Wired to do the Right and Wrong Things Essays

Wired to do the Right and Wrong Things Essays Wired to do the Right and Wrong Things Essay Wired to do the Right and Wrong Things Essay People from across different cultures and ethnicity vary in their interpretation of morality. In most instances the line that separates right and wrong is blurred when it comes to making judgments and decisions regarding special ethical and moral dilemmas. A person may pick one side of the problem and justify the decision with rigorous logic while another may pick the other with equal discursive weight. Thus it is easy to say that the concept of right and wrong seems to depend more on circumstances, context and race- or upbringing than it is a universal feature of the human species. Rebecca Saxe highlights this observation by saying that Americans would prefer to uphold notions of justice and fair play while a native from Papua New Guinea on the other side of the world would lean more towards collective responsibility when respondents were faced with the question whether it is justified to steal another man’s train ticket (47). But is this apparent disparity in ideas descripti ve of how are mind really works with respect to the idea doing the right and wrong things? Is there such a thing as a universal rubric of human morality that transcends ethnic differences?The ongoing debates on nurture and nature in its simplest function involve multiple perspectives and fields of study. Most people are of the belief that a person decides which is right or wrong based on how and where he was raised. Indeed, it won’t be hard to find someone who thinks that an individual acts in a certain way precisely because of his biographical profile and context. The clichà © is that a criminal becomes one because he came from a broken home, suffered an abusive father, mixed with the wrong group during childhood and so on. Even worse, people perfunctorily judge other people because of their culture, religion, gender and race as the basis for explaining and justifying why the Middle Eastern Muslim must be avoided at all costs or that Asians are to be dealt with at double th e arm’s length so to speak (Dawkins 34). In other words, the idea of nurture affecting our morality has gained popular stasis that it becomes almost natural to think in terms of closely knit cultural groups and not universally as a species.However, such assertions on the power of nurture that trumps any other form of natural physiological and neural schematics of the human mind cannot be more wide of the mark. Marc Hauser, in his seminal and ground breaking study on morality in his book Moral Minds, believes that we have evolved a universal moral intuition- that we are wired to think in a particular way (12). Our sense of morality may differ in the way it is enunciated and pronounced in various languages but its essence remains largely uniform for peoples around the world.   No matter what your mom says about your Korean neighbour being selfish, isolated and mean, the moral rubric between the two are the same in the neurological and biological level.It is fair say that it d oes not seem to explain why societies practice and adhere to varying formulas and codes of behaviour. Likewise, the idea proposed by Hauser, much as it is revolutionary, is quite counter-intuitive for the simple fact that individuals are quite able in coming up with a range of explanations for their decisions usually deliberative and rational. Thus an educated man with a doctorate degree on Philosophy and Ethics could come up with certain complex ideas while the uninitiated undergraduate could only slur out a few incoherent sentences (21).   Yet despite the level of complexity of one’s explanations and discourse inevitably the answers tend to be similar. The only key feature is the way individuals are able to express their ideas which is more or a less a function of language than anything else.Hauser posits that humans are endowed with the same moral instinct. The worldwide survey of the answers to the Trolley problem spread and collected from across samples of different co untries in the internet indicates an unmistakeable shared idea of morality. The statistics demonstrate that the answers tend towards saving the life of many at the price of another’s life. Such results underscore an existing fixed parameter imbedded in our minds that have developed through the process of evolution. It also suggests that our actions are merely the consequence of an inescapable, almost deterministic form of human nature. However, precisely because of the element of ‘nurture’, these universal precepts of morality are fine tuned â€Å"with nurture entering the picture to set the parameters and guide us toward the acquisition of particular moral systems† (21), In other words, we learn the rules of the society we belong to in time using our moral instincts. In such a way we can still determine what is right and wrong independent of the social dogma inasmuch as we are still able reject the tenets of a dogma if it assails our moral instincts as pa lpably wrong.Besides Hauser’s study on cognitive science, other psychological and neurological experiments show that our minds were built with an existing complete set of moral codes that can actually be even physically located in our brain (Bloom 6-7). Studies done on infants and toddlers, and on the brain activities of healthy young and adult men and women, buttress the claim that when the human being is stripped off of its socio-cultural, political and educational underpinnings, what is left is a primordial moral mind that knows how to pick what is good and bad, nice or mean and ultimately right and wrong. There are special triggers in our brain that activate in a predictable manner when stimulated with preset scenarios, situations or problems. Stated differently, there is a tangible part of the brain which does all the moral calculations even without the extraneous elements of society and culture. This belies any claim that nurture is the main reason behind our decisions simply because there are just parts of our mind that were built to decide moral issues the way it has been decided throughout the entire evolutionary time.The significance of the studies done by Hauser and other cognitive scientists about our moral minds is not confined alone in areas where the answers to such questions merely satisfy our craving for intelligent debates but it goes straight at the heart of humanity’s greatest failing and that is bias and prejudgment based on culture, religion, ethnicity, gender and the like. The news we receive in media and in print are festooned with a lot of instances where the existence of a universal moral rubric- the shared idea of right and wrong, is beset with serious doubts and skepticism. Take for instance the labels we put on people with a different religion, most specifically that with fanatics who resort to terrorism. If it were true that we all share the same moral mind then how come some people are wont to all the wrong things w hile the rest keep on doing the right actions.Richard Dawkins, a famous evolutionary biologist, in his book The God Delusion implies that we give too much credit towards religion and culture for our sense of morality when in truth such moral instincts preceded any form of religion a thousand of years prior (36). It would be harmful if not utterly dangerous to say that our ideas of right and wrong based on our social upbringing and especially religion is the proper benchmark from where everything else should be measured. The fact is, we all share the same biological makeup including that part of our brain which determines and acts on moral issues. The nurture factor only shapes this in minute details as it manifests clearly in present societies from different parts of the world; but our sense of right and wrong remains fixed and are to a large degree inescapable and determinable the way Mother Nature intends it to be.

Basic Assumptions of Economics

Basic Assumptions of Economics A basic assumption of economics begins with the combination of unlimited wants and limited resources. We can break this problem into two parts: Preferences: What we like and what we dislike.Resources: We all have limited resources. Even Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have limited resources. They have the same 24 hours in a day that we do, and neither is going to live forever. All of economics, including  microeconomics and macroeconomics, comes back to this basic assumption that we have limited resources to satisfy our preferences and unlimited wants. Rational Behavior In order to simply model how humans attempt to make this possible, we need a basic behavioral assumption. The assumption is that people attempt to do as well as possible for themselves- or, maximize outcomes- as defined by their preferences, given their resource constraints. In other words, people tend to make decisions based on their own best interests. Economists say that people who do this exhibit rational behavior. The benefit to the individual can have either monetary value or emotional value. This assumption does not necessarily mean that people make  perfect decisions. People may be limited by the amount of information they have (e.g., It seemed like a good idea at the time!). As well, rational behavior, in this context, says nothing about the quality or nature of peoples preferences (But I enjoy hitting myself on the head with a hammer!). Tradeoffs- You Get What You Give The struggle between preferences and constraints means that economists must, at their core, deal with the problem of tradeoffs. In order to get something, we must use up some of our resources. In other words, individuals must make choices about what is most valuable to them. For example, someone who gives up $20 to buy a new bestseller from Amazon.com is making a choice. The book is more valuable to  that person than the $20. The same choices are made with things that dont necessarily have monetary value. A person who gives up three hours of time to watch a professional baseball game on TV also is making a choice. The satisfaction of watching the game is more valuable than the time it took to watch it. The Big Picture These individual choices are only a small ingredient  of what we refer to as our economy. Statistically, a single choice made by a single person is the smallest of sample sizes, but when millions of people are making multiple choices every day about what they value, the cumulative effect of those decisions is what drives markets on national and even global scales. For example, go back to the single individual making a choice to spend three hours watching a baseball game on TV. The decision is not monetary on its surface; its based on the emotional satisfaction of watching the game. But consider if the local team being watched is having a winning season and that individual is one of many choosing to watch games on TV, thus driving up ratings. That kind of trend can make television advertising during those games more appealing for area businesses, which can generate more interest in those businesses, and it becomes easy to see how collective behaviors can start to have a significant impact. But it all starts with small decisions made by individuals about how best to satisfy unlimited wants with limited resources.

Possible solutions for tobacco usage in UK Essay

Possible solutions for tobacco usage in UK - Essay Example e tobacco tend to start at a very young age, mostly in their teenage, and these normally begin mainly because of the influence of their friends as well as peer pressure, especially in the school environment. Moreover, it has become the norm for these individuals to continue smoking for the rest of their lives since once they pick up the habit from such a young age; it is often very hard for them to stop. The result is that a large chunk of the population of the UK are tobacco users and this has created a situation where despite the best efforts that the government has taken, it has become difficult to control the use of this substance. Some of the largest tobacco companies are based in the UK and because it is a lucrative market for their products, these companies have worked hard to ensure that those laws that are not in favour of the reduction and at times abolishment of tobacco usage are not passed. These companies have powerful lobbies, which work hard to ensure that only laws which are in their favor are passed as a means of retaining their dominance over the UK market (Neuman, Bitton & Glantz, 2002). Therefore, it has become imperative for the government of the UK to take direct and effective measures which are meant to promote a reduction of tobacco usage within the country so that the population can stay free of the medical complications that are related to tobacco usage (Jha & Peto, 2014). Among the biggest steps that the UK government can take to curb the power of tobacco companies is to ensure that legislation that reduces the consumption of tobacco products is introduced and strictly implemented becaus e to do otherwise would mean that the health of the public would be at risk. In addition, the government should require that it make requirements where tobacco companies in the UK have to label their products as being dangerous to the health of those who use them ("Adding harm reduction to tobacco control", 2007). Moreover, the government should take an

Enviromantal engneering project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Enviromantal engneering project - Essay Example rmore, instead of excavating and transferring the contaminated soil to another site, this process proved successful as it was done on site- saving time and energy. Bioremediation- According to Prof. Shaily Mohindra of UCLA, conventional technologies for cleaning ground water are not always effective. Moreover, these methods usually move pollutants from one point to another. For that reason, Mohindra endorses Bioremediation using Pseudonocardia dioxanivorans bacteria for the mitigation of next generation pollutants e.g. Perfluorinated compounds, nano materials, and dioxane. The progress of remediation will be monitored usin stable isotopes. Pump and treat- The application of pump and treat technology in Hanford has been successful in soil and ground water remediation. By 2011, 24.7 billion gallons of ground water had been treated, although the whole process of remediation will be completed in the next 25 years. At the end of the remediation process Contaminants such as plutonium and i ts derivatives e.g. Carbon tetrachloride will be successfully removed from the soil and ground water. In situ thermal remediation- pump and treat technology had been used for more than 17years to clean up chlorinated solvents from the subsoil in Stuttgart with minimal success rates. However, in January 2013 an in-situ thermal remediation pilot test offered a suitable alternative for remediation even under prevailing difficult geological conditions in Stuttgart. Monitored natural attenuation- The Company was justified as it relied on natural processes to clean up the site. An environmental disaster similar to the silent spring has also been observed in Oregon (Lower Columbia). Since 1985, conservation centered on removing the nearly extinct bald eagle from the federal extinction list resulted in significant overall increase in bald eagle numbers. Yet, in lower Columbia most of the eagle nests in the lower Columbia failed to hatch eaglets; and have been producing half the number of

Bentham and Kant Essay Example for Free

Bentham and Kant Essay Jeremy Bentham was an English philosopher and political radical. He is highly known and respected today for his moral philosophy, primarily his principle of utilitarianism. Utilitarianism evaluates actions based upon their consequences. Bentham is most famously known for his pursuit of motivation and value. Bentham was a strong believer in individual and economic freedom, the separation of church and state, freedom of expression, equal rights for women, the right to divorce and the decriminalizing of homosexual acts. During his time he helped with the abolition of slavery, the abolition of the death penalty and the abolition of physical punishment, including children. Bentham was born in Houndsditch, London in 1748 to a very wealthy family who supported the Tory party. He was very intelligent and bright minded. When he was a toddler he was found behind his father’s desk reading the history of England and at age three he began studying Latin. He obtained his masters degree from Oxford College in 1766, where there after he trained as a lawyer but never practiced. Instead, Bentham decided to write about the law. One of Bentham’s major influences was Joseph Priestley. Bentham read Priestley’s work and had quickly changed his mind about the conservative political views that he had grown up in. One statement in particular from The First Principles of Government and the Nature of Political, Civil and Religious Liberty had a major impact on Bentham; â€Å"The good and happiness of the members, that is the majority of the members of the state, is the great standard by which every thing relating to that state must finally be determined. Bentham was also heavily influenced by the philosopher David Hume. In 1798 Bentham wrote Principles of International Law where he argued that universal peace could only be obtained by first achieving European Unity. He hoped that some for of European Parliament would be able to enforce the liberty of the press, free trade, the abandonment of all colonies and a reduction in the money being spent on armam ents. One of Bentham’s most famous works was Constitutional Code in 1830. Here Bentham shares many of his ideas and beliefs on political democracy. Bentham argues that political reform should be dictated by the principal that the new system will promote the happiness of the majority of the people affected by it. He also argues about universal suffrage, annual parliaments and vote by ballot. Bentham believed that there should be no king, no House of Lords and no established church. In Constitutional Code Bentham also includes his view that men and women should be able to vote. Bentham also addressed the problem of how government should be organized and suggests the continual inspection of the work of politicians and government officials. Perhaps Bentham’s most famously noted for his work with Utilitarianism and is noted as the founder of modern utilitarianism. His work can be found in his book The Principles of Morals and Legislation. Utilitarianism is defined as â€Å"a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes utility, specifically defined as maximizing happiness and reducing suffering. † Bentham examined the concept of punishment and when it should be used as far as whether a punishment will create more pleasure or pain for society. He believed that the legislation of a society is vital to maintain the maximum pleasure and the minimum degree of pain for the greatest amount of people. Jeremy Bentham passed away on June 6th 1832 at the age of 84. Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant was born, lived and passed away in his home town of Konigsberg. He lived from 1724 to 1804. He studied at the local university and later returned to tutor and lecture students. It wasn’t until he met an English merchant by the name of Joseph Green that Kant learned of David Hume and began to develop his ideas of morals and values. Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason (1781) is believed to many to be his greatest work. Kant’s was known mainly, however, for his moral code The Categorical Imperative. Immanuel Kant was a follower of Deontology, or duty ethics. Deontology is a theory holding that decisions should be made solely or primarily by considering ones duties and the rights of others. One of the most important implications of deontology is that a persons behaviour can be wrong even if it results in the best possible outcome. And, an act can be right even if it results in a bad outcome. In contrast to consequentialism, a philosophy infamous for its claim that the ends justify the means, deontology insists that how people accomplish their goals is usually, or always, more important than what people accomplish. Kant’s moral philosophy is based on the categorical imperative, good will, and duty. According to the categorical imperative, it is an absolute necessity, a command that humans should accord with universalizable maxims to treat people as ends in themselves and exercise their will without any concerns about the consequences or conditions of their actions. This concept can also be expressed in systematic terms by the two following formulations. The first form of the categorical imperative prescribes that we must act only according to that maxim whereby we can at the same time will that it should become a universal law. The second one states that we ought to treat humanity, whether in our own person or in the person of another, always at the same time as an end and never simply as a means. In order to obey the categorical imperative, people have to act on a maxim that can be universalized. For instance, Kant argues that a lying promise is bad since it does not pass the universality test. Whenever a person makes a promise knowing that he will have to break it, he violates the first formulation of the categorical imperative. He intends to make use of another man merely as a means to an end which the latter does not likewise hold. In other words, Kant does not believe that lying promises are bad due to the fact that they generate bad consequences but because they result in a practical contradiction. According to him, people can’t lie since they can’t act for the results. Considering the second formulation of the categorical imperative, we have the need to have others working for us limited to some morality principles without treating them merely as a means. Kant believes that even though we have the ability to create our own ends, we can’t use people for our own devise. If we interfere with others to pursue their end while pursuing our own end, we violate their autonomy. We can’t have double standards for ourselves and for others. It is morally obligatory for us to respect others since people are rational agents. We must respect everyone in the exact same way and treat them as autonomous. As rational beings, humans are systematically united through common laws within the Kingdom of Ends. We belong to this kingdom as a member when we legislate in it universal laws while also being ourselves subject to these laws. According to Kant, everyone, no matter who they are, should be both the legislator and the follower of moral laws. Overall, Kant’s theory emphasizes that no one is an exception to moral laws, that people must act on strongly held beliefs or duties that are not in their own interest, and that we should never use people.

How Genuine is the Paradox of Irrationality? :: Davidson Paradoxes Irrational Essays

How Genuine is the Paradox of Irrationality? ABSTRACT: In light of interpreting a paradox of irrationality, vaguely expressed by Donald Davidson in the context of explaining weakness of will, I attempt to show that it contains a significant thesis regarding the cognitive as well as motivational basis of our normative practice. First, an irrational act must involve both a rational element and a non-rational element at its core. Second, irrationality entails free and intentional violation of fundamental norms which the agent deems right or necessary. Third, "normative interpretation" is only possible for objects that are both natural events and capable of mental operations which presuppose some freedom of will as well as constructive representation of the surrounding reality. Fourth, there is always a question of whether we strike the best balance between fitting individual mental items consistently with the overall behavior pattern and keeping our critical ability in following certain normative principles which constitute our ra tional background. Fifth, the paradox of irrationality reflects and polarizes a deep-seated tension in the normative human practice under the ultimate constraints of nature. Finally, the ultimate issue is how we can find the best lines on which our normative rational standards are based-"best" in the sense that they are close enough to limits of human practical potentialities and are not too high as to render our normative standards idle or even disastrous. In "Paradoxes of Irrationality," Davidson has the following remark, which arises from, but is not limited to, the explanation of weakness of will: The underlying paradox of irrationality, from which no theory can entirely escape, is this: if we explain it too well, we turn it into a concealed form of rationality; while if we assign incoherence too glibly, we merely compromise our ability to diagnose irrationality by withdrawing the background of rationality needed to justify any diagnosis at all. (1) Many theorists who try to provide an adequate explanation of weakness of will and its bearing on the issue of rationality fail to fully appreciate the implication of the above remark, which I believe is an important thesis for any attempt to understand the source of many apparent puzzles around akrasia. Perhaps this failure is partly due to the fact that Davidson himself does not make it clear how central this thesis will be for exploring the cognitive as well as motivational basis of our normative practice. In this paper, I shall discuss in section I the conceptual ingredients of being irrational, viz.

Labor Relations,Employee Relations and Global HR

1. Define Job Stress, Burnout and Depression. Job stress is a type of stress that is work-related.   The pressure at work, the challenges and the obstacles that are facing employees each day can result to negative physical and physiological responses. Burnout is a term used to describe the onset of exhaustion after experiencing long-term stress.   This results from being constantly exposed to stressors at work without getting the system a chance to fully recover from adrenaline surges. Depression is characterized by low mood, lack of interest in usual things that excites the person, and lesser capacity to experience pleasure.   This condition is not alarming when it's not pervasive, otherwise, it becomes a psychiatric problem that needs professional attention. Depression can have serious effects on a person's personal life and work. 2. Explain how you would reduce stress at work. Stress impacts our thoughts, emotions, and behavior in a number of ways.   In the workplace, stress makes a person less productive and difficult to deal with. In order to reduce stress at work, a person has to recognize when he or she is experiencing it.   Some of the symptoms and signs of stress are lack of focus, moodiness, depression, and muscle tension, among others. Once a person accepts that he is experiencing stress, the next step is for him to identify what are stressing him at work.   By knowing the stressors, it will be easier for the person to deal with them.   For instance, if an employee doesn't like his job anymore, he can began scouting for other job opportunities in other companies. In most cases, however, a person does not really know what's stressing him at work.   With all the things he needs to face in the office, it would be confusing for him to exactly point out what are causing him stress.   If this were the case, the first thing that the worker needs to do is to take a break and stop working for a few days.   Distancing himself from the entire organization will give him a breathing space and a chance to slow down.   Vacationing to a warm place where there is sand and sea often does wonder to a tired mind and body. 3. Why you believe this approach would be successful. I believe that taking a long vacation would be successful because many people I have talked to have done this.   They always make it a point to go away for a few days every year in order to de-stress and slow down.   After the vacation, the employee is normally back to his old self, ready to face the daily grind at work. If a person who is constantly stressed at work does not give himself the chance to recover, the most likely thing that will happen to him is to feel burnout in the long run.   Rest and relaxation ensures that a person's mind and body will experience rejuvenation before joining the rat race once more. On another note, when stressors are identified and dealt with, the employee's worries and concerns would probably be over.   Say for example that an employee's co-worker is harassing him.   This attitude is causing the person stress.   So long as he doesn't do anything about it, he would continue to feel violated by the harassment he is receiving.  Ã‚   If he brings it out in the open and talks to the right persons, then the harassment would stop and the harassed person will be able to work more comfortably. References Depression.com Home Page.   Retrieved April 15, 2008, from http://www.depression.com/ â€Å"Preventing Burnout: Signs, Symptoms, and Strategies to Avoid It.† Helpguide.org Home Page. Retrieved April 15, 2008, from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/burnout_signs_symptoms.htm â€Å"Understanding Stress: Signs, Symptoms, Causes, and Effects.†Ã‚   Helpguide.org Home Page. Retrieved April 15, 2008, from http://www.helpguide.org/mental/stress_signs.htm      

Progressive Era

The Progressive Era reformers and the fedreal government were effective in bringing about reform at the national level by proof of amnedments passed, the food and drug administration, and various acts. One way that the progressives and federal government reformed America is by the four amendments; 16, 17, 18, and 19. The seventeenth amendment in 1913 provided for the direct election of senatros which was a victory for Roosevelt and pregressives. Another amendment passed during the Progressive Era was the abolition of alchohol, which is insignifigant in reform at the national level because it was later repealed. Finally, there was the nineteenth amendment whih allowed women's suffrage due to the progressive feminist movement. These different amendments were all ways in which the federal government helped reform America nationally. Upton Sinclair's book, The Jungle, enlightened the American punlic of the horrors of the meatpacking industry. Consequently, the Meat Inspection Act of 1906, was passed making meat shipped over state lines subject to inspection. Thus the food and drug administration was a result of the Progressive movement as well. Some of the various acts that were passed that met the pregressive standards are the Clayton Anti-Trust Act of 1914 which legalizes strikes and peaceful picketing; the Workingmen's Compensation Act and another act restricting child labor on products headed into interstate commerce; the Adamson Act which established an 8-hour workday; the La Follete Seamens's Act which required decent living wages for sailors, and a few other acts. Jane Addam's book, The Spirit of Youth and the City Streets, exhibits some of the pregressive feelings towards child labor and the evil of it. In conclusion, the federal government and the progressive Era were very effective in shaping and reforming America by these examples. Progressive Era The role and responsibilities of the federal government changed drastically during the Progressive Era and the New Deal. Rapid changes after the Civil War brought on a need for economic, social and political reforms. Before the Progressive Era and the New Deal, the federal government took a very hands-off approach and had little involvement in, and little care for the welfare of the American people. With the Progressive Era and the New Deal, the federal government became more involved and responsive to the public and implemented many revisions and reforms.The Progressive Era was a time of political and economic transformation. The role and responsibilities of the federal government evolved. Reform was necessary because of the changes that occurred during the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution brought on many changes, an important one being growth in the number and scope of work in factories. Factories and mechanization caused a need for less skilled workers, which in tu rn resulted in lower labor costs, lower wages, longer hours and appalling working conditions.Labor Unions were formed as a result of these conditions in order to protect the working class and put pressure on employers. During the Progressive Era, the federal government created labor laws, trade regulations and instituted other various measures in order to protect the public. The federal government also protected the rights of laborers to organize unions and became involved in the mediation of labor disputes in order to prevent riots from occurring. The regulation of utilities and railroads was used to protect the public welfare from the abuses of large corporations.The federal government also began to regulate large businesses and monopolies. It accepted large-scale corporations as an essential part of the economy but also embraced the need to regulate them. Trusts were also of great concern to the federal government. The Federal Trade Commission was instituted in order to protect t he public from additional abuses of large corporations. The federal government also promoted the public’s support of the war. Through voluntary and collaborative means, the federal government rallied businesses and the public in support of the war effort.The federal government made political changes on a national level with the Sixteenth, Seventeenth, Eighteenth and Nineteenth Amendments. The Sixteenth Amendment imposed an income tax. The Seventeenth Amendment allowed for the direct election of U. S. Senators. The Eighteenth Amendment established the prohibition of alcoholic beverages and the Nineteenth Amendment prohibited any U. S. citizen from being denied the right to vote based on sex. During the Progressive Era, social reform and cultural changes also occurred. Consumerism was at an all time high.It became a time of economic prosperity. With the introduction of electricity came household appliances. Movies, automobiles, radios, telephones, magazines, and advertising wer e in the forefront. While consumption prompted the economy in a forward direction, other economic issues arose throughout the country. Agriculture and mining were not prospering. The steel and textile industries were standing idly. The nation also relied too heavily on credit in order to maintain product demand and economic expansion. Lastly, consumer onfidence led to over-speculation in stocks. This inevitably led to the Stock Market Crash of 1929, which in turn marked the beginning of the Great Depression. Franklin Delano Roosevelt came into office in 1933 during the depth of the Great Depression. He launched the New Deal as a solution for bringing the United States out of the Great Depression. The New Deal changed the role of the government by expanding its involvement in social and economic affairs. The goal of the New Deal was to provide the â€Å"3 R’s†: relief, recovery and reform.The federal government worked to provide relief for the masses of unemployed, reco very of the depressed economy and reform of the financial system. Reforms were highlighted in a variety of acts that were passed. During the first 100 days of Roosevelt’s administration, more legislation was passed than under any previous president. The Federal Emergency Relief Act established funding and programs for relief and provided grants to the states to help people with food and shelter. The Civilian Conservation Corps Act granted the government the ability to pay young men to build bridges, roads and dams and plant 17 million dollars in new forests.The Agricultural Adjustment Act paid farmers not to plant crops so that the surpluses would not drive down prices. The National Industrial Recovery Act created the first minimum wage and marked the first time that the government intervened in business. The Works Projects Administration allowed the government to create over 250,000 projects and paid people to complete them. The Social Security Act created a pension for peop le over 65 years of age. All of these reform programs provided employment and direct payments to individuals and improved the economy.The federal government worked diligently to bring the United States out of the Great Depression during the New Deal and in doing so, the relationship between the government and the people changed significantly. The government took on a greater role in the everyday lives of people. As you can see, the role and responsibilities of the federal government changed considerably during the Progressive Era and the New Deal. The new hands-on approach of the government allowed for political, social and economic reforms during the 20th century. Progressive Era The Progressive Era reformers and the fedreal government were effective in bringing about reform at the national level by proof of amnedments passed, the food and drug administration, and various acts. One way that the progressives and federal government reformed America is by the four amendments; 16, 17, 18, and 19. The seventeenth amendment in 1913 provided for the direct election of senatros which was a victory for Roosevelt and pregressives. Another amendment passed during the Progressive Era was the abolition of alchohol, which is insignifigant in reform at the national level because it was later repealed. Finally, there was the nineteenth amendment whih allowed women's suffrage due to the progressive feminist movement. These different amendments were all ways in which the federal government helped reform America nationally. Upton Sinclair's book, The Jungle, enlightened the American punlic of the horrors of the meatpacking industry. Consequently, the Meat Inspection Act of 1906, was passed making meat shipped over state lines subject to inspection. Thus the food and drug administration was a result of the Progressive movement as well. Some of the various acts that were passed that met the pregressive standards are the Clayton Anti-Trust Act of 1914 which legalizes strikes and peaceful picketing; the Workingmen's Compensation Act and another act restricting child labor on products headed into interstate commerce; the Adamson Act which established an 8-hour workday; the La Follete Seamens's Act which required decent living wages for sailors, and a few other acts. Jane Addam's book, The Spirit of Youth and the City Streets, exhibits some of the pregressive feelings towards child labor and the evil of it. In conclusion, the federal government and the progressive Era were very effective in shaping and reforming America by these examples.

An Assortment of 30 Synonyms for Assortment, Mixture, or Variety

An Assortment of 30 Synonyms for Assortment, Mixture, or Variety An Assortment of 30 Synonyms for â€Å"Assortment,† â€Å"Mixture,† or â€Å"Variety† An Assortment of 30 Synonyms for â€Å"Assortment,† â€Å"Mixture,† or â€Å"Variety† By Mark Nichol This post lists thirty words to employ as alternatives for assortment, mixture, and variety, accompanied by brief definitions. 1–2. An agglomerate or agglomeration is a jumbled collection or mass, and the first variant also serves as a noun and an adjective (and can also refer to a volcanic rock consisting of various combined fragments). Agglomeration can also refer to the action or process of massing. 3. To botch is to bungle, or make a mess of, but the word can also describe the mess itself as a noun. 4. Clutter implies a concentrated assortment that impedes effectiveness or progress. 5. A collage is an artistic composition consisting of assorted elements or materials, but by extension the word can also refer to an assortment of any kind. 6. â€Å"Crazy quilt† implies a random assemblage of parts, from the original notion of a quilt consisting of odds and ends of fabric, though quilts are generally now assembled to create a pattern. 7. A farrago is a confused assortment. 8. A grab bag was originally a prize handed out at a fair or another event and consisting of a small sack with assorted toys and/or treats. Now, the phrase refers to any random collection. 9. Jumble suggests a disordered assortment. 10. Jungle, besides its primary meaning of â€Å"a region of tropical vegetation,† by extension can refer to a confused mass as well as a complex process. 11. Litter, from the Latin word for bed, came by extension from the sense of animal bedding material or organic matter on a forest floor to refer to accumulated objects strewn about. 12. Though medley is primarily understood to mean â€Å"a series of portions of two or more songs compiled as a single composition,† its original meaning is â€Å"mix.† 13. Mà ©lange refers to a usually incompatible assortment. 14. Cognate with manage, menagerie first applied to management of a farm and its livestock, then to a collection of or place for keeping animals for exhibition, and then, by extension, to any assortment. 15. A miscellany or miscellanea is a collection of various compositions or things. 16. A mishmash is an assortment of things literally or figuratively mashed together. 17. â€Å"Mixed bag† in similar to â€Å"grab bag† in current meaning, although the phrase more often refers to something with both positive and negative impacts. 18. Montage usually refers to a visual medley, but it can also be directly synonymous with medley in both artistic and general senses. 19. Motley originally had a sense of â€Å"multicolored† and described the variegated-pattern attire of the stock theatrical character Harlequin or a court jester, but it later came to describe a varied assortment. 20. To muddle is to make confused or unclear, and the noun refers to being mentally confused or to objects being in a state of confusion. 21. An olio is a collection or mixture. 22. A hybrid Latin/English term that literally means â€Å"gather all,† omnium-gatherum suggests a collection. 23–24. Patchwork, and â€Å"patchwork quilt,† denote a disordered collection, from the notion of a quilt made of assorted patches of fabric or something analogous to it in appearance. 25. A ragbag was originally a sack containing scraps of fabric, and by extensive the word came to refer to an assortment. 26. Rummage is primarily employed as a verb meaning â€Å"search,† but as a noun it refers both to a search through an assortment of objects or such a collection itself. 27. Similarly, to scramble is to rush or to make a difficult, energetic effort, but as a noun, the word pertains to a disordered collection that would require such activity when searching for something in it. 28. Shuffle describes the action of rearranging or moving back and forth, and a shuffle is an assortment of things messily rearranged. 29. A tumble is a careless, disordered, or sudden fall, and based on the middle sense, the word may also refer to a collection of things in disarray. 30. A welter is a chaotic assortment. Synonyms for assortment, mixture, and variety derived from names of food dishes are discussed in this post. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:70 "Home" Idioms and ExpressionsDifference between "Pressing" and "Ironing"Comment, Suggestion, and Feedback

Post-Impressionism Era in Art History

Post-Impressionism Era in Art History The term Post-Impressionism was invented by the English painter and critic Roger Fry as he prepared for an exhibition at the Grafton Gallery in London in 1910. The show, held November 8, 1910–January 15, 1911) was called Manet and the Post-Impressionists, a canny marketing ploy which paired a brand name (Édouard Manet) with younger French artists whose work was not well known on the other side of the English Channel. The up-and-comers in the exhibition included the painters Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cà ©zanne, Paul Gauguin, George Seurat, Andrà © Derain, Maurice de Vlaminck, and Othon Friesz, plus the sculptor Aristide Maillol. As the art critic and historian Robert Rosenblum explained, Post-Impressionists... felt the need to construct private pictorial worlds upon the foundations of Impressionism. For all intents and purposes, it is accurate to include the Fauves among the  Post-Impressionists. Fauvism, best described as a  movement-within-a-movement, was characterized by artists who used color, simplified forms and ordinary subject matter in their paintings. Eventually, Fauvism evolved into Expressionism. Reception As a group and individually, the Post-Impressionist artists pushed the ideas of the Impressionists in new directions. The word Post-Impressionism indicated both their link to the original Impressionist ideas and their departure from those ideas - a modernist journey from the past into the future. The Post-Impressionist movement was not a lengthy one. Most scholars place Post-Impressionism from the mid-to-late-1880s to the early 1900s. Frys exhibition and a follow-up which appeared in 1912 were received by the critics and public alike as nothing less than anarchy - but the outrage was brief. By 1924, the writer ​Virginia Woolf commented that the Post-Impressionists had changed human consciousness, forcing writers and painters into less certain, experimental efforts. The Key Characteristics of Post-Impressionism The Post-Impressionists were an eclectic bunch of individuals, so there were no broad, unifying characteristics. Each artist took an aspect of Impressionism and exaggerated it. For example, during the Post-Impressionist movement, Vincent van Gogh intensified Impressionisms already vibrant colors and painted them thickly on the canvas (a technique known as  impasto). Van Goghs energetic brushstrokes expressed emotional qualities. While it is difficult to characterize an artist as unique and unconventional as van Gogh, art historians generally view his earlier works as representative of Impressionism,  and his later works as examples of Expressionism (art loaded with charged emotional content). In other examples, Georges Seurat took the rapid, broken brushwork of Impressionism and developed it into the millions of colored dots that create Pointillism, while Paul Cà ©zanne elevated Impressionisms separation of colors into separations of whole planes of color.   Cezanne and Post-Impressionism It is important not to understate the role of Paul Cà ©zanne in both Post-Impressionism and his later influence on modernism. Cezannes paintings included many different subject matters, but all included his trademark color techniques. He painted landscapes of French towns including Provence, portraits that included The Card Players, but may be best known among modern art lovers for his still life paintings of fruit. Cezanne became a major influence on Modernists such as Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, both of whom revered the French master as a father.   The list below pairs the leading artists with their respective Post-Impressionist Movements. Best-Known Artists Vincent van Gogh - ExpressionismPaul Cà ©zanne - Constructive PictorialismPaul Gauguin - Symbolist, Cloisonnism, Pont-AvenGeorges Seurat - Pointillism (a.k.a. Divisionism or Neoimpressionism)Aristide Maillol - The NabisÉdouard Vuillard and Pierre Bonnard - IntimistAndrà © Derain, Maurice de Vlaminck and Othon Friesz - Fauvism Sources Nicolson B. 1951. Post-Impressionism and Roger Fry. The Burlington Magazine 93 (574):11-15.Quick JR. 1985. Virginia Woolf, Roger Fry . The Massachusetts Review 26(4):547-570.and Post-Impressionism

Summarize and Analyze your Entrepreneur Interview Essay

Summarize and Analyze your Entrepreneur Interview - Essay Example Amrita belongs to Indian origin. Her father and mother are Indian. Family back ground of the interviewee is very simple and she belongs to a simple Indian family which has migrated from India to USA. The interviewee is also a UX Research associate in User experience centre of Bentley University. Amrita is significantly passionate towards the various extra curriculum activities like playing Cricket, Tennis and reading books and travelling. She is extremely passionate about the lean start up methodology and she has managed it well enough. She is a graduate of Women’s leadership organization. The interviewer has identified her with the help of LinkedIn. All the above information is indicating that background of the entrepreneur is very much simple and she had to start her business from the scratch. But the interviewee has suitable educational background and working experience to come up with new business. Opportunity identification is a fundamental requirement for any entrepreneur. Amrita was travelling from India to USA. She was travelling to attend her high school reunion in USA. She was properly dressed up and she had her dresses in her bags also. But during that trip to reunion party she was missing shoes. She was thinking to borrow it from someone. But unfortunately she had to spend her money to purchase new shoes. At that point of time shoes were not at all required for the interviewee. But as there was no other choice to her, she had to buy it. So opportunity identification was significantly real-time and practical in nature. In this case, situation guided Amrita towards the opportunity. Opportunity identification was very much specific in nature and it helped the interviewee to come up with a successful idea. Here in this case also the interviewee identified the opportunity suitably. Here in this case one thing is crystal clear that opportunities are everywhere. But proper