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Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Cultural studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Cultural studies - Essay Example This is possible when the spirit is free from the influence of the universal will and instead it should be moved by the pure will or pure knowing. â€Å"Hegel believes that the idea of individual consciousness is closely connected with the Notion of Utility† (p.355). (G.W.F Hegel, 1977). It is this Notion of Utility which gives a new shape to the human consciousness-that of absolute freedom which Hegel considers as the ‘essence of all actuality’. Thus Spirit, in this absolute freedom, is aware of its own pure personality and of all spiritual reality which is a product of the general will of all individuals as such (p. 356). But there is a tendency for the consciousness to abolish all the ‘social groups or classes which are the spiritual spheres into which the whole is articulated’ (p. 357). Thus, it is necessary to bring about a balanced notion regarding the concept of absolute freedom and the way it creates difference between the individual and the universal consciousness. According to Hegel, the individual needs to respond to both the universal consciousness and his own personal consciousness . On the other hand he should also make sure that he doesn’t adhere himself to the dictates of the universal consciousness. The element of being is the key to nourish one’s self-consciousness. The self- consciousness should never be allowed to live in a world of illusion thinking that it is accomplishing a particular work while fulfilling the universal work itself. (p. 359). Hegel is of the opinion that the universal will represents only one actual will in a self whereas all other individual will are excluded from it. That is why he considers government as the ‘individuality of the universal will’ which represents only the ‘victorious faction’ (p. 360). Therefore, any attempt to bring together the universal will with that of the individual will is quite impossible and one should negate the very notion of â€Å"the individual as a being existing

Monday, October 28, 2019

What Is Obama Care Essay Example for Free

What Is Obama Care Essay Obama Care (also known as Health Care reform) is a national health care plan aimed at reforming the American health care system. Obama Cares main focus is on providing more Americans with access to affordable health care, regulating the health insurance industry and reducing spending in health care. There are around 44 million Americans who currently are unable to get health insurance. One of the major things Obama Care does is help these individuals to get health insurance through expanding Medicaid and Medicare and offering assistance to Americans who cannot currently afford healthcare. Obama Care helps to ensure that health care coverage is available to any legal U. S. resident who cannot otherwise obtain quality healthcare through their employer. Your access to health care is no longer in the hands of health insurance companies. The first phase of Obamas health care reform began in 2009 with the Affordable Health Care for America Act and was followed by The Patient Protection Act. Which culminated into the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 2010, or for short â€Å"Affordable Care Act†? After going through several changes the Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. Since Obama Care was upheld in the Supreme Court and Barack Obama was sworn into office for a second term Obama Care health care reform is now the law of the land (abet with some major changes made in the Supreme Court ruling). Many reforms have already gone into effect and many more will roll out over the next decade. Obamas healthcare reform is focused on health care funding, reducing the cost of healthcare for Americans, increasing coverage and removing the burden that health care has become on the average American. In the years since its become a law the Affordable Health Care Act, has already made a big difference in our country. Obama Care has done some important thins already such as prohibiting insurance companies from dropping your coverage if you get sick and has been chipping away at discrimination against anyone with a pre-existing condition. No system is perfect, but Obama Care Health Care Reform aims to reform the American medical system towards the favor of the people and away from the monopoly of the medical industry. Obama Care aims to provide complete and comprehensive medical coverage for Americans. Obamas health care reform under the Affordable Care Act is the most significant overhaul to health care industry in decades, covering every aspect of healthcare including mental health, care for seniors, child health, womans health and our nations poorest. Obama Care also provides drug coverage and free preventive care and checkups for children and countless other unprecedented reforms to the American health care system.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Brave New World - A Wake-Up Call for Humanity Essay -- Brave New World

Brave New World - A Wake-Up Call for Humanity (this essay has problems with the format) Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in England, human society has had to struggle to adapt to new technology. There is a shift from traditional society to a modern one. Within the last ten years we have seen tremendous advances in science and technology, and we are becoming more and more socially dependent on it. In the Brave New World, Huxley states that we are moving in the direction of Utopia much more rapidly than anyone had ever anticipated. Its goal is achieving happiness by giving up science, art, religion and other things we cherish in our world. It is an inhumane society controlled by technology where human beings are produced on assembly line. His prophetic elements of human beings being conditioned, the concerns for the environment, importance of genetic engineering and reproduction, and our physical and mental development has now been one of the major factors that the governments, businesses and educational institutions are exploiting today. We are subconscio usly moving to this bureaucracy of conformity, and Brave New World is a wake up call from our obsessions of standardization socially, economically and politically. The story took place in A.F (After Ford) 632, this is 632years after Ford has released the first T-ford. Huxley used ?After Ford?to show its great advancement in making automobiles as a company over the years. In 1932, Huxley introduced Brave New World to show his great concern of the Western civilization. He saw that in the 1900s there was a dramatic economic change in different countries, where the wholesalers are being eliminated, and manufacturers selling directly to the consumers. For example, at that time Ford makes cars and even sells them. They control who and where they sell. Technology and transportation was increasing tremendously, which caused more and bigger factories, mass-productions (eg. automobiles), and more manufactured goods. There were more volumes of trade and production due to more machinery. As markets are growing, activities, structures, as well as attitudes towards companies are changing. Robert Heibroner suggests that ?the rise of such giant enterprises has changed the face of capitalism as they attempt to alter the market setting through a system of public and private planning (p.43).? Like the vi... ...re before (in terms of wealth, happiness, etc)? Are we too reliant on technology and science? Where is our individuality? Where is the tradeoff? How can we change to stop ourselves from moving toward the so-called ?Utopia?society? It seems that we too, are living in an incubator, trapped and conditioned, and we must do something to stop this from happening. Bibliography Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. New York: HarperPerennial, 1946. http://www.primenet.com/~matthew/huxley/sub/Barron_BNW.html http://www.demigod.org/~zak/documents/high-school/brave-new-world/html http://www.ddc.net/ygg/etext/brave.htm Sexty,Robert. "Overview of the Business System" ,in Canadian Business and Society, Prentice-Hall, Scarborough, Ontario, 2005, pp5-22 Chandler, Alfred D.Jr. "The Roe of Business in the United States: A Historical Survey," in Business and Society, Barry Castro ed., Oxford University Press, pp.61-88 Steiner, G.A. and Steiner,J.F., "Critics of Business", in Business,Government and Society: A Managerial Perspective, 8th ed., McGraw-Hill, 2005.pp,69-90 Shaw, William H.., "The Nature of Capitalism",in Business Ethics, 3rd ed., Wadworth, 2006, pp.124-152

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Education of Philosophies Essay

After reading through the different philosophies of education, I have come to the conclusion that I can relate to the student centered philosophy the most for several different reasons. As stated in the chapter, education is not a competition. I don’t agree with having students take multiple choice tests to see who gets the highest amount of right answers. Many students suffer from test anxiety and giving them one chance to prove they are educated on the subject isn’t fair. I am a firm believer that students don’t gain knowledge from textbooks, they gain knowledge by being out in the real world. To me, experiencing things first hand is the strongest way to learn about a subject matter. This leads me to the progressivism philosophy of education. I am all for experimental learning, having students have the chance to learn by doing. Another method of this is called the scientific method. This happens by expecting students to pursue their answers through problem solving and critical thinking, and are rarely expected to find their answers in a textbook. Another method I agree with is social reconstruction. Democracy in a classroom encourages teachers to guide an important dialogue among the children, but to avoid telling students how to think or what to believe. Social purpose gives students an opportunity to instill habits or values that are useful to the greater community. I believe students should be encouraged to think about local, national, and international issues in the real world. More importantly, I believe existentialism is the most crucial student centered philosophy in education. Giving students the ability to develop their own creativity and different ways of self-expression is something that should be focused on in every school. Students should be allowed freedom to go at their own pace and should be inspired by the things shared among peers  in the classroom. Students are expected to be in control of their own lives at school while playing an active role in functioning community, students should leave the school with the important ability to think critically.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Forbes reports

The self-declared diva and her rapper spouse, who, Forbes reports, together earned more than $70 million in 2011, leased the 11-section of land property for $400,000, as per the New York Post, only for one month. The New York Post likewise reported that the rapper used $600,000 on a robust gold, carefully assembled stallion from Japanese gem specialist Gina Tanana for Blue VIVO', when she as conceived, and Beyond © and Jay-Z supposedly used $1. 5 million on blessings for their now 2-year-old child (Amethyst Tate – International Business Times).As the tour comes to an end, the super stardom couples are still proactively working and adhering to the needs of their many fans. Bayonne is due to return to the studio to begin working on her fifth studio recording album. As it relates, this upcoming album will not be release secretly as the self titled album BAYONNE was released during the beginning of 2014, which shocked the entire nation. Jay Z is also scheduling his next Naughty By Nature, Biggie Smalls and Outpace Shakier. This album is said to be one of the greatest Hip Hop collaboration ever to embrace entertainment, says Hip Hop weekly reporter.The above mentioned premises clearly points out a successful and happy marriage. As we are fully aware, this power couple is one of the most exclusive couples on the face of the earth. Bayonne managed to hide her pregnancy from the world until the day of birth of her daughter. The couple secretly invited some of the world's elite to their exclusive wedding ceremony at Jay G's New York apartment without anyone being made aware of this harmonious event but those invited. This Ewing said, this exclusive and very careful couple are serious about concealing their lives from the public.Just like any natural human being, their business should be their business. In sum, the writer of this original inductive argument proves no point of this rumored possibility. As it relates, inductive arguments are developed though causa l arguments, generalizations, and arguments by analogy which are presented in inductive argument forms. This reporter is clearly displaying the ad hoc fallacies as described from the informal logical fallacies family, as he presents an argument due to the circumstances of the two super stars.To present this statement to be true, the writer points out Bayonne, changing the lyrics to one of her beautiful but extremely depressing (in themed) ballads are actually the smoke signals representing the â€Å"truth† to this rumor. This article is extremely week as it relates only on assumptions. There are no presented hard pieces of evidences which points out that in fact, Bayonne and Jay Z will be soon divorcing upon the completion of their current â€Å"On The Run† tour. The authors inductive arguments are build solely on a foundation of rumors, paparazzi, internet blobs and social medial.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Rasmussen Surname Meaning and Family History

Rasmussen Surname Meaning and Family History Rasmussen is a patronymic surname meaning son of Rasmus, a Scandinavian form of the personal name Erasmus. Erasmus derives from the Greek ÃŽ µÃ ÃŽ ±ÃÆ'ÃŽ ¼ÃŽ ¹ÃŽ ¿Ãâ€šÃ‚  (erasmios) which means beloved.   Spellings of Rasmussen that end in -sen are most likely Danish or Norwegian in origin, while those that end in -son could be Swedish, Dutch, North German, or Norwegian. Rasmussen is the 9th most popular surname in Denmark  and the 41st most common last name in Norway. Surname Origin:  Danish, Norwegian, North German, Dutch Alternate Surname Spellings: RASMUSEN, RASMUSON, RASMUSSON, RASMUS   Famous People with the Surname RASMUSSEN: Saint Erasmus (Saint Elmo) - 4th-century martyr and patron saint of sailors.Theodore Rasmussen - Canadian neurosurgeon and scientist who gave his name to the rare disease, Rasmussens encephalitis.  Knud Rasmussen - Greenlandic anthropologist and polar explorer; the first European to cross the Northwest Passage via dog sledScott Rasmussen - co-founder of the sports television network ESPNLars and Jens Rasmussen - brothers and creators of Google Maps Where is the RASMUSSEN Surname Most Common? Considering its Scandinavian origins, its not surprising that Rasmussen is most prevalent today in Denmark, where it ranks as the 8th most common surname in the country. Surname distribution data from Forebears also identifies the surnames popularity in Norway, where it ranks 41st, as well as the Faroe Islands (12th) and Greenland (10th). WorldNames PublicProfiler also indicates that Rasmussen is by far most commonly used by people living in Denmark. Norway comes in a distant second. Within Denmark, the surname is found most frequently in Fyn and Stà ¸rstrom, followed by Aarhus, Vestsjà ¦lland, Vejle, Roskilde, Frederiksborg, Kà ¸benhavn, Bornholm and Staden Kà ¸benhavn. Genealogy Resources for the Surname RASMUSSEN Rasmussen Family Crest - Its Not What You Think: Contrary to what you may hear, there is no such thing as a Rasmussen family crest or coat of arms for the Rasmussen surname.  Coats of arms are granted to individuals, not families, and may rightfully be used only by the uninterrupted male-line descendants of the person to whom the coat of arms was originally granted.Rasmussen DNA Project: Rasmussen is a Scandinavian patronymic surname, meaning that your DNA matches will not necessarily (or likely) even be people named Rasmussen. This project will help you determine which Scandinavian and/or haplogroup projects are best to join for research into your Rasmussen heritage.RASMUSSEN Family Genealogy Forum: This free message board is focused on descendants of Rasmussen  ancestors around the world. Search the forum for posts about your Rasmussen ancestors, or join the forum and post your own queries.  FamilySearch - RASMUSSEN  Genealogy: Explore over 1.5  million  results from di gitized  historical records and lineage-linked family trees related to the Rasmussen surname on this free website hosted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. RASMUSSEN Surname Mailing List: Free mailing list for researchers of the Rasmussen surname and its variations includes subscription details and searchable archives of past messages.GeneaNet - Rasmussen Records: GeneaNet includes archival records, family trees, and other resources for individuals with the Rasmussen surname, with a concentration on records and families from France and other European countries.The Rasmussen Genealogy and Family Tree Page: Browse genealogy records and links to genealogical and historical records for individuals with the Rasmussen surname from the website of Genealogy Today.Ancestry.com: Rasmussen Surname: Explore over 1.4  million digitized records and database entries, including census records, passenger lists, military records, land deeds, probates, wills and other records for the Rasmussen surname on the subscription-based website, Ancestry.com.

Monday, October 21, 2019

New Public Management and Governance

New Public Management and Governance Over several decades, the implementation of successive policies has led to a complete change of the manner in which the government of Canada regulates the public sector. The most recent reforms concerning the stakeholders governing the public service considerably influenced the political figures such as ministers.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on New Public Management and Governance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Evidently, the recent policy formulation and advice has lead to the emergence of the New Public Management (NPM) and New Public Governance (NPG) to regulate the government actions. As a result, the government leaders have been entrusted with responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a significant responsibility is bestowed upon the ministers in form of policymaking and implementation. This makes it difficult for the ministers and other political figures in the government to formulate independent policies n ot influenced by the political situation of the country and partisan interests (Thomas 2). Moreover, the newly enacted laws seem to stunt the response to economic stimulus initiated by the government. However, the assumptions concerning the new measures to ensure accountability and transparency are not a total barrier to the functioning of the public service. A survey by the government indicates that the expected response was not realized even with the increased government spending on the public sector. The stimulus plan did not include a strategy to monitor the economy’s response. In this regard, a comprehensive investigation and report demonstrated that the money allocated to the various projects was appropriate. The lack of the political support for a quicker implementation of the projects was evident among the political class. The parliamentarians and municipal authorities who anticipated to be afflicted by the political implications of the failure to meet the set deadlin es were pressuring the state to ease on the deadlines and allow the projects’ implementation at a slower rate. This political pressure forced the federal government to accept the deadlines’ extension for the poorly performing projects and approve the funding of other projects as late as 2010. In 2011, the government extended the deadlines for the completion of the projects with the prime minister asserting that most of the projects would observe the deadline (Johnson 39). An examination of the economic situation in the world and the progress in Canada in particular, indicated that the government did not rely chiefly on the political factors in order to decide on extending the deadline. However, the political situation was a major factor that could have prevented the government from making an independent decision.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The fe deral government officials reported that natural adverse conditions had delayed the completion of most of the lagging projects. In addition, the complexity of some of the projects was a contributing factor to the experienced delays. An Investigation of the government spending indicates that the federal authorities were accountable for most of their actions, but the existing policies and reporting systems hindered the government from conducting a proper evaluation of the projects. The budget is another important aspect of the economy and the government’s plan for economic growth. The government formulates policies for the public sector based on the budget. In addition, the budget is the government projected spending on the public sector welfare. The effectiveness of a budget depends on the government’s policies that govern the use of money at the departmental level in the various public sectors. One problem that afflicts the budget is the power bestowed to the political authorities over the budget. The political leaders are responsible for the budget’s planning and implementation while the experts at the treasury insignificantly influence the budget. Trust is the main basis of interaction between the treasury officials and the political leaders concerning the planning and appropriation of the budget. For an effectively functioning public service, the policies regulating the government’s functions relating to the public service must be non-partisan for them to serve their purpose. The staffing of the public service should be non-partisan for proper functioning. A staffing system free of partisan influence is an essential component of the public service. Recent policies seek to govern the use of different types of labor within the public service. The non-partisan policy is significant in ensuring that the public service staff is able to execute its duties with due independence free of any political interference. The recent creation of the federal accountability act, that strictly regulates the public service actions, seems to nullify the relevance of ethics in the public service. The adoption of official policies as the guidelines to the implementation of all public service duties without including the ethical aspect of accountability in the execution of these duties poses a risk of imbalance. However, this does not mean that the policies should be eliminated for the proper functioning of the public service, but a blend of ethics and rules is necessary for the moderate regulation and promotion of liberal operations in the public sector. A policy that ensures that the public sector relies on the set regulations in its activities will limit the flexibility that is critical for the good performance of the public sector.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on New Public Management and Governance specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In addition, the government s hould be viewed as a malleable system subject to external forces and internal conditions so that the functioning of its public service arm is governed in tandem with the requirements of the current situation. The unpredictable nature of the public sector and its susceptibility to swaying by the economic and social forces requires a moderate approach concerning governance (Hubbard 2009). Moreover, the incorporation of the human nature into governance makes it incapable of conforming to strict expectations and unrealistic requirements. Another impediment to the proper functioning of the public sector is the parliament’s effort to regulate the ministerial officials and monitor the financial situation in their ministries. The parliamentary bodies have sought to hold the deputy minister accountable for the appropriation of funds and the internal activities of the public service (Public Service Commission 4). To secure impartiality in the public administration relationships, the go vernment of Canada needs to reforms its public sector in such a way as to ensure the protection of the public servants from the transparency and scrutiny associated with the modern technology. The watchdog role the legislature has assumed to place the government ministers under scrutiny is retrogressive. Moderation is necessary concerning the system that places professionals under direct control and manipulation by the political class. Although the public service has endured the effects of the political environment for long time, more pressure to conform to the whims of the politicians has been witnessed where expertise and professionalism is of cardinal importance. In this essence, the political influence that accompanies the new public governance is a relative phenomenon. A crucial Ingredient of the governance of the public service is that it should be able to work towards the achievement of the political leadership goals when the political targets are for the public’s bene fits. However, the public service’s independence is essential to ensure that the political class does not exploit it to influence the political mood of the public in any way. The government must be cautious not to hand over the public service’s fate to the politicians since they may use it to further their agenda. Moreover, the use of the public service to achieve personal agendas may threaten its integrity. The new public governance has given the discretion of deciding the direction of the public service to the supreme political leadership that the prime minister represents. The prime minister’s party rarely monitors him, and the partisan power can seldom remove him from his position.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Once the prime minister has assumed office, it is difficult to pressurize his resignation or limit his actions within his constitutional power. Recently, the prime minister has gained control over his deputies such that he is capable of influencing the staffing of the public service departments under the authority of the deputy ministers. This is possible since the prime minister’s control of the deputy ministers is well established. In addition, the influence of the prime minister over his deputies is camouflaged in such a manner that it is mistaken for a public agenda. The political structure propagates this situation since the deputies close to the prime minister blindly propagate his agenda. Some moderate independence of the deputies and the public service is necessary for the effective performance of the public service delivery system (Johnson 28). Furthermore, the ministers are not in a position to hire or dismiss their deputies. Ministers are direct appointees of the p rime minister and will almost certainly respect his decisions regarding appointments no matter how pervasive they may seem. A few radical ministers may seek to challenge the prime minister’s decision, but most of them will not express any kind of objection. Consequently, the prime minister holds immense power over the top echelon of the government. In this essence, the prime minister inevitably holds a significant influence of the public service In some cases of the ministers and deputy prime ministers’ appointments, a consideration about whether the potential appointees are equipped with the necessary knowledge and expertise to deal with the public service issues is essential. However, for every appointment, political considerations are made and in most cases, the political correctness of the appointment is the more prominent of the considerations. In addition, even those appointees that have sufficient professional qualification in their respective fields cannot dist ance themselves from political influence to match the non-partisan nature of the public service (Thomas 2). Political institution’s appointees are non-professional staff in the public service. However, the current system allows them to seek positions as professionals with fewer odds against them as compared to the professionals who have previously not held political posts. This kind of partial judgment of professionalism seems to indicate the political influence in the public service, which may lead to the public service politicization. Current the centralization of the public service is the major cause of the political influence in the public service. Differentiation and separation of the public service from the political class will serve to lessen the effects of the new public governance. Hubbard, Ruth. Profession: public servant. Ottawa: Invenire Books, 2009. Print. Johnson, David. Thinking Government: Public Administration and Politics in Canada. 3rd ed. Toronto: Univers ity of Toronto Press, 2011. Print. Thomas, Paul. When Machinery of The Government Breaks Down. Optimum online 39.4,December (2009): 2. Print. Public Service Commission. Merit and non-partisanship under the. Ottawa: Public Service Commission of Canada, 2003. Print.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

10 Facts About the Geography of Reykjavik, Iceland

10 Facts About the Geography of Reykjavik, Iceland Reykjavik is the capital city of Iceland. It is also the largest city in that country and with its latitude of 64Ëš08N, it is the worlds northernmost capital city for an independent nation. Reykjavik has a population of 120,165 people (2008 estimate) and its metropolitan area or the Greater Reykjavik area has a population of 201,847 people. It is the only metropolitan area in Iceland. Reykjavik is known as being Icelands commercial, governmental and cultural center. It is also known as being the worlds Greenest City for its use of hydro and geothermal power. What to Know About Iceland The following is a list of ten more facts to know about Reykjavik, Iceland: 1) Reykjavik is believed to have been the first permanent settlement in Iceland. It was established in 870 C.E. by Ingà ³lfr Arnarson. The original name of the settlement was Reykjarvik which loosely translated to the Bay of Smokes due to the regions hot springs. The additional r in the citys name was gone by 1300. 2) In the 19th century Icelanders began to push for independence from Denmark and because Reykjavik was the regions only city, it became the center of these ideas. In 1874 Iceland was given its first constitution, which gave it some legislative power. In 1904, executive power was given to Iceland and Reykjavik became the location of the minister for Iceland. 3) During the 1920s and 1930s, Reykjavik became the center of Icelands fishing industry, especially that of salt-cod. During World War II, the allies occupied the city, despite the German occupation of Denmark in April 1940. Throughout the war, both American and British soldiers built bases in Reykjavik. In 1944 the Republic of Iceland was founded and Reykjavik was named as its capital. 4) Following WWII and Icelands independence, Reykjavik began to grow considerably. People began to move to the city from Icelands rural areas as jobs increased in the city and agriculture became less important to the country. Today, finance and information technology are important sectors of Reykjaviks employment. 5) Reykjavik is the economic center of Iceland and Borgartà ºn is the financial center of the city. There are over 20 major companies in the city and there are three international firms with headquarters there. As a result of its economic growth, Reykjaviks construction sector is also growing. 6) Reykjavik is considered a multicultural city and in 2009, foreign-born peoples made up 8% of the citys population. The most common groups of ethnic minorities are Poles, Filipinos, and Danes. 7) The city of Reykjavik is located in southwest Iceland at only two degrees south of the Arctic Circle. As a result, the city gets only four hours of sunlight on its shortest day in the winter and during the summer it receives almost 24 hours of daylight. 8) Reykjavik is located on Icelands coast so the citys topography consists of peninsulas and coves. It also has some islands that were once connected to the mainland during the last ice age about 10,000 years ago. The city is spread out over a large distance with an area of 106 square miles (274 sq km) and as a result, it has a low population density. 9) Reykjavik, like most of Iceland, is geologically active and earthquakes are not uncommon in the city. In addition, there is volcanic activity nearby as well as hot springs. The city is also powered by hydro and geothermal energy. 10) Although Reykjavik is located near the Arctic Circle it has a much milder climate than other cities at the same latitude due to its coastal location and the nearby presence of the Gulf Stream. Summers in Reykjavik are cool while winters are cold. The average January low temperature is 26.6ËšF (-3ËšC) while the average July high temperature is 56ËšF (13ËšC) and it receives about 31.5 inches (798 mm) of precipitation per year. Because of its coastal location, Reykjavik is also usually very windy year round. Sources:Wikipedia.com. Reykjavik - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reykjav%C3%ADk

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Response to 4 students assignment postings with 2 references each Coursework

Response to 4 students assignment postings with 2 references each - Coursework Example and the highlight of the discussion came when he stated clearly and in no uncertain terms, how the impact of an organizational change at the individual response stage holds so much power in contributing to other forms of impact such as the group response (Burke, 2011). The lesson that is drawn from the discussion therefore is for managers to appreciate the fact that to attain organizational success, the individual success of the human resource base must be taken into consideration (Farcao, 2003). This writer creates a peculiar picture about a typical organization, where he makes it clear that for an organization to expect to achieve unanimous backing for any intended organizational change is virtually not feasible (Frankfort-Nachmias and Nachmias, 2008). This is because the writer was able to outline how there were individual opponent, group opponents and organizational opponents for a single organization. To the manager therefore, what he ought to do is to bring the views of both supporters and opponents together and try to solve the dilemma that arises (Burke, 2011). The writer refused to make a real case of the impact of the organizational change at the individual, group and organizational levels. This therefore made the essay lack some sense of focus on the topic. Given the type of change that took place, it is expected that the writer would let the impact of the change that took place be felt (Robinson, 2009). This is because for every organizational change, there would be rapid impact at the individual, group and organizational levels (Frankfort-Nachmias and Nachmias, 2008). Robinson Hickman, G. (2009). Organizational change practices. In G. Robinson Hickman (Ed.),  Leading organizations: Perspectives for a new era (2nd ed.) (pp. 510-524). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE

Friday, October 18, 2019

Care Delivery and Care Management in Nursing Case Study

Care Delivery and Care Management in Nursing - Case Study Example (Kurtzman and Corrigan, 2007, 20-36). This patient, Mr. John Smith has mental disability. Maintenance of Safe Environment: The nurse plans therapeutic interventions for clients with actual or potential risks for safety based on the nursing assessment of the risks and a development of a care plan for the specific client through a process called nursing process (Scott-Cawiezell and Vogelsmeier, 2006, p. 179-215). Nursing Process: The Roper et al. model for nursing offers a framework where during care, the nurse is able to ensure that his individuality is taken adequate care of and provided due weightage. The Roper-Logan-Tierney model recommends a problem-solving approach in the nursing process (Roper, Logan, and Tierney, 1983, 17-19). Deriving from this, nursing process can be defined as a systematic approach to planning and delivering nursing care. This process comprises of four main stages, namely, assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation. After the problem is determined, the nurse can then assess the needs of the patient. Depending on the needs, a plan of care is developed, depending on which the nurse can determine nursing goals. Once the goal is set, the chosen nursing care strategies can then be implemented, after which, it is also important to evaluate the care process, since any gap can be rectified through evaluation (Roper, Logan, and Tierney, 1983, 17-19). Assessment: Assessment is a cyclica... Smith. His main and actual problem was that he was unable to maintain his own internal and external safe environment due to his confused and impaired cognitive state. Rate of breathing, pattern of chest movement, presence of cyanosis, and pulse oximetry are important steps of assessment. It is important to remain aware that if needed, oxygen needs to be prescribed. Neurological assessment needed to be undertaken to assess the state of confusion and cognition. The aggression was also needed to be assessed. A safe external environment needed to be assessed by positioning of Mr. John Smith on bed, protective devices, and his own mobility. Apart from these, it was also important to assess whether all equipment for emergency care was within reach and was in working order. These included oxygen, suction apparatus, emergency trolley and resuscitation kit (Lesa and Dixon, 2007, 166-172). Identification of the Actual and Potential Problems: While assessing Mr. Smith, his actual and potential problems were prioritized. He was elderly with confusion and memory loss. Therefore, he was dependent for his care and needs. His religious and spiritual needs were also important parts of the assessment. His most important need was his care needs in terms of safety. Once his respiratory safety was ensured, his other actual problems were identified. He was having a problem with mobility due to age and confused state. This would call for positioning in the bed, safety arrangements in the bed and bed to chair mobility. Due to bed-ridden condition, he might have pressure sore or deep vein thrombosis (Roper, Logan, and Tierney, 1983, 43-44). Independent movement was also unsafe. He could end up having falls that is a safety risk. He was having aggression that

A Change Management Issue Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

A Change Management Issue - Term Paper Example Such organizations spent years to develop and establish their business traditions – the traditions they believe have led them to their current position and the ones they are not always willing to alter. However, the conditions of doing business change continuously, and the postmodern business reality imposes new diversity demands on organizations and businessmen. For many of them, to become more diverse means to produce a profound shift in organizational mentality, consciousness, and culture. Yet, once implemented, diversity has the potential to move the organization further to its performance and organizational highs. As long as I can remember myself working for that organization, our staff had been mostly comprised of white males working for the financial department and dealing with the most controversial issues in the field of organizational finance. I must say that the organization had spent years in the market and had been able to achieve considerable success and organizational stability. Its name was well recognized by customers and competitors, whereas its financial staff was believed to be at the core of the organization’s continuous success. The company was extremely careful about all staff members’ following the organization’s cultural and business traditions, and its success and competitiveness in the market made it increasingly reluctant to change anything in its attitudes toward diversity and hiring. However, the business realities were changing, demanding similar changes in our finance department. Our organization had to hire new people, including two black women and one Asian man. All three displayed remarkable performance results but they seemed to experience serious difficulties in their striving to adjust to the new conditions of work.  

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Essay on the definition or description of discipleship

On the definition or description of discipleship - Essay Example In valid sagacity it is not like that, Jesus is trying to notify that we have to give up all our relations for he is higher above all our family relations and even our life. In verse 27 Luke14 when it says that, "he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."(Luke) From this Jesus means that one should be prepared to die with him and should not hide from sacrificing. Similarly in Luke14: 28-30 it says "For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it Or else, when he has laid a basis and is not able to finish, all who watch it begin to mock him, saying, this man initiated to construct and was not able to finish." (Luke) It means that a person who is willing to be amongst the disciples of Jesus Christ must know first about the charge and the dilemma he is going to face. It is a type of check on the spirituality of a person that how sincerely he is keen to be a disciple.

Supply, Demand, & Equilibrium Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Supply, Demand, & Equilibrium - Essay Example In the first case, it will look at farmers, factory workers, engineers, and teachers. It should be noted that these occupations have generally unlimited supply meaning a lot of people can be employed in these jobs. In the United States alone, factory workers and engineers abound looking for a job. Thus, we can see an upward sloping curve where more workers will be willing to work for a higher income. The demand on the other hand is more or less horizontal as the job market generally has limited slots for teachers, factory workers, engineers, and farmers. The, intersection of demand and supply determines the average wage. It should be noted that this is often fixed and is determined by the demand curve. The workers under consideration often accept what is offered by the companies which hire them. The market of professional sports players are also competitive yet faces a far different situation than what is discussed above. It should be noted that as opposed to the market of typical players, professional sports players supply is limited because their career is often determined by their skills and abilities together with the reception of audiences to them. The length and intensity of training required for a professional player is far from what is undergone by an ordinary farmer or factory worker. It should be noted that the supply curve of professional players is upward sloping yet more leftward than the case of farmer, teachers, engineers, and factory workers as these players require more compensation for their trainings and performance. In the market of professional players, some players are even paid higher than the others. Look at the case of Michael Jordan compared to other basketball players. It is irrefutable that he is paid more than four times what is being paid the a verage player in NBA. In his case, the supply curve is vertical because there is only one Michael Jordan. Because his reservation wage is

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Essay on the definition or description of discipleship

On the definition or description of discipleship - Essay Example In valid sagacity it is not like that, Jesus is trying to notify that we have to give up all our relations for he is higher above all our family relations and even our life. In verse 27 Luke14 when it says that, "he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."(Luke) From this Jesus means that one should be prepared to die with him and should not hide from sacrificing. Similarly in Luke14: 28-30 it says "For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it Or else, when he has laid a basis and is not able to finish, all who watch it begin to mock him, saying, this man initiated to construct and was not able to finish." (Luke) It means that a person who is willing to be amongst the disciples of Jesus Christ must know first about the charge and the dilemma he is going to face. It is a type of check on the spirituality of a person that how sincerely he is keen to be a disciple.

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Of all the data about global warming and climate change that you have Essay

Of all the data about global warming and climate change that you have encountered, what concerns you the most - Essay Example There is also the disappearance of coral reefs because of the increased temperatures and ocean acidification. Lastly, global warming cause migration and conflicts whereby people are displaced due to lack of water or severe flooding, later, this migration leads to conflicts and war over the scarce resources such as water. These effects of climate change and global warming worries I most since the planet will be in danger of natural disasters such as flooding, food shortages, coastal flooding storms and dry periods if global warming is not reduced. The other concern that I have concerning global warming and climate change is the various suggested ways that individuals and organizations can use to reduce global warming and climate change. These may include reducing carbon dioxide emissions from burning coal, oil, gasoline and other fossil fuels in power stations, people embracing reusable packages instead of disposable ones. Furthermore, individuals can embrace efficient use of energy by using methods such as defrosting fridges and freezers regularly. However, despite peoples’ knowledge of these and other means of reducing effects global warming and climate change, the phenomenon is worsening. In conclusion, am ever concerned as it appears as though global warming and climate change dilemma will only be tackled only after the world suffers its effect to a great

Marlow Lie Essay Example for Free

Marlow Lie Essay Victorian  viewpoint,  and  often  paints  them  as being  the  embodiment  of  the  more  pure  and  gentle  aspects  of  human  nature. Conrad  makes many  references  to  a  belief  that  women  live  in  an  ideal  world  which  is  separated  from  the  evil side  of  human  nature  explored  in  the  story,  emphasizing  that  they  must  be  protected  from  this darkness  at  all  costs. This  theme  can  be  justified  by  many  details  within  {em  The  Heart  of Darkness},  but  at  the  same  time  there  are  a  number  of  points  in  the  story  which  stand  in  stark contrast  to  this  portrayal  of  women  as  noble  and  exalted  creatures. One  of  the  first  incident  where  Conrad  discusses  women  in  an  idealized  manner  occurs  in  the very  beginning  of  {em  The  Heart  of  Darkness},  as  Marlow  is  about  to  depart  for  Africa. During his  final  meeting  with  his  aunt,  she  talks  to  him  of  how  noble  she  feels  the  Companys  attempts to  civilize  the  African  natives  are:  an  opinion  which  makes  her  nephew  rather  uncomfortable. Its  queer,  he  says,  how  out  of  touch  with  truth  women  are. They  live  in  a  world  of  their  own, and  there  has  never  been  anything  like  it,  and  never  can  be. It  is  too  beautiful  altogether,  and  if they  were  to  set  it  up  it  would  go  to  pieces  before  the  first  sunset.   Marlow  believes  that  women cannot  perceive  the  horrors  that  men  are  capable  of  because  they  are  so  distant  from  them  by virtue  of  their  sex. Another  graphic  example  of  this  attitude  comes  when  Marlow  makes  a reference  to  Kurtzs  fiancee,  known  as  his  Intended. He  says  of  her:  Oh,  she  is  out  of it ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­completely. They ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­the  women,  I  mean ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­are  out  of  it ­Ã‚ ­Ã‚ ­should  be  out  of  it. We  must  help  them

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Smartphone Operating Systems: Evaluation Enhancements

Smartphone Operating Systems: Evaluation Enhancements Muneer Ahmad Dar Javed Parvez Abstract—The increasing number of mobile operating systems that operates the small hand held devices called the Smartphone, has become integral part of our lives. The openness of these new environments has lead to new domain of apps and markets and has enabled greater integration with existing online services like e-banking etc. Smartphone makers are competing in turns to trump each other for storage, processor speed, platform compatibility and camera megapixels but it’s the largely software the mobile OS that makes the biggest difference to the popularity and market share of Smartphone. This paper evaluates the popular Smartphone Operating Systems with the purpose of understanding the user friendliness, popularity, user privacy and security and accessibility with the wide range of apps. Our research focused on the advantages and limitations of the Smartphone operating systems with the intension to find out if one of them has an edge on the other and finally we propos e the enhancements so as to make them more user friendly and secure. Keywords: mobile Operating Systems; Smartphone; Apps; Processor speed; Megapixels; Security; Accessibility. Introduction Smartphone have become indispensible part of our life and everyone who uses it is getting addicted. Smartphone provides a wide variety of apps ranging from social networking to GPS based location searching that are useful for everyone in their day today tasks. In a study of 1,600 people including managers and professionals [1], Leslie Perlow, found that: 70% people said they check their Smartphone within an hour of getting up. 56% check their phone within an hour of going to sleep. 48% check over the weekend, including on Friday and Saturday nights. 51% check continuously during vacation. 44% said they would experience a great deal of anxiety if they lost their phone and couldnt replace it for a week. With these many professionals becoming dependent on Smartphone, which has necessary components of the computing platform: an operating system, applications and hardware. The main component of a Smartphone on which its functionality depends is the operating system ASmartphone,tablet or any other digitalmobile device is operated by the Operating system called the mobile OS. Modern mobile operating systems includes all the features of apersonal computeroperating system and in addition to that includes the features like atouch screen,cellular,Bluetooth,Wi-Fi,speech recognition,voice recorder, GPS mobile navigation,camera,video camera,music player etc. The Smartphone operating system (OS) development has grown to include competitors such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Symbian, and Palm with each of them trying to make it more user friendly and secure. Although these operating system platforms are trying their best and have come achieved a lot since their inception, none of these Smartphone companies provide a mobile OS that is ideal and satisfies all the users in terms of user friendliness and privacy. They claim that their platforms perform the best in all situations and will certainly not advertise any weakness with their Operating systems. This makes it difficult for end users particularly to a novice user to know which platform is best suited for their need. In this paper, we perform a comprehensive analysis of each mobile operating system in order to identify the strengths of one Operating System over other operating system. Section II gives the overview of various Smartphone operating systems. In section III we identify the limitations of mobile operating systems. In section IV we propose the enhancements which could be implemented in the Smartphone Operating Systems and finally we draw our conclusions in section V. Smartphone Operating Systems ANDROID Andy Rubin, Google’s director of mobile platforms, commented â€Å"There should be nothing that users can access on their desktop that they can’t access on their cell phone.† [1]. with this vision the popularity of smart phones having Google’s Android Operating System is continuously on the rise in the 21st century. .Android is a comprehensive operating environment based on Linux kernel, it is also a layered system; the architecture of Android system is shown as in picture [3]. Applications layer is the site of all Android applications including an email client, SMS program, maps, browser, contacts, and others. All applications are written using the Java programming language. Application framework layer defined the Android application framework. All Android applications are based on the application framework. The Android application framework including: A rich and extensible set of Views that can be used to build an application with beautiful user interface, including lists, grids, text boxes, buttons, and even an embeddable web browser. A set of Content Providers that enable applications to access data from other applications (such as Contacts), or to share their own data. A Resource Manager that provides access to non code resources such as localized strings, graphics, and layout files A Notification Manager that enables all applications to display custom alerts in the status bar. An Activity Manager that manages the lifecycle of applications and provides a common navigation back stack.[1]. Figure 1: Android System Architecture [3] Some of the advantages of Android over other Smartphone operating systems is listed as under. The ability to run tens of thousands of apps just like the iPhone but with choice of phone models that you can choose from. The choice of with or without physical keyboard, shape, color, phone size, screen size, manufacturer, features, and phone carrier. No more monopoly by one company on one carrier. Android allow developers/programmers to develop apps (applications) in what is known as application without borders. Android is beginner friendly and supremely customizable the more you use Googles services, the more Android will shine Android has the majority of the market and the user experience is improving quickly. Google’s Android Now checks your location and calendar to automatically show you relevant info e.g. traffic to work, cafes, and flight details and lets you search with natural voice commands and replies with natural speech. Android is an open source service. This means that it’s free and anyone can use it. Anyone can modify and improve the software making it more effective and personalized. Applications are freely made and designed for Android by numerous app developers all over the world and these apps are offered for free on the Android market place. This feature of open source has also attracted mobile phone producers to manufacture phones using Android OS Android is not just an operating system designed for individuals but it also fulfills your business needs at the same time. Android market place offers numerous apps that are specially designed to manage your business. Now you can have a closer look at your business processes on the go with the help of these apps. IPHONE OS iOS is the mobile operating system developed by Apple Inc. It is the second most commonly used operating system behind Google’s Android. Unlike Android it can be installed only on Apple’s hardware. The iPhone OS has seen a rapid rise in popularity and garnered a large and dedicated user base. The iPhone OS has risen so far and so fast primarily due to the innovations on user interface and availability of 3rd party applications [11]. Unlike the Android security architecture, iOS security model provides different philosophy for achieving mobile device security and user’s protection. The iOS application platform empowers developers to create new applications and to contribute to the application store. However, each application submitted by a third party developer is sent to the revision process. During the revision process the application code is analyzed by professional developers who make sure that the application is safe before it is released the application store. However, such an application, when installed, gets all the permissions on a mobile device. Application might access local camera, 3G/4G, Wi-Fi or GPS module without users knowledge. While Android lets each user handle its own security on their own responsibility, the iOS platform makes developers to write safe code using iOS secure APIs and prevents malicious applications from getting into the app store. The iOS security APIs are located in the Core Services layer of the operating system and are based on services in the Core OS (kernel) layer of the operating system [14]. Application that needs to execute a network task, may use secure networking functions through the API called CFNetwork , located in the Core Services layer. The iOS security implementation includes a daemon called the Security Server that implements several security protocols. The Security Server has no API with public access. Instead, applications use the Keychain Services API, the Certificate, Key, and Trust services API, which in turn gets access with the Security Server. SYMBIAN The Symbian OS was designed specifically for mobile devices with its small memory footprint and consumes low power. It is an open OS, enabling third party developers to write and install applications independently from the device manufacturers. An extensive C++ API is provided which allows access to services such as telephony and messaging, in addition to basic OS functionality. The Symbian OS was designed so applications could run for years without losing the user data. Also the OS has the capability of being platform independent and can run on more than one hardware platform [6, 7, 8, 9]. WINDOWS MOBILE This platform is based on Windows CE (WinCE). WinCe is a compact OS specifically designed for pervasive devices. It is focused on providing a consistent interface for applications on various hardware platforms which emphasizes portability by providing the user with the Win32 API. The hardware platforms include Packet PCs, Smartphone, Portable Media Centers, and even onboard computers in automobiles. The Windows Mobile platform was designed for flexibility and with the developer in mind. For that reason it was designed to support lots of preemptive multitasking. It supports a whopping 256 priority levels for threads and up to 32 processes. It supports all of the standard mutual exclusion and synchronization methods you would expect from a desktop PC. This functionality makes it ideal for a Smartphone because the users typically demand multitasking and want to be as productive as possible [4, 7, 8, 9 ]. PALM OS Palm OS is a proprietary operating system originally developed by Palm Inc. In the early versions (preà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ Garnet), the Palm OS was primarily utilized in Palmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ developed Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) mobile hardware units. At one point, Palm PDAs with the Palm OS held 85% of the market share in the mobile device market [12]. However, in recent years, Palms market share has been in decline, mostly due to the stagnant nature of the OS development and has yielded the leading position to Symbian [6, 7, 8, 12]. Limitations of Mobile Os As discussed in the previous sections, the mobile operating systems are competing for the major market share and are claiming to be the best for the users, yet they have number of limitations in their platforms which for obvious reasons they are not disclosing to their users. The malicious apps aimed at mobile devices have risen from about 14,000 to 40,000 in less than a year. This rise in the malicious apps requires the strong OS. The limitations of the Mobile operating systems are listed as under: All or No Permission: A user cannot grant single permissions, while rejecting others in order to install the app. Among the list of permissions an app might request a suspicious permission among the other legitimate permissions, will still be able to confirm the installation. Mobile devices may download malware which the mobile OS is not able to trace. The novice users may download apps that contain malware unknowingly because it can be disguised as a well known game, security patch by OS, utility, or other useful application. It is difficult for users to tell the difference between a legitimate app and one containing malware. Often, the users of the app cannot judge the appropriateness and legitimacy of permissions for the app in question. In some cases it may be well understood, for example when a chess game app requests the privilege to reboot the Smartphone or to send SMS messages. In many cases, however, users will simply not be able to understand the appropriateness of the permission. Functionality, which is supposed to be possible only given the appropriate permissions, can still be achieved with less number of permissions or even with none at all. In case of the iOS , the user is not at all informed about any of the permissions. The app can access any of the resources without the permission of the user. Resistance of Android and iOS against various attacks. Proposed OS Enhancements In order to enhance the security of the mobile operating systems we propose the following Enhancements: Need Based Permission System (NBS): The Need-Based Security (NBS) system designed to enhance the privacy of the user at run time. The main advantage of the proposed NBS system is that the user is informed about the authorized and unauthorized access of the resources at run time. The NBS system can be implemented in the operating system to provide the permissions at run time. Currently the Os is either including all the permissions without the information of the user as in case of iOS or it forces the user to accept all the permissions at install time as in case of the worlds popular OS Android. The most important file AndroidManifest.xml which lists the permissions of the app can be modified at run time by providing the need based permission system whenever the app is asking for the permission the user may be informed at that moment. For example, let us examine the Dial Kashmir app available on Google Play which gives all the details of Tourist places in Kashmir and contact details o f important places like universities, government offices etc. The main permission this app may require is the INTERNET. If it includes MANAGE_ACCOUNTS which is the permission that allows the app to retrieve the user account information from the phone, our operating system will get the permission from the user at run time to access the resource and if user allows then only the permission will be granted. The main advantage of our NBS system is that it gives freedom to the users and the programmers to write a code which does not result in usability issues. Need based permission system and getting permission approvals at run time is a relatively new but promising approach as it gives lot of freedom to the novice users. Security API: In order to deal with the malicious apps downloaded by the user, we propose a security API which can be integrated with the existing security framework of mobile operating system. The objective is to provide security against the Apps which are installed by the end user and is given all the permissions at the time of installation. This enhanced security has the desirable property of not disturbing a regular user in any noticeable way. In fact, the user need not even be aware that the Security API has been applied. We have to prevent the modification and access of data from mobile phones by other external malicious applications unknowingly. We propose an API which will enhance the security of existing Android Framework. The first step in our proposed security API is implemented by adapting an encryption technique utilizing Advanced Encryption Algorithm (AES) and applying it to all the personal files in the Smartphone. File operations offered by the proposed Security API should aid in the detection of potentially malicious Apps whose behavior matches that of Malware. Malware recognition is usually achieved by signature matching, heuristic analysis, or comparing hash-values Fig 4: Sequence Diagram of the System Conclusion The increasing trend of Smartphone usage by individuals of all ages has brought forward stiff competition between different Smartphone OS’s and Google’s Android OS. However, recent researches and reports revealed that the novice users are not secure on these platforms because of the limitations of these OS. We found different types of limitations in various mobile Os and particularly in Android and iOS which are the leading mobile Operating Systems. We found that there is a major need of modification in the permission based model of security system and we strongly recommended the implementation of Need based security system in the mobile operating systems so that the novice user can be informed at run time about the access to its various resources. References Perlow, L.A.: Sleeping with your smartphone:how to break the 24-7 habbit and change the way you work, Harvard Business review press, 2012. Kataria, A.; Anjali, T.; Venkat, R., Quantifying smartphone vulnerabilities,Signal Processing and Integrated Networks (SPIN), 2014 International Conference on, vol., no., pp.645,649, 20-21 Feb. 2014doi: 10.1109/SPIN.2014. Bornstein, Dan. 2008. â€Å"Dalvik VM Internals†. http://sites.google.com/site/io/dalvikà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ vmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ internals> Delac, G.; Silic, M.; Krolo, J., Emerging security threats for mobile platforms,MIPRO, 2011 Proceedings of the 34th International Convention, vol., no., pp.1468,1473, 23-27 May 2011 Muneer Ahmad Dar and Javed Parvez.: â€Å"A Novel Strategy to Enhance the Android Security Framework†.International Journal of Computer Applications91(8):37-41, April 2014. Published by Foundation of Computer Science, New York, USA. Cleron, Mike. â€Å"Androidology à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Part 2 of 3 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Architecture Overview. 11 November, 2007. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fL6gSd4ugSI> Cleron, Mike. â€Å"Androidology à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Part 3 of 3 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Architecture Overview. 11 November, 2007. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPukbH6Dà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ lY> . [8] DeviceForge.com. 2006. â€Å"Sun blesses Java phone†. http://www.deviceforge.com/news/NS6109398413.html> (accessed 14 April 2009). Dilger, Daniel E. iPhone 2.0 SDK: The No Multitasking Myth. 13 March 2008. Roughly Drafted Magazine. http://www.roughlydrafted.com/2008/03/13/iphoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ 20 sdkà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ noà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ multitaskingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ myth/> (accessed 8 February 2009). Dilger, Daniel E. â€Å"iPhone OS X Architecture: the Mach Kernel and RAM.† 13 July 2007. Roughly Drafted Magazine. http://www.roughlydrafted.com/2007/07/13/iphoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ osà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ xà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ architectureà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ theà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ machà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ kernelà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ andram/> Faas, Ryan and David Haskin. â€Å"Review: Which smart phone OS works best?†. http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasicarticleId=9117021 [14]. Apple inc., iOS Reference Library, Security Overview, http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/Security/Conceptual/Security_Overview/Introduction/Introduction.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP30000976-CH201-TPXREF101

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Are You There, Reader? Its Me Margaret Essays -- Literary Analysis

Joseph Michael Sommers, has written an article on one of Judy Blume’s most iconic coming of age story; Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret. In this article he speaks about the nature of this novel and how it speaks to young adolescent females. He speaks about the connection the novel has between the protagonist and the reader. Sommer’s argument is that the protagonist breaks the fourth wall and seeks outside intervention to her troubles in her life. The author speaks about the boundaries Judy Blume has tested. One is â€Å"sororal dialogism† in the novel, and how he will show it as a recast of avuncularism. Also how sororal bond can be found and interpreted in the novel. Another issue is, how Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret, has been described as a problem novel. As well as what position the reader plays. One thing that stood out was that Sommers in the title of the essay puts â€Å"reader† in the spot where the word â€Å"God† should be. The author uses first person point of view in his article, to connect with his audience, but his connection is not a personal one he wants it to be one of logic. He puts emphasis on the fact that we as reader are somewhat put in a position, that if we are the same gender and have gone through the same adolescent troubles (puberty, menstruation, boys, etc), we are compelled to identify with the main character. Sommer’s states: The reader reads in order to feel sorrow for the protagonist in a manner the reader can assimilate. Yet, it seems that the nature of Margaret’s thoughts is inherently dialogic or, to work with Duke’s terms, empathic: neither Margaret nor the reader uses the text in order to solicit pity from the other. What function would a â€Å"pity party† serve a reader by herself? To the contra... ...oached. Such as: how the reader is seen as having so many roles, and to which one do they take. This article is well- written and he has some significant points about the novel. Sommer’s tactics of constructing his argument in a logical manner was the right thing to do. It helps the reader to separate their feelings that they may have had when reading the novel, and look at facts. In some parts of the article he used reader-response, which helped you to question what others have said about this novel. Although there were parts where his argument is not clear, it did consist of some valid points. Works Cited Joseph Michael Sommers. "Are You There, Reader? It’s Me, Margaret: A Reconsideration of Judy Blume’s Prose as Sororal Dialogism." Children's Literature Association Quarterly 33.3 (2008): 258-279. Project MUSE. Web. 31 Mar. 2012. .

Friday, October 11, 2019

Interpretation Project

So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him† (Lucas, New Kings James Version). Jesus shares Insight for humanity prior to HIS return, In efforts that mankind may be prepared to receive the Lord and not be deceived. If people use consideration when interpreting God's meaning and not personal interpretations, the true message can be revealed. According to Journey into God's Word, â€Å"We believe that the way to approach the Bible (I. E. , the way we listen to God) should match how God gives us the Bible (I. E. , chose to speaks' (Devalue & Hayes, 2008, p. 0). This short story ay be viewed as Jesus being Like a thief and coming at an unexpected time; discovered. Jesus provides all humanity with the necessary preparations for the end times. Jesus reveals His love and concern for humanity by revealing signs of the tribulation. â€Å"Nation will rise against nation†¦ There will be famines and earthquakes†¦ † (Ma tt. 24:7). These are given in efforts to bring awareness that until these pass, the end is not here. Jesus will be returning at an unknown day, hour, and season. His return is not even known to â€Å"†¦ Angels, nor the Son, only the Father† (Matt. 4:36). He includes warnings and precautions. Jesus warns against false teachings, and prophets that will arise and claim to be the messiah. Man is to be cautious that he is not lead astray by the â€Å"thief† that will come to deceive. Jesus uses the parable of the thief and the master of the house. If mankind knows when His return will be, man would most likely live in darkness until the time approached. Then deception would be avoided by waiting for the very day and hour of His return and many may not accept Him until the last minute and not spread the Gospel until the end times.As stories are mentioned, people read the parable regarding the fig tree and fleet on the prophecy spoken in Daniel; these are pieces of the a rmor of God to keep the â€Å"elect† from being deceived by the true deceiver. â€Å"So when you see standing in the holy place the abomination that causes desolation'†¦ † (Matt. 24:15,). People who know God will know this is the â€Å"thief† that has come to steal salvation. As many become like the parable of the fig tree, they become fruitless and the Word of God will have been spoken and not heard. This is when the time to watch that The Lord will be arriving soon after these things has been fulfilled.He then shares with us the story of Noah. This story is included to reveal the swiftness of His return. Any who have lived an ungodly life â€Å"as determined by the Son of Man† will be cast among the hypocrites (Matt. 24:51). Jesus desires humanity to accept the gift of salvation and live unto Him; only by adhering to these warnings can mankind be prepared for the Lord's return.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

The Definition of Family in the Constitution

Article 41 of the Constitution recognises the Family â€Å"as the natural primary and fundamental unit group of Society†, and as a â€Å"moral institution possessing certain inalienable and imprescriptible rights† which are â€Å"antecedent and superior to all positive law†. The State guarantees to protect the Family in its constitution and authority â€Å"as the necessary basis of social order and as indispensable to the welfare of the Nation and the State†[1]. Article 41 of Bunreacht na hEireann contains the main provisions relating to the family. It is generally considered that Articles 41 and 42 were heavily influenced by Roman Catholic teaching. They were clearly drafted with one family in mind, namely the family based on marriage. †[2]. Since 1937 when the constitution was drafted there has been major social changes such as, changing attitudes to sexual behaviour, contraceptive use, social acceptance of pre marital relations, cohabitation and single parenthood, social acceptance of divorce, just to name a few. These social changes which would not have readily existed in 1937 have not been adapted to in the Constitution in Article 41/42 concerning the †family†. Simply put the definition of family in the constitution is old fashioned. I am of the opinion that an amendment to â€Å"The Family†- namely Article 41 is required. I base my argument on 3 main reasons 1) More types of family should be recognised, not just that of a marital family. 2) The definition of family should be changed to include expressed rights of a child incorporated into Article 41 and the rights of a child not just fall under that of †the family† 3) The wording of the rights of the family to change to allow for more state intervention. Though the â€Å"family† is not defined in the constitution the Supreme Court held that the family is based on marriage – State(Nicolaou) v An Bord Uchtala[3] : Walsh J – â€Å"the family referred to on [Article 41. 3. 1] is the family which founded on the institution of marriage, on which the family is founded on the institution of marriage and, in the context of the Article, marriage means valid marriage under the laws for the time being in force in the state†. Article 41. 3. [4] states â€Å"The State pledges itself to guard with special care the institution of marriage, on which the family is founded, and to protect against attack† . From this definition it appears that a non-marital family would not be protected by the State against attack. In my opinion this provision should be amended to conform to the social change that I have previously mentioned as a family in current times is no longer just a marital family. â€Å" The law must, as far p ossible mirror contemporary civilization and as that changes so must the law. If the law becomes too rigid and inflexible, then there is always the danger that it will conflict with the needs of the people, with all the unfortunate consequences to which conflict may arise†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. during the dynamic periods of History †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. for it becomes essential for the legal system to adjust itself to the novel conditions of social life†[5] As a general rule most rights and obligations flowing from family law legislation are confined to families based on marriage. There are few contexts where non marital relationships are recognised such as domestic violence[6] and wrongful death[7]. The European Court of Human Rights have taken broader approach then Ireland and has been deemed to protect inter alia the family life of non-marital parents and their children. â€Å"It is likely that the failure to recognise the rights, and indeed the duties, of the members of non-marital families may constitute a breach of Art. 8 of the European Convention of Human rights, which requires that the State respect the family life of all persons†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. iven that the convention is now part of domestic law it is only a matter of time before Irish Law is found to be in breach†[8] The European Court of Human Rights(ECHR) broader approach to the definition of a †family† can be seen in Mouta v Portugal[9]. In this case the ECHR recognised a homosexual man and his child as a family which wouldn't be recognised under the Irish Constitution. Da Silva was previously married and had a daughter in this relationship and divorced 3 years later. .The applicant (Da Silva) sought an order giving him parental responsibility for the child. The Lisbon Family Affairs Court awarded Da Silva parental responsibility. His ex-wife appealed against the Family Affairs Court's judgment to the Lisbon Court of Appeal, which reversed the lower court's judgment and awarding parental responsibility to the ex-wife, with contact to the applicant. It was held by the ECHR that the judgment of the Court of Appeal, in so far as it set aside the judgment of the lower court, constituted an interference with the father's right to respect for family life and attracted the application of Art 8 of the Convention. Were this case to appear in an Irish Court De Souza would not have been awarded custody due to the the rigidness of the courts to move from strictly interpreting †family† in the constitution . Secondly I will explore how 1)Article 41 acts as a shield against state intervention against matters concerning †the family† and also 2)why I think †the child† should be given expressed rights in the constitution contained in the definition of family. In my opinion I think that Article 41 acts as a shield against state intervention. I think â€Å"a shield† is an effective way of describing the Article as a shield protects against attack but does not block all danger/damage, just like Article 41protects the †family† but does not provide complete immunity. This article emphasises the rights of the family as a whole while not exploring individual rights such as the rights of the child. I think the words †inalienable and imprescriptible†/rights superior to positive law† are too strong as it gives the State limited opportunity to intervene with matters concerning †the family†. When can the state intervene?. Murphy J gave his view on this question â€Å"where conduct of parents are such to constitute a virtual abdication of their responsibility or alternatively, the disastrous consequences of a particular parental decision are so immediate and inevitable as to demand intervention and perhaps call into question either the basic competence or devotion of the parents† A State intervention must be proportionate -breach of Article 41 must have justifiable circumstances. As I previously mentioned Article 41 does not provide complete protection. This can be seen in People v T[10] where a father had been convicted of sexual offenses against his daughter. Casey made the point that while Article 41 â€Å"established that the family as a unit had it's own special rights, other provisions make it clear that each member of that unit had his/her own constitutionally-guaranteed personal rights†¦.. It follows from this that the common law rule can have no application in cases where one member of a family is alleged to have committed an offense against another†[11]. I have already given my opinion that i think the words ‘inalienable and imprescriptible† and †above positive law† are too strong and limit the courts powers in intervening. One case where I think this is prevalent is is N v Health Service Executives[12] aka †the baby Ann case†. At the time of A's birth in July 2004 the applicants were unmarried and they decided to place A for adoption. The applicants married in Northern Ireland in January 2006, strengthening their legal position as they now formed a family under the constitution. The High Court held that the child was in the lawful custody of Mr and Mrs D(the Adoptive parents) and that, accordingly, a conditional order for the inquiry under art 40 had to be discharged. The decision of the High Court was based on his conclusion that the applicants had failed in their duty towards their daughter and abandoned her and that there were compelling reasons why the child should not be returned to their custody. The decision was overturned by the Supreme Court. I feel that the decision by the Supreme Court was inappropriate, it did not take into account the welfare of the child, Article 41 restricted the courts ability to award custody of the child to the adoptive parents, as the maternal parents and Baby Ann has formed a †family† under the constitution. If the State had more powers to intervene and supersede Article 41 then the custody would probably have been given to the adoptive parents (which would have been the right decision from my point of view). John Walters gave his view on the Supreme Courts decision â€Å"its hands tied by outmoded provisions of the Constitution, was prevented from doing the â€Å"decent† thing: leaving baby Ann with her prospective adoptive parents†[13]. Judge Catherine McGuiness, closing remarks in the case were interesting. She voiced criticism regarding the rights of the child in the constitution and also how she was reluctant to come to the decision to support the maternal parents claims. â€Å" It would be disingenuous not to admit that I am one of the ‘quarters' who have voiced criticism of the position of the child in the Constitution. I did so publicly in the report on the Kilkenny Incest Inquiry in 1993. The present case must, however, be decided under the Constitution and the law as it now stands. With the reluctance and some regret I would allow this appeal. †[14]. I think that the argument to give the child expressed rights under the constitution is intertwined with giving the State more scope on intervening in family cases. As it stands children's rights are thought as secondary to the parents and this can be see in Crowley. [15] I think that there should be a change from the paternalistic approach, whereby the adults know best. Were there to be an express provision outlining the right of the child there would gave been an alternative decision in the PKU test case[16]. The court acknowledged the right of the parents to refuse a both standard and important test for a new born child while ignoring the best interests of the child. The Council of Europe Recommendation 1289 (1996) point 8(i) on a European Strategy for children advised that there should be guarantees that children's rights should be explicitly incorporated into constitutional text. [17] To summarise I think Article 41 concerning the definition of family should be changed. It is outdated basing a family on marriage as in current times there are more then just marriage based families, there are a variety of situations which the normal person would regard as a ‘family'. The Constitutional Review Group stated that there is a â€Å"multiplicity of differing units which may be capable of being considered family†. [18] I think there should be an exhaustive list including the instances above where a member of the public would regard the situation as being a family. Alternatively you could leave the definition of family open and state that â€Å"family† is not confined to that of just a family based on marriage. This would leave the judiciary to determine a family on a case by case basis which is similar to the ECHR approach. This would result in a large amount of uncertainty. I would favor the first option even though it would arise it's own problems such as would being forced to become a legal family under the constitution infringe on personal rights? And also how would you determine the length of time a family is together to qualify as co-habitant?. Either way I think the implied definition of family needs to be changed. To highlight the constant increase of different types of families and the need for reform, I have taken statistics from the last 3 census' of the number of units formed by cohabiting couples (which are one †family I think should be recognised) and formed a table, this furthermore indicates the need to incorporate the change in society into the constitution.

History of Gaming Essay

Gaming has been around since the late 1960’s far later than I had thought, for me I had always thought that the Atari 2600 was the first gaming system known to mankind, and after starting my research I found out how wrong I was. In this part of the teams paper I will discuss the different types of this technology thought it history. In 1967 the first gaming console ever was created and was named the â€Å"Brown Box.† A German born television engineer Ralph Baer and his colleagues created the Brown Box which worked on your basic standard television set. Working with a firm called Sanders Associates, Baer along with co-workers drew up schematics for a game which was called the chase game, and they built a vacuum tube circuit that connected to the television. Two players controlled two squares that basically chased each other on the screen, at that point in time gaming was born. Baer and his associates later added a light fun and developed a total of 12 games for the Brown Box. Fast forward five years after Baer and his associates created the Brown Box, Magnavox began production of the Magnavox Odyssey. The Odyssey was called the first commercial video-game console and was marketed in Magnavox TV dealerships. The Odyssey used six cartridges to play up to twelve games. The Odyssey downfall is that many TV dealers didn’t see any potential in it and along with the false rumor that it only worked in Magnavox televisions hurt the popularity of the gaming systems. In 1972 Nolan Bushnell founded Atari and three years later in 1975, they had their first smash hit with an arcade game called Pong. Atari sold a home version of the game Pong through Sears under the Sears Tele-games label. What made Pong unique was that it produced an on-screen score and sound all by single chip. With his first system Nolan Bushnell and Atari shot to the top of household gaming. Knowing that some of not anything last forever especially a single game system popularity, Nolan Bushnell and Atari started working on a cartridge based system, one that could play multiple games. In 1976 Bushnell Sold Atari to Warner Communications, and Warner immediately backed the Atari project, and the Atari VCS later renamed the Atari 2600 was introduced. The Atari was a big hit and had multiple game hits to go along with it, hits like the ever popular Spaced Invaders, Breakout, Missile Command, and Combat just to name a few. Atari was the first ever massed produced home video gaming system, selling 400,000 systems and hitting sales figures of $120 million dollars during the first Christmas season in 1977. In 1980 Mattel released Intellivision, and was the first to take a run at Atari’s gamming thrown. This sparked what some would like to call a console war between Atari and Mattel. Intellivision featured better game graphics and synthesized voices in video games. Both systems brought on other game developers like Coleco and Activision, but with so many of the games being unlicensed games and no household system lead to gaming industry crash in 1983-84 cause in many companies to file bankruptcy. Nintendo, a Japanese based company became part of the gaming industry in 1985 with its release of the Nintendo Entertainment System. With some of the most popular titles ever like Super Mario Brothers, Metroid, and Legend of Zelda and that of third party games like Tecmo Bowl and RBI baseball, the NES turned the non-believers that didn’t think it was a good idea to get into gaming after a crash, into believers. In 1987 Sega released its gaming system which dwarfed the capabilities that its predecessor, the NES, had offered. It was called the MasterSystem but it didn’t make the splash that many in the Sega camp had thought it would make, due to its lack of third-party games and other things it was the demise of the MasterSystem and the first failing of Sega. Sega went directly back to the drawing board and soon after released its first hit the Sega Genesis in 1989. Backed by many game developers like Electronic Arts, the Sega Genesis opened the door for the first ever battle for supremacy for gaming dominance. Four years after the release of the Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo released its second smash hit, with the Gameboy. Gameboy was dubbed the as the first ever handheld gaming console and had a black and white screen. Tetris one of the most popular Gameboy games ran the Gameboy sales through the roof. With many make-overs throughout the course of history Gameboy continued to stay relevant in gaming. 1990 was the release of SNK’s Neo-Geo a 24 bit home gaming system that was said to be many years ahead of its competitors and its time. The Neo-Geo had one problem, it wasn’t 2-D graphics those were great, it wasn’t its arcade level quality that was what everyone wanted, it was neither of those two things that helped the Neo-Geo fail it was its $650.00 price tag and its $200.00 games that took the Neo-Geo from great innovation to under achiever. In 1991 Nintendo releases the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Beaten to the punch by Sega with its gaming system the Sega Genesis, the 16 bit SNES had some catching up to do. It wasn’t long before the SNES thanks to its technological superiority, had overtaken the Sega Genesis thanks to its big name games like Super Mario Brothers, Metroid, and Zelda. By the end of the 90’s Sega Genesis was no more than an afterthought for SNES who had taken over the 16 bit era and the gaming industry. It wasn’t till the year 1995 that Nintendo again was challenged for its gaming dominance. Sony introduced the Sony PlayStation a 32 bit CD-ROM based technology and has been said to be the most popular gaming system ever. The games had three dimensional gameplay much better than the 2-D of the past. What was the most attraction to any gamer was the price of the games which dramatically dropped compared to those of cartridge based games. It was also in 1995 the second day of September that the Sega franchise basically started its demise. This day marked the release of the Sega Saturn, which was dubbed the best worst system, according to many. Because it was pushed up to get out ahead of the newly announced PlayStation 2, it gave the Sony corporation time to sit back and polish the upcoming PlayStation 2 and learn from the mistakes that the Sega Saturn was making. In 1996 the Nintendo franchise countered the PlayStation with the Nintendo64, the last cartridge based system. Although the cartridges loaded faster than the CD-ROMS of PlayStation the Nintendo64 couldn’t even keep up with the amount of games that were released for the PlayStation, leaving the PlayStation on top of the gaming for the time being. It was in 1998 when Sega made its final push as a contender in the world of gaming with its release of the CD-based system Dreamcast, which incorporated a 128-bit processing system. The Dreamcast was the first system that had a modem which allowed for internet connectivity that brought on the ability to play online, download extra content and updated to the system itself. This would be the last time that anyone would here from the Sega franchise in the console industry. In 2001 Sega discontinued the Dreamcast and announced that it would be leaving the console market for good and taking its Sonic franchise with them. Four years after the release of the Nintendo64 and five years after the first initial PlayStation, Sony releases its second version of the PlayStation 2. The first 128 bit system featured backwards compatibility allowing the PS2 to play the older PlayStations games, and also could be used as a DVD player. Not only was the PS2 named most popular 128 bit system but with its release it marked the rise of console popularity played over the internet. 2001 was the introduction of the old guy with a new system and the new kid on the block in gaming. Nintendo hit the gaming market again going away from its usual cartridge based systems and introducing its first ever CD based system. The GameCube was marketed more for the younger demographics and is said to be what made the system flop and sell short. Along with the inability to connect to the internet it was called a one trick pony and was behind in the gaming world and home entertainment systems. The now new kid on the block Microsoft introduced its own gaming system the X-box. The PC giant used PC technology when building the X-Box which allowed for greater performance. Although the X-Box’s technology proved greater performance when compared to that of the 128 bit PS2 it still remained behind the number of sales that the PS2 had leaving Sony alone at that top of the gaming world. In 2002 Nintendo stepped back in with the Gameboy Advance and again in 2004 with the Nintendo DS. Some would argue and go as far as to say that all Nintendo did was step on its on toes with how they released the two versions so closely together. By doing so experts say that they made the Gameboy obsolete by releasing the DS so soon. Playstation soon joined Nintendo in the hand held gaming evolution, challenging Nintendo’s dominance. The PlayStation Portable like the Gameboy and DS featured wireless capability, high graphics and non-gaming functions mimicking PC-based devices. 2005 also marked the release of the Microsoft X-Box 360. The processing power of the X-Box 360 was said to be unrivaled, and all came with an internal hard drive, played DVDs and had the ability to connect four controllers at one time wirelessly, as well as connecting to the internet. The Nintendo Wii was released in 2006 and featured a built in WiFi for online game play, wireless controllers and Bluetooth. The wireless controllers weren’t new to gaming but what Nintendo did bring to the table with their wireless controllers was the motion sensor technology, allowing the game to mimic the performance of the actual player. 2006 is also when the Sony franchise again exerted its dominance and rivaled back against Microsoft X-Box 360 with the PlayStation 3. The PS3 came with an internal hard drive as well and the ability not only to play DVD’s but also Blue Ray DVD, along with its ability to connect to the internet wirelessly and connect multiple controllers wirelessly, it is said to be still atop the gaming industry, but again that’s all in who you ask. These two systems, PlayStation 3 and X-Box 360, along with the Nintendo Wii brings us to where we are now with gaming in what is called the 8th Generation of gaming. Every year the three gaming giants Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo continue to wow us with different and greater gaming innovation that keeps the rivalry for gaming dominance going on and going strong. In the last few years the X-Box 360 stepped up the gaming war and has released technology that gets rid of the hand held controllers all together! The Kinect from Microsoft has really stepped up its technology and has gotten rid of the controller period. The Kinect set the Guinness Book of World Record for the fastest gaming system ever and comes highly recommended by many consumers and game developers. Recently it was reported that Microsoft X-Box 360 is looking to compete with cable television providers announcing that its consoles will allow the gamer to watch television through it. All of the consoles allow you to watch things like Net Flicks and get on the internet and surf the net, but rivaling cable providers that’s a big step. I look for Sony and Nintendo to sit back and wait to see where this goes before they follow in the footsteps of Microsoft, as they have previously done, but I don’t think they will jump right on board with this because of fear of failure and losing money. If you are a gamer a hardcore gamer you have to be excited for the future of gaming, from a standpoint it looks bright and exciting. With rumors of Sony releasing the Playstation 4 and the system having touch screen technology; it has all the gamers grinning from ear to ear about what the future of gaming actually may be. Gaming has already developed full 3D gaming technology and 3D moti on sensors and powerful graphics and they look to continue to improve upon these technologies. Many have argued that consoles in the future will eventually fall by the wayside making way for hand held portable gaming to be the dominate gaming systems in the future. Of course this upsets many hardcore gamers because they don’t see that as being a plus since many like to play their games on a larger scaled screen. With that being said many say the IPhone 8 will probably be the future of gaming and going as far as to say it although it is a hand held device it will be able to plug into a television set or even connect wirelessly to continue to give that big game experience. Many say that the future of gaming is mobile, digital, and cloud gaming. The better gaming system is said to be one that you can take anywhere and everywhere. Most of the time even of if home many gamers are even using mobile gaming at home, some experts say up to 47% of gamers are mobile gaming even at home. Mobile gaming is not just the casual gaming it used to be and has changed the way all gamers vi ew games. Spending approximately 16 hours a week compared to that of the 18 hours of traditional gaming some say digital is the way of the future and hardware doesn’t matter anymore. The type of hardware you use never really ever did matter, it has always been about the software. Hardware will be less and less relevant in the future and it will be more about the software. With cloud gaming it is becoming more and more of a reality and with two client services already launched it is coming along full circle. The angle of cloud gaming is to offer high definition gaming on any television or device that can receive a broadband signal with even high-end games that can be played on devices that get low power. In a CNNTech report back in September of 2008 had reported that a future release of the Emotiv EPOC headset. The Emotiv EPOC headset is said to be the first Brain Computer Interface and would be able to pick up on over 30 different expressions all by processing real time brain activity. With this technology many enthusiast say that this type of technology makes movies like The Matrix and the Star Trek Holodeck more of a reality in the future. Me personally I am kind of skeptical about that type of technology, and even though experts say that being able to control a computer with your mind is the ultimate quest of human to machine interaction, I still don’t feel any better. In those movies, well all except Star Trek, the machine had a way to take over. So all I see is me playing the video game and the machine taking over my mind and it controlling me and then the earth being run by machines. Well that is how it works in the movies hopefully this won’t be the case. The goal of this though is for the interactions of machines to mimic the way interaction with humans and they say it will ultimately bring communities closer together, so I guess that is one thing we will have to wait to see in the future. So with that being said there is no clear cut way to know which way the future of gaming is actually going, but seeing how far it has come since the Brown Box it is very interesting to sit back and see what the technology produces. At one point in time it was all about transistors and diodes and now it’s about multiple processors, internal memory, and real life graphics. What’s more gaming consoles are no longer just gaming consoles they are now the full true definition of Home Entertainment, with internet connection, streaming music and video and HDD, it is truly a new age for gaming. Social media and social networks has become a big part of many of our lives, well I really should say all of our lives. With that gaming has also being a part of that as it is being input into the Social Medias like Facebook. Many game makers look to theses Social Medias to see exactly what the gamers are taking to and what they are not taking to. World of Warcraft is one of those who uses social media to help them develop more of what they think users want to see and how they want the game to operate and it is actually one of the largest virtual game worlds due to just that along with Second Life which heralds itself as a virtual social world. Social Medias focus on building blocks, identity, conversation, sharing, presence, relationships, reputation, and groups, and many gaming systems that can connect to the World Wide Web can do just that. These gaming technologies give you the opportunity to engage with others from around the world no matter where they may be. Facebook has gaming that lets you connect with others and build a farm or a city and share with each other and allows you to help keep up someone else’s farm, building relationships with people anywhere anytime. No matter what you think about gaming and the gaming technology it has come a long way from where it started and there is no telling where it will go. It is a mainstay in the lives of many of people and I am sure that the technology will only get better or more interesting from here into the future. I do myself wonder what is next will the whole computer to brain interaction ever come full circle or is it just a past thought. Will Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo continue to stay on top or will a unknown company come along and knock all of them off the throne. I guess all we can do is sit back watch wait and see what that next big technology is and who will be the first to come out with it. Right now it’s more or less of a waiting game, the Kinect was a big jump and gaming technology and, I love to sit and watch my kids play on it, I have even been known to play on it myself, gaming technology is what keeps many of us known and connected so there is nothing wrong with that. Works Cited Admin. (2012). The History of Video Game Consoles. computergameoffer.com. Bellis, M. (n.d.). Computer and Video Game History. About.com. Edwards, B. (2009). 30 Years of Handheld Game Systems. PC World. Johnson, J. (2008). From Atari Joy Board to Wii fit. BBG. Melanson, D. (2006). A Brief History of Handheld Video games. engadget.