Post-Cold War US Foreign Policy - 1417 Words

Post-Cold War US Foreign Relations The Cold War and its ending with the dismantling of the Soviet Union and a great reduction in the threat of communism as a competing system to capitalism and democratic governance changed the focus of US foreign policy. The change did not happen overnight and has ebbed and flowed significantly across time, often associated with the nature of foreign conflicts and US involvement in them but change it did (Saull, 2007, p. 180). The reduction of the size, might and influence of the US military and many institutions associated with foreign relations was almost directly in response to the reduction in the obvious large and cohesive threat of the Soviet Union. Once that cohesive threat, a sort of outside check and balance with which the US had to meet toe to toe created a public and internal government demand for reduction of spending and investment in the US armed forces and also a point of access that changed the manner in which the US attempted to influence and redirect foreign nations (Saull, 2007, p. 180). According to Saul: The collapse of Soviet communism and disintegration of the USSR ushered in a systemic transformation in the structure and political character of the international system. The socio-economic and ideological challenge to capitalism and the capitalist great powers that had originated in 1917, and the geopolitical and strategic arrangements that had emerged after 1945, were replaced with the termination of the USSRsShow MoreRelatedAmerican Strategy For U.s. Foreign Policy829 Words   |  4 PagesWalter Russel Mead, a Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, believes that â€Å"American strategy for U.S. foreign policy is shaped from four distinct schools of thought: Hamilton and his protectionist toward commence, Wilson and his sense of moral principles; Jefferson and his maintenance of our democratic system; and Jackson, the advocate of populist values and military might.† Henry Kissinger argued that one of these schools has dominated American s trategy and statedRead MoreHistory Essay. Expansionism779 Words   |  4 PagesHow far do you agree with the view that the development of the Cold War in the years 1945-48 owed more to soviet expansionism than to the USA’s economic interests? Many historians argue that the development of the cold war in the years 1945-48 owed more to soviet expansionism than to the USA’s economic interests. Source 7 supports this view to an extent as it argues that the USSR ‘tightened its grip over the countries of central and eastern Europe’ and how the ‘western attitudes had hardened’Read MoreTo What Extent was the Cold war Caused by Ideological Differences?1709 Words   |  7 PagesThe Cold War, a period of sustained political and military tension between the USA and the USSR, resulted in various viewpoints concerning the cause of the tension emerging. Until today the question remains unresolved, even after the 1991 release of Soviet archives. The main point of disagreement relates to the roles that ideology played in the events between 1945 and 1949. Was it the strongly opposing ideologies, capitalism and communism, or power and material interest that drove both superpowersRead MoreThe Clinton s Impea chment Of President Clinton947 Words   |  4 PagesAmerican public, this was a very emotional and eye opening experience that their nation was not invincible. When President Bush had to address the nation over this, it was clear that he would not turn his back on domestic policy and start making changes to American foreign policy in response to this attack. 2009- More Troops in Afghanistan After many debates, Obama persuaded Congress to approve the deployment of thousands of more troops to Afghanistan in 2009. The intention was to show he listenedRead MoreThe Interpretation Of The Cold War Has Sparked A Number1694 Words   |  7 Pagesof the Cold War has sparked a number of heated debates throughout the historical field over how it should be documented. Who perpetrated and antagonized the world into a nuclear arms race that would last for decades? Was it a battle of East vs. West, or was it one of ideology? Did it even happen as some long-peace historians would suggest? Federico Romero, in his article â€Å"Cold War Historiography at the Crossroads,† organizes these historians into three groups; orthodox, revisionist, and post-revisionistsRead MoreTimely Treatment Of Post Conflict Liberia1210 Words   |  5 PagesThe Timely Treatment of Post-Conflict Liberia Following the end of Liberia’s civil war (which was borne out of the relationship of the US and Samuel Doe, the Liberian people elected a government in a free and fair democratic elections), the country was in need of the US and other world powers to help stimulate the country’s economy and help rebuild its damaged infrastructure. However, the US basically walked away from Liberia at the opportune moment leaving Liberia to its own devices and also atRead MoreImpact Of Domestic Politics On German Foreign And Security Policy1648 Words   |  7 PagesDiscuss the impact domestic politics has on German foreign and security policy. Germany is arguably one of the key global political actors. It’s extremely prominent, especially within international relations, and is also regarded as being economically, politically and geographically at the center of Europe. Germany’s success in Europe is considered to be due to its post-world war shift in ideologies and political culture and structures, from authoritarianism to democracy which inevitably createdRead MoreEssay about American Foreign Policy and Global Activism928 Words   |  4 PagesAmerican foreign policy has gone through many changes during our 200 years as an independent nation; our position as a global power has obligated us to participate in world affairs, even when public opinion has been unsupportive. After World War 2 we were only rivaled by the Soviet Union as a superpower; our policy at the time was to establish a righteous world order while simultaneously protecting that order against threats that could tear it down (i.e.: communism). Af ter the end of the cold war theRead MoreEssay on Examining the Possible Causes of the Cold War1309 Words   |  6 Pagesof the Cold War and how it developed into one of the largest unarmed struggles in history have been subject to much debate and consequently a number of schools of thought have developed as to the origins of the Cold War. These proposed explanations to the causes of the Cold War have consisted of the orthodox, revisionist and post-revisionist theories. Each theory demonstrates a different viewpoint as to how a variety of political, economic and militaristic factors instigated the Cold War TheRead MoreThe Cold War Between Communism And Communism1721 Words   |  7 PagesThe Cold War The conflict in ideologies between capitalism and communism resulted in one of the greatest conflicts of the twentieth century. The belief that freedom and democracy would die under communist rule caused the United States to start a conflict that would last for decades. 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Artificial Intelligence Free Essays

The movie Artificial Intelligence: A.I. is written and directed by Steven Spielberg, and stars Haley Joel Osment (â€Å"David†) and Jude Law (â€Å"Gigolo Joe†). We will write a custom essay sample on Artificial Intelligence or any similar topic only for you Order Now    The movie is set in the future in a civilization that has taken drastic steps to ensure the survival and prosperity of society by limiting human population. Wealthy nations stay afloat by limiting the number of childbirths allowed per married couple.   In fact couples who exceed the minimum legal standard for number of children were penalized by law.   Human beings also co-exist with androids, called â€Å"mechas† who perform various functions for their human owners, such as gardeners, nannies, laborers, and, in Joe’s case, gigolos. Traditionally, the androids built by humans were not programmed to feel any emotions.   They were programmed merely to assist in the day-to-day lives of human beings.   This all changes when a company called Cybertonics creates a boy mecha called David, who is built not only with artificial intelligence, but with emotional intelligence (or EQ) as well. In other words, David can love, looks for love, and responds to love from a human being.   As such, David is an experimental model, since no other mecha had been built quite like him, and Cybertronics selected one of their employees, Henry Swinton (played by Sam Robards) from a list of candidates of possible parents-to-be to take in David and to treat him as his own son. Henry decides to take David home under the advisement of the doctor who was worried about the health of Henry’s wife Monica (played by Frances O’Connor). Their own son, Martin (played by Jake Thomas) was seriously ill and was in suspended animation for a long time.   The doctors did not see the possibility of him recovering. The doctor told Henry that instead of worrying about his son, he should start worrying about the emotional wellness of his wife.   In order to do that, Henry thought that he should fill the void left by the â€Å"loss† of their son by taking home David to take Martin’s place. At first, Monica (played by Frances O’Connor) is appalled at the idea.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The very thought of taking home an android to take Martin’s place angers Monica in the beginning. Henry then appeases her by telling her that he will take David back. He then informs Monica that there is a code consisting of 7 random words that, if spoken, will enable a mechanism in David to start acting and feeling like a real boy.   He warns her that if that code is enabled, David can no longer be returned.   He will have to be destroyed in the factory because if activated, the android would recognize no other mother and would be worthless. She is initially afraid of David, and tries to ignore him, but her maternal instincts take over, and soon, she warms up to David and starts treating him as her son. One morning Monica decides to activate the code embedded inside David, and he himself starts to respond to Monica in the way a human child responds to his or her parent.   David does everything he can to please Monica, and she responds with warmth and love.   At the Swintons, David also makes friend with Teddy, a mecha teddy bear who speaks and has taken it upon himself to keep an eye out for David. Unfortunately, David’s happy stay at the Swintons, where he is treated as a real live boy and a son, does not last for long.   Martin, the Swintons’ real son, recovers miraculously from his illness and is sent home to his parents.   Upon his arrival, Martin becomes jealous over the attention and love his mother bestows on David. He starts thinking of ways to get David into trouble, to make his mother Monica love David less, and to give him, Martin, her full love and attention. How to cite Artificial Intelligence, Papers Artificial Intelligence Free Essays One were to take a look around the room they are currently in, chances are there would be some form of artificial Intelligence present. From cell phones to computers – artificial Intelligence Is everywhere and even a way of life. The next generation of people may never know what life is without some form of intelligence embedded into their everyday schedule and routines. We will write a custom essay sample on Artificial Intelligence or any similar topic only for you Order Now Perhaps the coffee pot that brews their caffeinated beverage every morning is programmed in such a way that they don’t even have to touch it. Originally, however, it was programmed by a human. Robots may indeed be programmed intelligently, but robots can never replace humans. According to Kevin Money, It Is said that â€Å"Google and a lot of other companies believe robots today are like cell phones back when they were the size of bricks and cost $6,000. It may take 10 or 20 years, but before long everybody is going to have a robot – or several† (Money, 2013). Robots work alongside human beings to ensure accuracy, precision, and skill that human beings cannot perform on their own. Dan Lyons states that, â€Å"From self-service checkout lines at the supermarket to industrial robots armed with saws and taught to carve up animal carcasses In slaughter-houses, these ever- ore-Intelligent machines are now not Just assisting workers but actually kicking them out of their jobs. Automation isn’t just affecting factory workers, either. Some law firms now use artificial intelligence software to scan and read mountains of legal documents, work that previously was performed by highly paid human lawyers. Surely, robots are designed to assist humans, but can they really replace them? Author Michael Brooks writes about Hugh Lobber, a philanthropist from New York, whose goal Is to create total unemployment for all human beings throughout the world. â€Å"He wants robots to do all the work. And the first step towards that is to develop computers that seem human when you chat to them. It’s not a new idea. Alan Turing is credited with the first explicit outline o f what is now called the Turing test. A human judge sits down at a computer and has a typed conversation with an entity that responds to whatever the Judge types. If that entity is a computer, but the judge thinks It’s a person, the conversational computer program passes the test (Brooks, 2013). † Human beings are highly flawed creatures and they often make mistakes. Robots, on the other hand, are computers – they execute a skill, time and mime again, without flaw, for the most part. That’s why they are often used in medical settings, so that doctors can have the assistance of a robot to help execute a task. Dan Lyons states, â€Å"surgeons are using robotic systems to perform an ever-growing list of operations–not because the machines save money but because, thanks to the greater precision of robots, the patients recover In less time and have fewer complications, says Dry. Miriam Cure. † However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that robots are going to replace humans. â€Å"The surgery bots don’t replace surgeons?you still need a surgeon to drive the robot† (Lyons, 2013). Unfortunately, computers are computers, and one day, they will crash. It may not happen right away, but eventually, there will be a glitch, a mistake, or an entire shutdown. Computers do not have a will or desire to complete a task, so they are only as good as they are programmed. In fact, there are many attributes that computers simply cannot intelligent as they may seem. It is inaccurate to think that a computer may genuinely mimic or replace a human, because they simply don’t have mental skills. A robot may be programmed to respond to certain types of tones, words, or body language, but he beautiful thing about human beings is that they can come up with their own responses on their own – no matter what the stimulus may be. According to Greg Egan, it is healthier to communicate with a real human being rather than an artificially intelligent one. He states that, â€Å"The art of conversation, of listening attentively and weighing each response, is not a universal gift, any more than any other skill. Honing one’s conversational skills with a computer–discovering your strengths and weaknesses while enjoying a chat with a character that is no less interesting for failing to exist–might well lead to better conversations with fellow unmans† (Egan, 2014). This is significant because human beings need this sort of interaction for mental health and stability. If one were connected to a robot, rather than a human, they would get a false sense of reality. Michael Brooks feels the same way about it. He says, â€Å"When we talk to each other, whether it’s about last night’s TV or the wisdom of a military strike on Syria, we are doing something far harder than sending a rocket to the moon. We did the moon-shot decades ago but we still can’t make a machine that will hold a decent conversation† (Brooks, 2013). Human beings make mistakes. It is simply a part of human nature. If a human was around a robot that didn’t make mistakes, or wasn’t â€Å"human† enough, then the person would become uncomfortable. According to The Economist, â€Å"To keep human workers at ease, collaborative robots should also have an appropriate size and appearance. Collaborative, humanoid robots should generally be no larger than a six-year-old, a size most adults reckon they could overpower if necessary. Large eyes make robots seem friendlier and, crucially, more aware of their surroundings. † This goes to show the relationships that humans have with each other: the bigger and stronger a arson seems to be, the more intimidating they become. There is a trust issue that takes place within the need for big eyes to seem friendlier and the need to be aware of current surroundings. Isn’t one of the greatest parts of being human the ability to judge character and decide, individually, who is frightening and untrustworthy and who is not? The article also adds, â€Å"But overly humanoid features can lead to problematically unrealistic expectations. † So, if the robot were to randomly burst into flames, then the human would no longer trust it. Alas, assuming the robot could be rusted in the first place would lead to unrealistic expectations – expectations that are not human enough to exceed. Robots are unique because they are programmed. Humans are unique because they are not – meaning they are able to think for themselves and make mistakes. The Economist states that it is important to give robots â€Å"A defining human trait–the ability to make mistakes. Amah Salem programmed a humanoid Asimov robot, made by Honda, to make occasional harmless mistakes such as pointing to one drawer while talking about another. When it comes to household robots, test subjects prefer those that err over infallible ones, Dry Salem says. This is significant to see that humans prefer robots to be more human-like by making mistakes because it makes the person more comfortable. It is almost laughable, because a human is such prone to error, so the robot might as well be, they would prefer a robot to make a mistake would mean that they are searching for that connection – a connection that would sound something like, â€Å"we are only human† and they shrug it off and feel comforted again. Although robots are indeed artificially intelligent and have many technological capabilities, they still can never be exactly eke humans or completely replace humans. They may be able to help doctors and surgeons, factory workers, and make life a little easier in the everyday world, but they simply cannot mimic humans. Therefore, the idea of connecting with a robot should be thrown out the window, along with the idea of making a robot make mistakes on purpose for the comfort of the nearest human being. What the nearest human being needs is to connect with the next human being and have a reassuring conversation that they will not lose their Job to a robot – unless they fail to program their robot ropey. How to cite Artificial Intelligence, Papers Artificial Intelligence Free Essays Technology keeps on getting better and better time to time. According to the Kondratieff Cycle, the technology changes states in around 50 years and in the early years of this 50 year cycle it builds upon only losses and only in the last ten years it brigs true returns which are actually the costs of adapting the technology being nullified. Artificial Intelligence is the premium technology being practiced today as it has the ability to mimic human behavior. We will write a custom essay sample on Artificial Intelligence or any similar topic only for you Order Now The fact that AI systems can learn make them more viable for race to gain edge over your rivals, therefore firms are readily adapting such systems as they tend to boost performance of the firms. AI, not only helps the firms, but also helps individuals (employees) in understanding the cases and directing strategies efficiently. It also reduces the work load for many employees but at a tactical or top level. AI is more like a nightmare for operational level employees as it tends to destroy the chain to speed up operations. For instance, an efficient AI planted into a manufacturing firm can eliminate the need for manpower in assembling departments. At present, the commercial world is hungry for technology that would ease operations and decision making to the maximum level as the long run costs of maintaining these systems are extremely low as compared to employee management programs. This means that professional jobs are at stake. Further, such systems do not have an aging problem so knowledge can be contained easily. The point still argued is can we rely on machines that work on binary codes i.e. Yes or No options only? Computers can think but can not think rationally as humans may do, computers may be able to comprehend faster but still they can not act intuitively as humans do. References 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jan Goldberg, Mark Rowh, (2003), â€Å"Great Jobs for Computer Science Majors† Edition: 2, McGraw-Hill Professional 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Alan Kernoff, Tom Schwartz Associates, (1986), â€Å"Who’s who in Artificial Intelligence: The AI Guide to People, Products, Companies, Resources, Schools and Jobs†, WWAI, 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Samir Dasgupta, Ray Kiely, (2006), â€Å"Globalization and After†, Sage Publications, How to cite Artificial Intelligence, Papers Artificial intelligence Free Essays Artificial Intelligence Is defined as the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages. Artificial intelligence has come a long way as our culture has developed. Many people believe that artificial intelligence is in a sense giving these computers sentience or making them alive. We will write a custom essay sample on Artificial intelligence or any similar topic only for you Order Now What most people don’t agree on is that Artificial Intelligence Is hat delightfulness Ass’s from humans if they can think critically about situations and form their own opinions. In the movie â€Å"The Final Moments of Karl Brand† we are shown the basic sense of how humans feel about sentient AH systems. Karl Brand a top researcher for a new experimental AH system downloads his memories into a device. Later after he is murdered his friend pulls up the memories he had â€Å"uploaded† and they create a sentient AH version of himself. Most people are greatly disturbed by the fact that AH could possibly become In a sense living and have a unconsciousness, In this movie the cop is deeply disturbed and rushes to pull the plug on the sediment being. This is how most people commonly react to change and constantly improving technology. Everyday Hollywood releases movies like terminator, and Robotic where artificial intelligences go haywire and takeover all of humanity. However, Most artificial intelligences are actually very intelligent and almost have a human like reasoning and logic. It is because of this sense of â€Å"sentience† that most people feel uncomfortable about robots and the growing technological age. How to cite Artificial intelligence, Papers

Model of Business Intelligence on Decision †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Model of Business Intelligence on Decision. Answer: Introduction It is important for organizations to not only realize the need for business intelligence (BI), but also to effectively integrate it within its decision making process in order to create and sustain the organizational competitive advantage (Ahmad, 2015). Researchers argue that an effective system could improve the decision making process and enhance knowledge sharing within the employees through sharing information and best practices. BI could be used to gather information about the external environment and the competition among the markets, including, competitors, new technology, customer behavior and market forces (Eidizadeh et al., 2017). As the SunPower Corporation faces problem related to decision making, it is important to the decision makers at the company to use Business intelligence (BI) tools to enable them from taking the right decisions. The company should create a project plan which aims at overcoming its decision making problems, provide recommendations depending on the reports of the BI tools, systems and applications. The following section discusses the project scope, objectives, functional and non-functional specifications, feasibility study, limitations and resource specifications. First: project scope The SunPower corporation needs to realize the importance of operating BI, DSS and the KM applications within its business to support the decision making process. DSS could be combined with operations research to reduce the cost and achieve flexibility in managing business operations (Bakhrankova, 2010). For example, the Honda case which resulted in a complex decision making process of having only one shift or two shifts, such business tools could assist in solving complex problems. The following section discusses the usability of business intelligence BI tools, decision support systems (DSS) and knowledge management (KM). Business intelligence (BI) is widely used within organizations nowadays, it is mainly used to combine data, storage and knowledge management by using analytical tools in order to present information reports to decision makers (Ahmad, 2015). The advantage of BI, is its speed in processing data to enable managers to take the accurate and right decision. BI includes a variety of analytical programs. BI is designed to transfer data to information and information to knowledge, this process adds value to the business (Eidizadeh et al., 2017). The right decisions lead to organizational success, as the organization can lead an excellent business performance based on accurate information. The fast development of IT resulted in producing decision support systems (DSS) that enables the managers to solve decision problems. DSS can support both individual, group decisions and the organizational decisions as a whole (Liu et al., 2017). Knowledge management is a strategy used by an organization to increase its competitiveness. Researchers argue that KM is the best way to achieve competitive advantage (Eidizadeh et al., 2017). The project has two main objectives, firstly, to apply the business information tools, systems and approaches at the enterprise level to support the decision making process. The SunPower Corporation can use different BI tools, systems and information intelligence approaches to simulate its decisions from various functional areas, for example, the case of NASA, which asked for cells for a solar powered airplane (Helios), the cells were successfully produced, but NASA asked for cost reduction. BI tools can assist in creating different scenarios with different costs to managers to select the most appropriate scenario. Secondly, to diversify the business information tools to include the data mining tools, which are considered the most widely applied tools, as they can add value to the business processes, clarify the buying pattern of the customer and profitability, through mining the data warehouse to support the decision making process (Ahmad, 2015). These two objectives should be fulfi lled within a specific time frame to ensure the success of the project. Third: functional and non-functional specifications The decision makers at the SunPower should decide the functional and non-functional specifications of the BI tools and knowledge applications that could most fulfill the project objectives. Regarding advancements in the systems thinking, there is a growing need for information system, which resulted in many approaches utilizing the DSS tools in managing operations while focusing on particular problems. These needs resulted in creating the evolutionary complex systems (ECS) that provides simulation models (Baldwin et al., 2010). Accordingly, the consequences of different decisions related to different functional areas can be simulated to enable taking the right and most effective decisions. There are many internal BI tools, including, data mining, query and reporting, OLAP, data virtualization. These tools enable organizations to aggregate, filter and summarize data (Harrison et al., 2015). Knowledge based systems are used by organizations to provide better knowledge processing, it enables managers to better understand the problem and gain new knowledge. Knowledge creation is linked to decision making. Also, they enable the knowledge sharing process. Automating the decision making process by using knowledge based systems, reduces the time needed to make decisions and the cost of doing activities related to decision making, which are considered critical factors in making right decisions (Rouhani et al., 2016). Third: feasibility study The SunPower Corporation main target was to commercialize solar concentrator21 technology, but by referring to relevant environmental aspects, it was found that the PV alternative is lower cost, also they are not suitable for many small distributed remote applications. By realizing these information, managers decided to change their production decision. The knowledge management strategy within SunPowerm started to consider the external environment aspects which led to more efficient and effective decision. In order to develop a realistic feasibility study, the company needs to share knowledge to add value. BI assists in the knowledge sharing process among employees within the organization. Knowledge sharing assists in transferring knowledge practices and problem solving processes, its benefits affect the current and future activities. BI assists in transferring knowledge among business units to create new knowledge (Eidizadeh et al., 2017). From the economic perspective, knowledge sh aring is considered a source of organizational power as a knowledge asset by itself does not guarantee power. The power of knowledge sharing creates an organizational competitive advantage due to transferring the tacit knowledge, which is unique and can't be imitated by competitors. SunPower Corporation could be empowered through the knowledge sharing with its new partner Swanson, to exchange their expertise in semiconductor manufacturing as they are considered experts in transferring RD to manufactured products. Forth: resources specifications The mapping process of the KM cycle uses tools and technologies, which are considered the project resources in the case of SunPower Corporation. KM should identify the required tools and resources to be used in each phase in the KM cycle (Kumar Islam, 2014). KMapping is considered a new approach to knowledge management. The KMaps are used to discover the sources of knowledge, either explicit or tacit. Also, they are used to facilitate the process of locating experiences within the organization. KMaps supports effective communication among employees (Lee Fink, 2013). KMapping in SunPower Corporation, requires development of prototypes that matches the requirements of the software available in the organization. Implementing a knowledge strategy should be based on an established road map of the organizational knowledge to enable the organization to achieve its strategic goals. The KS should consider all of the organizational operations, including, knowledge creation, transfer and application in order to create an organizational competitive advantage. Different aspects to be considered in formulating the knowledge management strategy include, structure, the prevailing type of knowledge, culture and the employee behavior. The environmental aspects also should be considered (Donate Canales, 2012). Accordingly, the project is limited to apply the required tools that can effectively fulfill the company goals within the planned strategy. Conclusion: Business intelligence (BI) is widely used within organizations nowadays, it is mainly used to combine data, storage and knowledge management. The fast development of IT resulted in producing decision support systems (DSS) that enables the managers to solve decision problems. The SunPower corporation needs to realize the importance of operating BI, DSS and the KM applications within its business to support the decision making process. Knowledge based systems are used by organizations to provide better knowledge processing, it enables managers to better understand the problem and gain new knowledge. SunPower Corporation can use different BI tools, systems and information intelligence approaches to simulate its decisions from various functional areas. Organizations need to share knowledge to add value. BI assists in the knowledge sharing process among employees within the organization. From the economic perspective, knowledge sharing is considered a source of organizational power. KMapping is considered a new approach to knowledge management. The KMaps are used to discover the sources of knowledge, either explicit or tacit. KMapping in SunPower Corporation, requires development of prototypes that matches the requirements of the software available in the organization. References Ahmad, A 2015, Business intelligence for sustainable competitive advantage, In Sustaining competitive advantage via business intelligence, knowledge management, and system dynamics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp.3-220. Bakhrankova, K 2010, Decision support system for continuous production, Industrial Management Data Systems, 110(4), pp.591-610. Baldwin, J, Allen, P Ridgway, K 2010, An evolutionary complex systems decision support tool for the management of operations, International Journal of Operations Production Management, 30(7), pp.700-20. Donate, M Canales, I 2012, A new approach to the concept of knowledge strategy, Journal of Knowledge Management, 16(1), pp.22-44. Eidizadeh, R, Salehzadeh, R Chitsaz, A 2017, Analysing the role of business intelligence, knowledge sharing and organisational innovation on gaining competitive advantage, Journal of Workplace Learning, 29(4), pp.250-67. Harrison, R, Parker, A, Brosas, G, Chiong, R, Tian, X 2015, The role of technology in the management and exploitation of internal business intelligence, Journal of Systems and Information Technology, 17(3), pp.247-62. Kumar, N Islam, A 2014, Knowledge management implementation in a library: Mapping tools and technologies to phases of the KM cycle, VINE, 44(3), pp.322-44. Lee, J Fink, D 2013, Knowledge mapping: encouragements and impediments to adoption, Journal of Knowledge Management, 17(1), pp.16-28. Liu, S, Delibasic, B, Butel, L Han, X 2017, Sustainable knowledge-based decision Sustainable knowledge-based decision, Industrial Management Data Systems, 117(7), pp.1318-22. Rouhani, S, Ashrafi, A, Zare, A Afshari, S 2016, The impact model of business intelligence on decision support and organizational benefits, Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 29(1), pp.19-50.

the means of communication Essays - Facebook, Internet Privacy

Experts estimate that many people now spend at least 50 percent of their waking time online (Fabian, 2008). For many, a large part of this time is spent in social networking sites like Facebook. People give up huge parts of their privacy when they post their feelings, interests, and ideas online, and society seems to be becoming much more open to this lack of privacy, in fact, the users of Facebook seem to relish it, adding very personal items to their profiles that anyone who becomes their friend can view. This seems to say that our society is much more open now, and much more open to posting intimate information online, but it also is rather anonymous in a way, because users never see, meet, or touch the person they communicate with, and so, even though they know intimate details, they do not really know the person at all. Writer Fabian continues, "Facebook and My Space are virtual experiences. People are free to be someone they aren't. Peer review doesn't exist. You don't literall y touch anyone--not even by a smile, to say nothing of a handshake. No one is accountable to anyone else. And so forth" (Fabian, 2008). Thus, Facebook is kind of a "fantasy land" where people can make up anything they want to command attention, they can live an alternative life if they choose, and no one is the wiser. The fact that people accept these profiles at face value, and choose people as friends based on these profiles says a lot about our society. For all our worries about information and identity theft, people are still seemingly naive when it comes to sites like Facebook, where they post intimate details with no thoughts to the consequences. In conclusion, Facebook on the surface is a socially acceptable networking site for college students and others to connect, share experiences, and meet old friends. It does say some disturbing things about how our society views privacy, personal information, and how our society is adjusting to the age of technology, and it brings into question what a generation of Facebookers will deal with the challenges of the real world in person, like career, family, and success. Keywords. Facebook, social networking, MySpace, personal profile, Freshman Facebook, interpersonal skills, communication, online marketing, personal privacy, virtual communities. Facebook opens up other questions ab

A Comparison of the Prince and the Analects Essays

A Comparison of the Prince and the Analects Essays A Comparison of the Prince and the Analects Essay A Comparison of the Prince and the Analects Essay Essay Topic: The Prince The Prince or The Analects By Rory Steuart Comparing the The Analects (confucious) with the Prince (Machiavelli) is something like comparing George bush and Elizabeth May of the green party. Basically the wrtitings of The Analects totally disagrees with the writings of The Prince. Confucius believes people are easily improved and taught through self promotion and development, Machaveli however sees humanity in a much different light. Machiavelli was an innovator of realism politics and believed that people of power should conduct themselves as tyrants. Machiavelli and Confucius are from totally different time periods and different places in the world. Which could possibly be the reason The Analects and The Prince are so very different(yet both lived in times of war). Machiavelli’s short Bio Niccolo Machiavelli was an Italian state politician and well-known person of the Renaissance. Machiavelli was born on May 3rd, 1469. His father was Bernardo di Niccoli who came from an impoverished part of Florentine, there is little recorded about Machiavelli’s father. Machiavelli lived in Florence at a time of constant war and endangerment of other forces such as France, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire all of which had an interest in Italy (quite possibly the main reason for Machiavelli’s philosophy). Machivelli was a major player in military dealings he had many diplomatic assignments. He met with the likes of Ferdinand II of Aragon, in Spain and to the Papacy in Rome, in the Italian states. Machiavelli examined Duke Cesare Borgia(son of the pope Alexander VI) who was a very important figure in the The Prince. From 1503 to 1509 Machiavelli controlled the militia of Florentine and was responsible for the cities defense. By 1512 the medici had regained control of Florence and decided to expel Machiavelli from office. In 1513, Machavelli was accused of conspiracy, while being contained Machiavelli was tortured but still had nothing to say. Machiavelli was released and retired back to Florence where he then wrote the Prince. Confucius shot Bio Confucius was given the name Kung Fu-tzu which means Great Master Kung. Confucius is believed to have been born either in 551 BC or 552 BC. Confucius father died when he was only three years old so his mother raised him. After the death of his father Confucius and his mother were forced to live in poverty. Confucius was a police chief in the city of Lu where he made many diplomatic arrangements. Confucius dedicated most of the rest of his life towards teaching and he died in Lu in 479 BC. The most thorough usual account of Confuciuss life is contained in the Records of the Historian by Ssu-ma Chien, many people believe this is fake nonetheless it is the closest to a biography of Confucius as you can get. Family Machiavelli does not discuss the thoroughly the importance of family very much in the Prince. However in the very first chapter Machiavelli proclaims that it is much easier to control a hereditary princedom than one that is created or passed over. Confucius was man who believed that a strong family was the key having a strong society. Confucius sees the family as the beginning and the place where great men are brought up in families with good relationships. Confucius also believed that the best teacher is usually a parent. Confucius believed that even if a person was not born smart they could still be taught the more important virtues of respect, loyalty, obedience, humility, trustworthiness and you guessed it love of ones parents. A great deal of importance was concentrated on loving and learning from your parents. War and aggression Since Machiavelli ponders so much on the importance of a strong army and strong defense I will focus much of Machiavelli’s portion of the essay on war and aggression. In the Prince Machiavelli has a win at all costs notion on war, being wicked and immoral are strategies. Machiavelli believed that a Prince should concentrate on being feared before being loved. A prince has land that is always in danger of invasion from others, for this reason Machiavelli believes that a prince should worry about himself and have very little worry for others. A prince has plenty to worry about during times of war and everyone is out to get you so you must be greedy and heinous in times of war. The prince declares that the nation state comes first before individuals. A strong prince can encounter any enemy in war. The prince proclaims a ruler must not depend on fortifications. A ruler who can’t create a fearsome army and relies only on defense is not a strong ruler. Machiavelli does focus a lot on the importance of having a city that is unable to be taken by siege, but if you must be able to raise your own army to go on the attack. Therefore a Prince must have a heavily fortified city and be able to deploy an army of his own. Machiavelli believes that the foundation of a strong Nation State is a strong army. According to The prince the most important part of being a leader is studying the art of war. Staying in power is a main point in the prince and to stay in power a Prince must conduct a strong army. The Prince proclaims not only do you need a strong army but also you need to be in total control of that army. â€Å"Prince ought to have no other aim or thought, nor select anything else for his study, than war and its rules and discipline; for this is the sole art that belongs to him who rules, and it is of such force that it not only upholds those who are born princes, but it often enables men to rise from a private station to that rank† (The Prince nline-literature. com/machiavelli/prince/14/ chapter 14). Even in times of peace a prince must be ready for enemy attacks and more importantly to continually consider the possibility of war. It is obvious that the Prince concentrates a large portion of the book war and author Machiavelli thinks it is the main point of being a political leader. The Prince conveys an almost evil war-mongering ideal to the reader of what a ruler should be. The Analects actually disagrees with The Prince almost totally, the Analects preach that there is no need for war and that peace is the answer. An oppressive government is fiercer and more feared than a tiger† (The Analects). The Analects preach to do what is right and not what gives you an advantage (total opposite of the Prince). Oddly enough like Machiavelli, Confucius was also lived in a time of constant war yet he decided to look at this violence from a different approach. Money and Private Property The prince declares that more importantly than money and other luxuries is political knowledge. Since the prince approaches this all topics as a leader the Prince is concerned mainly with principalities and luxuries. The prince inquires that Property and possessions are necessary for the structure of a successful society. Machiavelli believed property of land makes sure the land will be productive and all people are using land efficiently. The prince states there are only principalities and republics. As a principality the ruler usually gains leadership through hereditary selection. In these cases a Prince should be getting the most productivity from the land. The prince supports tyranny with this comes certain amount greed. The prince states that a ruler must be greedy because if a ruler is too generous with his wealth then his subjects will intend to take advantage of his generosity. Therefore princes must not be too gluttonous but at the same time not be taken advantage of by their peers. Machiavelli insists, â€Å"except to his cost, if he is wise he ought not to fear the reputation of being mean† (chapter 16 The Prince). What this can be translated to is that you cannot get caught up on being loved for generosity instead you must try to deflect hatred from accounting your money. In times of war it is important to have a surplus of goods and money so you do not have to tax your own people. â€Å"In a country Well governed Poverty is something to be ashamed of, in a poorly governed country wealth is something to be a shamed of( rightwords. eu /quotes/author/Confucius39/poverty- 140). The Analects support this very much so in many instances Confucius points out the obvious reasons for poverty. In the Analects it is depicted that the honorable man will concentrate himself on mortality before thinking about poverty, money or profit. The Analects constantly preaches the importance of Mortality and the art of being a gentleman are much more important than being rich in money and other luxuries. Law Authority and Government Machiavelli was an autocrat ruler or at least he was in his writings citing that republics can be easily broken up. Machiavelli strongly believed in principalities for many reasons although he does allow some exception where they can be problematic. The Prince states those principalities, which are passed down hereditarily, are easily entered into. On the other hand principalities taken by force are subject to fall due to the ways the ruler went about taking control of the principality. Machiavelli states a prince must be seen as gracious, and religious, but he must only seem to have these qualities (chapter 15). Princes must only be perceived to have these qualities for a prince will need to act in the opposite manner of these traits in order to keep his power. â€Å"The answer is that one would like to be both the one and the other; but because it is difficult to combine them, it is far safer to be feared than loved if you cannot be both†(The Prince Chapter 17). Once again a very important point that leadership inquires you is powerful. Confucius was extremely adamant on teaching â€Å"The Way† and even thought that the Government should follow this philosophy. â€Å"The good ruler is obeyed even though he doesnt give orders, while the bad ruler is not, even though he does. How can we know what to obey, if the good ruler doesnt give orders? But we already know what is good, and if we do that, we are obeying the good ruler. The bad ruler simply wants things for himself. There is no eason why we should do that, if we can help it† ( friesian. com/confuciu. htm). The differences in how The Prince says a ruler should be and the Analects are actually humorous how different these schools of thought really are. Leading by example is a reoccurring ideology in the Analects. A person in power is to govern his or her people by example and not by force. Governing by laws and punishments does not cultivate the virtue of the people. â€Å"Go verning by moral force and ritual and good manners does† ( friesian. om/confuciu. htm). The analects does not much talk about the importance of laws and more on the importance of being a superior man. In being a superior man a person of power must be loved and teach his people instead of keeping them in fear. Conclusion In the introduction it was stated that Machiavelli’s the Prince and Confucius Analects were almost complete opposites. On just about every topic the two schools of thought contradict each other. When it comes to family the Prince basically only mentions family if it concerns politics. For example Machiavelli talks a lot about differences between hereditarily owned principalities and ones taken by force. Confucius on the other hand basically speaks on family and especially parents are the building blocks to a person’s life. As for war these to again have totally different ideologies the Prince says a ruler should always study war. On the other hand The Analects preach that a ruler who has to rule with fear and is impart of a lot of wars they have already failed as a ruler. As for fortune Machiavelli saw this as very important and believed a ruler should be very greedy and save his fortune for times where it is needed. Confucius did not see the importance of money or luxury and believed practicing being a gentleman or wise man was much more important. The Prince believes in a realist government that believes in keeping fear in its people and keeping absolute power. Confucius again is much more concerned with having a government that leads its people by example and attempts to improve life. These two obviously cannot agree on anything

Ten top writing tips for scientists - Emphasis

Ten top writing tips for scientists Ten top writing tips for scientists Ask most scientists, engineers and technologists why they got into the profession and theyre unlikely to say it was because they love writing. But love it or hate it, writing is an essential part of a scientific career. Report writing skills are crucial to communicating your research, ideas and recommendations. Losing the gems of months of research in confusing, convoluted prose helps neither you nor your readers. The way you write can be more important than what you write. An instantly readable report will usually have more impact than one that is difficult to decipher. Science doesnt exist in a vacuum. So if you cannot communicate effectively to colleagues and the general public, your work is likely to be perceived as less important. In fact, if you cant communicate what you do, you could argue that you might as well not do it in the first place. Here are some top tips and techniques that can transform your written work: 1. Ask the right questions Powerful writing starts from an ordered, clear structure. Begin ordering your ideas by asking yourself the questions: what? where? when? how? why? and who? When you know what you want to communicate, and why, you can then lay out your core idea first, and expand on it in the rest of the document. Always make sure you ask yourself the exact purpose of what you are writing. When you have a clear intent, you have a much better chance of crafting an effective document. 2. Use jargon with care Abbreviations are a great shortcut when you and your reader speak a common language. But dont forget that there may be acronyms and abbreviations that people outside your organisation or area of expertise just wouldnt know. This doesnt mean that you have to avoid jargon at all costs. Just be aware of your readers knowledge and choose the words and phrases that you are certain they will understand. Most people overestimate how much their readers know and bombard them with too many technical words and phrases. 3. Focus on your reader Do your readers really know everything about thermodynamics or mass transfer? Or are they more concerned with how the science affects their environment, a product or the companys bottom line? Ask yourself the following questions so that you can tailor your information to your reader. Who will read the document? How much experience do they have of the subject? How much do they know about it? What is their likely attitude towards it? How involved in the subject are they? How interested are they in the subject? 4. Dont show off In academia, the more knowledge, information and argument you display, the higher the marks. In the outside world, only the most significant information is necessary. Summarising a wealth of related issues may at first appear to cement your expert status, but it doesnt help your reader. Managers often have several reports to read each day, so focus on becoming a solution provider. 5. Create a compelling opening paragraph Research has shown that when it comes to focus, people remember the beginning and end of something, plus a high point in the middle. This is as true for reports as it is for holidays or feature films. So make sure that your conclusions and recommendations are in the summary. If you bury your recommendations in the middle, theres no guarantee that your readers will get that far. 6. Be confident Say what you really mean and your readers will thank you for it. It can be a little disconcerting to write clearly and in plain English, especially if you come from an organisation that doesnt encourage having a definitive viewpoint. But it will help you to become recognised as a thought leader and means that your work reaches a much wider audience. 7. Learn how to KISS Keep it short and simple. Avoid long, flowery phrases and make sure your sentences contain a maximum of 15 to 20 words. Presenting information in short, manageable chunks also helps you to keep the reader with you, so stick to the principle of one idea per sentence. To paraphrase Einstein: make things as simple as they are but no simpler. 8. Get active Where possible, use the active voice rather than the passive one. Instead of writing, the reactions of various metals were tested, write we tested the reactions of various metals. Adding in the word we makes the document more personal. Dont be afraid to use the word you when writing reports for non-scientists. The idea is to engage the reader and active, personal language does just that. 9. Check for errors Always proofread carefully by printing out your document and combing through it word for word. You cannot rely on your spellchecker to know the difference between palate and pallet, especially if you have it on the automated setting. Print it out first. And if possible, put your work aside for a day and come back to it with fresh eyes. Its likely that any errors will jump out at you more easily. Also check for punctuation and make sure that your structure is as effective as it can be. 10. Use a style guide Grab a free copy of our new The Write Stuff (third edition) to help you with the writing process. This 60-page style guide contains the very essence of good writing. Request a copy here. How Emphasis helped scientists to write more clearly One of Europes leading pharmaceutical companies asked Emphasis to improve its scientists report writing skills. The problem? Many of their written reports were failing to communicate the results of their research and development work in a clear and concise way. The training programme changed how the scientists approach, plan and structure their reports. Before the training programme, most people saw writing as an irritating distraction from their research and their reports had to be heavily edited. Now, there are fewer amendments, the medical director explains. This has reinforced the lessons learned during the training, creating a positive cycle that has, in turn, promoted better writing throughout the company.

FINAL PAPER Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

FINAL PAPER - Essay Example The wings of the eagle are spread; as if the eagle is in flight or about to take flight. A pillow attached to a wooden stick juts out at the bottom of the painting. It seems that the eagle is carrying the pillow as it is about to fly. The pillow is divided into two halves because of the way it is hung on a piece of thread (Kleiner, 2014). The different elements of the painting do not form a whole but rather seem like disjointed elements in the entire painting. Rauschenberg has mainly used earthy tones in this painting. The use of bright colors in the painting is limited to just the upper central part and even those colors are not very bright. The predominant colors in the artwork are brown and black. The entire combine has a very rough feel to it. It reminds viewers of Dadaism where the objective was not to please the viewer but rather to bring attention to the art piece. Even in this case, the artwork does not appear aesthetically pleasing to the eye. It consists of different elements that do not make sense to the ordinary viewer. Only people with an art background would be likely to understand the significance of the artwork. This artwork tries to capture the essence of Rembrandts painting, The Rape of Ganymede. The dangling pillow is meant to be the buttocks of the child who was being carried out by the eagle. In terms of texture, Rauschenberg has introduced many different textures in the painting. These include the blobs of paint, the eagle and the dangling pillow. Each has a different texture to it and combined, they create a rough texture. It is the use of the different textures that makes the artwork so appealing. The textures tempt the viewers to consider the artwork closely and even touch it to understand the feel of it. In terms of color, the artwork gives off a very gloomy effect. The predominant colors used in the combine are brown and black. The rest of the colors are earthy colors. The

5 Business Projects Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

5 Business Projects - Term Paper Example The plaintiff upon receiving the note from the defendant did not send back any response but commenced work the next day by buying lumber necessary for completion of the defendants work. A second note was sent by the defendants countermanding the first note but was not forwarded before the plaintiff started work. The lower court decided that it was the plaintiff’s duty to go down to the defendants premises and commence work as a sign of acceptance and that the plaintiff was not obliged to expressly accept the offer by making either a written or verbal communication to the defendant and that his action to buy lumber for the work would suffice as an acceptance. The defendants were seeking an appeal on this ruling arguing that the plaintiff was obliged to communicate his acceptance before commencing work. They also argued that the note instructing the plaintiff to start work was a proposition rather than an agreement and that it should have been accepted by the plaintiff before either party could be bound by a contract. The appellate court ruled in favour of the defendant on the basis that any offer has to be accepted by an appropriate act. The plaintiff had to communicate to the defendant in a reasonable manner. According to the court, a mental determination which has not been spoken or an outright act to the other party should not be taken as acceptance binding the parties to a contract. Purchasing lumber was a normal routine by the plaintiff and did not communicate to the defendant of his acceptance thus such an act should not by itself be taken as an indication of acceptance. Plaintiff Parker, also well known as Shirley MacLaine Parker, contracted with the defendant, Twentieth Century Fox, to play the female lead in Fox’s planned musical motion picture â€Å"Bloomer Girl.† which would have fetched the plaintiff a total of $750,000. The defendant repudiated the contract before the commencement of the filming and decided not to go on with the filming

A critique on Teaching mathematics Essay Example for Free

A critique on Teaching mathematics Essay Graduate students who take up mathematics are burdened not only with the passion to obtain a deeper understanding and mastery of the subject but also with the responsibility to impart the knowledge they gain in their studies. It is acknowledged that there are only a few individuals who decide to pursue a degree in mathematics much less to attain a master’s degree or even doctorate in the field. It is clear, then, that the professors of mathematics undergraduate student are handled and taught by mathematicians who have obtained a higher educational degree in mathematics. Friedberg (2005) endeavors to present ways through which mathematics graduate students can be made better teachers during their training and learning in graduate school. The importance of such a feat are also presented in the article. The audience of the article is the mathematics community specifically the administrative staff in mathematics departments everywhere. Friedberg (2005) aims to provide an alternative to the present teaching curricula in mathematics education. He hopes to supplement the status quo with innovative teaching strategies that will develop the mathematics graduate students’ skills in teaching and handling undergraduate mathematics students. The article effectively presented the subject matter at hand in a readable manner. Anyone reading could easily relate to the document. Friedberg (2005) was also able to pinpoint the audience he was addressing in the article. This was effective in bringing his point across and establishing his goals with the article. However, the content and organization of the article, itself, is not as strong as it could be. A better organization of arguments could have made it a stronger article. Article summary Friedberg (2005) noted that mathematics graduate students could develop better teaching skills by having activities called case studies. These case studies were aimed at enhancing two factors that contributed to better teaching skills: experience and good judgment. Case studies were described by Friedberg (2005) as group discussions on â€Å"depictions of aspects of teaching math to undergraduates, typically involving a difficulty or an important decision† (Friedberg, 2005, 844) Qualified individuals were assigned to act as moderators in the said discussions. The success of the activity was reported by the author, who was also the one to conceptualize and develop the process. Statements given by students attesting to the effectiveness of case studies were also included in the article. Friedberg (2005) also relates the success of the teaching strategy by noting that the materials and case discussions he and his team have come up with have already been published and are already being used in different institutions for varied purposes. Dissecting the article Friedberg (2005) was very effective in his use of simple and everyday language to present his points regarding mathematics graduate students and their teaching skills. The manner of presentation of the text was straightforward, uncomplicated, jargon-free. When a reader goes through all six pages of text, he or she will be able to easily understand everything. This is mostly because of the language used by Friedberg. The article’s target audience was also effectively identified even on the very first page of the article. â€Å"The topic of this article should thus be of genuine importance to the entire math community. † (Friedberg, 2005, 842) From this one line found on the first page, it is clear that the author has already pinpointed the audience for whom he intended the article. Knowing who the author is â€Å"talking to† is a very important factor that increases the value of the article. When the author has a clear idea who he intends the article for, he is able to narrow his discussion down to tailor-fit that particular audience. There are, therefore, a number of things that may be edited out of the article already. The value of the article thus increases for that target population because the arguments and points contained therein are meant for them specifically. In writing the article, the author was also able to focus himself on concepts that would be most pertinent and relevant to his identified audience. Thus the Friedberg (2005) article is suited for the mathematics community and as such it will have the greatest value for that particular subgroup. Despite the positive factors regarding the article, the organization of the author’s points was not well thought out. Friedberg (2005) tended to expound too much on certain topics that were not as necessary in driving home his point about case studies being effective teaching tools. For example, too much attention was given to teaching assistants and certain characteristics of that subgroup. Although the topic is related to the article’s main concern, its weight in the overall impact of the article should have been taken into consideration and the amount of time spent expounding that point should have been adjusted accordingly. Conclusion Over-all, the article was effective in presenting the use of case studies as a tool for developing the teaching skills of mathematics graduate students. However, the arguments would have been more powerful if the author had given more thought to the organization of the article’s main points. Reference Friedberg, S. (2005). Teaching mathematics graduate students how to teach. Notice of the AMS, 52(8), 842-847.

Comparing the Dominant and Feminist Readings of Shakespeares King Lear

Comparing the Dominant and Feminist Readings of King Lear      Ã‚   Shakespeare's King Lear has been the source of much contention as to the way in which the text can be read. The play originally was written for the Jacobean audience of Shakespeare's time, but since then has taken on many other readings. These new readings are produced to comment on issues in the society in which it is explored. Readings encompass a wide range of ideas - from the Dominant reading, the manner in which Shakespeare's audience would have perceived the text, to feminist ideals. The various readings are influenced by the context in which they are discussed. In particular the dominant and feminist readings of King Lear both perceive the text in different contexts; the dominant following the traditional Jacobean interpretation as it was originally written, and the feminist reading pursuing a need for the lack of a patriarchal society in the twentieth century. King Lear can be read in a variety of ways, achieving a set perspective that suits the reader.    The Jacobean reading of King Lear focuses the blame for chaos and the subsequent tragedies on Lear's foolish decision to divide his kingdom between his three daughters. Though the play is set in pre-Christian times, Shakespeare's audience was greatly influenced by Elizabethan structure and hierarchy. According to the Great Chain of Being, God was the head of the universe, and the King was established as Gods connection to people. Lear's choice of abdication would have been viewed as blasphemy towards God. The audience would now perceive Lear's tragedy as inevitable due to his decisions. The play `King Lear' can be viewed as an expression of the Jacobean period concept of so... ... focuses on Lear's downfall and the pity we feel for Lear. The feminist reading of King Lear focuses on how the portrayal of women in the play is of a negative aspect and displays women as unfit for any role of leadership, else chaos ensues. The film A Thousand Miles shows how King Lear can be interpreted as a feminist reading in a contemporary setting, revealing the text King Lear in an entirely new light - women portrayed as the victims of men. King Lear can indeed be read in a variety of ways.    Works Cited Frey, C.   Experiencing Shakespeare.   Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1988. Granville-Barker, H.   Prefaces to Shakespeare.   London: B.T. Batsford INC, 1984. Halio, J.   The Tragedy of King Lear.   Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.   Thompson, A.   King Lear Criticism.   NJ: Humanities Press International, 1988.

Copying Morality? Essay

Software piracy and illegal file shares is becoming a bigger issue in modern day society, more likely with the youth of society. All computers now come with burn-ware technologies in which the user can take a product and create copies of that software. Originally, this process was created in order to provide methods of backing up a person’s computer files, in case of hardware crashing and system reboots. However, the situation has changed. People are now able to copy any type of media file (DVDs, CDs, operation systems, etc) and give out these products, free of charge. Do you like that CD that your friend bought the other day? Ask him to burn you a copy, then you can have it too. Did your latest version of Microsoft Windows crash on you and you don’t have the recovery discs? No problem. Get a friend to burn you a copy of their recovery discs. And what’s the best thing about these transactions? You don’t have to pay for anything! Broke college students rejoice! In Bernard Gert’s essay, Is it Moral to Make Copies of Software for my Friends? ,the ethics of this trend are discussed. What are the ethical guidelines when it comes to computers? Is it acceptable to copy software? Gert’s conclusion is that it is not morally acceptable to copy software, no matter who the software is for and regardless if it is free of charge. It is an illegal action, as there are laws against such activity, and therefore it is unacceptable to partake in such action. Although still possible to perform while still illegal, this doesn’t mean that it is acceptable. A law cannot be broken just because someone has the means of doing so. Gert first explains the ethics of breaking the law. He states that â€Å"one cannot limit the subject matter of the law to a particular law one dislikes. † He uses the example of smoking by minors to back up this argument. The law is that you must be 18 years old in order to buy cigarettes. However, minors cannot just go out and buy cigarettes and smoke because they dislike the law. It’s still a law; not liking the law isn’t a justifiable reason to try and break it. The only time that it is acceptable to break a law is in the situation in which the law is unjust. If a law is unjust and has a negative effect on society, then it should not be a law in the first place, thus making it acceptable if the law is to be broken because eventually, this will cause the law to be overturned. However, current software copying laws are not unjust, and if they are to be considered unjust, there is no clear and valid reason of why they are unjust. Copying laws are not morally unacceptable, making it unacceptable to break these laws. Gerts compares this issue to speed limits. Speed limits are the accepted law of whatever state they are set in. These speed limits are not hurting society and are morally acceptable within the community. Because of this, it is looked down upon when a driver breaks the speed limit, becoming so unacceptable that legal action can take place. Speed limits are not suggestions, they are laws. These laws are in no violation of morality and therefore they must be followed. Gert also believes that it is not acceptable to break a law in the event that one thinks that some other law would be better. If society allows violation of the current law due to the fact the society is in favor of other laws that are not passed, then it becomes acceptable for everyone to break every law. If everyone has this mentality, then law becomes obsolete. Why even bother having any laws if everyone feels that they can break them because they don’t agree with them? Gert believes that this mentality will lead into anarchy. As for software laws, Gert believes that because these laws are not unjust and are not causing any harm, it is not morally acceptable for anyone to be breaking the law. He claims that he does not know enough about the current laws to admit that there may be other more suitable and better laws that for this issue. However, that does not mean that software copying shouldn’t be illegal or have penalties. Gert states that illegally copying software cannot be described solely based on the â€Å"morally relevant issues, as it brings in one’s biases with regard to software†. People may only see it as doing a favor for a friend when they copy software. How can an act with good intentions possibly be immoral? According to Gert, it doesn’t matter of what the intentions were; motives don’t determine the morality of an action. In conclusion, for these reasons, Gert determines that copying software is not morally acceptable. II. Evaluation According to Gert, it doesn’t matter of what the intentions were; motives don’t determine the morality of an action. Here, I find myself agreeing with Gert. Just because you have good intentions, it doesn’t mean that it’s acceptable to violate the law. Hitler had good intentions, didn’t he? He wanted to cleanse his country and make his country better for the people he deemed valuable. Sure, he killed millions of people, but the good intent was there, right? Wrong. His intentions do not justify anything that he did. A person could justify burning software by saying that he is doing it to help out his friend, but his good intentions mean nothing. He still did something that was against the law, and therefore it is wrong. The second and last thing that I agree with Gert about is that it normally should not be acceptable for a person to break the law. The only time it is permissible is when the law is an unjust one that brings more harm than good to society. In America’s early years, did the settlers not eventually find King George’s rule to be unjust? Did we not find his laws and policies unbearable? Did we not oppose them and fight them? America was born by breaking the law! And this is acceptable! Why? Because it was against injustice. The only time a law can be broken is when it is unjust. We, as Americans, cannot argue with this. However, are piracy laws unjust? Gert certainly doesn’t think so. I’m not sure if I agree with him. A weakness that Gert has is that he admits that he does not know much about the piracy laws. He knows that there are laws making copying illegal, however, he does not explain them because he does not know enough about them to do so. It makes me wonder â€Å"if you don’t know everything about your subject, then why are making such an effort to persaude me to believe your opinion? † He loses credibility and this hurts him. If you are going to argue a viewpoint, I would prefer that the person pleading his case knows a lot about the subject matter. To be honest, I don’t think Gert knows a lot about the situation. He rarely actually talks about the core subject: copying software. Instead, he talks about the morality of breaking the law in general. He just happens to throw software piracy in there to add another example of the morality of breaking the law. This severely hurts his thesis and essay in general. Another weakness in this paper is the ‘slippery slope’ argument that he makes about breaking laws in favor for other laws. He claims that this will lead to anarachy. If people don’t want to obey the law because they think some other law would be better, how will this lead to anarchy? Couldn’t it be possible that it will just lead to the replacement of laws? If there is such replacement, how will it lead to chaotic anarachy? He does not explain why such a process will lead to anarachy; he just states that it will lead to it. Not only is his argument flawed, there is a flaw within the flaw. He can’t even explain his wrong reasoning. But then again, maybe that is the whole point of illogical reasoning: there is no logical reasoning! A final weakness that I found a couple of times in Gert’s essay is that he uses some faulty analogies. He compares software laws to speeding laws and drinking laws, among other breif examples. He uses these examples in his arguments about the morality of breaking the law. If one does not agree with the speed limits, he is not obligated to break them simply because he does not like them. If an 18 year old wants to drink when the legal drinking age is 21, he cannot do so just because he doesn’t agree with the law. Thus, if a person wants to copy a CD for their friend and it is illegal, he cannot do so. I don’t believe that piracy laws fall in the same field as speed limits and underage drinking. I think those problems impact society much more than a burned copy of Blue Oyster Cult’s â€Å"Don’t Fear the Reaper†. These are just different situations and they shouldn’t be compared on the same level. So it is morally acceptable to copy software for my friends? I personally believe so for a couple of reasons. I am guilty of illegally copying music and movies, and I see nothing wrong with anything that I have done. I’m a criminal justice major and I understand the piracy laws. I still see nothing wrong with it. If burning a CD or a DVD is so morally wrong, then why do stores provide the means of doing so? Stores sell burnable discs in which you can copy anything onto them. How can anyone be expected NOT to burn software or a CD? These discs aren’t illegal, but the act of copying is illegal. Yes, I understand that the original purpose of these rewritable CDs and DVDs were to be storage devices for personal work, but the times have changes as the technology has evolved. Do not provide the means of a crime if you do not want the crime to happen. I’m positive that the main reason why people burn software is because of the money involved. Downloading something is free. If I have a free option, then why should I bother buying something? If I only like one song on a CD, why should I have to shell out twenty-five dollars to buy the whole thing? CDs only cost companies ten cents to burn, and an additional two dollars for the packaging. I understand that there are labor fees to be paid as well, but why does the media industry have to charge their consumers, their lifeblood, these ridiculous prices? My laptop crashed recently. Nowadays, laptops are being sold with the software already installed onto the hard drive. This has added a hidden cost to the overall cost of the laptop. Along with this, no discs are provided. You’re paying for software that you have no legal copy for. When your laptop crashes, you no longer have the software. So when my laptop crashed, resulting in me buying a new hard drive, what did the technical support people tell me to do? They told me that I had to buy the operating system separately. It was an annoyance to do so, but it was an option. Do you know how much Windows Vista goes for? Two hundred fifty dollars. Well, there goes that option for this poor college student. My solution to my problem? I found a friend with Vista and I got him to copy the software for me. If the legal copy did not cost so much, I would have purchased it. I think that’s the root problem of this issue. If companies didn’t sell their software at such an absurd price, more people would turn away from illegal means of obtaining said software and actually acquire it legally. I see no problem with downloading software because of this key reason. Illegal copying and downloading of software, music, and movies is just something that isn’t possible to monitor. There are millions of people all over the world doing this. How can officials possible prosecute these people? How can they possibly track them down? Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as email tracking and there is no such thing as download tracking. There is no such technology to know exactly what illegal site someone has been on and downloaded something from. If you take my mp3 player, there is no way that you would be able to tell which songs I purchased and which ones I have illegally downloaded. It is the same situation if you took a look on my computer. Which files were obtained illegally? You’ll never know.

Department store Essay

â€Å"What I Heard at the Discount Department Store† ─David Budbill.  Q: How soon do you understand that a character, other than the poet, speaks this poem? What is her tone and how do you know it? In David Budbill’s poem, â€Å"What I Heard at the Discount Department Store†, it is evident by line six that someone other than the poet speaks this poem. The poem starts off in first person. The character is an angry mother â€Å"dealing† with her young child in a discount department store. Stop it. I mean it. You know I do. If you don’t stop, I’ll give you fucking something to cry about right here and don’t think I won’t either (lines 2-5). This displays how the character which is obviously the mother is speaking and it also displays her anger and frustration. The poem continues on and the point of view changes and as the reader, I became the spectator. â€Å"So she did. She slapped him across the face. / And you could hear the snap of flesh against the flesh†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (6-7). Understanding that both the poet and the character are speaking in this poem occurs early on and it isn’t until the poem redirects back to first person point of view, that it is understood that there are two speakers in this poem. Budbill emphasizes the tone of the mother’s character (anger and frustration) by the words he chose for the mother to say. In line three of the poem she drops her first â€Å"f-bomb† and does so again in line 20, which is  followed by another curse word. â€Å"You can get away with fucking murder there, / but you can’t get away with shit like that with me† (20-21). It is obvious that she is angry by the words she is using with her young child and it is also evident that she is frustrated with her child’s behavior. The mother’s frustration is demonstrated through line 16-21 when she explains how her child is not at school, where she believes him to get away with misbehavior, and that he is now with his mother where no misbehavior is accepted, â€Å"You’re not in school anymore. / You’re with your mother now† (18-19). The tone of the mother’s character is displayed through her choice of words and how she speaks so aggressively to her son.

New York Metropolitan Area Facts

New York Metropolitan Area Facts The New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area is the new official federal government name and definition for the greater New York City metropolitan area. It huge and encompasses thirty counties in the greater New York City region consists of the following Metropolitan and Micropolitan areas: Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT Metropolitan Statistical AreaKingston, NY Metropolitan Statistical AreaNew Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical AreaNew York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metropolitan Statistical AreaPoughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical AreaTorrington, CT Micropolitan Statistical AreaTrenton-Ewing, NJ Metropolitan Statistical Area New York City Region Descriptions Below, you will find descriptions of each of the seven above areas and how they are defined. The Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Fairfield County (including the principal cities of Bridgeport, Stamford, Norwalk, Danbury, and Stratford) The Kingston, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Ulster County. The New Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of New Haven County. The New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of the principal cities of New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Edison, NJ; White Plains, NY; Union, NJ; and Wayne, NJ. Officially, the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area is subdivided into the: Edison, NJ Metropolitan Division (Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Ocean County, and Somerset County)Nassau-Suffolk, NY Metropolitan Division (Nassau County and Suffolk County)Newark-Union, NJ-PA Metropolitan Division (Essex County, NJ; Hunterdon County, NJ; Morris County, NJ; Sussex County, NJ; Union County, NJ; and Pike County, PA)New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division (Bergen County, NJ; Hudson County, NJ; Passaic County, NJ; Bronx County, NY; Kings County, NY; New York County, NY; Putnam County, NY; Queens County, NY; Richmond County, NY; Rockland County, NY; and Westchester County, NY) The Torrington, CT Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Litchfield County. The Trenton-Ewing, NJ Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Mercer County.

Saying Hello in French

Saying Hello in French Greetings are an essential part of French social etiquette. The most important and common greeting is  bonjour, which means hello, good day, or even hi. There are also other ways to say hello or greet someone in French, but its important to understand what greetings are acceptable in various social contexts. Youll also need to familiarize yourself with greetings that are considered informal versus those that you would use in more formal settings. Bonjour- The Most Common Greeting Saying bonjour is the most common way to greet someone in French. Its a flexible, all-purpose term: You use it to greet people in the morning, afternoon, or evening. Bonjour is always polite, and it works in any situation. In France, you need to say  bonjour  when entering a place.  Whether you are talking to a single salesperson  or entering a crowded bakery, greet them by saying  bonjour. For example, if there are a few people sitting at a table you are approaching or several acquaintances are drinking  un expresso  at the bar as you walk up to them,  greet them with a friendly  bonjour.   If you are talking to one person, it is polite in French to use courtesy titles when you say hello, as in:   Bonjour, madame  (Mrs.)Bonjour, monsieur  (Mr.)Bonjour,  mademoiselle  (Miss) Its acceptable to say bonjour by itself- without using courtesy titles- if you are greeting several people, such as when you enter une boulangerie  (a bakery) packed with a line of customers. Bonsoir- The Evening Hello Use bonsoir  to say hello in the evening. Since the  hour that nighttime arrives in France can vary greatly  depending on the season, generally start saying bonsoir around 6 p.m. You can also use bonsoir when you leave- so long as its still evening. Beware of Salut Salut (pronounced with a silent t) is commonly used in France, although it is extremely informal: Its the equivalent of saying hey in English.  Avoid using salut  with people you dont know unless you are a teenager. If you are in doubt, stick with bonjour, which- as noted- is always an acceptable form of greeting. You can also use salut  to say goodbye  in an informal setting among close friends, but there are better ways to  say goodbye in French. Gestures Associated With Bonjour If you say bonjour to a group of strangers- such as when you are  entering a shop- you need not add any gestures, though you may nod your head a bit, and of course smile. If you know the person you are greeting with bonjour, you would either shake his hand- a frank, strong handshake is preferable- or kiss him on the cheek.  Light kisses  (rarely just one kiss on each cheek but usually three or four total) are extremely common in France among friends and acquaintances. Be aware, however, that the  French do not hug  upon greeting each other and saying  bonjour.

AP Art History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

AP Art History - Essay Example However, these little works collected with his notepads, which comprise drawings, methodical diagrams, and his opinions on the nature of painting, encompass an involvement to later generations of artists only matched by that of his fashionable, Michelangelo. Leonardo is inverted to his technical inventiveness as he hypothesized flying machines. Moderately little of his projects were built and some were viable during his life time .Returning to the Guild of St Luke, Leonardo consumed two years while crafting and painting a fresco of the combat of Anghiari for the Signori a as Michelangelo designing its confidant piece (Bambach & Manges, 2003). According to the post, Leonardo’s work is more than what is just represented as most of drawings looks more than just a drawing but supernatural. His intelligence in many fields of study showed how great he was talented. Thus, he remains the most talented and skilled artist to ever

Causality and logical fallacieis in old wives' tales and old farmer's Essay

Causality and logical fallacieis in old wives' tales and old farmer's tales (tales are given) - Essay Example y arise because of observing some instances where they became true, so people shared these stories as facts, and these beliefs are subsequently passed on to others. The flaws in the logical reasoning behind these tales are: first, non sequitur because conclusions about these superstitions do not necessarily follow from the premises; second, hasty generalization because anecdotal evidence does not support the external validity of superstitions; third, confusing cause and effect because factors that happen together are not always related as cause and effect; and fourth, appeal to fear because black cats are related to witchcraft and demons. The old wives’ tale about pregnant women shows non sequitur because the effect of having a child who becomes a musician does not always follow from the practice of listening to music while pregnant. The exact source of this superstition is not well-documented, although some of these stories are likely to come from European countries that are fond of listening to classical music in the past. These mothers might have been incidentally listening to music while pregnant, so when their children became musicians, they immediately attributed the latter’s musician skills to their pregnancy habits. Nevertheless, even if it was true for some mothers, it does not follow, which is non sequitur, that every mother who follows the same practice will also have children with musical skills. Believing in this relationship results to another fallacy called hasty generalization. Even if some pregnant mothers attest that they listened to music regularly while pregnant, and that this practi ce provided musical skills to their children, their small sampling cannot be applied to the entire population of mothers who follow the same habit. It will be hasty generalization to assume that the practice of a small group generates effects that are applicable for the whole population. Anecdotal evidence is not enough to prove the external validity of the

Environmental Problems, Mitigation Measures and Effectiveness Essay

Environmental Problems, Mitigation Measures and Effectiveness - Essay Example The other anthropogenic activity is destruction of the natural environment by unsustainable use of resources, a factor that has also resulted in world climate changes (Dalby, 2002: 44). Atmospheric pollution is the main cause of global warming; it results from the accumulation of carbon IV oxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, trapping heat from the sun in the earth’s atmosphere. Greenhouse gases are by-products of industrial combustion, which means that the extent to which a country contributes to global warming by these gases depends on the level of industrialization; a high level of industrialisation causes increased consumption of fossil fossils. Fossil fuels like natural gas, oil and its products have a high carbon content that is released in huge quantities and at a faster rate than can be sequestered by natural carbon sinks like forests and oceans. In this case, first world nations and rapidly developing third world nations are the main contributing agents to environmental degradation by industrial pollution. On the other hand, environmental degradation can occur due to unsustainable use of natural resources like forests and water bodies; this is a serious problem in developing countries (Adil, 2005: 315). The economies of these countries are primarily agricultural based; the high rate of population growth necessitates high agricultural production for food security. However, deteriorating climatic conditions have reduced the productivity of land in these areas, forcing people to clear more forests for agricultural purposes. Consequently, forests that play a role in precipitation are destroyed, and the areas receive less rainfall; this has a negative effect on agricultural productivity, which forces further clearance of forested areas. This cycle goes on and on until many of productive lands have become barren, especially due to poor farming practices and the dependence on rains for agriculture in these countries. Some of the effects of environmental degradation include loss of biodiversity; decreasing ice coverage on mountain tops and poles that pose a threat to sustenance of the hydrological cycle; and desertification by loss of vegetation cover. Moreover, it causes climatic changes like extreme weather conditions whereby dry areas get drier, hot areas hotter, and wet areas wetter; and a rise in sea level that destroys sceneries and property (Barry and Eckersley, 2005: 255). Based on the economic implications of these changes and their threat to survival of life in the planet, governments and international organisations have taken measures to mitigate the effects of the environmental problems that result from these changes (Carter, 2001: 282). These measures target the two main aspects of environmental degradation including pollution and unsustainable use of resources; there have been some level of success though with some limitations too. This paper discusses the measures taken by governments and internationa l organisations; the extent of success of these interventions; the limitations facing effective implementation of interventions; and the consequences of these measures. Intervention Measures Governments have come up with environmental policies that aim at encouraging adoption of environmentally sustainable approaches by their citizens. For instance,

Advantages of Composite Construction

Advantages of Composite Construction With regards to Civil and Structural Engineering, composite construction typically refers to the use of steel and concrete formed together so that the resulting component behaves as a single element. The aim of composite construction is to utilise the best properties of the different materials and to deliver performance that is greater than had the individual components been used together but not unified. In the case of steel and concrete, the best properties would be the tensile capacity of the steel and the compressive capacity of the concrete. (Nethercot, 2004) Composite construction is an effective method of construction and delivers good performance. The methodology for designing composite structures has been researched in great detail. For these reasons, composite construction is a very popular method of construction around the world. In order for the materials to behave as one element, it is necessary for some method of connecting the two materials. A shear connection between two materials will enable composite action between them. (The Institution of Structural Engineers) 2.1.1 Benefits of Composite Construction The benefits of composite construction include speed of construction, performance and value. Steel framing for a structure can be erected quickly and the pre-fabricated steel floor decks can be put in place immediately. When cured, the concrete provides additional stiffness to the structure. Additionally, the concrete encasement protects the steel from buckling, corrosion and fire. Service integration within the channels on the composite decks is another advantage to composite construction. Building quality standards can be adhered to easily by the use of pre-fabricated decks. Excessive deflections can be controlled by cambering the beams or by shoring the metal decks to limit deflection when concrete is poured. 2.1.2 Codes for the Design of Composite Structures The design of composite structures was governed by the British Standards. BS 5950-3-1 dealt with the design of beams whilst slabs were governed by BS 5950-4. Pre-fabricated decking used with composite structures was governed by BS 5950-6. Since the introduction of the Eurocode set of standards for the European Union, the design of composite structures is standardised by Eurocode 4. (BS EN 1994-1-2) (BCSA; TATA Steel; Steel Construction Institute) 2.1.3 The Principle of Composite Action The principle of Composite Action underpins the use of composite materials in construction. It relates to the interaction of two or more separate elements acting together and contributing together rather than separately. By physically connecting them, the strength of the beams and the resistance to bending, shear and torsion are significantly increased. The Principle of Composite Action is best illustrated as an example. The diagrams below shows two uniform concrete beams placed on top of each other and loaded with a uniformly distributed load. Both beams will resist the load independently and there will be relative movement between them. The bending strength will be the sum of the individual beams contribution. If the beams have width w and height h, the bending strength M will be: However, if the two beams are connected rigidly together by shear connectors and the relative movement between them is eliminated, the width remains w whilst the height becomes 2h. The bending strength M will be: This represents a doubling of the bending strength through the use of composite action. This is the principle behind the use of steel beams with reinforced concrete floor decks. The two are connected by shear connectors. The increase in strength due to composite action can be as much as 20%, resulting in lighter and thinner sections. (TATA Steel) Figure : The differences between identical beams when composite action is utilised. The beam on the left is comprised of two concrete beams that are not connected compositely. When loaded, there is relative slip between the beams. The component beams on the right are rigidly connected together by means of shear connectors. When loaded, there is no slip between the beams and the assemblage behaves as one large beam. Image from TATA Steel. 2.2 Composite Floor Deck Slabs Composite floor decks are comprised of either steel beams or concrete embedded steel beams together with a reinforced concrete slab. The profiled steel formwork that supports the concrete floor during casting is of vital importance as it also provides the shear bond to enable the materials to work compositely. The role that the profiled decking plays in fire resistance will be discussed in more detail in Section 3.3. Composite action is achieved between the beams and slab by the use of shear connectors that will be discussed in Section 2.4 in more detail. (Metal Cladding and Roofing Manufacturers Association, 2003) The profiled steel decking used in the construction of composite floor systems contributes significantly to the ease and speed at which the structure is construction. It acts as both the permanent formwork and contributes to the overall requirement of reinforcement. The performance of the steel decking when exposed to fire needs careful consideration and is dealt with in Section 3.2. Additional reinforcement is positioned in the troughs of the decking to ensure adequate performance in fire. Benefits associated with using profiled steel decking are reduced dimensions and weight of the overall structure. They also provide satisfactory performance in the areas of strength and economic constraints during construction. (Michel Crisinel, 2004) 2.2.1 Types of Composite Slabs The classification of composite slabs depends primarily on the geometry of the steel deck profile used. Shallow decks are classified by depths in the range of 120-200mm whilst deep decks are classified by depths in the range of 200-350mm. (Aida Rodera Garcia) The most common composite slab consists of the profiled steel decking and concrete cast in-situ. Once cured the concrete and decking act compositely. Sufficient interaction between the concrete is achieved by a chemical bond and a mechanical bond facilitated by the shape of the decking. In design, it is common to neglect the contribution from the chemical bond as it is unreliable. There are many different types of profiled decking available and contribute to the classification of the slab. (Nawy, 2008) Pre-cast concrete slabs can also be used to form a composite floor deck system. The slabs must be designed specifically so that they can interact with the beam system in place. The composite action in this case can be achieved by welded shear studs and transverse reinforcement across the floor deck. By utilising pre-cast concrete decks, hollow core slabs can be used. These can reduce the weight of the whole building whilst offering similar performance to solid slabs. Pre-Cast slabs are usually covered by a layer of concrete after installation to produce a more finished and aesthetic result. Figure : Examples of Hollow-Core Slabs The final type of composite floor slab is the Slim Floor. This consists of the supporting steel beam being encased in the concrete with the lower flange of the beam supporting the floor. Diagrams depicting the various composite slab types in use today are shown below. Figure 4: Proprietary Slim Floor System Slimdek- TATA Steel Figure 3: Example of Solid Slab with Topping and Encasement cast In-Situ Proprietary Slim Floor System Slimdek- TATA Steel http://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0143974X99000759-gr5.gif 2.2.2 Design Composite floor decks are comprised of permanent formworks of profiled steel decking. The decking serves to support the concrete during casting and before it has cured sufficiently to support itself. It is important to ensure that after curing sufficient interaction between the concrete and steel has developed so that the assembly behave compositely. The rebar is placed in the steel decking prior to pouring as is a steel mesh that serves to minimise cracking over supports and to increase the fire resistance of the floor deck. Most decks achieve a satisfactory degree of shear connection with the concrete by the presence of embossments and indentations along the profile of the decking. This type of shear connection is known as a shear bond. (Steel Construciton Institute, 1994) The decking also contributes to the stabilisation of the structure against lateral torsional buckling of the steel supporting sections and transfers wind loading forces to the walls and columns. The decking also serves to minimise cracking of the concrete slab during expansion and contraction such as during curing and fire. This will be further discussed in Section 3. (Aida Rodera Garcia) The steel decking is normally in the range of 0.9-1.5mm thick and has a yield strength of 280-350 N/mm2. Higher strength steels may be used if the spans are longer than the norm. Typical spans for a composite floor deck are between 2.7 and 3.6m although longer spans may be achieved by shoring the deck during construction. Galvanisation of the faces of the decking is done to prevent damage to the steel during pouring and in service. 2.2.2.1 Concrete Type Strength Both Normal Weight Concrete (NWC) and Light Weight Concrete (LWC) may be used in composite floor slab construction. The most convenient method for concrete placement is by pump. The concrete type and grade is an important design consideration as it affects the final stiffness of the deck system and the strength of the shear connection. 2.2.2.2 Steel Decking Resistance The elastic moment resistance of the steel decking may be calculated from the effective breadth of the steel elements in compression. Stiffeners are present in the deck design and contribute to increasing the effectiveness of the section. In designing a deck system, moment redistribution is not allowed. This results in an underestimate of the critical load for the decking. (ECCS, 1993) 2.2.2.3 Deflection Deflection limits for a composite slab are generally the span/180. However, by shoring the composite slabs during casting, this can effectively be reduced to zero. Increased deflection limits of span/130 are allowed if pooling of the concrete occurs in the middle of the span after pouring. (ECCS, 1993) 2.2.2.4 Transverse Reinforcement The strength of the concrete should be checked to ensure it is capable of receiving the force transferred from the shear connectors. Where the concrete may be susceptible to cracking, the provision of transverse reinforcement perpendicular to the beam is required. (Aida Rodera Garcia) 2.2.3 Failure The ultimate moment resistance of a composite slab is defined as the point at which less than 2mm of longitudinal slip has occurred between the concrete and the decking. Failure of a composite deck is deemed to have occurred when slip of more than 2mm occurs. Failure most commonly occurs during curing before the concrete has reached its design strength. 2.2.4 Fire Resistance of Composite Sections The minimum slab depth will be determined by the fire insulation requirements and the amount of reinforcement that is necessary to withstand loading at the fire limit state. This will be dealt with in more detail in Chapter 3. 2.3 Composite Beams A composite beam can be structurally described as a T-Beam, with the top flange composed of concrete in compression and the steel section in tension. Forces between the two materials are transferred by shear connectors. The principle of composite action with regards to beams leads to increased strength and stiffness of the system whilst using a smaller steel section. The two main variants of composite beams used today are shown in Figure 6. Beams are usually composed of a UKB or UKC section, partially or fully encased in concrete for strength and fire resistance purposes. (ECCS, 1993) 2.3.1 Design In composite beam design, the steel section is first sized to adequately support all the loads acting on it. No contribution is taken into account from the concrete as it has not gained adequate strength for composite action. A common value for the load applied to the beam from the concrete slab is 0.75kN/m2. Once the loading has been calculated, the beam is designed according to Eurocode 3. The presence of steel decking normal to the steel section provides lateral restraint to the beam. In this case, the beam can reach its full plastic moment. In cases where the presence of steel decking is parallel to the beam, the beam is only laterally restrained at the connections at either end and the buckling resistance of the beam must be calculated based on its effective length. The effective breadth of the concrete flange, taken from the supported slab, is approximated as the span/8 on both sides of the beam. This results in an effective breadth of span/4 for simply supported internal beams. 2.4 Shear Connectors Shear connectors are an essential element of composite construction if it is to perform adequately. The main purpose of the shear connector is to provide longitudinal shear resistance between the materials so that they act compositely and to facilitate the interaction between the different materials and to allow them to act as one. (MCRMA, 2003) The shear connection between steel beams and concrete slabs is typically achieved by headed steel studs, welded to the top flange of the steel beam and subsequently encased in concrete. The performance of the studs depends on their dimensions and the spacing along the flange of the beam. Near supports, where the shear forces are greatest, the spacing is reduced. Shear studs can be welded through steel decking. Welding shear studs to the steel beams has a number of limitations and guidelines. The flange of the steel beam has to be bare and can not contain any contaminants such as intumescient paint used as fire protection or moisture. This method also works best when the thickness of the steel decking is less than 1.25mm. Weather conditions will also affect the use of this method of connection. Excess moisture in the air can result in the finished weld being brittle and prone to sudden failure. Shear connectors can also be placed during production although mistakes in placement can be difficult and costly to correct. The purpose of a shear connector is to primarily resist lateral shear forces and displacement between the beam and concrete slab. However, they are also designed to prevent upward displacement of the slab from the beam as it has a tendency to do. For this reason, the studs are headed to provide vertical resistance to seperation. 2.4.1 Types of Shear Connectors In the past, the most common method of shear connection was a headed stud. As welding is only suitable for decking with a minimum thickness, where the decking is too thin, nailed studs are used instead. The choice of which shear connector is used ultimately depends on the shear resistance required and the grade and strength of concrete used. There are four main types of shear connector in use today. The most common is the headed stud. However, with the advent of thinner composite decks, the use of headed studs is not practical. This had led to the introduction of nailed sheets of shear connectors. The dimensions of the most common stud are 19mm x 125mm and the method of connection to the steel beam is ceramic disk welding. (Aida Rodera Garcia) 2.4.1.1 Headed Studs The most common form of connecting materials compositely is with the use of headed shear studs. The behaviour of headed studs does not vary significantly when concrete properties are changed. Resistance to shear depends on the number of studs used and performance is less that that achieved by more modern shear connectors such as the Perfobondstrip or a welded T-Section. (Zingoni, 2001) The advantages of stud connectors is that the welding process is quick and simple, the placement of the studs does not interfere with the placement of reinforcement within the slab and they provide uniform resistance to shear in all directions normal to the axis of the stud. (Johnson, 2004) 2.4.1.2 Oscillating Perfobondstrip The curved form of an oscillating perfobondstrip provides better force transfer between steel and concrete than a continuous strip. The load capacity of this connector is larger than a headed stud or welded T-Section. This form of connector is most suited to light weight concrete or high strength normal weight concrete. Problems with this form of connection are difficulties in welding the section to the steel beam. (Zingoni, 2001) 2.4.1.3 Continuous Perfobondstrip The continuous perfobondstrip is similar to the oscillating perfobondstrip but achieves lower resistance values in all categories of concrete type and grade used. For this reason it is not as widely used as the oscillating form although welding is easier. 3.3.1.4 Welded T-Section Welded T-Section connectors perform very well in comparison to headed studs and achieve the same load resistance as oscillating perfobondstrip. Load capacity increases when Light Weight Concrete or high strength concrete is used. The strength comparisons of the shear connectors described above are shown in Table 1 below. The results were obtained from Galjaard and Walraven (2001) from tests carried out to Eurocode 4 standards for push-out resistance. It can be seen that large differences in resistance and ductility were observed. (Aida Rodera Garcia) 2.4.2 Shear Connector Design The choice of which shear connector design is open so long as it possesses the ductility and provides the necessary shear and separation resistance to the composite system. Headed studs are the most common form of connection and the design of such will be dealt with in this section. The design of shear connectors and composite slabs is given in Eurocode 4. Partial safety factors (ÃŽÂ ³v) of 1.25 for ultimate, 1.0 for serviceability and 1.0 for fire are specified in the codes. (Steel Construciton Institute, 1994) 2.4.2.1 Spacing The correct placement of studs along the upper flange of the beam is of great importance. It is important that the flange of the beam be clean, dry and free of contaminants such as paint or fire protection material. A number of conditions for the placement of studs are described below. The upper flange thickness may not be less than 40% of the diameter of the headed stud. After pouring, the head of the stud should have a minimum of 20mm cover. The minimum edge spacing of the headed studs is 20mm, to facilitate welding. Transverse spacing of headed studs must be greater than or equal to four times the diameter of the headed stud. Longitudinal spacing of the headed studs must lie between the minimum of five times the diameter of the headed stud and the maximum of 800mm or six times the overall depth of the slab, whichever is smaller. (ECCS, 1993) 2.4.2.2 Resistance of Shear Connectors The failure of a composite floor deck slab and the failure of shear connectors occurs due to either the strength of the concrete being surpassed or the strength of the weld connecting the studs to the flange of the beam failing. Shear connection design resistances are taken as the minimum of either the concrete or the headed stud. The equations for the design resistance of the concrete and the headed stud are given below. Where: d is the diameter of the headed stud. The ultimate tensile strength (fu) is most commonly 450N/mm2 and should not exceed 500N/mm2. The characteristic cylinder strength of the concrete is given by fck. Ec is the mean value of the secant modulus of the concrete. The values for different concrete strengths are given in the Annex Table 4. The value for ÃŽÂ ± is governed by the ratio of the height of the slab to the depth. The values of ÃŽÂ ± are given below. For 3 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ h/d à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ 4, ÃŽÂ ± = 0.2(h/d +1) For h/d > 4, ÃŽÂ ± = 1.0 The partial safety factor () given by 1.25 in the ultimate limit state. (ECCS, 1993) Figure 10: Bearing stress on the shaft of a Headed Stud Connector (Johnson, 2004) 2.4.2.3 Degree of Shear Connection The degree of shear connection is based on whether the required numbers of shear connectors necessary for the composite beam to develop its full plastic moment have been installed. If fewer than the required amount necessary have been installed, the moment resistance of the composite system will be less than the maximum. The degree of shear connection is given by the equations below. Where Rc denotes the compressive resistance of the concrete slab and Rs denote the tensile resistance of the steel section. Both values are given by the equations below. Where hc is the depth of the concrete slab above the profiled decking. Eurocode 4 also provides provision for the minimum for the degree of shear connection based on the span (L) of the composite beam. These ratios are given below. For: L à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ 5m, N/Nf à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥ 0.4 5m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ L à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ 25m, N/Nf à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥ 0.25 + 0.03L L > 25m, N/Nf à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥ 1.0 (ECCS, 1993) Chapter 3 Composite Steel Deck Floors in Fire 3.1 Background The performance of composite steel deck floors in fire has been much studied to assess the design considerations that must be implemented and for designing the rules for reinforcement placement. In general, composites perform well in fire due to the insulating properties of concrete and the role of correctly placed mesh reinforcement and metal decking. (BCSA, Corus, SCI, 2007) Research conducted in the UK has concluded that previous methods of designing composite floor decks for fire scenarios was over conservative and that composite floor performance in many common fire scenarios was satisfactory. (Steel Conctruction Institute, 1991) Composite steel deck floor systems are typically not provided any fire protection material although the supporting beam to which the floor is connected is fire protected. The profiled decking of a composite floor acts as some of the tensile reinforcement of the system. For this reason, it is important to account for the effects that elevated temperatures will have on the decking. (Steel Conctruction Institute, 1991) The main contributor to the fire resistance of a composite slab is the embedded rebar mesh in the slab. As the temperature of the profiled decking increases in a fire scenario, the resistance that it provides is neglected. Additional reinforcement in placed in the slab to compensate for the loss of strength of the decking at elevated temperatures. The embedded reinforcement mesh is insulated by concrete and maintains a temperature sufficient for load bearing at the fire limit state. The positioning of rebar within composite floors typically results in higher concrete cover compared to normal reinforced concrete slabs. This results in good fire performance as the temperature of the reinforcement will rarely approach critical levels. The positioning of the reinforcement in the upper of the slab also contributes to controlling spalling in fire. The decking of a composite does play an important role however in maintaining the integrity of the concrete slab during fire. It limits the passage of flame and hot gases into direct contact with the concrete and controls spalling. 3.2 Load Resistance in Fire Design of composite slabs in fire conditions is based on the ultimate limit state properties. A composite floor slab is assumed to behave in bending as either a simply supported or continuous element. The load resistance of a composite floor deck system is due to the floor behaving as a reinforced concrete slab with loads being resisted by the bending action of the slab. Failure of a slab in fire occurs as a result of reinforcement failure. (Corus Construction Industrial, 2006) 3.2.1 Methodology There are two main methods for calculating the fire resistance efficiency of a composite floor deck system, referred to as the fire engineering method and the simplified method. 3.2.1.1 Fire Engineering Method The fire engineering method is based on the assumption that in the fire limit state, the plastic moment capacity of the floor is reached at higher temperatures and that redistribution of moments occurs where the slab is continuous. Temperature gradient experiments have produced temperature profiles such as those present in the Eurocodes. These profiles can be used to calculate the capacities of the beam in both hogging and sagging bending. The capabilities of the beams in the fire limit state can then be assessed. 3.2.1.2 Simplified Method The simplified method involves little or no calculation and relies on test data of actual fires to design the reinforcement in the composite slab. The density of the mesh can be adjusted to account for point loads and increased moment around supports. In general, the simplified method will deliver a result that demands less reinforcement in the design whilst the fire engineering method will allow greater flexibility in positioning the reinforcement and customising fire resistance time periods. The use of different grades of concrete will affect the dimensions and composition of a composite slab. Light Weight Concrete (LWC) has better insulating properties versus Normal Weight Concrete and its use will result in thinner slabs. 3.2.1.3 Design Period Deflection Limits The fire resistance of a composite floor deck system is measured as the time that a floor system can maintain sufficient load-carrying ability, maintain its integrity or by limiting heat transfer through the slab. The load-carrying ability of the composite floor system is measured by the amount of deflection that the system undergoes during fire exposure. Deflection greater than the span/30 is deemed critical as is a deflection rate greater than span2/9000d mm/min between deflections equalling span/30 and span/20. The integrity of the composite floor is deemed satisfactory for fire resistance if it can limit the passage of flame and hot gases. The insulating properties of concrete are deemed sufficient for fire resistance if after fire exposure, the upper surface temperature of the concrete slab remains below 140 °C. (Steel Conctruction Institute, 1991) 3.2.1.4 Reinforcement Fire resistance of a composite deck is attributed to the positioning of reinforcement in a mesh configuration within the slab. The most common forms of mesh are A142 mesh (6mm wires at 200mm c/c) and A193 mesh (7mm wires at 200mm c/c), the numbers referring to the cross-sectional area of steel per metre run, although larger gauges may be used if necessary. The tensile strength of the reinforcement is typically 450-500N/mm2. The positioning of the mesh is in the upper portion of the slab with a minimum cover and can be arranged to resist hogging or sagging bending or a combination thereof. (Aida Rodera Garcia) 3.3 The Fire Engineering Method The fire engineering method for composite slab design is discussed in this section. The partial safety factors at the fire limit state for materials and loads are outlined below. Materials: Steel: ÃŽÂ ³mr = 1.0 Concrete: ÃŽÂ ³mc = 1.3 Loads: Dead: ÃŽÂ ³fd = 1.0 Imposed ÃŽÂ ³fi = 1.0 3.3.1 Materials In conjunction with a suitable design fire scenario, it is possible to account for the reduction in strength of both the reinforcement and the concrete in fire conditions. With elevated temperatures, a reduction factor K may be used to account for the loss of strength associated with the increase in temperature. The table of reduction factors is given in Annex Table 5. The equations used for assessing the design strengths of the reinforcement and concrete at elevated temperatures including the reduction factor (K) are given below. Reinforcement: Concrete (Steel Conctruction Institute, 1991) 3.3.2 Depth The minimum depth of the concrete slab is taken from the tables below. Different values are obtained depending on the type of decking used, such as trapezoidal or re-entrant, and the concrete grade. This minimum depth satisfies the insulation requirement for composite slabs during fire exposure. Alternatively, the minimum depth may be taken from experimental test results from buildings of a similar design. (Steel Conctruction Institute, 1991) (Aida Rodera Garcia) 3.4 The Simplified Method The simplified method consists of installing a layer of mesh (A142, A193 or similar) in the upper layer of the concrete. One of the main differences between the Fire Engineering Method and the Simplified Method is that relatively few calculations are required for the Simplified. An outline of the Simplified Method is a follows: Imposed loads on a composite floor deck slab should not exceed 6.7kN/m2. The mesh size is chosen based on the required fire resistance period and the span of the slab. The minimum cover to any part of the mesh must be at least 15mm and not greater than 45mm. The span of a composite floor slab designed using the Simplified Method is typically 3.6m although spans greater than this may be used if adequate calculation is carried out. 3.5 Comparison of Methods While no method is definitively better than the other, they both have advantages over the other. The Simplified Method is more economical and is based directly on test results and not on theoretical calculation, which has a tendency to under-estimate the strength of materials. The Simplified Method also takes into account the contribution from the profiled steel deck even though the contribution may be small compared to that from the reinforcement mesh. The Fire Engineering Method however allows great flexibility in the customisation of the reinforcement and fire resistance periods. It is generally more expensive to design using this method as opposed to the Simplified Method though will result in thinner slabs that utilise more reinforcement. 3.6 Shear Connectors in Fire The performance of shear connectors in fire has not been widely studied. One of the major research projects on shear connectors in fire was The Restrained Beam Test conducted by British Steel as part of the Cardington Fire Tests in January 1995. The test consisted of the heating of a secondary beam and an area of the surrounding slab on the seventh-floor of the test structure. The steel section tested was a 305165 UB40 that was heated along 8m of its 9m length. Only the top 70mm of the concrete slab was taken into account. This was the maximum height of the slab above the troughs of the profiled decking. (Huang, Burgess, Plank, 1999) The temperature distributions in the steel beam and concrete slab were taken as averages of the test results recorded across the cross-sections of the components. The temperature of headed studs exposed to fire was approximated as 75% of the temperature reached by the top flange of the steel section. (Huang, Burgess, Plank, 1999) The degree of shear connection in the heated beam was assumed to be partial whilst the rest of the composite floor deck systems in the surrounding area were modelled as having full shear interaction. Analysis of the test results showed that the deflection at the mid-span of the heated beam increased with temperature. It was concluded from this that the assumption that partial interaction was corre