Why government should make fossil fuel illegal Research Paper

Why government should make fossil fuel illegal - Research Paper Example The by-products of oil, along with coal, together known as ‘fossil fuels,’ are the major contributors to what is commonly referred to as ‘greenhouse gasses’ being pumped into the atmosphere at a phenomenal rate, the effects of which are causing the Earth’s climate to change. According to all peer-reviewed scientific studies, if the quantity of greenhouse gasses being spewed into the air by automobiles, power plants and factories is not greatly reduced and quickly, the earth and its inhabitants will experience catastrophic consequences in the not too distant future. Fossil fuels are doing great harms that cannot be justified therefore should be illegal much as another other product that causes death and destruction. The people of the Middle East will have to rise up, as they currently are, to dispose their leaders. The best path for other countries, in this respect, is to stop funding them. This paper will discuss the most vital reason to criminalize f ossil fuels, pollution and global warming. The greenhouse effect occurs naturally. When the sun’s light penetrates the atmosphere and strikes the earth’s surface only about two-thirds of the solar energy of the impact is absorbed by the earth. The remaining third reflects off the earth then back into space. Gases consisting primarily of nitrogen and oxygen located in the atmosphere act in the same manner as the glass roof of a greenhouse. These gases act like a bubble surrounding the earth and allow all the available sunlight to enter but trap the majority of this solar energy which, in turn, warms the earth. This is a natural yet tenuous balance which is made more unstable by man-made gases which adds to the total amount of gases. This continuing build-up of gaseous substances in the atmosphere traps more of the solar energy and reflects less. This increasing trend is the reason the earth is warming and its climate changing. Carbon Dioxide (CO2) makes up only a tiny f raction of naturally occurring gases in the atmosphere but constitute approximately half of man-made fossil fuel greenhouse gases. (Lean, Pearce, 2006). The very apparent, inarguable scientific facts regarding man-induced CO2 gases exacerbating the greenhouse effect are not apparent to some who are arguing the evidence with questionable evidence and logic. For example Anthony Lupo author of the article â€Å"Anthropogenic Global Warming: A Skeptical Point of View† postulates that CO2 is not a pollutant at all which is a short-sighted theory, at best, to anyone who has seen black plumes of CO2 smoke pouring out of factory smoke-stacks into the formerly clean air. Lupo claims CO2 is beneficial for plants and occurs naturally in the atmosphere which is true but only when considering naturally occurring amounts which are small and not the excessive quantities which have been emitted worldwide over the past 100 years. According to Lupo climate change is more a regional occurrence and does not affect the entire earth. â€Å"Regionally, climate has been shown to change rapidly in the past and will continue to do so in the future. Life on earth will adapt as it has always done. Life on earth has been shown to thrive when planetary temperatures are warmer as opposed to colder† (Lupo, 2008). Further, Lupo says that scientists will not be able to prove one way or the other if climate change is happening for many decades to come. As if the well documented rising ocean levels and melting Polar ice caps are not an indicator. Lupo believes, or at least writes that today’

Ohms law Essay Example for Free

Ohms law Essay Predictions 1. The longer the wire, the more it will resist the flow of electrons 2. The wider the wire the less resistance it shall have. 3. Copper will be the wire which has the less resistance. 4. The different types of wire will have different levels of resistance. Accuracy I am intending to also get a reading for the length zero also using the crocodile clips and keeping the circuit identical. This shall be my control. I suspect that there will be resistance both in the circuit wires and in the multimeters. This will mean that the values obtained for resistance of the wire shall be slightly too high. By subtracting the resistance value of the circuit wire from the resistance calculations I will get a more accurate set of results. Also as I intend to draw a best fit line for my results, if all the points are slightly too high the gradient will be dramatically altered. The way in which the readings are being taken is designed so that the readings are random but in an orderly way so that I can spot any mistakes. Method Method used The method used was identical to that explained under the planning section, above. The results (i. e. readings on the multimeters), were taken down and put into tables. The results were as follows: Results For nickel chromium wire, SWG 30 Length (cm) Width (mm) Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) T3Length (cm) Width (mm) Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) For nickel chromium wire, SWG 22 Length (cm) Width (mm) Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) For copper wire, swg 30 Length (cm) Width (mm) Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) Try 1 Try 2 Try 3 Ave. Try 1 Try 2 Try 3 Ave. For constantan wire, swg 30 Length (cm) Width (mm). Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) For manganane wire, swg 30 Length (cm) Width (mm) Current Readings (Amps) Voltage Readings (Volts) Resistance values For Nickel Chromium Wire, SWG 30 Length (cm) Current (A) Voltage (V) Resistance (? )For Nickel Chromium Wire, SWG 28 Length (cm) Current (A) Voltage (V) Resistance (? ) For Nickel Chromium Wire, SWG 24 Length (cm) Current (A) Voltage (V)Resistance (? ) Patterns and trends It can be quite clearly seen in most of my results that when a graph of length and resistance are plotted the result is a straight line. In my case I have obtained a scatter graph with a very strong positive correlation. In graph 1 It can be seen that there are four straight lines passing through the origin. These straight lines are the values for Nickel Chromium at different gauges. The gauge values are as follows: Gauge Diameter (mm)Â   graph two, it can seen that this is not a relationship of direct proportionality as the correlation doesnt point towards the origin. Also from graph one, it can be seen that the resistance increases as the length does. All these lines are straight and they all pass through the origin, so I think it is appropriate to conclude that Resistance is directly proportional to the length of the wire. Finally it can be seen from graph three that the resistance in different types of wire varies according to the type. Keeping the gauge constant this was tested and the results were as follows: Nickel Chromium is the most resistant, Manganane is the second most resistance, Constantan is third, And the least resistant is copper. All the evidence her proves that my results agree with my hypothesis. (c. f. section P). Evaluation Reliability The reliability of these results is quite good. This is because the procedure is relatively straight forward, and the numbers are not difficult to record. I think the results are certainly reliable enough to support both of my conclusions firmly. Anomalus results. There are a few anomalus results throughout the experiment. The resistance values in the table are not always increasing, and this is not always occurring at a steady rate. Good example of which are the readings for 40 and 50 cm on the copper wire. I think that this is just a mistake in taking down the results or possibly we didnt wait foe the voltmeter to stabilize. Experimental errors These could include many things, the most likely of which are a short circuit, The wire may have heated up causing less resistance, and the readings on the multimeters could have been inaccurate. Further work This could include finding a more varied set of results, testing more types of wires. It could also include taking more readings to get better averages. I would suggest using all the rest of the equipment in the same way. Also one could try to investigate temperature changes by using insulated wires and a tray of cold/warm or hot water. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Electricity and Magnetism section.

Recent Organisational Changes in the Virgin Group

Recent Organisational Changes in the Virgin Group These assignments discuss the organisational changes that the Virgin Group has been during the last few years, and how they are adapting to the changes in the operating environment. This will be in the context of the employees perception of the changes, and how the Virgin Group can lower their resistance to change. This is a natural feeling from employees, when faced with uncertainty, and this needs to be managed. The assignment focuses on the Virgin Group airline operation, Virgin Atlantic. Virgin Atlantic Airways was founded in 1984, and it is the UKs second largest carrier. The company is based at Gatwick, Heathrow and Manchester airport; Virgin Atlantic operates long haul services to over thirty destinations globally. The organisation has been recognised through awards from top business, consumer and trade (www.virgin.com). 2.0 THEORECTICAL FRAMEWORK 2.1 Meaning of Change management Change management is not a distant discipline with rigid and clearly defined boundaries. Rather, the theory and practice of change management draws on a number of social science disciplines and traditions. Three schools of thought form the central plank on which change management theory stands. This includes: The Individual perspective school: This school is split into Behaviourist and Gestalt-Field theory. The Gestalt-Field theorists believed that behaviour is not just a product of external stimuli; rather it arises from how the individual uses reasons to interpret the stimuli. The behaviourists, on the other hand seek to achieve organisational change solely by modifying the external stimuli acting upon the individual. The Group Dynamics school: This originated from the work of Kurt Lewin. According to Lewin (1974) people in organisations work in groups, and individual behaviour must be seen, modified or change in the light of groups prevailing practices and norms. HENCE the focus of change must be at the group level and should concentrate on influencing and changing the groups norms, roles and values (Cummings and Huse, 1989). The Open Systems school: The school is concerned with understanding organisations in their entirely. It attempts to take a holistic rather than a particularistic perspective. This is reflected in its approach to organisational change. Change management can be defined as a systematic approach to dealing with change, both from the perspective of an organization and on the individual level. A somewhat ambiguous term, change management has at least three different aspects, including: adapting to change, controlling change, and effecting change. A proactive approach to dealing with change is at the core of all three aspects. For an organization, change management means defining and implementing procedures and/or technologies to deal with changes in the business environment and to profit from changing opportunities. Daft (2000) states that change is a necessary evil and all organisation undergo change at one time or another if not continuously. Organisations usually change in response to political, economical, social, technological and legal forces. There are four different types of change that an organisation can undertake, they are technological change, new product based change, structural change, and cultural change. According to Bass (1985) successful adaptation to change is as crucial within an organisation as it is in the natural world. Just like plants and animals, organisations and the individuals in them inevitably encounter changing conditions that they are powerless to control. The more effectively you deal with change, the more likely you are to thrive. Adaptation might involve establishing a structured methodology for responding to changes in the business environment (such as a fluctuation in the economy, or a threat from a competitor) or establishing coping mechanisms for responding to changes in the workplace (such as new policies, or technologies). 2.2 RESISTANCE FOR CHANGE Many authors (Lawrence, 1954; Maurer, 1996; Strebel, 1994; Waddell and Sohal, 1998, among others) stress that the reasons for the failure of many change initiatives can be found in resistance to change. Resistance to change introduces costs and delays into the change process (Ansoffs, 1990) that are difficult to anticipate (Lorenzo, 2000) but must be taken into consideration. Resistance has also been considered as a source of information, being useful in learning how to develop a more successful change process (Beer and Eisenstat, 1996; Goldstein, 1988; Lawrence, 1954; Piderit, 2000; Waddell and Sohal, 1998). Undoubtedly, resistance to change is a key topic in change management and should be seriously considered to help the organisation to achieve the advantages of the transformation. To manage resistance change effectively, the following methods could be used: Communication and Education: This is by far one of the most effective implementation tactics that can be used by an organisation. Communication is used when solid information is required to ensure that employees buy into the process and education should always be used when the change pertains to the introduction of a new technology or product or service (Bunker and Alban, 1992). Participation: This will help with the smooth transition from the pre change phase to the post change phase and if employees were encouraged to participate in the change initiation phase then most of the problems that can occur when the change is implemented could be eliminated as the issues and problems may have been identified and solved in the initiation process (Buller, 1988). Negotiation: This can be used when there is severe resistance and management needs to sell the idea to the employees. Top Management: The visible support of top management to the change process can help reduce and eliminate resistance (Daft, 1982). 3.0 IMPLEMENTING CHANGE IN VIRGIN GROUP One of the largest internal change moves by the Virgin Group, was when Sir Richard Branson, became disillusioned by the public listings, obligations and corporate bureaucracy of a publically listed organisation, he sought after to taking the organisation back to private ownership (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). This was from the philosophy that forgoing short-term profits for long-term expansion is the way forward (www.virgin.com). This contingency approach of the Virgin Group is formed from the business requirements, and the structure (which will take the shape of what is needed to operate within the change environment) as this has a considerable direction on the overall organisational performance (Burnes, B. 2000). The structure of the Virgin Group and its accomplishments, are contingent the environmental influences. As a result by changing the structure, this is an internal driver of change in reaction to the external markets (Mullins, L 2005). With the change in the listing of the organisation, came the reduction in organisational bureaucracy. The need for bureaucracy and a hierarchical structure in the Virgin Group was reduced greatly (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). As a result Sir Richard Branson assumed a hands-off stance, with the managers, encouraging them to use their initiative, skills and experiences (www.virgin.com). This change to the organisational structure has led to a separation of the employees, through now working in specific groups or parts of the business. The variety in locations that the Virgin Group operates, and the wide range of services and goods they offer has led to divisions in the work force. Therefore they are not a centralised team; some divisions could operate in an insular manner, which is easier said than done to change, without altering the structure (Burnes, B. 2000). Some of the internal drives of change the Virgin Group faced with, were the several layers of managers, which can slow down the management reporting systems and their reaction to situations they are faced with. With the contemporary environment, this is negative to change and will slow down the internal management process (Burnes, B. 2000). There have been internal issues since the structural change, with communication across the group and this was particularly noticeable in the middle and lower levels of employees. They were not receiving enough information on the proposed changes, leaving them unable to instruct employees on the organisational changes (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). The organisational structure of the Virgin Group is a group de-centralised; this could encourage silo behaviour, from the different business teams and the different locations in which they operate. There is a natural competiveness between groups, and operating under this structure can encourage competitive behaviour between them (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). To encourage the Virgin organisation working as a group, and to reduce silo behaviour caused by the structural change they started using a single web address, Virgin.com, for the whole of the organisation customers has entrance to all the Virgin services under a solo portal. These strategies assist in supporting the organisational parenting strategy and improve the synergies already imitative from the organisational branding of the Virgin Group (www.virgin.com). Virgin Atlantic service is very much customer focused with a prominence on value for money, quality, fun and innovation. The organisation is 51% owned by the Virgin Group and 49% owned by Singapore Airlines, and employees over 9000 people (www.virgin.com). This change has led to two internal parent organisations, but with Virgin retaining the majority share. Changes to organisations are almost at an epidemic status, reducing the organisations control of the external environment. All organisations are faced with incessant change; this is in their operational environment and the organisational context. In the modern-day organisational situation, there is enormous attention and spotlight on the human resource. The drivers from this change can be both internal and external to the organisation (Coram,  R Burnes B 2001). The human resource is not excluded from this change process, and is a significant part of the organisational context (Frank F et al 2004). Contemporary theorists advocate that if organisations want to be effectual, in both their current and future operating environment, they must focus on the composition and motivation of their human resource (Beardwell, I. et al. 2004). Virgin Atlantic values their employees and trains them to maintain the high service levels and to be able to remain effective (www.virgin.com). As a result of the change it is vital to manage the human resource fairly. When organisations use human resource management as a tool, it will assist them to encourage and motivated their employees to adapt to the proposed changes. The future prospects for all organisations are unpredictable and it is difficult to confirm what is required from the human resource, when an organisation is changing (Bratton, J Gold J 2003). An internal driver of change is the HR responses to market forces. The HR function should mix the current issues of their human resource with the wider financial and business requirements, that change will force upon them (Bratton, J Gold J 2003).The Virgin Group including Virgin Atlantic focus on their employees, as they see the value in managing the resource. Employees are recruited who fit within the culture and support the Virgin ethos. Internal change is driven by an organisations strategy (Bellin, B Pham C 2007). The strategy is a consciously created plan, which will include the methods and actions, to achieve the desired result. An organisation mission statement is normally a non monetary realisation. This mission is the future direction of the organisation (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). The internal forces for change includes making the organisational structure more effective, reducing diversification through streamlining the portfolio and identifying new and emerging markets. This change has realigned the organisation on their mission, focusing employees to assist in the transformation (Groucutt, J. et al 2004).   Virgin Atlantic is reliant on their branding, this is recognisable when they enter new markets, and this has been an internal driver of change (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). The Virgin brand name is the most significant benefit and asset to the organisation. This brand of Virgin and Sir Richard Branson was capitalised on, when an adverts for Apple Computers, Sir Richard Branson was connected to Einstein and Ghandi, as a shaper of the 20th century (www.virgin.com). The management of Virgin Atlantic has been very strong, during the changes over the past five years. This strong leadership of the organisation will focus the employees during periods of change. An organisations efficiency and survival during periods of change, is dependent on the ability of their management and leadership team. (Bailey, J. 2009). Gupta (2004) concluded that the ideal world of vision, the leadership transfers this to the real world, making it happen (Gupta, S 2004). The virgin group is a good parent to Virgin Atlantic, with Richard Branson as an effectual leader (Bailey, J 2009). This will assist in the stabilisation of the organisation during times of change, and reduce employee resistance. The success of the organisation is, in addition, dependant on clear-cut communication and management of the behaviours that motivate employees performance to be an effective organisation (Gupta, S 2004). Through proving freedom of decision making to the managers with Virgin Atlantic, encourage a responsibility of their actions and ownership of the organisation. This provided an organisational culture that encouraged growth with the managers. When recruiting new management, potential employees are shortlisted for innovation, abilities and competitive nature (www.virgin.com). In addition, Virgin Atlantic is capable to cope with the possible downsides of this autonomy and decentralisation. To prevent the failing of communication links and the potential threat of single business units chasing their own strategies, the Virgin Charter sets out a management system and internet business strategy that takes gains from the of information technology, further extending the Virgin brand (www.virgin.com). External forces have led the separate business within the Virgin Group to move towards the tactically five pillar realm. The core strategy is the heart of Virgins core strategy to develop the five pillars of the business empire: travel, leisure, mobile phones, entertainment retailing and personal finance (www.virgin.com). This during periods of change keeps employees focused on the organisational goals, and unites the organisation (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). The accomplishments of the Virgin Group are reliant on their corporate parenting strategy, and the competitive advantage is dependent on the culture (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). The Virgin Groups strategy is executed through the decentralisation of the businesses and the unified branding. In the short run, the strategy looks very strongly constructed, and some commentators believe it is near enough unstoppable (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). On the other hand, in the long term, they need to be a succession plan, to replace the natural wastage of management, with individuals that believe in Virgin Charter. They will need to continue the legacy of the Virgin Groups corporate ethos, through successful execution of the Virgin Charter (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). Virgin Atlantic must also carefully consider the new markets they plan to enter. One solitary slip-up can blemish or even destroy the Virgin Brand, and this could be disastrous for the group (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). Diversifying too much could weaken the Virgin brand, especially when a service or product does not meet the expected Virgin standard. The news on a loss of reputation will travel faster than the success of a product or service. Therefore the association of a single Virgin brand can also have a negative effect on the group (Kotler, P et al 2005). As previously discussed, organisational change is an existing and inevitable aspect of organisational life. The environment surrounding the organisation in the operational and market context is in a continuous situation of change, this through the worldwide economy and the speed and change of technology. As a result, organisations should take action to reduce the impact of forced change, through predicting and assessing the possibilities (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). There are numerous external factors, which will have an effect on the Virgin Atlantic, and how they manage their operations. The external political environment includes the administrative and legal systems, which govern the organisation where they operate. The external operational environment for the Virgin Group will influence the internal procedures and ultimately the organisational effectiveness. These external political influences can be drivers of change, which manage over the organisation. For example an unfavourable political environment can prevent expansion into the location (Klein, L 2008).   The national financial trends will also be a driver of change, for example a down turn on the economy will impact on an organisations expansion plan. This driver of change can reduce the economic stability of the finances of the organisation; as a result, less investment will be attracted. The state-run legal systems are made up from the policy, laws, and regulations of the host country.   As a result the organisation must survive within this legal framework, and audit their systems to ensure compliance to local regulations (Baldry, C et al, 2007). This economic stability is vital for organisational survival. This is achievable through re-evaluating their present market position, and tactically plan where they want to be. This is the organisations strategic fit, aligning their strategy with the environment, through matching their core competencies and skills, to the required strategy. This is a simple process that some organisations overlook (Kotler, P et al 2005). This continuous organisational change has an effect on the employees; this can impact the workplace, these changes can leave the workforce unsettled and can leave individuals uncertain of their role, and how this fits in with the organisations strategy. Change is unsettling for employees, and in times of economic downturn, they can become fearful of their job security (Hunter, D 2006). The very structure of an organisation can add to employees uncertainty in periods of change. The organisation hierarchical structure can put off the workforce from acquiring the details of the planned change. This is a basic change process, which is regularly overlooked, to the determent of the strategy (Hesketh, A Fleetwood S 2006). Consequently, the workforce is not aware of the full extent of the organisational change strategy, or their role within it. The structure of the organisation is capable of covering up what is really is occurring, frequently with just the summit of the management team being conscious of the full strategic intent of the organisation (Groucutt, J. et al 2004). The constant change in the Virgin Atlantic can lead to uncertainly with some employees. This uncertainly can lead to resistance to the change. This resistance is not malicious, and is not intended to disrupt, but some employees feel more secure through holding on to the way things are, and not changing working patterns and behaviours. When the employee relationship is not as strong as it should be, then any change to the working environment will be met with resistance (Beardwell, I. 2002). The most important tool that the management has during periods of organisational change is communication. Through setting up formal and informal communication channels, the employees can be given the information on the changes, leading to them understanding the rationale and the benefits to the organisation. The employee voice is a fundamental human right, for free speech, which should be encouraged in the workplace (Hunter, D 2006). These employee forums can be used as a platform for the Virgin Atlantic to discuss organisational changes that will affect the employees working lives. This will give the employees a voice, to openly discuss their concerns. Prosser (2001) concluded that the collective voice of the employees achieves what the lone voice could never do: it humanises and civilises the workplace (Prosser, M 2001). Therefore, it is vital to give employees a collective voice. The Virgin Group can also measure the employees feelings, fears and attitude to the proposed change, through employee surveys. This is good human resource management practice. This method of gauge the employee attitudes is only of assistance to the organisation when they are surveyed on a regular basis, to be used as benchmarks of the progress of the organisation in the employee relationship (Marchington, M et al, 2001). There are arbitrating factors when employees attitudes are surveyed, and this is further enhanced to benefit the organisation, when they are used with other forms of listening to the employee, for example discussion and communication (Hesketh, A Fleetwood, S 2006). When concerns are discussed it is imperative to pay attention to the motivational factors, which will maintain the employee interaction with the employer (Parker, S (2000) cited in Dorenbosch, L et al 2005). Not all theorists agree that employee attitude surveys are the way forward in industrial relations. When they have the results from the surveys employers do not have to respond to the conclusion from them, sometimes it is just lip service (Blyton, P Turnbull, P 2004). Union representation in organisations is frequently viewed as ideal in employees voice, and there is support that there is considerably more to the employees voice, than any survey can reveal (Dundon, T 2003). Virgin Atlantic has successfully managed organisational change through changing the structure of the organisation. This is in reaction to the different markets they operate in and the changes individually to their environment. This has led to an insular culture; this can be addressed through communication across the group. One of the major issues the organisation has faced is the employees rà ©sistance to the changes, sparked by uncertainty of their current and future working environments. Employees as individuals enjoy security, and when this becomes uncertain, there is a natural reaction to resist the change. 4.0 CONCLUSION The objectives of the assignment is the implementation of change in an organisation through understanding of the theoretical aspects of change management and the best way change management can be effectively implemented. It is absolutely clear that the support of senior management staff need to be sorted, development of effective strategies, tackling staff resistance to change, and implementing plans for accomplishing each goal stated need to be taken serious during implementation process to gaining comparative advantage over competitors. Virgin Group, are successful and encourage innovation. They must now ensure that all employees are committed to organisational strategy, and will through the knowledge accept the change.

Parents Should Be Involved in Their Children’s School :: Argumentative Essays

There are many reasons that parents should get involved in their children’s school. Students who have concerned and involved parents tend to get better grades. When a parent asks questions about homework and assignments, supervises to make sure that they get done, and even helps with homework, it is more likely that assignments will be completed and handed in on time. Another factor in grades is attendance. With a low attendance rate, assignments will be missed, and the student will get behind in content as well. Parents who do not get involved in the school might not know that their child is not attending on a regular basis, or even care if their child goes. When children are first starting school, or transitioning from pre-school to elementary school or elementary to middle school, the transition is easier when parents are involved. If a child is unhappy about being in school, but their parents volunteer in the school, the child will see their parents there and be less upset because they will not be separated from them. For whatever reason, if a child is nervous or simply misses his or her parent, seeing the familiar face in the hallway or just knowing that they are in the building is comforting and makes the transition into school easier. Along with parents helping with homework and supervising that projects are completed, giving support to a child will make them more likely to pass from grade to grade. Without parent involvement, unless a child is self-motivated to go to school and do their work, it will be difficult to pass to the next grade level, and in time, graduate. When students see that their parents are involved in their school, it shows them that their parents care about their education. This sets a good example for the student, and they are likely to model their parents and believe that education is important and beneficial. This is especially true when students see their parents volunteering in their school. In order for a child to see their education as something important, they have to believe that their parents feel the same, especially at a young age. Reasons Parents Don’t Get Involved Sometimes parents do not get involved in their child’s education for a completely different reason than not caring.

The Stock Market Essay examples -- Economy, Malaysia, Capital Market

The economic conditions were not that favourable during the financial crisis in 1997. Instability in the international financial markets in turn spilled over into the domestic financial markets. Continued waves of adjustment in both the currency and stock markets, coupled with the decline in domestic and export demand subsequently prompted a shift to more growth promoting policies. One of the institutions that affected was Malaysian stock market. In general, Malaysia stock market contributes to the best allocation of capital resources among numerous users. The roles of the stock market are mainly to facilitate and encourage the mobilization of funds, direct them towards efficient economic activities, provide adequate liquidity for investors and encourage the creation of large-scale enterprises, The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange Index (CI) is the most popular indicator of the Kuala Lumpur stock market performance. The CI represents share prices of 100 Corporations. These companies are chosen because their operations cover a broad spectrum of economic performance in Malaysia and more significantly reflect stock market activities with fair accuracy, Stock prices depend on the supply and demand for the stock, it causes by the factors that stock prices to be more volatile is limited supply of new issues despite of strong demand for the stocks. This restriction of supply leads to more price fluctuations, which are common to all stock markets. However, two things prevent an infinite price increase in the stock market. Firs tly, the amount of money available in any country is finite. As the bull market proceeds, more and more of the country’s savings are invested in the stock market and eventually the people involved might face liquidity... ...economic variables for emerging economies. At all, the studies have shown the existence of a weak form of market efficiency among the EMFs for respective periods of study and countries. Recently the studies done examine the cointegration between macroeconomic variables and stock prices in order to test for the informational efficient market hypothesis. All the studies are covering on the period before the financial crises in July 1997. However, there is no attempt to study the cointegration between the variables and the stock market after the financial crisis. Hence, this study investigate the relationship between stock market returns and underlying macroeconomic variables, for the Malaysia as country known as a member of ASEAN for the period after the Asian financial crises, to determine whether or not the weak form of market efficiency to exist in Malaysia.

Free Speech on the Internet v. United States Constitution

The internet became a very popular and huge way of getting millions of different kinds of materials and information for everyday use in the later 80's early 90's. It became easy for anyone to access millions of different kinds of materials ninety nine percent of which is decent according to our governments standards and one or less percent which is considered to be material the is indecent or harmful to minors.(ABC) These facts maybe deceiving however because there are millions of internet sites so the internet may only be one percent indecent but that means there are thousands upon thousands of sites that are indecent.(ABC) The biggest question is how can we protect our children from these indecent sites? The government believed that passing a bill banning indecent material from the internet would help in the protection of the children who use the internet. So in 1996 Congress passed the CDA (communications decency act) along with the TCA (tela communication act).(Lewis) The TCA wa s purposed and passed by congress in order to band indecent material from the radio and television and the CDA was a last minute add onto this bill.(Greenhouse) The CDA was never heard before congress and many of the members questioned its constitutionality. Clition did signed the bill however it was understood that he was hopping that the courts would declare the bill unconstitutional.(Greenhouse) It became obvious very quick that this bill was going to cause problems. In June of 96 the same year the bill was passed a New York internet based paper filed a law suite against the CDA saying â€Å"‘This bill is a violation of the rights of not only myself, but a violation of the rights of the American people. Long live the net,’ said Joe Shea, editor in chief of The American Reporter, the electronic newspaper that challenged the law.†(Lewis) This case however was not the first. In Philadelphia a group of some 50 organization filed a lawsuit against the CDA and the court also ruled in their favor. (Lewis) More and more cases began popping up in federal courts until December of 96 when it was finally brought before the Supreme Court in Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union.(ACLU v Janet Reno) The problem with the CDA was the fact that it didn’t clearly define indecent material. Many thought the broadness of the terminology used i... ...gle to â€Å"safely protect† the rights of the men and women of America. Works Cited "American Civil Liberties Union v. Janet Reno." 11 May 1996. 2 May 2005 Childs, Kelvin. "Problems Persist Despie CDA Ruling." . 05 July 1997: 19 Apr. 2005 "Communications Decency Act; Gina Smith, Charels Gibson." Good Morning America. ABC. 19 Mar. 1997. 19 Apr. 2005 Dlouhy, Jennifer A. "Ruling Suggest an Alternative For Online Pornography: Mandate Use of Internet Filters." 3 July 2004. 2 May 2005 Greenhouse, Lina. "Court,9-0, Upholds State Laws Prohibiting Assisted Suicide; Protects Speech on Internet." New York Times 27 June 1997. Kids and Civil Rights. Talk of The Nation NPR, Washington DC. 06 Apr. 1998. Lewis, Peter H. "Opponents of Indecency Rules on Internet Win Another Case." The New York Times 30 July 1996. eLibrary. 19 Apr. 2005 "Policing Cyberspace." Editorial. The Nation 1 Mar. 1999: n. pag. "Supreme Court Affirms Preliminary Injunction of Child Online Protection Act." . 01 Sept. 2004: eLibrary. 2 May 2005 "Supreme Court Rules on Child Online Protection Act." . 1 July 2002: eLibrary. 2 May 2005

AQA AS Philosophy Reason and Experience Key Points Essay

†¢There are different types of knowledge: acquaintance, ability and propositional knowledge. Theories of knowledge discussed here are about propositional knowledge. †¢Knowledge is not the same as belief. Beliefs can be mistaken, but no-one can know what is false. †¢Knowledge is not the same as true belief, either. True beliefs may not be justified, but can be believed without evidence. To be knowledge, a belief must be justified. †¢Rationalism claims that we can have synthetic a priori knowledge of how things are outside the mind. †¢Empiricism denies this. It claims that all a priori knowledge is only of analytic propositions. Do all ideas derive from sense experience? †¢Locke argues that the mind at birth is a ‘tabula rasa’ – there are no innate ideas, which Locke defines as ideas present in the mind from birth. †¢Locke argues that there is no truth that everyone, including idiots and children, assents to – so no truth is innate. †¢Rationalists define innate ideas as ideas (concepts or propositions) whose content can’t be gained from experience, but which are triggered by experience. †¢Locke and Hume argue that all concepts are derived from sense experience, from impressions of sensation or reflection. †¢They claim that simple concepts are copies of impressions; complex concepts are created out of simple concepts by combining and abstracting them. †¢One argument for innate concepts is to challenge the empiricist to show how a particular complex or abstract concepts, for example, a physical object, is supposed to be derived from experience. If it cannot be, and it is used by children, then this is a reason to think it is innate. Are all claims about what exists ultimately grounded in and justified by sense experience? †¢Hume argues that all a priori knowledge is of relations of ideas, and so analytic. All knowledge of synthetic propositions, matters of fact, is a posteriori. It depends either on present experience or causal inference, which relies on past experience. †¢Our knowledge of matters of fact that relies on induction can only be probably – never proven. †¢Some rationalists, for example, Descartes, try to show that we can use a priori intuition and deductive argument to demonstrate what exists. †¢The core of the idea of rational intuition is that you can ‘see’ the truth of a claim just by thinking about it. †¢Descartes argues that sense experience on its own cannot establish what exists – how can we know that all sense experience is not a deception cause by an evil demon? †¢He argues that he cannot doubt his own existence, and that the mind can exist without the body. †¢Descartes argues for the existence of the physical world by first arguing for the existence of God. From God not being a deceiver, it follow that our sense experience in general can’t be completely mistaken – so they physical world exists. Conceptual schemes and their philosophical implications †¢Thinkers who defend the idea of conceptual schemes often argue that there are two distinguishable elements to our experience – the data of the sense, and then the interpretation of these data by a set of concepts. †¢Some argue that human beings have formulated different conceptual scheme which are not translatable into each other. From the same sense experience, they form different views of the world. †¢Because we must use concepts to formulate truths, we can argue that truths are relative to conceptual schemes. Or more accurately, some truths can only be stated in certain conceptual schemes and not others, and there is no one conceptual scheme which we can use to state all truths. Do all ideas derive from sense experience? II †¢One objection to the empiricist theory of the origin of concepts is that there are some complex concepts, for example, knowledge and beauty that cannot be analysed in terms of simpler concepts. †¢A second objection is that some simple ideas, for example, a particular shade of blue, don’t have to be derived from sense impressions. Empiricists can respond in two ways: all ideas could be derived from sense experience’ or some ideas are exceptions to the rule that all ideas are derived from sense experience, but these exceptions are derived from ideas that are derived from sense experience. †¢Another objection is that it is not possible to derive any concepts from experience, because in order to form concepts, we must make judgements of similarity and difference to classify experiences. But we can only make these judgements if we already have the concepts. †¢Defenders of innate ideas maintain that we innately have very specific capacities for forming particular ideas, and these ideas count as innate. †¢Suggestions for the origin of innate ideas include evolution, God, and a previous existence. Are all claims about what exists ultimately grounded in and justified by sense experience? II †¢Rationalists claim that we have synthetic a priori knowledge either innately or through rational intuition †¢Plato argues that many particular objects can have the same property, for example, beauty. These properties can exist independently of the particular objects, as shown by the fact that is we destroy all beautiful things, we haven’t destroyed beauty. These properties are instances of the Forms. †¢Plato argues that innate concepts are our knowledge of the Forms, from a previous existence. Unless we had such innate memories, we wouldn’t be able to classify experience using concepts. †¢Descartes argues that he cannot doubt his existence. We can object that he cannot know he exists; only that thoughts exist. †¢Descartes also argues that the mind can exist without the body. We can object that just because he can conceive that this is possible doesn’t show that this is possible. †¢Both these arguments and the objections use a priori reasoning. Hume objects that a priori reasoning can only establish analytic truths. †¢Nietzsche argues that reasoning is not, in fact, something independent that reveals the truth, but is grounded on assumptions about value. Metaphysical theories are the result of attempts to defend a particular way of understanding the world, one that rests on the false assumption that good and bad are opposites. †¢The verification principle claims that a statement only has meaning if it is either analytic or empirically verifiable. However, the principle itself is neither analytic nor empirically verifiable. †¢Rationalists argue that mathematics is an example of synthetic a priori knowledge. Empiricists argue that mathematics is analytic. Is certainty confined to introspection and the tautological? †¢Descartes argues that what we can doubt is not certain enough to be knowledge. However, we can argue that certainty and justification are not the same thing, and that while knowledge needs to be justified, we need an argument to show that it must be certain. †¢Certainty can refer to a subjective feeling, to a proposition being necessarily true or to the impossibility of doubting a proposition. †¢Empiricists claim that analytic truth is the only kind of necessary truth. Rationalists argue that there are synthetic a priori truths that are also necessary. †¢A necessary truth is certain. Claims about mental state, based on introspection, may also be certain for the person whose mental states they are. †¢Whether any other claims are certain depend on whether there are necessary synthetic a priori truths. Conceptual schemes and their philosophical implications II †¢Kant argues that experience is of objects, and asks how it is possible for experience to be intelligible in this way, not a confused buzz. †¢He answers that what makes experience possible are certain concepts, which he calls categories. These categories together express the ‘pure thought of an object’. †¢One such category is causality. This enables us to distinguish the temporal order of our perceptions from the temporal order of objects. †¢Kant argues that to talk of concepts interpreting sensation is misleading. Our sensory experience is always already conceptualised as experience of objects. †¢Two implications of Kant’s theory are that the structure of the everyday world of objects is defined by our a priori concepts; and that we cannot know anything about how reality is completely independent of how we think of it.