Physics of football Essay Example for Free

Physics of football Essay Every Sunday afternoon in the fall, all across America, televisions, radios, and Internet broadcasts are tuned to the big football games. The sport of football has grown in popularity since the day it was invented, but not all of the views are good. The sport of football is viewed by many as a cruel and primitive sport, however every aspect within the sport of football is based in the field of physics. To begin to understand the complexity that is the game of football one can start by looking at how the punter needs to know the laws of physics to kick far. A punter’s job is to execute a drop kick (holding the football out and dropping it, then kicking the ball in midair) so as to give the other team the worst field position possible. This goal is only achievable with a kick that propels the football very far both horizontally and vertically. The punter is in charge of three things at the time of the kick: the velocity, the angle of the kick, and the rotation on the ball. Velocity is the speed at which the ball is propelled from the punter’s foot. The angle at which the ball is kicked combined with the velocity determines the distance the ball will travel. A ball kicked at a steeper angle with high velocity will have more hang-time (amount of time the ball is in the air), but will not travel very far. However, a ball kicked at a shallow angle with a high velocity will travel far, but it will not have the hang-time that many players desire (a punt with a long hang-time allows the players to get to the punt returner easier). Lastly, the rotation a punter puts on a football greatly affects how far the punt will go. If the ball is punted end over end, it will have more air resistance, slowing it down resulting in a shorter punt. A spiraling punt breaks through the air decreasing air resistance allowing for a kick with more distance. These same aspects are the ones applied to a quarterback when throwing the football (except without the kicking). One of the more sought after positions, and my personal favorite to play, is the running back. The job of the running back is to receive the football from the quarterback, and then try to gain as many yards as possible before being brought down to the ground by a defensive player. The running back lines up usually about three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage. This space allows the running back to accelerate to his top speed before he meets the defense. For a back to be able to change direction as he is running, he must plant his foot into the ground and apply force in the opposite direction. To stop going in one direction, a running back uses two different forces, the first of which is the force of friction (how hard it is to slide one object over another), and the second is the force with which the back applies. When a running meets a defensive player, his momentum must be greater than the momentum of the defensive player’s in order to break the tackle. On the opposite side of the ball, the linebacker is the defensive equivalent to the running back. He also is stationed three to five yards from the line of scrimmage in order to have room to accelerate. For a tackle to be made, the momentum of a defensive player must be greater than or equal to that of the offensive ball carrier. Momentum is found by multiplying the weight of an athlete by the speed at which he is moving. If the momentums of the two athletes are the same, then both players will come to a stop and in the game of football if the ball stops moving forward, then the carrier has lost. In my own experience, coaches have always told me to tackle low. The reasoning behind this is that a man’s center of gravity is usually located at just above the naval, and hitting below this point causes the runner to rotate, taking his legs off of the ground. If a player is hit above this point the tackler will just roll off, and if a player is hit on this point, he will be forced in to the direction he his hit, but it may not bring him down. The sport of football is a highly scientific game, and not the savage sport that many people see it as. Every aspect of the game can be figured through various physical formulas.

Difficulties Arab Students Have Learning English English Language Essay

Difficulties Arab Students Have Learning English English Language Essay Introduction: As a teacher of English to Arabic speaking students I have encountered a number of specific difficulties Arab students have in mastering the English language. In this paper, I would like to focus on a particular grammatical problem they have in the area of verb tenses because, of all the mistakes that my students make, mistakes with verbs and verb tenses impede communication to the greatest degree. The specific problem I will attempt to look at the area of verbs is the problem that Arabic speakers have in using and confusing the present progressive. I will base the evidence for these mistakes on actual writing errors that Arabic students have made. Mistakes such as I am live in Abu Dhabi. come up frequently in my students writing. This paper is basically a contrastive analysis since I feel that the majority of my students problems in this area come from mother tongue interference. However, as will be noted below, this does not mean I rule out other sources of errors such as intralingual errors. The following is the outline of this paper: In the first section of this paper, I will describe the various aspects of the grammatical structure of the present simple and the present progressive in the English language. In the second section of the paper, I will contrast the grammatical structure of the present simple and the present progressive with its Arabic counterparts. I will show how Arabic has structures that vary significantly and radically from their English counterparts. In the third section, I will introduce a number of examples takes from students written work and give an indepth analysis of the possible sources of the errors, mainly with respect to mother tongue interference, but also looking at some possible intralingual sources for these errors as well. Finally, in the last section, I will attempt to suggest a general theoretical approach to dealing with such problems Part One: A grammatical description of the English Present Simple and the Present Progressive: The simple present tense As we already know, the simple present of every verb (with the exception of the verb BE, which I will not be dealing with as a grammatical description since it is not the specific focus of this paper) is identical in every person with the basic unmarked base form of the verb except for the third person forms he, she and it to which we generally add s or es (Quirk 1985, p.98). However, numerous irregularities arise in the spelling and pronunciation of this third person form (Leicester 1998, 12.12)(Thomson 1986, p. 150). Questions are formed by using the auxiliaries do, does, in the present, and did in the past by putting all these before the subject. Negation is formed in the same way using dont (or do not) and doesnt, (or does not) in the present, and didnt (or did not) in the past. These forms go after the subject. In addition, the verb must be changed to the basic form. The simple present is used for statements that are always true, (e.g. The earth revolves around the sun.) (Azar 1989,p.2). The simple present is also used for events, actions or situations which are true in the present period of time and which, for all we know, may continue indefinitely, (e.g. Fatima goes to school at Zayed University.) (Azar 1989, p.2) What we are saying in these expressions is that this is how things stand at the present moment (Huddleston 1984, p.81). A further use of the simple present is for actions that are habitual, things that happen repeatedly, (e.g. We study a lot.) (Alexander 1988, p.163)(Quirke 1985, p.107). Observations and declarations are another use of the present simple, as in the sentence (It says here that there is a new night club opening.)(Alexander 19988, p.163). The present simple can also be used to express the future, especially when we want to express strong certainty, (e.g. When we graduate, we will get jobs.). Swan, Huddleston, Lewis, Thomson and Quirke, et. al. also add eight other functions of the present simple which might come up in other contexts such as: Demonstrations and commentaries (e.g. First, I take a bowl and break two eggs in it, thenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..) The structures here comes and there goes, (e.g. here comes your husband.) Promises and oaths (e.g. I promiseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦., I swear à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, He deniesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..) Formal correspondence (e.g. We write to advise you.) Instructions (e.g. You go left, turn rightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.) Stories (e.g. In act one, Hamlet meets the ghost of his father.), which Huddleston calls the historic present. In expressions of understanding such as hear, see, gather (e.g. I hear youre getting married.) Finally, the simple present can be used in newspaper headlines (e.g. RUSSIANS RAISE OBJECTIONS) Since there are so many instances of when to use the present simple, is there any way to summarize all of these? I concur with Lewis explanation that the present simple: 1-Expresses an event as a total single point in time. 2-Expresses an event as a matter of fact. 3-Expresses an event as immediate rather than remote. The present progressive tense Both the simple and progressive forms usually tell us that an action takes place. But the progressive forms also tell us that an activity is or was, or will be, etc. in progress, or thought of as being in progress. In other words, the present progressive tells us that the speaker sees an action as taking place over a period of time as opposed to a point in time. In addition researchers would add that the speaker sees the period as limited (Lewis 1986; Leech, 1975; Huddleston, 1984; Quirke, 1985). The present progressive tense is formed with the present of be (am/is/are) (which adds aspect and voice), said by Quirke to be the finite verb, plus the ing form (the non-finite form) (Quirke 1985, p. 120). There are no complications with the additional ing form; however the spelling of the ing has some irregularities and needs to be taught to students e.g. write, writing; run, running; begin, beginning; lie, lying). (Alexander 1988; Huddleston 1984; Quirke 1985). Question formation takes place by switching the place of the auxiliary be and the subject. Negation is achieved by inserting not between the subject and the auxiliary or by contracting nt with the auxiliary verb forms (with the exception of the first person singular form am) (Quirke, 1985). In the classroom, the classical reason given for why we use the present progressive is that it shows an uncompleted action in progress at the time of speaking. To emphasise this, we often use adverbials like now, at the moment, just, etc. For example, Hes not home at the moment, hes working. (Quirke 1985). The present progressive can also be used to describe actions which have not been happening for long, or are thought of as being temporary situations, and which are going on around now, e.g. Abdullah is living with his aunt until he can find a place of his own.. A further use of the present progressive is to refer to activities and events planned for the future. We generally use adverbials in such sentences unless the meaning is clear from context, e.g. Were spending next Thursday in Abu Dhabi. (Azar 1989; Huddleston 1984; Quirke 1985). The present progressive can also be used to talk about developing and changing situations, e.g. That child is getting bigger all the time. (Swan 1980). Sometimes the present progressive can be used to talk about feelings, such as I am feeling fine. or My back is hurting me.. The present progressive is used to show repeated actions along with adverbs such as always, constantly, continually, forever, perpetually, and repeatedly, such as He is always helping people.. In this sense it conveys not temporariness, but continuousness. (Leech 1975; Huddleston 1984). The present progressive also is used to show repeated actions that are happening around now, e.g. He is studying a lot of English these days. Why is he going to the library? (Swan 1980). Dynamic versus Stative Verbs in the present simple and the progressive tenses Dynamic/progressive verbs refer to verbs which show actions which are deliberate or voluntary, e.g. Im building a house., or changing situations, e.g. Hes becoming fat.. Dynamic verbs can be used in both the progressive as well as the simple forms e.g. I eat at 5:00 (everyday). as opposed to Im eating now.. Stative verbs (also known as non-progressive verbs) are verbs which indicate a state, condition or experience. Specifically, stative verbs fall into categories such as feelings (like, love), thinking/believing (think, know, realize), wants and preferences (need, want), perception and the senses (smell, see), and being, seeming, having, and owning (seem, look, appear). Stative verbs are generally not used in the progressive forms (Quirke 1985). However some stative verbs can be used in both the present simple and the progressive tenses, which results in a different meaning in each form, e.g. Im thinking of a solution. as opposed to I think he is the best man for the job. or These flowers smell good. as opposed to Latifa is smelling the flowers in the garden.) (Alexander 1988; Azar 1989; Azar 1986; Quirke 1985). The present simple versus the present progressive Swan makes note of a number of areas where students might confuse the present simple with the present continuous. A. We use the simple present to talk about things that are true for the present period of time, or, as was noted above, to say this is how things stand at the present moment for the foreseeable future. However, if the event is temporary and is taking place right now, we use the present progressive. Afrah studies at the Higher Colleges. Afrah is studying her English lesson. B. We use the present progressive to talk about habitual actions if these are happening around the moment of speaking. Fayrouz and Fatima are preparing for the Eid holidays. However, if the habitual action is not closely connected to the moment of speaking, we generally use the present simple. I go to Saudi Arabia once every three years. C. Verbs that refer to physical feelings can sometimes be used in either the simple present or the present progressive. I feel great! or Im feeling great! My head hurts. or My head is hurting. (Swan 1980). PART TWO A grammatical description of the Arabic present simple and the present progressive In this part of the paper, I would like to give readers a very brief background of the Arabic verb system in regard to the simple present and the present progressive. The Arabic verb system is very complicated. However, this does not mean that a teacher has to master the Arabic language before s/he is able to pinpoint errors that may be a result of the interference of Arabic in English. One can study the Arabic language with the goal of simply understanding the structure, rather than with the goal of speaking and writing in the language. Let us first look at the present simple, then the present progressive, and finally the verb to be since all of these grammatical items are specifically relevant to the particular problem at hand. A.The Present Simple In Arabic, the formation of the present simple is radically different from English, since Arabic uses a root system made up of the three most important consonants (though two or four consonant roots do sometimes occur). In Arabic the three basic consonants (the root) stay the same but it is by changes in the vowels, the suffixes and the prefixes that tense and number are indicated. It is vastly more complicated than the way some English verbs change tense by changing vowels, e.g. give, gave. For example, the sentence, he learns could be represented phonetically by ya-droo-soo. The d-r-s is the root, ya is the part that indicates this is a third person singular masculine verb (though this is not the pronoun). The pattern of the vowels and consonants (ya + c1 + c2+ oo + c3 + oo), lets the speaker know that this is the present tense. In contrast, the past could be represented by a different pattern; hence, he learned, dar-ah-sah has the pattern (c1 + ai or ah + c2 + ai or ah + c3 + ah) (and this is just one pattern out of ten!) From a sentence point of view the verb in Arabic is not necessarily treated as the nucleus of a sentence and, in the case of the copula verb BE, can be omitted entirely (as we shall see below). The verb can also be placed at the beginning of the sentence. Like its English counterpart, the present simple tense in Arabic expresses a habitual action. There are other functions, but they are not relevant to this discussion. B.The Present Progressive In general, the present simple form is also used in Arabic to express the idea of a continuous action occurring in the present. Hence, the English sentence He is working now. in Arabic becomes He works now. (represented phonetically by huwwah yaamaloo al eyn.) What is he doing? in Arabic becomes What does he do? (represented phonetically by mehzah yafaaloo al eyn?) Hence, in almost all cases, the present simple form is used to show the idea of continuous action in the present. However, there is a single verb form in Arabic called the ism-ul-fail which is the exact parallel to the idea of continuous action. However, the difference in Arabic is that the ism-ul-fail is used very sparingly compared to English and then only for some very specific verbs of movement, or verbs that indicate changing from one state to another (going up, going in, going down, walking to a place, leaving a place, etc.). Since the ism-ul-fail is radically different in form from the English progressive it is doubtful that any interference in form occurs. C.A Few Points About The Verb BE as a Copula Although BE as a copula is not the focus of this paper, it does deserve mention here for two specific reasons. The first point is that BE in Arabic, when it is the copula in the present tense, is unwritten and unspoken (although this is not true of the copula in the past tense or the future where it is written and spoken). (Kharma, 1989, p. 89). For example, the literal translation of the sentence Ahmed is a student. is Ahmed student.. So it is conceivable that students might leave BE out as a copula OR as the helping verb in the present progressive because it does not exist in the present tense in Arabic (although there are other additional reasons why students might forget to add it to the present progressive as we shall see). The second point is that BE is used so often in English, in so many different kinds of structures, and that it is so irregular, that it might simply add to the confusion of students (Kharma 1989, p. 161). Students who keep on being corrected for leaving out the verb to be when it is necessary, may for example, hypercorrect themselves and start to write it everywhere. Again, we shall explore this issue further below. PART THREE A look at some common written errors made by Arabic speaking students when using the English present simple and present progressive Finding the exact causes of any error can be a difficult and meticulous task. This is partly because there may be multiple reasons as to why students make one particular error and these causes may also overlap at any given time. In addition, it is extremely problematic, even for a native speaker of both Arabic and English, (which I am) to know exactly what is going on linguistically in the mind of a student when s/he makes such an error. However, having said that, even with these obstacles, we can at least make some good hypotheses and lists of possibilities as to why these errors occur with our own students. As a result, we will be able to generate classroom strategies and methods in order to correct and remedy these sorts of mistakes. The following categories of errors are the most common that I have found in students written work with regards to the simple present versus the present progressive. I will look at each category in turn, and offer an analysis of the sources for these types of error. Category One Fatima studies now. Ahmed does his homework now. In these sentences, the intention of the Arabic speaking writer seems to be to convey the meaning of what in English would be a present continuous action, expressed by the present continuous tense. This is clear by the use of the adverb now or in the case of other examples not shown here, from other adverbs or the context of the sentence. In examples one and two, the Arabic speaker seems to be transferring the rules of his native language into English. The Arabic speaker usually uses only the present simple to express events that would be expressed in English by both the present simple and the present continuous. Category Two Mariam cant talk, she eating now. This kind of mistake is a bit more problematic in terms of analysis. It could be that the Arabic speaker, feeling that the full meaning of the action is expressed in the verb with the ing, has decided that the am/are/is forms are redundant and unnecessary. It could also be the case that this mistake is a direct transfer of a particular grammatical form in Arabic. In certain cases Arabic speakers do express the present continuous with a verb and prefix change (called ism-ul-fail), but without the corresponding be form. For example, the literal translation of the sentence Ahmed is running. is Ahmed running. . Category Three Are you knowing the way to Dubai? I am wanting to see my family. In this case, the student has learned the present progressive form, but is over generalizing it to all verbs (or perhaps does not remember or has not been taught the rules for exceptions such as the above). These types of errors could very well be intralingual. This over generalization could also be found in sentences that have the function of explaining, demonstrating teaching or narrating such as: Next I am pouring the oil into the cooking pan. Ali is passing the ball to the goalkeeper. Category Four I am live in Abu Dhabi. We are study English. This category is probably the most difficult to analyze. This is because it is unclear whether the Arabic speaker is making the mistake of adding the additional am/is/are form while trying to use the present tense, or making the mistake of forgetting to use the present participle while trying to use the present progressive tense. That is, did the speaker intend to say I live in Abu Dhabi. and use the extra am form by mistake, or did s/he intend to say I am living in Abu Dhabi. and forget the correct present participle form? Of course, there are other possibilities but these seem like the two most likely. We must obviously look at the context of the paragraph to see if we can get the gist of what the speaker meant. The following is a more detailed analysis of these two possibilities from the standpoint of the students reasoning. 1. If we believe from the context that the student was trying to use the present simple and added the additional am in error, then the following analyses apply: A. The student may be confused by the lack of inflectional endings in English, since Arabic is a highly inflected language, and every personal pronoun has a distinct corresponding inflected verb form. The similarity of the verb forms in I live, you live, etc. may seem very awkward to the Arabic speaker. Hence, they may want to remedy the situation by distinguishing the verb forms in some way by, for example, adding an exceedingly familiar and overused verb form like am, are, or is. B. The student may be over generalising based on what they have learned about the present continuous. That is, they may have learned how to form the present continuous quite easily since there is no mother tongue interference from Arabic, (although they may not have mastered its use). They then may go on to conclude that every verb in the present simple or present continuous in English needs to be preceded by am/is/are. C. Similarly, the student may be hypercorrecting. They may have been corrected so many times for forgetting to use the verb BE in their sentences e.g. Ahmed happy, that they may start to feel that every sentence needs the verb BE. 2. However, if we believe that the student was trying to use the present continuous tense and used the present simple live (instead of the present participle living), then the following analyses apply: A. The student may not have correctly understood how to form the present participle by adding ing to the end of the verb. B. Perhaps students have simply forgotten to add the ing prefix because the structure is so different in their language. This is by no means an exhaustive analysis. However, these are, from my experience and collaboration with other colleagues, both native and non-native speakers, some of the major possibilities. PART FOUR Pedogogical implications of the above research for teaching the present simple and the present progressive to Arabic speaking students From the evidence I have presented here, I believe it is clear that many of the mistakes in using the present simple and the present progressive in form (such as omission of the verb to be in the simple present for Arabic speakers, e.g. I studying), as well as other mistakes in usage (e.g. using the simple present when the present progressive is required) seem to be traceable directly to Arabic mother tongue interference. Based on my analyses, reading and discussion with colleagues, I do feel that in this particular area, teachers of EFL to Arabic speakers must consider mother tongue interference as a major impediment to learning the present tense versus the present progressive. If we know that mother tongue interference is the cause of many errors, what should this imply for our teaching? One thing which I think it does not imply is that we teach English from the point of view of the mother tongue. For example, trying to get students to understand English grammar through word for word translations or using the grammatical structure of Arabic to help students to understand the grammatical structure of English are only useful in certain cases, and then only by someone who is a master of both languages. My experience in reading the research, being bilingual and talking to Arabic speaking students who are at the final stages of their English studies leads me to believe that, at least in the case of Arabic and English, that the two languages are sufficiently different that they are both best looked at in their own respective grammars. Students must be made, not only to think in English, but to understand English grammar in terms of English grammar without constantly switching back and forth to compare it with Arabic. Such practices are ineffective and will cause confusion among students. As Lewis says students should never expect the foreign language to be like their ownà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..the fact that English has verb forms that contain [be] as an auxiliary does not suggest that other languages ought to have a corresponding formà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.students should be positively encouraged to explore the foreign language within itself rather than through the expectations they bring from their own. (Lewis, 1986, pp. 164-165). In addition, I should add that intralingual factors can also be at work when students make such errors (in addition to context specific factors like student motivation, teaching style and competence, etc.). For example, on the intralingual side, we know that students of ESL from many different language groups and even children make common mistakes with the verb to be. Therefore, many such mistakes might be intralingual. (Mattar 1989). Hence, when we try to analyse our students errors we should not be prejudiced to any one theory and we should try to be open to looking at all possible sources of errors. What we as teachers should be doing in the classroom is continually collecting research on student errors and student learning styles in order to form hypotheses about why such errors occur and why such one approach worked and another didnt. We should then be trying to test these hypotheses to see if they are true or not, and afterwards share this information w ith other teachers in similar situations. Only then will we be able to understand why students make errors and what is the most effective way to correct them. Word count: 4,161 words

Abortion Should Be Illegal Essay -- Persuasive Essay

Around the world many women are receiving abortions legally and illegally. I believe receiving abortions should be against the law, with the exception of rape and incest. Taking the life of an unborn human being is not only cruel but wrong. The decision of taking another human beings life should not lie in our hands. In every society whether it was legal or legal, abortions were used to control fertility. In the United States it was practiced legally until about 1880, by then most states had banned it except to save a woman's life. It was widely practiced through the entire period it was illegal. In the 1890’s there were an estimate of two million abortions per year and, one to two million annually during the 1920’s-30’s. Whether a woman could receive an abortion was based upon her economic situation, race, and where she lived. Women with money could leave the country and find pricey doctors but, poor women who had no money to leave and get one would preform self abortions. Either inserting knitting needles or coat hangers into the uterus and vagina, douching with dangerous solutions such as lye, or swallowing strong drugs and chemicals. Several hundred thousand women were treated for health complications due to botched, unsanitary, or self-induced abortions. The laws prohibi ting abortions took a heavy toll on women’s lives and health. Scholars estimated that approximately five thousand woman had died in the U.S because of unsafe abortions. World wide unintended, mistimed, and unwanted pregnancies are faced by all women in every country and all cultures. Some 20-30 million legal abortions are preformed each year, and another 10-20 million that are preformed illegally. Globally an estimate of 46 million abortions occur each y... ... minors seek parental consent or that a parent is notified in advanced of a minor having an abortion. As of 2015, 35 states require that there is some sort of parental involvement with a minor receiving an abortion. 22 states only require parental consent, eleven states only require parental notification, and only two states require parental consent and notification. There are mandatory periods that the woman wanting to get an abortion must receive specific information about the pregnancy and alternatives first. Works Cited http://www.ourbodiesourselves.org/book/excerpt.asp?id=27 http://www.ourbodiesourselves.org/book/companion.asp?id=20&compID=40 http://www.emedicinehealth.com/abortion/page2_em.htm http://www.friesian.com/abortion.htm http://www.abortionno.org/Resources/fastfacts.html http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/surgery/abortion/overview.html

The Awakening and The Yellow Wallpaper -- Chopin Awakening Essays

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Kate Chopin's story The Awakening and Charlotte Perkins Gilman's story The Yellow Wallpaper draw their power from two truths: First, each work stands as a political cry against injustice and at the socio/political genesis of the modern feminist movement. Second, each text is a gatekeeper of a new literary history. Kate Chopin and Charlotte Perkins Gilman seem to initiate a new phase in textual history where literary conventions are revised to serve an ideology representative of the "new" feminine presence. Two conventions in particular seem of central importance: "marriage" and "propriety".   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Donald Keesey, editor of the critical collection Contexts for Criticism, describes "convention" for us as, devices of structure and plot, techniques of character representation, and a vast reservoir of images and symbols are conventions that most Western literatures, at least, have in commonBut like the conventions of language, they have meaning only to those who have learned them (Keesey, 262).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Literary convention is on one side the particular tool or image; for example, "baptism" can be used as a literary a convention. It is a "convention" because it brings with it a set of inferences, i.e. rebirth, renewal, awakening, initiation, etc. This relation of the signifier to the signified is what Chopin and Gilman seek to revise in the conventions of "propriety" and "marriage". The preceding definition of "convention" leaves us with an important question, namely, "What if what the existing conventions imply is insufficient? What if, as in the case of Chopin and Gilman, the canon (as a reflection of society at large) has failed to recognize the feminine voice?" As these authors have shown us, when such is the ... ...ier." New Essays on The Awakening. Ed. Wendy Martin. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1988. 89-106. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins, The Yellow Wallpaper, The Feminist Press, 1973. Gilmore, Michael T. "Revolt Against Nature: The Problematic Modernism of The Awakening." Martin 59-84. Giorcelli, Cristina. "Edna's Wisdom: A Transitional and Numinous Merging." Martin 109-39. Keesey, Donald, Contexts for Criticism. Mayfield Publishing Company, 1994. Martin, Wendy, ed. New Essays on the Awakening. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1988. Papke, Mary E. Verging on the Abyss: The Social Fiction of Kate Chopin and Edith Wharton. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1990. Seyersted, Per. Kate Chopin: A Critical Biography. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State UP, 1969. Showalter, Elaine. "Tradition and the Female Talent: The Awakening as a Solitary Book." Martin 33-55.   

The Cause of Aggression is Social Structure and Child Rearing :: Parenting Raising Children Society Social Status

The focus of this paper is to determine why certain societies are violent, judging from the way their society is structured to the psychological aspects of the individuals. The structural roots of internal and external conflict differ by most factors that were researched. Internal violence derives from weak cross-cutting ties, strong localized male groups (in uncentralized societies) and polygyny, whereas external conflict is seen in societies that are high on socioeconomic complexity, and low in polygyny and as cross-cutting ties. From the 186 societies, only a handful of them fell into the category of the variables this paper is centered upon high ext. vs. int. war were the Yanomamo, Comanche, Maori, Jivaro, and Somali. In Ross's article about conflict and violence, a measurement of internal and external violence was done using 44 variables for the 90 societies. The areas of interest for the table are those measuring internal and external violence. The factor loading is determined by the sum of the scores of each society for each variable and is weighted individually for each society. The six variables in the internal violence and conflict scale, in descending order of importance, are/:/./ The severity of conflict between different communities of the same society (v767), the acceptability of violence when directed against members of the same society outside the local community (v782), frequency of internal warfare (v773), the same severity of conflict within the local community (v764), the extent to which physical force is used as a mechanism for the dispute settlement (v770), the acceptability of violence when directed against members of the local community(v781) and degree of compliance wit h community norms and decisions by members of local communities(v775). Societies that scored high on this end of the scale, for example Jivaro or Somali, frequently engaged in violence and internal warfare both within and between communities of the same society. Societies that fell into the middle of the scale engaged in regular conflict, but internal warfare and violence in local disputes occur less frequently than the previous category of societies. The 3 variables that compose the external warfare and conflict scale are frequency of external warfare(v774), degreee of hostility(v780), and the acceptability of violence directed to people in other societies(v783). The Maori, Comanche and Jivaro are societies of the high end of the scale. From the large amount of research done on violence and conflict, there exist 3 characteristics of societies that are agreed upon by the majority.

People and culture Essay

In this essay I am going to compare to poems present people and culture. Whether it be using words, imagery or the tone of the poem. The two poems I will be comparing are ‘What were they like’ by Denise Levertov and ‘presents from my aunts in Pakistan’ by Moniza Alvi. Both people consider the prospect of loosing a culture but the will loose them in different ways to each other, through war and the pressures of society also peer pressure. In ‘what were they like’ by Denise Levertov we are first confused about what the poem subject matter may be until we delve into the meaning of the poem and explore the history of the Vietnamese war and the people and culture caught up in the conflict. After reading into the poem we can see that it is about how people after the Vietnamese war believed their culture would be lost forever and that they would need story tellers and educators to continue their cultures story. The poem considers issues that are still relevant today such as the possibility of the loss of the culture and tradition in Afghanistan and Iraq due to the ongoing hostilities. The poem heavily romanticises the war and the Vietnamese people when saying things like ‘life was in rice and bamboo.’ This implies that the Vietnamese are simple folk, their lives are painted in a sympathetic portrait of a gentle, kind and humble race living and working in the paddy fields, which may be perceived as a patronising view of the Vietnamese people. This would not necessarily be how the poem was intended to be presented. ‘Presents from†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ has similarities and differences to ‘What were they like’ is about. In ‘presents from my aunts in Pakistan’ Moniza Alvi is curious of her culture that she was torn away from at an early age. She receives presents from her aunts in Pakistan but is embarrassed of them. This poem is written through the eyes of a 16 year old girl who is curious, confused and embarrassed about a culture that she knows so little about but is such a big part of her as a person. When friends come round she hides her presents to avoid further embarrassment and ridicule. She is considering what culture to embrace and what culture to reject, peer pressure from both her friends and relatives are forcing her into a corner from which she is made to choose from and has nowhere to turn. The way this poem is both different and similar to ‘what were they like’ is that in both cases they are being forced to loose their culture, in ‘Presents from†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ by peer pressure and in ‘What were they like’ by military force, in this way they are also similar because it is not their choice to loose their culture, this is how both poems present people and culture, how people can make their own choices and that people need to stand up for themselves. In this section of my essay on people and culture I will be comparing the structure of both ‘Presents†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and ‘What were†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ how they are similar and different in shape, rhyme, punctuation, repetition, refrain and stanzas/sections. The structure of both poems are similar as they are original in the way they are presented. The structure has been greatly considered to show the poem is a certain way. In ‘Presents†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ there appears to be no structure or reason to the bizarre way the poem is written at first reading. When we consider that the poet is confused and curious about her other culture she has moved away from, it becomes clear that that are the scattered ideas running through the mind of a troubled young girl. There need be no beginning or end to this poem; it is possible for the poem to start in many places, as this is set out to be as though someone has jotted down ideas and thoughts that have possibly no link between lines. There is no rhythm or flow through the poem, broken up by the lack of sense and constant change of path the poem takes. There is still some structure to the poem, there is punctuation where is should be, maybe even mare so as she pauses to throw more ideas and thoughts onto the page. There are full stops and capital letters where expected at the start and end of ideas. Ideas are split into stanzas which shows the poem is not completely free from structure. There is no repetition or refrain which is only to be expected in a poem such as this, where there is no regular shape or structure. I believe the poet has intended for their to be no structure, as it shows turmoil in the writer’s mind as she throws up the pro’s and con’s of embracing or rejecting her culture of which she knows so little about. It could also be written in this way to celebrate culture and diversity, by displaying her work in a unique and diverse way, I think this is the way Moniza Alvi wanted to display people and culture through the structure of her poem. In ‘What were†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ the structure is also unorthodox in the way it is presented. We may be puzzled the first time we read it and question why the poem is written in such a way. As I have said before, it is not until you read deeper and research into the meaning of the poem that you can fully understand why it is written the way it is. You can then understand that it is written about the Vietnamese people and their battle to keep their culture. It appears to be children asking their teacher, Vietnamese people or American war veterans that fought in the war about the past and the culture or way of life the Vietnamese had. The way the poem is set out even as a question and answer poem is not as you would expect it to be, all the questions and all the answers are grouped together in two block paragraphs divided by a small gap. I thin Denise Levertov wrote the poem in this way because it shows that there are two different speakers to the poem and it draws a clear line between then to avoid confusion. I also think it is written in this way to show that there is a bombardment of questions from the children, as when the war was over people would have wanted to ask a lot of questions about the war, what the felt and how their culture has been affected. This is how I think Denise Levertov intended and used the structure of the poem to present how the people both Vietnamese and the group questioning them felt about the war. In the next section of my essay I will be exploring how the poets used language and poetic devices to display people and culture. Poets use different poetic devices to display their work in different ways depending on which way they would like their work to be perceived. ‘What were†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ is a good example of where metaphors are used affectively to creat a clear image in your mind of what the poet is tring to get accros. A good example of this is ‘Sir, laughter is bitter to the burned mouth’, this could mean a few things, it could mean that they can no longer laugh as nothing is funny after the horrors they have seen, nothing would seem funny after the amount of death and destruction they have seen. Another meaning that is linked to laughter being hard to come by, could be that after seeing charred bodies and charred mouths that can no longer physically laugh. The poem is very ambiguous and could have many meanings that are not clear at first. The poet, Denise Levertov could have intended for this to happen and used it as a devise to make you continue reading to see if it became clear over time the exact meaning of this poem. It may also be ambiguous because the poem was written before the end of the Vietnamese war and ideas they may have been proved wrong or be different to the knowledge we have now, I think it was accidental that the people and culture are displayed in such an ambiguous way, but the way imagery, metaphors and similes have been used is very effective and presents well people and culture in the Vietnamese war. In ‘Presents†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ imagery is also used all of the time to help you imagine the presents that are sent from her aunts in Pakistan. At the same time similes and metaphors are used to describe the items of clothing by comparing the exotic items of clothing to other more familiar objects, such as when it says ‘They sent me a salwar kameez peacock blue, and another glistening like an orange split open.’ This is very useful when trying to imaging other items of clothing that are sent. It is much better way of describing what the thing looks like and a much clearer way of presenting the people and culture in the poem when we can relate to everyday items and not just a name that we cannot pronounce properly. One of the dresses is personified when it says ‘ I tried each satin-silken top was alien in the sitting-room’. This puts a clear image in your mind of how Moniza feels towards her new clothes, it shows that she is confused about her Pakistani culture as if it were alien to her. Personification is not used in ‘What were†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ but is used very effectively in ‘Presents†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢

Hewlett Packard Spying Scandal Essay

Corporate misconduct, (or people’s misconduct so to speak) is an issue that has been dominating headline news in the American business world in recent years. Theodore Roosevelt, one time U.S. president was probably right when he said, â€Å"To educate a person in mind but not in morals is to educate a menace to society† (Platt, 1989). The American society has continued to suffer from corporate scandals, despite the fact that people are now better educated because behind each scandal and crisis is a possible lack of morals in the â€Å"educated people† running those corporations (Low et al, 2006). It should be noted that unethical behavior is not a new phenomenon in US business nor it is an issue of the US alone. Research Questions and Objectives The year 2002 witnessed the collapse of giants like Enron, Tyco, Arthur Anderson, WorldCom and less known cases like Morgan Stanley, Dupont and Prudential Financial amongst others all involved in one form of scandal or the other.   Such widespread corporate misbehaviors have left many people (including this writer) to wonder where things are going wrong. Should blame be placed on perceived weaknesses of legislation and accounting standards? Or is it that education is not producing the type of business graduates needed to prevent such scandals? (Low et al).  Ã‚   Do the misdeeds simply involve a few â€Å"bad apples†: a smattering of corporations that make the rest of American business look bad? Or is the problem much broader than that? Further, if it is a widespread issue, what needs to be done? (Clement R. May 2006). Such are the kind of questions this study is out to seek answers to in light of the Hewlett Packard Spying scandal of 2006. Conceptual Framework This section explains what the literature on business ethics suggests for achieving ethical behavior in an organization. It is hoped that this will lay a foundation for the analysis of the recent corporate misdeed of Hewlett Packard. Business Ethics: Business ethics, Black J. (2002) is the branch of ethics that studies what standards businesses should observe in their dealings over and above compliance with the letter of the law. This covers questions such as fair dealing with their labour force, customers, suppliers, and competitors, and the impact of their activities on public health, the environment, and animal welfare. If a good reputation helps to gain and retain business, ethical conduct need not necessarily conflict with profit, but there are bound to be cases where it does. Particularly difficult questions of business ethics arise in multinational firms, where practices such as gifts to officials, which are essential to doing business at all in some countries, are regarded as criminal in others. Previous research works on business ethics have pointed out some measures that can be taken within an organization to help foster a culture of ethical behavior. Many of these studies highlight the role that top management commitment plays in developing an ethical organizational culture. Weaver, Trevino and Cochran (1999) found that the commitment of top management is essential for ethical decision making to be integrated into a firm’s culture; in other words, management’s decisions and actions in promoting the program are more effective than making sure that the program addresses a long list of ethical issues. Trevino and Brown (2004) found that top executives must manage ethical conduct proactively by means of explicit ethical leadership and conscious management of the organization’s culture. To this end, they suggest that top managers should study the cultures of their organizations to see what ethical messages are being sent. The researchers also assert that executives should communicate the importance of ethics, reward ethical behavior, and model that behavior themselves. Holmes et al (2002) found that employees are more likely to engage in ethical behavior if top management is firm in its expectations of ethical behavior of all employees, including themselves (p. 97) while Harrington (1997) concluded that, to achieve ethical behavior, top management needs to gain social consensus through changes in organization culture and by encouraging employees to live up to their responsibilities. What constitutes â€Å"unethical† behavior? It is important to determine the types of corporate behavior to consider unethical, and to decide on the time period over which the data on that behavior should be gathered. Some types of behavior may seem unethical to certain individuals but not to others (Clement R, 2006).   He however identifies three conditions that seem to signal unethical behavior: – A plea of guilty by a firm to charges of misconduct; – by courts or government agencies against a firm as solid evidence of corporate misconduct, even if the firm is still appealing the ruling. – agreement by a firm to settle charges, often by paying a fine or agreeing to other restrictions on company behavior even if the firm is not required to admit guilt. The Hewlett Packard (HP) spying scandal Origins In a Newsweek report by Kaplan D, (2006), the confrontation at Hewlett-Packard started innocently enough in January 2006 when online technology site CNET published an article about the long-term strategy at HP and other information that could only come from a director quoting an anonymous HP source. HP’s chairwoman, Patricia Dunn, fed up with the ongoing leaks told another director she wanted know whom it was. According to an internal HP e-mail, Dun then took the extra ordinary step of authorizing a team of independent electronic-security experts to spy on the January 2006 communications of other 10 directors – not the records of calls (or emails) from HP itself, but the records of phone calls made from personal accounts. That meant calls from directors’ home and their private cell phones were intercepted. Dunn acted without informing the rest of the board and this caused a boardroom fury at the world’s largest technology company. In a related story by Sakuma P. (2007), the HP boardroom-spying scheme erupted into a national scandal , September 2006, after the company disclosed that detectives it hired obtained the private phone records of directors, employees and 9 journalists in an effort to ferret out the source of media leaks. The scandal also introduced the world to â€Å"pretexting,† a shady tactic in which detectives used other people’s Social Security numbers to fool telephone companies into divulging detailed call logs. In an interview with Newsweek, Dunn said she didn’t know that the investigation would reach such heights. Consequences In two separate press releases, HP announced a number of moves that was an outcome of 2 days of teleconferences among the board. – Patricia Dunn was to step down as chairwoman. – CEO Mark Hurd will replace her. – George Keyworth, the longest serving director and one who leaked information to a CNET reporter that led to HP’s investigation was to resign immediately. – Richard Hackborn, who served on the board since 1992 would become â€Å"lead independent director†. – A criminal investigation against Patricia Dunn, Kevin Hunsaker, HP’s former ethics chief who allegedly directed the probe, and 3 private investigators was started on 4 counts: use of false or fraudulent pretenses to obtain confidential information from a public utility; unauthorized access to computer data; identity theft; and conspiracy to commit each of those crimes. Each charge carried a fine of up to 10,000 dollars and 3 years in prison. How and Why HP successfully overcame this scandal Testifying before a congressional in September 2006, Dunn said she was repeatedly reassured by HP’s lawyers about the legality of its detectives’ subterfuge. In a Business Week report, November 2006, a state judge Cunningham in California dropped the above charges against ex-Hewlett-Packard Chair Patricia Dunn after she pleaded guilty. The court however did not accept the pleas of the other three defendants and offered to dismiss the charges against them if they met two conditions – by Sept. 12   2006, they must serve 96 hours of community service and complete any court-filed restitution requests made by victims. In a related story by CNN’s Katy Byron, (September, 2006), the court dismissed Dunn’s charge because of her cancer battle, according to the attorney general’s office. The dismissal came â€Å"not because she’s innocent but because she is sick,† attorney general’s spokesman Barankin told CNN. Dunn had breast cancer in 2000 and melanoma in 2002 and was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2004 and is still battling it. She also underwent extensive surgery last year after doctors discovered a malignant tumor in her liver. In a CNBC news report (september 2006) Hewlett Packard agreed to pay $14.5 million to settle the lawsuit brought by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, whose office accused the company of unfair business practices in its attempts to unmask the source of boardroom leaks. HP also implemented changes to its corporate governance policies to ensure that future internal investigations are conducted legally. There was no finding of liability against HP. The settlement includes an injunction and agreement that the California Attorney General will not pursue civil claims against HP or against its current and former directors, officers and employees. The vast majority of the settlement — $13.5 million — will fund state and local investigations into privacy rights and intellectual property violations, Lockyer said in a statement. The personal efforts of new HP chairman and CEO, Mark Hurd also contributed greatly to HP’s successfull exit from the scandal. He says â€Å"We are pleased to settle this matter with the Attorney General and are committed to ensuring that HP regains its standing as a global leader in corporate ethics and responsibility†. The company shareholders rejected a proposal that would have given investors the right to nominate directors to HP’s board. About 39 percent of HP shares entitled to vote at the company’s annual shareholder meeting favored the measure, which was supported by funds including Calpers, the largest U.S. pension fund, and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, the No. 3 fund. The above factors culminated in a slight stock price increase of HP in September 2006 despite the fact that September 2006 was a rocky month for the company. Its stock actually rose a bit that month, ending at $36.69. It has since climbed to nearly $40 as HP continues to perform strongly in the PC and printer markets. HP today has regained its leading position as the worlds number one technology company. The Role of Business Ethics in this Success The conceptual framework of this study laid some guidelines on how to identify when a company behavior should be considered ethical or not. In the context of the widely publicized Hewlett Packard spying scandal discussed above, there is no plea of guilt by the firm nor by Patricia Dunn and the other defendents to charges of misconduct, we haven’t seen a ruling against either the Carlifornia court that handled the case nor the Securities and Exchange Commissions against HP for unethical behavior. However, HP agreed to settle charges of $14.5 million to close the case and save the goodwill of the Silicon Valley icon. The payment, by ethical standards could be considered a fine, which is an evidence of unethical behavior, by a firm. HP’s intention, perhaps, as we have seen was to save the company’s image and probably in compliance with a court injunction or lawyer’s advice. Taking a look at HP’s Standards of Business Conduct, (SBC) , we find that it embodies the fundamental principles that govern   ethical and legal obligations to HP. They pertain not only to conduct within the company but also to conduct involving HP’s customers, channel partners, suppliers and competitors. (www.hp.com). As a business, remaining profitable and viable is a must for Hewlett Packard though this is not the only concern for the company. HP seeks uncompromising integrity through what each individual can contribute — to its customers, co-workers, company and communities. HP’s business success is dependent on trusting relationships. Its reputation is founded on the personal integrity of the company’s personnel and its dedication to the principles of: (www.hp.com) – Honesty in communicating within the company and with its business partners, suppliers and customers, while at the same time protecting the company’s confidential information and trade secrets. – Excellence in its products and services, by striving to provide high-quality products and services to its customers – Responsibility for its words and actions – Compassion in its relationships with employees and the communities affected by company business – Citizenship in observance of all the laws of any country in which the company does business, respect for environmental concerns and service to the community by improving and enriching community life. – Fairness to our fellow employees, stakeholders, business partners, customers and suppliers through adherence to all applicable laws, regulations and policies, and a high standard of behavior. – Respect for fellow employees, stakeholders, business partners, customers and suppliers while showing willingness to solicit their opinions and value their feedback. Conclusion From the above, we can say that Dunn’s investigation into the leak was simply in compliance with the first principle (Honesty) of the company’s code of ethics. Her intentions were clear from the outset – to probe into an alleged boardroom leak while at the same time respecting the principles of respect and fairness (last two principles) in the investigation. That in itself shouldn’t have been a scandal. It is the methods of the investigation – pretexting that raised controversy and finally erupted into a scandal. Patricia Dunn was able to prove before congress and the courts that such an act was carried out without her knowledge, though she acknowledged that an investigation was going on, which in itself complied with company ethics.