Part Four Chapter VII

VII It was a bright, balmy morning, and the computing lab at Winterdown Comprehensive became stuffy as lunchtime approached, the dirty windows speckling the dusty monitors with distracting spots of light. Even though there was no Fats or Gaia here to distract him, Andrew Price could not concentrate. He could think of nothing but what he had overheard his parents discussing the previous evening. They had been talking, quite seriously, about moving to Reading, where Ruth's sister and brother-in-law lived. With his ear turned towards the open kitchen door, Andrew had hovered in the tiny dark hall and listened: Simon, it appeared, had been offered a job, or the possibility of a job, by the uncle whom Andrew and Paul barely knew, because Simon disliked him so much. ‘It's less money,' Simon had said. ‘You don't know that. He hasn't said – ‘ ‘Bound to be. And it'll be more expensive all round, living there.' Ruth made a noncommital noise. Scarcely daring to breathe in the hall, Andrew could tell, by the mere fact that his mother was not rushing to agree with Simon, that she wanted to go. Andrew found it impossible to imagine his parents in any house but Hilltop House, or against any backdrop but Pagford. He had taken it for granted that they would remain there for ever. He, Andrew, would leave one day for London, but Simon and Ruth would remain rooted to the hillside like trees, until they died. He had crept back upstairs to his bedroom and stared out of the window at the twinkling lights of Pagford, cupped in the deep black hollow between the hills. He felt as though he had never seen the view before. Somewhere down there, Fats was smoking in his attic room, probably looking at porn on his computer. Gaia was there too, absorbed in the mysterious rites of her gender. It occurred to Andrew that she had been through this; she had been torn away from the place she knew and transplanted. They had something profoundly in common at last; there was almost melancholy pleasure in the idea that, in leaving, he would share something with her. But she had not caused her own displacement. With a squirming unease in his guts, he had picked up his mobile and texted Fats: Si-Pie offered job in Reading. Might take it. Fats had still not responded, and Andrew had not seen him all morning, because they shared none of their classes. He had not seen Fats for the previous two weekends either, because he had been working at the Copper Kettle. Their longest conversation, recently, had concerned Fats' posting about Cubby on the council website. ‘I think Tessa suspects,' Fats had told Andrew casually. ‘She keeps looking at me like she knows.' ‘What're you gonna say?' Andrew had muttered, scared. He knew Fats' desire for glory and credit, and he knew Fats' passion for wielding the truth as a weapon, but he was not sure that his friend understood that his own pivotal role in the activities of the Ghost of Barry Fairbrother must never be revealed. It had never been easy to explain to Fats the reality of having Simon as a father, and, somehow, Fats was becoming more difficult to explain things to. When his IT teacher had passed by out of sight, Andrew looked up Reading on the internet. It was huge compared with Pagford. It had an annual music festival. It was only forty miles from London. He contemplated the train service. Perhaps he would go up to the capital at weekends, the way he currently took the bus to Yarvil. But the whole thing seemed unreal: Pagford was all he had ever known; he still could not imagine his family existing anywhere else. At lunchtime Andrew headed straight out of school, looking for Fats. He lit up a cigarette just out of sight of the grounds, and was delighted to hear, as he was slipping his lighter casually back into his pocket, a female voice that said, ‘Hey'. Gaia and Sukhvinder caught up with him. ‘All right,' he said, blowing smoke away from Gaia's beautiful face. The three of them had something these days that nobody else had. Two weekends' work at the cafe had created a fragile bond between them. They knew Howard's stock phrases, and had endured Maureen's prurient interest in all of their home lives; they had smirked together at her wrinkled knees in the too-short waitress's dress and had exchanged, like traders in a foreign land, small nuggets of personal information. Thus the girls knew that Andrew's father had been sacked; Andrew and Sukhvinder knew that Gaia was working to save for a train ticket back to Hackney; and he and Gaia knew that Sukhvinder's mother hated her working for Howard Mollison. ‘Where's your Fat friend?' she asked, as the three of them fell into step together. ‘Dunno,' said Andrew. ‘Haven't seen him.' ‘No loss,' said Gaia. ‘How many of those do you smoke a day?' ‘Don't count,' said Andrew, elated by her interest. ‘D'you want one?' ‘No,' said Gaia. ‘I don't like smoking.' He wondered instantly whether the dislike extended to kissing people who smoked. Niamh Fairbrother had not complained when he had stuck his tongue into her mouth at the school disco. ‘Doesn't Marco smoke?' asked Sukhvinder. ‘No, he's always in training,' said Gaia. Andrew had become almost inured to the thought of Marco de Luca by now. There were advantages to Gaia being safeguarded, as it were, by an allegiance beyond Pagford. The power of the photographs of them together on her Facebook page had been blunted by his familiarity with them. He did not think it was his own wishful thinking that the messages she and Marco left for each other were becoming less frequent and less friendly. He could not know what was happening by telephone or email, but he was sure that Gaia's air, when he was mentioned, was dispirited. ‘Oh, there he is,' said Gaia. It was not the handsome Marco who had come into view, but Fats Wall, who was talking to Dane Tully outside the newsagent's. Sukhvinder braked, but Gaia grabbed her upper arm. ‘You can walk where you like,' she said, tugging her gently onwards, her flecked green eyes narrowing as they approached the place where Fats and Dane were smoking. ‘All right, Arf,' called Fats, as the three of them came close. ‘Fats,' said Andrew. Trying to head off trouble, especially Fats bullying Sukhvinder in front of Gaia, he asked, ‘Did you get my text?' ‘What text?' said Fats. ‘Oh yeah – that thing about Si? You leaving, then, are you?' It was said with a cavalier indifference that Andrew could only attribute to the presence of Dane Tully. ‘Yeah, maybe,' said Andrew. ‘Where are you going?' asked Gaia. ‘My old man's been offered a job in Reading,' said Andrew. ‘Oh, that's where my dad lives!' said Gaia in surprise. ‘We could hang out when I go and stay. The festival's awesome. D'you wanna get a sandwich, then, Sooks?' Andrew was so stupefied by her voluntary offer to spend time with him, that she had disappeared into the newsagent's before he could gather his wits and agree. For a moment, the dirty bus stop, the newsagent's, even Dane Tully, tattooed and shabby in a T-shirt and tracksuit bottoms, seemed to glow with an almost celestial light. ‘Well, I got things to do,' said Fats. Dane sniggered. Before Andrew could say anything or offer to accompany him, he had loped away. Fats was sure that Andrew would be nonplussed and hurt by his cool attitude, and he was glad of it. Fats did not ask himself why he was glad, or why a general desire to cause pain had become his overriding emotion in the last few days. He had lately decided that questioning your own motives was inauthentic; a refinement of his personal philosophy that had made it altogether easier to follow. As he headed into the Fields, Fats thought about what had happened at home the previous evening, when his mother had entered his bedroom for the first time since Cubby had punched him. (‘That message about your father on the Parish Council website,' she had said. ‘I've got to ask you this, Stuart, and I wish – Stuart, did you write it?' It had taken her a few days to summon the courage to accuse him, and he was prepared. ‘No,' he said. Perhaps it would have been more authentic to say yes, but he had preferred not to, and he did not see why he should have to justify himself. ‘You didn't?' she repeated, with no change of tone or expression. ‘No,' he repeated. ‘Because very, very few people know what Dad †¦ what he worries about.' ‘Well, it wasn't me.' ‘The post went up the same evening that Dad and you had the row, and Dad hit – ‘ ‘I've told you, I didn't do it.' ‘You know he's ill, Stuart.' ‘Yeah, so you keep telling me.' ‘I keep telling you because it's true! He can't help it – he's got a serious mental illness that causes him untold distress and misery.' Fats' mobile had beeped, and he had glanced down at a text from Andrew. He read it and experienced an air punch to the midriff: Arf leaving for good. ‘I'm talking to you, Stuart – ‘ ‘I know – what?' ‘All these posts – Simon Price, Parminder, Dad – these are all people you know. If you're behind all this – ‘ ‘I've told you, I'm not.' ‘ – you're causing untold damage. Serious, awful damage, Stuart, to people's lives.' Fats was trying to imagine life without Andrew. They had known each other since they were four. ‘It's not me,' he had said.) Serious, awful damage to people's lives. They had made their lives, Fats thought scornfully as he turned into Foley Road. The victims of the Ghost of Barry Fairbrother were mired in hypocrisy and lies, and they didn't like the exposure. They were stupid bugs running from bright light. They knew nothing about real life. He could see a house ahead that had a bald tyre lying on the grass in front of it. He had a strong suspicion that that was Krystal's, and when he saw the number, he knew he was right. He had never been here before. He would never have agreed to meet her at her home during the lunch hour a couple of weeks ago, but things changed. He had changed. They said that her mother was a prostitute. She was certainly a junkie. Krystal had told him that the house would be empty because her mother would be at Bellchapel Addiction Clinic, receiving her allotted amount of methadone. Fats walked up the garden path without slowing, but with unexpected trepidation. Krystal had been on the watch for him, from her bedroom window. She had closed the doors of every room downstairs, so that all he would see was the hall; she had thrown everything that had spilt into it back into the sitting room and kitchen. The carpet was gritty and burnt in places, and the wallpaper stained, but she could do nothing about that. There had been none of the pine-scented disinfectant left, but she had found some bleach and sloshed that around the kitchen and bathroom, both of them sources of the worst smells in the house. When he knocked, she ran downstairs. They did not have long; Terri would probably be back with Robbie at one. Not long to make a baby. ‘Hiya,' she said, when she opened the door. ‘All right?' said Fats, blowing out smoke through his nostrils. He did not know what he had expected. His first glimpse of the interior of the house was of a grimy bare box. There was no furniture. The closed doors to his left and ahead were strangely ominous. ‘Are we the only ones here?' he asked as he crossed the threshold. ‘Yeah,' said Krystal. ‘We c'n go upstairs. My room.' She led the way. The deeper inside they went, the worse the smell became: mingled bleach and filth. Fats tried not to care. All doors were closed on the landing, except one. Krystal went inside. Fats did not want to be shocked, but there was nothing in the room except a mattress, which was covered with a sheet and a bare duvet, and a small pile of clothes heaped up in a corner. A few pictures ripped from tabloid newspapers were sellotaped to the wall; a mixture of pop stars and celebrities. Krystal had made her collage the previous day, in imitation of the one on Nikki's bedroom wall. Knowing that Fats was coming over, she had wanted to make the room more hospitable. She had drawn the thin curtains. They gave a blueish tinge to daylight. ‘Gimme a fag,' she said. ‘I'm gasping.' He lit it for her. She was more nervous than he had ever seen her; he preferred her cocky and worldly. ‘We ain' got long,' she told him, and with the cigarette in her mouth, she began to strip. ‘Me mum'll be back.' ‘Yeah, at Bellchapel, isn't she?' said Fats, somehow trying to harden Krystal up again in his mind. ‘Yeah,' said Krystal, sitting on the mattress and pulling off her tracksuit bottoms. ‘What if they close it?' asked Fats, taking off his blazer. ‘I heard they're thinking about it.' ‘I dunno,' said Krystal, but she was frightened. Her mother's willpower, fragile and vulnerable as a fledgling chick, could fail at the slightest provocation. She had already stripped to her underwear. Fats was taking off his shoes when he noticed something nestled beside her heaped clothes: a small plastic jewellery box lying open, and curled inside, a familiar watch. ‘Is that my mum's?' he said, in surprise. ‘What?' Krystal panicked. ‘No,' she lied. ‘It was my Nana Cath's. Don't – !' But he had already pulled it out of the box. ‘It is hers,' he said. He recognized the strap. ‘It fuckin' ain't!' She was terrified. She had almost forgotten that she had stolen it, where it had come from. Fats was silent, and she did not like it. The watch in Fats' hand seemed to be both challenging and reproaching him. In quick succession he imagined walking out, slipping it casually into his pocket, or handing it back to Krystal with a shrug. ‘It's mine,' she said. He did not want to be a policeman. He wanted to be lawless. But it took the recollection that the watch had been Cubby's gift to make him hand it back to her and carry on taking off his clothes. Scarlet in the face, Krystal tugged off bra and pants and slipped, naked, beneath the duvet. Fats approached her in his boxer shorts, a wrapped condom in his hand. ‘We don' need that,' said Krystal thickly. ‘I'm takin' the pill now.' ‘Are you?' She moved over on the mattress for him. Fats slid under the duvet. As he pulled off his boxers, he wondered whether she was lying about the pill, like the watch. But he had wanted to try without a condom for a while. ‘Go on,' she whispered, and she tugged the little foil square out of his hand and threw it on top of his blazer, crumpled on the floor. He imagined Krystal pregnant with his child; the faces of Tessa and Cubby when they heard. His kid in the Fields, his flesh and blood. It would be more than Cubby had ever managed. He climbed on top of her; this, he knew, was real life.

Negative Effects of Technology on the Society’s Security and Privacy

Continuous studies on possible technological developments are being done everyday as initiated by private companies and the government military. Needless to say, these technologies, particularly those funded by private companies have been developed aside from making huge profits, to benefit the society in almost every aspect in their lives especially in terms of making their lives easier and more comfortable. Similarly, those developed by the government may have been initially done mostly for military and government purposes, but almost always; such technology comes to be marketed to the masses later on. Examples of which include the online technologies such as cellular phones, the computer and the internet. Cellular phones, computers and the internet have been for many years now, widely available for commercial use. Undeniably, such technologies have made casual life more productive in terms of the speed in which work can now be done. Cellular phones allow cordless communication in almost all places, all stations in the world; computers allow speedier processing of transactions, calculations and many other tasks; and the internet allows not only global communication but also better and more widely available databases of information which almost everyone with internet access can utilize. Attached with such array of commercial benefits however, are possibilities of misuse and thus disadvantages that could not only affect one individual but also huge numbers of populations at one time in general. With these, technologies come more ways of violation of individual privacy as well as security. These stem from such technologies’ nature of mass connection. The number of cellular phone users has been increasing. From 1997 to 2002, there has been 10-fold increase in global usage reaching 787 million (â€Å"GSM to Pass One-Billion Mark This Year†). This may mean better connection for these people but this may also mean an increase in the number of people probable of being violated of privacy. It is true that it is prohibited to access account information from private companies, but since the use of airwaves in this particular technology allows the personal tracking of the location of an individual, privacy cannot always be ensured. There are still people who have unlimited access to such information and are capable of such violation, that is, location tracking without the consent of the concerned individual. This is especially true with the number of hackers, both experimenting and professional, out practicing.   Individual information from private companies could also be tapped indiscriminately especially by government officials for their specific purposes. This may be beneficial (but may still be unethical) if the person concerned is a real crook, but for innocent individuals, the violation of privacy would be unwarranted. The rise of the computers and the internet creates a new breed of crime. Computers are an efficient way of storing important and sometimes company critical files. This computer function allows company’s easier management and access to their files which are in many ways beneficial. But these benefits are not limited to the companies as the storage of information in the computer also allows professionals, particularly hackers, access to the information. Just recently, 12 December 2006, it was reported by CNN that a number of names and personal information were exposed when a hacker attacked the database of the computer system of the University of California, Los Angeles (â€Å"Hacker Attack at UCLA Affect 800,000 people†). According to the same report, a survey released in October of this year showed that about a hundred colleges experienced a similar incident during the previous 12 months. The information stolen in such cases usually include names, birth dates, medical records, social security numbers, home addresses and other personal information (â€Å"Hacker Attack at UCLA Affect 800,000 people†). Clearly, the computers and the internet allow newer and more technical way of thieving, the most controversial of which is identity theft. The use of the internet has now evolved to allow even the purchase of items from objects as simple books to even loans and transactions can now be done conveniently through the internet using the credit card. It is this nature of internet transactions that allows identity theft through the internet. According to a report done by the Federal Trade Commission in 2003, the reported form of identity theft has been limited to those involving credit card transactions. According to the same report, about 13% of the victims reported that their personal information was obtained during transactions during credit card purchases. Among those purchases include those done through the internet.   Such information can be used by the thief in many ways such as obtaining government documents, purchasing online, obtaining loans, housing transactions, employment and filing of tax returns (Federal Trade Commission). These are just some examples of how technology, particularly phones, the computer and the internet disadvantage individuals. There could be a lot more other ways. Phones and computers have also been used in propagating pornography especially with the increase in use of video cameras, file sharing and websites that support such. Computer viruses had been and can still be easily distributed to corrupt several company and even government files, causing significant losses both in the concerned company as well as in the society in general. Freund cited a survey of the FBI that about 500 U.S. companies suffered significant financial losses amounting to $455.8 million in 2002. Technology is a powerful tool and is undeniably beneficial to the society especially with the ease in living it contributes to every individual. But as much as it is powerful and beneficial, it can also do harm because everything with advantages can always be exploited to bring otherwise. The results that technology brings just all depend on how the user chooses to use it. Works Cited Freund, G. â€Å"Perspective: Hacking 2003, The New Agenda.† Cnet News.Com. Cnet Networks, Inc. 2006. Federal Trade Commission. â€Å"Identity Theft Survey Report.† Sep 2003. Synovate. â€Å"GSM to Pass One Billion Mark This Year.† 2003. Cellular.co.za. â€Å"Hacker Attack at UCLA Affect 800,000 People.† CNN.com. 12 December 2006. Cable News Network LLP.      

Maxim Gorky

Russian short story writer, novelist, autobiographer and essayist, whose life was deeply interwoven with the tumultuous revolutionary period of his own country. Gorky ended his long career as the preeminent spokesman for culture under the Soviet regime of Joseph Stalin. Gorky formulated the central principles of Socialist Realism, which became doctrine in Soviet literature. The rough, socially conscious naturalism of Gorky was described by Chekhov as â€Å"a destroyer bound to destroy everything that deserved destruction. † LIFEMaxim Gorky whose real name was Aleksei Maximovich Peshkov, was born on March 16, 1868, in the Volga River city of Nizhny Novgorod, which in 1932 was renamed Gorky in his honor. His father, a cabinetmaker, died when Gorky was 4 years old, and the boy was raised in harsh circumstances by his maternal grandparents, the proprietors of a dye works. From the age of 10 Gorky was virtually on his own, and he worked at a great variety of occupations, among them shopkeeper's errand boy, dishwasher on a Volga steamer, and apprentice to an icon maker.At a very tender age he saw a great deal of the brutal, seamy side of life and stored up impressions and details for the earthy and starkly realistic stories, novels, plays, and memoirs which he later wrote. He was self-taught in many areas, including literature, philosophy, and history, both Russian and Western. In 1884 Gorky moved to Kazan, dreaming of entering university. That didn’t come to happen because of lack of money. Instead he enrolled in the â€Å"revolutionary underground school. † He attended gymnasium and university populist clubs, reading the relevant literature and fighting with police.At the same time he earned his living doing menial work. In December 1887 a series of misfortunes led him to a suicide attempt. After that, Gorky traveled around Russia in search of a job and experience. He traveled to the Volga Region, the Don, Ukraine, Crimea, South Bessarabia (now part of Moldova) and the Caucasus. He worked as a labourer in a village, a dishwasher, a railroad guard and a worker at a fishery, a salt-works and a repair workshop. At the same time he managed to get acquainted with people from arts circles, take part in clashes with police and earn an overall reputation as an â€Å"untrustworthy† individual.In his travels, he collected prototypes for his future characters, which can be seen in his early works, where the characters were people from the â€Å"bottom† echelons of society. In 1895 he was appointed at the â€Å"Samara Newspaper† (â€Å"Samarskaya gazeta†), where he wrote daily articles for the gossip column â€Å"By the Way† (â€Å"Mezhdu prochim†), signing them as Iegudiil Khlamida. While at the paper he met Ekaterina Volzhina, an editor, whom he married a year later. In 1897 he suffered from aggravated tuberculosis and moved to the Crimea together with his wife. Later they moved to the vill age of Maksatikha in Ukraine’s Poltava Region.That same year, his son Maksim was born. At the beginning of 1898 Gorky returned to Nizhniy Novgorod and in April 1901 Gorky was detained in Nizhniy Novgorod for having taken part in student unrest in St. Petersburg. Later he was expelled to Arazmus. Gorky was elected an honorary academic of polite literature. However, under Emperor Nikolay II’s order, the result of the election was annulled. In 1903 he broke up with his wife and in 1904, the Moscow Theatre Actress Maria Andreeva became his common law wife. In 1905 Gorky was an active participant in the revolution.He was a close associate of the social-democrats but at the same time, on the eve of â€Å"Bloody Sunday† (a key moment in Russia’s history, which served as a trigger for the 1905 Revolution) he visited Sergey Witte, the author of the October Manifesto of 1905, and together with a group of intellectuals he tried to prevent the tragedy. After the revo lution Gorky was arrested on charges of preparing a coup d'à ©tat, but both Russian and European cultural figures rose up to defend the writer. He was released and at the beginning of the following year, emigrated from Russia.He went to America to collect funds to support the Russian Revolution. In 1913 Gorky returned to Russia. After the 1917 Revolution his position became ambiguous: on the one hand, he was supportive of the new authorities, but on the other hand, he kept to his own beliefs, thinking that mass culture is more important than class struggle. At the same time, he started working at the â€Å"World Literature† (â€Å"Vsemirnaya literatura†) publishing house, founding the newspaper â€Å"New Life† (â€Å"Novaya Zhizn†). Gorky’s relations with the authorities gradually aggravated.In 1921 he left Russia, officially going to Germany for medical treatment, but in fact escaping Bolshevik retribution. He lived in Germany and Czechoslovakia until 1924. During this time he actively wrote articles for German magazines (â€Å"The Acknowledgement of a Poet and the Russian Literature of Our Time,† â€Å"The Russian Cruelty,† â€Å"The Intellectuals and the Revolution†). All the articles show his rejection of what had happened in Russia. Gorky actively strived to unify Russian artists working abroad. In the mid-1920s Gorky moved to Sorrento, Italy, where he started work on the novel â€Å"The Life of Klim Samgin† (â€Å"Zhizn Klima Samgina†).The novel was never finished. In 1928 he journeyed to the USSR and spent the summer traveling around the country. His impressions on the trip were published in the book â€Å"Around the Union of Soviets† (â€Å"Po Soyuzu Sovetov†). Three years later Gorky moved to Moscow. Having seen the results of Bolshevik rule while traveling, he set as his goal the promotion of the new â€Å"cultural construction† of the country. He initiated th e creation of literary magazines and publishing houses. Later he organized and chaired the first all-Soviet meeting of Soviet writers. In May 1934 Gorky’s son was killed.Some suspected the NKVD (the People’s Commissariat of Internal Affairs) was responsible for the killing. Two years later Gorky died himself. Speculations continued to surround his death for years; one popular theory suggested he was deliberately poisoned. Gorky is buried in Moscow. LITERARY CAREER Gorky rose to prominence early in life and made his mark as a writer, playwright, publicist, and publisher in Russia and abroad. His literary career began in 1892 with the publication of the story â€Å"Makar Chudra. † His articles and stories were soon appearing in provincial newspapers and journals.His ideas of the writer's involvement in the social, political, and economic problems facing Russia were close to those of Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir G. Korolenko, who became his mentor and friend. Some of h is literary works had important political significance, such as the poem Burevestnik (The Stormy Petrel), which in 1901 prophesied the oncoming storm of revolution. While visiting the United States in 1906 on a mission to win friends for the revolution and raise funds for the Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party (RSDWP), he wrote the novel Mat (Mother).Gorky's revolutionary ideology lay in his insistence on the inevitability of radical change in Russian society. He started to write for newspapers, and his first book, the 3-volume Sketches and Stories (1898-1899), established his reputation as a writer. Gorky wrote with sympathy and optimism about the gypsies, hobos, and down-and-outs. He also started to analyze more deeply the plight of these people in a broad, social context. In these early stories Gorky skillfully mixed romantic exoticism and realism. Occasionally he glorified the rebels among his outcasts of Russian society.In his early writing career Gorky became friends wit h Anton Chekhov , Leo Tolstoy , and Vladimir Lenin. Encouraged by Chekhov, he composed his most famous play, The Lower Depths (1902), which took much of the material from his short stories. It was performed at the Moscow Art Theater under the direction of Konstantin Stanislavsky. The Lower Depths enjoyed a huge success, and was soon played in Western Europe and the United States. Gorky was literary editor of Zhizn from 1899 and editor of Znanie publishing house in St. Petersburg from 1900.Foma Gordeyev (1899), his first novel, dealt with the new merchat class in Russia. The short story Dvadsat' shest' i odna (1899, Twenty-Six Men and a Girl) was about lost ideals. â€Å"There were twenty-six of us – twenty-six living machines locked in a damp basement where, from dawn to dusk, we kneaded dough for making into biscuits and pretzels. The window of our basement looked out onto a ditch dug in front of them and lined with brick that was green from damp; the windows were covered o utside in fine wire netting and sunlight could not reach us through the flour-covered panes.Our boss had put the wire netting there so we could not give hand-outs of his bread to beggars or those comrades of ours who were without work and starving. † (from ‘Twenty-Six Men and a Girl', 1899) The joy in the lives of the bakers is the 16-year old Tania, who works in the same building. A handsome ex-soldier, one of the master bakers, boasts of his success with women. He is challenged to seduce Tania. When Tania succumbs, she is mocked by the men, who have lost the only bright spot in the darkness. Tania curses them and walks away, and is never again seen in the basement.Gorky became involved in a secret printing press and was temporarily exiled to Arzamas, central Russia in 1902. On leaving Russia in 1906, Gorky spent seven years as a political exile, living mainly in his villa on Capri in Italy. Politically, Gorky was a nuisance to his fellow Marxists because of his insiste nce on remaining independent, but his great influence was a powerful asset, which from their point of view outweighed such minor defects. He returned to Russia in 1913, and during World War I he agreed with the Bolsheviks in opposing Russia’s participation in the war.He opposed the Bolshevik seizure of power during the Russian Revolution of 1917 and went on to attack the victorious Lenin’s dictatorial methods in his newspaper Novaya zhizn (â€Å"New Life†) until July 1918, when his protests were silenced by censorship on Lenin’s orders. Living in Petrograd, Gorky tried to help those who were not outright enemies of the Soviet government. Gorky often assisted imprisoned scholars and writers, helping them survive hunger and cold. His efforts, however, were thwarted by figures such as Lenin and Grigory Zinovyev, a close ally of Lenin’s who was the head of the Petrograd Bolsheviks.In 1921 Lenin sent Gorky into exile under the pretext of Gorky’s needing specialized medical treatment abroad. In the decade ending in 1923 Gorky’s greatest masterpiece appeared. This is the autobiographical trilogy Detstvo (1913–14; My Childhood), V lyudyakh (1915–16; In the World), and Moi universitety (1923; My Universities). The title of the last volume is sardonic because Gorky’s only university had been that of life, and his wish to study at Kazan University had been frustrated.This trilogy is one of the finest autobiographies in Russian. It describes Gorky’s childhood and early manhood and reveals him as an acute observer of detail, with a flair for describing his own family, his numerous employers, and a panorama of minor but memorable figures. The trilogy contains many messages, which Gorky now tended to imply rather than preach openly: protests against motiveless cruelty, continued emphasis on the importance of toughness and self-reliance, and musings on the value of hard work.Gorky finished his trilog y abroad, where he also wrote the stories published in Rasskazy 1922–1924 (1925; â€Å"Stories 1922–24†), which are among his best work. From 1924 he lived at a villa in Sorrento, Italy, to which he invited many Russian artists and writers who stayed for lengthy periods. Gorky’s health was poor, and he was disillusioned by postrevolutionary life in Russia, but in 1928 he yielded to pressures to return, and the lavish official celebration there of his 60th birthday was beyond anything he could have expected.In the following year he returned to the U. S. S. R. permanently and lived there until his death. His return coincided with the establishment of Stalin’s ascendancy, and Gorky became a prop of Stalinist political orthodoxy. Correspondence published in the 1990s between Gorky and Stalin and between Gorky and Genrikh Yagoda, the head of the Soviet secret police, shows that Gorky gradually lost all illusions that freedom would prevail in the U. S. S . R. , and he consequently adjusted to the rules of the new way of life.He was now more than ever the undisputed leader of Soviet writers, and, when the Soviet Writers’ Union was founded in 1934, he became its first president. At the same time, he helped to found the literary method of Socialist Realism, which was imposed on all Soviet writers and which obliged them—in effect—to become outright political propagandists. Gorky remained active as a writer, but almost all his later fiction is concerned with the period before 1917. In Delo Artamonovykh (1925; The Artamonov Business), one of his best novels, he showed his continued interest in the rise and fall of prerevolutionary Russian capitalism.From 1925 until the end of his life, Gorky worked on the novel Zhizn Klima Samgina (â€Å"The Life of Klim Samgin†). Though he completed four volumes that appeared between 1927 and 1937 (translated into English as Bystander, The Magnet, Other Fires, and The Specter) , the novel was to remain unfinished. It depicts in detail 40 years of Russian life as seen through the eyes of a man inwardly destroyed by the events of the decades preceding and following the turn of the 20th century.There were also more plays—Yegor Bulychov i drugiye (1932; â€Å"Yegor Bulychov and Others†) and Dostigayev i drugiye (1933; â€Å"Dostigayev and Others†)—but the most generally admired work is a set of reminiscences of Russian writers—Vospominaniya o Tolstom (1919; Reminiscences of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy) and O pisatelyakh (1928; â€Å"About Writers†). The memoir of Tolstoy is so lively and free from the hagiographic approach traditional in Russian studies of their leading authors that it has sometimes been acclaimed as Gorky’s masterpiece.Almost equally impressive is Gorky’s study of Chekhov. He also wrote pamphlets on topical events and problems in which he glorified some of the most brutal aspects of Stalini sm. Assessment. After his death Gorky was canonized as the patron saint of Soviet letters. His reputation abroad has also remained high, but it is doubtful whether posterity will deal with him so kindly. His success was partly due, both in the Soviet Union and to a lesser extent abroad, to political accident.Though technically of lower-middle-class origin, he lived in such poverty as a child and young man that he is often considered the greatest â€Å"proletarian† in Russian literature. This circumstance, coinciding with the rise of working-class movements all over the world, helped to give Gorky an immense literary reputation, which his works do not wholly merit. Gorky’s literary style, though gradually improving through the years, retained its original defects of excessive striving for effect, of working on the reader’s nerves by the piling up of emotive adjectives, and of tending to overstate.Among Gorky’s other defects, in addition to his weakness for philosophical digressions, is a certain coarseness of emotional grain. But his eye for physical detail, his talent for making his characters live, and his unrivaled knowledge of the Russian â€Å"lower depths† are weighty items on the credit side. Gorky was the only Soviet writer whose work embraced the prerevolutionary and postrevolutionary period so exhaustively, and, though he by no means stands with Chekhov, Tolstoy, and others in the front rank of Russian writers, he remains one of the more important literary figures of his age.

Door Locking System With Using The Motion Sensor Essay

Door Locking System With Using The Motion Sensor - Essay Example Introduction It is indispensable that the evolution of the world has been accompanied with various technological developments to the extent that the world can longer do without them. There is always increasing need to make various changes to keep abreast with the demand of the society. As far as electronics is concerned, these developments are not disputable. The changing times have seen new materials discovered, and the application of such material to change the outlook of the environment has been enormous, needless to mention improved locking system of the door, safety and performance for sustainable development. One pivotal area that technology has found a lot of applicability is that pertaining to application revolving doors fitted with motion sensors. It is worth noting currently there are a number of door available as options to architects whenever they wish to design commercial, educational or public buildings. The doors range includes both manual, automatic and both manual an d automatic combined. One thing to content with is that the underlying needs are most likely the same for instance when considering ease of use, their effectiveness, or their safety for the user. Revolving doors first appeared in the market in a New York Restaurant way back in 1899 though it is said that the idea was conceived by the Philadelphia residents about ten years earlier. Today, revolving doors are quite relevant hence widely used. Basically, the revolving doors are made of a number of three to four panels often referred to as leaves or wings. These panels the rotate around a vertical shaft upon which they are attached. As often is the case, the entire revolving door structure is enclosed in the cylindrical structure with panels being spaced in a manner that during normal operation, the door can never open and hence has no clear passage right from the street to the building for bypassing the panel. Panels and the enclosure both incorporate glass for purposes of safety and f or reasons of aesthetic. In this regard, the glass provides an allowance for people to observe others through the door and the serve to regulate movements. Most of the revolving door automatic version consists of a powered central shaft, as well as sensors used for purposes of stopping and starting the door in potential unsafe situations. Generally, there is the presence of speed control characteristics, which makes the doors to be folded back in a way to create a clear space in the opening for purposes of emergency, and for moving objects that are large in and out of the building. The direction for revolving of the doors constricting the revolving door often differs with countries. For example, in the UK, the predominant movement of the revolving doors is said to be in the clockwise direction using a right hand side as an entry. In New Zealand and in Australia, this is in reverse. Since the 1940s fire that occurred in a night club, in which many lives were lost because of having on e revolving door as means of exit, revolving doors were made to be collapsible. In most case, therefore, hinged doors of an equivalent capacity are often placed next to a revolving door with the other door assisting in case of disabled access. The modern doors lock system, has been made to include an array of electronic components including sensors. This way, it is designed such that it can sense, decide and act accordingly (Arkalgud, 2005). In this regard, sensors, as used in this

Change mangement in Qantas Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Change mangement in Qantas - Essay Example This section will illustrate the specific principles through the application of the KT approach of project management. This approach will split the project into three basic areas, in which communication occurs over all levels as shown below; The KT process will help Qantas in the analysis of implementation of goals via a systematic process of decision-making. It will apply in this case because it aids in achievement of improved satisfaction of customers, increasing sales, and the elimination of problems in sales (Biech, 2010: p44). The first step is analysis, where they will come up with rough goals to improve business like marketing of new products to clients. The management team will collect information from market data, databases, competitors, and customer surveys and sort through it to collect information accurately since this data forms assumptions on which all KT steps in the future will be undertaken. The second step is the strategy where Qantas, using all relevant data will h ave its management craft cost effective plans that accomplish the goals. They will take into consideration all barriers that may hinder the objectives, scope and types of products and services offered, new business sources, how to attain competitive advantage, as well as goal timeframes (Biech, 2010: p45). Following the strategy creation, a project design will be created and presented to the owner. In the third step, Qantas will consider the designs presented by the managers, as well as have the managers pitch strategies in the strategy session. Qantas, using the management team, will select the best strategy and come up with a master plan. This will include the project’s purpose, its schedule, project stages, and resources that are needed to meet the objectives (Biech, 2010: p45). Following this, the next phase is the implementation of the master plan through assigning various tasks and training the management in the fulfillment of roles. The KT process is emphatic on hands- off approach, which requires little interference where managers and employees only get required skills needed to complete objectives in the plan. Qantas should also ensure that the employees are constantly informed on the progress of the plan, only becoming active in the plan implementation when deadlines are not met. The final step is review, where Qantas while using the KT process need to review whether the plan is working after it is implemented since the plans are not necessarily considerate of all relevant variables in meeting the goals of the business (Biech, 2010: p47). As the project concludes, they should update the master plan to improve on the results. Should the project fail because of inaccurate research, the plan should be scrapped altogether and more time focused on the KT process’ analysis step. It is also opined that that Qantas used the popular Kotter’s 8 steps model as it is displayed in figure 2: Figure 2 steps to successful change The first step th ey would take would be creating a sense of urgency since everyone at Qantas will have to be behind the change and believe in it. They should identify potential threats with concurrent scenarios of possibilities in the future (Cameron & Green, 2012:

Article Summary about acqusition and consolidation Term Paper

Article Summary about acqusition and consolidation - Term Paper Example Acquisition aims at building on strong point or weak point of the subsidiary or parent company. The acquisition can be retained or discarded depending on the performance. An evaluation on processes and how they are performing is done, and a decision is made. Consolidation is the process of combining the financial statements of a parent company as consolidated financial statements. It is necessary for the parent company which is independent to control the subsidiary which is not independent through financial operations. This is shown when financial operations of the parent company are consolidated to the subsidiary in a financial statement. The purpose of an acquisition is for it to be successful by achieving more rapidly and gainful growth than ordinary. This can only be seen if a detailed consolidated financial statement is outlined. The article on Google acquiring Buffer-Box http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57556528-93/google-acquires-bufferbox-provider-of-delivery-lockers/ will be the case study. Google is a multinational company which provides internet-related products and services. While, Buffer-Box is an on-line pick up site for goods and services bought online. Most e-commerce operations for Google are in Waterloo which is where most of its online shopping functions are assembled. Therefore, by acquiring Buffer-Box Google will add to its mobile shopping sector. Buffer-Box, on the other hand, fights the challenge of low customer base and gets to leverage Google’s resources to grow their business. In preparing a consolidated financial statement for the parenting company, Google and the subsidiary Buffer-Box, needs to gather the necessary paper work on cash, accounts payable and inventory. In order to avoid double-counting when making journal entries, Google should not include transactions to the subsidiary. The statement should reflect incorporated cash flow showing sales, opening and closing

Kouros Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Kouros - Essay Example This is because of the fact that Kouros statues usually exhibit a supreme form of geometric symmetry, reminding us of the realism and naturalism of the ever famous artworks of the Renaissance Era later in the history of Europe, from which the artworks from this period of Greece became an inspiration. From the measures of the eyes and the face, to the muscles of the body, it can be seen that almost all of the components are very proportionate and exact with regards to the symmetries of the body of a real male youth. In addition to this, most of the Kouros statues usually pose in a certain form: a standing pose with â€Å"their left leg moved forward, their arms close to their bodies touching the side of their thighs...† all depicted â€Å"as simple geometric forms† (Ancient-Greece.org n. p.). One of the main references for the artists to gain symmetry in creating Kouros without utilizing a rigid measurement system was through appropriating proportions in the Kouros using â€Å"heads:† in fact, â€Å"several Kouros exhibit the 1:7 head:body proportions† (Ancient-Greece.org n. p.). Works Cited Ancient-Greece.org. â€Å"Kouros.† Ancient-Greece.org. Ancient-Greece, n. d. Web. 7 May 2011.

Product Development and selling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Product Development and selling - Essay Example To the individuals, computers can be used for communication, type setting, graphic design, entertainment and performing of a variety of tasks depending on each individual user. These are fundamental activities which can make one be comfortable both at home and in their officers. On the other hand, computers can be used by business organizations in the automation of their services. Thus, they become able to produce organized, neat, accurate, reliable and high quality work. The use of Information Technology (IT) can be a very good idea for any business as it can be the surest way of improving its productivity. However, in order to ensure that my commodity is sold, I will have to properly plan. By putting in place relevant strategies, I will definitely manage to sell my products to my clients and be in a position of making profit. After all, that is the major goal of my business. Besides, I will have to scan the prevailing conditions in the market so as to be privy with all the information about the level of competition in the market. I will need to know about the pricing policies of my competitors. This will be important in helping me to set a reasonable price which will not only be appealing to my clients, but be able to enable me to increase my profitability. Such prices should be decided based on the costs of production and the level of competition in the market. With this in mind, I will still have to ensure that I produce high quality commodities because it will be crucial in determining the success of the business. Many clients prefer commodities with high value regardless of their prices. When this is done, the business will be able to make some profit. It represents a profit margin of 52%. However, because the company needs to maximize its profits, it will have to venture into a sales presentation as it will help it to bridge the gap between it and the potential and existing clients (Roth 219). Besides, additional initiatives such as

CIS Management Information System Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

CIS Management Information System - Assignment Example With nearly one percent of the kanban cards lost per day, the net result is that the inventory runs dry and the overall production efforts suffer or get delayed. Considering the fact that Danaher has acquired a number of small companies, the application of the information technology can really go a long way in helping the firm under consideration in enhancing its efficacy, so far as the objective of reducing its inventory levels is concerned. The application of information technology can help Danaher to purchase supplies from the overseas vendors by making the purchasing process more streamlined. The usage of electronic kanban system can do away with the fragilities and flaws of the manual approach. This will also allow the key employees in the procurement system to focus on the core tasks like discovering new sources and developing supplier relationships. E-kanban system will also improve and fasten the communication between Danaher and its suppliers. The introduction of bar codes and electronic scanners will do away with the old and cumbersome processes that were prone to grave errors and thus delays. This will also delegate the responsibility of verifying the order notifications to the suppliers. Thus the key staff will be left with ample time to concentrate on the supplier procurement goals. The application of the information systems has already reduced the non-productive time at Gurnee by 57 percent. This has also e nabled Danaher in sourcing smaller suppliers to take an advantage of better services at lower costs. However, the introduction of information systems makes it imperative for Danaher to effectively deal with the unprecedented challenges like technical glitches and employee resistance. Overall, the information systems are sure to help Danaher run leaner. Q2. Can Blockbuster stand up to Netfix Ans 2. When Blockbuster ventured into the video rental business in 1985, it primarily relied on its traditional mom-and-pop style stores that were simple enough to blend with the underdeveloped digital technology and humble consumer expectations of those days. The biggest blunder that Blockbuster made was to fail to keep a keen eye on the latest developments in the digital technology and information systems, despite having an obvious competitive advantage in the market, to the extent of being a virtual monopoly. With the advent of DVDs, the consumer were left with the option of buying their own movie DVDs at competitive prices without having any need to rent movies from any outside provider. In the meantime, Netfix, which happened to be a new player in the market took ample advantage of the recent developments in the digital technology and e-commerce and engineered its strategy accordingly. Thus Netfix succeeded in establishing a cost conscious virtual vending system, thereby relievi ng customers of the botheration of venturing out of their home s to seek entertainment. Obviously, Netfix enjoyed a booming growth and success. For Blockbuster, the onerous task of responding to the new competition was a complicated matter, in which it miserably failed. It failed to discern that Netfix's strategy was obviously being backed by astute e-commerce specialists, which was very streamlined and lean. In response, Blockbuster came out with its own internet

International Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 4

International Management - Essay Example Hence, global ethics are expected to continue to be a very crucial concern for almost all MNCs. Woods claims that roughly 60,000 MNCs are doing business all over the world at present but that most of them are operating in developing countries (Cullen & Parboteeah 126). MNCs have access to massive human, capital, and economic resources, and this access endows influence and authority that restricts the capacity of the governments of developing countries to control these multinationals. In certain instances, these governments are not eager to control because they are taking into consideration the value of foreign investment for their countries (Cullen & Parboteeah 126-7). MNCs are thus being investigated for their capacity to carry out ethical practices when confronted with this kind of power. Besides the possibility of being condemned for unethical practices and sustaining damage in reputation and loss of public support, new studies confirm that doing business in an ethical way has numerous advantages for multinationals. An evaluation of different studies by researchers reveals that responsible and ethical multinationals have greater advantages in numerous parts, including predicted future financial outcome; stock market returns; stock market value; firm market value; and overall financial performance. Ethical MNCs hence experience more favorable financial outcomes (Kaptein 982). Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a concept that is largely related to corporate/organizational ethics. CSR is defined by Trudel and Cotte (2009) as â€Å"a decision by the company’s management to consider the impact their decisions will have on their customers, employees, suppliers and communities, as well as their shareholders† (as cited in Babetti 4). Cedillo-Torres and colleagues (2012) argued that CSR involves several interrelated aspects rooted in societal, ethical, legal, and

Meeting the Challenge of Educating English Language Learners Scholarship Essay

Meeting the Challenge of Educating English Language Learners - Scholarship Essay Example BIBLIOGRAPHY noted that these foreign students are the fastest growing group entering our schools, especially in urban settings. Although there are millions of immigrants in this country and endless resources geared towards their education, the educational performance of our new community members is one of the lowest in the country ( BIBLIOGRAPHY). As an educator for over seventeen years, the author of this paper believes that the challenge of educating English as Second Language learners is without a question a task which has been adequately explored by only a few districts. These districts are the ones that are truly prepared to see the value of language and culture as an opportunity to educate learners and to effectively integrate them into our schools and community at large. Hence, it is imperative for all districts to understand the magnitude of the challenge of teaching language and content to English as Second Language learners within the same hours of a day and in the same nu mber of days per year as English learners. The Challenge Despite the efforts of educational leaders to educate all students it is interesting to analyze the impact of this education on newcomers. Firstly, although school districts continuously develop new initiatives and interventions the end result is usually the same - the initiatives essentially create a lack of access to meaningful education to the newcomer. Thus, one can conclude that school districts are still in the dark about how to specifically and effectively educate newcomers since most of the interventions become new failing attempts to successfully educate these students from foreign countries. A second rationale for the lack of effectiveness of these new initiatives is the fact that former immigrant students were intimately connected to members with the same cultural and language background. The author of this paper believes that it is this network of support which provided a source of strength and acculturation for th e continued success of a given group. However, it is evident that the United States is now experiencing a tremendously large increase of students who are new immigrants who are isolated from mainstream society due to the lack of connections, resources and networking experienced by the former immigrants. At an alarmingly rapid rate more and more immigrants from oppressed nations are entering our cities, usually, as refugees. As such the challenges of these immigrant students are more severe than any of the previous groups. Consequently, it is has become critical to bridge the cultural and linguistic gaps of these immigrant students. Educational institutions within the school districts are not prepared or equipped to assimilate the multiple academic and socio emotional needs of these new students and their families. Accordingly, the institutions are faced with the daunting task of educating individuals who not only have diverse language and cultural backgrounds in English but also ind ividuals who have limited exposure to formal education. Moreover, many of these students have experienced trauma in their home land and are now facing the acculturation shock of trying to fit in to our communities. The assimilation process which incorporates student engagement, parent engagement, discipline problems and eventually student exclusion has a significant impact in the culture of the school. Exclusion, the foremost by-product of

The City in Literature Essay Example for Free

The City in Literature Essay This sweeping literary encounter with the Western idea of the city moves from the early novel in England to the apocalyptic cityscapes of Thomas Pynchon. Along the way, Richard Lehan gathers a rich entourage that includes Daniel Defoe, Charles Dickens, Emile Zola, Bram Stoker, Rider Haggard, Joseph Conrad, James Joyce, Theodore Dreiser, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Raymond Chandler. The European city is read against the decline of feudalism and the rise of empire and totalitarianism; the American city against the phenomenon of the wilderness, the frontier, and the rise of the megalopolis and the decentered, discontinuous city that followed. Throughout this book, Lehan pursues a dialectic of order and disorder, of cities seeking to impose their presence on the surrounding chaos. Rooted in Enlightenment yearnings for reason, his journey goes from east to west, from Europe to America. In the United States, the movement is also westward and terminates in Los Angeles, a kind of lands end of the imagination, in Lehans words. He charts a narrative continuum full of constructs that represent a cycle of hope and despair, of historical optimism and pessimism. Lehan presents sharply etched portrayals of the correlation between rationalism and capitalism; of the rise of the city, the decline of the landed estate, and the formation of the gothic; and of the emergence of the city and the appearance of other genres such as detective narrative and fantasy literature. He also mines disciplines such as urban studies, architecture, economics, and philosophy, uncovering material that makes his study a lively read not only for those interested in literature, but for anyone intrigued by the meanings and mysteries of urban life.

Bio-based Polymers and Their Future Trends: Article Review

Bio-based Polymers and Their Future Trends: Article Review The selected article, Current progress on bio-based polymers and their future trends[1], provides insight into the present tendencies, technological advancements, and the prospective utilisation of bio-based polymers obtained with renewable means. A wide domain of bio-based polymers are analysed in this article specifically focusing on its production, its characteristics and its potential in commercialisation. The review also measures the subsequent challenges whilst introducing these polymers for appliance. Consequently, the analysis of the review article pertains generally to specialists such as scientists possessing a background knowledge of bio-based polymers, to entrepreneurs who intend to commercialise these bio-based polymers due to their increase in allure as a renewable and environmentally friendly product and perhaps to enthusiasts. Part of this reasoning is due to the extensive use of chemical jargon and its passive and scientific articulation. Subsequently, the review art icle was difficult to comprehend as a scientifically sound reader. The discipline ideally suited for the review article is a combination of organic chemistry, polymer chemistry. Organic chemistry and polymer chemistry are both a chemistry subdiscipline where the former deals with the study of organic materials[2], matter formed with carbon atoms, and where the latter deals with the study of synthetic polymers[3]. The article examines the bio-based polymers, hence falling into the categories of organic chemistry and polymer chemistry. Additional disciplines can be related to this article but may seem ambiguous such as materials science which briefly covers the study of polymers[4] and industrial engineering[5] which examines the cost effectiveness of the production of these bio-based polymers. Therefore, article should be categorised as a discipline of organic chemistry as it focuses on bio-based polymers. The association concerning the discipline of organic chemistry and the review article from the journal Progress in Biomaterials relates thoroughly within. As stated in the description[6], this journal examines the preparation and characteristics of biomaterials in vitro and in vivo and assesses its compatibility in areas such as tissue engineering, drug delivery and implants and regenerative medicine. The editorial board regarding this journal is of an international standard where people from universities universally gather in order to publish and review this journal. Hence this journal is open accessed and peer reviewed published under the SpringerOpen brand and also approved by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, obtaining a high credible standard[7]. The journal, published by one of the many leading academic services[8], is therefore associated with the discipline of organic and polymer chemistry. The purpose of the review is to assess a variety of bio-based polymers of their production, characteristics, their effective future applications in our society and its difficulties. The review article investigates and assesses as much as ten bio-based polymers, each with diverse scrutinies, and therefore cellulose[9] will be briefly discussed as an example of what is reported as it is also associated with the primary article[10] that will be compared from the review articled. In this review article, cellulose, reported to be one of the largest bio-based polymer produced[11], is attained through the two methods: sulfite and pre-hydrolysis kraft pulping and has a ninety seven percent purity rate[12]. Cellulose is a rigid polymer and is highly tensile relative to other bio-based polymers. This causes processing problems and therefore is plasticised, mixing itself with other polymers, to soften itself for ease of use[13]. Subsequently, there are three main branches of which cellulosoic p olymers are classified under after chemical modification for applications: cellulose esters, cellulose ethers and regenerated cellulose. Each of these have difference uses: cellulose esters are mainly utilised for film and fiber, cellulose ethers are used in food and personal care and regenerated cellulose are used for disposables, textiles and fabrics[14]. The main drawback to the production of this renewable source is the low yields compared to its high expense.[15] The immense amount of professional research expressed into this review article accounts for the 159 references. Many of these references are primary articles which are peer reviewed whilst there are also some that are also review articles. Most of these references are linked to reputable academic services such as Oxford Academic and Science Direct. The sources of the review article are generally recent as most of them are from the 21st Century. The selected primary article, Cellulose Extraction from Palm Kernel Cake Using Liquid Phase Oxidation[16], is an experimental report that investigates the production of cellulose via its extraction from palm kernel cake with the method of liquid phase oxidation. Specifically this primary article highlights the optimization of this process where the yield of cellulose would increase as a variable changed such as the ration of hydrogen peroxide and the hot water treatment. As a result a theoretical optimal point was discovered. The investigations of this primary article is significant to the review article as it contributes through the production of cellulose, one of the many bio-based polymers discussed in the review article. This helps the audience to understand how cellulose is produced, providing insight on its benefits and drawbacks. While both articles relate to cellulose, the nature and purpose can be distinguishable. The primary article contains experimental data and methods which aimed to optimise the yield of cellulose whereas the review article aimed to provide information to an audience, gathering its data from a variety of sources. Reference List Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. Babu et al.: Current progress on bio-based polymers and their future trends. Progress in Biomaterials 2013 2:8, accessed 22 March 2017, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/2194-0517-2-8> Farm Yan Yan, Duduku Krishniah, Mariani Rajin, Awang Bono. Cellulose Extraction from Palm Kernel Cake Using Liquid Phase Oxidation. Journal of Engineering Science and Technology 2009, accessed 25 March 2017, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yan_yan_Farm/publication/49593921_Cellulose_extraction_from_palm_kernel_cake_using_liquid_phase_oxidation/links/57bc0e4e08aefea8f0f5f46e.pdf> [1] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 [2] ACS, Chemistry for Life, accessed 25 March 2017, https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/careers/college-to-career/areas-of-chemistry/organic-chemistry.html [3] ACS, Chemistry for Life, accessed 25 March 2017, https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/careers/college-to-career/areas-of-chemistry/polymer-chemistry.html [4] Merriam-Webster, accessed 25 March 2017, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/materials%20science [5] Oregon state University, accessed 25 March 2017, http://mime.oregonstate.edu/what-do-industrial-engineers-do [6] Springer Link, accessed 25 March 2017, https://link.springer.com/journal/40204 [7] Springer, accessed 25 March 2017, http://www.springer.com/materials/biomaterials/journal/40204?detailsPage=editorialBoard [8] Springer, accessed 25 March 2017http://www.springer.com/gp/about-springer [9] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 [10] Journal of Engineerring Science and Technology, accessed 25 March 2017 https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yan_yan_Farm/publication/49593921_Cellulose_extraction_from_palm_kernel_cake_using_liquid_phase_oxidation/links/57bc0e4e08aefea8f0f5f46e.pdf [11] Farm Yan Yan, Duduku Krishniah, Mariani Rajin, Awang Bono. 2009. Sec. 1 Para. 1 [12] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 Page 9 Para.1 [13] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 Page 9 Para 2 [14] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 Page 9 Para 3 [15] Babu, R.P., OConnor, K. Seeram, R. 2013 Page 10 Para 1 [16] Farm Yan Yan, Duduku Krishniah, Mariani Rajin, Awang Bono Sec.4 Para.1

Countries and cultures are diminishing

Countries and cultures are diminishing Impact of Globalization on fashion: relationship between fashion and spaces or places With globalization, world is changing and boundaries between countries and cultures are diminishing. Fashion has emerged as global phenomenon and this scenario has transformed the way people perceive fashion. In todays world traditions and identity have new meaning and sense for consumers. On the other hand, businesses and governments are concerned and active for providing better products and services to the right consumers, at the right place and time. This essay explores and discusses some of the major impacts of globalization on fashion with respect to the transformation of spaces and places. Perna (1987) defines fashion very aptly as ‘an expression of the times. This broad explanation or generalized perception of fashion matches with the modern consumer society in which more or less all aspects of peoples lifestyles are considered to be a reflection of social status and success. This perception is especially applicable to the commodities (products and services) that are highly visible when consumed, for instance, cell phones, clubs or bars, cars and clothing (as cited in Hines Bruce, 2001, p.123).Polhemis and Procter (1978) supported this by pointing out that the term fashion is mostly used as a synonym of adornment (as cited in Hines Bruce, 2001, p.123).Fashion has had cultural, social and political implications in every era, but rapidly globalizing world multiplied its impact on everyday life and the world around everyone. Globalization as a phenomenon is itself a consequence of competitive pressures that have led textile and clothing procedure towards and endless search of ways to lower production costs, firstly through efficiency measures, often internal to a single organization or network of organizations locked in a continuous supply chain. Secondly, the search for lower cost sources of supply shifts production and organizations controlling production to offshore locations throughout the globe, where conditions are more favourable than in the home market where the products will be sold and consumed. (Hines Bruce, 2001, p.23) Now the city life is experiencing a whole new era which is determined by economic activity. In nineteenth century life was divided between work, wages and leisure. Now spending money has become a leisurely activity itself. To meet the need of consumption, capitalist city invented the fantasy world of departmental and retail stores (Wilson, 2003, p.144). With the changing economy, the need to become the largest amongst major retail groups seems to be predominant. The desire of being the largest cannot be satisfied in todays saturated domestic market. This scenario demands to expand beyond limited geographical markets to international scale. It is crucial for survival to be the first and get the biggest market share (Hines Bruce, 2001, p.23). Effects of globalization can be tracked not only through economic changes but also through cultural and social shifts that has revolutionized communication and transportation infrastructures. Now, consumer behaviour is changing with converging markets. Consumer behaviours and attitudes are not simply changing on their own but in fact, more of the influence is induced by the professional purchasing and procurement officers hired by retailing groups (Hines Bruce 2001, p.24). Immigrants provide much of the material base for the new urban cultures generally called ‘fusion. Sometimes they bring new ideas and forms that labour turns into products of cultural consumption which are then shaped by the market provided by the rest of the citys population. (UN-Habitat,2004,p.42) Hines and Bruce (2001) state, the phenomenon of globalization, conditions that give rise to it, and shape the structure, strategies and consequences are probably more transparently evident in the textile and clothing industries than in many other sectors. Markets from Manchester to Manchuria and supplies from Singapore to Sacramento are subject to the phenomenon of global forces and global shifts. (p.24) A recent boom in shopping is not the reflection of economic development or consumers with extra leisurely time or money.It is escalating by planned actions of many stakeholders which include;retail store network,marketing experts,designers,advertising agencies,manufacturers and critics or reviewers.Government policies regarding wage and emphasis on multinational treaties or free-trade zone has also stimulated the shopping.Globalization has also affected and improved shopping experience by proliferation of credit card system.In todays environment governments manage a balance between shopping and cultural and social objectives. Changing patterns of shopping stimulte the strategic expansion of brands as well.It is not merely an individualistic expression or collective skill as artist but they are associated with big designers or create value for companies and become a symbol of social status for those who buy them.Transformation of luxury goods into brands demands for more diverse ways of promotion which emerged as building consumption spaces.It is a customized way of targeting particular audience which proved to be a great promotional tool.It provides a symbolic economy in which everyone can buy their likings in a public space(UN-Habitat,2004,p.42-6). Hines and Bruce(2001) state,â€Å"These large retail groups have enormous purchasing power and are able to extract economies of scale from their operations and economies of scope from their existing and developing supply chains†(p.23). The global intensification of shopping is also encouraged by governmental decisions to lower entry barriers to foreign-owned retail stores in some developing countries,bringing Western-style discount shopping to countries with much lower wages†¦Like the cultural districts that are built for performance and display,these new,mixed-use shopping development are spaces where residents of the city can perform the role of modern-or global-consumers and display their knowledge and wealth(see fig.1)†¦In Singapore,the government decided in 1996 that shopping presents the ultimate modern image that the city-state needed to project to multinational corporate investors.In China,shopping represents modernity,access to work markets and cultures.And shopping in the US,it has been observed,repersents a patriotic effort to support the economy†¦Multinational luxury goods corporations hire the same multinational architecture who design the mixed-use and cultural districts and are no less eagerly courted by city governments than the cultural districts.Indeed,in the major redevelopment of Potsdamer platz in the centre of Berlin,the reunification of East and West Germany rakes material form a shopping,office and entertainment centre.(UN-Habitat,2004,p.46) In todays globalized world, shopping is more of a socializing activity. Both adults and teenagers are eager to shop but young people are naturally more inclined towards it as it is a matter of their identity. It offers them to get into public circle without joining politics or unions. However, as it is not a traditional marketplace, it may clash with the local public sphere and their identity, for instance, jeans and music are recognized as symbols of youth globally but it may not match the local circle of influence (UN-Habitat,2004,p.46-7). According to Chua youngsters in Singapore pick fashion trends from a globalized ‘image bank. They get familiar with it through movies, TV and music videos. They often consume global fashion as a form of protest which points towards the rejection of local politics and traditional culture.However, in some cases such global spaces become part of the local culture as well. For instance, McDonalds proved to be equally acceptable for young students,elderly men and even woman in China who preferred it over traditional Chinese restruants(UN-Habitat,2004,p.47).Fashion and new media in a globalized world are developing as clusters of interconnected firms that shape industrial districts.One of the four types of cultural districts is industrial cultural distict that offers design based products and services and media as its new form (UN-Habitat,2004,p.41). The changing world particularly affected woman and their identity in recent times. Different aspects of fashion system aided to this redefining process. For instance, new clothing factories, departmental and retail stores, stylish promotion, magazines, illustrations and glamorous photography reshaped the lifestyle they are opting. Cinema and movie stars contributed to portray the image of a new woman. A specific group of such woman is focused who are important as consumers of clothing, popular forms of dace, art, cinema and music. Fashion is recognized as a significant symbol of womens changing powers, be it political, social or economic. Fashion proved to be a medium of portraying not only images and identities but also as an expression of gender and class identity. Orwell explains that drive of consumption emerged from women with easily interpretable desires and thought patterns (Fawcett and Buckley, 2004, p.81-7) spectacle carried a special message to a female public, or at least a feminized public, of mass consumers. By this period, womens visual pleasure was thought to be derived from their consumer desires. Such desires were in turn triggered by visually rich landscape viewed in particularly sensuous physical setting. In this conception of consumer psychology, as much as pure economic interest or personal relationships which created the partnership between, the fashion industry, and the theatreThe Warehousemen and Drapers Trade Journal, for example told its readers that it described actress dresses because â€Å"it frequently happens that a fashion makes its first appearance on the stage, and afterwards is adopted by the feminine public at large. (Rappaport, 2000, p.185) Fashion is predominantly an expression of time and space it is breathing in. It has always been a vehicle of determining the implications of a certain era. It has not only influenced but also represented cultural, social and political scene of cities and civilizations. However, in modern world, meaning and impact of fashion is changing rapidly. In modern age of globalization, people have become citizens of a global village, world demographics are changed and so are the ways to reach consumer. New age media and economic demands have stimulated this process. Citizens of a globalized world choose fashion considering their interest, identity, class and consciousness instead of tradition and public sphere expectations. Globalization is also changing lifestyles all over the world, be it the way to get dressed, eat, socialize, shop, produce or distribute. Fashion, being the ‘expression of times best expresses the trends of this transforming world. The concept of culture and identity are evolving into more diverse forms. With globalization the world has entered into a consumer and corporate world. Changing shopping habits and patterns are the result of economic activity as this is what that decides everything from cost of production to point of sales. Cities and spaces are evolving and becoming more dynamic in order to cater the demands of new consumer. Whatsoever are the factors stimulating this change, corporate world and government authorities world-wide are playing their part effectively in order to meet the needs of this rapidly globalizing consumer world.

Deng Xiaopeng :: essays research papers

Deng Xiaopeng Deng Xiaopeng was a good leader for China though at times Deng hit some bumpy roads and was said to infringe some of the Chinese rights still Deng controlled China with order and efficiency. Deng raised China’s economy to national high all around. Deng also strengthened its political status up to that of a very powerful country. Though Deng did things bad his achievements rose above his failures. As newfound leader of communist China after Mao’s death Deng’s first goal was to raise the technological status of China to standards that could possibly rival those of the west. He did this quickly and efficiently by allowing an â€Å"open door policy† on foreign trade affairs, which made China very appealing to foreign marketers. This â€Å"open door policy† also worked out for Deng because it opened up communication technology through out China so he could speak directly to his people in their own homes much like President Roosevelt did her e in America. Deng listed technology as on his list of expansion goals but he also listed three other important goals agriculture, economy, and military. Deng had great need to expand Agriculture because China has the highest population in the world. If Deng could not put food on the table then chances are the people are not going to really like him or trust him. So he increased farming technology and with the increase in technology the military grew stronger as well. Now Deng had the ability to protect his country from foreigners and he could also now enforce laws. With the military increasing then the economy increased significantly. Now Deng could say that he wields the ability to feed, protect, pay, and give useful technology to his people but Deng was missing one very important thing. China’s political status with some countries was not at all desirable. This is so because of past wars and many unfair treaties during China’s time of revolution but also because Chi na is a communist country. To most of the west communism is an evil and horrible thing. As a way to break the silence of political dealings with most countries through out the west Deng had a meeting with Margaret Thatcher of England. At the time Margaret was probably the most successful woman in the world. Deng had heated debates with her at first but he received an agreement after a many arguments that stated Hong Kong a city taken away form China long ago in the Opium wars would be returned China in 1997.

Was He Just a Man? Essay -- American History, Jefferson Davis

â€Å"I worked night and day for twelve years to prevent the war, but I could not. The North was mad and blind, would not let us govern ourselves, and so the war came† (Thinkexist 6). These words were spoken by Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America. Although he was president of the confederacy, he was opposed to secession and spoke for peace between north and south before the beginning of the war. The effects of Jefferson Davis’s accomplishments can still be felt today. Jefferson Davis was born in June 3rd, 1808 (McGill 2). At age seven he was sent to a Dominican boy’s school in Kentucky (Jefferson Davis 3). When he was thirteen, he went to Transylvania College in Kentucky (McGill 3). He accepted a nomination to West Point in 1824 (McGill 3). He graduated twenty-third in his class of thirty-nine; he also had a total of 327 demerits on his record (McGill 3). If Jefferson Davis had never gone to school as a young child, he would have never received a nomination to West Point. Without his West Point schooling, he wouldn’t have gone into the military, which would have changed everything in his life. He never would have met his two wives. If he didn’t meet them, he wouldn’t have gotten into politics which, would have rewritten history. After his school he went into the army as a lieutenant. He served in the Black Hawk War (McGill 4). The Black Hawk War was a war between the U.S. and Sac and Fox Indians (Lewis 1). The war began when these Indian tribes left their reservation in Iowa to return to their homes in Illinois (Lewis 1). Upon hearing that the Indians had left their reservation, citizens broke into widespread panic (Lewis 1). There was only one major battle during the Black Hawk War; it was the battle... ...d never have been appointed to Secretary of War. What if Jefferson Davis wasn’t chosen for the Confederate presidency? Davis’s role in the success that the Confederacy achieved against a nation much more superior in numbers and resources was enormous. First of all, even though he was too noisy in military affairs, he often helped. Lastly, he held the south together until the end of the war, which allowed the south to fight for much longer and continue with a fighting chance. Even though Jefferson Davis was a strong supporter of the south, he tried to keep the south from seceding, as stated in his quote, â€Å"I worked night and day for twelve years to prevent the war, but I could not. The North was mad and blind, would not let us govern ourselves, and so the war came† This quote shows how hard Jefferson Davis tried to keep the union together (Thinkexist 6).

Organizational Epistemology

Running Head: ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 1 Organizational Epistemology St. Rachel E. Ustanny University of Phoenix ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 2 There are different perspectives about the origin of knowledge, which have influenced the development of concepts such as a priori and a posteriori truth, epistemic regress, and sensual perception—Descartes (as cited in Cooper, 1999) argued that there are certain undeniable truths, which are obtained from our senses; Feldman (2003) noted that truth is obtained through one of or a combination of six means: perception, memory, testimony, introspection, reasoning, and rational insight; Feldman (2003) also reported that evidentialists believe that propositions must be substantiated; Bonjour (1978) articulated that truth is based on the existence of a priori knowledge, which is proven by engaging in epistemic regress; Schnapper (2009) noted that modern democracy calls for greater equality, including the recognition and acceptance of all perspectives as truth; and Webb (2007) reported that truth is that which is naturally experienced. In light of these varying perspectives about the origin of truth or knowledge, one cannot deny that the study of epistemology is very important to the development of new information, and socioeconomic progress. From an organizational perspective, epistemology provides a framework for critically analyzing and planning for the management and leadership of contemporary businesses—The change in the mode of production to that of knowledge work as reported by Drucker (1999) points to the need for contemporary organizational leaders to manage knowledge as a means of increasing productivity. This situation underscores the importance of deconstructing the origin of knowledge that workers produce on a daily basis. Epistemological Theories The multiple perspectives about the origin of knowledge have stimulated much criticism and skepticism about the validity and generalizability of epistemological theories. Nevertheless, this situation has continued to fuel the development of new theories, which have contributed to ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 3 the persistence of the epistemological debate over several centuries, and influenced its applicability to contemporary social problems. New theories about the origin of knowledge are still emerging as society is faced with unique challenges and alternate ways of learning and testing validity. Natural epistemology and the knowledge work theories will be examined as a means of garnering a better understanding of how modern society deals with and conceptualizes knowledge and uses it to improve social structures and systems. Four longstanding knowledge theories will also be discussed to facilitate an evaluation of the influence of past knowledge theories on contemporary problems—these four theories are: empiricism, rationalism, pragmatism, and relativism. Naturalized epistemology challenged the belief that one has to engage in epistemic regress to justify truth. It was proposed that truth is determined by scientific investigations and explanations (Feldman, 2003, p. 167). The tools, methods, and principles of science provide epistemologists with the means of testing and justifying knowledge, therefore machinery such as a lie detector enables contemporary investigators to examine individuals’ reactions (heartbeat, sweat production, and levels of anxiety) to determine if they are being truthful about a situation. This approach directly contradicts empiricism, which articulated that sensual perceptions enable human beings to determine truth. In this case, a lie detector would not be necessary to determine truth as the investigator would be able to use his or her senses to detect truth and untruth. While there is some merit in the empiricists’ approach, naturalized epistemology presented a replicable method that is less likely to fail due to human error. Knowledge work as argued by Drucker (1999) represents a shift in the nature of production from being purely manual as was contended by management theorists of the 20 th century (p. 79). This shift has increased the significance of epistemology in the workplace in that ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 4 managers are forced to contend with the sources and origin of knowledge that workers possess as a means of enhancing companies’ capacities to improve the productivity of the knowledge worker as was done by Taylor during the heyday of manual work. Knowledge work has challenged the society to come to terms with the importance of epistemology in everyday life and to find ways of optimizing it for development. Knowledge management is proposed by Wong and Aspinwall (2004) as a strategy for increasing the productivity of the knowledge worker, but despite this there are still challenges as it relates to those who possess tacit knowledge—the major concern for companies is the loss of productivity advances when the tacit knowledge worker leaves. It has therefore become increasingly important to find out how individuals gain knowledge in the first place, and then attempt to replicate those actions that are engaged in on a daily basis, which optimizes productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness. One cannot solve the epistemological problems of the contemporary workplace without reflecting on earlier conceptions about epistemology as articulated by empiricists, rationalists, pragmatists, and relativists. Empiricism argued that knowledge is derived from human sensual experiences and perceptions (Cooper, 1999, p. 117). This view is quite the opposite of rationalism, which contended that knowledge existed (a priori) before humans experienced it; therefore individuals derived knowledge out of necessity, which is later universalized if there are no exceptions (Cooper, 1999, p. 166). Pragmatism challenged empiricism and rationalism by arguing that the a posteriori and a priori conceptions of truth are false because knowledge is derived from practice, which results in the formulation of theories and provides opportunities for continuously evising and reformulating the theory to improve practice (Webb, 2007, p. 10691070). Relativism opened up the epistemological discourse to multiple perspectives of truth, so that knowledge is seen as socially constructed, experiential, dynamic, and variable—There is no ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 5 single truth that guides the solution to problems and knowledge is gained from all of the various means articulated by individuals, thus the empiricist is no more correct than the rationalist, nor the pragmatist, nor the natural epistemologist. There is merit in all perspectives and all must be considered when seeking justifications for the truth (Schnapper, 2009, p. 177). In light of the latter argument, management theorists must look to a wide range of epistemological perspectives to increase leaders’ understanding about knowledge work and how to increase its productivity. The tacit and explicit knowledge that workers possess is founded in first principles, as articulated by empiricists, and rationalists; as well as obtained from practice that the worker encounters as he or she carries out their duties—this (latter) pragmatic source indicates that each worker has the opportunity to discover truth in the execution of his or her duties. The fact that empiricism, rationalism, and pragmatism present valid perspectives about the sources of the knowledge worker’s knowledge indicates that there are multiple sources of truth, which contributes to the relativity of tacit knowledge work. Application of Knowledge to Organizational Leadership and Management The shift in the 21st century from manual to knowledge work has necessitated that management theorists and leaders critically examine and develop means for measuring and increasing productivity. This has contributed to the need for increased attention to different forms of knowledge, particularly distinguishing tacit and explicit knowledge to enhance management theorists’ abilities to capture the steps and processes involved in producing specific outputs (Manyika, 1996). Tacit knowledge is particularly difficult to capture, because it is the know-how that individual workers possess that they acquired as a result of their experience with particular tools, and their responses to unique challenges that stimulated them to innovate. ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 6 Making tacit knowledge more public within organizations is critical to the improvement of productivity and succession planning—According to Ambrosini and Bowman (2001) â€Å"tacit knowledge in particular may block adaptation to changes in the environment, hinder innovation and lead to the continuation of inferior work practices† (p. 812). It requires that organizational leaders examine epistemological theories to get a better understanding of the foundation of the know-how that individual knowledge workers possess. Pragmatism is the epistemological theory that facilitates the most likely explanation for the origin of tacit knowledge in organizations as according to Ambrosini and Bowman (2001) â€Å"tacit knowledge is context specific, is typically acquired on the job or in the situation where it is used† (p. 13); so pragmatists’ belief that theory emerges from practice and is applied back to it with the possibility of revising and reformulating it presents an explanation of tacit knowledge originating in experiences as they are encountered. Senge (2010) and Drucker (1999) have been my most influential theorists because of the fact that their propositions have helped to explain and present solutions to the challenges facing my organization. They argued that there are methods that can be used to help increase productivity of knowledge workers in an ever-changing world, which are aimed at measuring and improving the contribution of knowledge to organizational success. If companies fail to capture the tacit knowledge of workers, they are bound to face periods of slump when such workers leave the organization temporarily or permanently, as well as fail to make significant advances, because workers are not keeping abreast of new knowledge. The effective development of knowledge-based companies therefore depends on the implementation of strategies for standardizing and sharing such knowledge. In addition, there is a general need for the firm to control productivity so as to eliminate the possibility of being held at ransom by employees. ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 7 Converting companies to learning organizations was proposed by Senge (2010) as a means of increasing productivity and sharing knowledge. Five disciplines were proposed for solving the productivity challenges that face contemporary organizations: personal mastery, mental models, shared visions, team learning, and systems thinking. It is believed that the learning organization sought to create holistic changes in companies so that knowledge could be better managed, and all stakeholders could see that success was dependent on the relationship among the individual departments and the organization as a corporate entity (p. 2). It is important to note that in the learning organization, the tacit knowledge and skills that workers possess, is represented by personal mastery, and is shared with other workers and the organization through team learning. Knowledge management was proposed as a strategy for restoring power, over production, to the organization. Wong and Aspinwall (2001) noted that a knowledge management implementation framework should have five characteristics: â€Å"(1) a clear structure on how to conduct and implement knowledge management, (2) clear distinction among the types of knowledge to be managed, (3) highlight the necessary knowledge management processes or activities needed to manipulate knowledge, (4) include the factors that will affect performance, and (5) provide a balanced view between the role of technology and human beings in knowledge management† (p. 100). The knowledge management implementation framework serves as a strategy for reducing the autonomy of the knowledge worker, while increasing the control of the organization over productivity. Unlike the learning organization, knowledge management does not seek to create holistic change in the company, but isolates knowledge work as an aspect of production, and identifies the elements that are necessary for management to manipulate so as to increase productivity as was done in the time of Taylor (Drucker, 1999, p. 80). ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 8 The Future of Epistemology in Organizational Leadership Epistemology has an important role to play in the development of human services organizations. The concept of good governance that guides the effective management of such organizations articulates some of the productivity issues addressed by Drucker (1999). In the case of my organization, productivity is hindered by the fact that knowledge about specific critical aspects of work is possessed by the accountant who does not welcome succession planning, responds negatively to queries from the board of directors, works in isolation, and makes decisions for others and their departments unilaterally. This situation has contributed to inefficiency and ineffectiveness in a number of core areas of work, and as argued by Ambrosini and Bowman (2001) contributes to inferior work practices (p. 812). Good governance argues that successful management is characterized by accountability, transparency, participatory leadership, and responsiveness. This is reiterated by Drucker (1999) when he noted that productivity was curtailed by knowledge workers autonomy in deciding the task, and having unilateral control over the production process—The work done by the accountant is knowledge work and the fact that it is held only by him contributes to a situation where the organization is held at ransom. If there are opportunities for the improvement of the accounting function, this is hindered because of the lack of access by the organization to it, and the general lack of responsiveness to good governance practices. In the case of my accountant, deciding what to purchase without consultation, and refusing to answer questions posed by the board directors contributes to productivity problems. Drucker (1999) noted that overcoming this situation â€Å"requires changes in attitude not only on the part of the individual knowledge worker, but on the part of the whole organization† (p. 92). ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 9 The problems with the accountant articulated above can be solved by one of two or a combination of the following approaches. These recommendations were derived from weeks five and six discussion questions. These discussions enabled me to have a better understanding of the needs and challenges of my organization, and provided me with the opportunity to evaluate the company and make recommendations for its improvement. The following two recommendations represent the possible actions that I may undertake to increase organizational productivity: (1) reform the company to that of a learning organization, which takes a systems approach to productivity, thus the failure of accounts is not seen as an isolated element, but is the responsibility of all employees and departments, therefore all employees see it as critical to learn the tacit knowledge possessed by the accountant so that they are better poised to recommend changes. When all employees have a shared vision, greater pressure will be placed on the accountant to be accountable, transparent, and participatory in his leadership; and or (2) develop a knowledge management system to capture all of the job roles that are assigned to the accountant and the various steps that he undertakes to fulfill them—There will be need to integrate feedback components with the clinic nurse, statistical clerk, and clinic receptionist, before commodities can be purchased; and in order to successfully meet his reporting obligations he must answer specific questions about the financial status of the organization, which will automatically be shared with the board directors. Such a system could eliminate the lack of transparency, participation, and accountability that has curtailed efficiency and effectiveness. The implementation of a knowledge management system would also help the organization to be better operated as a learning organization, as the steps for each ta sk that is performed by the accountant would be accessible to leadership, which could be used to teach others by way of team learning strategies. ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 10 The future of management of human service organizations in the knowledge worker age is not totally distinct from traditional epistemology—it integrates critical concepts of the past to help solve new and emergent challenges. Empiricism, rationalism, pragmatism, and relativism are four of the longstanding epistemological concepts that guide management practitioners about the origin of tacit knowledge—On one hand know-how originates from the theoretical foundations of empiricism and rationalism as seen in the in the knowledge that individuals obtain through formal education that prepares them to fit into the workplace; and on the other hand it originates from the encountered experiences in the workplace. Both views are correct and hence when theorizing about the origin of knowledge in knowledge work, management theorists must be mindful that there are multiple valid perspectives. ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY References Ambrosini, V. & Bowman, C. (2001). Tacit knowledge: Some suggestions for 11 operationalization. Journal of Management Studies, 38(6), pp. 811-829. Retrieved from http://web. ebscohost. com. ezproxy. apollolibrary. com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=e9e 776b0-e4f1-46a2-af57-b1403102e01b%40sessionmgr112&vid=2&hid=107 Bayer, B. (2007). How not to refute Quine: Evaluating Kim's Alternatives to Naturalized Epistemology. The Southern Journal of Philosophy, 45(4), 473-495. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. apollolibrary. com/docview/218154099? accountid=35 812 Bonjour, L. (1978). Can empirical knowledge have a foundation? American Philosophical Quarterly, 15(1), 1-13. Retrieved from http://www. williams. edu/philosophy/fourth_layer/faculty_pages/jcruz/courses/Bonjour(1978). pdf Cooper, D. (1999). Epistemology: the classic readings. United Kingdom: Blackwell. Drucker, P. F. (1999). Knowledge-worker productivity: The biggest challenge. California Management Review, 41(2), 79-94. Retrieved from http://web. ebscohost. com. ezproxy. apollolibrary. com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=d0b 953c0-25c0-4ce2-acc3-a2eb62ec1545%40sessionmgr114=2=106 Feldman, R. (2003). Epistemology. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Manyika, J. (1996). The coming imperative of the world’s knowledge economy. The Financial Times, 17. Retrieved from http://go. galegroup. com. ezproxy. apollolibrary. com/ps/i. do? =GALE%7CA145813050=2. 1 =uphoenix=r=GPS=w Moser, P. & vander Nat, A. (Eds. ), Human knowledge: classical and contemporary approaches. New York: Oxford. ORGANIZATIONAL EPISTEMOLOGY 12 Schnapper, D. (2009). Relativism. Society, 46(2), 175-179. doi:10. 1007/s12115-008-9181-6 Senge, P. M. (2010). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization. Business Book Summaries, 1(1), pp. 1-8. Retrieved from http://ehis. ebscohost. com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=05ba5549-4ada-47b6-aca7