about the firm’s good intentions. Over the years, they had many slogans, but their brand recognition has only changed in a positive way: it increased. Apple was formerly better known for its notebooks, but after the successes of both the iPod and the iPhone, people identify Apple as the company which produces the best mp3 players and one of the smartest phones on the market. Its music store; iTunes, is nowadays the prime way of distributing music legally in the world. Through the successful marketing communication and the creative advertisements, Apple will most likely gain more market share in the segment of smart phones and maintain its leading position as the best portable music device producer. Bibliography www. wikipedia. org www. apple. com www. szifon. com www. appleinsider. com

Difference Between Believers And Non Believers Religion Essays

Difference Between Believers And Non Believers Religion Essays Difference Between Believers And Non Believers Religion Essay Difference Between Believers And Non Believers Religion Essay Harmonizing to the Holy Quran, trusters are They who turn ( to Allah ) , who serve ( Him ) , who praise ( Him ) , who fast, who bow down, who prostrate themselves, who enjoin what is good and prohibit what is evil, and who keep the bounds of Allah ; and give good intelligence to the trusters ( Surah At-Tawba: Ayah 112 ) . The Holy Quran farther shades visible radiation on this ; Successful so are the trusters, Who are low in their supplications, And who keep aloof from what is vain, And who are givers of poor-rate, And who guard their private parts, Except before their couples or those whom their right custodies possess, for they certainly are non blameworthy, But whoever seeks to travel beyond that, these are they that exceed the bounds ; And those who are keepers of their trusts and their compact, And those who keep a guard on their supplications ; These are they who are the inheritors, Who shall inherit the Paradise ; they shall stay therein. ( Surah Al-Muminun: Ayah 1-11 ) . In respects to the Bible, we might by and large state that the biggest difference between a truster and a non-believer is the thought procedure of how a individual looks at new information. Believers believe things are true until proved false and non-believers see things as false until proved true. However, we might state the opposite when other topics are introduced such the Theory of Evolution. So Christians can be guilty of the same accusal. Christians need to show their instance to non-believers utilizing mechanisms that do non get down with the premise the Bible is true because it is the Bible. More nonsubjective methods that do non utilize round logical thinking are needed in these forums. We ll do far more advancement this manner. The Bible Teachs that in order to be saved you must atone toward God which means to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ who shed his guiltless blood for the forgiveness of all your wickednesss. The Bible Teachs that after you are saved you must stand in the true grace of God. ( 1 ) Harmonizing to the Bible those who are saved are redeemed from the Law of Moses ( Old Covenant ) and are now under the New Covenant and a much higher jurisprudence: The jurisprudence of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. The Bible says, For the jurisprudence was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. ( John 1:17 ) . If you are led by the Spirit you are non under the Law of Moses: But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are non under the law. ( Gal. 5:18 ) . The jurisprudence of Moses- as sanctum and righteous a criterion as it is- does non give ageless life because no 1 is justified by maintaining the jurisprudence: But that no adult male is justified by the jurisprudence in the sight of Go d, it is apparent: for, The merely shall populate by faith. ( Gal. 3:11 ) . Paul explained that the flesh lecherousnesss against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other ( walking after the flesh is contrary to walking after the Spirit ) so we can non make the things that we would : For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye can non make the things that ye would. ( Gal. 5:17 ) . The ends of the flesh ( adult male s selfish desires ) are contrary to the ends of the Holy Spirit in a Christian s life. The ends of the flesh and the ends of the Holy Spirit are in resistance to each other. The Bible is clear that if the Christian follows the leading of the Holy Spirit he is non under the jurisprudence, but if he walks after the flesh without penitence, God considers him to be under the jurisprudence, non under grace. A urgent issue that seems to hold contentions worldwide is the issue of charitable giving. Apparently, it is an issue that is debated within faiths, between faiths, or between trusters and non-believers: Are Religious Peoples More Charitable than Non-Believers? The differences in charity between secular and spiritual people are dramatic. Religious people are 25 per centum points more likely than secularists to donate money ( 91 per centum to 66 per centum ) and 23 points more likely to volunteer clip ( 67 per centum to 44 per centum ) . And, consistent with the findings of other authors, these informations show that practising a faith is more of import than the existent faith itself in foretelling charitable behaviour. For illustration, among those who attend worship services on a regular basis, 92 per centum of Protestants give charitably, compared with 91 per centum of Catholics, 91 per centum of Jews, and 89 per centum from other faiths. In the book, Who Truly Cares: America s Charity Divide by Arthur C. Brooks ( 2006 ) , Brooks cited several surveies and studies that appeared to show that secular Americans give less to charity than their spiritual opposite numbers. He proposed several grounds for these consequences, viz. those secularists are merely of course less generous ; that as a mostly broad group they had higher outlooks of authorities public assistance plans ; and that they lacked a centralised establishment such as a church that codified and encouraged giving. However, subsequently critics have pointed out that it is non wholly clear whether the spiritual are more generous than the non-religious ; other surveies have shown that the existent state of affairs is far murkier. These critics of Brooks analysis were speedy to indicate out that spiritual charities are normally clearly labeled as such, doing it far easier to track the spiritual associations of the givers. Secular charities, by contrast, receive contributions from spiritual and non-religious alike, with no peculiar differentiation being made between the two. This might function the intent of hiding charitable giving by secular Americans. Recent attempts to set up pointedly secular charities like the Richard Dawkins-organized Non-Believers Giving Aid have been really successful, but by definition secular charities act really much like secular persons in being non-discriminating with both their contributions and their expense. There is some truth to Brooks contention that seculars who tend to tilt broad for the largest portion would want that public assistance plans be run more justifiably through authorities bureaus to a certain extent than being left to the caprices of private charitable trusts. And every bit utmost as it sets off, more European layman persons give far less to charities than their American opposite numbers. However, this is non the complete image. When the amount Europeans disburse in revenue enhancements to finance societal plans abroad and at place is taken into consideration, so their charitable philanthropic far outstrips that of Americans. In highly unbelieving Denmark, for case, the revenue enhancement caisson contributes to ninety per centum to foreign assistance, while in the U.S. the figure is simply 15 per centum. Surveies of religious generousness and belief that focused on non-cash giving established a further interesting consequence. With regard to donating blood, the spiritual belief or non-belief of the helper made highly no differentiation at all to the regularity or sum donated. every bit, a survey of American physicians who were prepared to waive productive medical callings in order to work with the underprivileged in the oversees or the U.S. showed undistinguished differences affecting the layman and the spiritual, with 35 % of the selfless physicians self-identified unbeliever, as contrasted to 28 % Catholics and 26 % Protestants. In extra surveies of bigheartedness by agencies of more restricted methods, no disparity was established between non-religious and spiritual topics. happenings of the dictator game where a individual topic is given financess and requested to divide it or non with an unidentified other participant who knows non anything of the particulars of the trade established spiritual topics were no more broad than their non-religious opposite numbers ; undeniably, a good figure people who participated in the game offered the anon. participant half or about half of the financess, despite of the spiritual belief or deficiency thereof. As in the bulk of research of this kind, there is a menace of trusting excessively much on people s self-reporting of their activities, in peculiar where something every bit accepted as generous giving is antsy. Some surveies, together with one done in 1973, give the feeling that the religious were more likely to desire to be seen as bounteous and accordingly more likely to pump up the sum they contributed to charity. Tom Flynn, in a free of charge Inquiry expose, illustrated the self-reporting deadlock by mentioning to the oft-cited statistic that 40 % of Americans account to holding attended church services in the old hebdomad, so lighting that when research workers basically went out to a large sampling of churches and counted attenders, the figure was nearer to 20 % . He supposes that the accurate incompatibility associating spiritual and non-religious giving, if any, can by no agencies be definitively known every bit long as self-reporting is the major agencies of informations d igest. In the treatment featured in The Great God Debate showcasing atheist Christopher Hitchens and the Judaic Rabbi David Wolpe, similar to many of the brushs affecting Hitchens and spiritual leaders, the statement was intriguing and spirited. This was one issue that came up-and perpetually does in these debates-was the topic of generous giving, and the world that spiritual people confer well more of their money and clip to charity than non trusters. despite the fact that Hitchens endeavored to annul that allegation by claiming that religious charitable giving often comes with strings attached-that is as portion of some kind of evangelical outreach to win farther converts- the basic truth that religious people give more is inflexible to rebut. Hitches besides conversed about the Richard Dawkins Foundation s enterprise to raise financess for subsisters of the Haitian shudder. In add-on, it ought to be understood that the unsimilarity is non merely relevant to trusters. Besides, non trusters are every bit broad with their money and clip. So whatsoever the ground is, it s non a footing particular to one belief. Thus trusters can non justifiably claim that their munificence is because of some built-in moral virtuousness or righteousness of their religion. There ought to be factors at work that are cosmopolitan to all major religious groups. Adding to this, the significance of benevolent giving is nt constrained to one political group or even within a specific faith. Pious progressives are in add-on much more likely to lend money and clip to charitable causes than their non-believing opposite numbers. it is factual that trusters typically suppose that the authorities ought to hold a superior function in assisting the needy and hapless in the universe which, in bend, should diminish the demand for cloak-and-dagger contributions, except that the belief decidedly does nt hinder trusters from donating their money and clip at the higher rates distinctive of all spiritual trusters, so the evidences why spiritual people contribute more is little to make with political relations. Last, after an drawn-out appraisal of authorities wellbeing and how he believes is impairing charitable giving and spiritual religion, Brooks gets about to undertaking the evidences of why devout trusters tend to be more bounteous than non-believers. He farther points out that it might be that belief merely has a strong didactic control over volunteering and giving. Assorted top ographic points of worship might educate their congregants the religious duty to give, and about both the religious and physical desires of the hapless. Basically, people are more likely to analyze charity in a temple, mosque or church than exterior. It s unquestionable that topographic points of worship are extremely important when it comes to bountiful giving. But it s to a big extent more than merely educating people that they ought to give. First, congregants are non simply taught that it is their merely responsibility to offer, they are often told in no dubious footings that they will be known by their fruits -that if they are surely reliable to their belief, they will portray it by willing their money and clip to commendable causes. This is an enticement beyond and above merely stating people that it is the right thing to make. Next, spiritual leaders are continuously reiterating to their congregants of their religious responsibility to give bigheartedly, largely in times of crisis ( What Laws are Believers Under, 2001, AÂ ¶1-5 ) . For illustration, how many American curates agreed up the chance to sermonise a discourse about the moral conscientiousness of looking after those less fortunate than ourselves in the effects of Hurricane Katrina? really few merely as everyone would bet. And it s non merely the influential who often remind trusters about parts, it is besides as a consequence of equal force per unit area. Among the parishioners at that place will for all clip be a figure of people on the sentinel for aid with one commendable ground or another. If you are a vigorous affiliate of a spiritual community, it s difficult to maintain away from all these desires for your money and clip. In decision, spiritual establishments hearten charitable contributions by seting up the substructure that makes philanthropic as painless and every bit easy as likely. each Sunday in several churches around the Earth, an offertory bowl is passed under every congregant s nose. In several of those churches, you can even put up a monthly express debit to direct your hard currency from your history to the church s personal caissons with no raising a finger. Furthermore as a asset, you get to put aside some money on the revenue enhancements every bit good. There are bases in the churches java suites covering with Traidcraft goods in aid to Third World scarceness, every bit good as tabular arraies set up where people can give up their clip to assist out in the vicinity. The listing of ways that religious establishments assist people contribute their clip and money to generous causes is eternal ( Buzz, 2010, AÂ ¶4 ) . It s besides deserving retrieving that while most organisations charge a rank fee in order to assist fund its fiscal duties, spiritual organisations typically do non, and therefore all monies collected from members in support of their operations are classed as charity, therefore greatly hiking the overall sum spiritual people donate. Compare all that with the experience of the non-believer. There is small inquiry that the huge bulk of non-religious people believe that charitable giving is a good and moral thing to make. Even without entree to a huge spiritual substructure to assist them, two-thirds of all non-believers still donate money to charity on a regular footing. So why do nt non-believers donate as much or every bit frequently? Simply put, they lack the same motives and chances that spiritual people have. Non-believers do non hold their moral responsibility to give to charity preached at 52 Lords daies a twelvemonth. They do non hold a aggregation home base waved in their face every hebdomad reminding them of their duty to do a contribution. They do non typically frequent topographic points where big ongoing attempts to raise money for charity are afoot, and they normally merely have their scrupless stirred when some great calamity hits the intelligence headlines-like the Ethiopian dearths, Hurricane Katrina, or the Haitian temblor. So I do nt believe that it is at all surprising that non-religious people give less of their clip and money to charity. But it s non because non-believers are per se less moral in any manner, it s merely because they lack the same duties, encouragement, and mercantile establishments that spiritual people have. Ashford ( 2010 ) , points out an first-class proposition on this issue that if assistance is so a civilized behaviour, it may be that houses of devotedness are merely meant to learn it. Secularists concerned in increasing benevolent volunteering and giving among their ranks might use some attempt opinionating on alternate ways to further these wonts. It at all there exists hope, so it would be in attempts to give many more people a gustatory sensation of what it s like to donate one s clip to charitable plants. Study after survey have shown that prosecuting in regular voluntary work can be a great benefit to one s mental and physical wellness. It does nt count if the volunteerism is conducted through a spiritual establishment or non, about everyone who tries it, even for a short clip, begins to see those personal benefits first manus, doing it more likely that they would desire to prevail making it on a customary footing ( AÂ ¶5-8 ) . Basically, persons must come together in the populace and make up ones mind how communal wealth will be allocated every bit good as how actions will be governed.A These opinionative inquiries bring both disbelievers and trusters together and coerce interaction among them.A It is non good plenty for trusters and disbelievers to writhe their dorsums on one other when real-life reasonable affairs are at risk.A Providentially, there is a batch of cosmopolitan land accessible between trusters and disbelievers to undertake practical jobs. So there are assorted ways to cheer charitable giving every bit good as instill good wonts beyond the protections of religious groups, despite the fact that I do non underestimate the graduated table of the responsibility of fiting the selfless work performed and encouraged through spiritual establishments. The most of import facet to maintain in head is that there is nil supernatural or mystical sing the generousness of spiritual people. It is strictly a n terminal merchandise of indoctrination, facilitation, publicity every bit good as instruction facilitated by the assorted spiritual establishments they belong to.

Life or Death in Auschwitz essays

Life or Death in Auschwitz essays "Auschwitz" the most brutal and horrifying German death camp of them all. Located near a town called "Oswie'cim" in Poland. Ran by Nazis under the control of Adolph Hitler. Auschwitz ran for six long strong years from 1939 to 1945. Nazis ran this camp after World War 1 and through World War 2. Also this camp "Auschwitz" was called "Birkenau". By the Nazis running this camp under Hitler's rule they made this camp the most brutal of the three German death camps. Mostly Jews was Hitler's target because they were blamed for the killing of JESUS CHRIST. Also they didn't fit Hitler's blonde hair blue eyed discription. Once they are trained in to the camp the are separated at the door. Only the strong would survive. They picked out only the strong to work for them. The strong ones would be worked to their death by starvation or just working to hard and suffering. The weak ones at the door would go to gas chambers or down alleys and murdered. Also during Hitler's rule he was arrested because he tried to topple the Bavarian government but he failed. He was sentenced to five years but he only served nine months. During his nine months of imprisonment he wrote "Mein Kampf". On June seventeenth 1936, Henrich Himmler becomes head chief of the German police. Also through August first through sixteenth Hitler opened Olympic games in Berlin. Hitler really comes to power on January thirtyeth of 1933, when he becomes national Chancellor. During October through November of 1934, homosexuals are arrested through out Germany. On January thirtyith of 1939, Hitler tells German Reichstag that a world war will mean the "extermination of all Jewish race in Europe". Big and strong words coming from a ruler that always keep his word of doing his job. Then on November twenty-third of 1939, All Jews in General Government in Poland have to wear the Star of David. By telling you this information about Auschwitz and hearing how bad ...

Buy a Baseball America`s Favorite Game Essay Online

Buy a Baseball America`s Favorite Game Essay Online Essay about Baseball As spring comes in, when the beauty of the earth comes alive one more time, the great American game begins in North America and Canada. It is so much more than a ball game played between two teams of at nine players on a diamond-shaped field – with bases, gloves, bats and balls, a mound, dirt on in infield, grass in the outfield, and people in the stands. Baseball is a game of graceful athleticism, intelligence, and class. At times, baseball is like a ballet, a performance and a mind game, a game of chess. It’s very different than – even superior to –that ruthless game called American football, not to be confused with soccer. Baseball is far more humane in nature than football, which is a brutish game of violence much too similar to war. Baseball is a gentleman’s game, a thinking mans sport of brains, strength, stamina, speed, and reflex. Also, baseball, which is said to have evolved from the British game cricket, was created in New England around the time of the American Civil War, played by Union soldiers to occupy their downtime, to probably distract them and aid in helping them keep their sanity when not fighting. It requires concentration and competition, so it was a helpful tool in bringing them together to do something fun and enjoyable. Next came professional baseball leagues in various parts of the country, in cities in most states in America. Over time, in one form or another, people all over were playing the great game – whether for fun on pastures or on a flat, dirt field. Then it became a spectator sport during the summer months. Late nights meant for baseball all day long, and people began paying money to see games. It is still this way today. They were paying money to see the best local players compete against the best players in other locations, regions or towns. Since then, since the turn of the 21st century, baseball has been a staple of American life, culture, and society. This may be the reason baseball is called, time and time again, â€Å"America’s Favorite Pastime.† Today, Major League Baseball has become the authority on professional baseball in the United States – and has become a multi-million-dollar company (if not a multi-billion-dollar one). Its  games and other retail items attract millions and millions of Americans every year, and the professional league fan base extends to South America, Canada, Europa,  and Asia. Its  players – Major League Baseball players – make millions of dollars a year, through contracts with each team, which is essentially a large corporation, and through deals with athletic equipment companies, sponsors, and other such things. That is a lot of money for someone to play a game that was played for fun by soldiers in the Civil War, a game played by children on long summer days. In the last 150 years since the game was created, baseball – the actual game itself – probably hasn’t changed too much. It still involves the same notions and requires the same language, the same basics of the game, its  basic principles and rules and standards and requirements. But the game has most definitely changed. A major problem in American professional baseball these past couple decades has been the use of performance-enhancing drugs, like steroids, among the game’s best and most famous players. For someone who grew up idolizing these players and wanting to emulate them, it can be a real downer to think they are human and fallible ones at that, too human to be heroes and to do heroic things. They are only people who could play a simple game very well to the point they could get paid to do it day in and day and for years at a time. It has become an industry and not just a game. That game has changed – and not necessarily for the better.

International Accounting Regulations Assignment

International Accounting Regulations - Assignment Example FRS 10 defines the classes of intangible assets that would be covered by the provisions. These intangible assets may include â€Å"licenses. Quotas, patents, copyrights etc and also other assets that are capable of being disposed of or settled separately without disposing of the entity.† (Neil D. Stein 1998)FRS 10 defines the classes of intangible assets that would be covered by the provisions. These intangible assets may include â€Å"licenses. Quotas, patents, copyrights etc and also other assets that are capable of being disposed of or settled separately without disposing of the entity.† (Neil D. Stein 1998)However, FRS 10 has left certain important issues in connection with the intangible assets vague that makes the provisions unserious about the objective it intends to accomplish.  Ã‚  Ã‚  FRS 10 has the following shortcomings which have made the treatment of goodwill and other intangible assets favorable to the firms:†¢ FRS 10 gives the firms the liberty to carry through the value of the goodwill or other intangible assets permanently at the purchased cost. This vitiates the chances of the true and fair valuation of the intangible assets as shown in the financial statements.†¢ Although there are provisions governing the impairment of the value of the intangible assets, the impairment process as detailed in the FRS 10 and FRS 11 are highly subjective and devoid of clarity. This allows the firms to postpone the impairment of the intangible assets as long as they want on the plea that the valuation and impairment procedure is costly and cumbersome.†¢ Moreover, the treatment of the negative value of the goodwill under FRS 10 does not follow normal accounting practices.†¢ The provisions of the Companies Act 1985 are not taken into account while allowing the goodwill to be carried for an indefinite period.

In what ways did the Reformation influence the formation of national Essay

In what ways did the Reformation influence the formation of national identity in Europe and North America - Essay Example With this view, Wolfe (2003, p. 24) notes that the vital moment in the formation of identity came when individuals came to view amorphous mass of people as sharing a common history, destiny, culture and interest. In the past few decades, the examination of the history of religion has shifted from the ghetto of clerical history to which it had been long impounded (Veer & Lehmann, 1999, p. 21). Having looked at the general state of identity in the European countries, it is imperative to focus attention on the relationship between reformation and national identity in the European and North American nations. In reference to Arnold (1999), Reformation is the religious insurgency that occurred in the Western church in 16th century. Martin Luther and John Calvin were its greatest leaders. It had far reaching political, social and economic effects and was the primary cause of Protestantism, one of the three primary divisions of Christianity. Meyer (2009) denotes that this revolution aspired to reform the practices and beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church. However, the revolution’s religious elements were complemented by political leaders who aimed at extending their supremacy and control to the detriment of the church. This upsurge brought an end to the unity inflicted by medieval Christianity and, according to many historians, marked the start of a new era (Meyer, 2009). A deterioration of the old order was by now in progress in North Europe, as verified by the materialization of flourishing new cities and a resolute middle class. The efforts and determination of the leaders of reformation resulted to the creation of new protestant churches (Clark, 2000, p. 251). The world of the medieval Roman Catholic Church from which the reformers aggressed was an intricate. Over the centuries, the church, especially the papacy, had been involved in the political life of Europe. This had resulted to manipulations which prompted the reformers to revolt. The Catholic Church c ontrolled the economy of majority of Europena countries and imposed heavy taxes on the people (Meyer, 2009). Luther saw that Catholic was a way of manipulating the people and driving them away from God. In 1517, Martin Luther, posted a document referred to as the 95 theses. This document outlined reasons by why he believed that Catholicism was completely defective (Clark, 2000, p. 253). Martin Luther’s stand transformed some parts of the Roman Catholic set of guidelines and numerous other practices. He insisted on the point that the Bible and not the pope, was the main way to recognize God’s Word. The pope was an extremely worldly figure and held supremacy in the Catholic Church. For this reason, Arnold (1999) asserts that this point raised eyebrows across the continent. Martin Luther felt that the bible was the most significant aspect in spirituality which the Christians should abide to other than the orders of the pope. He felt that this was an unfair to the true sig nificance of salvation. When Luther criticized the Catholic Church, not everyone accepted him as a savior of religion. At first, he only appealed to the barbarians and other lower class people. No one in the religion had acknowledged the importance of the document written by Luther, though it would be one of the most significant documents to ever be written in history (Meyer, 2009). Many public figures wanted to excommunicate him. The church did not want to involve him

Comparison of a Poem to a Song Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Comparison of a Poem to a Song - Coursework Example The poem â€Å"theme for English B† is a poem written at the peak of racial discrimination in the year 1951.  In the poem,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"theme for English B† Hughes talks about the differences between him and his class instructor (Bloom, pg 21). The poet talks about being the only colored person in his  class  and shows the  feeling  of his  likeness  to other races, solely â€Å" white† and yet different throughout the poem. Using his  community  (Harlem) as an  inspiration  Hughes manages to write a poem that depicts his  ethnic  affiliation. The class  instructor  gave a  precise  brief description of the  assignment  that is, go home, write a page tonight, and let the  page  be the  original  thoughts of students (Fetzer, pg 23). The persona in the  poem  remains  uncertain  on whether the task is that  easy  as portrayed by the class instructor.  Afterwards,  the student outlines the reasons substantia ting his  thought  that such an  assignment  could not be  easy. The speaker in the poem â€Å"theme for English B† is older compared to most white students in the English class. Secondly, the student gives the  route  he takes from  school  to his  residence  where the narrator sits  to do  his  assignment (Bloom, pg 46). The student perceives the  difficulty in writing true ideals or something that is only purported to be true. This judgment was at the discretion of the  white  class  instructor. The student plunges into listing what he likes, subsequently supposing that being colored does not make him different from the things he likes as other races.  The speaker in the  poem  is bothered  if his black identity  will make a difference in what he writes (Fetzer, pg 44). Secondly,  he wonders whether he will be able  to talk  with a white tutor  given that  he  is black. Despite these ill feelings, the speaker in the   poem  finally admits that both of them are part of each other. The speaker then delves into an  extremely  significant  conclusion  that as the black students learn  from the  white tutor, the  instructor  equally  learns from the  black student.  The tone of Langston Hughes in his poem befits the  description  of  mildly  ironical’ as he shows his difficulty in  earnestly  communicating  his own feelings at the  specifications  of his  white  tutor of English.  Irony is  manifest  in the  poem  where he commences by saying â€Å"I wonder if it is that simple,† but at the end of the poem, he succeeds in doing just that in a  remarkably  correct  manner. His actual inner being comprises of two distinguishing aspects; he is black and very different from the instructor of his class. Secondly, he is an American just like every other American inclusive of his tutor. The author of the poem embraces a conciliat ory tone that acknowledges the fact that the two races are part of each other. Nevertheless, the poem ends on a tone full of  regret  somewhat more  free. Besides poems, songs are also excellent mediums of creating awareness or sensitizing the  society. An example is the  song  we shall be  free  by Garth Brooks. The  song  Ã¢â‚¬Å"We Shall Be Free† is a song produced by American country music artist during the year 1992. The artist was born on February 7, 1962 in America. The artist in the release of this song collaborated with Stephanie Davis. In this song, an ordinary  man  conceives of a world in which human beings are free from earthly subjugations. Topics addressed in this

Student Assessment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Student Assessment - Assignment Example They also fail to measure the need for student growth which is needed to plan future instruction or lecture strategies (Tsagari). This has called for re-examining the traditional or conventional approach to testing qualities, hence a movement of alternative testing (Rachmnn 2005). Wiggins (1998) and Darling-Hammond, Ancess and Falk (1995) also pointed out the problem of deep understanding with conventional testing, emphasizing that deep understanding is robust learning which can be applied to different situations. The criticism pointed out by Wiggins and Darling-Hammond is that conventional forms of testing such as exercises, quizzes and multiple choice questions are not capable of gauging this understanding among students (Williams 2007). Due to these criticisms Wiggins and Darling-Hammond, Ancess and Falk are in favor of performance assessment, in which instead of testing a student using multiple choice questions, they are to work on projects, conduct interviews, and presentations in order to demonstrate their understanding to the reviewers/teachers (Ross 2006) . The basic premise of the vision of authentic achievement as proposed by Newmann, Secada, and Wehlage (1995) outlines the creation of more interesting yet challenging assessment tools for students. Teachers can encourage students to produce more intellectual work in the form of real world applications, and hence increase their performance. Although the basic assumption behind traditional and authentic assessment is common, which is to develop prolific citizens, the former approach tests the students on the possession of certain knowledge while the latter tests the students on the application of knowledge (Mueller 2008). Another difference between the two approaches is that in the traditional approach knowledge is the curriculum determined prior to delivery while in the latter the task to be executed by the students is determined first, which would include the application of knowledge and the curriculum to enable the students to perform the task is determined later (Mueller 2008). Dictionary definition of rubric is "an authoritative rule, especially, a rule for conduct of a liturgical service" (Dictionary 2008). Rubrics basically are assessment tools with the help of which the teacher can predefine what basis the paper or work will be judged on and how scoring will be done on the basis of the predefined criteria (ALTEC 2008). Hence, I agree with the statement that "using rubrics to code student work makes the expectations for success clear, and thereby solves a major problem of traditional assessment, namely, the mystery of marking/evaluating student performance" (Course Resource). If a student does not get a good grade despite knowing the rubrics, the teacher is to a point faultless because the student was informed about the assessment criteria and both students and teacher share with each other the requirements for a particular project (Holbrook 2001). Assessments by rubrics are very detailed and give students a much more clear idea of what they are expected (Walvoord n.d.).It is also very helpful as an assessment tool as it is an ongoing review process where students can also self assess themselves on the basis of preset criteria before submitting their work (Andrade 2001).

Quantitative Methods and Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Quantitative Methods and Analysis - Essay Example In correlation research, information is normally gathered through questionnaires, interviews or through secondary sources. The variables in a correlation study are usually selected through a given rationale (Cohen, 2002). For instance one can seek to examine the attitude of students towards math and their mathematical modeling ability in the workplace. In that case one will seek to find out whether the two variables are correlated in any way. A correlation coefficient is then computed which is a quantitative value and will indicate the direction and the size of the relationship between the two variables. The two variables are chosen because in one way or another there may seem to be a relationship between them. The results obtained from a correlation survey are very relevant and practical in the workplace. For investment purposes, the correlation between different portfolios can be determined so as to diversify and avoid investing in similar ventures. A business can also use correlation analysis to find out how different factors affect the sales volume. In the evaluation of learning, the study of correlation can effectively illuminate various issues that account for the disparities in learning abilities of the students (Adrich, 2008). The study of correlation is therefore very relevant not only in the social sciences but in entirely all sectors of human

Student Assessment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Student Assessment - Assignment Example They also fail to measure the need for student growth which is needed to plan future instruction or lecture strategies (Tsagari). This has called for re-examining the traditional or conventional approach to testing qualities, hence a movement of alternative testing (Rachmnn 2005). Wiggins (1998) and Darling-Hammond, Ancess and Falk (1995) also pointed out the problem of deep understanding with conventional testing, emphasizing that deep understanding is robust learning which can be applied to different situations. The criticism pointed out by Wiggins and Darling-Hammond is that conventional forms of testing such as exercises, quizzes and multiple choice questions are not capable of gauging this understanding among students (Williams 2007). Due to these criticisms Wiggins and Darling-Hammond, Ancess and Falk are in favor of performance assessment, in which instead of testing a student using multiple choice questions, they are to work on projects, conduct interviews, and presentations in order to demonstrate their understanding to the reviewers/teachers (Ross 2006) . The basic premise of the vision of authentic achievement as proposed by Newmann, Secada, and Wehlage (1995) outlines the creation of more interesting yet challenging assessment tools for students. Teachers can encourage students to produce more intellectual work in the form of real world applications, and hence increase their performance. Although the basic assumption behind traditional and authentic assessment is common, which is to develop prolific citizens, the former approach tests the students on the possession of certain knowledge while the latter tests the students on the application of knowledge (Mueller 2008). Another difference between the two approaches is that in the traditional approach knowledge is the curriculum determined prior to delivery while in the latter the task to be executed by the students is determined first, which would include the application of knowledge and the curriculum to enable the students to perform the task is determined later (Mueller 2008). Dictionary definition of rubric is "an authoritative rule, especially, a rule for conduct of a liturgical service" (Dictionary 2008). Rubrics basically are assessment tools with the help of which the teacher can predefine what basis the paper or work will be judged on and how scoring will be done on the basis of the predefined criteria (ALTEC 2008). Hence, I agree with the statement that "using rubrics to code student work makes the expectations for success clear, and thereby solves a major problem of traditional assessment, namely, the mystery of marking/evaluating student performance" (Course Resource). If a student does not get a good grade despite knowing the rubrics, the teacher is to a point faultless because the student was informed about the assessment criteria and both students and teacher share with each other the requirements for a particular project (Holbrook 2001). Assessments by rubrics are very detailed and give students a much more clear idea of what they are expected (Walvoord n.d.).It is also very helpful as an assessment tool as it is an ongoing review process where students can also self assess themselves on the basis of preset criteria before submitting their work (Andrade 2001).

I will tell you later Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

I will tell you later - Essay Example Secondly, the paper will focus on the relationship between food and water security and possible solutions to the security of the two. In the conclusion, there will be focus on the solution to safeguard food and water security in both developed countries and developing countries. Food-Water nexus Water and food are extremely connected; the impact of the quality and proper usage of the two is made necessary by the utilization of water resources and practice of good agricultural methods. Water is very essential in the food industry. In the primary production stage, it is used in irrigation, livestock watering and aquaculture. According to Krittasudthacheewa 3, agriculture consumes about 70% of all surface water supplies whereas domestic and industrial usage takes up the remaining percentage. It also performs a main role in the preparation and processing stage where it is used as a means of transport, as an ingredient for washing, pasteurizing, cooling and steam production. In order to p roduce, process and prepare food, a lot of energy is required. Energy is used in the transportation, treatment and production of food. Water enables the production for hydroelectric power which aids in the food production process by provision of energy. ... Poor agricultural practices have resulted to loss of soil due to run off water and had also caused water logging because of hard pans. The pollution of animal waste and water used in irrigation leads to the pollution of surface and ground water. Irrigation flows carry salts, nutrients and pesticides which contaminate the water sources and alter the eminence of the water. The pollution has negative impact on food production especially since the polluted water is to be reused in future. Utilization of polluted water in the food production chain results in low quality and insufficient agriculture produce. It also impacts on the cost of production that rises due to increased costs in the purchase of the necessary curatives needed for maximum production and protection of the impact of the infected produce. It is therefore necessary to practice good agricultural methods while at the same time regulating water usage. Protection of water sources from pollution and unnecessary use normally re sults in increased productivity. The relationship between water and food production should be well balanced to ensure the continued supply for food and likewise existence of suitable and non-polluted water. The disturbance of one has tremendous impacts on the other. The two depend on each other for maximum productivity which is essential to cater for the ever increasing human needs and wants. Impact of food production and water security Water security is the access to safe water for consumption and sanitation. Food security on the other hand is the availability of safe, sufficient and nutritious food to live a healthy life. Interdependence between water and food is the reason why agriculture is responsible for much water exploitation. During food production,

The role of the health and social care worker Essay Example for Free

The role of the health and social care worker Essay A working relationship is different from a personal relationship because a working relationship is more professional; there are boundaries, specific objectives and purposes. There are professional codes of conduct, employer policies and procedures also there are time limits and being in some cases cone way relationship. The three collages for whom I work with and there job roles are activity staff, care staff and music therapy staff. I communicate with these collages and work together to establish and maintain the trust and confidence of service users and care staff. I also have a good communicating relationship with these. Giving the policies; and procedures and communicating in partnership. It is important to work in partnership together in the health care to achieve the best outcomes for the individuals and its also important because collages have all different working skills, knowledge and rolls, Partnership also to share discussions and making information relation in common concern. Task B Reflective account I was with a collage in work with a member of care staff. I was going to hoist and transfer a service user, using a hoist. My collage wanted to go on break, and had an idea that would be quicker than using a hoist and using the correct method appropriately and safely. My collage wanted to lift the service user up from there wheelchair and transfer them onto a bed, but I was totally against this. I did not consider, to use this type of method of transfer, as I felt that I would injure, myself, the service user and my collage. And risk the possibility of loosing my job and loosing someone’s life. This incident involved conflict between my working collage because I did not want to go through with it, and work in an unsafe manner. I went to my line manager and said about this situation. I had to report this by filling in an incident form. I did not get the support at the right time, as my manger was not present. I think that I dealt with this incident effective and professionally and maintain a good level of care to the service user. I could have responded differently by not being professional and keeping my working relationship, but I had to because this was a work related incident.

Celtic Tiger Irelands Growth Economics Essay

Celtic Tiger Irelands Growth Economics Essay The Harrod-Domar (CITE!!!) model developed in the 1940s was originally intended to analyse business cycles, but has since been adapted to economic growth. In the model, growth is dependent on the levels of labour and capital. As developing countries typically have a plentiful supply of labour, their growth is more dependent on physical capital and savings to create growth. Growth is achieved through net investment which will lead to capital appreciation thus producing higher levels of output and income; with higher levels of income there will be higher levels of saving. Thus, economic growth is dependent on policies and practices that will promote savings and/or create technological advancements that will decrease the capital-output ratio. However, this does not provide a complete picture and as a result, further models have since been developed. The traditional neoclassical growth model as developed by Solow (1956) and others builds on the Harrod-Domar model by including labour as a factor of production. However, the model allows little room to explain any impact other outside factors, such as foreign direct investment, may have on economic growth. In the model there are diminishing returns to capital and long run growth will be determined through exogenous factors such as technological advancement or population growth. Growth only lasts for a transitional phase until the economy reaches its new steady state level of output and employment. The model also states that growth rates are inversely related to a countrys income per capita; a poor country with similar endowments to a richer country will grow faster and eventually converge to the income per capita level of the richer one. Exogenous factors will only affect growth in the short term and the only way they can have lasting effects is via permanent technological shocks. H owever, Romer (1986), Lucas (1988) and Barro and Sala-i-Martin (1995) among others are credited with the development of the endogenous growth model which considers technological advancements as endogenous to the model. In his seminal paper on growth, Romer (1986) provides an alternative model for long term economic growth. He states that income per capita among developed countries does not necessarily converge with that of developed countries and that in fact there may be differing levels of growth. In particular, less developed countries can exhibit low levels of growth or may not grow at all. The factors that do lead to growth are not dependent on exogenous technological changes or differences between countries, but rather technology is endogenous to the model. Even holding technology, population and other factors constant, the most important idea is to ignore the traditional assumption of diminishing returns. Thus, long run growth will come from the accumulation of knowledge. Knowledge can demonstrate increasing returns and marginal product and can have limitless, constant growth. New knowledge will be transferred between firms and have positive externalities thus leading to increased growth. Ro mer (1986) argues that these positive externalities are able to explain growth and are necessary for an equilibrium state to exist. Similar to Romer, Lucas (1988) adds technology or human capital to the neoclassical growth model. The model in his paper also considers learning by doing as a way of capital accumulation. Population growth is held constant and both physical and human capital are included. Physical capital is taken from the traditional neoclassical growth model and human capital boosts productivity, where a stable effort level will lead to stable growth rates in productivity. For a closed economy, poorer countries will continue to stay poor, but will actually have the same growth rates as richer countries. Therefore, there will be constant growth rates and a steady distribution of income. For the open economy with free labour mobility and free trade of capital inputs, externalities and spillovers will lead to higher wages and higher skill levels, thus increasing the wealth of a country. Lucas also states that different growth rates amongst countries can be due to different levels of human capital grow th associated with different goods. Accordingly, it is evident that the same levels of technology and human capital are not available in every country as the neoclassical model assumes. Barro (1991) examined 98 countries to test the neoclassical idea that poorer countries will grow faster than richer countries. Rates of school enrolment were used to measure levels of human capital. The results find that GDP per capita growth rates are significantly positively related to initial endowments of human capital and based on these initial levels, growth is negatively related to the initial level of GDP per capita. These findings seem to support the neoclassical model that poorer countries will eventually converge with richer countries. However, this only holds for the poorer countries that have relatively high levels of human capital, meaning that the human capital level is above what would be expected given the relatively low level of GDP per capita. The paper also takes into account other factors, such as fertility rates, government expenditure, political instability and corruption, and price distortions. Despite these considerations, Barro concedes that the results are unable to explain the poor growth rates for countries in Latin American and Sub-Saharan Africa and suggests that other factors must be involved. Convergence or Regional Boom? From the theory, it is evident that convergence of less developed countries is not automatic and that many factors are responsible for economic growth. For the case of Ireland, there is debate as to whether or not it was simply a matter of delayed convergence or as a result of a regional boom. There are several papers arguing both sides, which will now be examined. Ó Grà ¡da (2002) argues that the economic performance of Ireland in the 1990s is mainly a matter of delayed convergence and making up for many decades of underperformance. He finds that Ireland underachieved compared to other Western European countries from the end of World War II until the late 1980s. Throughout that period, the 1960s provided a glimpse at possible future economic growth. If the period is extended to 1998, Ó Grà ¡da states that Ireland performed as expected given the low initial level of income per capita in the 1950s in order to achieve convergence. Thus, the economic slowdown evidenced at the time of writing, 2002, seems to be in line with convergence theory and to be expected as Ireland had reached its new steady state level. However, if the Celtic Tiger is simply a matter of delayed convergence, then why it took so long also needs to be examined. Ó Grà ¡da attributes this to poor fiscal policy practices and protectionism during the 1970s and early 1980s. Ó Grà ¡da and ORourke (1996) examine in detail why Ireland underperformed in previous decades relative to other Western European countries. Ireland experienced much lower rates of GDP growth as evidenced in Figure 1. The richest countries in 1950, Switzerland (CH), UK and Denmark are compared with the poorest countries, Greece and Spain. Ireland is the clear outlier and exhibits much slower growth than would be expected. They attribute the weak performance to a variety of factors particularly trade protectionist policies, heavy reliance on agricultural exports, and rent-seeking behaviour. In particular, Ireland failed to participate in the economic recovery of the rest of post WWII Europe by maintaining barriers to trade and waiting to open up the economy until the 1960s. However, they do not find that low levels of investment in human and physical capital to have been significant factors. Ó Grà ¡da and ORourke also suggest that Irelands proximity and reliance on the UK cou ld have led to slower growth rates since the UK, while not underperforming, was not experiencing particularly high levels of growth. Figure 1: Average annual growth rates, 1950-1988, for Western Europe Source: Ó Grà ¡da and ORourke (1996) Honohan and Walsh (2002) also take the view that Irelands economic performance can be attributed to delayed convergence. They argue that there was no productivity miracle but instead the boom was mainly due to a change in fiscal and monetary policies and an improvement in the labour market, which allowed productivity to finally catch up to the levels of the rest of Europe. While an increase in the population employed and demographic trends are unlikely to be repeated, Honohan and Walsh argue that if the policy changes had been made earlier, Ireland would have achieved convergence earlier. The argument that the increased growth was due to a regional boom is also considered. However, it is immediately discounted when Irelands population and economic growth is compared to that of individual states of the U.S., ranking 23rd out of fifty (Honohan and Walsh, 2002). Barry (2000) examines if Irish growth can be attributed to changes in policy and to what extent, which would support the convergence hypothesis. The most important factor is correct microeconomic and industrial policy, which Barry argues is the main reason for the delay in development. However, he finds that there are other certain characteristics necessary for convergence to be achieved, including a stable economy, an effective labour market, a developed market for exports, and sufficient levels of education. Thus, Barry seems to provide mixed support for the convergence theory. The delayed convergence hypothesis suggests that Irelands economic growth was simply a matter of catching up with the rest of the developed world. However, it has some shortcomings including not satisfactorily explaining why Ireland failed to converge sooner like the other peripheral EU countries of Spain, Portugal and Greece. Delayed convergence also does not give a role to the large increase in foreign direct investment as the theory does not suggest that anything other than sound economic and industrial policies are necessary. The theory also suggests that since convergence has been achieved, all that is required to maintain it is to ensure the same sound policies are followed. The regional boom theory, on the other hand, does take into consideration other non-traditional factors such as FDI and the boom of the US economy. It particularly focuses on an economys export base as key for economic growth. This theory also leaves room for unexpected shocks, such as a decrease in FDI or downturn in the US economy to have an impact on the economy, which in light of recent events, would seem to be more accurate. The regional boom theory will now be examined in more detail. A regional economy differs from a national economy in that there is free movement of labour in and out of the region (Barry 2002a). Krugman (1997) has suggested that Ireland be treated as such a regional economy due to the fact that it exhibits many of the features of a small region of a larger economy rather than a larger independent nation. Ireland is a small, extremely open economy and before the adoption of the Euro, had a currency that was mostly pegged to another. With the free movement of labour, wages are determined by those of the larger region, rather than within the country itself and job numbers are based on labour demand rather than labour supply determining job creation based on wages (Krugman, 1997). Also, adjustment to exogenous shocks will be dealt with differently by a country in a regional economy versus a sovereign country. If a shock occurs to the labour market in an open economy, labour will simply leave, rather than a wage adjustment occurring and new industrie s arising, as in a closed economy. Krugman argues in favour of the regional boom hypothesis because of the large increase in the export economy and the increase in jobs in the services sector as a result. The majority of the increase in exports during the Celtic Tiger was in foreign-owned companies. Barry (2002b) examines Irelands economic performance and the factors that lead to convergence compared to the other peripheral EU countries of Spain, Portugal and Greece. Ireland, unlike the other countries, failed to reach EU average levels of growth until much later. Unlike previously argued by Ó Grà ¡da and ORourke, Barry finds that this was not in fact due to macroeconomic policies, as all four countries had similar practices and in fact, Ireland was the most export oriented country of the group, as shown in Table 1. Barry finds the main difference between Ireland and the rest is actually in labour market operations. Ireland experienced high unemployment, high emigration and increased wages from the 1960s to the late 1980s. The relatively high wages meant domestically owned labour-intensive firms were unable to compete with foreign-owned firms as high levels of FDI, particularly in the manufacturing sector, started to enter the economy. Thus, Barrys findings seem to support the regional boom hypothesis with exports and FDI playing a key role in explaining Irish growth. Table 1: Exports of goods and services as a percentage of GDP Barry (1999) argues that in order to achieve high levels of growth in a regional economy, a nation needs to be internationally competitive in the non-agricultural sector, as increased capital in an agriculturally based economy will lead to more emigration. He argues that industrialisation policy is crucial, whereas proponents of the convergence theory, including Ó Grà ¡da consider this a distortion with Ireland merely switching from import-substitution industrialisation to export-substitution industrialisation (Ó Grà ¡da, 2002, p. 8). However, others, such as Barros and Cabral (2000) and Fumagalli (1999) suggest that in order to industrialise, such a distortion is necessary. Hill et al (2005) consider both theories and come to the conclusion that perhaps it cannot be explained solely by one theory, but rather a combination of the two. They argue that the necessary conditions for convergence were in place by the 1970s, but that Ireland suffered as a result of poor policy practices from 1973-1986 and global economic downturn. However, this is not sufficient to explain the economic growth fully and thus, Hill et al also incorporate the regional perspective. Labour and capital inflows were as equally important as sound policies in Irelands growth. Ireland was able to attract foreign investment, create more and higher quality jobs and as a result, the levels of labour force participation increased. They cite increases in employment and job creation as extremely important in the Irish case, which implies a larger role for government than in convergence theory. Government needs to do more than just maintain proper fiscal policy and must ensure there is a compet itive environment for business. Ó Grà ¡da (2002) also considers the regional boom hypothesis, but finds it overly optimistic for proposing that high growth rates could be sustained without sustained increases in labour. However, both Barry (2002c) and Dascher (2000) develop a model of a regional boom economy with Irelands specifications and find that labour inflows will decline as infrastructure and housing become more congested. Yet, growth can still continue without more labour if sufficient stocks are maintained and there are no negative exogenous shocks to the larger regional economy. The regional boom theory also suggests that just because Ireland has caught up to average EU levels, it does not mean that further growth cannot be achieved as convergence theory would suggest. Indeed, if Ireland could continue attracting FDI and supplying labour, growth should still be able to continue, despite convergence already being attained. Blanchard (2002) comments on Honohan and Walshs 2002 paper and argues that convergence theory is not the appropriate model to describe Irelands growth, but rather endogenous growth theory is. Instead of the Solow model which has diminishing returns to capital, he suggests the AK model of economic growth is more appropriate, where output and capital accumulation move together because of consistently increasing employment levels. Thus, the economy will move towards producing more capital intensive goods. This is similar to the regional boom perspective where increases in labour and capital will stimulate each other to create more growth than would be possible in a national economy. The regional boom theory, unlike convergence theory, allows for negative exogenous shocks to affect growth. For example, a downturn in the global economy or a withdrawal of FDI in favour of Central and Eastern European countries, would significantly impact the Irish economy. However, convergence theory would consider these to be temporary shocks and since no policy changes have been made, they should not affect growth. Conversely, the regional boom theory allows for the possibility that these could be permanent shocks with tremendous negative effects, including even a return to pre-Celtic Tiger levels of unemployment and emigration and the undoing of the catch-up. Overall, both perspectives offer valid reasons to explain Irelands economic growth however, in view of the recent financial crisis and Irelands sharp economic decline, it may be more appropriate to view the progress of the 1990s in terms of a regional boom. While Ireland had relatively similar policies to Greece, Spain and Portugal, it did not catch up with European averages in the 1960s like the others did. Thus it seems perhaps more suitable to view Ireland in terms of part of a regional economy tied to the UK for that time period and again connected to the US during its boom years starting in the late 1980s. This theory also suggests that industrialisation strategy, creating an export-based economy and attracting FDI are the key factors for growth, rather than just appropriate macroeconomic policies. Both of these theories can provide useful lessons for other developing countries seeking to follow in Irelands footsteps of rapid economic growth. Lessons from Ireland for other countries There are many papers discussing the Irish economic boom, its causes and what lessons can be learned for other countries seeking to achieve such rapid economic growth. Acs, et al (2007) examine whether the Irish miracle could be duplicated in Hungary. The paper focuses specifically on the impact of FDI and how it affects entrepreneurial activity. While they find significant differences between the two, the results do suggest several policy outcomes based on the Irish experience that Hungary could implement, including boosting human capital, improving the quality of FDI and encouraging more enterprise development. Andreosso-OCallaghan and Lenihan (2005) focus on economic policy and whether Ireland can provide a good example of economic development for NMS, with particular regard to developing small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). They find that Ireland does indeed supply a useful model for others to follow. Developing the growth of SMEs is important for overall economic growth and it was a key focus of Irish industrial policy, particularly after 1993. Andreosso-OCallaghan and Lenihan suggest that adopting Irish policies, such as dedicated development agencies, and proactively evaluating industrial policies, would help SMEs grow in NMS. However, they also warn of the dangers of relying too heavily on FDI as some would suggest Ireland has done. Hill et al (2005) examine the Irish experience in great detail, beginning with considering whether convergence theory or regional boom is more appropriate. They then recognize that for a small, open economy to develop and create quality jobs, the country needs to be competitive in the following four areas: context for firm strategy and rivalry, demand conditions, factor (input) conditions and related and supporting industries (Hill et al, 2005, 5). There are also corresponding policy initiatives for each of the four areas: tax policy, educational system, regional economy and institutions and consumer protection laws. They then analyse these four areas for Ireland and how policymakers have performed. The economic conditions and performance of Arizona in the United States is then compared to Ireland, to see what lessons Arizona could learn and if they could replicate Irelands growth. The results show that Arizona shares some similar characteristics with Ireland and thus has some opport unities for similar growth. Bailey et al (2009) examine industrial policy in both the Celtic Tiger and East Asian Tiger countries to see what potential lessons African nations could learn. They focus primarily on the Irish experience and provide several reasons why Ireland is a better example for Africa, including that most African countries, like Ireland are small and open, Ireland had a more corporatist experience than in East Asia, and that in some East Asian countries the rights of trade unions were suppressed. Bailey et al take a holistic approach to analysing Irish industrial policy, instead of focusing solely on policies that promote just FDI, or developing SMEs or Research and Development (RD), and then apply it to Africa. They find that Africa can learn from the policy examples and mistakes of Ireland and East Asia. In another paper, Bailey et al (2008) examine and compare the Irish and Hungarian experience, with particular focus on industrial policy and then determine what lessons other Central and Eastern European nations could learn. Hungary is selected as a comparison because it has closely followed the Irish model and has been cited by others, including the World Bank and the OECD, as a potential example for other developing countries (Fink, 2006). Like previously mentioned, Bailey et al implement a holistic approach to industrial policy. They assess both countries policies and find that attracting FDI has had the most significant impact on growth. However, they find that there are limitations to FDI based growth and thus emphasize the need to also develop domestic industry. Fortin (2000) discusses and analyses the characteristics and causes of the Irish economic boom. It is divided into two main sections, a long-term productivity boom and a short-term employment boom. Key lessons as well as appropriate policies for other countries, particularly Canada, are identified based on the Irish experience. These include encouraging free trade and investment, industrial and tax policy conducive to business and ensuring high levels of education. Fortin examines Canadas recent economic performance and discusses what changes Canada can implement based on these lessons from Ireland. Although not all Irish policy is applicable, Canada can emulate the policies of fiscal discipline, openness and free trade. Hansen (2006) examines the Irish determinants of growth individually and assesses whether Latvia could repeat Irish success. The approach is more holistic and based on the methodology of Mancur Olson (1996) and Hansen states that this approach could be applied to any of the other New Member States of the EU. The results show that Latvia has already implemented many of the same policies that contributed to the Irish boom. Other factors are considered to be specific to Ireland, and consequently unable to be replicated. Overall, Hansen suggests that Latvia cannot adopt much more from Ireland and goes so far as to suggest the Irish case is no miracle as others have proposed, but rather a combination of sound policy, timing and a bit of luck (2006, 13). With the exception of Hansen (2006) and Fortin (2000), most of the literature on Irish growth and lessons for other countries focuses on specific determinants or policies rather than taking a holistic approach. Therefore, this paper seeks to follow this example and examine the Irish boom in detail and then apply it to country. The individual determinants of Irish growth will now be examined in more detail. The Irish Experience Macroeconomic Stability Convergence theory cites effective policy as an instrumental part of economic growth and indeed Irelands failure to catch up until recently has been attributed to this. In the immediate post-War period, much of Western Europe began to recover and experienced economic growth. However, in the 1950s, Ireland still relied heavily on agriculture, had high levels of emigration and protectionist policies. In the 1960s, the economic conditions began to turn around, with better macroeconomic policies being adopted. As Honohan and Walsh (2002) state, these include pegging the exchange rates to the British pound, managing a reasonable balance of payments deficit, conservative fiscal policy of borrowing only to finance public capital investment and relatively low tax rates. Previous protectionism was dropped and foreign direct investment was encouraged through grants and tax exemptions. Ireland entered into the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Area Agreement in 1965 and also decided to apply for membershi p in the European Economic Community (EEC), hence opening itself up for more trade. It would seem that during the 1960s Ireland was poised to catch up with the rest. However, in the 1970s, with the global oil crisis and inappropriate policy response, Ireland was unable to capitalise on the progress made in the previous decade. In an attempt to recover from the crisis quickly, expansionary practices were pursued, which caused real wages to escalate and crowded out productive growth. Consequently, in 1987 there was public debt in excess of 130%, an unemployment rate of about 16%, inflation level around 9.5%, high interest rates and there was an average growth rate of 3.2% during the 1980s (Hansen, 2006). All of these elements were not conducive to economic growth and as a result, Ireland faced a severe recession. Accordingly, it became evident that economic policy changes needed to be made and the general election of 1987 heralded the beginning of a more stable macroeconomic policy. The new government, employers and trade unions developed a social partnership known as the Programme for National Recovery to reach an agreement on wages, taxes, and other social welfare improvements. The government offered lower income tax rates in exchange for wage moderation by the trade unions. As a result, the labour market became more competitive and effective and more employment opportunities were created in both the services and manufacturing sectors. Fiscal Policy Fiscal policy from the 1970s to late 1980s was quite varied and went from being expansionary in 1977, to taxing and spending in 1981 and then to cost-cutting in 1987. These changes coincided with different governments in power and corresponding different policy goals. It was not until 1987 that appropriate fiscal policy was adopted for the economic situation and as a result, stabilisation began to occur. The government focused on reducing the budget deficit, which had reached levels between 6.1% and 8.2% of GNP between 1978-1987 and the debt to GNP ratio was a massive 131.4% in 1987 (Leddin and OLeary, 1991). By the end of 2001, the debt to GNP ratio was only 38% (Honohan and Walsh, 2002). Government spending also decreased from about 46% of GNP in 1987 to 37.2% already in 1991 (Leddin and OLeary, 1991). (For graphs see H and W). In addition to cutting spending and reducing the debt, the government cut tax rates. Comparing 2001 and 1985, the top income tax rates decreased from 65% to 42%, corporate tax rates fell from 50% to 16%, capital gains tax was reduced from 60% to 20% and capital acquisitions tax fell from 55% to 20% (Honohan and Walsh, 2002). From the 1960s until 1981, Ireland has a 0% tax rate on export profits. However, such low tax rates drew complaints from other EU members and, as a result, Ireland was forced to raise it to 10% in 1981. This preferential corporate tax rate was put in place for profits in the manufacturing sector, internationally traded services, and activities in the Dublin based International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). Again, due to complaints, Ireland agreed to raise rates to 12.5% in 2003 for manufacturing and internationally traded services and in 2005 for IFSC activities. It is generally recognized that such low corporate tax rates were instrumental in attracting inte rnational companies to conduct business in Ireland. Gropp and Kostial (2000) estimated that if Ireland had increased corporate tax rates to the EU average from 1990-1997, there would have been a loss of more than 1.3% of GDP per year in net FDI and a 0.8% loss of GDP in revenue. As a result of Irelands success, lowering of corporate tax rates has also been adopted by other countries, perhaps most significantly, Germany, who reduced their tax rate from 40% in 2000 to 25% in 2001 (Walsh, 2000). Despite this, it is also important to note that the effect of low corporate tax rates on attracting FDI may be distorted as a result of transfer pricing. This means that foreign-owned companies may use pricing adjustments to allocate a larger share of their profits to their Irish operations and thus pay less taxes. This may be responsible for the large gap between GDP and GNP in Ireland during the 1990s. In 1998, GDP surpassed GNP by 14.3%, well higher than any other country in the OECD (Walsh, 2000). However, Walsh also states that the effects of transfer pricing on the measurement of economic growth should not be exaggerated (2000: 225). Generally, GNP is used to measure the performance of the Irish economic boom because of the high levels of FDI. Overall, corporate tax rates have played an important role in attracting FDI, which in turn has been a significant factor in Irelands growth and will be examined more fully below. Monetary Policy Ireland decided to join the European Monetary System (EMS) and an adjustable peg system in 1978 and end its parity with the pound sterling in 1979. Although the decision was made more for political rather than economic reasons, there were definite economic implications. Throughout the period of EMS, many exchange rate readjustments occurred and for most of them the Irish pound was devalued against the German Deutschmark, which allowed Ireland to gain wage competitiveness. Overall, though, Irish membership in the EMS was not as successful as hoped and served to increase uncertainty and discourage anti-inflationary practices. However, joining EMS laid the groundwork for signing the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 and thus the agreement to join the European Monetary Union (EMU). As a result of joining EMU and giving up their independent currency, Ireland experienced a onetime decrease in interest rates.