Monday, September 30, 2019

Education Systems in Australia and in the Philippines Essay

Education is the process by which a person gains knowledge. It is considered as one of the essential needs for human survival, that is why most countries’ future depends on educating its people. The financial/economical issues and traditions lead countries to different educational routes. Although Australia and the Philippines may have some similarities, both countries’ education systems differ in many ways. What makes the primary difference is that the Philippine government do not have as much funds and budget as Australia do. Australia being one of the leading countries with high economy can provide a free, high standard and accessible education for its citizens. On the other hand, countries in the third-world country, the Philippines for example, can only provide a low budget for education although the Department of Education receives the biggest budget allocation from the government funds. As a result, not everyone in this country is able to study due to geographical, financial or social barriers. For example, a child living in a remote area might have to cross the river, the other side of the mountain or walk a few kilometres just to be able to learn. A typical public school in overcrowded areas or provinces may also include a classroom with fifty students sharing with at least a book. These situations happen everyday, but not in a wealthy country like Australia. This great deprivation leads to the very high regard of Filipinos for education. Another difference is the structure of the education system. In Australia, it is a compulsory education of seven years in primary school and five years in high school. On the other hand, the new K-twelve programme in the Philippines adds two more years for the senior high school, which now becomes similar to Australia’s system. The former system consists of six years in grade school and four years in high school. Although Australia has longer years of schooling, students from both countries start and finish at the same age. This is because the school year in the Philippines is from  June to March/April while Australian schools operates from February to December. Both school years are divided into two semesters, except Philippine schools do not have holidays in between of terms. Filipino students spend longer hours at school than Australians; a minimum of eight hours compared to Australia’s six hours per day. Although both education systems open schools from Monday to Friday, Philippine schools may have Saturday make-up classes for the suspension of classes due to typhoons, heavy rain or local feasts. Like the structure, curriculums from both countries also have a number of similarities and differences. Australian students are able to choose their own subjects while Filipinos are not. However, both countries cover almost the same subjects such as English, Maths, Science, Social Studies, Arts and Technology and Enterprise. While the Australian curriculum involves a lot of Sports, the Philippines have Character and Values instead. In addition, all graduating Filipino high school students are also required to pass their Citizen Army Training that covers after school sessions too. Like Australia, Philippine schools also offer special programmes for certain students. In addition to public schools, religious, foreign-ethnic, laboratory and science schools are also provided in the Philippines. In Australia, private schools are mostly religion-based, some maybe all boys/girl or mixed. Both systems have English as their medium of instruction; in fact, there are only around two to four subjects out of nine that are translated to the Filipino dialect! In contrast with a number of differences, exams are more likely to be similar. Philippine National Achievement Test is taken by grade school to high school students in a particular level, which is equivalent to the NAPLAN test from the Australian curriculum. Philippine National College Entrance Examination is also in the same manner with the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, which both determines the student’s competency for College/University and is not compulsory for those who only want to take a Vocational Career or a TAFE Pathway. After the completion of Primary and High School, students from both countries receive a Diploma or a Graduation Certificate, which is a prerequisite and prior to taking Tertiary levels. Other differences in Australian and Philippine schools are rules and policies. Like any other Asian-cultured countries, Philippine schools control the discipline of their students much more than Western school does. In the Philippines, it has been a practice that every morning we have our morning assemblies that consists of a prayer, followed by the national anthem, pledge to the flag, and morning exercises. Late or offending students are to be sent to detention or a yard-duty in both systems. Another example regards the uniform code. Both are almost the same except Filipino schools do not allow shorts or really short skirts for girls. Filipino boys are also required to maintain a clean cut otherwise they will have their hair cut off during a random check. Philippine schools use Identification Cards, usually includes the ID number and personal information of the student to prevent trespassing and skipping, which is not really necessary for schools in Australia. Given these points, it is clear that a country’s education system depends on the their resources, traditions and economy. Some practices of a country might work well for them but not for others. It helps us realise that education is essential and fundamental to every person of every nation. The Philippines may have a better focus on the concern of not only educating the students academically but also to shape up their morality through disciplinary acts whereas Australia devotes to the idea of individualism. Education systems in Australia and the Philippines do not only consist of entirely different perspectives but also share a number of similarities. What matters most is the country’s effort to provide education for its children in the highest form possible. BIBLIOGRAPHY: (ONLINE SOURCES) En.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Western_Australia En.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_the_Philippines www.gov.ph/k-12 www.i-nerdy.com/inerdy-philippines2.htm

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Film Reveiew – American Beauty

I chose this film due to its difference to conventional filmmaking, as instead of glorifying the main characters, the area and plot, it shows fault and illustrates the main characters as sad and unhappy. I chose to do this review on the opening minutes of the film describing in detail the camera shots and plot, as it would seem to the viewer watching for the first time. The opening scene is a medium shot of the main character's daughter lying on a bed talking. The screen is fuzzy, to give the impression of looking through a video camera. The daughter is talking to someone behind the camera, giving the impression of talking to the viewer or audience. She is talking about how much she dislikes and hates her father (Lester, the main character). This gives the impression of watching a personal film and the viewer is involved, as it appears at first that the character is talking to the audience until the hidden person filming speaks. The scene ends when the character behind the camera offers to kill the girl's father. The screen goes blank and the film title appears in medium red print on a black background, central to the screen. This sudden change from shot is to represent the plot to end a life, as the transition to a blank black screen. The next shot after the title is a top shot of a typical suburban American street on a slow zoom in towards the road. There is a narrative, male voice over of the main character Lester, describing his death. This would appear to fit with the previous scene of the daughter talking about murdering her father This creates a feeling of curiosity and suspense throughout the film, for the viewer, who is waiting to see what could have created such a gap between father and daughter. This effect of giving away the ending in the first scene is very effective in creating constant suspense throughout the film up to the dramatic climax. It has been used in many films and plays including William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. Gradually when the camera zooms in the shot switches to a bird's eye view of the main character lying in his bed, alone. This first shot of him shows him as lonely or incomplete even though he has a family. The camera then changes to a close up of his face, which appears sad and disorientated, further showing his dislike for his current lifestyle. There is then a jump cut to a pair of slippers on the floor next to the bed, being filmed from under the bed. This shot represents an ordered and scheduled lifestyle as the slippers must have been placed neatly next to the bed the previous night. The next frame switches to a medium long shot of the main character (Lester) masturbating in the shower. The effect of this is to shock the audience yet at the same time inspire pity at his frustrated and dull life as he continues to narrate over the film about himself, showing little embarrassment. The next scene is a close up of a Rose flower, which is then cut from the plant by a pair of pruning sheers. The Rose is constantly seen throughout the film, as well as rose petals, however rarely alive. They are usually in vases or on show. The roses, I feel, represent the lifestyle of the family. The rose looks perfect and appears very beautiful however it is dead. The family are similar, as they appear to have everything most people want, their health, nice house, money yet they are not happy. The roses are a constant theme throughout the film, I feel to remind us of the families unhappiness. The next frame sees the camera switch to a medium long shot of Carolyn (the main character's wife) holding the freshly cut rose in her hand. This shot represents that she too was once alive but is now dying inside like the rose. All in all I found this film extremely interesting and thought provoking, I would recommend it to anybody who enjoys twisting plots, amazing acting and some of the most brilliant (and strange) characters in modern day cinema. The slow unravelling of the plot keeps you guessing until the very end of the film, as well as challenging modern day society and depicting modern day family life and the hypocrisy of Suburban America.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Boys Without Girlfriends

As a coeducation institution boys and girls study together in North South University, they come in contact with many strangers on the sidewalks, steps, classrooms, and library. At first these individuals constituted a confusing blur of people they didn’t know. In a relatively short period, however, as they walked down on the campus or sat in the classrooms, some faces began to stand out simply because they passed by or sat beside a few individuals more than once. These casual and unplanned contacts soon led to mutual recognition. Those boys and girls may not have known who these individuals were, but they came to recognize their faces. As a result both of them were more likely to say â€Å"Hi† the next time they saw one another and perhaps exchanged a word or two about random topics such as the upcoming exam, or some event on campus. Thus they become familiar to each other and this familiarity leads to liking. This happens when there is too much exposure between boys and girls and they become friends each other. As a result, repeated exposure ordinarily results in increasingly positive feelings and friendly relations. They become friends and come closer to each other. It helps them to find the right person they are looking for, and they expect more company from their likeable persons to know each other very well. Most of the students are aged between 20 and 25, as young people they normally have more attraction towards the opposite sex, they may fall in love with their male or female classmates. Young boys have this kind of feelings or attraction to girls. When any young boy finds the qualities in a young girl that he is looking for, he may fall in love with that girl. The young male students of NSU have this kind of feelings and they may look for the right girl in NSU. But all boys may not have female friends in NSU for several reasons and the research paper will be focused on mainly the condition of those boys without female friends and how they handle the situation. [pic] The boys without girlfriends in NSU Most of the boys are without girl friends in NSU, there may be some reasons behind it. At present love is a great issue in any young person’s life; every boy wants to have a girl friend to get company. It is also a psychological need of any young boy, they need love, and affection, and caring and mental support from someone special and it is usually his female friend. When any boy doesn’t have girl friend, he may feel the need of company and the lacking of his psychological needs. It may be a typical condition for those boys who seriously want the mental support and love from a girl whom they are looking for. The other boys don’t have this kind of problem if they find themselves perfect without girl friends. The possible reasons for having no girl friends, the condition without girl friends and feelings of those boys are mainly discussed on the basis of questionnaire For the research I did my survey on 50 boys who did not have any girlfriend in NSU. I prepared the research paper analyzing their replies and showed the answers through graphs. [pic] The reasons for not having girlfriend The first question was to identify the reason why the boys don’t have girl friend. Boys may have different reasons for having no girlfriend; the reasons may be financial problems, study pressure and others. The options were mainly given based on the realistic situations of the boys in NSU. The first option was -study pressure; all students need to work hard, study regularly in NSU. They always remain busy with their studies and do not have enough free time. The next option was shortage of money. Money is a big issue in today’s competitive world and it is considered one of the most important facts in any relationship. It is not exceptional for the boys in NSU and they don’t want to spend too much money beyond their limitations. The third option was lack of time. The students always remain busy with their studies, classes, project and part time jobs. Some students might not have so much time to spend in vain. They are always in rush to finish their works on time. The last option was for those boys who did not want to have affair with girls during their study. But it was rare. The result of the options will be found from the following graph. [pic] If we look at the graph, 15%students said they did not have female friends for study pressure, 20% showed the reason of shortage of money and the rest 15% did not have enough time to continue affair, their lake of time was the reason for not having girlfriend. [pic] The idea about love Love is a central issue in most people’s lives and some times people may not know the right meaning about love. Their perspective may be different and every one can think about love in different way. The second question was asked that the boys had clear idea about love to make relationship with any girl. [pic] From the graph, the opinions of the question will be clear. It was found that 20% said they had clear idea about love, 10% said that they did not have so much knowledge about love to make affair with any girl. The rest of the 20% gave opinion that it was not necessary to have clear idea about love, because everyone might have different feelings and thoughts to get involved in affair. [pic] Effect of money The importance of money in love was mentioned in the first question. Money has magical effect to start and continue an affair. There is a popular modern proverb â€Å" The thicker the money bag of boys, the deeper the love is of the girls†. So money has major impact on affair. Most of the boys in NSU strongly supported that proverb, as they do not have enough sources to earn money and to spend the money for their girlfriends. Money is mainly important for boys to treat, give precious gifts to their girlfriends. It is one of the strategies to impress girl and to maintain social status. It is seen that boys always spend money when they have affair with a girl. At present this traditional way to impress girl has not been changed, in the survey it was found 40% boys strongly agreed with the impact of money on affair. Most of the students believed that it was not affordable for them to treat a girl in some prestigious and expensive restaurant or first food shop. They also gave opinion that they paid a lot of money for their education, so they were not supposed to pay extra money for maintaining femalefreind. If anyone had a girlfriend, he managed money in different ways. Only 5% believed that money did not have any effect on affair. The rest 5% answered money might have effect on affair occasionally not for always. So economical issue is considered as one of the important fact for the boys who think shortage of money is the main reason for having no girlfriend. [pic] From the graph the effectiveness of money is visible, so it can be said that money is one of the important factors on affair. [pic] What boys think about NSU girls? The research paper will mainly focus on the boys who don’t have girl friends in NSU. There was also a question what the boys thought about NSU girls. The options were mainly based on the different perspectives. First option was the NSU girls were not good for long time relationship. It was found some girls lost their attraction and they did not have so much patience to continue the relationship for a long time. The next option was they could only be good friends for their friendly qualities and behavior. The third option was that the girls hang out only for study benefits, it was often seen some girls mainly hang out with the boys to get the assignment, project done by the boys and they made good relationship only for study benefits. After the semester they were not as friendly as they before. It was also found that many girls were very rude and they did not want to have affair with any boys. Most of the boys thought that those girls did not value any one’s feelings and they never preferred the likeness of others at any cost. It will be clearer from the graph what boys actually think about NSU girls. [pic] From the pie chart, it has become obvious that the girls of NSU are not good for any long time relationship. The half of the boys (25%) agreed with that. But they can be good friends according the opinion of 10% boys. Other 10% boys gave different opinion; they said some girls hang out only for study benefits. The rest 5 % replied that a few girls did not value the feelings or likeness of any boy. So it is found that NSU girls are not good for any long time relationship according to the opinion of the boys. [pic] Necessity of having girlfriend in NSU There was also a question whether the boys thought that it was necessary having a female friend in NSU. Since boys and girls study together for a long time it is possible for them to get involved in affair. If we look at the graph it will be clear how many boys think to have affair with a girl in NSU. Their opinions related with the question will also visible. pic] Half of the students said that they might have girlfriend without hampering study. When any boys and girls have affair, there may be some emotional problems, which causes loosing concentration to study. As the students pay al lot of money for their studies and they never want to fail or getting lower grades in their courses. 25% boys wanted to have girlfriend without hampering their studies. Other 15% strictly said that it was not necessary to love any girl in NSU. Only 5% replied it was necessary having girlfriend and the rest 5% said that the boys could have only one girlfriend not more than one. It is found most of the boys prefer to have girlfriend without hampering their studies. [pic] Bad expereince about affair with NSU girls When people have any bad expereince of any thing in his life, he will never want to do the same thing again. If any boy has bad expereince about romantic relationship, he must try to avoid getting involved in relationship due to his previous expereince. Some boys may have bad experiences about relationship with NSU girls. It was also included in the questionnaire. The first option was about the heart breaking, there might be some facts that could break any boys’ heart. The second option was about those who did not have any bad expereince about relationship with NSU girls. The next option was the fact of being rejected. It was found in most cases that the majority of the boys were rejected and they suffered mentally for a long time. When any boy is rejected, it might be difficult for him to overcome his mental depression. It is a common fact in NSU that many boys have the pathetic expereince of being rejected. The following graph will show how many boys have bad expereince about relationship with NSU girls. [pic] From the bar graph, we can see that few students (10%) had heart broken expereince. The majority of the students (20%) did not have any bad expereince. Some boys were found having the expereince of being rejected; those 15% mainly did not get any response from the girls to get involved in affair. The rest of the students had other experiences. [pic] What boys do when they see any couple? It is found that most of the boys are without girlfriends in NSU, and few of them have girlfriends. What happened when the boys saw the couples and their reaction was asked in the questionnaire. It was found that most of the students did nothing when they saw any couple, they did not have any reaction and they took it normally. Few of the students were found that they admired, criticized and sometimes dreamed to be like them. It will be clear from the graph [pic] It is seen that 40% boys did nothing and they did not show any reaction. So when they saw any couple it seemed to be usual fact to the boys. A few of boys were found who admired or criticized when they saw any couple. Fantasies also worked in the boys who dreamed to be a couple with the girls whom they loved. pic] Feelings of boys without girlfriends The next question was about the most sensitive issue- the feelings of the boys without girl friends. Most of the boys feel loneliness†-an emotional and cognitive reaction to having fewer and less satisfying relationship than one desires. † Loneliness is accomplished by negative effect, including feelings of depression, anxiety, unhappiness, and dissatisfacti on. The boys who did not have enough friends, they felt lonely without girl friends in NSU. Some boys do not bother responsibility in any kind of serious type of relationship like affair. Those boys may be happy without girlfriends because they do not have other responsibilities and restrictions. They are free from emotional bindings. A young boy without girlfriend may feel boring, he become tired for his monotonous life without the regular company of a charming girlfriend. It is usual fact for the young aged people; they always expect the company of opposite sex. Few boys may be found that they do not want to get involved in an affair. They may dislike having romance with any girl during their study. The reply of the boys is shown in the following graph. [pic] The bar graph shows that half of the boys (25%) replied they were free from all kinds of responsibilities in affair. They did not need to be worried about their duties to girlfriends. The other 15% felt the loneliness. Though they had friends, they expected the company of a girlfriend and the lack ness made them feel lonely. Only 5% felt boring in the condition without girlfriend and the rest 5% thought differently. They said that they were fine without girlfriends and they did not want to be involved in any close relationship with a girl in NSU. [pic] Passing time without girlfriend When a boy is involved in an affair with a girl, he usually passes time together and enjoys the every moment they are passing together. But the boys without girlfriends passed their time in different ways. When they are alone they pass the time in studying, Most of the boys without girlfriends pass their time chatting with friends. This gives them opportunity to pass time in an enjoyable way. It may fill the lack of the girlfriend’s company, and the boys do not feel loneliness. Some boys who did not have enough friends, they might feel loneliness and those boys passed the time walking alone outside the campus. Most of the boys without girlfriends do not want to be frustrated and they pass time according to their own choice. From the graph it will be clear by how most of the boys pass time without girlfriends. [pic] If we look at the graph, majority of the boys (35%) passed time by chatting with friends and enjoyed the company while they were with their friends. The other 10% students replied that they passed time by studying in library. A few of the boys (5%) passed time by browsing Internet and mailing friends who live in abroad. From all the replies of the boys, it is visible that most of them enjoy their friend’s company to pass free time. pic] Facing problems without girlfriends When boys could not get involved in romantic relationship with the girls whom they loved, they (boys) were frustrated and passed through problematic life. The problem that they actually face is for loneliness. When any boy feels loneliness, he may be frustrated or depressed and it hampers his mental sati sfactions. A boy may suffer more depression when a girl refuses him, he may be frustrated for his heart broken. He lost confidence or attraction to love when he found his dream did not come true, it might change his mentality and idea about love. When any boy proposes a girl, he must be self-confident but after the refusal he can loose his self-confidence and never want to propose any girl in future. In this way the boys may be dissatisfied with affair and they loose attraction to love. The options in the question focused the problems that boys faced without girlfriend. [pic] The graph is indicating that how many boys face problems when they don’t have girlfriends. 20% of the boys felt the problems of requiring regular company of a girl. 15% replied that they were often frustrated and dissatisfied with their condition without girlfriends. The other 10% said that they were loosing confidence when any girl refused them, and the rest 5% answered that they were loosing attraction to love. [pic] Future desire to have girlfriend The boys who are now without girlfriends may have wish to get involved in affair with a girl in future. The last question was about the future planning of boys to make any girl as girlfriend in future, it actually depended on some several conditions. Every body wants to find out the similarities from others to continue a relationship. Similarities are more important than repeated exposure. When any boy finds similar mentality, choices with a girl, he becomes emotionally weak to her. They always look for a girl who has all kinds of qualities that the boys are looking for. Some students do not prefer girlfriends in student life and they never want to make girlfriends in future. Sometimes it actually depends on the situation if the boys are capable to continue relationship. Most of the boys are afraid to get involved in affair due to family restriction. If the boys get support from the parents, they may be involved in romantic relationship with girls. They will try to do that when there is no family restriction. [pic] Since the research paper is based on the opinion of the boys without girlfriends, there was also given two open questions to write down how they coped with the situation and whether they actually preferred the condition without girlfriends. Many boys gave different opinions and expressed feelings when they had no girlfriends, they passed life with bad expereince if they were rejected or cheated by any girl. It might have impact on a boy’s mind when he would not get the girl whom he loved. From the replies of the boys it is also seen that some of the boys are fine because they don’t have any extra responsibilities for a particular girl as the boys have no romantic relation with any girl. [pic] Conclusion When life itself does not come to a halt and any one does not stop breathing, than there is no being upset in being upset for not having girlfriend and jeopardizing their own life. Actually this is the age to study and to build them up and there will always be a better one for waiting. Most of the boys in NSU are young and this is the stage to prepare them for the future. Their entire future mainly depends on how they pass their young age and how much they can concentrate in study. When any student can overcome all his problems and pay attention to study he must be successful in his life, he won’t be afraid to face any problems that he may come across in future. Most of the boys are without girlfriend in NSU, it can give them mental dissatisfaction for the want of company. The reasons and conditions without girlfriends may be different, but the important thing is not to take the condition without girlfriends seriously. So if the boys think their life is boring and they are loosing confidence due to frustration, it will be harmful to them in future. No one can progress without self-confidence. If any boy has problems without girlfriend, he should try to overcome the depression by any means to keep him free from all kinds of emotional and psychological problems. It will be beneficial for their own future. This is the age for having fun not getting into serious mental depression. They should look at the bright side of not having girlfriends; they spend money and time in enjoying games, eating out with friends, and camping.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Is Foundationalism or Coherentism the better model for the Essay

Is Foundationalism or Coherentism the better model for the justification of our beliefs Investigate the arguments on either side and evaluate them - Essay Example Whether B1 is not fundamental, it may have to rise from an additional belief, B2. However, B2 can give good reason for B1 simply if B2 is vindicated itself. Whether B2 is fundamental, the justificatory sequence would finish with B2. However, if B2 is not essential, we could do with a further conviction, B3. Whether B3 is not fundamental, we require a fourth conviction, and so forth. Except the resultant regress comes to an end in an essential belief, we obtain two probabilities: the relapse will either circle back to B1 or carry on ad infinitum. In relation to the relapse argument, the two probabilities are deplorable. Consequently, if there are vindicated beliefs, there ought to be fundamental beliefs (Cornman 145). This argument endures from a variety of weaknesses. Initially, we might question whether the substitutes to foundationalism are in actuality deplorable. In the current literature on this topic, we, in fact, find a highly structured justification of the situation that infinitism is indeed the proper resolution to the regress predicament. Nor must circularity be overlooked too swiftly. The matter is not if a straightforward argument of the structure p consequently p is up to standard. In point of fact, it is not. Somewhat, the matter is eventually whether, in the effort to demonstrate that belief in our abilities is levelheaded, we might make utilization of the effort our abilities deliver. If such circularity is since objectionable as a p-therefore-p conjecture, is an open query. Moreover, the evading of circularity cannot come inexpensive. Experimental foundationalists assert that discernment is a foundation of rationalization. For this reason, they require to respond to the J-query : Why is discernment a basis of rationalization? If the answer this query is to be provided without entrusting ourselves to the type of circularity reliance

Thursday, September 26, 2019

International Relations (The Role and functions of the IMF and the Essay

International Relations (The Role and functions of the IMF and the World Bank in the International Economic System) - Essay Example tical science, is the study of foreign affairs of and relations among states within the international system, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations (IGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and multinational corporations (MNCs). It is both an academic and public policy field, and can be either positive or normative as it both seeks to analyze as well as formulate foreign policy.† It also referred to IR as drawing upon such diverse fields as economics, history, law, philosophy, geography, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and cultural studies and that it involves a diverse range of issues, from globalization and its impacts on societies and state sovereignty to ecological sustainability, nuclear proliferation, nationalism, economic development, terrorism, organized crime, human security and human rights. (Paraphrasing made) As to how international relations originated, one cannot avoid talking about the Peace of Westphalia of 1648. It is with Westphalia that e the modern state system was developed since it encouraged the rise of the nation-state and the institutionalization of diplomacy and armies. (Wikipedia-IR, 2006) (Paraphrasing made) Having a background therefore of IR, we are confronted with the questions: What are the institutions involved? The United Nations assumes a major role in IR as it describes itself as a "global association of governments facilitating co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity". Wikipedia, (2006) stated that it is the most prominent international institution and many of the legal institutions follow the same organizational structure as the UN. (Paraphrasing made) UN has therefore affiliations with several legal institutions which include International Court of Justice, European Court of Justice and the African Court of Justice. It has also affiliations with human rights organisations which include, United Nations Human Rights Council,

The Fight for Womens Rights, Laws, Social movements and Policies Essay

The Fight for Womens Rights, Laws, Social movements and Policies - Essay Example This research paper examines that organizations that are fighting for the rights of the Anishinabe people have a long way to go to ensure equalities. For instance, the mining of taconite in Minnesota has affected the Anishinabe people, other natives, and non-natives in the region. Forests have been deforested for the creation of mining pits. One in ten newborns contains mercury in their systems, and this leads to lung cancer. The organizations in Minnesota have been passing laws that have downplayed environmental protections. The North American Indigenous people have suffered for long periods due to oppression by the white people who came from Europe. They invited laws and policies that oppressed the indigenous people who were the rightful owners of the land. Immediately after the French and English landed, they noted how the indigenous people lived and how the male population treated the women with respect and honor. They introduced laws that had negative impacts on women and childr en and took the land of the aboriginal people. Many groups have come up to fight for the rights of the aboriginals and ensure that they get the chance to enjoy their rights fully. It is a shame how the United States and the Canadian governments have not provided laws to ensure that the aboriginals have obtained full equality. We should take the model of the Anishinabe people who treated everyone equal including the women who were respected. By doing so, we will change the perception of everyone and treat each other equal.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

International Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

International Management - Essay Example Living for long in the same geography they share vast similarities. The challenges that this kind of complex countries present are both relevant to ongoing companies as well as for MNCs trying to enter these markets. When making a debut into one market, and preparing an entry strategy firms need to consider very much the national culture of the company, to evaluate whether the culture will help the business to flourish or whether the cultural norms will act as hindrance to the business and profitability. Any cultural theory is based on the assumption that there is no universal method of management theory. And in this global world, doing business in other countries require knowledge and empathy with the locals of the country, hence it is important to understand and be aware of the cultural differences when handling or dealing with cross cultural groups or individuals. Geert Hofstede has described five dimensions of differences in values between national cultures. The five dimensions of Geert Hofstede are Power Distance, Individualism versus Collectivism, Masculinity versus Femininity, Uncertainty Avoidance, and Long-term versus Short-term orientation. The dimension, Power Distance tries to suggest the degree of inequality amongst the different members in a given culture. On a scale the dimension ranges from small to large. In cultures where Power Distance is small, members of the society relate to each other on a more equal level regardless of the status or authority of the people in consideration. Whereas, in large Power Distance situations, there is more formality in interaction amongst people. According to Hofstede, Pakistan has a score of 55 on the cultural scale; which compared to other regional countries is relatively low. It shows that Pakistan is somewhat in the middle and does not have a very large gap between the wealthy and the poor people in the country. But, still it does not strongly believe in the

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Sound effects Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sound effects - Essay Example The sound has been edited as dense because it complimented the seriousness of the plotline. Herein, it should be noted that the sources of the film are both outside and original. This has been made in direct accordance of dialogue delivery. I would state that throughout the film, one would note almost all the instruments of orchestra including violin, piano etc (Giannetti, 2010). The language was quiet simplistic with no swearing and coarse expressions. There are a number of dialogues that have been delivered. Few fancy dialogues have been added such as â€Å"Someone reminded me weed is good, now it seems it legal†. There is no narrator as watched in the trailer. However, few dialogues from the film have rather been used as a form of narration to ensure a storyline sneak. The delivery of dialogues has been done by a couple of actors including lead actor and supporting actor. The narrator of the film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps is partially omniscient in nature. It should be noted that along the storyline, the narrator has been able to comment about the events that take place in the movie one after the other. In addition, dialogues have been bee vividly used to make sure that the mystery of the film is made complex for the audiences so that the interest is kept unaffected. The fact remains that the director and music director have been successful in keep BG for the film. Audiences might also note that there are couples of walla in the film. While watching the trailer of Captain America, it was noticed that the sound effects used in this movie are a combination of hard sounds and background sound effects. This is because, the trailer is showing scenes of weapons firing, auto vehicles driving and rushing by and door slamming. On the other hand, the trailer also shows scenes of Captain America being deployed in jungle with sounds in the background that are not synchronized explicitly with the scene in the trailer. There is also a voiceover

Monday, September 23, 2019

The death of rock and roll Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The death of rock and roll - Essay Example There emerged a merger of secular and gospel themes coupled with a greater emphasis on vocalists. Soul music became a major commercial force and soon more attention was directed to it. Music is business beyond just passion. One needed to be where business is, this made more musicians levitate towards Soul. As more business was realized in the Soul genre more attention was given to it with little on rock and this commercial drive was critical in the decline of rock and roll.In my own experience, a similar commercial appropriation of a youth movement has happened in the recent past. This was in the genre of hip-hop music where there was an emergence of a subgenre, Crunk music also referred to as Krunk or pranksters. This genre originated from Memphis in the early 1990s and was to gain popularity in early 2000. It is an up-tempo and more club-oriented subgenre of hip-hop that is characterized by shouting vocals and heavy baseline. This subgenre immensely gained a commercial appropriatio n which would then attract more artists in the sector. More TV commercials, Radio adverts, and Film promos preferred the use of crunk in early 2000. This promoted this subgenre of Hip-hop attracting, even more, artists in the industry due to the heavy commerce it attracted. Clubs played crunch, public service vehicles and radio stations were all about crunk suggesting more business in this genre. For this period the genre of hip-hop faced a decline. Crunk was very popular in between 2001 and 2004.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Importance of Peer Review Essay Example for Free

Importance of Peer Review Essay A student in a graduate program must conduct research during the course of study. The purpose of this assignment is to discuss how one can determine which references are credible and which are not. Importance of Peer Review As a scholar-practitioner it is of utmost importance to know that information is obtained from a source which is peer reviewed. When a journal or article has been designated as peer reviewed this means that the information has been submitted to several of the authors peers for content review. The reviewers must agree that the information has been gathered through the use of proper research methods, and that it is accurate and original. Knowing that Articles Retrieved are from Peer-Reviewed Journals The articles I downloaded for this week’s application are peer reviewed. The Walden University library has a search feature which allows one to find only peer reviewed articles quickly and easily. This is the procedure I followed when obtaining my articles. If an article is obtained from a source other than the Walden library, verification of peer review can be done through Ulrich’s Periodicals Directory. Importance of Peer Reviewed Articles My area of interest is nursing education. It is important that the information I share with students has been peer reviewed. I want to make sure it is accurate and credible. Summary In summary, it is essential for students in a graduate program to always make sure resources utilized for research are peer reviewed. The information obtained for assignments must be reliable and accurate. References Cornell University. (April 5, 2011). Cornell University Library. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/skill20.html Walden University. (2011). Walden University Library. Retrieved from http://library.waldenu.edu/689.htm

Friday, September 20, 2019

Impact of Agriculture Credit on Agriculture Productivity

Impact of Agriculture Credit on Agriculture Productivity ABSTRACT Impact of agriculture credit on agriculture productivity. Agriculture plays vital role in Pakistans economy. It is the single largest sector and it is principal driving force for growth and development of the national economy of Pakistan. Agriculture credit plays vital role for increasing the efficiency of this sector. Timely and adequate availability of credit enables the farmers to purchase the required inputs and machinery for carrying out farm operations. There are two dimensions of this research first are measuring the impact of credit on development efficiency and second is measuring impact of credit on production efficiency. Regression model was used to determine the impact in both dimensions data collected from State Bank of Pakistan for analysis the results concluded that there is a positive relationship between agriculture credit and both development and production efficiency but not up to much extent that is required there is a minor impact on farm yield and productions le vels by agriculture credit the reasons can be credit policies timings of providing credit and can be not providing credit effectively where it is needed most. INTRODUCTION Agriculture plays an important role in Pakistans economy. It is the single largest sector and it is principal driving force for growth and development of the national economy of Pakistan. Agriculture and Livestock accounted for 23.1 per cent of the GDP in 2004-05. It employs 43.1 per cent of the labor force, provides livelihood to 68 per cent of the countrys population living in rural areas, and contributes 60 per cent share in export earnings from processed and un-processed agricultural products. Major industries like textile and sugar are agriculture based sectors. The rate of growth for agriculture sector is 4% in the past two decades, contributing significantly to overall economic growth, food supplies and exports. Although the share of agriculture in the GDP has declined over the years, in line with Development of other sectors such as industry, infrastructure, services, etc., it still remains the leading sector of the economy. The future policies in agriculture have been focused on attaining high growth rates by providing the right policies and institutional support, so that the sector can move forward and enhance its contribution to the economy. Review of Agriculture Sector The agriculture sector grew at an average annual growth rate of 4.5 per cent in the last decade, i.e. 1990s. However in 2000-01 and 2001-02, its performance was badly affected due to persistent drought conditions. It registered a growth rate of (-) 2.2 and (-) 0.1 per cent in 2000-01 and 2001-02, respectively. With subsequent improvement in the availability of Water, it grew by 4.1 per cent and 2.6 per cent in 2002-03 and 2003-04, respectively. In 2003-04, the major crops which account for 34.2 per cent of the agriculture value added grew by 2.8 per cent and minor crops which contribute 12.4 per cent to the agriculture value added, Grew by 1.7 per cent. In 2004-05, the agriculture sector registered an all time high growth of 7.5 per cent due to farmers friendly government policies, favorable weather conditions and Improvement in the availability of water. There was a recorded production around 14.6 million bales of cotton and 21.1 million tones of wheat. The contribution of major and minor crops was 17.3 and 3.1 per cent, respectively. Although the shortage of water affected the performance of crops in 2000-01 and 2001-02, its impact was reduced due to various measures by the farmers on the Recommendation of the Agriculture Departments such as efficient use of canal water, Exploitation of underground water through tube wells, sowing on ridges and better Agronomic and good management practices. The country had achieved self-reliance in wheat. Around 1.036, 1.704 and 0.553 million tones were exported due to build up of wheat stocks, in the years of 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04, correspondingly. However, due to subsequent decline in wheat production, around 1.37 million tones of wheat was imported in 2004-05 to build up reserve stocks and meet domestic requirement. Although availability of water has been a serious constraint, there are other factors also, which are hampering the growth and development of the sector. Some of the factors are: low productivity of crops, inefficient use of water, degradation of land resources (water logging and salinity), imbalance application of fertilizer, inefficient use of agricultural inputs, ineffective transfer of technology to the farmers, lack of coordination between research and extension, post-harvest losses, marketing infrastructure, etc. Inspite of the reasonably performance in the agriculture sector the over all productivity is comparatively low as compare to other agriculture based countries like India for example in study based on comparison of agriculture performance in Indian and Pakistani Punjab it was found that Indian Punjab performed very well as compare to Pakistani Punjab because of the problems in infrastructure lack of mechanization most of these problems arise due to financial constraints these problems can be addressed by emphasizing on credit programs to farms get proper inputs such as production inputs like seeds, fertilizers, pesticides on time so that production efficiency improved and on the other hand development efficiency can be increased by mainly development efficiency is farm efficiency like land leveling, water courses, tractors tube wells these all required proper credit supply so therefore credit is the vital component in the improvement of agriculture efficiency. Agriculture credit role in increasing productivity Credit plays an important role in increasing agricultural productivity. Timely and adequate availability of credit enables the farmers to purchase the required inputs and machinery for carrying out farm operations. The farmers will be facilitated through the one window operation and revolving credit scheme. The one window operation was initiated in 1997 by the ZTBL which has been found quite useful in meeting the farmers credit requirements. Credit is the back bone for any business and more so for agriculture which has traditionally been a nonmonetary activity for the rural population in Pakistan. Agricultural credit is an integral part of the process of modernization of agriculture and commercialization of the rural economy. The introduction of easy and cheap credit is the quickest way for boosting agricultural production. Therefore, it was the prime policy of all the successive governments to meet the credit requirements of the farming community of Pakistan. Agriculture as a sector depends more on credit than any other sector of the economy because of the seasonal variations in the farmers returns and a changing trend from subsistence to commercial farming. How credit improve productivity both production and development or farm efficiency the answer is through the supply of proper credit to farmers they are able to purchase proper amount of fertilizers at the right time purchase pesticides at the right time so the production process will continue without any problems that will increase production efficiency. For development efficiency credit is needed for mechanization, i.e for land leveling water courses, tube wells, tractors and other inputs so credit is needed by farms for the proper availability of theses resource of course without the availability of these resource both production and development efficiency cannot be increased. In some of the studies importance of credit in agriculture stated as According to Shephered (1979) credit determines access to all of the resources on which farmers depend. Consequently, provision of macroeconomic policies and enabling institutional finance for agricultural development has been directed to the provision of infrastructure capable of facilitating agricultural development with a view to enhancing the contribution of the sector in the generation of employment, income and foreign exchange. One of the reasons for the decline in the contribution of agriculture to the economy is lack of a formal national credit policy and paucity of credit institutions, which can assist farmers. Credit or loan able funds is viewed as more than just another resource such as labor, land, equipment and raw materials. Therefore, by injecting capital into agriculture, it is possible to increase the rate of agricultural development since credit has frequently been considered as one of the main factors in overcoming agricultural stagnation that helps to expand farmland size and production. Table 6 shows the figures of amount of credit in billion rupees disbursed by different sources in agriculture sector by analyzing the figures it has been noted that credit for production has more amounts in every year as compare to credit for development loans so therefore the area where government has to focus is how to increase development efficiency (land leveling, water courses, and tractors) etc. supply of adequate credit should be implemented for development loans like production loans. Difference between production efficiency and development efficiency Production efficiency is related to the productivity related to inputs related purely to crops production such as seeds fertilizers pesticides chemicals etc. where as development efficiency is related to mechanization of farms lands development there fore inputs are tractors, land levelers water courses etc the details are below. Production efficiency factors The input factors related to production efficiency are Fertilizer The use of fertilizer is expected to grow by 4.0 per cent per annum in order to meet the crop production targets. The growth rate for the nitrogen is estimated at 3 per cent, phosphate 7 per cent and potash 12 per cent. In quantitative terms, nitrogen will increase to 3,049 thousand tones, phosphate 1,058 thousand tones and potash 45 thousand tones by 2009-10. The overall fertilizer consumption is estimated at 4,152 thousand tones. The mean application rate at national level will be about 180 Kg nutrients per hectare. There are other fertilizer products as source of micronutrients such as Zinc, Boron and Iron would also be targeted for specific crops (rice, cotton, maize, sugarcane, vegetables and horticultural crops) for efficiency and quality. According to research by (Coady, 1995) it is stated that the introduction of high-yielding varieties (HYVs) of wheat and rice in Pakistan in the mid-1960s was heralded as a major breakthrough in the problem of food supply. A crucial characteristic of these new HYVs was their high yields when used in conjunction with chemical fertilizer (henceforth just fertilizer) and controlled irrigation. Great emphasis was placed on increasing the supply and use of fertilizer, which was still regarded as of crucial importance by the mid-1980s-of the total increase in agricultural output envisaged by the Sixth Five Year Plan (Government of Pakistan 1983), 48% of it was expected to come from increased use of fertilizer. Although the technology associated with HYVs is essentially regarded as being neutral to scale, constraints such as those arising from inadequate irrigation, an inability to secure credit and access to extension services can bias the technology towards larger farms. The researcher focuses on the use of fertilizer. Earlier analysis of the data showed that just over 80% of the sample applied fertilizer, this the farms more than 25 hectares have higher percentage. However, that simple analysis of fertiliz er use did not indicate any systematic relationship between land size and per-acre levels applied (henceforth, fertilizer intensity). There, as in most studies of fertilizer use, zero observations are dropped. Much of the literature on agriculture in developing countries argues that, because of lack of access to crucial complementary inputs (such as irrigation, knowledge or credit), the productivity of fertilizer is lower on smaller farms. This would suggest that fertilizer intensity ought to be positively correlated with farm size. However, although my data suggest that a larger proportion of smaller farms do not apply any fertilizer, focusing only on users, I do not find any systematic relationship between fertilizer intensity and farm size. However, when I allow in my analysis for lack of access, I find a negative relationship between fertilizer intensity and farm size, in spite of the fact that productivity-enhancing characteristics appear to be biased in favor of large farms. I suggest that this could reflect the effect of uncertain yields on risk adverse farmers. If one accepts this interpretation, then it appears that the effect of uncertainty is strong enough to outweigh the produc tivity bias towards larger farms Pesticides and Plant Protection The productivity of crops is mainly depends upon control of pest. Around approximately 20% to 25% cent of crop production output lost due to hit of insects and pests. The use of pesticides has increased from 665 tones in 1980 to 69,897 tones in 2002. It has been estimated that its consumption may touch 78,000 metric tones till 2010. Approximately around 54% of the pesticides are useful on cotton crop, 23 per cent on rice, 9 per cent on fruits and vegetables, and 5 per cent on sugarcane. The rising and unsystematic use of pesticides must be avoided as it also kills useful predators and insects and causes environmental deprivation. Importance will be given on support of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in order to reduce the application of pesticides in the best way. According to research (Alagh, 1988) states that INSECT pests, diseases and weeds inflict considerable damage to crops and plantations resulting in an estimated. Crop loss of over one-third of realizable output globally. Losses are higher in Africa and Asia, more than 40 per cent annually. The earliest use of chemicals to prevent crop losses is reported in the nineteenth century with the use of inorganic salts. The thirties of this century represent the beginning of the modern era of synthetic organic pesticides which saw the discovery of DDT (in 1939) and BHC (in 1942). A host of chloro organic compounds were introduced subsequently. Then came the organophosphorous com- pounds representing another extremely important class of organic insecticides, malathion being the first example of a wide spectrum insecticide with low mammalian toxicity. The new crop varieties and cropping sequences for intensive agriculture brought to the forefront problems of pests which caused tremendous losses to various crops and their produce. Pest problems have shown marked increase in changing agriculture. Pest problems have increased with the intensification of agriculture. Also improved agriculture brought about a transformation and an all round consciousness not to allow/tolerate yield losses especially because of the availability of modern pest control technology which makes it possible to avoid or to minimize such losses. Losses to crops and their produce are caused by various agencies which include insects, diseases, nematodes, weeds and several other non-insect pests. The estimated losses vary from crop to crop and region to region. However, it has been estimate that in India annual monetary loss in agriculture due to weeds, diseases, insects, nematodes, storage pests, rodents and birds runs into Rs 6,000 crore. This estimate is somewh at speculative yet it gives a first order approximation of the nature of the problem. Estimates with respect to many crop pests or diseases are available both in terms of percentage avoidable loss or loss in value. Such information is valuable and essential planning and implementation point of view of economic programs. So therefore pesticides plays important role in increasing production efficiency by reducing diseases and damage to the crops by the insects or pests because if crops production is effected by any of the reasons stated above crops production efficiency will be decreased. Development Efficiency How mechanization helps in improving farm efficiency Animal draft has conventionally remained a source of traction powers at farm over centuries. All operations at farm from tilling of the land to sowing, cultural management practices, lifting of water from shallow wells, harvesting, threshing, winnowing and transport were carried through animal provided draft. The use of fuel run machinery is a matter of about half a century. The major focus in the area came since the times of green revolution in late 1960s when the high yielding varieties (HYVs) inspired farming community for paradigm shift in adoption of other new technologies including farm mechanization. The major emphasis has been on farm traction, exploitation of sub surface water resources from sweet water aquifer, harvesting/threshing of crops, spraying of crops against insects, pests/diseases and pressurized irrigation operations. The main purpose of farm mechanization is to improve efficiency by replacing techniques with more efficient use of machines which performs sowing, harvesting, shallow wells and transport with less time and more efficient that animals based techniques. Mechanization of farm operation has become necessary due to shortage of labor and animal power at planting and harvesting stages of crops. It helps in timely sowing, cultural practices and harvesting of crops and reduction in post harvest losses. The most popular forms of mechanization are tractors with cultivators, drills, wheat threshers, sprayers, power rigs, tube-wells and bulldozers. The total number of operational tractors in the country is estimated to be 342,000 by June 2005. Thus available horsepower (hp) at farm level will be 0.82 hp per hectare as compared with 1.4 hp per hectare recommended by FAO for developing countries. It is projected that 45,000 tractors per annum will be added to the existing fleet. Thus, the total number of operational tractors will be increased to 466 thousand in 2009-10, increasing the horsepower at farm level to 1.1 hp per hectare. The fleet of bulldozers in the provinces will be strengthened for the development of wastelands and construction of slow action dams. The availability of institutional credit for the purchase of tractors and other agricultural machinery will be ensured through earmarking the actual credit requirement to Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and other commercial banks. The farmers will be facilitated to procure small seed processing units and establish primary grading facilities at farm level to fetch good price of their produce. The sugarcane harvesters, maize and cotton pickers, paddy transplanters and laser land leveling equipments will be introduced. Custom hire farm service centers will be established at suitable places for costly agricultural machinery/implements for small and medium farmers under public-private partnership. The public sector will provide seed money and technical assistance for the establishment of these centers. The farmers organizations will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of these centers on sustainable basis. The factors included in farm efficiency are Left bank outfall drainage scheme Land leveling Water courses Drainage schemes Left bank outfall drainage scheme Emerging drainage problems The greatly increased continuous use of Indus water for irrigation (from storage or direct river diversions) has significantly altered the hydrological balance of the Indus Basin. Seepage losses from irrigation canals, distributaries, minors, and watercourses and deep percolation from the irrigated lands have resulted in a gradual rising of the groundwater table, bringing with it critical problems of water logging and salinity over a vast area. Water logging is widespread throughout Punjab and Sind provinces, where most of the countrys food and fiber crops are produced. In the early 1900s, the water table was generally more than 15 meters (m) below the surface throughout the Indus Plain. However, by 1978 (when the Indus Basin Salinity Survey was completed), the water table in 22% of the Indus Basin was within 1.8 m of the surface, and an additional 30% was within 3 m. The condition has get worse since then. There was a comprehensive survey conducted in 1961 calculated that about 40,0 00 ha of land were being lost per year to agricultural production due to water logging and salinity. While these estimations have not been updated available information suggests that land neglected in severely waterlogged areas is continuing. What is left bank outfall drainage schemes The Left bank outfall drainage concept embraces major drainage and agricultural development and represents the collective efforts of Government of Punjab, Government of Sind, WAPDA, 1UNDP, international consultants, and potential co financiers, led by the World Bank. The Stage I Project has evolved from numerous investigations and studies initiated in the mid-1960s and refined thereafter. The project was subjected to extensive professional scrutiny and is a milestone in the Banks long-standing involvement with Indus Basin development. The LEFT BANK OUTFALL DRAINAGE SCHEME concept has been subject to intensive project preparation during the past 20 years. The Lower Indus Project report, prepared in 1966 by Sir N. MacDonald and Partners Ltd. and Hunting Technical Services Ltd., both of the United Kingdom, contains a comprehensive plan for optimum development of agriculture in the LEFT BANK OUTFALL DRAINAGE SCHEME area. Why this scheme is so important for Pakistani agriculture due to the irrigation conditions of agriculture Major factors in recent improvement of agriculture have been favorable weather and the affirmative response of farmers to GOVERMENT OF PUNJABs policies and programs for agriculture sector development. Land leveling in Pakistan Studies have indicated that a significant (20 to 25 %) amount of irrigation water is lost during its application due to poor farm designing and uneven fields. It has been estimated that the farmers keep on applying water until the maximum point in a field is covered. This leads to over-irrigation of low-lying areas and under-irrigation of superior spots in those results in irregular supply of all nutrients to the plants besides accumulation of salts in such areas. The fields not correctly leveled, because wastage of land, low irrigation efficiencies, and eventual result is considerably lesser yields than the possible. Accurate Land leveling (PLL) consists of grading and planning land to a smooth level or no slope to facilitate efficient irrigation. Modernized method of carrying out PLL is by using LASER equipment that helps in attaining mandatory degree of precision at lesser cost and effort. LASER land leveling equipment is provided to the farmers on nominal average rental charges i .e. Rs 150/hour to 200/hour. An area of about approximately 400,000 acres has been accurately leveled in the Punjab since inauguration of OFWM program that includes over 113,000 acres leveled with LASER technology. Precision Land Leveling (PLL) is a mechanical process of grading and smoothing the land to a accurate and consistent plane surface at grade or no grade (zero slope) with variation of less than  ± 2cm. It is carried out to control irrigation application losses at the farmers fields besides other advantages. LASER technology has been proved to be advantageous as it minimizes the cost of irrigation operation, ensures better degree of precision in much lesser time, saves irrigation water, ascertains consistent seed germination, increases fertilizer use efficiency and resultantly enhances crop yields. Impact studies on LASER land leveling identify that it: Curtails the irrigation application losses up to the extent of 25% Reduces labor requirements for irrigation by about 35% Enhances the irrigated area by about 2% by brining the number as well as length of field ditches and dikes to a minimum * Increases the crop yields by about 20% Pakistan is considered to be the pioneer in South Asia for promoting use of LASER technology in irrigated agriculture. OFWM Punjab has tested the first laser leveling equipment in 1985. Before devolution, there were 140 LASER land leveling units available with District Governments which have been procured through donor assisted projects, respectively. One hundred units were equipped with tractors while 40 units were without tractors. These machines have accurately leveled about 125,000 acres of land. The yearly potential of available LASER equipment was about 25,000 acres per year. The major operational limitation encountered to make sufficient use of this equipment was insufficient availability of OM funds with the public sector. Drainage schemes The constant expansion of the irrigation system over the past century drastically altered the hydrological balance of the Indus River basin. Seepage from the system and percolation from irrigated fields caused the water table to get higher, attaining crisis conditions for a significant area. Around 1900 the water table was typically more than sixteen meters below the surface of the Indus Plain. A 1981 study found the water table to be within about three meters of the surface in more than one-half the cropped area in Sindh and more than one-third the area in Punjab. In some areas, the water table is much nearer to the surface. Cropping is fatally affected over a wide area by poor drainagewater loggingand by accumulated salts in the soil. Officials were conscious of the need for additional expenditure to prevent further worsening of the existing situation. Emphasis in the 1980s and early 1990s was on rehabilitation and preservation of existing canals and watercourses, on farm improvements on the farms themselves (including some land leveling to conserve water), and on drainage and salinity in priority areas. Emphasis was also placed on the short-term projects, mainly to improve the operation of the irrigation system in order to lift up yields. Element of the funding would come from stable increases in water use fees; the objective is gradually to raise water charges to cover operation and maintenance costs. Substantial time and money are needed to understand the full potential of the irrigation system and bring it up to modern standards.(detected) Irrigation and watercourses In the beginning of 1990s, irrigation from the Indus River and its tributaries comprised the worlds largest contiguous irrigation system, capable of watering over 16 million hectares. The system includes three major storage reservoirs and numerous barrages, head works and canals, distribution channels. The total length of the canal system exceeds 58,000 kilometers; there are a further 1.6 million kilometers of farm and field ditches. Over the use of Indus waters there were prolonged disputes between India and Pakistan because partition placed portions of the Indus River and its tributaries under Indias control. After nine years of dialogue and technological studies, the issue was resolved by the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960. India use of the waters of the main eastern tributaries in its territorythe Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers after a ten year transitional period, the treaty awarded Pakistan received use of the waters of the Indus River and its western tributaries, the Jhelum and Chenab rivers. When the treaty was signed, Pakistan began an extended and rapid irrigation construction program, partly financed by the Indus Basin expansion Fund of US$800 million contributed by various nations, including the US, and administered by the World Bank. Several huge link canals were built to transfer water from western rivers to eastern Punjab to substitute flows in eastern tributaries that India began to redirect in accordance with the terms of the treaty. In 1967 the Mangla Dam, on the Jhelum River, was completed. The dam provided the first major water storage for the Indus irrigation arrangement. The flood control was also contributed by the dam, for regulation of flows for some of the link canals, and to the countrys energy supply. At the same time, further construction was undertaken on barrages and canals. The vital need in the 1960s and 1970s to raise crop production for domestic and export markets led to water flows well beyond designed capacities. Completion of the Mangla and Tarbela reservoirs, as well as enhancement in other parts of the system, made superior water flows possible. In addition, the government began installing public tube wells that frequently discharge into upper levels of the system to add to the available water. The higher water flows in parts of the system significantly go beyond design capacities, creating stresses and risks of breaches. However, many farmers, mainly those with smallholdings and those on the way to the end of watercourses, suffer because the supply of water is unreliable. The irrigation system represents a considerable engineering achievement and provides water to the fields that account for ninety percent of agricultural production. Nevertheless, serious problems in the design of the irrigation system avert achieving the highest potential agricultural output. LITERATURE REVIEW Production Efficiency and Agriculture Productivity According to research (Taylor, Drummond, Gomes, 1986) which relates to effectiveness of subsidized credit programs in improving the productivity of traditional farmers in developing countries the credit program known as PRODEMATA it is concluded by empirical results suggest that PRODEMATA has had no desire impact on technical efficiency and a slightly negative effect on allocative productivity (it is defined as a theoretical measure of the advantage or utility resulting from a planned or actual choice in the distribution or distribution of resources). The poor but efficient hypothesis states that the provision of agricultural credit will be ineffective in improving productivity and incomes since investment opportunities are limited. Traditional farmers are hypothesized to be efficient but faced with technological barriers that can- not be overcome by the mere influx of capital provided by credit programs alone. It is further analyzed that the economics of credit in Brazil and concluded there was an underutilization of capital on small farms and that credit would relieve capital shortages and improve output. However, in analyzing farm-level production in it is found that technological barriers were present which would prevent credit programs from having a significant impact on capital formation and incomes. Studying traditional agriculture in southern Brazil concluded that in- creased investment capital formation, such as use of mechanized equipment and fertilizer, alone is not the answer to increasing crop production. Better management, Information sources and consumption of resources are as significant and should be equally emphasized if any advantage is to be anticipated from increasing disbursement on these inputs. The implication here is that, while credit availability may afford traditional farmers the opportunity to invest in modernized inputs, there is no guarantee that these inputs will be used in such manner as to recognize the full level of output gains possible. It thus seems appropriate that the effectiveness of subsidized credit in traditional farming depends on concerns of technical as well as allocative efficiency. The research above illustrated credit program named as PRODEMATA was instituted The result was that participated in the program compared to those of nonparticipating farms indicate that the program wa

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Examining Educational Theorists and Current Practice Today Essay

Examining Educational Theorists and Current Practice Today Abstract This paper names three educational theorists, Benjamin Bloom, Jean Piaget, and Lev Vygotsky, and seeks to examine their most well-known theories. These are namely, Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development, and Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. Each theory is briefly explained and then compared and contrasted with the other theories. Lastly, the author reflects on the practical application of these theories in a classroom setting, discussing how these philosophies fit into the author’s current practice. Can anyone with a thought, idea, or theory about a topic be considered a theorist? Those who are formally named as theorists in educated circles seem to be people who have spent time pondering a particular subject, topic, or issue and then shared his or her thoughts with others of that field, eventually following up with testing and publication. In that same vein, are not those who study and work in those fields, albeit perhaps unpublished and unrecognized, pondering the inner workings of that field also considered theorists? When it comes to education, there are those who through publication have shared their theories regarding its purposes, processes, effects, etc, and then there are those who perform its’ necessary tasks daily. The latter learn about the former as part of undergraduate courses in education but are seldom asked to carry out these theories farther than a pencil-paper test. This graduate level course has asked, in the form of this paper, for s tudents who are at work in the field of education to re-examine several of these theorists, comparing and contrasting their pu... ...onal Bureau of Education. Vol: XXX, No. 3. www.ibe.unesco.org/Internaional/Publications/ThinkersPdf/bloome.pdf Gallagher, C. (n.d.) Psychology history: Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky http://fates.cns.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/vygotsky.htm Major categories in the taxonomy of educational objectives (Bloom, 1956). http://faculty.washington.edu/krumme/guides/bloom.html MIA: encyclopedia of marxism: glossary of people: vy (Vygotsky, Lev.). www.marxists.org/glossary/people/v/y.htm Presnell, F. (n.d.) Psychology history: Jean Piaget. http://fates.cns.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/piaget.htm Schutz, R. (2002, March). Vygotsky and language acquisition. www.sk.com/sk-vygot.html Smith, L. (2000, November). A brief biography of Jean Piaget. The Jean Piaget Society: society for the study of knowledge and development. www.piaget.org/aboutPiaget.html

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Biological and Psychological Drives Behind Consumerism Essay

Most of us like to think that we are reasonable, rational, and independent thinkers and actors. Thus, we believe that we have a good enough reason for our choices. However, we often erroneously buy products succumbing to strange compulsion. It is a power of consumerism. The term consumerism is defined as the tendency of people to identify strongly with products they consume, particularly of name brands and status-enhancing appeal. Then, how does the power of consumerism win over our rationality? In this situation, we pretend to regard the primary cause of the impulse consumerism is the commercial seductions. The truth, however, is that the shopping indulgences does not originate from a manipulation of the commercial advertisements, but rather a biological and psychological drive planted in every one of us. The biological and psychological drives for our consumerism are evidenced by: in order to show off, to get rid of stress, and to follow the fashion. Virginia Postrel explains about a reaction of Afghans when they get liberated after the Taliban fell. Although they are not been exposed of any â€Å"ubiquitous advertising or elaborate marketing campaigns† at all, consumerist impulses expressed as if they were â€Å"celebrating the end of tyranny by buying consumer electronics† (301). This reaction well shows the human desire aesthetic value and also the power of consumerism. In my case, the power of consumerism comes to the surface when I get to choose a product of between famous brand and no-name. I often make a decision to afford the cheaper one; and then with the profit –actually not a real profit– that I earn from buying the cheaper one, I tend to make a reasonable excuse to spend the remained money for the rest of the shopping. It i... ...ver us than we realize. I think this quotation strongly describes beyond what I have said about the internal drives of people: "I can imagine it, therefore I want it. I want it, therefore I should have it. Because I should have it, I need it. Because I need it, I deserve it. Because I deserve it, I will do anything necessary to get it." Before your consciousness being attacked directly by "imagin[g] it," first try to recognize what your internal needs are and set your limits rationally. Wanting things is perfectly human desire. However, buying material things doesn’t lead us to have a happier and more fulfilling life. The more you rely on superficial things to satisfy your needs for belonging and identity, the more dissatisfied you’re likely to be over the long run. If we cannot control ourselves, we can easily surrender to worship of consumerism and materialism.

slave families :: essays research papers

Aside from what the owners and overseers thought, slaves lived their own lives. They made friends, fell in love, played and prayed, sang, told stories, and engaged in the necessary chores of day to day living. These things as well as family and religion were also important to the slaves.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the South, the slave owners defined the living arrangements of slaves. Most slaves lived together in nuclear families with a mother, father, and children (Phillips 1929, 14). The stability of the slave family was often challenged due to various reasons: no state law recognized marriage among slaves, masters rather than parents had legal authority over slave children and the possibility of forced separation, through slave trade or sale were an issue of every slave family. These separations were especially frequent in the slave-exporting states of the upper South (Phillips 1929, 16). However, the most effective way of controlling slaves was the threat of sale. Slaves feared the reality of such a suggestion more than any form of punishment. They could endure the pain of whipping, but it was more difficult to suffer the grave psychological injuries that stemmed from the severance of familiar bonds (Phillips 1929, 44). Parents who were sold would worry about the welfare of children growing up without a mother and a father. Slave men and women heard terrifying stories from masters about the dangers of life in other states or in other towns where they might be sold. However, despite their severe status, families served as the slaves’ most basic refuge, the part of their private lives that owners could never fully control.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Religion also served as a refuge for slaves. African slaves usually remained close to their native religions, and many slave owners grew suspicious of those who looked to convert their slaves to Christianity, partly because they were scared that converted slaves would have to be freed. Christianity was increasingly central to the slaves’ cultural lives (Phillips 1929, 20). Many slaves converted during Christian revivals that swept through the South in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, where Baptists and Methodists denomination became most popular among slaves.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

German Philosophers Essay

My paper is about Kant’s ideas of progression which shall focus on a study of his works such as â€Å"Idea for a Universal History† and his most famous work â€Å"What is Enlightenment? † as basis for analysis. This paper also explains the opposing views of Mendelssohn from Kant’s ideas of progression. It will compare Mendelssohn’s idea of enlightenment from that of Kant. His contribution to the emancipation of Jews will be discussed too. I will include also some ideas from other philosophers like Nietzsche on The Genealogy of Morality and Hegel on the philosophy of history. The opposing views of Mendelssohn on progression are also discussed pointing his views on secularization and enlightenment in relation to Kant’s views. A little will be discussed on Kant’s Perpetual Peace essay pointing it on a philosophical manner. Other philosopher such as Nietzsche’s views on morality using his work On the Genealogy of Morality shall be discussed in relation with Kant’s two ways of distinguishing judgments (ethical and aesthetic theory). Introduction The primary objective of this paper is to discuss Kant’s historical theory of progression. The first approach in understanding his ideas is to touch in his historical philosophy. Since the system used for reconstructing Kant’s philosophical history is critical it results to unsatisfactory remarks thus the use of a horizontal approach is necessary. A more general issue of philosophical matters will usually submerge using the historical philosophy approach. This approach is helpful in understanding the dialogue between contemporaries because it particular criticizes the idea of progression. The Kant’s theory of progression involves a strong case of particular criticism addressing these objections: (i) the rejection of the idea of progression due to religion’s being secularized; (ii) that his ideas on progression are chronologically unfair because this try to mean that the earlier generation gets a raw deal; (iii) that progression delivers the species into endless unsatisfaction; (iv) that progression adds to a harmful homogenization which may eliminate traditional values and practices (McCloughan 2003). The ways of judgment as distinguished by Kant such as the priori judgment and the posteriori judgment; the former judgment explains that something is known a priori if it is neither derived from nor testable by sense experience while the latter judgments is derived from or is testable by experience. These judgment means that we have no certain knowledge about experience, and according to Kant, he believed that we had such knowledge thus we ask the question: â€Å"How are synthetic a priori judgment? † On the other hand, in Mendelssohn’s mind, aesthetics in relationship to Kant’s theory of aesthetic is closely interrelated with psychology (Kant 1983). I. What is progress? â€Å"Progress† is a broad term that is believed to be an act of rejection throughout history by human communities of their attitude. However, an increasing number of intellectuals believe that the methods and spirit of science must be applied to all fields. Because of this belief, the idea of progress came to include a concept of social and moral progress. It was stated that the cumulative improvement in human knowledge and power that had been brought about in the physical sciences could also be brought about in the organization of human society and its character if only these barriers against the employment of rational methods in morals, religion, and politics could be eradicated (McCloughan 2003). In pre-modern Western culture, the idea of progress challenged the thought that the golden age of humankind devised in the past and that the aging of the Earth involves decay for it and analogous to the aging of individual living organisms. Moreover, the idea of progress implies a trend to history and time that contrasts sharply with the cyclical conceptions of time and of history that is dominant in ancient history. Finally, the idea of progress implies an activist role for humans in defining their well-being and in causing it, in the present and for the future (McCloughan 2003). II. Kant’s idea of progression and his ways of judgment According to Kant, humanity, as whole, was gradually progressing towards enlightenment that there is a progression that expresses the idea of the history of humankind. Moreover, it is directing towards a goal, which led to the development of shifting interpretations of this abstract notion. Kant stresses the unplanned character of the development of history, which is more likely to go after on its way to a cosmopolitan world order. ‘Progress’ toward the commencement of perpetual peace will be unpredictable and painful because while the process is undergoing, progress will adopt a more regular pace. Progress would also take the form of a more balanced development of human capacities. Both at the national and international levels, spontaneous antagonism will not only holds up the process of development, but also ensures that such development as has taken place has failed to put attention to the all-important moral dimension (Kant 1983). Progression would be the universal history of all humanity and it is very comprehensive that often takes the case with traditional universal histories, the future as well as the past. Nevertheless, progression is more than just a collection of all facts falling under the intersection of the concepts ‘human’ and ‘history’. According to Kant, this would amount to what he calls an ‘aggregate’, a mere ‘distributive unity’, and would fail to satisfy reason’s demand for ‘systematic’ or ‘collective unity’ (Kant 1983). When human beings emerge from his self-incurred minority, it is called Enlightenment that is, on a public level, the application of one’s own understanding, improvement without the help of another individual. Kant asserted that it is the freedom of thought and all individuals can attain this freedom indiscriminately. While I agree that enlightenment transcends economic class and race, freedom of thought but it cannot practically be extended to everyone (Kant 1983). Furthermore, in Kant’s words, progress may be associated with human reason and talks about how things are presented to us. Human understanding is only concerned of how it works but it not concern with the foundations. In Kant’s mind, however, neither sciences nor philosophy must answer to those questions, since this separate their innate capacities. Nevertheless, this does not mean that it is less worthwhile to answer questions on one side because he said that we could not construct any serious progress in physics, for example, while we argue over the issue of whether it is logically consistent to talk about laws of nature. However, it does mean that whatever we are doing we are in an important respect, stopping to do philosophy. If this is correct, then there is no chance of achieving progress in philosophy by adopting a paradigm that helps achieve progress, but only by making it cease to be philosophy (Kant 1983). Kant saw the problem of knowledge was on the issue of how to connect the† is† of sense experience with the â€Å"must† of necessary and universal truth. First, we distinguish analytic from synthetic judgments. An analytic judgment can be ascertained by looking on the truth of such judgment which can be know by an analysis of the subject while a synthetic judgment can be ascertained by looking at the truth of such a statement which cannot be known through an analysis of the subject (McCloughan 2003). Philosophers before Kant stated that an analytic judgment was known a priori while the synthetic judgment was known a posteriori. The former were always and necessarily true but true only about the meaning and relation of words not about the world while the latter judgment was about the world but they could only be contingent or probable truths. Kant believed that we have no certain knowledge about experience and we had such knowledge. As a solution, he further adds that experience provides the content and the mind provides the structures that determine the way in which the content will be organized and understood (McCloughan 2003). III. Kant on the issue of morality Kant says in a moral sphere that he has denied knowledge to make room for faith because he believe that moral law cannot be justified by reason it can only be obeyed on its own sake. According to Kant’s ethical theory, which rests on the concept of duty, a good person acts out of duty not because he fears punishment but because it his duty. The categorical imperative states that a person should act in such a way that it are possible for one to will that the maxim of ones action should become a universal law (Kant 1983). On the other hand, according to Kant’s aesthetic theory, which holds that judgment, give beauty to something, although they rest on feeling, but have valid claims although these are mere statements of taste or of opinion. This concept involves a judgment, which are on purpose for example, when a person judges something to be beautiful there is harmony of the experienced object with mental structure (Kant 1983). IV. Mendelssohn’s Views Mendelssohn believed that destiny should be divided into two separate categories. The first is the personal, private, and intellectual destiny of man; and the second was the destiny as a citizen of a state or a public, duty-oriented destiny. In an enlightened society according to him, the need for culture is ideally eliminated and substituted by the virtues of Enlightenment (Mendelssohn 1983). Moreover, another important truth about the Enlightenment thinking is the possession of knowledge through experience and observation, education, and self-probing on an intellectual and spiritual level. Moreover, by fulfilling these quests shall lead you to the path of Enlightenment. The idea of Mendelssohn on Enlightenment has distinguished the destiny of man through his roles as both a citizen of a state and between the role of a human to morality, religion, and personal philosophy. He discovers that this distinction is necessary because he believes that the personal interests of man as a human can do conflict with the interests of public man. According to him, the ideals of Enlightenment should be limited in their availability to man when it is in the best interest of the state and they should not meddle with work ethics or motivations, as they are necessary to the functioning of society (Mendelssohn 1983). V. Mendelssohn’s contribution to Jewish thought and secularization Mendelssohn’s principal contribution to Jewish thought concerns a declaration of inconsistency while he supports the abolition of excommunication while remaining loyal to biblical law, and is willing to overlook such coercion. In Mendelssohn’s reply, â€Å"Jerusalem Or On Religious Power and Judaism† which was one of the first works in German to plead for freedom of conscience in religious matters, separates church and state, and the civil rights for the Jews. According to him, both states and church have as their final goals the promotion of human happiness. The state is permitted to enforce specific actions, whereas the church’s task is to convince its followers of their religious and ethical duties through persuasion alone (Mendelssohn 1983). Mendelssohn replied to the question of the continued authority of Jewish law, and said that the ceremonial law originating from the Hebrew Bible is binding solely on the Jewish people and Judaism is a religion of revealed legislation but not of revealed beliefs. He further said that the existence and unity of God, the reality of divine providence, and the immortality of the soul should be declared on the grounds of natural reason, not miracles or supernatural revelation. Mendelssohn was concerned with freedom inside one religion as well as freedom of religion for minority communities but he is still confirming the continued authority of Jewish law. He argued that by identifying the church and state in biblical Israel should end with the destruction of the ancient association of states and laws that preserve the universal principles of Jewish faith against errors into idolatry and polytheism. Until God arranges another indubitable supernatural revelation to the Jewish people, these laws will not lose their force to replace that of Mount Sinai. However, loyalty to the Jewish law does not prevent the Jews from expecting the legitimate duties of citizenship in an enlightened society (Mendelssohn 1983). Mendelssohn was seen as a forebear of the conflicting trends of German Jewry but Kant as well as Hegel viewed his synthesis of philosophical theism and traditional religious observance as outdated. Nevertheless, he was revered by the Enlighteners for having moved from the ghetto to modern society without abandoning the Jewish tradition or the Jewish people. However, Mendelssohn was criticized for having paved the way to the loss of Jewish distinctiveness and, therefore, to assimilation. In retrospect, his thought and life can be seen to have posed some of the fundamental issues of Jewish religious survival in secular, liberal society (Mendelssohn 1983).

Monday, September 16, 2019

Louis Althusser

In his essay, Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses, Louis Althusser demonstrates that in order to exist, a social formation is required to essentially, continuously and perpetually reproduce the productive forces (labour-power), the conditions of production and the relations of production. The reproduction of productive forces is ensured by the wage system which pays a minimum amount to the workers so that they appear to work day after day, thereby limiting their vertical mobility.The reproduction of the conditions of production and the reproduction of the relations of production happens through the State Apparatuses which are insidious machinations controlled by the capitalist ruling ideology in the context of a class struggle to repress, exploit, extort and subjugate the ruled class. The Marxist spatial metaphor of the edifice, describes a social formation, constituted by the foundational infrastructure i. e. , the economic base on which stands the superstructure comprising o f two floors: the Law-the State (politico-legal) and Ideology.Althusser extends this topographical paradigm by stating that the Infrastructural economic base is endowed with an â€Å"index of effectivity† which enables it to ultimately determine the functioning of the superstructure. He scrutinizes this structural metaphor by discussing the superstructure in detail. A close study of the superstructure is necessitated due to its relative autonomy over the base and its reciprocal action on the base. Althusser regards the State as a repressive apparatus which is used by the ruling class as a tool to suppress and dominate the working class.According to Althusser, the basic function of the Repressive State Apparatus (Heads of State, government, police, courts, army etc. ) is to intervene and act in favour of the ruling class by repressing the ruled class by violent and coercive means. The Repressive state apparatus (RSA) is controlled by the ruling class, because more often than n ot, the ruling class possesses State power. Althusser takes the Marxist theory of the State forward by distinguishing the repressive State Apparatus from the Ideological State Apparatuses (ISA).The ISAs consist of an array of institutions and multiple realities that propagate a wide range of ideologies such as Religious ISA, Educational ISA, Family ISA, Legal ISA, Political ISA, Communications ISA, Cultural ISA etc. He accentuates the differences between the RSA and the ISAs as follows: 1. The RSA functions as a unified entity (an organized whole) as opposed to the ISA which is diverse and plural. However, what unites the disparate ISAs is the fact that they are ultimately controlled by the ruling ideology. 2.The RSA function predominantly by means of repression and violence and secondarily by ideology whereas the ISA functions predominantly by ideology and secondarily by repression and violence. The ISA functions in a concealed and a symbolic manner. He declares that the School has supplanted the Church as being the crucial ISA which augments the reproduction of the relations of production (i. e. , the capitalist relations of exploitation) by training the students to become productive forces (labour-power) working for and under the Capitalist agents of exploitation.The Educational ISAs, which assume a dominant role in a Capitalist economy, conceal and mask the ruling class ideology behind its liberating qualities so that their hidden agendas become inconspicuous to the parents of the students. Althusser compares â€Å"ideology† to Freud’s â€Å"unconscious†. In the same sense that Freud had stated that the unconscious was eternal, he hypothesizes that ideology too is eternal due to its omnipresence. Therefore, ideology in general has no history.Althusser posits that it is not possible for a class to hold State power unless and until it exercises its hegemony (domination) over and in the ISA at the same time. The importance of ISAs is unde rstood in the wake of class struggles because ISAs are not only a crucial stake in class struggle but they are also the site of class struggle. The resistances of the exploited classes are able to find means and opportunities to express themselves in the ISAs to overpower the dominant class.An oppressed class can end its oppression by over powering the dominant/ruling class by utilizing the contradictions within the ISAs or by conquering combating positions in the ISAs during struggle. The crux of Althusser’s argument is the structure and functioning of â€Å"ideology†. Althusser explains the structure and functioning of ideology by presenting two theses. Firstly, he posits that ideology represents the imaginary relationship of individuals to their real conditions of existence.This distortion of reality is caused by material alienation and by the active imagination of oppressive individuals who base their domination and exploitation on the falsified representations of the world in order to enslave the relatively passive minds of the oppressed. Secondly, he posits that ideology always has a material existence in the form of concrete entities or apparatuses (ISAs). Hence, an individual’s belief in various ideologies (imaginary realities) is derived from the ideas of the individual who is a subject endowed with a consciousness that is defined by the ISAs.This (false) consciousness inspires and instigates the subject to behave in certain ways, adopt certain attitudes and participate in certain regular practices which conform to the ideology within which he recognizes himself as a subject. The ideas of the subject are inscribed in the ritual practices based on the â€Å"correct† principles of that ideology. Hence, despite the imaginary distortion by ideology, a subject derives his beliefs from the ideas which become his material actions and practices governed by material rituals which are all defined by material ideological apparatus and derived from the same.Althusser’s central thesis states that ideology transforms individuals as subjects by a process of interpellation or hailing. The Family ISA is at work even before a child is born because it predetermines the identity of the child before its birth. Hence, an individual is always-already a subject. An individual is subjected to various levels of ideological subjection and each level of subjection or each ISA that subjects the individual influences the individual’s day to day activities and thereby determines his real conditions of existence.Further, Althusser demonstrates that the recognition of oneself as a ‘free’ subject within an ideology is only a misrecognition because the notion of a ‘free’ subject in ideology is only an illusion. In reality, the subject is subjugated, limited, restricted and controlled by ideology to such an extent that he has limited freedom and diminutive individual agency. Due to this misrecogni tion the subject acts and practices rituals steeped in the dominant ideology that are detrimental to his/her own welfare.