Reinvest in R&D

To what extent is it necessary for companies to reinvest profits in research and development? In the past 20 years, intellectual property has been highly respected in the world. In other words, there has been a majority of companies that paid more and more attention with regard to the performance of department of research and development (R&D), and especially for technologic corporations that own the fast product-life-cycle. Despite the fact that some people will argue whether reinvesting more source in research and development is successful strategy or not, an important issue for management studies would be normally discussed to be to what extent companies have to reinvest in research and development. This essay will seek to discuss some solutions of a number of large technologic companies form different views and also try to find the optimum one. Firstly, there are two solutions will be discussed. Secondly , They will be compared each other. In the end, the essay could summarize that which solution is the best. One way of solving the problem would be to undoubtedly reinvest a significant amount of profits in R&D, even if it may occupy more 15% of the revenue. In fact, John Madden (2010) emphasized that â€Å"Most successful companies reinvest 3-6% of net sales into research and development† and some companies in the specific industries would arrive at 15% of revenue into R&D. In addition, according to Chesbrough, H. W. (2006: xix), â€Å"Internal R&D was viewed as a strategic asset and even barrier to competitive entry in many industries†. In particular, those enormous technologic corporations with considerable capitals and extended schemes of R&D could compete, such APPLE, IBM and HTC. Therefore, it could be said that the solution entirely agree R&D is a vital cycle and asset in developing company. Evidence indicates that most products of technologic corporations be probably own shorter product-life-cycle. As a result, R&D will allow the company to create new products continually. Following that, company makes a majority of profit form these new products. For example, ADES stated that more than 60% of revenue of Xerox earn from the new products that launched in the past two years. Moreover, investing R&D oneself will control the main techniques and put up the higher barriers to control competitor’s entrance. For instance, Apple enterprise continually devotes to discover new technology to take out enormous intellectual patents and then raise their competitiveness. On the other hand, firms need to spend huge time money and manpower to participate in the process of R&D and some companies that want to reinvest in R&D must ante up bigger risk. Unfortunately, this investment may be frequently sunk costs. A number of businesses fail and go bankrupt in the bad condition. On balance, it is not only unsuitable methods for all enterprise, but it is not unique answer. Another way to solving the problem would be to stop any investment of R&D. This is to say, the corporations do not have to reinvest any resource into R&D and also do not need to organize the department of R&D oneself. However, it does not mean that they must not acquire any new techniques and products of next generation. They just utilize some methods or strategies to gain a number of technology what they want, such as technical authorization, technical transfer, outsource R&D, hire consultants and enterprise merger and acquisition. To a certain extent, there are probably noticeable advantages in this solution. Firstly, the firms just spend lower cost to gain new technical knowledge and then finish the mission of R&D. Secondly, this should be able to compress the time of researching new technical knowledge and also shorten in the procedure of developing the coming products. Furthermore, the brilliant product could be successfully launched at the good timing. In contrast, evidence indicates that the strategy of utilizing outsource seem to be marked difficult for how to execute deeply it. There is one instance of enterprise merger and acquisition of exploring the post-acquisition integration risks. According to Chen, C. H. and Shih, H. T. (2008), Whether the mission or vision of the both company is the same or not will be a vital factor. The reason totally affects the success of an acquisition. In addition, how to find out and to purchase the primary techniques is also an obvious problem. Clearly, this method has some strengths and weaknesses, thus below two will be evaluated as follows. Both methods have probably offered most corporations to solve the R&D problem. Similarly, all of them agree that the importance of R&D and utilizing new techniques in the company. Moreover, there are also the similar risks in both ways. Tassey (1997) stated that uncertainty of R&D is â€Å" the inability to estimate the reward and risk. † On the other hand, one of their different points is the speed of exploiting new product. This would seem to be the way of cooperating other R&D institutions. The other one could be whether they can control the key techniques to persistently maintain core competitiveness of the enterprise or not. According to Porter (2004:164), â€Å"Technological change is one of the principal driver of competition. It plays a major role in industry structural. † technological As for that, organizing own R&D might be an appropriate way. Overall, how to keep the main technical knowledge is a very vital around growing energy and supporting stable profit of most firms. Despite the fact that outsourcing can help corporations acquire rapidly knowledge, reinvesting income in R&D by themselves is apparently better. Obviously, every method has different characters to solve the R&D problem. So people should understand the situation of the companies themselves before choosing the solution. All in all, it is difficult to clearly identify what extent is suitable to plow revenue in R&D related to the large technologic companies to and decide the best way to solve this problem. However, Here there are two methods to solve the problem in this essay. The best way seems to be the first one. It could be said that should do their own individual R&D seem to be one of competitive capabilities in a firm, and then it may affect the growth of a company in the future, such as launching latest production and recognizing new marking. Nevertheless, they should estimate the overall risk before deciding that. References: ADES (2008) Invest in R&D, It’s vital for your business’ survival. (school practitioner). ADESBLOG Weblog [online] 5th March. Available from: http://www. adesblog. com/2008/03/05/invest-in-research-and-development/. [Accessed 22/8/11]. CHEN, C. H. and SHIH, H. T. 2008) Mergers and Acquisitions in China: Impacts of WTO Accession. United Kingdom: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited. CHESBROUGH, H. W. (2006) Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating And Profiting from Technology. United States of America: Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation. MADDEN, J. (2010) Research and Development- reinvestment in innovation [www] Airborn Electronics. Ava ilable from: http://www. airborn. com. au/spec/econ. html [Accessed 22/08/11]. PORTER, M. E. (2004) Competitive Advantage. New York: Free press. TASSEY, G. (1997) The Economics of R&D Policy. United States of America: Quorum books.

NUMMI Analysis Essay

The goal of this executive summary is to identify the problems, the major causes, solutions and methods of implementation for the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. better known as NUMMI. NUMMI though specializes in vehicle manufacturing, was having trouble producing small vehicles. NUMMI workforce also had a horrible reputation. NUMMI would like to successfully reinvent its organization culture and produce high quality vehicles. NUMMI solution is to adopt a new production and management systems. To conclude this report, we will justify why adopting new production and management system will benefit NUMMI and help change its organizational culture. Problem Identification In1983 the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., Toyota and GM joint venture experiment in a unlikely collaboration to bring a new fleet of profitable small cars to the United States. This partnership took place in Fremont, California in a factory plant called NUMMI. GM objective was to learn how to make small profitable vehicles and learn Toyota production and Management System. Toyota objective on the other hand wanted to simply begin producing vehicles in the United States. GM already had the infrastructure in place that Toyota needed; this lead to their partnership. The workforce at the original GM Fremont factory was well-known to be the worst in producing low quality vehicles in the GM ecosystem. â€Å"The work force in those days had a horrible reputation, frequently going out on strike (sometimes wildcat strikes), filing grievance after grievance and even sabotaging quality.†(Shook 2010) The objective of NUMMI was to devise a plan to help change the culture of the organization. NUMMI would measure there outcomes by successfully reinventing there organization culture and producing high quality vehicles. This level of achievement allowed NUMMI to go from being GM’s worst factory to later becoming one of its best. NUMMI employees where empowered to be accountable for their selves and build quality vehicles. â€Å"What changed the culture was giving employees the means by which they could successfully do their jobs. It was communicating clearly to employees what their jobs were and providing the training and tools to  enable the m to perform those jobs successfully.† (Shook 2010) GM Fremont plant workforce was once considered one of the company’s worst production facilities. At the time, the plant workforce was producing some of the worst quality vehicles for GM; there level of absenteeism regularly ran over 20%, employees would habitually go on strike and sometime known to sabotaging quality. Without changing employees the once dysfunctional manufacturing plant was transformed into a model facility with a new company culture. By adopting Toyota’s production and management system, NUMMI overcame the many obstacles that once prevented its ability to achieve the objectives above. Causes of the Problem As stated before, GM Fremont factory in 1983 was producing extremely low quality vehicles. To try and correct this problem, GM entered a joint venture with Toyota. Toyota faced many challenges partnering with GM. To begin GM didn’t know how to make small profitable vehicles. GM attempts to create small size vehicles ultimately failed thus why reaching out to Toyota. GM also wanted to reinvent its work force production and management systems. This joint venture would allow GM to learn how to make quality small profitable vehicles and more importantly learn Toyotas production and Management System. GM Fremont was well known for having an unsatisfactory workforce. The employees had a terrible company-employee relationship culture and reputation. Employees were known to habitually go on strike, filing grievances were common, and there were employees to go as far as sabotaging quality. â€Å"Toyota had many concerns about transplanting perhaps the most important aspect of its production system — its way of cultivating employee involvement — into a workplace as poor as Fremont. Toyota wondered how workers with such a bad reputation could support it in building in quality. How would they support the concept and practice of teamwork?† (Shook 2010) The work force culture obviously was not a positive one. Employees had an unfavorable outlook of the employers. Company -employee relationship morale  was low thus affecting the company’s culture. GM Fremont facility was failing, due to the plant lack of company-employee relationship culture, production ineffic iency and management systems. Possible Solutions Changing NUMMI company-employee culture was no easy task. Shook stated it best, â€Å"the way to change culture is not to first change how people think, but instead to start by changing how people behave — what they do. Those of us trying to change our organizations’ culture need to define the things we want to do, the ways we want to behave and want each other to behave, to provide training and then to do what is necessary to reinforce those behaviors. The culture will change as a result.† NUMMI empowered its employees to find and solve daily problems and make justified improvements as they see fit. By doing so NUMMI provided its workforce the necessary means to successfully do their jobs. In the article â€Å"The Stop the Line System† was the primary example of this. Stop the line enabled employees with the obligation to stop the assembly line if and when there was a problem. This in turn reassured employees that the company value their opinions and trust them enough to make pertinent decisions. â€Å"Managers have the responsibility to create a proper climate in which employees can develop to their fullest potential. Failure to provide such a climate would theatrically increase employee frustration and could result in poorer performance, lower job satisfaction, and increased withdrawal from the organization.† (Steers and Porter 1983) â€Å"What changed the culture at NUMMI wasn’t an abstract notion of â€Å"employee involvement† or â€Å"a learning organization† or even â€Å"culture† at all. What changed the culture was giving employees the means by which they could successfully do their jobs. It was communicating clearly to employees what their jobs were and providing the training and tools to enable them to perform those jobs successfully.† (Shook 2010) Secondly, NUMMI provided its work force with a since of membership. Employees desired commitment from their employers. NUMMI did not guarantee life time employment, no employer can guarantee that. Instead NUMMI devised a mutual  trust agreement stating that the last thing it wanted to do was lay of its employees. To reassure employees, â€Å"NUMMI wrote into the contract the commitment that before anyone was laid off certain steps would have been taken, including reducing plant operating hours and cutting management bonuses. Employee motivation comes from assuring membership in the organization, rather than from buying and selling time, whatever the price tag. â€Å"(Shook 2010) To further advance and change the culture of the organization; In the hiring process NUMMI allowed certain floor leaders take part in the hiring of their own team members. This in turn gives employees since of responsibility and authority, thus positively changing the culture dynamics of NUMMI company-employee relationship. These are only some of the reason why Shook suggests how NUMMI culture was changed. Additionally, there are many other possible solutions that can be implemented in order to continue to motivate and change an organization culture. For instance, NUMMI can introduce an employee reward/recognition system. The drive to be rewarded or recognized by ones employer should be ample motivation to keep employees satisfied. The reward system could be broken down between the all-around best and worst performers, reward can be tied to individual performance and provide the lead performing employees with an opportunity for advancement. A disadvantage to the reward system would be convincing the entire workforce to continuously give 100% even though there may be a gap in skills amongst fellow workers. â€Å"The challenge therefore for organization is to develop reward system that are perceived to be fair and equitable and distributing the reward in accordance with employees beliefs about their own value to the organization.† (Ramlall 2004) Another method to having an amazing company-employee culture is by having a good work environment. Employees want to go to work to in an environment with a friendly setting, productivity, promote teamwork, collaboration, are respectful, and encourages an since of inclusiveness. A organization never wants to be in a situation where an employee feels as if there working in a hostile environment. â€Å"The consequences of employees perceiving they are not treated fairly can create a variety of options for employees. These options include the employee reducing their input through directly restricting their work output, attempting to increase their output be seeking salaryincreases, seeking more enjoyable assignments or simply withdrawal from the situation entirely, that is, quit the job and seek employment elsewhere.† (Champagne 1989) Lastly, developing jobs positions that are meaningful and challenging where employee roles and duties are clearly defined will help foster a positive organizational culture. For instance, â€Å"Cirque du Soleil, too, is committed to making jobs challenging and fulfilling. Despite grueling rehearsal and performance schedules, it attracts and retains performers by accommodating their creativity and pushing them to perfect their craft. Its employees also get to say a lot about how performances are staged, and they are allowed to move from show to show to learn new skills.† (Nohria, Groysberg, Lee2008) Solutions and Implementation Due to Toyota production and management systems, NUMMI went from being GM’s worst plant to GM’s best plant in just one year. â€Å"All with the exact same workers, including the old troublemakers. The only thing that changed was the production and management system — and, somehow, the culture.† (Shook 2010) There is no one specific solution for changing an organizations culture. The closet explanation explaining why NUMMI’s culture changed was the adoption of Toyota’s production and management system. Toyota’s system was more robust and organized compared to GM’s system. The workforce embraced Toyota’s system because it yielded them more favorable results and allowed employees to finally feel part of the organization. Toyota’s system offered NUMMI employees the opportunity to find and solve daily problems and make justified improvements as they see fit. By doing so NUMMI provided its workforce the necessary means to successfully do their jobs. Toyota’s system also provided its work force with a since of membership. Employees wanted to be reassured that NUMMI was just as committed to the organization as they were. Other solutions that would keep the work force motivated and change origination culture is an employee reward/ recognition system, a good work environment/culture and developing job positions that are challenging and fulfilling. All of these solutions work hand in hand in order to create a well-balanced origination culture. Furthermore, of the five solutions; I believe the opportunity for NUMMI employees to find and solve daily problems and make justified improvements would be the most important. By doing so NUMMI provided its workforce the necessary means to successfully do their jobs. The case states â€Å"Every person in a supervisory capacity, including hourly team leaders, visited Toyota City for two or more weeks of training at the Takaoka plant. The training included long hours of lectures but, most importantly, practical on-the-job training in which they worked alongside their counterparts to learn what was to be their job back in California. At the end of each training tour, we asked the trainees what they would most want to take back with them to Fremont of all they had seen at Toyota. Their answer was invariably the same: â€Å"The ability to focus on solving problems without pointing fingers and looking to place the blame on someone.† (Shook 2010) This in turn reassured employees that the company value their opinions and trust them enough to make important decisions. The organization allowing employees to solve problems will benefit the company long term in that it will boost workforce morale, employees don’t have to be afraid to solve problems without ramifications and there will be a better form constant communication between employees and managers. Disadvantages for an organization allowing employees to solve problems without managerial supervision can result in damage product, slowdown or stop of assembly line thus resulting in loss of money. Once implemented, the organization needs to ensure that the workforce (including managers) is on board with the changes in order to move forward. To do this, NUMMI must provide new training through workshops and seminars to all employees. After participating in either the workshop or seminars, Humane Resources should devise a form; having all employees sign that form in order to not have any miscommunication down the line. To sustain success, NUMMI should create team building events/demonstration for all employees to constantly remain on the same page. Currently, NUMMI provides its employees with the opportunity to find and solve daily problems and make improvements without fear of anyone pointing fingers. The workforce embraced the system so well that in one years’ time; NUMMI went from being GM’s worst plant to GM’s best. Justification Changing an organization culture is no easy task. When GM and Toyota decided to form there joint venture, no one could have predicted that they would become a success in a year’s time. There was no one specific solution for changing NUMMI organizations culture. The closet explanation explaining why NUMMI’s culture changed was the adoption of Toyota’s production and management system. Toyota management system benefited the organizational cultural in that it allowed NUMMI employees the opportunity to find and solve daily problems and make justified improvements. By doing so NUMMI provided its workforce the necessary means to successfully do their jobs. Toyota’s system also provided its work force with a since of membership. Employees wanted to be reassured that NUMMI was just as committed to the organization as they were. Other solutions that would keep the work force motivated and change origination culture is an employee reward/ recognition system, a good work environment/culture and developing job positions that are challenging and fulfilling. All of these solutions work hand in hand in order to create a well-balanced origination culture. I believe the opportunity for NUMMI employees to find and solve daily problems and make justified improvements is the most important solution. The article stated that of all the solutions; being able to solve problems without anyone looking to place blame on someone† was the most important organizational culture change. Adopting this organizational cultural change benefitted NUMMI in that the company now is GM best vehicle manufacturing plant. References 1. Champagne, P., & McAfee, B. (1989). Motivating strategies for performance and productivity. In A guide to humane resource development. New York: Quorum Books. 2. Ramlall, S. (2004). Motivation Theories and their Implications for Employee Retention within Organizations. Journal of the American Academy of Business, (5), 52-64. 3. Shook, J. (2010). How to Change a Culture: Lessons From NUMMI. MIT Sloan Management Review, 51(2). 4. Steers, R., & Porter, L. (1983). Motivation & Work Behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. 5. Nohria, N., Groysberg, B., & Lee, L. (2008). Employee Motivation: A Powerful New Model.Harvard Business Review.

Responsibility of A Correctioanl Captain in the State of Alabama Essay

Responsibility of A Correctioanl Captain in the State of Alabama - Essay Example The correctional captain is endowed the role of supervising Correctional Lieutenants along with Correctional Sergeants and clerical as well as technical staff (Fresno County, 1999). A correctional captain reviews the written materials such as job descriptions, counsels the inmates and their families, inspects areas of operational responsibilities, participates in committee activities, meetings and programs, develops written administrative guidelines, interviews individuals regarding various aspects such as litigation, monitors institutional operations, activities and job assignments along with writing document information. A correctional captain needs to have expert knowledge in the above mentioned fields. The Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) Administrative Regulation (AR) develops the responsibilities, procedures and policies for the implementation and development of professional guidance programs that comply with the federal and state requirements for ADOC employees. ADOC l aw enforcement employees include correctional sergeant, correctional officer, correctional lieutenant, correctional warden, correctional training director, correctional captain, correctional canine handler supervisor, correctional canine handler, correctional community program director and correctional investigative services officer (State of Alabama Department of Corrections, 2008). Responsibilities of a correctional captain include various tasks in terms of financial, managerial and operational area of the organization. In this research study, responsibilities of a correctional captain in the state of Alabama have been discussed elaborately. Explanation of the Responsibilities of a Correctional Captain in the State Of Alabama The responsibilities of a correctional caption are defined and regulated by the Alabama Department of Corrections. The Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) is the agency responsible for imprisonment of convicted felons in the state of Alabama in the Unite d States. Correctional captains generally review the reports, job descriptions, regulations, and trade journals along with making proper employee evaluations and budget expenditures using administrative regulations, directives and laws. They are also responsible for making incoming and outgoing correspondences and job descriptions in order to determine summarized actions required to initiate documentations. They follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) with regard to auditing reports, administrative regulations and accounting manuals in order to encourage optimistic community relations, ensure adequate financial solidity, gather and distribute information. Budget expenditure needs to be formulated in a way so that it can ensure proper utilization of organization’s resources and in this regard the correctional captain serves the purpose. To evaluate and ensure accurate, efficient, effective and complete daily operations, a correctional captain delegates particular tasks to the employees regarding the matter of preparation of organizational reports along with controlling of the treatment programs, vehicle maintenance, logistical and fiscal matters using job descriptions and available resources. They take various initiatives to assess and ensure well-organized and efficient daily operations like preparation of technical manuals, proper

Damming of the Hetch Hetchy Valley Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

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Performance Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

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International management - WHO, cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

International management - WHO, cancer - Essay Example The high tar and nicotine contents in the cigarettes sold contribute to increase lung cancer. Due to heavy smoking the fertility rate of a person decreases and sometimes may become impotent. Smoking causes ulcers in stomach and duodenum that are called as peptic ulcers that take time in incidence and healing. A disease called tobacco amblyopia that causes defective vision and other eye diseases such as cataract might result due to smoking. Smoking cessation services has been included in Health Plan Implementation Programme in 2001/2002. One of the important factors of smoking cessation services is effective monitoring. The main objective was to get feedback from the field and keep improving the monitoring schemes and obtain essential information on the usage of smoking cessation aids. The positive results reflect the success of smoking cessation schemes. Show personal intervention and interest in combating smoking, have a clear understanding about the problem or menace, have a good understanding with the members of the staff and should be a respectable person and should be in a senior position. Prohibition of smoking by pupils in the school premises, the staff and senior members including principal should follow the same, proper counselling should be provided for those who are addicted to smoking and those who are at starting stage and be able to explain the importance behind the policy. 4. Incorporate smoking related topics in class teaching Class teaching on smoking: Classes on smoking should be conducted and continued for the five to sixteen, about long term and short-term ill effects on health, disadvantages of smoking, psychological effects of smoking, disadvantages of addiction, should be able explain so that pupils understand the importance of teachings on smoking and counter the myth of smoking beneficial effects. 5. Link up with the wider community Involvement in schemes such as No Smoking Day, participating in anti-smoking promotion, join up with other schools, involve local shopkeepers in discussions so that they stop selling cigarettes to pupils and linking up with higher education departments to increase the awareness programme. 6. Conduct anti-smoking campaigns. This includes: Participating in discussion groups, campaigns through signing of anti-smoking posters, presentations, conducting smoking breathe tests and smoker's clinics. 7. Construct a

Contract law assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

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Editngi a paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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MHC Case Study Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MHC Case Study - Research Paper Example 29). 2. Identify the type of structure MHC currently uses in its primary businesses. Describe the fit between the structure and the competitive strategy. Describe any structural adjustments MHC should make to maximize the effectiveness of the strategy Based on the case study it can be said that MHC follows a ‘tall organizational structure’ because it has several level of management and as a result the time taken to make a decision is much longer with more people getting involved in it. MHC organizational structure constitute of the CEO, VP, regional executive VP, corporate CEO, corporate VPs including HR and OD. MHC tall organizational structure fit its competitive strategy as it contains more number of management levels and the upper management is aware of the strategies and subsequently implements them to meets the goals of the company. However the current organizational structure tends to face severe problems like managers needs to wait for approval, time taken to make decisions, no knowledge of the employee’s skills and capability. Therefore MHC can alter its organizational structure and implement the flat organizational structure in order to maximize the effectiveness of the strategy. The management is facing HR issues with the current strategies implemented in the organization. Carrie Brown is unaware of the skills and ability of its employees and hence they are not been able to plot the right people in the right place. The employees were not provided with enough training and so with change in technology the current management KSAs do not know how to implemented cost cutting which will not diminish the service and mangers that are aware of the skills are scattered throughout the organizations. Thus the main issue with KSA is that the company does not have any accurate data about which of our people have the capabilities. The mission of MHC is to provide care to the indigent and less able members of the community but MHC has

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Business Law - Essay Example The point of sales are located world wide and it is able to sell its digital content via the iBookstore , iTunes , App Store, and the Mac App Store as well. The company came in to being in the year 1977, and is now regarded as the world’s largest companies. The company currently has assets worth over a $70 billion and now has devised huge plans for this years and the upcoming five years as well. As per the annual report filling which is necessary with the Securities Exchange Commission of the United States , the company will be expanding its retail operations and the business. First off the retail business of teh company will be expanded where an approximate investment of about $900 million will be spent as a result of which the total Apple retail outlets will come to be about 357. In China, the company will be taking an initiative to increase the number of stores because this is the region where Apple faces the problem of the fake Apple stores and since the Chinese market is expanding at the same time as well. Some of the stores of Apple will also be replaced , which include inside the United States as well as outside of the region. Approximately $7 billion will also be spent on the production process equipment , the infrastructure facilities if the company and the enhancements of the information systems ,hardware and software technologies as well. With the construction of the new Apple Campus taking place in California, a significant chunk of the revenue of the company will also be allotted to the purpose of the space ship campus. There are massive research facilities , plants and auditoriums being arranged in the campus which will be expanded over the 150 acres of land. Most importantly , there will be significant expenditure on the ‘solar farm’ idea of the company which will be powerhouse of the data center and this is where nearly all the operations of the iCloud will be carried out. Therefore apart from the space ship campus being buil t in Cupertino, there is another facility being constructed for Apple in North Carolina which will be powered by the solar energy. There will be significant amount of investment in the research, manufacture and the marketing of the products as well, where Apple will be introducing new products in the market that are believed to revolutionize the world of technology. Apple will also be taking measures to improve the supply chain and establish a stronger relationship with its manufacturers, Foxconn. Foxconn came under the limelight of controversies due to the below average working conditions that the entity had and therefore Apple is seeking to improve the labor conditions of the Chinese workers whereas at the same time the company is striving to increase the consumer satisfaction as well. In order to achieve this objective, Apple will be paying for half the cost which is involved in making the working conditions better. Therefore the improvements in the supply chain will be followed by making the working conditions of the manufacturers better, which is Foxconn. The expansion policies of the company will have to take under consideration the administration law which is defined as the law body responsible for the governance of the administration agencies’ activities. Apple has been quite in the limelight for the past many years for the patent infringement law suits which have been filed against various companies and the lawsuits filed by other companies on Apple. Some of these

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause Essay Example for Free

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause Essay Point of View There are two points of view. One view is from the Simon (the vampire), and the other is from Zoà «, the girl whose mother is dying of cancer. Zoe is having a really hard time dealing with her mother’s sickness, especially since her father has become more and more distant as his wife gets sicker and sicker. Zoe is feeling like she has nowhere to turn, especially when she finds out her best friend is moving far away. Then she meets a very mysterious pale boy, and she feels like she can trust him. Perhaps he even needs someone like she needs someone. Simon, on the other hand, has been a vampire for hundreds of years. He is on the search for his brother, Christopher, who made him a vampire. Christopher was horrifyingly brutal and he killed their mother, which has made him Simons sworn enemy. Simon has been trying for most of his afterlife to find and kill Christopher for good, and he has finally tracked his brother to the town where Zoe lives. Once there, though, he finds himself drawn to Zoes loneliness. Before long, he is confiding in her and feeling compassion for the first time in a very long time. Setting in time and place The setting was more on a contemporary period, most usually at Zoà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s house and the hospital, at time when her mother is dying of cancer. However, flashbacks of past centuries bring back Simon’s memories of his mother. The setting blooms more about the understanding of love and how it blends no matted how different two beings might be. List all main characters and a brief description of each Zoà « – The 16-year-old girl whose mother is dying of cancer. Simon has been a vampire for hundreds of years. He is on the search for his brother, Christopher, who made him a vampire. Zoà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s mother – terminally ill, she is dying because of cancer. A brief plot summary 16-year-old Zoà « is faced with the reality that her mother is dying of cancer. When she meets the mysterious and handsome Simon, she feel he can understand her pain better than anyone else has. As Zoà «s life goes from bad to worse, Simon becomes her one true support. Conflict There is something very creepy about the pale young man. The question and conflict is will that creepy something (that is, the fact that Simon is a vampire) force the two apart? Theme How odd or incomparable two hearts may seem, love will always make them perfect for each other.

History of the Japanese Samurai

History of the Japanese Samurai The Samurai: Warrior and Ruler of Ancient Japan Few countries have a warrior tradition as long and exciting as Japan. It is a tradition found in the Samurai, the loyal and self-sacrificing knight of ancient Japan. The Samurai is a valiant warrior who can both appreciate the beauty of nature in that of a rose blossom but will also kill or die for his master in an instant. This well-rounded warrior was the ruling class of Japan for almost seven hundred years. He fought for control of his country and to keep Japan free from outside influences. (Turnbull 1) This aristocratic warrior class arose during the 12th century wars between the Taira and Minamoto clans and was consolidated in the Tokugawa period. Samurai were privileged to wear two swords, and at one time had the right to cut down any commoner who offended them. They cultivated the martial virtues, indifference to pain or death, and unfailing loyalty to their overlords. Samurai were the dominant group in Japan. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the samurai were removed from direct control of the villages, moved into the domain castle towns, and given government stipends. They were encouraged to take up bureaucratic posts. The Hagakure, has been dubbed the book of the samurai. It was written after a century of peace around 1716. It came to be the guide of samurai ethics until the end of the feudal period. Its short passages reflect and outline the qualities that make a samurai. Yamamoto Tsunetomo expresses in the hagakure the framework and mindset of being a samurai. â€Å"Although it stands to reason that a samurai should be mindful of the Way of the samurai, it would seem that we are all negligent. Consequently, if someone were to ask, ‘what is the true meaning of the Way of the Samurai?’ the person who should be able to answer promptly is rare. This is because it has not been established in one’s mind beforehand. From this, one’s unmindfulness of the Way can be known. Negligence is an extreme thing.† (Wilson, 17) â€Å"The Way of the Samurai is found in death. When it comes to either/or, there is only the quick choice of death. It is not particularly difficult. Be determined and advance. To say that dying without reaching one’s aim is to die a dog’s death is the frivolous way of sophisticates. When pressed with the choice of life or death, it is not necessary to gain one’s aim. We all want to live. And in large part we make our logic according to what we like. But not having attained our aim and continuing to live is cowardice. This is a thin dangerous line. To die without gaining one’s aim is a dog’s death and fanaticism. There is no shame to this. This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai. If by setting one’s heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he gains freedom in the Way. His whole life will be without blame, and he will succeed in his calling. (Wilson, 17) The samurai had extreme religious ideals. One samurai in particular, Tsunetomo, he began to despair of ever gaining a position as a retainer, and her began to visit a man who was to have no small influence on his life. This was the Zen Buddhist priest Tannen (? – 1680), a man of unbending integrity and will, who had resigned his post as head priest at the major Nabeshima temple as a protest against the death sentence of another priest, and when recalled, refused to return. Zen Buddhism and the samurai had been closely related since the thirteenth century in Japan, when the Hojo regents had discovered that its vitality and rejection of life as an object of special craving had much to offer the warrior. Tannen had his own ideas concerning the relationship of Zen and the warriors. â€Å"He declares that religious matters are for old men, and if young samurai learn about Buddhism it will only bring them disaster, for they will begin to look at the world from two sets of values ra ther than one.† (Wilson, 13) The warriors of early Japan bore only a passing resemblance to the later samurai. Weaponry and armor were of a distinctly Chinese flavor, and the earliest warriors carried shields, a device evidently out of vogue even before the Heian period. Some of our knowledge of the weapons and protection the early Japanese warrior carried comes from artifacts excavated from the tombs constructed in the 4th and 5th centuries to house departed royalty. Another, just as valuable resource are the haniwa, which were clay statues evidently used as grave markers. A good number of these haniwa depict warriors, and these provide us some insight into the nature of ‘home-grown’ Japanese armor of the time. The horse was imported to Japan sometime in the 4th or 5th century, and quickly became a valuable commodity. Also brought over from the continent were Keiko, or suits of lamellar scaled armor. This type, which is traditionally associated with horsemen, provided the foundation from which the classic patterns of samurai armor construction would build. Just as important is the samurai’s weaponry is the code of ethics by which they lived by which is known as the code of Bushido. This term refers to the moral code principals that developed among the samurai class of Japan, on a basis of national tradition influenced by Zen and Confucianism. The first use of the term apparently occurred during the civil war period of the 16th century; its precise content varied historically as samurai standards evolved. Its one unchanging ideal was martial spirit, including athletic and military skills as well as fearless facing of the enemy in battle. Frugal living, kindness and honesty were also highly regarded. Like Confucianism, Bushido required filial piety; but, originating in the feudal system, it also held that supreme honor was to serve one’s lord unto death. If these obligations conflicted, the samurai was bound by loyalty to his lord despite the suffering he might cause to his parents. The final rationalization of Bushido thought occurred during the Tokugawa period, when Yamaga Soko equated the samurai with the Confucian â€Å"superior man† and taught that his essential function was to exemplify virtue to the lower classes. Without disregarding the basic Confucian virtue, benevolence, Soko emphasized the second virtue, righteousness, which he interpreted as â€Å"obligation† or â€Å"duty†. This strict code of honor, affecting matters of life and death, demanded conscious choice and so fostered individual initiative while yet reasserting the obligations of loyalty and filial piety. Obedience to authority was stressed, but duty came first even if it entailed violation of statue law. In such an instance, the true samurai would prove his sincerity and expiate his crime against the government by subsequently taking his own life. By mid-19th century, Bushido standards had become the general ideal, and the legal abolition of the samurai class in 1871 made Bushido even more the property of the entire nation. In the public education system, with the emperor replacing the feudal lord as the object of loyalty and sacrifice, Bushido became the foundation of ethical training. As such, it contributed both to the arise of Japanese nationalism and to the strengthening of wartime civilian morale up to 1945. The term â€Å"Samurai† means those who serve. These mystical knights served many functions in Japanese society. During time of war, they were the masters of the battlefield. In peace they were the administrators and the aristocrats. As statesmen, soldiers, and businessmen, former samurai took the lead in building modern Japan. The Japanese warrior, known as the samurai, has played a significant role in Japans history and culture throughout the centuries. Their ancestors can be traced back to as far as can be remembered. Some stories have become mysterious legends handed down over the centuries. In this report you will learn who the samurai were, their origins as we know them, how they lived and fought and their evolution to today. It will be clear why the samurai stand out as one of the most famous group of warriors of all times. Looking back in time, the first Japanese battles recorded are in the first few centuries AD. At this time Japanese warriors went across the sea to Korea to help one kingdom battling two rival kingdoms. Four hundred men set out and fought on foot carrying their bows, spears and swords. They were quickly beaten by warriors attacking on horseback. They probably had never seen an attack like that before, with horses being ridden. Even though there were horses in Japan they had not been used for riding or fighting, but to help in carrying and pulling goods. In the next century, however, there is evidence that horses were being ridden and used in warfare by warriors who would later be called samurai (History Channel). The term samurai was first used in the 10th century and means â€Å"those who serve†. In the beginning it stood for men who guarded the capital for the Emperor, some where used as tax collectors. Later the word grew to include any military man who served a powerful landlord, almost like a police force for that time. They would go around the countryside on horseback collecting taxes from the peasants, often this was in the form of rice. This money helped the Emperor pay for his lavish life style. The word, samurai, quickly spread and was respected (and maybe feared a little) for the men it represented. The noblemen depended on the strength of the samurai. Since their power and wealth was directly related to how much land they owned, the noblemen kept small armies of samurai to protect their property from thieves and invaders. Eventually many noble families joined together to form clans that became more powerful than the emperor, who was the traditional head of the Japanese government (How Samurai Work 11). In the 12th century the two most powerful clans were the Minomoto and the Taira. The two came to battle in 1160 with the Taira winning. Twenty years later in 1180 those Minomotos who had escaped death (they were children during the first attack) led a new attack that turned into a war that lasted five years and was called the Gempei War. The Minamotos won, and the emperor made Minamoto Yoritomo shogun, the head of the military. Yoritomo however wanted more and took all power away from the emperor and made himself dictator. At this time the samurai gained power, through land given to them by the new shogun. Their rise in status was beginning. The battles that were fought during The Gempei War were very important in the history of the samurai. They set a new and honorable standard for all samurai to live by. These standards would last throughout the existence of the samurai warrior. The Gempei War provided a role model for Japanese samurai’s courageous and noble behavior (Turnbull 14). Almost all the important characteristics attributed the samurai culture came out of the Gempei war; â€Å"Archery, hand-to-hand fighting, undying loyalty to one’s lord and the tremendous tradition of ritual suicide all have key passages and proof texts in the tales of the Gempi War†(Turnbull 15). The samurai had an unwritten code of honor called the bushido. Bushido means â€Å"way of the warrior† (History of the Samurai 3). This provided them with a code to help show them how to live and conduct themselves at home and in battle. One of the most important duties of the samurai was their loyalty to their lord. The samurai would defend their lord until the death. Revenge was also central in the samurai’s life and if someone had killed their master or attacked their master’s honor revenge must be gotten. The same vengeance was given if they themselves or their family were disrespected or defeated. Not just anyone could become a samurai warrior. You had to be the child of a samurai, being born into this class was a privilege. The samurai were not all rich, in fact their wealth was judged on the amount of Koku (which is the amount of rice that the fields produced). Other things like the size of the samurai’s house were based upon the wealth and rank of the samurai. There were also strict traditions to be followed for a young samurai. When a samurai was born, he would be given a small sword charm to wear on his belt. When the boy is five he gets his first haircut and begins to learn martial arts. At age seven he receives his first wide trousers called hakama. When the young samurai is fifteen he goes through a ceremony called gembuku where the boy becomes a man. He then receives his adult name, his adult haircut, and his first real sword and armor. Most boys would be taught combat skills by their father and eventually as he got older he would be taught by a local sensei. Those boys from wealthier families were expected to be educated men and may be sent to an academy where they would study literature and the arts along with martial arts. The training of the samurai for battle was intensive. There was more than just physical training involved. Strong mental concentration and focus were necessary to channel their energies before battle. The samurai warrior would spend endless hours practicing a set of complex battle movements called kata. â€Å"This practice started slowly at first increasing speed, until they became effortless and perfect. The movements were based on strategies of attack, defense, and counterattack† (Gaskin Hawkins 73). However, the only way these young samurais would ever gain experience is to take part in actual battle. So the sons of the samurai would follow their fathers into battle to test their newly learned fighting techniques. The samurai were also known for having a psychic awareness of the world around them in addition to their great skill. This is something practiced from an early age as well. An example of this keen awareness is seen in the story of three brothers told by their father. The father decided to test the ability of his three sons. He placed a vase on top a door so that it would fall when someone entered. The youngest son entered the room and he cut the vase in half with his sword before it hit the ground. The father’s response was, â€Å"This son has a long way to go.† Then he called for his middle son, this son caught the vase right above his head. This time his father’s response was that, â€Å"he is strong and improving but still has much to learn.† Finally, the oldest was called into the room, when he reaches for the door he immediately feels the weight of the vase. He slides the door open a crack and catches the vase and walks in. His father replies, â€Å" This son is doing well.† (Gaskin Hawkins 75). Their goal for perfections and their training and dedication were endless. The samurai is famous for his sword and it is one his most prized possessions. There are two main swords, one called the katana and the other the wakizashi. The wakizashi is worn on his belt at all times and a shorter blade of the two that was used in battle. The katana is the longer curved sword that was the samurai’s main weapon. The sword is given to a samurai at birth and placed next to that samurai when he dies. The samurai would take the sword everywhere he went, even to bed. It was treated with great respect and most would have been passed down from generation to generation. The process for making each sword from iron and steel is long and tedious requiring many steps and much patience. When finished a decorative handle would be added. The sword makers were respected and treated with almost reverence for the job they performed. â€Å"Like an artist the master sword maker would often sign his work (Gaskins Hawkins 10). This sword would be the difference between life an d death for many samurai. The 1500s began as time known as the Period of Warring States. This term was borrowed from the Chinese even though Japan was battling between families and clans, and not states. The leader of the clan called himself an ashigaru. which means great names. Only the strongest clan could survive these battles and the daimyo would do anything to win. The powerful daimyos had large armies made up of foot soldiers called ashigaru. During this time there was also a big change in how the samurai fought. In addition to using the traditional bows they were introduced to guns for the first time. First the guns came from European traders and were made in China, but it didn’t take long for the Japanese to start manufacturing their own weapons. (Turnbull 19). The samurai’s armor was one of the most elaborate and unique creations of their time. Today they are seen as works of art. Their armor was made from lamellar armor which took small metal plates and fastened them together and covered with a lacquer to make them waterproof. The outside of the armor was very colorful and sewn and covered with silk and leather designs. There were two types of armor, one called yori, which was heavier and used for riding on horseback. The other was called do-maru this was lighter and more practical for the foot soldiers. Both allowed for the samurai to have flexibility to move able to use their weapons and move in battle. This armor covered the entire body from samurai’s helmet to his chest protector and panels protecting his hips, arms and legs. One interesting fact is the about the kote. It is an armored sleeve only worn on the left arm so that the right arm would be free for the samurai to shoot his bow. Even when the bow was no longer us ed for battles this type of armor was seen as honoring a sense of tradition (How Samurai Work 5). The samurai’s helmet was also very important. It provided heavy duty protection to the head and neck. They also wore an â€Å"iron face mask, which might represent demons, ghosts, or barbarians† (Gaskin Hawkins 71) to help intimidate the enemy. An older warrior might want to use the face of a younger warrior so no one would know his age. The heavy duty neck covering helped in battles, and also helped prevent beheadings. Another example of samurai pride and courage is the ritual of burning incense in his helmet before battle. This was done so if he was defeated and beheaded he would leave behind a pleasant scent. Another example of their legendary bravery was in 1281 when Genghis Khan (leader of the Mongols out of Asia) attempted to invade Japan. But, because of the brave samurai and a well timed storm called a kamikaze, they were destroyed along with their ships. The word kamikaze means â€Å"winds of the gods†, but after that day it took on another meaning to include, destroying an enemy. Even in 1945 the term kamikaze pilot was used for the Japanese pilots that attacked the American fleet at Pearl Harbor. This victory against the Mongols was another added to the list of samurai’s brave and notable victories (Gaskin Hawkins 28). To the samurai, their pride went hand in hand with their honor and heritage. One example of this is when one samurai would challenge another to battle. It was tradition at this time for each samurai to speak publicly the names of all his ancestors, along with their accomplishments in battle ( some stories became embellished over time). This showed the deep pride and respect they held for his ancestors. (Turnbull 47). By the 14th century a samurai’s lineage had gotten quite long and just reciting your ancestors was difficult. The family pedigree was so important it was written down to be kept safe at all cost. An example of this devotion is when a samurai’s house caught fire and one samurai volunteered to go in and get the family tree that was written on a banner. â€Å"After the fire they found the samurai laying dead on his stomach, when they turned him over they found he had cut his stomach open and put the family tree inside to protect it from the flames† (Tur nbull 53). This is another example of their devotion to their family and to duty. The ancestors of the samurai were very much involved in the present life of the samurai. Every year during the Bon Festival they would be welcomed back through religious ceremonies. These ceremonies showed a deep appreciation felt toward their ancestors. They felt great gratitude for who they were, this included their name and their status. There were even rituals held before battles to bring the ancestors to help (Turnbull 48). The death of the samurai was treated with the same respect and honor as was his life. Seppuku is the word used for suicide by cutting open the stomach (also known as hari kiri). Seppuku was performed with a dagger. To the samurai warrior seppuku was something to be honored and respected. It could also bring back honor to him and his family if he had been beaten in battle or disgraced. This took incredible bravely and was extremely painful. Often a friend of the samurai’s would to end his pain by cutting off his head. (History Channel). This could also be something planned out ahead of time or done quickly during battle. Nitta Yoshisada is one of the most famous stories of a samurai’s death in 1336. Going into battle one day he was worried, the battle was difficult and he had to lead his men through rice fields. Yoshida went charging in, despite a heavy attack of soldiers and arrows. His horse was hit and fell down pinning him underneath. He had no time or way to reach his stomach to perform seppuku so they say he cut off his own head. This is just one of many extreme acts of seppuku over the many years of the samurai. As clans all over Japan dispersed there became a large amount of samurai without a master these samurai were called ronin. These ronin were different from most samurai because they were not loyal to any lord. Many of them became personal body guards for farm owners, and some became senseis, and others took the time to master the technique of the sword. As time has passed the so did the importance of the samurai warrior. There were no more battles to be fought and peace was among the country. This with Japan becoming a more industrialized nation. After years of isolationism and their declining economy Japan was finally forced to open trade with western countries including the United States. This caused a split in Japan between the conventional samurai ideals and those who wanted to bring in the new ways of the west. In 1876 the emperor decided that there would be no wearing swords unless you were part of the imperial armed forces. This was another symbol of the samurai‘s power no longer needed. Over time the samurai could no longer support themselves and returned to farming or working in cites. The role of the samurai warrior was finished. The Japanese samurais have been extremely influential figures throughout Japan’s history. Their influence has been seen is all aspects of Japanese life from the education of young boys in body and mind, to governing of the Emperors, to the study of the martial arts. Their code of honor and loyalty are traditions that all Japanese respect and try to live up to even today. The self sacrifice of ones own life for a common cause was even seen in World War II when Japanese pilots deliberately crashed their planes into United States ships anchored at Pearl Harbor. This was a devastating attack and can show the horror caused by revenge and their belief in sacrifice and honor. They were even called kamikaze pilots after the famous samurai battle of long ago. The influence of the samurai continues to be seen in Japan today in a positive way with the stories and legends of heroic samurai and the bushido as their guide. Works Cited Gaskin, Carol. and Hawkins, Vince. The Ways of the Samurai. New York: Byron Preiss Visual Publications, 2003 â€Å"History of the Samurai.† http://home.online.no/~p-loeand/samurai/hist-eng.htm â€Å"How Samurai Work.† http://science.howstuffworks.com/samurai.htm The History Channel: The Samurai. Videocassette. AE Television Networks, 2003. 100 min. Turnbull, Stephen. Samurai, The World of the Warrior. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003

Incarceration Rates of Minorities in the US

Incarceration Rates of Minorities in the US With law enforcement poised to eliminate crime and the people who commit it, the building of new jails and prison seem to be the likeliest answer to the problem. Throughout American history, minorities have always been portrayed as dark and evil to name a couple of stereotypes. With the help of television and other means of media the focus has been set to create a mental consciousness to presume every black, Hispanic, and anyone closely related as armed and extremely dangerous. This has cause an unfair disadvantage for people of color, but has left the perception of the white race crystal clean. Just as there are bad people everywhere, there are bad cops, judges, and politicians in every police department, court house, and legislative branch that forge evidence to meet arrest quotas that the system needs to have in place; setup by the elitist to fund their need to have slave labor for their manufacturing companies. Some minorities have been falsely accused and persuaded by police bru tality in order to coerce false confessions, and the judges fall in their place to announce the sentencing. Throughout years of focusing on media events that always place blacks and other minorities in a position of being the bad guy. Today the jail and prison population is primarily made up of blacks. Although there are Hispanics, as well whites, the main overcrowding comes from blacks being locked up on frivolous charges. But there’s a deeper reason behind why this injustice is happening to blacks, and it all stems from the system’s need of the incarceration of minorities. To test the influence of local county politics on minority incarceration rates, data are collected at the county level in most states to create a pooled cross-sectional data set. OLS regression models predicting black, Hispanic, and white incarceration rates in state prison are used in the analysis. Counties ideological orientations and racial and ethnic contextual characteristics significantly impact minority incarceration rates. Greater ideological conservatism within counties is associated with higher rates as a proportion of their population of both black and Hispanic incarceration. Consistent with racial threat theory, results show counties with greater racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to incarcerate blacks and Hispanics. Tests for interaction effects indicate that greater county diversity decreases the punitive effects of ideological conservatism on minority incarceration. Political forces nested within states systematically shape how state government incarceration p ower is distributed across different racial and ethnic groups. (Bridges and Crutchfield, 1988; Greenberg and West, 2001; Western, 2006; Yates, 1997), The punitive paradigm that has characterized U.S. crime policy over the past three decades has led to important concerns about the distribution of one of government’s most intrusive powers; the ability to deprive citizen of their liberty through imprisonment across different racial and ethnic groups. It has been well documented that blacks are six to eight times more likely to be incarcerated relative to whites. (Western, 2006). Hispanics are over three and one-half times more likely to be incarcerated than whites. Blacks and Hispanics, together, account for nearly two-thirds of the state prison population. Disparities such as these within the criminal justice system have long engendered heated debate about principles of equality and civil rights. Imprisonment rates between the states are shown to be a function of a variety of state-level political and legal factors. From this research, there is clear evidence that political forces cause states to incarcerate at widely different rates, with minorities living in a particular state either more or less likely to be imprisoned, depending in part, on the politics within. Yet, while these studies have significantly advanced our understanding of the politics of incarceration, state-level studies often mask the fact that a state’s ‘‘use’’ of incarceration is largely a byproduct of political processes found at the local (county) level of government. When analyzing the politics of incarceration from the bottom up, top-dow n political forces like the partisan control of state-level institutions or state sentencing laws effectively become standardized, suggesting that local politics retains significant leverage over how a state’s imprisonment powers are allocated Given this, however, we know little about the extent to which incarceration rates are systematically tied to local environments and whether local politics systematically shape the imprisonment ratesof racial and ethnic minority groups. Two primary questions motivate this research: Do political forces shaped by the local ideological and racial and ethnic environment affect incarceration rates in ways that are disproportionately detrimental to racial and ethnic minorities? Second, to what extent does the racial and ethnic context interact with localized Ideological orientations to affect minority incarceration rates? Or, put another way, can diversity levels in a given jurisdiction work to strengthen or weaken the propensity of those who might, because of their ideological beliefs, be already more inclined to incarcerate minorities? Conservatives tend to view criminal activity as a matter of personal choice and focus on deterrence and incapacitation based policy responses. Beckett and Western (2001). Conservatives have been more likely to use incapacitation as a means to control a marginalized ‘‘underclass’’ of citizens that threatens the economic and political interests of elites. (Scheingold,1984), In contrast, ideological liberals tend to view crime as a function of structural impediments to success and place more emphasis on crime prevention policies rather than punishment after the fact. Beckett, and Sasson (2004). If ideological conservatives are more inclined to incarcerate, these orientations might also be expected to influence the target of those policies with racial minorities more likely to be targeted relative to whites. (Edsall and Edsall, 1992; Weaver, 2007), Republicans used crime and punishment as an effective tool to realign the political electorate by pursuing law and order policies that linked financially secure fiscal conservatives and middle to lower class conservatives who had little else in common, while blaming street crime and other social ills on a racial (black) underclass, conservative. Republicans made veiled appeals to anti minority hostilities among some lower income conservative whites by enacting punitive crime policies that were implemented in ways that put more blacks in prison, but invoked greater support at the ballot box. Insofar as these political pressures retain their influence on criminal justice policy making at the local level of government, as well as to minorities other  than blacks (i.e., Hispanics), it can be predicted that more conser vative counties will be more likely to incarcerate blacks and Hispanics (as a proportion of their respective population) in state prisons than are more liberal counties. Racial politics shaped by the local racial and ethnic contextual environment are also expected to influence minority incarceration rates. In racial politics literature, significant attention has been paid to social conflict or ‘‘racial threat’’ theory, which offers a ‘‘contextual’’ explanation for minority imprisonment. Dating back to the work of Key (1949), the main idea behind the theory is that when a minority population is small, it represents a relatively minor threat to the interests of the majority. However, as the number of minorities grows, they begin to threaten the economic and political interests of the majority population, increasing hostile attitudes toward minority populations among majority group members. Blalock (1967) argued that a majority groupà ¢â‚¬â„¢s repression of a minority group’s interests was based on two types of perceived threats those motivated by economic competition and those driven by competition over political power. A growing body of research has found evidence of a racial threat effect across a variety of institutional settings. (Hurwitz and Peffley, 1997). If racial hostilities increase in more diverse environments, there are more reasons to predict that these hostilities will spill over to influence criminal justice policy making. ‘‘Old-fashioned’’ white racism often concentrated on a perceived genetic inferiority of blacks to whites. Today, more common white stereotypes involve the perception of blacks as a violent, criminal underclass. These stereotypes, along with the assumption that objective demographic data which show blacks to be disproportionately linked to the U.S. penal system permeates the public’s consciousness to believe that most blacks are violent tha n whites. To a meaningful degree, likely increase the probability that whites associate crime and the criminal justice system with race. In conclusion; this research provides convincing evidence of ‘‘racialized’’ crime policy in the United States. The tendency among some whites to connect race with crime has important implications for state punitiveness and imprisonment of blacks more specifically. Whites who view blacks as violent have been shown to be more supportive of punitive policies like the death penalty and longer prison sentences. Following arguments associated with the racial threat idea, a more racially diverse environment is likely to trigger more negative stereotypes among whites living there, who, as a result, may be more apt to support punitive crime policies, particularly if there is the perception that the target population is black. However, existing tests of the racial threat hypothesis on black incarceration rates have brought mixed results. In so me state-level studies, once black arrest rates and other socioeconomic conditions are controlled, the racial threat hypothesis provides little predictive power (Bridges and Crutchfield, 1988; Yates, 1997). Others have found the proportion of blacks in a state does matter, but in the opposite direction predicted by the racial threat idea black imprisonment rates decreased in states with a greater black population (Yates and Fording, 2005). This mixed set of findings brings the possibility that a more appropriate test of a racial threat effect on imprisonment should be conducted at the local level. Measuring the influence of state racial composition on imprisonment has proven useful because it allows comparisons across jurisdictions; however, these efforts often gloss over the fact that state imprisonment rates are a function of decisions made by county law enforcement officials. If, indeed, incarceration rates are influenced by racial politics, it might be expected that county prose cutors, judges, or public defenders those with authority over prosecuting, sentencing, or defending offenders to/from state prison are most likely to be subject to racial ‘‘effects.’’ Assessing the influence of a racial threat on minority incarceration can also be advanced by considering whether political forces resulting from whites’ exposure to a variety of ethnic and racial minorities, rather than simply their exposure to larger black populations, affects minority imprisonment rates. References Percival, G. L. (2010).Ideology, Diversity, and Imprisonment: Considering the Influence of Local Politics on Racial and Ethnic Minority Incarceration Rates. Social Science Quarterly (Wiley-Blackwell), 91(4), 1063-1082. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6237.2010.00749.x Bridges, George S., and Robert Crutchfield. 1988. ‘‘Law, Social Standing and Racial Disparities cin Imprisonment.’’ Social Forces 66(3):699–724. Western, Bruce. 2006. Punishment and Inequality in America. New York: Russell Sage  Foundation. Beckett, Katherine, and Theodore Sasson. 2004. The Politics of Injustice: Crime and Punishment  in America. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications. Edsall, Thomas B., and Mary D. Edsall. 1992. Chain Reaction: The Impact of Race, Rights,  and Taxes on American Politics. New York: W.W. Nortan Company. Scheingold, Stuart A. 1984. The Politics of Law and Order: Street Crime and Public Policy.  New York: Longman. Blalock, Hubert M. 1967. Toward a Theory of Minority Group Relations. New York: Wiley. Key, V. O. 1949. Southern Politics in State and Nation. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Hurwitz, Jon, and Mark Peffley. 1997. ‘‘Public Perceptions of Race and Crime: The Role of  Racial Stereotypes.’’ American Journal of Political Science 41(2):375–401. Yates, Jeff. 1997. ‘‘Racial Incarceration Disparity Among the States.’’ Social Science Quarterly  78(4):1001–11. Yates, Jeff, and Richard Fording. 2005. ‘‘Politics and State Punitiveness in Black and White.’’  Journal of Politics 67(4):1099–1121.

Maxine Hong Kingstons Woman Warrior Essay -- Maxine Hong Kingston Wom

Maxine Hong Kingston's Woman Warrior   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Food strengthens us, without it we are weak. Eating has always been an important factor with families living in poor conditions. Often, those who could not help to produce more food are considered inferior or unworthy to eat. Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior is no exception, due to the relation it creates between eating and the strength of people. This is shown through the tale of Fa-Mu-Lan, the story of the eaters, and the references to the fellow relatives left in China.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the tale of Fa-Mu-Lan, the narrator is given a survival test, where she has to survive a mountain trek without provisions. During that trek, the narrator finds herself weary from hunger. Hunger brings out her animal instincts, because she needs to stay strong to live. 'On the fourth and fifth days, my eyesight sharp with hunger, I saw deer and used their trails when our ways coincided. Where deer nibbled, I gathered the fungus, the fungus of immortality'; (25). The narrator is forced to search for her food to eat. The hungrier she becomes, the more feral she is. Meat also played a role in the connection between food and strength. During the beginning of her story she claimed she no longer needed meat. After she became starving, she breaks down and eats meat. '†¦I saw the rabbit had sacrificed itself for me. It had made me a gift of meat'; (26). Her will was eroded by the hunger because as her hunger increased, she became weaker and her resolve was easier t o destroy. When the narrator was not starving she was in control of her faculties. Hunger however, strips her even of vision, as she imagines things that do not exist. The narrator says, 'Hunger also changes the world when eating can't be habit, then neither can seeing. I saw two people made of gold dancing the earth's axis'; (27). Viewing two gold dancers would be wonderful to witness, however the chances are very slim. The hunger had weakened her to the point of confusion, and possibly dilution. Just as hunger weakens a person so they cannot command themselves, eating will make a person powerful and the masters of others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The stories of the heroes who ate heaping amounts of food illustrate that those who can eat have extraordinary powers. The narrator says before, that her mother is powerful';†¦because she can eat anything – quick, pluck out the carp's eyes, one for... ..., yet Kingston continues to reference the topic throughout the book. In the chapter At the Western Place, Brave Orchid meets her sister Moon Orchid at the airport. ''†¦you're so skinny.' 'You're so fat.' 'Fat women are more beautiful than skinny women''; (118). Brave Orchid's bitterness toward American culture influenced the narrator. Fat carried not only excess lipids, it carried wealth and power in Brave Orchid's opinion. Women were more beautiful with fat because wealth enabled them to achieve their 'beauty';. The incessant use of references between strength and eating throughout the book show the narrator was influenced is some manner. The product of the influence may not have been a fat woman, but a woman educated in two cultures. Eating is vitally important in the memoir The Woman Warrior. It is regarded as a sign of strength in the book. That point is shown through Fa-Mu-Lan, the story of heroes, and through relatives in China. With those, Kingston became educated in two differing cultures, possibly influenced by both. The connection between hunger and strength is well known throughout the ages, as the old military adage states, 'An Army marches on its stomach.';

damnation :: essays research papers

Ruining The Grand Places â€Å"†¦ It is apparent, then, that we cannot decide the question of development versus preservation by a simple referral to holy writ or an attempt to guess the intention of the founding fathers; we must make up our own minds and decide for ourselves what the national parks should be and what purpose they should serve.†-Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire â€Å"†¦ The difference between the present reservoir, with its silent sterile shores and debris-choked side canyons, and the original Glen Canyon, is the difference between death and life. Glen Canyon was alive. Lake Powell is a graveyard.† – Edward Abbey, â€Å"The Damnation of a Canyon†, Beyond the Wall When you love the Desert Southwest, sometime, somewhere, you will stumble into the writings of Ed Abbey. Like me, Ed was not born there; he discovered his love of the place while riding a boxcar through it on a trip across the US; I discovered mine on a trip through myself. His writings helped lead me home, for that is what the desert southwest is to me: home. I don’t live there for one simple reason, i.e., I have not yet been able to put myself in the financial situation I need to be in. For now, I visit when I can, mostly during my long vacations at Christmas. A couple of years ago during one of those, on a whim after spending a few days in Arches National Park, my wife and I detoured to the snowy, icy south rim of the Grand Canyon. We journeyed toward it from the east side but got turned back at the National Parks’ gate; the road was snowed under from there on up. After retracing our steps, we traveled down to Flagstaff and spent the night, driving in my four by four truck up to the South Rim the next day. It was an eerie experience to stand on the edge of the South Rim and see only cloud; fog shrouded the canyon’s great gap, leaving us with visual doubts that anything was really there. Defeated, we hit the Visitor’s Center and gathered information so we could go back sometime in the spring or fall with weather more to our liking. We haven’t done that, yet. This year we had planned to take a guided river run down the great Grand Canyon. Right now, that probably is not going to happen, either, due to other family obligations that eat vacation and other financial priorities.

The Patriot Act: Trampling on the Bill of Rights Essay -- US Constitut

Several weeks after the horrible terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT ACT) Act was rushed through Congress by Attorney General, John Ashcroft. This particular Act, however, was established with a ruling hand of fear. Life for Americans changed dramatically in those immediate days, weeks, and months after the attack. America had been spoiled with luxury for so long, that the illusion of control had ingrained itself into our very nature as Americans. That act of terror, on September 11, 2001, brought that belief crashing down, almost immediately. Fear and anger were rampant though out America; a dangerous combination when it comes to charging out a Congressional bill. The scariest parts of The USA PATRIOT ACT, in my opinion, are not just the arguably unconstitutional sections proposed in the Act, but the timing and expedition of legislation. To pro pose a bill that remained indifferent in regards to sacrificing civil liberties for the sake of enhanced security. The Bill was voted in with near unanimity, 98-1 in the Senate and 357-66 in the House of Representatives near after. Considering the margins of the votes, it makes one wonder if anyone in Congress even bothered to read the bill. Perhaps a good portion of our legislators were fearful to look unpatriotic, by objecting a radical bill dubbed The USA PATRIOT Act. As an old phrase goes, the nail that stands-out, gets hammered. The congressional legislative process is supposed to be deliberately slow; ensuring that what is proposed is in fact constitutional. One of the more serious issues with the USA PATRIOT Act, is the ambiguity of crucia... ...e of the United States. Congressional acts with the means to side-step The Bill of Rights should be amended to protect any rights in question, no matter the current state of affairs. Arguments such as this paper are a crucial means to formulating a variety of perspective. Regardless of a person’s stance on The USA PATRIOT Act, we must take a look back into our history, and make sure we are honoring those who sacrificed so much more than we, for the civil liberties we have been afforded. Americans cannot allow fear to dictate the policies of our country, and should never allow our Congress or President use a National tragedy to proper un-amended, controversial policies. This is the United States of America, we can do better. "Where the people fear the government you have tyranny. Where the government fears the people you have liberty." (John Basil Barnhill 1914)

Electronic media Essay

Man has a nature of curiosity. He always engages with doing something unique. In the past century they explored in many field. It was a time when a man could hardly think about the unbelievable development that is within reach now. Media is a mean of transmitting the message, thought, opinion and view point. In the beginning, man used horse and other animal to send the message to the receiver. It took time to deliver the message and the probability of spoiling the message was on the top. Now man has entered the age of science and technology. They have explored . They have got a tremendous achievement in many field as well as Electronic Media. We are living in the era of electronic media. None can avoid and escape from it. It is prevailing profound effects on advertisement, education, information, politics and other social activities. Electronic media has revolutionized the information system. Now everyone can be aware himself with current information and updates. So many TV channels in the country and internet websites justify the importance and advantages of electronic media where everyone has a freedom to exchange his view point freely. The electronic media has both effects, positive and negative. If it is playing a negative role, on the other hand it is educating, informing and entertaining the societies too. Today people are getting aware of their rights through the media. Many social programs on TV are presented to set the minds of the masses. Today’s youths try to find the answers to their questions and demand the authorities to account for because media has disclosed all that the new generation has to be aware of. As Pakistani media is pointing out crimes, ministers holding fake degrees, terrorism and inflation etc, it is appreciable because the responsible people can be brought to book in this way. Thus, the media, whatever– be print or the electronic media– its importance at least in the modern world cannot be denigrated. While we are sitting in our drawing rooms at home, we can get all the information of all happenings around the world. We get a sea of knowledge and all the information, relaxing at home. So much so good, but, what we notice today, with the freedom of the press taking new proportions, the media is becoming slightly out of control and also partial. The latest trend in the media is that it has become tainted with signs of extreme partiality. I personally feel that, the media is at times overstepping its limits and to some extent misusing its freedom. The job of the media is just to give information of what happens and not to add its own partial views to the information. The job of the media should remain restricted only to reporting facts as to when and how they occur, and leave the readers to form their own opinions. However, this is no truer of the modern trends of the media. They get news and paint them as per their own personal leanings and beliefs. This I’d say is not correct reporting as, it is likely to colour the views of the readers/ viewers. The task of the media is just to report and not colour the views of the people. It would be good if the media restricts itself only to passing On correct and exact information only, without any comments for or against any political party it would be doing its job correctly and sincerely.

The Catcher in The Rye: Depression Catcher

American Lit 12, March 2012 Depression Catcher Do you have helpless outlook on your life? One minute it's an outburst of anger. The next you're crying uncontrollably. Do you need help? The Catcher In The Rye is a novel based of the main character’s point of view, his name is Holden Caulfield. Set in 1950s New York and California, where Holden is a mental hospital telling us, the readers, about his few days after leaving Pency. The movie Ferris’ Bullers Day Off , also set in Chicago, is a movie based in the 1980s. Ferris makes his friends skip school and run all around town trying to make Cameron have fun.In both the film and novel, you see many examples of depression and suicidal thoughts from both Holden and Cameron. Teenagers face a lot of pressures, from puberty to questions about who they are and where they fit in. In The Catcher In The Rye, Holden runs away from his fancy high school, Pency, 3 days before break begins. He felt isolated with no friends. â€Å"I alm ost wished I was dead† (48). Holden had just gotten in a fight with his roommate, Stradlater. Now Ackley was trying to have a conversation about the fight with Holden but he keeps talking nonsense to Ackley.In Ferris’ Buellers Day Off, Cameron, Ferris’ best friend always seems to be sick. His family isn’t really in his life and when they are, they seems to only bring him down. In the beging scene of Cameron, he is in bed acting like he’s dying. Holden says: â€Å".. she wouldn't've been the ones that answered the phone. My parents would be the ones. So that was out† (pg. 59). He doesn’t seem to have a great relationship with his parents either. Holden wants to talk to his little sister Pheobe or anyone for that matter. He feels isolated within himself which makes him depressed.Cameron is the same in that he is very awkward and no one really seems to want to be friends with him. Towards the end of the book, Holden takes a visit to see P heope but is unable to find her. He looks in the park and museum. â€Å"The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was. Nobody'd move. You could go there a hundred thousand times, and that Eskimo would still be just finished catching those two fish, the birds would still be on their way south, the deer would still be drinking out of that water hole, with their pretty antlers and their pretty, skinny legs, and that squaw with the naked bosom ould still be weaving that same blanket† (pg. 121). Therefore, Holden would love to live in a world where everything stays frozen, where nothing changes. This way, Holden can never grow up to be an adult. Cameron is very mad after they got the car back because of all the miles that were added. He goes in to shock and is unable to move. Ferris and Sloan try their best to get him out of it but he won’t budge. While at the pool, Cameron falls in, almost committing suicide. Ferris jumps in to save.Cameron starts to laugh saying â€Å"I got you good†. Holden goes home to find Pheobe. Phoebe is the only person Holden seems to actually like and have a stable friendship throughout the novel. She is the only one who tries to push him to do better: â€Å"You don't like any schools. You don't like a million things† (pg. 169). When Holden hears this, he becomes upset and states: â€Å"`I do! That's where you're wrong-that's exactly where you're wrong! Why the hell do you have to say that†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ I said. Boy, was she depressing me. Holden and Cameron are depressed teenagers who have suicidal thoughts because of depression. Depression: severe despondency and dejection, accompanied by feeling of hopelessness and inadequacy, a condition of mental disturbance, typicaly with lack of energy and difficulty in maintaining concentration or interest in life. People who are depressed don’t look for a way out. They have zero motivation and are always second guess ing stuff. They think the only way out is death; suicide. Just like what Holden and Cameron seem to feel.

Piaget vs Vygotsky Essay

Initially the study of lifespan development rose due to Darwin’s desire to understand human evaluation (Boyd & Bee, 2006). Developmental psychology is concerned with the changes of people during their life span including motor skill changes, problem solving changes, moral understanding changes, but it is originally concerned with these changes during infancy and childhood (Boyd & Bee, 2006). Without any doubts, Jean Piaget (1896-1980) and Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934), are two major contributors who have affected developmental psychology with their theories on human development. According to Lerman (1996), Piaget and Vygotsky belong to two different traditions; Piaget belongs to the constructivism perspective that sees learning as construction and Vygotsky to the activity theory perspective that sees learning as an appropriation. According to Piaget, cognitive development results from the development of the brain, acquiring new abilities and experiences, thus he separated development into stages (as cited in Santrock, 2008). Piaget developed four stages the sensori-motor stage (0-2 years) where the infant is trying to make sense of the world, and acquires the development of object permanence (Shaffer & Kipp, 2007). The pre-operational stage (2-7 years) where language development, animism, egocentrism and the use of symbols hallmark this stage (Shaffer &Kipp, 2007). The concrete operational stage (7-11 years) where children start classifying objects and are able to conserve and think logically about objects and events (Shaffer & Kipp, 2007). And the formal operational stage (11 years and beyond) where children develop hypothetico-deductive reasoning and imaginary audience and believe in the uniqueness of oneself and one’s experiences (Shaffer & Kipp, 2007). On the other hand, Vygotsky developed his sociocultural theory indicating that cognitive development is promoted in a â€Å"sociocultural† context which influences the form it takes (Shaffer & Kipp, 2007). Furthermore, Vygotsky indicated that many of the child’s most important cognitive functions develop from social interactions with parents, teachers and other more competent associates. Moreover, Vygotsky elaborated his Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) where the child is the learner and can manage independently and the difference between what the children can learn with guidance of a more skilled and competent partner and expect further cognitive growth, by internalising the help of the skilled partner (Shaffer & Kipp, 2007). Starting on the debate and trying to shed light upon the different approaches on development from Piaget and Vygotsky, the differences on egocentric speech and language will be analyzed. Vygotsky in one of his main books published in 1934 â€Å"Thought and Language† wrote about Piaget â€Å"Psychology owes a great deal to Jean Piaget. It is not an exaggeration to say that he revolutionised the study of child language and thought† (Vygotsky, 1962, p.9). Though, even if he exalted Piaget he differed his approach around the concepts of egocentric speech and egocentrism. In line with Vygotsky (1962, p. 14-15), the outcome of the observations of Piaget led him to the conclusion that children’s speech can be divided only in two distinct entities, the egocentric speech and socialized speech. The difference between them is due to their functions, during egocentric speech the child talks only about him having no interest in other people and expecting no answers, whereas socialized speech attempts exchanges with other people. According to Vygotsky, the conclusions of Piaget showed that the majority of preschool children talk is egocentric, though when the child reaches school age, egocentric speech declines (Vygotsky, 1962, p. 16).Vygotsky differed his view from Piaget on egocentric speech believing that it has a specific function and this function other than its communicative role, it also serves as a thinking tool and as a tool to solve problems (Vygotsky, 1962, p. 18). Piaget and Vygotsky seem to agree that inner speech develops from egocentric speech which leads to logical thinking, though Vygotsky highlighted language as an apparatus of thought other than another way of expression. On the other hand, Piaget awarded to language a less significant role than Vygotsky toward the development of thought (Piaget, 1970). Moreover, Vygotsky praised the use of language and egocentric speech as thinking tools which promote development, but Piaget disagrees indicating that Vygotsky could not understand that egocentrism could be a main obstacle for learning, concluding that language can also reduce learning and development (Piaget, 1962). Another main issue where Vygotsky and Piaget collide is the role of the social and the role of the individual in learning. Piaget indicates that teaching is divided in two sides, the one is the rising individual, and the other side consists of social, intellectual, and moral values that the educator attempts to transmit (Piaget, 1969). Piaget’s aim was to make children capture the solution of the problem on their own strength, self-regulation, and their own experiences rather than receiving help from any rules or from a more skilled individual (Piaget, 1969). Thus, Piaget points out that learning is not social, and that the individual on his own entirely captures the surrounding knowledge. On the contrary, Vygotsky who belongs to the activity theory indicates that learning is an active process from the child’s perspective, and that the child can duplicate culturally accumulated knowledge with assistance from social support (Vygotsky, 1962). The outstanding difference in learning is that Piaget perceives the individual as the onset of learning and also children can learn through repetitive interaction and experience with the environment, moreover the egocentric speech serves as a tool for logical thinking, though it can also intricate the meaning (Piaget, 1969). On the other hand, Vygotsky is emphasising more that an individual (child) cannot produce knowledge and learn without the verbal interaction and activity of other probably more skilled individuals (Vygotsky, 1962). Thus, Piaget seems to combine and emphasise on both the individual side and the social side, whereas Vygotsky emphasises more on one side, the social side. Additionally, Vygotsky proposes that knowledge arrives from the outside, on the contrary though Piaget points out that learning lies on a child’s innate capability. Piaget was mainly affected from his biological roots which influenced his approach on human development, and Vygotsky was influenced by the Marxist tradition forming his own ideas about human development and that is where the foundational difference lies on these two approaches on the essence of humanness (Newman & Holzman, 1993). On the contrary to Piaget who has strongly settled in a biological worldview and asserts human development in the adaptation to the environment, Vygotsky emphasizes on the centrality of transformative collaborative practices by individuals who do not adapt to their environment but as a whole transform it, and through this transformation also alter themselves and acquire their own status and essence (Newman & Holzman, 1993). For Piaget what promotes cognitive growth is disequilibration, a revolution made from the connection of two elemental processes. Concurrences with the world were either adapted, assimilated to anterior existing mental functions, or prevailing functions were altered to accommodate them. According to Piaget, there is this double connection between assimilation and accommodation highlighting that this double connection leads to cognitive growth, but none of these two functions can serve on its own the purpose of cognitive growth (Bruner, 1990). On the other hand, Vygotsky did not attribute to the mind this logical calculus. For Vygotsky, the mind is determined to consist of processes for attributing experience with meaning. Vygotsky indicated that meaning does not entirely depend upon language but also on the ability to apprehend the cultural context where language is used (Bruner, 1990). Vygotsky believed that cognitive growth would be promoted by acquiring essential order culturally allocated symbolic structures, with each of these symbolic structures having the ability to blend or switch pre-existing knowledge (Bruner, 1990). Additionally, these essential orders are manufactured by culture and cognitive growth is not formed by the biological perspective unless they are aided by language and culture which rely upon endured social interactions. Piaget was mainly concerned with the balanced order of mental development, whereas Vygotsky was merely concerned with how other more skilled individuals or the society implement the cultural patterning that constructs the process of cognitive growth and makes development achievable. According to Vygotsky’s general genetic law of cultural development any function the childe displays during his cultural development will appear two times. Firstly, it will appear in the social stage and then on the psychological stage. For Vygotsky, the unit of analysis is the individual engaging in social activities rather than psychological activity of the individual’s characteristics, arguing with Piaget’s position that children’s development must precede learning, Vygotsky’s position was that the development process lies behind the learning process. These two major theorists seem to disagree ontologically about learning due to the fact that Piaget is a constructionist and Vygotsky belongs to the activity theory. Ontologically constructivism indicates that there is no reality that exists outside of human thinking, whereas the activity theory points out that for everything that exists it does include physical characteristics. Furthermore, constructivism indicates that knowledge and thinking are inextricably on people’s brains and they just construct from their personal experiences. On the contrary, the activity theory indicates that knowledge is formed from a social negotiation involving people. Another issue which differs Vygotsky’s approach from Piaget’s is that the Piagetian theory does not provoke that children perform tasks that are far away from their cognitive capabilities. The teacher simply prepares the environment for the child’s developmental level of mental operations, concluding that the child is limited by its own developmental stage. On the other hand, Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development welcomes the child to attempt beyond its potential mental capabilities. Both theorists have contributed with their approaches of human development. The Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget and the Russian Lev Vygotsky consequently influenced from their environments and cultures and also from their beliefs in constructivism and the activity theory formed their approaches on human development were in some parts seem to agree, but have major differences between them. Most critiques reflecting on these two approaches seem to weigh more on Piaget due to the fact that several developmental tasks he applied on children especially in the pre-operational stage are not clearly stated and it seemed that Piaget often underestimated children’s mental capabilities. Piaget claimed that pre-operational children cannot decentre on the ‘three mountain task’ though new studies have shown that by altering the objects with something more familiar, children were able to decentre. Also in some other Piagetian tasks children performed better than expected by Piaget. And that has revealed that Vygotsky’s approach to the socio-cultural aspect seems more appropriate than Piaget’s constructivist approach. REFERENCE LIST: Boyd, D. & Bee, H. (2006). Lifespan Development (4th. Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Bruner, J. (1990). Acts of meaning. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Lerman, S. (1996). ‘Intersubjectivity in Mathematics Learning: A Challenge to the Radical Constructivist Paradigm?’ Journal for Research in Mathematics Education Vol. 27 2, pp.211-223. Newman, F., & Holzman, L. (1993). Lev Vygotsky: Revolutionary Scientist. London: Routledge. Piaget, J. (1962). Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks concerning ‘The Language and Thought of the Child’, and ‘Judgement and Reasoning in the Child’. Cambridge: Massachusetts, The M.I.T. Piaget, J. (1969). Psykologi og paedagogik Copenhagen: Hans Reitzell. Piaget, J. (1970). Genetic Epistemology. New York: Columbia University. Santrock, J., W. (2008). A topical approach to life-span development (4th Edition). New York City: McGraw- Hill. Shaffer, D., R., & Kipp, K. (2007). Developmental Psychology: Childhood & Adolescence (7th Edition). Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth. Vygotsky, L., S. (1962). Thought and Language Cambridge: Massachusetts, The M.I.T. View as multi-pages