Law enforcement today Essay

Law enforcement officers have a very important role in society. They have a job that involves lots of decision making and using personal judgment. Law officers have many duties while at work. Law officers have to decide whether or not someone is breaking the law and how they will enforce the situation. Law officers are sometimes expected to be perfect. They have to catch all the bad guys and save all the innocent. Unfortunately it doesn’t always work that way but officers try to do the best of their ability. All officers are different in that some are more strict and you can’t get away with as much, and others are very laid back and you are apt to get a way with more. I believe all officers should be strict when it comes to safety issues, and people’s health is at risk. I also believe officers should try and teach you what is against the law before you are punished, like warnings should be issued when no one is in harms way. Some officers think they are immortal when they put on a badge, sometimes officers forget what they’re there for and go too far. There are many cases when people have been falsel y abused by officers for no reason. All people have rights, even when you have committed a crime. You are read your rights when you get arrested and no one can take those rights away from you. If an officer violates those rights, you will probably win you case because of it. I think the laws and rules citizens have to follow are reasonable. To run a country successfully, you need to have laws that cover everything. People also need to educate themselves on what the laws are. In this country, you are innocent until proven guilty. Everyone also has a right to a trial before a jury when you have been accused of a crime. Each case obviously has its own circumstances, and that’s why everyone gets a trial. I think the more serious the crime, the less â€Å"space† or freedom you have. Obviously there are different penalties for speeding and murder. They say the crime should fit the punishment. I think the penalties in this country are very fair. I don’t think to many people get off too easy or too harshly. I believe the punishment system is pretty accurate in this country. I think a lot of police work is just plain old confidence. Criminals are going to take the state police more seriously than the police in a little town in the middle of nowhere. Law enforcement officers have a bad reputation of being fat, out of shape, eating donuts, sitting at a desk and so on. Some officers you see  are definently out of shape but they might have great knowledge in the field of law enforcement. I think all officers who go on patrol should have to pass a physical test as well as a written test each year to be certified. I’m not saying out of shape officers should be fired, but they shouldn’t be on patrol. They could be put at a desk or do detective like work. I think officers should be in good shape and look intimidating towards criminals. I think that would cut crime rates down. Criminals would be less apt to rob a bank if they knew a young, in shape, fast cop was chasing them rather than if a three hundred pound, forty six year old cop was. All these things I just mentioned would probably help reduce crime, but they are just opinions. I truly believe law officers today do a good job at what they do and deserve a tremendous amount of respect for it. Being a law officer is not only a risky job but it is kind of heroic in a way. I think it takes a special person to be a law officer and not everyone should able to be one.

Describe the Fluid-Mosaic Model of a Plasma Membrane

Describe the fluid-mosaic model of a plasma membrane. Discuss the role of the membrane in the movement of materials through it by each of the following processes: a. Active transport b. Passive transport The plasma membrane is a semi permeable barrier that separates the inside of the cell from the outside environment. The plasma membrane is made up of carbohydrates, cholesterol, proteins, and a lipid bilayer, or double layer of lipids. The plasma membrane may be known as a fluid mosaic model where the membrane is a fluid structure with various proteins embedded in or attached to the bilayer of phospholipids.The plasma membrane possesses hydrophilic tails and hydrophobic tails, which may be referred to as amphiphilic. There are various ways that materials may pass through the membrane. Movement across the membrane may be classified into two different categories, passive transport and active transport. Passive transport does not require energy to occur. During passive transport the mol ecules will move from a place of high concentration to a place of low concentration.In other words, the molecules are moving down their concentration gradient. A concentration gradient is the increase or decrease in the density of a chemical substance in an area. The three types of passive transport are diffusion, osmosis, and facilitated diffusion. Diffusion is the tendency for molecules of any substance to spread out into the available space. The plasma membrane is semi permeable so diffusion across the plasma membrane may only occur with a few substances such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and alcohol.Osmosis is the diffusion of water across a selectively permeable membrane. When osmosis occurs in the plasma membrane the molecules will move from hypotonic to hypertonic. Facilitated Diffusion is polar molecules and ions impeded by the lipid bilayer of the plasma membrane diffusing passively with the help of transport proteins that span the membrane. The transport protein, aquaporins, will allow for water to diffuse passively. There are other transport proteins, such as glucose umps, that aid with the movement of materials. Active transport is movement across the membrane that does require energy to occur. ATP will supply the energy for active transport. During active transport, molecules will move from places of low concentration to places of high concentration. Active transport requires energy because it must transport the molecules against their concentration gradient. There are four different subdivisions of active transport, primary, secondary, endocytosis, and exocytosis.Primary active will manifest in the form of certain transport proteins that require energy to function, such as the sodium-potassium pump. Secondary active transport is another subdivision of active transport. During secondary active transport molecules may move by symtransport, which is particles moving in the same direction, or antitransport, which is particles moving in the opposite dire ction. Primary and secondary active transport is utilized for small particles to be transported across the plasma membrane.Endocytosis is the cellular uptake of macromolecules and particulate substances by localized regions of the plasma membrane that surround the substance and pinch off to form an intracellular vesicle. Endocytosis is for materials that may be entering the cell. Endocytosis may be completed by phagocytosis, pinocytosis, and receptor-mediated endocytosis. Phagocytosis is a cell engulfing a particle by wrapping pseudopodia around it and packaging it within a membrane-enclosed sac to be digested. Pinocytosis is a cell â€Å"gulping† droplets of extracellular fluid into tiny vesicles.Receptor-mediated endocytosis is the movement of specific molecules into a cell by the inward budding of membranous vesicles containing proteins with receptor sites specific to the molecules being taken in. Receptor-mediated endocytosis is accomplished with the help of hormones. Exo cytosis is the cellular secretion of macromolecules by the fusion of vesicles with the plasma membrane. Exocytosis is for materials that may be exiting the cell. Exocytosis may also be referred to as secretion or excretion. Secretion is the expulsion of digestive enzymes while excretion is the expulsion of waste.

“Dawn is at Hand” by Kath Walker Essay

In the poem ‘Dawn is at Hand’ by Kath Walker, the author attempts to change people’s thinking about aboriginal people. The poem talks about a better future for all aboriginal people and letting go of their past. The author uses many poetic devices such as theme, repetitions and metaphor to enhance her message and inspire the audience. The main theme of this poem is that aboriginals will be discriminated no more, and they will be equal to white Australians. In the mainstream Australian society Aboriginals are ofter looked down upon, discriminated against and marginalised. This poem is trying to change the attitudes of both Aborigines and the white people of Australia. At the beginning of the poem the author addresses her people as the ‘Dark brothers first Australian race’ she talks about their struggle for justice and when all hope for a brighter future seemed ‘folly’. The author changes the tone of the poem and talks about a brighter future for all of them. She talks about her vision of a future Australia where ‘dark and white upon common ground’ describing equal standing for both black and white Australians. The poems message is a hopeful one for a better future for all aboriginals. The author tells her aboriginals people it is time to leave their shameful past and enter this ‘brand new day’ where they will be welcomed mate ship wise in industry and enterprise. They will stand a better chance in accomplishing their dreams because they will ‘feel a friendly land’ and will receive a ‘grip of the hand’ which emphasise on the fact that the future Australian society will learn to be more accepting of the aboriginals and will learn to treat them with equal respect. ‘The grip of the hand’ is a metaphor that signifies that the hand shake between the white Australians and aboriginals will be powerful, stronger and meaning full. It won’t just be a split second touch between the two hands, as proven in line ‘fringe dwellers no more.’ The author often repeats the line ‘fringe dwellers no more,’ by this she means the aboriginals will no longer be outcasts of society left to themselves and ignored. As the first line of the poem states ‘first Australian race’ the aboriginals are the original people of Australia, but  yet they feel outcast in their own land. The author repeats this line to emphasise their rightful belonging and their move to mainstream everyday Australians. The author even repeats this is line as the last line of her poem to show all Aboriginals and white Australians that Aboriginals will be a part of the new and better Australia. Therefore author Kath Walker’s aim was to change people’s thinking about Aboriginals people through the use of poetic devices such as theme, repetition and metaphors. She made a clear statement that the future Australian society will not be the same shameful past, and Aboriginals will be just as important as the white Australians.

Accounting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Accounting - Assignment Example After the negotiation, the checking of the cars history report is important. The car that is to be bought should be that with a positive report (Sharif, 23). Test driving the car before the payments is much important since it makes the buyer satisfied with the elements and the features that cab be got from the test. Inspection of the car will make the next step where the car undergoes several checks to make sure it is well. Negotiation of the deal becomes the next step after the inspection. This makes the buyer able to insist on the price which is lower than the one stated by the seller (Sharif, 203). The last step will be closing the deal after the seller agreeing to sell the car between the limits of 15,000 to 25,000 dollars with the least price possible. Budgeting for the car entails the inclusion of the operational budget items such as the maintenance costs and the buying of fuel for the car. The budget also entails the decision on the payment of the car whether to do nit monthly or annually when the car is bought on installments. The budget should also be address and consider the parts of the car that are not paid for or those that need continuous change (Sharif, 57). The budget addresses the objective of the car which is mainly to use it for work during summer. The budget will also consider the flow of cash to be used in the maintenance of the car. The budgeting also considers the alternatives that are available apart from the purchase of the car for example the use of public means to go to work. The budget for the car considers the different related items that are needed in the use of the car and the methods to be used in the payment (Sharif, 87). The budgeting also entails the creation of a spreadsheet after the collection of several data about the different cars and their costs. The buying and selling of the car should entails integrity between the buyer the seller. This will bring the negotiation between the two to come to the good price

A Modest Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

A Modest Proposal - Essay Example He probably has some hidden agenda for making the proposals that he did. Maybe it is not in his interest to have all of those babies born, but I think that it should be up to the parents to decide what to do with their child. About the only good thing to come out of his proposal is that, as he says, it would reduce the number of abortions that took place. Parents would even be able to make some money out of it! Swift get a little inhumane when he says that children should be roasted like pigs because no butcher would want to have anything to do with them. This is correct and this shows that his proposal would not work at all. To back up his point of view, Swift lists out six reasons why his plan would be a good one. I agree with all of his reasons but I do not agree with the method to get there. At the end he reveals the real reason why he believes this; his youngest child is nine and so would not

Case study for surgical technologist student Essay

Case study for surgical technologist student - Essay Example A recommended test will be either a CT scan or an MRI of the brain preferably together with an echocardiogram. The possible diagnosis is a transient ischemic attack or TIA due to smoking. If there is blockage, then a balloon angioplasty or coronary artery bypass surgery is needed. Diabetes causes hyperglycemia which is elevated blood sugar in which an excessive amount of glucose circulates in the blood plasma. Hyperglycemia can cause neuropathy which also includes collateral damage from microvascular injuries as well as macrovascular injuries due to repeated trauma or insults (either vascular or biochemical in nature) and an increased capillary hydrostatic pressure (Joslin & Khan, 2005, p. 1135). Hugos prognosis is five years without claudication when his own vein is used but the fem-pop bypass will remain open in about 50% of the cases five years after surgery if an artificial graft is used. Considering Hugo is now 65 years old, possible complications include leg swelling, bleeding and heart attack or stroke as he is a high-risk case. The risk of death is estimated at 1% to 3% of all surgery cases. 1. Collateral flow – refers to the alternative blood supply flow to the myocardium that has been jeopardized by ischemia (sometimes spelled as ischaemia). This is the process in which small and normally closed blood vessels (arteries) open up to serve as alternate routes if there is coronary heart disease, myocardial ischemia or a stroke (www.americanheart.org). 2. The difference – an ischemia is just a temporary stoppage in the supply of the needed oxygen to the heart for a very brief period of time while an infarction occurs when the heart muscles are deprived of the oxygen for too long that the muscles eventually die. There are other cases of ischemia and infarction occurring other than the heart such as what happens in the intestines due to a hernia, adhesions, arterial

Strategic Management functions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Strategic Management functions - Essay Example Gee and his wife" stay. Vanderbilt University funding is also believed to be used for "Gees' frequent parties and personal chef". It is estimated that "annual tab exceeds $700,000". Trustees of the board at Vanderbilt University had established a committee to monitor the Gee's spending. However, this was not sufficient to strategically control Vanderbilt University finance being spent in the wrong direction. With trustees holding a big stake, they seek accountability for finance sent, and they do not want to handover blank cheques to university leaders. This is particularly the case since it is known that university leaders have been known to misuse university budgets. With or without strategic management implementation, American University expelled President Benjamin Ladner after auditors exposed expenditures by him and his wife that exceeded $500,000. In California, a state audit revealed $334 million was used in unreported pay and perks for University of California staffers. With the most recent Vanderbilt University budget spending being questioned, there is need for better and more effective management. The Wall Street Journal reviewed a committee report about the Vanderbilt University spending. It has advised trustees to "take a more active role in university affairs, including strategic planning, capital spending and management compensation". These are the tools to prevent fraud in future with Vanderbilt University budget. Following some 'spirited board debate'. However, the recommendations to strategically handle the university's spending were implemented. Among some of the strategic recommendations was the creation of a special panel. This panel's job is to "monitor Mr. Gee's budget and outlays for entertainment, travel, food, staff and upkeep of Braeburn". The panel is to report annually to the full board. Although strategic planning implemented is to correct any discrepancies in spending, there is some concern over the board itself. It is thought that individuals who lend support to Mr. Gee are of concern. Individuals who have undertaken contracting with a parking company for instance have not sought out competitor companies. A consultant has advised the board to seek competitors in order to attain more competitive rates for parking. Though the current contract with the parking company is within the market rates, it is believed that more competitive rates could fit the university budget better. With the adoption of strategic management for better oversight and accountability, Vanderbilt University has apparently changed its course as compared to the way things were running not so long ago. With consultants advising the board with better strategies, procedures are more transparent and more democratic. One aspect of this is observed in the fact that the board announced that it was seeking parking bids this July. Other changes observed since the development of strategic management, capital spending and management compensation are observed in new employment compensation. Aside from finance being saved through hiring the most competitive services for the university, funds that are saved can be used for upgrading staff salaries. With Mr. Gee asserting that he is in favor of

Strategic Management - News Paper business Essay

Strategic Management - News Paper business - Essay Example If management wants to stress on the importance of customer needs they may vary from area to area in the regions the firm offers its products. Innovation can be considered as prime need of the customer in the case of weightage to customer needs. Every body covers the news, but the presentation matters. If the presentation is against the interests of a particular community they may be against the organization. So presentation of the news and analysis of the events must be according to the needs and interests of various customers in different areas. Desired Position: It is important to meet the customer needs in every business and industry. Here the needs of customers are timely delivery, publishing and presenting the problems in their areas, critical analysis of current national and international issues, interacting with the customer to let him express his views, to make government officials and heads of departments and governments to talk communicate with the people through our newspaper. The innovation in this area can be made possible by selecting a different topic and a new problem before out competitors pick and communicate with the people. The innovation here lies in continuity. ... The strategy canvas: The strategy that gives success in this business is not only to market the product but also getting advertisements. Generally in this business getting advertisements is the way to get profits. Obtaining advertisements depends upon the circulation of the newspaper. More the circulation the more number of advertisements the news paper can get. One can fix more tariffs for the ads also. The tariffs depend upon two factors: 1. The area that is covered by newspaper, 2. The circulation of the newspaper. If we want to be a head of our competitor having equal circulation with us, we must gather more ads for more tariff. This is made possible if the newspaper is supplied in more number of areas than our competitor. Though we are having an equal circulation with our competitor by selling our newspaper out of the state (if our competitor sells within our state) and out of the country (if our competitor sells his news paper within our country) and in more countries (if our competitor sells his product in other countries also). This strategy involves high establishment costs regarding the installation of offices and edition centers regarding collection of advertisements and publication of newspaper. But this investment will be fruitful in long term as it gives upper hand over competitor in increasing the circulation in future and deciding high tariffs for advertising in our paper in present. Along with newspaper one can publish magazines also. This thing will give an advantage to our infra structure as more than one product can be launched from the same infrastructure. This gives publicity without an advertisement as all the readers of magazine know about the newspaper and the readers of newspaper know about the magazine. This

International Advertising - US Harley Davidson Motorcycles Advertised Essay

International Advertising - US Harley Davidson Motorcycles Advertised to Japanese Market - Essay Example Eventually, the most effective communication method will be provided together with the rationale behind choosing each method. Prior to conclusion, a theme will be created in order to make the advertising of Harley Davidson motorcycle successful in Japan. The Japanese government has a significant role over the advertising regulation in Japan. Specifically the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) is the national governmental agency that monitors the advertising regulation in Japan. Basically, the main role of FTC is to promote a â€Å"fair and free market competition† in the Japanese market (JFTC, 2009a). Strictly enforced by FTC, the basic advertising laws in Japan include the Anti-Monopoly Law and the Premium and Representation Control Law (Cooper-Chen & Kodama, 1991: p. 182; JFTC, 2009b). Basically, the Anti-Monopoly Act (1995) gives the local and foreign advertisers a general framework on how advertisements in Japan are being controlled. Aiming to protect the benefits and welfare of the consumers, this particular advertising law prohibits actions that can be detrimental to market competition (JFTC, 1995). On the other hand, the Premium and Representation Control Law was developed and implemented in order to â€Å"prevent exorbitant giveaways and unfair labelling of products as a way of promoting fair competition† (p. 182). Similar to JFTC, Japan Advertising Agencies Association (JAAA) enhances the advertising practices in Japan. Aside from ensuring that the consumers fully understand the local advertisements in Japan (JAAA, 2009b); JAAA is also responsible in ensuring that the standards of advertising in Japan are met by the advertisers. (JAAA, 2009a) In general, advertisements in Japan follow a code of ethics which includes the following: (1) advertisements should use clear communication method to present the truth about a product and service; (2) comply with the

Response Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Response Paper - Essay Example The arguments presented by the defense about the murderer are mere excuses. If the argument is to hold true for this man, what would be the explanation for the same situation if an all-round nurtured individual is involved? There are individuals who are brought up by loving parents, provided with anything they desire, well educated, and in good careers who still engage in similar or worse crimes. In the event that the argument is considered viable, then individuals who are brought up in favorable environments should never commit crimes. However, this is not the case. People who engage in crime exhibit all kinds of backgrounds; good and bad. In this regard, this man is much less of an environmental product. Wallowing and self-pity best describes the personality and character of this man. The man has totally accepted that the state he is in is the best life can offer. He, therefore, views every other thing that happened to his life in the past as a complementing factor to the situation. The society cannot be accused of neglect when the defendant has not been said to have tried to get some help from charitable agencies. The situation is more of a choice than a result of the unfolding events. As a result, this man is fully responsible for his actions. While the fact that the man has had a difficult past cannot be disputed, there are other alternative choices available to him than taking his past as an excuse in the situation. It is openly evident that all persons that have been previously charged with the crimes outlined in the situation did not necessarily share the same experiences with this man. For instance, drugs are expensive, and even the rich and wealthy engage in drug use and end up addicted to these drugs. There are others who have realized their wealth from robbing and related actions. In other words, the experiences of this man

Shell company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Shell company - Essay Example The company was then run through different operating companies. Prior to the merger both the companies were struggling to sustain their business. Their decision to join hands led them to become one of the most successful company in the world and all signs showing in the first twelve months of their strategic decision. The company was under the management of Henry Deterding, whose guidance and dedication made the two barely managing companies into a strong force to reckon with, in the oil industry. The company began to make its mark quite quickly around and business started to expand globally. The Marketing companies started coming up throughout Europe and also in certain parts of Asia. With the growing demand of oil all around the globe, Dutch Shell began exploration and production in countries like Russia, Venezuela, Mexico, Romania and even in the United States. Along the timeline, the company has been able to maintain its competitive edge by looking out for newer technologies, alternative resources and advance developments. They have concentrated on their core products as well as kept their eyes open for any opportunities making them one of the most competitive companies in the market. Marketing is one of the core functions of any organizations. It is the function that helps a company defines the right kind of market and allows the company to identify consumer needs and wants and then searches for solutions and ideas for how to aptly satisfy those needs. (Bartels, 2002) When Organizations like Shell and other multinationals define their marketing strategy it evolves through a series of stages. This is because as the company starts growing, so does the demand. Eventually the company adopts a multi national strategy of marketing. At this stage the company has already gone through the local markets exporting and to international marketing. This is the kind of marketing Shell is doing as at this stage the company can use its size and scale

Should Defendants with Traumatic Brain Injuries Be Held Accountable for Their Actions Essay Example for Free

Should Defendants with Traumatic Brain Injuries Be Held Accountable for Their Actions Essay â€Å"Six weeks after getting his driver’s license, Christopher Tiegreen was in a car collision near his home in Gainesville, Ga. Tiegreen’s Isuzu Trooper flipped several times, causing severe head injuries. A month later, Tiegreen emerged from a coma a different person. The impact of the crash caused damage to the frontal lobe of his brain and sheared his brain stem. During his recovery and rehabilitation, the usually gentle Tiegreen became violent toward his mother, as well as with other family members and rehab staff. On Sept. 1, 2009, Tiegreen walked out of a duplex apartment where he was supposed to be under 24-hour supervision. In a yard nearby he attacked a young woman holding her 20-month-old son. He was charged with aggravated assault, criminal attempt to commit a felony, false imprisonment, battery, sexual battery and cruelty to a child in the third degree. † (Davis, 2012). Is Christopher Tiegreen a different person now, with a severely impaired mental capacity, because of his traumatic brain injury, or is he just an angry, violent person who has simply committed his first crime? More succinctly; do Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) cause violent behavior in previously â€Å"normal† people, or is the TBI personality change simply a smoke screen being used to defend people with dangerous personality traits who happen to have a brain injury? To begin with, a definition of Traumatic Brain Injury, especially as opposed to a head injury, as most people do confuse the two. The Mayo Clinic defines Traumatic Brain Injury as â€Å"Traumatic brain injury occurs when an external mechanical force causes brain dysfunction. The Mayo Clinic, 2012). Traumatic brain injury usually results from a violent blow or jolt to the head or body. An object penetrating the skull, such as a bullet or shattered piece of skull, also can cause traumatic brain injury. â€Å"(The Mayo Clinic, 2012). A Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is not a â€Å"head injury†, it is not a concussion nor an injury to the skull or spine; it is exclusively an injury the brain (and/or brain stem). With the definition clear, we see that the statistics regarding TBIs are shocking; Dr. William Winslade provides the following information from 2003, â€Å"Traumatic brain injury for decades has been, and continues to be, a major public health problem in the United States. Car crashes, gunshot wounds, falls and sports injuries account for two million brain injuries a year, nearly 400,000 hospital admissions, and at least 60,000 deaths. Approximately 90,000 people suffer a severe brain injury and survive but require extended, expensive rehabilitation. Some 2,000 people a year lapse into permanent unconsciousness lasting for months or years before they die. † (Winslade, 2003). Some survivors of traumatic brain injury fully recover, but many others experience a multitude of cognitive, emotional and behavioral disabilities. † (Winslade, 2003). As a survivor of a traumatic Brain Injury, the patient faces a myriad of recovery issues, not simply medical issues such as headaches, lethargy, pain in the distal limbs, speech issues, attention deficit and memory loss may affect cognitive functioning. Per Dr. William Winslade, an expert on Traumatic Brain Injuries; the changes in an individual with a TBI are profound and noticeable â€Å"Personality changes are common. Those who were calm and controlled may become quick-tempered and impulsive. In some people anger erupts into aggressive attacks on others. Many with severe brain injuries lack the ability to control their thoughts, emotions, impulses and their conduct. They may become uninhibited, promiscuous, anxious, paranoid or violent. † (Winslade, 2003). It is precisely these personality changes that makes Traumatic Brain Injuries so different from â€Å"head injuries† such as concussions, which do not present any marked changes is personality. Courts in the United States have increasingly been faced with the question as to whether or not the profound changes that are associated with TBIs should be considered a mitigating factor in trying defendants with the injury, or in determining what their sentences should be and where they should serve their time, if any; in a prison or in a mental health facility. â€Å"According to Duke University researcher Nita Farahany, the number of cases in which judges have mentioned neuroscience evidence in their opinion increased from 112 in 2007 to more than 1,500 in 2011. † (Koebler, 2012). The use of neuroscience in the courtroom is definitely increasing, Nita Farahany has been tracking criminal cases in which â€Å"lawyers have introduced neuroscientific evidence since 2004. By combing legal opinions, she’s found about 2,000 examples, with 600 of those cases in 2011 alone. † (Davis, 2012). â€Å"While attorneys have tried to win cases based on the lack of control over impulses based on the defendant having a TBI, † The biggest way in which neuroscience is being used in the courtroom is to mitigate punishment in one way or another, Farahany says, adding that its almost exclusively used in death penalty cases. They say they have a history of brain injury and trauma to say I have a different brain than the average person. Because of that difference, I have less control over myself. (Koebler, 2012). While medical scan, such as CAT scans and MRIs can show a difference in the appearance of the brain itself, there is scant evidence that these damaged brains are actually the cause of crimes committed by defendants suffering from a personality change brought on by a Traumatic Brain Injury. The science behind these brain scans is still in its infancy, but neuroscientists point to anecdotal evidence that traumatic brain injury or brain abnormalities can cause criminal behavior. † (Koebler, 2012). There is a case that many legal professionals point to when arguing the point for special consideration when trying or sentencing a defendant with a TBI. â€Å"In 2002, a 40-year-old Virginia teacher was caught viewing child pornography and making advances on his stepdaughter. He was convicted of child molestation, but the night before he went to jail, he went to the doctor with a crippling headache and confessed he might commit rape. Doctors found something they didnt expect: A brain tumor. The cancerous tumor was putting pressure on his orbifrontal cortex, which controls impulse and judgment. The tumor was removed, and the man no longer exhibited pedophilic tendencies. † (Koebler, 2012). The fact that is most persuasive with this case is the fact that once the tumor, and the pressure it was exerting on the orbifrontal cortex, were removed the patient no longer exhibited any pedophilic tendencies. Could this be the answer to whether or not TBIs do so adversely affect individuals that the personality changes they exhibit should not be held against them in the legal forum? Not necessarily. â€Å"Daniel Martell, a forensic neuropsychologist who examined Weinstein and testified for the prosecution, says the brain images were nothing more than fancy pictures meant to stir a jury. â€Å"It was the Christmas tree effect,† Martell says. â€Å"Lots of people ooh and aah at the pictures. It doesn’t tell you anything about a person’s behavior. † (Davis, 2012). Martell makes the point that many attorneys take when faced with opposing counsel who is presenting the TBI defense, stating that the profound changes in persons with TBIs should be a mitigating factor in trials and during sentencing. That hasn’t stopped defense attorneys from trying to introduce evidence of damaged brains into the courtroom, including brain scans. One such case, frequently cited in law and neuroscience journals, is that of New York advertising executive Herbert Weinstein, 65, who was arrested on charges that he strangled his second wife, Barbara, and t hrew her out the window of their 12th-floor Manhattan apartment in 1991 during an argument about their children. Weinstein never denied killing his wife. His lawyer, Diarmuid White, argued that Weinstein was not himself due to an arachnoid cyst on his brain. White contended that the cyst caused pressure on part of Weinstein’s temporal lobe, compromising his self-control and emotional regulation. Zachary Weiss, the New York City district attorney who prosecuted the case, thought it was simply a matter of a man getting angry at his wife and killing her. That was until White sent him the brain scan during discovery. â€Å"I got this picture in the mail and thought you’ve got to be joking,† Weiss recalls. It got complicated. I called this the rich man’s defense. † Whether Weinstein’s brain made him do it or not, Weiss believes the case was important. â€Å"It opened up a debate academically about responsibility and free will, and how we evaluate scientific evidence,† says Weiss, twenty years after the case; Martell still believes brain scans don’t explain specific behaviors. â€Å"The problem is that the science has not come along to support what the scan means,† says Martell, now a Newport Beach, Calif. based consultant for criminal as well as civil cases. â€Å"Since the ’90s, we’ve been much better at generating the cool pictures than we are at explaining what they mean. † (Davis, 2012). The opinion that Martell expresses about TBIs is not rare; many in the legal profession see the whole TBI debate as another â€Å"smoke and mirror† defense on par with the famous â€Å"Twinkie† defense; interesting and impressive in the courtroom, but lacking in any real legal merit. There is a group of individuals whose TBIs are taken into special onsideration; combat veterans. â€Å"Am ong the growing number of cases involving neuroscientific evidence are those that involve combat veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq as defendants. † (Davis, 2012). â€Å"Dr. Chrisanne Gordon, a Columbus, Ohio, rehabilitation medicine specialist who works with brain-injured vets, is one of three authors who wrote a chapter about traumatic brain injury. â€Å"They’re not insane, they’re not retarded, but they frequently have issues with impulse control and fall through the cracks of the legal system,† she says. (Davis, 2012). Combat veterans pose a desperate problem for the court systems judging them as defendants; because their injuries are usually combat related most people view them with a particular amount of sympathy because they received their injury in a â€Å"heroic† manner; serving the country. Agreeing that veteran’s legal situations are difficult to handle, at best, it has been suggested that courts need to view veteran’s with an air of compassion. There are courts who are taking definitive steps when dealing with combat veteran’s with TBIs who have ended up as defendants. â€Å"One of veterans’ biggest allies in Ohio is state Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Stratton, who plans to work full time with veterans’ justice issues after she retires later this year. She supports the development of more veterans’ treatment courts and hopes to change sentencing guidelines to ensure judges in all courts look at a defendant’s military service record. We want them to look at war experience as mitigation,† she says. â€Å"And we want them at least to look at the causes of what happened. † (Davis, 2012). Traumatic Brain Injuries are not simple to define and apply to a law principle; they allow that a defendant can be found not guilty of a crime because of their mental health issues, saying, in essence, that the defendant is not responsible for their crime because they had no real understanding of their actions or the consequences thereof. It will take many more years of research, to produce empirical evidence to supplement the anecdotal evidence that does exist, to determine if the dramatic personality changes that patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries exhibit, has the brain been so physically damaged that the victims of TBIs are no longer able to control themselves, or is the Traumatic Brain Injury defense simply a criminal defense â€Å"flavor of the week. †

Adolescents Influence In Family Decision Making Social Work Essay

Adolescents Influence In Family Decision Making Social Work Essay Abstract This study examines the perceptions and behaviour of Adolescents influence in family decision making in different family circumstances and what products are more influenced through the child more than the adults. The research findings are based on different journal articles that show how much power children have in the decision making process based on different members of the family perceptions and how they get their message across on what they want through coalitions or solely on their own. In terms of family types; single-parent and step-families are increasing in todays society compared to intact families. Its now not unusual for parents to divorce and move on with someone else. This will make an impact on the childs role in family purchase decision making. Being a child in a single-parent family suggests that they have more power in the household whereas being a member of an intact family can cause disruption as there are many people to please in that household. However, in many circumstances the parents perceptions do not always agree with the childs opinion. A number of explanations and examples for this are given. Introduction For a long time, Adolescents have played an important role throughout family purchase decisions, with their capability to have an impact to directly and indirectly influence the decisions families make when purchasing products. (Thomson, Laing, McKee, 2007). This is put into practice throughout all different types of families, whether it is an intact family of 4, a family triad, a single parent family of 1 or a mix matched family making it a step-family. This means the perceptions on adolescent influence in decision making depend on what family the child belongs to. Adolescent behaviour is also important when the child makes an input into the decisions of purchase making. Coalition being the behaviour type authors focused on as children recognized a frequent need for a purchase between more than one family member and in the end created a coalition (Thomson, Laing, McKee, 2007). These include different members of the family working together with the child in order to make a stronger influence on family decisions whether it is a parent or a sibling. Children therefore play a part in family decision making no matter how big or small and the products in question can vary from groceries to holidays. Junk foods, toys, kids clothes and accessories for school are a few of the main products that children have been known to have a strong influence on. (Mangleburg T. F., 1990). Research on how much influence children have on certain products will also be explored. Childrens Behaviour -When and how do they influence buying? Children constitute a huge secondary market by influencing family purchases (McNeal, 2008). As soon as children have established the concept of using communication skills to make demands, they are then more involved in making an influence in family decision making. (Furnham, 1998), showing that from the moment they can talk, they will automatically have an influence on buying highlighting the fact that children are becoming a significant part to the family decision making process on purchases at an early age. The most important behaviour for a child when they influence decision making is the use of knowledge and information. When contemplating child purchase power, research shows that this is known as a uniting topic (Thomson, Laing, McKee, 2007). To get a child to participate in the decision stage of buying, knowledge is a great source as it points out the cleverness or experiences that the children have when a purchase is carried out by a family (Thomson, Laing, McKee, 2007). Inf ormation is also important as it shows whether the child knows about the products in question or not. Knowledge and Information is a significant role in justifying the childs choice of products and is the main factor on how they influence on the buying stage. Parents can decide whether the childs reasons are enough to buy the product in question through their knowledge and information. Studies show that lots of parents encourage the use of knowledge and information and are foreseen characteristic of some family decision making (Thomson, Laing, McKee, 2007). How do coalitions affect adolescents decision on purchasing? Coalition behaviour involves at least two members of a family to get together to form an alliance to influence the end decision of a purchase within a family. This process is often termed majority rule (Pearson, 1989). Majority rule may have a bigger impact than just the childs influence; therefore a child may form a coalition with another family member to make their influence have more of an impact on the final decision of the purchase. However, there have been authors that convey this as lousy behaviour. (Sheth, 1974) and (Belch et al. 1980) felt that coalition would be few and far in between. Coalitions can come in different forms: Mother and child, Father and child or if there is more than one child, siblings could get together. This can benefit the child as one parent might be easily persuaded into giving the child what they want and more understanding of the childs needs. It was distinguished that a significant number of coalitions occurred between mothers and daughters than mo thers and sons concluding that when the same-sex members of a family unite to influence a decision on a product that they have more power than what different-sex members would (Beatty Talpade 1994). This would suggest that daughters had more chance of having a stronger influence in the family household compared to sons when they both wanted to convince their mother of purchasing a product. Family Triads Should the child have an input? Before buying products for any family, there is a decision making process that they must think about in order to come to a concluding decision on what to purchase if they have children. This involves three stages of decision making; gathering information, negotiating within the family and the overall decision on what to buy. Family triads are found to disagree in their perceptions of adolescent influence on both a wide selection of products and general influence in family decision processes. Mothers, fathers and children all, however agree that children have some influence in purchase decisions for a variety of products. Previous research has put forward the fact that two family members can disagree in evaluating purchase decision influence (Burns Hopper 1985). Each member of the family triad had different opinions on how much power the child actually has when deciding on purchasing a product in studies shown in the Journal of Consumer Research. Out of 161 families from North Wester n Towns, The children themselves agreed that they have influence when shopping with parents, suggesting stores, brands and products, paying attention to new products and learning the best buy. Mothers and Fathers also agreed to some extent that the child had general influence on these factors when buying products. However, suggesting the price was one of the factors that all three members of the family agreed that the child does not have influence on the price of products (Foxman, Tansuhaj, Ekstrom, 1989). This concludes that not only does the children themselves think they have influence throughout the decision making process on products but the other members of the family also agree that children should have their say. Overall, family members regarding adolescent purchase decision influence came to the conclusion that: Families that agreed on the same level of childrens influence had older fathers, a concept-oriented family communication style, less children, and a mother who was a housewife. This would suggest that a family triad let their child have more influence than a family with more children would. Other family types does the child have more power in a single-parent family? There are different types of families where a child can influence on family decision making when buying products. Family triads are one but there are also single-parent and step families. Intact families can also have more than one child meaning there are more children to have an influence on the decision making. There has been a growth in rapid social change over the years where parents are divorcing, children are living with only one of their parents or living with people that are from another family due to one of the parents falling in love with someone else. The more a family has differences, the more likely they will have to face difficulties when making important decisions as consumers (cf. Rindfleisch, Burroughs, and Denton 1997). Children gain their knowledge and information through events such as going to school, eating out and technology. However, their family members are one of the most important sources a child could possibly have through their period of consumer learning (Moschis and Churchill 1978; Moschis and Moore 1979; Ward 174). This contributes to the fact that children grow up surrounded by their family; therefore they learn from their mothers, fathers or an older sibling. Depending on what family type the child belongs to, there will be a different level of how much influence they have. Studies (Darley and Lim 1986) show that children in single-parent families had greater influence in a family outing decision than did children in dual-parent families, but did not ascertain between intact and step-families. If a child has to convince two parents, it may be difficult as they will both have different opinions on products or will have the same opinion which will overrule the child, therefore a childs influence in a single-parent household will be much stronger as there are less people to convince and the bond between the child and parent will be stronger as they have went through certain circumstances to end up on their own. Two parents can joi n forces to back up each other when they dont agree with the childs influence when purchasing a product (Mangleburg, Grewal, Bristol, 1999). This will make the childrens influence weaker compared to the single-parent household which appears to be much stronger. A single-parent household is seen as the family type to let the child have a stronger influence on decision making when purchasing products as the child only has one parent to do their parental duties which means the parent will have weaknesses in parental control and find it difficult to be the boss all the time meaning the child will have more independence and equal rights to influence to balance out the family (Dornbusch et al. 1985; Hetherington 1988; Thomson, McLanahan, and Curtin 1992). Family type does have an impact on adolescents influence on decision making and specifically, children in single-parent families had greater influence in both types of decisions as compared with children in step families and intact fami lies (Mangleburg, Grewal, Bristol, 1999). Products children have more influence on Junk foods, toys, kids clothes and accessories for school are a few of the main products that children have been known to have a strong influence on (Mangleburg T. F., 1990). This information suggests that children have more power over products and services that they will be experiencing themselves as children tend to have more of an influence in product sections that are most significant to the children themselves (Beatty and Talpade, 1994). Contrasting, children dont have much of an influence on decision making for products that are expensive and not used only by the child (Foxman et al.,1989a, 1989b). Expensive items such as cars, TVs and furniture are not influenced as much by children as these as more expensive buys. The adults of the household feel they have more influence on bigger products that will affect the whole of the family. Studies from the Journal of Consumer Research (Foxman, Tansuhaj, Ekstrom, 1989) back this up as out of 161 families from North Western Towns, Both the parents and children feel that the parents should have more say overall on products such as Home computers, cars, furniture and cable TV. It appears that children do have a strong influence when it comes to decision making in the family based on purchasing products. However, the childs influence on certain products is weaker than the parents due to the price and who uses the product. Although some research has found next to nothing child influence for bigger, family buys, others have found higher levels of influence than was foreseen by earlier research ( Foxman Tansuhaj 1988; Lee and Beatty 2002). Family holidays and events that see the family come together to have fun are other purchase decisions that children can play a part in influencing (Mangleburg T. F., 1990). These products are seen as expensive and a treat for all the family, this shows that some authors may find that children dont have much influence on expensive products whereas others will find children do have in fluence on products more expensive than clothes and food. Grocery shopping within different families It has been proven that children have more influence on food shopping than expensive buys in the last section of this review. It has also been proven that children have different levels of influence in different family types whether it is a single-parent or dual-parent family. Studies show even though children have a strong influence on purchasing food, the level of influence differs depending on what family the child belongs to. Children in single-parent families are more likely to take part in family tasks, such as going shopping than other children do in bigger families with their parents relationship still intact. (Weiss 1979; Taylor, Glynn, and Taylor 1985; Peters 1985). This would suggest that the child in the single-parent family will participate more in influencing what is bought for the grocery shop compared to the dual-parent family where there are more people to influence what is bought. Summary and conclusion Adolescents influence the decision making process in the family when purchasing products. However, there are different levels of influence and this depends on what family type the child belongs to as this has an effect on how the parents relationship with the child helps or hinders on how much influence the child has when the decision making process is being done when buying new products differing from groceries, clothes and holidays. The review helped come to the conclusion that the most important behaviour for a child when they influence decision making is the use of knowledge and information. Knowledge and Information is a significant role in justifying the childs choice of products and is the main factor on how they influence on the buying stage. It has been discovered that a childs influence solely on their own against both parents can sometimes be overruled by the parents. This is when the child forms a coalition to get more support to gain a stronger influence on the decision making process It was distinguished that a significant number of coalitions occurred between mothers and daughters than mothers and sons concluding that when the same-sex members of a family unite to influence a decision on a product that they have more power than what different-sex members would (Beatty Talpade 1994). This review suggested that different family types determined the level of influence the child had, this included single-parent families, triad families and step families. However, mothers, fathers and children all agreed that children play a part in influencing a number of products in purchase decisions (Foxman, Tansuhaj, Ekstrom, 1989). Products that children have more influence on were also researched. Findings suggest that products that are actually used by the child themselves and not expensive were found to be the products children had more influence on whereas children have been found to have less influence on decisions making for products that are more expens ive and are not just used by the child themselves (Foxman et al.,1989a, 1989b). Grocery shopping is another group of products that children have influence on and the level of influence depends on what family type they belong to. It was found that children belonging to the single-parent family have more influence than children in a dual-parent family. Overall there are different levels of influence a child has when the family are making decisions and it all depends on family types, children behaviour and the products in question.

Acid rain

Acid rain An introduction to the Acid rain Acid rain is a major problem for our health and even our existence. Human started poisoning the atmosphere with acid gases since 1730, at the height of the Industrial Revolution. Although, it was first recognized in 1872, approximately one hundred years after the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, when an English scientist, Robert Angus Smith (1817-1884), pointed out the problem. In 1962, the Swedish scientist Svante Oden brought the acid rain quandary to the attention of the press, instead of the less popular scientific journals. He compiled records from the 1950s indicating that acid rain came from air masses moving out of central and western Europe into Scandinavia. In 1984 it was reported that almost half of the trees in the famous black forest in Germany had been damaged by acid rain. In 1988 United nations agreed to reduce the emissions of these acids into the atmosphere. In 1990 changes to the Clean Air Act set rules to cut down the release of sulfur dioxide from power pl ants down to 10 million tonnes by January 1, 2000 The Meaning and Creation of Acid Rain Acid rain is a term that describes the fall of the quantity of acids, staying in the atmosphere. We can use the term â€Å"Acid deposition to be more specific. Acid deposition separates in two parts: wet and dry. Wet deposition refers to the acidic rain, fog, and snow. As the high-acidized water flows over and through the ground, affects badly most of the earths flora and fauna. The danger of this effect depends on many factors like the acidity of water, the capacity of the soil and the types of flora and fauna that depend on water. Dry deposition refers to the acidic gases and their particles. It is known, that most of these acidic gases falls from the atmosphere to the earth through this procession (dry deposition). After that, the wind blows these dangerous particles on trees, cars, buildings etc. Trees are also infected due to the rainstorms, because they absorb the water from the storm. When this fact happens the high-acidized water adds these acids to the acid rain, which makes it more acidic than the rain that already falls. Prevailing winds blow these chemical compounds, which cause both wet and dry deposition, across the lands (hundreds of miles). The most important and harmful compounds are sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) which are created mostly from electric power generation made through the burning of fossil fuels like coal. The acidity of acid rain is made through the following reactions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides with the oxygen from the atmosphere and the water from the rains S + O 2 → SO 2 SO 2 + O 3 → SO 3 + O 2 SO 3 + H 2 O → H 2 SO 4 SO 2 + H 2 O → H 2 SO 3 2NO 2 + H 2 O → 2HNO 3 + NO2 NO + O 2 → 2NO2 Natural effects Nature also harms herself. Acid gases, produced by emissions from fires, volcanic eruptions, bacterial decomposition and lightening, are released in the atmosphere, increasing the amounts of nitrogen oxide. The major biological source of sulfur containing compounds is Dimethyl sulfide. Gas Phase chemistry Sulfur Sulfur dioxide reacts with the hydroxyl radical. Then the product reacts with the oxygen from the atmosphere and creates sulphur trioxide. Sulfur trioxide, when water is present, reacts and produces sulphuric acid. (See reaction table No1) Now, sulphur dioxide, like carbon dioxide, reacts with water, when clouds are present, through the procession of Hydrolysis. It dissolves in water in a series of equilibrium reactions (See reaction table No2) SO2 + OH · → HOSO2 HOSO2 · + O2 → HO2 · + SO3 SO3 (g) + H2O (l) → H2SO4 (l) NO2 + OH · → HNO3 SO2 (g) + H2O SO2 ·H2O SO2 ·H2O H+ + HSO3− HSO3− H+ + SO32− Nitrogen Oxide Nitrogen oxide reacts with OH to form nitric acid NO2 + OH · → HNO3 Oxidation There is a large amount of reactions where sulfur is oxidized from S(IV) to S(VI) that leads to the formation of sulphuric acid. The most important oxidation reactions are with ozone, hydrogen peroxide and oxygen (reactions with oxygen are catalyzed by iron and manganese in the cloud droplets). Measure and effects To measure the acidity of acid rain, we use the pH scale. Pure water has a pH of 7.0. Normal rain has a pH of 5.5 due to the dissolve of carbon oxide into it. The most acidic rain was fell in USA in the year 2000. It had a ph of 4.3 This acidity affects every living thing on the planet. The following tasks explain exactly this affection: 1st Effect: On Plant life Roots of flowers and trees are destroyed, such as nutricients, which are very important for their lives. Useful microorganisms, which release nutrients from decaying organic material, are killed. Acid rain also damages the waxy layer of the plants, which makes the plant vulnerable to diseases. Plants that survive are weak and without the ability to survive through tough conditions such as a short dry period, a heavy rainfall or a strong wind. The reproduction is also affected. 2nd Effect: On soil The decrease of pH damages or kills some microbes, which produce important enzymes. These enzymes, after the damage of microbes, change shape and lose the ability to function. Also cation exchange creates a serious problem. The ions of some metals (magnesium, potassium, and other metals) are attached to the clay and humus particles in the soil. The attractive forces of positive metal ions to the negatively charged clay particles are strong enough to hold the metal ions in the soil despite the passage of water through the soil. Hydronium ions from acid rain mobilize toxins like aluminium and leach away nutrients like magnesium. 3rd Effect: On animals, humans, and aquatic life Humans depend on food (animals, fishes). Fishes on the lakes and the seas are poisoned or infected by aluminium and mercury, that is leached from soil and rocks. Soil and water have the ability to neutralize the acidity of the rain water. But as the acidity becomes stronger, the pH goes lower. pH 5.5- Plankton population begins to die pH 5.0 Fish population begins to die pH lower than 5.0- All the fishes have died This effect is called ‘Acid Shock† and prevents also the reproduction of the population. Animals, like all the living organisms, interdependent on each other. The habitants that depend on plants and fishes begin to extinct. Other animals that depend on the animals, who depend on fishes and plants, begin to extinct. The food chain is affected dangerously. 4th Effect: Corrosion of buildings and sculptures. The sulfur dioxide reacts with limestone and marble. This reaction creates a black crust on buildings and sculptures, composed by gypsum. Gypsum is composed by the reactance of calcite, water and sulfuric acid. It may be white, but in the crystals of the network of its composition, dirt and pollutant are trapped, so it looks black CaCO3 (s) + H2SO4 (aq) CaSO4 (aq) + CO2 (g) + H2O Acid rain also increases the oxidation rate of metals, especially copper and bronze One good result Researches have resulted that Acid rain restricts global warming by reducing methane emissions from wetland areas. This study also showed that sulfur in the acid deposition limits global warming by counteracting the natural production of methane gases by microbes in wetland areas. Heating these microbes increases the speed of producing more methane, which is mitigating by the sulphur pollution from the industries. This fact is happening because of the sulphur-eating bacteria, which are living in wetlands, and compete the methane-eating microbes. Experiments have shown, that releasing the sulphur deposits causes decrease of methane by 30%, due to the activation of sulphur-eating bacteria Acid rain: Problems and solutions An important solution is the remove of sulphur from the stack gases, made from coal-burning power plants of the industries. This will be able to be done with the use of FGD (flue gas desulfurization). This plan is commonly uses in the U.S.A and many other countries. An example of FGD is the wet scrambler. Wet scrambler is a reaction tower equipped with a fan that extracts hot smoke stack gases from a power plant into the tower. Lime or limestone in slurry form is also injected into the tower to mix with the stack gases and combine with the sulfur dioxide present. The calcium carbonate of the limestone produces pH-neutral calcium sulfate that is physically removed from the scrubber. That is, the scrubber turns sulfur pollution into industrial sulfates. In some areas, where he purity of calcium sulphate is high, the sulfates are sold to chemical companies as a gypsum. In other areas they are placed in landfill. However, the effets of acid rain can last for generations, due to the change of the pH level. Chemicals continue leaching in water, killing off all the living organisms and blocking the restore of life. Another solution refers to the trading of emissions. Industries can then install pollution control equipment, and sell portions of their emissions allowances they no longer need for their own operations. This plan saves the economy and decreases the capital cost for these equipments. The intention is to give operators economic incentives to install pollution controls. Prevention Step 1 · Reduce emissions from mining, smelting and generating electrical power. Consumers can help by using fewer mined resources and reducing electrical power usage, as well as campaigning for government regulation of emissions in their area. Step 2 · Reduce emissions produced by oil operations and oil-fueled transportation. Consumers can help reduce emissions produced by oil operations by buying less oil, buying from companies with higher emissions regulations and driving cars with lower emission rates. Step 3 · Reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides produced by reducing use of coal and wood burning as well as natural gas. Step 4 · Cut back on your use of products that produce chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs. Air conditioning, refrigeration and many aerosol products use or contain CFCs. Reduce the use of air conditioning by using fans and use a single, energy efficient refrigerator per household. Conserve cooled air by not leaving doors open when the air conditioning is on and by not leaving the refrigerator open for extended periods of time. Step 5 · Reduce production of sulfur dioxide by conserving paper. Sulfur dioxide is produced in paper production, so read newspapers online rather than buying a newspaper everyday, use the front and back of paper and use recycled paper. Step 6 · Reduce the emissions produced by your car by car pooling, planning ahead to combine long trips, biking or walking for short trips and keeping your car well maintained to be sure nothing is leaking. Step 7 · Increase energy efficiency in your home by using fluorescent lights, turning lights off when not in use, shutting down utilities when youre on vacation, closing off vents to rooms that are not in use and operating large appliances like dishwashers, washers and driers only when full. Step 8 · Reduce your use of manufactured materials such as packaging and other disposable products and recycle as much as you can. Producing new materials and disposing of waste materials are responsible for a large number of the pollutants that cause acid rain.

The Affect of Child Labor on the World Essay -- Essays Papers

The Affect of Child Labor on the World Introduction Child labor is a very hot topic in today’s world. The problems associated with child labor have always been a part of life but thanks to Globalization, everyone is now more aware of the child labor issues that exist. Whether an individual is in favor or against child labor the fact is that child labor affects everyone, because child labor affects the global economy. Children who work play a big role in the economy because they produce goods and are paid wages just like adults; they are an active participant of the work force. Child Labor Issues It is estimated that more than 200 million children across the globe between the ages of 5-17 work instead of going to school. And of these, 171 million work in hazardous conditions. Even though child labor was widespread during the eighteenth century it was not until the industrial revolution that society began to realize the seriousness of abuses on children that worked. In the past children generally worked alongside their families to help the family survive, but those conditions were not as severe as when children began working more than ten-hour days in factories and in adverse conditions like those seen during the industrial revolution. There are many other factors that cause child labor such as poverty, social values and cultural circumstances but they tend to be complex to understand. It can be said that child labor is more widely seen in developing and third world countries than that of developed. This is due in part to the poverty that the majority of these people liv e in, and then children are forced to work to help support the family. Asia has the highest number of children below the age of 15 that work wi... ...y with child labor. Conclusion Forturnatly, many organizations and individuals feel very strongly about protecting children and are trying to develop solutions to many of the problems associated with child labor and also to help protect the rights of children in the work place and in general. The International Labor Organization is an agency that is trying to develop a strategy to help prevent children form loosing their childhood and education by being forced to work. Other agencies such as UNICEF are protection agencies that advocate the protection of children’s rights. References Basu, Kaushik. Sep, 1999. Journal of Economic Literature, Vol. 37 No.3. American Economic Association. Children’s Rights. Oct. 2004 www.hrw.org/children/labor.htm Children in the Global Economy. Oct. 2004 www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/globableconomy/children.cfm

Emily Dickinson :: essays research papers

Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in Amherst Massachusetts. She had a younger sister named Lavina and an older brother named Austin. Her mother Emily Norcross Dickinson, was largely dependent on her family and was seen by Emily as a poor mother. Her father was lawyer, Congressman, and the Treasurer for Amherst College. Unlike her mother, Emily loved and admired her father. Since the family was not emotional, they lived a quiet secure life. They rarely shared their problems with one another so Emily had plenty of privacy for writing. During her childhood, Emily and her family attended The First Congregational Church on a regular basis. Emily did not like going to church because she didn't think of herself as being very religious. She refused to believe that Heaven was a better place than Earth and eventually rebelled from the church. Emily saw herself as a woman who had her own way of thinking, a way of thinking shaped neither by the church or society. By the time she was twelve, her family moved to a house on Pleasant Street where they lived from 1840 to 1855. Emily was already writing letters, but composed most of her poetry in this home. Emily only left home to attend Mount Holyoke Female Seminary for two semesters. Though her stay there was brief, she impressed her teachers with her courage and directness. They felt her writing was sensational. At the age of twenty-one, Emily and her family moved to the Dickinson Homestead on Main Street. This move proved to be very difficult for Emily. This was difficult for Emily because she became very attached to her old house, which shaped her writing and personality for fifteen years. They now lived next door to her brother Austin and his wife Susan and their daughter Martha. Emily and Susan became so close that many people believe they may have been lovers. A rumor perpetuated by the fact that Emily was known to have written many love letters and poems to Susan. Martha attempted to protect both of their images and suppress the rumors. It became common knowledge that Emily had some type of very strong feelings for Susan. At the age of thirty-one Emily sent some of her poems to a publisher, Thomas Higginson, from whom she got a very good response and a strong friendship developed. He acted as her mentor but she never seemed to have taken any of his advice. It became evident that she didn't like the idea of having her works published, she made 40 packets of about twenty poems apiece from 814 poems. She placed these in a box along with 333 other poems. Emily died on May 5, 1886 at the age of 56.

Longer Weekend

A plentiful amount schools in the U. S. Are beginning to consider bringing forth school four days a week rather than the usual five days. However, classes will be in session more hours per day. By doing this the schools will conserve money, have more instruction time per class, and longer weekends. First of all, the schools will preserve loads of money, as well as those who drive to school. They will have one less day of transportation because people aren't in school for that one extra day.The schools will also have much lower electric bills because the lights are off for another day. Also, if the school is under construction, there will be more time to complete it because there aren't kids in the hardhat area. Not only that, but the Janitors will have more time to tidy up the school while the kids aren't in there to create a safer and cleaner learning environment. Secondly, having longer days meaner more time per class period. Lots of kids aren't passing because they need more instr uction time.Giving more time per class period gives the teachers time to explain tough material to students who are behind. The students will better understand the material being taught. Some lessons can last for more than a day, like reading a novel. The students will better understand what they are reading if they do it all in one day than if they have to pick up where they left off the day before. Longer school days and less days in school will lead to a better education for students, there may even be less homework because the students use the extra time given In class to complete It.Plus, the school day also will last until almost dinner time, so the students will go home eight after school. They won't be out on the streets getting In trouble In the time period between school ending and dinner. Yet another reason to say yes to longer school days four days a week Is the longer weekends. While schoolwork Is obviously Incredibly important, so Is time off. Most kids need time to re lax, they are busier in today's world than ever. They have homework, practices, and projects to work on.Some even have Jobs, by the time the weekend Is over, the students haven't had any time for themselves. Schools should be open four days a week and have longer days because the schools will save money, by having more time per class a more quality education will be provided for the students, and the longer weekends will give the kids time to relax after long week. Agreeing with this Idea Is beneficial to your child's education. Adding school hours and reducing the amount of hours per school makes more time for academic pursuits.Longer Weekend more time to tidy up the school while the kids aren't in there to create a safer and emperor because the students use the extra time given in class to complete it. Plus, right after school. They won't be out on the streets getting in trouble in the time school days four days a week is the longer weekends. While schoolwork is obviously incredib ly important, so is time off. Most kids need time to relax, they are busier in Some even have Jobs, by the time the weekend is over, the students haven't had any kids time to relax after long week. Agreeing with this idea is beneficial to your child's

Rethinking Anthropology – E. R. Leach

RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS MONOGRAPHS ON SOCLL ANTHROPOLOGY Managing Editor: Anthony For^e The Monographs in on Social Anthropology were established modem The by 1940 and aim to publish results of anthropological research of primary interest to specialists. continuation of the series was made possible from the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, and more recently by a further grant from the Governors of the London a grant in aid School of Economics and Political Science. re under the direction of an Board associated with the Department of Anthropology of the London School of Economics and Political Science. Editorial The Monographs LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS MONOGRAPHS ON SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY No. 22 Rethinking Anthropology by E. R. LEACH UNIVERSITY OF LONDON THE ATHLONE PRESS NEW YORK: HUMANITIES PRESS INC Published by THE ATHLONE PRESS UNIVERSITY OF LONDON at 2 Gotcer Street, Distributed by Tiptree London wci Book Services Ltd Tiptree, Essex F irst edition, 1961 First paperback edition with corrections, 1966 Reprinted, 1968, 1971 E. R. Leach, 1961, 1971 U. K. U. K. sB N o 485 19522 4 cloth sB N B o 485 19622 o paperback U. S. A. s N 391 00146 9 paperback First printed in 1961 by ROBERT CUNNINGHAM AND SONS LTD ALVA Reprinted by photo-litho by JOHN DICKENS & CO LTD NORTHAMPTON 4- M75†² Preface The title of this collection properly belongs only to the first essay. On 3 December 1959 1 had the honour to deliver the first Malinovvski Memorial Lecture at the London School of Economics. The Editorial Board of the London School of Economics Monographs in Social Anthropology enerously offered to publish the text of my lecture but added the flattering suggestion that I should reprint a number of my other essays at the same time. I have accordingly appropriated the title of my Malinowski lecture for the whole collection. I do not pretend wholly consistent with that The essays extend over a period of fifteen years and is that th e viewpoint of the latest (Chapter i) of the earliest (Chapter 2) but there is, I think, a certain continuity of theme and method in all of them. When they were first written all these essays were attempts to ‘rethink anthropology'.All are concerned with problems of others, I ‘theory' and are based on ethnographic facts recorded by my own contribution being primarily that of analyst. In each case have tried to reassess the known facts in the light of unorthodox assumpSuch heresy seems to me to have merit for its own sake. Unconventional arguments often turn out to be wrong but provided they provoke discussion they may still have lasting value. By that criterion each of the essays in this book is a possible candidate for attention. tions. Among social anthropologists the is game f building new theories on the ruins of old ones almost an occupational disease. Contemporary arguments in social anthropology are built out of formulae concocted by Malinowski, Radcliffe-Brown an d Levi-Strauss who in turn were only ‘rethinking' Rivers, Durkheim and Mauss, who borrowed from Morgan, McLennan and Robertson- Smith the total outcome of all — and so on. Sceptics may think that despite all this ratiocination adds up to very little; our pedagogical subtleties, the diversities of human custom remain as bewildering as ever. But that we admit.The contemporary social anthropologist is all too well aware that he knows much less than Frazer imagined that he knew for certain. But that perhaps is the point. The contributions to anthropological pedantry collected in this book add little to the sum of human knowledge but if they provoke some readers to doubt their sense of certainty then they will have served their purpose. A note on the interconnections between the different papers draft of Chapter 2 may prove still helpful. The first was written in 1943 while I was on VI PREFACE and still in direct contact with Jinghpaw speakers. ppeared in the 1945 volume of the J. R. A. I, this was not actually published until 1950. These details of dating are relevant because they explain why my paper contains no reference to Chapters 15 and i6 of Levi-Strauss, Les structures elementaires de la parente (1949) and reciprocally why the latter work ignores the new information provided by my paper. Chapter 3, which was originally a Curl Prize Essay, was completed in the spring of 195 1 and seems to have been the first English language commentar)' on Levi-Strauss's magnum opus though, presumably, my paper and J.P. B. de Josselin de Jong's monograph Levi-Strauss's Theory on Kinship and Marriage (1952) were going through the press at the same time. Although I here criticized Levi-Strauss on the grounds of ethnographical inaccuracy my sympathy with his general theoretical point of view is very great. Professor Levi-Strauss has himself noted the similarity between the view of ‘social structure' implicit in my first Jinghpaw paper (Chapter 2) and his own (Levi-Strauss, 1953, p. 525 n), and in all my subsequent publications my debt to Levi-Strauss is obvious.The relationship of Chapter 4 to earlier literature will be apparent from the references in the text. Although it was not intended to be controversial it provoked Dr Kathleen Gough into a vigorous reply (Gough, 1959). The crucial part of my argument here is that I emphasize the need to distinguish between affinity regarded as an alliance between corporate kin groups and those individual affinal ties which bind a particular wife to a particular husband. This theme recurs in Chapter 5 and again in active military service t Although Chapter i. Chapter 5, as indicated in the text, is linked with a long correspondence which appeared in the pages of Man in 1953 and 1954 but the response which it evoked from my close academic colleagues is only marginally connected with this earlier discussion. Dr Goody has denounced my whole argument as grounded in fundamental error (Goody, 1959, p. 86 ) and Professor Fortes has taken up most of two issues of Man to expound my fallacies and confusions (Fortes, 1959b).Both these explosions of academic wrath were provoked by a single sentence in my essay, namely ‘Thus Fortes, while recognizing that ties of affinity have comparable importance to ties of descent, disguises the former under his expression â€Å"complementary filiation† (see below p. 122). The exact sense in which this statement is an ‘error' is still not clear to me for in the course of his denunciation Fortes reaffirms his view that ‘complementary filiation is a function of affinal relations' (Fortes, 1959b, p. 209) which is precisely the argument I sought to controvert. ^ Professor Fortes has called his article *a rejoinder to Leach', and — readers of Chapter i of this book need to appreciate that ‘a among other things in it is intended as rejoinder to Fortes'. Reference to a short note Man (i960. Art. 6) will perhaps help to mak e this clear. The two short papers on time symbolism reprinted in Chapter 6 do PREFACE influence of Professor Levi-Strauss Vll not form a series with the other chapters of the book though again the is pronounced. Although my ‘Cronus and Chronos' appeared in print in 1953 while Levi-Strauss's ‘The Structural Study of Myth' was only published in 1956, I had in fact already heard Professor Levi-Strauss's lecture on this topic before I wrote my essay.Explorations, the Toronto University publication in which my Chapter 6 was originally published, carried on its fly leaf the statement that it was ‘designed, not as a permanent reference journal that embalms truth for posterity, but as a publication that explores and searches and questions' and both my papers are correspondingly brief and tentative. Nevertheless a number of my friends have suggested that the arguments they contain are of more than ephemeral interest; hence the reissue here^ Chapter i contains a considerabl e amount of matter which was not included in the spoken text of my Malinowski lecture. The other essays^ appear as originally printed, except for the correction of misprints, and one or two very minor alterations intended to clarify the argument. The Introductory Notes at the beginning of Chapters 2-6 are new. Acknowledgements I am indebted to the Council of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland for permission to reprint the essays published here as Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5 and to Professor E. S. Carpenter and the University of Toronto for permission to reprint the two short essays included in Chapter 6.I am indebted to a personal grant in aid from the Behavioral Sciences Division of the Ford Foundation for facilities employed while preparing } * j] : -^ these papers for publication. E. R. L. Contents 1. RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY I 2. JINGHPAW KINSHIP TERMINOLOGY THE STRUCTURAL IMPLICATIONS OF MATRILATERAL CROSS-COUSIN MARRIAGE 28 3. 54 4. POLYANDRY, INHERITAN CE AND THE DEFINITION OF marriage: with PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO SINHALESE CUSTOMARY LAW ASPECTS OF BRIDEWEALTH AND MARRIAGE STABILITY IO5 5. AMONG THE KACHIN AND LAKHER 6. II4 TWOESSAYS CONCERNING THE SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION OF TIME (i) 124 Cronus and Chronos, 124 (ii) Time and False Noses, 132 Rethinking Anthropology my arrogant title. Since 1930 British Anthropology has embodied a well defined set of ideas and -^objectives which derive directly from the teaching of Malinowski and Radcliffe-Brown this unity of aim is summed up in the statement that British social anthropology is functionalist and concerned with the comparative analysis of social structures. But during the last year or so it has begun to look as if this particular aim had worked itself out.Most of my colleagues are giving up the attempt to make comparative generalizations instead they have begun to write impeccably detailed historical ethno- tET Social me begin by explaining — graphies of particular peoples. I regret this new tendency for I still believe that the findings of anthro- pologists have general as well as particular implications, but functionalist doctrine ceased to carry conviction? why has the understand what is happening in social anthropology I believe we need to go right back to the beginning and rethink basic issues really elementary matters such as To — hat we mean by marriage or descent or the unity of difficult siblings, and that is — for basic concepts are basic; The the ideas one has about them are deeply entrenched and firmly held. One bias of the things we need to recognize is the strength of the empirical which Malinowski introduced into social anthropology and which essential core of social anthropology has stayed with us ever since. is understanding of the way of life of a single particular people. This fieldwork is an extremely personal traumatic kind of experience and the personal involvement of the anthropologist in his work is reflected in wh at he produces.When we read Malinowski we get the impression that he is stating something which is of general importance. Yet how can this be? He is simply writing about Trobriand Islanders. Somehow he has so assimilated himself into the Trobriand situation that he is able to make the Trobriands fieldwork a microcosm of the whole primitive world. successors; for Firth, Primitive citizen of —the And the same is true of his is Man is a Tikopian, for Fortes, he a Ghana. The existence of this prejudice has long been recognized / but we have paid inadequate attention to its consequences.The difficulty of achieving comparative generalizations is directly linked with the problem of escaping from ethnocentric bias. 2 RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY As is appropriate to an occasion I when we honour the memory of Bronislaw MaUnowski, am going to be thoroughly egotistical. I shall imply there my own is merit by condemning the work of in my closest friends. But purpose is to distinguish between two rather similar varieties of comparative generalization, both of which turn up from time to time in contemporary British social anthropology.One of these, which I dislike, derives from the work of Radcliffe-Brown; the other, which I admire, derives from the work of Levi-Strauss. It is important that the differences between these two approaches be properly understood, so I shall draw my illustrations in sharp contrast, all black and all white. In this harsh and exaggerated form Professor Levi-Strauss method my malice. My might well repudiate the authorship of the ideas which I am trying to convey. Hence my egotism; let the blame be wholly mine. My problem is simple.How can a modern social anthropologist, with all the work of Malinowski and Radcliffc-Brown and their successors at his elbow, embark upon generalization with any hope of arriving at a satisfying conclusion? My answer is quite simple too; it is this: By thinking of the organizational ideas that are present in any societ y as constituting a mathematical pattern. The rest of what I have to say that is simply an elaboration of this cryptic statement. concern is with generalization, not with maintained that the objective of social anthropology was the ‘comparison of social structures'.In explaining this he asserted that when we distinguish and compare different types of social structure we are doing the same kind of thing as when we distinguish different kinds of sea shell according to their structural type (RadcliffeBrown, 1953, p. 109). Generalization is quite a different kind of mental First let me emphasize my comparison. Radcliffe-Brown operation. Let me illustrate this point. two points can be joined by a straight line and you can represent this straight line mathematically by a sm^G. first order algebraic equation.Any three points can be joined by a circle and you can represent this circle by a quadratic or second order algebraic equation. It would be a generalization to go straight on fro m there and say any : Any n points in a plane can be joined by a curve which can be represented by an equation of order n-i. This would be just a guess, but it would be true, and it is a kind of truth which no amount of comparison can ever reveal. Comparison and generalization are both forms of scientific activity, but different. Comparison is a matter of butterfly collecting —of classification, of the rrangement of things according to their types and subtypes. The followers of Radcliffe-Brown are anthropological butterfly collectors and their approach to their data has certain consequences. For example, according to RadclifTe- Brown's principles we ought to think of Trobriand society : RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY as 3 classification a society of a particular structural type. The might proceed thus: Main Type Sub-type: Sub-sub-type : societies societies societies composed of unilineal descent groups. composed of matrilineal descent groups. composed of matrilineal descent groups i n which he married males of the matrilineage live together in one place and apart from the females of the matrilineage, and so on. In this procedure each class preceding it is a sub-type of the class immediately in the tabulation. its uses, but it has very serious has no logical limits. Ultimately discriminated in this way as a sub-type Now I every just agree that analysis of this kind has is limitations. One major defect known society can be that it from any other, and since anthropologists are notably vague about what they mean by ‘a society', this will lead them to distinguish more and more ocieties, almost ad infinitum. This is not just hypothesis. My colleague Dr Goody has gone to great pains to distinguish as types two adjacent societies in the Northern Gold Coast which he calls LoWiili and LoDagaba. A careful reader of Dr Goody's works will discover, however, that these two ‘societies' are distinct simply the way that field Dr Goody notes from two has chosen to de scribe the fact that his neighbouring communities show some curious discrepancies. If limit Dr Goody's methods of analysis were pushed to the we should be able to show that every village community throughout is he world constitutes a distinct society which distinguishable as a type from any other (Goody, 1956b). Another serious objection is that the typology makers never explain why they choose one frame of reference rather than another. RadcliffeBrovsTi's instructions were simply that ‘it is necessary to compare societies the economic system, the with reference to one particular aspect . . . political system, or the kinship system' . . . this is equivalent to saying that you can arrange your butterflies according to their colour, or their size, or the shape of their wings according to the him of the moment, but no matter what you do this will be science. Well perhaps, in a sense, it is; but you must realize that your prior arrangement creates an initial bias from which it is later extremely difficult to escape (Radcliffe-Brown, 1940, p. xii). Social anthropology is packed with frustrations of it this kind. An obvious Ever since example is the category opposition patrilineal/matrilineal. has been customary for anthropologists to distinguish unilineal from non-unilineal descent systems, and writing of the Iroquois, Morgan began among that it the former to distinguish patrilineal societies from atrilineal societies. is These categories now seem to us so rudimentary and obvious extremely difficult to break out of the straitjacket of thought which the categories themselves impose. 4 RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY Yet if our approach is to be genuinely unbiased we must be prepared to consider the possibihty that these type categories have no sociological significance whatsoever. It may be that to create a class labelled matrtis as irrelevant for our understanding of social structure as the creation of a class blue butterflies is irrelevant for the understanding of t he anatomical structure of lepidoptera.I don't say it is so, but it may be; it is lineal societies time that we considered the possibility. J I warn you, the rethinking of basic category assumptions can be very disconcerting. But Let me cite a case. Dr Audrey Richards's well-known contribution to African Systems of Kinship and Marriage is an essay in Radcliffe-Brownian typology making which is rightly regarded as one of the ‘musts' of undergraduate reading (Richards, 1950). In this essay Dr Richards asserts that societies is ‘the problem' of matrilineal the difficulty of combining recognition of descent through the oman with the rule of exogamous marriage, and she classifies a variety of matrilineal societies according to the way this ‘problem' is solved. In effect her classification turns on the fact that a woman's husband the two men. jointly possess rights in the woman's brother and a woman's children but that matrilineal systems differ in the way these rights a re allocated between is the prior category assumptions. Men have kinds of society, so why should it be assumed from the start that brothers-in-law in matrilineal societies have special ‘prob- What I object to in this ll brothers-in-law in lems' which are absent in patrilineal or bilateral structures? really What has lay a matrilineal society, she has decided to restrict her comparative obser-ations to matrilineal systems. Then, having selected a group of societies which have nothing in common except that they are matrilineal, she is naturally led to conclude that matrilineal descent is the major factor to which all the other items of cultural behaviour which she happened here with the Bemba, is that, because Dr Richards's own special knowledge describes are functionally adjusted.Her argument I am afraid is a tautology; her system of classification already implies the truth of what she claims to be demonstrating. This illustrates how Radcliffe-Brown's taxonomic assumptions fit in with the ethnocentric bias which I mentioned earlier. Because the typefinding social anthropologist conducts his whole argument in terms of tempted particular instances rather than of generalized patterns, he is constantly to attach exaggerated significance to those features of social organization which happen to be prominent in the societies of which he himself has first hand experience. The ase of Professor Fortes illustrates this is same point in rather a different way. His quest not so much for types as for prototypes. It so happens that the two societies of which he has made a close study have certain similarities of structural pattern for, while the Tallensi are patri- RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY lineal 5 and the Ashanti matrilineal, both Tallensi and Ashanti come unfiliation', usually close to having a system of double unilineal descent. Professor Fortes has devised a special concept, ‘complementary w^hich helps him to describe this double unilineal element in the Tallen si/Ashanti pattern w^hile rejecting the notion that these societies actually possess double unilineal systems (Fortes, 1953, p. 33; 1959b). It is interesting to note the circumstances which led to the development of this concept. From one point of view ‘complementary filiation' is simply an inverse form of Malinowski's notion of ‘sociological paternity' as applied in the matrilineal context of Trobriand society. But Fortes has done more than invent a new name for an old idea; he has made it the corner stone of a substantial body of theory and this theory arises logically special circumstances of his own field experience.In his earlier writings the Tallensi are often represented as having a somewhat extreme form of patrilineal ideology. Later, in contrast to from the Rattray, Fortes placed an unambiguously matrilineal label upon the Ashanti. view, is The that merit of ‘complementary it is filiation', from Fortes's point of a concept which applies equally well to bot h of these contrasted societies but does not conflict with his thesis that both the Tallensi and the Ashanti have systems of unilineal descent. The concept ecame necessary to him precisely because he had decided at the start that the more familiar and more obvious notion of double unilineal descent was inappropriate. In retrospect Fortes seems to have decided that double unilineal descent is a special development of ‘complementary filiation', the latter being a feature of all unilineal descent structures. That such category distinctions are contrived rather than natural is evident from Goody's additional discrimination. Goody asserts that the LoWiili have ‘complementary descent rather than a dual descent system'.Since the concept of ‘complementary filiation' was first introduced so as to help in the distinction between ‘filiation' and ‘descent' and since the adjective ‘complementary' cannot here be given meaning except by reference to the word â⠂¬Ëœdescent', the total argument is clearly tautologous (Fortes, 1945, pp. 134, 20of; 1950, p. 287; 1953, p. 34; 1959; Goody, 1956b, p. 77). Now I do not claim that Professor Fortes is mistaken, but I think he is misled by his prior suppositions. If making and from enthnocentric science. we are to bias we must let escape both from typology turn to a different kind ofInstead of comparison repeat. Generalization us have generalization; instead of inductive; it butterfly collecting let us have inspired guesswork. Let me is consists in perceiving it is possible general laws in the circumstances of special cases; guesswork, a gamble, you may be wrong or you may be right, but if you happen to be right you have learnt something altogether new. In contrast, arranging butterflies according to their types and sub-types is tautology. It merely reasserts something you know already in a slightly different form. 6 RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY But if you are going is o start guessing, you need I to kno w how to guess. . d this wliat I am getting at when say that the form of thinking should be mathematical. Functional ism in a mathematical sense is not concerned with the interconnections between parts of a whole but with the principles of operation of partial systems. There is a direct conflict here with the dogmas of Malinowski and Malinowski's functionalism required us to think of each Society (or Culture, as Malinowski would have put it) as a totality Radcliffe-Brown. of a made up kinds — number of discrete empirical ‘things', of rather diverse institutions', e. g. groups of people, customs. These ‘things' are functionally interconnected to form a delicately balanced mechanism rather like the various parts of a wrist watch. cliff†e- The functionalism of Rad- Brown was equally mechanical though the focus of interest was different. RadclifTe-Brown was concerned, as it were, to distinguish wrist watches clocks, whereas Malinowski was interested in the gener al attributes of clockwork. But hath masters took as their starting point the notion that a culture or a society is an empirical whole made up rom grandfather of a limited two societies number of readily identifiable parts and that when we compare we are concerned to see whether or not the same kinds of is parts are present in both cases. This approach a mechanic but appropriate for a zoologist or for a botanist or for it is not the approach of a mathematician nor of an engineer and, in gineer. my view, the anthropologist has much in common with the en- But that is my private bias. I was originally trained as an engineer. The entities which we call societies are not naturally existing species, neither re they man-made mechanisms. But the analogy of a mechanism has quite as much relevance as the analogy of an organism. This is not the place to discuss the history of the organic analogy as a model for Society, but its arbitrariness is often forgotten. Hobbes, who developed his notion of a social organism in a very systematic way, discusses in his preface whether a mechanical or an organic analogy might be the more appropriate for his purpose. He opts for an organism only because he wants to include in his model a metaphysical prime mover (i. . God Life Force) (Hobbes, 1957, p. 5). In contrast RadcHffe-Brown employed the organic analogy as a matter of dogma rather than of choice (e. g. Radcliffe-Brown, 1957, pp. 82-86; 1940a, pp. 3, lo) and his butterfly collecting followers have accepted the appropriateness of the phrase ‘social organism' without serious discussion. Against this complacency I — must protest. It is certainly the case that social scientists must often resort all to analogy but eternity. we are not committed to one type of model making for Our task societies s to understand and explain what goes on in society, how work. If an engineer tries to explain to you how a digital computer RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY bolts. 7 works he doesn't spend his time classifying different kinds of nuts and He concerns himself with principles, not with things. He writes out argument as a mathematical equation of the utmost simplicity, somewhat on the lines of o + i = i i + i = 10. No doubt this example is frivolous; such computers embody their information in a code which is transmitted in positive and negative impulses denoted by the digital symbols o and i.The essential point is that although the information which can be embodied in such codes may be enormously complex, the basic principles on which the computing machines work is very simple. Likewise I would maintain that quite simple mechanical models can have relevance for social anthropology despite the acknowledged fact that the detailed empirical facts of social life display the utmost complexity. I don't want to turn anthropology into a branch of mathematics but I believe we can learn a lot by starting to think about society in a mathehis : ; matical way.Considered mathematicall y society is not an assemblage of things but an assemblage of variables. A good analogy would be with that branch of mathematics known as topology, which may crudely be described as the geometry of elastic rubber sheeting. If I have a piece of rubber sheet and draw a series of lines on it to symbolize the functional interconnections of some set of social phenomena and I then start stretching the rubber about, I can change the manifest shape of my original geometrical figure out of all recognition and yet clearly there is a sense in which it is the same figure all the time.The constancy of pattern is not manifest as an objective empirical fact but it is there as a mathematical generalization. By analogy, generalized structural patterns in anthropology are not restricted to societies of any one manifest structural type. you will tell me that topology is one of those which mere sociologists had best avoid, but I am not in fact proposing anything original. A very good simple account of the nature of topology appears in an article under that title in the current edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.The author himself makes the point that because topology is a non-metrical form of mathematics it deserves especial attention from social scientists. I Now know that a lot of alarming scientific mysteries The fundamental Any closed curve is arc of a circle is ‘the variable in topology ‘the is the degree of connectedness. same as' any other regardless of its shape; the same as' a straight line because each is open ended. Contrariwise, a closed curve has a greater degree of connectedness than an arc. If of pattern case if we apply these ideas to sociology particular relationships e cease to be interested in and concern ourselves instead with the regularities relationships. is among neighbouring In the simplest possible there be a relationship p which intimately associated with another relationship q then in a topological study we shall not concern ourselves 8 RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY with the particular characteristics of/) and q but with their mutual characteristics, i. e. with the algebraic ratio p'^q. But it must be understood that the relationships and sets of relationships which are symbolized in this way cannot properly be given specific numerical values.The reader should bear this point in mind when he encounters the specimens of pseudo-mathematics which occur later in this paper. All propositions in topology can also be expressed as propositions in symbolic logic (see Carnap, 1958, chapter G) and it was probably a consideration of this fact which led Nadel to introduce symbolic logic into own view is that while the consideration book (Xadel, 1957). of mathematical and logical models may help the anthropologist to order his last My his theoretical arguments in an all this intelligent way, his actual procedure s should be non-mathematical. The pattern relevance of to my main theme that the saTne structural may turn up in any kind of society patrilineal —a mathematical approach matrilineal makes no prior assumption that from non-unilineal systems or structures. all unilincal systems are basically different structures from the contrary, the principle of parity leads us to discount rigid category distinctions of this kind. On Let me try to illustrate I for the occasion shall take my point with an example. To be my example from Malinowski. Malinowski reported, as a ppropriate Most of you will know that fact of empirical ethnography, that the Trobrianders profess ignorance of the connection between copulation and pregnancy and that this ignorance serves as a rational justification for their system of matrilineal descent. From the Trobriand point of view ‘my father' (tama) is not a blood relative at all but a kind of affine, *my mother's husband' (Malinowski, 1932a, p. 5). However, alongside their dogmatic ignorance of the facts of life, Trobrianders also maintain that every child should resemble its mother's husband (i. . its father) but that no child could ever resemble a member of its own matrilineal kin. Malinowski seems to have thought it paradoxical that Trobrianders should hold both these doctrines at the same time. He was apparently bemused by the same kind of ethnocentric assumptions as later led a Tallensi informant to tell Professor Fortes that ‘both parents transmit their blood to their offspring, as can be seen from the fact that Tallensi children may resemble either parent in looks' (Fortes, 1949, p. 35; my italics). This is mixing up sociology and genetics.We know, and apparently the Tallensi assume, that physical appearance is genetically based, but there is no reason why primitive people in general should associate ideas of genetic inheritance with ideas about physical resemblance between persons. The explanation which the Trobrianders gave to Malinowski was that a father impresses his appearance on his son by cohabiting repeatedly with the mother and ther eby ‘moulding' (kuli) the child in her womb (Malinowski, 1932a, p. 176) which is reminiscent of the Ashanti . RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY view that the father shapes the body of his child as might a potter (Rattray, 1929, p. 9). This Trobriand theory is quite consistent with the view that the father is related to the son only as mother's husband that is, an affine and not as a kinsman. There are other Trobriand doctrines which fall into line with this. The father's sister is ‘the prototype of the lawful woman' (Malinowski, 1932a, p. 450) which seems to be more or less the equivalent of saying that — the father (tama) is much the same sort of relation as a brother-in-law.Again, although, as Powell has shown (Powell, 1956, p. 314), marriage with the father's sister's daughter is rare, the Trobrianders constantly assured Malinowski that this was a very right and proper marriage. Evidently in their view the category tama (which includes both father and father's sister's s on) is very close to that of lubou (brother-in-law) (Mal- inowski, 1932a, pp. 86, 451). The similarity is asserted not only in verbal expression but also in the pattern of economic obligation, for the harvest gift (urignbu) paid by a married man is due both to his mother's husband tama) and to his sister's husband (lubou) (Malinowski, 1935, I, pp. 386, 413-18). From my point of view this cluster of Trobriand beliefs and attitudes is a ‘pattern of organizational ideas'— it specifies a series of categories, in a particular relationship and places them with one another as in an was biased by his down to earth empiricism, by European prejudices and by his interest in psycho-analysis, and he refused to accept tlie Trobriand doctrine at its face value. Instead he refurbished his concept of ‘sociological paternity' which he had originalgebraic equation.But Malinowski ally devised to fit a quite different context, that of patrilineal organization among On to the Australia n Aborigines (Malinowski, 19 13, p. 170-83). this earlier occasion Malinowski had used ‘sociological paternity' relations show how between parents and children and between spouses derive from customary rules and not from any universal facts of biology or psychology, but in the later application of these ideas to Trobriand circumstances he shifts his ground and the argument becomes confused by the introduction of naive psychological considerations. On the face of t ‘sociological paternity', as used in The Sexual Life of attitudes Savages, seems to mean that even in a society which, like the Trobriands, sociological still denies the facts of ‘biological paternity', pertain to paternity, as zve understand it, which far, may be found. So so good. But Malinowski goes further than this. Instead of arguing, as in the Australian case, that kinship attitudes have a purely social origin, he now insists that social attitudes to kinship arc facts. rooted in universal psycholog ical The paternal relationship contains elements which are necessarily resent in the father/child relationship of all societies, no matter what the circumstances of custom and social structure confusing. may be. This is all very On the one hand the reader is is told quite plainly that the Trobriand child taught to think of his father as a non-relative, as an lO RETHINKING ANTHROPOLOGY individual with the special non-kinship status of mother's husband. But on the other hand the reader is forced to conclude that this ‘IVobriand mother's husband is related to the mother's child ‘as a sociological father', that is to say by ties of kinship as well as by tics of affinity.The argument, as a whole, is self-contradictory. is You may about. well think that this a yery hairsplitting point to make a fuss How can it possibly make any difference whether I think of a parti- cular male as my father or as is my mother's husband? Well, all I can say that anthropologists do Professor Fort es, Dr Goody and Dr Kathleen Gough on this subject that worry about such things. are so disturbed by my heretical yiews oflF time to try to bruise my owski's argument (Fortes, 1959)-