Comparative Public Administration Essay

The Arab Spring has created opportunities for countries across North Africa and the Middle East to redesign their constitutions. There are ongoing debates on whether these countries will adopt the Anglo-American model or look at other paradigms. Political leaders and scholars have turned to a number of academic fields such cultural studies, sociology, economics, and political science in attempt to answers some of these questions. However, no other field of study will provide more insight into the development of these new government structures than comparative public administration (CPA). Simply put, it is the study of comparing two or more public administrations by using multiple disciplines. This definition, however, does not sufficiently describe the complexity of this field or its contributions to other academic areas, government employees, and country leaders. Perhaps the area in which CPA provides the most aid is in its cross-national analysis. Through this research, countries are able to learn from one another. CPA is not limited to cross-national comparison though as it evaluates different administrative processes and systems within countries. To fully appreciate CPA, however, it is necessary to understand how politics factors into it, its progression over the years, and its analysis towards delineating future challenges to public administration. Politics in CPA The study of comparative public administration challenges the notion that public administration and politics are separate entities. Specifically, it has recognized that bureaucrats, pressure groups, and elected officials are all political actors in the policymaking process. In Germany, for example, politics influence policy formation because the law requires public agencies to consult with interest groups before making legislation and regulations. In other countries like the United States, public administrators and pressure groups engage in clientela politics which are mutually dependent relationships. Agencies rely on interest groups not only to shape policies but also for their survival. The interest groups lobby politicians and gain public support in order to help the agencies compete for government resources. At the same time, pressure groups benefit by gaining access to the decision-making process where they are able to represent their interests (Peters, 2010, p. 182). Nations w ith a single dominant party, in contrast, use politics to develop parantela relationships. The Chinese Communist party, for example, works with the bureaucrats on behalf of the interest groups, thereby ensuring policies decisions do not steer away from the party’s ideology. CPA also researches politics between public administration and other formal institutions, and it investigates the political strategies each side uses to assert their power and control over policies and budgets. The bureaucrats, for example, have technical knowledge and information which they use to their advantage. In Norway, civil servants collect and analyze vast amounts of data to develop complex plans and budgets which politicians do not have skills or the time to understand. The overwhelmed political leaders have little choice but to accept the administration’s plans. Another useful device that civil servants use in Japan and France are advisory bodies. Although these advisory boards are attached to the ministries, the members are usually civil servants or interest group associates co nnected to the government agencies. Thus, the bureaucrats determine many of the final outcomes of policies (Peters, 2010, p. 219). Nevertheless, political institutions have their own devices to counter the bureaucrats. Political leaders create their own specialized institutions and counterstaffs to gain independent sources of information. The president of United States has the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to monitor public expenditures while the Congressional Budget Office oversees the national budget on the legislative side (Peters, 2010, p. 220-221). Executive leaders also hire their own experts such as the Executive Office of the United States and the Office of the Chancellor in Germany. Since civil servants’ positions are permanent, elected officials exert their policy goals through political appointees as in the United States, Belgium, and France. In Germany, however, the minister may directly replace the senior civil servants with their own personnel (Peters, 2010, p. 226). Changes in CPA Traditionally, the field of comparative public administration focused on â€Å"public administration† aspects such as the bureaucratic structures and systems. In recent years, academics have shifted to the theme of â€Å"public management† where CPA identifies best practices to enhance the performance of bureaucracy. The theory of â€Å"New Public Management† (NPM) emphasizes generic management and market-based principles. It favors loosening bureaucratic rules to allow more creativity and flexibility, thereby â€Å"letting the managers manage† (Peters, 2010, p. 329). Moreover, NPM encourages competition by privatizing government services. An alternative approach to NPM is the participatory concept of governing. The participatory model streamlines the hierarchy found in traditional administrative system by empowering the lower echelons of civil servants (Peters, 2010, p. 334). Government workers become more productive through involvement in policy decisions (Peters, 2010). Other managerial reforms have included performances measures on the managers themselves and on the organization as a whole. This new tactic focuses on â€Å"making managers manage† (Peters, 2010, p. 335). Since employment is typically permanent in most agencies, leaders recognize that this status have made some civil servants comfortable and unmotivated in their jobs. CPA evaluates different methods to measure employee performances and explores different strategies to encourage them to work, including a variety of rewards and punishments (Peters, 2010, p. 336). Organizational performance reviews are challenging since there are many factors outside the agencies control that impact its successes. CPA aids in this process by identifying the indicators of poor performances in organizations, while also taking into consideration the external influences (Peters, 2010, p.341). Notable Challenges to Public Administration The study of CPA emphasizes a comparative approach to identify new challenges that public administration will face in the 21st century. One such challenge will be the issue of accountability. As mentioned above, many countries have transferred public services to the private sector. However in their attempts to increase efficiency, they have lost accountability. Transparency and ethical standards are no longer guaranteed. In order to solve this dilemma, a restoration of some form of government control is necessary. The challenge will be to find new models that balance efficiency and accountability (Peters, 2010). Yet, the biggest challenge will be finding long-term economic solutions in the face of demographic changes. In many societies, the over-65 population is increasing more than twice as fast as the overall population (Peters, 2010, p.8). Unless policy changes are made, this demographic shift will create unsustainable public expenses leading to budgetary deficits which could compromise pension programs and health care systems. By comparing public policies, governments can analyze policy options and understand the implications of their choices. Some countries have already changed their pension plans by increasing the age of eligibility for retirement; however, they may soon have to make difficult decisions regarding austerity measures such as benefit cuts. Conclusion It is important to understand that CPA does more than recognizing similarities and differences. CPA provides descriptive analysis and theories that help advance government institutions, improve government performance, and expand policy options. Before CPA can achieve its purpose, politics must be recognized as an influential factor in the research. In every aspect, politics is involved in the governmental decision making processes, especially policymaking. CPA research explores alternative strategies to improve public management and helps anticipate future challenges. As new regimes are formed, the field of CPA will be a valuable source of information to aid leaders in the process of nation-building. In return, existing CPA theories will likely be changed and new theories emerge through the research of the new governments in the Middle East and other parts of the world. Reference Peters, B. G. (2010). The Politics of Bureaucracy: An Introduction to Comparative Public Administration (6th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.

Hidden Connections

[pic] EMMANUEL KWAME ANTWI ID: UD16761BBU24478 SEMINAR CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT I â€Å"D† THE HIDDEN CONNECTIONS (ESSAY) ATLANTIC INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY HONOLULU, HAWAII DECEMBER 17, 2011 INTRODUCTION The Hidden Connections is a book authored by Fritjof Capra. In this book,  Capra relates today’s dynamic and complex human life styles to the symbiotic lives of  different interrelated and interdependent organisms. Specifically, he is trying to apply the ideology of obscurity assumptions to the close scrutiny of the magnitude of the interactions and correlations of mankind. He states in the book that if we are to maintain a future life, we need to learn to respect the rules of nature, the rules and principles that nature has inevitably adapted to advance and sustain what he calls the web of life. This book  explains and clears just how much the hypothetical thoughts and scientific theories which are much ignored by most of the world that operates outside the margins of science can practically be applied to resolving most of the problems that threaten the existence of this planet. This book brings to light the interrelation and interconnections of science in relation to our  societal and social organizations which most of us are not aware. This can be the reason why he titled the book ‘The Hidden Connections’, it is because most of the world’s population is either unaware f this understanding, or may be just negligent of its reality. According to a presentation by Darian Schiffman (academics, AIU) quoting from Capra (2002 p. vvi), the book basically has two goals, which are; to bring forth a new understanding of life through the presentation of a conceptual framework that integrates life’s biological, cognitive as well as social dimensions; and t o offer a clear systematic approach to some pertaining questions we have that negatively and aversively affect our world. This study purposes to critically analyze the message in this book, to look at every aspect of  human life that it addresses, I believe Capra himself being a physicist of prominence and an award winner in the science department, importantly with enough time, examined and fully dissected the theoretical scientific principles in every possible way and in their applicable nature, that in the end saw the connectivity of these scientific articulations to our own social lives today. At the same time, he saw in the most significant way the effect the things that we do as humans are going to later affect us if we do not change the organizational principles that govern and direct our lives today. The   book also   touches   almost   all   the   significant   aspects   of human   life   and   boldly substantiates just how each of these aspects affects the other if not well maintained. Generally, the book brings the world to understanding the extremes of destruction our current principles have on nature, making future life almost unimaginable. In the same vein, the book proposes the possible amicable measures that we can take to preserve our world, especially world leaders and world environmental organizations. For long the world has being striving towards globalization, this book addresses both the challenges and dangers of such a motive, addressing the complications of biotechnology and its nature. The book simply brings together the scientific world and our own social world, and pragmatically defining these worlds’ relationship and probable dependence. THE HIDDEN CONNECTIONS (THE BODY) The Nature of Life: Mostly, this would direct a person to the question â€Å"what s life? † a question which will clearly trigger an outburst of mental assumptions some driven by general thought, and some oriented by experience. An encyclopedic thesaurus Word Web, life is defined as being the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities, or  the course of existence of an individual; the actions and events that occur in living. This may sound quite simple and brief, but Capra looks at it in quite broader perspective, and defines it in even more detailed way, pin-pointing specific aspects that make up the definition of life. Capra explains in some way that no man or organism is total island, in one way or another  every organism depends on other organisms, no wonder I personally a ‘symbiotic’ kind of  relation where one organism of a different specie cannot live without the other, the interdependence of organisms where each organism benefits from the other. The practical of  such relationship is that of plants and animals, animals basically cannot make their own food so they depend on the photosynthetic process of plants, through which plants make food, at the same time releasing oxygen which animals do need forth the process of respiration. Maturana and Varela (1980) quoted by Capra (2002), in their definition of life came up with the concept of ‘autopoiesis’ which factually mean â€Å"self-making†, this concept particularly amalgamates   two defining characteristics or aspects of cellular life which are the physical boundary and the metabolic network; and in contrast to the surfaces of crystals or large molecules, the boundary of an autopoietic system is chemically distinct from the rest of the system and it participates in metabolic processes by assembling itself and by selectively filtering incoming and outgoing molecules. Therefore, the definition of a living system as an autopoietic network means that the phenomenon of life has to be understood as a property of  the system as a whole, just as much as Pier Luigi (2008) mentions that life cannot be attributed to any single molecular component, not even to the DNA or RNA but only to the entire bounded metabolic network. ‘Autopoiesis provides a clear and powerful criterion for distinguishing between living and nonliving systems. For example, it tells us that viruses re not alive, because they lack their  own metabolism. Outside living cells, viruses are inert molecular structures consisting of  proteins and nucleic acids. A virus is essentially a chemical message that needs the metabolism of a living host cell to produce new virus particles, according to the instructions encoded in its DNA or RNA. The new particles are not built within the boundary of the virus itself, but outside in the host cell,’ Capra (2002). So, the autopoiesis th eory strongly supports and founds the Santiago theory in some way. It explains and provides answers to many other  questions that surround the issue life and its natural defining features and traits, it can as well symbiotic relationships, organizations, and social networks of organisms. During the process of respiration, animals release carbon dioxide which plants need for the process of photosynthesis, so plants need animals for the carbon dioxide, and plants animals need plants for the oxygen. We (animals) primarily need each other to survive. God created a world that nourishes, restores, and preserves itself it were not for human activities that have degraded to total ruin, for example, a livestock farmer lets his/her livestock feed on the pasture, as they graze, they drop dung on the pastures which will in the next rain season dissolve to nourish the soil as fertilizer, promoting an even better outgrowth of  pasture, therefore the soil nourishment depends on the livestock, and the nourishment of the livestock depends on the soil. Capra looks at life as not being solely determined by the inherent design but views it as an evolving process that engages a complete epigenetic network or external factors, making it continuously responding to both physical and chemical constrictions we exert on our environment. There is one common character that all living organisms share and this is unquestionable. They all have cells, be it animals, people, plants, or microorganisms such as bacteria, virus or  fungi, all of them have cells that build up to give a structure. Despite transitions and extreme conditions, the genetic blueprint of organisms has so far stayed intact in most cases, some have succumbed to the inevitability of evolution, but some have been the same for thousands of years and the dependence upon another species of organisms have been carried on and on. In his definition of life, Capra (2002:6) uses the bacterial cell to clearly delineate what life is all about, he states that when a cell is viewed under a microscope one can easily notice that inside it a metabolic processes that uses special macromolecules consisting of elongated chains of atoms, and two of such macromolecules are common in all living cells, and these are proteins and the nucleic acid (the Deoxyribonucleic Acid-DNA and the Ribonucleic Acid-RNA). Basically, there are two kinds of proteins as well; the enzymes act catalysts for most metabolic processes, where as the structural proteins form part of the cell structure. The DNA and the RNA within the cell work hand-in-hand determining that crucial bond defining the cell’s genetic and metabolic features. The Santiago Theory: Maturana and Varela (1980:13) in theoretical definition of the Santiago theory say all living systems are cognitive systems, and that living as a process is itself a process of cognition, and the two further cement that ‘this statement is valid for all organisms in spite of whether such organism got a nervous system or not. Initially in the world of philosophy Rene Descartes (1596-1650) emphasized the Cartesian View which promotes dualism as follows which suggests that the body operates like some kind of  machine, having material properties of extension and motion, that it operates within the doctrines of physics; and further articulates that the mind and soul on the other is kind of none-material, making it a unit without extension and motion, and follows not the rules of physics. Descartes stressed that it is only the human beings that have minds, and that the mind acts together with the body at the pineal gland, a tiny pine-like endocrine gland located close to the central part of the brain which produces melatonin, a hormone responsible for regulating the patterns of sleeping or waking up as well as other seasonal functions. This understanding generally relates that it is the mind that basically and pragmatically controls the entire, and that at the same time the body can as well manipulate the reasoning of the mind, especially in cases where a person acts out of an emotional intuition. This theory looks at cognition as a component quite indispensable in the issues of systems, it practically implies that almost every activity that takes place or transpires in the system processes require cognition, which Capra stipulates as taking place in phases as follows, ‘Cognition, is not a representation of an independently existing world, but rather a continual bringing forth of a world through the process of living. The interactions of a living system with its environment are cognitive interactions, and the process of living itself is a process of  cognition. In the words of Maturana and Varela, â€Å"to live is to know†. As a living organism goes through its individual pathway of structural changes, each of these changes corresponds to a cognitive act, which means that learning and development are merely two sides of the same coin. The first type, known as â€Å"primary consciousness,† arises when cognitive processes are accompanied by basic perceptual, sensory and emotional experience. Primary consciousness is probably experienced by most mammals and perhaps by some birds and other vertebrates. The second type of consciousness, sometimes called â€Å"higher-order consciousness,† involves self-awareness—a concept of self, held by a thinking and reflecting subject. This experience of self-awareness emerged during the evolution of the great apes, or  Ã¢â‚¬Å"hominids,† together with language, conceptual thought and all the other characteristics that fully unfolded in human consciousness. Because of the critical role of reflection in this higher-order conscious experience, I shall call it â€Å"reflective consciousness. Reflective consciousness involves a level of cognitive abstraction that includes the ability to hold mental images, which allows us to formulate values, beliefs, goals and strategies. This evolutionary stage is of central relevance to the main theme of this book—the extension of the new understanding of life to the social domain— because with the evolution of language arose not only the inner world of concepts and ideas, but a lso the social world of organized relationships’ Capra (2002:38-39). According to Capra (2002:34) ‘the central insight of the Santiago Theory is the identification of cognition, the process of knowing, with the process of life. Cognition, according to Maturana and Varela (1980), is the activity involved in the self-generation and self-perpetuation of living networks. In other words, cognition is the very process of life. The organizing activity of living systems, at all levels of life, is mental activity. The interactions of   a   living   organism—plant,   animal   or   human—with   its   environment   are   cognitive interactions. Thus, life and cognition are inseparably connected. Mind—or, more accurately, mental activity—is immanent in matter at all levels of life. ’ This to me sounds more prudent and quite rational in comparison to the other perceptions, in opposition to Rene’s theories the Santiago Theory is more clearer and comprehensible even for low class students, it brings to life the real life situation that we all experience everyday, it makes one see the connection and dependability of organisms upon other organisms, taking into perspective, the biotic and abiotic factors on nature. According to the online encyclopedia (Wikipedia, 2010) Descartes believed that this special gland was the ‘seat of the soul’ an understanding he purported with many reasons stated respectively as follows; firstly, he understood that the soul is unitary or one and this to him meant the pineal gland was an entity despite it being proven hemispherical; second to this he discovered that this gland was positioned near the ventricles making him believe the cerebrospinal fluid worked through the nerves to control the body, as well as regulating the processes manipulated by the pineal gland. and finally Descartes despite figuring-out that both human beings and animals had the pineal gland he still resolved that only humans had minds advancing in his mind the idea that animals cannot feel pain or are insensitive to pain. Unfortunately the Cartesian view gets questioned and in the process challenged by the Santiago Theory which takes a totally different stand from the philosophy o f Descartes. The Santiago Theory vehemently recognizes the reality of cognition, normally defined as the ability or the process of knowing, or the activity involved in self-generation and self-perpetuation of living systems, entailing that cognition is actually the life itself, Maturana &Varela (1980). The Santiago theory moves away from Descartes’ view of life and instead studies the mind from a systematic understanding and has so far given to the interdisciplinary field of Cognitive Science; and according to Capra (2002:34), this theory holds the ‘Organizing activity of all living systems at all levels of life, is actually mental activity’. Therefore, the old perception of the mind as a ‘thinking thing’ has progressed into a view of  the mind as being a process where the ‘entire structure of the organism participates’ Capra (2002:37). Many other views have so far been brought forth to oppose Descartes view, but the Santiago Theory has so far been the first scientific hypothesis that has really questioned and practically overcame the Cartesian dissection of mind and matter, and from the optimistic point of view, this theory is believed to have far-reaching implications. Generally, this theory has brought the mind and body/matter together viewed as two harmonizing and complementary aspects defining the phenomenon of life. So far, the theory has already brought substantial knowledge and understanding concerning the beginning with a simple micro cell, the mind, the matter, the process and the structure at all levels which have so far proven to be inseparable and interdependent in one way or another, this unites the mind, matter and life. In the Santiago theory (Capra, 2002:34-36) it is clearly stated that as ‘a living organism responds to environmental influences with structural changes, these changes will in turn alter  its future behavior. In other words, a structurally coupled system is a learning system. Continual structural changes in response to the environment—and consequently continuing adaptation, learning and development—are key characteristics of the behavior of all living beings. Because of its structural coupling, we can call the behavior of an animal intelligent, but would not apply that term to the behavior of a rock. As it keeps interacting with its environment, a living organism will undergo a sequence of structural changes, and over time it will form its own individual pathway of structural coupling. At any point on this pathway, the structure of the organism is a record of previous structural changes. The Santiago theory advances the issue of higher order consciousness or ‘reflective consciousness which involves a level of cognitive abstraction that includes the ability to hold mental images’ Capra (2002:39). This inevitable capability gives human beings the repertoire to create a value system and act cordially. In the simplest of perception, this theory drives us take a person’s subjective and prejudiced experience into some version which has been conventionally ignored by science. The Santiago specifically states that mind is no thing rather a process operating through the brain relating that brain and mind is actually one between process and structure. It is also of some degree of importance to note that this eradicates the idea that the brain is the only compartment involved in the process of  cognition, clearly illustrating the fact that in all vertebrate organisms the immune system is actually a complicated network of unrelenting interconnectedness, just as much as the nervous system serving similarly the vital co-ordination purpose. According   to   the   Wikipedia   (2010)   on   the   Santiago   theory,   cognition   appears   as   a consequence of continual interaction between the system and its environment, delineating that the   continuous   interactions   between   system   and   the   environment   triggers   two-sided disturbances viewed as problems forcing the system to use its functional specialization routine to find solutions to the perturbations. It is of importance to note in this theory that the system slowly adapts to its environment positioning itself to face-up to the disturbances or  intrusion in order to sustain survival. This therefore means the resulting complexity  complicatedness of living systems is cognition emanating from the bilateral perturbations in the system/environment outline. The theory is really making the scientific world dig deep into these discoveries, eradicating misunderstandings and doubts, setting up the facts straight from experimental experience and observations. Extending the System Approach: Capra, resorts that the systematic understanding of life practically allows the world to see and comprehend the fundamental unity to life, that different living systems exhibit similar patterns of organization, Capra (2002:81),. This understanding can practically be applied to our communities, and the impact will definitely be significant. The defining blueprint of the systems is quite complicated, but can be understood, Capra (2002:81), when we extend this understanding and nowledge, applying it to the social domain we actually apply our ‘knowledge of life’s basic patterns and delineating principles of  organization, and specifically apply our understanding of living networks to social/societal reality’. The living networks in our social communities work just like the brain in its environment; the two diverse situations easily match and model each other. Capra views his extension of the systems approach to the social domain as exp licitly including the material world, which is quite unusual since traditionally social scientists were not interested in the world of matter. He basically mentions that ‘our academic disciplines have been organized in such a way that the natural sciences deal with social structures, which are perceived to be especially the rules of behavior; stating that in the near future this strict division will no longer be possible since the key challenge of this new century for social scientists, natural scientists and everyone else will be to build ecologically sustainable communities, designed in such a way that their technologies and social institutions, their  material and social structure do not interfere with nature’s hereditary ability to sustain life;†¦the design principles of our future social institutions must be consistent with the principles of  organization that nature has evolved to sustain the web of life. A unified conceptual framework for the understanding of material and social structures will be essential this task’ Capra (2002:19). The Social Network: In every society or community there must be a distinctive social kind of  network and on the issue of this kind of network Capra states that social networks use communication, which normally takes place in multiple feedback loops, as some measure to reproduce itself and its culture, and thus its value and belief. This actually addresses social reality. Capra mentions that wherever there is social organization there is power courtesy of  the inevitable conflicts of interest, and it is in these situations where ‘power plays a central role in the emergence of social structure’ which happens to provide people with rules or  principles of behavior, Capra (2002:90). Normally the ‘social networks generate material structures buildings, roads, technologies, etc, which become structural components of the network; and they also produce material goods and artifacts that are exchanged between the network’s nodes. However, the production of material structures in social networks is quite different from that in biological and ecological networks. ‘The structures are created for a purpose, according to some design, and they embody some meaning; and to understand the activities of social systems, it is crucial to study them from that perspective†¦perspective of meaning includes a multitude of interrelated characteristics that are essential to understanding social reality. Meaning itself is a systemic phenomenon: it always has to do with context. Webster's Dictionary defines meaning as â€Å"an idea conveyed to the mind that requires or allows of interpretation,† and interpretation as â€Å"conceiving in the light of individual belief, judgment, or circumstance. In other words, we interpret something by putting it into a particular context of concepts, values, beliefs, or circumstances. To understand the meaning of anything we need to relate it to other things in its environment , in its past, or in its future. Nothing is meaningful in itself’ Capra (2002:83-84). According to Wenger (2006), organisms in an environment develop a common practice which characterizes the shared manner of how things are executed and relate to each other, a reality that allows such organisms to attain their unifying course, and in most cases after a while such practice turns to be a significant bond within the participants. This book clearly depicts from its author that when we try to extend this new understanding of life to the social domain, we immediately come up against a bewildering multitude of phenomena, rules of behavior, values, intentions, goals, strategies, designs, power relations that play no role in most of then on-human world but are essential to human social life, however though, these different characteristics of social reality all share a basic common feature that provides a natural link to the systems view of life developed in the other chapters of the book, Capra (2002:73). Normally this is how social networks come into being, and such communities have special aspects in common such as; that impeccable looking common understanding, the general involvement of the community members, the regular round of activities that the members become   accustomed   encompassing   the   accepted   rules   of   behavior,   attitude   and comprehension which are normally sustained in due course, Wenger (2008). It such attributes that end up becoming differentiating principles of a community, despite emanating from the ordinary; they primarily become the identifying traits for a specific community. From the most general of perspectives, the social networks of mankind are defined by minor  and major aspects that maintain and sustain the network, and the connectivity in the entire metaphor, the same critically resembles the systems in the human beings and most other  organisms. In any typical social network there are strict outlines that define and regulate behavior and attitudes a practice that results in the creation of ethics and norms that different societies resort to consider for societal order. Capra states that ‘at all scales of nature, we find living systems nesting within other living systems, networks within   networks. Their  boundaries are not boundaries of separation but boundaries of identity. All living systems communicate with one another and share resources across their boundaries’. This clearly shows the possibility of social networks in another living web of networks interacting just as normal. Organization and Change: In most cases where an effort to bring change has been made and proven to be futile due to feeling and assumption that people resisted the intended change, the general conclusion made is the people resisted is refused to buy into the introduced change, be it for their good and benefit. Capra defiles and contradicts this idea and calls it false, stating that people only resist having change if such change is not negotiable meaning if such change is simply imposed on them, normally societies or communities would appreciate and support change if their input on the idea is sort. It makes them feel part of that change, and part of a social community that operates systematically. When we transfer on the metaphor of  an organization from machine to the living systems we actually begin to view organizations as communities with collective identities that share common values. During an interview by Barbara Vogl (2010) with Capra mentioned in answer to he question concerning self-organization in our individual lives and organizations could be useful in helping us see how to get through the anxiety in our period of transition and passing into the  new paradigm thinking, he replied and said ‘Well I think self-organization and the newer  understanding of life and com plexity, when it is applied to the social realm and human organizations, can help people to find their authenticity as human beings The old paradigm model is a mechanistic model where people are seen as parts of a big machine and the machine is designed by experts who either sit at the top of the organization or are brought in from outside as consultants. Then this design of new structures is imposed upon the people who work in the organization and they are pigeon-holed in certain departments with well-defined boundaries. So the underlying model is that of a machine working very smoothly. What self-organization tells you, among many other things, is that creativity is an inherent property of all living systems. All living systems are creative because they have the ability to reach out and create something new. In the last 20-25 years we have begun to understand the dynamics of this creativity, in terms of emergence of new structures and in terms of  instability, bifurcation points, and the spontaneous emergence of order. This is the underlying dynamics of creativity at all levels of life. When people understand this they will realize that human individuals as well as groups of individuals are inherently creative. So when you have an organization and you want to design a new structure and you bring in outside experts and then impose this structure on the organization you have to spend a lot of energy and money to sell the idea to the employees and the manager. Since human beings are inherently creative they will not accept the idea as it is. Since this will deny their humanity. Therefore, you can give them orders and they will nominally adhere to the orders but they will circumvent the orders; they will re-invent the orders and will modify it, either boycott it or embellish it, adding their own interpretation’. This to me implies the fact that for anything to be of some level of importance and value to the people, the people need to understand it first, have some insight on its implications, put on balance the advantages and the disadvantages, enabling them to be able to define the situation in its true context. Organizations or companies with collective identities do exist in sharp contrast to the ‘economical company, whose priorities are determined by the purely economic criteria Capra (2002:105). In further expatiation of this situation Capra states that ‘organizations cannot be controlled through direct interventions, but can be influenced by giving impulses rather than instructions, Capra (2002:112). In most cases interventions end up causing tension and stampedes in communities, but impulses which are normally conditioning can gradually bring about the desired change. Capra continues to point out that it is the meaningful disturbances that normally trigger structural changes within an organization, instead of force Capra(2002:112). The general deduction is that if you intend to bring about change, it is best that you involve the people as the subject of that change, for such change will directly affect them so they should be consulted about the change before it is applied, so if you involve people in the creation of change, then definitely change will be come. Organization in an economy: Organization plays a major role in shaping the economy of  our social communities and the world at large. The Hidden connections discuses the most probing issues in the world today, starting with politics, sociology, education, ethics, philosophy and design, and the book’s main theme is change in these important aspects of our  lives. In an interview with Ecotecture (2002) addressing the issue of economy, Capra states that he calls for change of values, a change of politics, a change of attitudes, with the general goal of building a sustainable society and the future that is sustainable, and believable for our  children, and further explained as an example that ‘in order to change the economy in such away that it becomes sustainable, one needs to understand the world economy, which today is a network of computers, a network of flows of money and information and power that extends globally. So we need to understand how we can introduce a different set of values into the global economy. ’ He extends that ‘in order to do that, we need to understand the relationship between living networks and values and human choices and politics. So it needs certain kind of philosophy and†¦spiritual stance/background, but it also needs the scientific understanding. ‘He clearly stipulates that in addit ion to being living communities, organizations are as ‘social institutions   designed   for   specific   purposes   and   functioning   in   a   specific   economic environment’ Capra (2002:125). Economic Globalization: Global economics has been under promotion for two decades now, all in effort to encourage standardization in the rules that regulate and control international trading. Globalization literary refers to the process of making something gain global and internal recognition and acceptance, a transformational process of turn simple local or  national rule or principle into an international law, or understanding. It is a process by which people of the world are fused together into a distinct society that share a common understanding and work as an entity; it enjoins the economical, technological, and socio-cultural together with the political authorities of this world, Croucher (2004:10). Upon this Jagdish (2004) substantiates further that globalization is quite often used to imply economic globalization which means the integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration, and the spreading of technology internationally. In chapter seven of the Hidden Connections Capra (2003) further explained and brought more light on the definition of economic globalization in the following statement during the conference; â€Å"During the past three decades, the information technology revolution has given rise to a new type of capitalism that is profoundly different from the one formed during the Industrial Revolution, or the one that emerged after the Second World War. It is characterized by three fundamental features. Its core economic activities are global; the main sources of productivity and competitiveness are innovation, knowledge generation, and information processing; and it is structured largely around networks of financial flows. This new global capitalism is also referred to as â€Å"the new economy,† or simply as â€Å"globalization. †   In the new economy, capital works in real time, moving rapidly through global financial networks. From these networks it is invested in all kinds of economic activity, and most of what is extracted as profit is channeled back into the meta-network of financial flows. Sophisticated information and communication technologies enable financial capital to move rapidly from one option to another in a relentless global search for investment opportunities. The movements of this electronically operated global casino do not follow any market logic. The markets are continually manipulated and transformed by computer-enacted investment strategies, subjective perceptions of influential analysts, political events in any part of the world, and most significantly by unsuspected turbulences caused by the complex interactions of capital flows in this highly nonlinear system†. However, Capra (2002) further extends that in order for the global economic automatization process called ‘automaton’ to properly work it has to be programmed by human actors and institutions giving rise to the new economy comprising of two crucial components, which are values and operational rules. Capra does not hide the fact that these automated global financial network processions do ‘†¦assign specific financial value to every asset in every economy’, he clears that this is no perfect measure though, because ‘it involves economic calculations based on advanced mathematical models, information and opinions provided by market valuation firms, financial gurus, leading central bankers, and other  influential analysts, as well as unregulated information turbulences’; which mean that ‘the tradable financial of any asset subject to continual adjustments is an emergent property of the automaton’s highly nonlinear dynamics. However, underlying all evaluations is the basic principle of unfettered capitalism: that money-making should always be valued higher than democracy, human rights, environmental protection or any other value†¦ in the process entirely changing the principle’. Basically, the World Trade Organization (WTO) was initiated the mid-1990s to watch over and determine economic globalization; so far politicians and business leaders promised that economic globalization would benefit all the people in all countries worldwide through the process of  free trade, but instead of really sticking by this promise the organization has been responsible for a ‘multitude of interconnected fatal consequences’ Capra (2002:129), that are affecting especially developing countries, that are still in their developing stage in most aspects; which brings me to the next question that Capra addresses in this book, and that is the consequences of economic globalization. Every decision one takes despite the level at which the decision is taken there will always be advantages and disadvantages, benefits and consequences and the process of economic globalization has not been an exclusion from this natural phenomenon, in this case most of  the powerful and controlling nations are benefiting the most, and the some nations are really suffering from the entire operation. According to Capra (2003), ‘The impact of the new economy on human well-being has been mostly negative. It has enriched global elite of  financial speculators, entrepreneurs, and high-tech professionals. At the very top, there has been an unprecedented accumulation of wealth, and global capitalism has also benefited some national economies, especially in Asian countries. But overall its social and environmental consequences have been disastrous. The rise of global capitalism has been accompanied by rising social inequality and polarization, both internationally and within countries. In particular, poverty and social inequality have increased through the process of social exclusion, which is a direct consequence of the new economy’s network structure. As the flows of capital and information interlink worldwide networks, they exclude from these networks all populations and territories that are of no value or interest to their search for financial gain. As a result, certain segments of societies, areas of cities, regions, and even entire countries become economically irrelevant. Thus, a new impoverished segment of humanity has emerged around the world as a direct consequence of globalization. It comprises large areas of the globe, including much of Sub-Saharan Africa and rural areas of Asia and Latin America. But the new geography of social exclusion also includes portions of every country and every city in the world’. Capra (2003) further explains that ‘According to the doctrine of economic globalization known   as   Ã¢â‚¬Å"neo-liberalism,†   the   free-trade   agreements   imposed   by   the   World   Trade Organization (WTO) on its member countries will increase global trade; this will create a global economic expansion; and global economic growth will decrease poverty, because its benefits will eventually â€Å"trickle down† to all. This reasoning is fundamentally flawed. Global capitalism does not alleviate poverty and social exclusion; on the contrary, it exacerbates them. Neo-liberalism has been blind to this effect because corporate economists’ have traditionally excluded the social costs of economic activity from their models. Similarly, most conventional economists have ignored the new economy’s environmental cost — the increase and acceleration of global environmental destruction, which is as severe, if not more so, than its social impact. One of the tenets of neo-liberalism is that poor countries should concentrate on producing a few special goods for export in order to obtain foreign exchange, and should import most other commodities. This emphasis on export has led to the rapid depletion of the natural resources required to produce export crops in country after country — diversion of freshwater from vital rice paddies to prawn farms; a focus on water-intensive crops, such as sugar  cane, that result in dried-up river beds; conversion of good agricultural land into cash-crop plantations; and forced migration of large numbers of farmers from their lands. All over the world   there   are   countless   examples   of   how   economic   globalization   is   worsening environmental   destruction;   and since money-making   is the dominant   value of global capitalism, its representatives seek to eliminate environmental regulations under the guise of  Ã¢â‚¬Å"free trade† wherever they can, lest these regulations interfere with profits. Thus, the new economy causes environmental destruction not only by increasing the impact of  its operations on the world’s ecosystems, but also by eliminating national environmental laws in country after country. In other words, environmental destruction is not only a side effect, but is also an integral part of the design of global capitalism’ Capra (2003). One can clearly see that in scientific perspective the world is not really benefiting from the issue of economic globalization considering the number of consequences the whole program brings and foretells for the future in relation to the benefits, personally I see more disadvantages and more consequences accumulated in the entire operation coming in the name of money making and development. The worst part of this whole motion is that its future impact on the natural vegetation of the world is really unpleasant, trees are being cut out in the name of development, and minerals are being extremely extracted at rate that the replenishment process is by many times left behind, fumes and harmful gases from factories and industries are being emitted in the atmosphere, marine resources have been exploited without the really consideration of the impact such activities may have o the world environment in the near future, or the impact on the biodiversity of lives in different habitats on the planet. So far the principles of ecology are not so difficult to comprehend and follow, Capra (2002) simplifies them as follows; Networks: As we have already seen in this essay the unrelenting networking of organisms, networks within networks. We also saw just how living systems communicate with one another and share resources even beyond the margins of their reach. Cycles: This must be gener al knowledge at this time in life, we generally should accept the reality that all living organisms feed on continual flows of matter and energy within their  environment to sustain life, and acknowledge the reality that all organisms produce waste. It is also of greater to note that the ecosystem itself does not produce any waste because one organism’s waste happens to be the next specie’s food, so in the end nothing really goes to waste, almost everything is useful in one way or another making matter cycle continually through the web of life. Solar energy: We all need sunlight, both plants and people. Sunlight is the common source of  vitamin D for animals, and green plants transform sunlight to chemical energy by the process of photosynthesis, making plants the ultimate source of food for both animals and human beings on the entire planet, running the ecological cycle accordingly. Partnership: It is of greater importance to note that the exchanges of energy nd resources in an ecosystem get sustained through pervasive co-operation, stating the verity that life came by co-operation, partnership and networking. Diversity: Under this aspect Capra mentions that ecosystems achieve stability and resilience through th e richness and complexity their ecological webs, and the greater the biodiversity, the more the resilience and buoyancy. These clearly show just how nature adapts and adjusts to its natural environment or any other factors that triggers reactions of the organisms. Dynamic Balance: Ecosystem is no stationery realms; they are actually flexible and ever  fluctuating, and its flexibility come as consequence of multiple feedback loops that keep the system in the state of dynamic balance. Therefore all ecosystem variables fluctuate around their optimal values. If only we stick by these principles, and do everything in careful consideration of the involved dangers we would really be on the right path by now. So far our ignorance and negligence is slowly making us pay through what we choose to call ‘natural catastrophes’ when in reality these are no more natural calamities but rather man-made, our activities are making our world prone to harm. I really wouldn’t say we do this unknowingly considering the level of both the general, social and scientific knowledge of the world at this moment. Everybody is educated today making it quite easier for any transmission of information. The people in the science departments of the world fully understand the consequences of the activities they invent and institute in the name of science and invention. This is what makes Eco-literacy and eco-design subjects of concern to the future-concerned citizens of this planet, for if we get the people to understand this reality the situation may improve towards a positive and conducive future. The Role of NGOs: Everybody that is an inhabitant of this planet is practically and directly involved in either destroying it or restoring it. In one way or another we all contribute to this paradoxical situation, each one of us fall into one of these categories, and this include the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). The encyclopedic online dictionary Wikipedia, 2010) defines NGOs as follows, ‘A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a legally constituted organization created by natural or  legal lessons that operates independently from any government and a term usually used b y governments to refer to entities that have no government   status. In   the   cases   in   which   NGOs   are   funded   totally   or   partially   by governments, the NGO maintains its non-governmental status by excluding government representatives from membership in the organization. The term is usually applied only to organizations that pursue some wider  social aim that has political aspects, but that are not overtly political organizations such as political parties. Unlike the term â€Å"inter-governmental organization†, the term â€Å"non-governmental organization† has no generally agreed legal definition. In many jurisdictions, these types of organization are called â€Å"civil society organizations† or referred to by other names’. These   organizations   are   operated   separately   from   governments;   they   are   stand-alone organizations that globally strive for the betterment of the ordinary or common people world-wide. There are so far both local/national and international Non-Governmental Organization in the entire world established for a diversity of activities, as they see fit, sometimes according to local, national, international or even global needs; they can either be charitable orientation; service orientation; participatory orientation; or empowering orientation type, and are always non-profit making organizations. These organizations’ primary aim is to help promote and encourage collaborations, relationships or partnerships between NGOs in all countries throughout the world, so that together and as an entity we can more effectively cohort with the United Nations (UN) and each other so that we are able to create a more peaceful, serene, just, equitable and sustainable world for our generation as well as for the upcoming future generations. According to Capra (2002) ‘At the turn of this century, an impressive global coalition of  nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), many of them led by men and women with deep personal roots in the sixties, formed around the core values of human dignity and ecological sustainability. In 1999, hundreds of these grassroots organizations interlinked electronically for several months to prepare for joint protest actions at the meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle. The â€Å"Seattle Coalition,† as it is now called, was extrem ely successful in derailing the WTO meeting and in making its views known to the world. Its concerted actions have permanently changed the political climate around the issue of  economic globalization’†¦ and furthers that ‘At the second of these meetings, the NGOs proposed a whole set of alternative trade policies, including concrete and radical proposals for  restructuring global financial institutions, which would profoundly change the nature of  globalization’. So far ‘the global justice movement exemplifies a new kind of political movement that is typical of our Information Age. Because of their skillful use of the Internet, the NGOs in the coalition are able to network with each other, share information, and mobilize their members with unprecedented speed. As a result, the new global NGOs have emerged as effective political actors who are independent of traditional national or international institutions. They constitute a new kind of global civil society. This new form of alternative global community, sharing core values and making extensive use of electronic networks in addition to frequent human contacts, is one of the most important legacies of the sixties; and if it succeeds in reshaping economic globalization so as to make it compatible with the values of human dignity and ecological sustainability,’†¦during the sixties the most important and enduring legacy of that the world community developed has been the creation and subsequent flourishing of a global alternative culture that shares a set of core values. Although many of  these values e. g. environmentalism, feminism, gay rights, global justice — were shaped by cultural movements in the seventies, eighties, and nineties, their essential core was first expressed by the sixties' counterculture. Therefore, many of today's senior progressive political activists, writers, and community leaders trace the roots of their original inspiration back to the sixties’ Capra (2002). This is basically the much the NGOs strives to do, to restore the world to its naturally vegetative state, to help the poor and the needy, and hope to help those ravaged by natural catastrophes such as flooding, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, famines and many other calamitous situations. Many countries that struggle economically or affected by any kind of difficulties have benefited from these non-governmental organizations in many ways such as in food relief programs, volunteer teachers from a diversity of developed countries, financially sponsorships, and further educational sponsorships, and many other  ways. Bunge (2002:233) mentions that the rational first step at the moment is to wade towards sustainability, and the second step being the one that involves Eco-design where ‘we need to apply our ecological knowledge to the fundamental redesign of our technologies and social institutions’ and as stated in process bridging the separating opening between the two,(technology and social institution). When we all work towards this idea, the idea of improve and caring for our world we would change a great deal of the happenings around the world; which could practically lead to the quick restoration of our planet before we bring it its total destruction. The reality that we are destroying our vegetation which is our natural source of  food and oxygen, we are actually putting ourselves at risk. Plants need us (animals) just as much as we need them, they depend on us the same way we depend on them. Upon this is part played by non-living objects such as water, air, the soil and all o ther abiotic matters that are vital to our sustenance of life. They form part of ecosystem even if they are non-living, they contribute greatly to self-sustaining abilities of our planet and form part of the web of  life in one way or another, without water plants would wilt, and animals would die of thirst, and without air both plants and animals would suffocate, and with no soil there wouldn’t be plants for us to feed on. So this is life in its real form, all contributing factors are vital to the sustainability of life in the future. Conclusion This essay is quite practically applicable in our real life situation; it fully conveys the primary hypothesis of the Capra’s book â€Å"The Hidden Connections†. It simplifies the complicate and great amount of information he whole book contains, and most of all it is highly educative and reasonable, compromising of almost every component that matters in life on this planet. In this assignment, I learned the importance of understanding the trend of life as well as the flows of ene rgy within the unrelenting interconnecting chains of life. It is simple; I learned that plants need dead organic materials for food, herbivorous animals feed on those plants, and the carnivorous animals feed on those herbivorous animals and later they all die providing manure back into the soil which plants will suck-up once again to grow, simply explaining the theory of producers and consumers. I also learned in this study that despite the efforts made by Rene Descartes to define life and help the world understand there are some facts which would have helped him define it even better if only he paid more attention to important factors that save as the basis of life. The Hidden Connection is a book if taken seriously and put to action can bring back our world to its initial natural state. The book clearly defines just how we have destroyed our natural world. In the development of weaponry, back in 1945 atomic bombs were created with devastating long lasting effects on the environment, and the vegetation alike including all the living organisms within its reach. Wasn’t this supposed to be a scientific breakthrough in the science of war? But in the end this defined the ultimate weapon with which man will completely destroy the whole world. Technology so far came up with many efficient measures of doing things increasing productivity in the process, many cars and machineries that emit harmful gases into the atmosphere have been heavily produced, huge upon tremendous amounts of fossil fuel gases have been gushed out into the atmosphere sucking out the gases important to the maintenance of the ultra-violet ray protective ozone layer and this has resulted in extreme temperature in our world today. Technology once again increased productivity in the agricultural sector so as to sustain the world’s ever growing population, and so they introduced genetically modified products that also have effects on the animals that feed on them including human beings, thus breaking the natural rules of replenishment. This was meant to be a scientific break-through as well but later backfired. Fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides, and many other  chemicals meant to advance humanity and help prevent the world from starvation have turned out to fatal substances, whereby when washed down the streams during rain and flood seasons they affect the water upon which most wild organisms and animals depend for water, the animals drink such water and get affected, some die from the effects, while some develop resistance to the effects but continue to carry the resulting illness of which people will kill for meat, and eat the infected meat which will clearly cause negative consequences. If we want to save the world for our children, we really have to act now before it gets too late. Preventing our world from getting destroyed by our activities is a better alternative than trying to salvage the remaining patches after destroying. This is why Capra suggested the ecological alternative, repairing the world by us can be difficult, but the good thing is that our world has natural abilit ies to restore itself if given a chance of restoration. At this moment in time, there are millions of totally extinct species that once existed and defined the beauty of our world. We can still save and manage to replenish the remaining species if taken into serious consideration the suggestions made by Capra in his book â€Å"The Hidden Connections†. Bibliography 1. Barbara Vogl, (2010). PATTERNS- Interview with Fritjof Capra. http://www. haven. net/patterns/capra. html (Accessed on 11/14/2011) 2. Bhagwati, Jagdish (2004). In defense of Globalization. Oxford, New York: Oxford University PressCC 3. Capra, Fritjof (2002b). Where Have All the Followers Gone? Reflections on the Spirit and Legacy of the Sixties, December 1, 2002. Mindwalk, http://www. terehesshu/english/capra2. html (Accessed on 11/13/2011) 4. Capra, Fritjof, (2002). The Hidden Connections. New York, USA: Doubleday a division of Random House Inc 5. Descartes, Rene (1644). The Principles of Philosophy (IX) 6. Europe Commission, (2011). Organic Farming: Good for nature, good for you. http://www. ec. europa. eu/agriculture/organic/organic-farming/what-organic_en (Accessed on 11/13/2011) 7. Food and agricultural Organization of United Nations, (2010). What FAQ Does: Food Forever (The Green Revolution). FAQ: United Nations, http://www. fan. org/kids/en/revolution. html (Accessed on 11/13/2011) 8. Goodstein, David (2004) Out of Gas: The End of the Age of Oil, W. W. New York: Norton and Company, p. 128 9. Laura De Francesco (2004). Profile: Capra Fritjof: Nature Biotechnology. San Francisco: Nature Publishing 10. Maturana, Humberto R. Varela, Francisco J, (1980). Autopoiesis and Cognition. The Realization of the Living. Dordrecht: Reidel, p. 13 11. Philip S, Wenz (December, 2002). Connecting With Fritjof Capra. Ecotecture. http://www. ecotecture. com/library_eco/interviews/capra1a. html Accessed on 11/14/2011 12. Pier Luigi, L (2008). The Emergence of Life-F rom Chemical Origin to Synthetic Biology. Cambridge University Press 13. Shiela L, Croucher (2004). Globalization and Belonging: The Politics of Identity a Changing World. Rowman & Littlefield, p. 10 14. The Association of University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, (1990). The Talloires Declaration. Washington, DC. www. ulsf. rg/programs_talloires_td. html Accessed on 11/14/2011 15. Wackermagel, M. , N. B. Schulz, D. Deumling, A. Callejas Linares, M. Jenkins, V. Kapos, C. Monfreda, J. Loh, N. Myers, R. Nargaard, and J. Randers (2002) â€Å"Tracking the Ecology Overshoot of the Human Economy, â€Å" Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences 99:9266-9271. 16. Wenger, Etienne. Communities of Practice. Healthcare Forum Journal/August: (1996). 17. Wenger, Etienne. Communities of Practice. Cambridge University Press 18. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2010). Non-Governmental Organizations. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/non-governmental_organizations. html. Accessed on 11/14 /2011idd

Perception And Perception Of Interpersonal Perception

I really enjoyed reading the chapter about interpersonal perception. I didn’t realize until after reading chapter four there were so many different aspects to the interpersonal perception process. It was really interesting figuring out some of these interpersonal perception aspects that apply to my life. The three terms I would like to discuss in this paper are overattributing positively bias and negativity bias. The first concept I would like to address is overattributing. The book defines over attribution as the tendency to attribute a range of behaviors to a single characteristic of a person. I would like to talk about how the process of overattributing has affected my relationship with my son. Even though I didn’t know before reading the information about overattributingne that that’s what I was doing to my son. My son was born premature and has had to overcome lots of challenges in his life. 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Sylvia Plath, a Poet and Her Depression - 525 Words

When asked about her autobiographical novel, â€Å"The Bell Jar†, Sylvia plath responded that â€Å"the trouble was, i had been inadequate all along, I simply hadn’t thought about it† (Sylvia Plath Quotes). Plath was the editor for her school newspaper and sent in poems to different magazines (PAL). Junior year is when her depression started, as she couldn’t afford her dream college (PAL). Sylvia Plath struggled a lifetime of depression that was reflected in her writings. Sylvia Plath was a troubled young poet who wrote mostly about the difficulties within her family and marriage. Plath was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 27, 1932 and died on February 11, 1963 in London, England. In her early life she faced many obstacles, one being her father passing away when she was only 8 years old due to complications from diabetes (poets.org). Plath, herself struggled with depression as she tried to kill herself many times. Therefore these feelings of hers reflected in her poetry. Having a high expectation to be perfect, Plath’s depression was often a result of writers block (PAL).Plath’s poems continued to encourage her large audience of readers who were facing the same issues with depression and other struggles.(Poetry Foundation). Plath was a loving wife to Ted Hughes and later a wonderful mother to her two children (poets.org). Plath gave birth to two children in 1960 and 1962, Frieda and Nicholas Hughes (poets.org). Also in 1962 her h usband, Hughes left her for another women,Show MoreRelatedPeople s Love At First Sight By Sylvia Plath1567 Words   |  7 Pages People dream of falling in love at first sight. Sylvia Plath, an American writer, experienced the desirable moment the first time she saw Ted Hughes, an English poet (Middlebrook). The romantic relationship between Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath grew instantly. They both shared a love of writing, but yet their relationship began to go downhill five years after their marriage (Popova). 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The battle continued on when she was diagnosed with severe depression later on in life which contributed to her death. Sylvia Plath was a very successful novelist and poet in the thirty short years of her life, however, the achievements were not enough to mask her depression battleRead MoreContributions Of Sylvia Plath1302 Words   |  6 PagesThrougho ut the decades many great poets and writers have influenced and impacted the literature that we read today. Henrik Ibsen’s pivotal work regarding social and moral issues of his day and Sigmund Freud’s writing pertaining to peoples’ mental health are just a few of examples of profound writers who contributed to the growth and development of literature. Sylvia Plath was also a profound writer and one of the most respected poets and prose writer of her time as well. She was once described asRead MorePoetry Is Not Turning Loose From Emotion, By Sylvia Plath Essay1092 Words   |  5 Pagesout. Sylvia Plath effectively expresses her complicated emotions in a form that is bizarre to some. Leaving the reader in curiosity, she uses the stroke of a pen to capture the people who can not capture themselves. Sylvia Plath effectively captivates her readers appeal through her poetry by using emotional appeal, powerful language, and profound and developing structure. Sylvia Plath had a past that represents the type of hell that is unimaginable by a normal mind. Her birth by the seed of her educatedRead MoreSylvia Plath: The Exemplary Confessional Poet1015 Words   |  5 Pagessuicide, it is no surprise that Sylvia Plath wrote poetry in this style. Plath suffered from depression most of her life and used writing as an outlet (Spinello). In her works â€Å"Cut,† â€Å"I Am Vertical,† and â€Å"Lady Lazarus,† Plath exemplifies confessional poetry through the themes of resentment, death, and mental illness. To understand why Plath is placed in the literary category that she is, there needs to be knowledge of her personal life. Born in 1932 in Massachusetts, Plath led a short and tragic lifeRead MoreAnalysis Of Sylvia Plath s Poem, Metaphor s ``996 Words   |  4 PagesSylvia Plath s poem, Metaphor s, is about a woman who is significantly distressed about her pregnancy. The poet playfully pieces together nine metaphors that are vastly unrelated, but she tones the poem so that a sense of depression and emptiness creep over the reader to tie together the theme. The very first line of the poem begins by opening the meaning directly to the reader. â€Å"I’m a riddle in nine syllables,†. (Line 1) It shows the reader it is a nine line riddle to be solved. It is to beRead MoreLady Lazarus, by Sylvia Plath1110 Words   |  5 PagesLazarus† is a poem by Sylvia Plath, written in 1962 shortly before her death in early 1963, and published posthumously by her husband, poet Ted H ughes, in 1965 in the collected volume Ariel. â€Å"Lady Lazarus† is a poem about suicide as a rebirth, and was in part inspired by Plaths own life and draws heavily on Plaths lifelong struggle with bipolar depression and suicidal feelings, and uses holocaust imagery to paint a bleak portrait of suicide and hopelessness. Sylvia Plath was born in Boston, MassachusettsRead MoreAnalysis Of Daddy By Sylvia Platt901 Words   |  4 Pagescharacter explains his dislike of her father and how he is happy that he has died. He stated that she would have rather killed him herself. I believe that his father was a Nazi during the Holocaust. Initially when I first read the story I did not understand the meaning of it, but after reading it a second time I understood why the main character felt the way he felt. The main character was afraid to be around his father, He couldn’t even sneeze the wrong way around him. Her father is described as a bigRead MoreThe Life Of Sylvia Plath Essay1313 Words   |  6 PagesThe Life of Sylvia Plath Sylvia Plath was a very dedicated author who lived from 1932-1963. She is best known for her poetry. Plath started writing and was a published poet at a very young age. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Plath’s first poem was published when she was eight years old. â€Å"Plath’s poems explore her own mental anguish, her troubled marriage to fellow poet Ted Hughes, her unresolved conflicts with her parents, and her own vision of herself†(Poetry Foundation). Plath was a devoted

The Foolproof Writing Thesis Strategy

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Tourism Impacts Planning and Management

Question: Discuss about the Tourism Impacts for Planning and Management. Answer: Introduction: Tourism is growing very fast across the global economy; from statistics for 2015 (weforum.org) it shows that has been an increase especially in developed countries. With constant calls from all entities for better measurement in tourism sector and gauge its impacts a lot has to be done. Across the chain issues such as policy formulation, business operations or program interventions will lead to leaning of the impact that will help stakeholders and customers to effectively manage sustainability and growth of the sector. Growth Development-Growth needs to be effectively managed for benefit maximization Mason (2015). With proper management of growth in tourism sector it leads to minimizing the negatives that would occur. Thus this requires planning and management which should be a continuous process. According to World Bank (2015) Planning and management should remain a point of interest for stakeholders, Customers and workers. New facilities will come up which helps the local at large. Better management ensures that such infrastructure open up new areas for development. For the World Bank Group, our clients and our development partners, this process of planning and management is a central interest Equitable distribution of wealth-Stakeholders has an obligation of ensuring extreme poverty is eradicated through shared resources. National governments and state agencies should participate in guiding future plans and development agendas Theobald (2012). This is through funding across all lines of tourism sector. With resources received through tourism other parts also need to feel as this will help in educating the society at large importance of tourism in developing a country. In turn caring of natural resources such as wildlife will be achieved. Availability of quality and consistent data has been a great hindrance in opening upon new areas for tourism. Its important for organizations who are looking forward to measure the impact of tourism need to collect and analyze data for a period of time. This will help stakeholders make positive managerial procedures towards improvement of service delivery. Mode of communicating to the right audience-Within the sector various organizations has different audiences. Thus channel of communication may be a concern in decimating full control in the tourism sector. A noteworthy test in the division is an absence of a typical comprehension about what is being done, which can mean an absence of support. This is intensified by a communication challenge with endlessly unique vocabulary utilized by various offices, for example, the United Nations and World Bank Group than that which is utilized by the private segment. Workers and stakeholders should try to learn various foreign languages a s away of ensuring they is a minimized language breakdown from tourist from non-speaking country. SME are major income generators in tourism sector, developed countries such as USA, Canada and Australia who have been accounting for more than 90% within the business sector. Cost and time of service delivery has been a huge blow in tourism sector and thats why its important for one to plan well. References WEFORUM.Org ,2015 Travel and tourism competitiveness Viewed on April 17, 2017 https://reports.weforum.org/travel-and-tourismcompetitiveness-report-2015/technical-notes-and-sources/). Peter Mason, 2015 Tourism Impacts, Planning and Management Travel Tourism World Economic Impact , 2015, World Travel Tourism Council Viewed on 17th April 2017 https://consultations.worldbank.org/Data/hub/files/consultation-template/towards-more-effective-impact-measurement-tourism-sector-openconsultationtemplate/phases/wbg_towards_more_effective_impact_measurement_in_the_tourism_sector_consultations.pdf William F. Theobald, 2012, Global Tourism, Routledge Publishing.

Morgan Lewis Essays - University Of Florida, Gator Growl, Humanities

Morgan Lewis Humanities II December 8, 2017 Essay 3 For this essay I attended Gator Growl Homecoming festival at the university of Florida. This is annual festival that the university of Florida holds to celebrate past, present, and future students. During this festival this is a time for past students to come back and unite and catch up. This is also an opportunity for present students to have fun supporting their school. This is also a great event to attract future students to the university of Florida. This is basically a big social event that celebrates important alumni and students hard work. During this event there is also celebrity guest appearances. Gator Growl is the flagship event of the University of Florida and a tradition that has continued to be a prominent for over 90 years. It is a University of Florida tradition that marks the culmination of Homecoming Week. The pep rally is rooted in the tradition and honoring alumni. This tradition started with dad's day and this is where dads would come to spend the day with their child. In 1924, Dad's Day was replaced with a Friday night pep rally, which was then accompanied by the addition of comedy skits in 1932. Thus, Gator Growl was born. The massive production consists of musical and comedic entertainers, Gator athletics and performances by UF's Cheerleaders, Dazzlers and Pride of the Sunshine Marching Band. Hundreds of students work endless hours to create the annual spectacle. The amount of student participation that goes into an event like this has given Gator Growl the right to call itself the largest student-run pep rally in the nation. With the time the tradition chang es over the years and new ones are formed. Gator Growl's tradition possesses the pride, feelings and hard work of the varying generations of students at the University of Florida. This memorable show will foster the legacy that students and alumni will be able to share for generations to come. (Gator Growl 2017). I really enjoyed this experience I was able to meet new people and explore the college. The university of Florida is home to many students that come from different areas all over the world. I even met someone that was from New York. This was a good experience for me because it was nice to see different aspects of life. Every student had different interest and majors. I enjoyed being able to speak to past alumni and the paths they have taken in life. I also really enjoyed the music. Guest celebrity appearances was snoop dog and Daya. I have never seen them perform in person. Dayas music was very inspiring and enjoyable. The way the crowd responding to their favorite songs was fun to see. People would sing and dance while taking tons of videos and pictures. I think this course gave me a better understanding for different cultures. During this music festival I was able to see how different people showed appreciation to the performing artist. I noticed that people were very documented of the musical artist. People spent a lot of time recording the performance. I think documenting things like this is crucial. Its memories and history that we are able to keep with us. I notice students reacted differently to different songs. Some students really enjoyed snoop dog while others really enjoyed Daya. This goes to show that people truly have different interest in music, art of any culture event. Some people find different music more artful and enjoyable. For example, the older guest at the festival showed less interest in Snoop Dog which is understandable because he appeals to the younger crowd. Regardless everyone showed appreciation for the singers and bands hard work of producing music and true art. I love cultural events so yes, I will co ntinue to attend them. Cultural events are very crucial in understanding our world as a whole. We must take the time to attend these kinds of events so we can better understand different cultures in the world. Without experience to other backgrounds we have less knowledge. Less knowledge is less appreciation and understandings. (Mario Morales). Humanities is everywhere and we must go out and experience it. The benefits of