Solar System Science Project Ideas

Solar System Science Project Ideas Do you have a science fair project in your future? If so, consider focusing on the solar system. Outer space is rich with mysteries and scientific questions to explore, from the phases of the moon to the existence of space dust (micrometeorites). Start with this list of solar system science fair projects. Build a Working Sundial The ancients used sundials to tell time using the position of the Sun in the sky.  You can build your own sundial with two simple materials: a flat surface (e.g. paper, cardboard) and a thin object that can stand up (e.g. a popsicle stick or straw). Once your sundial is functional, test it for accuracy a few times per day by comparing the sundials reading to your watch or clock. Make Your Own Telescope Build a telescope. Galileo did, and so can you. Learn about the basics of telescopes  here, then check out  NASAs page on building your own. The easiest one to build is a Galileoscope, made out of a cardboard tube and some lenses.   Build a Model of the Solar System You can make a scale-model solar system out of paper or in a diorama. First, find out the distances between solar system objects, then do some math to get the distances to scale within your own model. Some tabletop scale-model solar systems contain marbles for the planets, a tennis ball for the Sun, and other smaller pebbles for asteroids and comets. Make a Spacecraft Model Build a model of a NASA space probe. Many of the major probes and space-based observatories have patterns you can download and use to make scale model, including the  Hubble Space Telescope and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Track the Lunar Phases First, read about the phenomenon of lunar phases here. Then, for a few months, observe the Moon in the sky each night, recording how, where, and when it appears. Record the information in a chart and include a drawing of the moons shape each day.  If you have the materials, you can construct a 3D model of the sun using small balls and a light source to show how the Sun illuminates the Moon and Earth throughout the month.   Study Renewable Energy For many years, NASA and other space agencies have been using solar panels to power their satellites and the International Space Station. Here on Earth, people use solar power for everything from household electricity to powering their watches and other electronics. For a science fair project on solar power, study how the Sun generates light and heat and how we convert that light and heat into usable solar power. Collect Bits of Space Micrometeorites are tiny bits of asteroid that drift through our atmosphere and land on the surface of the Earth.  You can collect them by looking in places theyre likely to end up. For example, rain and snow can wash them off of roofs, and they can flow down the drainpipes and storm gutters. You might also try looking in the piles of dirt and sand at the bottom of a rain spout.  Collect that material, remove anything that obviously is not a micrometeorite (e.g. large rocks and leaves), and spread out the remaining material on a piece of paper. Place a magnet underneath the paper and tilt it. Most of the material will slide right off; anything that does not slide off is magnetic. Study the remaining magnetic material under a magnifying glass or microscope. Micrometeorites will appear rounded and may have pits. Edited and updated by  Carolyn Collins Petersen

4 Reasons to Teach in a Private School

4 Reasons to Teach in a Private School Teaching in a private school has many advantages over teaching in a public school. For most of us, it comes down to the reality that all we really want to do is teach. We find the administrative side of the job confining and time-consuming. Minimal bureaucracy has to be the biggest advantage of teaching in a private school, but there are other advantages. Private schools create a climate for serious teaching with the following: thin management structuresmall class sizessmall schoolsideal teaching conditions Thin Management Structure A private school is its own independent entity. Its not part of a large administrative group of schools, like  those in a school district. So you dont have to go up or down through layers of bureaucracy to deal with issues. Private schools are autonomous units of manageable size. The organization chart typically has the following upward path: StaffDepartment HeadHead of SchoolBoard. You will find additional layers in larger schools, but even there its a pretty thin management structure. The advantages are obvious: responsiveness to issues, clear communication channels. You dont need a union to help you deal with issues when you have easy access to administrators. Small Class Sizes This issue goes to the heart of what we teachers are all about. Small class sizes allow us to teach effectively, to give our students the individual attention which they deserve, and to accomplish the goals which have been entrusted to us. Private schools typically have class sizes of from 10-12 students. Parochial schools generally have larger class sizes, but even they are smaller than those in comparable public schools. Contrast this with your public schools which range from 25-30 or more students per class. At that class size, you become a traffic cop, not a teacher. Union mandated class size is not an issue in private schools. Small Schools Most private schools have 300-400 students. The largest independent schools top out at only 1100 or so students. Compare that with public schools with 2,000-4,000 students and you can understand why students in private schools are not just numbers. Teachers can get to know all their students as well as others throughout the school community. The community is what private schools are all about. Ideal Teaching Conditions Teachers want to be creative. They want to teach their subject. They want to light the fires of enthusiasm for learning within their young charges. Because private schools adhere to the spirit, but not to the letter of state-mandated curricula, there is great flexibility in the choice of texts and of teaching methodologies. You dont need a union agreeing to the adoption of this text or that methodology for use in the classroom. Common Goals Private school students are there because their parents want them to have the best possible education. Parents are paying serious money for that service. Consequently, everybody expects the very best results. If you are passionate about your subject, you feel the same way. Only the best will do. Public Vs Private Education: Differences While there are many differences between public and private schools, the primary difference is the approach to discipline. In a private school, the rules of the school are clearly laid out when you sign the contract to attend a private school. By signing the contract you agree to abide by the terms of the contract which include consequences for infraction of the discipline code. In a public school, you have rights - constitutional rights which must be respected. The disciplinary process takes time and frequently is a cumbersome, complicated process. Students quickly learn how to play the system and can tie teachers up in knots for weeks over disciplinary matters.​ Discipline Promotes an Atmosphere of Learning When you are not fighting for control of a class, you can teach. Because parents send their children to private school to learn, the focus is on learning. Of course, there will still be the usual teenage experimenting with authority and the limits. But, as a rule, that kind of testing is fairly harmless. Why? Because everybody knows the rules. The code of conduct spells out serious consequences for disrespecting a teacher or a classmate. The code of conduct is enforced. Bullying is unacceptable behavior. Disruptive behavior is unacceptable. Fighting is unacceptable. Discipline promotes an atmosphere of learning. Discipline is a critical part of the three-way partnership private school education is all about. When you sign the contract with the school, you commit to a three-way partnership. While the school takes care of the academics and provides a host of other services while your child is in its care, you are still required to be involved. The school will not allow you to be a silent partner. It will insist on your involvement. When you have no distractions in the classroom, you can teach. Editors note: Brian Horgan is the Director of the Upper School at Gilmour Academy. I asked him why he taught in an independent as opposed to a public school. Here is his response. Most of the colleagues with whom I work and share the joy of independent school teaching, celebrate the aspects of what the late British historian of ideas, Isaiah Berlin, famously refers to as negative libertythe freedom to act without interference from others. Clearly, this is a valuable aspect of independent school teaching. Most of us relish the opportunity to work free of burdensome dictates of state department of education mandates, strict and often misguided teacher certification and re-certification requirements, pat curricular designs and assessment procedures, and bureaucratic paperwork including the submission of daily lesson plans. In my teaching career I have come to appreciate the benefits of this kind of liberty as well; however, I try to remain attentive to the opportunities, by way of responsibilities, this kind of freedom makes imperative. It is precisely these opportunities that give me cause to celebrate the independent school experience. More specifically, the fr eedom I enjoy as an independent school teacher affords me the opportunity to turn my attention to things that matter most.​ Because I am free from the democratic, though nobly intended, policies of public education, I can work within a smaller community where individuals can meet the individual needs of other individuals. Of course, the demands of the community become more pronounced in this small settingthe virtuous practice of sharing, listening, and compassion are paramount to the success of the independent school. A good public school system will, to be sure, have teachers who are committed to these virtues as wellmy children have been in their classrooms. But it is also true that there are teachers who are not so committed in part, perhaps, because they work in school systems where, by necessity or accident, sociological statistics and objective data collection have become more important than people. Unfortunately, independent schools employ people like this as well but my sense is that this is accidental rather than the inevitable by-product of a large educational system overburdened by bureaucratic demands. The small community of learners to be found in an independent school invites us to listen to the individual needs of our students and respond to those individual needs rather than having to resign ourselves to the limitations that long class rosters and incredibly hefty teaching loads would normally dictate. It invites us to share our insights, strategies, and classrooms with our colleagues rather than wasting time and energy protecting turf and reputation. It invites us to self-direct our professional growth rather than having it governed for us by people whom we have never met. When we enjoy these benefits of independence, however, we must recognize that the source of our joy is an independence hat differs from the negative liberty of no interference. As independent school educators we must be constantly mindful that to be independent of outside demands is to be, at the same time, bound by professional and inter-personal obligations, and that monitoring these obligations has become, to a great extent, the responsibility of the individual rather than the state, or proficiency test results, or the superintendent, or even, in some cases, the department chair. Freedom should never mean that one is free to do whatever one pleases; rather it should mean that one has the opportunity to focus with greater clarity on the proper limits of independence. To be independent does not allow one to say leave me alone and let me do my work; instead it calls one to invite others to share that work in an environment that is grounded in trust. With freedom comes dutya duty to m ove beyond the walls of individual classrooms and attend to the broad requisites of the mission. Unfortunately, I fear this aspect of independence is sometimes overlooked. Fortunately, many independent school teachers are mindful of the full scope of possibilities their independence affords and consequently enjoy the most rewarding benefits of teaching at an independent school. Some people think that you have to wear an academic gown when you teach at a private school. At least thats the impression you get when you watch the Harry Potter movies. Thats just one misconception people have about teaching in a private school. Myths abound concerning teacher salaries, teacher certification, faculty housing, same-sex partners and the impression that private schools are elitist. Lets find out the facts. Salaries Myth: Private school teachers make less than their colleagues in public schools. As with most things, thats not necessarily true. A lot depends on the kind of the school we are talking about. For example, a third-grade teacher in a parochial school will make about 10-15% less than her counterpart in a public school. Why? Parochial school budgets are traditionally the slimmest in the business because their tuitions are among the lowest in the business. Now, put that same third-grade teacher in a Montessori school and the salary gap closes significantly. Why? Montessori schools typically charge what the market will bear. Highly qualified teachers with terminal degrees working at the top prep schools will make very close to what their colleagues in public education make. Ditto for administrators. Elitism Myth: Private school students are spoiled rich kids or neer-do-wells who have been packed off to private school for remediation. Yes, there are day schools in many parts of the country where you will see more luxury cars per square foot in the school parking lot than you can possibly imagine. Yes, it is impressive seeing Joshs dad land on the soccer field in his company helicopter*. The reality, however, is that most schools are remarkably diverse, inclusive communities. Ignore the popular stereotypes which Hollywood loves to perpetuate. Same-Sex Partners Myth: Same-sex partners are not welcome in private schools. That may still be the case in most conservative religious schools. On the other hand, some of the top prep schools including Andover welcome same-sex couples on their faculty and staff. They enjoy all the rights and privileges which heterosexual couples enjoy. Housing Myth: Private schools require their faculty to live on campus Some do and some dont. Boarding schools typically want their junior faculty to be dorm masters. In other words, you are required to live in an apartment in the dorm and be responsible for supervising the students who board. Senior faculty and staff generally live in school-provided housing located on campus. Day schools dont require their faculty to live on campus as a rule. Dress Code Myth: Private school teachers have to wear academic gowns. American and Canadian private school teachers dress up in their full academic regalia for state occasions such as prize day and graduation only at schools which have a tradition of such formality. Personally, I think that an academic procession with faculty wearing their gowns and hoods is inspiring. Some English schools such as Eton have a very formal dress code. Gown and mortarboard are de rigeur in the classroom. (Considering how cold and drafty English classrooms can be, thats probably not a bad idea.) What is the dress code in most schools? Generally, it follows the lead of the student dress code. If a blazer, shirt, and tie are required for young men, male faculty will dress similarly. The same applies to women faculty. They will wear clothes appropriate to the young ladies dress code. Article edited by  Stacy Jagodowski

Information Needs by Position, Function and Role Essay

Information Needs by Position, Function and Role - Essay Example Certainly, having an appropriate organizational model in place is a precondition for long stint success (Pugh, 1990). This is because of its ability to identify and address the innumerable business and human realities of the corporation in question. An organization is a three layer system where at the bottom the organization’s material flows (activities of the first kind). Decision makers, managers of the organization are at the top. The middle layer receives information from the bottom, processes it and presents it to the decision makers. Decisions made in the top layer influence the bottom layer activities. For organization mangers to make qualitative decisions, they need to receive qualitative information on time (Pugh, 1990). This will result in the delivery of decisions to the bottom layer on time. Qualitative realization is attained if these information flow procedures are ensured by the middle layer. The two fundamental requirements of an organizational structure includ e division of labor into distinct tasks and coordination of that labor. This is such that the workers are able to accomplish the company’s goals. ... It may choose to cluster these utilities together under the department of marketing. Bigger establishments may organize so much of these undertakings that they isolate sales into a department different than the other functions (Pugh, 1990). Hence, qualitative information is required on the customer’s needs as well as the company’s performance in the market. The company should have information on how to establish market niche. The other information needed is the need for competitor intelligence. The company should be equipped with strategies to beat the competitor. Roles Once a corporation has proven how functions are convened, then functions must be allocated to the people who have the capability to perform them. Many establishments make roles to execute these functions. Companies should have information on ranks with job explanations that will assist employees to know the range, function and parameters of their roles. This will create a system of accountability and rel iability between all the people working in an organization (Pugh, 1990). In corporations big enough to have several people in a branch, roles aid in making sure that each person is taking care of central functions without replication or desertion of tasks. For instance, in a finance division, they might have a controller, accounts payroll person and an accounts collections person. All these people form part of a crew with an inclusive job to manage the firm's cash flows. However, every one of them has a set of duties that boost efficiency and ensure the assiduousness of the team. Information needs associated with organizational roles include information on training programs and motivation strategies for the employees. There is a need for

Thought Piece Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Thought Piece - Essay Example Due to the overwhelming attempt by individuals to be at par with the developments that happen as technology progresses fast, individuals may develop future shock. Toffler considers that the future shock is an unavoidable, inevitable consequence of ancient forces. However, he claims that we can shield ourselves from its most horrible effects with an amalgamation of technological control, education deconstruction, and psychological engineering. According to Toffler, (4), the solution to future shock is not non-alteration, but a diverse type of alteration. The foremost recommendation for coping with these alterations is to admit that different people will deal with the changes in dissimilar ways and at altered rates and have the public deliver contradictory levels of public services set to individual requirements. Individuals who may adjust, but require help to do so, might be engaged in half-way curriculums where the degree of change is cautiously measured or less tremendously, be part of situational provision groups upon which they can share their worries with other individuals going through similar modification related stress. In more fundamental cases, Toffler proposes that crisis therapy professionals and programs might be required to take care of life changes and events. Nevertheless, for individuals incapable of adapting to technological and social change, he suggests the formation of the territories of the past which are no-change, future-free, encapsulated zones subsidized by the public at large. Additionally, Toffler explains how education can assist to deal with the problem. He says that the education system should be evolved to focus mainly on preparing students on how to cope with the rapid changes occurring all over the globe. He advocates the replacement of old-fashioned schools which are outdated with a combination of future-orientated, independent study and computer-based instruction apprenticeship

Law of nature Essay Example for Free

Law of nature Essay There are several books that deal with philosophical questions of liberty, social restrictions, pursuit of property and freedom versus enslavement. I have selected six related to these themes to be reviewed and closely analyzed to understand those themes better. The second treatise of Government by John Locke has been ever since its first publication in 1689 an influential source of political and social interpretation. The USA constitution is based on the principles and themes John Locke deals with in this master piece of philosophical reasoning. His main argument in the book is that the sovereignty is in the hands of the people and that the government is in their service. Locke underscored the importance of being aware as people of our natural and fundamental rights but that we have had to relinquish certain aspects of this human freedom to be able to coexist peacefully within a society regulated by laws established to maintain the order. People are thus originally endowed with certain inalienable rights in a state of nature where freedom exists in absence of laws or rules to abide to. This law of nature does thus not require people to obey each other but instead people are free to be themselves. The state of nature is defined by Locke himself as: To properly understand political power and trace its origins, we must consider the state that all people are in naturally. That is a state of perfect freedom of acting and disposing of their own possessions and persons as they think fit within the bounds of the law of nature. People in this state do not have to ask permission to act or depend on the will of others to arrange matters on their behalf. The natural state is also one of equality in which all power and jurisdiction is reciprocal and no one has more than another. Locke deals thus with the topic of civil society in this book and how we can politically coexist together as people. To understand the true and best form of a civil society we need to comprehend the fundamental right we are born with as humans which is simply freedom in its complete sense. Taking this into consideration we have also to acknowledge the full meanings this brings along with it for everybody despite color, ethnicity, religion or race. Since all people are born with this right then it follows that all people are equal and deserve to live in a system that secures this equality and freedom of pursuit of ones dreams. Lockes second main argument is how governments should only rule with the consent of the people and that any government that does not becomes as a result illegitimate and deserves to be overthrown by the people through their right to revolution. He also deals with the themes of conquest and slavery, property and representative government. Property for instance lead to the creation of the civil society as men sought to protect his property through the law. People exchanged some of their natural rights in order to achieve this form of civil society where they could coexist peacefully with other people in a safe and secure atmosphere. The representative government on the other hand is only legitimate if it is acknowledged by the people and serves the needs of the people. It is this way that Locke established the rule that governments should be there for the service of the people rather than vice versa. Lockes ideas about slavery on the other hand are that it is essentially a form of involuntary servitude and the only way slavery could be justified as a system that goes against the order of the natural state is through the absence of the state of nature and the presence of the opposite which is the state of war during which exceptions were allowed. The discussion of slavery leads us to another major work concerned with the subject: The Life of Olaudah Equiano which is an autobiographical work that was first published in the 18th century and recounts the story of slavery and its horrors. The story of his enslavement, acquired freedom and pursuit of work as a seaman and merchant is a very fascinating tale of forward movement and determination at achieving success, despite the hardships encountered along the way, in order to earn the natural right of freedom back. Olaudah, like Locke, was a fighter for a cause. Lockes book helped revolutionize the ideas about government and shaped the USA constitution the way we know it now. His defense of the rights of the human continues to influence the discourse on democracy, human rights and politics. Olaudah’s journey and struggle for freedom has also left tremendous impact in the literature of slavery and he also helped in the process of abolishing slavery later on. Those two prominent men had a social vision of what a society was supposed to be like and fought to achieve it. The book starts with the recount of Olaudahs personal life before enslavement when he used to live in an African region called Assaka. He was kidnapped and forced into slavery(something that enforces Lockes opinion about the forced status of slavery as an institution) at the age of ten and transported to the New World or to be more specific the plantations of Virginia. He was purchased by a lieutenant in the Navy called Michael Pascal who named him Gustavus Vassa, a name he also came to be known by. His life as a slave was a continues struggle and suffering. He could not tolerate the idea of deprivation of his right of freedom and chose to rebel through denying the new name his owner gave him which lead to his punishment as if he was a mere dog whose job was to obey without reluctance. Being deprived of his freedom reduces the human being into an animal. The life of the slave was really hard according to the journals of Olaudah. He was later sold in the Caribbean and acquired by a Philadelphian Quaker who taught him how to read and write better and educated him in the Christian faith. He allowed him to trade to earn the money required to buy his freedom as young man in his twenties and traveled to England where he fought for the cause of slavery abolition. Olaudah observed in his book how slaves were treated as inhuman subjects with no feelings. It was almost as if the masters considered them to be a different specie or an alien creature. Our third book or novel is concerned with a creature that displays those characteristic: Frankenstein. Frankenstein by the author Mary Shelley refers to the scientists within the book Victor Frankenstein who knows how to create life and decides to create a creature that is like man but with more powerful characteristics. The novel is made up of the correspondence between the Captain Robert Walton and his sister. Walton happens to know about Frankensteins creature and recounts the story to his sister in his letters. The story starts with Walton traveling to the North Pole where he will be trapped by a sea of massive ice rocks. This is how Walton meets Victor Frankenstein and this is also how he comes to know about the monster Victor had created. Victor is himself terrified by what he has created and runs away thereby allowing the monster to be released. The troubled scientist feels sick with guilt and his depressed state only worsens when he hears about the murder of his brother. It appears that the monster was who murdered his brother and this was explained by the monster himself as an attempt at taking revenge of Victor who had treated him with horror and disgust. He begs Victor for a companion since he cannot stand the loneliness. Victor does decide to oblige but later on regrets it and destroys his second creation to which the monster vows revenge that he soon fulfills through killing one of his friends. The monster manages to also kill his bride and Victor decides to follow the monster which led him to meet Walton and dies a few days later on. Walton concludes his letters by recounting how surprised he was to find the monster weeping on his body in agony and loneliness. It turns out that the monster had feelings like any other human being and could be good or evil like any other normal person. But Victors fear and prejudice blinded him from seeing that. The same thing happened with the white owners of slaves in the era of Olaudah. They stopped seeing the slaves as human beings and regarded them as mere properties to be feared and doubted if they acted differently the way Olaudah did through educating himself. The fear of the unknown is a characteristic of the human psyche but what is also a common aspect between the white and black man and the monster of Frankenstein is the need of freedom. Our fourth book is the Communist manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The first publication of the book took place in 1848. Just like John Lockes The Second Treatise of Government the Communist Manifesto is a very influential political manuscript. The main theme of the book is the class struggle and the weaknesses of the capitalist system. The Communist Manifesto is what the communist party strengthened the ideology of the Communist party. The Manifestos main aim was to make communism more understood by a larger number of people since the party was feared and doubted by many. Karl Marx continues then to mark the differences between the bourgeois and proletariat class since his main focus will be throughout the paper on how the proletariat has been victimized by the capitalist system and bourgeois class. He states in the first section that: The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a revolutionary re-constitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the contending classes. Marx arguments of class struggle resemble those of Locke to a certain extent. He also echoed the claim that the human need for property is what leads to the creation of civil society as we know it today. Marx acknowledges this human need for the acquisition of property but seeks to regulate it more through establishing laws that do not allow for a minority of rich people to subject and benefit from a larger group that is the real driving force of any society: the proletariat class. The proletarians will, according to Marx, rise to power through class struggle. The bourgeois continues exploiting the proletarians but the latter will use their right to revolution (Locke again) to throw this form of social establishment and create a new reality more fit for the general and larger public. This vision was eventually realized by the Bolsheviks in the former Soviet Union. Our human need for freedom equality and development is according to Locke, Olaudah, Marx and Shelly a fundamental aspect of our psychological nature. This leads us to the fifth book to focus on: On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin who explains in this work how humans have developed from their natural state to their current one and how they have been able to survive. The natural state described by Darwin in his book is different from that of Locke in that he focuses on how we developed physically as people from the shape of monkeys to that of humans. It is needless to say that his book has caused the necessary controversy in the religious circles. Darwin presents a very interesting evolutionary idea in this particular book to explain the process of human evolution: the survival of the fittest. The idea of the transmutation of the species was however not welcomed by the Church establishment of that time and is still not looked at with favor by several even nowadays and despite the many scientific data that has been supplied to enhance his theory. Natural selection or to use the other phrase, the survival of the fittest, has been described by Mr. Herbert Spencer as: Owing to this struggle for life, any variation, however slight and from whatever cause proceeding, if it be in any degree profitable to an individual of any species, in its infinitely complex relations to other organic beings and to external nature, will tend to the preservation of that individual, and will generally be inherited by its offspring. Charles Darwins book has also helped in reshaping the human thought regarding its origin and nature and developed the notion of the necessity of strength and relentlessness to succeed and earn the right to exist since only the fittest survive. Our last book is also closely related to the themes we have seen so far in relation to human rights and natural states and the preservation of an efficient civil society. Civilization and its discontents was first published in 1929 and became one of Sigmund Freuds most renowned works. Freuds main theme in this book is the state of conflict between the individual and his society. Just like with Lockes book we come to wonder how much the relinquishment of our fundamental right of total freedom affects our psyche and therefore our performance within the civil society we created. The primary source of conflict, according to Freud, is the individuals desire of freedom and the clash that creates with societys expectation of the individual to conform to the general rules. The majority kills with this the individuality and our natural states are denied for the sake of preserving the general picture agreed upon by the majority of the citizens. Humans have certain desires and characteristics that are hard to control. The desire for sex is the most prominent one which has lead to the creation of many laws to regulate sex conduct in public and punish the acts of rape and sexual aggression. The natural instincts come to be subjected to laws and regulations to allow for the peaceful existence within a society. The six books that we have seen so far all deal with several issues related to humanity’s primal needs that can clash at times with society’s expectations of the individual. Our quest for freedom and property creates conflict all along but we never are able to let go of one of the two. Humans have always wanted the two together and the need for more property led to the enslavement of millions to satisfy the need for cheap labor thereby violating the natural human state of being free by birth. But humans are creatures who seek pleasure and understanding and bonding with the other. That is also another reason why we co-exist within a society and try to abide to the rules to sustain the civil form. Works Cited Darwin, Charles (2002). The Origin of Species. W. W Norton Company. Equiano, Olaudah (1999). The life of Olaudah Equiano. Dover Publications. Freud, Sigmund (1989). Civilization and its discontents. W. W Norton Company. Locke, John (2002). The Second Treatise of Government. Dover Publications. Marx, Karl (1998). The Communist Manifesto. USA: Oxford University Press. Shelley, Mary (2004). Frankenstein. Pocket.

Free Raisin in the Sun Essays: Bad Dreams :: Raisin Sun essays

Bad Dreams in A Raisin in the Sun The issue of racism is one of the most significant themes in Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. Many black men have to deal with inherent racism. The frustrations that they deal with does not only affect them, but it also affects their families as well. When Walter Lee has a bad day he can't yell at his boss for fear of loosing his job Instead he takes it out on his family, mainly his wife Ruth. Walter is thirty-five years old and drives a limousine for a living. This job provides just enough for his family without there being extra money left over to spend. It is so bad that when Travis asked his mother Ruth for fifty cents she said she couldn't give it to him because they couldn't afford it. Walter hears this and gets a little upset with Ruth and gives Travis a dollar instead. Walter tells Ruth that she shouldn't tell Travis that they can't give him fifty cents because they don't have it. I believe Walter is upset because he realizes that he isn't able to provide his son with pocket change without becoming broke himself.   What kind of man would he be? What kind of role model would he be for Travis if he can't bring home enough money to support his family? How would he be a strong black man for his family? It's obvious that Walt er is not able to provide his family with what is considered the "American Dream". Walter complains to Mama about the way he feels about his job. I open and close car doors all day long. I drive a man around in his limousine and I say, "Yes sir no sir very good sir shall I take the drive, sir?" Walter wants to be the one sitting in the back of that limousine while someone else is doing the driving. Walter wants financial freedom, he doesn't want just enough money to provide for his family but rather he tells his mother "I want so many things." Walter is materialistic and greedy, he has been corrupted by a superficial â€Å"American dream†. Walter has no desire to find out about himself through his African American Heritage. He believes he can define himself through money, money is everything to this man. Money is status, money is wealth, money is happiness, money is almost God to him.

The Threat of National Id

William Safire’s â€Å"The Threat of National ID† Comprehension 1. According to Safire most people are willing to give up their privacy â€Å"in return for greater safety. That’s why we gladly suffer the pat – downs and ‘wanding’ at airports†. Such precautions contribute to our peach of mind. He believes that law enforcement officials are already taking advantage of this situation. He says that Police are â€Å"unconcerned with the sanctity of an individual’s home† and developed â€Å"heat sensors to let them look inside people’s houses. And claims that the Justice department has an electronic bug that the F. B.I can plant on your key board to read every stroke. This is really ironic because Safire has typed his article and must question what infringes of his privacy have already been made that he isn’t aware of. 2. Safire says that â€Å"national ID cards give Americans a â€Å"false sense of securityâ₠¬ . I believe Safire is referring to the security of your identity. Identification cards are supposed to prove who you are: approve purchases, entry, travel, etc. They are used so that another person can not just take your name and replace you. They ensure the safety of your identity, salary, house, and other personal things.I agree with Safire. Although I feel that there should be some sort of way to identify yourself you will only be able to do that if you give up more of your privacy, like providing a â€Å"fingerprint, description of DNA and details of your eye’s iris†. Even with national ID cards it is difficult to ensure its accuracy due to fake ID cards. 3. People will not be able to choose not to carry a national ID card because it is a requirement. The government has made it essential for people to have this source of verification. Without this card you will not be able to â€Å"travel, or buy on credit, or participate in tomorrow’s normal life. Soon enough police as well as employers will considers those who resist full disclosure of their financial, academic, medical, religious, social, and political affiliation to be suspect. He says that Police are â€Å"unconcerned with the sanctity of an individual’s home† and developed â€Å"heat sensors to let them look inside people’s houses. 4. In paragraph 6, Safire says â€Å"But in the dreams of Big Brother and his cousin, Big Marketing, nothing can compare to forcing every person in the United States – under penalty of law – to carry what the totalitarians used to call ‘papers’†.Safire compares the United States government to a totalitarian government if they force everyone to have â€Å"papers†. The idea of having to prove who you are goes against American ideal of living in a free country, or even being able to start over. If you force a permanent identity on someone you revoke their chance of having a brighter future . I believe that everyone has the right to seek a better future. There is a movie where they present the idea of your identity being written in your DNA. The protagonist’s was supposed to die at 31, it was written in his DNA however he wanted to become an astronaut.But because his DNA says that he will die at 31 no one is willing to hire him which forces the protagonist to go to someone who has broken both his legs and pays the man for his DNA. 5. There are advantages and dangers of national ID cards that everyone should be aware of. Having such personal national ID cards would â€Å"speed you through lines faster or buy you sure-fire protection from suicide bombers†. However the disadvantages seem to out way the advantages. With all this important information found on a single card this card has now increased in value immensely.Forcing you to protect the card as a part of yourself. The copy of that card in a national databank supposedly confidential but available to a ny imaginative hacker. The universal use and most likely abuse of the national card will most often trigger personal questions. This card is the ticket to losing much of your personal freedom. Purpose and Audience 1. Safire sees his readers as either friendly or neutral. You can tell because Safire informs the reader so the audience must not be hostile towards his view.However it is very plausible that he is also trying to convince his reader. Forcing you to protect the card as a part of yourself. The copy of that card in a national databank supposedly confidential but available to any imaginative hacker. The universal use and most likely abuse of the national card will most often trigger personal questions. This card is the ticket to losing much of your personal freedom. 2. Safire’s purpose does not seem to be changing his audience’s behaviour but changing their ideas or at least rethinking them.Safire mentions the dreams of Big Brother and his cousin, Big Marketing, nothing can compare to forcing every person in the United States – under penalty of law – to carry what the totalitarians used to call ‘papers’†. Safire compares the United States government to a totalitarian government if they force everyone to have â€Å"papers†. The idea of having to prove who you are goes against American ideal of living in a free country, or even being able to start over. 3. Safire assumes that his readers are well informed about national ID.He believes that they should be well informed about their rights and especially support the fourth amendment. He feels that people should protect their right to privacy and feels that having a national ID infringes on their right of privacy which he mentions many examples. I believe that everyone has the right to seek a better future. There is a movie where they present the idea of your identity being written in your DNA. The protagonist’s was supposed to die at 31, it was writ ten in his DNA however he wanted to become an astronaut. Style and Structure 1.The writer begins his essay with discussion of losing an animal. This strategy is very effective, however I don’t understand why. By introducing the new device animal ID he makes an allusion to identification of people. Safire introduces the idea of implanting a little chip implanted under the skin in the back of the neck so that a shelter can quickly pick up the address of the owner. Safire later mentions having identification in the back of their neck alluding to the beginning of the essay which ties the whole thing together. I cannot think of a better opening.Satire mentions a lot of problems with national ID however he leaves the reader to figure out all the different ways national id could be a problem. He forces you to think about whether you are willing to give up so much information with one sweep or scan. 2. Safire’s argument is primarily appealing to deductive reasoning. Because it is proceeding from general presumption to a specific conclusion. According to the textbook, deduction holds that is all the statements in the argument are true the conclusion must also be true. Thus Safire must not use inductive reasoning to argue his case.Cops of course would insists on a record of arrests speeding tickets, E-Z pass auto movements, and links to suspicious Web sites and associates. All this information and more is being collected already which is very scary and by including all the different possiblilties it only makes having a national ID seem more of a threat. 3. The writer uses various kinds of evidence to support his points. You can tell because Safire informs the reader so the audience must not be hostile towards his view. However it is very plausible that he is also trying to convince his reader. Forcing you to protect the card as a part of yourself.The copy of that card in a national databank supposedly confidential but available to any imaginative hacker. T he universal use and most likely abuse of the national card will most often trigger personal questions. However Safire does not provide a source for his evidence which forces the reader to question whether or not the is relevant. I think that Safire could’ve used more solid evidence to prove his points but it is hard to find that sort of information so its ok. 4. Safire refutes the idea of having National ID. He believes that law enforcement officials are already taking advantage of this situation.He says that Police are â€Å"unconcerned with the sanctity of an individual’s home† and developed â€Å"heat sensors to let them look inside people’s houses. And claims that the Justice department has an electronic bug that the F. B. I can plant on your key board to read every stroke. This is really ironic because Safire has typed his article and must question what infringes of his privacy have already been made that he isn’t aware of. 5. He uses rhetor ical questions as a stylistic device to move his argument along. A few examples of this devise are: â€Å"Think you can encrypt your way to privacy? â€Å"How about a chip providing a complete medical history in case of emergencies? † â€Å"What about us libertarian misfits who take the trouble to try and ‘opt out’? † his entire paragraph 11 asks a bunch of rhetorical questions and the list goes on. By using rhetorical devices Safire forces his readers to think about their answer to the question even though it doesn’t necessarily require an answer it creates an emphasis on the unknown answer that only the reader can provide. 6. Safire basically concludes his essay with a summary. The hospitals would say: how about a chip providing a complete medical history in case of emergencies?Merchants would add a chip for credit rating, banking accounts, and product preferences, while divorced spouses would lobby for a rundown of net assests and yearly expendi tures. Politicians would like to know voting records and political affiliation. Cops of course would insists on a record of arrests speeding tickets, E-Z pass auto movements, and links to suspicious Web sites and associates. All this information and more is being collected already which is very scary and by including all the different possiblilties it only makes having a national ID seem more of a threat.

Behavioral Anchored Rating Scale Essay

Methods of performance appraisal: Traditional method Traditional method of performance appraisal has been used by companies for very long time. A common feature of these methods is they are all relatively simple and involve appraisal by one senior. 1. Check list method In this method the senior, the boss is given a list of questions about the junior. These questions are followed by check boxes. The superior has to put a tick mark in any one of the boxes. This method can be explained with the following ex. Does the employee have leadership qualities Yes No A questioner containing questions is given to the senior. This method is an extremely simple method and does not involve a lot of time. The same set of questioners can be given foe every employee so that there is uniformity in selecting employee. 2. Confidential report This method is very popular in government departments to appraise IAS officers and other high level officials. In this method the senior or the boss writes a report about the junior giving him details about the performance about the employee. The +ve and – ve traits, responsibilities handled on the job and recommendations for future incentives or promotions. The report is kept highly confidential and access to the report is limited. 3. Critical incident method In this method critical or important incidents which have taken place on this job are noted down along with employee’s behavior and reaction in all these situations. Both +ve and –ve incidents are mentioned. This is followed by an analysis of the person, his abilities and talent, recommendations for the future incentives and promotions. 4. Ranking method In this method ranks are given to employees based on their performance. There are different methods of ranking employees. †¢Simple ranking method †¢Alternate ranking method †¢Paired comparison method Simple ranking method Simple ranking method refers to ranks in serial order from the best employee e.g. If we have to rank 10 best employees we start with the first best employee and give him the first rank this is followed by the 2nd best and so on until all 10 have been given ranks. Alternate ranking In this method the serial alternates between the best and the worst employee. The best employee is given rank 1and then we move to the worst employee and give him rank 10 again to 2nd best employee and give him rank 2 and so on. Paired comparison In this method each and every person is the group, department or team is compared with every other person in the team/group/department. The comparison is made on certain criteria and finally ranks are given. This method is superior because it compares each and every person on certain qualities and provides a ranking on that basis. 5. Graphic rating scale Graphic rating scale refers to using specific factors to appraise people. The entire appraisal is presented in the form of a chart. The chart contains certain columns which indicate qualities which are being appraised and other columns which specify the rank to be given. The senior has to put a tick mark for a particular quality along with the ranking. Such charts are prepared for every employee. According to the department in which they work. Sometimes the qualities which are judged may change depending upon the department. 6. Narrated essay In this method the senior or the boss is supposed to write a narrative essay describing the qualities of his junior. He may describe the employees strength and weakness, analytical abilities etc. the narrative essay ends with a recommendation for future promotion or for future incentives. Modern methods Modern methods of appraisal are being increasingly used by companies. Now days one of the striving feature that appraisal involves is, the opinion of many people about the employee and in some cases psychological test are used to analyze the ability of employee. These methods are as follows 1. Assessment centers Assessment centers are places where the employee’s are assessed on certain qualities talents and skills which they possess. This method is used for selection as well as for appraisal. The people who attend assessment centers are given management games, psychological test, puzzles, questioners about different management related situations etc. based on their performance in these test and games appraisal is done. 2. Management by objective This method was given by Petter Druckard in 1974. It was intended to be a method of group decision making. It can be use for performance appraisal also. In this method all members of the department starting from the lowest level employee to the highest level employee together discus, fix target goals to be achieved, plan for achieving these goals and work together to achieve them. The seniors in the department get an opportunity to observe their junior- group efforts, communication skills, knowledge levels, interest levels etc. based on this appraisal is done. 3. Behavioral anchored rating scale In this method the appraisal is done to test the attitude of the employee towards his job. Normally people with +ve approach or attitude view and perform their job differently as compared to people with a –ve approach. 4. Human resource audit/accounting In this method the expenditure on the employee is compared with the income received due to the efforts of the employee. A comparison is made to find out the utility of the employee to the organization. The appraisal informs the employee about his contribution to the company and what is expected in future. 5. 360* appraisal In this method of appraisal and all round approach is adopted. Feedback about the employee is taken from the employee himself, his superiors, his juniors, his colleagues, customers he deals with, financial institutions and other people he deals with etc. Based on all these observations an appraisal is made and feedback is given. This is one of the most popular methods.

What Comes Around Goes Around

What Comes Around Goes Around What Goes Around Come Around In the story "First Confession," Frank O'Connor uses many methods of writing to convey his ideas about the first confession and communion of a young 7-year-old boy named Jackie. There is a great deal of conflict between Jackie and the other members of his family, especially Ryan and his sister Nora. The religious people around him convinced him that he was a sinner and gave him a horrible fear of hell and confession. In the end, Jackie would learn that he was better than the rest and that he wasn't all that bad after all. By studying all of the author's different ways of conveying ideas, one can try and understand the overall theme of the story. The theme in this story is that truth is always the best policy, good will come out of honesty in the end; and those who are not honest will pay for it in the long run, showing that what comes around goes around.Oh JackieThroughout the story, "First Confession," O'Connor uses Jackie as the first-person narrator, w hich helps build up to the theme. "First-person narrators or speakers frequently express ideas along with their depiction of actions and situations, and they also make statements from which you can make inferences about ideas" (467). Jackie expresses his fear of hell and confession, which was instilled in him by an old woman named Ryan and his sister Nora. Ryan was a woman who was most likely a sister, since she wore a black cloak and bonnet. She would go to Jackie's school everyday to prepare the students for confession and communion. Ryan frequently spoke of hell, barely mentioning heaven; and if she did it was probably by accident, "for hell had the first place in her heart" (361).

Defining and Understanding Literacy

Defining and Understanding Literacy Simply put, literacy is the ability to read and write in at least one language. So just about everyone in developed countries is literate in the basic sense. In her book The Literacy Wars,  Ilana Snyder argues that there is no single, correct view of literacy that would be universally accepted. There are a number of competing definitions, and these definitions are continually changing and evolving. The following quotes raise several issues about literacy, its necessity, its power, and its evolution. Observations on Literacy Literacy is a human right, a tool of personal empowerment and a means for social and human development. Educational opportunities depend on literacy. Literacy is at the heart of basic education for all and essential for eradicating poverty, reducing child mortality, curbing population growth, achieving gender equality and ensuring sustainable development, peace, and democracy., Why Is Literacy Important? UNESCO, 2010The notion of basic literacy is used for the initial learning of reading and writing, which adults who have never been to school need to go through. The term functional literacy is kept for the level of reading and writing that adults are thought to need in a modern complex society. Use of the term underlines the idea that although people may have basic levels of literacy, they need a different level to operate in their day-to-day lives., David Barton, Literacy: An Introduction to the Ecology of Written Language,  2006To acquire literacy is more than to psychologically and mechanically dominate reading and writing techniques. It is to dominate those techniques in terms of consciousness; to understand what one reads and to write what one understands: It is to communicate graphically. Acquiring literacy does not involve memorizing sentences, words or syllables, lifeless objects unconnected to an existential universe, but rather an attitude of creation and re-creation, a self-transformation producing a stance of intervention in ones context., Paulo Freire, Education for Critical Consciousness, 1974 There is hardly an oral culture or a predominantly oral culture left in the world today that is not somehow aware of the vast complex of powers forever inaccessible without literacy., Walter J. Ong, Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word,  1982 Women and Literacy Joan Acocella, in a New Yorker review of the book The Woman Reader by Belinda Jack, had this to say in 2012: In the history of women, there is probably no matter, apart from contraception, more important than literacy. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, access to the power required knowledge of the world. This could not be gained without reading and writing, skills that were granted to men long before they were to women. Deprived of them, women were condemned to stay home with the livestock or, if they were lucky, with the servants. (Alternatively, they may have been the servants.) Compared with men, they led mediocre lives. In thinking about wisdom, it helps to read about wisdom, about Solomon or Socrates or whomever. Likewise, goodness and happiness and love. To decide whether you have them or want to make the sacrifices necessary to get them, it is useful to read about them. Without such introspection, women seemed stupid; therefore, they were considered unfit for education; therefore, they weren’t given an education; therefore they seemed stupid.   A New Definition? Barry Sanders, in A Is for Ox: Violence, Electronic Media, and the Silencing of the Written Word (1994), makes a case for a changing definition of literacy in the technological age. We need a radical redefinition of literacy, one that includes a recognition of the vital importance that morality plays in shaping literacy. We need a radical redefinition of what it means for society to have all the appearances of literacy and yet to abandon the book as its dominant metaphor. We must understand what happens when the computer replaces the book as the prime metaphor for visualizing the self.It is important to remember that those who celebrate the intensities and discontinuities of postmodern electronic culture in print write from an advanced literacy. That literacy provides them the profound power of choosing their ideational repertoire. No such choice or power is available to the illiterate young person subjected to an endless stream of electronic images.

What Maisie Knew Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

What Maisie Knew - Essay Example As the child was at the garden she kept on looking on his legs and comparing to other children. Maisie parents (Beale and Ida Farange) had divorced, and the court ruled that each parent will spend six month of the year with the child. When Maisie was with her father, she developed body structure problems. Moddle was responding to the child’s question about the legs. The child had faced a lot of suffering by having the parents divorced and being exchanged between the two parents. Moddle was taking care of the child and had to protect her from developing psychological problems. Moddle was telling the child that she can not find another pair like her own in order for the child to understand that she is better and unique than other people. Maisie parents also were frivolous and immoral, and they used her to intensify the hatred they had for each other. The parents made Maisie suffer and it is more difficulty for a parent to inflict suffering to his or her own child. Moddle made th is statement also has a parable in which she meant that the character with Maisie parents can not be found elsewhere (James, 2013). Throughout the text book, this quote is significant because there are many circumstances with unique things that can not be found even in the society today. After Maisie’s parents divorced, they went ahead and remarried again without even considering the effect it had to their child. The two parents cheated to their new spouses which led to Mrs Farange having an affair with Claude. In the end, the child refused to stay with Sir Claude because she concluded that the relationship will come to an end just like her biological parents. As a result, she left and went to stay with her guardian Mrs. Wix. Just as the quote indicates the child realised that she can not find another pair of parents like her biological parents and decided to live with Mrs Wix. In the