Shapiros Auto Wreck Essays - , Term Papers

Shapiro's "Auto Wreck" Philosophers have pondered the meaning of life and death since the beginning of time. There are many hypotheses. From reincarnation to Valhalla -- then on to heaven. There have been many proposed solutions. Yet no one fully understands dea th. In Shapiro's poem "Auto Wreck," he illustrates the irrationality of life for it can be taken away at any given time for no rational reason. Shapiro uses metaphors to emphasize the fantasy-like and wild setting of the auto wreck. The following is an excerpt taken from "Auto Wreck": "And down the dark one ruby flare Pulsing out red light like an artery." This statement contrasts the red light emitted from an ambulance to the blood of an artery. The idea that a light is spurted out like blood is abstract and bizarre. In addition to that metaphor, Shapiro writes: "One hangs lanterns on the wrecks that cling Emptying husks of locusts, to iron poles." This rhythmical sentence paints a picture of locusts, grass? hopper like creatures, clinging to a luscious green jungle of grass. Yet symbolically this jungle is the twisted, black, and crisp auto wreck. This depiction of the auto wreck is extravag ant and almost unreal. Using metaphors, Shapiro portrays the fantasy-like auto wreck in which wildness is indispensable. In addition to Shapiro's use of metaphorical phrases, he emphasizes the lack of comprehension of the on-lookers as a result of death's inconsistency with logic. Shapiro directly tells the reader, "We are deranged." The word "we" symbolizes u s, as a whole institution or better yet -- society. He goes on further to say, "Our throats were tight as tourniquets." By this he means that the on-lookers were stopped, almost speechless, as they gazed upon the wreckage contemplating the reason b ehind death. Finally, Shapiro writes: "We speak through sickly smiles and warn With the stubborn saw of common sense." What the writer is getting through is that the on-lookers attempted to rationalize the accident with their common sense. But their "common sense," or their logical reasoning ability, was being sawed upon as they continued to puzzle over death. Once again, the old age question of "What is the meaning of death?" was tackled at the scene of the auto wreck. Finally, Shapiro asks rhetorical questions which could never be answered by logical means. One question which Shapiro asks is "Who shall die [next]?" This question could never be answered for death strikes without cause but randomness. The second question Shapiro asks is "Who is innocent?" No one knows who is innocent. The driver might have been suicidal. Maybe he might not have. Who knows, for this is death that is being dealt with. These hard questions could not be reasoned with deductively. Only an irrational source such as an all-supreme and omniscient being could answer these questions. In death, there exists strictly irrational causes for the loss of life. Death is an eccentric jungle whose twisted, convoluted, and entangled vines represent the causes of death which can not be mapped out mathematically, but can be mapped o ut by the deranged explorer or sole creator of that jungle, both of whom are irrational persons in themselves.

Chapel essays

Chapel essays Everyone knows that Rome is the home of art. One of the example of this is Sistine Chapel in Vatican is decorated with works by many great artists of different periods. It was built between 1475 and 1483, in the time of Pope Sixtur IV della Rovere. The chapel is rectangular in shape and is 40,93 meters in length and has width of 13,41 meters.It is 20.70 meters high and is roofed by a flattened barrel vault. It is consisted of six windows cut into the long sides, forming a series of pedantries between them. All the art work was done between 1481 and 1541. The wall paintings were done by Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosselli, as well as the Perugian Pietro Perugino. But the most astounding art work was done by Michaelangelo on the ceilings and above the altar. It was the work of Michaelangelo that gave the Chapel the life. Michaelangelos art was one of a kind with beautiful fresco colors, and depiction of various characters and events on the ceiling. Michelangelo gave all the perfec tion to this work that can be given such as new poses, clothing on figures, and various inspiring details. Michaelangelo could be given the most credit for the beauty of the chapel because he alone created as many beautiful paintings as all the other painters together. He proved what one man is capable of with his artistic talent, due to which the chapel achieved its greatest fame. These men together built a chapel that could be called the 8th wonder of the world. The wall paintings were decorated by several talented Florentine painters. It was done by Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio and Cosimo Rosselli, as well as the Perugian Pietro Perugino. The walls of the chapel was divided in three horizontal segments. The lowest porthion of the side walls were covered with a series of tapestries depicting events from the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The central one with two life cycles, one relating the life of Moses, and the other ass...

Assignment # 7 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

# 7 - Assignment Example b) The amount of profit generated by the company per dollar of sales: Net profit margin. It is profitability ratio. A company should have higher value for the ratio because it indicates high profitability. c) This ratio gives a measure of the number of days it takes a company to collect on sales that it sells on credit: Days sales outstanding. Efficiency/Asset Utilization ratio. A lower value for the ratio is favourable as a company collects cash faster from customers, it has good collection procedures. d) This ratio is used to determine how easily a company can pay interest expenses on outstanding debt: Times interest earned. It is a leverage ratio. A higher value for the ratio is favourable; the company has more cover for finance costs hence low business risk. e) This ratio specifies the number of days it takes for the company’s inventory to be converted to sales, either as cash or accounts receivable: Days in inventory. Efficiency/Asset Utilization ratio. A lower value for the ratio is more favourable as the company is converting its inventories into cash faster; hence the inventory is more liquid. f) This ratio indicates how profitable a company is over on accounting period (typically 12 months) without regard to how it is financed: Return on assets. Profitability ratio. A higher value for the ratio is required because it indicates that the company is more profitable. g) A ratio that further refines the liquidity by measuring the amount of the most liquid current assets there are to cover current liabilities: Acid test ratio. It is a liquidity ratio. A company should have higher value for the ratio to be able to meet its short term obligations with lots of ease. h) This ratio compares the amount of interest-bearing debt in a company’s capital structure to its total assets: Debt-to-total asset ratio (leverage ratio). A lower value for the ratio is required because it indicates less leverage and less risk. i) This ratio is a measure of

Is the Death Penalty Effective Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Is the Death Penalty Effective - Research Paper Example Rather, it is an economic drain for most of the states in our country that continue to use it as their severest form of criminal punishment. It also provides an emotional and psychological release for the criminal who suffers the most in death row. We all have a right to life. We all have the right to change the way of life that we chose to lead in the past. Nobody ever wants to willingly live a life of crime. Some people, or most hardened criminals like Charles Manson, prove to have psychological shortcomings that have driven them into such a horrific lifestyle. With that kind of information on hand for anyone to see and read about, one can only come to the conclusion that the death penalty is a punishment that is outmoded and irrelevant when dealing with criminals. Rather than killing these people, prisons should make more effective use of their criminal rehabilitation programs instead. Opting to keep the most dangerous criminals under lock and key for the rest of their lives witho ut a chance of getting a parole rather than trying to right a crime with another crime. Let's call a spade a spade in this case. The death penalty has never been an effective crime deterrent. The states that implement them such as Florida, California, and Texas still have high crime rates with murder rates still on the rise. These aforementioned states have seen a reduction in their police force and a trimming down of their prison budgets all because the state budget cannot afford to keep the law enforcement team on the payroll the way they need to be. But, and this is what boggles the minds of most thinking people who live in these states, the fact remains that these very same states manage to spend millions of dollars of the state budget in implementing death penalty actions. Case in point: Before the Los Angeles riots, for example, California had little money for innovations like community policing, but was managing to spend an extra $90 million per year on capital punishment. Te xas, with over 300 people on death row, is spending an estimated $2.3 million per case, but its murder rate remains one of the highest in the country. (Dieter, Richard â€Å"What Politicians Don't Say About the High Costs of the Death Penalty†) Keeping the above costing in mind, it is sufficient enough to say that Capital Punishment as we know it is actually making America a dangerous place to live in. When a country, or a state for that matter, pours out so much of its budget on the death penalty while their crime prevention measures and law enforcers suffer with meager budgets or a slash of employed police officers, one can only deduce that something is very wrong with the way people of the state view their safety concerns and strategies. Why do some states continue to enforce the death penalty when it has a f cheaper alternative? By placing a criminal in prison for life, without parole. we prevent the clogging of our judicial system with motion after motion for reconsidera tion on behalf of the sentenced death row convict. Capital punishment trials are one of the most costly trials that can be had by any accused most specially since there is a huge

Assess the concept of cosmopolitan democracy Essay

Assess the concept of cosmopolitan democracy - Essay Example Later on, other important issues such as global environmental problems, global justice system, crimes against humanity and economic and cultural globalisation added to the global peace concern. The concept of cosmopolitan democracy was supposed to resolve or at least alleviate these global problems. The main idea of cosmopolitan democracy is to design and implement "a system of governance arising from and adapting to the diverse conditions and interconnections between different peoples and nations" (Held, 1998: 25). David Held and Daniele Archibugi, the most renowned European theorists of cosmopolitan democracy, argue that although democracy has gained universal acclaim as the best form of political establishment after fall of the Iron Curtail and end of the Cold War, it influences only domestic level, while the realm of international relations remains practically unaffected by democratic processes. International institutions, including the United Nations organization and European Union do not care much about democratisation of their activities which results in lack of accountability and restricted public access to information. The risk is that if this tendency remains, democratic forms of governance will give up to authoritarianism (McGrew, 2002). Cosmopolitanism offers an alternative that helps effectively fi... Democracy is to be conceptualized as a process, rather than as a set of norms and procedures. A feuding system of states hampers democracy within states. Democracy within states favours peace, but does not necessarily produce a virtuous foreign policy. Global democracy is not just the achievement of democracy within each state. Globalization erodes states' political autonomy and thereby curtails the efficacy of state-based democracy. The stakeholders' communities in a relevant and growing number of specific issues do not necessarily coincide with states' territorial borders. Globalization engenders new social movements engaged with issues that affect other individuals and communities, even when these are geographically and culturally very distant from their own political community (Archibugi, 2004: 439). These assumptions suggest that contemporary form of national democracy must be seriously transformed in order to survive. Firstly, the sovereignty of the nation states must be restricted by increasing numbers of international treaties and conventions. Secondly, the existing international governing structures must be reformed to provide a better opportunity for international dialogue and democratic decision-making. Thus, Derk Bienen, another known theorist of cosmopolitan democracy, claims that in order to achieve these goals the UN must establish a second chamber consisting of members elected directly by people, the veto-right of the Security Council should be limited, and the system of international courts has to be strengthened and reformed in a way to provide better protection for individuals. Initially, the UN was founded not as an assembly of democratic states: the primary purpose of this organization was to prevent military conflicts similar to WWII.

Text Analysis of Hamlet and Man on Fire Essay Example for Free

Text Analysis of Hamlet and Man on Fire Essay Over time Hamlet transfigures from a highly emotional state to a temperament which is extremely methodical and emotionally stale. This mentality leads to a course of self-imposed blockades that ultimately result in the deferment of his revenge. Creasy, contrastingly, begins in an emotionless and detached state, a facade consolidated through his apparent want to die. However, this icy stature is chiseled away by Peta when he is assigned as her bodyguard. Upon Peta’s kidnapping Creasy is enraged, with reason exchanged for an intense and tremendously emotional approach for revenge. Hamlet’s first soliloquy clearly exhibits the magnitude to which his emotions have informed and consumed his thoughts. Even before knowing the reasons behind his state, it is established that Hamlet has a wish to die, a point pushed by the expression of ‘too too solid’ in the opening sentence. This repetition of ‘too’ expresses Hamlet’s dismay at his own permanency, an idea consolidated in the following line with the words ‘thaw’, ‘resolve’ and ‘dew’ contrasting to make a depiction of evanescence. This remarks that he does not wish to live long . Hamlet also shares a rather resentful view of the world and this is represented through the use of decay imagery. When Hamlet depicts ‘how weary, stale, flat and unprofitable’ the world appears to be he wholeheartedly believes that there is no worth in the world and that it possesses things only ‘rank and gross in nature’. Additionally, the use of caesurae in the sentence indicates, in its very nature, the desultory state of Hamlet. Dislocated sentence structure is also an indicative part of enforcing his wildly emotional state. Constant and erratic leaps between ideas in the mind of Hamlet lets us know that he is not thinking methodically or in a way that would be considered steady. This concoction of chopping and changing ideas is easily displayed where Hamlet says ‘like Niobe, all tears: why she, even she—O, God! ’ This depicts how he redirects his thoughts as seemingly new ideas come to mind and this thus adds to the knowledge of Hamlet’s emotionally unpredictable frame of mind. In contrast, Creasy projects a completely different mental picture at the beginning of Man on Fire. He appears as a character that is very much in his right mind and objective of his emotions. This kind of emotionless facade is furthermore evident in Creasy’s unsociable stance when in the presence of Peta. An example of this comes when Peta asks Creasy whether or not he was scared of her to which he provides a very short, blunt reply of ‘I used to be. At first. But not anymore. ’ This dialogue also indicates that Creasy may have social difficulties and by extension is lost in ways of approaching people or at least those he is not familiar with. An obvious inference of this lack of communication is that Creasy is lonely and quite dejected. A view of the world as being hopeless is also taken up by the character and evident when Peta says that ‘there are some good things in the world’ and Creasy replies ‘Oh yeah, like what. ’ In this way the characters of Hamlet and Creasy are similar – sharing a correlating perspective in which the world is of no prospect. An amalgamation of all these elements lead to an inevitable emotional trough for Creasy; in which he falls into total despondency. This state is characterized through the song ‘Blue Bayou’ which Creasy plays while drinking in the night. In this scene he becomes suicidal as he is assaulted by images and thoughts from which he cannot escape; leading the song to becoming fragmented pieces of non-diagetic sound. This fragmentation and seeming discord is emphasized by Scott who employs a magnitude of frantic panning and rapid cut shots in order to display the breakdown in Creasy’s mental state. When the scene nears its end, Creasy attempts to take his life with a gun that inevitably fails to deliver the life ending bullet. At this point, a non-diagetic and mellow piano starts that indicates a kind of relief to the perplexity of the previous moments. The contemplation of suicide is comparatively explored by Hamlet in the third act. Here, he questions, quite simplistically, his existence with ‘to be, or not to be. ’ From this point, Hamlet appears to ponder reasons for living or ying by asking whether it is ‘nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles. ’ This analysis indicates that Hamlet has devolved from his highly emotional state to a temperament that is extremely methodical in nature, even when considering the ending of his own life. The use of the word ‘thus’ also indicates a fluent transition from one idea to another. Throughout the soliloquy Hamlet appears to be in search of reasons not to die rather than does that consolidate suicide. The most prominent idea being the ‘dread of something after death’. Evidence of this is most prominent when Hamlet states ‘ to die, to sleep;†¦for in that sleep of death what dreams may come’. This indicates fully his fear of life after death and perhaps a kind of retribution for his sins or that of which he will commit in ways of exacting revenge on Claudius. The analytical disposition assumed by Hamlet and his inherent rejection of passion ultimately leads to his downfall and thus, this is his tragic flaw. In contrast to this, Creasy establishes a strong bond of friendship with Peta and, in the wake of her kidnapping, transforms himself into an unstoppable and passionate force for revenge. The most evidential dialogue for this newly ignited passion comes when Creasy says ‘I’m gonna kill ‘em. Anyone that was involved. Anybody who profited from it. Anybody who opens their eyes at me. ’ These short sentences are indicative of his straight-to-the-point nature and disregard for excessive analytical thinking. Additionally, Tony Scott settles his use of cut shots and selects longer scenes to focus on Creasy’s intent for revenge and the fact that no external forces will impede his pursuit. Subtitles are also employed by Scott to emphasize certain key aspects of scenes and additional bolding of words within the subtitles makes features prominent still further. In all, Creasy’s heightened passion to rescue Peta leads to his downfall and this can be acknowledged as his tragic flaw. In conclusion, Creasy and Hamlet are two contradictory characters in terms of their mindsets over the course of their respective texts. Creasy in Man on Fire evolves for an icy, stale and emotionally objective state to a mentality of passion and purpose. A variety of cinematic techniques are employed to depict both demeanors of Creasy including cut shots, subtitles and diagetic and non-diagetic sound. Hamlet, alternatively, begins in a consumed state of passion that declines to a methodical manner involving enormous analytical evaluation. The final state of both characters are inevitably their tragic flaws and equally lead to their demise -fulfilling their roles as tragic heroes.

Distance Learning Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Distance Learning Distance education can trace its roots to 1840 when Sir Isaac Pitman, the English inventor of shorthand, came up with an idea for delivering instruction to a potentially limitless audience: correspondence courses by mail. By the 1900s, the first department of correspondence teaching was established at the University of Chicago. The founding of the United Kingdom’s Open University in 1969 marked a significant development of the newest phase of distance learning involving a mixed-media approach to teaching (Matthews 1999). Distance education takes place when a teacher and student are separated by physical distance and technology (in the form of print, voice, video and/or data) is used to bridge the instructional gap. (Willis & Dickinson 1997) Today, in addition to serving the learner who lives far from campus, distance education is aimed at part-time students, time-strapped adults learners, and students trying to work full-time while earning degrees. Virtual classrooms are not aimed at the traditional market of young college people, but disciplined adult learners. The benefits such students reap include: increased access to higher learning, flexible scheduling of personal time, convenient location, individualized attention by the instructor, less travel, and increased time to think about and respond to questions posed by the instructor. At a cursory glance, distance education appears to be working. With few exceptions, most of the research writings suggest that the learning outcomes of students using technology at a distance are similar to those of students who participate in conventional classroom instruction. The "no significant difference" finding has become accepted as fact. But th... .... Steven P. Crow. Available: WWW URL: http://www.aaup.org/319let.htm Phipps, Ronald and Merisotis, James (1999). What’s the difference? A review of contemporary research on the effectiveness of distance learning in higher education. Available: WWW URL: http://www.aaup.org/319let.htm Schneider, Alison (1999). AAUP seeks greater faculty role in distance-education. Chronicle of Higher Education, 45(42), p. A34. Sherry, L. (1996). Issues in distance learning. International Journal of Educational Telecommunications, 1(4), pp. 337-365. Willis, Barry and Dickinson, John (1997). Distance Education and the World Wide Web. In Khan (ed.), Web-Based Instruction, (pp. 81-84). Englewood Cliffs, NJ; Educational Technology Publications. Willis, Barry (1992). Strategies for teaching at a distance. ERIC Document Reproduction Services No. ED 351 007.

Environmental Factors Role in Obesity Epidemic Essay

Are Environmental Factors the Main Reasons for Obesity Epidemic? In her essay† What’s to Blame for the Surge in Super-Size Americans? † Tori DeAngelis discusses the various factors that lead to obesity. DeAngelis reminds us that obesity is getting worse and worse by the day. According to the current government estimate, about 65 percent of Americans are obese or overweight. DeAngelis states three factors that contribute to obesity. These are environmental factors, stress and gene factors. The author gives mainly two causes, environmental and gene factors. The other factor is the gene factor. In this essay, it is said that gene factors may also have an effect in causing people to be overweight and obese. I strongly believe that environmental factors are the major factors which play a great role in obesity. As DeAngelis stated in her essay, easy access to fast food is one of the major environmental factors that contributes to obesity (Page 291). Today, there are close to 160,000 fast food restaurants in United States. These restaurants are fast, fun, inexpensive, and can be found almost everywhere. When people look a quick, easy meal to grab on the go, fast food is the common solution. It’s far too easy to choose fast food over cooking a healthy meal at home and when it comes to eating out, temptation often wins. Fast food is the driving force behind the epidemic of obesity. It contains large amounts of fat accumulates in your body. You will gain weight and that could lead to obesity. The more weight you gain, the more you will be at risk for serious chronic illnesses such as diabetes, stroke, heart disease and debilitating conditions. The second environmental factor which DeAngelis states on her essay is lack of physical activity (Page 292). Lack of physical activity is a major environmental factor that contributes to obesity epidemic. The lack of physical activity is one reason why people get obese. The remote control, video games, automobiles, televisions and to some extent computers are all parts of the environment which discourages people from being physically active. Some people live in neighborhood where they can’t go outside because walking and running is too dangerous. Plus, given that we are becoming fatter, it becomes less interesting to exercise. As you know, weight gain occurs when calories consumed exceed calories burned. Physical activity plays a key role in energy balance because it uses up calories consumed. The third environmental which DeAngelis state on her essay is stress (Page 292). Stress is another major environmental factor that contributes to epidemic of obesity. When people are really stressed, they tend to crave comfort foods that are high in fat or sugar. They may eat often even when they are not hungry. People learn to eat as a way to cope with stress. They may be too exhausted to exercise regularly when they are under a lot stress. Once a friend told me obese people are often embarrassed about their weight and appearance. This leads to more depression, so they turn to food to feel better, which makes the problem even worse. So everybody should try not to stress themselves in order to keep their body fit and to live a healthy life. In conclusion, as DeAngelis states the rate of people getting obese is increasing. And she tells us the factors that are causing this problem. I think this is happening mainly because of the environmental factors. We all have to realize how damaging obesity can be to the body and for our overall health. Obesity is something that is increasingly on the rise today and will continue to rise unless we do something about it. Informing people how bad it really is and encouraging people to live a health enhancing lifestyle is one way to reduce the growth of obesity. A healthy diet and exercising are the keys not to become obese. Last but not least both the people and health professionals have a critical role compelling the fast food industry to change the way it does business.

Improving science literacy with hypermedia Essay

Methods Learning Design Architecture The four cornerstones of this Science learning and teaching design are goal-based and constructivist learning, simulation, computer-based creative learning environment, computer-based creative assessment, as well as the traditional lectures and tutorials. In the present research, the Discovery Channel â€Å"Pompeii: The Last Day† site was used as the hypermedia environment for investigating the science topic of Plate Tectonic Theory, first, and the impact of natural processes on human history (Pompeii), second. A few words need to be said about the structure of this hypermedia resource and its value for the current research. It is organized as the complex system of thematic hypermedia audio/video-packages accompanied by informational texts in written form. The structure of the site appears to be complex, so far as on the macrolevel it consists of the hypermedia sections: â€Å"What Happened Here? ,† the â€Å"Virtual Volcano† simulation, Pompeii Quiz, and Eruption Videos. Each macrounit, meanwhile, is designed as another macroentity. For example, the section â€Å"What Happened Here? † provides learners with different types of information on the theme of volcanic activity having erased ancient cities from the earth surface. The â€Å"Step Back in Time† slide-show is organized as a series (7 parts or pages) of the typed texts (â€Å"The Long, Deathly Silence,† â€Å"Herculaneum,† â€Å"Two Days in August,† â€Å"The Story of Lupercus,† â€Å"Pompeii: Part I,† â€Å"Pompeii: Part II,† and â€Å"The Story of Caius Julius Polybius† by Rossella Lorenzi). The â€Å"Ongoing Excavations,† or â€Å"Ongoing Archaeology† slide-show comprising 6 parts or pages (â€Å"Uncovering Pompeii,† â€Å"Bringing the Oldest Pompeii to Light,† â€Å"A Unique Glimpse,† â€Å"Herculaneum’s Lost Papyri,† â€Å"Lost Plays of Sophocles,† and â€Å"Multi-Spectral Imaging†) is analogous in structure to the â€Å"Step Back in Time† macrounit. Besides, within the same â€Å"What Happened Here? † macrosection, there is a â€Å"Pompeii’s Eyewitness Account† web documentary. The students listen to the text and watch the video accounting for Pliny the Younger’s story about the ancient Pompeii devastation. Whereas the aforedescribed macrounit explores the issues of human history in relating to natural catastrophes, the other macrosections concentrate on Plate Tectonics theory and scientific description of volcanoes as natural pressure valves. Under the umbrella of Volcanology, there are the hypermedia macrounits â€Å"Virtual Volcano† and of â€Å"Eruption Video. † The section â€Å"Virtual Volcano† consists in its turn of the Overview and the â€Å"Virtual volcano† simulation sections. The theme of the section is â€Å"Tectonic Plates and Volcanoes. † The Overview dwells on the Earth’s tectonic structure, volcano types (three subsections) and structure. The information is presented through both visual and textual form (typed text). In the macrounits of â€Å"Global Perspective† and â€Å"Virtual volcano† a specific type of hypermedia – symbolic simulation or microworld – introduces students to the details of tectonic structure and volcanic activity. Simulation is â€Å"a computer-based simulation of a work or decision-making environment† as a system (Sauer, Wastell, & Hockey, 2000, p. 46, qtd. in Gredler, 2004, p. 577). Whereas a â€Å"Global Perspective† is a genuine symbolic simulation of Earth with delineated plate boundaries and active volcanoes, the â€Å"Virtual volcano† section is an experiential simulation. This is an alliance of hypermedia and video images â€Å"to create a virtual experience for students who are fulfilling roles as researchers† (ibid. ). The macrounit seems to be designed to improve students’ comprehension of the theme by projecting the concepts from short-term to long-term memory, training topical vocabulary and operating knowledge in the goal-based settings. Six informational video packages within the section of â€Å"Eruption Video† train audition as well as visual comprehension. It also broadens students’ vocabulary with useful terms and present visual information on useful concepts (e. g. pyroclastic flow, lava flow, underwater volcano, etc. ). The informational section â€Å"Volcano news† provides learners with interesting facts on ancient and modern volcanic activity (as well as other scientific facts; there are 13 news pieces, 2 of which are corrupted). The hypermedia assessment tool is given in the form of the Pompeii Quiz. This is an interactive multiple-choice test â€Å"Would you survive after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius?. † To accomplish the test, a student must use knowledge having been gained during the research of the site. The Discovery Channel â€Å"Pompeii: The Last Day† site seems to be a useful hypermedia environment for investigating the topics of Plate Tectonic Theory and its impact on human history. First, students pick up useful concepts related to several branches of science (tectonics, Volcanology, history, archeology, etc. ). Second, they learn important vocabulary on the topics in the flow of constructivist and creative learning process. Due to the fact that the hypermedia environment is used for achieving the learning goals, the body of information is presented through various media (typed text, oral speech, graphics, videoimages, photographs, simulations) and organized flexibly. A learner is free to step from one macrounit to another being led by his/her personal background and motivation, return to the sections which are of most interest for him/her essentially and train comprehension skills in the Quiz as many times as (s)he needs. Finally, it refines students’ ICT skills while they use the World Wide Web to reach the site and proceed from page to page. Instruments To evaluate the effect of the hypermedia learning environment on students’ comprehension of Science (Plate Tectonics, Volcanology, History, Archeology), the researcher investigated each of the four â€Å"Pompeii: The Last Day† sections for the most significant scientific concepts to be utilized by students in the learning process. The search was done by qualitative linguistic analysis of the informational texts. The concepts were grouped into three main sections: geographical names, personal names and scientific terms and concepts (see Table 1 for the list). The students were assumed to learn those terms in the constructivist educational process through the hypermedia tools to incorporate them into their evaluation assignments as the evidence for their improved science reading and visual comprehension. Second, an end-of the week questionnaire was administered to the eight-graders in the Science Hypermedia class to find out feedback on their learning experience from using the hypermedia learning environment including time spent on independent research in the hypermedia environment (â€Å"Pompeii: The Last Day†) (see Tables 3, 4 and Figure 1). Third, Power Point presentations were used as creative evaluation instrument to check the learning outcomes of students’ comprehension. All the students were trained to create computer-based presentations by the given program. In an effort to guide and improve the learning of science concepts in the realms of Geology, History and Archeology with eight-graders in the middle school, a week study of the Topic â€Å"Plate Tectonic Theory and the Impact of Volcanic Activity on Human History† was designed as an action research experiment. From the point of view of settings and partly qualitative assessment of the outcomes of research on specific stages (e. g. students’ feedbacks), this study may also be called a case study, since only one science topic was investigated in regard to students’ comprehension and motivation. Two classes of eight-graders relatively equal in achievements and learning potential were invited to participate in educational experiment. However, there was no internal sampling conducted within each of the classes. All the students participated voluntarily and for no reward in grades or other. The goals of the present research were clarified to all the participants (N = 40). The total number of participants (N = 40) was invited to study the topic of Plate Tectonics and its impact on human history through different learning resources. The students of experiment group (n = 20) studied the topic in the hypermedia environment (a school computer laboratory equipped with Windows-based microcomputers and, optionally, at home), whereas the other group of students (control group, n = 20) did not use any hypermedia resources learning solely from printed textbooks and handouts as well as teacher’s oral instructions. To comment, the student of the experiment group received small portions of a teacher’s instruction while researching the hypermedia context. They were also assisted by a teacher in proceeding from one structural part of the site to the other in order to investigate the topic on each other’s individual pace. However, the general framework of scientific topic was introduced to a group of students. Thus, both group and individual types of instruction tool place in the research. One more thing to note, the studies in both the experiment and the control groups were conducted by one and the same teacher of a teaching style being familiar to the students from previous experience. After a week of studies, the students from both the groups designed Power Point presentations on the topic within the Hypermedia Evaluation Project in lieu of a formal examination. The assessment comprised: 45% on the subject comprehension (major concepts and direct conceptual links), 45% on utilizing Power Point hypermedia resources, and 10% on creativity. All the students (n = 40) were trained in using the Power Point program. Presentations were evaluated by three examiners. The point of degree between the evaluators was high (r = . 088).

Comparison and conclusions about the nature of knowledge between knowing a friend and knowing how to swim, knowing a scientific theory and knowing a historical period.

Comparison and conclusions about the nature of knowledge between knowing a friend and knowing how to swim, knowing a scientific theory and knowing a historical period. We can compare many things and people only by each quality. Contrasting them with their qualities will be at the same time easy and hard. Comparing a friend with something that is not alive, like knowing how to swim are two different things. A friend for example is a human being as everybody, who will help you anytime you want, give you support, understand and love you. According to Jane Sequichie Hifler, "In every man there is something wherein I may learn of him, and in that I am his pupil". We learn from our friends and they learn from us. So it is "us" who teach each other and let them know of the world we live in.Knowing how to swim is just something that you can do in the water to move within it. It can't help you nor can it know what you are feeling in any way.English: Flowchart that shows how an idea moves fr...Water also cannot teach you anything nor can you learn from water. When you learn how to swim you teach yourself how and the water it just there. Swimming it just an a ct of moving through a substance that is not air. Although, swimming allows us to experience a part of the world we are in. it allows us to take part in exploring more than just what our feet can touch. This allows us to learn and grow from what we learn under the water and how it interacts with what we see around us. The act of knowing a friend and knowing how to swim are both in turn methods of learning to obtain and achieve things in life.Comparing knowing a friend to knowing a scientific theory shows that they both must be proven. Friends are people who just don't walk up and suddenly become...

Refitting the pieces Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Refitting the pieces - Essay Example The results of the interactive Jigsaw Puzzle Media Piece exercise revealed one’s personal worldview is formed and composed of three essential components. The three components that make up my worldview are God, Ethics and Knowledge, because they shaped my thoughts, experiences, education and life decisions.Believing and trusting God’s Word provides a lively faith and confidence in God’s promises. One of the most significant lessons I learned is to live and learn from the Bible. Believing and trusting God’s Word and incorporating the Gospel in our lives will create a positive worldview and generate consistent worldview beliefs. God’s teaching, as detailed in the Bible shared messages of loving one’s neighbor as oneself and to obey the commandments. There were instances in life where trials and challenges are faced through death of loved ones or through troubles in relationships. The lessons of love revealed in the passages of 1 Corinthians 13 g ive the greatness of love in its capacity to encompass patience, kindness, hope and the constant pursuit for truth (Bible Gateway, 2010).Embracing God’s worldview steers us to make sound choices and life decisions. Those decisions uncover who we are, what we believe, and our purpose. When difficulties become pressing, the faith and trust in God gives courage and comfort that everything would come to pass and that these trials are just temporary incidents that are made to be experienced to make us stronger to face vicissitudes in the future. The Bible creates a moral compass for people to learn and make life decisions. As a book that gives guidance in the form of messages, one is directed to focus on specific aspects in one’s personality that needs to be addressed. For example, people who face problems in disobeying God’s commandments would find answers in Deuteronomy 27:11-27: â€Å"(â€Å"Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen† (Deuteronomy 27:26)† (Deeper Christian Life Ministry, 2011, par. 1). Those who are reflecting on taking one’s life or killing others would find answers in the value and sanctity of life through this verse: â€Å"Don?t you know that you yourselves are God?s Temple and that God?s spirit lives in you?† 1 Corinthians 2:16† (The Bible and the Sanctity of Life, n.d., par. 10). Following God’s Word creates the foundation necessary to choose between good and evil and right and wrong . My life decision is to learn, teach and follow the scripture but to also keep an open mind to others beliefs, opinions, and worldviews. Keeping an open mind means being open to accommodate diverse points of views and perspectives from different cultural and ethical orientations. With regards to ethics, one’s personal contention is to treat everyone like you would want to be treated. Being ethical (moral) is how humans relate to one another, how you relate to yourself, and how you relate to your creator. The word of God provides one with the direction and guidance to avoid treating others unethically or immorality. One’s personal beliefs, values and standards on fair and equally treatment in according human rights can impact in a negative or positive manner, depending on the person and how they apply it. For example, there have been controversial issues of equality in gender and race in organizations. With one’s commitment to ethical codes of conduct, one is co mmitted to treat all

Red worm food preferences and the rate of consumption Research Proposal

Red worm food preferences and the rate of consumption - Research Proposal Example Most of these countries already started the recycling of their garbage. Many recycling plant were built for plastics, metals, and biodegradable waste but dumping of waste on landfills is still being practiced. The rate of recycling of biodegradable waste was the major difficulty for most of the landfills. The faster rate of waste input as compared to the waste degradation to the landfill pushed many governments to look for an alternative and faster way of decomposing organic waste products (Recycled Organics Unit 9). Decomposting is a process by which organic waste matter is buried or stood still to allow bacterial decomposition to occur. Bacterial decomposition of organic waste is naturally occurring in garbage landfill but the rate of it is slow. Other methods were used to allow faster decomposition of organic waste in garbage landfill. Using worms to increase the rate of conversion from organic waste to fine organic materials is known as vermicomposting (Munroe 1). The result of decomposting is the "compost" production. Compost is a fine, nutrient-enriched, soil-like materials from the decomposed organic waste. Composts are used as an organic fertilizer by farmers. The use of worms in decomposting, which is known as vermicomposting, would produce a vermicompost. Vermicompost is like compost and both are used as an organic fertilizer. Since the rate of production of vermicompost is faster than the compost, the use of vermicomposting in organic fertilizer production and organic waste management recycling is favored (Recycled Organics Unit 9). The increasing popularity of vermicomposting on both waste management and fertilizer production leads to the increasing demand of worms. The worm, specifically earthworms, culture is called vermiculture. Vermiculture is a process by which earthworms are nurtured and fed in a bin or other storage materials to increase their numbers. The number and reproduction rate of the worms should be enough to sustain a regular harvest (Munroe 1). Although vermicomposting uses earthworm, there are only some species of earthworm that could be used and readily available for vermiculture. There are three types of earthworm namely epigeic, endogeic, and anecic type. Epigeic type of earthworm thrives on the surface of the ground. This type of earthworm feeds on fine or decaying organic matter readily available on the ground. On the other hand, endogeic type of earthworm thrives in the ground. This type of earthworm makes and lives in a horizontal hole within the ground. Endogeic earthworm surfaces very seldomly because it already feeds on organic matter imparted within soil. Anecic type of earthworm makes and lives in vertical hole within the ground. The vertical burrow serves as their protection and passage to the surface of the ground to obtain food at night (Recycled Organics Unit 13). Epigeic type of earthworm is used mainly in vermicomposting but anecic type could also be used in addition to the epigeic. Although there many species of epigeic earthworm that can be found in decomposting and vermicomposting area, Eisenia fetida is the most commonly used species in vermicomposting particularly in temperate countries because the rate of organic matter utilization and reproduction is fast, the range of tolerance to chemical and physical