Language acquisition: Nature or nurture? Essay

During the late 1950s, psychologists differed on how language is acquired. Skinner argued that language acquisition is based on instrumental conditioning, while Chomsky stressed that people are born with an innate capacity for acquiring a language/s, also called nativism. This paper argues that language is acquired through both nature and nurture, because these two theories can help fully explain language acquisition, instead of separately, although it is still unclear how much nature or nurture guides and impacts language acquisition. Language is acquired through both nature and nurture, because these two theories can fully explain language learning, instead of separately. Chomsky’s examples and some studies on the brain and language acquisition prove that children acquire their first language through a â€Å"language faculty,† which is a biologically independent system in the brain that â€Å"has an initial state which is genetically determined, like. . . the kidney, the circulatory system, and so on† (Chomsky, p. 13, cited in Knezek, 1997). This is evident in how all humans, except, those with language problems, understand particular ambiguities of language in the same manner (Knezek, 1997). Chomsky’s example is how children understand the meaning of a â€Å"brown house† across all cultures, referring to it as a house that is brown in the outside, and not inside (Knezek, 1997). This is remarkable because it shows how human beings make universal assumptions about the same words. Furthermore, studies showed that children, by the age of four or five, normally have the language competence of adults, whatever their culture might be (Knezek, 1997). On the other hand, nativists can also not explain all the processes of language acquisition. Behaviorists argued that Chomsky cannot explain why people have special parts of the brain that are focused on language or why humans can converse through language while other animals cannot (Knezek, 1997). Most likely, people also evolved their language capability by having their brain store the same skills and knowledge needed for language acquisition (Knezek, 1997). Furthermore, the universality of human language acquisition that animals lack can also be explained through the differences in brains and speech organs of human beings and other animals (Knezek, 1997). Human beings acquire language through nature and nurture. Up to now, people do not have a complete understanding of language acquisition processes, and studies show different results on why and how people acquire their languages as children, and even, as adults. At present, this paper shows that through evidence and examples, people acquire languages through their inherent capability for acquiring them and on how they make inductions about learning languages. Reference Knezek, M. (1997). Nature vs. Nurture: The Miracle of Language. Pyschology. Retrieved May 30, 2010, from http://www. duke. edu/~pk10/language/psych. htm

An Essay on Criticism

Intrigued by his essay, I wondered if what he had to say might hold true today, and whether Pope's words could/should play a part in how we judge things today. Pope's An Essay on Man is divided up into three parts. Of those three parts, two are in our textbook. Of those two parts, one is dedicated to describing how critic's criticism can be unjustified and harmful to the creator. The second part describes the birth of poor Judgment, naming pride and, from what I can tell, ignorance as the culprit parents of a poor critic. In Pope's time, the most commonly Judged works were iterative.Poems, plays, novels, and other readable sources were the mainstream source of entertainment back then. Today, we have a different type of visual media; we watch as oppose to read. TV shows, movies, and Internet videos are our main source of visual entertainment in these times. Music is also another large source of entertainment and probably an even bigger platform for Judgment and criticism if you consid er all the different genres and people's large variety of taste in music. In Lines 17-18, Pope says, â€Å"Authors are partial to their wit, ‘its true, /But are not critics to heir Judgment too? I took this to mean that while authors may not always be putting out gold or writing the next groundbreaking piece, critics arena always the ones to say what the next groundbreaking piece is, or whether it is even good or not. Critics can have biased opinions by human nature and will not like some things no matter how good they are in their own respects. In Lines 21-22 Pope says, â€Å"Nature affords at least a glimmering light,† meaning the author has some internal sense of direction with what they're doing. â€Å"The lines, though but touched faintly, are drawn right. I felt eke this meant that through informal skill and some ignorance, the creator has still managed to put out something worthwhile. Even if it IS bad, it could show some serious signs of potential. To the crea tor, it may be the best work they've ever done, but if allowed to continue creating, they may look back and wonder what the Hell made them think that was okay to call finished. I can personally relate to this because I'm in a terrible little band and I can remember writing songs that we thought were amazing, awesome, and would rock socks right off the feet of my audiences, but years eater, we don't even play those songs anymore.They are completely scrapped. We never really had any bad criticism, but along the way, we criticized ourselves decided to change direction. I'm not sure if I find criticism to be relevant today. Even back in Pope's day, a bad critic usually Just found themselves satirized in one of Pope's works. I think criticism is especially ineffective today because I think it used to be a tool people used to find what they should bother paying attention to, but now we have an almost unlimited source of entertainment outlets we can turn to that we're bound to mind somethi ng we like.I think today criticism either hurts someone's feelings or they'll Just curse you out in there head. I think it is more harmful than effective. Shelley Viscous, a life skills specialist and mind coach, says, â€Å"Hindsight is a wonderful thing but it is that, information we realize after something has already happened. We can then use that information for next time but we cannot change or alter what has happened. So criticism Just rubs salt into the wounds,† (Viscous).I think this is true because my band never had anyone tell us what we were making as good or bad, we simply evolved after saw what we were doing wasn't enough to make people interested in us. And we're still evolving. Right now we're writing songs we think are amazing, d ©J v, and I'm sure we'll once again look back and be borderline ashamed of what we're writing. I think criticism, good or bad, can tend to negatively affect humans psychologically. I'd be willing to bet that if the rankings for the King of the Beasts were dependent on psychological strength and not our ability to create and dominate, Mankind would be near the bottom.Humans are a atheistically weak race when it comes to psychological strength. You don't ever see any lions or tigers with social anxiety disorders or monkeys that are introverted or cry when they get called a loser. The dark realm humans throw themselves in when faced with criticism is called cognitive distortions. â€Å"These negative thinking styles are within psychology known as cognitive distortions. These inaccurate thoughts may seem rational and accurate but in reality they only serve to reinforce negative thinking or emotions, keeping us from feeling good about ourselves,† (Isakson).I'm not ring to act like I'm better than anyone. I know it sounds like I kind of am, but in the article Isakson lists four of the most common distortions, and I am certainly guilty on one of them. Polarize thinking is where, â€Å"you live in a universe where everything is either black-or-white, with no colors or shades of gray. You either look at yourself or others as perfect or as failures,† (Isakson). I very much do this with myself. I'm either in a state of bliss where I'm walking on sunshine, or I'm the scum of the Earth, I'm not worth the dead carcass you pass on the highway, and everyone rightly hates me.It's idiotic and one day I hope to look back on myself and wonder why I ever thought like this. All in all, I think criticism should be kept inside of people's heads. Think what you want to think, but keep it to yourself. Who are you to throw your opinion into someone's vision? That mostly goes to people who aren't professional critics. I think professional critics should have to read and re-read Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism because I feel like it does have some good insight on how to be mindful of when you're doing wrong. It's sort of like The Prince for criticism. I feel like that book fits into most situat ions.As for people trying to create something out of a vision or dream they have, I think criticism should either be ignored or lightly acknowledged. Success shouldn't be based on the opinions of the few, it should be measured by all the people that want something to do with whatever it is you're making. There's a quote I heard online once and I couldn't find where it was originally said so I won't be able to cite a source, but director Robert Rodriguez once said, â€Å"l think that everyone has at least a dozen or so bad movies in them; the sooner you get them out the better. † I relate this back to songs. An Essay on Criticism An Essay on Criticism Alexander Pope engraved his name in history by proving that the pen is mightier than the sword. Due to him being a Roman Catholic, he was unable to attend University, vote, or hold office. To add on to that, Pope was plagued with poor health from birth, suffering from tuberculosis of the bone. Pope wouldn't let these barricades stop him from becoming the writer he knew he could be and was encouraged by his father to be. At the age of 23, Pope wrote his first striking poetic piece, An Essay on Criticism.Intrigued by his essay, I wondered if what he had to say might hold true today, and whether Pope's words could/should play a part in how we judge things today. Pope's An Essay on Man is divided up into three parts. Of those three parts, two are in our textbook. Of those two parts, one is dedicated to describing how critic's criticism can be unjustified and harmful to the creator. The second part describes the birth of poor Judgment, naming pride and, from what I c an tell, ignorance as the culprit parents of a poor critic. In Pope's time, the most commonly Judged works were iterate.Poems, plays, novels, and other readable sources were the mainstream source of entertainment back then. Today, we have a different type of visual media; we watch as oppose to read. TV shows, movies, and Internet videos are our main source of visual entertainment in these times. Music is also another large source of entertainment and probably an even bigger platform for Judgment and criticism if you consider all the different genres and people's large variety of taste in music. In Lines 17-18, Pope says, â€Å"Authors are partial to their wit, ‘its true, /But are not critics to heir Judgment too? I took this to mean that while authors may not always be putting out gold or writing the next groundbreaking piece, critics aren't always the ones to say what the next groundbreaking piece is, or whether it is even good or not. Critics can have biased opinions by hum an nature and will not like some things no matter how good they are in their own respects. In Lines 21-22 Pope says, â€Å"Nature affords at least a glimmering light,† meaning the author has some internal sense of direction with what they're doing. â€Å"The lines, though but touched faintly, are drawn right. I felt eke this meant that through informal skill and some ignorance, the creator has still managed to put out something worthwhile. Even if it IS bad, it could show some serious signs of potential. To the creator, it may be the best work they've ever done, but if allowed to continue creating, they may look back and wonder what the Hell made them think that was okay to call finished. I can personally relate to this because I'm in a terrible little band and I can remember writing songs that we thought were amazing, awesome, and would rock socks right off the feet of my audiences, but years eater, we don't even play those songs anymore.They are completely scrapped. We nev er really had any bad criticism, but along the way, we criticized ourselves decided to change direction. I'm not sure if I find criticism to be relevant today. Even back in Pope's day, a bad critic usually Just found themselves satirized in one of Pope's works. I think criticism is especially ineffective today because I think it used to be a tool people used to find what they should bother paying attention to, but now we have an almost unlimited source of entertainment outlets we can turn to that we're bound to mind something we like.I think today criticism either hurts someone's feelings or they'll Just curse you out in there head. I think it is more harmful than effective. Shelley Viscous, a life skills specialist and mind coach, says, â€Å"Hindsight is a wonderful thing but it is that, information we realize after something has already happened. We can then use that information for next time but we cannot change or alter what has happened. So criticism Just rubs salt into the w ounds,† (Viscous).I think this is true because my band never had anyone tell us what we were making as good or bad, we simply evolved after saw what we were doing wasn't enough to make people interested in us. And we're still evolving. Right now we're writing songs we think are amazing, dJГ vi, and I'm sure we'll once again look back and be borderline ashamed of what we're writing. I think criticism, good or bad, can tend to negatively affect humans psychologically. I'd be willing to bet that if the rankings for the King of the Beasts were dependent on psychological strength and not our ability to create and dominate, Mankind would be near the bottom.Humans are a atheistically weak race when it comes to psychological strength. You don't ever see any lions or tigers with social anxiety disorders or monkeys that are introverted or cry when they get called a loser. The dark realm humans throw themselves in when faced with criticism is called cognitive distortions. â€Å"Thes e negative thinking styles are within psychology known as cognitive distortions. These inaccurate thoughts may seem rational and accurate but in reality they only serve to reinforce negative thinking or emotions, keeping us from feeling good about ourselves,† (Isakson).I'm not ring to act like I'm better than anyone. I know it sounds like I kind of am, but in the article Isakson lists four of the most common distortions, and I am certainly guilty on one of them. Polarize thinking is where, â€Å"you live in a universe where everything is either black-or-white, with no colors or shades of gray. You either look at yourself or others as perfect or as failures,† (Isakson). I very much do this with myself. I'm either in a state of bliss where I'm walking on sunshine, or I'm the scum of the Earth, I'm not worth the dead carcass you pass on the highway, and everyone rightly hates me.It's idiotic and one day I hope to look back on myself and wonder why I ever thought like this. All in all, I think criticism should be kept inside of people's heads. Think what you want to think, but keep it to yourself. Who are you to throw your opinion into someone's vision? That mostly goes to people who aren't professional critics. I think professional critics should have to read and re-read Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism because I feel like it does have some good insight on how to be mindful of when you're doing wrong. It's sort of like The Prince for criticism. I feel like that book fits into most situations.As for people trying to create something out of a vision or dream they have, I think criticism should either be ignored or lightly acknowledged. Success shouldn't be based on the opinions of the few, it should be measured by all the people that want something to do with whatever it is you're making. There's a quote I heard online once and I couldn't find where it was originally said so I won't be able to cite a source, but director Robert Rodriguez once sai d, â€Å"l think that everyone has at least a dozen or so bad movies in them; the sooner you get them out the better. † I relate this back to songs.I know I have a lot of bad songs in me, so I'm trying to get them out so I can get to the good stuff. The best part about that is the songs are good to me right now, they don't become bad until I write something new. I'll know I'm where I want to be when I look back at my old songs and still want to practice them alongside my new ones, not when a critic tells me,

Diversity Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Diversity - Research Paper Example Managing diversity properly leads to healthy organization of these differences which results in a dynamic milieu where every individual is appreciated and cherished which makes him employ his abilities successfully to accomplish the societal objectives in general and organizational goals in particular. On the other hand, mismanagement of diversity may lead to violence, aggression and revulsion among people. On individual level, diversity helps one to come out of challenging situations by being flexible to troubles. If we talk about business world in United States which is a diverse nation, people of different races and ethnic background are working actively because of the involvement of more women and immigrants. This diversity is necessary for staying in competition with the outer world and ensuring higher productivity. Characteristics that come under the umbrella term of diversity, also sometimes called dimensions of diversity, include age, race, ethnicity, gender, culture, heritage, cognitive approach, beliefs, mental or physical abnormality, socio-economic and educational background, customs and traditions, norms and values, geographical status, religion, art, language, nuptial and family status, political following, sexual orientation, food habits, and etcetera. Every individual is unique but belongs to an identity group at the same time that identifies him. Some of the characteristics are chosen by the individual himself (such as religious beliefs, political affiliation and marital status) while some are given to him by nature or society (such as language, race and ethnicity). Sweetman (2004, p. 2) asserts that diversity can be understood in two dimensions, that is, primary and secondary diversity. He states that primary diversity comprises of those characteristics that an individual cannot alter for himself, such as, â€Å"sex, race or ethnicity, age, physical abilities and qualities, and

Value at risk Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Value at risk - Assignment Example Value at risk provides a way to depict the probability of on making losses. In the paper below, various methodologies are going to be used to calculate the value at risk of the 4 portfolio shares for the given year. The methodologies that would be use include: The historical simulation, the Monte Carlo simulation and the parametric approach. In each of the following, there are various crucial steps that would be used in calculation of value at risk in the value at risk to come up with conclusions for the various portfolio shares. The structure of the paper would mostly be description based of the following approaches mentioned above. While calculating value at risk in a specific methodology, the following will need to be observed carefully. In each methodology, a description on how one is going to arrive at the specific value at risk for the given portfolio is going to be calculated and even a histogram plotted where necessary. In addition, one would be expected to comment on the important steps used and give a final verdict of the advantages and the disadvantages of using the given method. After calculating value at risk using the three approaches mentioned above, then a discussion will be conducted to compare the differences in the three methods while attempting to get the value at risk (Jorion 2007, p.6). Then the paper would end with a conclusion that would comment on the value at risk of the 4 portfolio shares used. ... cause the end product of any of the two approaches will be to estimate value at risk, often the most important points remain on whether results calculated by other different methods may differ from each other. In addition, one would still like to know which approach is the most reliable in estimating value at risk. Generally, intuitiveness shows that non-parametric methods, like the historical simulation as well as the parametric methods i.e. Risk metrics, will often yield the same Value at risk if historical returns data will be normally distributed. In addition, empirical studies also shown that the given predicted results from different Value at risk methodologies are often not close (Choudhry 2006, p.7. The historical simulation often does not impose a given distributional assumptions, sometimes it can be limited when used to forecast the range of certain portfolio value changes since it incorporates no volatility updating plus it produces inaccurate values once the future succum bs to extreme events. In contrast, the Risk metrics, is relatively easy to put in practice. Nonetheless, a given empirical observations on a given returns of financial instruments often do not exhibit the given normal distribution and hence the method do not fit data with certain heavy tails. Background to the data sample The following 4 companies have been chosen to have the analysis of their value at risk of their share portfolios calculated. They are Aggreko PLC, Admiral Group PLC, Amec PLC and the Anglo- American PLC. The Aggreko PLC is a very large international company that deals with supplying temporary power plus dealing with temperature control too. Admiral Group PLc is a large motor insurance company that has a head office at Wale, Cardiff . The Amec PLC is hence a global

World cultures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

World cultures - Essay Example The Mayan civilization consisted of powerful city-states that spread from southern Mexico to northern Honduras. Scientists in Mayan civilization cite that drought theory plays a pivotal role where the people cut down the jungle canopy to accelerate the problem`. A climate model simulation depicts the aggregation of drought caused by deforestation. The pale climate records show that the collapse of Mayan socio-political structure links to Terminal Classical Drought (TCD). The efforts to assess the effects of climate change on prehistoric societies leads to controversies on the future climate change in the modern societies. Lane et al (2014) present evidence of TCD along the Caribbean Island of Hispaniola, Laguna Castilla, and other areas of the Dominican Republic. The flowering with the rain theory analyzes the cavern stalagmites on the cave floors to link the climate swings that lead to the fall of the empire. Belizean stalagmites in the early Classical Maya are unusually wet since the population proliferation aid the process. Sophistication of monumental architecture, political systems, and complex religion fall in the full flower era. Scientists provide a warfare theory that could have shattered the entire people. The stone carving depict vicious images such as Tikal, Quirigua, and Dos Pilas. It is possible cites went to war with each other. As Dos Pilas invasion took place in 760 A.D (Lane et al. 2014). One cannot rule out the possibility of war that brought economic disaster and a domino effect in the Maya cities. At the apex of their power, things started to unravel just like the stock market zigzag into uncharted territory. Carroll (2013) explains that the ancients built an advanced society where they were undone by their own success. The population of the people continued to escalate stretching the natural resources to a breaking point. The political leaders

Third Cinema- Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Third Cinema- - Essay Example The aspects of Third Cinema which are expressed by Sembene make the films controversial as well as a way to show the culture of Senegal and the controversies surrounding politics and society. Through the movies, there is a creation of boundaries of what it means to belong in a third world country and the social and political divisions which have arisen in response to this. Theory of Third Cinema The concept of third cinema is based on the social and political problems that are apparent in third world countries. These issues are defined as being separate from first world countries and hold several layers of what it means to belong to a third world country. The language that is developed to represent this shows a development and understanding of the practices and political and ideological overtones that are present in the countries. This is furthered by showing the pressing issues which need to be changed and how these have affected the nations without the understanding of those in pre sent day society. From the ideas of political and social overtones are three main strategies used to create the Third Cinema. This includes styles and narratives that are relative to the country represented, defamiliriazation from Hollywood style plots and national and local variations that are representative of the main issues of a given culture. While Third Cinema is able to provide the outlook of politics and society in the third world, there are other influences that create a different portrayal of the films. The main contrast that is seen with the films is based on the combination of Western ideologies and techniques, such as seen through Hollywood influences, as well as creating unique outlooks with both the techniques and content of the film. To change this, the third cinema focuses on representation that is specific to localities and nations. This includes an exotic look as well as content that is specific to each of the regions. By doing this, there is the ability to create a sense of identity and belonging as a part of the film, as opposed to fitting in with the Western concepts. To the Western viewer, this leads to an understanding that the third world problems are a part of the other and have a feel of belonging to the outside as a specific problem to that culture. By using this image, there is the ability to gain interest from the Western viewers while representing the context of a specific third world culture (Ukadike, 1994). Xala I the Cure â€Å"Xala I The Cure† is the first film that is displayed by Sembene as appealing to the specific politics and society that are a part of Senegal. The beginning of this is the setting that is chosen, specifically which represents the ideal of Senegal before colonialism. The setting and the representation of the exotic through costumes and other elements are seen as related directly to the Mande Empire. This is common for the area of shooting of the film. This contrasts with the setting after coloniali sm, which is represented by the French costumes that are a part of the story line. At first, this is seen specifically by the French invasions. However, as the story continues, there is conformity to the French styles in costume, ways of living and the ideals which are carried. The setting and the approach that is taken shows how there is a division between these two era which has created a different sense of belonging to t

Federal Guards Indicted for Abusing Prisoners Essay - 1

Federal Guards Indicted for Abusing Prisoners - Essay Example The issue at hand needs to be clarified and all allegations evaluated. The first step towards doing this is gathering information. The information to gather relates to the issue at hand. The primary decision maker should be identified in the process. Both parties bound to the issue should be interviewed independently in order to ensure that the information at hand is actually the one held by both parties (Reid, 2011). All the views of the parties should be accounted for before and after the abuse occurred. The second step involves deciding the specific ethical issue and determining the conflict therein. This is tailored towards determining the liable party, legally and ethically. After that, the pertinent issue is addressed. Decisions on the pragmatic issues that make the case complex should be addressed. In this case, the entire prison system seems to be implicated in the matter. The complexity of the matter should be weighed against justice, rights, and freedoms of each party, and the right actions were taken prior to the provisions of the law (Reid, 2011). The conclusion arrived at in this case is solely based on the ethics code of conduct for a prison system. The officers’ general standard of conduct should be evaluated ethically and legally. Secondly, applicable laws in this context should be assessed. Compliance with these laws is the principle point of consideration here. Thirdly, personal rights and freedoms should be highlighted for both all the parties involved in order to alleviate occurrences of conflict of interest. The restriction of each party should constitute the conclusion herein, focusing on both ethical and legal issues. Once all that has been done, the unethical conduct is manifested.

Assignment presentation QAHE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Assignment presentation QAHE - Essay Example of which 265 are in the United States and 182 outside America.The importance of this research is to evaluate the internal and external environment in which Apple Incorporation operates. Apple incorporation external environment will be analysed using the PEST analysis model. PEST stands for its political, economic, social and technological aspects of the company in order to determine Apple’s feasibility in relation to its growth, market, size, its performance position and possible operation ventures (Newlands & Hooper, 2009). Apple’s political environmentincludes the external problems that can hinder its routine operations,which can be caused by the instability of the national government. The problems can include terrorism, civil wars, corruption, health concerns and political instability. All these uncertainties can affect the sales of Apple products worldwide. In order for Apple to reduce its overall operational costs and external calamities, it has outsourced its activities in various countries. The countries include the Republic of China, Cork, Ireland, Korea and the Republic of Czech.Apple’s business activities can be hindered if these countries encounter political instability, which can otherwise affect its manufacturing processes. The hindrances of products manufacturing can cause a delay; resulting inshortages and dissatisfaction from the customers and its loyal dealers (Gendron, 2013). The economic environment can be analyzed by the global economic condition. The purchase of the company’s products can be hindered by the unemployment level of the country. If the unemployment rate is high, the consumers will have a low purchasing power and subsequently,a decrease in disposable income. Inflation is another robust problem which can adversely affect Apple’s revenue values.Inflation can be brought about by the increase in oil prices leading to inflation in the global economy. Due to the rise in operational costs, the costs arelater transferred to the

Paul's life in the Acts vs the Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Paul's life in the Acts vs the Letter - Essay Example Therefore, just like Luke, all through his ministry, Paul never mentioned his pre-Christian life in his epistles and how he persecuted Christians. Moreover, Luke in the Acts portrays Paul as a staunch believer of Jesus Christ. In the book of Acts 27, Paul never controlled the storm or the future. However, amidst the impending disaster he appeared the most competent and sober human because he believed in God and had faith that God will deliver him and the others to Rome safely. Therefore, through his God given capability mastering the social environment while still on aboard of the ship makes him stand out as source of hope to the others. These attributes of Paul are depicted all through his letters and teachings. He was strong believer of Jesus Christ; preaching the word of God to the people by encouraging them to have hope and faith in Jesus Christ (Bruce, 1888). Ultimately, in the book of Acts the life of Paul was characterized by threats and arrests from the Romans. However, Luke portrays Paul in the Acts as the light who enjoyed certain benefits while under arrest. For instance, unlike his detention in Caesarea and Jerusalem, he stayed in personal lodgings as indicated in verses 16, 23 and 30 of Acts chapter 28 (Bruce, 1888). Moreover, this can be harmonized to his detention in Rome while writing the epistles to the Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians and Philemon. Therefore, from the aforementioned it is evident that it is possible to harmonize Luke’s Acts to Paul’s epistles in the New

A Study of Sergei Eisenstein’s Montage Theory Essay Example for Free

A Study of Sergei Eisenstein’s Montage Theory Essay Cinema is a visual concept heavily marked by the objective of enterntainment, yet is also an ideology that is subject to a whole universe of theoretical frameworks. Many of it may trace their beginnings to a technique, as with the montage, which in French means â€Å"putting together†. This is the solid base of Russian cinema, more specifically in the montage theory subscribed to by Russian filmmakers. It is defined as a cinematic approach that depends mainly on editing, and the value of cuts in a film. In this revolutionary philosophy in cinema, probably the most recognized name is that of Sergei Eisenstein. Eisenstein was born to Jewish parents in Tsarist Russia in 1898, and was educated in Riga and St. Petersburg. He learned to speak a number of languages fluently, and was urged by his father to follow his path of becoming a civil engineer. Nonetheless, the young Eisenstein already had serious interests in theatre, and spent all of his free time watching films. The Bolshevik Revolution further reinforced his penchant for cinema, as he found himself educating workers, peasants, and troops in remote areas with camera in hand—and a gun in the other. Cinema was then perceived as a weapon by Eisenstein, a belief he would carry with him for the rest of his filmmaking career (Jonas, 1998). II, The Soviet Montage Soviet montage films were defined by its own set of values, not necessarily just techniques, but executed in a specific way. The socialist thinking was obviously present in this style, for individual characters in these films had no place as focal points. Social classes are the main issues, and the role of each character is to represent one. Various organized protests are also common elements of the film’s narrative, echoing the Russian revolution experience. Eisenstein formulated the system that resulted in a Synthesis, starting with a Thesis, followed by an Anti-Thesis—a foundation of the montage that traces its origins to Marxist themes of human history and experience being in perpetual conflict wherein a force clashes with a counterforce; the product of this encounter would be a new idea or concept, something absolutely greater than its origins (Karpenko, 2002). The montage style utilized editing and the resulting film cuts to generate reactions from the audience, usually in ways that defy convention. This contradicts traditional continuity editing, which shows scenes as they happen chronologically or at least in the same time realm; montage cutting produced overlapping or elliptical time relations between cuts. Most exemplary of this technique is Eisenstein’s Strike, where he juxtaposed scenes of two separate characters and time frames via jump cuts. In the series showing a police officer and a butcher, the editing serves a particular purpose—relate the connection between the acts being done by the officer and the butcher, in this case portray the idea that the workers were being slaughtered, just like animals. Eisenstein introduced his theory of intellectual montage, fully at work in this film by showing conflict in the juxtaposition of unrelated shots (Trischak, 1998). Eisenstein called montage a merge of opposites in art, through unity and conflict. He created this theory primarily to go against film tradition, negating the lack of character and stimulus in the logical editing of films. He listed several categories of montage, as well as the purpose of each: 1. Metric Montage. Shots are edited together according to their measured length, and are arranged according to a measure of music. Tension is invariably produced by the combination of short shots and the expected flow of melody or tone. 2. Rhythmic Montage. Compared to metric montage, action is given equal importance as the shot’s length, allowing for occasional conflicts between the montage’s rhythm and movement. An example would be the Odessa steps sequence in Battleship Potemkin, where the shot showing soldiers marching does not match the editing rhythm. This violates all metric requirements, effecting absolute tension and prepares the viewer for the iconic baby carriage scene. 3. Tonal Montage. Generally a level higher than metric montage, this style is created by the specific scene’s emotional tone. Vakulnichuk’s death in Potemkin, somber and sedate, appears in complete contrast to the steps sequence’s fast cuts. With each shot’s length at five seconds, this sequence serves as caesura, or a device to provide transition from the previous scene of violence to the citizens’ angry demonstrations. The similarities between rhythmic and tonal montage can be clearly seen as they both operate via the actions shown within each frame (HATII, 2008).

History of the Development of Impedance Cardiography (ICG)

History of the Development of Impedance Cardiography (ICG) Review the history of the development of impedance cardiography (ICG) from its theoretical base and direct applications for non-invasive measurement of cardiac output, to its most recent applications in assisting CPR, in rate responsive pacemakers and its potential application in automatic electrical defibrillators (AEDs). Impedance Cardiology often called ICG, is a measure of change across the thoracic region of the body over the cardiac cycle. If there is high fluid volume and blood flow, a low impedance across the region is calculated. Impedance Cardiology is also used to measure blood flow in major vessels of the cardiac region from which stroke volume is obtained. A change of impedance can be useful in calculating stroke volume, cardiac output and systemic vascular resistance due to the fluid volume changing with every heart beat. Cardiac Output (CO) along with the concentration of haemoglobin and arterial oxygen saturation are the cornerstones in the movement of oxygen. Cardiac output can be used to confirm the usefulness of treatment or if treatment is required as it analyses the functional performance of the cardiovascular system. The measurement of cardiac output is important in cardiothoracic surgery. There are several different methods for calculating the cardiac output. Firstly there is invasive methods that are quite accurate however the use of these methods are usually limited to intensive care units. While using invasive techniques the loss of blood, risk of infection and other complications are usually a matter of concern which leads to a alternative method, that being a non-invasive technique. For example Impedance Cardiology (ICG) is a method that is used quite often as it is easily used, provides a continuous reading of the cardiac output measured and has a better accuracy than that of other non- invasive techniques that are available. Impedance Cardiology involves applying a current field across the thorax using a constant magnitude, high frequency and a low amplitude alternating current.  ¹ Bio-impedance is a non-invasive technique where the stroke volume is estimated based on the changing of impedance that occurs in the human arterial system during the cardiac cycle due to the constant change of blood volume. Cardiac output is a lot easier to measure by impedance cardiology compared to thermo dilution with a catheter interested in the pulmonary artery, as it can be applied quickly and easily. It also does not cause risk of blood loss, other complications or infection that would be carried with the arterial catheters. Invasive methods cannot monitor the cardiac output continuously whereas ICG will. Non-invasive techniques are the solution to all these problems. Cardiac output is calculated by multiplying the stroke volume by the heart rate. Stroke volume is the volume of blood that is pumped by the heart during every cardiac cycle. This means that measuring the differences in impedance gives an estimate of the changes in stroke volume. ¹ The American Heart Association (AHA) resuscitation guidelines stated the chest compressions are the main source of effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). A number of feedback devices have been developed to try to improve the efficiency of chest compressions, all of which improved guideline complaint CPR but did not improve the patients outcome. The ICG provides a non-invasive measure of the hemodynamic status of the body and is being investigated as another method of helping to improve CPR. This led to a study being set up Heartsine Technologies to investigate whether there was any relationship between compression depth, thrust and ICG amplitude during CPR. This also let a correlation between these to be established. The impedance cardiogram was recorded using 2 electrodes from defibrillation pads. The compression depth (cm), compression thrust (kg), end-tidal CO2 (kPa), systolic blood pressure (mmHg), carotid flow (ml/min) and cardiac output (L/min) were all measured at two minute intervals for each model (13 porcine models in total).  ² The results of the study showed that there is a strong correlation between the correlations achieved with compression depth, compression thrust and between ICG amplitude. The table below shows the results obtained in the study and shows the correlation between the three: The ICG measurement provides another measurement of CPR efficiency with physiological effects that are compared to chest compression depth and chest compression thrust. The results show that the ICG measurement could be used in the development of CPR feedback algorithms for AEDs (automated electrical defibrillators).  ² Improved impedance cardiogram measurement and recording methods have enabled their use in critical care of patients. Cromie reported that the use of both ICG recordings from two defibrillator pads , which is used to overcome the awkward application of using multiple electrodes and frequency analysis of the calculated derivative of the impedance signal (dZ/dt) which also provides information about circulatory arrest that occurs in the porcine model.  ³ He then reported an algorithm that was based on the ICG using the peak magnitude in a frequency range for detecting cardiac arrest. It was brought about that the frequency analysis by Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) in public access defibrillators (PAD) and automated electrical defibrillators (AEDs) would compromise its processing capabilities and the use of integer filters to calculate the frequency components was proposed. An algorithm that was only based on the impedance cardiogram that had been recorded through the use of two defibrillator pads, by using the strongest frequency and amplitude, could lead to a decrease in beginning CPR and could determine the circulatory arrest. Integer filters were used to analyse the frequency of the impedance cardiogram signal. Filters are lighter, simpler and a lot more adaptable when it comes to comparing with Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). This approach is more desirable as it limits the processing abilities of the devices that could compromise usability of the FFT, even though the approach is less accurate. The two techniques were compared with one another using 13 cases of cardiac arrest and 6 of normal controls. The best filters were used on this set and an algorithm that detects cardiac arrest was tested on a much wider set of data. The algorithm was then tested on a validation set and the ICG was recorded. It was tested on 132 cardiac arrest patients and 97 c ontrols. The results indicated that cardiac arrest using the algorithm had a sensitivity average of 81.1% with the samples ranging from 77.6-84.3%. The specificity of the validation set was 97.1% with the samples ranging from 96.7-97.4% at a 95% confidence limit. These results show that automated defibrillators with impedance cardiogram analysis has the potential to improve emergency care by enabling non qualified persons to carry out appropriate CPR and it can also improve the detection of cardiac arrest when the algorithm is combined with ECG analysis. ³ He then reported an algorithm that was based on the ICG using the peak magnitude in a frequency range for detecting cardiac arrest. It was brought about that the frequency analysis by Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) in public access defibrillators (PAD) and automated electrical defibrillators (AEDs) would compromise its processing capabilities and the use of integer filters to calculate the frequency components was proposed. The results of the frequency spectrum of the first order derivative of the impedance cardiogram (dZ/dt) recorded using the two defibrillator pads can be used as a marker to calculate circulatory collapse. The results obtained provide tools for the development of applications for the use of impedance cardiograms in defibrillators in emergency clinical practice. Automatic Electrical Defibrillators are available in public areas along with trained rescuers. AEDs that recognise circulatory arrest use a hemodynamic sensor together with algorithms based on ECGs, would aid in the management of collapsed patients where accurate, quick and critical decisions must be made.  ³

Great Gatsby :: Free Essay Writer

Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby was written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, published by Charles Scribner’s Sons, and copyrighted in 1925. The book takes place mostly in a small town near New York known as West Egg during the 1920’s. One of the main characters of the novel is the narrator of the book, Nick Carraway. He relates the events of many summers that affected him deeply. He has a knack for telling the truth, at least according to him, and he comes from a small mid-western town seeking employment as a bond trader. His next door neighbor, Jay Gatsby, is the main character of the novel. He throws magnificent parties during the beginning of the summer, but stops throwing the parties after he realizes that they don’t impress Daisy Buchanan (originally Fay), the significant other that he seeks. Gatsby does not show many redeeming qualities, and his party â€Å"guests† enjoy spreading rumors about the finer points of Gatsby’s life. The aforementioned Daisy Buchanan, Nick’s second cousin once removed, is married to Tom Buchanan, one of Nick’s friends from the Midwest trying to find success in the East. Tom and Daisy are not very faithful towards each other, as Tom has a mistress and Daisy gets quite well acquainted with Gatsby. Tom’s mistress is the wife of George Wilson, Myrtle Wilson. George is the proprietor of a small garage near West and East Egg, and he is not very observant, but he is very devoted to his wife. Myrtle cheats on her husband with Tom, and only hides this from her husband, who would have to be bluntly told to figure the problem out. Jordan Baker is a friend of Daisy, Tom, Nick, and Gatsby, and at the end of the novel she marries an unknown character. She and Tom are attracted towards each other, but become disenchanted with each other after Gatsby’s death. The story begins as Nick Carraway gives a brief description of himself and his current situation. He is reflecting upon events of summers of the 1920’s, which occur on the East Coast. Nick went to the East to escape the Midwest and to hopefully find a better, faster paced life. He settled in community near New York known as West Egg. It is mainly a quiet little town with a neighbor across a lake of East Egg. When Nick arrived at his home, he had only heard about his neighbor for a couple of weeks.

Dance In The Early Twentieth Century Essay -- history of jazz

The history of Jazz music is one that is tied to enslavement, and prejudices, and it is impossible to separate the development of Jazz music from the racial oppression that occurred in the United States as they are inextricably connected. Slavery was a part of our country’s development that is shameful and yet, lead to some of the greatest musical advances of the twentieth century. Slavery in the United States first began in 1619 when Dutch traders seized a Spanish slave ship and brought those aboard to the North American colony of Jamestown, Virginia. When the North American continent was first colonized by Europeans, the vast land proved to be more work than they had anticipated and there was a severe shortage of labor. Land owners needed a solution for cheap and plentiful labor to help with the production of profitable crops such as tobacco and rice. Although many land owners already made use of indentured servants- poor youth from Britain and Germany who sought passage to America and would be contracted to work a given number of years before they were granted freedom- they soon realized that in order to continue expansion they would need to employ more labor. This meant bringing more people over from Africa against their own will, almost depleting the African continent of its healthiest and most capable men and women (Slavery in America, 2009). Individuals with African origins were not English by birth, instead they were considered foreigners and outside English Common Law and were not granted equal rights. Many slave owners intended to make their slaves completely dependent on them and prohibited them from learning to read or write. The oppression of black slaves was on the rise and many sources estimate that nearly twelv... ...ca | (2006, August) Scholastic.com. Retrieved April 20, 2014, from http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/bhistory/history_of_jazz.htm 6) Peretti, B. W. (1992). White Jazz Musicians of the 1920's. The creation of jazz: music, race, and culture in urban America. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 7) Scaruffi, P. (2005, January 1). A History of Jazz Music. A History of Jazz Music. Retrieved April 26, 2014, from http://www.scaruffi.com/history/jazz1.html 8) Slavery in America. (2009, January 1). History.com. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/slavery 9) Stearns, M. W., & Stearns, J. (1968). Jazz dance; the story of American vernacular dance. New York: Macmillan. 10) White, S., & White, G. J. (2005). The sounds of slavery: discovering African American history through songs, sermons, and speech. Boston: Beacon Press.

Governments advance Essay

As man advances in his everyday life, the governments advance in warfare technology too1. New sophisticated weaponry changed warfare tactics and warfare became a vastly advanced art. The crude techniques were quickly replaced with refined ones. The increase in damage and death commensurate with the increase in technology leading to very high death counts, and leaving a myriad maimed for life. The technological inventions were self- defeating to man. Man staged war with himself. The very inventions he made became a thorn in his own flesh! WW1 saw the advent of tanks and gas as some of the new technologies. For instance the British mark 1 tank was first used in September 19162. The tanks had their limitations such as getting stuck in the mud and toppling over. They were mechanically unreliable. The tanks were not the war winning weapons as the generals hoped they would be3. The German on the other hand were the first to use chlorine gas at Ypress in 1915. The chlorine gas is a lung irritant. Symptom such as bright red lips and blue face denote gas poisoning. Chlorine gas poisoning killed its victims a slow death of suffocation. It caused long diseases such as emphysema. The civilians suffered from this too. In 1915 the Germans added phosgene, which was more suffocating. The effects of phosgene caused bleeding that corrupted the lungs. Mustard gas, which was also used, burnt the entire layer of skin from the face and body. This was dangerous as its effects were not noticed, burnt the skin and ripped out the lining of the lungs. Gas had a rippling effect like atomic bomb had in world war2. Their uniqueness was in the fact that they were air-borne, had the risk of causing mass destruction and there effects agonizing. We can have an overview of what the weapons looked like and the technologies they espoused. â€Å"New weapons revolutionized combat in war1†4. It gave the war an altogether new model. For instance, trench warfare. The factories of industrial Europe were held culprit for this new war technologies that were destructive and ruinous. We can divide the first war and weaponry in to a number of categories: Artillery: These were new and improved cannons. British soldiers fired approximately 170 millions but the German scientist did not accept to be left behind. They developed the biggest artillery ever known. It was called the Big Bertha. It was such a powerful weapon. New high-explosive shells were developed as well and made more efficient. Artillery fire killed thousands of men and made aiding more difficult as it blew the ground. 5 Communication: as we have indicated WW1 was a trench warfare radios and telephones were the main ways of communication and was very essential ways of communication and was very essential for the troops in trenches. Messengers gave dogs and other like pigeons were gradually being faced out. Machine guns: the effectiveness of machine guns reached frightening new levels in the WW1 they could fire 600 bullets a minute which was estimated t be equivalent of 250 men with rifles. With this kind of ability machine guns were deemed to be weapons of mass destructions. Gas grenades: we have looked at chlorine, phosgene and mustard gas. Which burned the lung of the inhaler leaving them to die in agony. Has masks that were issued to everyone in German were of so effective therefore leaving many people dead6 Tanks: also known as the chariots of god. As we have seen at first they were not very reliable but scientist kept making new improved tanks such that by 1918, the Anglo-American mark 8th could carry up to 8 men and fire 208 shells and up to 13,000 bullets. Another weapon of mass destruction! An armored car was developed and could travel up to 8 kilometers and had 8 machine guns. Transportation: transportation of troops in to battlefields became vital necessitating the increase in more efficient transportation needs. Trains, taxis and lorries were used to ferry soldiers to battlefields and other places. Planes: they epitomized the new types of weapons used in advanced technology warfare huge blimp-like bombers called zeppelins were used7. Their speed and efficiency killed thousand of people

How resources are allocated Essay

An economic system is the result of individuals (consumers and producers), groups (firms, trade unions, political parties, families etc) and the government coming together and interacting in a legal and social society. The function of an economic system is to resolve the basic economic problem – scarcity which means that the resources are limited but wants are infinite. This distribution has three dimensions: * What is to be produced * How is it to be produced * For whom is it to be produced. There are 2 economic systems which are commonly used world-wide. There are: the free market system in which the role for the government is limited and the planned system where the government takes viturally total control. In both of these systmes there are different methods of resource allocation used. There are economies that use a mixture of these systems in particular the planned and free market system also known as the mixed economy in which some of the decisions resource allocation are done by the government and other by the public. In a free market economy: *The factors of production are owned by private individuals or groups of individuals who own the resources. They then rent them out to the firms so that they can produce the goods and services. *Everyone is motivated by pure self interest. Consumers maximise welfare, firms maximise profits and privated individuals aim to maximise rents, wages interest and profit. *Firms can sell anything they want. They respond to the consumers who are allowed to by anything that is sold by the producers. *The level of competition is very high. Firms are competing desperately for customers and the consumers are competing with each other for the goods on offer How are resources allocated under a market mechanism? What is to be produced? In a pure free market, it is the consumer which determines the allocation of resources. Consumers are sovereign. Each consumer has a free choice on the amount of money to spend on goods and services. Firms with the money recieved, buy the factors of production needed to produce goods and sercives. In other words in a free market a firm will only produce what the consumers are prepared to buy. The consumers are the ones to dicate the goods that should be produced. For example the public decides that they want to buy more product X than product Y. The increase in demand for product X will increase the price at first. The production of product X will increase since many new first will get attracted with the idea of profit and at the same time the level of competition will increase. On the other hand for product Y the demand will fall along with profits. In general there is a transfer of resources from one industry to another. How will it be produced? There is competition between the various firms. Consumers will buy from the producers which offer the lowest price. So producers must produce at lowest cost. This then determines how goods are produced. The firms will adpot the lowest cost technique of production hence resulting in productive efficiency and allocative efficiency For whom will it be produced? The amount of money the consumers spend is determined by their income. This affects the factors of production since those with high invomes will be able to consume more of the goods whlist those with low income can only buy few  goods and services. There are some advantages in a free market economy: *Resources are allocated more efficiently. *There will be a much larger choice of goods and services *Firms will keep on innovating and produce better quality products since there is a high level of competition *Higher economic growth rates – Economic systems with a free market model have grown much faster than those with a command economy. For example with the restaurant Mac Donald’s the demand is high because the consumers find it convenient to just drop by and have a meal within a matter of minutes, and since the consumers demand more the supply of it is also large. A command economy has a very powerful government sector and the workets and consumers are subordinate. The resources are allocated through a planning mechanism. Some goods and services are prvided free and some rationed or sold The characteristics of a command economy: * Factors of prodction are owned publicly by the government * No one think of himself – Everyone is assumed to be working for the common good * There are no free enterprise * There is very little competition which gives rise to black markets * Since there is no competition there is no price mechanism. The authorities  set the prices, and they are forced to set the prices low to make sure that it is affordable to everyone * The government has the responsability of planning how all the resources should be used. The decide what should be produced and in what quantities. In other words they set the output and price levels. What is to be produced? The consumer does not have any control at all on what will be produced. The planners or the government decide what will be produced, but the main problem which arouses is that the government does not know what exactly the consumers need. In other words supply is dictated by a governing body which tries to predict demand however this process is very difficult and it leads to heavy losses. How will it be produced? There is no such thing as firms in a planned economy. The government direct the resources into producing â€Å"units† They have no autonomy, so basically the government decides the quantities of output and the methods of production For whom will it be produced? The government tries to distribute the output of the economy more fairly. Wages are determined by the planners and so are the prices of the goods produced. So the government is effectively determining how much each consumer can consume. They also believe that all consumers get equal amounts. Advantages of a planned economy: * The strong government will make sure that public and merit goods are consumed that the right levls and that demerit goods are banned or taxed heavily * The government will try to make sure that nobody falls through the safety net. It will be a fairer economy even though it is likely to be less successful overall. * Command economies can make sure that the prodction processes that they chose are as environmentally friendly as possible. They should be able to make sure that the level of output is the socially optimal level of output. For example in Russia the government decided to produce jeans at a large scale but people were importing levis jeans and were selling them for a much cheaper price. this meant that the government lost a lot of money since they predicted that the people needed jeans but in reality they did not and even though they lowered the prices there were still huge amounts of stock which was not sold. A mixed economy as the name implies is a mixture of a planned economy and a free enterpirse economy. In pure practice no pure planned economies or free enterprise economies exist in the world. It is a mixture of the two extremes and the degree of mixing depends and varies from one society or country to another. Characteristics of a mixed economy: * The government owns some of the country’s factors of production publicly and some are owned privately * The market part of the economy will be motivated by self interest. First will maximise profit consumers will maximise their welfare and the factor owners will maximise rent interest and profit. The government on the other side has the common good goal. * There are only free enterprises in the free market part of the economy * The level of competition will vary on the degree of mix. and it will depnd on the market structure. * The price mechanism operates in the private sector. its efficiency depends on how competitive the market structures are. The government run activities. Many countries or economic systems have attempted to solve the resource allocation problem by reaching a compromise between the free market and planned economy systems. For example a governing body may decide that the production possibility frontier (ppf) has potential to increase if education and health services are provded to the public and thus enforces this, thus supplying it for free – this must be paid for by taxes which encourage a planned economy approach. However the remainder of the economy follows a free-market model The government needs to decide the perfect balance between these two factors. If people are healthier then they are more educated and the more educated the healthier. This means that they firms will be able to have better qualified workers. This in turn will mean that the taxes will increase and the government will get more money. This money can be invested into improvements in technology and resulting in an increase in the ppf. For example the UK offers free NHS this means that more money can be spent on education and train people and this can lead to an improvement in techonology. On the other hand the better the education means that people are better qualified and more people can become doctors and thus it will improve health services. Though there are 3 main types of economic systems which sue three different methods of resource allocation, there is often, in developed countries a tendency to use mixed economic methods in which both aspects of the free market and the planned economy are present. In developing countries there are approaches to the problem of resource allocation using all 3 methods. In a free market economy supply is dictated by demand, the bigger the demand the bigger the supply and thus the price of the product is given. In a planned economy the governing body makes those decisions, supply is dictated by a governing body which tries to predict demand however this proves very  difficult and it supplies goods to its wish and in a mixed economy supply of certain guds is dictated by a governing body and the others by demand.

“Futility” by Wilfred Owen Essay

The poem titled â€Å"Futility† meaning uselessness or pointlessness. Owen is trying to say this war is the pointless war. The soldiers are useless that they’re dead. No matter how much the soldier work, it doesn’t worth it. The poem is written in fourteen lines and divided into two verses. The two verses are contrast each other. The first verse’s atmosphere is quite, soft, tender and peaceful and the second verse’s atmosphere sounds more desperate, frustrate, ridiculous and demanding for something to happen. In the first verse, three verbs that describe the action of the Sun, move, gently, and touch are quite soft and tender. These verbs describe that the sun move softly, gently and touch the soldier to wake him up. The sun here means the sun that shines everyday to wake the man and at the same time it may symbolize religious. The sun that used to wake him up and care for him. It’s metaphor that the sun moves the man into the light. The third line of verse one, it mentioned that the soldier was once a farmer. The word whispering is onomatopoeia meaning the sun is whispering to the man about the memories the man used to have on the farm. It’s a soft and tender plus pleading together. â€Å"Unsown† means that the field has not seeded but yet the sun is shining now to tell the man that it’s the beginning of the planting season now. In other meaning, the word unsown is metaphor that the soldier is still too young for them to join the war, as they haven’t start their adult life yet. The fourth and fifth lines, ‘Always it awoke him, even in France, until this morning and this snow.’ The sun symbolizes the warmth of life and the snow symbolizes the coldness of death. The sun always arouses him everywhere even he’s in France but this morning is different because snow has partially block the man so the man wasn’t able to wake up. The word morning has two different meaning. One is the everyday morning, which is the beginning of the day and the second meaning referring to the word mourning. Owen is mourning for the man who has die. The last two line of the last two line, Owen is pleading to god, please please if anything can rouse him now please do it and in this case only god who can do it. Only the old sun that used to be very kind can wake him up now. The sun here is personified by referring the sun as old and kind. Through the whole verse Owen create the sound by using assonance of the repetition of â€Å"ow† sound in woke, unsown, snow, rouse, now and know. Owen used an imperative verb, think, at the beginning of the second verse. It’s order the reader to think and at the same time Owen also make it sound more desperate. He is desperate to think on how the sun will wake the seeds. The seeds here give the image of growth and nature and it symbolized the beginning of life. He is desperate to ask how god wakes the soldier that is already died on the ground. The third line of the second verse mention the word â€Å"limbs†, it has two meaning. First a limb is a branch of a tree, which fit in with the nature. Second meaning means the pair of legs, arms and wings. Owen means that god create these nature and mankind. The line after this said â€Å"full-nerved, –still warm, — too hard to stir?† Owen means that he still don’t understand how the sun gives life to seeds, but not the warmness to these soldier. The fifth line â€Å"Was it for this the clay grew tall?† this refer to the war. Clay is mud and mud comes from Earth. The clay grew tall; in this case the clay symbolized man. In this line Owen was asked what was this war for? Do we do all this to kill? Is this why we put him on this Earth? So what is the point of life? The last two lines â€Å"—O what made fatuous sunbeams toil to break Earth’s sleep at all?† Owen ask this question starting with what made, he means what is the point of sending these men these men to the war and died there? It’s seems so silly that the sun create life for these him and then let them died with regret. The first verse focuses upon a dead soldier and second verse asked why the sun is shining at all. Why there is life when there is such a suffering, Owen is trying to say if the sun can wake up life on Earth but why can’t it wake up his soldier because what he thinks is that if anything could make the soldier it must be the sun.

Discursive

Discursive EssaySean Killoran The death penalty, used from 1707 and fully abolished in 1969, was said to have cut crimes by two thirds. It is a controversial topic ever since it was created. It has taken the lives of guilty and innocent parties. In a recent survey 70% or the public want the death penalty reinstated for heavy crimes. Personally I feel the death penalty should only be used if a murderer has been proved guilty with flawless evidence. Many people feel that the death penalty is a cruel and inhumane punishment for any convict.It brings forward the question that would we be any better than the person standing in front of the jury ? There is also a major danger that an innocent person could be sentenced to death. There would be know way of releasing the person if there was suitable evidence from because they would be dead. For example, In 2004, the state of Texas executed Cameron Todd Willingham for starting the fire that killed his children. The Texas Forensic Science Commi ssion found that the arson testimony that led to his conviction was based on flawed science.As of today, 138 wrongly convicted people on death row have been exonerated. One of the main reasons I feel people are against the death penalty is the cost. In Texas over 430 executions have been recorded since 1976, this has cost them $2. 3 million, which is almost three times of which it would cost to imprison a convict. This makes people think why would you pay almost three times the amount to kill a person just so the family can have ‘revenge’ and ‘justice’. There is more than one side to this argument however.The death penalty did reduce crimes by two thirds therefore making the area a safer place. This gives the impression that a ruthless and no holds barred attitude would be put towards the offender and possibly make other people who are thinking of committing think twice. Also there is no chance of re-offending as the type of people who are willing to do suc h a crime will effectively be wiped out. A judge could sentence a man to life in prison. That same man could be out of jail with 15 years. How has life in jail become known as ten to fifteen ears? If the judge says life with no parole, then the criminal could stay in jail a bit longer, but that would mean the country would have to take care of the prisoner for twenty to twenty five years. How can we trust the murderers and thieves of our country to a law that will either let them out in ten years or have us take care of them for twenty years, and then let them go? The criminals do not fear the punishment anymore, because they know they will not die. Punishment is meant to be feared by the convict and to keep him from doing it again.I am not saying we execute all of the criminals in the world, but it has to remain an option for the courts to use and to scare the criminals of the country. Many criminals don't fear the law. They know that they will get out in ten years if they murder s omeone. They are not afraid of jail or their punishment. How can we force them to stop killing or stealing if they are not afraid of the punishment we give them. Most rational men are afraid of death. They don't want to die. There are also men that don't fear death, but enjoy killing.They must be controlled, but if they are sentenced to life, they are soon free to kill again. Again, I am not saying we should kill all the men in jail and any other criminal in the world. That is not the answer either, but we must have the death penalty as an option so that they will be afraid to break the law, and to control those who don't fear death but love to break the law. The Death Penalty has proven to have good benefits upon the country in determining the consequences that criminals deserve. This is needed to ensure the safety of society.If this is the case, there is no need for us to consider the expenses involved in the death penalty. Certainly human lives are more important, for it may easi ly be yours. We should not abolish the death penalty, but hold our country accountable for properly using the death penalty upon those who deserve it. Sources YYwww. wikipedia. com[->0] YYwww. answers. yahoo. com[->1] YYwww. tnjn. com[->2] Word Count: 766 [->0] – http://www. wikipedia. com/ [->1] – http://www. answers. yahoo. com/ [->2] – http://www. tnjn. com/

Humana Case Essay

The purpose of this memo is to analyze Humana’s business model and its spin-off solution. We think Humana’s problems were severe enough to implement restructuring plans within the company. First of all, Humana’s administrative cost ratio was 16.1% and medical loss ratio stood at 85.9% (increased from 84.4% in 1991). The stock price was declining from $34.5/share in May 1991 to $21.63 in May 1992. In addition, the entire hospital industry is suffering losses in the long-term because of increases in operating costs, decreases in average hospital stays (occupancy rate declining to 47%, national average occupancy rate was 69%), and growing competition. The margin is diminishing and the PE ratio is lower in both industry averages. Spin-off is ideal since the hospital industry is shrinking and Humana’s profit from hospital starting to decline. A decision made early will still allow Humana a higher valuation on hospital business. The separate income statement is listed below. As presented, the after-tax net income of Humana Hospital and Health Plan are $314M and $ 41M. After we compare the asset sizes of comparable companies, we decided that the PE ratio for the Hospital business should be 13.0x, equal to that of National Medical Enterprises, as they are closer on the asset size. The PE ratio for Health Plan business should be 17.0x, equal to the average of United Healthcare and U.S. Healthcare, for the same reason. Thus, the value of these two businesses separate will be $4,087M and $694M. The Market value using current PE ratio for the whole Humana Company is $3,550M. Therefore, a spin-off of these two segments (assuming tax rate is 36%) will create an extra value of approximately $1,231M. Humana should assign most of its debt to the hospital business and keep sufficient cash in the health plan segment. According to the exhibits, the proportion of debt distributed to hospital and health plan is 5:1. Health Plan business could expand itself and enjoy further profit and growth, while the hospital business could start eliminating parts that are not profitable or carries much capacity. Kaiser has 6.5 million members and 7700 beds. This means feeding more people into the hospitals and a higher occupancy ratio. Humana has 1.7 million members and 17829 beds, significantly less occupancy. Both of the hospital and health plan industries enjoy higher PE valuation ratio than Humana as a company does, which indicates that this integrating strategy doesn’t fulfill the fullest of their respective potential. There is no other option that’s more sensible since they all have their respective flaws. New price structure compensates their margin to sell more services, yet their hospital’s occupancy ratio will not increase and they will lose on the Medicare deals. Selling off hospitals may help gain profit and independence. However, it will be extremely undervalued (6.0x EBITDA ratio). Leverage buyout is not feasible either because Humana’s marketable securities are occupied, thus no sufficient fund. Stock buyback will not help Humana to deal with hospital section’s occupancy and profitability problem. Finally, the feasibility of ESOP remains uncertain, as it didn’t measure whether employees have the ability to purchase and whether synergy has been compensated.

How significant a problem is youth offending Essay

How significant a problem is youth offending - Essay Example Their stay in the prison must be utilized to fine-tune their personality, so that upon release, they would find it easy to assimilate into the mainstream of society. The negligent society and adults are responsible for majority of the criminal offenses by young people. Early life experiences have much to do with the criminal leanings of the youngsters. Low achievement in school, family history of problem behavior, and lack of social commitment could be some of the reasons for the youth to get into crimes. Youth offenders should not be treated as the regular criminals. Mercifully, there is a separate youth justice system to look after this aspect, through the intervention of Youth Courts. In his book titled â€Å"Criminology† Tim Newburn, deals extensively on this subject in chapter â€Å"Youth Crime and Youth Justice (p714-741). He highlights the role of the administration, the working of the prisons, police and measurement of youth offending and tries to offer appropriate solutions. No two young offenders are alike and they require varied types of counseling on the basis of their backgrounder information, as to what led them to the path of crime. Society and administration have lots of responsibility in treating and looking after the first time offenders. Youth, besides being combustible, have impressionable minds. Every offender is not a criminal, but has the potentiality to become one, if not guided well in time. What is important is to develop an understanding of the causes of crime. What is the possible solution? Newburn writes, â€Å"†¦imposition of an overreaching aim for youth justice, the creation of the Youth Justice Board to oversee practice, and the establishment of multi-agency Youth Offending Teams to deliver justice†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (p.549) are important. The ultimate aim of the reforming agencies is to target the offending behaviour and to address the specific factors linked with offender’s

Mid-term Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mid-term - Assignment Example speed, he uses his mind to trick the tiger with a glass ball, which the tiger after seeing its image on the mirror believes it is the cub and even cuddles it, allowing the hunter to escape with the real cub (White 7). a. Portals with subtle and twisted columns that seem to be strained by the weight. The portals have been criticized that they might give in to the heavy weight that they support though they have stood the test of time. The Donation of Constantine is the interpretation of the Holy Trinity. The holy trinity refers to three God in one, described as the father, the son and the Holy Spirit. It was important in the Middle Ages since it helped to explain the development of the Roman faith. It explains the shift from the period of worshipping idols to the realization of the modern faith. Sylvester, the universal pontiff, has helped in spreading the modern gospel. Sylvester changed the perception that the author had about the gods Peter and Paul, and told them that they were apostles (Halsall 1). The theme of this passage is love. It clearly brings out the various aspects of two people who love and treasure each other. The lady confesses that his only fear is losing him. The man who is the king treats the beautiful creature like a marvel of nature which he had never seen before. He orders that the creature should be fed well and given drink. Every other man admires the beautiful creature who is depicted by the king as a very special one. The theme of love is cemented by the statement that the couple would always visit places together, and none of them would allow to be separated from the other. The passage relates to the course in that it contributes to the effectiveness of use of figurative language, commonly used during the medieval period. The passage was written by Marie de France and translated by Judith P. Shoaf in 1996 (France, para 12). The theme of the text is religion. It describes the faith and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. The

Resume Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 26

Resume - Essay Example 1. I actively participated in all kinds of volunteering activities in arranging event during my stay in Alsabah wa Al Setoon Secondary School, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia 2006. 2. I served as a volunteer worker in the â€Å"Orphan’s Day† in 2008 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 3. I attended and energetically participated in â€Å"Compass Cycle Thinking† Workshop in 2008 at King Abdulaziz University, Faculty of Education for Girls Scientific Department, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 4. Partook as a volunteer in â€Å"Happy Leaders† activity arranged by Self- development Center from 30.12. 2009 – 08.01.2010 (29 hours). 5. Participated in the formation the largest Human Awareness Pink Ribbon Oct 2010. 6. Significantly contributed in the first Geometrics Symposium in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia GTC in 2011. 7. I attended the first forum of the Architectural Heritage 2011. 8. I attended a training course approved by the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties under the title understand the different personal styles (understanding of the characters) 2013.

European Sovereign Debt Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

European Sovereign Debt Crisis - Essay Example In addition, the crisis led to a downtown in the equity market and increased demand for gold because of loss of confidence in the Euro by investors. The states within the European market should learn from the consequences of sovereign default so that their economic condition is kept at check. To prevent debt crises, various financial institutions and policy makers in countries have used policies and strategies of stabilizing the economy, which include regulation of financial credit and national balance sheet management. Introduction The world economy is controlled by various financial and political forces, which should be regulated to avoid sovereign debt crises and defaults. The European Sovereign Debt Crisis illustrates the failure of financial institutions, which stretched across the world. Governments, which face such crises, may announce sovereign default leading to economic consequences. This paper gives a critical discussion of the European Foreign Debt Crisis of 2010/2011, it s impact in the bond market and the lessons, which the Eurozone states would learn, from sovereign defaulters such as Russia and Argentina. A critical analysis of the effectiveness of economic policies and the impact of sovereign debt crises on the financial landscape is also provided in this paper. Part A: European Sovereign Debt Crisis The recent European Sovereign Debt Crisis of 2010/2011 has many features in common with the financial stresses experienced in the early 1990s in the world economy. The features of the sovereign debt crises such as low risk on premiums, long duration of credit growth, abundant liquidity, high asset prices, strong leveraging, and real estate bubbles are experienced in the European Sovereign Debt Crisis which began in 2008 with the collapse of the banking system of Iceland. As a result, there is a lot of uncertainty of banks on the creditworthiness of the institutions in which they had heavily invested. As a result, there is reduced investments by bank s in various institutions in the United Kingdom as demonstrated by Brearley (2010, p. 36). Moreover the recent European Sovereign Debt Crisis has caused a big liquidity problem among the European banks. Because of the liquidity problem, the European banks are failing to rollover their debts. The European Sovereign Debt Crisis may be viewed as a mere liquidity problem by policy makers and financial institutions like the previous crises which would cause eventual collapse of the financial institutions. Estenssoro (2010, p. 4), explains the beginning of the recent European Foreign Debt Crisis by showing that the emergency concerned with the solvency of various financial institutions in Europe demonstrated a serious economic problem policy makers thought that it was unlikely for the financial systems in Europe to fail. From the point of view of Blundell-Wignall and Slovik (2010, p. 12), the European economy was believed to be immune to the financial turbulences because it was considered to be thriving through the good financial positions of businesses and households in addition to the growth in export. In September 2008 when the recent crisis began, these perceptions changed drastically with evaporation of valuations of the financial firms, which caused panic within the stock markets. At this point, the collapse of the financial institutions became a real threat to the stakeholders of the financial and manufacturing sectors. The sovereign debt

Implementation of EMR System Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Implementation of EMR System - Term Paper Example It can be a complete decision support system with quality management and reporting method.But this implementation process of the EMR incurs a huge investment for the firm which cannot be afforded by many small scale companies. Government plays a vital role in the investment process to help the hospitals to adapt the system. In the year 1996 the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act i.e. HIPAA was passed at U.S to setup rules for the access and storing of patients information and auditing to electronic medical records. These rules set a standard for electronic records which is much more stringent than older paper work records. But there are some concerns about the different issues that arise due to the implementation process. The organization faces several challenges in the implementation process which the company needs to evaluate beforehand for a successful implementation of the EMR system. Identifying the key business areas, selecting the appropriate vendor for the so ftware development and implementing in a tactful manner are most important in the adaptation process. Rapid development in IT industry aided in the reduction of cost for setting up the information system and emerging device compatibility gives great flexibility to access the system. The information stored manually through paper work can also be accessed in a simple manner but this cannot be managed for a huge number of records. Networked EMR gives the litheness to connect the different departments and the laboratory data and prompt assistance can be received from the system in an effective way. Various other features like the e-mail and internet communication allows the specialist to take advice from remote organization or physicians. Storage of drugs and availability of the supplementary health care instruments can be tracked by the system. Lastly the report generation of different situational analysis can also be conducted through the system (Fraser, et.al., 2005, p. 84-85). This report is mainly concerned with the issues which arise in the adaptation of EMR system by the hospital administrator and the features of the different EMR systems available from different vendors. The report also will help in the decision process for selecting the right EMR system for the given hospital. EMR implementation process Why EMR implementation? Implementing an EMR system is not an easy task for the hospitals. Identifying the best EMR and deciding the one to buy are two main questions which arise before the implementation process. Identifying the clinical, administrative and the business needs are the very first step one should consider in the process. When searching for the best system one should understand what the process is all about and what can be the implementation process i.e. proper understanding of the systems available in the market are needed to be evaluated first so that there should not be loss of capital in the investment for the system. Proper knowledge of t he systems available and the business process and comparison between the two will help the implementation process much easier. Once the product selection is done the process identification and the analysis can be done and the clinic will surely benefit from that if the right product is selected. EMR system facilitates the processes than if done manually. The analysis, calculation and recording of data about the

MANAGEMENT REPORT Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

MANAGEMENT REPORT - Assignment Example The revenue from the natural resource makes the country rich. That is why the country has seen a sustained economic growth in last few years even though the rest of the world was suffering from global financial crisis. For years Qatar was among the fastest growing economy, but from the crisis period in 2008 it is among the top three countries in terms of the growth of GDP. The positive economic scenario allows the banking sector of Qatar to grow. Qatar is the place where the eastern sides meet western people. Apart from the domestic business houses, the hydrocarbon economy has attracted many foreign investors to invest in Qatar, Kerbaj (2006). The contribution of Petroleum is 70% of the government revenue, 85% of the export earning and more than 60% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. According to Shachmurove (2009) a very interesting fact about Qatar is that, there is no income tax for Qatari and GCC nationals. However, it is not a tax free country. Taxes are being collected from business houses, corporate and foreign investor. That is why the banking system in Qatar is bit different from the rest of the world. The apex bank of the country is Central Bank of Qatar. Many commercial bank and foreign banks are operating in the territory of the country. The banking system of Qatar is secure, well financed and well regulated. Regular banking services like, retail banking, corporate banking, branch banking, online banking, mobile banking, credit and debit facilities are available from the bank. Hasim & Chaker (2009) argued that, like in other parts of the world Qatar is also bending towards using new technologies in the banking system such as online banking and telephonic banking as these instruments have made banking easier and accessible. Elsamadisy et al. (2013) argued that, the banking scenario has seen a big change during the pre and post global financial crisis. The monetary policies and other banking policies

On Fire Creation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

On Fire Creation - Essay Example The work at hand tries to establish the ideas showing why fire can be a natural, technological and human-caused hazard generally within the community. Furthermore, the appropriate or relevant Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) that will be able to mitigate fire as a hazard is discussed. Fire can be a natural-caused hazard within the community. As explained earlier, it is possible to build up a fire when there is a remarkable presence of a higher temperature, fuel and oxygen. In the case of the on-going global warming phenomenon, fire is not impossible to take place anywhere knowing that a high temperature of the environment may possibly ignite combustion provided there is a potential fuel that can help develop the flames, naturally. However, this is common to take place in areas where there is extreme level of heat for the environment. In some cases, in the presence of lightening, the creation of fire is not impossible to take place, which at some point could further lead to ravage prop erties and even lives. There are reported cases when both properties and humans were significant subjects of a fire that was evidently due to a natural phenomenon such as lightening. It is therefore clear in this case that fire is developed naturally, and that is without the presence of significant human or technological intervention factors. On the other hand, fire can also be a technological-caused hazard in the community, working place and even at home at the most specific level. We heard many reports presenting us the significant reasons of fire in the community. A substantial number of them were due to the use of human technology. We heard how cellular phones exploded during its charging process which evidently led to the creation of fire. We received some reports how a micro-wave oven exploded leading to the inception of fire that ravaged properties and even lives. We heard how electricity led to the destruction of various personal or corporate properties and even lives at its worst case scenario. All of these are significant proofs we see around us, proving the point that fire can be a technological-caused hazard. In fact, various manuals linked to the use of our prevailing technologies have substantial information on how we can get rid of fire while using them. Even there are precautionary measures that are linked to these technologies so as instead of giving us hazard like fire, we can use them to optimize their promised design of usage. Finally, fire can be a human-caused hazard. Evidently, we cannot argue that it is we humans who are sometimes responsible for combining fuel and a high temperature in the presence of oxygen around us. Oxygen is one important element in the creation of fire that we can hardly control under the normal setting at home, job and in our community. Therefore, what we can only possibly do to contribute to the creation of fire is to provide fuel and ensure temperature is higher enough in order to spark a flame. In some cases, fire may be due to our failure to take the precautionary measures prior to the effective use of our technologies. At this point, although it is clear that the technology might have a great role to play in the actual creation of fire, our inability to take control of it also provides a great contribution to a hazard that the actual fire may present us. In addition, it is evident that we are indeed capable of producing fire, as we cook our foods, create goods, and develop various products and other offerings. On the process of making all of these, it may actually require us to create a fire, but we have to observe precautionary measures. Sometimes, our failure to employ the necessary actions may lead to the formation of fire which brings the

Miep Gies Essay Example for Free

Miep Gies Essay Miep Gies (2/15/1909-1/12/2010) opposed the holocaust by aiding the Jews from the Germans. She was one of many Dutch saviors of the Holocaust. For over two years, she administered food, shelter, companionship, and news of the outside world to eight Jewish people. The Frank Family, the van Pels, and a Jewish dentist named Fritz Pfeffer were taken great care of. By virtue of her gratitude, these Jews were fortunate enough to have Miep in their lives. Miep jeopardized her own life when she assisted in hiding the eight innocent people. She brought food for them secretly and knew that there was serious trouble waiting for her if she were to get caught. Her husband, Jan Gies, also cooperated in aiding Jews. He provided ration cards that he attained illegally so Miep could get more food. She also visited various grocery shops each day to refrain from suspicion and prying among other individuals. The employees in Otto Frank’s business were not aware about the Secret Annex. Due to this, Gies attempted to avoid entering the hiding place during office hours. The hiding place is located in an empty part of Opekta’s premises on the Prinsengracht canal. It had an entrance of a regular door and then the door was replaced with a bookcase to make it less questionable. Work went on as usual and normal in the front part of the building. The frightened people were sealed in the Secret Annex near the rear. They stayed as quiet as possible so the workers and Nazis wouldn’t discover them. Gies also provided something especially valuable in their lives, companionship and news of the outside world. Since the Jews could not make any outside commotion, Miep brought them the most recent news of events during World War II. Although the news became increasingly hopeless, her hope never faded. Her and her husband’s presence helped in providing comfort towards the families. Thankfully, their companionship kept everything stable. Despite knowledge of the possible consequences, Miep was determined to keep the Jews safe from the Nazis. She accompanied the Frank family, the van Pels, and Pfeffer with food, shelter, and companionship. Gies was aware of the dangerous risks she had taken upon herself and her husband. She was more than willing to jeopardize her own life to rescue the lives of others. Miep Gies opposed the Holocaust in a way better than any other, by saving lives.

Strengths And Weaknesses Of Ids Information Technology Essay

Strengths And Weaknesses Of Ids Information Technology Essay Although IDS is a useful addition to ensure security, it does well on some points, but there are still some limitations with it. Table 5.1 summaries some the strengths and weaknesses of IDS. Strengths Weaknesses Monitoring user behaviors and system event logs. Detection but not prevention. Testing the system configrutions of hosts. False positive detections. Setting up baseline for the security state of a system, and tracking any changes to that baseline. False negative detections. Protecting against known threats. Spoofing attacks. Recognizing patterns of activity that are abnormal. Cannot automatically investigating attacks without human intervention. Centralized management. Delays of signature update. Alerting to appropriate administrators with appropriate means. Easier to perform security monitoring functions for non-security experts. Table 5.1: Strengths and Weaknesses of IDS. Monitoring user behaviors and system event logs One of the strengths of IDS is that it provides ability to monitor the system event logs of every host, which make administrators to be aware when any changes on the hosts. They can also utilize this information collected by IDS to analyze user behaviors, thereby planning the security strategy and policies for their organizations accordingly. Testing the system configrutions of hosts IDS are also able to test the security states for every host, when the system is configured below par or a baseline, it alerts to administrators which host is set below a security level. Thus, administrators can make further configurations for that host. Setting up baseline for the security state of a system, and tracking any changes to that baseline With IDS, administrators can set up their own expectation as a security baseline. Based on that baseline, IDS keeps tracking the differences and changes on the hosts, allowing administrators to have all hosts in the same security level they expect. Protecting against known threats The Signature detection techniques make IDS to protect systems and networks well against known threats. It ensures recognizing patterns of system events that compare to the known threats. Recognizing patterns of activity that are abnormal When a new attack does not exist in known threat signatures, IDS has Anomaly detection techniques for it. This technique is good at comparing system activities or network traffic against a baseline to indentify abnormal behaviors, recognizing new attacks that Signature detection techniques miss. Centralized management IDS provides a centralized management for administrators easier to change logging mechanisms, perform software upgrade, collecting alarm information and updating security setting etc. Many IDS products even have a very simple menu to have the configuration of IDS set up, which helps administrators a lot to monitors a numerous of networks and hosts. Alerting to appropriate administrators with appropriate means Based on scan and match principle, IDS always send alerts to appropriate people by appropriate means. Administrators can decide who should receive the alerts and define different activates they want to be alerted. These appropriate meaning of messages to appropriate people can be more effective and efficient to an organization. Easier to perform security monitoring functions for non-security experts Many IDS products now already provide basic information security policies, plus easy configuration, allowing non-security expert to perform security monitoring functions for their organizations as well. This is also a strength that makes IDS to a success. On the contrary, there are some weaknesses have been suggested as shown in Table 5.1. Detection but not prevention IDS concentrate on detection method but not prevention, it is a passive activity. It is sometimes too late to detect an intrusion, especially now some attacks are transporting very fast on the current high speed networks, when IDS sends a alert to administrators, the actual situation may be worse. False positive detections The detection capabilities of IDS can be defined in four measures: True positive, False positive, True negative and False negative. Figure 5.3 illustrates the differences of them. True positive indicates that the real attacks are identified by IDS correctly; True negative indicates that IDS is identified correctly that are not attacks; False positive indicates that IDS is identified incorrectly as true attacks but actually that are not real attacks; False negative indicates that IDS is identified incorrectly as not attacks but actually that are attacks. Figure 5.3: Measures of IDS IDS often generate too many false positives, due to the inaccurate assumptions. One example is looking for the length of URLs. Typically, a URL is only around 500 bytes length, assuming that an IDS is configured to trigger an alert for denial of service attack when the length of a URL is exceed 1000 bytes. False positive could be occurred from some complex web pages that are common to store a large content now. The IDS is not making mistake, the algorithm is just not perfect. In order to reduce False positives, administrators need to tune the assumptions of how to detect attacks in an IDS, but which is time consuming. False negative detections False negatives are also a weakness of IDS, hackers now can encode an attack file to be unsearchable by IDS. For example, cgi-bin/attack.cgi is defined as a signature in an IDS, but the file is encoded to be cg%39-b%39n/a%39tt%39 by the hackers. While cg%39-b%39n/a%39tt%39 is not defined in the signature files, the attack will pass without any notice, then a False negative occurs. Spoofing attacks Hackers can utilize spoofing attacks to blind the administrators. For example, hackers can use one of the IP in a network to make many False positive detections, administrators may then set the IDS to ignore local traffic for this IP, after then hackers start the real attacks. Cannot automatically investigating attacks without human intervention Even IDS can detect most of the attacks in the hosts and networks, but it still need administrators to investigate and perform reaction. Hackers can utilize this weakness of IDS to perform an attack, for instance, a hacker can make a large of attacks to host A, since IDS is not able to analyze all the attacks automatically by itself, administrators needs to spend time to investigate each alarm from host A. Thus, the hacker may have more time to make a real attack to host B. Delays of signature update IDS rely on its signature database to detect a known intrusion, IDS products typically updating the signature database by the IDS vendors. The potential problem is the delay of signature update patch, IDS vendors often take a long time to identify a new attack and finish an update patch. However, even IDS vendors provide the most update signature as soon as they can. It is still a time period that the IDS are not able to identify a new attack before updating the signature database.