The Web of Knowledge Essay -- Philosophy Papers

The Web of Knowledge Great theorist and philosophers such as the stoics, skeptics, Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, Descartes, Spinoza, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Kant, Bertrand Russell, Darwin, Freud, and all of 20th century science have struggled with the question what is knowledge? and can we have knowledge? "To know" and "knowledge" are potent concepts and before taking Text and Critics, I took it for granted that I had knowledge of what knowledge is. Then came a simple question. After reading The American Scholar, I recall the class being asked "how is nature related to knowledge?" I didn't have an answer. But more importantly, before I could answer the former, I realized I didn't "know" what knowledge is. How could it be that I had never considered one of the most important philosophical questions asked of mankind--what can we know and what is knowledge? There have been many different views about knowledge, but none of the major philosophers, perhaps because knowledge is such a potent concept and its understanding is assumed to be self evident, have explained what knowledge is. For example, I have here some views with knowledge but no definition of knowledge: Chuang-Tzu, the old Chinese sage and poet said: "Once I dreamed I was a butterfly, and now I no longer know whether I am Chuang-Tzu, who dreamed I was a butterfly, or whether I am a butterfly dreaming that I am Chuang-Tzu." Black Elk, the Lakota moralist, told John Neihardt: "That is the real world that is behind this one, and everything we see or hear is something like a shadow from that world." So, too, was it for Plato. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote in The American Scholar : "We all know, that as the human body can be nourished on any food, though it were boiled grass ... ...rowning in information and starved for knowledge --Unknown "By necessity, by proclivity, and by delight we all quote. In fact it is as difficult to appropriate the thoughts of others as it is to invent." --Ralph Waldo Emerson References Neihardt, John. 1961. Black Elk Speaks . Lincoln and London, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press. Confucius. 1989. The Analects of Confucius. New York: Vintage Books, A division of Random House, Inc. Gaarder, Jostein. 1996. Sophie's World, A Novel About the History of Philosophy. New York: Berkeley Books. Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The American Scholar. Aristotle. The Nicomachean Ethics. Custom Course Packet. Plato.1984. The Great Dialogues of Plato. New York, New York: Mentor. Quotes not from text T&C text, above, or otherwise mentioned are from: http://www. starlingtech.com/quotes/qsearch.cgi The Web of Knowledge Essay -- Philosophy Papers The Web of Knowledge Great theorist and philosophers such as the stoics, skeptics, Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, Descartes, Spinoza, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Kant, Bertrand Russell, Darwin, Freud, and all of 20th century science have struggled with the question what is knowledge? and can we have knowledge? "To know" and "knowledge" are potent concepts and before taking Text and Critics, I took it for granted that I had knowledge of what knowledge is. Then came a simple question. After reading The American Scholar, I recall the class being asked "how is nature related to knowledge?" I didn't have an answer. But more importantly, before I could answer the former, I realized I didn't "know" what knowledge is. How could it be that I had never considered one of the most important philosophical questions asked of mankind--what can we know and what is knowledge? There have been many different views about knowledge, but none of the major philosophers, perhaps because knowledge is such a potent concept and its understanding is assumed to be self evident, have explained what knowledge is. For example, I have here some views with knowledge but no definition of knowledge: Chuang-Tzu, the old Chinese sage and poet said: "Once I dreamed I was a butterfly, and now I no longer know whether I am Chuang-Tzu, who dreamed I was a butterfly, or whether I am a butterfly dreaming that I am Chuang-Tzu." Black Elk, the Lakota moralist, told John Neihardt: "That is the real world that is behind this one, and everything we see or hear is something like a shadow from that world." So, too, was it for Plato. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote in The American Scholar : "We all know, that as the human body can be nourished on any food, though it were boiled grass ... ...rowning in information and starved for knowledge --Unknown "By necessity, by proclivity, and by delight we all quote. In fact it is as difficult to appropriate the thoughts of others as it is to invent." --Ralph Waldo Emerson References Neihardt, John. 1961. Black Elk Speaks . Lincoln and London, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press. Confucius. 1989. The Analects of Confucius. New York: Vintage Books, A division of Random House, Inc. Gaarder, Jostein. 1996. Sophie's World, A Novel About the History of Philosophy. New York: Berkeley Books. Emerson, Ralph Waldo. The American Scholar. Aristotle. The Nicomachean Ethics. Custom Course Packet. Plato.1984. The Great Dialogues of Plato. New York, New York: Mentor. Quotes not from text T&C text, above, or otherwise mentioned are from: http://www. starlingtech.com/quotes/qsearch.cgi

Romulus My Father Belonging Essay

What particular insight into an understanding of belonging have you gained from Raimond Gaita’s representation of his father’s life in Romulus my Father in the early chapters of the memoir, and how his choice of language, style, voice and the use of the memoir influenced your response to his story so far In the early chapters of the memoir Gaita gives us images and ideas that he himself acquired from his father, for example ‘Though the landscape is one of rare beauty, to the English or European eye it seems desolate and even after 14 years my facer could not become reconciled to it’ is a quote said early on in the book describing Romulus’ disdain for the Australian landscape which Raimond originally also shared until his enlightenment. Romulus does not feel like he can belong in Australia early in the chapter because he still has the images of the lush, green European landscape in his mind and this leads to a sense of not belonging because he hungers for his homeland. The idea that the landscape shapes your identity and sense of belonging is something that Gaita reinforces. Another insight into belonging that Raimond tries to convey is that people gravitate to those who share similar values/language to them. Romulus is a migrant and feels lost in this country but he then finds other Romanian people and bonds with them.The house at frogmore which was isolated helped shape Gaita’s sense of belonging because he felt safe and free there, this is another example of the place where you grew up shaping your sense of belonging. Time and time again Gaita reinforces the idea that his father was a hero and someone who should be admired. This devotion and love for his father is seen throughout the memoir and we are told anecdotes explaining how Romulus made the hard decisions and tried to raise his son as a good person even going so far to beat him to reinforce these ideals such as lying is bad, respect your parents and not to steal . The repetition of this admiration is used to show the bond between a father and his child.The depression motif gives another insight into how hard it is to acquire a sense of belonging. Many characters in the memoir have depression and this is to emphasis the feeling of loneliness, desolation and non-belonging because of the migrant experience and even Romulus himself goes through states of madness during his life because of the migrant experience. Acceptance by all people is something that people must have to belong or else the sadness/loneliness may drive them to madness also. Christina is an example of this because she has no sense of belonging, travels a lot and has a lot of lovers. Gaita never says she is a bad mother even because of these things, he only reminds us she that she has problems and it is not her fault.Her attempted suicide story is used to make us feel sorry for her and pity because she has never been able to connect with anything, ‘alone, small, frailâ₠¬ ¦forsaken†, this accumulation of adjectives gives us a more descriptive picture of what was happening and how she felt. The narrative is in first person narrative and gives us a firsthand experience in what had happened. The memoir seems more real to us because it is real and therefore we can relate to it better and use it to better our lives. Though his language is more matter of fact at the beginning of the memoir, his eventual ascendance changes his language style so much that is clear that is a wiser and smarter Raimond speaking now. This higher intelligence lets us communicate with him better and so we can fully grasp what he is trying to tell us about belonging and how it is to get that true sense of belonging.

Role of Industrial Manager

The modern industrial manager is largely responsible for overlooking management operations at the workplace along with the management of people and technology. The role of the industrial manager is mainly personnel management initiatives for the employees as well as operational management and technology management through HR principles and knowledge management involving technological advances. Some of the theories that could be discussed in the context would be McGregor’s theory X-Y, Taylor and Fayol theories of management and how leadership skills of the manager could affect output and general performance of employees and the company. Role of manager: The focus here is on the role of the industrial manager, what he does and the tasks he is expected to perform. McGregor has formulated his X-Y theory by examining theories of individual behavior at work and his assumptions for theory X and theory Y vary considerably (McGregor, 2006). The theory X assumptions are that employees inherently dislike work and the managers feel that workers are in the job mainly because of the money. This sort of management style has inherent flaws as tight controls could go against the freedom of employees and will finally make people unproductive and resentful. The theory Y shows the management style marked by open-mindedness allowing individuals to work with their own responsibility. In this case, the manager believes that employees commit to their organizations through imagination, and creativity (McGregor, 2006; Weisbord, 2004). If the job is satisfying, individuals will more often commit to their organization which is always good from any HR perspective. Theory Y is often considered a positive set of assumptions for workers and reflects higher order needs. The other theories of management that could be used in practice would be Taylor’s scientific management theory that suggests that man is a rational economic animal concerned with his own economic gain and people tend to respond individually. Taylor’s theory suggests that people could be treated like machines and these principles suggest that high wages could be linked to motivation. However, considering humans as standardized machines would be like overlooking several individual differences and this would not be advantageous for any organization. Fayol’s theory emphasized on team dynamics and employee efforts in an organization (Fayol, 1988). Division of labor, authority and responsibility, discipline, unity of command and direction, emphasis on general interest, remuneration, centralization, line of authority, order, equity, stability of tenure, initiative etc are some of the features in Fayol’s theory that points out to a successful management system within an organization. Conclusion: In conclusion the role of the industrial manager is associated with bringing out a balance between people’s sense of responsibility and economic and other gains of the company. The theories used here suggest that the industrial manager is responsible for understanding individual needs of employees as also their opinions and sense of responsibility. Bibliography Fayol, Henri. (1988) General and industrial management /Â  Henry Fayol. Pitman McGregor, Douglas. (2006) The human side of enterprise /Â  Douglas McGregor, updated and with new commentary by Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld. New York ;Â  London :Â  McGraw-Hill, Weisbord, Marvin Ross. (2004) Productive workplaces revisited :Â  dignity, meaning, and community in the 21st century /Â  Marvin R. Weisbord. [2nd ed.]. San Francisco, Calif. :Â  Jossey-Bass ;Â  Chichester :Â  John Wiley

Emily Dickinson Poetry Essay Essay

There is a lot more to poetry than just the words themselves. â€Å"What William Shakespeare called, â€Å"the mind’s eye† also plays a role† (Borus34). What that means is that your experiences and thoughts will add to your understanding. Dickinson had an active mind and a style so unique and unusual with her writing. Something that was very unusual about her writing was that she never put a title to her poems. Just like many poets, she used a wide assortment of literary devices such as, metaphor, simile, alliteration, and symbolism. Unlike many writers of her time, Dickinson did not use conventional rhyme, capitalization, or punctuation† (Borus36). For example, she would put dashes not just at the end of a line, but also within the lines. Dickinson’s writing deals with all different aspects of life; love and death, time and eternity, and war. She treats these themes in a matter of her own, often with humor and playfulness, but most often than not, she is writing with seriousness and sensitivity. Emily Dickinson was born on December 10th, 1830, in the town on Amherst, Massachusetts. Amherst, 50 miles outside of Boston was becoming well known as a centre for education. â€Å"In 1830, was the time when railroads were beginning to crisscross the country, connecting places that were formerly unreachable; people thought of train travel the way we think of traveling to other planets† (Borus9). During this, the economy was based on agriculture, and most people were working as farmers. Emily, however, came from a family of scholars and lawyers. Her values and priorities were very high, due to the high expectations she was given by her grandfather Samuel Fowler Dickinson, a very religious, hard and steady worker she looked up to. The Dickinson family might not have been too well off and wealthy, but they were very well-known. Emily spent most of her earlier years enclosed in her house; it was very unlikely to see girls playing outside. In the 1800’s, there were many deadly diseases going around such as scarlet fever and whooping cough. There were many children dying from just minor cuts and scratches that were becoming infected. Just these simple things that don’t seem life or death today were defiantly deadly back then. Being the strong minded observer that Dickinson was, she would most often write about her feels with the things that were going on around her. Dickinson was very dedicated to her work in writing poetry, she took it very seriously; she strived in exploring to find poetry in every aspect of her day-to-day life. â€Å"The themes of life: love, spirituality, or the belief in something outside the physical world, and jealousy and despair, repeat themselves throughout her work† (Borus46). Dickinson was not always consistent in her views; her viewpoint seemed to change from poem to poem. There are always different beliefs or thoughts that people have on death; there might be fear or anxiety that people experience in thinking what afterlife might hold. In 1863, Emily Dickinson wrote the poem â€Å"I heard a Fly buzz – when I died-,† starting off the poem with this, gives the reader a rare glimpse of dying from the viewpoint of someone who is already dead† (Borus51). No matter what one thinks about life, death is always in the future. But, according to Emily, there is a continuing of life after death. This poem is written in the past tense about someone who has already died. â€Å"Emily Dickinson uses past and present tense words together, which indicate a transition between life and death† (Borus57). The poem is ironic and unique in the way that there is such a boring and eventless matter such as a buzzing fly at such a final moment of life, â€Å"And breaths were gathering firm†. An annoying buzzing fly in not the importance in ones last moments of death. Death is supposed to come across as a serious time in life. Dickinson first sets the scene in the third and fourth stanza, â€Å"The Stillness in the Air-/Between the Haves of Storm†. In the room, there was a silence. â€Å"The Eyes around- had wrung them dry-† (5). To who is suffering, the family is anxiously waiting for the news to come. For that last Onset-when the King/ Be witnessed-in the Room-† (7-8), â€Å"In the first part of this line, the author uses an oxymoron by stating â€Å"that last Onset†. Last means an â€Å"end,† while the definition of onset is a â€Å"beginning. â€Å"† (Borus57). Dickinson’s poems use a lot of symbols, things that represent other thi ngs. When the speaker describes â€Å"Onset- when the King Be witnessed- in the Room-,†(7-8). I feel like the king is being targeted as a symbol of God and death. This is showing connection that the narrator must have a strong belief in religion. This poem is full of sadness, with the narrator stating, â€Å"I Willed my Keepsakes† (9). â€Å"Making a will is the last and final way of ensuring the narrator’s previously-owned possessions staying with loved ones after death† (Borus62). Most people fear death, the tone of the narrator is merely one of sad acceptance† (Borus62). At the moment of the revealing of the narrators will, â€Å"There interposed a Fly-,† This is telling us that the fly is again interrupting (12). The fly seems to come across as a noisy fly. Why is it representing as a noisy fly? Why did the fly appear at the end of someone’s life and at their last breathe? The description of the fly changes in stanza thirteen as the narrator states, â€Å"With Blue- uncertain stumbling Buzz-,† thus explaining the fly is no ordinary house fly but a metaphorical figure representing death† (Johnson173). The blue buzz in being compared with noise, but a noise can’t be a color. I think that the narrator is interpreting in this comparison is that the sky is blue and it symbolizes the heavens. â€Å"Emily Dickinson’s poem â€Å"I heard a Fly buzz- when I died† is told by a narrator who uses past tense to describe the final moments of their life† (Johnson178). This poem was written to give the reader the inside looks to the final moments of life, but from the perspective of someone who has already had experience of death. The fly is very symbolic; it is representing the oncoming of death. Dickinson filled this poem up with a variety of metaphors and similes, such as the king being represented as god and death. Those whom going about living life without hope, carry a huge about of stress and worry for sure. Hope surely is the light in the opening of a dark tunnel. It is true that many people all over the world are in extremely hard situations, leading to horrifying conditions. When people are put into these situations and have to live with them, is hope the thing that things can change? When reading â€Å"Hope is a thing with feathers† by Emily Dickinson, this was a thought that came in mind. The content and idea that comes out of this poem is far from being simple, the idea of hope in â€Å"extremity†, and hope being â€Å"the chilliest land-, and on the strangest sea-,† (8-10) is an interesting way in viewing the world. It is very clear that Dickinson wrote this poem to create the mind to think outside the box and get a lot more out of it than just a simple piece of verse. The message that was obvious to me that Dickinson was trying to get across was that â€Å"whatever life throws at the individual, there is always the drove-like gleam of hope that sits within all of us that is stronger than us as a person that its voice can still be heard in the â€Å"gale† of the stormy times† (Borus42). Everyone goes through rough times in their life, and might hit a bump in the road every once in a while. But, no matter whom you are on earth, or where you come from, even if that might be from the â€Å"strangest sea†, yet you might abide, but there is no room for despair. In â€Å"Hope is a thing with feathers†, Dickinson describes that pain and hope come to all of us, â€Å"And sore must be the storm† (6). Hope is what keeps all human nature stubborn and keeps us fighting the things that life throws at us. A bird that â€Å"perches in the soul-,† (2) is a metaphor that Dickinson is using to show us that regardless of who you are, your gender, or where you come from, your race, there is always a soul within you, and everyone has a soul that is â€Å"keeping them warm† against the challenges that the storm in life is hitting them with. This poem is telling us that our soul â€Å"never stops-at all-,† (4). â€Å"It is something that is present within us that we take for granted and usually think little of, until that is we come across poetry like this to capture our attention† (Johnson92). This poem is very clear in telling that whatever life might bring us, and all the battles that we may face, hope will always win in the end.

The Arrangement of the Genes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Arrangement of the Genes - Essay Example The only thing keeping us safe from them is our immune system. Our innate immune system (e.g. skin, mucous membranes, sneezing, blinking, excretion of waste, etc.) is the first responder and is responsible for most of the pathogens we encounter everyday. For the uncommon pathogens, we rely on our adaptive immune system to quickly develop and combat new and rare pathogens that the innate immune system cannot handle. That aside, it also changes itself to be prepared for a repeated attack by the same organism. It is amazing to think about how many harmful organisms are repelled again and again by this system that continuously changes to keep us safe. Some of the key players in our adaptive immune system are our T cell antigen receptors (TCR). They are ‘highly variable antigen-recognition structures’1 whose job is to recognize antigens and activate the appropriate lymphocytes to combat them. Since the TCRs are antigen-MHC compound specific and insoluble at the same time, iso lating them was very difficult until scientists started using clonotypic monoclonal antibodies.2 With this method, they were able to determine that the TCRs were heterodimers of 2 sets of chain genes: the ?:? and the ?:? chains. The two have similar structures, but they detect different antigens. The ?:? is the most common (90-99%) while the ?:? is the minority (1-10%). 3 The former detects antigens presented with Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) while the latter doesn’t need MHC to detect certain antigens. The genetic structure of the TCR is similar to that of the immunoglobulins (Ig) in B cells. It is composed of Variable (V) and Constant (C) regions. The variable region contains Variable (V), Joining (J) and Diversity (D) segments depending on whether the chain is a light or heavy immunoglobulin (or an ? or ?, or a ? or ? chain for a TCR). In heavy immunoglobulin chains, VDJ gene segments join together randomly, while in the light chains (Lambda and Kappa), they only have V and J segments to join. Combinatorial association in B cells further increases variability by giving the ability to create ‘any one possible heavy chain and any one possible light chain’ in all individual B cells.4 Because of the large number of possible gene rearrangements, the structure of Ig or TCR genes is virtually unique for each B or T lymphocy te.5 Figure 1 T-cell receptor ?- and ?-chain gene rearrangement and expression6 Since T cells also have antigen receptors like the immunoglobulin, they also have a similar process of gene rearrangement and expression. In Figure 1, we can see an ?- and ?-chain rearranging and coming together to form a TCR. The ?-chain gene rearrangement is similar to the light chain because they do not have a D? to combine. The ?-chain is also similar to the heavy chain because it combines V?, D? and J? gene segments. The less common ?- and ?-chains are structurally similar to the TCR?- and ?-chains, but with a few changes. The ? chain is found inside the TCR? chain, between the V? and the J? gene segments. This arrangement causes a loss of ? chain whenever the TCR?-chain rearranges, since any segments in between V? and J? will be deleted. The ?-chain is similar to the TCR?-chain in that it has V, D, and J segments. The ?:? receptors are largely a mystery to scientists as of the moment.7 One of the f ew things determined to be true is the fact that they can detect non-classical major histocompatibility complex class I molecules T10 and T22.8 Combinatorial association further increases the variability, making it possible to have a unique genetic arrangement for every T cell receptor. Figure 2 The numbers of human T-cell receptor gene segments and the sources of T-cell

Reggae Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reggae Music - Essay Example During the run-up to the elections, he arranged concerts where Eccles’ performed politically loaded numbers. The other Reggae groups that were also supportive of Manley were Dennis Brown, the Chosen Few and The Wailers. Let’s take, for example, Eccles’s â€Å"Rod of Correction†. The title of the song is a reference to the staff given to Michael Manley, as a gift, by Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. The Emperor was highly revered across the black diasporas and more so in the Caribbean. The biblical symbolism is noted in how the rod commonly came to be known as â€Å"Joshua’s Rod†, whereby making Manley the Joshua – the personification of the â€Å"good† according to the Old Testament. And just as Joshua brought down the walls of Jericho and led the Jews to the land of Canaan, Manley was projected to lead his fellow countrymen to peace and prosperity. There are other symbolic references too. The parable of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the story of the crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites are the other references to the Old Testament. Manley is portrayed as Joshua (the Savior) and his incumbent opponent is taken as the Pharoah. Need less to say, such powerful biblical symbolism made a critical impact on the Jamaican society, which was highly religious, and made Michael Manley the Prime Minister. The people will later be disappointed with Manley and disillusioned of his promises of paradise are quite another story (Cooper 1996).

Implementation of ecotourism principles in Pembrokeshire Coastal Essay

Implementation of ecotourism principles in Pembrokeshire Coastal National Park . Success or failure- Conclusion and Abstract - Essay Example The principles of ecotourism as laid down by †¦ have been used as the basis of assessment and the non-compliance with any one of these principles is suggestive of failure. The rationale for the research lies in its interest to the wider community. PNCB in Wales was chosen because of its location and because of the suitability of Wales generally as an ecotourism destination. The collection of data was done by means of survey questionnaires which were done face to face, by telephone interviews and emailed questionnaire. The methodology was both qualitative and quantitative as both served to reinforce and strengthen the other. The findings revealed that even though the visitors to the park were impressed with the scenic beauty and would recommended it as an ecotourism site there were still shortcomings that needed to be addressed. PNCP which was used to test the principles was weak in a number of respects. The management was not able to control the traffic through the park as it is an open area. The full cooperation of the community with the NPA is necessary to facilitate the implementation of the principles of ecotourism. The decision to conserve energy and preserve the environment is currently left to the locals who do not place major importance on the issue at this time. Conclusions, Implications and Recommendations In concluding it is clear from the findings that there is no standard definition for ecotourism. However, the principles have provided sufficient guidelines to indicate that ecotourism principles have not been fully implemented at PNCP. The park is affected by increased tourist visitation with over 4.2 million visitors per year. This problem concurs with Weaver’s (2001) and Butler’s (1991) finding that increased tourist visitation is one of the most persistent problems facing parks and protected areas in the UK. The authorities are unable to control the entrance to the park because it is an open area. There is no real possibility of keeping anybody out. How do you limit the number of visitors in an open area? An additional problem faced in terms of minimising the negative impacts is the fact that ninety nine per cent (99%) of the park is in private hands. This problem may seem irresolvable. However, there is always a way. It simply means that the several owners would have to cooperate in order to facilitate the security of the park for it to implement this particular aspect of the principles of ecotourism. Establishing this principle is and will continue to be the real challenge for PNCP under the existing conditions. This principle, however, may not seem suitable based on the issues on the ground (Diamantis 2004). While people cannot be forced to practice preservation and conservation in terms of the use of energy, recycling and proper disposal of waste, educating them will take some time. It has to start in the schools and other institutions which can help in a positive way. Young children can teach their parents and older siblings a lot. They are the standard bearers of the future. The older folks are already set in their ways and may not think that these efforts will impact their well being in any major way. They are taken up with the daily problems in the economy. However, there are still ways that can be used to get them involved in energy conservation and preservation of the environment. The other major institutions such as the church and local clubs can be used as a means of getting the locals to comply with guidelines. They