Representation of women in media Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Representation of women in media - Research Paper Example Most actresses, cover models and ballet dancers (Slater & Tiggemann) weigh less than the average weight of a woman since the media advocates for slender bodies. Women and young girls use diet pills to lose weight (Moffitt & Szymanski, 2011). Pictures describe many things; they display beauty, send a message or simply advertise something. Photographs are a form of communication between the photographer and the audience. Marketers use photographs to advertise their products. People use photos to store information as a form of pictorial memory (Benson & Allen, 2009). Finally, photography can be implemented as a career, which a photographer sells the photos to make money or as a passion. On the other hand, photo manipulation involves altering a photo through a computer in order to improve its look or beauty. Journalists use photo manipulation for resizing photos and cropping images. Secondly, it is also used to restore the structure of a damaged photograph. Thirdly, web designers use it for designing web layouts and navigation tools. It can be used to construct an intact website. Finally, photo shopping is a powerful animation

Parvo Virus in Puppies; Does my Puppy really need it and why Essay

Parvo Virus in Puppies; Does my Puppy really need it and why - Essay Example In this case, the dogs cannot survive where the feces have been dropped anywhere. This makes the disease highly contagious and in the end very risky to the animals. The feaces that contain the virus serve as containers for the virus, and they are transmitted once they get in contact with surfaces such as cages, floors and other objects (Wade, 2). The virus does not discriminate on the dogs that it attacks, but it is highly infectious on puppies that are below four months and have not been vaccinated. However, the disease is more infectious on other breeds such as the Rottweiler and the Doberman pinscher. These breeds also have very severe results when they are infected. The disease also has its own symptoms that identify it. They comprise loss of appetite, fever, bloody diarrhea, lethargy and death after 48 or 72 hours from the day of infection. This shows that the disease is highly dangerous, and it is in the best factor that preventive measures are taken. In any case, when the signs are seen in the animals, more so the puppies, it is wise to see a veterinarian as fast as possible (Kahler, 2). Over the years, veterinarians have diagnosed the disease based on clinical appearances and laboratory tests. In as much as there is no specific drug that can be used to kill the virus and cure the dogs, the treatment of the dog is done in a slow process. This treatment normally starts with primary efforts such as; rehydration since the dog is extremely dehydrated from the diarrhea. This is also done to replace lost fluids and electrolytes. Proper cleaning and disinfection of kennels is considered one of the greatest ways of preventing contamination by the virus; thus reducing the risks that come along with the disease. To ensure that the cleaning has been effective, it is always advised that one should contact a veterinarian for advice on

Slide animation Essay Example for Free

Slide animation Essay Successful presenting entails focusing on important points, controlling the flow of information, and holding the audience’s interest in the presentation. We can include two types of animation — within a slide and from slide to slide. Animation on a slide, often called builds, determines how and when objects on the slide appear. Animation from slide to slide, called transitions, specifies how a new slide appears after the previous slide disappears. The last version of the PowerPoint includes powerful animation effects and features. Animation can certainly enliven a presentation, but too much animation will distract the audience from the main message. All professionals make the same point about animation — pick one or two effects and stick to them. This principle applies to both animation on a slide and transitions between slides. Animating objects has an additional purpose — to focus the audience’s attention on what one is saying. To animate a slide, one needs to know what he is going to say while that slide is displayed — and in what order. He then uses that order to determine the order in which the objects appear on the slide. Object animation is sometimes called a build because the objects build up on the screen, one after another. One can control the following aspects of the animation: †¢ How the object appears. †¢ In what grouping the object appears. For example, text most often appears paragraph by paragraph but can appear by the word or even by the letter. †¢ Whether the animation occurs when one clicks the mouse or automatically after a preset number of seconds. †¢ Whether a sound plays during the animation. †¢ What happens, if anything, after the animation. For example, one can change the color of a previously displayed object when the next object appears or hide it completely. For a quick solution, PowerPoint offers animation schemes — a complete group of settings that one can quickly assign to a slide or presentation. Animation schemes apply only to slide titles and text placeholders. To animate other objects the custom animation is used. Several animation schemes also include slide transitions. When one animates placeholder text, all the text in the placeholder is considered one object. However, it is automatically animated paragraph by paragraph — that is, bullet by bullet, which is usually what is wanted. To animate by word or even letter, the custom animation is used too. For more control over animation, than the animation schemes proposed one need to create own settings. New features of custom animation include attaching more than one animation type to an object, animating an object along a path, and animating an object when another object is clicked. The number of the animation options that are included is vast. One can also animate objects such as AutoShapes and text boxes. Because these objects often serve to draw attention anyway, adding animation to them only increases the effect. One can animate WordArt text too. Another type of animation controls how each new slide appears. Because these effects control the transition from one slide to another, they are called transitions. While some of these effects have the same names as animations, they look quite different when applied to an entire slide. Transitions, like slide animation, has to be used with reserve. Many options are available, but that doesn’t mean that one should use them all in one presentation. One of the best solutions is to choose a simple transition and apply it to every slide in the presentation. If the presentation is divided into sections, one could use a second transition to introduce each new section.

Economic Aspects of Global Warming and Climate Change

Economic Aspects of Global Warming and Climate Change Abstract The issue of global warming and climate change has proven to be one of the most controversial and difficult problems facing all the nations of the world.   Assessing the impact of climate change is extremely complex as it is very difficult to project the future and assess the hypothetical impact it will have on the world.   Additionally, it is unknown how technological progress will respond and potentially alter the effects of global warming.   This paper will focus on some impacts of global warming and climate changes on the global economy and review possible methods of mitigating the adverse effects. Introduction Climate change is one of the most challenging problems facing the world community.   According to NASA, global warming is a natural process.   A layer of greenhouse gases which include water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane and nitrous oxide acts as a thermal blanket for the Earth, absorbing heat and warming its surface to an average temperature of 59 degrees Fahrenheit which help sustain life (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2017).   Without this natural cover, the Earth’s surface would be colder than it is today, making the planet freezing and mostly likely uninhabitable. However, scientists are concerned that increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are causing an unprecedented rise in global temperatures, with potentially harmful consequences for the environment, human health and the economy.   We are adding to the natural greenhouse effect with emissions from industry and agriculture, trapping more energy and increasing the temperature. The possible causes of global warming are numerous.   But according to Environmental Protection Agency, the most concerning and alarming are manmade emissions of CO2 caused by burning fossil fuels and cutting down carbon-absorbing trees. Other greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxide are also released through human activities, but their presence is relatively small when compared to carbon dioxide.   According to a 2016 BBC article, the level and concentration of CO2 in our atmosphere is significantly higher than it was at the beginning of the industrial revolution which began in 1750 (What Is Climate Change?†, 2016). Climate change has a broader meaning as it not only refers to the increased temperature trends described by global warming, but also changes such as sea level rise; ice mass loss in Greenland, Antarctica, the Arctic and mountain glaciers worldwide; shifts in flower and plant blooming; and extreme weather events. Kenneth Green (2002) argues that human prosperity in many parts of the world, especially developing countries, heavily depends on climate. Agriculture, tourism, transportation, energy use, and many other activities that define our economies are largely influenced by climate.   Therefore, it is crucial to understand the effects of global warming in short and long run and perform the cost and benefit analysis to determine what policies and measures should be taken to mitigate and prevent the climate change and its various impacts. Climate change is a global issue, but the impacts are likely to differ in different continents, countries, and regions. Some nations will likely experience more adverse effects than others. Other nations may benefit from climate changes. The ability to adapt to climate change can influence how climate change affects individuals, communities, countries, and the global population. This paper will discuss the effects of global warming on the energy industry, agriculture and food supply, production output and inflation.   Next, it will focus on the cost benefit analysis of implementing the policies and procedures to mitigate and/or prevent global warming and climate change. Lastly, the paper will review the possible methods of reducing the effects of global warming and climate change and the mitigation policies to be implemented. Global Warming and Climate Change Economic Impact Climate Change Effect on Energy In my opinion, energy is the key industry that will be highly affected by global warming and climate change. The world’s production and use of energy is the primary cause of global warming.   Climate will affect energy consumption by changing consumers’ wants and needs in both the intensive (short) and extensive (long) terms. There are several ways in which climate may affect energy consumption. In the residential, commercial and industrial sectors in a warmer world higher cooling demand is expected, which would lead to increased electricity consumption. On the other hand, fewer cold winter days would result in decreased heating demand, which would decrease natural gas, oil and electricity demand. These are demand side effects.   On the supply side, one would expect increased use of natural gas on hot days, as some power plants become less efficient as well as higher natural gas consumption for generation due to higher electricity demand. During the winter, there might be a decrease in natural gas demand for generation due to lower electricity demand. According to a 2009 report on global climate change, the majority (87%) of the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions are from the production and use of energy production.   The research was primarily on the energy usage in buildings concerning the various heating and cooling demands. The findings stated that, â€Å"the demand for cooling energy increases from 5 to 20 percent per 1.8 °F of warming, and the demand for heating energy drops by 3 to 15 percent per 1.8 °F of warming† (Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States Report, 2009).   Additionally, the 2009 report projects that global warming’s increasing temperatures will increase the peak demand for electricity as it is the main source used for the cooling of buildings.   This would result in a disproportionate increase in energy infrastructure investment and possible pollution as most of the nation’s electricity is currently produced from coal.   This would potentially increase the nation’s CO2 emissions and slow the development of alternative â€Å"green† energy sources (Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States Report, 2009). Climate Change Effect on Agriculture and Food Supply Since temperature and precipitation are direct inputs in agricultural production, this sector will experience significant effects as well.   Recent droughts worldwide have highlighted that the advances in modern farming techniques and technologies cannot insulate the world’s food production and supply.   In fact, rising CO2 concentrations could increase production of some crops, such as rice, soybean and wheat (Clark, 2012).   However, Clark (2012) also stated, â€Å"the changing climate would affect the length and quality of the growing season and farmers could experience increasing damage to their crops, caused by a rising intensity of extreme weather events such as droughts, flooding or fires†.   Furthermore, in many developing regions, agriculture is of major importance for national economies, as it represents the large share in gross domestic product (GDP).   Therefore, with prospects of continued global warming, the damages for poor regions could be substantial (Clark, 2012).   Climate change’s probable impact on agricultural production patterns and prices in these regions lower the profitability of agriculture industry and increase the share of consumers’ income spent on food.   This may lead to food shortages or insufficient access to food in some countries or regions. In addition to agriculture, the worlds fisheries which provide an important source of food for at least half the worlds population are very susceptible to climate change.   Fisheries are plagued by two problems, overexploitation and pollution.   Additionally, the various marine fish species are encountering their own problems due to climate change such warming surface waters, and rising sea levels due to melting ice.   Clark (2012) states, â€Å"some marine fish species are already adapting by migrating to the high latitudes, but others, such as Arctic and freshwater species, have nowhere to go†.   If we are unable to find sustainable solutions to help the fisheries and fish, we may end up with shortages of edible fish which will cause prices to soar. According to Schierhorn (2016), over the last century, the global population has quadrupled. In 1915, there were 1.8 billion people in the world. Today, according to the most recent estimate by the UN, there are 7.3 billion people and we may reach 8.5 billion by 2030 (UN projects world population to reach 8.5 billion by 2030, driven by growth in developing countries, 2015).   This population growth, along with rising incomes in developing countries, is increasing global food demand.   Schierhorn’s (2016) research shows that food demand is expected to increase anywhere between 59 to 98 percent by 2050.   Therefore, the world’s crop production will need to increase.   That means there needs to be an expanse of farmable land to grow crops, and current productivity needs expanded through the use of modern farming methods (Schierhorn, 2016). A recent EPA (2016) study concludes that â€Å"climate change is very likely to affect food security at the global, regional, and local level† and that â€Å"climate change can disrupt food availability, reduce access to food, and affect food quality†.   The study projects that changes in temperatures and precipitation patterns, along with extreme weather events may reduce agricultural productivity (Climate Impacts on Agriculture and Food Supply, 2016). The same study further suggests that â€Å"increases in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events can also interrupt food delivery, and resulting spikes in food prices after extreme events are expected to be more frequent in the future†.   Increasing temperatures can contribute to food spoilage and contamination (Climate Impacts on Agriculture and Food Supply, 2016). Furthermore, Clark (2012) argues that food production itself is a significant emitter of greenhouse gases, as well as a cause of environmental degradation in many parts of the world. Clark states agriculture contributes about 15% of all emissions, on a par with transport. He concludes that to limit the long-run impacts of climate change, food production must become not only more resilient to climate but also more sustainable and low-carbon itself (Clark, 2012). Climate Change Effect on Economy Growth According to a recent study by Wade (2017), climate change will most likely reduce the capital stock and productivity in the world economy. Global warming is expected to increase the frequency and severity of extreme weather events causing property and infrastructure loss. While the initial economic response to recover the damages may be positive for GDP while it is possible, in the long run the world economy will face an extreme challenge. The harm to economic output may become irreversible.   Wade (2017) argues that it will not be worth for businesses to replace their capital stock unless future damages could be prevented or the business could be relocated to the safer area.   This could cause a short period of disruption as businesses relocate, or in the worst case scenario, a permanent loss of capital stock and output.   As the temperatures continue to rise, the damages will increase and become permanent (Wade, 2017). Wade (2017) represents the likely effect of climate change on output in production function in Figure 1 (See Appendices).   If there is less capital stock available due to the damage resulted from climate change, the productive capacity of the world economy will fall.   It is represented by the downward shift in the world production function as each unit of labor produces less output (Wade, 2017). However, lower labor productivity may occur not only due to a lower level of capital stock.   Global warming may affect food safety, promote the spread of infections, cause social unrest and thus reduce availability of labor. Wade (2017) shows this effect as a supply shock in a supply and demand graph (Figure 2, Appendices).   Global warming is likely to contract supply at any given price and result in a backward shift of the supply curve (from S1 to S2) (Wade, 2017). As the graph demonstrates, this will result in a lower level of output (Y2) and a higher price (P2). This analysis is based on the assumption that the world will not respond to climate change and no prevention or mitigation measures are taken. Climate Change Effect on Inflation Wade (2017) also proves that as global production output is reduced, an increase in the general price level will occur as a result of global warming. As discussed earlier, higher food prices will affect consumers’ income and overall food price inflation will rise.   Furthermore, reduced land availability may also contribute to rising inflation. Per Wade (2017) the surge in global temperatures may eventually cause some areas of the world to become uninhabitable and cause mass migration. Along with the political and socioeconomic implications of the migration there will be higher demand for decreasing amount of land.   Higher energy costs are also likely to boost inflation. As discussed earlier, as our climate becomes more extreme the demand for energy used for cooling will likely to rise.   As the energy demand will rise, the supply will shrink as the efficiency of existing power stations is compromised due to higher temperatures (Wade, 2017).   Policy actions by governments to transition to green energy may further contribute to inflation in the short-run when taxes are placed on fossil fuel electricity. Since energy is the basis of most of the world’s production, the effects of higher energy prices on inflation will impact the global economy (Wade, K. 2017). Cost-Benefit Analysis According to Mendelsohn (2013), â€Å"the biggest threat climate change poses to economic growth is from immediate, aggressive and inefficient mitigation policies†. Thomas C. Shelling believes that climate change is the global public good, because each country’s emissions of greenhouse gases contribute cumulatively to the increase of the overall concentration, and each country’s abatements entail higher cost than benefit, unless effective concerted collective actions take place (Stiglitz & Shelling, 2012).   Therefore, benefit-cost analysis is a principal tool for deciding if this public good should be altered through mitigation policy. There are many conflicting views regarding the true dimensions of climate change problem and a lot of various policy assessment models. The most famous are DICE model created by William Nordhaus and the Stern Review prepared by Sir Nicholas Stern for the British government in 2006.   The modeling approach by Nordhaus views climate change as a matter of investment efficiency and assumes that climate change policies will compete with other investments such as public health and education.   This model provides estimates of the appropriate price path on carbon emissions, with prices starting relatively low and gradually rising as a result of discounting. (William D. Nordhaus and Joseph Boyer, 2000) The Stern Review, in contrast to Nordhaus’ model, recommended strong and immediate action on climate change.   Stern (2006) found that the costs associated with uncontrolled global warming would be up to a 20 percent drop per year in the world’s GDP by 2050. The Stern Review incorporated new scientific evidence suggesting that the climate system may be more sensitive than previously thought.   Also, it supported the application of much lower discount rates. (Stern, 2006). Therefore, two aspects of the benefit-cost calculation are critical. One is allowance for uncertainty as the possible outcomes of global warming in the absence of mitigation are very unclear.   The other critical aspect is the choice of discount rate as most of the climate-related benefits from current policy efforts would take the form of avoided damages in the long run with many of the costs incurred in the short run. Stiglitz & Shelling (2012) suggest a number of behavioral changes to mitigate the problem of global warming such as shifting to fuels with higher ratio of useful energy to CO2 emissions (from coal to oil, from oil to natural gas); developing technologies that use less energy per unit output; shifting demand to products with lower energy intensity; planting trees and reducing deforestation; pursuing policy of sequestering the CO2 by pumping it directly into underground reservoirs. The process of mitigation will require a temporary economic transition from consumption to investment, provided that the transitional costs are small relative to the cost of inaction (Wade, 2017).   However, as the costs of mitigation rise, budget limitations will become increasingly important. Possible Mitigation Measures Despite the disagreements between nations, in recent years we have witnessed the gradual emergence of a range of international and domestic climate change policies, including emissions trading programs, emissions taxes, performance standards, and technology-promoting programs (Goulder & Pizer, 2006).   At the Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015, 195 countries adopted the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate agreement that outlined a global action plan to put the world on track to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2 °C. Therefore, there is now an agreement among climate economists to consider climate change as a global externality that must be compensated for to recover economic optimality. Hence, basic public economics wisdom requires some mitigation eï ¬â‚¬orts (IPCC, 2007). The issue gets controversial however when we try to answer the â€Å"when† and â€Å"how much† questions. One approach that has become widely used is cap and trade. The U.S. Clean Air Act of 1990 established emission levels (caps) and permitted companies with emissions below the cap to sell (trade) their rights to remaining permissible amount to firms that have exceeded the cap. Over time, the government would reduce the cap, thus overall emissions would be gradually reduced. This approach gives companies flexibility. It increases the pool of available capital to make reductions, encourages companies to cut pollution faster and rewards innovation. But the critics pointed out that it allows richer companies to pollute more as they are able to buy those rights.   Another type of emissions control is establishment of emissions charges or fees. Each business would be charged accordingly for the amount of emissions produced. It would become very expensive for the companies to pollute and will create incentive for them to clean up. In recent years governments also experimented with various green taxes and eco-taxes that levy a fee on environmentally damaging behavior. Beside the punishment, governments also offer positive incentives for the companies that improve their environmental behavior. For example, the government may decide to purchase only from those firms that meet certain pollution standard or to offer financial aid to those that install pollution control equipment. Tax incentives such as faster depreciation for pollution control equipment may also be used. Overall, the trend has been for governments to use more flexible, market oriented approaches such as tradeable allowances, pollution fees and taxes, and incentives, to achieve the goals of protecting the environment and mitigating climate change. (Lawrence & Weber, 2017) Many challenges remain though. 2 °C stabilization goal set at the Paris Climate Conference     requires decarbonization of the world economy. Carbon pricing would be a necessary tool in reaching that goal. The advantages of carbon pricing would be the following: it would trigger economy-wide decarbonization in a cost efficient manner, generate revenues that can be used for financing the sustainable development goals and become a focal point for international climate policy cooperation focusing on carbon pricing coordination. For many policy issues, there is an important and clear distinction between the short-run and the long-run responses by businesses and individuals. The short run is a period when businesses and individuals are locked in to some past decisions and have fixed costs that they are not able to avoid. But over a period of time, they might respond by making gradual adjustments in their behaviors and choices. They are more responsive in the long run than in the short run because they have more time and opportunities to respond to a change in price. As we know, supply and demand are generally more elastic in the long run. We can use the example of a gas tax that was introduced as a tool to reduce pollution. If we look only at the short-run elasticity of demand, we might come to conclusion that a gas tax will have little effect on driving since demand is inelastic. However, if we had an estimate of the long-run elasticity of demand, we might see that the demand curve is flatter. As recent studies how, the effectiveness of many market-based environmental policies depend on the responsiveness of businesses and individuals to a change in incentives, economists and policymakers should keep in mind the difference between short-run responses and long-run responses (Global Warming Causes, 2017). Summary The overall effect of climate change on economic growth will most likely be negative in the long run. Although there will be winners and losers from climate change at different levels of warming, the impact of climate change will be widespread due to the financial, political and economic integration of the worlds economies. Global warming will primarily influence economic growth through damage to property and infrastructure, lost productivity, mass migration, security threats. The issue of global warming and climate change invokes the highest form of global citizenship. The nations have to be willing to sacrifice hundreds of billions of dollars of present consumption in an effort that will largely benefit people in other countries, considering that the benefit that will not be instant. Moreover, the threat of climate change is uncertain and based on modeling rather than direct observation. In considering climate change policies, the fundamental trade-off that society faces is between consumption today and consumption in the future. By taking measures to slow emissions of greenhouse gases now, the economy reduces the amount of output that can be devoted to consumption and productive investment. This is the opportunity cost of the investment into mitigating global warming. However, the return for this investment is lower damages and higher consumption in the future. The climate investments involve reducing fossil-fuel consumption and moving to low-carbon fuels.   In return, the impacts on energy, agriculture, economic growth and inflation as well as the potential for catastrophic climate change will be reduced. Appendices Figure 1: Global Production Function (Wade, K., 2017) Figure 2: Supply and Demand (Wade, K., 2017) References Carbon Pricing for Climate Change Mitigation and Financing the SDGs. (n.d.). Retrieved April 01, 2017, from https://www.global-economic-symposium.org/about-the-ges/council-of-global-problem-solving/recommendations/carbon-pricing-for-climate-change-mitigation-and-financing-the-sdgs Clark, D. (2012, September 19). How will climate change affect food production? Retrieved April 16, 2017, from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/sep/19/climate-change-affect-food-production Climate Change Indicators in the United States. (2016, December 19). Retrieved April 16, 2017, from https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators Green, K. P. (2002). Global warming: understanding the debate. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow. Mendelsohn (2013).   Climate Change and Economic Growth, Commission on Growth and   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Development, Working paper no.60 Global warming / opposing viewpoints. (2002). San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press. Global Warming Causes. RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2017, from https://www.briangwilliams.us/environmental-economics/shortrun-versus-longrun-substitutions.html Lawrence H. Goulder and William A. Pizer (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2017, from http://stanford.academia.edu/LawrenceGoulder National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (n.d.). Retrieved April 16, 2017, from https://www.nasa.gov/ Schierhorn, M. E. (2016, April 07). Global Demand for Food Is Rising. Can We Meet It? Retrieved April 16, 2017, from https://hbr.org/2016/04/global-demand-for-food-is-rising-can-we-meet-it Stern (2006). Stern Review on The Economics of Climate Change (pre-publication edition).  Executive Summary, HM Treasury, London. Archived from the original on 31 January 2010) Stiglitz, J. E., & Shelling, T. C. (2012). The economists voice: top economists take on todays problems. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. Wade, K. (n.d.). Climate change & the global economy: Growth and inflation. Retrieved April 16, 2017, from http://www.schroders.com/en/us/institutional/insights/economic-views3/climate-changethe-global-economy-growth-and-inflation What is climate change? (2016, November 14). Retrieved April 23, 2017, from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-24021772 William D. Nordhaus and Joseph Boyer, Warming the World: Economic Models of Global Warming. MIT Press, Cambridge Mass., 2000. ISBN 0 262 14071 3. UN projects world population to reach 8.5 billion by 2030, driven by growth in developing countries. (2015, July 29). Retrieved April 23, 2017, from http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=51526#.WP083IWcHIU

The Ethical Concerns with Data Mining Essay example -- Computers

The Ethical Concerns with Data Mining Introduction to Data Mining and Warehousing With the advent of computer technologies that can store large quantities of data, cross reference that data, and compute patterns in the data, benefits abound in many applications. However, with it comes new ethical concerns regarding the privacy and security of the persons or entities in which the information was sourced. While permission may have been received with each bit of information, which may have appeared harmless to divulge, there are issues regarding the data's ownership -- its sharability in US or globally, its combination with other data, its accuracy, its security, and its overall end use [1] -- that could contribute to privacy or security "violations", where some kind of detremental harm could potentially be presented. Many questions exist. Should there be restrictions on what data can be stored? Should permission be required to be up front? How can the data collected be shared? Should there be a mandated set of rules on data collection and use in general for all businesses, governments, to uphold if they want to use data? What are the ethical evaluations of the issues, and would it be correct for a policy to be put in place to monitor the ethical issues? In this paper I will address how some organizations are dealing with the ethical approaches, but first, here is some background on the technology, its uses, benefits, misuses, and issues. What is Data Mining? What are its Uses? Data Mining, Data Warehousing, or Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining(KDDM), are technologies that encorporate computer hardware and software to store large amounts of collected data, usually about people, and then use the infor... .../30/2004 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/03/30/international0553EST0481.DTL 16. ACLU, "Group Calls for Investigation, New Laws to Restrict Data Surveillance", May 27, 2004, http://www.aclu.org/Privacy/Privacy.cfm?ID=15860&c=130 17. Leslie Miller, "EU, U.S. Sign Passenger Data Agreement", Associated Press, May 28, 2004, http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=4&u=/ap/20040528/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/airline_passenger_data 18. Amanda Holt, PR Ethics Resource Center 18. Amanda Holt, PR Ethics Resource Center 19. Utilitarian Ethics, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarian_ethics 20. Colleen McCue, Emily S. Stone, Teresa P. Gooch, "Data mining and value-added analysis", The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Nov, 2003. http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2194/is_11_72/ai_111496582

Illusion in The Great Gatsby :: F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   James Baldwin looked upon reality and illusion through the eyes of a great author. He saw that all authors live in reality, while everyone else lives in a sense of illusion, or not knowing the whole truth.   He shows us that the author must question everything, breaking down the illusions that are set up by people and by our society.   Baldwin shows that normal people don't question everything, and therefore are fooled by illusions may times. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald suggests many things about illusion and reality.   I think that the strongest thing Fitzgerald suggests is that you create your own illusion, and with this illusion, you shape the person that you are.   All of the rich people in this book have some sort of illusion surrounding their persona, but Gatsby has the greatest of all illusions surrounding him.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Gatsby is presented as living the charmed life, with plenty of friends, no problems, and an honest man.   In the end his whole illusion unravels and we find that he has plenty of problems, is very crooked and dishonest, and has no true friends.   He longs for companionship with Daisy, and still can never have that.   Gatsby's illusion surrounding him is totally shattered in this book, partly through the actions of Tom who feels that he must discredit his name.   Tom, however discredits name to draw Daisy away from him when he finds that Gatsby has become interested in Daisy.   When Tom confronts Gatsby, and begins to crumble his illusion, Gatsby is as cool and confident as he always is.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tom's voice, incredulous and insulting: I told you I went there [Oxford]," said Gatsby.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "I heard you, but I would like to know when."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "It was in nineteen-nineteen.   I only stayed for five months."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tom glanced around to see if we mirrored his unbelief. (136)    This passage shows that even Gatsby has bought into the illusion that he has created for himself.   It is as if he has thought out the answer for every question about his past, so that he can come off as being distinguished and honest.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It would be hard to read The Great Gatsby without analyzing if the narrator, Nick Carroway falls into the illusion of Gatsby.

Dear Sahara Shadow Knights: The Unsung Hero’s

Chapter One: Sweat and Blood The stars twinkled with ferocity as I stared at them through the window of my room, the light of the moon brightened up my room with a natural glow. My face was milky white, and my armor glowed with a white aura, in this natural light show the moon provided. I sighed at the vast emptiness of space and continued to stare into the distance with the dazed stare I was all but famous for. I heard a knocking on my door that echoed throughout every corner of my room. A voice boomed out over the residual echo of the knocking â€Å"Jesse, Jess are you there, we're late for our training† I once again sighed at the deep dismal abyss that laid in front of me. I got out of my seat and stretched my arms up in the air. The voice and knocking continued â€Å"Jesse, answer me are you there!† I brought my hand to my forehead and slowly dragged it down. I replied with a hint of anger in my voice â€Å"Yes I am here, and I told you its ShadowWolf now, that is my chosen Knight name.† The voice replied with a sense of sarcasm hindering in it â€Å"Yes your knightness, but hey if you ever wish to BE one you should get you arse out here and get to the training room like we were supposed to be.† The voice stopped temporarily then flared up again with loud haste â€Å"Ten minutes ago!!! the master will be very angry!† The voice stopped and the silence was quickly followed by hard sound of hollow foot steps running down the hall. I made my way to the door slowly, whistling a low and sweet and sweet tune that matched perfectly with the milky white light that softly filled the room. I pressed the button and the door flew open with a loud swhooch. The sound echoed down the empty metal halls. I stepped forward down the hall with the carefree speed of a child going to school. My long journey down the metal halls had brought me to a large grey door, above it laid ever so carefully the words â€Å"Training Room†. I pushed the door open all the time whistling the tune I had begun in my room so far back. Everyone in the room drew silent as I walked past them, a large robed man stared at me with a dismal grin of disappointment. He shook his head in a negative fashion as he said to me â€Å"Your late again, Mr Jesse. You know if you keep this up you wont reach knight level.† I looked down at my arm and brushed some dirt off my suit and replied â€Å"Sorry masters, some things came up. You know?† The master replied to me with anger â€Å"That is no excuse, if you wish to become a great knight like your father you need to straighten up, and fly right for there will be a time that comes you will wish you had.† I lowered my head in shame, and replied with sincerity â€Å"I'm sorry master, I truly am.† The master sighed and stared at me with a subsided rage â€Å"Get into position, and then we may continue.† My training ensued, numerous drills of both physical and mental variety of which left me exaughsted and sweaty. I Panted for air and rested my hands on me knees as I bent over to catch my breathe. I looked at the ground below me and the metal glistened with my sweat provided a reflection of myself. I was a young man, full bodied face with my hair auburn red, my eyes were mud brown, and my aftershave left me with a rugged look. The armor I wore was a dark black decorative vest the white flaps that came down from this vest synchronized their movements with my panting, under this was my shirt, soft and warm on the body with white scaled sleeves that reflected any light that touched their polished surface, below this was my gloves bulgy and black they stood out next to my white sleeves as a flame stands out in front of the dark, adjacent to this was my skirt it was black as space with triangles of white at the bottom and top, and it all was held together by my black boots polished to a shine that was unparalleled to others in the class. My panting continued with no end in sight, a student came behind me and slapped me on the back. â€Å"Haha, suck it up man were not even done yet.† I tried to form my words to say something ,but nothing ,but panting came out. I raised my hand and wiped the sweat from my forehead that had been dripping down forming a fairly large puddle below me. At that moment a large sound pierced my ears with the high-pitched scream that made me fall over into my puddle of sweat. I pushed my aching body up and spit on the floor as I dragged my hand over my face to get rid of the sweat. â€Å"What the heck is that† I yelled over the sound The master stared at us with serious stare, he mouth slowly opened to say â€Å"It's the alarm. We are under attack† The loud simultaneous yelp of â€Å"what† filled the room to be quickly white washed with the alarms high-pitched scream. The master slowly walked to the other side of the room where a small black box sat on the wall. The master pushed the buttons with the speed of a huurton as a section of the wall swung open to reveal an array of weapons and backpacks. â€Å"Get geared up and ready, this is what we all have been training for† His words filled the room and for a moment seemed to be the only things I could hear. I panted furiously and coughed rapidly. Rose up from my bent over position with the shaking slowness of a person that just got pummeled with a stun baton. We all ran towards the room as the alarm seemed to grow louder with each yelp. The room lay filled with Long Vibro Axes, the glare of light that reflected off of them blinded me as I slowly made my way in. I grabbed an Axe and rushed out of the room and fell back into the formation the class was in as I had entered. The sound of ion cannons and TIE engines filled the room and overpowered the alarms loud noise. The master made his way slowly across the room as if nothing was happening. The master then stopped 10 feet in front of us all and smiled with a wicked grin. He raised his arm slowly and pointed at one half of the class, he motioned them to take the exit to the right. The students did a salute and rushed out of the room, all armed with pikes and pistols. He pointed at our half now and motioned them to the left exit. He then walked towards me, he rubbed his eyes and little then set his hand on my shoulder. â€Å"Lets just hope you learned enough.† I looked at him with a confused glare, he laughed and motioned at the left exit again. I was now running down the hall the sounds of my footsteps were all but unheard under the yelp of the alarms screaming every second, my body was still aching from training, and my leg wobbly from the idea of the battle that laid ahead. My foot stumbled to the side and balance became harder to maintain, I continued running until my foot tripped over what felt like a pike. My body flew forward and spun to the side a little, my body hit the floor in one big boom, and I began to tumble forward on the ground, my pike has dislodged from my holster on impact and now spun in the air ahead of me hitting the walls causing sparks to flare in its wake. I finally stopped when I hit something, the sound of a splash boomed in my ears, my hair now filled with a cold liquid splashed. I slowly got up and grabbed the back of my head to help soften the pain that now overwhelmed me. I felt something squish in my hair as I pressed down, I quickly brought it to my face to reveal blood soaking over my hand. I quickly turned around to see a puddle of blood leading up to a stormtrooper whose neck was half way cut off. I panted fast and licked my lips, the sweat that lay dormant now began to drip into the puddle and mix with the blood, this mixture of sweat and blood made my stomach churn as it continued to spread out on the ground.