Trip to Hinduism temple Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Trip to Hinduism temple - Essay Example Another interesting point that I noticed is a little box for donation which is place next to each Statue. I acknowledge that any temple needs maintenance which, in turn, requires money. Since religious institutions can not directly ask for money, people are encouraged to make donations. This was particularly interesting for me as it shows that different religions all over the world actually have a lot in common, even in such daily matters as donation boxes. What was even more important is that visitors were not allowed to take pictures. I believe this shows that people who come to the temple to pray to their gods find it particularly disturbing when other people come to the temple as if they were visiting a museum. I thought that this prohibition was quite logical. Speaking of the aspects of my visit that surprised me the most was the need to take off ones shoes prior to walking into the temple. To my mind, this is one of the most intriguing aspects about Hinduism temple as the place feels so much different when one walks around barefooted. There is no doubt that this tradition is conditioned by the warm climate of India. Continuing the idea of similarities between religions, I was surprised very much to learn that there was an analog of Christian Sunday school – the Hinduism temple that I visited also had a little school on the other side of it. It is quite obvious that this shows a close connection between religion and society as well as how there two important aspects mutually shape each other which may be seen in the form of education. Finally, I was quite surprised to learn that many people who attended the temple were wearing traditional Hinduism clothes. I believe that this is extremely important since this kind of clothes allowed them to maintain and reinforce their identity through religious as well as through garments; it also reflects the fact that they treated

Cronulla Riots Essay Example for Free

Cronulla Riots Essay The beachside suburb, known by residents as Gods Country, saw the spread of violence in a series of ethnically motivated confrontations in the week of December 11th 2005. This day saw the gathering of nearly 5000 people, most of Anglo Celtic background, some locals, some from other Sydney beachside suburbs such as Maroubra and Brighton, in order to reclaim the beach after two middle eastern youths attacked Cronulla lifesavers earlier in the week. The notification of the gathering was sent via mobile text to people all around Sydney, inviting them to join in the fight for Australians right to reclaim their beaches. Violence broke out due to a combination of mob mentality and alcohol and many ethnic individuals were attacked and assaulted. Signs and t-shirts read discriminatory sayings such as Fuck Allah, Save Nulla, Love it or Leave it, Wog Free Zone and We grew here, you flew here. The following nights saw incidents of retaliatory violence and vandalism by those of Middle Eastern decent; throughout Sydney, and from Wollongong to Newcastle protests of both sides were present. Police locked-down areas of Sydney including Western Sydney, guarding those who were to enter and leave and searched cars and checked identification for those entering the Sutherland Shire area to avoid the occurrence of further incidents. The fight divided many of Sydney, and called for Australians to address their notions of the identity of Australians or more specifically, what is to be Australian? the community was shock to see such violence in a quiet neighbourhood.

Employment Relationship in Industrial Relations

Employment Relationship in Industrial Relations The employment relationship between an employer and an employee has often led to being described by two different terms ‘Industrial Relations or ‘Employee Relations. These, though seen as interchangeable terms often have been under the scrutiny of writers. Employee relations in general can be seen as a relationship between any employer and his workers, i.e., be it in the form of domestic labour, self-employed employers or professionals. On the contrary, Industrial Relations take into account employment in all spheres where economy activity takes place, i.e., industrial relationship. Since there is a misconception that Industrial Relations is just concerned with the study of trade unions, strikes, labour markets etc., and hence in some books writers have used the term employee relations to evade these among general public. However, in context with UK, the term industrial relations is seen to be more appropriate. Industrial relations is a multidisciplinary field and is influenced by a lot of internal as well as external factors. The main actors that play an important role in affecting a countrys industrial relations system are employers and management of an organisation, third-party agencies like the state and finally, employees and their representatives, i.e., trade unions. However, it must be noted that each of these actors have functions towards themselves as well as towards the role of other actors. In other words, there is a dependency between all of them. Brief Overview of the Current Changes in Industrial Relations over the last three decades In the last three decades, i.e., since 1980s the industrial relations in Britain has undergone a massive reform. The major changes undergone include the demise of collective bargaining, decline in trade union recognitions and membership density, a reduction in the number of strike activities and an increase in the intervention on law in the industrial relations since 1979. Moreover, there have been reforms in the organisation of the work which is related to restructuring of labour market, new management practices adopted by the employers and globalisation. However, in order to understand how these changes have played a role and influenced the present industrial relations, it is important to have a look at the historical background of it prior to the reforming. Industrial Relations in UK Historical Overview, i.e., before 1979 Earlier, it was seen that the central matter of industrial relations in UK was the concept of ‘free collective bargaining, a term introduced by the Webbs and developed in practice by the trade unions. According to this, the rights of the employees like wage determination among others were supported by the trade unions present in organisations. It was their peak presence during 1960s and 1970s which contributed to the decline of UKs economy because of them leading to increasing unemployment and lower productivity. The employers believed in the old tradition of unscientific management where all the costs regarding technical staff as well as capital were kept to minimum. And any alternative systems regarding organisation of work and for controlling of labour were looked upon as risky. Also, it was seen that the state was not looked upon as a part of the industrial relations system and a contributor towards labour strength due to both the employers and trade unions implying collect ive bargaining or voluntarism phenomenon (as it was called) not wanting any kind of legal intervention. Unions believed that the presence of law might take away workers from unionising and hence just believed in a labour law system and moreover, since employers looked for employee cooperation and productivity, they encouraged trade unions. Owing to all these factors, the Industrial Relations in UK till 1960s started being looked as a problem because of low wage, low productivity and increasing strike activity. Therefore, the concept of reforming it was a prime concern. Now we shall see how there has been change in the management of industrial relations during the last three decades and what does it tell us about the influence of the three major actors on the current framework of industrial relations in UK. Change in the Role of State and Law and its influence During the last three decades, there has been a drastic change in the legislative frameworks with the coming up of Conservative Governments during 1980s and 1990s and the Labour Party beyond 1997 contributing to the development of participation by the law in industrial relations moving beyond the traditional voluntary approach among organisations. The criticism by pluralists that state couldnt play any role in industrial relations was not justified during the Conservative Government Period of 1979-1997. During this period, the government curbed the presence of the trade unions and eradicated the collective bargaining phenomenon with an aim to restricting individual employment rights, giving more freedom to the employers. However, owing to the EUs directive influence on the domestic UK Law, there were a number of issue mismatches between the UK policies and the EU employment policy. As a result of which, UK opted out of the EU Community. Nevertheless, the influence of the EU is still seen there. These de-regulatory measures did not contribute much towards juridification of the industrial relations and the employment relationship was still determined voluntarily. Also, due to the changing law, it was seen that in the period after 1980s and 1990s, the number of days which had been lost in dealing with strikes suffered a decrease indicating that the strike pattern in UK observed a diminishing trend. The influences of these successive Conservative Governments show that the role of the state has had only a negative impact on industrial relations. Though, a number of acts and commissions were developed in order to combat certain issues, but the outcome was very different. In regard to the trade unions, The Employment Act in 1982 made sure that they suffered penalties for all their wrong doings as a result of which the statutory immunities enjoyed by them were gradually reduced. This showed the restoration of the private law. Also the restrictive re-regulation of collective action made changes in the unfair dismissal law to protect the rights of strikers. Both these regulatory techniques made sure that a fully functional labour market was restored unlike before. However, it is noted that though the legislative change provided unions with some national leadership like controlling of strike ballots, it has also led to the deterioration of the financial expenses of the unions. Similarly, the rising influence of the European Community Law saw policies like equality in pay for equality in work between men and women and employment protection taking place in Britain. In spite of restoration of the Equal Pay for Equal Work in 1983, the negative economic outcomes of legislative action relation to pay and productivity have been there. The removal of wage councils has led to pay differences in low-wage sectors and hence widened the pay inequalities in UK. As for the contribution of legislation in improving economic performance, it has only been seen in areas where unionism and closed-shops have eradicated. Moreover, it was Conservatives who were keen on the idea â€Å"of de-regulating labour markets and removing ‘obstacles to the free operation of market forces (Blyton and Turnbull, 1998)† for which they wanted to remove trade unions. However, adopting a strategy based on cost-reduction (i.e., the least labour costs) in times of high levels of unemployment, bad economic activity state, deficits in payments etc., only led to the uprising of an economy having low skill, productivity and wage along with being technologically backwards. Therefore, it is seen that although the successive Conservative laws has reformed the old traditions of UK industrial relations relying on centralised bargaining systems and absence of statutory rights but it hasnt managed to solve many of the problems like that of still continuing unemployment and no legal protection right with employees (be it collective or individualistic). But, post 1997, Labour Party came into force and has been there since then been, maintaining a balance between using legal regulation where required like in new concepts of national minimum wage, individual employee rights and supporting collective bargaining and employee representations along with retaining some earlier Conservatives approaches like restrictions on strikes and internal trade union procedures. But still some restrictions on industrial relations from previous times like the ballots are still there. Moreover, in this period UK signed up with the EU Social Charter which resulted in current legal framework developments like working time regulation and improved rights for non-standard workers among others. This new legislation has also affected the British industrial relations in a different number of ways with having positive along with negative implications. The current Labour Law sees that a legal intervention is a source of employment rights in Britain and the Labour Party seems to maintain labour flexibility with fair universal minimum standards unlike the previous governments. The most important piece of legislation introduced by the Labour Party was the introduction of National Minimum Wage and its influence is seen in the sense that it prevented employers from cutting pay and hence did not affect employment and inflation adversely. Also, in order to support collective bargaining, there was a statutory procedure to gain trade unions recognition under the Employment Relations Act 1999. Though, the current legal framework in UK shows there has not been an aim to remove old philosophies and accept new changes but the aim is to maintain continuity. Nevertheless, it is still evident that there have been tensions and contradictions due to the present Labour Government balancing between pressures from the domestic law as well as maintaining the standards of the EU employment law. This has led to compromises between many aspects like those between managerial freedom and workers relationship and not all EU developments being welcomed in spite of the no longer opposition to becoming a part of it. Furthermore, though the Labour Government has advocated social partnership and fairness, but it is unclear as to how it will achieve these by retaining the old Conservative Law practices of restriction on trade union governance and strikes along with ensuring flexibility in labour market. Also, in UK the employees still have no rights to bargain which is considered important by the all the other European states as necessary and legitimate elements for the industrial relations to work effectively. It is also questionable that how will productivity and flexibility increase in an environment of removed individualistic legal rights and counteracting collective representation. Change in Employers and Management Strategies and their outcomes The earlier British management style was predominant on collectivism but depended on a hostile union-management relationship along with the cost-driven individualism. Moreover, till 1980s, management as an actor in Industrial Relations was not given much importance due to it being considered as not interested in changing things and just responding to the other actors being trade unions and the state in its decision making. However, after the period of 1980s, management has started getting lot of attention owing to its increased activity in taking a lot of initiatives leading to the emergence of lot of key issues. Firstly, it is due to the development of management models which shows the respective roles of it as being a system actor, a strategic actor and a capital agent. However, all these three models arent sufficient to explain the role of management which is diverse consisting of complexity and variety. Secondly, due to the non-presence of legal regulations and multi-employer bargaining, it might be easy for British managers to opt for any choice but this is not as such and can be influenced by variables like sector, size, occupation etc., indicating the variety of management practices. Also, as the British economy shifted after 1980s, the industrial relations underwent a change and the interest of employers too changed. The current framework sees an attitude of social partnership and voice arising from EU policy giving much more rights to employees though not to a great extent as also indicated by the role of state. This new UK policy has begun to reshape the participation of the employees by a direct and an indirect impact and also though the increased legal regulation. Moreover, attempts to involve EI into management practices and consolidate and integrate voice measures indicate the confident approach of the current British management towards organisational participation. Furthermore, new management prerogatives have emerged with changes in the thinking of management and strategic intentions of large firms to manage labour with an emphasis on individualism moving away from the traditional norms of collectivism in 1970s. They are looking forward to a single-employer bargaining system which helps firms link its labour to the product market and brings in new payment systems and grades along with need for more flexibility, single unionism and individualisation of industrial relations. Therefore, this new strategy shows moving away from external market structures by linking industrial relations to the needs of business. In spite of all these changes, the influence of the new management too hasnt been that good. It is clear that employers after 1980s and 1990s adopted individualistic manners for determination of pay conditions and shift from the collectivism approach led to the introduction of two different styles involving high commitment practices in a union as well as non-union environment. However, what ais seen contrasting here is that, even though union presence led to encouraging efficient management along with the high commitment practices and partnership agreements with the employees relating to a new form of collective bargaining so as to increase productivity, still it has not been possible to identify the current style of management. The main reason seen to be is that after 1980s, the decline in unionism has allowed management wider choice to choose which style to adopt be it with unions or without. And evidence still suggests that â€Å"management are driven more by a cost-minimisation and opportunistic approach to employees, reflecting more than anything a traditional lifestyle (Edwards, P. 2003)†. Also, the deregulation of collective bargaining has led to the development of organisational employment systems with employment relations dependency on human resource management having minimized unionised role. Furthermore, there also have been problems with individualism or non-collective reforms stating that they cannot comply with a single formula. An example of this is seen from the fact that in order to restructure and reorganise its business when Knowco created an individualised employee relations it was faced with employee insecurity and low trust between managers and staff. And hence it is worth questioning that whether, the use of individualism will protect the firms or worsen competitive tendencies. These facts state that the present influence of management is to manage its employee relations both individually and collectively. To add to all this, despite decline in unions as a means of employee representations, still more and more companies are indulging in partnership in the presence or absence of trade unions. And even though there has been a shift from conflicting industrial relations to a one with new employment trends, still the new employers and unions have a striking relationship. This is due to the new management strategy model consisting of its effects on trade unions and partnerships. Hence, even without partnership or with it, trade-unions will have to make organisational participation work as well as manage tensions and conflicts in employment relationship skilfully. Lastly, it should be pointed that the managements main aim is cooperation and compliance both in regard with its employees, but the problem faced by the former till date is the old managerial issue of maintaining a labour which is cost-effective, productive and co-operates. This is due to the fact that the management in UK still relies on short-term tendencies. Moreover, the absence of the trust between employees and management is the biggest obstacle for a better industrial relations system in UK. This is evident from the so called Labour Partys social partnership strategy, according to which where there are no employee rights either governed by law or through rights in a de-regulated market; employees can just trade their pay for their labour resulting in exploitation by employers. Therefore, for management to effectively contribute for the development of better Industrial Relations and improve the UK industry, it should bring about a change in its attitudes so as to build up trust and confidence in its workers along with concentrating on enhancement of productivity than maintain cost-minimising approach. Changes in Trade Unions and their influence Though the unions have been at their highest peak till 1979, but after this with the emergence of the Conservative Governments, there has been a decline in Union membership from 55% in 1979 being at its peak to 33% presently along with a huge demise in collective bargaining indicating a continual drop in trade union recognition after 1980s. Though, union membership is required, but if it doesnt influence dealings with the management it is not worth anything. The 2004 WERS survey showed that in comparison to the 1998 survey there has been a fall in union recognition from 33 to 27 percent. Also, 77 percent managers agreed that they would directly speak with the employees instead of wanting trade unions to fight for employee rights in comparison to 8 percent who disagreed to it. Moreover, 33 percent stated that unions dont help in improving performance at the workplace in comparison to 23 percent who agreed that they improve. These results show that management believes in generally sett ing terms for its workers, with legislation, trade unions and industry agreements playing a minimalist role. In the current scenario, by means of interviews with different industry employers and unions, a case study shows the impact of Employment Relations Act (ERA) 1999 on trade unions and employers. According to the study, there has been a widespread agreement between the two with employers recruiting mangers with an ability to deal with unions showing no hostility towards unions and unions tolerating the legal law interference by the government. Most of the employers have agreed to the statutory recognition of the unions and started reviewing their policy of anti-unionism. Though they have accepted the presence of unions, still they give them limited rights seeking their views for organisational changes but giving them no influence on pay-setting. However, while giving employees consultative rights, ERA moves away from the contemporary industrial relations practices taking it back to the adversarial system. This can affect trade unions by giving them a chance to develop their presence wi th no-members. This indicated that collectiveness of workers is returning but with an attitude of representative and consultative agreements rather that the old norm of free collective bargaining. Contrary to this is a fact that though this collectiveness gives consultations rights, it might make unions have more influence on employers by the former just letting the latter know of the key issues and this might make them freer from the dependence on the fundamental levels of the lay activists. This weakening of power of the unions can be attributed to have taken place due to a variety of global changes highlighting an employment shift from unionised to non-unionised sectors due to competitive product markets and internationalisation of labour markets. Also, restructuring of employment led to more self employment and a fragmented workforce with the size of the workplace being smaller, indicating challenges for the unions to recruit elsewhere which they couldnt afford due to lack of resources and organisation skills. Though a contrasting point was that in 1980s during unemployment rise in the entire Europe, when all countries unions brought a wage cut to stir employment opportunities, UK was the only exception with its distribution of wages brining a real gain. A discussion on union membership in countries outside and within OECD during 1970-2003 showed that there is a level of decline in the union density in many of these countries (except four) with unions being more popular in public than private sectors. This was also evident from the WERS 2004 Survey, according to which union density in public sector was 64 percent compared to meagre 22 percent in the private sector. Although there was a probability that more male members were a part of unions but females too were there though in public sectors noted again by the WERS Survey (53 percent women being members compared to 46 percent men). The most important feature which came out from the discussion was that age plays a major role in deciding to be a member in unions and it follows an inverted U-shape with maxima at 50. This is due to a main factor that since young and new workers in a union are usually paid less than that of the older union workers, it becomes an added advantage to employ ers to hire them. Also, a number of possibilities arise like older union members quit their jobs and get promoted to non-union jobs in order to increasing their earning levels, older members though enjoy union benefits, they forget to pay their union due etc. The increasing decline in Unions in 1980s and 1990s along with the increase in non-union workplaces show that the reversal of this trend is unlikely. However, these findings indicate that unions now know how they can get recognition through different routes (example: the participation in ballots) by the ERA. But, the potential of this act to control decline can be seen as a future research agenda for industrial relations. Unions have not been able to influence the Industrial Relations in a positive way, in spite of the fact that during the reforms of unions in 1980s and 1990s, their decline has been able to stop the decline of UKs economy to an extent, because of the new legislation adopting a ‘third way of interaction between the government and the unions, thereby eradicating the phenomenon of anti-unionism. They still are faced with a number of challenges. The key problem is that there is still rivalry between unions for members in UK which leads to a lack in coordination between union movements and depicts further problems of recruitment and organisation. They also have to deal with the challenges of their decreasing membership along with the increasing managerial attack in the form of policies of cost-reduction leading to the unions having to bear a scope with limited finances. Also, there has been evidence by a research conducted on to test unemployment measures effects on inflation results , which lead to the fact that high union density can cause unemployment and hence shouldnt be there. Finally, though the presence of the traditional unionism approach of collective bargaining can although lead to a less attrition rate, it also contributes to low productivity and poor performance in jobs in firms. Thereby, it should be stated that in order for the industrial relations in UK to not crumble further and rise again, the unions have to find a way to deal with these current problems. Conclusion In the end we should examine whether Industrial Relations in UK has really improved from the previous times. There have been some positive as well as negative outcomes. Firstly, though there has been a decline in the number of strike activities saving work stoppage days but other problems have also arisen particularly relating to an increase in number of ACAS or tribunal cases with employees complaining about the behaviour of their employers. This suggests that the climate at workplaces still shows a dispute between managers and employees perceptions. Secondly, diminishing collective measures and resorting to individual measures indicate the present scenario has little place or role for trade unions to influence events. However, a contrary point to this is that, the concept of individualism is already seen as a failure and hence the recognition for the efficaciousness as well as legitimacy of representation by collective interest is seen to be encouraged both by the UK as well as the European Law. Also, the efficacy of challenging systems of workers involvement, i.e., partnership and high performance workplaces indicate more scope for trade unionism analysis in future. Finally, in spite of the fact that Labour Party will maintain legal regulations in employment conditions and markets, UK becoming a part of the EU Social Charter, leads to the imposition of EU laws into the national laws which can have implications on domestic laws like the directive introduced in national system for informing and consulting workers. To sum it all it can be said that the Industrial Relations in UK can be improved to a greater extent if all the actors in it, i.e., state, management and trade unions realise the need for long-term measures indicating a wider area for the rights of employees and the joint regulation of the employment relationship.

Common Vulnerabilities Facing IT Managers Essay examples -- Informatio

Vulnerabilities are like a thorn in the side of every single organization doing business today. In the IT world vulnerabilities are bugs or flaws, a weakness, or an exposure of an application, system, device, or service which could lead to a failure of confidentiality, integrity, or availability (Liu & Zhang, 2011). They are to companies today what the black plague was to Europe in the 1300’s. It doesn’t even matter if the organization is connected to the internet or not it’s still vulnerable to some type of attack. Regardless of what a company actually produces and what its mission statement states their number one internal concern is â€Å"vulnerability†. How do IT Departments and IT Managers combat these threats? Every company has some type of Cyber Security team or department. Cyber security is defined by the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team as protecting that information by preventing, detecting, and responding to attacks (McDo well & Householder, 2009). Every year companies spend billions upon billions of dollars in cyber security assessing and combating possible vulnerabilities of their organization's hardware and software systems, transmission media, local area networks, wide area networks, enterprise networks, Intranets, and Internet. This paper will evaluate 3 company’s networks and assess their vulnerabilities. Company A Weebles, Inc has several hundred employees in their main office and two hundred at the shipping plant just a few miles away. The LAN or Local Area Network uses 100 gb/1000gb connectivity speeds over Ethernet circuits. Local Area Networks cover small geographical locations and enable individual computers to communicate with each other to share information (Pang, 2011). The Wid... ... external IP address. Works Cited Liu, Q., & Zhang, Y. (2011, March). VRSS: A new system for rating and scoring vulnerabilities. Computer Communications, 34(3), 264-273. Retrieved June 08, 2011, from Computers & Applied Sciences Complete. McDowell, M., & Householder, A. (2009, May 6). Cyber Security Tip ST04-001. In US-CERT. Retrieved June 08, 2011, from CSEC610 9041 Webliography. Valacich, J, & Schneider, C. (2012). Information Systems Today: Managing in the Digital World 5th Edition. (pp. 12-37). Pearson. ISBN-13: 978-0-13-706699-5. UMUC. (2011). Custom Textbook for CSEC 610 (pp. 1-13). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-0-470-92331-3. Pang, L. (2011). The vulnerability of information systems in CSEC610. Course module 2 posted in University of Maryland University College CSEC 610 9041 online classroom, archived at: http://webtycho.umuc.edu

A Thousand Splendid Suns: Analysis

Create questions you would ask the author and at least one of the people in the book. Include why you would ask each particular question, and connect the question to a specific event (quote with page #) in the book. If I were to ask questions to the author and characters, they would be about their experiences. The one question I would ask Khaled Hosseini is, All the characters in this book were granted poetic justice, but why not Mariam? Mariam did nothing monstrous to deserve execution; her act of killing Rasheed was done in self-defense and the defense of Laila. Nonetheless, she suffered the shame and punishment from the government under which she lived in. â€Å"Like a compass needle that points north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam. †pg. 364 Even though Mariam’s execution was injustice in my eyes I believe that for Mariam her death sentence was an legitimate end to her life which had legitimate beginnings. Before her death sentence, she recites lines from the Koran asking for mercy and forgiveness which portrays her humbleness and her dedication to loved ones in her life. I would like to ask Mariam why she refused to call witnesses at her trial. Why did she not try to escape with Tariq and Laila? Calling witnesses to her trial could have proved to be beneficial to Mariam; she might not have been sentenced to death but she didn’t even try. â€Å"Remembering the last time she’d signed her name to a document, twenty- seven years before, at Jalil’s table, beneath the watchful gaze of another mullah. pg. 364 There was still a little hope left her, her dreams were to see Laila and Tariq happy and to watch Aziza and Zalmai grow but just like that she gave it all up. Her life had not ended but she still acted as if there was nothing that could be done; she herself gave up her hopes which contrasted her character at the beginning of the book. Lastly, I would like to ask Kh aled why was Laila not given a chance to attend university and complete her secondary education? It is obvious in the early stages of the book that her dream is be educated and educate others so that she can play a women’s worthy role in their society. Her young self is contradicting to what her character becomes. I wonder why after building her family and living in peace she didn’t have the desire to attend university. She had a good opportunity and I feel it would have benefited her and her family a lot. One question I would ask Laila is why she wanted to move back to Kabul? Wasn’t she done with all the suffering and painful memories she endured there? â€Å"†¦Where do we go from here, Tariq? How long do we stay here? This isn’t home. Kabul is†¦Ã¢â‚¬ pg. 390 I realize it was her homeland, she grew up there and the Kabul they left during the war was now half restored; though why would she risk the lives of her family members and their freedom they obtained in Murree. â€Å"It’s a good life, Laila tells herself, a life to be thankful for. It is, in fact, precisely the sort of life she used to dream for herself in her darkest days with Rasheed. †

Tchiakovskys Concerto No 1 essays

Tchiakovskys Concerto No 1 essays The concerto, is in Bb minor and features solo pianist Alessio Bax. Accompanying the piano was the Meadows Symphony Orchestra of SMU, conducted by Paul Phillips. The first movement is performed allegro non troppo e molto maestroso, and opens with several bars of pensive, ominous, horn dominated melody. The English horn was a new addition to the Romantic orchestra and its powerful contribution is evident immediately. But following this tense opening, the piano emerges as the focal point, and just twelve seconds into the movement Mr. Bax plays the driving three chord subject material of the first theme. While the extended length of the piece creates difficulties in determining its form, there are distinguishable themes repeated throughout the work. The first theme, with a simple chordal progression on piano with a supporting string harmony, is typical of the Romantic aesthetic. Lofty and extravagant strings soar over the terrace dynamics of the piano, whose disjunctive melody rises and falls by octaves at a time. Beyond the easily recognizable subject material of this theme, the piano is prone to develop and digress on subjects briefly presented outside of the strict conforms of Classical period sonta-allegro. While I can only speculate the form employed by Tchiakovsky, I will attempt to be more specific as to quality traits perceptible to the unrefined ear. During the second movement, performed Andantino simplice, a sympathy towards Rubenseins critic of the work threatens to overtake the listener. Two minutes into the movement, the piano interupts the comparatively even and chromatic strings with a dissonant and agitated arpeggiated melody. The emotion builds with very distinct passages of antecedent, consequent interplay between the orchestra and soloist. The arpeggios grow larger and more dramatic, running up and down the whole length of the keyboard. This intensity is assuaged by a string passage at fourtee ...

Free Online Public Schools for Michigan Students

Free Online Public Schools for Michigan Students Michigan offers resident students the opportunity to take public school courses online for free. This public school option is for parents who prefer a flexible, home-based environment for their children.  The online schools use certified teachers and follow a curriculum designed to provide the students with an education that equals that of other public school students. Most virtual schools offer full-time and part-time enrollment. The online schools offer core courses similar to the standard courses offered by other programs. They meet all the academic requirements for graduation and for potential admission to colleges. Honors courses and Advanced Placement college-level courses are also available.   All the virtual programs require that students provide a computer and an internet connection. In some cases, the programs provide a computer and an internet allowance to families who cannot afford the equipment. The family is expected to provide a printer,  ink,  and paper. In most cases, online students are free to attend school activities in their district. Several no-cost online schools currently serve grades K-12 in Michigan.   Michigan Free Online Public Schools Highpoint Virtual Academy of Michigan  serves Michigan students in grades K-8. Students are offered the same core courses that are available to students in a brick-and-mortar school. Textbooks and instructional materials are provided for the student. Virtual students are invited to participate in school outings and field trips and other social events. Jenison International Academy is available in West Michigan. Because Jenison is a School of Choice district, any family not residing in the Jenison district can simply apply for non-resident enrollment. JIA is a tuition-free public school serving students in grades K-12.Insight School of Michigan is a full-time only free virtual public school authorized by Central Michigan University. Currently, the Insight School of Michigan offers grades 6-12. Michigan Connections Academy  is a free K-12 virtual charter school. State-certified teachers provide instruction with support from trained counselors and administrative staff.Michigan Great Lakes Virtual Academy  serves students in grades K-12. Parents do not pay tuition for their students to attend an online public school. The academy offers core, comprehensive, honors and AP courses.Michigan Virtual Charter Academy  offers full-time enrollment for grades K-12. Because Michigan Virtual Charter Academy is part of the public school system, there is no charge for the curriculum.   Michigan Virtual School  offers two free classes per academic term at no cost to parents of students in Michigan. Additional courses require payment of a fee.Virtual Learning Academy Consortium serves students in grades K-8. The Virtual Learning Academy Consortium  serves students in Genesee, Lapeer, Livingston, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.VLAC also serves students in grades 6-8 in Kala mazoo county. Choosing a Michigan Online Public School When choosing an online public school, look for an established program that is  regionally accredited  and has a track record of success. Be wary of new schools that are disorganized, are unaccredited or have been the subject of public scrutiny. For more suggestions on evaluating virtual schools see  how to choose an online high school. About Online Public Schools Many states now offer tuition-free online schools for resident students under a certain age (often 21). Most virtual schools are charter schools; they receive government funding and are run by  private organizations. Online charter schools are subject to fewer restrictions than traditional schools. However, they are reviewed regularly and must continue to meet state standards. Some states also offer their own online public schools. These virtual programs generally operate from a state office or a school district. Statewide public school programs vary. Some online public schools offer a limited number of remedial or advanced courses not available in brick-and-mortar public school campuses. Others offer full online diploma programs. A few states choose to fund seats for students in private online schools. The number of available seats may be limited and students are usually asked to apply through their public school guidance counselor.

10 Exploratory Essay Topics on Globalization and Minority American Communities

10 Exploratory Essay Topics on Globalization and Minority American Communities If you need a list of facts which you can use in your next exploratory essay on minority communities in America consider the 10 below. Minority traits include distinguishing physical or cultural characteristics such as skin color or language; unequal treatment and less power; involuntary inclusion in a group; an awareness of subordination. This can be seen in the labor union organization of Cesar Chavez who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, now the United Farm Workers. It can also be seen in the American Civil Rights Movement which was a massive undertaking that used many different groups to obtain voting rights, better education, and end segregation. There is also the example of the Women’s Suffrage Movement which spread out into the greater Women’s Rights movement that includes everything from anti-discrimination, birth control to social reform. A minority is a group whose members have significantly less power, control or authority over their lives (or some aspect of them) than other members of a larger or more dominant group. It is impossible to avoid having a minority of one kind or another. There is even a phrase that describes a â€Å"minority of one†. This means that the United States will always contain groups that qualify as minorities because they are significantly outnumbered by the larger population. Throughout the history of the country there have been many times when people have had to organize themselves into recognizable groups in order claim their political rights or to enjoy equal economic opportunities. These are groups that fall under several common headings or categories that include: Racial – in the United States the minority racial groups have included African Americans, Native Americans, and Asian Americans among many others. Ethnic – In the United States the minority ethnic groups have included Latinos and Hispanics as well as such groups as Jews who can also fall under the Religious heading too. Religious – The United States have seen religious minorities such as the Amish, Mormons, Muslims, and even Roman Catholics. One major demographic trend occurred in the U.S. as a result of immigration. The United States has always been a country of immigrants. Almost all Americans living in the U.S. today are descended from immigrants, including Native Americans who are believed to have originally immigrated from Asia to North America. The volume of immigration to America began increasing during the 1950s. An average of 800,000 immigrants were legally admitted to the U.S. each year between 1992 and 1999. It has been estimated that another quarter of a million immigrants entered the U.S. illegally during this same time period. Between 1880 and 1914 there had been a major wave of immigration to the United States, primarily from northern and western Europe. Approximately 1.2 million immigrants were admitted to the United States in 1914. Among the immigrants who made their way to the United States legally in the 1990s, about half came from Latin America while another 30% came from Asia. In the same way that previous waves of immigration had molded the ethnic makeup of the United States, recent patterns of immigration have also contributed to the ethnic composition of the country as well. American history demonstrates that, even though the founding documents ensured that human dignity and many significant freedoms were protected, there were certain groups which would have to fight for them. Generally, it has been the minorities which have had to create a social disruption such as protesting and marching, or through the creation of organized movements, as means of facilitating change. Minority communities function today as insular groups which are referred to by a key identifying figure. Their race. There are different races, although all American are identified as different to the Anglo-Saxon majority. This minority status brings with it problems for many groups including racism, discrimination, and a lack of equality in terms of social and economic opportunity. Chicanos, for example. While many originated from the same geographic location, when the United States defeated Mexico during the 1850’s, those individuals who remained north of the new borderline became a minority of Americans, forming the backbone of the Chicano minority community known today. Minority communities can be studied in the way that people, ideas, and even organizations move and interact between different minority communities throughout America including groups like African Americans, Asian Americans, and Mexican Americans often referred to as Chicanos. With Asian Americans, many came during the times of economic need, such as the high number of nurses brought over to America during the 1980’s and 1990’s from Asian countries to fill the economic demand. While they migrated to America for jobs, they remained inside of the Asian American minority community, not receiving equal treatment and being exposed to racism and discrimination. African American minority communities have formed since the time of slavery being abolished. With the new freedoms, these groups continued to face oppression and discrimination, especially in the south. As means of survival, minority communities gathered together. It is this minority bonding which led to the growth of many popular African American communities like Harlem. From mentioned communities, many cultural influences emerged, such as authors of great literature, jazz music and blues, as well as great plays and artwork. American minorities have been extremely active in fighting for their rights from the country’s earliest days, and several key figures tend to stand out in the period since the end of the Civil War. These individuals come from all minority groups we see today including African American minority communities, Chicano minority communities, and Asian American minority communities. Prominent leaders from each minority community have all had significant social, political, and economic impact based on their life’s work. Some have used lectures and speaking as their means of communicating, others have created large and powerful organizations to forward their cause, and still others have used many different approaches to create widespread and long-lasting results. These facts should give a solid backbone for your exploratory essay on globalization and minority American communities. Be sure to also check our 20 subtopics and 1 sample essay on the subject as well as our instructions on academic essay writing one on your own. References: Almaguer, Tomas.  Racial Fault Lines: The Historical Origins of White Supremacy in California. Univ of California Press, 2008. Behiels, Michael D.  Canadas Francophone Minority Communities. Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2004. Print. Cheng, Wendy.  The Changs Next Door to the Diazes: Remapping Race in Suburban California.  2013. Gupta, Nilanjana, Sipra Mukherjee, and Himadri Banerjee.  Calcutta Mosaic. London: Anthem Press, 2009. Print. Hira, S. Questions and Answers about Reparations for Colonialism. (20). Jones-Brown, Delores D, and Karen J Terry.  Policing And Minority Communities. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2004. Print. Steger, Manfred B.  Globalization. Print.

Language Confusion in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night Essay

Language Confusion in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night - Essay Example In literary critics, views that Feste has assumed the spirit of the Twelve Night festivities which involves having fun and tossing the bird towards authority figures (Ford, 145). Despite the belief by Caesario, the disguised Olivia, she believes that Feste remains one of the wisest cats in Illyria. The description fits Feste through his expressed genius nature with words. Feste is endowed with the talent of punning, clever banter and word play. It is amazing how Feste utilizes his skills throughout the Twelfth Night (Ford, 148). Feste appears fond of amicably sizing up situations as they come and at the same time the characters around him allowing him to discern the foolishness of the individuals around him. The character not only tickles individuals but, at the same time ends up providing him with an opportunity to earn a few bucks. Feste mocks the Olivia saying that she has over indulge in mourning which, he, Feste, views as a foolish behavior. Further, Feste mocks Duke Orsino’s moods as being excess. To emphasize the extent he compares Orsino’s mind with an ‘apal’ that constantly changes its color (Ford,

Statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Statement - Essay Example Laughter and so much culture around me that I feel, coming here will not only help me grow up as a person but it would also give special impetus to my interior decoration course, for which I have come here. I have done two years of the course in Toronto and intend complete my post graduation in same from Parsons University which is one of the best in states. Morning is packed with reading of newspaper followed by e-mail checking and putting my new apartment in order by decorating it. Later, after brunch and go out to get familiar with the town. In the evenings, I love to sit in front of my computers and do some random creative designing. After dinner, if I am not going out with friends for clubbing and dancing, I relax at home, reading and then going off to sleep. Right now I am reading Hemingway’s ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’, it’s a fascinating tale of human emotions. Yesterday I had seen Brooklyn Museum and today, I am again going to walk through the famous landmark Brooklyn Bridge. It fascinates me and I would really like to comment here of the aspects that attract me here again and again. The Bridge for me is a symbol of commitment and a staunch belief in one self. The bridge was conceptualized by the great engineer John Augustus Roebling who died of tetanus shortly after the construction of the bridge started in 1869. The work was taken up by his son Washington, who was also an accomplished engineer, like his father. He believed in hands on approach to his work and actively participated in the underwater work in ‘caissons’ which are huge containers of water. Unfortunately, excessive exposure in water crippled Washington and made him permanently disabled. The later stages of bridge construction and supervision continued under the guidance of Emily, wife of Washington, who reported the progress to her invalid husband. In 1883, it was opened to public and

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

Homlessness - Research Paper Example adequate nighttime residence; and an individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is – a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations †¦ an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized or a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings† (Federal, 2009). In other words, a homeless person is someone who does not have a regular, personal, secure place to sleep at night on a regular basis. This definition would also include people who live in their cars as this is not a ‘fixed’ location nor is it a place ‘designed for †¦ regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.’ This discussion will examine the homelessness issue including why and what type of people become homeless. It will also review agencies and programs offering assistance to individuals and f amilies living on the street. Thanks to recent public awareness campaigns by private and government agencies such as the National Coalition for the Homeless and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development respectively, long-standing societal stereotypes of the homeless are gradually evaporating. Images of creatively clothed white-bearded old men leaning against an alley wall clutching a bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag have morphed into a family living in their car or a single mother and her children living in a shelter (Marsh & Kennett, 1999). This changing image of the homeless hasn’t come fast enough, though, to increase the level of awareness among the general population, creating a situation in which many of the nation’s homeless children go without necessary services and are forced to repeat the cycle into their own adulthood (Martijn & Sharpe, 2006). It is a matter of fact that the estimated half a million children that, at any one time, is homeless in America and their mothers r epresent

Paper 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Paper 3 - Essay Example Who among them was right, is it the City management or is it Uriah? Arguments raised by the two parties will help in determining the case. On his part, Uriah felt that his actions were justified while the City felt that they were justified in their decision to fire the employee. In the arguments that I shall hereby raise, I will look at both sides of the arguments and why they felt they were justified in their actions. Moreover, I will also explore the possibilities in both cases. Discussions to the case As opposed to crimes which are public, torts are private wrongs committed by people or businesses. Unintentional torts, also known as negligence are defined as the situation whereby a person has either failed to do something or has done something that a reasonable person in his or her own right mind would not do and the another person has suffered harm as a result of the foreseeable action or inaction (Cooke, 2007). The action that has either been committed or omitted is what is refe rred to as negligence. In the case of Uriah versus the City, Uriah acted in due negligence and breached his duty of care. This was against the ethics of business which requires that an employee should at all times portray a behavior or character that in no way will dent the image of the company, whether on duty or off duty. Failure by any employee to observe the code of ethics could attract severe consequences, even dismissal. According to Miller (2012), many businesses take their codes of ethics with increased levels of seriousness as they value how their customers judge them in accordance to the image of the employees. With the high levels of competition due to globalization, no business is ready to let anything to chance in maintaining their public image and stay ahead of their competition. In essence, the dismissal of Uriah was backed by ethics of the business. In particular, Uriah would cost the business its image as few customers would like being served by a night club dancer. Clubs are associated with all mannerisms of immorality and bad behavior. Contrary to this, the modern business environment is concerned about image, ethics and morals. Employees such as Uriah thus find themselves on the wrong due to their actions. Miller & Jentz, (2010) observe that businesses have increasingly shunned away unethical behavior such as alcoholism, drug abuse among other socially unaccepted behavior. Some even restrict the areas in which their employees need to reside in, the type of social places that they can hang out in and the dress codes. All this is supposed to show their customers that they understand what it means to be ethically responsible. As part of the corporate social responsibility, businesses are required to be on the front line in promoting moral behaviorisms in the society. They can only survive this through keeping employees who are ethically responsible. It is due to these reasons that the City decided to fire Uriah for being a night club dancer. O n his part, Uriah was justified in a number of ways to take part in the night club dance as a part time job. However, his argument would be tricky as he had to put into consideration the damages his actions would have caused the company. Although he had acted in violation of the codes of ethics, business morals require that an

Approaches to Quality Management Discussed here six thought leaders Essay

Approaches to Quality Management Discussed here six thought leaders who had a lasting impact on quality management practices thr - Essay Example The historical backgrounds of quality gurus, development of interests in quality, and their contributions to total quality management are also elaborated. The research used secondary methodology in collecting data. Data collected was analyzed using qualitative data analysis. Key words: total quality management, quality gurus, organization, contributions Introduction to the Topic During the 1960s, concerns about widespread global competitiveness forced most companies to show new interests in total quality management (Goetsch & Davis, 2013). The leading six quality gurus who augmented interests in quality management included Crosby, Deming, Feigenbaum, Ishikawa, Juran and Taguchi. These gurus were active consultants, lecturers, and authors with several years of experience. Most of the quality gurus were at advanced ages and widely influenced the growth of industries through development of distinctive approaches to total quality management. Total quality management philosophy seeks to i ntegrate all organizational functions to focus on meeting customer needs and company objectives (Summers, 2009). Examples of organizational functions include marketing, customer service, engineering, finance, design, and production. It is critical for all organizations to comprehend the contributions of quality gurus and institute their ideas into business operations to enhance performance. Research Methodology The data collection method for this study was secondary methodology. This methodology involved collecting data from already available datasets and researches done by other people. The sources of secondary data the researcher considered include companies’ publications, journals, periodicals and books that have been published under the subject of total quality management. Secondary methodology was advantageous because it helped reduce the costs of research such as finances, time, and facilities. The researcher selected the most recent resources from credible sources such as libraries and websites. The research adopted evaluative research strategy. Evaluative strategy involved assessing systems, theories, and frameworks of total quality management in relation to their effectiveness and outcomes. Data analysis involved comparing the contributions of various quality gurus, identifying their similarities and differences, and forecasting their outcomes. Data was analyzed by reorganizing and refining it to adapt standards of simplicity and understandability. Findings, Analysis and Interpretation Philip Crosby Philip Crosby started his career in industry as an inspector. Later, he became a vice president of quality at ITT. Crosby left ITT in 1979 and founded Philipp Crosby Associates, Inc., and Crosby Quality College that had trained 35,000 managers and executives by 1986 (Summers, 2009). Crosby influenced General Motors; General Motors purchased over 10% of Crosby stock in addition to setting its own Crosby school similar to IBM, Johnson & Johnson and Ch rysler (Besterfield, 2009). Crosby directed his messages to top managers and sought to change their perceptions and attitudes about quality. He spoke of quality as conformance to requirements and made managers to believe that products consistently reproducing its design specifications conformed to standards of high quality. According to Crosby, the goal of quality improvement is achievement of zero-defects. This is achieved through prevention rather

Effects of Implied Terms on Contract of Employment, a Judicial Review Essay

Effects of Implied Terms on Contract of Employment, a Judicial Review - Essay Example The employer is also bound to the employee under the implied terms of the employment contract by way of trust and confidence, payment of wages, provision of work and reasonable care. between the employer and employee. Under what circumstances the implied terms are applicable and also under what circumstance it is not applicable? What are the stands taken by the Court regarding the implied terms of the employment contract? Before proceeding to answer to theses question, firstly we shall explore the scope and applicability of implied terms in employment contract. As said above a contract gives both employee and employer certain rights and obligations. The most common example is that employee has a right to be paid for the work do. The employer has a right to give reasonable instructions to the employee for the work he entitled to do. These rights and obligations are called contractual terms. These contractual terms are two types. Express terms in an employment contract are those that are explicitly agreed between employee and employer and can include amount of wages, including any overtime or bonus pay hours of work, including overtime holiday pay, including how much time off you are entitled to sick pay redundancy pay and how much warning (notice) the employer must give you if you are dismissed. They are terms that have not been expressed orally or in writing but nevertheless form part of the contract of employment. Some are general such as the duty of each party to take reasonable care of each others property and to safeguard each others confidences. In Hagen and ors v ICI Chemicals and Polymers Ltd and ors (3) it was held that an employer owes his employees a common law duty of care to keep them adequately informed of the details of changes to their terms of employment which may follow from a company reorganization and can be sued for the tort of negligence if he is in breach of that duty.

Paper 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Paper 3 - Essay Example Who among them was right, is it the City management or is it Uriah? Arguments raised by the two parties will help in determining the case. On his part, Uriah felt that his actions were justified while the City felt that they were justified in their decision to fire the employee. In the arguments that I shall hereby raise, I will look at both sides of the arguments and why they felt they were justified in their actions. Moreover, I will also explore the possibilities in both cases. Discussions to the case As opposed to crimes which are public, torts are private wrongs committed by people or businesses. Unintentional torts, also known as negligence are defined as the situation whereby a person has either failed to do something or has done something that a reasonable person in his or her own right mind would not do and the another person has suffered harm as a result of the foreseeable action or inaction (Cooke, 2007). The action that has either been committed or omitted is what is refe rred to as negligence. In the case of Uriah versus the City, Uriah acted in due negligence and breached his duty of care. This was against the ethics of business which requires that an employee should at all times portray a behavior or character that in no way will dent the image of the company, whether on duty or off duty. Failure by any employee to observe the code of ethics could attract severe consequences, even dismissal. According to Miller (2012), many businesses take their codes of ethics with increased levels of seriousness as they value how their customers judge them in accordance to the image of the employees. With the high levels of competition due to globalization, no business is ready to let anything to chance in maintaining their public image and stay ahead of their competition. In essence, the dismissal of Uriah was backed by ethics of the business. In particular, Uriah would cost the business its image as few customers would like being served by a night club dancer. Clubs are associated with all mannerisms of immorality and bad behavior. Contrary to this, the modern business environment is concerned about image, ethics and morals. Employees such as Uriah thus find themselves on the wrong due to their actions. Miller & Jentz, (2010) observe that businesses have increasingly shunned away unethical behavior such as alcoholism, drug abuse among other socially unaccepted behavior. Some even restrict the areas in which their employees need to reside in, the type of social places that they can hang out in and the dress codes. All this is supposed to show their customers that they understand what it means to be ethically responsible. As part of the corporate social responsibility, businesses are required to be on the front line in promoting moral behaviorisms in the society. They can only survive this through keeping employees who are ethically responsible. It is due to these reasons that the City decided to fire Uriah for being a night club dancer. O n his part, Uriah was justified in a number of ways to take part in the night club dance as a part time job. However, his argument would be tricky as he had to put into consideration the damages his actions would have caused the company. Although he had acted in violation of the codes of ethics, business morals require that an

Effects of Implied Terms on Contract of Employment, a Judicial Review Essay

Effects of Implied Terms on Contract of Employment, a Judicial Review - Essay Example The employer is also bound to the employee under the implied terms of the employment contract by way of trust and confidence, payment of wages, provision of work and reasonable care. between the employer and employee. Under what circumstances the implied terms are applicable and also under what circumstance it is not applicable? What are the stands taken by the Court regarding the implied terms of the employment contract? Before proceeding to answer to theses question, firstly we shall explore the scope and applicability of implied terms in employment contract. As said above a contract gives both employee and employer certain rights and obligations. The most common example is that employee has a right to be paid for the work do. The employer has a right to give reasonable instructions to the employee for the work he entitled to do. These rights and obligations are called contractual terms. These contractual terms are two types. Express terms in an employment contract are those that are explicitly agreed between employee and employer and can include amount of wages, including any overtime or bonus pay hours of work, including overtime holiday pay, including how much time off you are entitled to sick pay redundancy pay and how much warning (notice) the employer must give you if you are dismissed. They are terms that have not been expressed orally or in writing but nevertheless form part of the contract of employment. Some are general such as the duty of each party to take reasonable care of each others property and to safeguard each others confidences. In Hagen and ors v ICI Chemicals and Polymers Ltd and ors (3) it was held that an employer owes his employees a common law duty of care to keep them adequately informed of the details of changes to their terms of employment which may follow from a company reorganization and can be sued for the tort of negligence if he is in breach of that duty.

Selection and organization of content Essay Example for Free

Selection and organization of content Essay Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives One of the most widely used ways of organizing levels of expertise is according to Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. (Bloom et al., 1994; Gronlund, 1991; Krathwohl et al., 1956.) Blooms Taxonomy (Tables 1-3) uses a multi-tiered scale to express the level of expertise required to achieve each measurable student outcome. Organizing measurable student outcomes in this way will allow us to select appropriate classroom assessment techniques for the course. There are three taxonomies. Which of the three to use for a given measurable student outcome depends upon the original goal to which the measurable student outcome is connected. There are knowledge-based goals, skills-based goals, and affective goals (affective: values, attitudes, and interests); accordingly, there is a taxonomy for each. Within each taxonomy, levels of expertise are listed in order of increasing complexity. Measurable student outcomes that require the higher levels of expertise will require more sophisticated classroom assessment techniques. The course goal in Figure 2student understands proper dental hygieneis an example of a knowledge-based goal. It is  knowledge-based because it requires that the student learn certain facts and concepts. An example of a skills-based goal for this course might be student flosses teeth properly. This is a skills-based goal because it requires that the student learn how to do something. Finally, an affective goal for this course might be student cares about proper oral hygiene. This is an affective goal because it requires that the students values, attitudes, or interests be affected by the course. LEVEL OF EXPERTISEDESCRIPTION OF LEVELEXAMPLE OF MEASURABLE STUDENT OUTCOME Table 1: Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives for Knowledge-Based Goals 1. KnowledgeRecall, or recognition of terms, ideas, procedure, theories, etc.When is the first day of Spring? 2. ComprehensionTranslate, interpret, extrapolate, but not see full implications or transfer to other situations, closer to literal translation.What does the summer solstice represent? 3. ApplicationApply abstractions, general principles, or methods to specific concrete situations.What would Earths seasons be like if its orbit was perfectly circular? 4. AnalysisSeparation of a complex idea into its constituent parts and an understanding of organization and relationship between the parts. Includes realizing the distinction between hypothesis and fact as well as between relevant and extraneous variables.Why are seasons reversed in the southern hemisphere? 5. SynthesisCreative, mental construction of ideas and concepts from multiple sources to form complex ideas into a new, integrated, and meaningful pattern subject to given constraints.If the longest day of the year is in June, why is the northern hemisphere hottest in August? 6. EvaluationTo make a judgment of ideas or methods using external evidence or self-selected criteria substantiated by observations or informed rationalizations.What would be the important variables for predicting seasons on a newly discovered planet? LEVEL OF EXPERTISEDESCRIPTION OF LEVELEXAMPLE OF MEASURABLE STUDENT OUTCOME Table 2: Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives for Skills-Based Goals PerceptionUses sensory cues to guide actionsSome of the colored samples you see will need dilution before you take their spectra. Using only observation, how will you decide which solutions might need to be diluted? SetDemonstrates a readiness to take action to perform the task or  objective Describe how you would go about taking the absorbance spectra of a sample of pigments? Guided ResponseKnows steps required to complete the task or objectiveDetermine the density of a group of sample metals with regular and irregular shapes. MechanismPerforms task or objective in a somewhat confident, proficient, and habitual mannerUsing the procedure described below, determine the quantity of copper in your unknown ore. Report its mean value and standard deviation. Complex Overt ResponsePerforms task or objective in a confident, proficient, and habitual mannerUse titration to determine the Ka for an unknown weak acid. AdaptationPerforms task or objective as above, but can also modify actions to account for new or problematic situations You are performing titrations on a series of unknown acids and find a variety of problems with the resulting curves, e.g., only 3.0 ml of base is required for one acid while 75.0 ml is required in another. What can you do to get valid data for all the unknown acids? Organization Creates new tasks or objectives incorporating learned onesRecall your plating and etching experiences with an aluminum substrate. Choose a different metal substrate and design a process to plate, mask, and etch so that a pattern of 4 different metals is created. LEVEL OF EXPERTISEDESCRIPTION OF LEVELEXAMPLE OF MEASURABLE STUDENT OUTCOME Table 3: Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives for Affective Goals ReceivingDemonstrates a willingness to participate in the activityWhen Im in class I am attentive to the instructor, take notes, etc. I do not read the newspaper instead. RespondingShows interest in the objects, phenomena, or activity by seeking it out or pursuing it for pleasureI complete my homework and participate in class discussions. ValuingInternalizes an appreciation for (values) the objectives, phenomena, or activityI seek out information in popular media related to my class. OrganizationBegins to compare different values, and resolves conflicts between them to form an internally consistent system of valuesSome of the ideas Ive learned in my class differ from my previous beliefs. How do I resolve this? Characterization by a Value or Value ComplexAdopts a long-term value system that is pervasive, consistent, and predictableIve decided to take my family on a vacation to visit some of the places I learned abo ut in my  class. To determine the level of expertise required for each measurable student outcome, first decide which of these three broad categories (knowledge-based, skills-based, and affective) the corresponding course goal belongs to. Then, using the appropriate Blooms Taxonomy, look over the descriptions of the various levels of expertise. Determine which description most closely matches that measurable student outcome. As can be seen from the examples given in the three Tables, there are different ways of representing measurable student outcomes, e.g., as statements about students (Figure 2), as questions to be asked of students (Tables 1 and 2), or as statements from the students perspective (Table 3). You may find additional ways of representing measurable student outcomes; those listed in Figure 2 and in Tables 1-3 are just examples. Blooms Taxonomy is a convenient way to describe the degree to which we want our students to understand and use concepts, to demonstrate particular skills, and t o have their values, attitudes, and interests affected. It is critical that we determine the levels of student expertise that we are expecting our students to achieve because this will determine which classroom assessment techniques are most appropriate for the course. Though the most common form of classroom assessment used in introductory college coursesmultiple choice testsmight be quite adequate for assessing knowledge and comprehension (levels 1 and 2, Table 1), this type of assessment often falls short when we want to assess our students knowledge at the higher levels of synthesis and evaluation (levels 5 and 6).4 Multiple-choice tests also rarely provide information about achievement of skills-based goals. Similarly, traditional course evaluations, a technique commonly used for affective assessment, do not generally provide useful information about changes in student values, attitudes, and interests. Thus, commonly used assessment techniques, while perhaps providing a means for assigning grades, often do not provide us (or our students) with useful feedback for determining whether students are attaining our course goals. Usually, this is due to a combination of not having formalized goals to begin with, not having translated those goals into outcomes that are measurable, and not using assessment techniques capable of measuring expected student outcomes given the levels of expertise required to achieve them. Using the CIA model of course development, we can ensure that our curriculum, instructional methods, and classroom assessment  techniques are properly aligned with course goals. Note that Blooms Taxonomy need not be applied exclusively after course goals have been defined. Indeed, Blooms Taxonomy and the words associated with its different categories can help in the goals-defining process itself. Thus, Blooms Taxonomy can be used in an iterative fashion to first state and then refine course goals. Blooms Taxonomy can finally be used to identify which classroom assessment techniques are most appropriate for measuring these goals. Attachment: Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives [PDF, 67 KB] Website: Field-tested Learning Assessment Guide (FLAG): Assessment Primer.

Buddhism In East Asian Culture History Essay

Buddhism In East Asian Culture History Essay Buddhism is a mixture between a religion and a philosophy compromised of various beliefs, practices, and traditions. Although Buddhism had originally derived from India, it has come to be more associated with East Asian cultures, mainly China and Korea. Nevertheless, these two countries do not completely share the same doctrines; they are not identical. Each region received and accepted Buddhism in a different manner, as they already had their own religion deeply rooted. For instance, the Chinese had embraced the principles of Confucianism and Daoism, and the Koreans believed in Shamanism, the indigenous religion that emphasized spiritual rites and nature. Therefore, it was inevitable that the introduction of Buddhism to these three East Asian countries were not accepted at once. Nevertheless, China and Korea gradually coalesced and adopted Buddhism with their native religious faiths and ethical beliefs. The contributions of Buddhism resulted in overall advancements in both China and Korea. In spite of the conflict that was encountered by the introduction of Buddhism into the already dynamic religions, the principles of Buddhism ultimately conglomerated with the preexisting religions to produce enhancements in China and Korea in various aspects such as _____. Buddhism was born in India. It first spread to China, and then to Korea. It is said that it is uncertain when or how the Chinese first came into contact with Buddhism, but according to the official tradition, Buddhism seems to have reached China by 100 C.E. (de Bary,415 420). Therefore, it can be surmised that the religion was first introduced when Buddhist worshipers came into China from India. Then, Buddhism made its way across China and to the Three Kingdoms of Korea. And because Koguruo is closes to China and is actually bordered by China, it was naturally the first kingdom introduced to Buddhism in 372 C.E. For the same reason of geographical locations, Paekche received Buddhism second in 384 C.E., and finally Silla, much later in 527 C.E. (Lee, 34). Both China and Korea were influenced by the receiving of Buddhism from India; yet because the time period in which they received it, and the order they received it differs, In China, Buddhism was not easily accepted for it met opposition with firm believers of Confucianism and Daoism. It was ultimately acknowledged after having found a mutual premise, and was considered one of the Three Religions among Confucianism and Daoism. However, it was not easy for Buddhism to wrestle against the prevailing religions. For instance, for the conservative and orthodox Chinese, they could not understand why they had to shave their heads and conform to these foreign ways. The Confucians held that the body is the gift of ones parents and that to harm it is to be disrespectful toward them. (de Bary 423). It was one of the requirements for all members of the Buddhist clergy to shave their heads; however, it was met with aversion from the Chinese for they believed that they should not injure any parts of their body. Certain ideas of Buddhism such as the practice of shaving heads were seen as too different for the Chinese to adhere to. Nevertheless, as mentioned previously, Buddhism was eventually adopted by the Chinese. The turning points of these oppositions were the works of Mouzi, a Chinese author who believed that it was possible to be a good Chinese and a good Buddhist at the same time, that there is no fundamental conflict between the two ways of life, and that the great truths preached by Buddhism are preached, if in somewhat different language, by Confucianism and Daoism as well. (de Bary 422). He claimed that people should not have to decide on one religion, but that certain aspects of both sides can be drawn and implemented together. Mouzi also stated that the Chinese should not reject Buddhism for its differences, but rather embrace the ideas that do not conflict with their own. (de Bary 425). Additionally, he discovered that there are similarities between the Three Religions regarding their practices and beliefs. For instance, when asked about the concept of Immortality and how to achieve it, Mouzi exp lained: Talk to immortality is superstitious and unfounded; it is not the word of the sages. Laozi said, Even Heaven and Earth cannot last forever. How much less can human beings!Confucius said, The wise man leaves the world, but humaneness and filial piety last forever.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Yao died; Shun had his [place of burial at] Mount Cangwu; Yu has his tomb on Kuaijià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦To speak of immortality, is this not a great error? (de Bary 426). Mouzi gave examples of the teachings of each religious leader, and proved how immortality in all aspects of religions does not exist. He had replied that neither Buddhism nor Daoism nor any other great leader can provide the route to immortality. With his philosophies, Mouzi was able to slowly connect the Buddhist doctrine to the indigenous, traditional ways of Confucianism and Daoism. The people of China ultimately accepted Buddhism after all of the obstacles and resistance. In Korea, Buddhism was introduced by a Chinese monk to each of the three Kingdoms: first to Koguryu, then to Paekche, then finally to Silla. The Buddhist religion was not received easily by the Koreans, but was met with less hostility than the Chinese. The kingdom of Silla was the most isolated region of the three, and was not yet prepared to accept Buddhist doctrine. The people of Silla held strongly onto their original values and ways of life. (Lee 42). For instance, the twenty-third king of Silla was a monk named Popkong who wanted to spread Buddhism throughout his kingdom. However, his suggestion was greeted by dispute and discrepancy by his ministers. His ministers were against the idea of erecting a building for a monastery when the kingdom of Silla was undergoing hardships due to the lack of crop production and the ongoing battles with neighboring states. (Lee 42). Eventually King Popkong got his wish, Buddhist dieties were spread, and the first monastery was established durin g King Popkongs reign. However, this obstacle was overcome with great sacrifice by the Grand Secretary, who put his life at risk to try to prove to the ministers of Buddhism as the eternal religion. (Lee 42). After the Grand Secretary sacrificed himself, strange things began to happen in the heavens. The sun darkened, wonderful flowers rained from heaven, and the earth trembled violentlyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Lee, 43). And with these signs, the king and his officials decided to take an oath to worship the Buddha. Buddhism eventually spread to the three Kingdoms and coalesced with Shamanism, which was Koreas deeply rooted religion, in order to construct a novel belief system that connected the Buddhist idols and the Shamanisms Holy Mother. (Lee, 51). For instance, trees in the Forest of the Heavenly Mirror felled in order to build a monastery. (Lee, 43). The quote above perfectly exemplifies how room was finally made for this new religion called Buddhism in Korean culture in which the tree s represent Shamanism, and the monastery represents Buddhism. Overall, the integration of Buddhism into Korean religion happened more abruptly than in China for the leaders of Korea had legally established Buddhism as its state religion. After struggles, Buddhism finally won the hearts of _____.After Buddhist beliefs have been accepted by the Chinese, Buddhism seemed to have impacted the Chinese in various ways. The coming of Buddhism to China was an event of far-reaching importance in the development of Chinese thought and culture and of Buddhism itself (de Bary 415). First of all, Buddhism brought forth to China a new way of thinking, and opened the minds of its people as it gave the Chinese different perspectives. Also, the influence of Buddhism was great during the unification of northern and southern China Buddhism played an important role in influencing the Chinese people, and had affected their ways and beliefs in areas such as aesthetics, literature, medicine, and philosophy. Buddhism had a great impact on China through its acceptance in Korea, for China The message of Chinese Buddhism to Korea was______________. Buddhism played an important role in influencing the Korean people, and had affected their ways and beliefs in areas such as aesthetics, literature, medicine, and philosophy. Although Silla was the latest recipient, Silla prospered the most from Buddhist doctrine It is important to understand the What contributions did Buddhism make to East Asian culture? What obstacles did it have to overcome, and how did the native culture respond?

The Life and Work of Raymond Carver Essay examples -- Biography Biogra

The Life and Work of Raymond Carver          In private desperation, Raymond Carver's characters struggle through their lives, knowing, with occasional clarity, that the good life they had once hoped would be achieved through hard work will not come about. In many ways, Carver's life was the model for all of his characters. Married to Maryann Burk on June 7th, 1957, at nineteen, and having two children by October of 1958, the Carvers' life was decided for years to come. Early on, Carver felt, along with his wife, that hard work would take care of nearly everything. "We thought we could do it all," he said in one interview, "We were poor but we thought that if we kept working, if we did the right things, the right things would happen" (Gentry 123). Somewhere in the middle of this life of dead end jobs and child raising, he realized, very much like one of his characters, that things would not change. He recounts one of the strongest of these moments in his essay on writing influences, "Fires." On a Saturday afternoon in the early 1960s, when Carver was a student at the University of Iowa, he was doing chores and taking care of their two children, Christine and Vance. The children were with some of their friends, at a birthday party, Carver was not sure--he often admitted to having a very poor memory. He was at the laundromat washing clothes and, at this point in the essay, waiting for a dryer:    When and if one of the dryers ever stopped, I planned to rush over to it with my shopping basket of damp clothes. Understand, I'd been hanging around in the laundromat for thirty minutes or so with this basketful of clothes, waiting my chance. I'd already missed out on a cou... ... grew and received reprieves in life that most do not encounter. Anything can happen, he tells us. He once said, "It's strange. You never start out life with the intention of becoming a bankrupt or an alcoholic or a cheat and a thief. Or a liar" (Gentry 38). At one time Carver was all of these. If we can learn one thing, it is that nothing is set in stone. Change is the only sure thing.          Works Cited    Carver, Raymond. Fires. New York: Vintage-Random House, 1989. Gentry, Marshall Bruce, and William L. Stull, eds. Conversations With Raymond Carver. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 1990. Halpert, Sam, ed. ...when we talk about Raymond Carver. Layton: Gibbs Smith, 1991. Helprin, Mark, ed. The Best American Short Stories 1988. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1988.

Descriptive Essay - College Dorm Room -- Descriptive Essay, Descriptive

Filthy College Dorm Room As I lifted my head, I was greeted by at least fifty naked models, all in various X-rated positions, each eyeing me with an expression that suggested nothing but lust and desire. I stepped into the room, only to be overwhelmed with at least twenty-five more girls stripped of any trace of clothing. Although my legs were begging to walk my sickened body out the door, I brought myself together and looked at the reason I was forcing myself to stay there. I had to pee so badly, and a small, filthy toilet was only a few short steps across the chilled tile floor. My bare feet felt every speck of dirt underneath them, and I laughed at the thought that I respectfully took off my shoes before coming in. The heavy stench of mildew continued to coat my lungs so thickly I was tempted to hold my breath. I focused only on my destination and tried to figure out how anyone, even if they are college freshmen full of testosterone, could turn the walls of their dorm bathroom into a Playboy magazine. After going about my business, I reached for the brass door-handle that would let me out of the tiny room, which consisted of the toilet, a small shower, a moldy rug, and a trash can that was overflowing with tissues and toilet paper. A few pieces of blue gum were carelessly stuck on top of the heap. I hesitated, however, to let my hand touch the door-handle in fear of what might be living on it. I took the chance and grabbed the smooth metal anyway, turned it as quickly as I could, and stepped out of the bathroom to the sink to wash my potentially diseased hands. Chad, who came with me to Joe's dorm, stood nervously in the living area, his hands hanging onto the rims of his pockets. The porcelain sink, which I am assuming... ...e building, and took a deep breath of fresh air. Not only did the environment of the dorm appall me, but I was thoroughly shocked that I could be so blind when it came to Joe. My mind flashed to other people in my life, and I thought about how their outside images may easily conceal their true ways. Joe's dorm made me realize that the depictions I have of a person are often misleading or simply untrue. Chad was now just behind me, and Joe was following him. Joe stopped in the doorway. As we proceeded to walk down the hallway, we passed four gray doors, each identical to Joe's. As we neared the glass doors of the exit, Chad turned around and said to Joe, sarcastically, "Yeah I hope we didn't interrupt you. You weren't tidying up or anything, were you?" He then replied, as he gradually closed the door, "What are you talking about, man. This place is clean."

Erikson’s Development Stage Essay

During adolescence, peer groups often become the most dominant socialization force next to family. Teens need the sense of membership and belonging and they can find it when they are with their peers. With a particular group, they learn to have satisfying relationships with others and more importantly they develop their self-identity.[1] However, there are also some negative aspects of being in peer groups. Being closely attached to the group might cause them a lot of stress especially if they could not handle it well or if they are misguided. In general, the peer pressure on male teens relate to qualities that are traditionally masculine. For females, they tend to become more concerned with being popular and also with the physical appearance. These norms may create conflict between peer (people usually of same age, which they consider as friends) and parental messages resulting to further confusion and stress.[2] Most adolescents find it hard to decide whether they follow their parents or their friends.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The psychological issues of adolescence are described in the fifth stage of the Erikson’s Development Stage. This is the stage of identity versus role confusion wherein teens try to integrate roles (child, sibling, student, athlete, worker) into a self-image under role model and peer pressure.[3]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most important stage in Erikson’s is the stage five – the stage of adolescence. This is the stage when questions like ‘Who am I?’, ‘What are my values?’, and ‘What is my identity?’ start to came out. This appears as form practice in the decision-making. This is also the stage where values have to be chosen, beliefs understood and the ‘self’ explored. If values are imposed rather than chosen by the child himself/herself, they are not internalized and there is a lack of meaning in later life.[4] During the period, when guided properly teens can fully take advantage of making all the positive choices they could have. Taking the right choices during this period creates a foundation of how great a man/woman he/she can be in the future. The decisions made during adolescent years affect lots of great things that would happen in the future. References: Meares, Paula A. and Constance Hoenk Shapiro. (1989). Adolescent Sexuality: New Challenges for Social Work. New York: Haworth Press. Patient Teaching, Loose Leaf Library Springhouse Corporation. (1990). Erikson’s   Development Stages. Retrieved April 02, 2008 from http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/ intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/erikson.htm. Ramkumar, Suchitra. (July 2002). Krishnamurti Foundation India. â€Å"Erik Erikson’s Theory of Development: A Teacher’s Observations†. Journal of the Krishnamurti Schools. Retrieved April 02, 2008 from http://www.journal.kfionline.org/article.asp? issue=6&article=12, Accessed 02 April 2008. [1] Paula Allen-Meares, Constance Hoenk Shapiro, â€Å"Adolescent Sexuality: New Challenges for Social Work†, (New York: Haworth Press, 1989), 32. [2] Ibid, 33. [3] Patient Teaching, Loose Leaf Library Springhouse Corporation., â€Å"Erikson’s   Development Stages†, http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/erikson.htm, Accessed 02 April   2008. [4] Ramkumar, Suchitra, â€Å"Erik Erikson’s Theory of Development: A Teacher’s Observations†, Journal of the Krishnamurti Schools, http://www.journal.kfionline.org/article.asp?issue=6&article=12, Accessed 02 April 2008.

Lorna Simpson: Manipulation of Spectatorship

Lorna Simpson is a highly recognized African-American artist who has expressed her creativity and skill through photography, and more recently, movies. She did her graduation in the School of Visual Arts in New York and her post graduation at the University of California in San Diego (ArtFacts.net, 2007). Her work is somewhat abstract and has a very subtle meaning. She usually uses literary elements such as metaphor, biography, portraiture and narrative fin her work. Many of her works deal with concepts of ‘blackness’ and ‘feminism’ (Armendi, 2001). Lorna Simpson became popular in the mid-1980s with her large scale black and white photographic works of art that combined photo and text in a novel manner. What is most characteristic about her work is that she always makes the spectator think, self-reflect, and finally arrive at the meaning of the work. This gives the viewer the thrill of having solved a puzzle. In the words of Marianne Kurylo-Litvak, â€Å"Simpson manipulates spectatorship by utilizing the Brechtian method of distanciation that relies on audience participation through speculative detachment†. (Kurylo-Litvak, 1998) General Style: Laura Simpson uses a technique commonly known as photo text, which combines figurative or nonfigurative photos and text. Usually, in the works of Lorna Simpson, the figures have their backs turned towards the viewer. Even when it is not so, they do not make eye contact with the viewer. Her female figures are simply dressed and do not follow evoke any open feelings as most figures in photography do.   But the author in a manipulative manner uses these obscure figures as a screen to portray the discrimination in our society of the black woman. She presents them with a sort of curious detachment that can be seen in investigative films. Sometimes, she uses pieces of texts along with the mural-size huge black and white images that give only partial meaning to her work. The rest of the meaning has to be pieced together by the thinking viewer. More recently, in her work that is being exhibited at Sean Kelly, one finds that Simpson has also given up the use of the human figure. Instead, she presents empty, urban and natural settings. The emptiness of these works seems to express human loss and desire in a very effective and powerful manner (Heartney, 1995). One finds that most of the works of Lorna Simpson focus on sadness. The texts seem to talk about the emptiness and loneliness in urban life. The totally unknown places in the photographs seem to symbolize the emptiness of relationshions in urban settings. The lack of color and polish in the black and white photographs creates a sense of mystery and helps to dig out faded memories within the viewer. Simpson often removes the background or the faces of her subjects so that she can remove any kind of identity to the image (Morgan, 1990). The power of the artist in bending the viewer to her angle is clear in the way she uses the black female body in her works. There is nothing much revealed about the model in the photographs. Even faces are hidden and this underlines in a subtle manner, the way black women have been seen across the ages – as de-faced bodies. Again, Simpson uses fragmented bodies to indicate vulnerability and domination. The viewer can see only some part of the body such as the back of the head,   or back of the body or an arm or a knee. This shows that the black women has never been fully portrayed to the extend that a viewer can understand her (Lorna Simpson for the sake of the viewer). Analysis of Specific Works: There is â€Å"The Car† showing a narrow street that is stretching beyond and arch-covered pathway. Somehow the included text makes it clear to the viewer that the narrator must be sitting within the auto that is parked clearnly in the foreground. The words â€Å"small cramped room within a room† together with other text suggests that maybe these random thoughts are coming to the author just before sex in the car (Heartney, 1995). There is   a series of black-and-white photographs titled â€Å"9 Props,† each of which focuses on a single object in an empty room – a solitary vase, cup or goblet. The text in each photograph refers to figures that are missing around these solitary objects. This allows the reader to understand that these images refer to earlier photographs by James Van Der Zee. Simpson, in a very fine and yet powerful manner indicates that the black middle class continues to be invisible. Lorna Simpson's photograph Waterbearer was reproduced in 1987.   A black woman with shabby hair is seen fro the back, pouring water from a jug and a plastic bottle, one in each hand. The text included in the photograph says: â€Å"She saw him disappear by the river They asked her to tell what happened Only to discount her memory†. While the figure of the woman is calm and lacks emotion, the language shows the emotional disturbance that this woman may be carrying. Here, Lorna Simpson allows the reader to consider the history of the black people and how the history can reveal subconsciously hidden memories. (Hooks, 1993). In 1989 Lorna Simpson made Guarded Conditions. It depicts a   braided black woman in working shoes. She is shown in three images with minor changes in her body position. This is then repeated in a serial manner. The work seems to indicate the model’s changing notions of her own identity (Marshall, 1989). The position of the feet and hair are slightly rearranged in these images and in the middle row of photographs, the right hand alternately embraces, then caresses the left arm. Along with the photo, there is a rhythm of the words â€Å"sex attacks skin attacks,† which titles the prints. Guarded Conditions has been intellectually interpreted by various artists (Copeland, 2005). In a December 1989 review, an art critic found a link between a newspaper article reporting the brutal beating and rape of a black woman by two white securing guards and the work â€Å"Guarded Conditions†. Three years later, a curator wrote that this picture portrays â€Å"a double-sided metonym of racial sufferance†(Copeland, 2005). In his view, the isolated body of the woman invokes â€Å"slave auctions, hospital examination rooms, and criminal line-ups,† while the duplication â€Å"of the turned-back figures †¦ calls up images of those women who stand guard against the evils of the world on the steps of black fundamentalist churches on Sunday mornings† (Copeland, 2005) Stack of Diaries, 1993, portrays a black and white photo of a stack of diary books; in the foreground tehre is a multileveled metal stand that holds stacked glass panels, with black-lettered text-fragments rendered in subtly distinct styles (bold script, italics, etc.) pressed into the glass. The different styles seem to imply the presence of different voices. The viewer is encouraged through these phrases to explore why the writer of the diaries has so much confusion in identities. In Twenty Questions   (A Sampler), Simpson shows a woman's back, her features hidden and masked by a lush har that is long enough to cover her neck revealing only the vulnerable shoulders and the upper back which is covered by a simple calico chemise. The questions included in the photo are: â€Å"Is she pretty as a picture† â€Å"Or clear as crystal† :Or pure as a lily† â€Å"Or Black as coal† â€Å"Or sharp as a razor†. Though the subject does not face the viewer, the viewer is forced to look at her judgmentally and the text is specifically aimed at encouraging the viewer to dig up recorded history and   past experiences in his brain to come up with an answer (Lorna Simpson by Okwui). Conclusion: Overall,   one finds that Simpson’s photo-text constructions are like puzzles inviting interested viewers to solve. There are clues provided by the text. Maybe the author was stifled in trying to express the subtle thoughts through text form. By including both picture and text in the imagery, Lorna Simpson grasps the viewers attention for a while, allows him to reflect on all possible meanings in the context of history and contemporary society and give unique interpretations that might also be based on his own personal experience. Her new works attract the viewer to dig out meanings that are hidden between symbolic pictures and fragments of text. Some people may accuse the author of allowing too much freedom to the viewer in interpretation. However, it cannot be denied that her works invite the viewer to examine closely, think deeply and finally give directions to arrive at conclusions that orient the viewer towards her own opinion. This is the effective manipulation of spectatorship as found in Lorna Simpson’s work of art Bibliography: Online Sources: Marshall, Peter (2007). More Work and Selected Links† ‘Guarded Conditions' (1989). http://photography.about.com/cs/photographersaz/a/aa021604_2.htm ArtFacts.net (2007). Lorna Simpson.http://www.artfacts.net/index.php/pageType/artistInfo/artist/2932 Print Journals: Copeland, Huey (2005). â€Å"Bye, Bye Black Girl†: Lorna Simpson's figurative retreat. Art Journal, Summer, 2005. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0425/is_2_64/ai_n15338133 Heartney, Eleanor (1995). Figuring absence – Lorna Simpson, photography, Sean Kelly gallery, New York, New York. Art in America, December 1995. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1248/is_n12_v83/ai_17860708 Marianne Kurylo-Litvak, The Art of Lorna Simpson: Challenging Preconceived Notions with Invisibility Imagery, thesis, Queens College, City University, 1998, 17. Decter, Joshua (1994). Lorna Simpson – Josh Baer Gallery, New York, New York. ArtForum, January 1994. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0268/is_n5_v32/ai_15143646 Hooks, Bell (1993).Lorna Simpson: Waterbearer – photograph. ArtForum. September 1993. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0268/is_n1_v32/ai_14580117 Morgan, Joan (1990). Lorna Simpson: words of art – photographer uses technique known as photo text. Essence, December 1990. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1264/is_n8_v21/ai_9132098 Books: Smith, Roberta (1990). Review/Art; Linking Words and Images Explosively. The New York Times. July 20, 1990. Armendi, De Nicole (2001). Lorna Simpson’s Public Sex Series: The Voyeuristic Presence and the Embodied Figure’s Absence. ATHANOR XIX. Rivelli’s Books. http://www.fsu.edu/~arh/events/athanor/athxix/AthanorXIX_armendi.pdf Lorna simpson by okwui Lorna simpson by for the sake of the viewer. Files used: Simpson-resourcepacket (Lorna Simpson by okwui) AthenorXIX_armendi Art_Journal_Summer_2005 Lorna Simpson for the sake of the viewer ;