Virtu essays

Virtu essays In Machiavellis The Prince, in order to be a successful ruler, a statesman must possess virtà ¹. The Machiavellian principle of virtà ¹ begins with the idea that a ruler must be prudent and cautious, and in times of peace he may be non-violent. Yet, if the situation calls for it, he needs to take bold, decisive action, at any cost. It can be appropriate to lie and make false promises, as well as to act in a manner that seems violent and ruthless. The essential need for political order is to be sacrificed for no reason, moral or immoral. Instead, political decisions are to be based on the means by which to retain political power, and the political practicality of those results. Machiavelli feels that the world is comprised of unpredictable forces that are working against each other, and a leader needs to create an order out of these forces. He believes that by nature human beings are more inclined toward evil than good, and so it is impossible to do what is only morally right. If a ruler tries to proceed in this fashion, he is bound for failure because of the impossibility of adjusting continuously to the ever-changing circumstances. A ruler only has to reflect the human nature of a state, to know how to act. In order for a ruler to exemplify the meaning of virtà ¹ he must be committed to doing what need be. He must realize that a ruler is only as strong as the foundation on which he builds his political power. It is of the utmost importance to realize that even if at a present time things are peaceful, situations change repeatedly. Fate and fortune can be the ruin of a ruler. Yet, if a ruler uses judgment and is prepared at all times for whatever circumstances may occur, fate and fortune can be controlled. War is to never be avoided, regardless of its justness/injust ness; avoidance only weakens ones position. A war is to be won by force or fraud, whatever means necessary. A ruler also needs...

Glossary of Organic Chemistry Terms

Glossary of Organic Chemistry Terms This is an organic chemistry glossary. Look up definitions of common and important organic chemistry terms. ab initio abrasive absolute alcohol absolute error absolute temperature absolute uncertainty absorbance absorption absorption cross section absorption spectroscopy absorption spectrum absorptivity accuracy acetal acid acid anhydride acid-base indicator acid-base titration acid catalysis acid dissociation constant - Ka acidic solution activated complex activation energy - Ea activity series actual yield acute health effect acylation acyl group acyl halide adsorption aerosol alcohol alcoholate aliphatic amino acid aliphatic compound aliphatic hydrocarbon alkali metal alkaline alkalinity alkanoylation alkene alkenyl group alkoxide alkoxy group alkylate alkylation allotrope alloy alpha decay alpha radiation amide amine amine functional group amino acid ammonium amorphous amphoteric oxide amu angular momentum quantum number anion androgen anhydrous anode antibonding orbital anti-Markovnikov addition anti-periplanar aqueous aqueous solution aromatic compound Arrhenius acid Arrhenius base aryl atom atomic mass atomic mass unit (amu) atomic number atomic radius atomic weight autoionization Avogadros Law Avogadros number azeotrope azimuthal quantum number azo compound

Human Services and its Concern with Human Care Article

Human Services and its Concern with Human Care - Article Example Necessarily this approaches yield the basis for the four-category model theory in order to categorize the human service organizations. The uniqueness of this model lies in the fact that it makes a high contribution to the societal wellbeing that is based on the conjunction of the needs and the recipients. Also only three of the four approaches can make the definition of human services. These approaches, the differentiated approaches, the universal basic, the universal optimal approaches to define the human services and their needs and the characteristics prove their efficacy. In the changing context of a Post modern era, as the concepts of basic have been interpreted from different points of view, the two basic welfare approaches have to define the grounds basic human needs. Necessarily these approaches result into the concepts of â€Å"quality of life†, â€Å"human rights†, â€Å"social welfare†. But at the same time the universal optimal approaches are to prepa re congenial criteria for the concept of human services. These approaches are outlined in such a way that they are ordained to include all of the services that are offered in a modern state. One of the weak points of these approaches is that they often ignore the concept of Human services as social services that are designed to meet human needs. The concept of care is often confronted with the policies that are directly or indirectly related to the cultural factors and issues regarding age, sex and gender. Also these issues are related to the structure of the various institutions of human society. These factors issues of culture and society are interrelated with each other in such a way that any adverse effect on one of them affects others in a difficult way.

Bessie Smith Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Bessie Smith - Essay Example Bessie Smith’s inherent passion for music was discovered fortunately at a very young age as she and her brother took to the streets of their local neighbourhoods in Chattanoonga, as they sang and danced in order to earn money for their meals. However, her brother soon left her to join a professional troupe and she was left behind due to being very young. Soon enough, her brother arranged for a meeting and interview for Bessie for the Stokes Troupe and she was hired as a dancer but not as a singer, thus her true potential had yet not been realised. In 1915, the singer left and became a part of the Theater Owners Bookers Association, an African American performance group and this became the milestone in her career. The group helped her to gain popularity all over and become a recognised singer. Following this, offers began coming in for Bessie to be part of musicals and one of her firsts, titled ‘How Come?’ made its way to Broadway as well. Here, Bessie co starred w ith Sidney Bechet. Looking at her success and getting motivated by the same, Smith moved on to working in theatre, mostly Black theatres as they accepted her better, and in 1923 she landed with her first recording contract. Soon enough, Bessie became one of the highest paid black women in her field however, the money did not make much difference to her life then and she realised she wanted to sing all her life. Smith’s voice, mellifluous and harmonious, was something she was able to practice and develop on her own. She did not receive any formal training from anywhere, and with the practice she had had since her early years, she dedicated and devoted more time to get even better than what she was and all that she had achieved. Bessie’s mentor, during her years with the Stokes Troupe was Ma Rainey, and she learned a lot during her time there even though it was not a platform for her to better her vocal power and skills. Nonetheless, under Ma Rainey, she was able to lear n and understand what stage presence meant and how she could make herself better in front of the general public. During the time that Bessie was trying to establish herself, the environment for black people was not very conducive. Apartheid reigned badly all around and the opportunities for blacks were very limited, especially in off the hook fields like music. She first got a chance to sing with Okeh Records as they signed her alongside Mamie Smith. Being a woman, Bessie knew she had to really give in her best and fight for her rights in order to get her music heard across to people and have them accept her first as a musician and then as an identity and part of her race. Columbia Records thus, was impressed by her because of her work with Okeh Records, and soon signed her as a part of ‘race records’ series with her record named ‘Cemetery Blues’ which was the first to be released in 1923. Paramount Label had helped Bessie’s first hit titled ‘G ulf Coast Blues’ coupled with ‘Downhearted Blues’ to become an even bigger hit than what it was at the time of release. Bessie began to tour following this success as well as prepared and trained for theatre productions and musicals. She was given titles such as ‘

The Advantages of Steel in Building Construction Assignment

The Advantages of Steel in Building Construction - Assignment Example Another aspect that can no longer be neglected is the environment, both inside as well as outside the building is to be considered and given the high level of consideration in design and construction of the building. Latest advances in technology and high appraisal in energy has influenced the mindset of the client to select and use energy efficient products and design, even if they cost a bit more in the start but they eventually pay back their expenses. It is no longer a choice but a compulsion for designers and constructors to save energy as well as environment and at the same time it’s the client’s and his real estates adviser’s social responsibility to dictate these terms in the facility’s construction and have knowledge as well as encourage these technologies as much as possible. There are mainly two types of spaces that are to be constructed as the part of the establishment. The first part is the 12 storey Headquarter block whose height would be around 40m, this would be just a typical office building and the spaces would be designed in a similar manner. The second requirement of the client in the facility is of a showroom/ retail facility which is going to be constructed just in front of the main office block, this separate facility would be used for the display of different products and so the space requirement of this would be entirely different from that of the office block. The basic requirements of this space are that it should be a single storey and 35 m wide span, these attributes make this part of establishment unique and this structure has to be designed accordingly. The third and the most governing requirement of the client in the construction is that the time for construction should be as short as possible and the facility should be brought into service in minimum time period and the last requirement which would dictate the construction and its techniques as a whole is that the facility should eco friendly at all its levels both during the construction phase and during the service life as well.  

Effect of Smoking on Division of Attention

Effect of Smoking on Division of Attention ABSTRACT The basic objective of this study is to see whether smoking significantly affects the division of attention of an individual. Smoking can be defined as the process in which any substance, usually tobacco is rolled and burnt and the smoke that is released is inhaled. There is evidence that smoking is harmful to the brain at the functional and morphological level (Swan Lessov-Schlaggar, 2007). Division of attention can be defined as the person’s ability to attend to two or more tasks at a single time. Snowball Sampling was used to select 60 participants, 30 Smokers (N=30) and 30 Non-Smokers (N=30). A screener developed by Fagerstrom called the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (1978) was used to screen the participants after which the Division of Attention Experiment by Shailaja Bhagwat was administered. Results indicated that there was no significant difference in the division of attention between smokers and non-smokers (t=0.27, t=0.38, t=0.009, t=0.22). They both had n early the same divisions of attention between physical and mental tasks. INTRODUCTION Smoking: There are approximately about 2 billion smokers all over the world. (WHO, 2013) Smoking can be defined as the process in which any substance, usually tobacco is rolled and burnt, and the smoke that is released is inhaled. This practice was started as a recreational one in which an active substance like for example nicotine is made available to the blood stream through the lungs (Gatley Wilbert). The most common method of this practice of smoking is through cigarettes. There are other methods of this practice too like the use of bidis, bongs, cigars, hookah, pipes and vaporizers to name a few. A 2007 report states that, each year, about 4.9 million people worldwide die as a result of smoking. (West, Robert Shiffman, 2007.) Among the many substances used for smoking, tobacco is by far the most widely used substance which is addictive because of the nicotine content. The history of smoking can date back to as early as 5000 BC when it was used for religious ceremonies. The use of tobacco products is increasing globally, though in some higher and middle income countries its use is decreasing. The global prevalence is 48% for adult males and 12% for adult females. There are about 1/3 of the adults worldwide, who smoke, that is an approximate of about 2.0 billion smokers around the world including child smokers. (WHO 2013) A few reasons as to why people start smoking can be: having parents who smoke, siblings who smoke, friends who smoke, the freedom that they have to do what they want, peer pressure, low academic achievements, their daily surrounding, that is, having co-workers or people they are usually surrounded with being chain smokers, economic background or even life in the urban environment to an extent. An individual might just start smoking as a result of a social gathering or a party which becomes an addiction later on. Smoking is most prevalent in the age group of 18-25. It is stated that there are about 1000 smokers at the age of 18 and below who start smoking (WHO 2013). There are various reasons and causes for such a trend. This age group is the most prone to getting addicted to smoking as individuals in this age bracket are most easily swayed in their decisions and get addicted most easily. Once addicted to the use of any substance, tobacco generally, it gets very difficult for individuals to leave this habit. According to statistics by the World Health Organization we have more male smokers (35% developed 50% developing) than female smokers (22% developed 9% developing). These statistics show a rather large number of women smoking, especially in the developed countries we see that a lot of women smoking. Division of Attention: Division of attention (Multi-Tasking) is the process in which an individual’s attention is divided between two tasks. The talent of multitasking is when an individual knows how to juggle the time and attention spent between the two tasks well so as to give equal amount of attention to both so that it doesn’t look like there is any amount of partiality or preference given to a specific task on hand. One is said to be good at multi-tasking when one is able to perform both the tasks at the best of their abilities without being overworked or stressed. Since the 1990s experimental psychologists have tried to understand the nature and limits of human multitasking. In dichotic listening, subjects are apparently unable to attend simultaneously to two concurrent, auditory speech messages. However, in two experiments reported here, it is shown that people can attend to and repeat back continuous speech at the same time as taking in complex, unrelated visual scenes, or even while sight-readingpiano music. In both cases performance with dividedattentionwas very good, and in the case of sight-reading was as good as with undivided attention. There was little or no effect of the dual task on the accuracy of speech shadowing. (Allport, Antonis Reynold, 1971) Attention, it can be described as the process of focusing in ones field of awareness. Our attention can be commanded by a number of factors. Two of the main factors that can do so are: Objective factors such as intensity, size, movement, distinctiveness etc. Subjective factors such as, an individual’s needs, motives, interests, past experiences etc. The intensity of attention given to a specific stimulus is affected by the presence of another stimulus that is competing for one’s attention. This is known as shifting of attention. Shifting of attention is necessary for perception as it prevents negative adaptation. Another phenomenon which is related to attention is known as the distraction of attention. As we already know what is shifting of attention, distraction of attention is when the attention wavers and gets back to the previous stimuli. There are maximum numbers of stimuli that can be responded to in a particular period of attention. This maximum amount of attention that can be referred to in this particular period is called the span of attention. How a person can divide their attention has to do with that person’s intelligence (Sternberg Sternberg, 2012). Researchers Navon and Gopher (1979) theorized a modality model which explains the basics of attention mainly divided between various simple tasks and not between various complex tasks. There are various variables that play a role in our ability to pay attention or to concentrate on the many tasks that are to be performed at once. A few of those variables are anxiety, arousal, the difficulty of the tasks to be performed and the skills that an individual possesses. Relation between Smoking and Division of Attention: When we look back to studies done in the past on these two topics, we have many, but when it comes to a study involving both these topics we have hardly any studies. We have many researches on smoking and its effect on health, cognition, effect of nicotine on the brain activity during the performance of a task, impact of smoking on the performance of an individual, as well as studies on the effect of smoking during pregnancy on the performance of a child after its birth. An accumulation of evidence suggests that smoking may be reinforcing, in part, due to nicotines capacity to enhance the process of attention, but correspondingly, the stimulus-filter model of nicotine reinforcement asserts that nicotine increases cognitive performance by acting as a stimulus-barrier, thereby screening and preventing the irrelevant and annoying stimuli from the smokers awareness. (Kassel, 1997) Some studies that have been performed on smoking and the performance of an individual, either cognitive or social both say that smoking usually has a negative impact or rather they say that smoking reduces the cognitive and physical performance of an individual.It was found that while cigarette smoking had no negative effect upon performance for simple perceptual tasks, smoking was found to exert measurable negative effects upon performance for more complex information processing tasks (Spilich, June Renner, 1992). There is a scientific background for the decrease in the physical performance of an individual who smokes. Smoking reduces the capacity of an individual to do work as the oxygen available to the body is reduced. When we inhale smoke from a cigarette, we introduce the carbon monoxide into the blood. The carbon monoxide combines with the hemoglobin in the blood to form carboxy-hemoglobin which reduces the amount of oxygen that is carried in the blood. The lesser the available oxygen, the lesser the physical endurance, the lesser the endurance, the weaker the individual. Prolonged smoking causes irreversible lung damage. A study recently done in Kings College London tells us that smoking spoils the brain by damaging memory, learning and reasoning as well (Smoking Rots the Brain Lowers Cognitive Performance, November 2012). Smoking just a single cigarette can immediately affect physical capability in exercise when the inhaled carbon monoxide binds to red blood cells, displacing oxygen and preventing its delivery to muscle cells. In fact, a study at UCLA found that young adults experience a four percent decrease in oxygen uptake right after smoking. It has long been known that smokers tend to be less physically active than nonsmokers, and vice versa. For instance, a study in Public Health Reports found smokers are more likely to quit supervised exercise programs. Another study found that male high school students who were less physically active than their peers were twice as likely to smoke. There hasn’t been a specific study on the effect that smoking has on the division of attention. Generally the division of attention is usually different for different individuals. Smokers perform one physical and one mental task at a time. They are hence â€Å"multitasking† or rather dividing their attention in such a way that they are spending enough time performing both the tasks but to what level of their ability? Smokers are better at Division of Attention. The above mentioned hypothesis is one study or rather one topic that has not been widely studied under the vast topic of smoking especially in the Indian contest. There have been various studies on the effect of smoking on performance as well as the capacity of an individual to divide their attention between two tasks. Will the division of attention among non-smokers be greater than the division of attention among smokers? OBJECTIVE To determine whether there is a significant difference in the division of attention between smokers and non-smokers while performing two tasks simultaneously. HYPOTHESIS There is a significant difference between the division of attention of smokers and non-smokers while performing two tasks simultaneously. METHOD Participants: A sample size of 60 students (n=60) within the age group of 18-22 with all of them from a middle class background, studying in college and from the city of Hyderabad were selected on the basis of Random Sampling. They were divided into two groups of 30 each i.e. smoker and non-smokers. These two groups were further divided into 15 girls and 15 boys each. Before giving them the screener itself, the purpose of the study was explained and a signed informed consent was taken from the students. Participation inclusion criteria: Students between the ages of 18-22 Pursuing bachelor’s degree from any college Students who were smokers Participation exclusion criteria: Students above the age of 22 or below 18 Students working part time or full time Instruments: The Fagerstrom Nicotine Dependence Scale (FTND) was used as a screener for the smokers. It is a 6 question scale which shows the levels of dependence on nicotine. Anybody who has moderate to high dependency (score of 5 or above) on this scale is considered a smoker. This scale was developed by Fagerstrom in 1978 titled Fagerstrom Tolerance Questionnaire which was later called the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND: Heatherton et al., 1991). After this the Division of Attention (different variables) by Dr. (Smt.) Shailaja Bhagwat was given to the participants, which involved the performance of 4 tasks. Each task was to be performed only for two minutes, that too each task had 3 sub tasks. The students were explained what each and every task was very carefully and if they had any doubts, those doubts were cleared too. The 4 tasks in brief were: one Physical and one Mental Simple Tasks (separately as well as simultaneously) one Physical Simple Task and one Mental Complex Task (separately as well as simultaneously) one Physical Complex and one Mental Complex Task (separately as well as simultaneously) one Physical and Mental Complex Task (separately as well as simultaneously) ANALYSIS The statistics that were used on the raw data were: Mean Standard Deviation T-Test RESULTS The hypothesis states that there is a significant difference between the division of attention between smokers and non-smokers. The Statistics used were: Mean: The Mathematical Average of a set of numbers. Standard Deviation: Measures how spread out the data is. T-Test: Measures if there is a significant difference between two variables. The results got do not support the hypothesis which states that there is a significant difference in the division of attention between smokers and non-smokers. Table 1 shows the Mean (M) Standard Deviation (SD) and T-Value (t) between smokers and non-smokers. *N.S = Not Significant Table 1 shows that the t-values were not found to be significant. DISCUSSION When we attend two or more tasks at one time, it is mainly because of the division of attention of that person. The first scientist to study in the field of division of attention was Paulhan (1887) who found out that if the nature of both the jobs is simple, the outcome would be the least affected. A few other scientists who got the same results were Binet (1890), Jastraw and Cairnes (1892) and Fitts and Simon (1949). According to the table shown above, the hypothesis mentioned above has been proved right. There is no significant difference between the: Division of attention between smokers and non-smokers in performing two tasks simultaneously. These results could be due to various reasons. The lifestyle of both smokers and non-smokers is the same. Their surroundings, their routines everything is very similar. Although minor differences will be present in the results due to differing mental abilities, everything else is the same. Hence their results or rather the levels of division of attention between ideally should not differ to a great extent. When we look at the tables closely we observe that the performance of two simple tasks (one physical and one mental) the loss of efficiency in the performance of tasks in non-smokers is lesser than that of smokers, whereas in the performance of two difficult tasks (one mental and one physical) the opposite case happens. The loss of efficiency is lesser for smokers when compared to non-smokers. When we look at the results of the tasks of difficult physical- easy mental or difficult mental and easy physical, they depended completely on the mental abilities of that person. There was no pattern that was followed. The hypothesis may not have been proved right as the all the students have not been smoking regularly for long. The effects might be seen more clearly if they had been smoking for longer. The brain functioning might be something that would be impaired only after a while. The impairment is not going to be sudden. There could have also been many intervening variables such as the weather, the students mood the surroundings, the situations and even the noise levels. All these affect the performance of the subject while performing a task. This particular research in this field gives the psychologists a base to build up future researches and ones which can be conducted in more depth. The same study can be conducted on an older population and the results can be matched and seen. Then it can be proven if age plays a major role in this research. As the subjects are older it is but natural that they have smoked for longer in their life which has been proved to reduce brain functioning. This study shows that there is no significant difference between smokers and non-smokers as well as girls and boys when it comes to the division of attention. REFERENCE Anstyl, O’Kearney, Salim, Sanden. Smoking as a Risk Factor for Dementia and Cognitive Decline: A Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies (2007) West, Robert and Shiffman, Saul (2007).Fast Facts: Smoking Cessation. Health Press Ltd. p.28 Hirsch, GL, et al., â€Å"Immediate effects of smoking on cardiorespiratory response to exercise,† Journal of Applied Physiology 58:1975-81, June 1985 Blair, SN, et al., â€Å"Relationship Between Exercise or Physical Activity and Other Health Behaviors,† Public Health Reports 100(2):172-180, March-April 1985; Faulkner, RA, et al., â€Å"The Relationship of Physical Activity to Smoking Characteristics in Canadian Men and Women,† Canadian Journal of Public Health 78(3):155-60, May-June 1987; Lazarus, NB, et al., â€Å"Smoking and Body Mass in the Natural History of Physical Activity: Prospective Evidence from the Alameda County Study, 1965-1974,† American Journal of Preventive Medicine 5(3):127-35, May-June 1989 Dishman, RK, et al., â€Å"The Determinants of Physical Activity and Exercise,† Public Health Reports 100(2):158-71, March-April 1985 Winnail, SD, et al., â€Å"Relationship Between Physical Activity Level and Cigarette, Smokeless Tobacco, and Marijuana Use Among Public High School Adolescents,† Journal of School Health 65(10):438-442, December 1995 http://www.holah.karoo.net/sampling.htm The Effects of Tobacco Smoke and Nicotine on Cognition and the Brain, Gary E. Swan, Christina N. Lessov-Schlaggar On thedivisionofattention: A disproof of the single channel hypothesis, D. Alan Allporta,Barbara AntonisaPatricia Reynolds Smoking and attention: A review and reformulation of the stimulus-filter hypothesis, Jon D. Kassel Cigarette smoking and cognitive performance, George J. Spilich, Lorraine June, Judith Renner. Smoking Rots the Brain Lowers Cognitive Performance November 29, 2012 http://scitechdaily.com/smoking-rots-the-brain-lowers-cognitive-performance/ 1

Human Values and Ethics - What Science Cannot Discover, Mankind Cannot Know :: Philosophy Essays

Human Valuse and Ethics - What Science Cannot Discover, Mankind Cannot Know Those who maintain the insufficiency of science, as we have seen in the last two chapters, appeal to the fact that science has nothing to say about "values." This I admit; but when it is inferred that ethics contains truths which cannot be proved or disproved by science, I disagree. The matter is one on which it is not altogether easy to think clearly, and my own views on it are quite different from what they were thirty years ago. But it is necessary to be clear about it if we are to appraise such arguments as those in support of Cosmic Purpose. As there is no consensus of opinion about ethics, it must be understood that what follows is my personal belief, not the dictum of science. The study of ethics, traditionally, consists of two parts, one concerned with moral rules, the other with what is good on its own account. Rules of conduct, many of which have a ritual origin, play a great part in the lives of savages and primitive peoples. It is forbidden to eat out of the chief's dish, or to seethe the kid in its mother's milk; it is commanded to offer sacrifices to the gods, which, at a certain stage of development, are thought most acceptable if they are human beings. Other moral rules, such as the prohibition of murder and theft, have a more obvious social utility, and survive the decay of the primitive theological systems with which they were originally associated. But as men grow more reflective there is a tendency to lay less stress on rules and more on states of mind. This comes from two sources - philosophy and mystical religion. We are all familiar with passages in the prophets and the gospels, in which purity of heart is set above meticulous observance of the Law; and St. Paul's famous praise of charity, or love, teaches the same principle. The same thing will be found in all great mystics, Christian and non-Christian: what they values is a state of mind, out of which, as they hold, right conduct must ensue; rules seem to them external, and insufficiently adaptable to circumstances. One of the ways in which the need of appealing to external rules of conduct has been avoided has been the belief in "conscience," which has been especially important in Protestant ethics.