Thursday, December 26, 2019

The First Five Presidents Of The United States - 1233 Words

The first five presidents for the United States impacted the United States greatly and their names were George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. The president I think that impacted the U.S the most was George Washington who was in office for eight years (1789-1797). George Washington who was the commander in chief and led the army in the Revolutionary War and gained freedom from Great Britain at that time there was thirteen colonies in the United States. In 1783 George Washington signed a peace treaty with Great Britain. John Adams which was the second president to be elected who was vice president at first for eight years (1789-1796) soon became president for four years (1797-1801). John Adams strengthened the central government by making the army stronger and he signed a law which is called the â€Å"Act for the Sick† which let government marine hospital service. Thomas Jefferson which was the third president was one of the more impor tant presidents for the United States, he was one of the authors of the Declaration of Independence and he also organized the Louisiana Purchase which doubled the country known as the United States. James Madison Jr. known as the fourth president promoted the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. James Monroe which was the fifth president for the United States who was in office for eight years (1817-1825) and was the last president that was in the Virginia Dynasty and the Republican Generation.Show MoreRelatedThe First Five Presidents Of The United States Essay1596 Words   |  7 PagesThe first five presidents of the United States impacted the United States greatly and their names were George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. The president I think that impacted the U.S the most was George Washington who was in office for eight years (1789-1797). George Washington who was the commander in chief and led the army in the Revolution ary War and gained freedom from Great Britain at that time there was thirteen colonies in the United States. InRead MoreWhat Is The Left Side Of The United States?1025 Words   |  5 Pages First, The left side is The United States of America. That is why it has a United States flag. The Right side of the mural is Russia’s side. That is why it has the Russian flag. I am going to start on the United States side. The person in the box on the left side is the president of the United States of America, Donald Trump. The big 323 is for three hundred- three million people in the United States. The big M of course represent million. All of the people represent immigrants. The green thingRead MoreDrug Abuse Prevention And Control888 Words   |  4 PagesOn Thursday June 17, 1971, United States President Richard Nixon gave a press conference to publicize the publication of the special message that was given to Congress on Drug Abuse Prevention and Control. During this he declared drug abuse public enemy number one (Nixon, 1971). In the message to Congress Nixon states that the United States should dedicate more federal resources to â€Å"the prevention of new addicts, and the rehabilitation of those who are addicted† (Nixon, 1971). This part didRead MoreMore Than Just A Five Dollar Bill1429 Words   |  6 PagesThan Just a Five Dollar Bill Compared to many other countries across the globe, The United States of America is defiantly one of the youngest nations. The nation is only 238 years old which is not a long time compared to other countries. Over the last 238 years a lot has happened in America. One thing that has not changed in the United States of America is the government. When people came over from England to the United States, people were not used to having a president. The President would fulfillRead MoreUs Constitution Essay1653 Words   |  7 PagesAmerica in the 21st Century? Written in seventeen- eighty-nine, being two hundred and twenty-five years old, Today, many of us question whether or not the United States Constitution is still relevant. When our founding fathers wrote the Constitution, it was written according to their needs in the eighteenth century. According to the Bill of Rights, everyone has the right to bear arms, but in the twenty-first century what exactly does it mean to have the right to bear arms? Our meaning of the ConstitutionRead MoreFederal Government And The United States1498 Words   |  6 Pages Federal Government The United States of America government is called the federal government and is the republic of the fifty states which constitute the United States. It also constitutes the capital districts and several other territories. Now the government is made up of three different branches and they are the Executive, Legislature, and the Judicial. Those powers are all vested by the US constitution which is in the congress, the president, and also the federal court that also includesRead MoreThe Attack At Pearl Harbor1596 Words   |  7 PagesProfessor Benjamin Carr July 25, 2016 The Attack at Pearl Harbor Seventy-five years ago, in the early morning of December 7, 1941, â€Å"the Japanese launched hundreds of attack planes off warships, 230 miles off the coast of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.† 2 The United States had no indication that an attack was about to occur. These planes were â€Å"heading straight to Oahu, the home of Pearl Harbor and the Unites States Pacific Fleet.† 2 It was one of the most massive attacks in world history. TheRead MoreThe War Between The North And The South993 Words   |  4 PagesFive years American had their own bloodshed between the North and the South. There is many reason into why the United States had a war between the North and the South. The United States was divided depending on location and personal sentiments. People in the United States sometimes think that this war was only fought over slavery, but there was many reason in why the Union and the Confederate States of America fought. The war was fought on many reason such as th e idea of slavery, states’ rightsRead MoreThe State Of The United States979 Words   |  4 Pages the type of federal government of the United States, four important philosophers, and abundance of the U.S Constitution. First of all, The United States has a democratic republican government. There are three branches of government called the Legislative branch, Executive branch, and judicial branch. The Legislative branch makes laws. The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government. (Federal government of the United States., 2015) It has two chambers which are theRead MoreEssay On Texas Constitution977 Words   |  4 Pagesbetween the United States and Texas Constitution allows citizens to be apprehensive of what is happening in our government. The topics on the amending and impeachment system and the Judicial and Executive Branch grant insight of the proceedings in our governments. For an amendment to become official for the United States’ Constitution it would first need approval by the Senate and the House of Representatives with a superiority vote of two-thirds. The amendment then goes up to the states, needing thirty-eight

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

The Practice Of English Teaching - 1625 Words

Approaches and methods are the main methodology in the practice of English teaching. An approach refers to theories of the language, whereas a method includes the techniques and procedures in how it is used (Harmer, n.d.). Language teaching and its approaches have a very long history emerging from the early twentieth century. Throughout this time applied linguistics, teachers and others, thrived to develop teaching methods in order to meet the characteristics of change and improve efficiency. The main incentive for change corresponds to the increase demand in speakers who wish to acquire a second language together with globalization, encouraging an ongoing need of reassessing language-teaching practices (Richards and Rodgers, 1989). Due to the ongoing changes of language teaching, it is clear that this has resulted in a variety of approaches and methods that exist, ranging from the twentieth century to current time today. This leads to the clarification in which the method of discuss ion will be: the audiolingual method, a major trend in the twentieth century for language teaching. Firstly, an in depth description of what the approach consists of will be discussed. Then, the different theories corresponding to this method such as the behaviorism and language theories will be illustrated. Teacher roles in comparison to student roles will then henceforth, alongside a critical evaluation of the method. Before the nineteenth century, the majority of language learners wereShow MoreRelatedPractice for Teaching English as a Second Language to Students in Hong Kong: Analyzing my Own Classroom Interaction1650 Words   |  7 Pagesstatement is exceptionally true in Hong Kong context because English are seldom used by students in their daily lives. English lessons seem to be their solely exposure to this target language. Therefore, effective classroom interaction plays a particularly important role in English lessons of Hong Kong secondary schools. In this essay, I am going to explore my interactions with students in my English lessons during my Teaching Practice. I will analyze the interaction patterns according to differentRead More............It Seems Reasonable to Suggest That the Motivation That Students Bring to Class Is the Biggest Single Factor Affecting Their Success the Practice of English Language Teaching Harmer from Your Own971 Words   |  4 Pagesstudents I am able to describe and translate English into the Greek language when needed. In order to achieve my goal, I made the effort to do all homework assignments, attend all lessons, and participate, and involve myself in all lessons. My self determination was directed towards successfully completing the course by writing the final exam, and receiving my certificate. Besides being faced with young learners who may not have any set goals for learning English they may acquire their motivation andRead MoreThe Western Training And Communicative Language Teaching1449 Words   |  6 Pages 1. Analyses the generic structure of the article The article is discussing the Western training and Communicative language teaching and mainly it argues about the impact of these teachings on a person who belongs from other languages. The role of TESOL is important here and the opinion and views of the other language teachers have been described. The discussion made in paper is in a proper and significant manner that is holding a generic structure for understanding. On the very first the paperRead MoreTeaching Is An Interesting Profession1528 Words   |  7 Pages For me teaching is an interesting profession. It makes me feel good. My thoughts regarding teaching were the same before I started working, so I did not experience any disappointment. In short teaching profession is joyful and instructive (English Teacher/6 years, Female). After undergraduate education, I thought that I could do everything and I would be a good teacher. When I began my career, sometimes I could not deliver the topic properly. I did not know how to provide knowledge toRead MoreMy Reflection On My Ethnographic Study1153 Words   |  5 Pagesenhance the teaching quality and facilitate positive curriculum development through the interview. Last week I had an opportunity to interview a schoolmate of mine, a doctoral degree student who studies in TESOL program at Alliant International University. The name of my schoolmate called April and she is a Taiwanese. April is a multi-lingual who masters four kinds of foreign language: English, Japanese, Spanish and Taiwanese. Except for her mother-tongue language Taiwanese, English is theRead MoreCommunicative Approach1566 Words   |  7 PagesBEST APROCHE IN ENGLISH LANGUAJE TEACHING : THE COMMUNICATIVE APPROCHE I. Problems in the present English teaching and causes of these problems II. Introduce the communicative approach 1. The definition of communicative approach 2. Two principles of communicative approach †¢ Create a realistic situation †¢ The class should be students-centered III. Adopt communicative approach to improve students ability to listen and speak, and achieve the goal of English teaching 1. Three stagesRead MoreCelta Essay828 Words   |  4 PagesI am an English/EFL instructor with over five years of experience in three different institutions of higher education teaching Academic English and ESP courses to high school graduates and employees in tourism sector and the tertiary sector. Prior to teaching undergraduate students full time, I have taught at different levels ranging from ABC kindergarten to adult professionals of various fields of occupation. I am in the teaching profession, regularly updating my teaching skills through attendingRead MoreEnglish Language Vs. Foreign Countries Essay1186 Words   |  5 Pages[Date] English Language Education in Japanese Schools Introduction Teaching a second language always has its unique challenges, unlike teaching other subjects, in which instruction is in the learners’ first language. English, being an international language is taught across, most, if not all modern day nations. It is not only important for personal communication and professional growth but also for socialization in a world that is increasingly globalized (Fujimoto-Adamson, p. 259). English languageRead MoreA Reflection On Methods And Materials900 Words   |  4 Pagesto take graduate courses in order to earn a master’s degree in education with a concentration in English Language Learners. As an ESL instructor, prior to joining the military, I had arrived at a career plateau. My hopes before taking this course were high. My expectations were met, for the most part Expectations I imagined I would learn how to teach English as a Second Language effectively with teaching materials which would be appropriate for this task. Regarding this course, which I am about toRead MoreThe Duty Of Any Teachers883 Words   |  4 PagesHowever, due to enormous pressure to pass and get high scores in the standardized test, many teachers have begun to employ test preparation practices that are usually not in the interest of students. These activities may include giving extra classes to drill on test content and sometimes eliminating curriculum content not covered by the test. This kind of practice has been noted in many countries such as Canada, Australia, England, China, Japan, and my chosen context, Indonesia. In Indonesia, students

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Human Factors free essay sample

The terms human factors and Ergonomics have only been widely known in recent times: the fields origin is in the design and use of aircraft during World War II to improve aviation safety. It was in reference to the psychologists and physiologists orking at that time and the work that they were doing that the terms applied psychology, applied psychologist and ergonomics were first coined. Other terms used to describe the discipline and their related professions are; Human Factors Human Factors Practitioner Ergonomics Ergonomist Human Factors Engineering Human Factors Engineer Sub-disciplines or specialisations within this field include; Cognitive Ergonomics Cognitive Engineer Usability Usability Engineer Usability Professional Human Computer / Human Machine Interaction HCI Engineer User Experience User Experience Engineer This is not an exhaustive list and new terms are being generated all the time. For instance User Trial Engineer may refer to a HF professional that specialises in user trials. We will write a custom essay sample on Human Factors or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Although the names change HF professionals share a underlying vision (see the Human Factors Communitys Vision) that through the application of HF the design of equipment, systems and working methods will be improved and therefore have a direct effect (for the better) on peoples lives. Human factors practitioners can come from a variety of backgrounds; though predominantly they are Psychologists (Cognitive, Perceptual, and Experimental) and physiologists. Designers (Industrial, Interaction, and Graphic), Anthropologists, Technical communication Scholars and Computer Scientists also contribute. Though some practitioners enter the field of Human Factors from other disciplines, both M. S. and Ph. D. degrees in Human Factors Engineering are available from several universities worldwide. [edit] Human Factors Science Human Factors are sets of human-specific physical, mental and behavioral properties which either may interact in a critical or dangerous manner with technological systems, human natural environment and human organizations, or they an be taken under consideration in the design of ergonomic human-user oriented equipments. Interface design is constrained by conservative forces, such as the expectations of users of existing systems in the installed base and emerging de facto or formal standards. At the same time, human factors involvement with a particular product may ultimately have its greatest impact n future product releases. In this paper we explore an expanded time line for influencing product design. This time line brings middle- and upper-management concerns into focus, revealing critical opportunities for effectively positioning and applying human factors resources. Skills needed by user-centered design practitioners in real software development environments: User-centered design (UCD) of human-computer interfacesincluding task flow and documentationis gaining acceptance in software development organizations. But managers who want their organizations to start using UCD often o not know what characteristics to look for, in candidates for hiring or retraining to fill IJCD roles; this article can help. It has the recommendations from participants in a CHI 92 conference workshop on this topic. The 16 workshop participants were UCD practitioners and managers from companies and a few universities across the United States, Canada, and Sweden. This article first describes some typical roles of IJCD practitioners in software development organizations. There follows a list of attributes that IJCD practitioners should have. Some attributes should be had by all practitioners, regardless of their subspecialties. The most important of those universal attributes are of three types: knowledge that can be acquired formally (e. g. , of the human-computer interaction literature, cognitive processes, experimental design, rapid prototyping), skill that can be gotten from experience (e. g. , estimating resources needed to do a Job, commitment to users, understanding of the software development process, negotiating ability, enjoyment of working on teams, ability to really listen), and attributes that are harder to acquire (e. g. , tenacity, flexibility). Every practitioner needs other characteristics as well, but their importances differ by the ractitioners subspecialties (e. g. , a design team leader needs team management skills). A method for (recruiting) methods: facilitating human factors input to system design The paper proposes that some current problems in recruiting human factors methods to system design might be alleviated by means of a structured human factors design framework. The explicit stage-wise design scope of such a framework would support the assignment of appropriate human factors methods to specific system design needs. As an illustration, the design framework of an in-house structured human factors methodology is reviewed followed by the assignment of a et of existing human factors methods against its design stages. Subsequent steps to develop the assigned methods into a similar methodology are then described. The potential of such a methodology for facilitating human factors input is discussed. Human factors and software reuse: the managers impact While some of software engineerings basic assumptions seem intuitive, the need tor scientific experimentation remains clear. Empirical validation is the hallmark of a mature scientific or engineering discipline. However, little precise experimentation is performed in computer science, especially in the area of software engineering. Several assumptions are made about the factors affecting software reuse, specifically concerning the role of human factors such as managerial influence. This paper describes the results of a controlled experiment designed to evaluate the impact of human factors on software reuse. The experiment concludes that (1) software reuse promotes higher productivity than no reuse, (2) reuse resulting from both moderate and strong encouragement promote higher productivity than no reuse, and (3) while strong managerial encouragement did not create a significant difference in productivity, it does tend to promote improper reuse activities. Integrating human factors and software development Approaches to integrating human factors or user interface knowledge and expertise with software development are still exploratory and evolving. The human-computer interface provides a broader range of user interface challenges than earlier technology, but human factors is only now starting to be widely recognized as a distinct discipline requiring integration with system development. Devoting human and computer resources to user interface enhancement has been considered a luxury, and in many places still is, but the falling cost of computational power and the growing user resistance to poor nterfaces, as well as a rising need for product differentiation in the marketplace, insure that human factors will become a necessity where it has not already. The need to develop organizational approaches to support the integration of human factors or user interface expertise with product development is thus a relatively new concern. The integration problems that have been identified include some that are shared with more established support activities such as technical writing, and others that are particular to human factors or result from the relative unfamiliarity of the discipline. Approaches that have been taken to managing human factors resources in order to maximize influence on user interface development include: hiring human factors engineers or psychologists directly into development teams, concentrating human factors engineers in a support organization, making use of external consultants with user interface knowledge, placing a development group under the leadership of a human factors professional, and forming an educational center in which software engineers learn about human factors approaches. Below, each panelist focuses on the advantages of one particular approach. Papers on software ngineering education and training: process and methodology: Empowering software engineers in human-centered design Usability is about to become the quality measure of todays interactive software including Web sites, and mobile appliances. User-centered design approach emerges from this need for developing more usable products. However, interactive systems are still desi gned and tested by software and computer engineers unfamiliar with UCD and the related usability engineering techniques. While most software developers may have been exposed with basic concepts such as GUI design guidelines, few developers are able to understand the uman/user-centered design (UCD) toolbox at a level that allows them to incorporate it into the software development lifecycle. This paper describes an approach skilling developers and students enrolled in an engineering program in critical user- centered design techniques and tools. The proposed approach starts from the analysis of the usability and software engineers work context, identifies critical IJCD skills and then associates relevant learning resources with each of the identified skills. Our approach suggests a list of patterns for facilitating the integration the UCD skills into the software engineering lifecycle Human and Social Factors of Software Engineering (HSSE): A qualitative empirical evaluation of design decisions In this paper, we motivate examining software design decision making and provide the process by which the examination will occur. The objective is to provide qualitative results indicative of rational or naturalistic software design decision making. In a rational decision a decision maker evaluates decision alternatives and potential outcomes for each alternative using a utility function and probabilities of the outcome of each alternative. The utility function assigns a value to each possible alternative based on its outcome. The goal of rational decision making is selecting the optimal alternative. A naturalistic decision manifests itself in dynamic and continually changing conditions, embodies real-time reactions to these changes, embraces ill-defined tasks, and has a goal of selecting a satisfactory alternative. The proposed empirical qualitative study consists of inductive and deductive interviewing and deductive observations. Human factors training and awareness Transferring human factors technology to designers involves complex issues: training, human factors data, interdisciplinary communications, designers references, and organizational trends. Training is a structured, formalized method for improving human factors technology transfer. Some of these formal approaches in academia and industry are explored, and recommendations for a systematic approach to training development and evaluation are offered. Human and Social Factors of Software Engineering (HSSE): Applying small group theory to analysis and design of CSCW systems This paper introduces a social psychological theory Small Groups as Complex Systems as a contribution to software engineering and more specifically, design of CSCW systems. Small Group Theory is composed of local dynamics which model the internal view of a group; global dynamics that represent whole group emergent properties; and contextual dynamics that model the influences of the groups environment on its composition, coherence and behaviour. The potential contribution of Small Group Theory to the design of CSCW systems is investigated by model-based analysis of group members, supporting technology, and design principles motivated by the theory. Inter disciplinary approaches to the design of dependable computer systems: Lessons from industrial design for software engineering through constraints identification, olution space optimisation and reuse Design is a complex activity that can be analysed from a wide variety of perspectives. This paper attempts to look at the individual problem solving process, taking into account psychological arguments. We characterise some of the phases involved in the design process, namely the constraints identification, the optimisation of solution space and the reuse process. We highlight a three-dimensional tramework ot now the constraints identification impacts on the solution space which, in turn, determines the range of the components that will be eligible for reuse. We discuss this argument through examples from both inside and outside the software engineering field. Human and Social Factors of Software Engineering (HSSE): A communication architecture from rapid prototyping Communication issues can become a progress-impeding burden to software projects requiring advanced group collaboration. Human and social factors, such as conflicting personalities, educational backgrounds, or different communication styles, play a large part in group communication. During a recent rapid prototyping project with over 30 collaborators, including software engineers, UI esigners and non-technical customers, we understood that effective and efficient communication would be crucial to the success of our project. The communication architecture that we evolved through the project incorporates human and social factors so that team members with different backgrounds (e. g. , Ul design, software engineering, non-technical) can communicate effectively in an agile development environment. A field study of the software design process for large systems The problems of designing large software systems were studied through interviewing personnel from 17 large projects. A layered behavioral model is used to analyze how three of these problems†the thin spread of application domain knowledge, fluctuating and conflicting requirements, and communication bottlenecks and breakdowns†affected software productivity and quality through their impact on cognitive, social, and organizational processes. Modeling Design/Coding Factors That Drive Maintainability of Software Systems It is cost-effective for software practitioners to monitor and control quality of software systems from the early phases of development. Assessing and modeling the effects of esign and coding factors on software system maintainability can help provide heuristics to human designers and programmers to reduce maintenance costs and improve quality. This paper presents a study based on intuitive and experimental analyses that use a suite of twenty design/code measures to obtain indications of their effect on maintainability. This paper lists several important contributions of the work, one of which is the investigation of an unprecedentedly large number of systems (fifty) in a single study. The previous related studies on the other hand, have investigated 28 systems. The results reported in this paper using experimental procedures are unique, many of which have not been empirically established in the previous literatures, and are interesting because they are not normally intuitively obvious in most cases. The study also serves to empirically validate those results that seem to be intuitive. The results of the study indicate a number of promising effects of design and coding factors on system maintainability. The use of the results from the relatively early phases of software development could significantly help practitioners to improve the quality of systems and thus optimize maintenance costs. Extending Design Environments to Software Architecture Design Designing a complex software system is a cognitively challenging task; thus, designers need cognitive support to create good designs. Domain-oriented design environments are cooperative problem-solving systems that support designers in complex design tasks In this paper we present the architecture and facilities of Argo, a domain-oriented design environment for software architecture. Argos own architecture is motivated by the desire to achieve reuse and extensibility of the design environment. It separates domain-neutral code from domain-oriented code, which is distributed mong active design materials as opposed to being centralized in the design environment. Argos facilities are motivated by the observed cognitive needs of designers. These facilities extend previous work in design environments by enhancing support for reflection-in-action, and adding new support for opportunistic design and comprehension and problem solving. Designing the Human-Computer Interface There is a growing awareness in the academic and industrial computing communities of the need to introduce human factors considerations into the design of computer systems. At the School of Information and Computer Science of the Georgia Institute of Technology, this need is being met through a well-funded graduate research program in the human factors of computer systems as well as the introduction of courses that emphasize usability in designing the human-computer interface. The course detailed in this paper has the title Human-Computer Interface. When computerized systems were first developed, and storage capacity was highly limited, the primary concern was the design of an efficient, reliable system which could store data in the most compact manner. Little regard was given to the human element of data entry and retrieval. Although there have been considerable advancements in computer technology, human factors considerations are still lacking. This results in the end user frequently becoming confused or frustrated when trying to interact with the software. Designing human-computer interfaces for quadriplegic people: The need for participation in an emerging Information Society has led to several research efforts for designing accessibility solutions for disabled people. In this paper we present a method for developing Human-Computer Interfaces (HCls) for quadriplegic people in modern programming environments. The presented method accommodates the esign of scanning interfaces with modern programming tools, leading to flexible interfaces with improved appearance and it is based on the use of specially designed software objects called wifsids (Widgets For Single-switch Input Devices). The wifsid structure is demonstrated and 4 types of wifsids are analyzed. Developed software applications are to be operated by single-switch activations that are captured through the wifsids, with the employment of several modes of the scanning technique. We also demonstrate the Autonomia software application, that has been developed according to the specific methodology. The basic snapshots of this application are analyzed, in order to demonstrate how the wifsids cooperate with the scanning process in a user-friendly environment that enables a quadriplegic person to access an ordinary computer system. Human-computer interface considerations in the design of personal computer softwareThis paper examines some aspects of the design considerations of the human-computer interface as related to personal computers. It is shown that the success of a popular personal computer software product, visiCalc, may be attributed to a thoughtful reconciliation of these design tactors witn the hardware constraints. The trends ot advancement in personal computer software for management-science- engineering problem-solving and decision-making are exemplified by discussing the microcomputer implementation of the Question Answering System on mathematical models and related data bases. Human factors considerations in development of interactive software: When computerized systems were first developed, and storage capacity was highly limited, the primary concern was the design of an efficient, reliable system which could store data in the most compact manner. Little regard was given to the human element of data entry and retrieval. Although there have been considerable advancements in computer technology, human factors considerations are still lacking. This results in the end user frequently becoming confused or frustrated when trying to interact with the software. Software safety: why, what, and how Software safety issues become important when computers are used to control real-time, safety-critical processes. This survey attempts to explain why there is a problem, what the problem is, and what is known about how to solve it. Since this is a relatively new software research area, emphasis is placed on delineating the outstanding issues and research topics. Berlin Brain-Computer Interface-The HCI communication channel for discoveryThe investigation of innovative Human-Computer Interfaces (HCI) provides a challenge for future interaction research and development. Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCls) exploit the ability of human communication and control bypassing the classical neuromuscular communication channels. In general, BCs offer a possibility of communication for people with severe neuromuscular disorders, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or complete paralysis of all extremities due to high spinal cord injury. Beyond medical applications, a BCI conjunction with exciting ultimedia applications, e. g. a dexterity discovery, could define a new level of control possibilities also for healthy customers decoding information directly from the users brain, as reflected in EEG signals which are recorded non-invasively from the scalp. This contribution introduces the Berlin Brain-Computer Interface (BBCI) and presents set-ups where t he user is provided with intuitive control strategies in plausible interactive bio-feedback applications. Yet at its beginning, BBCI thus adds a new dimension in HCI research by offering the user an additional and independent communication channel based on brain activity only. Successful experiments already yielded inspiring proofs-of-concept. A diversity of interactive application models, say computer games, and their specific intuitive control strategies are now open for BCI research aiming at a further speed up of user adaptation and increase of learning success and transfer bit rates. BBCI is a complex distributed software system that can be run on several communicating computers responsible for (i) the signal acquisition, (it) the data processing and (iii) the feedback application. Developing a BCI system, special attention must be paid to the design of the feedback application that serves as the HCI unit. This should provide the user with the information about her/his brain activity in a way that is intuitively intelligible. Exciting discovery applications quality pertectly tor this role. However, most ot these applications incorporate control strategies that are developed especially for the control with haptic devices, e. g. , Joystick, keyboard or mouse. Therefore, novel control strategies should be developed for this purpose that (i) allow the user to incorporate additional information for the control of animated objects and (it) do not frustrate the user in the case of a misclassification of the decoded brain signal. BCs are able to decode different information types from the users brain activity, such as sensory perception or motor intentions and imaginations, movement preparations, levels of stress, workload or task-related idling. All of these diverse brain signals can be incorporated in an exciting discovery scenario. Modern HCI research and development technologies can provide BCI researchers with the know-how about interactive feedback applications and corresponding control strategies. A virtual logo keyboard for people with motor disabilities In our society, people with motor impairments are ften times socially excluded from their environment. This is unfortunate because every human being should have the possibility to obtain the necessary conditions to live a normal life. Although there is technology to assist people with motor impairments, few systems are targeted for programming environments. We have created a system, called Logo Keyboard,to assist people with motor disabilities to program with the Logo programming language. With this special keyboard we can help more people to get involved into computer programming and to develop projects in different areas. Mixing oil and water: transcending method boundaries in ssistive technology for traumatic brain injuryA prototype assistive technology for traumatic brain injury has been developed using a combination of formative experiments and contextual design. Both approaches have proved to be essential to the development of a simple communication program using a brain-body interface device. We describe the combination of these methods and their separate and Joint contributions to the evolution and evaluation of an assistive technology. Our experience suggests that failure to use either research method in assistive technology development would result in critical oversights in design and evaluation. An overview of programs and projects at the rehabilitation research and development center The mission of the Rehabilitation Research and Development Center is to improve the independence and quality of life for disabled veterans through the creation and application of emerging technologies. In support of this mission, the Center develops concepts, devices, and techniques for in-house testing, national evaluation, and technology transfer leading to commercial production. This presentation will detail the Centers design/development process and technology transfer strategies using examples drawn from its fifteen years of operation. Efficient eye pointing with a fisheye lensThis paper evaluates refinements to existing eye pointing techniques involving a fisheye lens. We use a fisheye lens and a video-based eye tracker to locally magnify the display at the point of the users gaze. Our gaze- contingent fisheye facilitates eye pointing and selection of magnified (expanded) targets. Two novel interaction techniques are evaluated for managing the fisheye, both dependent on real-time analysis of the users eye movements. Unlike previous attempts at gaze-contingent fisheye control, our key innovation is to hide the fisheye

Monday, December 2, 2019

Sex Education in Public Schools Essay Example

Sex Education in Public Schools Essay Today, formal courses and discussions on sex education are offered in the public school system all over the United States both on the elementary and secondary level.Recent school programs are adopted the principle that complete information about sex, suitable to the developmental level of children and youth, is desirable. The underlying premise is that sex is normal, natural phase of life and that an objective knowledge in this field by youth should be regarded as making for a potentially good adjustment.The programs call for an unemotional, objective yet moral approach to sex education, which should continue into adult life. The emphasis is on the development of wholesome attitudes and personal adjustment. (Menachem, 1986, p, 140)While sex education is deemed necessary there are many who still question whether it belongs to the elementary schools.   The schools and the agencies view sex education as a program to help boys and girls achieve a happy, healthy sex attitude and a norma l, stable family life. The religious and spiritual dimension of sex, however does not find a place in to such a program, since public schools and secular organizations seem to reflect mostly the new morality that is in fashion in contemporary society.Public School is nearly a universal experience as exists in our society. While supplementary means may be necessary to reach some teens, the vast majority are reachable in the school setting. Second, public schools provides an opportunity for the early introduction and timely and continuous reinforcement of age- appropriate sex education material as it becomes relevant at succeeding developmental stages. Although the public schools are beleaguered, sex-related preventive education is viewed as so necessary and the schools are so potentially good a vehicle as to justify further claims on a system with already strained resources. Other settings for intervention ranging from infusing soap operas and teen music and magazines with preventive messages, to use of the existing public health network to diffuse relevant information, may supplement basic reliance on continuous public school sex education.( Edwards, 1990,p,91)Sex education in Canadian society is addressed within the formal educational system. The content and the role of the education system, as it pertains to issues of sexuality, is a matter of debate with in the Canadian Muslim Community. Ways, in which sex education should be approached and discussed, especially with respect to Muslim women, is a point of particular contention in Canada.Public Schools across Canada include sex education as part of their curriculum. Sex education courses are age specific and incorporate biological, moral and emotional dimensions. Boys and girls are taught the same material, including description   of male and female anatomy; mental emotional and social aspects of pubescent change; the risks of unprotected sex; methods of contraception; varying conceptions of sexual orienta tion ( heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, trans-sexuality); and social attitudes toward sexuality, such as gender discrimination. Canadian public schools, although sensitive to the religious considerations of various traditions, limit discussions relating to religion and impart the same material to all students.While public schools provide sex education most Islamic schools in Canada, both weekend and full-time do not. As yet there are no standardized courses or materials available on sex education for Muslim in Canada. Some members of the Canadian Muslim Community fear that sex education will encourage sexual experimentation amongst Muslim youth. Recently, however, Canadian Muslims have began to recognize that educating youth in matters related to sexuality is not the same as allowing sexual activity.( Afsanh suad, 2007,p, 408)Canadian Muslim children are continuously exposed to media laden with sexual overtones, which many believe compromise their childrens Islamic valu es. The widespread perception regarding sexuality within the Muslim community maintains that sexual education is necessary to dispel messages communicated by the mass media. In this regard, sex education taught in public schools is considered insufficient, as it does not project Islamic perceptions of sexuality. From the Canadian Muslim perspective, matters concerning sex utility should be taught within the parameters of Islam.Unfortunately, comprehensive sexuality education in the school is not a wide-spread phenomenon. U.S. society tends to devote much time and energy to coping with unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and related problems once they have occurred, but very little to helping people prevent them in the first place. Some experts believe that only a minority of young people in the United States receive adequate sex education in public schools. Most are exposed to scattered presentations on basic reproductive facts- the plumbing, so to speak, of human sex uality. Since only a small number of parents educate their children about sex, the result is many sexually vulnerable citizens. (Jeffrey, 1986, p, 383)It is hard to understand why Americans fallen so short in this area since for years surveys have indicated that most Americans favor sex education in the public schools. Perhaps it is because there is so much disagreement about the content of sexuality education, how and by whom it should be taught, and whose values should be conveyed.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Gender differences in Communication

Gender differences in Communication For as long as there have been two different genders, there was a difference in communication styles between men and women. It was evident before and later, when women began fighting for equality rights and fair treatment. Verbal and non-verbal differences in communication lead to prejudice and partially, it comes from the fact that men and women are different not only biologically but mentally as well.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Gender differences in Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Charles Greenwood mentioned that even looking at The Early Communication Indicator (ECI), children of very young age have particular communication styles, ranging from gestures to vocalizations and utterances (Greenwood et al., 2013). As a result, the unique nature of each particular style of communication comes from biological and social or environmental factors. Women would communicate both verbally and no n-verbally in a way, which the modern society describes, as feminine. This is due to the influences of male preferences and social roles. Since birth, both boys and girls are conditioned to behave in a certain way, which is representative of their role in society and family. Girls are taught to be more sensitive and rely on their feelings while boys are given lessons in masculinity. The society expects a certain â€Å"style† from each gender and thus, the separation in professional and leisure-time communication has been created (Ashford LeCroy, 2010). Communication styles can be qualified as instrumental and expressive since each one is specific to males and females. Men are more focused on finding out the neutral and clear cut facts about something, which leads them to being more direct and assertive. There is a much greater reliance on logic and the â€Å"instrumental† nature of things. As such, males are interested in how something can be used practically and in a n application to the physical factors. One piece of knowledge or information usually, leads to another, thus creating a â€Å"thinking chain†. Women use a much different technique in communicating, as it stems from better insight into the matter of things. Because women were segregated for such a long time and prevented from taking up higher and more prominent positions, they have developed a unique method of communicating in reaching their goal. Women tend to center on the person, deeper insight into the context and personality of the speaker and the general situation.Advertising Looking for critical writing on gender studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This allows for better qualitative analysis of information, linking it to the individual presenting the facts. Their communication is more personal, and is directed to the emotional side of the person. Of course, it would be unwise to conclude that all me n and women exhibit these qualities, as there are women who want to have all the authority and men who have profound insight, but the standard for the majority is upheld by existing evidence. It is interesting to note that professionally, there is a difference as well. Desjarlais-deKlerk and Wallace write that healthcare professionals use unique set of communication skills to attend to a particular gender and person. Especially in rural areas, medical staff is well aware of the families, their cases and so, the communication style adjusts on a more personal level. This type of communication decreases anxiety and develops trust (Desjarlais-deKlerk Wallace, 2013). This can clearly be aligned to women’s communication style, as they develop a more individual understanding towards a person, thus connecting on a closer and more effective level. At the same time, it is difficult to say which style is the best because every individual has their unique technique in the interaction wi th other people. But the modern times have made gender differences less noticeable with men being great negotiators and women strong fighters. This is much noticeable in the relationships that exist today. Sexual communication has stayed very much prevalent for centuries. One of the oldest gender constructions came from the functioning of the family. This is where conflict might arise, as women were taught to have a role of homeowners, raising children and teaching children how to be more sensitive to the surrounding environment. Men were hunters and centered their life on providing for the family, so strength and calculation would be something a father would teach his children. Even though the world has greatly changed, the separation is still noticeable through social and private roles in communication. Each gender has their own way of communicating in a relationship or family, and the goals or expectancies each individual has are also unique.Advertising We will write a cu stom critical writing sample on Gender differences in Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The majority of positions of power are still held by men, thus the communication style tends to be authoritative, depriving women of a chance to demonstrate their strengths. Women are forced to communicate in a non-demanding way, allowing the man to be in charge. Often, the conflict stems from inability to understand the meaning behind the communication, as each gender bases communication on own understanding of others and the environment. As a result, each person uses their own style, and it becomes difficult to align to the thought process and emotions of the other person (Krolokke, 2006). References Ashford, J. LeCroy, C. (2010). Human behavior in the social environment: a multidimensional perspective (4th ed.). Belmont: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning. Desjarlais-deKlerk, K, Wallace, J. (2013). Instrumental and socioemotional communicatio ns in doctor-patient interactions in urban and rural clinics. BMC Health Services Research 13(1), 261-268. Greenwood, C., Walker, D., Buzhardt, J., Howard, W., McCune, L., Anderson, R. (2013). Evidence of a continuum in foundational expressive communication skills. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 28(3), 540-554. Krolokke, C. (2006). Gender Communication Theories and Analyses: From Silence to Performance. Thousand Oaks: SAGE.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Analysis of the Differences Between Laws and Ethics

Analysis of the Differences Between Laws and Ethics Ethics refers to a set of rules or guiding principles that inform and govern people’s conduct in various situations and circumstances. For example, different professions have different codes of ethics that determine how they behave and act. Ethics influence behavior and decisions in various ways. In addition, it can be classified into different groups including personal ethics, professional ethics, and universal ethics that govern society.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Analysis of the Differences Between Laws and Ethics specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More On the other hand, law refers to rules or codes of practice that are created and reinforced by an authority such as a government in order to bring order and cohesion. Law is compelling because failure to adhere to its precepts leads to punishment. Moreover, law is diverse because its implementation includes various forms including constitutions, policies, term s of service, and other forms of legal provisions. Law and ethics have several similarities. First, they influence human conduct and decisions in order to benefit individuals and society. People follow ethics because it represents principles and values that direct society. On the other hand, people follow law because it creates a common ground to unify people and create order among individuals in society. Second, they serve the main aim in society. They improve the moral status of individuals in society. Law enforces certain rules with a punishment threat if broken. Ethics relies on people’s rationality and sensibilities in order to influence people’s behaviors. They are both responsible for maintenance of order and social cohesion. Law and ethics have several differences. Law is compelling while ethics is not. Breaking law results in punishment while acting without regard to ethics does not have punishment. Acting ethically is a personal responsibility while obeying l aw is mandatory for everyone. Again, they influence people’s conduct in different ways. Ethics usually affects people’s behavior with regard to how they treat those who are close to them or those whom they interact with regularly. In contrast, law affects people’s behavior with regard to people whom they rarely interact with. Ethics is defined by the values, customs, or beliefs of a community or society. In contrast, law is defined by universally accepted standards and behaviors. Ethics is immune to societal or communal change while law is not immune to change. Ethics changes only when the morals, perceptions, and values of society change. On the contrary, law can be changed by an act of a governing body or a decision by lawmakers.Advertising Looking for essay on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Ethics tells people what they ought to do and in what ways. For example, business peop le are expected to serve their customers with honesty and fairness. This concept does not apply to law because it tells people what they are not supposed to do and what they must do. It has prohibitions and mandates. Unlike ethics, it does not tell people what they should do and in what ways. Finally, ethics influences individuals internally while law influences people externally. While law is enforced, ethics is not. In conclusion, law and ethics are similar because they aim to promote order and cohesion in society. In addition, they influence behavior in ways that benefit individuals and society. On the other hand, they are different in several ways. Law is enforced while ethics is not. Law is easily changed while ethics is immune to changes. Changes depend on shifts in people’s moral values and cultures. Finally, law is binding because it tells people what they cannot do and what they must do. Ethics tells people what they ought to do. People are free to either adhere to e thics or not. On the contrary, it is mandatory to follow law.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Robert E. Lee Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Robert E. Lee - Essay Example Evaluating Lee is certainly not easy since there are quite a few different opinions about him. In essence, we have to take all available evidence into account before we can judge Lee to be brilliant, flawed or pragmatic. Considering his background and personal history, we know that he was a well bred individual who was a career army man as he showed his keen dedication to work even while at West Point. It was perhaps this training which showed him how to understand that the odds were insurmountable and the best course of action for the union was to surrender. As compared to his northern counterparts, Lee seems to have a completely different notion about life and how things are supposed to work since the north was unwilling to accept certain changes which had been brought to their economic systems. And production houses which did not need slave labor much. However, despite his defeat at the hands of his enemies, he remains a great leader since he had the foresight to see that the war, the battle and the games between the leaders had all finished which allowed him to sit down and negotiate a peace treaty. In comparison to Grant, Lee had very different ideas about what America should be like and he certainly would have thought his viewpoint to be better. However, in defeat he accepted that his ideals may never come true and he accepted that the victorious party gets to shape America as it wants. This makes him both a great leader and a flawed general since he accepted defeat which shows his greatness yet the defeat itself shows that he was flawed. In this manner, it becomes plain to see that what Freeman (1934) and Nolan (1991) have written about Lee is very true indeed. He was great as a man since he believed in his ideals and was willing to fight for them. He was great as a leader since he recognized defeat and did not continue to put his armies in danger while he knew that the war could not be won. However, the idea of defeat brings with it a

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Cultural anthropology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cultural anthropology - Essay Example The two techniques facilitate a society to attain similar quantities of proteins continuously, though gathering one utilizes less energy since it entails collecting edible foodstuffs from the field where the coverage may not be too wide (Wilson & Wilson, 2007). Conversely, hunting entails crossing terrains in search of animals meant for hunting, hence entailing high-energy utilization. However, both gathering and hunting provide the societies with a wide range of selection of proteins even in times of paucity, which maintains high protein outcomes to evade starvation (Park, 2007). Contrastingly, hunting and gathering result in labor specialization among the communities where each task’s allocation depends on the gender. For illustration, men assume hunting task since it encompasses much energy while the women undertake to gather. Nevertheless, some foraging communities have embraced egalitarianism where no certain gender assigned to a given task, hence resulting in a classless society that does not have social stratification. This emanates from the notion that the main objective is to shun extinction of human species via adaptive modus operandi (Wilson & Wilson, 2007). ... This inclines them adoration, thus religion among the foraging societies that are much rooted in nature (Park, 2007). 1. Hutterites’ organizational structure encompasses that of chiefdom. Since their association is more intricate than a tribe or band but less complex than a state. Hutterites comprises of numerous colonies where a leader together with other key advisory associates makes daily decisions. These verdicts entail how the people in the relevant colonies ought to conduct themselves, hence maintaining peace and unity, which is vital in their regions. The colony’s political makeup and demarcations encompass: 1. Colony 2. Gemein – It is a religious unit comprising all baptized adults. 3. Colony’s executive board constituted of at least five to seven el ders. 4. Council members - They are the architects of day-to-day verdicts in the colony for the populace. 5. Head preacher – He is the link to the external humanity besides being the colony’s economic executive. Hutterites' socialization contrary to other surrounding people ensures that it prepares its people to be compliant, hardworking and reliable adults in the colonies (Wilson & Wilson, 2007). This makes the people productive, thus stabilizing their economy and making their organization more strong. Additionally, social control entails absolute adherence to the set rules and punishment for any defiance that may arise among the colonies. The unforgivable cases encompass murdering and deserting the colony, which yield to excommunication from the colony. 2. The search for reliable information regarding the origin and time of modern language has entailed anthropologists to devote themselves to diverse, intensive studies (Nanda & Warms, 2011).

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Exxon Mobil Resources and Capabilities Essay Example for Free

Exxon Mobil Resources and Capabilities Essay Mobile is one of the most successful companies in the oil and energy industries today. But what makes them so successful? In an effort to answer this question, a thorough internal investigation can be helpful in determining what aspects of this company are making it an industry leader. Two aspects of this internal analysis of Exxon Mobile are the company’s resources and capabilities. Resources One of the most reputable resources that Exxon Mobil has today is a strong brand name. Exxon Mobil operates all over the world and is recognized in every part of the world (Datamonitor, 2008). When people all over the world know who a company is, what they do, and where they are located, the company gains a unique competitive advantage over the rest of the industry. A good way to analyze this resource is to use the VRINE Model (Strategic Management, 2007). This breaks down in order to analyze its value, rarity, inimitability, and exploitability. For this resource I’ll start by assessing its value. The question that must be answered is, â€Å"does this resource allow the firm to meet market demand or protect the firm from market uncertainties? † (Strategic Management, 2007). In the case of the brand name resource, I believe that it gives them ample protection against uncertainty and enables them to compete, if not lead, in the industry. Exxon operates in over 200 countries around the world (Datamonitor, 2008) The fact that this company is present all over the world, and not many other industry competitors operate in so many different regions, proves that this particular resource is very valuable to the company. If a company can possess something that another company cannot, value is inevitably created for that resource. This resource also protects them from uncertainty because this brand is already established itself within the market and can thrive in it without too much concern about the well being of the company, thus limiting some uncertainty. Next in the VRINE model is assessment of its rarity. Do any other companies possess such worldwide recognition as Exxon Mobil’s brand name can bring? There are some companies that have come close in competing with Exxon Mobil, such as ConnocoPhillips and Chevron, but none can compare with the unique profitability and opportunities that the name Exxon can bring to a region. The name is undoubtedly trusted throughout the world and rarely rivaled. Those aspects of the brand name recognition make this brand name a rarity. The next step in the VRINE model is to assess the inimitability. To assess this, the question of can competitors â€Å"acquire the valuable and rare resource quickly, or will they face a cost disadvantage in doing so? † (Strategic Management, 2007). The simple fact that the Exxon Mobil name is trademarked and registered makes it impossible for any other company to replicate its name. Also it would cost a substantial amount to buy out the company and gain its name. This alone makes the brand name inimitable. Now assessment of the nonsubstitutability is needed. The question arises, â€Å"is there protection against ready substitutes? † (Strategic Management, 2007). For Exxon, their name reputation is one that substitutes have a very difficult time matching. Exxon is leading the industry and continues to be a leader of almost every aspect of the industry today. Though substitutes are present in the industry, none can surpass the reputation of Exxon Mobil. The final step in the VRINE Model is to assess the resource’s exploitability. The question to answer is, can the firm â€Å" nurture and take advantage of the resources and capabilities that it possesses? † (Strategic Management, 2007). For Exxon, they can bring the company anywhere in the world and use the recognizable name to establish credibility and power in that region. This gives the company a considerable advantage when it comes to exploiting its brand name to establish the company around the world. After analyzing the resource using the VRINE Model, all aspects of the model have been met, so it is safe to say that this resource can give them a competitive advantage among its competitors. Another important resource that Exxon possesses is the presence of human expertise capital throughout the company (Datamoitor, 2008). Exxon employs many scientists and engineers that are researching and finding new ways to gain access to more energy resources and make the new innovations less harmful to the environment (Annual Report, 2007). This human capital has proven to be a very important resource for the company as shown by their development of new ways to increase liquid natural gas supplies and â€Å"enhancing heavy oil recovery† (Annual Report, 2007). Using the VRINE model again, I will assess this resource. In analyzing the value of the human expertise capital, again we must consider whether this resource helps the company meet market demand and can eliminate some uncertainty. In this case, I believe that the unique research department that houses these scientists and engineers is one that gives the company a great capability to compete in the market, and even excel within the industry. I believe it also eliminates some uncertainty because while the company is researching and developing cutting edge technology, it keeps them knowledgeable about all the new innovations and ideas that are throughout the industry. This makes the resource very valuable. Next, the rarity of the resource must be analyzed. I believe that this resource is rare because of the entire department (the Upstream Research Center) within the company devoted to letting these scientists and engineers use their knowledge to propel the company into the future (Annual Report, 2007). Some companies have R D departments, but they don’t posses the funding for such expertise and capabilities within these departments like Exxon has in its Upstream Research Center (Annual Report, 2007). This makes the breadth of their scientists and engineers and rare resource among it competitors. Following the VRINE Model, inimitability is the next aspect to analyze. I believe that it would be very difficult for any company to gain the human expertise capital that Exxon has. Exxon pays particular attention to its scientists and engineers by providing opportunities to use their knowledge to help solve every day problems that the company is facing. Many of these scientists and engineers had PhDs in their respective fields, thus making their ideas more credible and valuable to the company (Annual Report, 2007). This make the human expertise capital an inimitable resource because it makes it hard for other companies to replicate the magnitude of the distinguished human capital that Exxon possesses. The next step in the VRINE Model is nonsubstitutability. It would be nearly impossible for a competing company to substitute an equally effective team of engineers and scientists. The cost would be too great for the company. Exxon is leading the way in Research and Development trends, and substitutes for the quality of employees that Exxon has would be very difficult for other companies, making the nonsubstitutability of Exxon’s human capital very high. The final step is to analyze the exploitability of the human expertise capital. Exxon has proven that the expertise that is present can be exploited to develop new and innovative ideas that help Exxon maintain as an industry leader. One example of the result of this exploitation is the development of Metallyte UBW-ES, which is a new polypropylene film for packaging that has unprecedented sealing power (Datamonitor, 2008). This example proves that the exploitability of this human expertise capital makes this resource a valuable asset to the company. After analysis of the human expertise capital resource using the VRINE Model, it can be said that this resource gives Exxon Mobil a competitive advantage in the industry. Capabilities After assessing the resources that Exxon has available to them, it is now easier to illustrate what Exxon’s capabilities are because of the acquisition and ownership of these resources. One of Exxon’s important capabilities is their extensive research and development capabilities. Exxon’s research and development capabilities are very dynamic in the sense that as new energy conservation and developments arise, they can adapt their research and development departments to meet the new technologies and innovations. Their research and development capabilities go insofar as to â€Å"improve existing products, and enhance service† (Datamonitor, 2008). Using the VRINE Model again, it can be easy to see if this capability really gives Exxon a considerable competitive advantage. First we have to look at the value of this capability. Exxon has utilized the company’s valuable resource of human expertise capital do help head the research for new improvements and innovations that help lead the way for Exxon to grow (Annual Report, 2007). One such innovation is the development of Enable mPE, which has â€Å"substantially reduced waste and energy consumption across a wide variety of film applications† (Datamonitor, 2008). This capability allows them compete within the market and gain headway in developing potentially high profit innovations, thus giving value to their research and development capability. Next the rarity needs to be assessed. Though almost all of Exxon’s competitors have research and development departments, none have invested the amount that Exxon has. Also there are only a handful of top competitors within the energy industry so that alone makes Exxon’s R D department rare. In fiscal year 2007, Exxon invested $814 million in R D. Though the idea of an R D department is not a rarity in its own right, the amount invested and products produced because of their extensive R D work makes this a rare capability among its competitors. The next assessment in the VRINE Model is the inimitability of this capability. As mentioned before many other companies have a R D department, but not to the extent that Exxon’s is being funded and operated. In the past 5 years, Exxon has invested upwards of $3. 5 billion in research and development alone (Annual Report, 2007). Very few of Exxon’s competitors can match that without having an almost impossible financial obligation afterward. That is one feat that few companies can imitate. The next step is to analyze its nonsubstitutability.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Childhood Obesity in America Essay -- Obesity in Children

It’s a scary feeling when climbing a simple flight of stairs only to reach the top and be completely out of breath. In America today this is the reality that many children face. Obesity has become an epidemic in our world, it has many contributing factors, affects learning abilities but there are preventive methods for it. Although little is being done about obesity, it's affecting the lives of many but mostly children and by a multitude of different factors. The rising numbers of obese children has reached an alarming rate. With many Americans, â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬Ëœobesity’†¦carries the connotation of being extremely overweight. [But] health professionals define overweight as an excess amount of body weight that includes muscle, bone, fat and water; whereas obesity is specifically defined as an excess amount of body fat† (Andrews 1). More often than not we tend to switch these definitions and have false pretenses. Although, there are many health threats in the world today, â€Å"†¦childhood obesity (is) one of the leading health threats in the United States† (2). Even the statistics show that obesity is becoming an epidemic. In fact, â€Å"[s]ince the 1970s, the prevalence of obesity has more than doubled for preschool children and adolescents and more than tripled for school-aged children† (1). With the increasing numbers it causes people to wonder if there are other causes for obesity. Through tests and observations it has been found that obesity can be caused by other factors. Many scientists â€Å"†¦believe there are other causes for the obesity epidemic besides too many French fries†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Belluz 1). Eating habits can contribute to obesity but they’re not the only factor playing into the bigger picture. For instance, â€Å"[p]ollutants, like DDE, are believed to... ...n't be the ones that are out of breath. Work Cited Andrews, Shirley P., and Stan Andrews. â€Å"Fitness fun for everyone: classroom games and activities to support reading and math.† Childhood Education 2009:97. Beebe, Ginger, and Joe Thompson. "The problem of childhood obesity." Arkansas Business 2010: 7. Belluz, Julia. "Born to be fat: does prenatal exposure to chemicals called 'obesogens' help explain the epidemic of obesity?" Maclean's 8 Nov. 2010: 89. DeSantis, Cari. "On child obesity." Policy & Practice 2010: 3. "Move it." Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication 25 Oct. 2010: 6. "Physicians Group Urges Schools To Go Veggie.† American School & University 2010. 5. Skolnik, Neil S., and Mackenzie Mady. "Clinical guidelines for family physicians: screening for obesity in children and adolescents." Family Practice News 2010:49.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

E-marketplace, E-mall, E-tailing Essay

There are various electronic commerce activities and mechanisms. E-Commerce Activities and Mechanisms include the following but not limited to: E-Market Place: It is an online market usually B2B where buyers and sellers exchange goods or services. EC transactions take place in the electronic equivalent of a mall called the electronic marketplace (e-marketplace). Electronic marketplaces utilize different tools (electronic shopping cart, e-catalog, fulfillment technologies, and checkout and payment mechanisms) to provide the equivalent brick and mortar shopping tools. Types of Electronic Market Places: 1. Electronic Storefronts: A single companys website where products and services are sold. Example: Walmart 2. Electronic Malls: An Online Shopping Center where many online stores are located. 3. Market Place: An Online market, usually B2B where buyers and sellers negotiate. Electronic retailing is a form of electronic commerce. E-Retailing — This type of e-commerce refers to the act of using internet by retailers to perform business activities. It covers retailing using a wide variety of technologies or media. E-Tailing — Selling of retail goods over internet. E-Tailing is short form of E-Retailing. E-tailing can be used as a synonym with business-to-consumer transaction. To keep it short, Online retailing can be referred to as E-Tailing. E-tailing has resulted in the development of e-tailware–software tools for creating catalogs and managing the business connected with doing e-tailing. A new trend is the price comparison site that can quickly compare prices from a number of different e-tailers and link you to them. Example: Bestbuy site provides a customer to select a product upto 3 or more varieties and compare them. Examples of e-tailing are Dell, Walmart, Amazon. Comparison: Following are some of the key differences between e-marketplaces, e-malls, e-tailing and physical marketplaces, malls, and retail outlets. 1.E-Marketplaces, E-Malls and E-Tailing is all about the business taking place in an online manner, nothing is physical. 2.There is a wide variety of selection available online when compared to the physical outlets or malls. More options available online. 3.Certain tools are provided to compare the prices between different products and services which lead to an easier desired selection process. 4.No need to drive to the physical location of the mall for purchases. Tools and Techniques for a successful E-Commerce presence: Tools: Few tools for successful e-commerce are listed below but are not limited to: 1. Analytics: Analytics gives the idea of the sales where they are originating from. It is not enough to know that our products and services are getting sold. We need to know how the customers are visiting our site, how the traffic is being redirected to our site and how the marketing efforts are done. Some ecommerce scripts have statistics built in or available through a plugin. Standalone packages such as Google Analytics also provide you with a way to thoroughly check your stats, and all you do  is place a line of code on your site for tracking. Analytics allows you to check all of your data online. You also have access to it whether you have access to your ecommerce servers or not. 2. Accounting Software: Having the right accounting software for your ecommerce store is essential to keeping you in the black. This simplifies the book-keeping process and cuts down on the chance of human error causing issues with accurate profit and loss numbers. 3. Cross Selling: Cross selling is an easy way of exposing additional products to the customer based on their search. For example, if a customer is visiting a site to buy a phone, the site will automatically recommend the customer to also take a look other available options such as phone accessories, headphones etc. 4. Currency Converter: Dealing with international shipping is a struggle for many ecommerce site owners. When your product has mass market appeal overseas, you want to make it simple for international customers to order. A currency converter is particularly useful, whether you have it as part of your script, or as an additional tool. Planet Management, a payment processor who offers international payments, reports that ecommerce stores who use their service to offer multiple currencies increase international sales by up to 25 percent. Techniques: According to Miller (2000), Business approaches and broad range of technology tools that are used to support collaborative product definition management (cPDm) initiatives are having a tremendous impact on the ways companies operate. A major change in enterprise computing is underway as companies apply best-practice processes in combination with a wide range of technologies including product data management, collaboration, visualization, collaborative product commerce, enterprise applications integration, component supplier management, and others. The pace of improvements in cPDm-related technologies continues to  accelerate, and companies use these tools to implement process change faster than ever. Whereas not long ago, companies were talking about three- and five-year plans for implementing data management systems; they now are asking what results to expect in six months or less. This represents a significant step forward in industry and a strong emerging movement that is becoming an essential element for companies to successfully compete in the 21st century (Miller, 2000). According to Shaun Ryan, CEO of site search provider SLI Systems (http://www.sli-systems.com) (NZX: SLI), the best retailers use different techniques and features to create an equivalent merchandising experience that help visitors identify brands, sales or seasonal promotions and to draw more attention to products. Shaun summarizes three primary steps – tuning, merchandising banners and reports – which can add significant value to your eCommerce efforts. Tuning rules are designed to help promote or demote specific products as the merchandiser sees fit. For example tuning rule places certain products on the top of the list where as certain products on the bottom of the list or even off the list. This way it helps the merchandiser to prioritize which products should be shown and which should be not. â€Å"Banners can be shown anywhere on the search or navigation page and can be triggered by a number of different rules. For example the banner could contain logos and other imagery associated with the keyword or facet. If someone searches for a TV or clicks on the TV category you could show a banner that displays a TV selection widget.† Reporting allows merchandisers to easily access key data about customers’ search behavior. The Top Searches report can give useful insights about the most popular keyword searches, showing you the language that your customers use and identifying some possible candidates for fine tuning or adding banners. References Turban, E., King, D., Lee, J., Liang, T. & Turban, D. (2012). Electronic Commerce: Managerial and social networks perspectives. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Miller, E. (2000). Survival Tools for an E-Commerce World. Computer-Aided Engineering, 19(6), 52. PR, N. (2013, December 5). Easy Techniques Fuel E-commerce Merchandising. PR Newswire US. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://blog.compete.com/2013/12/04/best-ecommerce-tools/ (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.yourdesignonline.com/4-tools-building-successful-ecommerce-site/

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg

Running head: THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD1 The Man Connecting the World Rachel Ritchey West Virginia Wesleyan College THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD2 My definition of success is achieving a desirable outcome or goal in life and to achieve success one must illustrate the qualities Coplin states. Throughout his life Mark Zuckerberg has developed the skills Coplin says in his list of ten things and Mark has efficiently demonstrated these qualities. Through his success Mark Zuckerberg has connected more than half a billion people with the company Facebook. Even though there are many different definitions of success, it should be obvious that successful people share common qualities such as those found in Bill Coplin’s list of 10 Things Employers Want Students to Learn in College. Reaching success was not easy but, Zuckerberg took the necessary steps to get there. These steps include influencing people, solving problems, and using quantitative skills. Mark Elliot Zuckerberg was born on May 14, 1984 in Dobbs Ferry, New York. His father ran a dental practice, and his mother was a psychiatrist up until the birth of Randi, his oldest sister. At a very early age Mark started to become interested in computers. He developed his first software at age 12. He created Zucknet, a messaging system from an Atari BASIC, and his father actually put it to use in his dental office. His parents soon hired a tutor to keep up with his budding interest in computers. Mark first attended high school at Ardsley High School, and around the same time started taking some graduate courses at nearby Mercy College (Grossman, 2010). Soon, Zuckerberg transferred to Phillips Exeter Academy, a private school in New Hampshire. There he excelled in academics, THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD3 but also discovered another talent of which was, fencing. He was captain of the fencing team but also, excelled more with computers as he developed a name for himself as a â€Å"Programming Prodigy. † His next step in developing software was described as an early version of Pandora, named Synapse. Companies like Microsoft and AOL actually offered to buy it off of him, and hire him before he had even graduated high school. He declined both offers and decided to continue his quest for knowledge. (bio. 2011) Zuckerberg enrolled at Harvard in 2002 after graduating from Phillips Exeter Academy. By the time he began his sophomore year he already had a reputation as the go-to software developer on campus. It was around this time he developed something called CourseMatch, a way for students to choose their classes based on what courses were popular with other users. Next he invented Facemash, a way to compare two studentâ⠂¬â„¢s pictures and vote on who is more attractive. Immediately Facemash became extremely popular, but was shut down because administration deemed it inappropriate. With the popularity of Mark’s other projects, three of his fellow students Divya Narendra, Camron Winklevoss, and Tyler Winklevoss, approached him one day about an idea called Harvard connection. They wanted to use Harvard’s student networks to create a dating site. Mark agreed to help, but soon moved on with his own ideas. (bio. , 2011) Zuckerberg’s new idea was to create his own network with various features for users. So, along with another three friends Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes, THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD4 nd Eduardo Saverin they worked together to create their own social network. They developed a site users could create their own profiles, upload photos, and talk to other users. They called this site, The Facebook, and ran it out of their Harvard dorm room from February 2004 to June 2004. Mark then took a huge risk, dropped out of Harvard, and moved to Palo Alto, California to devote his time solely on â€Å"The Facebook. † At this time users were strictly students at Harvard, but the site then opened to Ivy League schools only. The Facebook was shortened to just Facebook, and by the end of 2004 the site had one million users. (bio. , 2011) This brings me to an inevitable quality Mark shares with Coplin’s ten things, Using Quantitative Skills. He has been creating software since he was about twelve years old, which had brought him to where he is today, as a software programmer and developer. He attended one of the most accredited schools of all-time, Harvard University. This serves as an example of how well educated he is just in all areas of academics. Another thing Coplin states is, â€Å"Performance will be measured in numbers just as the performance of your company or agency is measured in the number of sales, the amount of income, or number of people served. † (Coplin, 2003) Zuckerberg is well aware of applying this to his company as CEO and founder of Facebook. He must constantly pay attention to these parts of business because of the number of people he is serving. THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD5 Facebook’s next boost came from the venture capital firm Accel Partners, with an investment of $12. 7 million dollars in their network (Kirkpatrick, 2010). This led to the expansion of Facebook, which then opened to other colleges, high schools, and international schools. By December 2005 they reached 5. 5 million members. With Facebook’s popularity, other companies wanted to advertise on the site, but Zuckerberg turned down their offers. (bio. , 2010) Common with all big companies, at some point they face problems. Unfortunately in 2006 the three students that Mark helped make Harvard connection with forced him into a lawsuit. They claimed that he stole their idea and after lawyers found incriminating messages from Zuckerberg, they came to a settlement. Although it was a $65 million dollar settlement, the dispute still continues today. (bio. , 2011) The next controversy Zuckerberg faced took more of a toll on his reputation. In 2009, Ben Mezrich wrote a book called The Accidental Billionaires. Mezrich retold the story of Zuckerberg’s life, but heavily fabricated it. He included invented scenes, imagined dialogue and fictional characters. Not only did he manage to cause controversy with his book, but also he actually sold the rights of the story to screenwriter Aaron Sorkin. Sorkin’s portrayal of Mark’s life was called The Social Network, which went on to be nominated for eight Academy Awards, and take home an Oscar for best picture. Mark strongly opposed the film’s storyline and went on to say, â€Å"It's interesting what stuff they focused on THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD 6 getting right; like, every single shirt and fleece that I had in that movie is actually a shirt or fleece that I own, so there's all this stuff that they got wrong and a bunch of random details that they got right. † (bio. , 2011) Developing such an influential company makes him somewhat of a target. He is constantly facing problems, and coming up with new solutions. Therefore another skill he possesses is Solving Problems. He has always under the pressure of creating something pleasing for Facebook users. The web page regularly changes formats, and introduces new features. One thing Coplin directly says is, â€Å"Problem solvers are into continuous improvement. † (Coplin, 2003) Mark’s problem solving skills were also useful when it came to problems in his personal life. He has encountered lawsuits and found a way to settle and move past. Along with lawsuits, the public criticism he’s faced was handled maturely and with integrity. In spite of all the criticism, and negative publicity he still received recognition for his accomplishments. In 2010, Time Magazine named him Person of the year. (Grossman, 2010) Vanity Fair placed him at the top of their New Establishment list and named him number one on its 2010 list of the Top 100 â€Å"most influential people of the Information Age. † Forbes ranked Zuckerberg at No. 35—beating out Apple CEO Steve Jobs on the Forbes 400 list. Mark’s net worth was is an estimated $6. billion dollars. (bio. , 2011) Mark’s wealth has made him a billionaire six times over (Grossman, 2010). THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD 7 With the money he’s earned through his hard work, he’s decided to involve himself in philanthropic causes. He donated 100 million dollars to save the failing Newark Public Schools system in New Jersey. On December 9, 2010, Zucke rberg, Bill Gates, and investor Warren Buffett signed the â€Å"Giving Pledge†, promising to donate at least 50 percent of their wealth to charity over the course of their lifetimes. bio. , 2011) He not only wants to help people connect with the social network he’s created but he wants to help charitable causes with the money he worked so hard for. With the company make has created, he has wired about a twelfth of humanity into a single network (Grossman, 2010). When relating Zuckerberg to Coplin’s list of ten things, virtually any of them can be applied but the most obvious one in my opinion is Influencing People. He not only influences people through charities but clearly through the social network he has created. Nearly half of all Americans have a Facebook account, and 70% of Facebook users live outside the U. S. (Grossman, 2010). This just goes to show the number of people he reaches and has an impact on. Facebook has 800 million active users and is currently growing at a rate of about 700,000 people a day (Duff, 2010). Like Coplin says find the basic need, or the main point of interest and stick to it (Coplin, 2003). Mark undoubtedly found a point of interest for the world. Mark Zuckerberg is someone that has the qualities Coplin says that employer’s value and he has demonstrated them throughout his life. Bill Coplin’s THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD 8 list of 10 Things Employers Want Students to Learn in College serves as an example of the qualities of successful people. When applying the ten things to a successful person Zuckerberg’s life serves as the perfect example. His success story shows the way to develop yourself to reach success by using the same things Coplin states in his list of ten things. He has basically created the social network that has taken over the world. The accomplishments he has made are something that we witness, and we are impacted by his success in our own lives everyday. THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD9 References Coplin, B. (2003). 10 things employers want you to learn in college. Berkeley, California: Ten Speed Press. Cooper, C. (2011). The future according to Zuckerberg: All Facebook, all the time. Retrieved September 23, 2011, from http://www. cbsnews. com/stories/2011/09/22/scitech/main20110419. shtml Kirkpatrick, D. (2010). The Facebook effect: The inside story of the company that is connecting the world (1st Simon & Schuster hardcover ed. ed. ). New York: Simon & Schuster. Grossman L. (2010). Person of the year. Retrieved Dec/15, 2010, from http://www. time. com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2036683_2037183,00. html Mark Zuckerberg. (2011). Biography. com. Retrieved 07:45, Nov 13, 2011 from http://www. biography. com/people/mark-zuckerberg-507402 Duff, C. (Producer), &. (2010). One minute on Facebook. [Video/DVD] Retrieved from THE MAN CONNECTING THE WORLD10 http://www. time. com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2036683_2037109_2037113,00. html

Friday, November 8, 2019

Toni Morrison essays

Toni Morrison essays Toni Morrison was born in the steel town of Lorain. Ohio on February 18, 1931, her name at that time was Chloe Anthony Wofford. Morrison was the second of four children. Her family was made up of migrant sharecroppers on both sides. Her parents George and Ramah Willis Wofford moved north to Ohio to escape racism and find better economic opportunities. Morrison was born into a very proud family her father worked and new many trades including welding and construction. George kept three jobs at the same time during Morrisons childhood. He took great pride in his appearance and work always being sure to be well dressed and at his work each time he welded a perfect seam he would also weld his name into the side of the ship. George would tell Morrison folk tales of the black community, making sure to transfer some of his African-American heritage onto her. She also gained from her father a slight distrust for whites she says My father was a racist. As a child in Georgia, he recei ved a shocking impression of adult white people, and for the rest of his life felt he was justified in despising all white, and that they were not justified in despising him. Morrisons mother was a church going woman who sang in the choir. Lorain was a small industrial town populated with immigrant Europeans, Mexicans and Southern blacks intertwined in the city. Morrison attended an integrated school in Lorain. In the first grade she was the only black student in the class, she was also the only student who could read. She was a great student who hoped to one day be a ballerina dancer like her favorite Maria Tallchief. She loved to read everything from Dostoyevski to Gustave Flaubert. She was friends with many of the white students in her school and it was not until she started dating that she really experienced racism first hand. Morrison graduated with honors in 1949 from Lorain High School. Morrison...

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Sample Topics for Comparison Contrast Essays

Sample Topics for Comparison Contrast Essays In high school and college literature classes, one common type of writing assignment is the comparison and contrast essay. Identifying points of similarity and difference in two or more literary works encourages close reading and stimulates careful thought. To be effective, a comparison-contrast essay needs to be focused on particular methods, characters, and themes. These ten sample topics demonstrate different ways of achieving that focus in a critical essay. Short Fiction: The Cask of Amontillado and The Fall of the House of UsherAlthough The Cask of Amontillado and The Fall of the House of Usher rely on two notably different types of narrator (the first a mad murderer with a long memory, the second an outside observer who serves as the readers surrogate), both of these stories by Edgar Allan Poe rely on similar devices to create their effects of suspense and horror. Compare and contrast the story-telling methods employed in the two tales, with particular attention to point of view, setting, and diction.Short Fiction: Everyday Use and A Worn PathDiscuss how details of character, language, setting, and symbolism in the stories Everyday Use by Alice Walker and A Worn Path by Eudora Welty serve to characterize the mother (Mrs. Johnson) and the grandmother (Phoenix Jackson), noting points of similarity and difference between the two women.Short Fiction: The Lottery and The Summer PeopleAlthough the same fundamental conflict of tradition vers us change underlies both The Lottery and The Summer People, these two stories by Shirley Jackson offer some notably different observations about human weaknesses and fears. Compare and contrast the two stories, with particular attention to the ways Jackson dramatizes different themes in each. Be sure to include some discussion of the importance of setting, point of view, and character in each story. Poetry: To the Virgins and To His Coy MistressThe Latin phrase carpe diem is popularly translated as seize the day. Compare and contrast these two well-known poems written in the carpe diem tradition: Robert Herricks To the Virgins and Andrew Marvells To His Coy Mistress. Focus on the argumentative strategies and specific figurative devices (for example, simile, metaphor, hyperbole, and personification) employed by each speaker.Poetry: Poem for My Fathers Ghost, Steady as Any Ship My Father, and Nikki RosaA daughter investigates her feelings for her father (and, in the process, reveals something about herself) in each of these poems: Mary Olivers Poem for My Fathers Ghost, Doretta Cornells Steady as Any Ship My Father, and Nikki Giovannis Nikki Rosa. Analyze, compare, and contrast these three poems, noting how certain poetic devices (such as diction, repetition, metaphor, and simile) serve in each case to characterize the relationship (however ambivalent) between a daughter and her f ather. Drama: King Oedipus and Willy LomanDifferent as the two plays are, both Oedipus Rex by Sophocles and Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller concern a characters efforts to discover some kind of truth about himself by examining events from the past. Analyze, compare, and contrast the difficult investigative and psychological journeys taken by King Oedipus and Willy Loman. Consider the extent to which each character accepts difficult truthsand also resists accepting them. Which character, do you think, is ultimately more successful in his journey of discoveryand why?Drama: Queen Jocasta, Linda Loman, and Amanda WingfieldCarefully examine, compare, and contrast the characterizations of any two of the following women: Jocasta in Oedipus Rex, Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman, and Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. Consider each womans relationship with the leading male character(s), and explain why you think each character is primarily active or passive (or bot h), supportive or destructive (or both), perceptive or self-deceived (or both). Such qualities are not mutually exclusive, of course, and may overlap. Be careful not to reduce these characters to simple-minded stereotypes; explore their complex natures. Drama: Foils in Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass MenagerieA foil is a character whose main function is to illuminate the qualities of another character (often the protagonist) through comparison and contrast. First, identify at least one foil character in each of the following works: Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass Menagerie. Next, explain why and how each of these characters may be viewed as a foil, and (most importantly) discuss how the foil character serves to illuminate certain qualities of another character.Drama: Conflicting Responsibilities in Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass MenagerieThe three plays Oedipus Rex, Death of a Salesman, and The Glass Menagerie all deal with the theme of conflicting responsibilitiestoward self, family, society, and the gods. Like most of us, King Oedipus, Willy Loman, and Tom Wingfield at times try to avoid fulfilling certain responsibilities; at other times, they may appear confused as to what their m ost important responsibilities should be. By the end of each play, this confusion may or may not be resolved. Discuss how the theme of conflicting responsibilities is dramatized and resolved (if it is resolved) in any two of the three plays, pointing out similarities and differences along the way. Drama and Short Fiction: Trifles and The ChrysanthemumsIn Susan Glaspells play Trifles and John Steinbecks short story The Chrysanthemums, discuss how setting (i.e., the stage set of the play, the fictional setting of the story) and symbolism contribute to our understanding of the conflicts experienced by the character of the wife in each work (Minnie and Elisa, respectively). Unify your essay by identifying points of similarity and difference in these two characters.