Civil Disobedience In Antigone By Sophocles - 1195 Words

Civil disobedience has been a controversial issue that possess a conflict between ethical and moral values among both scholars and students alike. Martin Luther King Jr. used the civil disobedience approach to air his grievances and made it known to the majority of the population that a particular aspect of the law was interfering with their moral and ethical values even if it was unwritten. On the other hand, Sophocles, in the play â€Å"Antigone† reveals the grief, struggle, inner strife and distress of a young woman. Through her speech, Antigone can persuade her audience by employing rhetoric, passion and subtle alteration, and therefore, able to fight against injustice she faced from Creon. Thus, both Antigone and Martin Luther King Jr.†¦show more content†¦This act led her to be declared a heroine by the people. While Creon is the idea that a person’s country interest should take preeminence, Antigone values and beliefs were that family comes first and tha t blood is always thicker than water. This belief persuaded her to bury her brother even if the king had outlawed it, and she states that â€Å"the king has no right to keep me from my own† (Sophocles). Even though, she understood the consequences of her disobedience, she didn’t try to hide her treason act. She admits publicly before Creon that she would choose death but bury her brother than live knowing that her brother is rotting on the battlefield. In her disobedience speech, she eloquently tries to make her king understand how unjust the laws are rather than pleaded her case. There evident force and confidence in her words, which she punctuates well and offers examples together with accusations. Furthermore, her lines are emotional and full of sarcasm and contempt towards the king and his unjust laws, which gives her speech a bitter edge. In burying her brother, Antigone shows obedience to the gods rather than the king even if it was illegal to do so. To prove her allegiance, she states that, â€Å"Look at me, you noble sons of Thebes, -the last great line kings, I alone, see what I suffer now at the hands of breed of men- all reverence, my reverence for the gods (Sophocles). Through this quote, Antigone shows that she feared theShow MoreRelated Exploration of Civil Disobedience in Sophocles Antigone, Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail, and Platos From Crito580 Words   |  3 PagesExploration of Civil Disobedience in Sophocles Antigone, Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail, and Platos From Crito Civil disobedience spawns a major and widely debated issue by many who established by well-known intelligent scholars and many examples of civil disobedience become displayed. The acts of civil disobedience can be noted in major works such as Sophocles?s Antigone, King?s ?Letter from Birmingham Jail?, or even from Plato?s ?from Crito?. A specific claim exemplified throughout theseRead MoreAntigone Essay926 Words   |  4 PagesCivil disobedience is an act Antigone and multiple modern-day women commit to raise awareness of a lack of justice in their societies. Civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws as a peaceful form of political protest. This form of protest is shown throughout Sophocles’ tragedy Antigone. Antigone, the protagonist, exhibits civil disobedience when she gives her brother, Polyneices, a proper burial. Antigone is very much like Rosa Parks as described in the article â€Å"Rosa Parks leavesRead MoreAntigone By Sophocles : A Moral And Lega l Battle951 Words   |  4 PagesIn the play Antigone by Sophocles, the title character is engaged in a moral and legal battle with King Creon. The king has issued a legal verdict against the brother of Antigone. He is to be left to rot in the battlefield, rather than be buried. As such, his body will be eaten by vultures and not be given the honor of burial. This was considered the worst punishment that could be given at the time. Antigone believes that this is wrong. She decides to go against the legal orders of the kingRead MoreCivil Disobedience And Martin Luther King s Letter From Birmingham Jail1236 Words   |  5 Pagesupon lightly such as committing civil disobedience. In Sophocles s â€Å"Antigone† and Martin Luther King’s â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail†, both, King and Antigone, were supporters and activist of civil disobedience. However, both, Antigone and Martin Luther King had different methods of conducting civil disobedience and viewed civil disobedience differently. Furthermore, Antigone and Martin Luther King were both steadfast in what they believed in and used civil disobedience to fight for their cause. DespiteRead MoreCivil Disobedience In Antigone By David Thoreau958 Words   |  4 PagesWhen one thinks of civil disobedience, they think of a person that neither follows nor respects the law. However, one does not take into consideration why a certain person is not abiding by the law, and what is influencing their decisions. In the case of Antigone, in Antigone by Sophocles, the reason she does not follow the law is that not only does she view the law as unfair and not just, but the law hurts her more than anyone else. Antigone feels she has a burden to bury her brother Polynices,Read MoreCivil Disobedience in Antigone and Trifles Essay1096 Words   |  5 PagesCivil Disobedience of Antigone and Mrs. Hale Civil disobedience is the purposeful violation of a law to show that it is unconstitutional or morally defective. In the plays, Antigone and Trifles, the female main characters commit an act of civil disobedience. The plays are respectively written by Sophocles and Susan Glaspell. Antigone, the main character of Antigone, protects her dead brothers honor as she disobeys the laws of King Creon. Mrs. Hale, the main character of Trifles preventsRead MoreTheme Of Antigone 964 Words   |  4 PagesAmer Debis Professor: Kennedy ENC 1102 April 12, 2016 Theme In Antigone Sweeping dramas of rival families and of rival family members seeking control of a kingdom are very popular now. One obvious example is Game of Thrones, which continues to break viewership records and also engender controversy. Such sagas, however, are nothing new. Antigone, a play by Sophocles and the sequel to Aeschylus’ Seven Against Thebes, provides an ancient Greek perspective on the themes of power, duty, and lawRead MoreAnalysis Of Civil Disobedience In Antigone1078 Words   |  5 PagesMany people around the world and in books are getting in trouble for their acts of civil disobedience. Civil disobedience is refusing to follow certain laws as a form of political protest. In Antigone, written by Sophocles, Antigone rebels against the laws of Creon and buries her brother, Polynieces, when everyone was ordered not to. Modern day people around the world like Antigone are also defying laws. Women in Saudi Arabia who went driving when laws forbid them to and they got in to a lot of troubleRead MoreCivil Disobedience, And Martin Luther King Jr. s Letter From Birmingham Jail1018 Words   |  5 PagesToday, the word disobedience carries a negative connotation that acts as a deterrent for necessary disobedience. The common way in which people view disobedience is as a rejection of a rule, law, or a simple standard. Historically, rules were implemented in ways that were deemed immoral by society. Therefore, civil disobedience is justified to combat immoral standards implemented in society. However, civil disobedience is only justified under these circumstances, mainly for the betterment of societyRead MoreThe Truth Behind Political Thought944 Words   |  4 Pagesinconsistency ,that civil disobedience is not justified because of society s accentuation on law and order. The understanding of law and civil disobedience illustrates itself in both readings of Sophocles Antigone and Plato s Apology which suggests that they give both similar views with th e existing idea of different higher authority in mind. Because of the unresolved feud between the law and civil disobedience it is prevailed effectively in Sophocles tragic drama Antigone and Plato s Apology

Global Issues in Crime and Justice The War and Genocide in Darfur Free Essays

string(80) " used as motivating factor behind the destruction of African groups in Darfur \." Global Issues in Crime and Justice The war and genocide in Darfur (Sudan) (2003-2010) The conflict in Darfur officially started in February of 2003 when a rebel group launched an attack on Golo. This rebel group refers to themselves as Sudan Liberation Army (SLA). Not long after, another Darfur rebel group arose, identifying itself as the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). We will write a custom essay sample on Global Issues in Crime and Justice: The War and Genocide in Darfur or any similar topic only for you Order Now The uprisings from the rebel groups, however, did not draw immediate reaction from the Sudanese Government. The turning point for the conflict which led to a war was the raid on al Fashir air base by both the Sudan Liberation Army and Justice and Equality Movement. According to Daly, 2010, military planes and helicopter gunships were destroyed, vehicles and weapons were seized, soldiers were killed and the base commander was captured. The SLA and JEM continued their attacks in Tine, Kutum and Mellit in May 2003. After the attack, the Sudanese government carried out a counter-insurgency campaign by coordinating a ‘special task force’ , composed of Arab militia men named Janjaweed. The Janjaweed militia was backed by government troops. Their task was to attack the Africans in Darfur and destroy their villages. The bombing of villages, rape and mass killing became the means to destroy the Africans in Darfur. Those who survived were displaced from their homes and moved into displacement camps in Sudan. However, assistance provided to the African survivors were minimal, the humanitarian aid workers were aggressively pressured and it was difficult to bring food and medicine supply into the camps. According to Hagan and Rymond-Richmond in 2009, more than 200, 000 displaced persons were pushed over the border into refugee camps in Chad. On the other side, the amount of deaths in Darfur varied. In fall of 2004, World Health Organization (WHO) estimated 70,000 deaths within seven months since the beginning of the war. However, this estimate is likely to only involve people who died in and around camps. On the other hand, the State Department’s Atrocities Document Survey (ADS) provided data on people who died in the attack but does not include people who died in the camps. To obtain a more accurate picture, Hagan and McCarty (2009) combined the WHO and ADS data. The result is at least 200, 000 people had died in Darfur and the amount could have reached to 400, 000. There were many parties involved in the war and genocide in Darfur but there were definitely only two sides. The first side is the rebel groups, they are Sudan Liberation Army and Justice and Equality Movement. The other side of the conflict is the Janjaweed and the government of Sudan and its troops. The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) was first formed in 2002 by an alliance of Fur and Zaghawa with Abdel Wahid as its first chairman and Abdalla Abaker as its chief of staff. The SLA consisted of Zaghawa and Fur but their relation was sour. The inexperience leadership, disorganized infrastructure and tension and conflict within the SLA only made matters worse. By mid-2003, there were no longer communications made betwen the Zaghawa and the Fur resulting to division of the movement into two groups. After the death of Abdalla Abaker, Minnawi announced himself as the secretary general. There were then two factions of SLA – the SLA under Abdel Wahid and the SLA under Minnawi. The second group that entered the conflict in Darfur in 2003 was the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). Its origin can be traced back to the mid-1990s. Having been marginalized, the Darfurians felt disappointed towards Islamist leaders in Sudan. The group consisted of mainly rebellious members of National Islamic Front in 1989. The JEM was formed in 2001 with Khalil Ibrahim as the leader holding the position of the chairman of the JEM. In response to the rebellion, the Sudanese government created a military force named Janjaweed which consisted of both Arab and Non-Arab groups. The Janjaweed became a ‘state security organs’ and the administrative system in Darfur became ‘military command’. They implemented a strategy where attacks would be made on African civilian in their towns and villages. Not only that, the Janjaweed was given a license to kill which allows them to kill and torture whoever they want with no limits imposed. The role of Sudanese government and its army would be to provide assistance to Janjaweed. This include from air support to cleaning up the crime scenes in Darfur. Despite the obvious proofs that genocide had taken place, the Sudanese government claimed that what happened was merely a counter-insurgency tactic to stop the rebellion and the blame was placed on the rebel groups. The rebel groups shared neither the same motivation nor the same goal. However, both SLA and JEM aimed to use armed rebellion as means to achieve their goals. For the SLA, the 1991 rebellion in Darfur convinced them to make changes in Darfur through armed rebellion. They were then motivated by the ideology of the ‘New Sudan’ and so were determined to make the ‘New Sudan’ as their goal. It was a concept suggested by Sudan People’s Liberation Army. It demanded a secular, democratic and decentralized government as well as equality in power and wealth. In contrast, the JEM was motivated by a document that was created in May 2000, The Black Book Imbalance of Power and Wealth in Sudan which gave a clear analysis of the underdevelopment of Darfur and the government’s lack of concern. The group’s goals were to call for ‘radical constitutional reform, regional empowerment and social democaracy’ excluding separation of state and religion. In contrast to SLA, their focus was on Sudan as a whole rather than solely on Darfur. The motivation behind the creation of Janjaweed by the Sudanese government was difficult to establish. The Sudanese government had repeatedly argued that its destructive behavior and violent attacks on civilians were merely counter-insurgency tactics. However, it is believed that racial intent is used as motivating factor behind the destruction of African groups in Darfur . You read "Global Issues in Crime and Justice: The War and Genocide in Darfur" in category "Essay examples" Daly in 2010 described that the goals of the Sudanese government as well as its troops and Janjaweed were to destroy settlements and property, evacuation of the land by killing the men, women and children or stigmatizing the women by raping them, and forced displacement of the survivors. There were many factors that may have caused the uprisings in Darfur however its immediate cause were the African’s experience of being marginalized, invaded, exploited and neglected. It is reasonable to believe that the factors which led to the formation of rebel group had also resulted to the occurrence of the first event in the war in Darfur: the uprisings. Among the factors were political and economic marginalization experienced by the Darfurians as described in the Black Book. The Sudanese government did little attempt to help the economy of Darfur and the positions in government institution were mainly dominated by those from the Norths and Arabs. Another factor would be the increasing insecurity in Darfur caused by attacks on African villages carried out by Arab nomads. This was the main reason why the Zaghawa joined the Fur to form the SLA. The failure of the Sudanese government to solve the conflict between the Arabs and the African had resulted to a rebellion in 2003. The Sudanese government’s action escalated the rebellion turning it into a war and genocide. The government’s mistake was its failure to acknowledge the rebel groups and accept their demand. Furthermore, its decision to use the Janjaweed militia as a counter-insurgency tactic caused a creation of the ‘worst humanitarian crisis’. It is the way the Sudanese government reacted to the rebellion that based a basis of genocide in Darfur. Apart from the above factors, there were also other underlying factors that contribute to the conflict in Darfur. These factors existed long before the start of the rebellions in 2003. These factors include the drought in Darfur since the 1970s which caused a struggle of land and Arab supremacism in Darfur. Tensions between Africans and Arabs burst into violence when Darfur suffered from numerous droughts since the early 1970s. The increasing desertification had resulted to loss of produce, grazing land and livestock. This had caused conflict between the African farmers and Arab herders over territories and access to water. The droughts had forced the Arab herders to intrude on the lands of the African farmers causing a clash between them. The ethnic conflict was further intensified with the introduction of small arms that transformed the means of violence in Darfur. Favored groups were allowed to possess arms for the purpose of self-defense. Unfair policies were introduced to give legal protection to the Arabs and the policy itself undoubtedly showed favoritism towards the Arabs especially over matters relating to land. It is undeniable that the government had played a primary role in stimulating the ethnic conflict. In Darfur, the Arabs were often seen as superior to all others, which make those who are not Arab as inferior. The Arabs in Sudan dominated all aspect of life ranging from politics to social life. The relations between Arabs and Africans in Darfur became even tenser as the ideology of Arab supremacy led to ‘both the demonization and disenfranchisement of certain groups’ , in particular the Africans. One significant factor to include would probably be the disenfranchisement of Darfur. Darfur had been neglected by Sudan. Schools, medical facilities and the roads provided in Darfur were very minimal if compared to those provided in the north of Sudan. Even worst, there was no attempt to include the African in the politic and administration of Darfur or Sudan. The Africans have suffered discrimination, prejudice and exclusion. These sufferings might have added to the conflicts that turned into rebellions and then war and genocide in 2003. The case of Darfur had frequently been labeled as crime against humanity due to the pattern of mass killing in Darfur. Maier-Katkin et al in 2009 presented a theory to explain the crimes against humanity. There are 6 suggested factors as to how crimes against humanity could have occurred. The first factor is the development of societal strain and anger depression. Secondly, the formation of primary group affiliations where tensions emerged between two groups- between the self and the other, or most commonly known as between us versus them. The third factor is the socialization and normalization of idea in the primary group. The next factor is the continuation of the previous factor, socialization of individuals into roles within the group makes them more incline to conform and follow orders from the authority. The fifth factor is that the possibility of the occurrence of crimes against humanity when there is a technique of neutralization. Lastly, where the target or victim is not threatening, crimes are easier to commit. In the case of Darfur, the second, third, fifth and sixth factor could be applied to explain the crimes of humanity committed against the Africans. Tension had developed between the Africans and Arabs long before the start of the war in 2003. The two groups had always clashed and thus satisfying the second factor. Secondly, the belief of the people in Sudan and Darfur is that Arabs are always superior to the Africans which make the African less valuable to the country. This idea had been normalized into the life of every person in Sudan. Not only that, technique of neutralization had clearly been used by the Sudanese government and the Janjaweed. Racial epithets expressed toward the Africans were commonly heard during the attacks. This is an act of dehumanizing the victims. The sixth factor refers to the fact that the victims in the case of Darfur are civilian. They do not have the means to attack back and therefore no risk is associated with the perpetrators. Denials were used by the Government of Sudan in response to its Human Right violation. Stanley Cohen in 2001 presented 6 types of denial: denial of knowledge, denial of responsibility, denial of injury, denial of the victim, condemnation of the condemners, appeal to higher loyalty and moral indifference. It is possible that the Janjaweed and military forces of the Sudanese government had relied on the denial of responsibility and victim to justify their destructive actions. Whereas the Government of Sudan may have justified their action based on denial of knowledge, denial of victim and the condemnation of the condemners. Other than committing a crime against humanity, the Janjaweed had also committed crimes of obedience by following the order of Sudanese government to attack African civilian. No attempts were made to challenge the authority and the decision to obey was not done out of fright towards the government but was likely to be caused by hatred that developed between the ethnic lines. Bibliography Cohen, S. , 2001. States of Denial. Cambridge University Press. Daly, M. W. , 2010. Darfur’s Sorrow: The Forgotten History of a Humaniatarian Disaster. 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge University Press. Flint, J. , Darfur’s Armed Movement. In: A. De Waal, ed. 2007. War in Darfur and the Search for Peace. Harvard University Press, p 140-172 Hagan, J. , Rymond-Richmond, W. , and Parker, P. , 2005. The Criminology of Genocide: The Death and Rape of Darfur, Criminology, 43(3), p 525. Haggar, A. , The Origins and Organization of the Janjawiiid in Darfur. In: A. De Waal, ed. 2007. War in Darfur and the Search for Peace. Harvard University Press, p 113-139 Hagan, J. and Rymond-Richmond, W. , 2009. Darfur and the Crime of Genocide. New York: Cambridge University Press. Maier-Katkin, D. , Mears, D. P. , and Bernard, T. J. , (2009) Towards a Criminology of Crimes Against Humanity, Theoretical Criminology 13(2) p 227-256 McCarty, B. and Hagan, J. , Counting the Deaths in Darfur Pitfalls on the Pathway to a Public Sociology. In V. Jeffries, ed. 2009. Handbook of Public Sociology. United States: Rowman Littlefield Publishers, Inc. p 319-337 Tar, U. A. , 2006. Old Conflict, New Complex Emergency: An Analysis of Darfur Crisis, Western Sudan, Nordic Journal of African Studies, 15(3), p 406-427 Totten, S. , The Darfur Genocide. In: S. Totten and W. S. Parsons, ed. 2009. Century of Genocide: Critical essays and Eyewitness Accounts. 3rd ed. New York: Routledge. Tubiana, J. , A Conflict for Land? In: A. De Waal, ed. 2007. War in Darfur and the Search for Peace. Harvard University Press, p 68-91 How to cite Global Issues in Crime and Justice: The War and Genocide in Darfur, Essay examples

Tesla Gigafactory

Questions: 1.What is the Aim of Tesla Gigafactory? 2.What is the Current SCM Structure of building lithium Ion Batteries? 3.How will Tesla Disrupt the Current Supply Chain Management of Lithium ion Batteries? 4.Do you think Tesla will Succeed its mandate? Answers: Introduction: Tesla Motors with its initiative of establishing the environment friendly Gigafactory to produce lithium ion batteries has taken a great step towards developing technology that will sustain environment in future. At present, the factory is under construction at Tahoe Reno Industrial Center, U.S. This construction running near Nevada and the Nevada governor expects to enjoy a good amount of revenue in two decades of its production ("Tesla Gigafactory | Tesla Canada", 2017). Lithium ion battery cars are one of that technological advancement that promises to save the rapidly decreasing non-renewable resource of fuel as well as looks promising as an alternative technology. Tesla Gigafactory in Nevada started its first production in 2016 of Powerpacks and Powerwalls in a meager quantity while within some months in 2017 it has successfully commenced its mass production of battery cells. Gigafactory 1 in Nevada has been designed with the aim of minimizing the cost of production and the usag e of raw materials through the arrangement of vertical integration. Another factory of the same kind Gigafactory 2 is decided to be established in Europe aiding more 1production of eco friendly car batteries ("Tesla Gigafactory | Tesla Canada", 2017). 1.Aim of Tesla Gigafactory Tesla has several significant and noble aims behind founding the massive Gigafactory spending a huge amount of money. The primary objective of Tesla that has accelerated the establishment of the first Gigafactory in Nevada is to take a step forward to transform worlds automobile industry by replacing the fuel with electric. As hoped by Tesla Motors, the production of lithium ion batteries in the Gigafactory will become that source of the sustainable alternative source of energy ("Tesla Gigafactory | Tesla Canada", 2017). To achieve this mission Tesla needs to produce electric cars in such great quantity that it can push the change of the alternative source of energy into this industry. In order to achieve success in their mission Tesla will require a massive number of lithium ion batteries; probably the entire worldwide production of present time. The factory, to perform this huge mission, is still under construction and by 2018, Tesla expects to commence its full capacity production. Tesla has joined hands with Panasonic and others who help in developing strategies for the company with the aim of producing batteries at a considerable lower cost. Tesla also aims to achieve innovation in the manufacturing field and desires to reduce waste generation during the manufacturing process. The Gigafactory will help Tesla to locate the entire process of manufacturing under the same roof. Some other of their significant aims are to diminish the per kWh hour cost of battery pack by at least 30 percent as well as to be strengthened by renewable sources of energy; the goal is to achieve clearly zero energy application. Tesla is eager to finish the construction part as soon as possible since they hope to reduce the cost of their presently available batteries dramatically with the help of this giant factory. It is still not very clear how th is extreme economization will be possible but it is anticipated that Tesla aims to be decked up with a complete recycling system. 2.Current SCM Structure Lithium ion batteries are rapidly rising in demand and at present, the Asia dominates the world market in its production. These batteries are largely used in the applications of consumer electronics since these possess considerable high lifecycle and density. The power output of high capacity makes them appropriately convenient to be used in a number of selective automotive applications (Miller, 2014). The production of lithium ion batteries is thickly concentrated in Asian countries like Japan, China and Korea due to the abundance of lithium ion battery specific component suppliers available here so that these countries together have formed a clustered supply chain particularly focusing on the production of lithium ion battery. Japan, China and Korea comprises of almost 79% of the entire automotive lithium ion battery production while U.S is steadily advancing to get hold of this demanding market presently covering 17% of the total production. Though the Asian cluster of LIB production contributes some advantage at regional level, the benefit in cost is not available outside this cluster. Lithium is primarily mined from two sources: pegmatite found in hard rocks and brine found in salt lakes. Now the major sources of pegmatite are: Australia Brazil Canada China The chief sources of brine are: Argentina Bolivia Chile China and S To some extent, there exists vertical integration of electrode materials across Asia and production of battery cells. This is likely to help in lowering the cost of production for some certain manufacturers. The LIB materials producing countries of South East Asia are considered as major suppliers of battery materials; the major reason behind this may be the firms of these countries do have the required knowledge of this field as well as the stable financial background to be known as strong and reliable suppliers. The following chart explains the picture of supply chain management of LIB: Total Manufacturing Capacity of LIB (MWh) Percentage share of capacity (%) Manufacturing Capacity of Automotive LIB (MWh) Percentage Share of Automotive Capacity (%) China 39010 51 11240 41 Japan 11978 16 5750 21 Korea 16059 21 4600 17 U.S 4970 7 4600 17 E.U 1798 2 1300 5 Others 2440 3 0 0 Total 76255 100 27490 100 The chart clearly shows that the U.S does not have as strong a supply chain as Asian cluster region and in addition to that, most of the U.S suppliers are comparatively new and inexperienced and hence, are believed to be less reliable ("Automotive Lithium ion battery supply chain and U.S Competitiveness", 2017). Indeed, the production cost of Tesla is to rise if they have to depend on the export service of Asian suppliers. While supporting the expansion of advanced battery manufacturing in U.S the U.S government has provided $1.5B. 3.Whether Tesla will disrupt the Current SCM It has been seen that the lithium ion battery cell supply is rapidly growing but the growth is concentrated on Asia. If Tesla Gigafactory, based in U.S has to depend on this existing supply chain structure, it will cost a great deal for the company. Hence, Tesla has planned to exceed the global production of lithium ion batteries by 2020 disrupting the present structure of its Supply Chain Management ("Automotive Lithium ion battery supply chain and U.S Competitiveness", 2017). In order to do so, the company has signed a formal negotiation with Panasonic specially to collaborate with its Gigafactory initiative ("Everything will be recycled.", 2017). According to the agreement, Panasonic is entitled to invest necessary equipments for production of these automotive batteries such as cathode materials, PVDF and SBR Binders, prismatic lids and cans, logistic solutions, electrolyte filling and the like. On the other hand, Tesla is to invest all the utilities, land and buildings required to set up and run Gigafactory 1 (Nykvist Nilsson, 2015). Tesla is also responsible for providing production equipments indispensible for LIB module and production of battery packs. With efficient management of Gigafactory and procuring the necessary precursor compound materials from other collaborators, Tesla is likely to emerge as worlds largest producer of lithium ion batteries (Barr, 2013). Undoubtedly, Tesla Gigafactory shows prominent signs to be the largest and technologically most advanced and exceptional battery producing factory surpassing the dominance of Asian farms. The company is even more keen to accelerate the construction work of Gigafactory because the scarcity of lithium ion batteries has somewhere limited their production of cars (Eisler, 2016). Therefore, apparently Tesla hopes to outreach the 2013 global production of lithium ion batteries by 2020 as mentioned earlier; not only that the company has claimed to produce a huge number of battery packs enough to build 500,000 LIB powered cars by the target year. According to Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Inc. the automobile company intends to apply one such unique technology that would economize the production of these batteries as well as it has the potential to upset the prevalent structure of Supply Chain Management. Tesla plans to transport the rail cars full of raw materials directly from the mines into the factory and Musk insists that these cars will come out being transformed into finished products of lithium ion battery. The way Tesla has consolidated its battery pack manufacturing process right from the stage of raw materials; it will be hard for any other enterprise to compete with Tesla when it will start its full capacity production (Anderman, 2016). 4.Whether Tesla will succeed its mandate The construction process of Gigafactory 1 is still a long way to go because more than half of the planned structure is yet to be built. Now, all the claims that Tesla has made for this massive factory and its production capability are still assumptions and have not been proved in real field. Therefore, it is a matter of debate whether Tesla will achieve its claimed target within 2020 and the answer precisely discusses what the elements are that can take the company forward and what can be proved as setbacks (Zeng, Li Singh, 2014). One significant possible obstacle can be appeared in the form of bureaucratic mismanagement (Hanley, 2015). This can be avoided if thoughtful and coordinated measures are taken together with the architects, engineers, construction crews and technicians properly led by the managers to reach the end-goal without being diverted from the root aim (Martin, 2014). Due to their intended application of vertical integration, the entire responsibility relies upon Teslas management because now they would have to supervise each aspect of battery production instead of just controlling the system built up with producers. Apart from this, Teslas huge plantation of Gigafactory has increased their business risk a lot. Tesla is probably the only automobile company who wants to rely entirely on electrical cars in near future. However, the customers are yet to shift completely to these cars of new technology and that the idea of fully electric powered cars has not yet been tested. Besides, in the age of rapid technological advancement it is very likely that the lithium ion concept would also be replaced with something else and the question arises in this context that what then will happen to this huge infrastructure (Lu et al, 2013). Much of Teslas success depends on the accountability of its partner Panasonics lithium ion technology. On the other hand, if Tesla can achieve its grand scale of production in Gigafactory, it is almost guaranteed that the upcoming models of cars built under Tesla Motors will be sold at a much-lowered cost (Wang et al, 2014). This gigantic Gigafactory is also believed to be capable of providing Tesla about a bulk of battery pack output that will make Tesla self sufficient in terms of Supply Chain Management. However, the question is not about applying innovative technology but rather the success of the company will be depending on how far and how long they will be able to sustain the management of this gigantic structure. If the organization can execute perfectly what they has claimed for Gigafactory, certainly there will be no looking back for Tesla Motors. References: Anderman, M. (2016). The Tesla Battery Report: Tesla Motors: Battery Technology, Analysis of the Gigafactory and Model 3, and the Automakers Perspectives. Automotive Lithium ion battery supply chain and U.S Competitiveness. (2017). Retrieved 1 March 2017, from https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2015/06/f23/Lithium-ion%20Battery%20CEMAC.pdf Barr, A., Deguilhem, B., Grolleau, S., Grard, M., Suard, F., Riu, D. (2013). A review on lithium-ion battery ageing mechanisms and estimations for automotive applications.Journal of Power Sources,241, 680-689. Eisler, M. N. (2016). A Tesla in every garage?.IEEE Spectrum,53(2), 34-55. Everything will be recycled.. (2017). Business Insider. Retrieved 1 March 2017, from https://www.businessinsider.in/18-incredible-facts-about-Elon-Musks-Gigafactory/Everything-will-be-recycled-/slideshow/52906827.cms Hanley, S. (2015). Analyst predicts Gigafactory will reduce Tesla battery costs below $100 per kWh.Ecomento, September. Lu, L., Han, X., Li, J., Hua, J., Ouyang, M. (2013). A review on the key issues for lithium-ion battery management in electric vehicles.Journal of power sources,226, 272-288. Martin, C. (2014).Driving change in the battery industry(Doctoral dissertation, Nature Research). Miller, J. (2014). Energy Storage and Battery Advances. Online]. Avaliable:https://www. eei. org/about/meetings/Meeting_Documents/Miller,%20Jam es. pdf. Nykvist, B., Nilsson, M. (2015). Rapidly falling costs of battery packs for electric vehicles.Nature Climate Change,5(4), 329-332. Richa, K., Babbitt, C. W., Gaustad, G., Wang, X. (2014). A future perspective on lithium-ion battery waste flows from electric vehicles.Resources, Conservation and Recycling,83, 63-76. Sharma, S. (2016). The Tesla Phenomena A Business Strategy Report. Tesla Gigafactory | Tesla Canada. (2017). Tesla.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017, from https://www.tesla.com/en_CA/gigafactory Wang, X., Gaustad, G., Babbitt, C. W., Richa, K. (2014). Economies of scale for future lithium-ion battery recycling infrastructure.Resources, Conservation and Recycling,83, 53-62. Zeng, X., Li, J., Singh, N. (2014). Recycling of spent lithium-ion battery: a critical review.Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology,44(10), 1129-1165.

Psychological Profile Caulfield, Holden - Preliminary Diagnosis Negative Effectivity, Borderline Schizophrenia free essay sample

A psychological analysis of a young man with the recognized symptoms for negative affectivity which may signal the onset of a schizophrenic condition. In this paper the author makes a psychological analysis of a 16 year old youth who is demonstrating various recognized symptoms for negative affectivity. The author looks at all of the symptoms and attempts to asses what has led both to the symptoms and behavior of the youth. The author considers the youths relationship with his parents and siblings and also the effect on the youth of his brothers death. From the paper: Vacillations such as declaring himself an atheist one minute and praying to God the next Caulfield is in a flux of coming to terms with his own identity, not an uncommon trait among teens. The difference in Caulfields behavior and normal growing pains are the extreme inter personal negativity, paranoia (e.g. knowing he is going to die from cancer because of a canker sore), and the descent into delusional behavior (e. We will write a custom essay sample on Psychological Profile: Caulfield, Holden Preliminary Diagnosis: Negative Effectivity, Borderline Schizophrenia or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page g. speaking with his dead brother).

Evolution--Its True essays

EvolutionIt's True essays The origins of mankind is an extremely controversial issue within todays society. Scientists have a host of different theories pertaining to mans inhabitance of earth. Many disagreements arise between scientists who have different beliefs pertaining to where and how mankind arose. One such argument is the conflict involving the theory of evolution versus the theory of creation. After research, it is apparent that the theory of evolution is correct. Evolution is the theory that life arose by natural processes at an early stage of the earths history and that complex organisms developed from simpler organisms by a process of slow change (Webster). Its the idea that new species arise from older species after thousands of years of gradual chemical, environmental, and genetic change (Wright). Evolution can also be described as the complex processes by which living organisms originated on earth and have been diversified and modified through sustained changes in form and function. Scientist s, looking for an explanation to the origin of man and other organisms created this evolutionism theory, which also presented answers to the many asked questions dealing with similarities between species. Unlike the theory of creation, which states that the complexity of life and different species can only be explained in terms of a supernatural creator or God who placed life on earth, the theory of evolution has a plethora of evidence proving it to be true. There are several different types of observations that support the theory of organic evolution as an explanation for the similarities and the differences among species. One such observation is in the geologic record. The geologic record is the rock scheme found within the earths outer crust. By means of radioactive dating, the ages of rocks in many places on earth have been determined. Its a timetable of the earths geologic history. This combined with the fo...

Tips For Writing an A Grade Marketing Essay

Tips For Writing an A Grade Marketing Essay Marketing Essay Paper: Writing a Unique Essay For you to craft a good marketing essay, you should be conversant with both the subject you are to discuss and discipline it is categorized under. Below are the aspects that you should consider while writing your marketing essay: Basic rules Before you write about marketing, make sure that you know the general purpose of the discipline. It is referred to as a complete study through analysis of the wide range of market segments in relation to the potential financial profit they offer.   A compelling marketing essay should begin with a good thesis statement. Choose the topic you are to discuss and decide on the particulars that will be addressed in your paper. You should, however, know that this is the first step of many you will encounter as you craft your marketing essay. Even though you may have good ideas that concern the topic of discussion, they will not make clear sense without support from credible facts and data. This requires you to conduct a lot of research and narrowing your topic down. Do keep in mind that a marketing essay is no different than any other essay and it will require you to structure it in an engaging manner. Both writing skill and the collective information given are vital towards the crafting of an impressive essay. Structure your work within pre-established frameworks In most cases, you will be working on a topic that has already been covered by different students. The use of the pre-established framework will ease your work greatly.   One of the best ways to conduct your research is by placing focus on operating companies and thoroughly evaluating their products and marketing strategies. This will help you in the crafting of your thesis statement and provide substantial insight into operational marketing and business strategies. When crafting your essay, focus on making it more practical than just giving theoretical information. For the next research stage, gather enough information from credible sources that will support your point of view and ideas that are to be expressed. The number of sources to use will depend on the topic of discussion you are handling and just in case you need clarification, consult your professor about it. Use the guideline given to direct the sources you are to use. It does not mean that the more the sources, the more the quality of the work. Quality depends on how you express your ideas and correctly back them up with supporting arguments from a credible source. You should be limited to one new source for each page you write. While in the process of choosing the sources to use, have in mind that blogs and Wikipedia pages do not count are reliable academic sources. Try using the Google scholar instead to get your sources and information you require. Always search for the latest information concerning your subject and mostly source your work from articles published by well-known universities or colleges. Newspapers, magazines and academic books still serve as reliable sources of information. Make sure you interpret and analyze used sources to make your management essay more sufficient and worth a good grade. The sources you find and plan to use will give you a better insight into the topic you are to handle.   This should make you craft a persuasive thesis statement for your essay. Your paper will be built based on your thesis statement, as you will see when you progress to the main body of your work. Before embarking on writing your management, first structure the outline that you will use to place your logical flow of ideas. Ideally, think of it as the plan for your essay. You should just write down the main points in an understandable manner. This will help you maintain focus as you write, thus reducing the chances of you getting a writer’s block as you work on the management essay paper. Factual evidence is the basis for a good idea you express. Make sure that while presenting your ideas, you back up with facts, statistics or any other relevant data that will hold its credibility to place. Relate each point to the present real-world business sector. It is also advisable to add case study examples. They will help you explain your main idea (thesis) broadly. Incorporate marketing case studies to your essay Case studies are important in ensuring you understand how the topic you are discussing relates to the present day business environment. You can also use it to start your introduction. This will provide you a chance to be straight forward to the reader as you will highlight the meaning of your research and its relevance. After you have crafted your introduction, shift your attention to the configuring of your body paragraphs. At this point keep in mind that each paragraph you begin should describe and explain a different idea from the one expressed in the previous paragraph. A topic sentence is an added advantage since it summarizes what the reader is to expect while going through a particular body paragraph. After you have put across your ideas and supported them with relevant arguments, move to the conclusion part of your essay. You should highlight the conclusion you have arrived at for each idea presented. Avoid leaving any questions unanswered or introducing new information. Keep in mind that a good conclusion gives ground to expressing the practical importance of the management essay. Revise your marketing essay Don’t revise your work just after finishing writing the essay. You are bound to skip sections that require editing of errors that might affect your final grades on the paper. Give yourself like two days before you embark on this task. Ensure that all ideas have been addressed and backed up with arguments that hold value to your main point of view. After completing this, you can now proofread your work again and resolve any grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors. Pay attention to the academic format required Your marketing essay should comply with all the standard rules for academic writing, with formatting as an integral part of it. Use the specifications given by your professor to comply with the formatting styles (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.). Make sure you maintain consistency of the formats all through your paper. That sums up the information you need to know about marketing essay writing. 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Night Work and the Risk of Cancer Among Men Essay - 1

Night Work and the Risk of Cancer Among Men - Essay Example geted men aged between 35-70 years residing in the greater Montreal who had been diagnosed with incident, pathologically confirmed cancer at any major 18 hospitals of Montreal. The study results confirmed earlier studies which had linked night shift workers to increased levels of cancer. However, the study also provided new evidence that had not been well investigated previously, which was the relationship between night work and risks of several types of cancer among men. The results suggested increased risks of cancer sites among men working at night. The results were not tested, since the researchers point out that, â€Å"the absence of duration-response relations, and the very fact of ostensible excess risks across such a wide array of tumour types, might raise questions about the credibility of these ï ¬ ndings and possible methodological artefacts† (Parent, 2012, p. 753). The primary risk of exposure of interest was the relationship between night work and the risk of cancer among men. The study found that there was the existence of a relationship between cancer and night work, although it was not accurately measured. A case study was used to conduct this study of night work and the risk of cancer among men. It involved interviewing men who resided in greater Montreal and who had been diagnosed with various types of cancer in the 18 hospitals in Montreal. The study only focused on male patients who had visited the largest hospitals in Montreal between 1979 and 1985. Out of 4,576 eligible cancer patients 82% of the patients, which total to 3, 730 were successfully interviewed. 81% responded for themselves while the remaining per cent, their spouses acted as the respondents. The study only focused on men who had visited hospitals and successfully been diagnosed with various types of cancer. The selection bias was based on the exposure of interest. The fact that only those men who had been diagnosed with cancer were selected for the study made it qualify for

Management for a Small Planet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Management for a Small Planet - Essay Example Common Humanitarian Fund was providing humanitarian services to Congolese affected by the war in the year 2013 (Cengage, 2014). A peculiar parasite found in the water destroyed the corneas of eleven people, who consequently went blind. An organizational agency, Doctors Without Borders, has volunteered to deploy four doctors to aid in the process of transplanting corneas (Cengage, 2014). The corneas are scarce in Africa. Recently, the director of Doctors Without Borders called the Common Humanitarian Fund and informed that the UK Aid agency is willing to exchange fifteen corneas for a truck and ten cases of medical supplies. The directors of the Common Humanitarian Fund is concerned with the origin of the corneas; credible sources reveal that a wealthy Hong Kong tradesman bought them from an urgency who buys body parts for transplant from executed prisoners. According to the director of Doctors Without Borders, there is no problem using the corneas. However, the director of the Common Humanitarian Fund is not comfortable with the source of the corneas (Cengage, 2014). Common Humanitarian Fund has a few days to decide whether they are willing to accept the corneas or else Doctors Without Borders forwards them to someone else. Utilitarianism theories require decisions to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. The theory of utilitarianism is founded on the premise that moral decisions consider the consequences of the choices (Crane & Matten, 2010). It is critical for decision-makers to consider the possible results of their choices when determining appropriate courses of action. According to Jeremy Bethany and John Stuart Mill, the best decisions do the greatest good for the masses. Thus, the theory of utilitarianism requires decision makers to select alternative courses of action that guarantee the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.

Religious Commitment Essay Example for Free

Religious Commitment Essay Religious governments often have a very undemocratic approach of management, with strict and stringent laws and little freedom. Women are thus usually hard-pressed, dictated, given fewer liberties, and less educated. It is no surprise therefore that these societies are generally male-dominated with little influence from women. Education is primarily based upon the laws and scriptures of state religion with little room for anything else. From primary to secondary studies, emphasis is placed upon teaching and preaching everything about the religion and its practices. Anything which differs from religion is discarded. This consequently results in low literacy rate in terms of modern ways, studies, technologies and knowledge. Civil laws are also based upon the scriptures of the religion, with severe and strict rules and regulations. There is little democracy, freedom, and usually harsh punishments given out for violating laws. Religious laws are of chief importance and consequentially high government posts are inhabited by religious clerics and leaders. There are a large percentage of these types of governments in Middle East, Asia and East, where as the West and European countries are exceedingly democratic. In recent times, extremists Muslims have been severely criticized for trying to impose their religion and violating basic rights of freedom. It is also one of the reasons cited by the American government for attacking Afghanistan and Iraq, which were primarily religious governments with little freedom and democracy. On the whole, religious governments place emphasis on religion, its laws and practices. Compliance is usually mandatory, with all matters: women, education and civil laws etc. molded according to religious beliefs. Reference Audi, Robert. Religious Commitment and Secular Reason. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Essay --

On Friday, 19, 1971, Cornelius â€Å"Neil† Sheehan of the New York Times received copies of a Defense Department study labeled â€Å"Top Secret – Sensitive† regarding U.S. foreign affairs in Vietnam. At that time, the U.S. was deeply involved in the Vietnam War, with no foreseeable end. Sheehan had received the documents, entitled â€Å"United States – Vietnam Relations, 1945-1967,† from Daniel Ellsberg, a defense analyst formerly employed at RAND Corporation. As Sheehan and his colleagues examined the study, an argument sparked over whether the papers would ever be released. Some argued it was treasonous to publish stories based on critical parts of a 7,000-page, 47-volume, top-secret government study. Others believed that it was the duty of the Times to release the truth about what truly was happening in Vietnam. Arthur Sulzberger, the publisher of the newspaper, was far less than eager about publication. He was uneasy about a dissertation so obviously critical to national security. Finally, on June 11, Sulzberger called Times executives to his office and announced he had decided to go ahead as planned. On June 13, 1971, The New York Times ran the stories covered up by four presidents: Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson. Less than three weeks after the release of the stories, the Supreme Court would issue a landmark ruling. In any case involving classified government material, the right of the people to know the information must be weighed against the responsibility of the government to protect its citizens. In this particular case, the right of the people to know what has been hidden from them by countless officials for dozens of years severely outweighs the responsibility of the government to protect old ... ...r 7, 1964, that air raids would be necessary to win the Vietnam War. Apparently, the Nixon Administration reached a similar conclusion, because toward the end of the war, because right after the Pentagon Paper were released President Nixon ordered an extensive bombing campaign on the North Vietnamese. The study also revealed that President Johnson secretly paved the way for ground combat in Vietnam. Based on the evidence, it seems that Johnson, or at least his administration were interested in escalating the war in Vietnam, not ending it, as they had announced to the public. The entirety of the Pentagon Papers suggests that the United States escalated the Vietnam War, instead of trying to bring it to an end. It was the responsibility of the press to exercise its right of free speech, and the right of the public to know that the government they trusted had lied.

Ancient Views of the Concept of Marriage and the Family Essay

There are several aspects that constitute social life. These aspects include family, religion, leisure, sexuality, intellectual and creativity. The aforementioned aspects are evident in the ancient literature. However, both the Western and the Eastern had different views regarding these social aspects. The paper discusses Western and Eastern views of social life and responsibilities in ancient literature. To narrow down the research, marriage and the family were chosen. Both Western and the Eastern writers had different views regarding various issues surrounding marriage and the family. Ancient literature dates back A.D 476, and it underwent a series of transformations until the 16th century. During ancient times, many, philosophers and writers used various forms of writing to pass their messages. These forms included poetry, narration and even writing on stones. The recorded ancient from Greek, Egypt, Persia, Europe and some parts of Asia shows significant similarities and differences. To understand the matter introduced, we can consider views from the Greece and Persia, and compare them with views from Asia and Egypt. In these countries, a lot was written regarding social life and responsibilities. We shall also consider several works by different authors to support the arguments presented. Similarities Both the Western and Eastern literature talked about marriage and the family and the roles of the parties involved. A good example is Homer’s Novel, Iliad, which have several scenes of love and romance. One of its themes is military glory over family life. According to the novel, family is depicted as an important institution between two people. Homer constantly forces the characters in his writings to put the interests of their loved ones. From the novel, it is clear that a complete marriage can only be possible between a man and a woman. In addition, the novel suggests that women had a role to take care of their children while men went out for war. This was the case in Eastern parts of the world. Israel writers such as Jim West emphasized on the role of women in the family. He suggests that women were seen as custodians of their families. The two writings show similar characteristics regarding men’s responsibilities. The Iliad by Homer suggests that men had a responsi bility to protect their families from any form of attacks. A close examination of these ancient works portrays men as muscular persons who were supposed to protect the interests of the societies. Moreover, the ancient literatures by Euripides from Greece suggest that both man and a woman must complement one another. The same is shown by Emily Teeter, an Eastern ancient writer. In his novel, Ancient Egyptian and Family Life, Teeter points out that men and women are equal parties in the marriage. However, the novel suggests that ancient women from Egypt had a role to attend markets while men carried out hard jobs, which were suitable for the survival of the family (Minchin 22). Both Western and Eastern ancient literature values ethics in family matters. The following are various examples in support of this claim. Western ancient writers such as Plato and Aristotle came up with several ethical frameworks which were supposed to guide the members of the family. Marriage and the family were highly valued by these two great writers. According to Plato’s writings, family members were supposed to be guided by ethics of virtues. The writer came up with four virtues which are prudence, duty of care, love, justice and integrity. Moreover Eastern writers from Egypt and Israel valued ethics. A good example is The Pyramid Texts of Egypt, which talks about the journey of the soul to the eternity. The Pyramid is considered as literature because it has some moral lessons. They taught couples to practice ethics whenever they deal with each other. The literature suggests that a marriage is a journey that ought to have follow ethics (Pearson 234). Differences There are several differences between the Eastern and Western views of the marriage and the family as depicted in the ancient literature. The first one is the structure of the family. Eastern literature suggests that families in the East by 14th century were dominated by the husband. Women are depicted as subjects to men. According to a journal article, Ancient Israelite Marriage Customs by Jim West, men in ancient Israel were given more powers, which were dictated by the society. This is quite different Western view of the same issue. According to Homer’s novel, The Oddesy, women in the Western world during the ancient times were almost equal to men. Homer uses a number of women to show their roles in the society. A good example is where he uses examples of Circe and Calypso who never entertained exploitation from their male counterparts. However, Homer presents a way in which women’s status was lowered. In the novel, there are examples of women who only existed to sat isfy men’s sexual desires. According to this ancient work, this ruined the institution of marriage. From this we get a very crucial difference between the Western and Eastern view of the family. While Homer suggests that prostitution could happen freely in the Western world, this was highly discouraged in Eastern Literature. In fact, any woman who was found guilty of the offence was stoned to death. Most of the ancient Eastern writings make a lot of references to the Bible. A good example is presented in the journal article mentioned above. According to Eastern culture, it was wrong for a woman to make love with another man, apart from her husband. Surprisingly, men were allowed to do so. This shows that women presented in Eastern literature had little control of their life. Everything they did was already stipulated by the society (McDemont 67). Another key difference in the two views is the attitudes towards abortion. This was a critical issue in marriage and the family. The Eastern view suggests that couples married to procreate and fill the earth. As already mentioned an above, this was another reference of the Holy Bible. Israelites were among the communities that valued life and children. Ancient Greeks and Romans accepted abortion. They were not much concerned to protect unborn children. Early philosophers argued that it took 40 -80 days for a fetus to be formed. According to Aristotle, an Ancient philosopher, couples could practice abortion before sense of life had begun. He however believed that female embryos developed slowly than male ones. With regards to the subject of abortion, things were stickier in Eastern parts. Eastern culture did not allow abortion to take course in the society. The Eastern view regarding abortion was that anyone who caused miscarriage, he or she had to pay a fine to the husband of the wom an. The literature suggests that fetus was a property and it needed to be safeguarded by all means. This suggests that everyone in the Eastern society had a responsibility to support human life (Pepe 45). From the above analysis, it can be noted that both the Eastern and Western views on family had similarities and differences. Ancient Eastern writers seem to have been influenced greatly by the Bible in their writing. On the other hand, Western writers were critical on a given subject matter, and they often differed in opinions. References McDermott, M. H. Novel and Romance: The Odyssey to Tom Jones. Diss. The New University of Ulster, 1975. Minchin, Elizabeth. â€Å"Homer and the resources of memory: some applications of cognitive theory to the Iliad and the Odyssey.† (2001). Pepe, L. â€Å"Abortion in ancient Greece.† XIX Symposion of Greek and Hellenistic Law. 2013. Pearson, Lionel. Popular ethics in ancient Greece. Stanford University Press, 1962. Source document

A summary of wal-mart chapter

Wal-Mart, the largest corporate organization in the world and the largest employer in the private sector in the United States, is a success story in the corporate world.The history of Wal-Mart dates back to the year 1962. Initially, it was a single store which was the initiative of one Sam Walton who has since died. It has weathered the storm of competition and has now grown in size to a worldwide corporation. Walton had at the time of starting Wal-Mart opened 20 stores which were competing against 250 from Kmart.Walton was dynamic in operating the organization. He made sure that he maintained the principles of marketing and those of customer satisfaction, a factor that made Wal-Mart become the single biggest retailer worldwide.International sales have been increasing at an impressive average of 13 percent, which is a dream for any company or any corporation anywhere in the world, no matter how large it is. In the year 2000, Wal-Mart realized an increase of 46 percent in internationa l sales which translates to 16.8 percent of all the corporate sales combined.This corporation however has its shortcomings in the way it relates with its employees and the obligations to its corporate responsibilities. On the part of human resource, Wal-Mart gives its employees lows benefits even though they add great value to the corporation, and health benefits have been lost. Wal-Mart does not consider the values of the grassroots community but rather of more importance to it is profit together with economic growth.Wal-Mart’s contribution to the local communities is enormous given that it employs many people. When it opens a new outlet, it employs people from the surrounding local community and in this way it improves the living conditions of the people from these communities.Given the current rate of unemployment and job losses, Wal-Mart has taken the lead role in solving this problem and has helped many people who otherwise would not have been in any form of gainful empl oyment to at least get something to do for the sustenance of their lives and those of their dependants.  But there is the negative side to this employment issue. Wal-Mart has for all the years been an insensitive employer. Besides poor pay, the working hours are inconsistent and this is a great inconvenience to the workers. Long working hours and unpredictable working schedule characterizes the experiences the employees of Wal-Mart have to go through.This retail outlet giant has made it a rule that its employees should not join any labor organization or union of any kind.Several attempts by the workers’ representatives to force Wal-Mart allow them to join labor organizations have all come cropper. Court cases have been ruled in favor of the employer to the detriment of the employee, and this seems not to bother the management of Wal-Mart.Wal-Mart has adopted capitalist as its politico-economic approach. This therefore means that in any venture, it is guided not necessarily by the interests of the general society or more specifically those of the local communities, but rather by what gains they stand to get from them in terns of profits from the investment.This is capitalism per excellence and this approach has made Wal-Mart to have an edge over its competitors, who seem to favor a combination of both reasonable profits and good conditions for the workers.Wal-Mart is not a good neighbor. It thrives on capitalizing on the weaknesses of and inability of its competitors. Five years after Wal-Mart enters into a new market, all the existing retail businesses start recording losses and others close shop.This leaves Wal-Mart to monopolize the market and therefore the customers have no alternative but to consume what is on offer at the Wal-Mart outlets. This amounts to monoculture as it thrives on cultural homogenization.It manages to draw away attention from a local competitor by selling its commodities at very low prices, in fact at prices below the actual p rice making it impossible for any other business, however strong and committed it may be, to lose out and leaving Wal-Mart to dominate the market.This homogenization is actually due in part to confusion. While its intention on the one hand is to ensure that it has an upper hand in the market share, it also genuinely thinks that this is good corporate practice (Jacques et al pp 7-10).

Children literature timeline paper

Children literature timeline paper Introduction Many cultures have over time experienced real and dramatic changes in almost every sphere. As time elapses, people evolve. Consequently, there is a paradigm shift in the way people do things and handle various situations that come their way on daily basis. Child literature has been part of people’s lives. It has however undergone tremendous changes over time from one generation to the next.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Children literature timeline paper specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More These changes are represented as stages in the lifetime of these generations. The timelines also depict a sense of peoples’ perceptions and outlook on life, defining the norms and cultures that governed institutions at given times (Mulherin, 1982). Many factors have been considered to determine the depth of literature that the child is exposed to with much of this being centered on age and what the adults perceive the child to be. Age Child literature has been classified according to the stages of growth of the child. From infancy through to adolescence (this almost happens at the stages of twelve and thirteen), the child is given different classes of literature that is expected to bring up certain traits in them. The bridge between infant literature and adult literature is the young adult’s literature. This differs from the previous in both maturity level and the content that is represented. The literary skills that are employed are also different. Much of what appears in adult literature also features in literature designed for the children. McGuffey, for instance, alludes that fiction in its many forms such as â€Å"contemporary realism, fantasy and historical fiction, poetry, folk tales, legends, myths, and epics all occur in children literature† (McGuffey, 2001). Non-fictional literature spans from subjects that range from literature to humanities. These subjects v ary from social issues, biological studies to general sciences and ultimately deals in the earth as the prime topic. Books that are designed to be children’s literature use many methods to pass across the message they are meant to convey, as such pictures that display both visual and audio texts are used to complete the cycle. The evolution of Children literature Children literature as it is known today, has borrowed a lot from the then adult literature. The fairy tales and other fictitious characters were all a part of adult history. Books that were to be used as educative materials went further than providing entertainment to the children, and as such were used to teach, impart moral lessons and improve on a child’s ability to socialize with others effectively. Other books were cautionary to the youth as they warned them on the consequences of operating within the set standards and rules that determined the norms of their people (Kubler-Ross, 1999).Children literatur e came into being at around the seventeenth century.Advertising Looking for essay on literature languages? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Before then, children were overlooked and accorded little respect; they were considered a little less of humans and not much was done for them in relation to the literature they got. Cliftons (2006) noted that children in the olden days had it rough with their literature laced with an abnormally barbaric and forceful streak often used to scare the children to get them behave as the parents wished. They were majorly used to caution children and as such the subject in their pieces of literature was either killed or severely punished for a wrong deed. By the end of the seventeenth century, following the publication of John Newberry’s â€Å"A little pretty pocket book† for children, it dawned on the people that children literature should be a tool for entertainment rath er than for education or castigation. This marked the beginning of the official publishing of children literature and as such, set the trend for the other writers and the generations of writers that came afterwards. The roles of children literature in society Children literature, as earlier stated can be used as an avenue to impart several life lessons to the students and thus be an educative tool. It can also be used to pass history from one generation to the next thus expanding the knowledge base of a given child (Hunt, 1995). Child literature in its own capacity could be used to mould character as a cautionary tool to the children that have indiscipline cases in the society. References Cliftons, J. (2006). Old-Time Schools and School Books, New York: Dover Publishers. Hunt, P. (1995). Childrens Literature: An Illustrated History. New York: Oxford University Press. Kà ¼bler-Ross, E. (1999). On Death and Dying. New York: Macmillan. Print.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Children literature timeline paper specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More McGuffey, W. (2001). McGuffeys Eclectic Readers, 7 book series, Primer–Sixth  Reader. New York: Van Nostrand. Print. Mulherin, J. (1982). Favorite Fairy Tales. London: Granada Publishing.

Case Study on Human Error

JFK airport authorities had been told to keep a higher landing rate than safe at 33 planes attempting to land per hour, on one runway the typical rate being 52 in good weather, with all runways open. The airport was experiencing a rate of 27% missed approaches, with 39 planes waiting in holding patterns for clearance to land and dozens waiting to take-off. Sequence of events The 707 had been placed in holding patterns for a total of 1 hour and 17 minutes during three separate occasions over the U. S. east coast. There were 6 different air traffic controllers that had communicated directions to Flight 52 after they entered U. S. airspace, adding confusion and un-transmitted messages, yet at the same time not providing any more crucial information such as weather conditions. The Flight Engineer failed to communicate the urgency of the low fuel situation to the pilot and co-pilot after they passed the point of no return and had to remain committed to JFK –by not having enough fuel to get to their alternate airport at Boston, 342km away from JFK. He also failed to emphasize the importance of landing in their first attempt because they would not have enough fuel to loop around and try again. Another discrepancy was how the co-pilot used the words â€Å"Low Fuel† and â€Å"Priority† rather than â€Å"MAYDAY† and â€Å"Minimum Fuel† while communicating to ATCs. There was a lot of crucial information left out or misinterpreted and not so important information repeated, which could have easily been avoided without the language barriers in place. In terms of the Swiss Cheese model there were many holes in the conversations between ATCs and the flight crew, similarly between the flight crew and passengers, where they weren’t even given a warning. Causes and factors During the chase to point the blame on someone, Avianca stated to investigators that the phraseology used by their pilots was correct as per their training -whether it matched the standard English phraseology used by IATA countries or not they were only following what they thought to be proper protocol. Investigation by the NTSB found many holes in the events leading up to the crash, due to both active and latent failures by the crew, ATCs, and airport management. The leading causes can be attributed to airport mismanagement, inconsistent training for pilots that should have English proficiency, and overall poor communication between ATCs and the flight crew. Repetitive flaws in a system run by human beings shows a clear link in the lack of Risk Management, causing communication gaps referred to as holes in the Swiss Cheese model for human error. CRM stipulates training crew in assertiveness, inter-personal communication, leadership and decision-making, to name a few key attributes these pilots were in need of addressing prior to the incident. There was no problem of experience as both the pilot and co-pilot had flown that route before, and the pilot had 27 years of experience flying for Avianca. The implementation of Crew Resource Management techniques in the previous years must not have been as streamlined as intended, at least not for the American ATCs and those training under Avianca in Columbia. If one lesson would be learned from this it would be that had the crew received effective and efficient CRM training on time, they could have saved 73 people from an almost completely preventable death by human error. References AskCaptainLim. com {comments}. Aviation, Air Crash. Avianca flight 52: why the pilots failed to use proper phraseology. (Last updated October 19, 2008). Retrieved from: http://www. askcaptainlim. com/-air-crash-aviation-34/830-avianca-flight-52-why-the-pilots-failed-to-use-the-proper-phraseology. html Cushman Jr. , John H. New York Times, Archives, Collections, Fuel. Avianca flight 52: the delays that ended in disaster. (February 5, 1990). Retrieved from: http://www. nytimes. com/1990/02/05/nyregion/avianca-flight-52-the-delays-that-ended-in-disaster. html? pagewanted=allamp;src=pm National Geographic, Cineflix Productions. Air Crash Investigation series, Episode S02E05 Missing Over New York. Retrieved from http://natgeotv. com/ca/air-crash-investigation/videos/deadly-delay Wikipedia. org, Avianca Flight 52. (Last updated March 22, 2013). Retrieved from: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52

Internaltion Political Topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Internaltion Political Topic - Essay Example What is a terrorist and how does one define terrorism? The age old adage that â€Å"one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter† (Bergesen & Lizardo 2004) rings true and the term terrorist has been notoriously difficult to define. Seeking to address the difficult definitional questions surrounding these terms, this essay will compare and contrast definitions offered by scholars at the forefront in the study of the terrorist phenomenon. Despite the definitional challenges surrounding the terrorist phenomenon, a definition of â€Å"terrorism† is integral and this term must be defined so as to provide our theoretical basis. Bruce Hoffman, world renowned terror scholar and expert of the use of terror as a political tool, understands the slippery nature of defining the term and argues that first and foremost, terrorism is a political concept. Secondly, terror is about power and the use of this power to enact political change (Hoffman 2007). Another pro minent international terror theorist, Gà ©rard Chaliand, argues that terror is a tool which targets the mind. From this perspective, terror is â€Å"the most violent form of psychological warfare† (Chaliand et al. 1999) and terrorism is a means to power and control through violent means. While both of these definitions shed insight into the terrorist phenomenon, Dr. Mia Bloom, the world’s foremost expert on the suicide terror phenomenon, defines terrorism in a different fashion. According to Bloom, terrorism is â€Å"premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetuated against noncombatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience† (Bloom 2005). Taken together, all of these definitions are comprehensive enough to guide this essay and complement our analysis of the global terrorist phenomenon. As has been thoroughly documented,

Under what circumstances is genocide most likely to occur Can Essay

Under what circumstances is genocide most likely to occur Can recognition of these circumstances help us prevent genocidal acts - Essay Example Likewise, the perpetrator’s definition of the group is necessary for establishing a specific intent. It also distinguishes genocide from other heinous crimes or justified acts such as a pre-emptive strike.3 This definition of genocide is significant because it informs of the broader characteristics of genocide and guides theoretical approaches to recognizing the instances in which genocide is most likely to occur and therefore provides a means by which genocide can be predicted and prevented. This paper provides a critical analysis of these theories and argues that history instructs however, that genocide is largely incapable of qualification and as such it is unpredictable and most likely unpreventable. If history is any indication, genocide typically occurs during war. However, it does not occur during all wars. Therefore differentiating what kind of war or what wars are consistent with the propensity to commit genocide is futile. A. Historical Overview of Genocide Mamdaniâ €™s brief history of genocide distinguishes genocide from the systematic killing of an enemy. In 1994 Rwanda, the military and its supporters orchestrated the mass murder by Rwandan Hutu majority of Rwandan Tutsi minority. Non-conforming Hutus were also killed. The difference is, Hutus were killed as enemies, whereas the Tutsi were killed simply because they were Tutsi.4 Mamdani also suggests that â€Å"the genocidal impulse may be as old as organized power† and while â€Å"the impulse to destroy an enemy is ancient, the technology of genocide is constantly evolving†.5 Looked at in this way, it is difficult to predict genocide. If genocide is an impulse in much the same way as the impulse to kill one’s enemies, genocide like any act of violence is difficult to predict and just as difficult to prevent. History bears this out. Genocide is not specific to any particular location, politics, economy, race, ethnicity or gender. While there are specific themes such as ethnicity there are other themes that are far more subtle such as the influence of outsiders. Moreover, genocide has occurred on virtually every continent. The best explanation is that genocide is a result of â€Å"the conjunction of influences and actions widely present in the world.†6 Nsereko informs that, â€Å"the history of human race abounds with episodes of genocide.†7 Historically, genocide has been for the most part conducted during the course of a war. Evidence of this trend goes back to the Bible. In more recent times, the Nazis committed the holocaust executions during the Second World War. Other genocidal acts in the last century occurred in Turkey, Vietnam, Pakistan, Nigeria, Rwanda, Burundi, Iraq, Bosnia Herzegovina and Zaire.8 History also informs that genocide was not prevented by international customary law. Crowe informs that not only is genocide â€Å"as old as history†, but so are norms, standards and laws regulating standards of conduct during conflict.9 In 1943, the Allied Powers adopted a charter establishing the war tribunal for trying the Nazis for their war crimes. Some of the charges included genocide.10 On December 11 1946 the UN’s General Assembly adopted Resolution 96(I) in which genocide was characterized as a crime pursuant to international law. The Resolution also instructed the Economic and Social Council to draft a genocide convention.11 Two years later the UN’

Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 18

Art - Essay Example Deaccessions of the objects can only take place when the objects to not match the mission of the museum. The re-opening of museum in Bagdad was meant to give political mileage to the politicians. In an open letter addressed to the government by Donny George and Rakowitzs, expressed concerns over shortest duration with which the preparation of the museum under-went for its re-opening. Despite all these efforts, the government through the Minister of Tourism went ahead to re-open the museum. The notion that of the â€Å"strong takes it all† is a common phrase frequently put into practice in Iraq today. This is evident from the creation of the ministry of tourism to oversee the management of the museums. This is contrary to the old system where the ministry of culture had this mandate. The re-opening of the museum was more of an exhibition as stated by Amira Aidan in an email. This is because; 8 out of the 26 rooms were open and a few items on display. Security situation in Iraq prompted a policy of allowing 50% of the staff to make it to work on a single day with the other 50% on the following day. Close to 50% percent of the objects missing from the museum due to security lapses in the country. It is important to note that museums play a significant role in preserving a country’s heritage through generations. Governments should therefore come up with relevant policies to ensure that museums are preserved (Merritt and Reilly 23-25). Regulations that undermine the independent operations of the museum would eventually make them collapse due to loss of objects within the

Sociological Analysis of Media Article

Sociological Analysis of Media Article Select and present an article from a current newspaper or magazine in your country, (the UK), that offers an assessment of some social problem. Assess the data in the article in terms of a social scientists perspective. What is your conclusion regarding the article.? Introduction Relationships between the West and the Muslim world have been of considerable interest both to politicians and to the general public, especially sociologists. Since the events of 9/11 in America the world has been confronted with the fact that there is a faction within Islam that will do anything to make its voice heard and to further its concerns in the West. This paper therefore has selected a newspaper article concerned with the publication of some cartoons involving the Prophet Mohammed. This has caused considerable upset in the Muslim world and is given a different presentation in different publications. The article selected for analysis here is taken from the Daily Mirror, Saturday 4th February. This paper will assess the data in the article from the perspective of a social scientist and will then give some conclusions regarding the article. Sociological analysis of documents is usually described as content analysis and there are a number of ways in which this type of analysis may be undertaken. Some sociologists use formal content analysis where a number of different texts on a given subject are used. This also sometimes involves the use of statistics (Giddens, 2001). Content analysis may also involve thematic and textual analysis. This paper will use a thematic and textual analysis (as described by Bryman, 2004) to analyse the chosen article. Scott (1990) maintains that great care should be taken when analysing documents, particularly media documents. The person undertaking the analysis needs to be aware of their own position and prejudices at the outset and how this might impact on their reading and understanding of the text. There are, therefore, problems of reliability with this kind of analysis. Language and Ideology The article that I have chosen to analyse is entitled â€Å"Muslims Day of Rage: Muslim cartoon Protest rock the world and Britain† by Victoria Ward and Stephen White. The article concerns the protests and violent reactions to the publication by a Danish newspaper of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed as a terrorist. The first thing that was noted was the title. Muslim’s Day of Rage, this is the kind of phrase that is likely to add to the Islamaphobia that has been growing in the West since the events of 9/11 and the London terrorist bombings last July. The wording implies that all Muslims were not only upset and insulted by the cartoons, bearing in mind that all forms of representation not only of the prophet, but of human beings are forbidden in Islam, but that most of them are engaging in violent protest. This analysis of the title is confirmed by the opening lines of the article: FURIOUS Muslims warned Europe it would pay with blood yesterday for publishing a cartoon of the prophet Mohammed as a terrorist (Daily Mirror, 4/2/06-no page number given). Again the article does not differentiate between groups of Muslim protestors and the Muslim community at large. It tends to suggest that the vast majority of Muslims take the view that Europe should be made to pay in blood for the insult. This kind of wording is likely to incite religious and racial hatred. Looking at the article as a whole it might be said that the ideology underlying this article relates to Islamaphobia and is perhaps connected to the writers’ own fears of terrorist attacks. This theme of Muslim violence can be detected throughout the article. What is most problematic about this is that the article does not clearly differentiate between those Muslims engaging in demonstrations and violent protest, and those Muslims who are not. The language is used in such a way that it appears to apply to all Muslims and represents them as an angry and violent group. Representation The title and opening lines of the article I would suggest, tend to represent Muslim people as a homogenous group who want to see the West pay for the outrageous insult to the Prophet. The writers go on to speak of demonstrations that were charged with hatred in London where the Danish flag was burned and some protestors were claiming that ‘another 7/7 is on its way’ (referring to the tube and bus bombings in London last year). The article refers only briefly to the cartoon itself: The offending cartoon, which first appeared in a small Danish newspaper, showed the prophet Mohammed wearing a bomb-shaped turban. Islamic tradition bars any depiction of the prophet to prevent idolatry (Daily Mirror, 4/2/06) No criticism is made of the paper that printed the cartoon, of the cartoonist that produced it, or even of the fact that to Muslims such a cartoon would be viewed as blasphemous. While not wishing to endorse violent protests or to take sides it would seem that the article treats the subject with a very uneven handed approach. Clearly the writers, although this is not mentioned, hold to the idea of free speech and the freedom of the press. The question is why should this unheralded endorsement of free speech be contrasted with the representation of ‘furious’ and ‘angry’ Muslims. The ways in which the information is presented arguably gives a distorted picture of the whole issue. The cartoon is given much less space and attention than the acts of groups of Muslim protestors and tends to minimalise the offence that even the majority of non-demonstrating/protesting Muslims must have felt. Passive and Active Language The sentence relating to the cartoon is written in the passive voice, it says that the cartoon ‘first appeared’ as though it was not the work of human hands. By contrast all the recorded incidents concerning the protestors and the demonstrators are presented in the active mode as the following two extracts show. In Jakarta, Indonesia, more than 150 Muslims stormed a building housing the Danish Embassy and tore down and burned the countrys white and red flag (Daily Mirror, 4/2/06). Thousands of Palestinian refugees marched through the streets of their camps in Lebanon, burning flags and urging Osama bin Laden to avenge Mohammad (Daily Mirror, 4/2/06). No information is given as to the accuracy of the number of Palestinian refugees, the authors cite demonstrations from across the world and so some of those represented must have come from secondary sources, live news bulletins or other papers but it is not stated where such information came from or how the numbers given in the article for example the article states that more than 10,000 Palestinians were burning Danish cheese. The ways in which these numbers are presented and the fact that the newspaper makes consistent use of verbs to describe the protests and demonstrations gives what might be said to be an inflated view of what has been going on. The reader could be forgiven for believing that many thousands of Muslims across the globe have been involved in demonstrations and violent protests. Clearly this does not make violent action and threats of violence right but perhaps journalistic ethics were not hugely in evidence judging by the way in which this information was presente d. Towards the end of the article Jack Straw condemned the cartoon, but again, not the cartoonist who produced it not the editor that published it. His comes as a voice of calm reason at the end of a litany of violent protest and threats of violence, adding to the overall picture of Muslims as enraged and violent rather than groups of Muslim protestors. At the end of the article the writers point to the fact that the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Great Britain urged Muslims not to be provoked by the extreme actions of those elements who were out to exploit the situation. It would seem that this might be a clearer picture of events than that which the writers of the article have presented us with. Conclusion In this paper I have attempted to analyse, from the point of view of a social scientist, a newspaper article that is concerned with protests and demonstrations by some groups of Muslims over their upset at the publication of a cartoon which present the Prophet Mohammed as a terrorist. I have used a textual and thematic analysis in reading this article and have tried to cover most of its aspects. In undertaking this analysis I was acutely aware that the way in which the article was written annoyed me because I felt that it did not give an accurate picture of Muslims as a whole. It seemed that some of the language used by the writers was used not just to persuade, but to inflame and that this could lead to counter-protest on behalf of those people who see Islam and its people as a threat to Western civilisation. Bibliography Bryman, A 2nd ed. 2004 Social Research Methods Oxford, Oxford University Press Giddens, A. 2001 4th ed. Sociology, Cambridge, Polity Press http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/topstories/tm_objectid=16665334%26method=full%26siteid=94762-name_page.html Daily Mirror, â€Å"Muslims Day of Rage: Muslim cartoon Protest rock the world and Britain† by Victoria Ward and Stephen White. 4th February 2006 www.polity.co.uk/giddens

Balanced Literacy vs Whole Language Approach to Teaching Reading Essay

Whole language is considered a "top down" approach where the reader constructs a personal meaning for a text based on using their prior knowledge to interpret the meaning of what they are reading. Teachers are expected to provide a literacy rich environment for their students and to combine speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Whole language teachers emphasize the meaning of texts over the sounds of letters, and phonics instruction becomes just one component of the whole language classroom. Problems associated with whole language include a lack of structure that has been traditionally supplied by the scope and sequence, lessons and activities, and extensive graded literature found in basal readers. Whole language puts a heavy burden on teachers to develop their own curriculum. Balanced Literacy is an approach for teaching literacy that is widely used in classrooms across the country. It involves several methods of teaching and learning reading and writing, whole class instruction directed by the teacher with independent work in reading, writing, and oral language. By integrating a variety of approaches, a balance is achieved in which students learning to understand text (from a whole language approach) as well as how to read text (from a phonics approach). Effective phonics instruction focuses children's attention on noticing the letter/sound patterns in initial consonants and consonant clusters and in rimes. BALANCED LITERACY provides and cultivates the skills o...

Gender Identity Essay

There are a couple factors that determine gender identity; like genetic factors, environmental situations, psychosocial factors, and even sexual hormones. â€Å"Gender identity is almost always consistent with chromosomal sex. † (Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , and Fichner-Rathus, L. 2005). From the moment sperm fertilized an ovum, our destiny to be a girl or a boy is chosen. Usually at this point; 23 chromosomes from the male donor and 23 from the female come together and combine to make a â€Å"zygote†. Starting about six weeks into the pregnancy, our bodies began to form and create into what they are meant to be, and after the seventh week, our genetic code (XY or XX) begins to really assert itself. Gender identity is not always a term referring to a person’s anatomic sex, â€Å"sex assignment† is now the correct term to ask a person their anatomic sex that occurred at birth. It is said that by 36 months old, most children are said to have a firm sense of their gender identity. Our genes play an important role in determining our gender identity. The SRY gene (which is the gene that determines the Y male gene) will bind to DNA and distort, and alter it, creating the testes. The gene called Sox 9 is the gene that regulates the expression of SRY. If Sox 9 did not get to regulate the SRY gene; it would turn into a male fetus. We without help from the SRY gene, female reproductive organs would form instead of male organs. Recent research suggests that as many as one in every hundred individuals may have some intersex characteristics. † (Domurat, 1998). Some people do not believe that their gender identity corresponds with their biological sex (mainly transgender people, but also including; transsexuals and inter-sexed individuals as well. ) Difficulties can begin because society maintains that a person must accept a manner of social gender roles, which is based on their sex, and the person may feel that it is not consistent with their gender identity. This is known as â€Å"gender identity disorder†, and by definition means that the individual is uncomfortable with their anatomic gender, and presents themselves or act like a member of the opposite sex. Masculinity and femininity are terms that we hear every day in our lives. For example, we hear that Shawn is so secure in his masculinity that he is comfortable being a house-husband or that Wendy’s mastectomy is threatening her sense of femininity. Even though most people think of masculinity and femininity on opposite ends of one continuum, it does not make it true. Just because an individual may possess some traits of both categories does not make them too masculine or feminine. Where a person should be placed on the masculinity and femininity continuum, all depends on the degree to which the show or report specific gender-linked qualities, and behaviors. The midpoint on this hypothetical continuum is known as the zero point, and if a person has failed to develop gender-role identification, or they have transcended it, then they would be placed at this point of the line. Those who show strong sex-role identifications would go at either one end or the other of the hypothetical continuum. One of the factors in my life that have helped determine my gender identity is; by nature I am a female because I have the sexual reproduction system of a female. That is not what makes me a female though. What makes me a female is how I carry myself in everyday life. I am secure in my womanhood, and have never felt like I should have been a male instead. I like to dress like a woman, talk like a woman, and even use manners that are considered â€Å"womanly†. I chose to keep long, pretty, unpolished fingernails, and I wear make-up on special occasions, but since I do not wear it all the time that does not make me masculine. I was raised in an environment that my parents, teachers, and any other important figures in my life treated me like a female; therefore, I act like a typical societal female. I even grew up with toys that were specifically designed for female use like; dolls and make-up, and cooking toys. The masculine and feminine traits that I attribute to myself using the hypothetical continuum are kind of split in some ways. I can identify with both points of view regarding females and males. My mother thought it best to teach me things that most of the time need a man. She taught me these â€Å"manly† activities because she believes that women should be independent and never need a man for anything. Women are just as good as men (she used to tell me), and women should never be made to feel differently on the subject. I whole-heartedly agree. In conclusion, gender identity and gender roles can cause some conflicts in some people within their daily lives. These disputes can be lessened when the individual is able to develop a secure masculine or feminine gender identity about how they perceive themselves. There are rites of passages that help young female into womanhood, or a young male into manhood, depending on the culture around you as to what the rite of passage may include. Once an individual has figured out what identifies them as either masculine or feminine, they will be able to progress their own positive feelings about masculinity and femininity.