It Began in 1961 by President Kennedy

The chronicle of what entered the history books under the name â€Å"affirmative action† began with the executive order number 10925, issued by President Kennedy in 1961. It called for affirmative action on the part of federal contractors, with the ultimate goal of allowing the victims of previous discriminatory conduct to occupy positions they would have occupied in the absence of this conduct. At a glance, everything was alright: the representatives of minorities got an opportunity to get jobs solely on the basis of their merits. Right? Not exactly. Unforeseen Consequences of Affirmative Action Like it often happens, what worked well on paper turned out to function not so smoothly in reality. While the stated purpose of affirmative action was to make employers color-blind, what it ensued was the fact that they ceased to be in full control of their companies and organizations. Whenever a representative of a minority is refused a job, he or she can file a complaint based on discrimination, even if in reality he is less qualified than a white applicant who finally got the job. A lot of employers began to hire non-whites when they had white contenders just to be on the safe side – some loss in productivity turns out, in the long run, to be less undesirable than court proceedings with unclear prospects. Uncertainty and General Confusion When analyzed logically, it is clearly seen that affirmative action not only fails to do its job, but also creates additional problems. For example: It hinders the employer in his search for skilled labor – when he chooses more experienced whites he can always be accused of giving them unfair preferences. As a result, employers have to worry about what their actions appear to be more than about doing what they are supposed to do – business. It creates the so-called reverse discrimination, when representatives of the majority find themselves being discriminated by the employers trying to play it safe. It is not uncommon for equally qualified blacks to be preferred over white applicants – as a result labor policy is anything but color-blind. Legal proceedings aimed at establishing the truth in such cases only add to general confusion, because it is extremely hard to find out what are the grounds on which employers really make their choice. It is quite obvious that affirmative action in the form it exists now is just as unfair and subjective as the policies that were used before. Unfair to workers, to employers, to their clients. What Lies in Future It stands to reason that some changes are in order. Shouldn’t employers really be allowed to own what they own after all? If an owner doesn’t want to hire somebody, no matter on what grounds, isn’t it his business? Will somebody who is hired against the employer’s wishes really be all that welcome in that company? Won’t he be better off somewhere where the senior management shouldn’t be legally prosecuted to give him job? All in all, business thrives best when left alone. This was an example of the Kennedy essay, written by the writers of our custom writing service. To buy an essay on the necessary topic, please, fill in the Free Inquiry form in the top right corner of this page.

Ignou Bshf101 Solved Assignment 2011 - 3442 Words

IGNOU BSHF 101 Solved Assignment 2011 Foundation Course in Humanities and Social Sciences Course Code : BSHF 101 Answer in 250 words. Attempt any four questions. 1. What do you understand by term Post-Industrial society? Are †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦of the Industrial society? Solution: Industrial society came into existence when the number of factory workers exceeded the number of primary-industry workers. Primary industry is the type of economic activity that deals with the harvesting of raw materials. Included in that category are: farming, fishing, foresting, mining, and so forth. England was probably the first industrial society, but there is some reason to believe that the phenomenon occurred about the same time in Holland.†¦show more content†¦It is going to be a challenge to bridge the gap even by introducing teachers training programs.According to a teacher of a reputed school in Delhi, there are hundreds of students in one class and there is a huge gap between the training imparted to teachers and what they practice on ground.Our HRD Minister himself has acknowledged that there is a shortage of about five lakh teachers. In the face of this, how will it fulfill its promise of providing quality education to all? It is going to be a huge challenge. Challenge to provide Infrastructure Will we get better schools? In a survey on Elementary Education in India, conducted by the National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA), it has been found that almost half of the recognized elementary schools in the country do not have separate toilet for girls. This goes out to prove and depict the sorry state that our schools are in. It is going to be a challenge to provide the requisite infrastructure that the Act expects.The Act demands that the building of all the schools should be weather proof According to the Act there should be one teacher for every 30 students. The survey has come up with dismal details in this regard. There are 5.79 million teachers teaching in the elementary schools currently and each school has an average of 4.5 teachers. The Act suggests barrier free entries for all the schools whereas presently, only about 40% of

The Vampire Diaries The Fury Chapter Fourteen Free Essays

string(76) " shapes came out of the darkness, from between parked cars, from all sides\." White owl†¦ hunting bird†¦ hunter†¦ tiger. Playing with you like a cat with a mouse. Like a cat†¦ a great cat†¦ a kitten. We will write a custom essay sample on The Vampire Diaries: The Fury Chapter Fourteen or any similar topic only for you Order Now A white kitten. Death is in the house. And the kitten, the kitten had run from Damon. Not out of fear, but out of the fear of being discovered. Like when it had stood on Margaret’s chest and wailed at the sight of Elena outside the window. Elena moaned and almost surfaced from unconsciousness, but the gray fog dragged her back under before she could open her eyes. Her thoughts seethed around her again. Poisoned love†¦ Stefan, it hated you before it hated Elena†¦ White and gold†¦ something white†¦ something white under the tree†¦ This time, when she struggled to open her eyes, she succeeded. And even before she could focus in the dim and shifting light, she knew. She finally knew. The figure in the trailing white dress turned from the candle she was lighting, and Elena saw what might have been her own face on its shoulders. But it was a subtly distorted face, pale and beautiful as an ice sculpture, but wrong. It was like the endless reflections of herself Elena had seen in her dream of the hall of mirrors. Twisted and hungry, and mocking. â€Å"Hello, Katherine,† she whispered. Katherine smiled, a sly and predatory smile. â€Å"You’re not as stupid as I thought,† she said. Her voice was light and sweet-silvery, Elena thought. Like her eyelashes. There were silvery lights in her dress when she moved, too. But her hair was gold, almost as pale a gold as Elena’s own. Her eyes were like the kitten’s eyes: round and jewel blue. At her throat she wore a necklace with a stone of the same vivid color. Elena’s own throat was sore, as if she had been screaming. It felt dry as well. When she turned her head slowly to the side, even that little motion hurt. Stefan was beside her, slumped forward, bound by his arms to the wrought-iron pickets of the gate. His head sagged against his chest, but what she could see of his face was deathly white. His throat was torn, and blood had dripped onto his collar and dried. Elena turned back to Katherine so quickly that her head spun. â€Å"Why? Why did you do that?† Katherine smiled, showing pointed white teeth. â€Å"Because I love him,† she said in a childish singsong. â€Å"Don’t you love him, too?† It was only then that Elena fully realized why she couldn’t move, and why her arms hurt. She was tied up like Stefan, lashed securely to the closed gate. A painful turning of her head to the other side revealed Damon. â€Å"Which one do you like better?† Katherine asked, in an intimate, confiding tone. â€Å"You can tell me. Which one do you think is best?† Elena looked at her, sickened. â€Å"Katherine,† she whispered. â€Å"Please. Please listen to me†¦ â€Å"Tell me. Go on.† Those jewel blue eyes filled Elena’s vision as Katherine leaned in close, her lips almost touching Elena’s. â€Å"I think they’re both fun. Do you like fun, Elena?† Revolted, Elena shut her eyes and turned her face away. If only her head would stop spinning. Katherine stepped back with a clear laugh. â€Å"I know, it’s so hard to choose.† She did a little pirouette, and Elena saw that what she had vaguely taken for the train to Katherine’s dress was Katherine’s hair. It flowed like molten gold down her back to spill over the floor, trailing behind her. â€Å"It all depends on your taste,† Katherine continued, doing a few graceful dance steps and ending up in front of Damon. She looked over at Elena impishly. â€Å"But then I have such a sweet tooth.† She grasped Damon by the hair, and, yanking his head up, sank her teeth into his neck. â€Å"No! Don’t do that; don’t hurt him any more†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Elena tried to surge forward, but she was tied too tightly. The gate was solid iron, set in stone, and the ropes were sturdy. Katherine was making animal sounds, gnawing and chewing at the flesh, and Damon moaned even in unconsciousness. Elena saw his body jerk reflexively with pain. â€Å"Please stop; oh, please stop-â€Å" Katherine lifted her head. Blood was running down her chin. â€Å"But I’m hungry and he’s so good,† she said. She reared back and struck again, and Damon’s body spasmed. Elena cried out. I was like that, she thought. In the beginning, that first night in the woods, I was like that. I hurt Stefan like that, I wanted to kill him†¦ Darkness swept up around her, and she gave in to it gratefully. Alaric’s car skewed on a patch of ice as it reached the school, and Meredith almost ran into it. She and Matt jumped out of her car, leaving the doors open. Ahead, Alaric and Bonnie did the same. â€Å"What about the rest of the town?† Meredith shouted, running toward them. The wind was rising, and her face burned with frost. â€Å"Just Elena’s family-Aunt Judith and Margaret,† Bonnie cried. Her voice was shrill and frightened, but there was a look of concentration in her eyes. She leaned her head back as if trying to remember something, and said, â€Å"Yes, that’s it. They’re the other ones the dogs will be after. Make them go somewhere-like the cellar. Keep them there!† â€Å"I’ll do it. You three take the dance!† Bonnie turned to run after Alaric. Meredith raced back to her car. â€Å"Go back in! Get everybody inside and shut the doors!† he yelled at the sheriff’s officers. But there wasn’t time. He reached the cafeteria just as the first lurking shape in the darkness did. One officer went down without a sound or a chance to fire his gun. Another was quicker, and a gunshot rang out, amplified by the concrete courtyard. Students screamed and began to run away from it, into the parking lot. Alaric went after them, yelling, trying to herd them back. Other shapes came out of the darkness, from between parked cars, from all sides. You read "The Vampire Diaries: The Fury Chapter Fourteen" in category "Essay examples" Panic ensued. Alaric kept shouting, kept trying to gather the terrified students toward the building. Out here they were easy prey. In the courtyard, Bonnie turned to Matt. â€Å"We need fire!† she said. Matt darted into the cafeteria and came out with a box half-full of dance programs. He threw it to the ground, groping in his pockets for one of the matches they’d used to light the candle before. The paper caught and burned brightly. It formed an island of safety. Matt continued to wave people into the cafeteria doors behind it. Bonnie plunged inside, to find a scene just as riotous as outside. She looked around for someone in authority but couldn’t see any adults, only panicked kids. Then the red and green crepe paper decorations caught her eye. The noise was thunderous; even a shout couldn’t be heard in here. Struggling past the people trying to get out, she made it to the far side of the room. Caroline was there, looking pale without her summer tan, and wearing the snow queen tiara. Bonnie towed her to the microphone. â€Å"You’re good at talking. Tell them to get inside and stay in! Tell them to start taking down the decorations. We need anything that’ll burn-wood chairs, stuff in garbage cans, anything. Tell them it’s our only chance!† She added, as Caroline stared at her, frightened and uncomprehending: â€Å"You’ve got the crown on now-so do something with it!† She didn’t wait to see Caroline obey. She plunged again into the furor of the room. A moment later she heard Caroline’s voice, first hesitant and then urgent, on the loudspeakers. It was dead quiet when Elena opened her eyes again. At the hoarse whisper, she tried to focus and found herself looking into pain-filled green eyes. â€Å"Stefan,† she said. She leaned toward him yearningly, wishing she could move. It didn’t make sense, but she felt that if they could only hold each other it wouldn’t be so bad. There was a childish laugh. Elena didn’t turn toward it, but Stefan did. Elena saw his reaction, saw the sequence of expressions passing across his face almost too quickly to identify. Blank shock, disbelief, dawning joy-and then horror. A horror that finally turned his eyes blind and opaque. â€Å"Katherine,† he said. â€Å"But that’s impossible. It can’t be. You’re dead†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Stefan†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Elena said, but he didn’t respond. Katherine put a hand in front of her mouth and giggled behind it. â€Å"You wake up, too,† she said, looking on the other side of Elena. Elena felt a surge of Power. After a moment Damon’s head lifted slowly, and he blinked. There was no astonishment in his face. He leaned his head back, eyes wearily narrowed, and looked for a minute or so at his captor. Then he smiled, a faint and painful smile, but recognizable. â€Å"Our sweet little white kitten,† he whispered. â€Å"I should have known.† â€Å"You didn’t know, though, did you?† Katherine said, as eager as a child playing a game. â€Å"Even you didn’t guess. I fooled everyone.† She laughed again. â€Å"It was so much fun, watching you while you were watching Stefan, and neither of you knew I was there. I even scratched you once!† Hooking her fingers into claws, she mimicked a kitten’s slash. â€Å"At Elena’s house. Yes, I remember,† Damon said slowly. He didn’t seem so much angry as vaguely, whimsically amused. â€Å"Well, you’re certainly a hunter. The lady and the tiger, as it were.† â€Å"And I put Stefan in that well,† Katherine bragged. â€Å"I saw you two fighting; I liked that. I followed Stefan to the edge of the woods, and then-† She clapped her cupped hands together, like someone catching a moth. Opening them slowly, she peered down into them as if she really had something there, and giggled secretly. â€Å"I was going to keep him to play with,† she confided. Then her lower lip thrust out and she looked at Elena balefully. â€Å"But you took him. That was mean, Elena. You shouldn’t have done that.† The dreadful childish slyness was gone from her face, and for a moment Elena glimpsed the searing hatred of a woman. â€Å"Greedy girls get punished,† Katherine said, moving toward her, â€Å"and you’re a greedy girl.† Distracted, Katherine stepped back. She looked surprised, then flattered. â€Å"Well-if you really want me to,† she said. She hugged her elbows with her hands and pirouetted again, her golden hair twisting on the floor. â€Å"No,† she said gleefully, turning back and pointing at them. â€Å"You guess. You guess and I’ll tell you ‘right’ or ‘wrong.’ Go on! Elena swallowed, casting a covert glance at Stefan. She didn’t see the point of stalling Katherine; it was all going to come out the same in the end. But some instinct told her to hang on to life as long as she could. â€Å"You attacked Vickie,† she said, carefully. Her own voice sounded winded to her ears, but she was positive now. â€Å"The girl in the ruined church that night.† â€Å"Good! Yes,† Katherine cried. She made another kitten swipe with clawed fingers. â€Å"Well, after all, she was in my church,† she added reasonably. â€Å"And what she and that boy were doing-well! You don’t do that in church. So, I scratched her!† Katherine drew out the word, demonstrating, like somebody telling a story to a young child. â€Å"And†¦ I licked the blood up!† She licked pale pink lips with her tongue. Then she pointed at Stefan. â€Å"Next guess!† â€Å"You’ve been hounding her ever since,† Stefan said. He wasn’t playing the game; he was making a sickened observation. â€Å"Yes, we’re done with that! Go on to something else,† Katherine said sharply. But then she fiddled with the buttons at the neck of her dress, her fingers twinkling. And Elena thought of Vickie, with her startled-fawn eyes, undressing in the cafeteria in front of everyone. â€Å"I made her do silly things.† Katherine laughed. â€Å"She was fun to play with.† Elena’s arms were numb and cramped. She realized that she was reflexively straining against the ropes, so offended by Katherine’s words that she couldn’t hold still. She made herself stop, trying instead to lean back and get a little feeling into her deadened hands. What she was going to do if she got free she didn’t know, but she had to try. â€Å"Next guess,† Katherine was saying dangerously. â€Å"Why do you say it’s your church?† Damon asked. His voice was still distantly amused, as if none of this affected him at all. â€Å"What about Honoria Fell?† â€Å"Oh, that old spook!† Katherine said maliciously. She peered around behind Elena, her mouth pursed, her eyes glaring. Elena realized for the first time that they were facing the entrance to the crypt, with the ransacked tomb behind them. Maybe Honoria would help them†¦ But then she remembered that quiet, fading voice. This is the only help I can give you. And she knew that no further aid would come. As if she’d read Elena’s thoughts, Katherine was saying, â€Å"She can’t do anything. She’s just a pack of old bones.† The graceful hands made gestures as if Katherine were breaking those bones. â€Å"All she can do is talk, and lots of times I stopped you from hearing her.† Katherine’s expression was dark again, and Elena felt an acid twinge of fear. â€Å"Yes! That was funny. You all came running out of the house and started moaning and crying†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Katherine evoked the scene in pantomime: the little dog lying in front of Bonnie’s house, the girls rushing out to find his body. â€Å"He tasted bad, but it was worth it. I followed Damon there when he was a crow. I used to follow him a lot. If I wanted I could have grabbed that crow, and†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She made a sharp wringing motion. Bonnie’s dream, thought Elena, icy revelation sweeping over her. She didn’t even realize she’d spoken aloud until she saw Stefan and Katherine looking at her. â€Å"Bonnie dreamed about you,† she whispered. â€Å"But she thought it was me. She told me that she saw me standing under a tree with the wind blowing. And she was afraid of me. She said I looked different, pale but almost glowing. And a crow flew by and I grabbed it and wrung its neck.† Bile was rising in Elena’s throat, and she gulped it down. â€Å"But it was you,† she said. Katherine looked delighted, as if Elena had somehow proved her point. â€Å"People dream about me a lot,† she said smugly. â€Å"Your aunt-she’s dreamed about me. I tell her it was her fault you died. She thinks it’s you telling her.† â€Å"Oh, God†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I wish you had died,† Katherine went on, her face turning spiteful. â€Å"You should have died. I kept you in the river long enough. But you were such a tramp, getting blood from both of them, that you came back. Oh, well.† She gave a furtive smile. â€Å"Now I can play with you longer. I lost my temper that day, because I saw Stefan had given you my ring. My ring!† Her voice rose. â€Å"Mine, that I left for them to remember me by. And he gave it to you. That was when I knew I wasn’t just going to play with him. I had to kill him.† Stefan’s eyes were stricken, confounded. â€Å"But I thought you were dead,† he said. â€Å"You were dead, five hundred years ago. Katherine†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Oh, that was the first time I fooled you,† Katherine said, but there was no glee in her tone now. It was sullen. â€Å"I arranged it all with Gudren, my maid. The two of you wouldn’t accept my choice,† she burst out, looking from Stefan to Damon angrily. â€Å"I wanted us all to be happy; I loved you. I loved you both. But that wasn’t good enough for you.† Katherine’s face had changed again, and Elena saw in it the hurt child of five centuries ago. That must have been what Katherine looked like, then, she thought wonderingly. The wide blue eyes were actually filling with tears. â€Å"I wanted you to love each other.† Katherine went on, sounding bewildered, â€Å"but you wouldn’t. And I felt awful. I thought if you thought I’d died, that you would love each other. And I knew I had to go away, anyway, before Papa started to suspect what I was. â€Å"But then†-Katherine’s face twisted in grief-â€Å"you did everything all wrong. You were supposed to be sorry, and cry, and comfort each other. I did it for you. But instead you ran and got swords. Why did you do that?† It was a cry from the heart. â€Å"Why didn’t you take my gift? You treated it like garbage. I told you in the note that I wanted you to be reconciled with each other. But you didn’t listen and you got swords. You killed each other. Why did you do it?† Tears were slipping down Katherine’s cheeks, and Stefan’s face was wet, too. â€Å"We were stupid,† he said, as caught up in the memory of the past as she was. â€Å"We blamed each other for your death, and we were so stupid†¦ Katherine, listen to me. It was my fault; I was the one who attacked first. And I’ve been sorry-you don’t know how sorry I’ve been ever since. You don’t know how many times I’ve thought about it and wished there was something I could do to change it. I’d have given anything to take it back-anything. I killed my brother†¦Ã¢â‚¬  His voice cracked, and tears spilled from his eyes. Elena, her heart breaking with grief, turned helplessly to Damon and saw that he wasn’t even aware of her. The look of amusement was gone, and his eyes were fixed on Stefan in utter concentration, riveted. â€Å"Katherine, please listen to me,† Stefan said shakily, regaining his voice. â€Å"We’ve all hurt one another enough. Please let us go now. Or keep me, if you want, but let them leave. I’m the one that’s to blame. Keep me, and I’ll do whatever you want†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Katherine’s jewel-like eyes were liquid and impossibly blue, filled with an endless sorrow. Elena didn’t dare to breathe, afraid to break the spell as the slender girl moved toward Stefan, her face softened and yearning. But then the ice inside Katherine crept out again, freezing the tears on her cheeks. â€Å"You should have thought of that a long time ago,† she said. â€Å"I might have listened to you then. I was sorry you’d killed each other at first. I ran away, without even Gudren, back to my home. But then I didn’t have anything, not even a new dress, and I was hungry and cold. I might have starved if Klaus hadn’t found me.† Klaus. Through her dismay, Elena remembered something Stefan had told her. Klaus was the man who’d made Katherine a vampire, the man the villagers said was evil. â€Å"Klaus taught me the truth,† Katherine said. â€Å"He showed me how the world really is. You have to be strong, and take the things you want. You have to think only of yourself. And I’m the strongest of all now. I am. You know how I got that way?† She answered the question without even waiting for them to respond. â€Å"Lives. So many lives. Humans and vampires, and they’re all inside me now. I killed Klaus after a century or two. He was surprised. He didn’t know how much I’d learned. â€Å"I brought you here, both of you. I put the thought in your mind, Stefan, the way you put thoughts into a human’s. I guided you to this place. And then I made sure Damon followed you. Elena was here. I think she must be related to me somehow; she looks like me. I knew you’d see her and feel guilty. But you weren’t supposed to fall in love with her!† The resentfulness in Katherine’s voice gave way to fury again. â€Å"You weren’t supposed to forget me! You weren’t supposed to give her my ring!† â€Å"Katherine†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Katherine swept on. â€Å"Oh, you made me so angry. And now I’m going to make you sorry, really sorry. I know who I hate most now, and it’s you, Stefan. Because I loved you best.† She seemed to regain control of herself, wiping the last traces of tears from her face and drawing herself up with exaggerated dignity. â€Å"I don’t hate Damon as much,† she said. â€Å"I might even let him live.† Her eyes narrowed, and then widened with an idea. â€Å"Listen, Damon,† she said secretly. â€Å"You’re not as stupid as Stefan is. You know the way things really are. I’ve heard you say it. I’ve seen things you’ve done.† She leaned forward. â€Å"I’ve been lonely since Klaus died. You could keep me company. All you have to do is say you love me best. Then after I kill them we’ll go away. You can even kill the girl if you want. I’d let you. What do you think?† Oh, God, thought Elena, sickened again. Damon’s eyes were on Katherine’s wide blue ones; he seemed to be searching her face. And the whimsical amusement was back in his expression. Oh, God, no, Elena thought. Please, no†¦ Slowly, Damon smiled. How to cite The Vampire Diaries: The Fury Chapter Fourteen, Essay examples

Essay about The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls Essay Example For Students

Essay about The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls Essay Mothers always tend to want the best for their children so that their kids do not struggle in life and become dependent on their parents. Rose Mary Walls from â€Å"The Glass Castle† by Jeannette Walls acts like the complete opposite from mothers who want the best for their kids. Rose Mary goes through her own struggles throughout the book but she decides to create wrong choices by not working when her children need her the most. Each of her four children are brilliant in their own ways especially Jeannette and Lori who find their way out of Welches and head to New York followed then by Brian. The three of them became successful on their own but their mom did help them in a different way when compared to other mothers. When she was older, after dinner, her father read the dictionary with the kids, looked up the words they did not know, and discussed the definitions (Walls 56). Because of the reading habits her parents gave her, every time Jeannette did not understand a word, she looked up the word in the dictionary. The routine of reading dictionary after dinner and the habit of looking up an unknown word in the dictionary helped Jeannette build up her vocabulary. With abundant vocabulary and excellent reading skills, Jeannette did not have problem with her college admission test. Studies show that having good reading habits not only increa. . m by herself. Achara’s dream of become a teacher has come true. Now she is teaching her students not only school subjects but also life experiences that she has learned from her mother. Parents should stop being over-involved in children s lives in order to make them more independent.As you can see, the way parents raise their children can greatly affect children’s futures. Reading can give children some new ideas and knowledge they cannot learn from schools or their parents. It also improves their literacy which becomes a learning booster that helps them perform better in school. With self-confidence, people are more willing to try the things they are interest in without dreaded to fail. Once they reach their goals, they are more likely to make a contribution to society. Children who are growing in these environments are also more likely to enjoy their adulthoods.

Technological Singularity Essay Example

Technological Singularity Essay In a guest column, Computers vs. Brains on the Opinionator of The New York Times, Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang analyzed some of the arguments by inventor Raymond Kurzweil, one of the leading inventors of our time, in his most recent futurist manifesto: â€Å"The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology† (2005). Kurzweil estimates that machines will inevitably be able to surpass our thinking capabilities within a few decades. Kurzweils speculative reasoning has been heavily debated and challenged. In Aamodt and Wangs article they point out that there are fundamental differences between our brains and computers that makes Kurzweils predictions improbable. The purpose of this essay is to evaluate the arguments of sides, Kurzweils book and Aamodt and Wangs article. I will attempt to accomplish this by using various critical thinking methods such as defining, clarifying and explaining some of the history of the concepts and the debates involved. To understand the debate we must first clarify what is technological singularity. A technological singularity is the moment our technological development becomes so rapid that it makes the future after the singularity unpredictable. Writers on singularity, such as Raymond Kurzweil, define the concept in terms of the technological creation of super-intelligence (Kurzweil, 2005). The article points out that any comparison of the brain and computers misses the messy truth about the fundamental differences between them. The article provides various reasons why the brain is superior to computers and ways in which it is not. We will write a custom essay sample on Technological Singularity specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Technological Singularity specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Technological Singularity specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The debate focuses on differences on energy consumption, information processing strategies and capacity, and the pros and cons of artificial versus biological between brain and computers. The brain contains many systems that have evolved through natural selection for one task then was adopted for another. It is efficient for nature to adapt an old system that to build a new one. As such, the brain is composed of the brain stem, the limbic system and the brain cortex carrying out a complex communication with each other that we have yet to decipher. Engineers however, have the advantage to start over to get it just right. A persistent problem, with not just artificial intelligence, but all machines, is the tendency of components to fail. Yet our biological neurons and synapses fail all the time, even under healthy conditions, but unlike computers, new neuron connections can form as well as break throughout a lifetime, this provides an infinite potential for new paths and brain activity. The human brain uses 12 watts, which is less than a typical refrigerator light while the memory of an artificial brain would use nearly a gigawatt, the amount currently consumed by all Washington, D. C. (Aamodt Wang, 2009). To solve this challenge Kurzweil invoked Moores Law. The law is named after Intel co-founders Gordon E. Moore, who originally described the trend in 1965. In this paper Moore noted that number the of transistors in integrated circuits had doubled every year from the invention of the integrated circuit in 1958 until 1965 and predicted that the trend would continue for at least ten years (Moore, 1965). His prediction has proved to be incredibly accurate, in part because most technology and electronic industries now use this principle to set targets for research and development (Disco Meulen, 1998). For the last four decades memory and chip capacity has doubled every one or two years (est. 2025 to 2030). The article claims that Kurzweil overlooks Moores Law power consumption per chip, which has also increased immensely since 1985 (Aamodt Wang, 2009). While this is true, it implies that electrical power consumption will continue to grow whereas electrical power and storage technologies such as batteries, fuel cells and renewable energies will remain stagnant. The problem in this logic is that history and technology advancements do not evolve at a constant pace, in fact the capabilities of many digital electronic devices and technologies like energy efficiency are also linked to Moores law. New revolutionary technologies are emerging fast to address this issue of increased electrical power generation and storage needs. An example is teams of MIT scientists that have created a synthetic, self-assembling chloroplast that can be break and reassemble repeatedly, a self-restoring solar cell. Dillow, 2010). Another example is a company called Bloom Energy, which is producing tiny fuel cell boxes called â€Å"Bloom Boxes. † Two of these can power an average U. S. home. Each device is about the size of a standard brick. Although they need to be surrounded by a larger unit that takes in an energy source, they are still about the size of a refrigerator. This alternative is already being tested by companies such as Google and eBay (Siegler, 20 10). One striking feature of brain tissue is its compactness. The memory capacity in this small volume is potentially immense. For computer capacity, to begin to approach that of a human brain, as we get closer to the physical limits of silicon and other materials used in current computing components like computer chips and memory; manufacturers would possibly need to experiment with other production techniques and materials. As humans have evolved, we have developed the ability to make fast inferences in very complex situations. We can make logical approximations and find â€Å"good enough† solutions. This type of decision-making will undoubtedly be hard to match but there are already robots accomplishing seemingly simple tasks like matching socks and playing soccer autonomously, which are actually very complicated tasks. On good example is ASIMO, which is currently the worlds most advanced humanoid robot; it is the culmination of two decades of research by Honda engineers. ASIMO can run, walk on uneven slopes and surfaces, turn smoothly, climb stairs, and reach for and grasp objects, comprehend and respond to simple voice commands. ASIMO can also have the some face recognition capability and can map its environment and register stationary objects. ASIMO can also avoid moving obstacles as it moves through its environment (Honda. com). However, we bring a large amount of background information to bear on simple tasks, allowing us to make inferences that are difficult for machines. Even the most advanced computer has trouble differentiating a dog and a cat apart, something even a toddler can do without any effort. In regards to the declaration that engineers can learn from brain strategies (Aamodt Wang, 2009), it should be noted for the purpose of clarification that researchers and engineers are constantly trying to mimic the tricks that millions of years of evolution and development have taught to biology. If engineers can recreate this tricks and shortcuts, computers that share our imperfections. This may not be exactly what we want, but it could lead to better â€Å"soft† judgment or so called â€Å"fuzzy† reasoning from computers (Aamodt Wang, 2009). What determines a computers ability to make such inferences is related to the artificial intelligence software not hardware. In addition several devices can share computing resources through wireless technologies and the implementation of cloud computing strategies. Cloud computing refers to a shift towards internet-based computing, where shared software or information are provided on demand. Why bother? The article concludes that we should no try to achieve the goal of sophisticated artificial intelligence since, human beings are already capable of fulfilling all those requirements and in order to create a new one all it akes is a fertile couple with the resources to nurture their child. Although, it will eventually be possible to design devices that imitate human behavior, we already have such an incredible device in humans. I do agree that humans have achieved an intellectual and self-awareness that seems incomprehensible at times. The article misses one of the most important argu ments of Kurzweils discussion. The functionality of the brain is computable in terms of technology that we can build in the near future. We must take into account that preliminary research is already suggesting that prolonged use of such devices is affecting the way our minds work. â€Å"The technology is rewiring our brains,† said Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse and one of the world’s leading brain scientists. Our brain is evolving, she and other researchers compare digital stimulation less to drugs and alcohol than to food and sex, which are essential but counterproductive in excess (Richtel, 2010). We must always remember that Kurzweil describes this technological singularity as resulting from three different technologies and disciplines: genetics, nanotechnology, and robotics (which includes artificial intelligence). Genetic modification is the manipulation of an organisms genetic material in a way that does not occur under natural conditions. Nanotechnology is the study of controlling matter on a molecular scale to create new materials and devices with a wide range of applications, such as in medicine, electronics and energy production. Robotics is related to electronics, mechanics, and software. Kurzweil argues we are in the process of reaching new levels of refinement in our technology that will allow us to merge biological and artificial to create higher forms of life and intelligence. The article fails to make a persuasive argument against the inevitably of the technological singularity and the reasons for not pursuing this goal. There are many reasons why people will aim to achieve this such as vanity, medical and cognitive compensation or enhancements. We must not assume that the only goal in producing such technology is to just emulate humans, but to augment and even transcend our biology, as the book title suggests. References Aamodt, S. Wang, S. (March, 2009). Guest Column: Computers vs. Brains, New York Times, Retrieved from: http://opinionator. blogs. nytimes. com/2009/03/31/guest-column-computers-vs-brains/ Dillow, C. (2010). MITs Self-Assembling Solar Cells Recycle Themselves Repeatedly, Just Like Plant Cells.

Oedipus The King Odyssey And Greek Culture English Literature Essay Essay Example

Oedipus The King Odyssey And Greek Culture English Literature Essay Essay Example Oedipus The King Odyssey And Greek Culture English Literature Essay Essay Oedipus The King Odyssey And Greek Culture English Literature Essay Essay Essay Topic: The Odyssey The Peloponnesian War Present civilization can be considered an evolved version of the Greek, Hebrew, Roman, and Mesopotamian civilizations. Whether it is through literature, authorities, or merely manner of life, there are many ways that the aforesaid civilizations have influenced the present. The Greeks created the construct of a city state, a metropolis which controls its ain authorities and is the district. The two most celebrated city states of Greece were Athens and Sparta. A modern city state would be Singapore. Washington D.C. can besides be considered a city state. D.C. is the US capital that is besides considered a province, even though it is non one of the 50 provinces. The Greeks called their city states a Polis. Polis is still used to depict a metropolis in modern times. Some illustrations would be Metropolis, Minneapolis, Indianapolis, and Annapolis. The Greeks were besides celebrated for their innovation of the democracy. Merely as we have media and leaders influence us in our vote determin ation, the Greeks besides had people to assist them decide on. Though it was nt every bit safe to roast a campaigner back so as it is now, many writers or literature figures used their work to assail authorities determinations and figures. The Romans subsequently on went on to germinate this to the following degree. Aristophanes, considered to be the Father of Comedy, wrote the book Lysistrata. Lysistrata was fundamentally an onslaught on The Peloponnesian War. Similar to protests of war in modern times, Lysistrata is fundamentally on work stoppage and gets the backup of many others ( adult females ) that lead to the peace of the work forces. This narrative was one of the first narratives of its sort, puting a adult female as a hero. The Grecian piece known as Odyssey has put an influence on several modern narratives. One of the chief narratives so happens to be a film called O Brother Where Art Thou. Even though the film is merely slackly based, there are still features in the film that put the Odyssey in modern yearss. Taking pieces of the Odyssey and utilizing it for our civilization is similar to what the Romans done with Grecian civilization, non needfully by doing it better but by interpreting it into their ain footings. The Odyssey was based in Ancient Greece and O Brother Where Art Thou was based in the 1930 s in the Deep American South. Another similarity between the Ancient Greeks and modern Americans is the fact that both states can barely remain out of a war. And with war, brings anti-war protests. Every narrative that has come out of Ancient Greece has had some tie to being in war. Another ancient piece to last was Oedipus the King, which was written by Sophocles. It is considered a calamity because of the destiny of the supporter. There seemed to be a batch of predestination in the narrative. He was told that he was supposed to get married his ain female parent and it was so. This is non so much something we would see as fortunate in modern times. He is besides predestined to kill his male parent and it besides becomes true. In both of these incidents, none of the chief characters are cognizant of the relation between one another. It is interesting to see Tiresias the blind prophesier in the narrative, being that he was besides in the Odyssey. The turns in this narrative more than probably influenced any turn in narratives in the hereafter from B.C. to now. Creon, his brother-in-law and possible uncle, informs Oedipus about the pestilence, which has to make with King Laius s liquidator neer being found. Oedipus, unaware that he is in fact the liquidator, is in indignation and curses the liquidator. While reading Oedipus the King, I began to recognize that this was like an ancient version of Maury. Laius was the male parent. He was the male parent of Oedipus, whom Oedipus slayings and so marries his female parent Queen Jocasta. With Jocasta he has two girls, which are besides his two sisters. With all the play traveling on, Jocasta commits self-destruction and blinds himself before being taken off. Sophocles influenced literature besides by making subsequences. In today s civilization, you ca nt travel anyplace without hearing about a subsequence to a film or a book coming out. Sophocles made Oedipus the King and two following narratives. Those two would be Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone. Oedipus at Colonus is fundamentally about the destiny of Oedipus after being sent off. Antigone is a narrative about one of his girls and her destiny. The narrative of Antigone looks as if it was more tragic than its old narratives because of all the self-destructions that occur in the narrative. Without the Ancient Greeks, what would literature be like now? Would at that place be any? The Greeks innovated the art of moving and dramas. Even before composing, they would state narratives through vocalizing and moving out as they pass on unwritten tradition. This ulterior developed into play and dramas when the Greeks developed a system of composing. The Greeks were by far the earliest histrions known to us. If they had non began moving, we would likely hold neer seen a Shakespeare, Broadway, and telecasting. The ancient Grecian histrions performed in theaters much similar to the 1s we would see today. The ground is that the Greeks developed the thought of and design of the bowls and theatres we see today. The Greeks were advanced at their clip, even composing a narrative of a adult male traveling to the Moon. This became true in the modern age when American astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon in 1969. On top of everything else the Greeks did, their faith is a topic to many things to this twenty-four hours. Demigods, half adult male half god existences, were idolized at their clip merely as a super hero to a kid or Jesus Christ to the Christians. In some facets, Jesus can be viewed as a superman because of the fact that he is the boy of God and the Virgin Mary. Although the Greeks were beat to the thoughts of supermans by the Mesopotamians with Gilgamesh, they were still to a great extent influential to the thought. Overall, some Grecian narratives are still being refashion to this twenty-four hours. Movies and books about characters, fictional or nonfictional, are viewed by many.

Human growth and developement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Human growth and developement - Essay Example 1. Development proceeds from the head downward. This is called the Cephalocaudle principle. This principle describes the direction of growth and development. According to this principle, the child gains control of the head first, then the arms, and then the legs. Infants develop control of the head and face movements within the first two months after birth. In the next few months, they are able to lift themselves up by using their arms. By 6 to 12 months of age, infants start to gain leg control and may be able to crawl, stand, or walk. Coordination of arms always precedes coordination of legs. 2. Development proceeds from the center of the body outward. This is the principle of Proximodistal development that also describes the direction of development. This means that the spinal cord develops before outer parts of the body. The child's arms develop before the hands and the hands and feet develop before the fingers and toes. Finger and toe muscles are the last to develop in physical development. 3. Development depends on maturation and learning. Maturation refers to the sequential characteristic of biological growth and development. ... Finger and toe muscles are the last to develop in physical development. 3. Development depends on maturation and learning. Maturation refers to the sequential characteristic of biological growth and development. The biological changes occur in sequential order and give children new abilities. Changes in the brain and nervous system account largely for maturation. These changes in the brain and nervous system help children to improve in thinking or cognitive and motor or physical skills. 4. Development proceeds from the simple to the more complex. Children use their cognitive and language skills to reason and solve problems. For example, learning relationships between things, or classification, is an important ability in cognitive development. The cognitive process of learning how an apple and orange are alike begins with the most simplistic or concrete thought of describing the two. Seeing no relationship, a preschool child will describe the objects according to some property of the object, such as color. Such a response would be, "An apple is red or green and an orange is orange." The first level of thinking about how objects are alike is to give a description or functional relationship between the two objects. "An apple and orange are round" and "An apple and orange are alike because you eat them" are typical responses of three, four and five year olds. As children develop further in cognitive skills, they are able to understand a higher and more complex relations hip between objects and things; that is, that an apple and orange exist in a class called fruit. The child cognitively is then capable of classification. 5. Growth and development is a continuous process. As a child develops, he or she adds to the skills already acquired and the new skills