Haidt Happiness Hypothesis

Ch. 5 The Pursuit of Happiness (Haidt) pp. 81-102 1. Compare the main ideas of The Consolation of Philosophy from Ch. 2 and of Ecclesiastes on pp. 81-82. 2. How do we experience pleasure differently from the animals? Why don’t we enjoy life more than they do? What’s the problem or trick with reinforcement as a source of pleasure? 3. Explain and give examples of 2 types of positive affect according to Davidson. Which one gives us more happiness? 4. What is the progress principle? 5. Explain the adaptation principle, habituation of neurons, and the hedonic treadmill. . Describe early happiness hypotheses (Buddha, stoics). Do these theories of happiness suggest that we hide from the world in order to find peace? 7. Describe the relationship between marriage and happiness. What’s the â€Å"reverse correlation† between marriage and happiness (â€Å"reverse† does not mean â€Å"negative†)? 8. List factors which are strongly associated with happines s and the ones which are not but most of us believe that they should lead to happiness (pp. 88-89). 9. Explain the main components of happiness formula and describe the research that it is based on. 10.Name the external conditions that have strong effect on happiness according to Haidt (pp. 92-94). 11. Describe the experience sampling method. 12. What are the characteristics of flow? How is flow different from physical pleasures? 13. What’s the difference between pleasures and gratifications according to Seligman? 14. How can we increase pleasures and how can we find our gratifications? 15. Why do people pursue goals that work against their happiness? 16. What is the difference between conspicuous and inconspicuous consumption? 17. Explain the paradox of choice.

Compare and Contrast: Byzantine Empire and the Aztecs Essay

The early civilizations of the byzantine and Aztec empires rose to power using a variety of tactics. They were both very successful and very powerful up to a certain point. The byzantine and Aztec empires both used military strategies and advancements in war. Although while the Byzantine Empire used Christianity to unify its people, the Aztecs made people fear them by using human sacrifices. Also the byzantine was a bureaucracy with an emperor who was thought of to be chosen by the gods to rule over the people, however, the Aztecs had a ruler who was seen as an actual god. The Byzantine and Aztec empires had very strong military tactics which led to expansion and advancement. The Byzantine conquered almost all of the land around it and had many skilled warriors. This is much like the Aztecs who had skilled warriors and even though they didn’t necessarily conquer the land, they took control of the people and made them pay tribute. The Aztecs captured people for human sacrifices many times and this was an adapted technique they used, while the Byzantine used the technique of the â€Å"Greek fire† which was an invention similar to a flamethrower. In the Byzantine Empire there was a main religion and in the Aztec empire hey were highly reliant on human sacrifice to scare people into joining the civilization. The Byzantine empire used the newly found religion of Christianity to unify its population and make them a whole. The Aztecs however, believed in multiple gods and used human sacrifices to make other people fear and respect them. This tactic was also used to get them to join and scared them into paying tribute to the Aztecs or the Aztec gods. There was an emperor in the Byzantine Empire who had much influence because people thought he had been chosen by god; this was similar but not exactly the same as the Aztecs who had a leader that was thought of as an actual deity, or god. Because the Byzantine ruler was thought to be chosen by god, he had power and control over his own civilization and also those that he tried to conquer. The Aztec leader had divine power over his people and since everyone viewed him as a god it would be wrong to defy him. For this reason, he had influence and power over other places, as well as his own.

Computer Games On Critical Thinking Skills Of Adolescence Education Essay

Presents, the new coevals has begun to develop an involvement in assorted computing machine bet oning activities. It is likely that computing machine games provide satisfaction for the demands, such as to let go of emphasis and as a acquisition procedure tool. Therefore, both kids and grownups are really attracted and addicted to these activities. It is really common for grownups to acquire involved in these computing machine games because drama is a natural manner to larn as it is joyful and can supply the chances to unconsciously incorporate thoughts ( Eow, Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Roselan Baki, 2009 ) . In add-on, great entree to cyberspace has besides increased these old ages. Most households are able to afford computing machine and internet entree at place. Besides, picture games had besides increased to go one of kids and adolescence ‘s front-runner, even in grownups every bit good. The gross revenues of video games in the United States have grown systematic ally between $ 7 billion and $ 7.5 billion in 1999. On the other manus, the worldwide gross revenues had besides increased to $ 20 billion ( Gentile, Lynch, Linder & A ; Walsh, 2004 ) . Games have ever been a favorite interest for everyone despite their age and gender. But, how is game defined? Harmonizing to Huizinga ( as cited in Smed & A ; Hakonen, 2003 ) , he defined drama as an activity which returns within certain bounds of clip and infinite, in a seeable order, harmonizing to regulations freely accepted, and outside the domain of necessity or material public-service corporation. In add-on, game is defined as an cosmopolitan signifier of diversion which includes any activity of amusement and organize a competition or competition fortunes. A game is comprised of three constituents: the willingness of participants to take part in the game to seek for amusement, regulations that provide bounds for the game, and ends which initiate struggles and competition among the participants. So, computing machine games can be defined as a set of activities that involves one or more participants, with ends, restraints and effects. Harmonizing to Crawford ( as cited in Hasiah Mohamed Omar, Nora Yanti Che Jan & A ; Nik Marsyahariani Nik Daud, 2010 ) , all games are comprised of four common factors: representation, interaction, struggle and safety. It is accomplished with the assistance of a computing machine plan, in which the computing machine coordinates the game procedure, exemplify the state of affairs and take part as a participant. There are assorted types of computing machine games designed to suit different participants ‘ demands and demands, for case, function playing game, educational game, athletics game and amusement game. World of Warcrafts ( WOW ) is the most popular â€Å" massively multiplayer on-line role-playing games † ( MMORPGs ) worldwide, with transcending 9 million endorsers from North America and Europe, Australia, New Zealand, China, Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, based on the Blizzard ‘s official web site. Besides, it is besides the first on-line game to make the gross revenues of over $ 100 million worldwide in the first twelvemonth of production, and besides known as the best-selling Personal computer game in 2005 and 2006 ( Chen & A ; Chang, 2008 ) . Games may be harmful to a individual ‘s wellness, but it may besides lend to an of import function in instruction. It benefits users in larning procedure such as bettering their logical and critical thought and job resolution accomplishments. Besides, it besides assists users in bettering their physiological reactions and hand-eye coordination. Critical thought is acquiring more and more of import as a cognitive undertaking on present yearss. Persons today frequently encountered metric tons of jobs and have an increasing figure of of import determinations to do, which affects themselves and the society. The National Council for Excellence in Critical Thinking defined critical thought as the intellectually disciplined procedure of actively and skillfully gestating, using, analysing, synthesising, and measuring information gathered from observation, experience, contemplation, concluding, or communicating, as a usher to belief and action. There are two factors in critical thought: a set of information, belief generating and processing accomplishments ; and the wont of utilizing those accomplishments to steer action ( Foundation for Critical Thinking, 2009 ; Renaud & A ; Murray, 2008 ) . Critical thought is non cosmopolitan as persons have undisciplined and irrational idea. However, it is seen as a self-guided and self-restraining thought in which concluding frequently occurs at the highest degree. Persons with critical thought are able to utilize their rational tools to believe rationally and moderately by forming and analysing ideas in order to do determinations that affect their lives, every bit good as to better their thought and concluding accomplishments ( Schafersman, 1991 ) . Problem Statement In Malaysia, 75.8 % of signifier one pupils in Kuala Lumpur were gamers, whereas the other 24.2 % were non-gamers. It is so reported that out of the 138 male childs being surveyed, 126 ( 91.3 % ) of them were gamers. On the other manus, 53 out of 98 ( 54.1 % ) miss being surveyed were besides gamers. This research showed that male childs have a higher per centum to be gamers than misss. Computer games do non merely act as the involvement among adolescence, it besides acted as a acquisition tool where brainstorming and critical thought develops. Therefore, it is non surprising that the signifier one pupils are so indulged in it ( Eow, Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Roselan Baki, 2009 ) . In a study on Institute of Higher Learning ( IHL ) pupils ‘ exposure to computing machine games in Malaysia, it is reported that 36.8 % of pupils were exposed to computing machine games at the age of 10 to 12, 21.1 % at the age of 7 to 9, and 7 % at the age of 16 to 18. About 80 % preferred to play card and arcade games, followed by action games ( 69.2 % ) , function playing games ( 63.1 % ) , puzzle games ( 50.8 % ) , scheme games ( 26.2 % ) and sport games ( 21.5 % ) . This statistics revealed that the pupils at IHL have a penchant for games that enhance their high-order thought accomplishments ( Hasiah Mohamed Omar, Nora Yanti Che Jan & A ; Nik Marsyahariani Nik Daud, 2010 ) . Excessive exposure to computing machine games can be risky as it may impact wellness and even take to decease. In Beijing, a adult male in his mid-thirtiess was found abruptly after an inordinate three-day gambling indulgence in 2007. Deaths by bet oning have besides been reported in Hong Kong, a 28-year-old adult male and a 17-year-old male child died within a twelvemonth of each other while playing the first-person taw game. In the U.S, a adult male died a hebdomad after he played Nintendo. On the other manus, in South Korea, a adult male died four yearss subsequently after exposure to inordinate on-line games. Harmonizing to Dr. Maressa Orzack ( as cited in Lee, 2009 ) , â€Å" our society is going more computing machine dependant non merely for information, but besides for merriment and amusement, this tendency is a possible job impacting all ages, get downing with computing machine games for childs. † Numerous surveies had revealed a consistent negative correlativity between sums of picture games played and school public presentation of kids, adolescence, and college pupils. Harmonizing to the informations, adolescence and college pupils who spent more clip on games are more likely to hold poorer classs in categories, compared to non-gamers. Besides, the content of games besides played an of import function. Based on recent analyses, approximately 89 % of games contain some violent content in which half of the games presented heavy force. Spending excessively much clip on these force games can bring forth strong negative effects on the gamer. For case, additions aggressive behaviors, ideas and emotions ; desensitisation to real-life force, increases physiological rousing and decreases societal behavior ( Gentile, Lynch, Linder & A ; Walsh, 2004 ) . The effects are proven by informations collected from functional magnetic resonance imagination scan ( functional magnetic resonance i maging ) . It showed that there is activation in the amygdaloid nucleus when the adolescents are playing games, but less activation in the concentration portion of the encephalon ( Carney, 2008 ) . Other than that, video games can besides do several other effects such as fleshiness in kids, societal isolation and physiological wellness jobs. Obesity is hazardous because it affects one ‘s wellness to the extreme. When kids spend most of their clip sitting and bet oning, they do non even bother to acquire up or hold a walk outside. Hence, opportunities of acquiring corpulence are ineluctable if they do non do any alterations with their lives. In the same state of affairs, the longer the clip they caught up in gambling activities, the more opportunities of them to lose socialisation accomplishments or connexion with the outside universe. Face-to face socialisation will be reduced since they can hold interaction with others through the Internet. Therefore, these kids will bit by bit go socially stray someday. Furthermore, physiological jobs such as GI jobs, sickness and concerns, attending jobs such as Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ( ADHD ) , addition in both emoti onal and behavioral upset symptoms, diminutions in verbal memory public presentation, and decreased sum of slumber ( AddictionBlog.org, 2010 ; Cultrona, 2010 ) . Frand ( as cited in Roselan Baki, Eow, Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Mohd. Sahandri Gani Hamzah, 2008 ) discovered that computing machine games and cyberspace are really of import to the younger coevals as they depended and remain connected with it most of their clip. However, other research workers claimed that picture games are no longer a interest for adolescence as it works as a larning tool in which it enhances computing machine literacy, ocular attending, job resolution and reaction clip. In add-on, Gee ( as cited in Roselan Baki, Eow, Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Mohd. Sahandri Gani Hamzah, 2008 ) mentioned that video game can be a learning tool integrated into schoolroom acquisition since kids today frequently play games. Harmonizing to him, â€Å" when childs play videogames they experience a much more powerful signifier of larning than when they are in the schoolroom † . Besides, the benefits that one could obtain from computing machine games include chance for practical socialization ; larning about other participants ‘ civilizations and life styles ; prosecute in high-order thought accomplishment ; gathers general cognition ; and even increasing the linguistic communication larning chance. Therefore, it is suggested that instructors in school should admit the benefits of games on cognitive development of the pupils by organizing learning methods that helps to reassign the accomplishments and schemes to the pupils ( Roselan Baki, Eow, Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Mohd. Sahandri Gani Hamzah, 2008 ) . Conceptual Model Gender *Independent Variable* Male Female Critical Thinking Skills *Dependent Variable* Duration of games played per twenty-four hours *Independent Variable* Type of Games *Independent Variable* Strategy Game 1. & lt ; 2 hours Arcade Game 2. 3 – 6 hours Card and Board Game 3. 7 – 10 hours Shooting Game 4. 11 – 13 hours Word and Puzzle Game 5. & gt ; 14 hours Role-Playing Game The chief model of this research is focused on how computing machine games can be of import determiners of the development of critical thought accomplishments in adolescence. Three variables: gender, type of games and continuance of games played per twenty-four hours will be examined and they act as an independent variable in this research. The type of games will be categorized into six classs such as scheme, arcade, card and board, word and mystifier, shot, and role-playing games. Each of these independent variables will be surveyed whether it plays a function in developing or bettering critical thought accomplishments in adolescence. Theoretical Model John Dewey ‘s Definition of Critical Thinking Harmonizing to John Dewey, critical thought is viewed as ‘reflective thought ‘ and it is defined as an â€Å" active, relentless, and careful consideration of a belief or supposed signifier of cognition in the visible radiation of the evidences which support it and the farther decisions to which it tends ( as cited in Jaimes, 2005 ) . † Robert Ennis ‘s Definition of Critical Thinking A widely used definition of critical thought was developed by Robert Ennis whom so defined critical thought as â€Å" sensible, brooding thought that is focused on make up one's minding what to believe or make ( Fisher, 2001 ) . † Moore and Parker ‘s Definition of Critical Thinking Harmonizing to Moore and Parker, critical thought is defined as â€Å" the careful, calculated finding of whether we should accept, reject, or suspend judgement about a claim, and the grade of assurance with which we accept or reject it ( The Critical Thinking Co Staff, 2005 ) . † Mathew Lipman ‘s Definition of Critical Thinking In Lipman ‘s position, critical thought is seen as a more complex procedure than ordinary thought. Lipman defines critical thought as a adept and responsible idea that helps to build better judgemental accomplishments. Harmonizing to Lipman, critical thought accomplishments are applied in a given context in order to assist separate between the most relevant and less relevant information received. Therefore, critical thought represents a tool for countering sentiments ( noncritical thought ) and thoughtless behavior. Apart from that, Lipman argues that critical thought â€Å" protects us from being coerced or brainwashed into believing what others want us to believe without holding the chance to ask for ourselves. † ( Murchu & A ; Muirhead, 2005 ; Daniel, Splitter, Slade, Lafortune, Pallascio & A ; Mongeau, 2004 ) . Critical thought is thought to develop based on four classs: conceptualization, concluding, generalization and research. In Lipman ‘s point of view, critical thought develops based on three standards: ( 1 ) Use of peculiar standards, whereby a individual who uses peculiar standards of his or her ain critical thought accomplishments to measure the footings of statements ; ( 2 ) Self-correction, in the sense that persons are capable of transporting out an active geographic expedition for the mistake they make with the aid of self-correction in their head ; ( 3 ) Sensitivity to context, in which the flexible ideas helps persons to place assorted applications of regulations and rules for different state of affairss ( Daniel, Splitter, Slade, Lafortune, Pallascio & A ; Mongeau, 2004 ) . Edward Glaser ‘s Definition of Critical Thinking Critical thought was defined by Edward Glaser in 1941 as the ability to believe critically which involves three constituents: ( 1 ) an attitude of being disposed to see in a thoughtful manner the jobs and topics that come within the scope of one ‘s experience, ( 2 ) holding the cognition of the methods for logical enquiry and logical thinking, and ( 3 ) the accomplishments required in using those methods. Harmonizing to Glaser, critical thought is a utile cognitive tool with a scope of abilities such as to acknowledge jobs, to happen solutions for the jobs, to garner information, to acknowledge the unexpressed premises, to grok and utilize linguistic communication with truth, to construe informations, to measure grounds, to measure statements, to acknowledge logical relationships between propositions, to pull and prove decisions, to retrace forms of beliefs, and to render opinions ( Foundation for Critical Thinking, 2009 ; Fisher, 2001 ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy of Learning Domains The well known Bloom ‘s Taxonomy was originally formulated by Benjamin Bloom in 1956. This theoretical account was chiefly created for educational intents in developing critical thought accomplishments in pupils. It serves as a checklist that provides construction for planning, planing, measuring and measuring preparation and larning effectivity. There were three chief spheres identified: cognitive, affectional, and psychomotor. The cognitive sphere is comprised of six degrees which were organized from the simplest to the most complex: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation ( Big Dog & A ; Little Dog ‘s Performance Juxtaposition, 2009 ; BusinessBalls.com, 2009 ; Bellis, 2010 ) . Knowledge refers to the retrieval of informations or antecedently learned information such as the acknowledgment of specific facts to finish theories. Although it is the start for higher degree of believing development, nevertheless, it is besides the lowest degree of larning results in the sphere. Comprehension, on the other manus, refers to the ability to grok, construe, and understand the significance of information antecedently learned. If an person can grok rules and theories, it so contributes to future job work outing or determination devising in the work topographic point. It represents the lowest degree of understanding in the hierarchy. Application is defined as the usage of erudite stuff in a novel and concrete state of affairs. In other words, it involves choice and interlingual rendition of constructs, rules and theories into work outing a undertaking or job. It therefore requires a higher degree of understanding in this degree ( Hammond, 2007 ) . Analysis refers to the ability to acknowledge and separate stuffs learned into constituent parts, analyze the relationships between parts and recognize the organisation rules involved. It is in this degree that critical thought and job work outing gets involved. Besides, an apprehension of both content and structural signifier of stuff are besides involved. As for the degree of synthesis, it is the ability to organize a new construction ( i.e. , program, proposal ) from several little constituent parts, such as uniting thoughts. Emphasis on the preparation of new constructions is seen as the larning results in synthesis. Evaluation refers to the opinions made about the stuffs ‘ value for a given intent. The acquisition results are the highest among the hierarchy because they comprised of elements from all of the other degrees in the taxonomy. Besides, it besides contains witting value opinions based on clearly defined standards ( Huitt, 2009 ; Instructional Design Knowledge Bas e, n.d ) . However, Bloom ‘s taxonomy has been criticized by professional critics. They commented that this hierarchy merely focuses on the idea processes itself and non sing how these procedures may work otherwise on several different informations or state of affairss. They besides mentioned that the knowledge-level of thought can non be assumed as less demanding than application-level thought ( Harmon & A ; Jones, 2005 ) . On the other manus, Marzano pointed out that the construction of the taxonomy traveling from simplest degree of cognition to hard degree of rating has no supports from research surveies ( Intel Education, n.d. ) . Core Critical Thinking Skills ( Peter A. Facione ) Peter Facione conducted a Delphi undertaking with a group of critical thought experts and identified the nucleus elements of critical thought, known as the nucleus critical thought accomplishments. Harmonizing to the panel of experts, the nucleus of critical thought accomplishments can be divided into six cognitive accomplishments: reading, analysis, rating, illation, account, and self-regulation. Based on the experts ‘ consensus statements, reading is defined as the ability â€Å" to grok and show the significance or significance of a broad assortment of experiences, state of affairss, informations, events, judgements, conventions, beliefs, regulations, processs, or standards. † The sub-skills include classification, decrypting significance, and clear uping significance. Analysis, on the other manus, is â€Å" to place intended and existent illative relationships among statements, inquiries, constructs, descriptions, or other signifiers of representation that is intend ed to show belief, opinion, experiences, grounds, information, or sentiments. † The sub-skills include scrutiny of thoughts, sensing of statements, and analysis of statements ( Facione, 1990 ) . The 3rd accomplishment, rating, is â€Å" to measure the credibleness of statements or other representations which are histories or descriptions of a individual ‘s perceptual experience, experience, state of affairs, opinion, belief, or sentiment ; and to measure the logical strength of the existent or intended illative relationships among statements, descriptions, inquiries or other signifiers of representation. † It includes the sub-skills of measuring claims and measuring statements. Inference is defined as the accomplishments â€Å" to place and procure elements needed to pull sensible decisions ; to organize speculations and hypotheses ; to see relevant information and to evoke the effects fluxing from informations, statements, rules, grounds, opinions, beliefs, sentiments, constructs, descriptions, inquiries, or other signifiers of representation. † The sub-skills include questioning grounds, speculating options, and pulling decisions. Explanation refers to the ability â€Å" to province the consequences of one ‘s logical thinking ; to warrant that concluding in footings of the evidentiary, conceptual, methodological, criteriological, and contextual considerations upon which 1 ‘s consequences were based ; and to show one ‘s logical thinking in the signifier of telling statements. † Sub-skills of account include description of consequences, warranting processs, and showing statements. The last accomplishments which is known as self-regulation, is besides the most singular accomplishments among all six accomplishments. Experts define it as â€Å" self-consciously to supervise one ‘s cognitive activities, the elements used in those activities, and the consequences educed, peculiarly by using accomplishments in analysis, and rating to one ‘s ain illative opinions with a position toward oppugning, corroborating, proof, or rectifying either one ‘s concluding or one ‘s con sequences. † The sub-skills include the introspection and self-correction ( Facione, 2010 ) . A Stage Theory of Critical Thinking ( Linda Elder with Richard Paul ) A phase theory of critical thought development was originally developed by Linda Elder with Richard Paul ( Gakushuu, 2010 ) . Six phases were involved in this theory: 1 ) the unthinking mind, 2 ) the challenged mind, 3 ) the beginning mind, 4 ) the practicing mind, 5 ) the advanced mind, and 6 ) the maestro mind. In phase one, unthinking minds fail to detect the important jobs existed in their thought, such as doing premises, organizing constructs and sentiments, and pulling illations. In other words, they are incognizant of the lucidity, truth and relevancy of their ideas. Unreflective minds are deficiency of the accomplishments and cognition to measure their thought and better it. In add-on, self-monitoring idea is unequal which makes them unable to recognize their prejudice belief. In phase two, the challenged mind becomes cognizant of the jobs in believing and may try to better and develop consciousness of the appraisals of believing even though they have limited accomplishments in thought. Besides, their deceptive ideas can lead on them to believe that they have better thought accomplishments. Therefore, it leads them to extinguish other jobs in their thought imperceptibly ( Cournoyer, 2008 ; Worldwide Centre for Organisational Development, 2008 ) . In phase three, the beginning mind starts to understand the importance of egoistic function in believing. They have sufficient believing ability to assist them self-monitor their ideas so that they can place bias and biased beliefs. Practicing minds in phase four acknowledge the necessity to execute regular systematic pattern in believing. They besides become more knowing of the demands for regularly monitoring and measuring their ideas. In add-on, they frequently monitor their egoistic thought actively ( Foundation for Critical Thinking, 2009 ) . In phase five, advanced minds have developed apprehensions of jobs at deeper degrees of ideas. However, they are non ready yet to hold consistent high degree believing. They besides have important penetrations into the function of egoistic ideas and the control over the ideas. In phase five, maestro minds exhibit highest degrees of critical thought and continual betterment of their ideas. They develop consistent self-monitoring ideas, and are able to pull off the strengths and failings of their ideas ( Foundation for Critical Thinking, 2009 ; Worldwide Centre for Organisational Development, 2008 ) . The Elementss of Thought ( Richard Paul ) Richard Paul formulated this theoretical account by placing the eight elements as the basic edifice blocks of productive thought. It is composed of eight elements including intent, inquiry at issue, point of position, premises, information, constructs, reading and illation, deductions and effects. Combination of all these eight elements will supply a general logic to logical thinking. The component â€Å" Purpose † suggests that all concluding involves a intent or end. It is of import to clear up the conflicting intents as each single develops different intents in concluding. It is besides of import to find the best intent and non-critical thought motivations that one has. â€Å" Question at Issue † refers to the effort of concluding an issue by inquiring some inquiries. Therefore, issue ever raise a inquiry. The inquiries formulated will be answered or solved by one ‘s concluding procedure. However, before replying the inquiries, one should clearly place the significance of each inquiry. If possible, one should besides find the inquiries as holding one correct reply, or involves sentiments. â€Å" Point of View † includes the position sing an issue and how people are influenced by their ain point of position when logical thinking. Persons should place their ain point of position, every bit good as others in order to find the strengths a nd failings â€Å" Premises † are unexpressed grounds which predict decisions. It is suggested that people need to take things for granted in their logical thinking procedure to do several premises. However, one should clear up the premises made and so merely find its justification. â€Å" Information † requires important groundss that showed logical thinking is acceptable. It is highly of import to garner informations and facts in happening supports and cogent evidence for separating sentiments and grounds. In add-on, it is besides necessary to see the lucidity, truth, and relevancy of the groundss. Experience may besides lend to concluding procedure. â€Å" Concepts † suggest that the usage of constructs and thoughts including rules, Torahs, theories, definitions, and theoretical accounts are needfully required in concluding procedure. Besides, it is besides important to see alternate constructs before make up one's minding on which to utilize, and to place the lucidity of the constructs. â€Å" Interpretation and illation † involves pulling decisions and happening solution through concluding procedure by the receiving system. The decisions one concept is dependent on the illations that one has made. It is of import to deduce harmonizing to the evidentiary supports and the consistence of illations should be taken into history every bit good. â€Å" Deductions and Consequences † suggest the significance for sing the deductions and effects of concluding. Deductions are decisions drawn from the transmitter and formed by concluding. Therefore, it is of import that one should see both positive and negative deductions and all possible effects ( Paul, 1992 ; Santa Rosa Junior College, 2010 ) . Literature Review Gender and Critical Thinking Skills Type of Games and Critical Thinking Skills Duration of games played per twenty-four hours and Critical Thinking Skills Research Hypothesiss Three void hypotheses are formulated: H01 = There is no important difference between gender and critical thought accomplishments among adolescence H02 = There is no important difference between types of games and critical thought accomplishments among adolescence H03 = There is no relationship between the continuance of games played per twenty-four hours and critical thought accomplishments among adolescence Research Aims To find the differences in critical thought between males and females. To find the differences between critical thought and several types of games played. To look into the relationship between critical thought and the continuance of games played per twenty-four hours. Research Questions Is there a important difference in critical thought between males and females? Is there a important difference between critical thought and several types of games played? Is there a relationship between critical thought and the continuance of games played per twenty-four hours? Operational Definition Critical Thinking Tonss obtained from The Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment Using Everyday Situations ( HCTAES ) Methodology Sampling A sample size of 0.38 % adolescence from around 100000 populations of secondary school in Kuala Lumpur will be selected utilizing the multistage bunch trying method. Therefore, a sample of 400 participants with approximative 240 males and 160 females at the ages runing from 13 to 17 old ages old will be indiscriminately selected ( Krejcie & A ; Morgan, as cited in Key, 1997 ; Bahagian Perancangan Dan Penyelidikan Dasar Pendidikan, 2007 ) . First of all, six territories will be indiscriminately selected from 20 territories in Kuala Lumpur. The selected six territories will so be divided into school blocks, which there are 20 blocks in each territory. Four blocks will be indiscriminately selected. Following, split the blocks schools with 40 schools in each block and two schools will be selected indiscriminately. In each school, eight respondents will be indiscriminately selected to take part in this study research. The principle of taking multistage bunch sampling is that it provides a generalisation of the study findings of the population. In add-on, this trying method besides minimizes the possibility of prejudices in response of the study. Data Collection Procedure The information will be collected utilizing face-to-face interview with the participants. The research workers will do assignments with the participants selected in order to run into them in individual. Since there are two questionnaires ( i.e. , Computer Games Questionnaire and The Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment Using Everyday Situations ) needed to administer in this research, therefore the same group of participants selected will be expected to make full up the two questionnaires, one after the other, on the same twenty-four hours of interview. The research workers will be in the same room with the participants to do certain that they fill up both questionnaires, with the Computer Games Questionnaire foremost. After the interview, all the questionnaires will be collected for farther informations analysis. Instruments Demographic Form There are 10 inquiries formulated in the demographic signifier. The participants will be asked of the types of games that they preferred or engaged in playing most frequently. For case, scheme games, arcade games, card and board games, word and mystifier games, hiting games and role-playing games. Based on the different class of games, six inquiries are formed with graduated tables runing from ne'er, rarely, sometimes, often, and frequently. Furthermore, the continuance of clip that they engaged in the gambling activities per twenty-four hours will besides be asked in the questionnaire. Few options of the clip continuance are categorized as less than 2 hours, 3 to 6 hours, 7 to 10 hours, 11 to 13 hours and more than 14 hours per twenty-four hours. Other than that, the last inquiry requires the participant to analyse themselves as which type of computing machine game participant, with options such as non-computer, novice, occasional, frequent, and expert computing machine game partici pant. The Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment Using Everyday Situations ( HCTAES ) This instrument was late developed by Halpern and is composed of two response formats such as unfastened and closed ( Nieto & A ; Saiz, 2008 ) . Halpern made an effort to unite both the multiple-choice and open-ended inquiries into a individual measuring tool due to restrictions of each response format. The trial is considered less structured but it presents more life-like state of affairss by utilizing inquiries that are set in reliable and credible contexts to mensurate critical thought accomplishments. HCTAES is a measuring tool which comprises of 25 scenario-based inquiries on day-to-day life, with each inquiries dwelling of both open-ended and multiple-choice responses necessitating judgement and rating. There are a sum of 50 inquiries formulated in the trial. In the open-ended responses, it is aimed to prove the strategic usage of believing accomplishments and the ability to self-construct possible solutions without any intimations given, or known as measurings of â€Å" free callback. † For illustration, there will be a ‘Yes ‘ or ‘No ‘ inquiry and a short reply inquiry given in this subdivision. On the other manus, the multiple-choice responses measures â€Å" acknowledgment memory † whereby seeking and choice of appropriate cognition and accomplishments from participants ‘ memory are indispensable in assisting them to happen an appropriate reply from a list of options given. Other than supplying inquiries with several options to take from, Likert graduated table or 7-point graduated table is every bit good formulated in this subdivision. In add-on, the open-ended responses will be the first portion in each inquiry and participants are besides required to react to it foremost before they get to reply the multiple-choice portion. The intent of the inquiries formulated in this trial is to mensurate five types of critical thought accomplishments including verbal logical thinking ( i.e. , acknowledgment of the usage of permeant and deceptive linguistic communication ) , argument analysis ( i.e. , acknowledgment of grounds and decisions in statements ) , hypothesis testing ( i.e. , understand the sample size, generalisations ) , utilizing likeliness and uncertainness ( i.e. , using relevant rules of chance, base rates ) , every bit good as determination devising and job resolution ( i.e. , placing the job end, bring forthing and selecting solutions among options ) . Several groundss of the convergent and divergent cogency of the trial had been reported in surveies with assorted samples of American pupils. However, the dependability coefficients ( Cronbach ‘s I ± ) had reported between 0.81 and 0.82 for survey with different groups of pupils ( Ku, 2009 ; Ku & A ; Ho, 2010 ) . Datas Analysis The void hypothesis in this research will be tested with one-way ANOVA and independent t-test on gender differences and types of games with critical thought in adolescence. In order to prove if there is any difference between types of games and critical thought, one-way ANOVA with alpha-level 0.05 will be used. The ground is that there are more than two classs of games that are being surveyed, such as scheme, arcade, word and mystifier, role-playing, card and board, and hiting games. Besides that, t-test is chosen to analyse the differences between genders in critical thought. The independent t-test with alpha-level 0.05 will be used since there is no matching required in this research. In add-on, it will be a two-tailed t-test as the relationships between genders are non-directional. Last, a correlational trial will be used to analyse the relationship between continuance of games played per twenty-four hours and critical thought. The consequences will demo that there is a relationsh ip between the two variables. Furthermore, big sum of informations can be collected in a comparatively short period of clip. Restriction and suggested hereafter research Mentions:AddictionBlog.org. ( 2010 ) . Top 10 Negative Effectss of Video Games on Children.Retrieved April 26, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //addictionblog.org/top-10/top-10-negative-effects-of-video-games-on-children/Bahagian Perancangan Dan Penyelidikan Dasar Pendidikan. ( 2007 ) . Registration and categories of secondary schools by province, type of school and sex ( Jadual 7 ) . Malaya: Ministry of Education. Retrieved April 24, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //apps.moe.gov.my/emis/emis2/emisportal2/mainpage.php? module=Makl umat & A ; kategori=47 & A ; id=188 & A ; papar=1Bellis, M. ( 2010 ) . Benjamin Bloom – Critical Thinking Skills: Benjamin BloomModel of Critical Thinking. Retrieved April 17, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //inventors.about.com/library/lessons/bl_benjamin_bloom.htmBig Dog & A ; Little Dog ‘s Performance Juxtaposition. ( 2009 ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy ofLearning Spheres: The Three Types of Learning. Retrieved April 17, 2010,from hypertext transfer protocol: //nwlink.com/~Donclark/hrd/bloom.htmlBusinessBalls.com. ( 2009 ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy – Learning Domains. Retrieved April17, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //www.businessballs.com/bloomstaxonomyoflearningdomains.htmCarney, S. ( 2008 ) . Violent Video Games and Teens: Negative Effectss on the Brain,Development, and Behavior. Retrieved April 26, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //at-risk-youth-support.suite101.com/article.cfm/teens_and_violent_video_gamesChen, C. Y. , & A ; Chang, S. L. ( 2008 ) . An Exploration of the Tendency to Online Game Addiction Due to User ‘s Liking of Design Features. Asiatic Journal of Health and Information Sciences, 3 ( 1-4 ) , 38-51.Cournoyer, B. R. ( 2008 ) . The Social Work Skills Workbook ( 5th ed. ) . Belmont, CA:Thomson Brooks/Cole.Cultrona, R. L. ( 2010 ) . Negative Effectss of Video Gaming. Retrieved April 26, 2010,from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ehow.com/about_5370023_negative-effects-video-gaming.htmlDaniel, M-F. , Splitter, L. , Slade, C. , Lafortune, L. , Pallascio, R. , & A ; Mongeau, P. ( 2004 ) . Article: Dialogical critical thought: elements of definitions emerging in the analysis of transcripts from students aged 10 to 12 old ages. Australian Journal of Education. Retrieved May 16, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-124791659.html Eow, Y. L. , Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud, & A ; Roselan Baki. ( 2009 ) . Form One Students ‘ Battle with Computer Games and Its Consequence on Their Academic Achievement in a Malayan Secondary School. Computers & A ; Education, 53 ( 4 ) , 1082-1091. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from Science Direct database. Facione, P. A. ( 2010 ) . Critical Thinking: What It Is and Why It Counts. Millbrae, CA: The California Academic Press. Facione, P. A. ( 1990 ) . The California Critical Thinking Skills Test: College Level Technical Report # 1 — Experimental Validation and Content Validity. Millbrae, CA: The California Academic Press. Fisher, A. ( 2001 ) . Critical Thinking: An Introduction. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. Foundation for Critical Thinking. ( 2009 ) . Critical Thinking Development: A Phase Theory. Retrieved April 19, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.criticalthinking.org/articles/ct-development-a-stage-theory.cfm Foundation for Critical Thinking. ( 2009 ) . Specifying Critical Thinking. Retrieved April 11, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.criticalthinking.org/aboutct/define_critical_thinking.cfmGakushuu. ( 2010 ) . Reviewing â€Å" Critical Thinking † . Retrieved April 19, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //www.gakushuu.org/index.php/academic-competencies/45-critical- thinking-competency/57-critical-critique.html Gentile, D. A. , Lynch, P. J. , Linder, J. R. , & A ; Walsh, D. A. ( 2004 ) . The Effects of Violent Video Game Habits on Adolescent Hostility, Aggressive Behaviors, and School Performance. Journal of Adolescence, 27 ( 1 ) , 5-22.Hammond, G. ( 2007 ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy. Retrieved April 18, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //xnet.rrc.mb.ca/glenh/newpage83.htmHarmon, D. A. , & A ; Jones, T. S. ( 2005 ) . Elementary Education: A Reference Handbook. United States of America: Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data. Hasiah Mohamed Omar, Nora Yanti Che Jan & A ; Nik Marsyahariani Nik Daud. ( 2010 ) . Exposure of Computer Games among IHL Students in Malaya: Case Survey of Computer Science Students in UiTM Terengganu. Computer and Information Science, 3 ( 1 ) , 1-2.Huitt, B. ( 2009 ) . Bloom et Al. ‘s Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain. Retrieved April17, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cogsys/bloom.htmlInstructional Design Knowledge Base. ( n.d. ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy of CognitiveDomain. Retrieved April 17, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //classweb.gmu.edu/ndabbagh/Resources/Resources2/bloomstax.htmIntel Education. ( n.d. ) . Bloom ‘s Taxonomy: A New Look at an Old Standby. Retrieved May 24, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www97.intel.com/au/ProjectDesign/ThinkingSkills/ThinkingFrameworks/Bloom_Taxonomy.htm Jaimes, J. ( 2005 ) . Critical thought, brooding authorship: acquisition? Retrieved May 24, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3325/is_1_9/ai_n29182842/ Key, J. P. ( 1997 ) . Module R7 – Sampling. Retrieved April 24, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.okstate.edu/ag/agedcm4h/academic/aged5980a/5980/newpage15.h thulium Ku, K. Y. L. ( 2009 ) . Measuring pupils ‘ critical thought public presentation: Goad for measurings utilizing multi-response format. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 4 ( 1 ) , 70-76. Ku, K. Y. L. & A ; Ho, I. T. ( 2010 ) . Dispositional factors foretelling Chinese pupils ‘ critical thought public presentation. Personality and Individual Differences, 48 ( 1 ) , 54-58. Lee, A. ( 2009 ) . Deadly Computer Games. Retrieved April 13, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.chicktimes.com/articles/deadly-computer-game.html Murchu , D. O. , & A ; Muirhead, B. ( 2005 ) . Insights into Promoting Critical Thinking inOnline Classes. Retrieved May 16, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //itdl.org/journal/jun_05/article01.htmNieto, A. M. & A ; Saiz, C. ( 2008 ) . Evaluation of Halpern ‘s â€Å" Structural Component † for Bettering Critical Thinking. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 11 ( 1 ) , 266-274. Paul, R. ( 1992 ) . Critical thought: What every individual needs to last in a quickly altering universe. Sonoma, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.A Renaud, R. D. , & A ; Murray, H. G. ( 2008 ) . A Comparison of a Subject-Specific and A General Measure of Critical Thinking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 3 ( 2 ) , 85-93. Retrieved April 11, 2010, from Science Direct database. Roselan Baki, Eow, Y. L. , Wan Zah Wan Ali, Rosnaini Mahmud & A ; Mohd. Sahandri Gani Hamzah. ( 2008 ) . The Position of Six Malayan Students on Playing Video Games: Beneficial or Detrimental? US-China Education Review, 5 ( 11 ) , 1-10.Santa Rosa Junior College. ( 2010 ) . Elementss of Thought. Retrieved May 18, 2010,fromhypertext transfer protocol: //www.yorku.ca/rkenedy/critical_skills/student/critical_skills_web/critical_thinking_santarosa/link3.htm # coordinate systemSchafersman, S. D. ( 1991 ) . An Introduction to Critical Thinking. Retrieved April12, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.freeinquiry.com/critical-thinking.htmlSmed, J. , & A ; Hakonen, H. ( 2003 ) . Towards a Definition of a Computer Game. Turku Centre for Computer Science, 553, 3-6.The Critical Thinking Co Staff. ( 2005 ) . What is Critical Thinking? – CriticalThinking Definition. Retrieved May 24, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.criticalthinking.com/company/articles/critical-thinking-definition.jspWorldwide Centre for Organisational Development. ( 2008 ) . Critical Thinking: Phasesin Developing Critical Thinking. Retrieved April 19, 2010, fromhypertext transfer protocol: //talentspotters.org/downloads/CRITICAL-THINKING.pdf

Monetary Policy in Kuwait Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Monetary Policy in Kuwait - Essay Example The instruments include means that are available to monetary authorities and that are used to achieve the ultimate aims. Central banks generally use a number of key instruments such as changes in the ratio of legal reserves, the discount rate or the central bank rate, and open market operations. Very often, these instruments are enhanced by using other supplementary instruments, known as direct instruments, generally in the form of instructions issued by the central bank. Direct instruments are much used by developing countries because the nature of the economic problems of these countries and their economic conditions do not allow their monetary authorities to be quite free in applying traditional instruments of monetary policy. It relates to existing legal and institutional procedures, particularly as the interest rate on the Kuwaiti dinar is governed by legal limits, in addition to issues related to the degree of competition inside the banking system. It also relates to the basic features of the Kuwaiti economy, not only as an economy based on the philosophy of free markets and free capital movement, but also as an oil economy of high exposure, depending on imports to meet a major portion of consumption and investment demand. Talking about the monetary policy goals as shown above should not m... Talking about the monetary policy goals as shown above should not mitigate the important role central banks may play in other economic areas, especially in the area of developing money and capital markets in countries where these markets are lacking. The development of such markets will enable central banks to use one of the important instruments of monetary policy, i.e. open market operations. The Central Bank of Kuwait and the organization of banking business specified the goals of the Central Bank of Kuwait, similar to those of central banks in general. The goals related to the function of the monetary policy of the Central Bank of Kuwait can be stated as follows: To endeavour to secure the stability of the Kuwaiti currency and its free convertibility into foreign currencies. To endeavour to direct credit policy in such a manner as to assist economic progress and the growth of the national in-come. To supervise the banking system in the State of Kuwait. Since the mid-eighties the Central Bank of Kuwait has been on a course dictated by the nature of new developments witnessed by the Kuwaiti economy as a result of a number of internal and external effects of the securities market crisis on the whole economic condition, including the emergence of the difficult debt problem as a key issue threatening the financial system in the country. The Central Bank of Kuwait had no alternative but to make the protection of the banking and financial system its top priority and to take necessary measures to identify repercussions of the securities market crisis and prevent the accumulation of its negative effects on both the Kuwait economy and community. Based on the priority of this commitment, the Central Bank adopted a number of measures,

Importance of Work-Life Balance Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Importance of Work-Life Balance - Research Paper Example Giving the employees added benefits such as the installation of a gymnasium in the work facilities for the free use of the employees can enhance the work life balance of the staff. A third technique that can be used to improve the work life balance of employees is giving the workers extended vacation time every year. Instead of the industry standard of two weeks of vacation time, the firm can offer one month of vacation time per year. Vacations are important because people that suffer from recreation deprivation act crankier and the person becomes more critical of their co-workers (Reinhold, 2012). A few years ago I faced a tough family situation that required me to take time off work to help my family. I could not ask for vacations because a few months earlier I used up all my vacation time. I also could not afford to take an unpaid leave because I was in a tough economical situation as well. I talked to my supervisor about my problem. He told me that I was in luck because he could arrange for me to work flexible hours despite the fact that a flexible time program was not available at the firm yet. The careers paths of men and women are often different due to gender issues and the different responsibilities societies impose on genders. Women often have tougher challenges in the workplace due to family responsibilities. After pregnancy the child is highly dependent on his mother. Women typically perform more shores and have higher house responsibilities than men. During the last 30 years the role of women has changed in the workplace (Erbschloe, 2009). Society has imposed on men a higher financial responsibility over the home finances. Men consequently are expected to obtain better paying jobs which required a higher level of education. There is a lot of parity in the workplace among genders, but the glass ceiling has hurt the chances of women moving up the corporate ladder. In other parts of the world such

Students Own Experiences of Digital Technology and Implications for Research Proposal

Students Own Experiences of Digital Technology and Implications for the Design of University Education - Research Proposal Example In the last decade, higher education in Saudi Arabia has undergone a major transformation. There has been a three-fold increase in the number of universities in the last ten years. Consequentially, postgraduate students have increased in number. Along with this, improvement in the quality of education and making Saudi education come at par with the education of technologically advanced countries in terms of quality has been the major goal of Saudi universities in the 21st century. Several events have recently occurred that have reflected the increased interest of the students in Saudi Arabia in e-learning. In the year 2009, an international conference regarding cyberlearning and distance education was held in Saudi Arabia for the first time in her entire history. This led to the establishment of the Center for e-Learning and Distance Learning. This center was developed in accordance with the plan prepared by the Saudi Ministry of Higher Education that was directed at cultivating a ro bust infrastructure for the promotion of technology led education in the Universities of Saudi Arabia. Taking a look at the recent advancements that have been made in the field of education in Saudi Arabia, it becomes evident that this is a very crucial time for understanding how students’ own experiences of digital technology use in their personal lives influence their perceptions of ideal university education. Young people have conventionally been the primary users of innovation information technology (Rheingold, n.d. p. 97) â€Å"remaining at the top of Internet usage statistics and distinguishing themselves as early adopters of features such as instant messaging, peer-to-peer file sharing, and social networking tools† (Xenos and Foot, n.d.). Thus, the matter fundamentally concerns the youth and hence the future of Saudi nationals. This research will generate this information so that educationalists may be facilitated in adjusting the university education according to the aspirations of students which is conducive to the students’ increased participation and better academic performance. Provision of digital media in Saudi universities will â€Å"enhance their civic engagement, which comprises political activism, deliberation, problem-solving, and participation in shaping a culture† (Levine, n.d., p. 119).

Perspectives on Policing SC2037C Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Perspectives on Policing SC2037C - Essay Example The criminologists have become increasingly preoccupied with policing over the past two decades and recently there has been growing attention paid to the regulatory activities undertaken by other bodies of officials and to the private security industry. The policing explores the law enforcement, rules and the complexity of the order maintenance, with an explicit focus on the relation ship between the private sectors and public. The creation of professional police was for the benefits of the middle classes and not for the society as a whole. Community policing is a process in which the crime control is shared by the public. The purpose of community policing is to develop the communication between the interest groups and public. In United States during the 1970s the community policing described the tactics of short term to repair the relations of the police minority, when the investigations and the entrenched petrol failed then a largely cosmetic exercise masking reluctance to make the major changes. The community policing strive and define to enact a posited common good. The policing can produce the unanticipated consequences. (Nigel Fielding, 1995) The important developments in the organization of police were occurred in the areas of mobilization of petrol officers and command organization, the work of petrol officers and the organization, and the use and access of systems of information by all level of personnel. While to consolidate the law enforcement there has been some efforts, generally the organizations of police remain resistant to this goal. Numerous changes have been produced by the bureaucratization of the police and those changes were within departments and have been influenced very strongly by the changing situations or conditions from the department of outside. The problem oriented and community based policing are shaping the way in which some organizations of police conduct their business

Entrepreneurship and Business Start-up Assignment

Entrepreneurship and Business Start-up - Assignment Example We listen to their needs and work with them to create and manage each event successfully. We help them achieve their personal, financial, professional, social, and artistic objectives. The people behind PEC are seasoned organisers and social network specialists who have a track record of successful event management experience dating back to several years. Our services include planning and executing for special events such as meetings, conferences, birthdays and special occasions, concerts, book launchings, exhibits, inaugurations, fund-raising, special dinners, victory parties, graduations, sports tournaments, and reunions. We want every event that we plan, organise and carry out to be successful, whether it is an intimate dinner for two or a conference for 100. We strategically established an upper limit to the number of participants to events we organise at this number for the first five years because of the unique financial model we employ of fixing the price we charge to competitive unit rates. We can increase these numbers much later. Regardless of the number of people at our events, we aim to take care of every detail for the event to provide the greatest pleasure and to make it a memorable experience. We offer a host of packages and services specifically tailored to the needs of each client and participant, and we are confident that this business venture will succeed and that our net income will increase according to our modest projections. 1.2 Mission Statement PRO-ACT Events Consultants (PEC) is a full service company that provides complete consulting services for any event, except weddings and anniversaries. Our consultants are experienced and dedicated professionals with many years of event planning experience. We are unique in that we give our clients our undivided attention and assure them that we are people they can trust. We listen to their needs and work with them to create the event of their dreams. We make everything possible. We have a professionally developed strategic plan that promises to make PEC one of the best places to work for in the world where everyone enjoys what one is doing, where the financial rewards are generous, and where everyday is a party! Our success is determined by the success of our

J.C. Bach Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

J.C. Bach - Essay Example After J.S. died when J.C. was only fifteen, J.C.’s older brother, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, took over the musical instruction (Erickson 174). Bach’s works reveal the influences from both his father and his brother. Classical music is â€Å"serious or conventional music that follows long-established principles (Vandome 7)†. As a classical composer, Bach was limited to the rules placed down by the many classical artists before his time, including those of his father and brother. Indeed, the majority of what J.C. Learned growing up had been the works of his father, which helped him to understand the principles of classical music. After being taught by his father and brother, J.C. Bach moved to Italy in 1756 to learn under Giovanni Battista Martini, another famous classical musician. While living in Italy, Bach obtained the job as the organist at Milan Cathedral, where he also wrote two of his Masses, a Requiem, and a Te Deum. J.C. Bach was the only child of the ele ven Bach siblings to dabble in opera, which became a successful career for him. He first wrote the arias to be placed into the operas written by other composers, and then he wrote pastiches; it was in 1760 that he was paid to write a complete opera, Artaserse. Two years after, he was commissioned by the King’s Theatre in London to write more operas. ... However, not only did Bach remain in London, but he also became the most popular musician in England for a reign of twenty years and was given the job of being the music master of Queen Charlotte and her children. This eventually led to Bach’s marriage to the Queen’s daughter, Cecilia Grassi, in 1766 (Thompson 29). Grassi and Bach did not have children together, but instead focused on Bach’s music career. Unfortunately, at the end of his twenty-year music reign, people’s interest in Bach’s works diminished entirely. By the time of his death on January 1, 1782, he was remembered more as his father’s son than the individual musician that he aimed at becoming. After his death, Franz Joseph Haydn, another well-known name in classical music, worked off of many of Bach’s works, and many of his concerts involved quite a few of Bach’s symphonies. During his time in London, Bach met an aspiring young classical musician by the name of Wol fgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart had been touring London, as well as Paris, on the orders of his father with the hopes of promoting Mozart’s talents as a classical musician; as a young musical prodigy, Bach became interested in the future of the young man. Due to the amount of time that Bach and Mozart spent together, it is believed that Bach became one of the greatest influences on Mozart’s music. The extent of Bach’s influence can be seen in Mozart’s piano sonata in B-flat in the Linz sonata (Nicholas 88), which is similar to two of Bach’s sonatas that Mozart would have been subjected to in his time. Mozart revered Bach so much that he arranged three sonatas from Bach’s Op. 5 into

Left In The Lurch Essay Example for Free

Left In The Lurch Essay Jim showed up at work today and found out that Sara called in sick but Jim thought he saw Sara at the gas station on his way to work this morning. It was a car like hers and he’s pretty sure that it was her license plate. Jim and Sara were supposed to give a big presentation to the CEO today and Sara never sent him her slides for the PowerPoint show. What are Jim’s options? Jim should call Sara to see if she would answer the phone to check on her. If she answers he could then ask if she would send the power point slides by email. Or Jim could try to postpone the meeting to a later time until he can get the power point slides from Sara or she could be there for the presentation. What does he actually know and what does he think he knows? Does it matter? Jim knows that Sara called in sick and they were to give a big presentation to the CEO and he also knows he doesn’t have her slides for the Power Point show. Jim thinks he saw Sara at the gas station because he saw a car that looked like hers and he thought the license plate was her number. It doesn’t matter why she called in sick or if it was her at the gas station. Jim still needs to find a solution to his problem before the presentation. How could he apply the character qualities you’ve learned about so far (persistence, enthusiasm, optimism, and self-control) in this situation? Being positive in this state of affairs and having the determination to get through this presentation. Being optimistic will help him give the performance without Sara. Jim can exhibit self-control by not getting upset and blaming everything on Sara, when he should be focusing on the presentation. Jim exhibiting self-control, being optimistic, being persistent and enthusiastic all plays a major role in the way he is going handle this problem. These qualities will help Jim to make new slides for his presentation and overcome the urge to be upset with Sara. His ability to show enthusiasm will help him to deliver his presentation to the CEO. What should he do? Jim should try and call Sara to see if she can email the slides. If he can’t get a hold of Sara, Jim can do the slides himself and go into the meeting with confidence and enthusiasm. Jim should focus on getting through the meeting by doing the best that he can do in this type of situation by, showing that he can overcome and adapt to the situation he is facing.

Presentation of War in Literature | The Man He Killed and Dulce Er Decorum Est

Presentation of War in Literature | The Man He Killed and Dulce Er Decorum Est The Man He Killed by Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), and Dulce et Decorum est, by Wilfred Owen explore the theme of war, they both take similar views on life during and after the treacherous times that war created, and its lasting effects. However, the poets choose to display these feelings through their poetry in different ways. In Hardys poem, the poet adopts the person of a war veteran in the Boer war. The poem is about his actions in this war and their lasting effects. In Dulce Decorum est, the poet prefers to take a step back, he is not as directly involved as Hardy, yet he continues to get his message across very effectively by describing the horrors he witnessed. Though the poems were written in different wars the messages they portray are very similar as the poems do not divulge into the actual wars they were based on, but, instead on the inner dynamics of war on a whole. Wilfred Owen is known as being one of the most famous poets of the First World War. He wrote Dulce et Decorum Est while he served as a soldier in the appalling conditions of the trenches. Dulce et Decorum Est gives a distressing account of the futility of war, generated from his own personal experiences. It was composed during the summer of 1917 when Owen wrote a series of poems about the war. The preface to this collection was My subject is War, and the pity of War. This shows Owens view to war and his purpose for writing the poems was to show the disgusting horror that war created to an ill-informed and uneducated audience back at home in England. Though the war made Owen famous it ultimately led to his demise a year later. The Man He Killed by Thomas Hardy was written to express Hardys beliefs. Hardy felt that war was inhuman, he despised the heartlessness atrocity between men. The poem is specifically addressed to the Boer War, which Hardy was passionately against. The poem may seem very simple at first but in fact it is a very skilful one, it is hampered with irony and Hardy makes interesting use of colloquialism (writing in a conversational style). Hardy titled the poem The Man He Killed, in the third person. However, the poem is narrated in the first person. The person in the poem, the he in the title and I in the poem, is clearly a soldier of the Boer war attempting to explain and perhaps clarify the reasons to kill another man in battle. The short lines, simple rhyme scheme, and colloquial language make the poem almost like pleasant nursery rhyme as it is so simple and easy to read, however, this is an ironic contrast to its less than pleasant subject. In Dulce et decorum est, Owen is showing how the press and public at home were comforting themselves in the belief that all the young men dying in the war were dying noble, heroic deaths. Owen on the other hand, shows how the reality was quite different; the young men were dieing horrible and obscene deaths in the trenches. I believe that Owen wanted to open the eyes of the reader to what was really going on in the war to illustrate how vile and inhumane war really is. The first line sets the tone for the rest of the poem Bent double, like old beggars under sacks. He uses the simile like old beggars to show how the average soldier was not being treated nobly or with respect but like someone the lowest class (a beggar). It also shows how the young, vibrant boys who signed up had the life taken out of them by the war and were becoming old well before it was their time. This put the reader in the right frame of mind about the war, it casts out any false pretences they had about the war and opens their eyes to the inhumane truth war created. He uses bitter imagery like coughing like hags and But limped on, blood shod. All went lame; all blind; Drunk with fatigue to show how these apparent youthful and strong men had been broken by the war and become prematurely old and weakened. Owen takes pity on these tired and weary soldiers as he describes them in the most unglamorous, inglorious manner. Similarly, in The Man He Killed, Hardy also banishes a common misconception about war, that killing a man was a dignified and noble thing to do. In the first stanza Hardy establishes that things could have been different in more favourable circumstances between him and his foe: Had he and I but met they could have had a drink together By some old ancient inn. However, in the second stanza, Hardy shows the true circumstances in which they did meet, which is in stark contrast to the first stanza. Ranged as infantry Hardy once again reemphasises the point that the men are not natural foes but have been ranged, which means that they have been set against each other by someone elses decision. The phrase as he at me indicates they are both in similar situations. This tells the reader how your foe may have been your friend in indifferent circumstances but because someone higher has said they are your enemy means you must kill them, in essence you must banish your own moral and personal view s on the person you are about to kill because someone has told you, falsely, it is your duty to kill them. Like Owen, Hardy takes pity on the soldiers, as it is not their fault, as he shows it is kill or be killed in war. In The Man He Killed, Hardy also exhibits the dark side of man, especially his capacity for violence and cruelty. He does this in the last stanza where concludes with a repetition of the contrast between his treatment of the man he killed and how he might have shared hospitality with him in other circumstances, Youd treat, if met where any bar is, or even been ready to extend charity to him Or help to half a crown. Before this he says that war is quaint and curious, as if to say war was is bit of a harmless puzzle. This may give the impression that war is undamaging and acceptable, but as the reader now knows from the events described in the poem and the knowledge he already has of war, make it clear that Hardy applies this phrase quaint and curious with great irony, knowing full well that this statement is far from the truth. It forces the reader, through Hardys irony, to divulge deeper into the ethics behind war and the brutality and inhumanity it creates, and to consider how human s are often victims of sheer circumstance and fate, which has lead them to take another persons life. Hardy has very cleverly through colloquial language and simple statements, made the reader think as though they have made a judgment of whether war is right or wrong on their own, when really Hardy has inconspicuously made that decision for them. Furthermore, Owen also shows how war has changed man into a killing beast. He concentrates on the use of mustard gas, a new devastating weapon used in the First World war. If inhaled without the protection of a mask, the gas quickly burns away the lining of the respiratory system. Owen shows this as he compares the soldier who has breathed in the toxic fumes with a man consumed in fire or lime. When you have breathed in the fumes, it is of often compared with drowning, as mustard gas effectively drowns people in the blood from their own lung tissues. Owen then skilfully uses a metaphor to tie into the drowning theme as he says As under a green sea, I saw him drowning. This was because Mustard gas had a green colour, he calls it a sea to show how it was impossible to get away from. Owen continues this aquatic theme as he views this floundring man as if through an underwater mask, Dim through the misty panes. This gives the impression that Owen was unable to fully access the situation through his gas mask, there is also a helplessness felt by Owen as there is nothing he can do, which adds to the surreal and nightmarish atmosphere of the poem, in all my dreams, before my helpless sight. This dream then becomes a harsh reality as the guttering, choking soldier plunges at the helpless speaker, seeking help, in an effort to escape his inevitable death, Owen uses triple emphasis to engrave this astringent image in the readers head. Owen can do nothing for the man; there is still a feeling of responsibility and guilt. This vivid imagery creates a bleak image in the readers mind, Owen is trying to make them question whether the suffering and torture created by war is really worth it. His despair at war and the loss of morals it results in are shown in phrase sores on innocent tongues, as Owen realizes that this soldier, though he is fighting in a war, is innocent and there was no reason for him to die in this way. Owen then uses alliteration to further emphasize the inh umanities man does to man by describing the soldiers slow death, he repeats initial consonant sounds in closely related words wagon, watch, white, writhing. Owen then continues to use bitter imagery combined with similes such as, Like a devils sick of sin to describe the soldiers dying face. This exceptionally dramatic imagery creates a lasting and distressing impression on the reader, as Owen reveals the true horrors that go on during times of war. In The Man He Killed, Hardy illustrates that the reason for killing a man because they are your foe is not good enough. This is shown in the third stanza. The colloquial style Hardy uses enables him to repeat the word because, when he is trying to justify the reason for killing the man, implying hesitation, and therefore doubt as he doesnt know why he killed him. He uses repetition of my foe and the of course this also shows that there is an element of doubt as the speaker tries to convince himself of his justification for the killing. Hardy has already made it clear that the men fighting each other because of an artificial hostility created by others. He adds at the end of the stanza Thats clear enough which is obviously ironic, as the reason for killing is far from clear to the reader because of the reasons above. The last word of the stanza although ultimately destroys the whole entire believability of the reason he has just given. I believe the main point of this poem is to show that there is never a good enough reason to kill another man. Hardy shows this through illustrating how these men would have been friends if they had met under different circumstances yet because someone has said they were there enemy this was a good enough reason to take the other persons life, thus showing how war is a pointless and frivolous act. On the other hand, in Dulce et Decorum est, Owen in not against the reasons why soldiers are killing each other but the fact that these young, innocent and possibly naive men were signing up based on the belief that it is sweet and fitting to die for your country (which is Dulce et decorum est the title of the poem in Latin). At the end of the last stanza, Owen sums up the poem. Owen speaks directly to reader calling the reader my friend, this draws the reader into the poem. He says you would not tell with such high zest, to say directly to the reader that if they had witnessed the horror that he had witnessed then the readers attitude towards the war would change. Therefore, the reader would not repeat patriotic slogans to make people sign up, To children ardent for some desperate glory. The title of the poem Dulce et decorum est is used with a certain sense of irony as the poem is all about how it is not sweet and fitting to die for your country. However, Owen abandons this irony a nd just says The old Lie, showing how more soldiers will die in the circumstances of the fallen soldier in this poem, if the reader continues to spread that lie to young men who have been blinded by this sense of patriotic duty to their country. The final line brings about the full chilling effect of the poem Pro patria mori: to die for ones country. Owen shows how people are signing up to the war on lies like Dulce et decorum est, however, this is far from the truth as nobody deserves to suffer the fate of the fallen soldier in the poem for their country. Within Dulce et Decorum Est the poet utilises a variety of powerful poetic devices in order to depict death in war as a brutal and horrifying experience. It is through the use of this simile that the poet arouses the sympathy of the responder as they witness the grotesque nature of such a death. In Dulce et Decorum est Owen masterfully uses a variety of potent poetic devices to depict the horrifying nature of death in a war to stimulate a response from the reader. He uses metaphors and similes to provoke sympathy for the people who were dying in the war, as the reader witnesses the grotesque death of the soldier who died in the poem. By doing this Owen portrays his message in a very bold and tasteful way. In The Man He Killed Hardy uses a colloquial style of writing combined with an ABAB rhyme scheme, this makes the poem very easy to read and long lasting. Hardy uses slang to get the reader involved in the poem, this allows Hardy to make a strong point in highlighting the irony behind how war can turn friend into foe simply by association and sway the reader against war. Both poems are against war and the reasons and ethics behind them. Though Hardy uses a more direct approach to get his point across, both poems successfully complete the objective that the poets had for them , which was to open the readers eyes to the true reality of war.

Duke Basketball :: essays research papers

There are 12240 students at Duke University, and every year 12 out of those 12240 are put on a mission. The expectations are far above the ground, these 12 men and their coaching staff are called the Duke University Blue Devils basketball team. Year after year their mission is to bring home an NCAA basketball national championship trophy. Three of 84 teams at Duke University have reached their goal by winning a national championship. Duke is one of the nations best known basketball programs. Just eight miles away from Dukes campus, one of their toughest competitors and arch enemy, the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. The Duke ? UNC rivalry is one of the best in sports, they are usually one of the top teams in the nation. Duke is the forth- winningest program in the nation (1799-792). Under Coach Mike Krzyzweski they have become the winnigest program in the country (648-167). Coach K as they call him, has brought all 3 national championships to Durham, North Carolina (1991, 1992, 2001). Duke basketball dates back to when they were Trinity College, the name was later changed in 1923 to Duke University. Trinity never was as high-quality of a team as Duke has been in the last 20 years. Trinity won 48 games in the 65 years of their existence. In Dukes early years the basketball program did not triumph as in recent years. At the time the power sport at Duke was football. In 1949 a change came when a young man named Dick Groat came around, he became the star of the Blue Devil basketball and baseball team. Groat wasn?t recruited to play basketball he was on an athletic scholarship for baseball. None the less, he was elected as an All- American in 1951 and 1952 for his basketball talents. Unfortunately, he was never able to lead either of his teams to a championship. His basketball number (10) was retired, and now hangs on the ceiling of Cameron Indoor Stadium. The 1980?s rolled around and the ?Cameron Crazies? (Duke Basketball fans) felt as if there were no hope for their Blue Devils basketball program, but that?s where they were wrong. Along came what is arguably the greatest coach to step foot on a basketball court, Coach Mike Krzyzewski. Coach K has had unprecedented success at Duke, winning three national championships, and making Duke the powerhouse basketball school that they are today.

Aluminum Essay -- Elements Natural Resources Science Essays

Aluminum Hello buddy! How is the weather in Paris? It is extremely cold in New York and there is snow all over the place. The reason I am writing is to give you the information you wanted on aluminum. I have everything you would possibly want to know about everything from mining to recycling, but I will begin with a little background on the element first. Aluminum is the third most abundant element in the Earth's crust and was probably formed during the birth of our solar system through collisions of hydrogen atoms under intense heat and pressure. Aluminum never occurs as a metal in nature and is only found in the form of its compounds, such as alumina, because of its strong affinity with oxygen. It is this special bond for oxygen that explains why it withstood all attempts to prepare it in its elemental form until well into the nineteenth century. The aluminum industry was founded in 1854, but it was not until the late 1880's that a method was found to bring down the prices and permit aluminum to be used in a wide variety of ways. Most of the aluminum in the world today is made from Bauxite. It was first discovered in 1821 near Les Baux, France. It was formed by the weathering of aluminous rocks such as feldspar, nepheline, and clays. During the weathering, these rocks are decomposed and leached out, leaving behind a residue of ore rich in alumina, iron oxide, and silica. Most of these large Bauxite deposits are found in the tropical and the subtropical climates, where heavy rainfall, warm temperatures, and good drainage combine to encourage the weathering process. Because Bauxite is usually found near the surface, it is mined by open-pit methods. After the extraction of the Bauxite, it must be converted to A... ...dditional information, you could get in touch with the Reynolds Aluminum Recycling Company of America for tips to construct your program. Lorin Industries could also help since they are the worlds largest job shop anodizer of aluminum. As for myself, I could just call any of my references that I leave on the bottom of this letter if I need any additional information. Take care pal and I will see you very soon. References 1. Altenpohl, D. G., Aluminum Viewed from Within, (1981). 2. Ammen, C. W., Casting Aluminum, (1985). 3. Bakker, M., Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology, (1986). 4. Burkin, R. R. Production of Aluminum and Alumina, (1987). 5. King, F., Aluminum and its Alloys, (1987). 6. Pampillo, C. And Biloni, H., Aluminum Transformation Technology and Applications, (1980). 7. Peck, M. J., ed., World Aluminum Industry in a Changing Era, (1988).

The Fabulous Fifties Essay examples -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some may call it the â€Å"fabulous fifties,† but others call it a time of â€Å"tensions and insecurities.† Several people think back on the fifties and remember them as the â€Å"good old days,† while others think of it as a time of crisis and terror. Although Americans were faced with many hardships throughout the fifties, I think that the positive aspects such as the new technologies, growing economy, higher focus on education, and growing job opportunities of the era outnumber the negative aspects, such as racism that African Americans faced, and the changing roles of women, making the fifties an overall â€Å"happy† period in American history.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The fifties are characterized as a watershed period, due to the unparallel growth and change that America socially and economically experienced after WWII. In the years during the War and the Depression there was high employment, low inflation and a yearning for normalcy, and stability in many Americans lives. The fifties changed all of this providing the American culture with prosperity by way of network television, air conditioning, computers, jet travel, a national highway system, chain hotels, and franchised fast food that made businesses boom. The fifties are also characterized as a golden age when everything was simple and innocent. People had peace and prosperity due to the war ending, and they expressed their feelings of excitement and anticipation through their clothing with men dressing in suits and hats, and women in dresses, stockings and heels, and by going out dancing to big bands downtown, and experimenting with the new technologies and organizations of the time. With World War II bringing thousands of men back to America seeking new lives and opportunities, the US experienced an economic expansion like it had never seen before. During the middle of the twentieth century wages increased 22%, family income went up from $3,000 to $5,400, and the Gross National Product increased from $206 billion to $440 billion. In order for the country to meet the demands of the massive consumptions of the American people, industries had to expand and create more efficient ways of selling there products through advertisements, which as a result provided citizens with more job opportunities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In my opinion I think that the fifties were defian... ...greater emphasis on engineering and mathematics, which provided a boom in many of these careers. The Government began building technical institutes focused on scientific, and space research encouraging Americans to further their education in these areas. After the Sputnik event, the US economy began to fall. Unemployment grew, and problems were erupting in the White House. Sherman Adams was dismissed for taking bribes, and many people were becoming to think that life was not as good as they thought it was. To many the fifties was a period when the United States prospered and dominated much of the world’s economy, a time when girls wore poodle skirts and guys wore leather jackets and danced around to Elvis and rock & roll. When Americans began to take advantage of leisure time experiencing new inventions like hula-hoops, Barbie dolls, becoming active in sports like baseball and football, and making television a dominant part of mass media. Although it was also a time when society underwent world shattering changes, it was a period in history that helped stabilized a country that just got out of war and prepared America for the changes that it experiences in the upcoming years.

Obediance and Deindividuation Essay

Most, if not all humans, have some ethics and morals, which help the individual make distinctions between right and wrong. Therefore, in most situations human beings behave in accordance with their morality. Studies on notions such as obedience to authority and deindividuation have shown that in some cases, an individual can be made to act in direct opposition to their morals and ethics. Studies conducted by Milgram (1963) on obedience have shown that if an individual is ordered to do something by someone who is perceived to be in power, it is possible that they will do it, even if it is something the person does not believe is right. Also, studies conducted by Zimbardo (1973) on deindividuation have shown that a normally healthy, intelligent person can lose their identity in a crowd, and commit acts of violence and aggression which they would not normally commit. According to the deindividuation theory, this is because the individual feels that they can no longer be singled out and held personally responsible for behaviour. The studies conducted by Zimbardo (1973) and Milgram (1963) have been examined and compared in this essay. The notions of obedience and deindividuation have been the subject of some very informative and sometimes disturbing research by social psychologists. Obedience is defined by Moghaddam (1998) as: â€Å"changes in behaviour that arise when people follow the instructions of persons in authority.† Our tendency to comply with authority figures can be surprisingly strong (Bourne & Russo, 1998). Experiments on the subject, particularly those conducted by Milgram (1963) have shown that though obedience is, in many forms positive, it can also be extremely negative, instigating individuals to commit acts of violence or aggression, of which they would not normally partake. Deindividuation is defined by Moghaddam (1998) as: â€Å"The loss of one’s sense of self identity as an individual person, associated with lower self awareness and decreased personal responsibility in group settings†. This can often lead to acts of aggression or violence, by a normally placid person. This notion, as well as the notion of obedience to authority, has been examined in this essay, by looking at, and comparing the studies conducted  by Milgram (1963) and Zimbardo (1973), Milgram looked to explore the notion of obedience by using the cover story that he was conducting research on the effects of punishment on learning. He advertised for volunteers aged twenty to fifty who would be paid four dollars an hour plus fifty cents petrol money. It is important to note though, that the participants were told that the money was theirs simply for coming to the laboratory no matter what happened after their arrival. A wide range of occupations, ages and backgrounds were represented in the chosen sample. The selected participant was introduced to a person (a forty-seven year old accountant, whom most observers found mild mannered and likeable [Milgram, 1963]) who pretended to be another participant, but was actually a confederate of the experimenter. It was explained that as this was a learning experiment, it was required that there be learner and teacher. The participants took a piece of paper from a hat to determine whether he was the teacher or learning. This was rigged so that the participant would always be the teacher (both pieces of paper said ‘teacher’). The teacher was then allowed to watch the learner being strapped into an ‘electric chair’ which was to be used to administer electric shocks. The learner was told that though the shocks could be extremely painful, they cause no permanent tissue damage. The teacher was then taken to an adjacent room and seated in front of a ‘shock generator’ consisting of thirty switches set in a horizontal line. The switches were marked, increasing from 0 to 450 colts, 15 volts at a time. Each group of four switches was also marked, from lowest voltage to highest, â€Å"slight shock†, â€Å"moderate shock†, â€Å"strong shock†, â€Å"very strong shock†, â€Å"intense shock†, â€Å"extreme intense shock†, â€Å"danger, severe shock† with the last two switches simply marked â€Å"XXX† (Moghaddam, 1998). The participant was given an example shock of 45 volts. The learning exercise was a word association task. Each time the learner got an answer wrong, the teacher was instructed to administer a higher level of shock. The teacher was also required to call out the voltage level before administering a shock, to make sure they were fully aware of the shock  level. The learner was instructed to give specific response to different shock levels. Between 75 and 105 volts, the learner grunted. At 120 volts, the learner shouted that the shocks were becoming painful, after that the learner complained of a bad heart and shouted that he no longer wanted to be part of the experiment. The cries became more and more distressed until shock level three hundred, when the learner indicated that he could no longer give answers to the memory test. After this, all that was heard from the learner was agonized cries. The participant was instructed to treat the lack of response as a wrong answer and continue increasing the shock level every five to ten seconds. At different stages of the experiment, the subjects looked to the experimenter for guidance or expressed their wishes not to continue, to which the experimenter’s responses were standardized. A series of ‘prods’ were established, which were to be used each time a participant indicated his unwillingness to go on. These prods were always given in order and were started again each time the participant showed reluctance These were: â€Å"Please continue†, then â€Å"The experiment requires that you continue†, then â€Å"It is absolutely essential that you continue† and finally â€Å"You have no other choice, you must go on†. If the participant refused to go on after the last prod, the experiment was terminated. The participants showed obvious signs of distress throughout the experiment, especially while administering the more powerful shocks. Subjects were observed to sweat, tremble, stutter, bite their lips, groan and dig their fingernails into their flesh (Milgram, 1963). Many subjects said they could not go on, but nevertheless they did. Approximately sixty five percent of participants were fully obedient (Moghaddam, 1998), continuing until they reached the most potent shock on the generator, at which point, the experimenter called a halt to the session. Not one participant stopped before shock level 20, which was 300 volts, and the point at which the learner stopped answering questions. Milgram asked groups of laypeople and experts to predict the outcome of the experiment before it as conducted. As it was predicted that participants would refuse to administer shocks of more than a minimal voltage to learners (Moghaddam, 1998) these results amazed many people. This experiment demonstrated that normal, healthy, intelligent people are capable of carrying out violent and destructive acts, if placed  in the right (or wrong) situation. This was also demonstrated by a study carried out by Zimbardo (1973). The Stanford Prison experiment, as it was known, simulated a prison environment in the basement of the psychology building at Stanford University. The prison was made to be as realistic as possible, with bars, prison uniforms, identification numbers and uniformed guards (who wore mirrored sunglasses). Volunteers for the experiment were screened with clinical interviews and psychological tests to ensure that they were emotionally stable and mature. Participants were to be paid fifteen dollars a day for the two week experiment. The study required two roles, guards and prisoners, which were assigned by a coin toss. The prisoners were unexpectedly arrested at their homes and brought to the ‘prison’ in a police car. They were handcuffed, searched, fingerprinted, booked, stripped, deloused, given a number and issued a prison uniform. Each prisoner was then placed in a six by nine foot cell with two other inmates (Bartol, 1998). The guards were simply instructed to keep order. They all wore standard uniforms and carried a night stick, keys to the cells, whistles and handcuffs. Guards drew up their own rules for maintaining law and order in the prison. Before the prisoners were allowed to do anything, they had to obtain permission, and they were required to address the guards as ‘Mr corrections officer, sir’. The participants quickly absorbed their roles. Guards degraded the prisoners in different ways, making them clean toilet with their hands, disrupting their sleep and using physical punishments and solitary confinement for minor infractions (Bourne and Russo, 1998). The prisoners broke down and accepted the brutal treatment. Three had to be released during the first four days because of hysterical crying and severe depression and many others begged to be paroled, willing to forfeit the money they had earned for participating in the experiment (Bartol, 1998). The experiment was terminated after only six days, well short of the planned two weeks, because of the guards’ brutality (Bourne and Russo, 1998). It is interesting to note some of the remarks made by the prisoners: â€Å"I practically considered the prisoners as cattle† and â€Å"I was tired of seeing  the prisoners in their rags and smelling the strong odours of their bodies that filled the cells† (Moghaddam, 1998). The experiment prompted Zimbardo to conclude â€Å"Many people, perhaps the majority, can be made to do almost anything when put into psychologically compelling situations-regardless of their morals, ethics, values, attitudes, beliefs, or personal convictions† (Zimbardo, 1973, cited in Bartol, 1998). Much the same conclusion had been reached by Milgram (1963) with respect to authority figures (Bartol, 1998). The results of these studies make statements about human nature and social psychology by demonstrating the importance of situational variables in determining behaviour. Zimbardo’s (1973) experiment illustrated the influence of deindividuation – the process of losing one’s identity and becoming part of a group, as a situational variable (Bartol, 1998), and Milgram’s (1963) study examined the variables involved in obedience to authority. Deindividuation follows a complex chain of events. Firstly, the presence of many other people gives rise to a sense of anonymity, the individual then loses identity and becomes part of a group. Under these conditions, the person feels that they can be no longer singled out and held responsible for their behaviour. According to the deindividuation theory, this generates a â€Å"loss of self awareness, reduced concern over evaluations for others, and a narrowed focus of attention† (Baron & Byrne, 1977, cited in Bartol, 1998). The combination of these things is believed to lower restraints against antisocial or aggressive behaviour. This theory is supported by Zimbardo’s (1973) prison experiment. As was demonstrated by Milgram’s (1963) experiment, individuals are likely to be obedient to people who have power (whether real or perceived) over them. Also, culture teaches people in certain roles to expect to be obeyed. As such, people learn to play authority roles, as well as roles submissive to authority (Moghaddam, 1998). This dominant-submissive relationship was demonstrated in the prison study. Stereotypically, prison guards are  perceived as having dominant, possibly even sadistic personalities, whereas prisoners, will tend to be aggressive and socially deviant (Moghaddam, 1998). The results of this study indicate that situational factors have a large bearing on behaviour, regardless of morals, ethics, values, attitudes or beliefs, or in short, the nature of the individual. This is also demonstrated by Milgram’s (1963) study. Milgram’s (1963) experiment also demonstrates how normal, healthy, intelligent people are quite capable of carrying out destructive acts, in this case, however, the individuals carried out these acts, because they were persuaded to do so by a person whom they perceived to be in authority. This can be seen on a much larger scale in the success of dictators, such as Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler. A substantial proportion of people do what they are told to do, irrespective of the context of the act and without limitations of the conscience, so long as they perceive that the command comes from a legitimate authority (Milgram, 1977, cited in Bartol, 1998). A lot can be learned from this about human nature. It can be inferred from this study, as well as Zimbardo’s (1973) study that normal, healthy, intelligent human beings are capable of carrying out acts which normally go against their nature, if the individual is placed in the right (or wrong) situation. These studies showed the effects of authority figures and environmental factors involved in behaviour and suggest that in many cases, people engage in behaviour that goes against their very nature, simply because they are told to do so. The results also show, that under deindividualized conditions, people may do things that they would not normally do, or engage in acts that they did not think they were even capable of. A better understanding of deindividuation could lead to a decrease in violent or aggressive acts committed by individuals in a crowd, for example rioting, and a better understanding of obedience to authority could decrease the possibility of events like those caused by Hussein or Hitler happening again. References Bartol, C.R. (1998). Criminal Behaviour. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Bourne, L.E. and Russo, N.F. (1998). Psychology Behaviour in Context. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. Milgram, S. (1963). Behavioural Study of Obedience. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 67 (4), 371-378. Moghaddam, F.M. (1998). Social Psychology. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company.