Fraternities and Sororities Essay

What is fraternity? A fraternity (Latin frater : â€Å"brother†) is a brotherhood, although the term sometimes connotes a distinct or formal organization and sometimes a secret society. A fraternity (or fraternal organization) is an organized society of men associated together in an environment of companionship and brotherhood; dedicated to the intellectual, physical, and social development of its members. * Wikipedia A fraternity is a male-only association with members who are linked by common interests of some form or another. The most famous form in North America is probably the college fraternity, although it is also possible to find social and a variety of other fraternal organizations around the world. College fraternities date to 1776, when Phi Beta Kappa was founded in the United States. Many college fraternities are established with academic criteria for membership. People who wish to join typically participate in activities that take place over the course of a week at the start of a semester. Since most colleges with a system have multiple fraternities, these events usually take place during the same week for all groups, allowing people to explore all their options. This period is known as â€Å"rush week.† After rush week, current members of the fraternity decide which new members should be voted in. Traditionally, new pledges participate in an initiation ceremony that has historically been accompanied by hazing challenges. Due to concerns about the risks of hazing that involve dangerous activities and drinking, many colleges have explicitly banned it in the interest of student safety. Some colleges have also cracked down on fraternity parties in response to complaints from other students and the surrounding community. Membership in a fraternity can confer many advantages. It is not uncommon for these groups to maintain living quarters and private clubs that are only open to their members. Special scholarships may be available, and membership can be used for networking which will be valuable later in life. Many people also enjoy the brotherhood that comes with membership. Fraternities are often identified with Greek letters, as in the case of Lambda Chi, a Christian fraternity, and Phi Iota Alpha, a Hispanic fraternity. These letters often represent the group’s motto. Thanks to the common use of Greek letters in their identifications, the culture is sometimes described as â€Å"Greek,† as in â€Å"Greek life† or â€Å"Greeks† in reference to the members. It is also possible to use an English name, as in the case of the Skull and Bones, a notorious Yale fraternity. Public service is often a part of fraternity membership. They usually include a specific charity or cause in their mission, with members donating funds or time to the cause each year. Members are sometimes frustrated by the judgmental attitudes of people outside the Greek system, pointing to their fundamental missions of service and brotherhood to counteract stereotypes about lewd behavior and decadent parties. History There are known fraternal organizations which existed as far back as ancient Greece and in the Mithraic Mysteries of ancient Rome. Analogous institutions developed in the late medieval period called confraternities, which were lay organizations allied to the Catholic Church. Some were groups of men and women who were endeavoring to ally themselves more closely with the prayer and activity of the Church. Others were groups of tradesmen, which are more commonly referred to as guilds. These later confraternities evolved into purely secular fraternal societies, while the ones with religious goals continue to be the format of the modern Third Orders affiliated with the mendicant orders. The development of modern fraternal orders was especially dynamic in the United States, where the freedom to associate outside governmental regulation is expressly sanctioned in law.[1] There have been hundreds of fraternal organizations in the United States, and at the beginning of the 20th century the number of memberships equaled the number of adult males. (Due to multiple memberships, probably only 50% of adult males belonged to any organizations.)[2] In 1944 Arthur M. Schlesinger coined the phrase â€Å"a nation of joiners† to refer to the phenomenon.[3] Alexis de Tocqueville also referred to the American reliance on private organization in the 1830s in Democracy in America. There are many attributes that fraternities may or may not have, depending on their structure and purpose. Fraternities can have differing degrees of secrecy, some form of initiation or ceremony marking admission, formal codes of behavior, disciplinary procedures, very differing amounts of real property and assets.[2] Types of fraternities The only true distinction between a fraternity and any other form of social organization is the implication that the members freely associate as equals for a mutually beneficial purpose, rather than because of a religious, governmental, commercial, or familial bond, although there are fraternities dedicated to each of these fields.[2] On college campuses, fraternities may be divided into groups: social, service, professional and honorary. Fraternities can be organized for many purposes, including university education, work skills, ethics, ethnicity, religion, politics, charity, chivalry, other standards of personal conduct, asceticism, service, performing arts, family command of territory, and even crime. There is almost always an explicit goal of mutual support, and while there have been fraternal orders for the well-off there have also been many fraternities for those in the lower ranks of society, especially for national or religious minorities. Trade unions also grew out of fraternities such as the Knights of Labor. The ability to organize freely, apart from the institutions of government and religion, was a fundamental part of the establishment of the modern world. In Living the Enlightenment, Margaret C. Jacobs showed the development of Jurgen Habermas’ ‘public space’ in 17th century Netherlands was closely related to the establishment of lodges of Freemasons.[4] Trade guilds The development of fraternities in England can be traced from guilds that emerged as the forerunners of trade unions and friendly societies. These guilds were set up to protect and care for their members at a time when there was no welfare state, trade unions or universal health care. Various secret signs and handshakes were created to serve as proof of their membership allowing them to visit guilds in distant places that are associated with the guild they belong. Over the next 300 years or so, the idea of â€Å"ordinary† people joining together to improve their situation met with varying degrees of opposition (and persecution) from â€Å"People in Power†, depending on whether they[clarification needed] were seen as a source of revenue (taxes) or a threat to their power. When Henry VIII broke from the Roman Catholic Church, he viewed the guilds as supporters of the Pope, and in 1545 expropriate their property. Later, Elizabeth I appropriated apprenticeships away from guilds,[clarification needed] and by the end of her reign most guilds had been suppressed. The suppression of these trade guilds removed an important form of social and financial support from ordinary men and women. In London and other major cities, some Guilds (like the Freemasons and the Odd Fellows) survived by adapting their roles to a social support function. Eventually, these groups evolved in the early 18th century into more philosophical organizations focused on brotherly love and ethical living. Among guilds that became prosperous are the Freemasons, Odd Fellows and Foresters. In many instances fraternities are limited to male membership, but this is not always the case, and there are mixed male and female, and even wholly female, fraternities. For example, for general fraternities: the Grande Loge Mixte de France, the Honorable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons, the Grande Loge Fà ©minine de France, the various Orders of Odd Fellows, Orange Order, Daughters of Rebekah and the Order of the Eastern Star. College and university fraternities Main article: Fraternities and sororities in North America Fraternities have a history in American colleges and universities and form a major subsection of the whole range of fraternities.[5] In Europe, students were organized in nations and corporations since the beginnings of the modern university in the late medieval period, but the situation can differ greatly by country. In the United States, fraternities in colleges date to the 1770s, but did not fully assume an established pattern until the 1820s. Many were strongly influenced by the patterns set by Freemasonry.[2] The main difference between the older European organizations and the American organizations is that the American student societies virtually always include initiations, the formal use of symbolism, and the lodge-based organizational structure (chapters) derived from usages in Freemasonry[2] and other fraternal organizations such as the Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias.[6] The oldest active American college fraternity is The Kappa Alpha Society founded in November 1825, at Union College in Schenectady, New York, followed closely by Sigma Phi Society (1827) and Delta Phi Fraternity (1827) at the same school. Other fraternities are also called literary societies because they focus on the literary aspect of the organization and its role in improving public speaking. In Germany the German Student Corps are the oldest academic fraternities. Twenty-eight were founded in the 18th century and two of them still exist.[7] ————————————————- References 1. ^ NAACP v. Alabama ex rel. Patterson, 357 U.S. 449, 460 (1958) 2. ^ a b c d e Stevens, Albert C. (1907). Cyclopedia of Fraternities: A Compilation of Existing Authentic Information and the Results of Original Investigation as to the Origin, Derivation, Founders, Development, Aims, Emblems, Character, and Personnel of More Than Six Hundred Secret Societies in the United States. E. B. Treat and Company. 3. ^ Schlesinger, Arthur M. (October 1944). â€Å"Biography of a Nation of Joiners†. American Historical Review (Washington, D.C.: American Historical Association) L (1): 1. 4. ^ Jacob, Margaret C. (1991). Living the Enlightenment: Freemasonry and Politics in Eighteenth-Century Europe. New York, New York: Oxford University Press. 5. ^ Baird’s Manual of American College Fraternities 6. ^ Several collegiate fraternal societies were founded by members of Freemasons, Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias, Abovetopsecret.com 7. ^ Klimczuk, Stephen & Warner, Gerald. â€Å"Secret Places, Hidden Sanctuaries: Uncovering Mysterious Sites, Symbols, and Societies†. Sterling Publishing, 2009, New York and London. ISBN 9781402762079. pp. 212-232 (â€Å"University Secret Societies and Dueling Corps†).

Second Foundation 1. Two Men and the Mule

THE MULE – It was after the fall of the First Foundation that the constructive aspects of the Mule's regime took shape. After the definite break-up at the first Galactic Empire, it was he who first presented history with a unified volume at space truly imperial in scope. The earlier commercial empire at the fallen Foundation had been diverse and loosely knit, despite the impalpable backing at the predictions of psycho-history. It was not to be compared with the tightly controlled ‘Union of Worlds' under the Mule, comprising as it did, one-tenth the volume of the Galaxy and one-fifteenth of its population. Particularly during the era of the so-called Search†¦ Encyclopedia Galactica [1] There is much more that the Encyclopedia has to say on the subject of the Mule and his Empire but almost all of it is not germane to the issue at immediate hand, and most of it is considerably too dry for our purposes in any case. Mainly, the article concerns itself at this point with the economic conditions that led to the rise of the â€Å"First Citizen of the Union† – the Mule's official title – and with the economic consequences thereof. If, at any time, the writer of the article is mildly astonished at the colossal haste with which the Mule rose from nothing to vast dominion in five years, he conceals it. If he is further surprised at the sudden cessation of expansion in favor of a five-year consolidation of territory, he hides the fact. We therefore abandon the Encyclopedia and continue on our own path for our own purposes and take up the history of the Great Interregnum – between the First and Second Galactic Empires – at the end of that five years of consolidation. Politically, the Union is quiet. Economically, it is prosperous. Few would care to exchange the peace of the Mule's steady grip for the chaos that had preceded, On the worlds that five years previously had known the Foundation, there might be a nostalgic regret, but no more. The Foundation's leaders were dead, where useless; and Converted, where useful. And of the Converted, the most useful was Han Pritcher, now lieutenant general. In the days of the Foundation, Han Pritcher had been a captain and a member of the underground Democratic Opposition. When the Foundation fell to the Mule without a fight, Pritcher fought the Mule. Until, that is, he was Converted. The Conversion was not the ordinary one brought on by the power of superior reason. Han Pritcher know that well enough. He had been changed because the Mule was a mutant with mental powers quite capable of adjusting the conditions of ordinary humans to suit himself. But that satisfied him completely. That was as it should be. The very contentment with the Conversion was a prime symptom of it, but Han Pritcher was no longer even curious about the matter. And now that he was returning from his fifth major expedition into the boundlessness of the Galaxy outside the Union, it was with something approaching artless joy that the veteran spaceman and Intelligence agent considered his approaching audience with the â€Å"First Citizen.† His hard face, gouged out of a dark, grainless wood that did not seem to be capable of smiling without cracking, didn't show it – but the outward indications were unnecessary. The Mule could see the emotions within, down to the smallest, much as an ordinary man could see the twitch of an eyebrow. Pritcher left his air car at the old vice-regal hangars and entered the palace grounds on foot as was required. He walked one mile along the arrowed highway – which was empty and silent. Pritcher knew that over the square miles of Palace grounds, there was not one guard, not one soldier, not one armed man. The Mule had need of no protection. The Mule was his own best, all-powerful protector. Pritcher's footsteps beat softly in his own cars, as the palace reared its gleaming, incredibly light and incredibly strong metallic walls before him in the daring, overblown, near-hectic arches that characterized the architecture of the Late Empire. It brooded strongly over the empty grounds, over the crowded city on the horizon. Within the palace was that one man – by himself – on whose inhuman mental attributes depended the new aristocracy, and the whole structure of the Union. The huge, smooth door swung massively open at the general's approach, and he entered. He stepped on to the wide, sweeping ramp that moved upward under him. He rose swiftly in the noiseless elevator. He stood before the small plain door of the Mule's own room in the highest glitter of the palace spires. It opened- Bail Channis was young, and Bail Channis was Unconverted. That is, in plainer language, his emotional make-up had been unadjusted by the Mule. It remained exactly as it had been formed by the original shape of its heredity and the subsequent modifications of his environment. And that satisfied him, too. At not quite thirty, he was in marvelously good odor in the capital. He was handsome and quick-witted – therefore successful in society. He was intelligent and self-possessed – therefore successful with the Mule. And he was thoroughly pleased at both successes. And now, for the first time, the Mule had summoned him to personal audience. His legs carried him down the long, glittering highway that led tautly to the sponge-aluminum spires that had been once the residence of the viceroy of Kalgan, who ruled under the old emperors; and that had been later the residence of the independent Princes of Kalgan, who ruled in their own name; and that was now the residence of the First Citizen of the Union, who ruled over an empire of his own. Channis hummed softly to himself. He did not doubt what this was all about. The Second Foundation, naturally! That all-embracing bogey, the mere consideration of which had thrown the Mule back from his policy of limitless expansion into static caution. The official term was – â€Å"consolidation.† Now there were rumors – you couldn't stop rumors. The Mule was to begin the offensive once more. The Mule had discovered the whereabouts of the Second Foundation, and would attack The Mule had come to an agreement with the Second Foundation and divided the Galaxy. The Mule had decided the Second Foundation did not exist and would take over all the Galaxy. No use listing all the varieties one heard in the anterooms. It was not even the first time such rumors had circulated. But now they seemed to have more body in them, and all the free, expansive Souls Who** thrived on war, military adventure, and political chaos and withered in times of stability and stagnant peace were joyful. Bail Channis was one of these. He did not fear the mysterious Second Foundation. For that matter, he did not fear the Mule, and boasted of it. Some, perhaps, who disapproved of one at once so young and so well-off, waited darkly for the reckoning with the gay ladies' man who employed his wit openly at the expense of the Mule's physical appearance and sequestered life. None dared join him and few dared laugh, but when nothing happened to him, his reputation rose accordingly. Channis was improvising words to the tune he was humming. Nonsense words with the recurrent refrain: â€Å"Second Foundation threatens the Nation and all of Creation.† He was at the palace. The huge, smooth door swung massively open at his approach and he entered. He stepped on to the wide, sweeping ramp that moved upward under him. He rose swiftly in the noiseless elevator. He stood before the small plain door of the Mule's own room in the highest glitter of the palace spires. It opened- The man who had no name other than the Mule, and no title other than First Citizen looked out through the one-way transparency of the wall to the light and lofty city on the horizon. In the darkening twilight, the stars were emerging, and not one but owed allegiance to him. He smiled with fleeting bitterness at the thought. The allegiance they owed was to a personality few had ever seen. He was not a man to look at, the Mule – not a man to look at without derision. Not more than one hundred and twenty pounds was stretched out into his five-foot-eight length. His limbs were bony stalks that jutted out of his scrawniness in graceless angularity. And his thin face was nearly drowned out in the prominence of a fleshy beak that thrust three inches outward. Only his eyes played false with the general farce that was the Mule. In their softness – a strange softness for the Galaxy's greatest conqueror – sadness was never entirely subdued. In the city was to be found all the gaiety of a luxurious capital on a luxurious world. He might have established his capital on the Foundation, the strongest of his now-conquered enemies, but it was far out on the very rim of the Galaxy. Kalgan, more centrally located, with a long tradition as aristocracy's playground, suited him better – strategically. But in its traditional gaiety, enhanced by unheard-of prosperity, he found no peace. They feared him and obeyed him and, perhaps, even respected him – from a goodly distance. But who could look at him without contempt? Only those he had Converted. And of what value was their artificial loyalty? It lacked flavor. He might have adopted titles, and enforced ritual and invented elaborations, but even that would have changed nothing. Better – or at least, no worse – to be simply the First Citizen – and to hide himself. There was a sudden surge of rebellion within him – strong and brutal. Not a portion of the Galaxy must be denied him, For five years he had remained silent and buried here on Kalgan because of the eternal, misty, space-ridden menace of the unseen, unheard, unknown Second Foundation. He was thirty-two. Not old – but he felt old. His body, whatever its mutant mental powers, was physically weak. Every star! Every star he could see – and every star he couldnt see. It must all be his! Revenge on all. On a humanity of which he wasn't a part. On a Galaxy in which he didn't fit. The cool, overhead warning light flickered. He could follow the progress of the man who had entered the palace, and simultaneously, as though his mutant sense had been enhanced and sensitized in the lonely twilight, he felt the wash of emotional content touch the fibers of his brain. He recognized the identity without an effort. It was Pritcher. Captain Pritcher of the one-time Foundation. The Captain Pritcher who had been ignored and passed over by the bureaucrats of that decaying government. The Captain Pritcher whose job as petty spy he had wiped out and whom he had lifted from its slime. The Captain Pritcher whom he had made first colonel and then general; whose scope of activity he had made Galaxywide. The now-General Pritcher who was, iron rebel though he began, completely loyal. And yet with all that, not loyal because of benefits gained, not loyal out of gratitude, not loyal as a fair return – but loyal only through the artifice of Conversion. The Mule was conscious of that strong unalterable surface layer of loyalty and love that colored every swirl and eddy of the emotionality of Han Pritcher – the layer he had himself implanted five years before. Far underneath there were the original traces of stubborn individuality, impatience of rule, idealism – but even he, himself, could scarcely detect them any longer. The door behind him opened, and he turned. The transparency of the wall faded to opacity, and the purple evening light gave way to the whitely blazing glow of atomic power. Han Pritcher took the seat indicated. There was neither bowing, nor kneeling nor the use of honorifics in private audiences with the Mule. The Mule was merely â€Å"First Citizen.† He was addressed as â€Å"sir.† You sat in his presence, and you could turn your back on him if it so happened that you did. To Han Pritcher this was all evidence of the sure and confident power of the man. He was warmly satisfied with it. The Mule said: â€Å"Your final report reached me yesterday. I can't deny that I find it somewhat depressing, Pritcher.† The general's eyebrows closed upon each other: â€Å"Yes, I imagine so – but I don't see to what other conclusions I could have come. There just isn't any Second Foundation, sir.† Arid the Mule considered and then slowly shook his head, as he had done many a time before: â€Å"There's the evidence of Ebling Mis. There is always the evidence of Ebling Mis.† It was not a new story. Pritcher said without qualification: â€Å"Mis may have been the greatest psychologist of the Foundation, but he was a baby compared to Hari Seldon. At the time he was investigating Seldon's works, he was under the artificial stimulation of your own brain control. You may have pushed him too far. He might have been wrong. Sir, he must have been wrong.† The Mule sighed, his lugubrious face thrust forward on its thin stalk of a neck. â€Å"If only he had lived another minute. He was on the point of telling me where the Second Foundation was. He knew, I'm telling you. I need not have retreated. I need not have waited and waited. So much time lost. Five years gone for nothing.† Pritcher could not have been censorious over the weak longing of his ruler; his controlled mental make-up forbade that. He was disturbed instead; vaguely uneasy. He said: â€Å"But what alternative explanation can there possibly be, sir? Five times I've gone out. You yourself have plotted the routes. And I've left no asteroid unturned. It was three hundred years ago that Hari Seldon of the old Empire supposedly established two Foundations to act as nuclei of a new Empire to replace the dying old one. One hundred years after Seldon, the First Foundation – the one we know so well – was known through all the Periphery. One hundred fifty years after Seldon – at the time of the last battle with the old Empire – it was known throughout the Galaxy. And now it's three hundred years – and where should this mysterious Second be? In no eddy of the Galactic stream has it been heard of.† â€Å"Ebling Mis said it kept itself secret. Only secrecy can turn its weakness to strength.† â€Å"Secrecy as deep as this is past possibility without nonexistence as well.† The Mule looked up, large eyes sharp and wary. â€Å"No. It does exist.† A bony finger pointed sharply. â€Å"There is going to be a slight change in tactics.† Pritcher frowned. â€Å"You plan to leave yourself? I would scarcely advise it.† â€Å"No, of course not. You will have to go out once again – one last time. But with another in joint command.† There was a silence, and Pritcher's voice was hard, â€Å"Who, Sir?† â€Å"There's a young man here in Kalgan. Bail Channis.† â€Å"I've never heard of him, Sir.† â€Å"No, I imagine not. But he's got an agile mind, he's ambitious – and he's not Converted.† Pritcher's long jaw trembled for a bare instant, â€Å"I fail to see the advantage in that.† â€Å"There is one, Pritcher. You're a resourceful and experienced man. You have given me good service. But you are Converted. Your motivation is simply an enforced and helpless loyalty to myself. When you lost your native motivations, you lost something, some subtle drive, that I cannot possibly replace.† â€Å"I don't feel that, Sir,† said Pritcher grimly. â€Å"I recall myself quite well as I was in the days when I was an enemy of yours. I feel none the inferior.† â€Å"Naturally not,† and the Mule's mouth twitched into a smile. â€Å"Your judgment in this matter is scarcely objective. This Channis, now, is ambitious – for himself. He is completely trustworthy – out of no loyalty but to himself. He knows that it is on my coattails that he rides and he would do anything to increase my power that the ride might be long and far and that the destination might be glorious. If he goes with you, there is just that added push behind his seeking – that push for himself.' â€Å"Then,† said Pritcher. still insistent, â€Å"why not remove my own Conversion, if you think that will improve me. I can scarcely be mistrusted, now.† â€Å"That never, Pritcher. While you are within arm's reach, or blaster reach, of myself, you will remain firmly held in Conversion. If I were to release you this minute, I would be dead the next.† The general's nostrils flared. â€Å"I am hurt that you should think so.† â€Å"I don't mean to hurt you, but it is impossible for you to realize what your feelings would be if free to form themselves along the lines of your natural motivation. The human mind resents control. The ordinary human hypnotist cannot hypnotize a person against his will for that reason. I can, because I'm not a hypnotist, and, believe me, Pritcher, the resentment that you cannot show and do not even know you possess is something I wouldn't want to face.† Pritcher's head bowed. Futility wrenched him and left him gray and haggard inside. He said with an effort, â€Å"But how can you trust this man. I mean, completely – as you can trust me in my Conversion.† â€Å"Well, I suppose I can't entirely. That is why you must go with him. You see, Pritcher,† and the Mule buried himself in the large armchair against the soft back of which he looked like an angularly animated toothpick, â€Å"if he should stumble on the Second Foundation – if it should occur to him that an arrangement with them might be more profitable than with me – You understand?† A profoundly satisfied light blazed in Pritcher's eyes. â€Å"That is better, Sir.† â€Å"Exactly. But remember, he must have a free rein as far as possible.† â€Å"Certainly.† â€Å"And†¦ uh†¦ Pritcher. The young man is handsome, pleasant and extremely charming. Don't let him fool you. He's a dangerous and unscrupulous character. Don't get in his way unless you're prepared to meet him properly. That's all.† The Mule was alone again. He let the lights die and the wall before him kicked to transparency again. The sky was purple now, and the city was a smudge of light on the horizon. What was it all for? And if he were the master of all there was – what then? Would it really stop men like Pritcher. from being straight and tall, self-confident, strong? Would Bail Channis lose his looks? Would he himself be other than he was? He cursed his doubts. What was he really after? The cool, overhead warning light flickered. He could follow the progress of the man who had entered the palace and, almost against his will, he felt the soft wash of emotional content touch the fibers of his brain. He recognized the identity without an effort. It was Channis. Here the Mule saw no uniformity, but the primitive diversity of a strong mind, untouched and unmolded except by the manifold disorganizations of the Universe. It writhed in floods and waves. There was caution on the surface, a thin, smoothing effect, but with touches of cynical ribaldry in the hidden eddies of it. And underneath there was the strong flow of self-interest and self-love, with a gush of cruel humor here and there, and a deep, still pool of ambition underlying all. The Mule felt that he could reach out and dam the current, wrench the pool from its basin and turn it in another course, dry up one flow and begin another. But what of it? If he could bend Channis' curly head in the profoundest adoration, would that change his own grotesquerie that made him shun the day and love the night, that made him a recluse inside an empire that was unconditionally big? The door behind him opened, and he turned. The transparency of the wall faded to opacity, and the darkness gave way to the whitely blazing artifice of atomic power. Bail Channis sat down lightly and said: â€Å"This is a not-quite-unexpected honor, sir.† The Mule rubbed his proboscis with all four fingers at once and sounded a bit irritable in his response. â€Å"Why so, young man?† â€Å"A hunch, I suppose. Unless I want to admit that I've been listening to rumors.† â€Å"Rumors? Which one of the several dozen varieties are you referring to?† â€Å"Those that say a renewal of the Galactic Offensive is being planned. It is a hope with me that such is true and that I might play an appropriate part.† â€Å"Then you think there is a Second Foundation?† â€Å"Why not? It would make things so much more interesting.† â€Å"And you find interest in it as well?† â€Å"Certainly. In the very mystery of it! What better subject could you find for conjecture? The newspaper supplements are full of nothing else lately – which is probably significant. The Cosmos had one of its feature writers compose a weirdie about a world consisting of beings of pure mind – the Second Foundation, you see – who had developed mental force to energies large enough to compete with any known to physical science. Spaceships could be blasted light-years away, planets could be turned out of their orbits-â€Å" â€Å"Interesting. Yes. But do you have any notions on the subject? Do you subscribe to this mind-power notion?' â€Å"Galaxy, no! Do you think creatures like that would stay on their own planet? No, sir. I think the Second Foundation remains hidden because it is weaker than we think.† â€Å"In that case, I can explain myself very easily. How would you like to head an expedition to locate the Second Foundation?† For a moment Channis seemed caught up by the sudden rush of events at just a little greater speed than he was prepared for. His tongue had apparently skidded to a halt in a lengthening silence. The Mule said dryly: â€Å"Well?† Channis corrugated his forehead. â€Å"Certainly. But where am I to go? Have you any information available?† â€Å"General Pritcher will be with you-â€Å" â€Å"Then I'm not to head it?† â€Å"Judge for yourself when I'm done. Listen, you're not of the Foundation. You're a native of Kalgan, aren't you? Yes. Well, then, your knowledge of the Seldon plan may be vague. When the first Galactic Empire was falling, Hari Seldon and a group of psychohistorians, analyzing the future course of history by mathematical tools no longer available in these degenerate times, set up two Foundations, one at each end of the Galaxy, in such a way that the economic and sociological forces that were slowly evolving, would make them serve as foci for the Second Empire. Hari Seldon planned on a thousand years to accomplish that – and it would have taken thirty thousand without the Foundations. But he couldn't count on me. I am a mutant and I am unpredictable by psychohistory which can only deal with the average reactions of numbers. Do you understand?† â€Å"Perfectly, sir. But how does that involve me?' â€Å"You'll understand shortly. I intend to unite the Galaxy now – and reach Seldon's thousand-year goal in three hundred. One Foundation – the world of physical scientists – is still flourishing, under me. Under the prosperity and order of the Union, the atomic weapons they have developed are capable of dealing with anything in the Galaxy – except perhaps the Second Foundation. So I must know more about it. General Pritcher is of the definite opinion that it does not exist at all. I know otherwise.† Channis said delicately: â€Å"How do you know, sir?† And the Mule's words were suddenly liquid indignation: â€Å"Because minds under my control have been interfered with. Delicately! Subtly! But not so subtly that I couldn't notice. And these interferences are increasing, and hitting valuable men at important times. Do you wonder now that a certain discretion has kept me motionless these years? â€Å"That is your importance. General Pritcher is the best man left me, so he is no longer safe. Of course, he does not know that. But you are Unconverted and therefore not instantly detectable as a Mule's man. You may fool the Second Foundation longer than one of my own men would – perhaps just sufficiently longer. Do you understand?† â€Å"Um-m-m. Yes. But pardon me, sir, if I question you. How are these men of yours disturbed, so that I might detect change in General Pritcher, in case any occurs. Are they Unconverted again? Do they become disloyal?† â€Å"No. I told you it was subtle. It's more disturbing than that, because its harder to detect and sometimes I have to wait before acting, uncertain whether a key man is being normally erratic or has been tampered with. Their loyalty is left intact, but initiative and ingenuity are rubbed out. I'm left with a perfectly normal person, apparently, but one completely useless. In the last year, six have been so treated. Six of my best.† A corner of his mouth lifted. â€Å"They're in charge of training bases now – and my most earnest wishes go with them that no emergencies come up for them to decide upon.† â€Å"Suppose, sir†¦ suppose it were not the Second Foundation. What if it were another, such as yourself – another mutant?† â€Å"The planning is too careful, too long range. A single man would be in a greater hurry. No, it is a world, and you are to be my weapon against it.† Channis' eyes shone as he said: â€Å"I'm delighted at the chance.† But the Mule caught the sudden emotional upwelling. He said: â€Å"Yes, apparently it occurs to you, that you will perform a unique service, worthy of a unique reward – perhaps even that of being my successor. Quite so. But there are unique punishments, too, you know. My emotional gymnastics are not confined to the creation of loyalty alone.† And the little smile on his thin lips was grim, as Channis leaped out of his seat in horror. For just an instant, just one, flashing instant, Channis had felt the pang of an overwhelming grief close over him. It had slammed down with a physical pain that had blackened his mind unbearably, and then lifted. Now nothing was left but the strong wash of anger. The Mule said: â€Å"Anger won't help†¦ yes, you're covering it up now, aren't you? But I can see it. So just remember – that sort of business can be made more intense and kept up. I've killed men by emotional control, and there's no death crueler.† He paused: â€Å"That's all!† The Mule was alone again. He let the lights die and the wall before him kicked to transparency again. The sky was black, and the rising body of the Galactic Lens was spreading its bespanglement across the velvet depths of space. All that haze of nebula was a mass of stars so numerous that they melted one into the other and left nothing but a cloud of light. And all to be his- And now but one last arrangement to make, and he could sleep. First Interlude The Executive Council of the Second Foundation was in session. To us they are merely voices. Neither the exact scene of the meeting nor the identity of those present are essential at the point. Nor, strictly speaking, can we even consider an exact reproduction of any part of the session – unless we wish to sacrifice completely even the minimum comprehensibility we have a right to expect. We deal here with psychologists – and not merely psychologists. Let us say, rather, scientists with a psychological orientation. That is, men whose fundamental conception of scientific philosophy is pointed in an entirely different direction from all of the orientations we know. The â€Å"psychology† of scientists brought up among the axioms deduced from the observational habits of physical science has only the vaguest relationship to PSYCHOLOGY. Which is about as far as I can go in explaining color to a blind man – with myself as blind as the audience. The point being made is that the minds assembled understood thoroughly the workings of each other, not only by general theory but by the specific application over a long period of these theories to particular individuals. Speech as known to us was unnecessary. A fragment of a sentence amounted almost to long-winded redundancy. A gesture, a grunt, the curve of a facial line – even a significantly timed pause yielded informational juice. The liberty is taken, therefore, of freely translating a small portion of the conference into the extremely specific word-combinations necessary to minds oriented from childhood to a physical science philosophy, even at the risk of losing the more delicate nuances. There was one â€Å"voice† predominant, and that belonged to the individual known simply as the First Speaker. He said: â€Å"It is apparently quite definite now as to what stopped the Mule in his first mad rush. I can't say that the matter reflects credit upon†¦ well, upon the organization of the situation. Apparently, he almost located us, by means of the artificially heightened brain-energy of what they call a ‘psychologist' on the First Foundation. This psychologist was killed just before he could communicate his discovery to the Mule. The events leading to that killing were completely fortuitous for all calculations below Phase Three. Suppose you take over.† It was the Fifth Speaker who was indicated by an inflection of the voice. He said, in grim nuances: â€Å"It is certain that the situation was mishandled. We are, of course, highly vulnerable under mass attack, particularly an attack led by such a mental phenomenon as the Mule. Shortly after he first achieved Galactic eminence with the conquest of the First Foundation, half a year after to be exact, he was on Trantor. Within another half year he would have been here and the odds would have been stupendously against us – 96.3 plus or minus 0.05% to be exact. We have spent considerable time analyzing the forces that stopped him. We know, of course, what was driving him on so in the first place. The internal ramifications of his physical deformity and mental uniqueness are obvious to all of us. However, it was only through penetration to Phase Three that we could determine – after the fact – tbe possibility of his anomalous action in the presence of another human b eing who had an honest affection for him. â€Å"And since such an anomalous action would depend upon the presence of such another human being at the appropriate time, to that extent the whole affair was fortuitous. Our agents are certain that it was a girl that killed the Mule's psychologist – a girl for whom the Mule felt trust out of sentiment, and whom he, therefore, did not control mentally – simply because she liked him. â€Å"Since that event – and for those who want the details, a mathematical treatment of the subject has been drawn up for the Central Library – which warned us, we have held the Mule off by unorthodox methods with which we daily risk SeIdon's entire scheme of history. That is all.† The First Speaker paused an instant to allow the individuals assembled to absorb the full implications. He said: â€Å"The situation is then highly unstable. With Seldon's original scheme bent to the fracture point – and I must emphasize that we have blundered badly in this whole matter, in our horrible lack of foresight – we are faced with an irreversible breakdown of the Plan. Time is passing us by. I think there is only one solution left us – and even that is risky. â€Å"We must allow the Mule to find us – in a sense.† Another pause, in which he gathered the reactions, then: â€Å"I repeat – in a sense!†

Press Release Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Press Release - Essay Example e standard elements or components, to wit: â€Å"( 1) Company Letterhead, Name, Address, Phone Number, Web Address; (2) PRESS RELEASE in all caps; (3) Contact Persons Name; (4) Immediate Release or Release Date(all caps); (5) HEADLINE or TITLE in BOLD/CAPS; (6) BODY-Date/City-who, what, when, where and why; (7) Catchy Text; (8) Sum it up...; (9) Basic Font, Double Spaced, Page Numbers, and ###; and (10) Action Plan/Calendar† (Aten, n.d., par. 9). All crucial elements are easily identifiable and readily available making preparation and implementation stress-free. Since the purpose of the press release is to enhance public awareness of an organization’s product, services, or activities, the structure and presentation format needs to contain all the elements identified above. At the same time, the message must be timely, catchy, and attractive enough to encourage the potential viewers’ interests and promote commitment to one’s cause. Various organizations opt to use press releases as a tool in public relations to increase awareness of the organization’s vision, direction, or focus at some point in time: either in the introductory stage, during promotional or campaign periods, and as strategies designed to spur productivity and growth. Hollis, New York – November 11, 2010 – Good news to all commuters vying the subway area along the city of New York, a newly opened food store targeting businessmen, students, senior citizens, and various professionals from all walks of life is now the solution to your hunger pangs. Benjamin Smith, the owner and proprietor of Healthy Snacks Alternative is now open for business with several food stall along the subway. Healthy Snacks offer subway sandwiches with a variety of fillings from cold meat, tuna, vegetables, cheese, eggs and other healthy fillings one can think of – at the most affordable price and readily available for take-out or dine-in, as needed. There is an array of beverages, likewise, available on

Sculpture Course Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sculpture Course Paper - Essay Example Her art was inspired by her traumatic past in which she struggled with themes of sex and the body, depression and violence, marriage and motherhood, and aging and childhood. She lived to be almost 100 year of age, therefore, her career spanned more than seven decades. She is best known for her series of giant spiders, which were inspired by her beloved mother Josephine, who was a weaver. Her most well known work is â€Å"Maman† (1999), which depicts a giant spider 30-foot high with a sac containing marble eggs. The title â€Å"Maman† is French for Mother. This sculpture has brought Bourgeois into the 20th century Pop Culture genre. Spiders are very alarming and strong figures in their effect on people. They can pull differing emotions from fear to terror, to curiosity and playfulness. The first creation of â€Å"Maman† filled the space Bourgeois’ was given to create her piece. There was just enough room left to work around in the great Turbine Hall. This g ave her room for exploration of her relationship with her mother in her characterization of the giant spider. Viewing â€Å"Maman† can invoke fear, terror, playfulness and even awe at the size and inspiration behind the spinally figure.

Ionic and covalent Bonding Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ionic and covalent Bonding - Essay Example The element that loses electrons forms cations while the element that gains electrons forms anions and the opposite charges form the ions to constitute the bonding (Saha 2010, p. 4). Covalent bonding however defines attractive forces between atoms through sharing of electrons. Each atom in the bond is unstable but is requires high energy to either gain or lose electrons and therefore shares electrons with a nearby atom. Covalent bonding may occur between atoms of the same element or atoms of different elements. The shared electrons forms part of the energy levels of both of the atoms and the attraction to each of the atom’s nuclei forms the bonding (Khanna, Verma and Kapila n.d., p. 230). Ionic bonding works through attraction between the formed ions. The bond between sodium and chlorine to form sodium chloride illustrates this. Sodium atoms lose electrons from their outer most energy levels and therefore form ions with positive charges, sodium ions. Chlorine atoms gain the lost electrons into their outer most energy levels to form chloride ions with negative charges. The sodium and chloride ions then attract each other to form sodium chloride compound under ionic bond. The bond between chlorine atoms in a chlorine molecule however illustrates covalent bonding. Since the two atoms have high and equal affinity for an electron, they donate an electron each, that they share in the outer most energy level to attain stability (Saha 2010, p. 4; Khanna, Verma and Kapila n.d., p. 230). The main similarity between covalent and ionic bonding is the resultant bond that is created between atoms. Both ionic and covalent bonds also identify transfer of electrons across atoms towards formation of bonds (Vandermeer 2011, p. 157). Despite the similarities between the two types of bonds, they have many differences. The first difference is in the transfer of electrons in the

Research Euromoney market Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Euromoney market - Research Paper Example Eurodollars refers to the U.S. dollars deposited in banks outside the United States or these are dollars deposited in European banks (Globalization Financial Markets, n.d.). The major sources of the Eurodollars include foreign governments, dollar reserves, oil exporting countries, multinational corporations and business executives with excess cash balance deposits outside the U.S. The users of Eurodollars include commercial banks and governments. Globalization Financial Markets n.d. states that, â€Å"many commercial banks have been have been relying mostly on the Eurodollars to make loans to the exporters and importers and domestic companies.† Eurodollars instruments can be categorized into two: Eurodollar deposits, which can be negotiable certificates of deposits with floating interest rates and specified maturity time and time deposits, which have a maturity time of less than a year or Eurodollar loans, which range from $500,000-$100 million. The later also forms the major source of finance of Eurodollars among all other sources of finance. Globalization Financial Markets n.d. states, â€Å"The expansion of Euro dollars is enabled by; private and public depositors keeping their money outside the United States banks and private and public borrowers who take the Euro dollar loans.† London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) is one of the world’s widely used benchmark for setting short-term interest rates set by sixteen international member banks. The rates were introduced into the financial markets in the year 1986 after two years of conducting test runs. Today, LIBOR rates published by BBA daily places a rough estimate of about $360 trillion rates of financial instruments globally. LIBOR is important, applauded by many participants of the financial markets because it is inclusive, and considers even the less preferred borrowers of money. Either LIBOR has ability to dilute Fed rate cut effects. The Euro commercial paper is short-term unsecured loan

Next Plc as a Major Company Dealing in Retail Fashion Clothing Essay

Next Plc as a Major Company Dealing in Retail Fashion Clothing - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Next plc does business in the following major domains: retail stores that sell a variety of products, but the major one among them being clothes, catalog sales, and customer support services through ‘Ventura’. The company designs, manufactures and sells clothes under the brand name ‘Next’ and targets people between the age group of 20 to 40. Since its expansion drive in 1999, the company had to close down the international outlets that were managed by it directly and has since then concentrated on franchising options for the overseas markets. It operates in well over 20 different countries. Since 1999, the company’s primary activities have been progressing along two major sections namely retail clothing and catalog sales. The retail section of the company contributes to around two-thirds of the company’s income. It was around  £821 million in 1999. Moreover, the company has also adopted the policy of closing down s maller stores and has been in favor of opening superstores. Under its ‘Next catalog’ banner, the company offers the service of enabling customers to order products using a catalog, after which the purchased products are delivered to the customer’s home. In fact, this method of shopping (under the next brand) has become ingrained in the minds of the common Briton. One of the primary differences between other companies and next happens to be the fact that the latter focuses on the middle-class customers. It designs and markets affordable clothes that are contemporary unlike other retail houses such as Marks & Spencer that produces fashionable garments under various brand names. Likewise, the company has also adopted the policy of designing its clothes under its watchful eye, but in an attempt to cut down costs, it has been getting the goods produced in countries such as China, where the cost of production is comparatively much cheaper. The production operations are handled by the company’s house in Hong Kong. The company has also started offering financial services under the next brand credit financing. In spite of these branches, retail and catalog sales continue to be the two main contributors to the company’s revenues.

Learning Style Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Learning Style - Assignment Example An individuals learning style can remain constant and can even change with changes in an individual’s age. These changes are mostly experienced when individuals move up the ladder of schooling and education (Dunn 15). During the early ages an individual tends to learn through observation of their models such as teachers and parents. As they grow old, they search for information on their own and as they enter adult ages they even use the learning style of trial and error. In cases where both the parent and the child have a strong bond, the parent influences various developmental aspects of a child including their learning style. For example: a mother who belongs to the lower income social class tends to promote her child in completing a job without following instructions, as a result of this, their children tend to experience difficulties in following directions that are provided by teachers in later years of life (Gestwicki 133). There are various ways in which both personal essays as well as research papers tend to be different from each other. Personal essays and research papers are different on the basis of size, purpose, stakeholders, content and formatting. A paper that is written for research purposes is mostly written to address a specific issue and is completely based on previous as well as current research and issued while presenting and arguing wither in favor or against a particular subject. A research paper starts with the act of obtaining information and continues with organization and development of opinions and ends with all those opinions put together as a conclusion. A personal essay is constructed mainly from the personal view point of the writer and mostly focuses a particular issue and the entire paper surrounds that issue. These essays are lesser in size as compared to research papers and may be as short as one page or three to five paragraphs long. A research paper can never be based on the author’s view and is quite subjective in nature and it includes opinions as well as researches conducted by other individuals. This means that research papers are based on the findings of others and these findings are utilized by the author of research paper to either support r reject a particular opinion or hypothesis.

The Benefits of Organic Food to Human Health Essay Example for Free

The Benefits of Organic Food to Human Health Essay Organic refers to the way agricultural foods is produced and processed. It is using methods and materials that are of low impact to the environment. And the primary goal is to optimize the health and productivity of interdependent communities of soil life, plants and people. Research published in a 2001 study showed that the current fruit and vegetables that are conventionally grown in the United States have about half the vitamin content of their counterparts in 1963. The study was based on a comparison of published USDA figures. Produced in organic farm, organic food is grown under government supervision. Therefore it is healthier for the environment which it is produce with an organic farming method that are less disruptive to the ecosystem and less dependent on chemical. . In today society, people are always in search of factors that give them an edge in maximum their health. As we all known a healthy diet and appropriate rest all has an impact on our health. Therefore there has been an overwhelming group of people that believe the benefits of organic food. Many people purchase organic food because it contains more nutrient than conventionally grown food. Its true there have been more than a hundred studies comparing the nutrient content of organic and non-organic foods. Official food composition tables, including data compiled by the US Department of Agriculture, reveal that since the 1940s the mineral levels in fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy have declined substantially in conventional foods. Combine this with longer storage, and more processing of crops and its not surprising that we may be getting fewer nutrients in our food than we were 60 years ago. The artificial fertilization associated with conventional crops produces lush growth by swelling produce with more water. On a pound-for-pound basis, organic food has more dry matter (i. e. iron). We can expect also that phytonutrients, which are antioxidants involved in the plants own defense system, will be higher in organic produce because crops rely more on their own defenses in the absence of regular applications of chemical pesticides. Evidence is emerging that confirms this expectation. Higher levels have so far been found of lycopene in organic tomatoes, polyphenols in organic potatoes and flavonols in organic apples. A recent review of the subject estimated that organic produce will tend to contain 10-50% higher phytonutrients than conventional produce. ( Mark Jeantheau,2005) Partly because of this and for other reasons too, there are higher levels of nutrients in organic produce. Research by American nutritionist Virginia Worthington has confirmed that, based on the dietary patterns, the differences can be enough to help you achieve certain nutrients that you otherwise might not get. Despite of improve a person nutrient level intake, organic food also has a lower pesticides residue. A Consumer Union report found that fresh peaches, frozen and fresh winter squash, apples, grapes, spinach, pears, and green beans had some of the highest Toxicity Index ratings. (Edward Groth III,February 1999). However conventional-food provider also claims that pesticide residues are no threat to human health. Yet consumers intuitively know this is a false assurance. In 1999, the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) estimated that nationwide there were at least 10,000 to 20,000 physician-diagnosed pesticide illnesses and injuries per year in farm work. Exposure to pesticides can cause a range of ill effects in humans, from relatively mild effects such as headaches, fatigue, and nausea, to more serious effects such as cancer and neurological disorders. (U. S. General Accounting Office, GAO-01-815, Page 4, August 2001). Researchers have linked symptoms such as headaches, tremor, and lack of energy, depression, anxiety, poor memory, dermatitis, convulsions, nausea, indigestion and diarrhea with dietary intakes of pesticides. It also has claimed that women diagnosed with breast cancer are six to nine times more likely to have the pesticides DDT or hexachlorobenzene in their bloodstreams compared to women who did not have breast cancer. Organic food also has no harmful and less food additives. Antibiotics, growth promoters and other additives are added to non-organic meat during the animals life and while the meat is prepared for consumption. Normal intensive farming methods mean that animals live in overcrowded, unhealthy conditions where disease would quickly spread through the herd where antibiotics not used. Although antibiotics are still used to treat organically reared animals, the healthier living conditions of the animals mean that antibiotics are used prudently to treat specific ailments, rather than as a preventative method. Once the animal has been slaughtered and the meat is being prepared for human consumption, additives are often added to it to improve the flavour, colour or texture of the meat, or to make it stay fresh longer. (T. H. Carson,2005). Organic food producers are prohibited from using additives that research has shown may be harmful to human health, such as sulphur dioxide or artificial colourings. But as our organic meat is reared more naturally, the meat has its own natural flavour, texture and colour, and does not need any artificial enhancers! Besides that, children also need organic food the most as childrens are generally fast on developing organs, brains, and detoxification, however weak on immune systems. Children also have a large intake of food per kilo of body weight. Children may be at risk of higher exposure to the toxins found in nonorganic food because the food is often made up of condensed fruits or vegetables, potentially concentrating pesticide residues. Pesticides pose special concerns to children because of their high metabolisms and low body weights. More than 1 million children between the ages of 1 and 5 ingest at least 15 pesticides every day from fruits and vegetables. More than 600,000 of these children eat a dose of organophosphate insecticides that the federal government considers unsafe, and 61,000 eat doses that exceed benchmark levels by a factor of 10 or more. (Ranchers and Foresters,1998, pp. 1-3. ). Meanwhile, artificial colorings and preservatives in food and drink are thought to contribute to hyperactivity in pre-school children, and while many still contest this issue, a recent study in the UK found that the proportion of hyperactive children was halved when additives were removed from their diets. Many additives such as preservatives, artificial sweeteners, colorings and flavorings, MSG, hydrogenated fat, and phosphoric acid are prohibited in organic food production. As a conclusion, it is so important that the organic food benefits be made aware to the people as it offers a lot of good benefits to human health. Many people usually wonder why there are so many diseases these days. Therefore, making a commitment to organic food means making a commitment to your health. Organic food is how foods supposed to be, a valuable part of any regimen intended to maintain, improve, or restore health. Although there are many different benefits that we can get from the consumption of organic food, the most basic organic food health benefit that we get is pure, clean fruits, vegetables and other foods and a lot more healthier.

Outcome Essay Example for Free

Outcome Essay Identify non medical incidents and emergencies that may occur in the work setting Non medical incidents and emergencies that may occur in work settings could be a fire, a flood or a lack of electricity/water/gas/heat. 3. 2. A. Outline the actions to take in response to in the following situations; fire If there was a fire in your nursery setting, you would have to do the simple fire drill. If you discover the fire, you would have to raise the alarm. Once you have raised the alarm, you would have to immediately evacuate the building using the nearest safe exit, someone would have to pick up the register on the way out. Staff would lead the children out in a nice straight line and you would go to the designated assembly point. The manager would then check all areas in the building (toilets, staff room, baby changing area, sleep room, play areas) etc to check there is no other children in the building. You would close all doors behind you and dial 999 and ask for the fire service. Whilst waiting for the fire service you would check the register to make sure you have all your children. If the fire was only small, you could attempt to put it out. If it was too dangerous to put out, you would leave it and evacuate ASAP with all the children in a single fire. 3. 2. B. Outline the actions to take in response to in the following situations; security incident If there was a security incident in your nursery there is a procedure you have to take. 3. 2. C. Outline the actions to take in response to in the following situations; emergency incident

Analysis Of Tescos Corporate Social Responsibility Management Essay

Analysis Of Tescos Corporate Social Responsibility Management Essay Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is an important societal issue that also gains momentum in the food retail industry (Tulder et al., 2007). In an approach to analyze the CSR activities, this report presents the CSR activities of Tesco, which is one of the leading retailers. Further this report analyses the market and non market environment, which explains the internal and external alignment as important factors to understand the design and the development of the companies CSR activities and motivations. The CSR business models in the retail industry are inclined towards the management of the supply chains. These models tell the firms what to do or how to do in general, to respond to the challenges and changes in the retail industry, but do not provide sophisticated analytical models to analyze the actual position of the company and delineate the trajectories to change positions. (Tulder et al., 2007) CSR Corporate Social Responsibility is considered to be the future of all organizations in general and the retail industry in specific. However the firms have to be more active on the categorization of CSR activities and on how the consistent implementation in the retail organization and in their distribution channels could be obtained. (Tulder et al., 2007) Tesco plc is worlds third largest, British international grocery and general merchandising retail chain with operations in 14 countries. It is the largest British retailer by both global sales and domestic market share, with profits exceeding  £3 billion, and the third largest global retailer based on revenue, behind Wal-Mart and Carrefour. They cater for all sections of the market, with ranges spanning from premium ranges, as well as specialist ranges such as Organic, Fairtrade and Healthy Living. They are also into Non-food ranges accounted for 21% of Group turnover in 2008 and include electrical goods, books, home-ware, sports equipment, personal finance and clothing. (Tesco, 2009) We understand that our success comes from behaving responsibly and earning the trust of our customers, suppliers and stakeholders. There are many complex issues that we have to face on a daily basis, from reducing our environmental impact to ensuring consistent standards across our markets. (Tesco, 2009). Corporate responsibility represents an entire approach to business and is therefore embodied in Tescos governance framework to ensure that the company operates in a responsible and safe way. In general corporate responsibility is embedded in the following categories:    Tesco CSR Approach Environment Community Supplier and Ethical Trading Customers, choice health People KPIs Tesco CSR Activities The above approach integrates corporate responsibility in Tescos day-to-day business activities by supporting fair trade and taking customers, staff, communities and suppliers into consideration, as well as the environment and society. Education Education is one of the key areas of Tescos activities including a partnership with I CAN, a charity that helps children with speech and language difficulties, or offering scholarships and establishing cultural community centres. A specific programme is the Computers for Schools programme aimed at schools. Tesco provides schools with computers and supports the use of new technologies in different countries (Tesco, 2007). Charity The Tesco Charity Trust was established in 1987 to support national and local communities making grants to charities within the UK (Tesco, 2007). Tesco dedicates 1% of pre-tax profits to good causes and supports charities as well as staff fundraising. In addition the companys supports the Race for Life fundraising event which focuses on cancer research and initiated the Tesco Charity of the Year (Tesco, 2007). Every year Tesco chooses a community charity close to the heart of its staff and customers which becomes the main focus for staff fundraising and receives 20% top-up of the Tesco Charity Trust. For example the charity chosen for 2005 is Age Concern, an initiative concentrating on supporting older people in the UK by providing services such as day care and fulfilling information needs for topics such as care, money and finance, health, disabilities or neighbourhood issues (Tesco, 2007). Environment In terms of environmental protection Tesco has integrated its corporate responsibility in its environmental management including topics such as emissions, resources, waste recycling and the companys products. Among others the issues covered are organic food, animal welfare, green transport and travel and vehicle efficiency. Furthermore Tesco is also concerned with energy efficiency and water consumption as well as its environmental impact in terms of its operations and customers (Tesco, 2007). Wildlife choice for example is an initiative requiring farmers to consider wildlife on their farms. They agree to improve operations and monitor their impact on farmland habitats providing habitats for wildlife such as a farm in the Midlands for example (Tesco, 2007). Tesco works closely with suppliers and farmers to protect wildlife. Tesco Market and Non-Market Environment Analysis In this report an approach to analyze the market and non market environments is done with the help of understanding and using various frame works like An integrated framework (Baron, 1995 2005: 32). Also by understanding the non market environment: The 4Is Systematic Level Organisational Level Individual Level An Analysis a case analyzed by Lets clean up fashion Issue related to living wages Payment of living wages -workers being paid below living wage levels. Tescos focus on primarily on productivity projects. We believe that sustainable improvements to wages are most often delivered through improved productivity, up skilling workers and working to ensure our purchasing practices support our suppliers ability to invest in their workforce. (Tesco, CSR Report 2009) It lists specific wage and wage-related work under the following headings: Ensuring we understand the scale and nature of the issue. Activities: Wage surveys and worker interviews in Bangladesh (Tesco, 2007). Setting clear expectations. Activities: Lobbying government in Bangladesh to improve minimum wages, MFA Forum (Tesco, 2007). Supporting suppliers to improve productivity. Activities: Lengthening lead times, producing seasonal items out of season to help suppliers plan production, rewarding ethical suppliers, expanding in-country ethical experts (Tesco, 2007). Building long-term relationships to enable investment in workers. Activities: Consolidating the supplier base, offering business support to A-list suppliers (Tesco, 2009). Tesco accept that some minimum wage levels are unacceptably low and have conducted a wage survey with a supplier in Bangladesh (lets clean up fashion, 2009). Tescos Plans on Living Wages Its main focus for wages work is to continue with the ETI wages project. This group has experienced some delays over the last year due to its focus on Bangladesh and that countrys political and industrial instability. However, it stated that, useful work has been shared, including by us, in the areas of productivity, efficiency, worker engagement, work flow, and purchasing practices. Following the summer this group will re-convene to decide on how to move forward. Building on this work, we will review further initiatives of our own specifically in Bangladesh on productivity and wage improvements. (Tesco CSR Report, 2009) In an analysis done by the Lets Clean up fashion, Tesco seem to have made little progress towards living wages. Surveys in Bangladesh, showing the training grade for workers being manipulated by suppliers for extended periods of time, informed a small piece of work to improve wages but this merely brought pay packets up to the legal minimum standard and no more. Tescos belief that productivity is the best route to living wages seems to have ousted a number of other options, such as support for freedom of association and a proper examination of pricing. Its focus on up skilling workers as a part of these improvements may be helpful for individual groups but doesnt achieve an across the board rise in wages. It is also unclear how it plans to ensure more skilled and expensive workers are not replaced by new, lower paid, unskilled workers. Furthermore, Tesco makes no mention of any work to ensure worker involvement in any of its projects, which makes us even less convinced that its productivity plans are likely to lead to any real benefit to workers. Tescos work with suppliers on purchasing practices; offering longer lead times, producing out of season, ensuring long-term supplier relationships, and offering business advice could bring about some improvement. Last year it also acknowledged that price needed to be examined, but no progress seems to have been made in this area and no mention was made of plans to move this forward. Lets hope Tescos engagement in the ETI Wages Project over the coming year will see it start to output wage projects of its own, and give serious attention to delivering the living wages expected from a retailer of this size and influence (lets cleanup fashion, 2009). Tescos Position on Relationships with Customers Tesco tries to keep its prices as low as possible than most of the other national superstores. Tesco has an online Price checker, to show its low prices to its customers, through which customers can compare Tescos prices with those of other super markets (CRR, 2006). Price, though, is not the only factor. Value for money, as Tesco describes, includes the quality of the products, the personal service of their staff and the pleasant surroundings in their stores (AR, 1995). Tesco has become big by being like Britain. As Britons became more middle-class, Tesco followed them up market (Econ,2005). Tescos Position on Suppliers The retail sector has a high increasing purchasing power, which can be used to cut prices and put pressure on the suppliers (cf. Fearne et al., 2005). Since Tesco is one of the four major global retailers, It is said that suppliers fear to complain about Tesco as they fear being struck off by the retailer (FT2005; FT2005). Tesco however mentions that it takes a partnership approach while working with suppliers, sharing their knowledge and listening to suppliers feedback, providing technical expertise, advice and insight into customer trends and making regular payment, on time (AR, 2007). Tesco monitors its relations with suppliers through the Supplier Viewpoint Survey. Their target is that 90% of UK suppliers view Tesco as being trustworthy, reliable, consistent, clear, helpful and fair (92% in 2008, 94% in 2007). In 2007 the international suppliers have started taking part in the Supplier Viewpoint Survey (88%) (AR, 2008). Tesco fully supports the legally binding Supplier Code of Pr actice. In March 2005, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) audit found no breaches of the Supplier Code at Tesco (CRR, 2006) nor in 2006 (CRR, 2007). In 2005 rival companies and industry groups accused Tesco of slowing down the Office of Fair Tradings investigation during its early stages. The OFTs main concerns included claims that the supermarkets were slow to pay suppliers, required them to contribute to marketing costs and insisted on retrospectively changing contracts (FT, 2005). The investigation revealed that over the past five years, the amount owed to creditors by Tesco had risen by 1.5bn pounds, money it had used to help finance its growth (FT, 2005). Motivations and collaborations An attempt to analyze Tescos Motivations and its collaborations is done by using the following theories: Strategy Theory Stakeholder Theory Agency Theory Legitimacy Theory An Analysis Tesco is engaged in number of NGOs and charity organisations. Tesco was engaged with: The Soil Association on extending the organic range The Fairtrade Foundation to promote Fairtrade Fortnight and encourage more customers to choose Fairtrade Diabetes UK on providing information for customers living with diabetes The British Red Cross on responding to disasters and emergencies Marine Conservation Society and Marine Stewardship Council on sustainable seafood sourcing Greenpeace on sustainable sourcing and climate change Friends of the Earth on palm oil, prawn sourcing and GM animal feed; ActionAid and Women on Farms on labour standards in fruit farms in SouthAfrica. (CRR, 2006) Tesco is a corporate partner of Forum for the Future and work together on a broad range of sustainability issues. we held a nationwide Community Conference in partnership with the British Red Cross and the Work Foundation. This brought together voluntary groups, charities, businesses and government to explore the role of business in local communities (CRR, 2008; CRR, 2007). With regards to economic development, the 2005 Make Poverty History campaign identified increased trade as one of three key means of eliminating poverty. Tesco sources products from farms in 15 African countries (CRR, 2006). Tesco actively supports communities trough sponsoring certain activities like the collaboration with Age Concern to raise  £2 million for projects including Fight the Freeze buying blankets and heaters for the elderly; paying for volunteers to regularly call the elderly to stop them feeling isolated, and raising money to pay for meals and provide company for the elderly (CRR, 2006). Tesco aims to give at least 1% of pre-tax profits to charity. In 2007 they succeeded with 1.95% (CRR, 2008) and in 2006 as well with 1.63% of pre-tax profits to charities and good causes (CRR, 2007). Tesco has also supported communities in crisis. In 2007, 250.000 pound was donated to people affected by extreme weather conditions. Tesco is a founder member of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and expects all their suppliers to follow the ETI Base Code (CRR, 2006). The ETI Base Code includes among others freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, no use of child labour and no excessive working hours (CRR, 2008) Tesco has with four other global retailers formed the Global Social Compliance Programme to develop a code of practice. The GSCP has agreed a draft Reference Code between the 25 leading retailers and manufacturers currently involved. Next steps involve the development of an audit checklist to ensure the Code is interpreted consistently around the world (CRR, 2008). In 2005 Tesco appointed a Code Compliance Officer to act as a contact point for suppliers in case they have complaints and dont want to discuss these with Tesco buyers (CRR, 2008). Tesco participates in multi-stakeholder groups on corporate responsibility issues like Business in The Community, The Ethical Trading Initiative, the Carbon Roundtable, GM Freeze Roundtable, Forest Stewardship Council Retailers Group, British Retail onsortium Corporate Responsibility Policy Advisory Group and the DEFRA Climate Leaders Group. The Executive Committee, Corporate Responsibility Committee and Compliance Committee are to help guide an d monitor the set policies. Conclusion From the above discussions, it can be concluded that Tesco faces some severe in-coherence in its market and non market environments. On several issues such as environment the company has identified opportunities and taken many interesting (and active) initiatives, whereas in other instances the company behaves rather re-active. This corresponds with the in-coherent nature of its internal alignment strategy. The company is having difficulties with aligning some active intents, expressed through its KPIs with a re-active strategy (Tulder et al., 2007). Major challenge for Tesco, therefore, is how to create coherence through increased coordination and sustain the transition towards a more pro-active approach. References Ethical trading initiative. Downloaded from http://www.cleanupfashion.co.uk/companies/tesco.php. as of 9th March 2010. Tesco CSR 2009 report. Downloaded from http://www.investis.com/plc/cr09/crr09.pdf as of 5th March 2010. Tulder, R. van, M. Bleijenbergh, M. Danse, R. Wiersinga and M. Torppe, (2007) CSR Business Models and change trajectories in the retail industry. Downloaded from http://www.fairtradegemeenten.nl/uploads/news/december%202009/CSR%20business%20models.pdf as of 5th March 2010. Tesco News Article 6 (2007). Downloaded from http://www.tesco.com/talkingtesco/news/?page=article6 as of 6th March 2010. Tesco regulatory news part 2 (2008). Downloaded from http://www.tescocorporate.com/plc/ir/rns/rnsitem?id=1214847199nRn2d9573XHYPERLINK http://www.tescocorporate.com/plc/ir/rns/rnsitem?id=1214847199nRn2d9573Xt=popup_rnsHYPERLINK http://www.tescocorporate.com/plc/ir/rns/rnsitem?id=1214847199nRn2d9573Xt=popup_rnst=popup_rns as of 9th march 2010. Advfn final news (2008). Downloaded from http://www.advfn.com/news_Final-Results_27119452.html as of 7th March 2010. Tesco reports (2008). Downloaded from http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=200806301833069573X as of 7th march 2010. Tesco News from Interceder (2010). Downloaded from http://interceder.net/news/Tesco as of 7th March 2010. Tesco CR Strategy (2010). Downloaded from http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/corporate_responsibility_09/approach/cr_strategy/ as of 7th March 2010. Tesco news (2010). Downloaded from http://www.freebase.com/view/en/tesco as of 7th March 2010. Tesco CSR review (2005). Downloaded from http://www.tesco.com/csr/e/e4_1.html as of 7th March 2010. Tesco community promises (2009). Downloaded from http://www.tesco.com.my/html/community.aspx?ID=9HYPERLINK http://www.tesco.com.my/html/community.aspx?ID=9PID=35LID=1HYPERLINK http://www.tesco.com.my/html/community.aspx?ID=9PID=35LID=1PID=35HYPERLINK http://www.tesco.com.my/html/community.aspx?ID=9PID=35LID=1HYPERLINK http://www.tesco.com.my/html/community.aspx?ID=9PID=35LID=1LID=1 as of 7th March 2010. Tesco at a glance (2009). Downloaded from http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/corporate_responsibility_09/approach/tesco_at_a_glance/ as of 7th March 2010. Larry File, cornwall foundation case study: Gingers presentation. Downloaded from http://www.cornwallfoundation.com/ways_to_give/CSRtalk22.1.10.htm as of 7th March 2010. Tesco ethical progress (2008). Downloaded from http://www.tesco.ie/crreview08/ethical-progress5.html as of 7th March 2010. Business and human rights resource centre. Downloaded from http://www.business-humanrights.org/Search/SearchResults?SearchableText=china+footwear as of 7th March 2010. Risks and uncertainities, Tesco CSR report page2 (2009). Downloaded from http://www.tescoplc.com/annualreport09/businessreview/risks_uncertainties/2/ as of 8th March 2010. Tesco news FT (2009). Downloaded from http://www.ft.com/cms/s/10613232-a507-11db-b0ef-0000779e2340,_i_rssPage=80830b5e-3018-11da-ba9f-00000e2511c8.html as of 8th March 2010. Tesco reports. Downloaded from http://www.flex-news-food.com/pages/8283/Tesco/tesco-preliminary-results-20062007.html as of 8th March 2010.

Special Needs in the Classroom :: Education Disabilities Essays

Special Needs in the Classroom Virginia teachers face many challenges when trying to meet the needs of special needs students in their science classrooms. The most difficult task at hand for Virginia teachers is making sure that all students (general education and special education) learn the content outlined by the Virginia Standards of Learning. These standards "set reasonable targets and expectations for what teachers need to teach and students need to learn" (Virginia Standards of Learning, 1995, foreward). These targets and expectations are in the four core subjects, including science, however, no accommodations have been made in the SOLs for special needs students. All students, regardless of ability will need to know the same material in order to pass and graduate. One way that Virginia teachers meet the challenging needs of students is through the use of special strategies. Much research has been conducted which supports the use of special strategies to teach science content to students with special needs. Research has shown that some strategies to help special needs students in science are to prioritize materials in order of importance, pre-teach vocabulary that may be difficult for students, paraphrase passages, provide study guides, graphics, and organizers, or provide audio-taped texts (Munk, Bruckert, & Call). Other research suggests that teachers should, "employ strategies that emulate the principles of inclusive education (for example, outcome-based education, multiple intelligence theory, constructivist learning, cooperative learning, use of technology in the classroom, and peer-mediated instruction)." (Norman, Caseau, and Stegfanich, 1998) Gallas (1995) writes that it is important to build on students’ prior knowledge, so that they can use that knowledge to explore theories and construct other ideas and explanations. Methods of evaluation are also a concern and challenge for educators of special needs students today. Finson & Ormsbee (1998) argue that, "rubrics are effective methods for objectively and individually assessing the achievement of students with learning and behavior problems in inclusive science classrooms†¦." Rubrics are especially useful because they are written as a specific outline of the skills or knowledge that the students are to master after the lesson and points are awarded in a systematic and objective manner. To further explore the realm of special needs students and their education in science classrooms in Virginia today, we interviewed two educators from Central Virginia. "There simply is never enough time in the day to meet the needs of all students. And, when you think about it, they all have special needs†¦" Anne, a fourth grade teacher remarked when asked how she finds time to attend to both her general education students and special education students.

Importance of Worldviews Essay -- Cosgrove, Reality

Cosgrove describes a worldview as â€Å"a set of assumptions or beliefs about reality that affect how we think and how we live† (p. 19). A person’s worldview has been molded from the day they were born by family, friends, media, and even strangers. Worldviews are important because they allow us to â€Å"develop a deep comprehensive faith that will stand against the unrelenting tide of our culture’s non-biblical ideas† (Tackett). Our actions also tend to mimic our beliefs—for example, if you believe that there is life after death like Christians do, your priorities should reflect your dedication to follow Christ and not be of this world (John 15:19 NLT). As I have learned more and more about worldviews in this class, particularly a Christian worldview, I have the opportunity to look back on what my worldview was and how it has changed. Because I have grown up in a church, and been a Christian for as long as I can remember, I have always thought of myself having a Christian worldview. However, after this course, I have realized that I did not know some of the basic Christian foundations—I did know that God is the creator of all things and that he is and everything he did is love. In the church I learned God is loving, all-powerful, all-knowing, eternal, unchanging, holy, and all good things, which are similar to the characteristics Dr. Strobel talked about in class. My picture of God has not changed much, if anything I have become more in awe, especially in regards to the trinity. My idea of what a person is, something that was made in God’s own image but sinned, and what happens to humans when they die, the body will stay but the soul will spend eternity in heaven or hell, has also not changed much (Zukeran). After learning from Dr. Strobel... ...MI: Kregel Publications. Davis, K., & Clark, B. (2011). Kisses from katie: A story of relentless love and redemption. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster. Strobel, K. (2013), Classroom Lectures, State University, Phoenix, Az. Strobel, L. (2000). The case for faith: A journalist investigates the toughest objections to Christianity. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House. Tackett, D. (n.d.). Why is a Christian worldview important?. Retrieved from http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian_worldview/why_is_a_christian_worldview_important.aspx Wilkens, S; Sanford, M. (2009). Hidden Worldviews: Eight Cultural Stories That Shape Our Lives. Downers Grove, IL, InterVarsity Press. Zukeran, P. (n.d.). what happens after death? a Christian perspective. Retrieved from http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4224733/k.63A1/What_Happens_After_Death.htm Importance of Worldviews Essay -- Cosgrove, Reality Cosgrove describes a worldview as â€Å"a set of assumptions or beliefs about reality that affect how we think and how we live† (p. 19). A person’s worldview has been molded from the day they were born by family, friends, media, and even strangers. Worldviews are important because they allow us to â€Å"develop a deep comprehensive faith that will stand against the unrelenting tide of our culture’s non-biblical ideas† (Tackett). Our actions also tend to mimic our beliefs—for example, if you believe that there is life after death like Christians do, your priorities should reflect your dedication to follow Christ and not be of this world (John 15:19 NLT). As I have learned more and more about worldviews in this class, particularly a Christian worldview, I have the opportunity to look back on what my worldview was and how it has changed. Because I have grown up in a church, and been a Christian for as long as I can remember, I have always thought of myself having a Christian worldview. However, after this course, I have realized that I did not know some of the basic Christian foundations—I did know that God is the creator of all things and that he is and everything he did is love. In the church I learned God is loving, all-powerful, all-knowing, eternal, unchanging, holy, and all good things, which are similar to the characteristics Dr. Strobel talked about in class. My picture of God has not changed much, if anything I have become more in awe, especially in regards to the trinity. My idea of what a person is, something that was made in God’s own image but sinned, and what happens to humans when they die, the body will stay but the soul will spend eternity in heaven or hell, has also not changed much (Zukeran). After learning from Dr. Strobel... ...MI: Kregel Publications. Davis, K., & Clark, B. (2011). Kisses from katie: A story of relentless love and redemption. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster. Strobel, K. (2013), Classroom Lectures, State University, Phoenix, Az. Strobel, L. (2000). The case for faith: A journalist investigates the toughest objections to Christianity. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House. Tackett, D. (n.d.). Why is a Christian worldview important?. Retrieved from http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian_worldview/why_is_a_christian_worldview_important.aspx Wilkens, S; Sanford, M. (2009). Hidden Worldviews: Eight Cultural Stories That Shape Our Lives. Downers Grove, IL, InterVarsity Press. Zukeran, P. (n.d.). what happens after death? a Christian perspective. Retrieved from http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4224733/k.63A1/What_Happens_After_Death.htm

Marriages and Families Essay

Course Description Welcome to Marriage and the Family Online (SOCIO 210-IN1/IN2)!! As the course title suggests, we will explore key sociological concepts related to the social institution of marriage and the family. Individual success in this online course will come to those who are self-disciplined and work collaboratively to make the course a success. I look forward to working with all of you as we try to make sense of the world’s social forces and their impact on individual lives within marriages and the family. The College’s formal course description for SOCIO 101 states: â€Å"This course provides an understanding of sociological concepts, theories, and research methods in relation to marriage and family issues. It focuses on the ever-changing dynamics of relationships and the influence of contemporary society on family life. Special emphasis is placed on communication in relationships, dating and mate selection, love, parenting, balancing work and family, violence in relationships, and divorce† (Official Course Description, Prairie State College 2012-2014 Catalog). Course Objectives Students who complete SOCIO 210 will be able to: 1. Apply the major sociological perspectives to marriage and family issues. 2. Discuss the importance of communication, power, and gender in shaping relationships and family dynamics. 3. Explain the diversity of experiences for couples and families, with attention to issues of social class, race/ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and the life course. 4. Describe the impact of other social institutions—such as the economy, education, religion, and the legal system—on marriages and families. 5. Identify the key issues related to family violence, divorce, and successful marriages. 6. Discuss the trends involving single-parent families, remarriage, and blended families. 7. Demonstrate skills of public deliberation within context of on-line classroom discussions. 8. Demonstrate critical thinking skills through writing. 9. Articulate viewpoints on contemporary sociological issues affecting marriages and families. Classroom Policies Absence Policy: As stated in the Prairie State College Board policies: â€Å"Regular class attendance is an essential component of successful learning. Students are responsible for prompt attendance and participation in all class meetings of every course for which they are registered. Students have the responsibility to contact professors in case of unavoidable absence.† Attendance in this online course is linked to your consistent and meaningful participation in online discussions and timely completion of assignments and chapter quizzes. Late or Missed Work/Plagiarism: In order to receive full credit, all assignments must be completed and submitted by the due date. Partial credit may (or may not) be accepted for work submitted after the deadline. Plagiarism, or other forms of cheating, will not be tolerated and students in violation will fail the assignment and face possible failure of the course. Meeting deadlines is an essential element of this online course. Once a deadline passes, there is no longer access to the course assignment. For example, if a student fails to complete an attempt on a 45-point Chapter Quiz, then that student earns zero points for that assignment. Missing 45 points may have significant negative consequences on a final grade. Evaluation of Student Performance Online Chapter Quizzes (630 points) Our text includes 16 chapters. For each chapter, there is a Chapter Quiz. Each Chapter Quiz includes 15 multiple choice or true/false questions and each question is worth 3 points (45 points/quiz). For the first half of the course, which covers Chapters 1-8, I count the best 7 Chapter Quiz scores toward your final grade. The Chapter 8 Quiz is an opportunity to improve on an earlier quiz score on one of the previous seven quizzes. For the second half of the course, which covers Chapters 9-16, I also count the best 7 Chapter Quiz scores toward your final grade. The Chapter 16 Quiz is an opportunity to improve on an earlier quiz score for Ch. 9-15. In total, I count 14 quiz scores, each worth 45 points for a total of 630 points. Please note that there is a time limit of 15 minutes (with a 2-minute grace period) to complete each Chapter Quiz. The purpose of this is so that students do not rely on their textbooks for answering all of the questions. You may use your book, but you must read the chapter prior to taking the quiz so that you can move fairly quickly through the 15 questions and finish within the time limit. In fact, given the high value of these Chapter Quizzes—accounting for over 60% of the total points in the course—I strongly recommend that you read the chapter closely twice prior to taking the quiz. Points will be deducted for going past the 2-minute grace period (one point deduction for each minute over). I do allow two attempts, with the highest score counting toward a student’s final grade. I encourage reading the chapter a third time if you are disappointed with the outcome of your first attempt. Deadlines for Chapter Quizzes are typically on Sundays at 11:59 p.m. Examinations (200 points) There is a Mid-Term Examination covering Chapters 1-8 and there is a Final Examination covering Chapters 9-16. Each exam includes 40 questions, worth 2.5 points apiece. Each exam is valued at 100 points. There is a 45-minute time limit with a 5-minute grace period. For each minute taken beyond grace period, one point will be deducted from score. Online Class-based Discussions (170 points) For this part of the course, students participate in weeklong online conversations about the textbook material or about sociological assignments that are connected to the course material. The intent of these conversations is to encourage a close reading of our Henslin text and to reach a deeper understanding the sociological perspective on human behavior. Past students have really enjoyed hearing the thoughts and perspectives from their fellow classmates. There are several class-based Discussions throughout the course. The first one involves Student Introductions and takes place during Week 1 (worth 20 points). The next five Discussions are spread out over the course of the semester (Weeks 3, 5, 7, 11, and 13). Each of these Discussions is valued at 30 points and takes place across a 7-day period running from Monday-through-Sunday. The Discussion forum is split into two stages, with the first stage ending on Thursday (11:59 p.m.) and the second stage ending on Sunday (11:59 p.m.). First stage posts of 300 or more words are due on Thursday (worth 15 points), and at least three second stage posts of 50-75 words each (5 points each; 15 points total) are due on Sunday. Your first stage posts will respond to the writing prompt I post for each Discussion, typically a question or set of questions. Again, as with the completion of chapter quizzes, the key challenge is meeting the deadlines. I will do my best to post points earned for the Discussions on the Monday morning following the Sunday night deadline for second stage posts. There will be a make-up Discussion offered during Week 15 of the semester. Here is a breakdown of the components of the course and point value: Online Chapter Quizzes (14 at 45 points each)630 points Online Discussions (5 at 30 points plus 20 points for Intros)170 points Mid-term Examination (40 questions at 2.5 points each)100 points Final Examination (40 questions at 2.5 points each)100 points   When assigning Final Grades, I will use the following point ranges: A=900-1000 points B=800-899 points C=700-799 points D=580-699 points F=0-579 points Some Final Thoughts: One of the challenges of online learning involves the issue of communication. In a traditional face-to-face course, everyone meets on a weekly basis and those meetings are reminders of our course commitments. In the online environment, communication is different. I communicate frequently via email, with Email Updates almost every week and sometimes more than once a week. The D2L system links your PSC email accounts to the class so when I send an email to â€Å"all users† the information is sent to the PSC email accounts of the 40+ students enrolled in this course. This information is very important and your accessing it is essential. Please note that it is possible to have your PSC email forwarded to another email address—maybe even to your mobile phone—but I want to make clear that it is your responsibility to access the information I send to you. Whenever you have questions, contact me by email (cmulling@prairiestate.edu[->1]) or by phone (709-3625). Keep in mind that it is essential that you participate on a consistent basis throughout the course in order to be successful. Good luck, hold on to you hats, and enjoy what I hope will be a challenging and meaningful learning experience!