My father had told me that I should consider first my budget

I am so excited in buying my first car. Can’t wait to drive it! As I was browsing through catalogues and asking friends and family I’ve learned that there are factors that I have to consider in purchasing a car. I thought it was as easy as buying a chocolate bar at the store. My father had told me that I should consider first my budget. What’s the budget I’ve allotted for my car? It was only then that I had thought about it. It seems that my budget won’t match the car I’ve dreamed of buying.So my father told me to think of the other factors, such as, look for a car that would fit my budget. Next is the quality of the car, like the engine and the body; and lastly are the features of the car. What I did was look through the catalogues and brochures again. Write on a piece of paper the features I like and the kind of engine that fits my lifestyle. On the other side are the features of the cars I’m looking at. Cross out the things that I d on’t like, and left out what I like and the things that match them.It was only then that I was able to choose the car that I’ll be purchasing. But there are three choices left, which I really have to think about and consider. I again consulted my father about it to finalize my decision. He told me to go and check out the cars that are in my list, â€Å"Once you’re there and check them you’ll know which one is for you. † And I did went to check the cars out. I wasn’t able to see the third choice for when I saw the second car I knew it was for me.As if it was calling me, when I approached it to check out the seats, the interiors and engine, I didn’t waste any time at all and spoke to the car salesman. That afternoon I negotiated with the salesman and was able to purchase the car less than my budget. I felt so accomplished and victorious. The salesman told me to go back after a few days for the car. I called my father while I was walking out of the office, telling him what happened. He was just laughing while I was talking.I kept on talking as if I didn’t hear he was laughing on the other line. When I was finished he said, â€Å"That’s what I was telling you. Now you know what I was saying. And I can say that you’re too proud and happy that you were able to purchase your first car on your own. † When I heard that I just nodded and said, â€Å"Thank you very much, Dad. I love you. † It was such a fulfilling feeling that, I won’t forget that experience. I go with the same process every time I would purchase something. I’ve learned a lot from my father.

Lasting Effects of Nuclear Arms Race and Cold War Essay

The cold war and the armed race have been regarded as one of the insecurity problem in the world of today. Cold war can be regarded as the state which involved the conflict, fear and competition between the allies of the United States of America and the Soviet Union with other counties which were allied. This cold war was felt in the period between the years of 1940s and the 1990s. At this period the war was fought by the use of the propagandas, military advancements, technological advancements and the weapon development which is generally referred as the arms race. During this period there was a lot of the defense spending by the member countries involved, many wars and the development of the hatred between the countries which were involved. This war was characterized by the increased hatred between the member countries. Thus this war was characterized by indirect attacks, thus it can be regarded as the war of words as the superpowers never fought directly. The cold war and the arms race have had profound lasting effects in the economic, political and the social growth of the world. This paper tries to analyze the lasting effects which were created as a result of this cold war and the arms race in general. At the same this paper tries to bring out the methods and the organization of this cold war and the milestone in the arms race in that time of the cold war up to the present world. The end of the cold war does not mean the end of the nuclear dangers. For instance the world is under the second nuclear danger, which is felt through the consequate terrorist attacks and the space missile advancements. (Bourantonis 48-55). The cold war has been regarded as the origin of the nuclear danger in the world up to date. It has been noted that it has created a dangerous world which makes the citizens of different countries to live with a lot of fear. This can be regarded as one of the dangerous challenge which the world superpowers such as the United States of America have ever experienced. The cold war has brought the basic realities of the arms race in the community at large. According to President Reagan, â€Å"nuclear war can not be won and should never be fought†. The cold war can be regarded as a long-term product which was created by the competition and proud ness between the world super powers (Bourantonis 48). In contrast to the fact that the United States, the Soviet Union, France and Britain had joined hands against the axis powers, this led even to much disintegration afterwards which has since reduced the developmental cooperation. There have been major disagreements between these states on regard to the direction of the post war world. ASfter the end of this cold war the military powers were mostly possessed by the Soviet Union and the United States of America while the axis powers occupied most of the Europe economic land. After the end of the cold war, it was believed that the nuclear danger had also come to an end, but this is not through up to date. Still there are many issues which need to be answered in relation to the political, social and economic developments. This has been not in light since the nuclear powers had been initially neglected. After the year of 1991 when the cold war ended many people believed that there would be better trends which shall promote the security of the world, but that has proved to be a nightmare. The effects of the cold war have not stopped but instead they have reversed their direction. It is true that there is a new era of the arms race which can be regarded as the second nuclear age (Buchanan, Tom 75-79). The United States of America taught that the expansion of the Soviet Union would threaten the developing nations. Thus in the year of 1949 Mr. Truman who was then the president of United States of America had negotiated four hundred dollars from the congress for the promotion of the technical developments in the Latin America ,Africa and Asia. But such a move was not to develop these countries but to prevent the spread and growth of the communism principles which were supported by the Soviet Union (Byrad, Peter 68-69) . Consequently the United States of America and other Western powers made alliances to act against the attempts of the Soviet in extending their influences in the word, both in the economic and the political matters. After the end of the cold war there was a lot of the dictatorship among the countries in the western sphere. For instance in the year of 1949 the united states of America decided to sign a treat which was commonly known as the North Atlantic Treaty, where by the members said that the if any country which was a member was attacked, then it would be considered as an attack to all (Cowley 33-35). In response to this the Soviet formed an alliance commonly known as the Warsaw Pact. As a result of this arms race many countries in the world have a lot of the nuclear weapons which has generally endangered the world security. Although the nuclear arms decrease is the main aim of most of the countries, some of the negotiation process has consequently failed. The first arms negotiation which took place in Moscow between Moscow and Washington in the year of the 1969 aimed at reducing the massive weapons which were established during the cold war failed. Consequently there was the formation of the ABM Treaty in the year of 1972 between the Moscow and Washington, whereby it was agreed that the involved countries would reduce the nuclear missile system, but this treaty has been in jeopardy. At the same time there was the formation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treat (NPT), which was one of the arms treat which was negotiated in the post war era. This NPT treaty which was signed in the year of 1968 was considered as one of the most important treaty which would have improved the security of the world but it has been constantly claimed that it was a plot between Moscow and Washington to promote their own interests (Crocker 27) Actually the conflict which is in the high degree between the Soviet Union and the Western world as been regarded as the basic catalyzing factor which is increasing the arms race in the present world (Dobrynini15). Although the collapse of the Soviet union in the year of 1991 was seen as the end of the arms race, this is not true. There is a lot of political struggles in the present world which has promoted the insecurity thus taking the place of the cold war. As the increase of the nuclear dangers is still felt in the present world, then the nuclear powers will not justify before the global world the reasons why they are holding their nuclear production strategies. The present world has tremendously changed. After the fall of the Berlin wall and the end of the cold war, the world had prophesized the end of the bipolar powers and the establishment of the multpolar powers. (Ericson 12-14). The United States of America had consequently has taken a new relationship by claiming that they are building an everlasting environment for solving their former nuclear disputes. For instance the United States government claims that it has taken a peace full dialogue of arms disarmament so as to reduce the arms powers in the world. But this method is not operational since other countries posses the nuclear weapons secretly without exposing them. The present world can be regarded as a world with increased threats. The world has reached in an era which makes the countries to push for the national security . Friedman, Norman (69), says that† As the cold war threat of massive nuclear strike has receded, new threats have emerged related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles†. At this century we are seeing a different picture which is developing slowly in the world. The arms control treats has totally collapsed. For instance the START treaty has reduced it s function since 1993 and it is in the process of breaking down. At the same time the ABM treaty is also in limbo due to the fact that the United States of America has decided to construct the missile defense systems. This defense system has consequently led to a lot of conflicts between Russia and the United States of America. The United States of America had requested Russia to comply with the amendments of the Start treaty so as to allow the United States of America to establish it s missile defense systems but Russia has constantly refused by arguing that the missile system may destabilize the nuclear race balance between the member countries. This missile defense system may be regarded as one way of the arms race in existence in the present world. Generally the post cold war time has proved to be having the bad conditions in regard to the nuclear arms control. The international interactions between many countries have deteriorated to a great extent. The economic developments have reduced between United States of America and Russia due to effect of the nuclear weapons development by these two powers. These two countries have been regarded as the forcing powers in the control of the nuclear weapons in the world. The nuclear weapons were consequently used by the United States of America and Russia. These nuclear weapons have a lot of impact in the world of today as they can destroy the entire world in general. Both indirectly and directly, the nuclear weapons have a profound effects in the relations between the United states of America and Russia (Soviet Union). Regardless of the fact that the United states of America and Russia have a particular duty in the development of the world s nuclear weapons policies, they have been implicated in the nuclear mess as they have experienced many problems from their creation. As a result the world security council has created the nuclear policies which regulate the arms development in the world. Russia and the United States of America are regarded as the leaders of the nuclear weapons development. At the same time the other countries has emerged successfully in the production of the lethal weapons such as the atomic bombs and some long range missiles which can be used in the war periods to deliver the nuclear devices from a long distance. For instance the relationship of the Russia and the United States of America as been in a difficult state as a result of the nuclear development between these two nations which have been regarded as super powers at one instance. When Bolsheviks was declared the leader of Russia, United states of America developed some enemity with the Soviet Union and it consequently cancelled the diplomatic links with the Soviet Union until the year of 1934 (Wolf 35-39). But in the year of 1941 United states of America and the Soviet united against Germany. The end of the Second World War which was characterized by the arms race between the countries led to the creation of two major alliances which served as the arms block. These alliances came to be known as NATO and the Warsaw Treaty. These two alliances were greatly involved in the cold war. The countries which were involved were supposed to adhere to the principles of either the USSR or United States of America in terms the political, economc and the military practices. In reward to their participation these countries would gain some security. This type of collaboration would be regarded as a type of colonialism. The Soviet Union and The United states of America had a cold war instead of a real war which is usually characterized by the participation of the military. As a result those countries which not allied to either the United States of America or USSR block started looking for means of creating their own nuclear weapons. For instance some countries like Britain and China succeeded. Thus this led to the establishment of five general nuclear powers which included the USSR, USA, Britain, France and China (Blum, William, 15-30). The long term effects of the arms race can be detected in the nuclear terrorism. Many of the terrorist groups such as the Al Qaeda have consequently used the same lethal weapons which were produced during the cold war. Most of the arms which are used in the terrorism attacks originate from the inferior countries which were developing the nuclear weapons silently. Not only that the arms race ended during the end of the cold war, but also the arms race is on progress. For instance many countries such as India, North Korea, Pakistan and Pakistan have constantly started to develop the nuclear weapons . This countries argue that they are carrying out peace full technological research. This is regarded as one method of establishing the nuclear weapons without the presence of the cold war. The historical lesson behind the nuclear weapons development is that those who develop them are responding to the fear that they may be attacked. As President Roosevelt quoted† The Soviet Union then raced to build the bomb because it feared the nuclear might of the United†. Consequently it might be established that the Indian government tested it s military for fear of the Chinese nuclear might. At the same time China carried out it s bomb tests because they feared the nuclear advancement of the Soviet Union and The United States (Breslauer, George, 37-38). There is a series of the threats and on the other hand some counter threats in the present world that links with the cold war are springing in the southern Asia and this links the future establishments of the nuclear weapons in the region. It has been quoted that many nations have developed nuclear weapons as a result of the regional reasons (Edelheit, Hershel, 45). In general the post cold war has a lot of lasting developments. There are no effective measures which can be used to eliminate the nuclear weapons. This is the emergence of the nuclear dangers. In this world, the nuclear advancement to other nations and the nuclear proliferation of the present nuclear powers can be regarded as the second dangerous era. The other lasting effects of this cold war and the arms race in general are that, the economic growth of the involved countries decreased. The expenses of the United States of America were high. Many American armies lost their lives in the Korea and Vietnam wars. Consequently the Soviet soldiers lost their lives also. Other people died in the Western Asia since the Asian soil was commonly used as the fighting ground of the axis powers. At the same time after the collapse of the cold war, Russia cut the military numbers. This step led to the unemployment of many people. Consequently after the Russian government started the capitalist reforms, it suffered the financial constrains which is more severe than the great depression of the 1930. In general the living standards in Russia have reduced during this post cold war period(Aslund, Anders 54). The environmental effect of this cold war and the arms race is one of the outstanding effects to the citizens of the involved countries. For instance the bombs which could explode caused a lot of environment pollution in the present world. The Japan bombing by the United States of America led to the release of the dangerous gases which have since then led to the birth deformity of the subsequent generations. Moreover the remains of these lethal weapons have caused a lot of air pollution and soil pollution. Even up to date the effect of such bombings is felt, many people lost their people whom they depended on to provide the daily live hood. The cold war up to date serves as one of the influential force in the world affairs, for instance the political roles in the United States of America are determined by the cold war, the ones who were supporters of the communistic groups have no much support. Those were against the Soviet Union are regarded as the true sons of the American soil thus they get much political benefits. Following the effect of McCarthyism theory which led to many prosecution of those w leading top much suffering. Thus in conclusion it can be determined that the cold war and the arms race in general has a lasting effect in the worlds up to date. Works cited Andrew, Christopher; Mitrokhin, Vasili, the Sword and the Shield: The Mitrokhin Archive and the Secret History of the KGB. Basic Books, 2000. Anatoly (2001), In Confidence: Moscow’s Ambassador to Six Cold War Presidents, University of Washington Press, 2001. Aslund, Anders, â€Å"How small is the Soviet National Income? † 1999. Blum, William, Rogue State: A Guide to the World’s Only Superpower, Zed Books 2006. Bourantonis, Dimitris, A United Nations for the Twenty-first Century: Peace, Security, and Development, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1996. Breslauer, George, Gorbachev and Yeltsin as Leaders. Cambridge University Press. 2002. Buchanan Tom. Europe’s Troubled Peace, 1945-2000. Blackwell Publishing. 2005. Byrd, Peter. â€Å"Cold War†. In Iain McLean & Alistair McMillan. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Oxford University Press. 2003. Charles Jr. The Impoverished Superpower: Perestroika and the Soviet Military Burden. California Institute for Contemporary Studies. 2000. Cowley, Robert, The Reader’s Companion to Military History, Houghton Mifflin Books, 1996 Crocker, Chester; Fen Hampson & Pamela Aall, Leashing the Dogs of War: Conflict Management in a Divided World, US Institute of Peace Press, 2007. Dobrynin, Edelheit, Hershel and Abraham. A World in Turmoil: An Integrated Chronology of the Holocaust and World War II. Greenwood Publishing Group. 1991. Ericson, Edward E, Feeding the German Eagle: Soviet Economic Aid to Nazi Germany, 1933–1941, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1999, pp12-14. Friedman, Norman (2007). The Fifty-Year War: Conflict and Strategy in the Cold War. 2007. pp62-69 .

Role of Literature in the Age of Technology

Literature refers to the realm of letters and the writings of a particular period, mostly those whose value lies in the beauty of form or emotional effect. Technology is the science of the industrial arts. Scientists have played an important role in promoting human welfare, but the benefits of science may not have reached the masses, at any rate in ample measure, without technological devices and practical applications. We live in the world of both science and technology and many people, who take a rather superficial view of things, have begun to feel that in the technological world of tomorrow the role of literature seems poor.In fact, literature in its pure form is believed to have little relation with science and technology. Science provides knowledge and power and both science and technology affect human life at several points, though the extent and utility of the applications are determined by our culture, our wisdom and our priorities. Literature reflects the moods and emotions of the times in which it is produced; it is conditioned by the reflexes which, in turn, are created by the impact of science and technology.Modern technology increasingly dominates the world, and the domination is likely to become more pronounced in future, because of the fast developments tending to subdue creative human thinking and expression. But the belief that literature would have no place in future and in futuristic calculations is erroneous. There is no reason to believe that the mechanical way of life, in which our actions are governed more and more by computer culture and electronic calculators of all types, will destroy the talent of writers, authors, poets, biographers and artists.Technology does not discourage natural, multi faceted talent; rather, it generally promotes the climate for expressions of talent in countless channels. All round prosperity helps a great deal in creating literature of lasting value, and it is technology which has made many countries wealthy and prosperous. Jawaharlal Nehru cautioned us some four decades ago that it was only through the growth of technology that our country would become prosperous.In some cases technological development and automation may cause misery, through the resultant unemployment, for instance. But it has to be noted that both science and technology also provide additional avenues for employment; countries which boast of maximum employment, or nearly so, are those which are technologically advanced. In fact, our country may go down, instead of progressing fast, if we do not keep pace with technological developments and march in step, as far as possible, with the industrialised and technologically progressive nations.It is not only for the sake of the material benefits, the comforts and conveniences of life that we must opt for the latest technological processes, even by discarding our traditional practices, but for our art and literature, too, we shall have to make the best of technology, which w ould enable talented people to put in their best in art and literature. Some people think and they have a reason for doing so, that since science demolishes faith and tradition, it tends to produce scepticism, anxiety and even tensions, and it doubts everything, even cherished values.Science has eliminated superstitions. Technology helps to provide weapons of war; war stimulates technologists, but it depresses the artists and those who prepare literary pieces. Sensitivity and the urge to create new masterpieces get suppressed; reckless destruction, bloodshed and hostilities ruin the very climate that helps to create literature and artistic masterpieces. Culture and literature, after all, indicate the cultivation of man's inner nature.Culture prompts men and women to seek perfection; they are not motivated by curiosity and the endless sense of enquiry which characterise scientists and technologists. Literature expresses feelings and innermost thoughts and ambitions, while technology has other ends and other fields to explore. Literature may at first appear to be out of place in a technological milieu, but surely scientists and technologists do not encroach upon the field of literature. There seems to be no reason why both literature and technology cannot flourish side by side.A society that is highly progressive technologically may also become rich in literature. We may take the example of the world's most industrially advanced country and the mightiest military power, the USA, where technology has registered unprecedented achievements and yet the USA has produced rich literature. Technology results in affluence and prosperity and economic prosperity promotes good literature and masterpieces in the arts. So there is no contraction involved. It is only during war and the all out preparations for war, that literature gets a setback.Science and technology, it has been truly said, have radically altered the face of civilisation, but nothing, not even the most sophi sticated mechanical devices and the most fruitful applications of new inventions, can change human nature or replace human being, who must indeed remain in effective command of all scientific inventions and their day-to-day application. Technology has created robots, artificial intelligence in the shape of â€Å"thinking computers† which can read, translate, interpret and give decisions with amazing speed and accuracy.But not even the most sophisticated technological advances can by themselves produce literature—poetry, prose, plays, novels and stories. In a sense, science and technology may be said to be of direct assistance in promoting literature, because they help to create leisure by introducing labour saving and time saving devices and by eliminating drudgery as well as duplication of effort. The leisure thus created can be put to literary pursuits. In such a context, the talk of a contradiction between technology and literature is not well founded.Scientific kno w how may thus be viewed as technology which, examined dispassionately, has an important bearing on arts and literature. Good literature makes a lasting impact on the human mind; it entertains, instructs and ennobles the spirit of human beings; it does not debase or corrupt the mind in any way, and it certainly does not lead to destruction of any section of mankind. Science and its handmaid, technology, however, have placed in the hands of man vicious and highly destructive tools in the shape of lethal weapons the like of which he has never had before.Literature builds, but technology, if misused by vicious statesmen and politicians may cause havoc on a massive scale, destroying both litterateurs and technologists without discrimination. Technology does make for concentration and centralisation of economic and political activity. A person's individuality, sense of fraternity and selflessness tend to get eroded. Where there is less patronage of art and talent, there is bound to be le ss of literature of permanent value, because the right spirit and mood are not there to promote it.The depersonalisation of modern life which, it appears, will get stronger as the years pass, is likely to discourage writers and poets; misery, anguish and a generally noisy atmosphere are hardly conducive to the production of sound literature. But we need not give up all hope of a better world tomorrow, from the standpoint of culture and literature, simply because science and technology tend to predominate over human values. It is within the power and capacity of man, provided he exercises his sound judgment and pursues the right priorities to shape a better world, where literature flourishes along with industry and technology.

Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 performed in 1721 Essay

Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 performed in 1721 - Essay Example Bach's musical education began with the violin followed by his growth into an authority on the organ and other keyboard instruments. He was a musician with a strong personality and intensity and was known to possess a desire to create a "richer, more complex" music score. Bach's concerts have known to be rich in complexity and this is what we get to understand in the Brandenburg Concerto which has been recognized as one of the best combinations of Bach's works, combining elements of church and orchestral music. "Baroque", a set of European classical music which existed from 1650 - 17501 originally meant an insult also describing an 'irregular' shape of no particular beauty which is often compared to an irregular pearl denoting its irregularity in shape. The "irregular pearl" is a strikingly fitting characterization of architecture often symbolized with that of 17th century. Over time though, this style of music came to be recognized as one with grandeur, stylishness, a sense of bravado and improvisation. Instruments that are particular in this era are hurdy gurdy, harpsichord, organ, bass viol, lute, violin and baroque guitar. Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 is considered to be a masterpiece in the Baroque style. This composition has a clear melody, with excellent and timely usage of instruments like the Lute, Organ all put together in a clever ensemble. The harp and organ invoke an uplifting feeling of happiness along with the lute. The concerto has a continuous line moving and extends with the addition of instruments as the composition progresses, which is peculiar to the Baroque style. Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 displays the influence of the reformation on musical style when compared with the Renaissance era proving to be a masterpiece in its style and era. The concert begins with the lute, followed by introduction of the organ and the cello. The introduction of the 5th Concerto is impressive and demanding which was created with the combination of the violin, cello and the lute. As the concert progresses, the cello and lute are continuous with the organ providing the "melody", the violin depicts drama and intensity and the constant variations in instruments succeeds in invoking many emotions. The finale is depicted with the dramatic introduction of the violin and the cello. Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 is a brilliant composition that is captivating. References http://www.answers.com/baroque+musiccat=entertainment http://classicalplus.gmn.com/composers/composer.aspid=2 A History of Baroque Music (Book). By: McGee, Timothy J., 03630277, 5/15/2004, Vol. 129, Issue 9 http://www.mckeeth.org/wikilinks/bach1911.html Johann Sebastian Bach & the Art of Baroque Music (Book). By: Jones, Trevelyn E., Toth, Luann, Charnizon, Marlene, Grabarek, Daryl, Larkins, Jeanne, Steinberg, Renee, 03628930, Aug2004, Vol. 50, Issue

A Rationale for Integrating Arts in Education Essay

A Rationale for Integrating Arts in Education - Essay Example What makes this approach simultaneously traditional and revolutionary in nature is that it proposes a wider sense of self-development and expression of being in human nature and the conception of self than is traditionally permitted in institutions focused on discipline and social control of large and diverse masses of students who must be managed efficiently and coerced into behavioral patterns. The possibility exists that the â€Å"discipline and punish† mentality operating overtly and subtly in academic institutions publicly and privately may be more related to social hierarchies, engrained power structures, systems of status, and the needs of capitalist production facilities than a genuine valuing of the human being as a unique and free individual, as the work of the French Philosopher Michel Foucault suggested. If in recognizing this deeply engrained structural bias, educators feel the need for systemic reform in education institutions, one possible methodology to impleme nt on a theoretical basis in managing educational institutions is an Integrated Arts approach. This methodology relates also to extensive research in Humanistic and Integral psychology, which additionally posit a fundamental paradigm change in education that represents a broader and multi-dimensional conception of the human being and the respect for the essential freedom of human life found in Natural Law and Human Rights theories. Critical to the success of the Integral Arts approach is the cultivation of creativity in all aspects of life, problem solving, learning, and self-development. Encouraging Learning Styles and Multiple Perspectives Public institutions in a democratic and egalitarian society should be tasked with protecting the interests of all of society’s members equally. In education, this should fundamentally apply to serving the needs of all students equally. It can be further argued that the ranking, grading, evaluation of students, and distribution of grades o perates on a standardized model that contains both cultural biases and discrimination against students who have different learning styles or forms of self-expression. Integrated Arts methodologies in education management can theoretically eradicate these engrained structural biases by eliminating or changing the way students are tested, â€Å"valued†, promoted, etc. As Gallas (1991) wrote in â€Å"Arts as epistemology: Enabling children to know what they know,† â€Å"they [the students} will show you what they know and how they learn best, and often that is not the teachers way.† (Gallas, 1991) In forcing the students to conform on a fundamental level to the authority and rules of the class, a type of bias in education may arise that teachers and educators should address through education theory. An Integral Arts approach is designed to address this bias by de-emphasizing the authority structures that are presented in traditional models of classroom

Aum Shinrikyo Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Aum Shinrikyo - Research Paper Example This religious organization promotes their way of living by giving up any worldly pleasures since they believe that offering yourself solely to the organization would mean acceptance from its leader. The members of this cult are expected to focus and dedicate their lives to the Supreme Truth. Aum Shinrikyo, as portrayed by Reader (2000, p. 2), is an â€Å"introverted yet aggressive movement.† Their followers are young but highly educated ones who chose to give up their careers, belongings, and even their families. They have to give up even their identity so as to follow their blind leader who is a guru figure to them. Their followers are fascinated since they believe that their leader can levitate and can only transfer the spiritual power by way of initiation. He also added that this initiation often includes rituals which require the coming member to drink his bath of water or blood. Further, Shoko Asahara taught his followers the apocalypse is true and it will happen soon. According to Juergensmeyer (2000, p. 107), the members concluded that Aum Shinrikyo movement does not just provide them a â€Å"mystical personal experience†, but it also gave them a new social order which they consider to be a transformed egalitarian community. Hence, Aum Shinrikyo is not just a religious movement, but it is also known as an organization that practices biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction (Juergensmeyer, 2000, p. 103). Moreover, this Japanese apocalyptic cult became more popular after the tragic incident that happened in March 1995 (Tucker, 2000, p. 218). This was when the group initiated a chemical weapon of mass destruction in a subway station in Tokyo. It was considered to be the cult’s deadliest and most dangerous act after many failed attempts. The attack caused several casualties to the passengers of the five trains on three major lines, which are in the central Tokyo subway station in Kasumigaseki

Euonymus alata - Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Euonymus alata - - Essay Example long and have tapering tips. During the Autumn season the leaves of this plant turn a bright reddish color. It is also called the â€Å"winged euonymus† because most of these cultivars possess two t three corky flanges or wings that are present along the length of the branches. The branches which are lime green in color when the plant is young become ash gray as the plant grows older. The flowers are small and grow in Axillary pairs on ‘Y’ shaped stems. The flowering season for the Euonymus alata takes place between the months of late April to June. By September or October the flowers mature and turn into reddish – purple fruits that have four seeds inside. These seeds are dispersed by birds and also gravity. The Euonymus alata is an exceedingly tolerant plant and can withstand a lot of sunlight and thrives in poor soil conditions. Therefore this plant becomes quite a threat to grow in open environments. Seeds could be stored up to long periods and made use of much later as it possesses good longevity. For healthy growth the Euonymus alata could be treated with an application of herbicide. The Euonymus alata is also called the â€Å"burning bush† which is deciduous and grows to a height of about 20 ft. It thrives greatly throughout eastern United States and is a highly invasive plant. This plant is a native of Northeastern Asia and for the first time it was introduced to North Americans in the 1860’s for the purpose of using it as an ornamental plant. The leaves which are dark green in color are rounded, smooth and taper at the tips. This winged burning bush invades forests and also a wide variety of other habitats, fields, roadsides and side- walks. Once these plants are strongly established, they grow wildly and form dense thickets, covering the other plants and displacing other native flora in the area. Invasive plants grow at a much quicker rate and aggressively, spreading wildly and displacing other fauna in the same area around

Leading a Multicultural Team through a Change Process Case Study - 18

Leading a Multicultural Team through a Change Process - Case Study Example The current discourse hereby aims to present an action plan to get the team back on track, using your new knowledge of multicultural teams and communication, the change process, decision making, and ethics. From the complaints that were relayed, as well as with the diversity of the team members, not only in cultural orientation but also in age and gender, it was evident that the team leader is currently faced with challenges to get the team back on track. The problems apparently stem from lack of unified interest and commitment to achieve a common goal. Likewise, there is lack of motivation to improve the performance and productivity of team members. As such, the means to solve the problems that were relayed by the members include application of leadership theories (leadership style and skills, motivational strategies), effective communication, change management, conflict resolution, as well as emphasis on the adherence to ethical, moral, and legal standards (Martires & Fule, 2004). Thus, emphasize time schedules, delineation of roles and responsibilities, reporting protocols, communication procedures, conflict resolution, and the need to change behaviour and attitude of members to attain the identified goal. Forge commitment from all the team members into collaborative and participative efforts to ensure that costs are minimized, identified projects phases and activities are undertaken according to schedule, and group cohesiveness is effectively manifested. Likewise, aside from the rewards, sanctions for violating policies and procedures for the project should also be developed. For instance, failure to produce expected outcome according to assigned tasks should be sanctioned or penalized according to the organization’s code of discipline (Hill & Jones, 2012). As emphasized, â€Å"the impetus for change is dissatisfaction with the old behaviour† (Martires & Fule, 2004, p. 358). The previous project leader was fired due to unethical behaviour.  Ã‚  

Management report on Intel Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management report on Intel - Case Study Example It is essential that Intel move fast to close the gap in embedded segments in order to compete effectively and take advantage of the growing mobile and tablet segment. A company’s strategy should be directed at availing a product or service, which is distinctive from what the competitors are offering or establishing competitive capabilities that the rivals cannot match. Intel has also developed expertise and resource strengths, which have provided the company with competitive capabilities that are hard for the competitors to imitate. Intel has appreciated that winning lasting competitive edge over the rival necessitates that the company build competitive valuable expertise and capabilities, instead of merely having a distinctive product. Intel enjoys high reputation, economies of scale, and capability to innovate technological processes at low cost. Intel has encountered difficulties in its attempt to redefine itself in an era typified by stagnating desktop and net book PC unit. Although, AMD can be regarded as the only major competitor within the PC microprocessor market, Intel encounters intense competition from established firms using ARM technology such as Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and Broadcom. Moreover, the number of processors within the devices are set t rise as the devices becomes more capable (Haberberg, 2014). Besides, Intel can no longer depend on the relationship it has built over the last two decades with firms such as HP, Dell, and IBM; hence, Intel will now be required to forge fresh relationship with cloud service providers (known to be aggressive and cost conscious). Intel has adopted a differentiation strategy as a mode of competition. This is manifest in the products and services possessing high to moderate prices since the majority of clients are ready to pay the premium so as to get the best, most efficient, the fastest, top of the line PC components. The campaign â€Å"Intel Inside† has helped to

Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 40

Case study - Essay Example Secondly, the proposal focuses on demonstration of the scale, as well as scope of the new group and the influence of the new management accounting practices. The demonstration could benefit the company in the attainment of its set goals and targets by end of the fiscal period. Management accounting refers to the act of combining accounting, finance, and management with the intention of exploiting competitive advantage techniques, which are essential to driving the organization towards the achievement of success. From this approach, management accounting relates to the process of developing management reports, as well as accounts with the ability and potentiality to offer accurate and timely financial and statistical information. The outcomes of management accounting are essential for the managers to make day-to-day, as well as short-term decisions. Management accounting tends to have the ability and ideal platforms for generation of monthly and weekly reports in accordance with the demands and expectations of the internal audiences. There are numerous research exercises, which have focused on the assessment of the concept of management accounting. For instance, Goretzki, Strauss, and Weber (2013, p. 41-63) focused on theorizing the influence of a new acto r of the firm can drive the institutionalization of the new role for management accountants. According to the findings of the study, it is possible to understand institutionalisation of a new role for management accountants. Their role is a product of purposive actions by diverse actors in support of specific institutional management within the organization pursuing competitive advantage in the market and industry of interest. In addition, Weißenberger and Angelkort (2011, pp. 160-180) focused on the assessment of integrating financial and management accounting. This is through evaluation of the influence of a consistent financial language in relation to

Religious Education Learning Package Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Religious Education Learning Package - Essay Example With such deliberations of the beliefs and practices advocated for during the Rosh Hashanah festival, it is apparent that, this marks a period of purifying oneself for the rest of the year. In addition, since the season is marked with several prayers, fasting and repenting, it reminds every Jew to abide by the Jewish beliefs and practices (Jacobs, 1987). In light of this, it is critical to focus on the beliefs and practices of Jews that make them repent so that they can have a good and sweet year ahead. In this regard, the concern is the relevance of beliefs and practices exhibited in the Rosh Hashanah festival, which culminates the evaluation of oneself in regard to their adherence to the beliefs and practices of Jews for the previous year. Therefore, the Rosh Hashanah festival could be argued to detail the overall beliefs and practices of Jews. This is in line with what Segal (2009) pointed out that, formal prayers guide Jews and their beliefs and practices. The following learning package aims at enlightening year 8 students with lessons designed to give insights to Jewish beliefs and practices. ... The first reading material is Essential Judaism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs, Customs & Rituals, a book by George Robinson (Robinson, 2003). Robinson highlights the importance of Jewish beliefs and practices, which are put into practice through various festivals. The festivals are symbolic interaction between Jews and God. In Rosh Hashana, Jews recite prayers. Robinson argues that prayer is at the heart of Jewish prayer, God listens to them. In order to elicit a clear understanding of such an assertion from the text, students would be requested to review the assertion, which is further elaborated by Robinson to mean that prayer is part of dialogue between man and God. In this regard, the students would be required to explain what they take of the assertion in relation to the understanding of Rosh Hashana prayers. A set of questions would be used to develop a discussion of whether the students believed that a prayer acted a means of communication between Jews and God, and whether what Jews believe in their Rosh Hashanah prayer is actually fulfilled by God. Some of the verbs used in driving points home from the book involve requesting students to read specific chapters and sentences of the book that emphasizes on the Jewish beliefs and practices in regard to the Rosh Hashanah festival. This would ensure that the students clearly understand the content of the book. In addition, students would be required to quote some sentences and phrases from the book that supports their arguments during discussions. A validation of their Jewish beliefs and practices would also be enhanced through reading the following sentence from Woodhead, (2002, p. 128): â€Å"the

Disadvantages of Globalization Essay Example for Free

Disadvantages of Globalization Essay 1. ABSTRACT It is debated that sustainable development has not worked well within the globalist environment and continues to seem unpromising for our future. If there is not some sort of new outside of the box idea followed by drastic action which takes place, this society faces grave environmental dangers as every new year comes. This essay will critically assess the statement mentioned above and will go in depth to try to explain how negative impacts can be stopped and this essay will put forth ideas regarding how capitalism and environmentalism can reconcile. 2. INTRODUCTION 2.1. BackgroundGlobalization is a concern today as it is attributed to massive social problems in developing nations. The deterioration of the environment i.e. the destruction of the rain forests, oceans, rivers, and lakes is directly related to overwriting and non-regulation of local environmental laws by corporations in developing countries. Also within the global society, economic inequality, especially poverty and exploitation of underdeveloped nations, are major social problems due to developed policies between international economic institutions of the International Monetary Fund and the Word Bank, international corporations, and national governments. These policies can be so harmful to economies that they contribute to horrors such as world hunger, disease, and human trafficking to name a few. Government intervention by regulation, taxation, and redistributing wealth then distorts natural laws of supply and demand. Some economies may suffer disadvantaged at first, but society is better off when the free market is allowed to control itself. 2.2. Purpose of the ReportThis report is aimed to give in detaied undertandign of what does globalization it, how it developed and what negative impacts on human life. While there are many positive aspects of globalization, its negative effects are overwhelming and far reaching. In fact the effects of the same behave like slow poison which is why it becomes more important to recognize and stop the negatives. 2.3. Statement of the problemBefore understanding the reasons behind why this phenomenon has brought with it so many problems, we need to have a look at  the instruments by which globalization is being promoted and enhanced. The most important and predominant instruments influencing this process are the multinational corporations and the new revolution of information technology. 3. METHODOLOGY While preparing this report, mostly the book resources of Yeditepe University Knowledge Center applied. there were numbers of books to search about the subject. This report will start with briefly defining globalization. then it will follow by its negative impacts in terms of both its economic, human and nature impacts. 4. FINDINGS 4.1. GlobalizationThere are various definitions for the word globalization, but depending on the perspective it is seen in, this phenomenon ramifies itself in different shade colors between white and black. To put ourselves in the appropriate context, it is important to understand what the word globalization means. Globalization in its literal sense is the process of transformation of local or regional things or phenomena into global ones. It can also be used to describe a process by which the people of the world are unified into a single society and function together. This process is a combination of economic, technological, socio-cultural and political forces. Globalization is also used to refer to another term called economic globalization and this term, refers to the Integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, and the spread of technology.(Robertson, 1992) During the death of each minute consumed and the passing of each day, societies have identified a certain shrinking of the world that has been more real with the strengthening of larger and stronger bonds between parallel worlds called countries. It is interesting to see that this phenomenon is not only visible because of the human being evolution, but also because of the rapid transformations in communication, transportation, and computer technology, that have permitted these parallel worlds to explore and be exposed to other ways of living and cultures (Roberts, 1999). In a broader perspective, this situation could be seen as a beneficial situation due to the fact, that opening up to new cultures, means the breaking of paradigms in the solving of problems. The difficulty nagging in everyones minds is, in the dissolution of those paradigms, are the  societies going to lose their identities which indicate in the way they live life and differ themselves from others? Its a question that has been more and more obvious in the passing of each day and that have started revolutions in pursue of preventing cultural distortion because many countries, in fact, feel threatened by other cultures and consequently, are acting out to preserve themselves the best way possible. 4.2. Globalization and culture Globalization represents a challenge to cultures and local languages. Globalization needs to be pursued with tolerance and respect for the cultures that we come across. Being hastily judgmental could lead to marginalizing many local cultures. Scientific and economic superiority of the US and the flow of information technology assist in imposing certain languages in particular English as a second language in some developing and developed countries, and as a first language in some others and this could have a significant impact on cultures resulting in the dilution if not wiping out traditions, customs, and values of many societies and marginalizes their cultures (Appadurai, 1996). 4.2.1. Cultural imperialism People are scared of cultural imperialism, which describes the idea that one day the whole world will be one big culture and that the blending of cultures will eliminate the existence of the weaker ones and fusion the habits and customs of the stronger ones. In order for this to happen, there must be an eradication of many different cultures around the world, but in a personal perspective, the idea of cultural imperialism is not possible (Appadurai, 1996). Even if all the weakest cultures adopted important habits, people would still prefer some of the things their culture proportions. 4.2.2. McDonalds More than half of the Colombians would never prefer a Mc Donald lunch over a real good sancocho trifà ¡sico and the American culture has a higher possibility to choose the other way around, due to the fact that a lot of people can only afford to eat at Mc Donalds because of its low prices in their country. This is why in a way it is clear that even if cultural imperialism were to happen, the cultures of the world would never be able to come together to form just one. Besides, there is no secret that  globalization is an uneven process, due to the fact that there is an unequal distribution of benefits and losses and this is another argument that demonstrates that many cultures differ(Peterson, 1999). This imbalance, also leads to the separation between the rich countries, and the poor ones causing them to be more against the beliefs of the rich countries, and more protective of their own. Positive cultural understanding of the market is a way to facilitate any marketing program development and resumes in a higher success for the manager that applies this, but some managers confuse themselves believing that marketing influences culture completely (Appadurai, 1996). In a way, this is true but this does not mean it changes it even though product acceptance is affected by culturally based attitudes towards change. There are a few things to take into consideration when thinking that culture is in constant change with marketing. There is a term called corporate culture, which describes the whole collection of assumptions, practices and norms that people in an organization adopt over time. This means that employees have to buy into them, eventually getting to the point where they take them for granted and passes them on. (Bauman, 1998) This term is interesting because all of the companies have their own internal culture that is always bargaining with the culture of its home country and many managers confuse themselves trying to change their national cultures for that of their company without any success, thinking in that idea that market can change culture. Experts in organization behavior say it is difficult to alter any kind of culture independent if it is a national culture or a corporate one, but the corporate culture is more flexible in terms of the way they do things internally and that a manager must understand this in order to obtain success. 4.3. Globalization and developing countries Globalization has serious effects on many developing countries:a. The irresponsible behavior of some multinational corporations toward the environment of developing countries (using these countries as a safe haven) participating in this phenomenon could cause much harm to the latter. Due to lenient policing, expired products are dangerously marketed and natural surroundings are carelessly  abused. So globalization in this context changes the world to become a global pillage instead of being a global village. Besides due to lack of supervisory governmental bodies, such behaviour could also lead to Global Warming -the consequences of which will not be limited only to the marginalized nations (Cosgrove-Sacks, 1999). b. The real test to globalization is through its success in reducing the gap between the rich and the poor at local, national and global levels. However the widening gap between the East and the West at international level, and between haves and have-nots at national level is another serious aspect of globalization (Peterson, 1999). c. Globalization has forced many countries in various parts of this world to regulate to a lower league the most fundamental needs of their peoples. The equitable distribution of food, adequate health care facilities, and the quality of education are no longer priority concerns the political agendas of the governments in these countries (Roberts, 1999). All these indicate that poor societies in the third world not only remain far away from benefiting from globalization, but also they continue to suffer from its calamities, pitfalls and misfortunes. It then contributes to laying the foundation of injustices and social inequalities, and moreover preventing the growth of new markets in these countries because they are unable to compete with the advanced markets. Globalization can also be bad for countries that arent very good at producing things and are too impoverished. Their industries may need protection against multinational firms so that their local industries can develop and get big enough to fund research and development and exploit economies of scale. Globalization means the world becoming one big marketplace with as few trade barriers as possible, so obviously weaker companies would be wiped out by stronger ones, which might be based in a few rich countries. So great income inequality can result. However, it is generally agreed that globalization has more pros than it has cons. 4.4. Globalization and morals The immoral character of globalization is becoming even more serious and its negative impacts in this context have different aspects. Globalization has internationalized crimes. Drug trafficking and the trafficking of women and children have become much more difficult to control because of their international character. Not only crimes are globalized, but also diseases such as AIDS. Pornography too accounts for the poisoning of young minds and counter productive usage of technology. This has lead to increase in crimes against women and beginning of unhealthy trends in society(Perlas, 1999). 4.5. Globalization and international politics By increasing interdependence among countries, globalization would give economically strong and advanced countries a strong hold on international politics. However this power could be misused by superpowers which could possibly challenge international legitimacy through marginalizing the role of the United Nations and ignoring the international law (Baylis, 2001). 4.6. Globalization and societal structuresThe free economy and the development of technology have negative impact on labourers. As known, twenty percent of the world population is producing the needs of all population in this world, while most of the rest 80% are unable to find a suitable source of income. This is serious because underprivileged people are expected to revolt against their bad conditions (Perlas, 1999). This is possible with the growing decline of states power to the favor of private sectors, on one hand, and to the growing decrease of the governmental expenditures on social and public services such as heath, education etc., on the other. In this, globalization is a source of social instability and class disparity. 4.6.1. Inequalities within society It is difficult to fully understand inequalities within society without fully understanding that in our capitalist societies, nothing happens unless it is profitable and that profit is usually achieved through the struggle of others surrounding it.  The leading corporate empires and some of the richest people in our worlds history have achieved their successes through the blood, sweat and tears of the unnamable workers that have helped in the past, and are helping them today (Bauman, 1998). The following essay will critically assess the usefulness of the blame globalism approach as to why there exist so many inequalities in our society, and this essay will also touch upon alternative points of view that steer away from capitalism as the main problem (Peterson, 1999). Inequality in society is quite extensive and it continues to grow. Different ways exist when portraying inequality and where it is rooted from, some views are fact based logic and some are more opinion based. Most of the time our initial views of what inequality is and where it seems to exist most, comes from the infomercials we see where images of poor children in third world countries strike across our televisions. Outside the western hemisphere of the world in the poorer countries there certainly is a visible inequality when compared to life here at home, but this has been the case for so many years (Perlas, 1999). One of the major modern inequalities creating a history of its own for people in the future to look back upon is how our own capitalist society continues to divide the rich and the poor at a fast rate and a greater division as every year passes. 4.7. Globalization materializing human nature Globalization has also popularized a consumer culture among people due to the flow of goods and products. Since the desire to consume more and more can never really be satisfied, the consumer becomes addicted to shopping to a point where the spiritual, moral and intellectual dimensions of his/her personality do not grow or develop. These are actually due to the business corporations, which produce the wide array of consumer goods and the media which advertise them. In fact this trend has also resulted in higher levels of dissatisfaction despite improved lifestyles due to never-ending wants (Bauman, 1998). 4.7.1. Gender issue Gender is essential to modern globalization in manufacturing because it has been discuss at a variety of joint degrees to see if assembly-line workers are to influence global factory regimes and  improve the quality of their jobs. This knowledge is made a power by workers in that they are able to build effective networks of resistance and resistance centers on issues of human rights, labor rights, gender identities, and indigenous identities (Brysk, 2004). Economic oppression caused by the globalization of markets and industries keeps women poor. Around the world, women are paid less than men even when they have similar jobs to male counterparts. Often women are demoted to lower paid positions and then unable to advance. When companies such as factories are privatized, women are the fist to be let go because employers assume that their income is an appendage the income earned by the male head of household. Single, unemployed mothers are one of the largest groups of potential trafficking victims (Brysk, 2004). All of these issues force women into the gray, semi-legal economy, or even worse, the black market in an effort to support themselves and their families. Increased globalization is what causes this oppression for women through trade, travel and the movements of money both legal and illegal become faster and much less able to be regulated and trafficking is made easier due to these factors. 4.7.2. Human rights violation The effect of globalization on state-based human rights violations depends on the type of state and its history. Countries that are newly democratizing with weak institutions and elite-controlled economies, such as Russia, Latin America, and Southeast Asia, the growth of global markets and economic flows tends to weaken coercive forces but increase crime, police abuse, and corruption (Brysk, 2004). Global mobility and information flows generally lead to ethnic mobilization, which may promote self-rule in more open states but mostly it produces abuses in defense of dominant-group control. Alternatively, the same forces have produced slow institutional openings by single-party states, like China and Mexico (Brysk, 2004). In much of Africa, globalization has increased the power void, by both empowering and providing intervention, which displace old governments without combining new ones. Some of the most horrifying abuses of human rights happened in the international civil wars of Sierra Leone, Angola, and the Congo (Brysk, 2004). 4.8. Globalization and prosperity Globalization poses serious questions about  peace and prosperity: Could the implementation of free market principle globally enhance international peace and security or prevents wars, as globalists argue? Prosperity, welfare and economic progress which market economy is expected to achieve could enhance or create some opportunities for political stability; but it does not necessarily ensure peace or social stability (Brueggemann, 2006). It is true that market economy has contributed to social and political stability in liberal states and to peace among them, but it does the opposite in many developing countries. Asian economic crisis of 1997 is a case in point. The free market forces allowed manipulators to control stock markets and to transfer large amount of money just to maximize their profits, while they were destroying the economies of many Asian countries (Baylis and Smith, 2001). Indeed these activities have destroyed the social structures of those societies, and furthermore, created what might be called potential social unrests in the region. That is why globalization in its current formula does not necessarily ensure social and political stability. 4.9. Globalization and Environment Capitalism is mainly about the overall accumulation of wealth based upon the consumption of our planets natural resources and these resources are becoming more and more strictly limited. We as one face the universal environmental problem existing that we are consuming roughly twenty-five percent more than the Earth can give us each year. Our planet needs these natural resources such as trees for example that continue to give our planets ecosystem clean air and water that we all need to survive daily. 4.9.1. Pollution We are exceeding the amount of pollution that our environment can handle. Waste products that give off carbon dioxide emissions into the air are now much more than our planet is able to absorb and deal with without having serious affects for both our planets health and our own. These carbon dioxide emissions are also the leading cause of our climate change referred to as global warming. Even though international agreements exist to prevent global warming by affectively fighting it, there truly needs to be than just marketing principles to achieve overall compliance from everyone (Cosgrove-Sacks, 1999). There has to be set in stone  principles that turn standard to every leading employer that threats the environmental crisis, and they need to feel as if they cannot just continue doing what they are doing by paying a fine here and there. There are many developing nations still needing to grow economically themselves but in order for them to achieve their goals, the richer countries such as ours here in the western hemisphere, we will need to reduce the usages of natural resources in order to balance things out efficiently (Cosgrove-Sacks, 1999). This is highly unlikely to happen as we continue to use more and more resources each and every year that passes now. If everyone in the world lived like we do over here, we would need around five planets to simply provide the necessary natural resources needed to survive. 4.9.2. Environmental technologies Technology that is more efficient and cleaner will not necessarily solve the environmental issues at hand either. Even though these new innovations seem to be the ideology that if we do things cleaner than everything will be okay, this is not the answer to the question of sustainability. Many areas of the world that were or still are leading polluters have began to go about their work more efficiently by adapting cleaner technology but it still does not change the fact countries such as the United States consume far more material goods and end up using more of the planets limited natural resources (Roberts, 1999). There is always another issue behind another and it becomes very difficult to address everything at once successfully. However, without a solution to these problems our planets climate will continue to die (Peterson, 1999). The only way for globalism to move forward successfully would be for it to make a change from exploiting out natural resources such as air and water and to protect them as common wealth trusts of humanities. They could belong to everybody and we would have the power to limit the use of scarce resources, charge rent, and pay dividends to everyone. Continuous economical growth can occur as long it becomes environmentally friendly with efficient technologies being adopted and if the economies steer away from producing material goods and begin to move towards services, sustainable prosperity is  what this is known as. Sustainable prosperity as the global use of resources and methods of dealing with wastes would not exceed the planets capacity to regenerate and absorb. True prosperity can only come if the income disparity between the rich and poor shortens (Brueggemann, 2006). 4.10. Globalization and poverty Wealth is created through labor. This labor comes from the people who are not getting rich from the company of which they are working for. Workers dedicate hours of labor work and most of their lives working with a companys means of production such as machinery and building things. The company owners themselves are not out there building a house, driving a bus, or selling vacuums, yet they are getting practically all of the profit and do not do the hard work themselves. They simple own the means of production. This unfair sort of money pyramid is the bases of pretty much all major money leading companies and it is the system that creates rich and poor and continues to do so much more all the time (Bauman, 1998). 4.10.1. InequalitiesOnce this basic realization is understood, it is easier to see how inequalities within the oppressed classes relate to this as well. For poor people in places like Africa and similar circumstances countries, their struggle is mainly a result of the capitalists not caring about them, because there is no profit to be made out of their labour. What worsens the views and opinions people have on capitalists even more is not that they are exploiting the poor, but it is that they are not exploited them at all. These poor people are irrelevant to capitalist production and therefore capitalists truly do not care if they live or die, eat or starve, the capitalists simple are not concerned. In fact in some cases, capitalists would most likely love if the poor would just die out, so then they could stop pretending to care (Perlas, 1999). Bosses have used all sorts of divisions in the past to attempt to increase the inequalities and drive down working conditions. However, through the years there has been an increasing amount of workers coming together to fight these inequalities. There once existed a time when racism, sexism, and youth wages played more than just a small factor in working wages, but in  fact made up most of the inequalities within our society. With so much success as time progresses, workers continue to unite to challenge globalists (Peterson, 1999). With progressions of equality such as these in our capitalist society, there are certainly other views that do not blame globalism for all the poor in the world, in fact some may even say hat globalism helps people instead of causing societal negativities. 4.10.2. Decrease in living standards of people These types of little scenarios make up the theory of equal opportunity. Poorer families not having the education, health care, or typical social skills which are created by being raised in a decent home, are at a lesser advantage than others whom were raised in a middle class family (Robertson, 1992). This makes it clear to see how people and families remain poor over decades and through generation and as the prices of things climb, these people get even more left behind. It is not necessarily the fault of capitalism, just the result of many, many growing up situations being the same. However, when people then begin to bite onto this theory and give globalism the benefit of the doubt in situations, people then turn around and say it was globalism in the first place long back many years ago that caused that family to be poor. Then as decades passed, these poor families never got out of the downward slope of things and globalism started it all (Brysk, 2004). It is not a simple task to pin point exactly where inequality was derived from in the beginning, it is easier to see where it still exists now. For every positive thing brought to light regarding globalizm, there seems to be an opposing view whether fact of opinion that then blames it again. Globalizm and inequalities in society continue to move around as one, even if possibly they were never one in the beginning and globalisms original intention was never to create a gap as large as the one is today between the rich and poor (Brysk, 2004). 5. CONCLUSION The affects of globalization can be endless. States in the US can see impacts both good and harmful due to manufacturing of export goods. Economically, globalization can be positive when it benefits commerce and can contribute to an increase in the standard of living. Also, when developing nations being to grow wealthier is can lead to social prosperity. On the other hand globalization can be seen as a negative. When it acts as  corporate imperialism, the global issues of environment, gender, and human rights are abused. This is due to the growth of markets, internationally, where economic movements tend to aid the deterioration of protective forces which increase crime levels, and abuse of policies. Depending on how globalization is approached it can negatively or positively affect socializations, but one thing s for sure: it brings change. 6. REFERENCES Appadurai, Arjun, Modernity at large : cultural dimensions of globalization, Minneapolis, Minn. : University of Minnesota Press, 1996Bauman, Zygmunt, Globalization : the human consequences, New York : Columbia University Press, 1998Baylis, John and Smith, Steve, The globalization of world politics : an introduction to international relations, Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2001Brueggemann, William G. The Practice of Macro Social Work. Thompson Brooks/Cole, Canada. 2006. Brysk., Alison. Globalization and Human Rights. University of California Press, Ltd. 2002. Globalization and Gender Inequalities: Advancing the Status of Women Worldwide. The Zontian. 2004. Volume 83, number 4. Cosgrove-Sacks, Carol, The European Union and developing countries : the challenges of globalization, New York : St. Martins Press, 1999Perlas, Nicanor, Shaping globalization : civil society, cultural power, and threefolding, Quezon City, Philippines : Center for Alternative Development Initiatives, 1999Peterson, Robert Dean. Social problems : globalization in the twenty-first century, Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Prentice Hall, 1999Roberts, J. Timmons and Hite, Amy, From modernization to globalization : perspectives on development and social change, Malden, Mass. : Blackwell, 1999Robertson, Roland. Globalization : social theory and global culture, London : Sage, 1992

The Sodor Oil Terminal

The Sodor Oil Terminal Introduction The Sodor Oil Terminal project was undertaken by a team of students as a case study in project management. The purpose of the exercise was to organize and plan the project as part of a project team, and deal with events arising during the project life, utilizing techniques and tools learned during the study of project management. Management of the Project Team Team Selection The team selection for the project was left to individuals, who had to form themselves into teams based on personal choice and internal acceptance. In an educational setting random group selection is very common but not realistic as it does not consider the diversity of skills among the students (Blowers 2003). In terms of skill sets the team forming in this project was random in that there was no comparison before a team was selected, merely a choice of friends or acquaintances. This would seem to be negative and, as Blowers (2003) pointed out, totally unrealistic in the business world, where teams of high skill-set individuals would be chosen to give a project the highest possible chance of success. However, the team selection was not as random as it first seemed, as four members of the team had worked together before, and although it was not acknowledged formally, were aware of each individuals skills and working methods. This proved to be a positive feature in the project development. There were an additional two members of the group who were known only to one of the core four, and this also proved to be significant during the course of the project. Team Development Tabaka (2006) paraphrasing Tuckman and Jensen (1977) stated that in the forming stage the team members must acquaint themselves with each other and judge their own and others role in the team. This stage was already accomplished in the team which formed for the Sodor project. Four out of six members had already worked with each other in previous projects and knew each others capabilities. The two extra members were unknown, did not turn up initially, and showed no enthusiasm for participating in the project tasks. They were therefore largely ignored in terms of expectations of the other team members. The second stage according to Tuckman and Jensen is storming where team members try to exert power over one another, and jockey for position within the group. This stage was also already completed within the core team at the start of the project, and the team had already surpassed Tuckman and Jensens norming stage, with the trust having been built up in previous team encounters, and the ability to work together successfully having already been achieved. The team was therefore ready for Tuckman and Jensenss performing stage. Unfortunately the two outsiders to the team never achieved a real measure of trust within the team, so they remained outsiders for the rest of the project, but were allowed to contribute in a small way whenever they expressed a desire. Team Project Management In the initial stages of the Sodor project tasks, most of the project team was missing for the meetings. This would seem to be a very unfortunate and negative feature for the progression of the project. Ericksen and Dyer (2004) maintained that most of the successful project teams they had studied had had a very decisive launch, with solid project management, direction and clarification right at the beginning, as opposed to the teams who had procrastinated and lacked direction. As there was no-one else to take the position, the one team member present in the initial stages of the Sodor project took on the responsibility of project manager, at least for that stage of the project. The team member had to act alone at the start of the project and was able to be decisive and act with direction precisely because there was no-one else to interfere, and no negotiations to be performed, and the project was able to progress. As the team was already normed it was able to move into the performing stage. The reaction of the other team members was approval that the team member had shown the responsibility to take on the task. There was also an underlying understanding that the other team members would accept future responsibilities. This understanding was formulated into an informal contract of work within the team, more out of conformance to the project guidelines than from the need within the team. Throughout the course of the rest of the project the other team members fulfilled their roles as had been agreed in the contract of works. It was decided that the areas of relevance within the project would each have an individual largely responsible for that particular area. The areas of relevance chosen were planning, costing, procurements, and configuration or change management. The four core members of the group accepted responsibility for an area each with little consultation between members, with the two outside members agreeing to assist whenever needed. This seemingly discrete allocation of tasks would have been a negative feature in some teams but was suitable for the character of the team members, all being highly motivated and goal oriented individuals, but also having a high level of trust in their other team members to deliver. There was an element of informal skills measurement in the allocation of the tasks, done on a purely experiential basis rather than empirical evi dence. Tenenberg (2008) questioned whether people who are highly individual can be encouraged into more collaborative behaviour in order to make teamwork more effective. He quoted Cain et al. (1996) and stated that software development should be regarded as essentially social and that the social side of the activity needs to be addressed the same principle could be applied to any projects which are team-based. Tenenberg (2008) stated that teams have in common a set of collective action problems which require teamwork to be solved. One of those problems mentioned is that of dealing with people who do not contribute to the teams efforts. The Sodor project team did not address this problem at all, largely because the team worked as co-operative individuals rather than a team, and those who did not co-operate were simply ignored and their potential workload absorbed by the co-operating members. Akgun et al. (2007) also postulated team processes as a way to improve the chances of a projects success, and put forward the idea of group potency a belief held by team members that they can be effective. Although the Sodor team worked largely as individuals there was a genuine trust among the main members and a genuine belief in the potency factor which may have been mistaken. Summary The team did not behave as a traditional team with a high level of interaction and decision making but rather as a set of co-operating individuals. It did, however, go through the traditional Tuckman and Jensen (1977) stages of development, albeit before the Sodor project began, and also displayed some of the characteristics of a team as defined by Katzenbach and Smith (1993) complementary team members with common goals and approaches who were willing to be held accountable to the other team members. Evaluation of the Project General frameworks of project management can be found from many sources. Gannon (1994) suggested that project management should consist of six functions planning, organizing, executing, monitoring, reporting and controlling. Prodomos and Macaulay (1996) proposed four main activities planning, monitoring, co-ordinating, and reviewing. The Sodor project will be evaluated using the categories of planning, and monitoring and control. The Gantt charts and cost schedules from this section can be found in the Appendix attached. Planning the Project Prodomos and Macaulay (1996) cited Jordan and Machesky (1990) and proposed that the planning stage was the foundation for the other project activities. Dvir et al. (2003) reported that a belief amongst project management professionals (supported by the Project Management Institutes Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge hereinafter referred to as the PMBOK) is that planning is an essential activity which cannot guarantee success, but without which a project will most certainly fail. This belief was reflected in the Sodor case study where half of the activities were on planning the project. Activity Planning Initially, the Sodor project was presented as a textual case study, providing information to construct a work breakdown structure. Andersen (1996) argued that in a real situation activity planning cannot be completed when it is most useful, i.e. at the start of the project, because all of the activities cannot be known then. The Sodor projects activities were identified and provided, so a work breakdown structure could be constructed by the project leader. Other categorizations of the work and different breakdowns were possible but the project team was happy with the project managers decisions. Project Planning Hughes (1995) suggested a Step Wise guide for software projects with details of the stages a project planning team must complete to achieve an effective project plan. PRINCE2 a methodology advocated and required by the UK government also prescribes stages of project development including planning, which reflects the PMBOK areas of Scope, Time and Cost Management. (Siegelaub 2004). Scope management was outside the brief of the Sodor project team as it was provided in the project information. Clear objectives and methods were also provided and no feasibility study was necessary. Therefore the first main planning activity of the Sodor team was in time and cost management to produce a Gantt chart and estimated costs schedule based on the work breakdown structure and provided task precedences to calculate an estimated project end date and project cost. The next stage in planning was to choose vendors.The vendor selection process was carried out by one member of the team acting as project manager. This was where the rest of the team should have had more input, as two important issues in project management would arise which had implications later risk management and quality management. Risk Management The PMBOK devotes a whole knowledge area to risk management and PRINCE2 identifies risk as one of its components. The PMBOK suggests four phases of risk management identification, quantification, response and ultimately control. The Sodor project was totally dependent on third party vendors for both the supply of materials and construction. The biggest identifiable risk for the project would be the failure of a supplier or contractor to deliver on time. This would be particularly relevant to the tasks within the project which were on the critical path in the original estimated plan. Therefore the vendor selection for these tasks should have been carefully considered. Risk is usually quantified as a function of the risks occurrence probability and occurrence impact. (Williams 1996). The probability is a difficult judgement to make but the team was supplied with ratings which were based on how reliable the vendor was. The impact was the penalty cost for late project delivery. The contractors for the two critical tasks of jetty design and construction, and the installation of piping equipment were only rated 2. This proved to cause problems later. Methods of risk management include trying to reduce the risk (Gannon 1994). Of course, reducing the risk by choosing higher rated vendors would have had a cost and would have to have been judged to be cost effective. This was partly taken into account in the vendor selection policy, but should have warranted more attention from the project team. Another way of dealing with the risk in a real situation would have been to deflect it (Gannon 1994) by transferring it to the vendors. Penalty clauses could have been inserted into their contracts for overrunning the quoted task durations. The Sodor project team were not able to do this, so reduction of the risk was the only option available. Quality Management The PMBOK also devotes a whole knowledge area to quality management, so it is obviously an important area for project managers to consider. In the Sodor project the quality of the vendors was the greatest area for consideration. The only indicator of this was the rating provided, which was used in the vendor selection. In a real world situation vendors could have been required to conform to International Organization for Standardization quality standards such as ISO 9001:2008 dealing with Quality Management Systems Requirements, but this was not an option for the project team. After the completion of the planning phase with vendor selection, a final baseline plan and costings were produced. In order to adjust the project end date to conform to the required schedule it was decided to pay overtime to the painting contractor. At this point cash flow should also have been considered by delaying the times for the purchase of materials until necessary but it was not, a potentially huge mistake in the commercial world. Monitoring and Control Gannon (1994) stated that project performance can be measured by the comparison of actual progress to the original planned progress at any stage in the project. The slippages in the Sodor project at 25 weeks were entered into the project Gantt chart and it was found that as a result of slippage in critical path activities the project would overrun by 4 weeks compared to the baseline, and penalties would apply. The project team had 3 choices accept the penalties, reduce the length of an activity on the critical path by paying overtime (known as the time-cost tradeoff problem, (Liberatore and Pollack-Johnson 2006)), or reconsider the precedence requirements (Liberatore and Pollack-Johnson 2006). It was found that paying overtime to the painting contractor to reduce the project duration by 4 weeks was less than the potential penalties and less complicated than reconsidering the precedence requirements. Further problems at the 25 April 2001 stage were caused by the vendor selection for the jetty erection. For the same reasons as above it was decided to pay for overtime on the jetty erection thereby reducing the critical path back in line with the required completion date. By the project closeout it was found that as a result of a reduction in a critical path activity the project completed 2 weeks early and earned bonuses. Summary The project was a success if the criteria was to complete the project in time. But more careful selection of vendors could have also cut the costs of the project the choice of the pipe installation vendor in particular could have produced substantial bonuses. The complete exclusion of any consideration for cash flow was also a major mistake. In the real commercial world, projects can fail because of cash flow problems, so this should have been recognized. Conclusion The Sodor Oil Terminal project was a success in terms of completion of the project within the required time. Pinto and Slevin (1988) measure success simply by achieving the projects time and costs schedule, accompanied by an adequate performance. This approach, however, ignores the factors of commercial success in the marketplace, and how the future of the organization as a whole has been affected by the project, factors recognized by Shenhar et al. (1997). The Sodor project could have been completed within a smaller budget, with greater commercial success and larger profits for future investment in the organization if greater attention had been paid in the areas of vendor selection in terms of risk management. The financial pressure of the large project on the organization could have been offset by greater attention to costings in terms of cash flow optimization. These negative conclusions can be directly attributed to the project teams lack of real teamwork in not questioning each others actions enough or discussing relevant issues.

Philosophical Arguments Of Plato And Aristotle

Philosophical Arguments Of Plato And Aristotle This paper tends to use known facts and dialogues as the starting point from which to draw inferences and solutions based on the philosophical arguments of Plato and Aristotle. THE PROBLEM OF CHANGE ARISTOTLE The basic notions of Aristotles philosophy of nature can be understood from his analysis of change. When Aristotle undertook to explain how it is that things change, a fact apparent to anyone, he had first to confront the seemingly iron-clad logic of Parmenides. According to Parmenides All change is mere appearance; reality is One, and this One, which only is, is unchanging. Parmenides had argued that there are only two alternatives for anything, being and non-being. No new being can come from non-being since nothing comes from nothing. Nor can new being come from being since what has being, already is and does not begin to be: being cannot come from being since it is already. The advance that Aristotle made over Parmenides consists in seeing that, although it is true that nothing can come from nothing, it is not entirely true that being cannot come from being. One must distinguish being-in-act from being-in-potency. While it is true that from being-in-act, being-in-act cannot come since it would already be. The alternative from which being can come is not non-being, but being-in-potency. From being-in- potency there can come being-in-act. Potency, in this case, is defined as the capacity for growth and development. ACCIDENTAL CHANGE In his analysis of change, Aristotle discovered that every change implies duality. It implies a subject in potency which, by the action of some agent, pases into act, i.e. receives some new perfection or actuality. Motion presupposes the acquisition of something and the corruption of something else. The subject of change is what stays the same through the change. However, through the change, it acquires something new and loses what it previously had. Motion implies a passive principle and an active principle, intrinsic to the thing that changes. This he described as accidental change. Thus, there are three principles necessary for change to take place. There must be something new that comes to be, something old that passes away, and something that stays the same throughout. In the Aristotelian tradition, these principles receive the names form, privation and matter. Form is what comes to be Privation is what passes away And matter is what stays the same throughout the change. In the case of a statue, the shape of the sculpture, Michelangelos David for instance, is the form that comes to be when a formless block of marble becomes a statue. The formlessness of the block is itself the privation of the statue shape, and the potency for the statue shape. The marble, first in block shape, later in David shape, is what stays the same throughout the change. The case of the coming to be of a statue is an instance of an accidental change; what changes are the accidents of the marble. What stays the same is the substance of the marble. SUBSTANCIAL CHANGE For Aristotle, motion is the technical name for changes in accidents. There are three kinds of motion for Aristotle: a change in quality (which he calls alteration), a change in quantity, size (called growth or diminution), and a change in place (called local motion). In all cases, motion, as such, is defined as the act of a being in potency insofar as it is in potency. Motion is the process that a substance goes through in which it loses one accidental form or actuality and gains another. Aristotle discovered these principles of nature (matter, form and privation) by analyzing accidental changes. He found that they could also explain the more fundamental kinds of changes, changes that involve the passing away and coming to be of substances. Example; If one admits that sodium and chlorine are different substances (and they certainly appear different one is a white metal, the other a green gas), and that they are each different from salt (also apparently so), then one can see that the change from sodium and chlorine to Sodium chloride (salt) is a substantial change. PLATO Plato argued that both the material objects perceived and the individual perceiving them are constantly changing; but, since knowledge must be concerned only with unchangeable and universal objects, knowledge and perception are fundamentally different. In his theory of forms Plato meant to solve the ethical and intellectual problems as well as that of change and permanence: How can the world appear to be both permanent and changing? The world we perceive through the senses seems to be always changing. The world that we perceive through the mind, using our concepts, seems to be permanent and unchanging. Which is most real and why does it appear both ways? These are the arguments Plato sought to solve. The general structure of the solution: Plato splits up existence into two realms: the material realm and the transcendent realm of forms. Humans have access to the realm of forms through the mind, through reason, given Platos theory of the subdivisions of the human soul. This gives them access to an unchanging world, invulnerable to the pains and changes of the material world. By detaching ourselves from the material world and our bodies and developing our ability to concern ourselves with the forms, we find a value which is not open to change or disintegration. This solves the first, ethical, problem. Splitting existence up into two realms also solves the problem of permanence and change. We perceive a different world, with different objects, through our mind than we do through the senses. It is the material world, perceived through the senses, that is changing. It is the realm of forms, perceived through the mind, that is permanent and immutable. It is this world that is more real; the world of change is merely an imperfect image of this world. A form- This is an abstract property or quality. Take any property of an object; separate it from that object and consider it by itself, and you are contemplating a form. Platos characterization of forms to explain permanence and change: The forms are transcendent- This means that they do not exist in space and time. A material object, for instance a basketball, exists at a particular place at a particular time. A form, the roundness, does not exist at any place or time. Therefore a form such as roundness will never change; it does not even exist in time. It is the same at all times or places in which it might be instantiated. The forms are also pure- This means that they are pure properties separated from all other properties. A material object, such as a basketball, has many properties: roundness, ballness, orangeness, elasticity, etc. These are all put together to make up this individual basketball. But the form, Roundness, is just pure roundness, without any other properties mixed in. In virtue of the fact that all objects in this world are copies of the forms, the forms are the causes of all that exists in this world. In general, whenever you want to explain why something is the way that it is, you point to some properties that the object has. That is, you explain what forms the object is a copy of. The forms are causes in two closely related ways: The forms are the causes of all our knowledge of all objects. The forms contribute all order and intelligibility to objects. Since we can only know something insofar as it has some order or form, the forms are the source of the intelligibility of all material objects. The forms are also the cause of the existence of all objects. Things are only said to exist insofar as they have order or structure or form. Hence, the forms are the causes of the existence of all objects as well as of their intelligibility. Plato uses the sun metaphor to explain how the forms in general, and the form of the Good in particular, are causes in these two ways. Just as the sun gives light which allows us to see objects, the form of the Good provides order and intelligibility to allow us to know objects. Just as the sun provides the energy for the nourishment and growth of all living things, so the form of the Good provides the order and structure which is the source of the existence of all things. REASON WHY WE THINK ARISTOTLES ARGUMENT IS MORE CREDIBLE: In place of Platos doctrine of Ideas with a separate and eternal existence of their own, Aristotle proposed a group of universals that represent the common properties of any group of real objects. The universals, unlike Platos Ideas, have no existence outside of the objects they represent. Aristotle sought a general combined principal approach, unlike Plato who insisted that the forms are the causes of the existence of all objects as well as of their intelligibility. Not implying that Plato was wrong but that Aristotles attribution of change to 3 principals seems to be logically acceptable i.e He did not separate Form from Privation nor from Matter. Form and matter, therefore, make up a substantial unity; one cannot have form without matter, nor matter without some form. But, one can still distinguish these principles, and also understand that these principles are real features of the things that exhibit them. Aristotle thought that Platos theory of forms with its two separate realms failed to explain what it was meant to explain. That is, it failed to explain how there could be permanence and order in this world and how we could have objective knowledge of this world. By separating the realm of forms from the material realm, Plato made it impossible to explain how the realm of forms made objectivity and permanence possible in the material world. The objectivity and permanence of the realm of forms does not help to explain the material world because the connection between the two worlds is so hard to understand. Aristotle and the Aristotelian philosophers used logic to criticize the theory. Gail fine went to an extreme to say: The theory of form is an unnecessary proposal. There is no need to split the world up into two separate realms in order to explain objectivity and permanence in our experience.6 Aristotle elaborated this general criticism into two more particular objections: 1. The obscurity of the notion imitation: According to Plato, material objects participate in or imitate the forms. It is in virtue of this relation to the realm of forms that material objects are knowable and have order. Yet, Aristotle argues, it is almost impossible to explain what exactly this participation or imitation is. The properties that the forms have (eternal, unchanging, transcendent, etc. ) are all incompatible with material objects. How, for example, can a white object be said to participate in or copy the form of whiteness? Is the form of whiteness white itself? How can there be whiteness without any thingwhich is white? What can a white object and the form of whiteness be said to have in common? It seems that the metaphor of imitation or participation seems to break down in these cases because of the special properties that Plato ascribes to the forms. The only link between the realm of forms and the material world, then, breaks down. The forms cannot explain anything in the material world. 2. The third man argument: This argument was first given by Plato himself in his later dialogues. It is related to the first objection, but is a more technical way of getting at the main problem with the theory of forms. The resemblance between any two material objects is explained by Plato in terms of their joint participation in a common form. A red book and a red flower, for example, resemble each other in virtue of being copies of the form of redness. Because they are copies of this form, they also resemble the form. But this resemblance between the red object and the form of redness must also be explained in terms of another form. What form does a red object and the form of redness both copy to account for their similarity? Whenever someone proposes another form that two similar things copy, we can always ask them to explain the similarity between the form and the objects. This will always require another form. The notion of imitation or copying used in the theory of forms, then, runs into logical difficu lties. The theory of forms really explains nothing about the similarity of objects; another form is always needed beyond the one proposed. Thus to explain the similarity between a man and the form of man, one needs a third form of man, and this always requires another form. The explanation of the original similarity is never given; it is only put off to the next level. This criticism paved the way for further criticism. As there was no logical connection between the transcendent forms and the material world, so many critics raised a question about the epistemological dimensions of this theory. Plato was of the view that real knowledge was knowledge of form and the ideal destiny of a man was to reach the realm of forms. But he didnt mentioned how to reach that realm. As it was above this material world, so whether there was a way to reach that realm in ones life or only death could take a man in that ideal realm. The idea of forms was very abstract and it wasnt clear enough to be accepted, un criticized. Plato didnt write much about his theory of forms and most of the written work was also not preserved. Pheodo was the first book to have this theory and later on in republic he explained it a bit. But this explanation was too little to make the theory clear. So the explanation was mostly rendered by the commentators of the theory. This became the major source of criticism on this theory. CONCLUSION: The criticism of Aristotle and Aristotelian philosophers, on this theory, is mostly of explanatory type. Had Plato written more or his books had been preserved, there might not have been that strong criticism on this theory. Even then the theory was powerful enough to split the philosophy and philosophers in two parts. Though a group of philosophers dont agree with the content of the theory but even they accept that this theory provided human beings with s new way to think and perceive the universe.