Financial information management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Financial information management - Essay Example For instance due to financial crisis many western countries invested a significant portion of their funds in the equities of growing Asian countries like China and India. This is known as international diversification and enables an investor in tackling the country specific risk. The integration of the global financial markets has facilitated the creation of international portfolio which besides mitigating the risk factor helps in taking advantage of the markets of the developing economies. A share portfolio generally comprises of securities of various sectors. For effective diversification the sectors should be non-related such as oil refining companies and automobile. A rise in the price of oil is beneficial for the oil refining company but this can adversely impact the sales of the automobile company. This will push up the share price of the oil refining companies but will batter the share price of the automobile companies. Thus the value of the portfolio will remain protected as the fall in its value due to a fall in the share price of automobile company like Rolls Royce will be compensated by the rise in the price of the oil refining company. This highlights the advantage of investing in a portfolio. The share portfolio that has been constructed comprises of securities belonging to varied sectors like pharmaceutical, healthcare, food & drug retailers, financial services, software etc. By including the stocks of different sectors, the risk of a fall in the portfolio value has been minimized. Any adverse, ‘sector specific’ news will only affect the shares of that particular sector, without influencing the share price of the other sectors. This will keep the portfolio value intact which is the ultimate aim of investing in a portfolio. In the IT industry the stock chosen is Autonomy Corporation. The company features among the top Software 500 companies published by Software Magazine (Financial Express, 2009). This ranking is based in terms of

Locke and Hobbes Essay Example for Free

Locke and Hobbes Essay How does the founders view of power affect the framers reactions to John Locke? According to Locke, how does man enter the political society and what is the purpose of that society? What obligations does the government have in the civil society? What obligation does the individual have? How do Hobbes and Locke differ? Do you think Americans would agree with Locke? You may read the first paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence to assist you. What evidence do you have to support your view? The founders believed that the power of government should be limited, so it doesnt trample on peoples natural rights. The framers thus wrote in guarantees that the government could not usurp individual freedoms. Locke believed that citizens gave their consent to the government so that society would operate freely and safely. Government should ensure equal opportunity and protection of political and property rights. The individual is obligated to participate in the political process, but abide by the governments rules. Hobbes is more pessimistic about how violent the state of nature would be and is therefore willing to give the government more power than Locke is. Yes, Americans seem happy that the government has power, but individuals retain rights as well. Unlike many countries, the United States has never had a revolt against its government in the last 200 years (The Civil War was something very different.)

Political Issues In The Presidential Election Of 1960 History Essay

Political Issues In The Presidential Election Of 1960 History Essay In this paper, there will be an examination of the main political issues in the presidential election of 1960. This paper will also inform the reader of what influenced voters and factors such as the nations and the candidates past history, the image of the candidates and priming that took place during this campaign, and also how fraudulent voters had an effect on this election. To begin, the 1960s are known as the era of youth. Seventy million children from the post-war baby boom became teens and young adults. There was movement away from the conservative 1950s to a more revolutionary way of thinking. This was a time of change in lifestyles, entertainment, education and laws. The Supreme Court decided that prayer in public schools was unconstitutional. Political arenas and social issue out breaks formed over the chaos of race and a push for equality and black unity. College campuses became the center of debates and protest, from the civil rights movement supporting black activists such as Martin Luther King, Jr. with peaceful protest to Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael representing Black Nationalism and the Black Panther Party. The number of Hispanic Americans tripled during this period to become recognized as the oppressed minority, and the American Indian population who were unemployed formed violent riots. The Cold War had no definite start date, though it began as WWII was ending in Europe. When the United States dropped atomic bombs on two cities of Japan, it forced the Japanese government to surrender, signifying the end of conflict in the Pacific. The ending of WWII led to United States and the Soviet Union (Russia) engaging in an arms race. The Soviets were unhappy with the United States as their former allies and were unwilling to share atomic technology, thus leaving the United States to use information-gathering techniques otherwise known as spy planes. The 1960s shadowed one of the great embarrassments to the United States that encouraged a marked relapse in its relations with the Soviet Union, the U-2 spy plane episode. An American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. The United States was forced to admit the planes role as a secret surveillance aircraft when the Soviet government beared its remains and surviving pilot. Along with spy, planes there were many oth er issues the United States had been involved in during this time with other countries (Goldman, Lillian). At the end of World War II, fears of a communist subversion also heightened as Fidel Castro led the transformation of Cuba into a one party socialist republic and Cubas revolutionary government became economically and militarily dependent on the Soviet Union. The Cuban Missile Crisis occurred between the United States, the Soviet Union, and Cuba during the Cold War. In September 1962, the Cuban and Soviet governments placed nuclear missiles in Cuba. When United States military intelligence discovered the weapons, the U.S. government did all it could to ensure the removal of the missiles. The Space Race was a competition between the United States and the Soviet Union in the exploration of outer space. It involved revolutionary efforts to launch artificial satellites, send man into space, and land him on the moon. The Space Race took place during the Cold War and had its start in the missile-based arms race between the two nations. It effectively began with the Soviet launch of the first Earth-orbiting artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, in 1957 (Goldman, Lillian). Moreover, the election of 1960 began. The United States presidential election of 1960 marked the end of Dwight D. Eisenhowers two terms as President. Eisenhowers Vice President was Richard Nixon, who was now running himself for the Republican nomination, along with New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater, while the Democrats nominated Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy, Texas Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson, Missouri Senator Stuart Symington, Former governor of Illinois Adlai Stevenson, and Minnesota Senator Hubert Humphrey. The electoral vote was the closest since the election between T. Woodrow Wilson of New Jersey and Charles Hughes of New York in 1916 where Wilson edged out Hughes by a margin of 277 to 254. The electoral vote totals in the election of 1960 were not as close with Kennedys 303 to Nixons 219 (Carney, Francis M). In the popular vote, Kennedys victory was among the closest ever in American history. Kennedy garnered 49.7% of the popular vote while Nixon held 49.6% . However, an election is not based on the popular vote but the electoral vote. The electors actually cast the vote, meaning a president without the popular vote can be elected president. The 1960 election is still of great debate historically among many people as to whether voter fraud in selected states benefited Kennedys victory, which was one of the major issues within this election. The election consisted of 531 electoral votes plus the addition of 2 U.S. Senators votes and 1 U.S. Representatives vote from both Alaska and Hawaii. On January 3 and August 21 of 1959, Alaska and Hawaii were granted statehood allowing the states to participate in their first presidential election. This was merely only one of the firsts during the election. This was also the first election where a candidate carried more than half the states (Nixon with 26) but lost the presidency, and it was the first election in which the four debates were nationally televised which is another major factor resulting to Kennedys victory. Accepting the nomination before a crowd of 75,000 people in Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Senator Kennedy introduced (4President Corporation). The New Frontier of the 60s. We stand today on the edge of a new frontier the frontier of the 1960s a frontier of unknown opportunities and perils a frontier of unfulfilled hopes and threats. This resulted in the Democratic slogan, And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your country(4President Corporation). Kennedys campaign promises amounted to many as he recognized the nation as having fallen behind the Soviet Union in the Cold War militarily and economically and promised to get America moving again. He recognized the fear of becoming a communist country and promised to fight against it. He identified himself with the liberal form tradition of the Democratic Party of Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman and promised a new surge of legislative innovation in an attempt to win the vote of conservative Catholics and to show he encouraged the civil rights movement. Kennedy supported a higher minimum wage, increased unemployment compensation, a broader federal housing program, and safer working conditions. He assured farmers of a fair share of national income; his surplus food distribution and food-for-peace bills received wide support from both urban and rural organizations. As Senator, Kennedy drafted a 10-point plan to provide older people with housing, medical care, and recreational faci lities. He also sponsored a bill to provide for hospital, nursing, and medical care for older citizens (4President Corporation). In addition, as Chairman of the Government Operations Subcommittee, Kennedy guided The Hoover Commission bill, which estimated to ultimately save the taxpayers $4 billion annually (4President Corporation). Aside from his promises, Kennedy was a member of the Senate Rackets Committee. This committee battled relentlessly to free American labour and management from racketeers, hoodlums, and union busters. Senator Kennedy also spent four years in the military services and fourteen years in Congressional service, thus familiarizing himself with several branches of the U.S. Government (4President Corporation). Kennedys candidacy was controversial because no Roman Catholic had ever been elected president. However, Kennedy was aware of the dangers of mixing religious and political organizations. He strongly promoted the separation of church and state: It is my firm belief that there should be separation of church and state as we understand it in the United States that is, that both church and state should be free to operate, without interference from each other in their respective areas of jurisdiction (letter to Glenn L. Archer, 23 February 1959). Also initially criticized by some Democratic Party elders, including former President Harry Truman, Kennedy was viewed as too youthful and inexperienced to be President; these critics suggested that he should agree to be the running mate for a more experienced Democrat. Despite the criticism, Kennedy continued his run for presidency and selected Lyndon Johnson to be his running mate. In contrast, Kennedys opponent Richard Nixons campaign promised to campaign in all fifty states; he also pledged to keep the federal government from dominating the free market economy in the lives of the American people. He promised he was not going to join the parade of those who promise to spend more while ignoring the reality of the present situations. He acknowledged that the cost of living was rising and more government spending would only add to inflation, hurting those people it was meant to help. He indicated a budget cut, not increase, and suggested it would be an act of total irresponsibility to promise additional federal billions that were simply not available. Nixon promoted and encouraged tax cuts and presented a plan for economic growth and deficit reduction that appealed to many. Nixon also wanted to make considerable progress toward balancing the federal budget so that millions of Americans could make possible balancing their family budgets and promised to not neglect education (4President Corporation). Like Kennedy, Nixon had military time. Nixon joined the Navy to serve in World War II, rising to become a lieutenant commander and resigning in 1946. In 1947, he was elected a U.S. Representative. In addition, in 1950 he became a U.S. Senator, where he worked until being selected as Eisenhowers running mate in 1953, becoming one of the youngest Vice Presidents in American history. This contributed to Nixons presidential campaign in 1960, when he chose Henry Cabot Lodge to run as his Vice President (4President Corporation). Candidates tend to focus their electoral campaigns either on policy issues or on personal images. Social psychologists idea of priming stresses a notionally conceivable campaign strategy for treating image and issues as interconnected strategic concerns. Evidence suggests that Kennedy deliberately used these popular strategies to shape the electorates standards for evaluating his personal attributes rather than to win over helpful maximizing voters (The Structure of Electoral Politics 362). Sneaky unclear policy positions and attractive personal images of strength, boldness, competitiveness, honesty, and trustworthiness, project a favourable personal attribute and image. How ever, this is a risky strategy for holding together a party base and attracting wavering voters. Priming is a way to understand the unification of image and issues in campaign strategies. This process suggests that candidates use popular policy issues to influence the electorates standards for evaluating their personal attributes. Priming focuses public attention on certain topics and provides the main basis for evaluation. Because mass media provides individuals with much information, it can be considered a priming stimulus. The message communicated through and by the media during an election significantly influences the attitudes and information that are likely to be retrieved and incorporated into voters judgments (Issues, Candidate Image, and Priming 528). During the Kennedy campaigns, Louis Harris, polling engineer and conductor serving on the Kennedy strategy committee, used inventive public opinion surveys to heighten the interest and skill in using position taking to shape the candidates image taking limited information about voters policy preferences. Harris devoted a section of his surveys to tracking and analysing the publics image of Kennedys personality and his job performance. Kennedys aides carefully tracked their candidates image and attempted to identify his perceived personal characteristics that were considered unfavourable. The campaign wanted to identify issues that both appealed to party activists and responded to the concerns of the centrist voters (Issues, Candidate Image, and Priming 529). The campaign introduced major innovations in terms of number, structure, and political use of opinion polls. Campaigns draw on analysis of individual perceptions and distinctions between availability and accessibility of public information and attitudes. Kennedys campaign objective was to use priming to construct an image that would be noticeably different from Nixons. They decided to fashion a move- ahead image for Kennedy to demonstrate a large difference between the Republican and Democratic candidates. The campaign used popular policy issues as part of a priming strategy, along with salient accessible issues in order to construct an appealing image of the candidate as competent and caring. Priming is supported in evidence found in records and interviews, as well as in a combination of both interpretive and quantitative analysis (Identifying the Persuasive Effects of Presidential Advertising 960). His campaign polls were based on personal interviews with large representative sampl es in separate states. Many of the states were polled at multiple occasions. There were sixty-six polls during the primary and general election campaign; twenty-six of them were between September and November, meaning that the polls were bunched into six weeks. The questions what is the most important problem? and what do you think can be done? measure the importance of an issue, which tells how a particular policy area is ranked compared to other issues (Issues, Candidate Image, and Priming 530). Kennedy cautiously reacted to the area divisions and the public opinion; in terms of the Democratic Party, Kennedy was thoroughly guided by polling on voters concerns. His success in using this strategy confirms the role of competitive elections and leadership selection. Public opinion became more influential during and after the nationally televised debates. The first debate was over domestic issues. Questions were asked of both Nixon and Kennedy to address their position on farm surpluses, expanding welfare programs for schools, teacher salaries, medical care, reducing the federal debt, and their opinion on communist threats to our national security. An estimated 80 million viewers watched the first debate. TV viewers believed Kennedy had won; he was well rested before the first debate and appeared tanned, confident, and relaxed during the debate. In contrast, Nixon insisted on campaigning until just a few hours before the first debate and had not completely recovered from his hospital stay for his knee injury, thus looking pale and sickly, as well as underweight and tired. Resulting from his refusal to wear makeup for the first debate, his beard stubble showed particularly on the eras black-and-white TV screens. Radio listeners believed Nixon had won. However, after the debate had ended, polls showed Kennedy moving from a slight shortfall into a slight lead over Nixon (Vancil, David L., and Sue D. Pendell). The second debate addressed issues dealing with the defence of two small islands off the Chinese mainland named Quemoy and Matsu, civil rights, and the U-2 flight incident. Political observers at the time believed that Nixon had won this debate as well as the third debate, which was also based on the Quemoy and Matsu island problem and questions over the US economy. The fourth debate was considered the strongest of the four debates by both candidates but was still seen as a draw. This debate focused on nuclear weapon testing and foreign policies (Kraus, Sidney). On October 2, 1960, during a sit-in in Atlanta, Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested and sentenced to a four-month term in prison. He was taken to the state prison at Reidsville, Georgia. Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy called Coretta Scott King to express sympathy. Kennedy then contacted Georgias Governor Ernest Van diver seeking Kings release from Reidsville Prison. King was released after eight days in jail. This ultimately resulted in Kennedy receiving more black votes and more votes from northern/Midwestern cities. On the contrary, Nixon remained uninvolved in this issue. Eisenhower was a strong supporter of Nixon throughout the election. He made strong campaigns for Nixon and began a tour on behalf of the Republican candidate over the last ten days before elections, which lead to a boost leaving Nixon and Kennedy at a tie. The support of Eisenhower resulted in rural suburban areas in the Midwest favouring Nixon. Although, when President Eisenhower was asked to give one example of a major idea of Nixons that he adopted, his reply was, If you give me a week I might think of one. I dont remember,(Eleanor Roosevelt, John Kennedy, and the Election of 1960). which ended up damaging Nixons campaign. When regarding fraud in this election, the first issue addressed are the claims made that mobster Giancana had connections with the Kennedy family and is believed to have influenced the election in Illinois and assisted in Kennedys defeat of Nixon. Giancana and Kennedy also were believed to be sharing the same mistresses and passing information to each other through her. At the end of the election, Kennedy was also accused of voter fraud in states and counties including Fannin County and Angelina County, Texas, where more votes were casted then registered. Fraudulent voters were accused in Cook County, and Chicago, Illinois, as well. Kennedy won Hawaii and Illinois; he carried twelve states total, including all northeast and southern states except for North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas. Kennedy also carried California; however, he lost the state to Nixon. Nixon won California and carried six states, all but three western states including California, and Ohio, which was his biggest victory. Nixon also carried Hawaii, although he ended up losing the state to Kennedy after absentee ballots were counted. Nixons campaign staff encouraged a recount in Illinois, Missouri, and New Jersey, but Nixon declined. Eventually Nixons chairman challenged eleven stated to be recounted, but the only overturned state was Hawaii. Respectfully, Richard Nixon refused to call for any recounts or investigations, under the sham that such an action might cause a constitutional crisis. Moreover, influences in the presidential election of 1960 that affected the electoral behaviour consisted of the issues shadowing from World War II, the issues ahead leading into the Cold War and political movements within the nation, the use of priming, and the suspicion of fraud during the election.

Plane Nuts :: essays research papers

Plane Nuts The date was May 26, 2005, and was a day that my life would change forever. I walked out of the flight attendant group interview session (a â€Å"cattle call† if you will) with a good feeling. Now, I played the waiting game, will I or won’t I receive a letter in the mail inviting me to training. What seemed like an eternity, in actuality was a week, I received the letter. I ran upstairs to my apartment, and on the way up noticed it was a very thin envelope. I opened the letter with a bit of hesitation and read the first line. â€Å"Congratulations Daniel Shultz, you have been accepted into training class 9-01 starting June 13th, 2001† I was ecstatic and already packing. Training was in Indianapolis, the core of boredom as I came to find out later. Training was six weeks long and brutal. My airline, American TransAir has the second toughest training in the industry. On graduation day, I was happy to finally go home for a few days before moving to San Francisco, my new base. August proved to be a tough month. My first flight was a 16 hour day. The flight was San Francisco-Honolulu-Maui-San Francisco. Of course, this makes sense, sending a first time flight attendant on a 15 hour work day. Needless to say, I learned very quickly from the experienced crew. The people were very demanding, â€Å"Bring me a pillow, bring me playing cards† After that day, I was like, â€Å"Bring me a gun.† My first angry customer came on in Maui. He was an obese man of about 50 years old and had horrendous sunburn. He had given the flight attendant in the front grief already about the plane being late. He, of course was sitting in my section. I walked by him and he uttered â€Å"Gosh, you know what would make me happy, if he these seat were a bit bigger†. I gave a sympathetic glance and agreed with him. What did he want me to do about it, get out my Handy Man kit and make the chairs bigger? My first year of a flight attending was like an actor’s school. I had to keep a face of constant uplifting emotions. I am a confrontational person and in that year learned to grin and bear it. I wasn’t very good at first. For example, I was picking up trash on a New York flight and turned to the lady and said â€Å"Trash†, she gasped and said â€Å"Fuck you†. Plane Nuts :: essays research papers Plane Nuts The date was May 26, 2005, and was a day that my life would change forever. I walked out of the flight attendant group interview session (a â€Å"cattle call† if you will) with a good feeling. Now, I played the waiting game, will I or won’t I receive a letter in the mail inviting me to training. What seemed like an eternity, in actuality was a week, I received the letter. I ran upstairs to my apartment, and on the way up noticed it was a very thin envelope. I opened the letter with a bit of hesitation and read the first line. â€Å"Congratulations Daniel Shultz, you have been accepted into training class 9-01 starting June 13th, 2001† I was ecstatic and already packing. Training was in Indianapolis, the core of boredom as I came to find out later. Training was six weeks long and brutal. My airline, American TransAir has the second toughest training in the industry. On graduation day, I was happy to finally go home for a few days before moving to San Francisco, my new base. August proved to be a tough month. My first flight was a 16 hour day. The flight was San Francisco-Honolulu-Maui-San Francisco. Of course, this makes sense, sending a first time flight attendant on a 15 hour work day. Needless to say, I learned very quickly from the experienced crew. The people were very demanding, â€Å"Bring me a pillow, bring me playing cards† After that day, I was like, â€Å"Bring me a gun.† My first angry customer came on in Maui. He was an obese man of about 50 years old and had horrendous sunburn. He had given the flight attendant in the front grief already about the plane being late. He, of course was sitting in my section. I walked by him and he uttered â€Å"Gosh, you know what would make me happy, if he these seat were a bit bigger†. I gave a sympathetic glance and agreed with him. What did he want me to do about it, get out my Handy Man kit and make the chairs bigger? My first year of a flight attending was like an actor’s school. I had to keep a face of constant uplifting emotions. I am a confrontational person and in that year learned to grin and bear it. I wasn’t very good at first. For example, I was picking up trash on a New York flight and turned to the lady and said â€Å"Trash†, she gasped and said â€Å"Fuck you†.

Penalties for success: Reactions to women who succeed at male gender-typed tasks Essay

Women are subjected to gender-biased evaluations with their performance on male gender-typed tasks often devalued and their competence denied. This result from the inconsistency between stereotypic perceptions of what women is like and the qualities thought necessary to perform a typically male job. The main idea of this article is to demonstrate this phenomenon, to provide insight into why and under what conditions it is likely to occur, and to examine its consequences for how women are evaluated and rewarded in work settings. Key to their argument is the dual nature of gender stereotypes that not only denote differences in how women and men actually are but also denote norms about behaviours that are suitable for each about how women and men should be. Thus behaviours are positively valued for men and typically prohibited for women. Gender stereotypes and the self-fulfilling expectations that they produce prompt bias in evaluations of women. When a woman is acknowledged to have been successful at performing male gender-typed work, her motivation in achievement situations are inhibited by her fear of disapproval for not being feminine. Or there are penalties for women who violate gender-stereotypic prescriptions by being successful are apt to take the form of social censure and personally directed negativity. It states that success can be costly for women in terms of social approval. Competent women for example as compared with competent men have been depicted as cold and undesirable as fellow group and also as severely wanting interpersonally (e.g. bitter, selfish, devious). In their first study, they sought to demonstrate the reactions to women and men on a male gender-typed job when performance on that job was clearly successful rather than ambiguous with regard to performance outcome. They predicted 2 hypothesis:1)In a male gender-typed job, women will be rated as less competent and less achievement oriented than men when information about performance outcome is ambiguous but not when success is clear. 2)In a male gender-typed job, women will be rated as less likable and more interpersonally hostile than men when information about their success is  clear but not when the performance outcome is ambiguousThe result of this study supported those hypotheses. Women were viewed as less competent and characterized as less achievement oriented than men only when there was ambiguity about how successful they had been; when the womens success was made explicit there were no discernible differences in these characterizations. However, when success was made explicit, there was differentiation between women and men in how they were viewed interpersonally hostile. In the second study, the subjects reviewed and evaluated men and women who were all highly successful, but at jobs of different gender types. They expected the following:1)Successful women as compared with successful men will be rated as less likable and more interpersonally hostile when the job is male in gender type but not when it is female or neutral in gender type. The study provided strong support for the hypotheses. So negative reactions to successful women occurred only when the job was male in gender type, but not when it was female or neutral in gender type. Same negative ratings were directed at successful men occupying female gender-typed jobs. But the findings suggest that the failure to act in accordance with gender-stereotypic norms does not uniquely produce social disapproval for men, if it does not the same then for women. The study 3 was focus on the effect of being disliked on how individuals are evaluated and on the types of recommendations made about how they should be treated in work settings. The premise behind this study was that people who are disliked are at a serious disadvantage when evaluations are made and rewards distributed. 1)Information about likability will have a significant effect on overall evaluations and reward recommendations made about both male and female employees regardless of how competent they are. These results suggest that being disliked can have detrimental effects in work settings. The fact that an unlikable individual has a worthy of salary  increase or promotions was found to be true, regardless of whether the individual is a man or woman. There are many things that lead an individual to be disliked but it is only women, not men, for whom a unique propensity toward dislike is created by success in a nontraditional work situation. That is meaning that success can create an additional impediment to womens upward mobility when they have done all the right things to move ahead in their careers. General discussion on this experiment:Success in traditionally male domains can have deleterious consequences for women. They are less liked and more personally derogated as compared with equivalently successful menNegative feelings about successful women can have serious consequences: affect on evaluations, recommended organizational rewards, including salary and special job opportunitiesWomens success would prompt disapproval only in situations in which the success signalled deviation from behaviour deemed appropriate for them (penalties for success only when the job was a male gender-typed)In none of the three studies, female subjects react differently to the stimulus targets than did male subjectsFinally, success in nontraditional areas is double-edged for women. The price is social rejection taking the form of both dislike and personal derogation, and appears to have definite consequences for evaluation and recommendations about reward allocation. Terms like bitch, ice queen, iron maiden, and dragon lady are invoked to describe women who have successfully climbed the organizational ladder. That provide some insight into why despite their success, high-powered women often tend not to advance to the very top levels of organizations.

Ryanair’s Strategic Issues and Suggestion

Ryanair (0704007 business ) their strategy Ryanair's strategy is to offer their services with cheap price. So their competitive advantage is â€Å"Cheaper price† than other rivals. To maintain cheaper price than other rivals, they faces several problems. facing problems There were several challenges faced by low cost carriers in Europe like rising aviation fuel costs, ensuring staff productivity and maintaining a large fleet for expansion. 1. There are lots of airways which is provide cheap fare of flight such as easyjet, Virgin express, Air Berlin and so on.As minor airways use the same routine, minor airports get a purchasing power from the airlines competition. It is hard situation for Ryanair to minimize the fare. 2. The aviation turbine fuel costs fluctuated as economic and political situation changes and increasing demand of fuel. Also, the fuel should be paid by US dollars, so change of exchange rate affects to the fuel cost. Ryanair had not added surcharges like other airlines so that they could maintain lower fares.But increasing fuel cost makes hard to maintain lower price for Ryanair. 3. As I mentioned earlier, there are so many airlines offer cheap fares in Europe. The major competitors of Ryanair were easyJet, bmibaby, Air Berlin, SkyEurope, Wizz Air and Aer Lingus. Also, there were other low cost substitutes like train and tram services in Europe. 4. Ryanair want to expand their business in the European continent as it was becoming popular tourist destination. Also it is planning to expand its network to North Africa.It requires more aircraft, human resources, and agreements with airport authorities and governments. But the incidents of terrorism in UK and Europe, requirements from airport authorities and governments is hard for them. providing solutions 1. As there are quite lots of airlines which offer low fare of flight, they can be united and make a union of lower fare flight. Then they can have a purchasing power to local airports. 2. When the CEO judges the fuel cost goes up and thinks the time of low cost of fuel, CEO can make a long term contract with oil supplier.At this strategy, CEO's judgement is really important. Also, the company can do Forward Trading of oil. 3. Customers choose some airlines by fare and service. As the automatic devices are developed fast, they can reduce the cost by replacing from human resources to automatic devices. But the part of offering services, employees should be focused. 4. Do negotiation with the countries such as North Africa, US etc , then try to be liberalization. After the negotiation, business expansion will be easier.

Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity

Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity Words to Describe Degrees of Religiosity By Maeve Maddox With the topic of religion so much in the air, writers may have use for adjectives to describe various degrees of religious feeling and behavior. The following words have other meanings, but here the focus is on their use to describe people. religious dedicated to religious practice; observant practitioner of a particular religion. The word derives from Latin, possibly the verb religare, to tie back. The word may carry negative connotations for individuals, (Bill Maher, for example), but in general it is a good all-purpose word, in itself neither positive nor negative. pious in earlier writers, pious was used in a positive sense of loyalty to religion, family, and those things for which a person might be expected to feel reverence. Current usage tends to tinge the word with hypocrisy. Ex. His pious remarks about family values concealed the fact that he was sleeping with his neighbors wife. godly pleasing to God. One speaks of a godly person or a godly life. The negative, ungodly, is often used as a term of contempt by religious people to describe anything contrary to their beliefs. fervent derives from a Latin word meaning to boil or to be very hot. A fervent person is one that feels very intensely about a subject. The subject does not need to be religious in nature. One can be a fervent Catholic, or a fervent environmentalist. Or both. zealous This adjective derives from the noun Zealot. The Zealots were members of the sect that worked to drive the Romans out of Palestine during the First Century. They were fanatics who resorted to assassination and other acts of terrorism that eventually resulted in the destruction of the Temple and the expulsion of the Jews from Jerusalem. Zealous, therefore, can carry the sense of intense fanaticism that will stop at nothing to promote its cause. devout from the verb devote, to set apart. The word connotes a sense of consecration. A devout person practices religion from genuine feeling of reverence for the object of worship. sanctimonious Until the 1800s, this word had a positive connotation. It derives from the Latin word for holy. A sanctimonious life could be one that reflects good deeds and devout religious observance. In current usage, however, sanctimonious carries the sense of hypocrisy. Indeed, a common expression is sanctimonious hypocrite. A sanctimonious person is like the Pharisee who prays and gives alms in public so that everyone can admire him for it. A sanctimonious person is always reminding people of their shortcomings. fanatic This word, which also gives us the word fan as in movie fan, comes from Latin fanaticus which had a religious sense. A fanum was a temple where sometimes very wild manifestations of devotion took place. For example, worshippers inspired to a frenzy by the god might cut themselves. A fanatic therefore, is out of control, at least as regards a particular subject. Winston Churchill defined a fanatic as someone who cant change his mind and wont change the subject. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Idioms About NumbersHang, Hung, Hangedâ€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†

AP English Literature - Learn What Score You Need

AP English Literature - Learn What Score You Need AP English Literature and Composition is one of the more popular Advanced Placement subjects. Nevertheless,  roughly 175,000 more students took the AP English Language course and exam in 2018. The literature course is primarily focused on college-level literary analysis, and students who do well on the AP English Literature exam will often earn college credit for composition or literature. About the AP English Literature Course and Exam The AP English Literature course covers important literary works from a range of genres, periods and cultures. Students learn close-reading and analytical skills, and they learn to identify a literary works structure, style, tone, and use of literary conventions such as imagery and figurative language.   Students in AP Literature work at becoming active readers; in other words, they learn to become thoughtful and critical readers who can analyze and appreciate the various writing strategies employed by a wide range of authors.   The course has no required reading list, and individual AP instructors are free to choose any literary works that invite a rewarding reading experience. Genres will include poetry, drama, fiction, and expository prose. Most texts will have been originally written in English and may have originated in the United States, Canada, England, Africa, India, and elsewhere. A few works- such as a Russian classic or Greek tragedy- might be read in translation. The focus of the course, however, is much more on reading and writing skills, not specific authors. On the writing front, students learn to write effective analytical essays that employ a wide-ranging and appropriate vocabulary, effective and varied sentence structures, logical organization, strategic use of both generalization and specific detail, and careful attention to rhetorical forms, voice, and tone. AP English Literature Score Information Many colleges and universities have a composition and/or literature requirement, so a high score on the AP English Literature exam will often fulfill one of these requirements. The AP English Literature and Composition test has a one-hour multiple-choice section and a two-hour free-response writing section. The score on the is based on a combination of the multiple choice section (45 percent  of score) and the free-response essay section (55 percent of score).   In 2018, 404,014 students took the exam and earned a mean score of 2.57. Close to half of those students (47.3 percent) received a score of 3 or higher indicating that they have enough mastery of the subject matter to potentially earn college credit or course placement. The distribution of scores for the AP English Literature exam is as follows: AP English Literature Score Percentiles (2018 Data) Score Number of Students Percentage of Students 5 22,826 5.6 4 58,765 14.5 3 109,700 27.2 2 145,307 36.0 1 67,416 16.7 The College Board has released preliminary score percentages for the 2019 exam. Keep in mind that these numbers may change slightly as late exams are added to the calculations. Preliminary 2019 AP English Literature Score Data Score Percentage of Students 5 6.2 4 15.9 3 28 2 34.3 1 15.6 College Credit and Course Placement for AP English Literature The table below provides some representative data from a variety of colleges and universities. This information is meant to provide a general overview of the scoring and placement information related to the AP English Literature exam. For schools not listed below, youll need to look on the colleges website or contact the appropriate Registrars office to get AP placement information. AP English Literature Scores and Placement College Score Needed Placement Credit Hamilton College 4 or 5 Placement into some 200-level courses; 2 credits for score of 5 and B- or higher in a 200-level course Grinnell College 5 ENG 120 LSU 3, 4 or 5 ENGL 1001 (3 credits) for a 3; ENGL 1001 and 2025 or 2027 or 2029 or 2123 (6 credits) for a 4; ENGL 1001, 2025 or 2027 or 2029 or 2123, and 2000 (9 credits) for a 5 Mississippi State University 3, 4 or 5 EN 1103 (3 credits) for a 3; EN 1103 and 1113 (6 credits) for a 4 or 5 Notre Dame 4 or 5 First Year Composition 13100 (3 credits) Reed College 4 or 5 1 credit; no placement Stanford University - No credit for AP English Literature Truman State University 3, 4 or 5 ENG 111 Introduction to the Short Story (3 credits) UCLA (School of Letters and Science) 3, 4 or 5 8 credits and entry writing requirement for a 3; 8 credits, entry writing requirement and English Comp Writing I requirement for a 4 or 5 Yale University 5 2 credits; ENGL 114a or b, 115a or b, 116b, 117b A Final Word on AP English Literature Keep in mind that another benefit to the successful completion of an AP Literature course is that it helps demonstrate your college readiness in a core subject area. Most of the countrys highly selective colleges and universities have  holistic admissions, and the admissions officers look not just at your GPA, but  how challenging your course work is. Colleges would much rather see you successfully complete a challenging college preparatory class in English than an easy English elective. AP Literature shows that you are taking the most advanced course possible in literature. So even at a school like Stanford that does not award any credit or placement for AP English Literature, your decision to take the class still strengthens your application. To learn more specific information about the AP English Literature exam, be sure to visit the  official College Board website.

Political Heroism as depicted in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance Research Paper

Political Heroism as depicted in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance - Research Paper Example This essay explores the characters, actions, and controversies of the three characters; Valence, Stoddard, and Doniphon, in John Ford’s film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence as a critique of political heroism and an examination of the value, relevance, scope, and limitations of the written law. In the contemporary society, heroism is quite fragile and can be easily destroyed by the media. However, the dialogues between most actors in Ford’s film portray heroism as relative to the level of arrogance an individual can portray. The Man who Shot Liberty Valance sensationalizes the challenges associated with establishing political order in accordance with the rule of law. For example, Stoddard is given credit for killing Liberty Valance who had caused a lot of instability in the town through his violent actions. The wrongful credit enables Stoddard attain great political favors and he ends up a marrying Hallie, a woman who was also loved by Doniphin. Therefore, Stoddard gets fame out of an action done by Doniphon and end up taking away the woman he loved. He even ends up dying unrecognized. Therefore, the man who removed the hindrance to the developments in the town ends up unrecognized. Moreover, Stoddard confesses to a newspaper editor about the true story, the editor ignores the true story and publishes the untruthful one (Stewart, Wayne, and Miles Web). The political aspect of the film focuses on Ransom Stoddard who is considered a hero since people assume he managed to kill the dreaded Liberty Valance. However, the actual hero in the shadows of political reality is Tom Doniphon since he was responsible for the killing under question. The reality of political heroism is evident when shooting of evil Liberty Valance by a civilian is considered a depiction of heroism even in the eyes of law (Stewart, Wayne, and Miles Web). The film addresses the issue of how law shapes the political arena. The

Health Program Evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Health Program Evaluation - Essay Example As the officials in charge of social programs happen to be humans and thus fallible, either deliberately or inadvertently, a strong requirement for accountability keeps them alert and keeps such programs, efficient and productive. As the state run health and social programs happen to be complex and intricate, so far as their scope, implementation, assessment and budgeting is concerned, an accurate and scientific system for the evaluation of such programs enables the state and the citizens in determining and enforcing accountability on the officials and professionals managing such vital programs, that are often so crucial, so far as the stability and progress in a welfare state is concerned. "Program evaluations are systematic studies using scientific research methods to assess how well a program is working (Shipman, 2008, p.1). In the contemporary era of constrained budgets, when health has become a major political and public issue, it is imperative that the agencies managing the health and social programs are able to authenticate the expenses incurred by them in the light of the pragmatic and desirable outcome achieved by them. In that sense, evaluation facilitates the people and the state agencies with the much desired tool, which can be used to gauge as to what extent these programs contribute to the envisaged goals and helps them cross check and improve the performance of such programs on a regular basis. Establishing accountability, so far as health and social programs are concerned becomes a mere exercise in words, unless it is backed by authentic and verifiable data. Accountability can be enforced only if it is supported by concrete evidence that brings it within the framework of legal and statutory remedies. Herein lies the relevance of evaluation. Many experts like to put forward the argument that government agencies have miserably failed, so far as the management of health programs is concerned and the privatization of these services is the only possible panacea. Such individuals fail to see that entrusting such crucial programs in private hands can possibly further augment the scope for inefficiency, as the private firms work purely for profit motives and lack any welfare oriented guidelines. Infact, it simply does not matter who stands at the helm of affairs, whether it is some state official or a private firm. The point that deserves the tax payer's immediate attention is th at what kind and quality of evaluation programs are being employed to analyze such programs It is pivotal that the evaluation programs being used to assess the health or social programs should be accurate enough to solicit a wide range

'Euthanasia is a compassionate response to the suffering of life' Essay

'Euthanasia is a compassionate response to the suffering of life'. Discuss the statement - Essay Example Many individuals believe that life is a very sacred and gifted thing and by taking it away it can be tagged as murder, other people, however have different views. They believe that a person’s life is his own and he/she has the right to do whatever he/she wants with their life, even if it calls for termination (Michael Manning, 1998, pg 45-56). Different individuals have varied opinions about euthanasia which is why there is no definite answer to whether or not euthanasia can be justified as a compassionate response to the suffering of life. On one hand, a person who is on a life supporting device for the past week and has shown no signs of recovery will eventually die so one might as well spare him the misery of the pain, suffering and torture that is accompanied by a life supporting device. Conversely, there have been many incidences where patients have come around and successfully fought the battle for life. Thus, miracles do happen, although rarely but terminating a person’s life without giving him a chance to fight is also considered by many as ‘murder’. The time frame involved is also important to be considered. What are the chances of survival for an aged person who has been in surviving artificially for the past four years as compared to a young girl who went on a machine a day before? Therefore , many aspects, perspectives and differences in opinion must be catered to before a final decision regarding pulling the plug is taken. The name Teri Schiavo should ring a bell in every person’s mind. It has been the most renowned cases in the history of America regarding euthanasia. Teri, at the age of 26 was diagnosed with a neurological condition called PVS also known as the persistent vegetative state according to which she was practically brain dead. Teri’s parents fought against her husband and were adamant to let her live on the

Audit framework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Audit framework - Essay Example Operational audit a review of any part of an organization’s operating procedures and methods for the purpose of evaluating efficiency and effectiveness. And compliance audit – Auditing process is considerably broader than the definition of an audit of historical financial statements and encompasses many attestation and assurance service activities. Definition of auditing is also includes several key words and phrases. In auditing accounting data, the concern is with determining whether recorded information properly reflects the economic events that occurred during the accounting period. Because accounting rules are the criteria for evaluating whether the accounting information is properly recorded, any auditor involved with these data must also thoroughly understand those rules. To do an audit, there must be information in a verifiable form and some standards (criteria) by which the auditor can evaluate the information. Information can and does take many forms. Auditors routinely perform audits of quantifiable information, including companies’ financial statements and individuals’ federal income tax returns. Auditors also perform audits lf more subjective information, such as the effectiveness of computer systems and the efficiency of manufacturing operations. This is a case study for auditing Southern Rock, a high street UK Bank, registered in Southampton. Here audit partner in the firm is â€Å"APMC Auditors† has provided some questions to answer. Answers of the given questions are answered as bellow respectively: The â€Å"going concern† perception is one of the regulatory foundation stone of the financial accounting arena. The spirit of going concern express that the Balance Sheet of a company must be an echo the weight of that company as if it would stay in existence for and beyond the predictable future. In other words, the going concern concept also states that the company would

Black History Disputed Elections in American History Essay

Black History Disputed Elections in American History - Essay Example Nonetheless, some stand out as the ultimate mark of controversy and even legal dispute. With emphasis on electoral discrimination against the African Americans, this paper focuses on the disputed and controversial 1960 and 2004 elections. Despite the serious accusations concerning the 1960 elections, unanimity on the event among historians and experts does not exist. Indeed, most experts and historians tend to support both sides of the claim, but a closer analysis of the data and facts tend to disagree with the viewpoint. Despite the failure of the Republican Party to prove fraud in the elections does not necessarily mean that the election was clean. Despite all the efforts, the issue remains unsolved. Interestingly, the legend leaves out that multiple election boards did not consider overturning the election results, nor federal judges and a special prosecutor from Illinois. Furthermore, numerous academic inquiries concerning the Illinois case conclude that the evident fraud was not substantial enough to challenge the election results (Campbell 87). However, some level of fraud occurred in Cook County. Three people were incarcerated on election-related offences and more than 670 indicted and then acquitted by Judge Karns. Most of the allegations presented involved practices undetectable by a mere recount. According to an article on the issue, nobody clearly knew the winner of the election, and despite the claim by Kennedy that he had won the election, his father cautioned on the vote count in Cook County. Apparently, the close win by Kennedy over Nixon has been a long, contentious debate, with accusations of the former receiving assistance from his father’s mob connections, the powerful Chicago Mayor Daley, and Lyndon Johnson’s connections. In essence, there is no clear evidence that Nixon won both Illinois and Texas, which he had to in order to win the Electoral College Vote, but there was massive voter fraud on behalf of Kennedy in

Business Management Techniques for Engineers Essay

Business Management Techniques for Engineers - Essay Example This essay discusses that the Chief Technology Officer is the ultimate person to whom the progress of the whole project will be reported. It would be the responsibility of the CTO to conduct the whole project and report the final outcomes of the project to the Board of Directors of the company. CTO of the company will assign five sub-committees, in order to bring in the different ideas from various personnel involved at the planning stage. This stage of the project is named as activity A. All of five committees would be assigned to prepare a feasibility report as per their own understanding and knowledge of the project. These four stages would be entitled as activity B, C, D, E and F. After the submission of detailed five feasibility reports, CTO would evaluate every report and discuss it with the CEO of the company. CTO in collaboration with CEO will then approve particular sub committees’ feasibility report and will show his consent in commencing the project. These activitie s are referred as activities G and H. CTO along with his/her team will then decide whether the internal human resource of the company will be necessary enough to complete the project or external hiring should be conducted if the project completion requires special types of skilled workers. Internal human resource utilization activity is referred as activity I and activity pertaining to external hiring of highly specialized workers is referred as activity J.... g other heavy manufacturing projects, therefore, as such there seems no requirement of hiring specialized outside workforce as the company already has various project specialists and technicians who can perform their tasks during this project as well. The decision in favor of capitalizing the internal human resource of the company is referred as activity K. Financial Resources After this decision, the financial resources of the company will be sought in order to make funding arrangements of this project. The finance department of the company will analyze as how to finance this project whether by raising equity or debt or utilizing company’s own internally generated funds. After the establishment of funding resources, the resources will be allocated to different areas of this project. The primary allocation of financial resources involves the payment of salaries and wages to the project workers, procurement of the necessary equipment and tools, purchasing of specialized softwar e packages relating to that particular technology etc. This financial resource activity is referred to as activity L. Procurement Procurement of necessary equipment and tools to be used in the project would be made in the next stage of the project after allotment of allocated funds. These funds will be utilized till the end of the project if any further tools are required at the later stage of the project. Purchase of highly sophisticated project is also one of the areas in which funds would be used. The company would purchase a customized software package with different suits. Appropriate training of that software would also be provided to the specific personnel with those dedicated funds. This procurement activity is referred to as activity M of the project. Technology Implementation After the

Audit framework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Audit framework - Essay Example Operational audit a review of any part of an organization’s operating procedures and methods for the purpose of evaluating efficiency and effectiveness. And compliance audit – Auditing process is considerably broader than the definition of an audit of historical financial statements and encompasses many attestation and assurance service activities. Definition of auditing is also includes several key words and phrases. In auditing accounting data, the concern is with determining whether recorded information properly reflects the economic events that occurred during the accounting period. Because accounting rules are the criteria for evaluating whether the accounting information is properly recorded, any auditor involved with these data must also thoroughly understand those rules. To do an audit, there must be information in a verifiable form and some standards (criteria) by which the auditor can evaluate the information. Information can and does take many forms. Auditors routinely perform audits of quantifiable information, including companies’ financial statements and individuals’ federal income tax returns. Auditors also perform audits lf more subjective information, such as the effectiveness of computer systems and the efficiency of manufacturing operations. This is a case study for auditing Southern Rock, a high street UK Bank, registered in Southampton. Here audit partner in the firm is â€Å"APMC Auditors† has provided some questions to answer. Answers of the given questions are answered as bellow respectively: The â€Å"going concern† perception is one of the regulatory foundation stone of the financial accounting arena. The spirit of going concern express that the Balance Sheet of a company must be an echo the weight of that company as if it would stay in existence for and beyond the predictable future. In other words, the going concern concept also states that the company would

Business Management Techniques for Engineers Essay

Business Management Techniques for Engineers - Essay Example This essay discusses that the Chief Technology Officer is the ultimate person to whom the progress of the whole project will be reported. It would be the responsibility of the CTO to conduct the whole project and report the final outcomes of the project to the Board of Directors of the company. CTO of the company will assign five sub-committees, in order to bring in the different ideas from various personnel involved at the planning stage. This stage of the project is named as activity A. All of five committees would be assigned to prepare a feasibility report as per their own understanding and knowledge of the project. These four stages would be entitled as activity B, C, D, E and F. After the submission of detailed five feasibility reports, CTO would evaluate every report and discuss it with the CEO of the company. CTO in collaboration with CEO will then approve particular sub committees’ feasibility report and will show his consent in commencing the project. These activitie s are referred as activities G and H. CTO along with his/her team will then decide whether the internal human resource of the company will be necessary enough to complete the project or external hiring should be conducted if the project completion requires special types of skilled workers. Internal human resource utilization activity is referred as activity I and activity pertaining to external hiring of highly specialized workers is referred as activity J.... g other heavy manufacturing projects, therefore, as such there seems no requirement of hiring specialized outside workforce as the company already has various project specialists and technicians who can perform their tasks during this project as well. The decision in favor of capitalizing the internal human resource of the company is referred as activity K. Financial Resources After this decision, the financial resources of the company will be sought in order to make funding arrangements of this project. The finance department of the company will analyze as how to finance this project whether by raising equity or debt or utilizing company’s own internally generated funds. After the establishment of funding resources, the resources will be allocated to different areas of this project. The primary allocation of financial resources involves the payment of salaries and wages to the project workers, procurement of the necessary equipment and tools, purchasing of specialized softwar e packages relating to that particular technology etc. This financial resource activity is referred to as activity L. Procurement Procurement of necessary equipment and tools to be used in the project would be made in the next stage of the project after allotment of allocated funds. These funds will be utilized till the end of the project if any further tools are required at the later stage of the project. Purchase of highly sophisticated project is also one of the areas in which funds would be used. The company would purchase a customized software package with different suits. Appropriate training of that software would also be provided to the specific personnel with those dedicated funds. This procurement activity is referred to as activity M of the project. Technology Implementation After the

Discuss and describe a moral panic from a social science perspective Essay Example for Free

Discuss and describe a moral panic from a social science perspective Essay Society is frequently subjected to moral panics when any crime is committed. Humanity repeatedly blows crimes and incidents out of proportion until the entire society is somewhat controlled. Stuart Hall, in his book, ‘Policing the Crisis’ explained that â€Å"the media, in conjunction with the bourgeoisie, create moral panics in order to perpetrate fear and maintain control over society, as a whole.† (Hall, 2013, s. 1) Moral panics are created as a hazard and rising threat to shock both society and culture into changing the way it thinks and acts about problems in the real world. In this essay, moral panics will be looked at in detail with a specific interest in the case of James Bulger. There will too, be a focus on the influence the media, police and politicians have on moral panics and public opinions. Stanley Cohen derived a moral panic as â€Å"a sporadic episode which subjects society to worry about the values and principles which society upholds which may be in jeopardy. The moral panics are a means of characterising the reactions of the media, the public and agents of social control to youthful disturbances.† (Cohen, 1987: 9) The abduction and subsequent murder of the toddler James Bulger, from a shopping centre in Liverpool, was a crime which brought about a huge moral panic in Britain in the 1990’s. A murder of any sort brings about a moral panic, but when the victim, and in this case the defendants, are both children, it attracts overwhelming media attention and a vast moral panic is quickly spread. It has been previously said that it is the most monstrous of crime when a child elects to kill another child. Theories of moral panics are sparked when they are spread; the ‘Grassroots Model’ (Critcher, 2008) theory occurs when the public and media col laborate, consequently leading to fears becoming exaggerated; in the case of James Bulger; ephebiphobia, which is the fear of children and youth. The murder of Bulger made parents realise how defenceless their own children really are, and how they should fear others’ children. The theory suggests â€Å"panics are initiated and generated from the bottom up and are spread about particularly large numbers of people.† This is subsequently shown in the murder of Bulger; the moral panic was initiated from the crime but then soon spread to the media, thus advertising the story which then became public knowledge and the fear of children and youth becomes established and inflated. Marx established the ‘Elite Engineered Model’ which encompasses the ruling elite  manufacturing certain panics to instil fear in society and divert it away from the real problems they are having. In the scenario of the James Bulger murder, those with high ranking in society involved in the case, for example, police, detectives, press and politicians, created the moral panic of the murder in an attempt to divert the public’s opinion away from the shocking crime of two young boys, just 10 years old, not just abducting a toddler from a busy shopping centre in Liverpool, but also killing him in the most vicious way and dumping his body on train tracks in an attempt to cover up what had happened. This is not the behaviour of children; it is the behaviour of evil. Particularly due to the age of the killers, the ferociousness of the crime and the age of the victim, the mass media reports allowed the public to get personally and emotionally involved in the case and have severe anger and resentment towards the children who murdered James Bulger. The public outcry was huge and, the decision by the politicians and press combined to release the names of the killers publicly as Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, allowed the public to finally vent their abuse against the killers. Amid the hysteria in 1993, both Thompson and Venables lost the right to be seen as children, or even as human. The kids who had killed the kid had to be killed, or indeed locked up for life. The word used about them stopped all arguments; they were pure evil.’ (Morrison, 2003) These scandals make any type of child harm seem dramatic and heinous; these crimes force the attention onto those in society who are high ranked, in an attempt to aim for a change to prevent this crime being repeated. The path of any moral panic can sway in two opposing directions; either the panic dies down relatively quickly and is totally forgotten, or it has lasting repercussions for all those i nvolved, whether press, politicians, the police or the public. (Butler, n.d.) In the case of the murder of little James Bulger, there were lasting implications; which included the introduction of the National Sex Offenders Register (Paedophile Register) in the late 1990’s as a response to the growing concern and panic over the recent child sex offences (Cohen 1972:9). The Interest Group Theory involves panic about a given behaviour, in this instance, a child killing another child, and hence due the massive public outcry, the case is more likely to be distorted by the media and the outcome  changed. The Bulger story was iconic and a rare, uncommon case; but lessons should be learnt. A similar crime had previously been committed in the form of the 1861 murder of baby George burgess in Stockport by two eight year olds. Burgess was forced to suffer a horrific attack and the two young boys inflicted shocking injuries upon his body. This crime severely angered the local community and again created a moral panic. In today’s society, thankfully due to the role that the media now plays in the viewing and promoting of crimes, we, as a whole in society, are able to successfully campaign for justice and see those who participated in the crime jailed for as long as they deserve. The concept of moral panics does have some disadvantages; they do tend to be deterministic and can be twisted by the media to blow the event out of proportion. In the case of James Bulger, the amount of media attention thrown onto the case means that this moral panic is ever lasting, and will always be remembered, preventing events like this from being repeated. Bibliography: Butler, I (2013) Moral Panic and Child Protection Available form: http://www.moralpanicseminars.files.wordpress.com.2013/05/sem2-butler.pdf [Accessed 15th November 2013] Cohen, S (2011) Folk Devils and Moral Panics: Key Ideas. London: Routledge Critcher, C (2006) Moral Panics and the Media. OU Press Critcher, C (2008) Moral Panic Analysis: Past, Present and Future Swansea University: Blackwell Publishing. Available from: http://www.penelopeironstone.com/Critcher.pdf [Accessed 28th October 2013] Eldridge, J Kitzinger, J Williams, K (1997) The Mass Media and Power in Modern Britain (Chapter 5 – Moral Panics, Media Scares and Real Problems) Oxford University Press Goode, E Ben-Yehuda, N (1994) Moral Panics: The Social Construction of Deviance. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Blackwell Hall, S (2013) Policing the Crisis: Mugging, the State and Law and Order. 2nd ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan Jewkes, Y (2011) Media and Crime. Sage Kirsh, S (2010) Media and Youth. Wiley Blackwell Marsh, I Melville, G (2011) Moral Panics and the British Media: A look at some contemporary ‘Folk Devils’

The Moon Landing: How it Happened

The Moon Landing: How it Happened Luca Maffioli Introduction The moon landing, which took place in 1969, is one of the biggest events that ever happened and this report is going to analyze it. This statement is divided in four parts and will examine how everything started, how it developed and what changes it carried. In the fourth and final part it will describe the Conspiracy which is something that existed since when everything started and will give a conclusion. The big question is Did Apollo11 really land on the moon, or is everything a fake? Methodology This report has been created thanks to the collection of information coming from four different websites (The Observe, Study Moose, Engadget, Listverse). It summarizes the information that researchers analyzed over the years and reported in their articles (Paul Harris The Observe August 2012; Christopher Riley The Observe December 2012; Josh Fox The Listverse December 2008; University of California Study Moose March 2016; Ben Gilbert Engadget July 2014). It presents some of the proposed evidence to suggest that the moon landing was a fake (Josh Fox The Listverse December 2008) How everything started After the Second World War there was an economic conflict in between USA and the Soviet Union, called Cold War. USAs goal was to beat URSS showing to the entire world how clever and powerful State they were. This is why President J.F.Kennedy decided to reach the Moon. A group of specialized scientists carried out studies and tests for five years before realizing the first mission called Apollo 7. Unfortunately the test became a tragedy after the spacecraft burned in a fire and three astronauts died. After Apollo 7, they continued with researches until when in 1968 they managed to send the first manned spacecraft out of the orbit. (University of California, 2016) How it developed After this successful test they made a new mission named Apollo 11, a new shuttle ready for launch. Inside the spacecraft there were astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Micheal Collins. Its the most well-known in-space exploration history for being the first manned spacecraft to land on another celestial body. Apollo 11 was divided in three different components: Living quarters (which came back to Earth with the three astronauts) Service module (which supplied propulsion, electricity and oxygen) Lunar module (the crazy-looking shuttle that brought Armstrong and Aldrin from the lunar orbit onto the surface) With this last component named Eagle, the three astronauts could orbit around the moon for one day before reaching the surface. Once on the moon, Armstrong said Thats one small step for a man, one giant leap for a mankind. This phrase became famous as millions of people where following the event and listened to his words. The astronauts explored the surface, planted the American flag, took pictures and videos. They collected as many information and sample as they could before returning to Earth. USA had successfully landed a man on the moon and returned them safely, beating the Soviet Union in the space race. (Ben Gilbert, 2014) What did the moon landing change Many events happened in USA in 1960s: from their participation in the Vietnam War, Kennedys death and the introduction of the Civil Right Act. This period of time was named the American century. When USA reached the Moon thanks to Apollo mission, the tumultuous decade ended. The Moon Landing is one of the most important steps that helped USA to be recognized as that powerful Country which is still nowadays. (Paul Harris, 2012) William Bainbridge, writer of the book The Spaceflight Revolution, said that Apollo was a grand attempt to reach beyond the world of mundane life and transcend the ordinary limits of human existence through accomplishment of the miraculous a story of engineers who tried to reach the heavens. (The Observe, 2012) After the mission everything changed: technology, economy and humans thoughts. As a matter of fact the moon landing opened a new era of technology which would help in all aspects of life and study for the following years. Technology became more affordable and common: huge computers switched to micro technology and pocket size items. Internet, video streams and social networks are a few examples of what the moon landing inspired. (Paul Harris, 2012) Conspiracy and Conclusion It has now been nearly forty years since Armstrong stepped on the moon but the mystery behind it never stopped. People think that America invented it in order to beat the Russia in the space race; people say they invented this story inside a Hollywood stage or in Area 51 calling this matter Conspiracy. If you think about it, why after Apollo mission no one has ever been back on the moon? In fact there are many doubts about this. Another confusing matter is the flag that was planted on the moon, which from the pictures looks wavy and fluttery. How could this be possible, considering that theres no air in the moons atmosphere and no wind to cause the flag movement? There are a few other pictures taken by NASA that conspiracy theorists are focused on. An example is the multiple light source. On the moon there is only one strong light source: the Sun. Videos and pictures clearly show that shadows fall in different directions. This could mean that someone has created the images and clearly made the mistake. (Josh Fox, 2008) This report examined only a few of the many examples that support the Conspiracy theory. You can find plenty of information on the web; a very famous online report is the one written by Listverses (you can find the link in the list of References here below) which is very helpful and inspiring. After reading all of these information about the moon landing you could have a few other questions, such as: how was all of this possible with the technologies of the time? Why so many mistakes and mysteries? Unfortunately there are questions that cannot be answered, and we cannot know the truth. Anyway, it is still amazing the feeling that a man could been on the Moon. REFERENCES The observe (Christopher Riley, 2012) 40 years Apollo on: how the moon mission changed the world for ever Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2012/dec/16/apollo-legacy-moon-space-riley and (Paul Harris, 2012) Man on the moon: moment of greatness that defined the America century Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2012/aug/25/man-moon-american-century Study Moose (University of California, 2016) Man on the moon essay Retrieved from: https://studymoose.com/%EF%BB%BFman-on-the-moon-essay-essay Engadget(Ben Gilbert, 2014) What you need to know about the Apollo 11 moon landing Retrieved from: https://www.engadget.com/2014/07/21/apollo-11-explainer/ Listverse (Josh Fox, 2008) 10 reasons the moon landing could be a hoax Retrieved from: http://listverse.com/2012/12/28/10-reasons-the-moon-landings-could-be-a-hoax/

The United States and the International Criminal Court (ICC) Essay

The United States and the International Criminal Court (ICC) Statement of Purpose This paper will clearly lay out the Unites States concerns with the International Criminal Court and will attempt to resolve them. I will then argue that no country has the right to be above international law, including the United States and that it is in the best interest of America and the world community for the united states to join the efforts of the ICC and sign the Rome Statute. Introduction to the ICC â€Å"In the prospect of an international criminal court lies the promise of universal justice. That is the simple and soaring hope of this vision. We are close to its realization. We will do our part to see it through till the end. We ask you...to do yours in our struggle to ensure that no ruler, no State, no junta and no army anywhere can abuse human rights with impunity. Only then will the innocents of distant wars and conflicts know that they, too, may sleep under the cover of justice; that they, too, have rights, and that those who violate thus rights will be punished.† Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General The Twentieth Century was the bloodiest in record history with over 174 million people killed in mass murders and genocides; more often then not, victims’ cries went unanswered. Following World War II the United Nations realized the need to take action in ending impunity from these horrible crimes against humanity. With one of the primary objectives of the United Nations being to secure â€Å"universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals throughout the world,† the United Nations recognized the need to establish an international criminal court. In 1948, at the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the ... ...xisNexis. November 3, 2003. http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/document? Davenport, David. â€Å"Commentary: New Threat to U.S. Sovereignty. United Press International.† August 2003. Lexis Nexis. December 3, 2003. http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/document? The Roman Statute of the ICC: Jurisdiction. November 3, 2002. Internet. http://www.icc.int/en/ICC_jurisdiction.html PIPA. Americas on Globalization: A Study of US Public Attitudes. International Cooperation. March 28, 2000. Internet. December 4, 2003. http://www.pipa.org/OnlineReports/Globalization/4.html PIPA. Americans on Globalization. All Notes. Question 83. December 2, 2003. Internet. http://www.pipa.org/OnlineReports/Globalization/notes/allnotes_.html Margrethe, Ellen. â€Å"U.S. Peacekeepers Integral and Prosecutable.† August 2002. LexisNexis. November 3, 2002. http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/document?

Comparing Two Seafood Restaurants :: comparison compare contrast essays

Comparing Two Seafood Restaurants From a succulent fresh lobster tail to a mouth-watering red snapper filet, everyone loves some type of seafood. The residents of our city are lucky, restaurants specializing in seafood are plentiful. Many locals consider Pappadeux and Joe's Crab Shack to be the best. Although they both serve wonderful, fresh seafood, the differences in the menu, the service, and the overall atmosphere set them apart from one another. Pappadeux offers elegant, elaborate dishes on its menu, while the food described on the menu of Joe's Crab Shack is the sort which tastes best when accompanied by an ice-cold beer and a large plate of french fries. For example, my favorite meal at Pappadeux consists of a flaky filet of red snapper blackened in hot Cajun spices and smothered in a rich Bearnaise sauce. It is then topped with lightly sauted crawfish tails and mushrooms. Once this concoction touches the tongue, it simply melts. On the other hand, Joe's Crab Shack has been made famous for its barbecued crabs. The cook begins by slowly cooking small dungeoness crabs in a large barbecue pit. Once the crabs have been seared to perfection, the cook tosses them on a large tray, and they are ready for presentation. The waiter then serves these divine crabs with a hammer, a bib, and a roll of paper towels. After pounding on the shell for five minutes, the lucky diner discovers a piece of crab meat which, like the sna pper filet, melts in the mouth. Distinguishing each restaurant further is the service; although it is impeccable at both Pappadeaux and Joe's Crab Shack, the manner in which one is served varies greatly. When dining at the classy Pappadeux, each patron is greeted by an exquisitely dressed staff. The waitstaff is clad in black slacks, white tuxedo shirts, and classic bow ties, while the hostess dons an elegant dress. The staff greets each diner with the traditional "ma'am" and "sir" and treats her or him with the utmost respect and dignity. In contrast, at the relaxed Joe's Crab Shack the entire staff wears t-shirts and shorts or jeans and treats everyone as if they are life-long friends; greeting patrons with "Hey! How's it going?

Prewriting: Attitudes Toward Women Essay

1. INTRODUCTION a. Thesis Statement: With different motivations, but similar intentions the word choices and poetic rhetorical devices of the speakers reveal their attitudes toward women. Using persuasive techniques and extensive figurative language to compare and contrast Browning’s, â€Å"My Last Duchess,† and Marvell’s, â€Å"To His Coy Mistress,† it becomes clear that the main goal of the characters in these poems is their need to be the dominant force over the opposite sex. 2. Attitudes Towards Women Demonstrated in Poetry a. Illustrate how the speakers in each of the poems are trying to persuade women i. In the Duke’s case, it’s the envoy and in the speaker’s case, the woman. b. Both the characters aims are the same, but their motivations are different i. The speaker in â€Å"To His Coy Mistress† seems like a respectful man, who is articulate, this is important because it is his main strength which he uses to lure her to him. ii. The use of time to symbolize sex=self (To His Coy Mistress) †¢ The speaker of the poem is infatuated with a woman who won’t give him the time of day. The speaker chases the woman and he proposes that time is flying by and they should grab it and run as fast as they can. â€Å"Had we but world enough and time, /this coyness, lady, were no crime.† iii. The Duke in â€Å"My Last Duchess† is an arrogant, disrespectful man, who cares more about status and wealth then love. 3. Women are presented as objects of beauty and pleasur e a. Describe the tone and figurative language—imagery, simile, hyperbole, etc.—used to present woman as objects rather than their importance as human beings i. Elaborate on men only appreciating women for their physical appearance and ability to please their partner †¢ In ‘To His coy Mistress’, the woman is portrayed as beautiful, â€Å"The youthful hue sits on the skin like morning dew.† Here, the speaker praises the fair complexion of the woman through the use of simile. †¢ Similarly, in ‘My Last Duchess’, the Duke makes comments regarding his ex-duchess being captivating and alluring. â€Å"That’s my last duchess painted on the wall, looking as if she were alive. I call that a piece a wonder†. Here the Duke tries to impress the envoy with his ex-Duchess’s beauty as he stops to admire the painting of her. 4. The value of love versus total disregard for the role of women in society a. Compare and contrast the reasons each poem portrays both of these ideas b. To His Coy Mistress=values woman and the love they give i. Based on the speakers urge, or motives, for a sexual relationship with the lady ii. Describe the speakers polite techniques to praise and persuade, and how they develop into impatience and desperateness c. My Last Duchess=humiliates the role of women in society i. Show how women are viewed/treated as inferior and easily manipulated ii. Confirm the fact that because the Duchess did not depend on the Duke completely, she terrorized him. iii. Analyze the death— the speaker refers to the portrait of the wife he murdered as â€Å"My last duchess.† It hints that she was not his only duchess and that he might have had several wives before this â€Å"last† or â€Å"latest† one. 5. Mans obsession with domination over woman (need for submissiveness) a. The men in both poems want to feel like they are ranked higher than the women. They want to feel powerful and be controlling, aiming only to please and seek pleasure for themselves. 6. Mans insecurity in the absence of women dependence a. Answer the question: are men weakened by their dependency on the power they have over women? i. In To His Coy Mistress, although the speaker appears thoughtful and genuine, he is preoccupied with pursing an attractive and captivating young woman in all hopes of making love with her. No strings attached. ii. In My Last Duchess, When the Duke had the Duchess killed; it was a threat to all women. The Duke had the Duchess murdered because she did not worship her husband.

Cognitive linguistics Essay

The cognitive linguistics enterprise is characterized by two fundamental commitments (Lakoff 1990). These underlie both the orientation and approach adopted by practicing cognitive linguists, and the assumptions and methodologies employed in the two main branches of the cognitive linguistics enterprise: cognitive semantics, and cognitive approaches to grammar, discussed in further detail in later sections. The first key commitment is the Generalization Commitment (Lakoff 1990). It represents a dedication to characterizing general principles that apply to all aspects of human language. This goal is just a special subcase of the standard commitment in science to seek the broadest generalizations possible. In contrast to the cognitive linguistics approach, other approaches to the study of language often separate the language faculty into distinct areas such as phonology (sound), semantics (word and sentence meaning), pragmatics (meaning in discourse context), morphology (word structure), syntax (sentence structure), and so on. As a consequence, there is often little basis for generalization across these aspects of language, or for study of their interrelations. This is particularly true of formal linguistics. Formal linguistics attempts to model language by positing explicit mechanical devices or procedures operating on theoretical primitives in order to produce all the possible grammatical sentences of a given language. Such approaches typically attempt precise formulations by adopting formalisms inspired by computer science, mathematics and logic. Formal linguistics is embodied most notably by the work of Noam Chomsky and the paradigm of Generative Grammar, as well as the tradition known as Formal Semantics, inspired by philosopher of language Richard Montague. Within formal linguistics it is usually argued that areas such as phonology, semantics and syntax concern significantly different kinds of structuring principles operating over different kinds of primitives. For instance, a syntax ‘module’ is an area in the mind concerned with structuring words into sentences, whereas a phonology ‘module’ is concerned with structuring sounds into patterns permitted by the rules of any given language, and by human language in general. This modular view of mind reinforces the idea that modern linguistics is justified in separating the study of language into distinct sub-disciplines, not only on grounds of practicality, but because the components of language are wholly distinct, and, in terms of organization, incommensurable. Cognitive linguists acknowledge that it may often be useful to treat areas such as syntax, semantics and phonology as being notionally distinct. However, given the Generalization Commitment, cognitive linguists do not start with the assumption that the ‘modules’ or ‘subsystems’ of language are organized in significantly divergent ways, or indeed that wholly distinct modules even exist. Thus, the Generalization Commitment represents a commitment to openly investigating how the various aspects of linguistic knowledge emerge from a common set of human cognitive abilities upon which they draw, rather than assuming that they are produced in encapsulated modules of the mind. The Generalization Commitment has concrete consequences for studies of language. First, cognitive linguistic studies focus on what is common among aspects of language, seeking to re-use successful methods and explanations across these aspects. For instance, just as word meaning displays prototype effects – there are better and worse examples of referents of given words, related in particular ways – so various studies have applied the same principles to the organization of morphology (e.g., Taylor, 2003), syntax (e.g., Goldberg, 1995), and phonology (e.g., Jaeger & Ohala, 1984). Generalizing successful explanations across domains of language isn’t just a good scientific practice – it is also the way biology works; reusing existing structures for new purposes, both on evolutionary and developmental timescales. Second, cognitive linguistic approaches often take a ‘vertical’, rather than a ‘horizontal’ strategy to the study of language. Language can be seen as composed of a set of distinct layers of organisation – the sound structure, the set of words composed by these sounds, the syntactic structures these words are constitutive of, and so on. If we array these layers one on top of the next as they unroll over time (like layers of a cake), then modular approaches are horizontal, in the sense that they take one layer and study it internally – just as a horizontal slice of cake. Vertical approaches get a richer view of language by taking a vertical slice of language, which includes phonology, morphology, syntax, and of course a healthy dollop of semantics on top. A vertical slice of language is necessarily more complex in some ways than a horizontal one – it is more varied and textured – but at the same time it affords possible explanations that are simply unavailable from a horizontal, modular perspective. The second commitment is termed the Cognitive Commitment (Lakoff 1990). It represents a commitment to providing a characterization of the general principles for language that accord with what is known about the mind and brain from other disciplines. It is this commitment that makes cognitive linguistics cognitive, and thus an approach which is fundamentally interdisciplinary in nature. Just as the Generalization Commitment leads to the search for principles of language structure that hold across all aspects of language, in a related manner, the Cognitive Commitment represents the view that principles of linguistic structure should reflect what is known about human cognition from the other cognitive and brain sciences, particularly psychology, artificial intelligence, cognitive neuroscience, and philosophy. In other words, the Cognitive Commitment asserts that models of language and linguistic organization proposed should reflect what is known about the human mind, rather than purely aesthetic dictates such as the use of particular kinds of formalisms or economy of representation (see Croft 1998 for discussion of this last point). The Cognitive Commitment has a number of concrete ramifications. First, linguistic theories cannot include structures or processes that violate known properties of the human cognitive system. For instance, if sequential derivation of syntactic structures violates time constraints provided by actual human language processing, then it must be jettisoned. Second, models that use known, existing properties of human cognition to explain language phenomena are more parsimonious than those that are built from a priori simplicity metrics. For example, quite a lot is known about human categorization, and a theory that reduces word meaning to the same mechanisms responsible for categorization in other cognitive domains is simpler than one that hypothesizes a separate system for capturing lexical semantics. Finally, it is incumbent upon the cognitive linguistic researcher to find convergent evidence for the cognitive reality of components of any proffered model or explanation. Having briefly set out the two key commitments of the cognitive linguistics enterprise, we now briefly map out the two, hitherto, best developed areas of the field. Cognitive linguistics practice can be roughly divided into two main areas o research: cognitive semantics and cognitive (approaches to) grammar. The area of study known as cognitive semantics is concerned with investigating the relationship between experience, the conceptual system, and the semantic structure encoded by language. In specific terms, scholars working in cognitive semantics investigate knowledge representation (conceptual structure), and meaning construction (conceptualization). Cognitive semanticists have employed language as the lens through which these cognitive phenomena can be investigated. Consequently, research in cognitive semantics tends to be interested in modelling the human mind as much as it is concerned with investigating linguistic semantics. A cognitive approach to grammar is concerned with modelling the language system (the mental ‘grammar’), than the nature of mind per se. However, it does so by taking as its starting points the conclusions of work in cognitive semantics. This follows as meaning is central to cognitive approaches to grammar.4 It is critical to note that although the study of cognitive semantics and cognitive approaches to grammar are occasionally separate in practice, this by no means implies that their domains of inquiry are anything but tightly linked –most work in cognitive linguistics finds it necessary to investigate both lexical semantics and grammatical organization jointly. As with research in cognitive semantics, cognitive approaches to grammar have also typically adopted one of two foci. Scholars such as Ronald Langacker have emphasized the study of the cognitive principles that give rise to linguistic organization. In his theory of Cognitive Grammar, Langacker has attempted to delineate the principles that structure a grammar, and to relate these to aspects of general cognition. The second avenue of investigation, pursued by researchers including Fillmore and Kay, Lakoff),Goldberg and more recently Bergen and Chang (2005) and Croft (2002), aims to provide a more descriptively and formally detailed account of the linguistic units that comprise a particular language. These researchers attempt to provide a broad-ranging inventory of the units of language, from morphemes to words, idioms, and phrasal patterns, and seek accounts of their structure, compositional possibilities, and relations. Researchers who have pursued this line of investigation are developing a set of theories that are collectively known as construction grammars. This general approach takes its name from the view in cognitive linguistics that the basic unit of language is a form-meaning pairing known as a symbolic assembly, or a construction. Cognitive semantics, like the larger enterprise of which it is a part, is not a unified framework. Those researchers who identify themselves as cognitive semanticists typically have a diverse set of foci and interests. However, there are a number of guiding principles that collectively characterize a cognitive approach to semantics. In this section we identify these guiding principles (as we see them). In section 5 we explore some of the major theories and research areas which have emerged under the ‘banner’ of cognitive semantics. The four guiding principles of cognitive semantics are as follows: i) Conceptual structure is embodied (the ‘embodied cognition thesis’) ii) Semantic structure is conceptual structure iii) Meaning representation is encyclopaedic iv) Meaning construction is conceptualization Conceptual structure is embodied Due to the nature of our bodies, including our neuro-anatomical architecture, we have a species-specific view of the world. In other words, our construal of ‘reality’ is mediated, in large measure, by the nature of our embodiment. One example of the way in which embodiment affects the nature of experience is in the realm of color. While the human visual system has three kinds of photoreceptors (i.e., color channels), other organisms often have a different number. For instance, the visual system of squirrels, rabbits and possibly cats, makes use of two color channels, while other organisms, including goldfish and pigeons, have four color channels. Having a different range of color channels affects our experience of color in terms of the range of colors accessible to us along the color spectrum. Some organisms can see in the infrared range, such as rattlesnakes, which hunt prey at night and can visually detect the heat given off by other organisms. Humans are unable to see in this range. The nature of our visual apparatus – one aspect of our embodiment – determines the nature and range of our visual experience. The nature of the relation between embodied cognition and linguistic meaning is contentious. It is evident that embodiment underspecifies which color terms a particular language will have, and whether the speakers of a given language will be interested in ‘color’ in the first place (Saunders, 1995; Wierzbicka, 1996). However, the interest in understanding this relation is an important aspect of the view in cognitive linguistics that the study of linguistic meaning construction needs to be reintegrated with the contemporary study of human nature. The fact that our experience is embodied – that is, structured in part by the nature of the bodies we have and by our neurological organization – has consequences for cognition. In other words, the concepts we have access to and the nature of the ‘reality’ we think and talk about are a function of our embodiment. We can only talk about what we can perceive and conceive, and the things that we can perceive and conceive derive from embodied experience. From this point of view, the human mind must bear the imprint of embodied experience. This thesis, central to cognitive semantics, is known as the thesis of embodied cognition. This position holds that conceptual structure (the nature of human concepts) is a consequence of the nature of our embodiment and thus is embodied. Semantic structure is conceptual structure The second guiding principle asserts that language refers to concepts in the mind of the speaker rather than, directly, to entities which inhere in an objectively real external world. In other words, semantic structure (the meanings conventionally associated with words and other linguistic units) can be equated with conceptual structure (i.e., concepts). This ‘representational’ view is directly at odds with the ‘denotational’ perspective of what cognitive semanticists sometimes refer to as objectivist semantics, as exemplified by some formal approaches to semantics. However, the claim that semantic structure can be equated with conceptual structure does not mean that the two are identical. Instead, cognitive semanticists claim that the meanings associated with linguistic units such as words, for example, form only a subset of possible concepts. After all, we have many more thoughts, ideas and feelings than we can conventionally encode in language. For example, as Langacker (1987) observes, we have a concept for the place on our faces below our nose and above our mouth where moustaches go. We must have a concept for this part of the face in order to understand that the hair that grows there is called a moustache. However, there is no English word that conventionally encodes this concept (at least not in the non-specialist vocabulary of everyday language). It follows that the set of lexical concepts, the semantic units conventionally associated with linguistic units such as words is only a subset of the full set of concepts in the minds of speaker-hearers.