Saturday, August 31, 2019

The Crusade: Unjustified Attack on Muslims

The Crusade, or the â€Å"Holy War† was a medieval military expedition between the Europeans and the Muslims. Their main goal was to conquer the Holy Land, as it will give the conqueror prosperity. Pope Urban II was known for starting the First Crusade which begun in 1096 and lasted till 1099. Within this period of time, chaos and destruction was unavoidable. With both sides having their own schemes of conquer, this resulted to be an endless blood striving battle for control. Despite the clever tactics of the Christians, their attacks toward the Muslims were unjustified. Christians believed that the Crusades were justified because of multiple reasons. Being one of the most powerful religions back then and today, they were well known for their strong devout beliefs. They believed that it was God’s will and their duty to attack the Muslims (Crusaders Capture). This leaded into a more in depth theory that the Crusaders took caution of. Those who failed to achieve their duties serving God, â€Å"He will condemn [you]† (Muslim Belief). Furthermore, the Crusades believed Pope Urban II’s speech. All who die by the way, whether by land or sea, on in battle against the pagans, shall have immediate remission of sins. †(Littell). In exchange for their faith, â€Å"†¦in your coming you will find your reward in heaven. † (Littell) Thus, this convinced them to believe and become attentive to all their activities so they will not displease God for they did not want to face any consequences. It was also an encouragement for Chr istians to confirm their decisions of battling against the Muslims since it gave them hope to think for all that is worth, it was a justifiable action. The Muslims believed that the Christians were unjustified. Firstly, Jerusalem was a holy land to the Muslims, for Muhammad visited a temple that was located there. Their main goal was to protect their land from barbaric vengeances. As for Muslims, they also had their own God. Following the same concepts as the Christians, they relied and trusted the one and only God, Allah. â€Å"There is no god but He, the Living, the Self-subsisting, Eternal. † (Juma) For those who disbelieve God, their punishment will be to receive devastation as well as to fail their mission, returning home defeated and worthless. If a Muslim monarch failed to please their people, they were sentenced for slavery (Beha-ed-Din). People were punished if they did not succeed their commission towards warfare. Convinced by this conjecture, the Muslims were cruel towards the Christians. Their religious beliefs were the main reasons for the Crusades. Both parties, especially the Muslims, had confidence towards their God and it angered the Muslims that the Christians did not believe their one and only Allah. For those who believed in Allah: â€Å"He will help you firm your feet†(Translation). The Muslims trusted these messages therefore it motivated them into satisfying both their nation and religion but left them unjustified due to the Christians. Following this premise, the Crusades were inequitable. By considering the concepts above, it clearly shows that both had different intentions from its many viewing points. However, Muslims tend to show an unrighteous side towards the affects that the Christians had constructed. The Muslims indicated a strong will of unjustification towards its attacks. In 1187, Saladin once more triumphed Jerusalem and most of the Holy Land. Hearing its news, Richard the Lion Heart began the Third Crusade to vanquish the city once and for all. Arriving in 1191, he massacres and held the Muslims as prisoners. Saladin feared that his approaching plans of conquer would definitely cause his empire to collapse therefore, he offered agreements. Nonetheless, Richard stated an execution to be held for the Muslim defenders. Their agreement never worked out accordingly. Richard) In addition, the Muslims had a better rebuttal for ruling Jerusalem. Muhammad had conquered the â€Å"Holy Land. † The Christian power was being dissolved at that time and the Muslims had a period of peace. This is significant because it explains how the Muslims came to occupy the land before the Christians had. They later came back and declared war to regain the city they thought to be theirs also intended to weaken Muslim forces. (Translation) Lastly, the Western scholars in dicated bias towards the Christians leaving this unjust to the Muslims to a greater extent. They â€Å"highlighted the Christian desire to rule the Holy Lands† (Juma). This clearly proves that the Muslims were unsatisfied with this situation. To conclude this, the statements and opinions declared in the previous paragraphs are all debatable from both sides. It is agreeable that they have influential arguments that can take place. The Christian had their own purposes of attacking while Muslim’s motives were to keep the land. To come to a respectable factor, both sides had the same ideal objective. To make what they believe in that was right just. Muslims believed that it was an injustice act that the Christians did. During the period of time, many events occurred that obstructed and caused hardship towards the unlucky. Today, this phenomenon has struck the society into an influence of warfare. This is important because we are able to take notices of what the history had left us either benefiting us in either a positive or negative way. Humans can easily use this as an advantage as well as a weapon towards today’s society.

Friday, August 30, 2019

“Macbeth” and “Brave New World” Comparison Essay Essay

Freedom and individualism are a significant component of contemporary society, however there are many parts of the world where these basic human rights are not granted. The lack of these basic rights are clearly demonstrated in the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare. The leaders of many societies are willing to sacrifice innocent lives in order for society to function according to their visions. Many leaders are willing to sacrifice the freedom of the people in order for society to run the way they want. Furthermore, even the individuals making up the society are quite willing to sacrifice their souls in order to live in an imaginary world. As long as they perceive happiness to be present they are very content to live there. To live in the utopian imaginary worlds of Brave New World and Macbeth, freedom and individuality are often sacrificed. Sacrifice is often a necessity when attempting to create utopian societies. However, these sacrifices are not enough to convince every individual within the society. One of these individuals is Bernard, who was going to be exiled to Iceland by the director, because he does not believe in the society that individuals after Ford believed in. Even though Bernard was conditioned when he was a child, he could not accept what all the other individuals believed. Unlike the other individuals, Bernard has stunted growth and often felt isolated from the rest of society. Further alienating Bernard from the rest of society is his rejection of the promiscuous nature present in his society. He also exhibits the various characteristics of men who existed before Ford. Bernard Marx did not believe in the everyone belonged to everyone theme that was the norm in Fords society. The director wanted to exile Bernard Marx because he did not believe in the society that the director was enforcing. However, Bernard felt strong enough to meet and overcome affliction, strong enough to face even Iceland. (Huxley 106). This mentality was one of the many factors which set Bernard apart from the rest of society. Another man who sets himself apart from society is Macbeth. He plots and succeeds in killing King Duncan after hearing the witchs prophecies.  Macbeths reasons for killing King Duncan are numerous but most striking are greed and an unrelenting desire to become King. He also wants to make sure that he runs the country as he saw fit. Macbeth allows the prophecies to control him and his internal struggle is demonstrated by: This supernatural soliciting Cannot be ill; cannot be good: if ill why hath it given me earnest of success (Shakespeare 27). Despite his initial reluctance, he quiets his conscience leading to the brutal murder of King Duncan. I have done the deed (Shakespeare 70). Both stories show similarity between the Director and Macbeth, who are willing to sacrifice innocent lives to obtain the society they want. Wanting and achieving the society that is envisioned is always paralleled with loss and some sort of sacrifice. Bernard Marx sacrifices the little respect that he has by bringing John Savage back to the utopian society. Bernard and John both want the society to be more independent. Fortunately for Bernard and unfortunately for the director, society accepts John and questions their own lifestyle. Bernard believes that life should be exactly the same as John wants it to be I dont want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness, I want sin.(Huxley 237) Bernard took a huge risk in bringing John back to his society because he was risking definite exile to Iceland had society rejected John. Macbeth sacrifices his peace of mind and self-respect by killing Banquo and trying to kill Banquos son Fleance. At the feast Macbeth makes a fool of himself by talking to the imaginary ghost of Banquo. Blood hath been shed now, I the olden time, Ere human statute purged the gentle weal; Ay, and since too, muders have been performed Too terrible for the ear: the time has been, That when the brains were out, the man would die, And there an end: but now, they rise again, With twenty mortal murders on their crowns, And push us from our stools: this is more strange Than such a murder is.(Shakespeare 145)Many individuals take note of Macbeths strange behavior leading them to suspect him of some foul deed. Unfortunately for Macbeth, Macduff realizes that Macbeth is the true murderer. This realization leads to the eventual killing of Macbeth. This illustrates Macbeths sacrifice of his self respect and his life in order to fulfill his  prophecy. Many individuals are willing to sacrifice their souls in order to become part of the imaginary world where only happiness exists. John Savages mother, Linda, sacrifices her life by taking too much of a drug referred to as soma. Linda wants to get away from the real world and enter a world of happiness. Ever since she had a child with the Director her life changed for the worse. So the best people were quite determined not to see Linda. And Linda, for her part, had no desire to see them. The return to civilization was for her the return to soma, was the possibility of lying in bed and taking holiday after holiday, without ever having to come back to a headache or a fit of vomiting, without ever being made to feel as you always felt after peyotl, as though you’d done something so shamefully anti-social that you could never hold up your head again. Soma played none of these unpleasant tricks. The holiday it gave was perfect and, if the morning after was disagreeable, it was so, not intrinsically, but only by comparison with the joys of the holiday. The remedy was to make the holiday continuous. Greedily she clamoured for ever larger, ever more frequent doses. Dr. Shaw at first demurred; then let her have what she wanted. She took as much as twenty grammes a day (Huxley 107)Lenina introduces the drug to Linda as soon as Linda enters the world after Ford. Linda looses her life and dies at the hospital because of an overdose of soma, the drug that is supposed to provide happiness. Lady Macbeth also sacrifices her peace of mind and eventually her life so that Macbeth could be King. Lady Macbeth sets up the killing of King Duncan at the beginning of the novel. Throughout the novel, Lady Macbeth becomes involved in many of the murders committed by Macbeth. Unfortunately Lady Macbeth experiences a sleepwalking illness with recurring nightmares of the murder of King Duncan that could not be resolved. This disease is beyond my practice: yet I have known those which have walked in their sleep who have died holily in their beds.(Shakespeare 213). The lives of Linda and Lady Macbeth can also be viewed as victims of the utopian societies envisioned by the director and Macbeth. Freedom and individuality are sacrificed throughout Brave New World and  Macbeth in order to achieve the societies envisioned by the director and Macbeth. The director tried to exile Bernard just because Bernard did not accept the norm of the utopian society. Macbeth kills King Duncan after hearing the witchs prophecies of him being King so that he can run society the way he wants. Bernard sacrifices his respect by bringing John Savage back home. Macbeth also sacrifices his respect when he talks to the ghost of Banquo. Linda puts her soul on the line with an overdose of a drug called soma. Lady Macbeth also sacrifices her life in order for Macbeth to be King of Scotland. Many individuals throughout Brave New World and Macbeth sacrifice their freedom and individualism for the society that they believed in, even if it was not the society that was accepted by the majority of people. Bibliography Shakespeare, William, Date Modified: 1999, MacbethHuxley, Aldous, Date Modified: 1979, Brave New World

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 7

Human Resource Management - Essay Example As such, job analysis can be termed to be a component of planning where jobs are studied and analyzed to know the requisite characteristics and nature of the job. With the help of this information, competent and suitable candidates can be employed on that particular job (Ostwald 2003). Jobs make positions, positions make occupations and occupations transform themselves into organizational structure. As such, job analysis is the building block of not only human resources function, but also organizational behavior, structure and planning (Fig.1). Planning, recruitment, training and appraisal- all other HRM activities directly stem out from job analysis. Job analysis is actually a comprehensive data collection technique where some data relates to the job specifications and other pertains to the individuals. Thus, number of employee, characteristics of employees, nature and mode of training and objective appraisal of employees can be done only on the basis of job analysis. Evaluation of job- with the help of job analysis, relative worth of jobs is ascertained which in turn helps in determining the base compensation and relevance of the job in the organization. This proves to be an important criterion of cost cutting and cost saving activity for a firm. Employee development- when both the specifications of job and the individuals handling the job are determined in advance, it becomes easier to benchmark the performance levels and analyze the gaps. Moreover, specific areas of gap can be figured out which can then be resolved by using employee counseling and training sessions. Safety measures- process of job analysis is applied in all kinds of jobs be it technical, clerical or managerial. Therefore, it extends a bit beneficial in technical jobs where use of tools, machinery and equipments can give rise to hazardous conditions and unhealthy workplace environment. Job analysis tries to do away with

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Teching ICT for Special Need Pupil Between Theory and Practice Essay

Teching ICT for Special Need Pupil Between Theory and Practice - Essay Example To make ICT practical in addressing the needs of students with special needs, there is need to sensitize the community on the role that ICT can play in education of those with special needs. INTRODUCTION There are pupils faced with all manners of learning disabilities whether physical, educational, emotional, mental, or may be a combination of all the above problems. Problems like autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, epilepsy, spinal bifida, and others present compounding disabilities which teachers find difficult to deal with. These problems present various kinds of learning disabilities ranging from mental problems to behavioral problems. Behavioral problems make it difficult for student to associate with others in the learning environment which defies the order of learning as an associative activity. It is good to realize that the world has moved from early problems of deafness and blindness which has defined learning disabilities for along time, and has moved to addressing the previously mentioned problems. The world is coming to realization that disability is no inability. There has been a vigorous campaign from all over the world in a bid to encourage the education of those with special needs. For a long time disabled children have been considered as unfit to pursue higher levels of education as compared to their normal counterparts. Students with learning disabilities have faced a lot of problems integrating in the same classrooms with other students. This has led to development of special teaching classrooms for those students with special needs. In a learning environment, teachers are faced with various problems of addressing the needs of the students which are as diverse as the students themselves. Those with physical disabilities will require... This paper stresses that to make ICT more practical to students with special needs, it is also good to start with training the community first of the importance that ICT can play in education of these children. This will involve mobilization of the community which turns out to be holding teachers, parents and the children themselves. This report makes a conclusion that the use of ICT in the learning process of students with special needs is very vital. It is very important models of learning that can help student with learning disability achieve the same education calibre like other children. It is beneficial not only to the students but also to the community as a whole. However we have seen the many hurdles that make the process impractical. This is the point that all the authorities in the world should strive to address right now. Implementing ICT in special schools should not be seen only as a burden of the parents and teacher alone nor should it be taken as a problem to be tackled by the authority alone but rather it should be seen as burden that everybody has to tackle. All of us have an input that can make the process more practical. It is time the world moved from the theoretical mentioning of the process and moves to make it more practical. Going by its benefits, it is worth our trial. There is need for t he world to move fast and address the digital divide that has currently rocked the world. The ICT gap between the developed and the developing world has increased with a huge gap and there is need for it to be addressed fast. This can only be done through increasing access to ICT facilities to the developing world. This will also involve involving students with learning disabilities more in the digital world which will help in their holistic development.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Governments talk about regulating the Internet and taxing Ecommerce Essay

Governments talk about regulating the Internet and taxing Ecommerce. a) what problems might governments encounter in regulating the internet b) what dif - Essay Example Going by current practices, "regulation [has] largely confined itself to the physical boundaries of the regulating state" (Thierer & Crews). The Internet however, makes physical boundaries irrelevant. Legal boundaries determining the rights and obligations of users and questions of jurisdiction in cases of violation of country specific laws all remain contentious issues. If User A in Country A, were to commit an illegal act over the internet terminating in Country B, who would have jurisdiction to prosecute User A What would be the status if the said illegal act were not to be illegal in Country A Since the Internet is global, are the regulations global too Internet regulations therefore would have to keep many such considerations in mind. Any one country cannot possibly hope to legislate on behalf of the entire world, given the ubiquitous nature of the internet. Similarly, questions arise as to whether separate regulations for the Internet are required at all, or whether rules and r egulations already existing and applicable to the 'physical world' would suffice. Given the globalized nature of international trade, many of the issues of jurisdiction have already been addressed by trans-national laws.

Monday, August 26, 2019

Democracy and New Media Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Democracy and New Media - Article Example The new media has exponentially augmented the access to information and has dramatically expanded the scope of free speech. The global flow of information has enabled people around the world to test and contrast the archaic models of civic life with the emerging trends and influences. The pivotal question in this context is that is the new media ubiquitous and if it is so, does it have the potential to contribute to the cause of democracy at a global scale? I s new media contributing to democratic values in Castro’s Cuba or in war ravaged Afghanistan? A general perusal of the history establishes beyond doubt that one or other form of media did play an essential role in the dissemination of political values and ideologies in the 20th century. Lenin’s smuggling of Iskra into Russia, nine decades ago is an apt example of the subversion of a regime through the usage of media (Leighley, 2003).

Sunday, August 25, 2019

The Current United States Recession Research Paper

The Current United States Recession - Research Paper Example If the GDP decreases, it is a clear indication that the economy is performing dismally. Other indicators include national and personal income, and if these reduce, it is an indication of a recession. The retail sales reflect the purchasing power of consumers, so if there is a decline in retail sales, the country is likely to witness a recession. Evidence of a recession can be witnessed from a decline in government taxes due to the fact they are obtaining less taxable income and buying fewer goods that can be taxed. In the construction industry, the effects of the recession are felt when the sales of the houses drastically reduce. The construction industry is a segment of the financial system that is prone to recession. In the event a recession occurs it will be manifested in this industry. The purchasing power of consumers diminishes. The active growth seems to be slowed down near stagnation. Construction work therefore slows down due to the slump in the sales of the houses (Roubini, 2008). This in turn renders a lot of workers jobless. Expansionary fiscal policies have tried to limit the damage in conjunction with bailouts and government funds. With the recession, it is quite evident that the construction sector will face an extremely demanding task and it also threatens to limit any construction activity in the near future. Even despite the fact that the government is enthusiastic on prioritizing some of the infrastructure projects the spending cuts limit the job security for most of the construction workers. Additionally, the house building activity is likely to be restricted by the weak housing market activity and low house prices. The recession forces the prices of the houses to decline due to low purchasing power. In the society as a whole, the labor market is likely to decrease due to the lack of employment; consumer confidence is likely to diminish as they will be uncertain if they will be able to pay for the house once they are jobless (Cline, 2005). I nvestors in the construction industry are likely to pull out for fear of losing their money. Consumer spending is down to 4% since the recession began and the retail sales volumes have remained resilient. The recession has taken its toll on the labor market as the employment rate has fallen to 70%, which is much lower than in the previous quarter. The long term jobs are expected to be subdued. Apart from the public housing sector, the private sector also felt the effect of the decline on the economy. Due to the house price uncertainties and strict mortgage lending there has been a reduction in the sales. Buyer are opting for the â€Å"wait and see† approach to see if the prices can be reasonable. Objective 2 With reference to the business cycle, economic growth is not a steady phenomenon; rather it follows a specific pattern. These include an expansion of above average growth, a peak, a contraction of below average growth and a low point. The troughs are followed by periods o f expansion and the cycle generally repeats itself, though not in a usual manner (New York Times, 2010). The fluctuations in economic growth are regarded as the business cycle. The business cycle is related to the economic activity which is a popular indicator of the GDP. Economists generally consider two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth to act as an

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Infectious disease Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Infectious disease - Essay Example The HIV virus damages the immune system by damaging CD4+ lymphocytes and marring cell-mediated immunity, which impedes the body’s ability to combat infections thereby rendering the body susceptible to diseases (McCutchan, 2013). As a result, when other viruses, bacteria or pathogens gain access to the body, they fail to get resistance from the host body immune system hence cause disease. Thereafter, a person with the HIV virus in his or her body is said to have AIDS when the immune system gets compromised. AIDS is a multiplex of signs and illnesses brought about by the effects of HIV on the immune system. From the name, an individual must come into contact with the virus to have an infection. HIV virus thrives in biological fluids such as human blood, semen, and vaginal secretions. Breast milk also contains the virus. Other body fluids such as amniotic fluid surrounding a fetus as well fluids surrounding organs such as the brain or the spinal cord also contain the HIV virus. HIV virus exits the host through various portals such as the mucus membranes, open wounds, bloodstream, and genital tract. The breasts also serve as a portal of exit for infected mothers who breastfeed their infants. HIV virus moves from the reservoir to a new host through participating in unprotected oral, vaginal or anal sexual intercourse with an infected person. According to the World Health Organization, HIV/AIDS spreads mainly through sexual contact thereby making it classified as a sexually transmitted infection (2015). Sharing needles with a person who is infected with HIV also leads to transmission of the virus. Consequently, the abuse of injectable drugs such as heroine is associated with high rates of HIV transmission. Expectant mothers infected with the HIV virus can also transmit it to their babies in the course of the gestation period, during childbirth or while breastfeeding. However, recent advancements in the prevention of mother to child

Managed health care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Managed health care - Essay Example with American Medical Association (AMA) becoming a national force bringing awareness in 1900s (PBS), the call for advancement in medicinal procedures and the want to lure and maintain a healthy work force of organizations. This resulted in inelastic expenditure on health with establishment of Federal responsibility to ensure health security and devising of health insurance policies. There arose a shortage of health-manpower as demand for health facilities increased. More money was now officially (from 4.5% in the beginning to 15% currently, of the total budget) put into the making of the specialized doctors who demanded greater fee, breakthrough sophistication in medicine were taking place, and hospital expenses and profits were expanding till the point it became an integrated, privatized and corporatized system. Other important factors that contributed to the rising health costs included exploitation of fee-for-service method, general inflation in economy, greater demand of services as a result of greater and aging population (AWHP) and speculation over changing government policies. Managed-health-care, which took over as a result of exploitation of pay-as-needed method of health care programs, mostly sapped these factors of rising costs. Firstly, the appointment of third party kept the interest of both consumer and financier of the health benefit in view. It put the urgency and necessity of the service consumed under unbiased third party scrutiny, enabled cost effective group contracting with health-service providers and minimized the chances of exploitation with maximum consumer satisfaction. At the same time the service provider (hospital etc) were also brought to account for their charges which in turn reviewed the money minting privatization and brought the overall cost of health care in check. Consumer-driven heath care as the name suggests empowers the consumer to the health care program. It enables more space in decision making for the consumer, with

Friday, August 23, 2019

The role of consideration in contract Outline Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The role of consideration in contract - Outline Example Many European countries have adopted the position that any agreement that is both serious and lawful is a contract, but under English law, an agreement, even if serious and lawful, can only be enforced if consideration is present (Mothersole & Ridley 1999:360). Consideration thus, separates enforceable contracts from unenforceable ones, constituting the first of the three-pronged tests in contract enforceability (Stone 2011:87). The difference between these systems is thought to be historical-based, with the English assumpsit, or legal action for breach of promise or contract, traced back to commercial needs whilst continental law originated from the canon law and the principle of good faith (Chandler & Brown 2007:46). Another significance of consideration is that it provides intent of the parties to be legally bound by their agreement. Thus, even a token amount can be deemed consideration although it may be inadequate or insufficient. The Court has held, for example, that  £1 per annum was consideration in Thomas v Thomas [1842] 2 QB 851 and generally declared that parties may enter a contract for any amount of consideration, even valueless ones, in Chapell & Co Ltd v Nestle Co Ltd [1960] AC 87 (Chandler & Brown

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Summarise Risks of Assessment Essay Example for Free

Summarise Risks of Assessment Essay There are many different risks that you need to take into account when you are planning assessments. When dealing with anything that involves two separate parties there are many issues that could arise which could affect the intended outcome. When training students there are risks that surround the level of commitment that the student has to the course they are doing. If they are not enthusiastic about what they are learning, due to them potentially being forced into the learning environment could affect their level of work. This could then affect the whole assessment process. If the learner has no interest in the subject that they are learning then they may not keep their work up to date or attend their study days. To minimise the risk of that happening a clear and detailed explanation of the course and the expectations of the learner throughout the course period should be given to the learner when they sign up. Students that are not committed to learning are also a risk that could affect the whole assessment procedure. If a student does not want to commit to the learning process the chances of getting work in on time and study days attended is minimal. This will then affect the whole assessment process and risk the learner not having the correct units in on time and falling behind with their work. There are some literal risks that you could come across when going through the assessment process. The learners could have a negative view on learning and education due to previous experiences. They may have had experiences in the past that have influenced their views which could make the learning experience very hard for them, if they are negative towards learning this could make it hard for the other learners in the group. It could make study days hard if there is a negative attitude within the group setting, which could have an effect on the learning experience of others. The learners could have many different issues that could affect their assessment process, they could have personal issues that could create difficulties throughout the assessment process, and they could become ill and struggle to attend heir placements/settings. The learners could have an additional learning which could affect the work they produce or their understanding of the work that is being taught, this could then frustrate the learner with could result in the learner feeling they no longer want to continue with the course. As a tutor/assessor you have to have a good knowledge of all the learners within your groups so you can ensure that you are providing them with the support they need to complete the course effectively and on time. To enable you to do this you need to take the time to gain a knowledge and understanding of what level the learner is working at with regards to their functional/key skills, if they have any previous experience of the course subject that they are doing and what they want to achieve by doing the course. Ensure you read all the information gained by the training account manager is vital to the assessment process. When going through the assessment process you need to ensure that the learners have a relationship with you as a tutor, so they can feel comfortable speaking to you. They need to know that they can contact you for support and advice. By ensuring this you are improving the chances of the learners informing you if they are struggling with any work or if they have issues that may affect them completing their work or attending study days. Each learner has a tracker which help the tutor/assessor to keep track of the student’s progress, to ensure that the risks of complications and problems with the assessment process tutors need to be ensuring that they implement action plans for the learners as soon as they become behind on any of their work. This with allow the learner to have a clear picture of what is missing and expected of them to catch up with their work. It also enables the learner to see that you are aware of the work that is needed and how they are going to complete it to enable them to catch up. Planning throughout the assessment process is vital to ensuring that the learners achieve the goals that are set for them and to ensure that they know exactly what is expected of them in order to gain their qualification. Tutors/assessors need to ensure that they keep up to date with their plans and if anything on their original plan needs to be adjusted it is immediately, to reduce the risk of leaners becoming behind and struggling with any of their work. Ensuring that work that is handed in is marked and feedback is given as soon as possible is very important throughout the assessment process so the learners know how they are doing. They can see their progress which could potentially increase their confidence and self-esteem which could encourage them to work harder throughout their course.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Transport Layer Network Layer Protocols Attack

Transport Layer Network Layer Protocols Attack Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1: Background Data Communication technologies and the underlying protocols in the twenty-first century is one of the critical elements that acts as the backbone for electronic commerce and use of the world-wide-web (Todd and Johnson, 2001[1]). The increase in the growth of electronic commerce as well as other forms of internet-based secure communication have increased not only the risks associated with networking related attacks that involve in the loss of personal information and possible financial loss to the victims. One of the major components in the Internet communication is the underlying protocol that governs the compilation and communication of the information from the source computer to the target and back (Nash et al, 2001[2]). The role of the protocols in the networking also has a key influence on its ability to securely deliver the information as part of the overall communication architecture. This makes it clear that the robustness of the protocol and the extent to which a given proto col architecture can resist intruder attacks through encryption efficiency etc dictates the security associated with the information transfer as argued by Todd and Johnson, (2001). In this report a critical overview on the transport layer and the network layer protocols of the TCP/IP protocol architecture is presented to the reader. The research aims to throw light on the possible security attacks on these protocols and the possible countermeasures in order to prevent such attacks. The attacks in these cases mainly concern with the infringement of the information through unauthorised access bypassing the security or breaking the encryption surrounding the information being transported. 1.2: Aim and Objectives The aim of this research is to investigate the possible attacks on the Transport layer Network layer protocols and present possible countermeasures on overcoming the threat of these attacks on the day-to-day Internet-based data communication. The above aim of the research is accomplished through embracing the research on the following objectives To conduct a literature review on the Transport and Network layers of the TCP/IP protocol architecture. To conduct a critical overview on the possible types of attacks on the Transport Layer and Network Layer protocols. To present a critical analysis on the possible countermeasures to prevent the attacks on the Transport layer protocols. 1.3: Research Methodology A qualitative approach is used to conduct the research. Since there are five layers to the TCP/IP model of which the research aims to investigate the protocols associated with the Transport and Network layer, a qualitative approach is deemed effective as the infrastructure required to simulate tests for conducting a quantitative research is limited for conducting the research. As it is also apparent that the analysis on the five layers of the TCP/IP model is beyond the scope of the research conducted in this report, the research conducted mainly focuses on the key threats and possible types of attacks on the protocols of the TCP/IP layers discussed. 1.4: Chapter Overview Chapter 1: Introduction This is the current chapter that presents the aim, objectives and brief overview on the research conducted to the reader. Chapter 2: Literature Review This chapter presents an overview on the layers of the TCP/IP model followed by a detailed overview on the key Transport layer and Network layer protocols. The chapter also presents a brief overview on the network attacks and the possible threats associated with the Internet data transfer. Chapter 3: Protocol Attacks This chapter presents a critical overview on the types of attacks on the Transport Layer and Network Layer protocols. The chapter presents a critical analysis on the methods used and the potential losses that may result due to the attacks. Chapter 4: Countermeasures This chapter presents a critical overview on the possible countermeasures that are implemented in order to prevent the attacks discussed in chapter 3. A comparative study on the countermeasures discussed is also presented in this chapter. Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1: Internet Security in the twenty-first century The increase in the need for internet security from unauthorised access and malicious attacks is not only due to the need protecting personal/sensitive information of the users but also the service providers (Ganesh and Thorsteinson, 2003[3]). This is naturally because of the fact that the service providers can perform effectively only when the requests sent to the server are valid thus making justifiable use of the resources (Rayns et al, 2003[4]). The use of the resources in terms of the number of connections and the allocation of memory to cater for each connection established with the web server of the service provider is deemed to attribute to the extent to which a given website establishment performs effectively. This makes it clear that the need for internet security is not only a matter of protecting personal information but also effective utilisation of the computer resources dedicated for the purpose as argued by Rayns et al (2003). Walden (2007)[5] further argues that the security over the internet is mainly accomplished through implementing security measures on the connection-oriented and connection-less protocol used for transferring information from one end to another. It is interesting to note that the above focuses especially on the resource utilisation and protection of computer from malicious attacks through ensuring that the communication to and from the computer are not only secure but also valid. It is necessary to ensure both the validity and security of a given connection over the internet because of the former corresponds to the availability of the service whilst the later attribute to the reliability of the available service (Walden, 2007). It is also interesting to note that the prevention of unauthorised access to information systems connected to the Internet is deemed effective as opposed to implementing access control on each individual system as argued by Todd and Johnson (2001). This makes i t clear that the implementation of the security over the Internet is mainly through implementing the preventive measures against malicious attacks through strengthening the protocols used in the various layers of the TCP/IP model. As the TCP/IP model forms the basis for communication over the internet, it is apparent that the robustness of the protocols implemented in each layer of the TCP/IP stack dictates the effectiveness of the Internet security implemented (Walden, 2007). In the next section a critical overview of the TCP/IP model is presented to the reader. 2.2: TCP/IP Model ‘TCP/ IP is a set of rules that defines how two computers address each other and send data to each other’ as argued by Blank (2004) (p1)[6]. Naturally the above makes it clear that TCP/IP is merely a framework that governs the methods to be deployed in order to enable communication over the internet between two computing devices. As TCP/IP is platform independent in nature, it provides a communication framework that can be deployed across any given operating system on a computing device connected to the Internet or even a dedicated network as opposed to the World Wide Web. This further opens room for development of new protocols and communication standards/rules that can be implemented using the TCP/IP model on any one of its five layers as argued by Rayns et al (2003). Hence securing the information being transferred from one end to another over a given network or the Internet can be accomplished through implementing a combination of protocols to operate within the laye rs of the TCP/IP framework. The five layers of the TCP/IP model are Application Layer Transport Layer Network Layer Data Link Layer and Physical Layer. From the above it is evident that TCP/IP can be implemented in a given network using any number of protocols in each layer of the TCP/IP model depending upon the level of security required and the speed in data transfer. This is because of the fact that the increase in the number of protocols naturally increases the size of the data packet being transferred as part of the communication thus having a direct impact on the speed of communication as argued by Rayns et al (2003). It must also be noted that the protocols presented in each layer of the TCP/IP model shown in Fig 1 is merely a selection and not the exhaustive list of the protocol suite. From the model represented in Fig 1 one should also appreciate that the layers of the TCP/IP model are arranged in a logical fashion so that the protocols closer to the top at the layer 1 associate themselves with the computing applications that handle data encryption and security. The protocols to the bottom of the TCP/IP stack on layer 5 on the other hand associate themselves with the actual data transfer from one end to another through establishing connection and enabling communication between sender and receiver as argued by Blank (2004). As the research presented in this report focuses on the Transport and Network layers of the TCP/IP model a detailed overview on the five layers is beyond the scope of this report. A brief overview on each TCP/IP layer is presented below. Application Layer – This layer of the TCP/IP model comprises of the protocols that associate with the handling of data and the encryption of the information order to effectively transfer the information from one end to another. The application layer is also deemed as the layer of the TCP/IP model that communicates with the actual application that is handling the information prior to its transfer over the Internet. The protocols of the application layer enable the interaction between the computer and the actual web application that performs the business logic associated with the application prior to preparing the information for transfer over the Internet. This makes it clear that the application layer encryption is mainly associated with the segmentation of the data into packets and allocates the associated headers in order to enable their transfer over the Internet. This also makes it clear that the security associated with the information transfer is not implemented at the A pplication Layer of the TCP/IP model. This makes it clear that the application layer protocols are extensively used in case of client server applications where the data transfer between the client and the server is in the full-duplex mode (Feit, 1998[7]). Transport Layer – This is the actual layer that manages the connection between the two computers and the success or failure of the information being transferred as argued by Blank (2004). The purpose of the Transport layer protocol as the name suggests is to ensure the secure and successful transfer of information over the Internet between the communicating parties as argued by Ganesh and Thorsteinson (2003). The process of enabling end-to-end communication for successful data transfer is the major task that is accomplished using the Transport layer of the TCP/IP model. It is also interesting to not that the transport layer of the TCP/IP model provides the error tracking, flow control and data fragmentation capabilities independent of the underlying network as argued by Feit (1998). The transport layer of the TCP/IP model also performs the task of assigning the header to the data fragment off the overall information being transferred from one end to another. The transport layer of the TCP/IP model implements two forms of communication strategies. These are connection-oriented and connectionless implementation as discussed below. Connection-Oriented Implementation – The TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) protocol of the transport layer accomplishes the connection-oriented strategy of data communication. The connection-oriented approach o data communication corresponds to the process where a connection must be available between the communicating parties in conformance with the authentication and association rules prior to actually performing data transfer. This makes it clear that the data transfer in case of a connection-oriented approach depends on the extent to which the connection being established is live between the communicating computers. This makes it clear that the data transfer in a connection-oriented implementation can be accomplished only with the ability to maintain the connection between the computers thus making the data transfer reliable as argued by Feit (1998). This is naturally because of the fact that termination of the connection of loss of connection established during the cours e of the communication/data transfer would trigger a request to resend the information thus providing room for transferring all the information from one end to another. The session based communication strategies in terms of enabling the communication security is one of the key features of the connection-oriented implementation as prolonged inactivity or termination of the session will naturally terminate the connection established thus protecting the information transferred over the internet. Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) which will be discussed in the next section depends on the establishment of a connection-oriented communication strategy in order to ensure that the communication between the two computers using the connection oriented approach will help protect the information being transferred by the transport layer protocol. As discussed earlier, the transfer of information from one end to another in a communication channel is accomplished through segmenting the information in to equal sized segments of data called packets that are assigned a header containing the details of the packet as well as its sequence in the information being transfer. The connection-oriented implementation of the transport layer has following key features Sequential data transfer – This is method which follows the First-in First-out (FIFO) strategy. Thus the sequence in which the data packets are received is the same in which it is being sent from the source computer. This approach is deemed secure to ensure that the information being transferred is not tampered with and loss of one of the packets will enable the sender to resend the entire information again. However, the major disadvantage is that the increase in the size of the information will result in poor performance in terms of speed of data transfer. Higher level of error control –As the connection oriented approach ensures that the connection established is live between the sender and the receiver throughout the entire communication process, it is clear that the error control is accomplished successfully through enabling the sender to resend the packets that were not received in the initial transfer. The control in the loss of packets using the above resend strategy naturally minimizes the error associated with the data transfer. Duplication Control – The connection-oriented strategy also has the inherent ability to eliminate duplicate data packets transferred thus allowing the connection-oriented architecture to ensure consistency in the information being transferred. Congestion Control – The TCP protocol monitors the network traffic as part of the transport layer activities. This ensures that that the session established between the sender and the receiver can transfer the required information successfully prior to reaching the session time-out situation as argued by Feit (1998). The client-server communication over the internet is a classical example for the implementation of a connection oriented strategy in the Transport layer of the TCP/IP model. The use of the PKI in the communication is one of the key aspects of the connection-oriented implementation that makes the TCP protocol a key element in the secure data transfer strategies of the day. Connectionless Implementation – As the name suggests the connectionless implementation is the case where a dedicated connection is not required to complete the data transfer between the communicating computer as argued by Blank (2004). The User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is used in the case of connectionless implementation where the transfer of the data packets merely comprises the packet order and the source/target details alone. This makes it clear that the transfer of data can be achieved at a higher rate as the authentication and validation of the data transferred is not restricted to a time frame or the session that controls the communication. However, the major issue associated is the lack of security and inaccuracy of the data transferred. Alongside, the key issue with the UDP protocol and the connectionless implementation is the lack of traceability of the information thus resulting in a non-reliable communication channel as argued by Blank (2004). The UDP is thus deemed to be an insecure mode of communication over the internet due to the lack of security measures apart from authentication and identification of the communicative parties. It is further important to appreciate that implementing PKI using the connectionless approach would result the exposure of the information and the lack of effective acknowledgement of the authentication between the communicating computers thus affecting the information security providing room for network attacks that can directly affect the information being transferred through the connection. Network Layer – Blank (2004) argues that the network layer of the TCP/IP model performs the task of delivery of the data within the network one the data packet has reached the appropriate network subnet. This makes it clear that the network layer of the TCP/IP model plays a critical role in identifying the correct network target/destination in order to enable effective communication between the communicating parties as argued by Feit (1998). In case of the World Wide Web, the Network Layer plays the vital role of identifying the destination network and enabling the routing of the packets through the network in order to effectively reach the destination without the data being tampered by unauthorised users. The protocols that are widely used in the Network layer include the Internet Protocol (IP) and the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP). The Routing Information Protocol (RIP) of the information TCP/IP model which is predominantly used in the Application layer plays a vi tal role in the network layer for enabling routing of the information across the networks in order to effectively reach the target computer in the communication channel established over the Internet. It is further critical to appreciate the fact that the routing of the packets alone is not the task of the network layer protocols but also to enable the transport layer protocol to effectively enable the communication and data transfer between the communicating computers. This makes it clear that network attacks over the internet by hackers to affect the performance of the communicating computers in order to gain unauthorised access is accomplished through manipulating the communication strategies implemented by the protocols in the Transport and Network Layers of the TCP/IP model. The access to information and the actual infringement of the information which is deemed as the consequence of the hacking or network attack is related to the infringement of the information at the applicati on layer protocols that hold the actual information being transferred (Blank, 2004). However, the attacks themselves that facilitate the aforementioned are accomplished through manipulating the procedures associated with the Transport Layer and Network Layer protocols. The attacks typically include spoofing, overloading, flooding etc., which are discussed in detail at chapter 3 of this report. The Data Link Layer and the Physical Layer of the TCP/IP model involve the actual hardware based communication strategies that are beyond the scope of this research. Hence these two layers of the TCP/IP model are not discussed any further. It is important to appreciate the fact that the top three layers of the TCP/IP stack interact frequently in order to enable the secure communication and allocation of computing resources on the computing devices involved in the communication (Blank, 2004). 2.3: Public Key Infrastructure – an overview PKI implements a form of cryptography known as the asymmetric cryptography in order to enable secure communication between two computers over the Internet as argued by Todd and Johnson (2001). This process mainly involves the use of a public key and private key that are used for encrypting and decrypting the information at the client and server ends respectively (Blank, 2004). The process of encryption is beyond the scope of this research although its role in the secure communication and the extent to which a hacker can manipulate the authentication strategies for launching an attack is relevant to the research. Hence the discussion in this section mainly concerns with the handshake and the communication strategies deployed along with an overview of the players in the PKI. This will help in identifying the various attacks plausible and the level manipulation that can be implemented by the hacker over the protocols used in order to infringe the communication between the client and ser ver computers. It is deemed that the PKI is a reliable communication strategy to implement secure communication through the use of Trusted Third Party (TTP) authentication and approval of the overall communication process between the server and the client computers. The key components of the PKI infrastructure that enable successful and reliable communication over the internet are discussed below Certificate Authority (CA) – The CA is the issuer and control of the public key and the digital certificate associated with the authentication and transfer of secure information over the connection established using the TCP protocol. The primary role of the CA is to generate the public and the private keys simultaneously for a given server computer or service provider (Blank, 2004). The public key as the name suggests is made available over the public domain for encryption/decryption of the information at the client-end of the connection. The private key is not shared and stored at the server which is used for encryption/decryption of the information as applicable at the server end of the connection established for communication. From the above description it is evident that the role of the CA in the PKI is pivotal for the effective implementation of the PKI for secure communication free of network attacks. This is because, if the server hosting the CA application is attacked either using cross site scripting or flood attacks, the public keys stored as well as the associated certificates for verification are compromised thus resulting in the hacker gaining control over the communication channel without the knowledge of the server or the client as argued by Blank (2004). This makes it clear that the security at the CA computer is critical to establish a reliable TTP computer for implementing connection-oriented communication using TCP protocol of the TCP/IP model. Registering Authority (RA) – The RA as the name implies is the verifier of the digital certificate before it is issued to a requestor as argued by Todd and Johnson (2001). The role of the RA computer in the PKI implementation is to enable an independent authorisation of the digital certificates issued thus providing a secondary verification of the information prior to communicating to the server. This presence of an independent verifying program or computer as part of the communication makes the PKI a reliable communication strategy to implemented connection-oriented communication over the internet in a secure fashion. It is also deemed to the key weakness of the PKI strategy owing to the fact that the reliability of the RA as a TTP in the communication process dictates the effectiveness of the communication and the protection of the server from intruder attacks as argued by Todd and Johnson (2001). However, the reliability of the CA or RA is not the issue of debate in this re search but the potential attacks that threaten the stability of the computers hosting the CA and RA programs in order to enable secure connection oriented implementation across the Internet. The key area where the attacks can be accomplished by hackers to disable the RA or the CA computer eventually compromising the information held within is the use process of handshake where the RA or the CA computer is expected to receive an acknowledgement (ACK) from the requesting computer for each message successfully communicated. It is through manipulating these handshake communications a CA or RA can be compromised as the communication channel is expected to open for a specific time period to receive the ACK as well as allocate sufficient resources to complete the data transfer. Abuse of this feature is one of the major areas where the connection-oriented communication faces threat of attacks. These are discussed in chapter 3 elaborately. Directories – The directories are the locations on the public domain that host the public keys for enabling the encryption of the information. The keys are normally held in more than one location in order to enable easy/quick access to the information as well as a verification strategy to ensure that the key retrieved is indeed the valid one for data transfer between the client a given server computer. Certificate Management System (CMS) – This is the application that controls or monitors the certificates issued and facilitates the verification process. The CMS forms the core of the PKI infrastructure as the CA and RA computers in the given PKI implementation are expected to host a validated CMS program to enable the connection-oriented communication between the client and the server. The key issue associated with the case described above is the fact that the CMS program itself is an independent application and hence its reliability/robustness to prevent malicious attacks alone dictates the extent to which a given CA or RA is reliable over the Internet. The key security strategy in case of the PKI implementation is the sharing of the public key whilst retaining the private key at the server computer as argued by Burnett and Paine (2001) [8]. This strategy allows the server computer to effectively encrypt or decrypt the information without depending upon the public key and hence leading a two pronged attack as the information encrypted using private key can be deciphered using the public key and vice versa. Although the use of the two independent keys helps overcome the security threats to the information being transferred, the transfer process itself is not governed by the PKI. This is the major weakness of the PKI infrastructure that allows room for malicious attacks that can hamper the performance by the CA, Ra or the host server computers as argued by Burnett and Paine (2001). From the above discussion it is evident that the security established using the PKI is mainly dependant on the following key elements of the PKI infrastructure CA and RA – The validity and reliability of these computers play a vital role in the effective implementation of the PKI. Apart from the fact that the client computer sending the information depends upon these computers security of the information in its entirety, it is also clear that the availability of these computers and their responses in terms of session time control and preventing session time-out cases are critical to enable successful communication in a connection-oriented implementation using the TCP protocol. An attack on the hosting server for the CA or the RA mainly in terms of flooding or denial of Service will result in the failure of the PKI infrastructure in terms of lack of availability. This situation is one of the major elements that must be addressed as part of the security strategies to be implemented on the transport layer protocols. Encryption Algorithm – The encryption algorithm used for issuing the public and private keys is another element that influences the security and reliability of the PKI as argued by Burnett and Paine (2001). The effectiveness of the hashing algorithm used for the purpose is not only essential for ensuring the security of the information through encryption but also dictates the size of the information for transmission after encryption as well as the speed associated with the data transfer for a given encryption strategy. As the complexity of the encryption algorithm naturally increases the size of the data being transferred thus affecting the speed associated with the communication, it is critical to establish a balance between security and speed in order to enable effective communication over an established connection. It is also important to note that the use of encryption algorithm dictates the extent to which a hacker can hack into the information that is being transfer whil st launching a transport/network layer attack as argued by Burnett and Paine (2001). It is deemed that the hackers through launching malicious attacks at the transport layer or the network layer tend to utilise the time gap to decipher the information being transferred in order to use the data for personal benefits. This makes it clear that the code hacking at the protocol level mainly attribute to the speed with which a given payload data transferred over a connection can be decrypted prior to termination of the connection itself as argued by Burnett and Paine (2001). From the above arguments we can deduce that the encryption poses the threat of single point of failure to the PKI in terms either being weak to prevent infringement or highly strong affecting the communication speed as argued by Nash et al (2001). Advantages or benefits of PKI The major benefits of the PKI include the following The TTP presence enables higher level of security through verification by independent entities in the communication process. The CA and RA in the PKI play a vital role in achieving the aforementioned. The dedication of resources for developing stronger algorithms to generate reliable public and private keys is yet another advantage associated with the PKI implementation. This makes it clear that the transport layer protocol (TCP) of the network layer protocol (IP, ICMP) weaknesses in terms of the request for resend and other key elements of connection verification can be overcome through robust algorithms. The growth f the electronic commerce at an exponential rate is one of the key factors that attribute to the availability of resources dedicated to the development of the PKI security strategies (Nash et al, 2001). The security infrastructure behind the storage and retrieval of the public keys is yet another area where the reliability and effectiveness of the PKI is evident. The fact that in case of reliable CA and RA, the security is indeed robust and the information being transferred is secure as well as the communication process as argued by Nash et al (2001). Constraints, Weaknesses and threats TTP reliability and costs – As discussed before the major issue is the TTP reliability. The involvement of the TTP not only questions the

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Migrant Life in Greece During the Economic Crisis

Migrant Life in Greece During the Economic Crisis Tsiori Maria Abstract For a long time Greece has been a country of emigration. Despite the ongoing economic downturn of recent years the country has turned into a host country for many migrants from Africa and Asia mainly as a gateway illegally, into the EU. Consequently, this migratory movement in this country has attracted a lot of academic interest as the issue is of vast importance to not only the EU but also the Greek government , Greek society and migrants alike. The aim of this work is to provide an in depth view of migrant life in Greece at present both through their eyes and from the perspective of the people their presence impacts upon. Migration to Greece through Turkey, especially has exploded recently and this thesis will explore the reasons migrants have ended up in Greece whilst in transit further west or the reasons they end up settling there and how the current economic climate of Greece itself is directly affecting migrant lives. It will investigate how much the migrants integrate into G reek culture or the extent of the formation of their own social networks within the country and whether this integration or lack thereof affects the air of xenophobia seemingly increasing as of late. Moreover , it will investigate how the Greek government is handling the issue , the related animosity from either side and the positive and negative aspects the migrants have on Greek society both in the immediate area and on a larger scale both economically and socially. Literature view The collection and review of relevant literature went on throughout course of the project and included both empirical and theoretical texts. As far as the former are concerned we reviewed the recent literature on the European emigration at times of crisis as well as academic texts which deal with issue of emigration and economic crises more broadly. A person occupying another country for over a year is defined as a long-term migrant by the EU, and a short-term migrant over three months but under a year (UN DESA 1998) with a clear distinction from tourism but the ultimate intentions of that movement of individuals may be unclear or may even evolve with time and give rise to the use of other definitions of migration as can be seen with seasonal migration. A major factor influencing human societies is that of migration and an ever increasing amount of investigation and analysis into this issue and the effects of it. It is by no means a new phenomenon with many large scale movements of people in history but especially with the improved ease of movement we definitely can recognize this time as the age of migration (Castles Miller, 2009) with some researchers citing that migration never ceases to finish (Schapendonk, 2011). One characteristic of modern day migration is that of irregular migration or illegal migrants as peoples moveme nts infringe upon host countries laws but the latter term reinforces the criminal nature of the act .Such activity can be seen in a major way in the area the Greek-Turkish borders where there exists a significant portal of entry into Europe (Schapendonk, 2011). Whether the migration process stops for individuals depends on the conditions of life the migrants find. It can be seen in the current literature, that investigations into migration highlight the effect that migration has but not the actual migration mechanism (Karczemski Boer, 2010). Furthermore, there exists numerous theories concerning migration internationally and contemporary research tends towards a multidisciplinary angle (Castles Miller, 2009) but there is a large proportion of analysis focusing on how social migrant networks integrate into migration and what part they play (Schapendonk, 2011; Koser Pinkerton, 2002; Spittel, 1998). Academics define these networks as sets of interpersonal ties that connect migrants, former migrants, and non-migrants in origin and destination areas through ties of kinship, friendship, and shared community origin (Gelderblom Adams, 227: 2006). The way in which migration is looked at has changed as Khalid Koser, a Senior Fellow at Brookings Institution says, We used to think of migration as a human security issue: protecting people and providing assistance. Now we clearly perceive-or misperceive-migration as a national security issue. And the risk of securitizing migration is that you risk legitimizing extraordinary responses. Furthermore the problem can be compounded by the demographic nature involved with the migration as former CFR Senior Fellow Charles Kupchan explains, The backdrop to this [migrant crisis] is the difficulty that many European countries have in integrating minorities into the social mainstream. Many of these immigrants are coming from Muslim countries, and the relationship between immigrant Muslim communities and the majority populations is not good. Kupchan also goes on to highlight the fact that geographically this problem has other factors involved too, Europe has historically embraced more ethnic than civic approaches to nationhood, unlike the United States, and that is part of the reason immigration is proving so difficult. Francesc Ortega, a professor of economics in New York conducted an investigation in 2013 into European migration and concluded that it is driven by financial needs and irregular migration is a product of poverty, The migratory pressures to Europe are something thats not going to go away.and the truth is there are very limited legal pathways to migrate to Europe. . . . Those two facts combined make smuggling very profitable. The pursuit for monetary reward by migrants does put pressure on the host nation as can be seen specifically with Greece as the number of jobs and the income has reduced for Greeks everywhere. Animosity towards migrants in Greece is on the rise and according to Anna Trianda fyllidou, attention to immigration as a growing threat to the cohesion of modern Greek society. In fact, racism is on the rise in society and politically with support for immigration constantly on the decline ( http://www.eliamep.gr/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/MIDAS-Policy-Paper-EN.pdf). From my opinion, the integration of immigrants appears to be a complex, multifaceted and contradictory process, touching several aspects of contemporary Greek society: politics and policy, economy and the labour market, geography and space, education and culture. Despite the exclusionary mechanisms that are still in place, immigrants do make a living in the host country and gradually become organic elements, turning Greece into a multicultural society. Outline of the chapters Currently the thesis consists of seven chapters. Chapter 1 will serve as an introduction to the issue and present the aim of the research and the significance of the topic in a contemporary sphere. The second chapter will look at the current policies of both the EU and the Greek government concerning irregular migration and will look at Greek migration elsewhere in the globe. Chapter 3 will focus on the entry point to the EU via the Greek-Turkish border and look at the reasons they are found to be there at that moment and what the conditions are like at these holding centers. It will feature points of view from both Greek citizens and migrants. It will include a number of interviews from both sides. Chapter 4 moves on to look at the migrants life-legal and illegal- in the period after the holding centers in various regions and snapshots of their lives as well as their hopes and desires for the future. It will pay particular attention to any racism and antimigrant feeling experienced by those interviewed. Chapter 5 will explore the social networks of the migrants in Greece and how they have developed and to what extent they have improved their lives. The sixth and final chapter will present the conclusions and suggest further areas of investigation including suggestions on political alterations to migrant policy specifically dealing with the Greek legislation. Methodology The methodology that I will use for this research will be a combination of a quantitative and qualitative approach, using interviews and statistics around the migrant and immigrant crisis in Greek life and in EU in general. It will include a field research also in some areas of Greece where they have refugees hotspots. I will interview a number of refugees and Greek citizens comparing their opinions. This sort of research tries to offer responses to inquiries like how or why. Furthermore I will include the political approaches of realism and feminism and liberalism. Also, my research will be exploratory and I will use the empirical method. Finally, it will conclude the foreign policies of Greece around immigration through the years. Bibliography Regarding the bibliography, the paper will be construct both in light of essential and secondary sources. At first it will include official archives from the EU and the UNHCR, (2012), Text of Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs ,European Union Councils decisions for the refugee crisis. Concerning the derivative sources, they will principally include scholastic interviews from refugees and Greek citizens in the areas of Greece, Local and international press coverage regarding the refugee crisis in Greece and in Europe (The Independent, BBC,Guardian,To Vima, Kathimerini ) some of them are listed below: Castles, S. Miller, J. (2009), The Age of Migration. New York: Palgrave McMillan Karczemski, M Boer, A. (2010) Post-Accession Migration: Polish migrants moving from Poland to The Hague, Radboud University, Nijmegen Koser, K. Pinkerton, C., (2002) The Social Networks of Asylum Seekers and the dissemination of information about countries of Asylum, Migration Research Unit, University College London Schapendonk, J. (2011), Turbulent Trajectories. Sub-Saharan African Migrants Heading North, Radboud Universiteit, Nijmegen

Monday, August 19, 2019

Communication and Culture: The Benefits of Beginning Foreign Language Study Early :: Research Papers

Communication and Culture: The Benefits of Beginning Foreign Language Study Early As global awareness increases, American interest in the study of languages other than English increases apace. Unlike early programs which did not teach â€Å"languages†¦primarily to learn oral/aural communication, but to learn for the sake of being ‘scholarly’ or, in some instances, for gaining a reading proficiency in the foreign language† (Brown 18), the twentieth century began to focus on communicative goals, and a variety of new theories and methods for teaching were put forth. A common goal has emerged, and modern programs push students towards fluency. Therefore, more research is being conducted into the best possible ways to create competent communicators. The Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics defines communicative competence as â€Å"the ability not only to apply the grammatical rules of a language in order to form grammatically correct sentences but also to know when and where to use these sentences and to whom† (Richards, Platt, and Platt 65). As scholars search for the best ways to achieve communicative competence, they emphasize the importance of beginning language study early. The critical period hypothesis first put forth by Lenneberg in the late 1960’s holds â€Å"that there is a limited developmental period during which it is possible to acquire a language†¦to normal, nativelike levels† (Birdsong, 1). At the most generous estimate, this critical period is thought to extend from the age of 2 only until puberty, and some estimates posit a much narrower window (for more information on the possible causes of the critical period, see Birdsong, 7-9). According to Krashen, Long, and Scarcella, although â€Å"adults and older children in general initially acquire the second language faster than young children (oldest-is-better for rate of acquisition), †¦child second language acquirers will usually be superior in terms of ultimate attainment (younger-is-better in the long run)† (574). This eventual attainment includes superior pronunciation skills (Fledge 101) when compared with learners who began their study later in life. Although â€Å"starting age determines the levels of [communicative] accuracy achieved, particularly in pronunciation† (Ellis qtd. in Nunan 41), beginning young has an additional advantage. The young learner has many years of schooling left in which to explore this new language, and â€Å"the number of years’ exposure contributes greatly to the overall communicative fluency of the learners† (Ellis qtd. in Nunan 41). Although the pace of the young learner may be slower than that of the older learner, â€Å"when language learning begins earlier, it can go on longer and provide more practice and experience, leading ultimately to greater fluency and effectiveness† (Curtain and Pesola, Languages and Children 3) than is generally achieved when study begins after puberty.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Mozart Essay -- essays research papers

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart This paper discusses Mozart's life, his compositions and his importance to the world and the world of music. It explains how Mozart's music is still some of the most popular classical music played today and his life is still studied because his music is so well known and liked. An Austrian composer and performer who showed astonishing precocity as a child and was an adult virtuoso, musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born to Leopold Mozart and Anna Maria Pertl in Salzburg, Austria on January 27, 1756. Leopold Mozart was a successful composer and violinist and served as assistant concertmaster at the Salzburg court. Mozart and his older sister Maria Anna "Nannerl" were the couple's only surviving children and their musical education began at a very young age. The archbishop of the Salzburg court, Sigismund von Schrattenbach was very supportive of the Mozart children's remarkable activities. By the time Mozart was five years old, he began composing minuets. The next year, he and his sister were taken to Munich and Vienna to play a series of concert tours. Both children played the harpsichord, but Mozart had also mastered the violin. In 1763, when Mozart was seven years old, his father took leave of his position at the Salzburg court to take the family on an extended concert tour of western Europe. Mozart and his sister performed in the major musical centers, including Stuttgart, Mannheim, Mainz, Frankfurt, Brussels, Paris, London, and Amsterdam. They did not return to Salzburg until 1766. During this time, Mozart continued to compose, completing his first symphony at age nine and publishing his first sonatas the same year. Leopold soon realized that he could make a substantial income by showcasing his son as a Wunderkind in the courts of Europe. Maria Anna was a talented pianist, and Mozart wrote a number of piano pieces, in particular duets and pieces for two pianos, to play with her. On one occasion when Mozart became ill, Leopold expressed more concern over the loss of income than over Mozart himself. The cold weather and constant travel may have contributed to his later illness. After spending less than a year in Salzburg, the family again departed for Vienna, where Mozart completed his first opera La finta semplice in 1768. Much to Leopold's frustration, the opera was not per... ... concertos, 23 string quartets, 35 violin sonatas, and more than 50 symphonies. Major composers since Mozart's time have worshipped or been in awe of Mozart. Beethoven told his pupil Ries that he (Beethoven) would never be able to think of a melody as great as that of the first movement of Mozart's 24th piano concerto, and did Mozart homage by writing variations on his themes (such as the two sets of Variations for Cello and Piano on themes from Mozart's Magic Flute) and cadenzas to several of the piano concerti, most notably the Concerto No. 20 (K. 466). (After their only meeting, Mozart noted that Beethoven would "give the world something to talk about.") Tchaikovsky wrote his Mozartiana in praise of him; and Mahler died with "Mozart" the last word on his lips. The music critic James Svejda, when filling out a job application that asked for his religion, entered "Mozart". Summary: His Christian name was Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart. His progress as a composer was amazing; by the age of 13 he had written concertos, sonatas, symphonies, a German operetta, Bastien und Bastienne, and an Italian opera buffa, La finta semplice

The History and Literary Context of Silas Marner Essay -- English Lite

The History and Literary Context of Silas Marner Silas Marner was written in 1860 by Mary Ann (Marian) Evans, better known under the pen name of George Eliot. She used this name for several reasons; for one, she'd had affairs with a variety of unsuitable men, which was greatly frowned upon in those days, and she rightly thought this could affect her career as a successful novelist. For another reason, women authors were looked down upon by critics and indeed, society, so she felt sure she would have a greater chance of success under a male name. Other women writers like the BrontÃÆ'Â © sisters have done similar things. Whilst she was young she was a firm Christian, as was expected. It was only later that she began to question her faith, when she met the unconventional Charles Bray and his wife Caroline. Eliot's father was horrified when he discovered this, having an evangelical outlook on life. He broke contact with Eliot entirely, ashamed that one of his children should turn out to be a non-believer. However, when her mother died in 1836, Eliot returned home to look after her father although she wouldn't give up her education and learnt German and Italian. Because of her linguistic skills, Eliot's first publication was a translation of Strauss' Life of Jesus, under her real name. She still was not writing novels until she met George Lewes. Lewes was married and with children, but he and Eliot grew gradually closer until they finally decided to elope. As Lewes was already married, he and Eliot could not be officially joined in matrimony, but they lived together like man and wife, and Eliot even went under the name Lewes. Their relationship was censured by many, and Eliot hardly left the house, becoming... ..., and soon many people from all over Raveloe were coming to Silas to have him cure their rheumatism and other ailments, adding more darkly "that if you could only speak the devil fair enough, he [Silas] might save you the cost of the doctor." So witchcraft was still in people's minds. Drugs were also used in that time, and Godfrey Cass's wife, Molly, was addicted to opium, the drug which finally killed her. The life that George Eliot was depicting in Silas Marner was one in which poverty and wealth lived side by side, and people accepted that that was how things were. Religion was very important to all, whether it was non-conformist or Anglican. By the time George Eliot wrote Silas Marner she had lost her Christian faith, and this could have inspired her to write about somebody who also loses their faith although, unlike George Eliot, Silas regains his.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Commerce: Ethics and Social Responsibility Essay

In order to maintain social order and stability, people create a lot of rules to conduct the people’s behavior. A part of these rules of conduct is included in the scope of the law, which needs the coercive power of the country to protect its implementation. The other part belongs to the moral category, and it needs to rely on self-reflection and intervention of public opinion which can assurance its implementation. The business ethics is a part of commerce responsibility, and it is also a part of moral rules. Commercial activity is one of the most important activities in human society, and whether the commercial activity can run orderly have a tremendous impact on a society. A responsible commerce should fully consider the moral responsibility. Abramov (2007) said that The enterprise is closely related to the profits, in order to establish the basic responsibility of the enterprise, it should strengthen the full range of responsibility and cultivate culture which concentrates on responsibility. This essay will firstly give a brief description on the responsible commerce. Following this, it will discuss on the utilitarianism theory and its relation to the responsible commerce. After that, it will use the utilitarianism theory to analyze a case. Finally, it will give a reflection about the study. A brief introduction of the responsible commerce As a part of the social system, the responsibility of commerce attracts more and more attention. This concern not only comes from the theoretical areas, but also comes from the groups related to the enterprise and the stakeholders. How to ensure the implementation of the responsibility of the enterprise, and make it give a greater contribution to the society when it gets benefit from the society are the hot spots. An enterprise is rooted in the society, it is impossible to be an isolated body, and it must have a broad contact with the society, then it is necessary to undertake the corresponding responsibilities. In general, according to Jeremy (1789), the responsibility of commerce should include three aspects: economic responsibility, social responsibility and ethical responsibility. The economic responsibility refers to the economic interests that the enterprise pursuit and want to make the benefits of investors maximize. Through the process of accumulation: investment, profitability, reinvestment and re-profitability, the enterprise will grow and have a healthy development. The social responsibility should include internal and external aspects. The internal aspect refers to establish an effective monitoring mechanism, which is both responsible for the staff, but also responsible for the society. The external aspect includes three elements, first is to provide tax for the government, this is the important social responsibility for the enterprise. The second is to make efforts for the social harmony. It means that the commerce should provide employment opportunities for the community, should protect the ecological environment, and safeguard the interests of shareholders. The third is to provide the quality products and goods to the market. This responsibility relates to people’s lives and health, and also relates to the normal operation of the society. Peter (1981) said that the ethical responsibility is moral responsibility, unlike social responsibility, it is the voluntary acts. The enterprise should undertake these three responsibilities, and play its role for the rapid and stable development of the society and economic. The utilitarianism theory The utilitarianism can be said as an ethical theory, which believes that the proper action is the one which can maximize the happiness of all the people. It can be also regarded as a form of the consequentialism, it means that every action has a moral worth, and it is determined only by the outcome of the resulting, people can only know all the consequences of the action, and then can weigh the morality. The core of utilitarianism is principle of the greatest happiness of most people. The personal interests can not be separated from the interests of others. Frederick (2003) said that the utilitarianism can be accepted by human beings because of the profit nature of human. Therefore, the principle of utility is necessary to consider the personal interests and the interests of others, and also consider the interests of the stakeholders. Mill (2004) inherited Bentham’s idea of the greatest happiness principle, and pointed out that it should develop ethics according to the utilitarian purpose, in compliance with these codes of ethics, it will get the best interests of the overwhelming majority of people. Mill’s idea makes utilitarianism which only stresses the effect of utilitarian change into the principle which not only stresses the effect, but also pays attention on the guidelines of the ethics. Kelly (1990) said that the essence of the utilitarianism is that it affirms the necessity of achieving personal interests, and also provides that realizing the overall interests is premise and precondition of personal interests. The one-sided pursuit of personal interests is a narrow utilitarian concept, which can be extended to the utilitarian concept of the modern commerce. It can be concluded that some commercial operators with narrow utilitarian view will have one-sided pursue the commercial interests, the utilitarian view of modern commercial operators should maintain and achieve the overall interests of stakeholders and collective. Application of utilitarianism theory to analysis the company of Sanlu It has been reported that in China, the incident of Sanlu milk is a typical manmade disaster. From last year, the company of Sanlu began to receive the consumer complaints. To August 1 when the experts make the conclusion on the milk, then to September 8, the municipal government of Shi Jiazhuang gave a report to the government of Hebei Province. During the half year, the unspoken rule which is known by every one is not timely broken, and the company of Sanlu did not take measures to reduce the damage and the losses. The incident of Sanlu reflects the corporate ethics and social responsibility, which are concerned by many people. In order to pursue the profit and gain the ill-gotten wealth, a small number of enterprises ignore people’s health and even people’ life, the corporate moral is decay. The unscrupulous milk traders seek profits, so they devoid of conscience, and mix the milk with melamine. The management of the company lack of responsibility, and neglect lives and safety of people. The relevant department has also developed a number of systems to deal with the incident. But these systems are not specific. The incident of Sanlu milk lacks the system of third party testing. And the regulatory powers is own by the company, the profit make the system fail, and which lead to the fail regulation. George (2005) said that the reason why the company should fulfill the responsibility is neither because the company faces many ethical dilemmas and moral hazard, nor because the ethics can be regarded as the effective tools which can help company achieve the economic purpose. The most fundamental is that the responsibility is the core values of the modern enterprises, which has a special meaning and civilized significance. There are many reasons which can lead to the unethical behaviors and the shady transactions, but the most main reason which can induce unethical behavior is too much emphasis on the performance. So the company should correct the idea of too much emphasis on the performance and also qualify the performance. When it seeks to the purpose of self-interest, it should also establish a business concept of altruism. The company of Sanlu should have the responsibility, it should aware that the development of the company is not only for profit, but also for the fulfillment of a moral. It can use the scientific management to combine the interests of the company and the social responsibility. The company should use the greatest happiness principle as a guidance, which can make our society more harmonious. The greatest happiness principle is an abstract concept, when using this idea to make the commercial decisions, it will often encounter the problem that the interests of all parties can not easy to achieve the largest. So the company should fully balance the interests and realize the greatest happiness of most people. Conclusion The modern commercial operators use the greatest happiness principle as its core of utilitarian, which break the western traditional idea of utilitarian, which pursues the maximize the self-interests and the interests of the stakeholders. The principle affirms both the interests of the main groups which include the merchants and the staff, and the interests of consumers. It also affirms the interests of the society. It means that it combines the interests of individuals and others, the interests of organizations and nation, society. From the sources of the theory, it reflects the unity of the commerce and moral, and also reflects the combination of benefits and fair. It is more suitable for the modern society. In short, to make a business decision with ethical aspects, it should let the decision have the support of ethical standards. Bernard (1973) said that from the view of utilitarian, it is necessary to meet the requirements of the stakeholders who pursue maximize of the benefits. Walters (2008) believed that if the business decision has the support of ethical standards, it can be said that it have the ethics, and then the company can avoid the risk of commercial ethics, and can also bear the ethical responsibility which the commercial operators should undertake, and this company can be regarded as a responsible commerce.

Friday, August 16, 2019

What Is Strategy?

Today's dynamic markets and technologies have called into question the sustainability of competitive advantage. Under pressure to improve productivity, quality, and speed, managers have embraced tools such as TQM, benchmarking, and reengineering. Dramatic operational improvements have resulted, but rarely have these gains translated into sustainable profitability. And gradually, the tools have taken the place of strategy. As managers push to improve on all fronts, they move further away from viable competitive positions. Michael Porter argues that operational effectiveness, although necessary to superior performance, is not sufficient, because its techniques are easy to imitate. In contrast, the essence of strategy is choosing a unique and valuable position rooted in systems of activities that are much more difficult to match. In answering the question ‘what is strategy? ’, some theorists focus more on the role of strategy in allowing a firm to ‘position’ itself in an industry, hence to make choices regarding ‘what game to play’. Others focus more on the role of strategy in determining how well a given game is played. Strategy is about both: choosing new games to play and playing existing games better. One of the biggest disagreements among strategy researcher concerns the process by which strategies emerge. Some describe stratgy as a rational and deliberate process, while others describer it as an evolutionary process which emerges from experimentation and trial and error. Some place more emphasis on external factors, like the structure of the industry to which he firm belongs (e. g. the industrial organization approach), while others place more emphasis on factors internal to the organization, like the way production is organized (e. g. Resource-Based approach). Furthermore, some describe a relatively static relationship between strategy and the environment where firms respond to external conditions, while others describe a dynamic picture of competition, where firms not only are influenced by the environment, but also actively seek to change it. (e. g. he Schumpetarian approach). This feedback relationship between firm strategy and the environment is the focus of industry ‘lifecycle’ studies which look at the sources and effectrs of changes in industry structure. Porter(1996) claims that not all business decisions are strategice. Decisions can only be defined as strategic if they involve consciously doing something ‘differently’ from competitors and if that difference results in a sustainable advantage. To be sustainable it must be difficult to imitate. Activities which simply increase productivity by making existing methods more efficient (‘operational efficiency’) are not strategic since they can be easily copied by others. Although a firm must engage in both types of activiteis, it is strategic activies that will allow it to develop a sustainable superior performance. One of the factors that renders strategies hard to imitate, hence unique, is that they are the result of a complex interaction between diffenrent activities, which is not reducible to the sum of the indicidual activities. It is this synergy between activities that produces value, not the activities in themselves. Whittingtton(2001) introduces us to four different perspectives on stragey: the classical perspective, the evolutionary persperctive, the processual perspective and the systemic perspective. The classical perspective assumes that the manger has near to complete control over how to allocate the internal and external resources of the firm, and can thus manipulate the internal organization of the firm to better suit these objectives. In this view, strategic behaviour is guided by rationality, opportunism and self-interest. The evolutionary perspective places emphasis on behacioural differences between firm (e. g. some firms base their descisons on rational caculations, others simply on imitaion) and on the market selection mechanisms that allow some firms to frow and survive and others to fail. This view causes the image of the heroic entrepreneur, centreal to the classical perspective, to fall apart: it is not one manager but the mix between the forces of market selection, random events, and processes of positive feedback that determine performance. The processual perspectiver holds that economic outcomes emerge from the interactions between individuals and between individuals and their environment. The result of this interacion is unpredictable because actions are often unintended. Humans are not perfectly rational but ‘bounded’ in their rationality. This, along with the fact that interaction between individuals is guided not only by self-interest but alsoby collective bargaining and compromis, causes economic dynamics to be fuzzy and unpredictable. The systemic perspective argues that each of the above approaches is characterized by a narrow view of the world: a Western, often Anglo-Saxon, view. The ‘rationality’ of a particular strategy depends on its specific historical, social and cultural context. Strategic behaviour is ‘embedded’ in a network of social relations that includes cultural norms, class and educational background, religion and so on. Hence what if labelled as ‘irraional’ behaviour in one context may be perfectly rational in another.