Formal Reality And Objective Reality

Formal Reality And Objective Reality To begin this approach, Descartes introduces formal reality and objective reality. Formal reality is said to be what humans can actually see and prove to be their senses, and objective reality is what is in their minds. Descartes goes on to say, Hence it follows, both that nothing can come from nothing, and that what is more perfect cannot derive from what is less perfect (Third Meditation 29). In this quote Descartes believes that nothing can come from nothing: a person cannot get one from zero; for an effect to happen their must be a cause, and an effect must have as much reality as its cause, as so, something that is perfect cannot come from something that is less perfect. For example, it is not possible to have hot water without a thing that creates heat. Also, electricity is what causes a light bulb to turn on, but a light bulb cannot cause electricity. After realising this, Descartes uses this argument to sum up how the idea of God came to be. He believes that he is not perfect and has limits, so how can the idea of an all knowing and all powerful being with no limits be even thought of. All real ideas come from other real ideas, and even unreal ideas have real qualities in them. A flying pig might not be real, but the idea comes from a pig, and a flying object put together; fairies might not be real, but the idea comes from putting flying qualities to a person. So this Idea of God came from something as real as God, and since there is nothing on earth that is as real as God, we must have been born with the idea, so therefore God exists. In Descartes meditation his premises are structured. One must first accept that the idea of God is more real than anything that is limited; after accepting that, one must accept that an effect cannot be greater than its cause; and after accepting that, one must accept that the idea of God cannot be thought off with out a cause, or without it being real. Once you have accepted all of these it is clear to say that God exists, but if one denies any one of these premises the conclusion fails. Although Descartes believes to have solved the existence of God, many other people such as Atheists have went on to argue that God does not exist. A popular argument against the existence of God is the paradox of the stone: Can God create a stone so heavy that he cannot lift?'(Arguments for Atheisms). God is known to have unlimited power, so if God cannot create a stone more powerful than him, then he does not have unlimited power; if he is able to create such a stone that he cannot lift, then he still does not have unlimited power. So either way God is not all powerful; something that is all powerful can do everything, and since God cannot do everything, God does not exist. Though this argument is seemingly legit, there are many arguments that proves its falseness. Descartes believes that God can do the logically impossible, so God can make two plus two equal five. However, Thomas Aquinas (A Christian philosopher) believed that God can possibly do anything, but he cannot go against the laws of logic. With Aquinas argument, it proves that God cannot do something, which has to be false because God has to be able to do everything. So if we go with Descartes argument that God can make two plus two five, it also means that God can Create a stone that he cannot lift, and then lift it. This argument may seem difficult to understand, but Descartes tells us not to try and understand God because it is not possible. This proves that the argument of the paradox is false, a simple way to prove that it is false, is that God is known to be a spirit that cannot be seen, but here the paradox argument gives God human qualities (The Paradox of the Stone). The stone argument failed to prove that God does not exist, so Descartes argument about Gods existence still stands. But looking at it in a different way, say that a person is stuck on an island, and this person cannot escape, so he/she builds some type of shelter to be protected from the bad weather such as, rain and cold temperatures. Now, this person does not know what perfect is, but while building this shelter, this person will not attempt to make it bad seeing he/she wants good protection; this person will attempt to make a perfect shelter, so can the idea of something perfect not come from our selves? Descartes answer to this question would be no: everything has its opposites, and one opposite cannot be without the other. For example, there cannot be heat without cold, and one would not know what pain is without joy. Which must mean that God exist because humans are imperfect, and the opposite of imperfect is perfect. It is very difficult to disprove Gods existence, but if God exists, and everything has a cause; what caused God? Scientist hold this point strongly as to disprove the existence of God. Descartes, however, says not to try and understand God, but his whole meditation attempts to find if God exists which is trying to understand. Descartes somehow goes around the question what caused God. In the world we live in today, one should not be surprised if one does not believe that God exists. It is simple, in our society proof is necessary; if a close friend was to threaten to kill themselves, it would not be all that believable, but when the friend shows a weapon to be used, then the belief will increase. Also, one cannot go to a court room and say to a judge, He is the murderer, you might not understand your honour, but he killed an old lady. One would need some type of convincing proof to prove that someone is a murderer. It is just how the world works. Descartes believes that God is not a Deceiver, and that God is supremely Good, if it is so, why does God allow suffering? If a father, that is known to be good, one day sees his twenty three year old son on the street begging for food and money, and the father realizes this and walks away, is it reasonable to say that the father is good? Not at all, in fact one would believe that the father has abandoned his son. This argument has been used countless times to disprove the existence of God. Arguments can go both ways, and this argument about the existence of God is ridiculously difficult. One can conclude that God exists, but until physical evidence or something more real is shown, saying that God exists will just be a theory, at least in this world. Perhaps if one was in a world where there is simply one religion and one belief, then the idea of a God would be easy to believe, even if it is false. So Descartes has reasonable ideas of the existence of God, but as long as we are in a world filled with many different race, religion, and ideas, Descartes argument about Gods existence will always be plausible.

The brander-krugman model

The brander-krugman model Extended Essay 1 The Brander-Krugman model, also known as the reciprocal dumping model, explains the possibility of international trade in a homogenous good. In doing so, it raises an interesting issue: is this apparently pointless trade socially beneficial? Meanwhile, Corden developed a more realistic customs union (CU) theory compared to orthodox theory by relaxing the assumption of constant marginal costs (MC). While the framework of these two models are similar, their conclusions are very different, the reasons for which are discussed further below. a) Both models are set in a partial equilibrium framework; the prices of all substitutes and complements of the good in question are assumed to be constant, as are the income levels of consumers, allowing for an easier analysis of welfare gains from the formation of the customs union (CU). Within this framework, there is a single producer in each of the CU countries that produces a homogenous good. The other similarity between the two models is that the tariffs set and faced by both countries (Home (H) and Partner (P)) before CU formation are equal .Thus, when the union is created a Common External Tariff (CET) already exists. Corden develops his model in further stages to include made-to-measure tariffs so that the CET has to be set upon CU formation. It is assumed that this will be set lower than the original tariffs that were imposed. The countries forming a CU in Cordens model are small relative to the rest of the world (R), implying that its formation will have no effect on world prices. In the Brander-Krugman model, all three countries (R is represented as one country) are identical in size. Symmetry is assumed between the firms in the Brander-Krugman model therefore the firms in each of the countries face the same constant marginal cost and domestic demand functions, contrary to Corden. Corden relaxes the assumption of constant marginal costs (MC) that is held in orthodox customs union theory, and assumes instead that the firms benefit from internal economies of scale and thus face declining marginal and average cost (AC) curves. Figure 1 shows that the minimum point of the firms AC curves is above the price paid for imports (pm). Hence a tariff is necessary to protect domestic production, which is set at T- pm and prevents R from importing to H and P. The domestic price being equal to the firms AC, they operate at a normal profit. The price received for exports (px) is assumed to be lower than pm as H and P also face tariffs. Therefore, their AC is greater than px and so they cannot export their goods either. Thus, unlike in the Brander-Krugman model, there is no international trade prior to CU formation. The main characteristic of the Brander-Krugman model is that the firms display Cournot behaviour the firms make decisions about their own output levels to maximise their profits assuming that the output levels of the other producers will not change[1]. This is not necessarily the case in Cordens model. b) The existence of internal economies of scale in Corden means that efficiency and welfare gains could be increased if a single firm increases its output and captures both markets following CU formation. This, along with the assumption that the firms face different cost functions, leads to the conclusion that the firm with the higher AC will exit the market and import the good from the firm that can produce it at a lower cost (this essay will assume that the partner firm exits the market). The assumption that the partner firm operated at a normal profit pre-CU indicates that there will be no loss of producer surplus and no welfare loss in P as it exits the market. Conversely, the symmetry between the firms in Cournot means that neither firm in the CU has a cost advantage over the other. Thus, both the home and partner countries benefit from CU formation by increasing trade with each other, resulting in an increase in output for both firms (Appendix, equation (1)). Although H and P have increased their overall output, the quantity they supply in each of their domestic markets decreases (equation 2). Although there is an overall gain in welfare in both models as a result of CU formation, the source of these gains differ. Both the home and partner countries experience a welfare gain from CU formation in Cournot given the symmetry, whereas only the home country benefits in Corden as the partner firm exits the market. In Cournot, the price falls in the markets (equation 3) and thus the welfare gain is largely reflected by an increase in consumer surplus (equation 4) in both the home and partner markets. The countries also lose welfare through a fall in tariff revenue (equation 5) and the firms profits may rise or fall depending on the elasticity of the aggregate demand in the CU (equation 6). However, Hs overall welfare gain is shown to be always positive (equation 7). In Corden, the assumption that the home and partner countries are small compared to the rest of the world implies that the CU firms are not large enough to compete with the outside firm and therefore the CU formation will not affect world prices. This, along with the assumption that the remaining firm within the CU maximises his profit by charging right up to the import-preventing price, which is the world price plus the CET, means that the price will remain unchanged. Thus, the increased welfare is due to an increase in the remaining firms producer surplus (figure 1, a+ß) as the fall in average cost (to J, figure 1) is not passed onto consumers. However, if made-to-measure tariffs are assumed and the CET is lower than both the initial tariffs, a price reduction will be induced in both countries and some of the welfare gain will be passed onto consumers. The symmetry in Cournot and differentiation in Corden also lead to different conclusions with respect to the impact on the rest of the world. In Corden, the CU formation does not affect Rs welfare under the assumption that there was no international trade pre-CU and there is still none post-CU. In Cournot, the fall in Rs output (equation 8) and the price drop in H and P impact negatively on the R firms profits (equation 9). As consumption and imports in R remain unchanged, Rs welfare is reduced. The main assumptions that lead to the different conclusions are those of symmetrical costs in Cournot and differentiation in Corden. This affects how the welfare gains are divided amongst the countries as well as how they are split between the producers and consumers. c) In discussing the appropriateness of the models to the EU situation, the relevance of the assumptions and the predicted results, and how the causes of these results compare with reality need to be considered. There are many studies that analyse how EU integration has affected trade flows in terms of trade creation and trade diversion. Trade creation is defined as intra-EU imports replacing domestic production; trade diversion as EU imports replacing imports from the rest of the world. By 1992, bilateral trade between any two EC countries was 65% higher than if the EC had not existed, supporting both models predictions that trade between the home and partner countries increases.[2] Over the period from 1959/60 to 1977, which includes both stages of integration for the EC and EFTA countries, annual trade creation was estimated at $20-31 billion and trade diversion at $5-8 billion.[3] This affirms the Cournot prediction that the partner firm would increase its imports to the home country at the expense of both domestic production and imports from the rest of the world. A study by the Single Market Review on the impact of the Single Market Programme (SMP) on trade creation and trade diversion gives a detailed insight into the relevance of the Corden and Cournot models to the EU situation.[4] Its data and analysis focuses on industries within the manufacturing sector, particularly the 15 industries that were likely to be particularly sensitive to the SMP.[5] Although there are some industries close to perfect competition with a concentration ratio of 0.00 or 0.01 such as clothing and boiler making most industries within the EU are relatively oligopolistic according to their average concentration ratios. The assumption of perfect information is unlikely to hold true. In many economic theories where this is assumed, it is highly unrealistic, especially with regards to the reactions of a firms competitors to the union formation. While Cournot assumes that firms face a constant MC, a 50% reduction in output from the minimum efficient scale of output led to an increase in AC, and therefore MC, in all the industries analysed, thus indicating the presence of economies of scale. The assumption that all firms display Cournot behaviour does not always hold in the context of the EU. Through a comparison of the changes in the price-cost margins and in the home firms market share in the domestic industry, it is evident that industries reacted in two very different ways. One group, including office machines and pharmaceutical products, experienced large cuts in their price-cost margins and a relatively small change in their market share, while the opposite is the case for the other group. It appears that the first group decided to reduce its prices instead of losing market share, implying that some firms do not compete on output but on price. However, the effect of changes in competitive behaviour by firms on market shares was extremely small for most industries and countries, though it was usually more important in the smaller EU countries.[6] Thus, changes in firms behaviour are relatively insignificant in affecting market shares, compared to other factors. The assumption of symmetrical firms is, again, an unrealistic one. Given that the country sizes within the EU are very different, it is highly likely that firms across the EU faced different market sizes and domestic demand functions before integration, and as a result, they are unlikely to be the same size or have the same cost functions. In terms of the impact of the CU formation on the industries, most of the results predicted in Cournot hold true from 1900-94, the period examined in this SMR report. The price-cost margins in the 15 sensitive industries fell by an average of 3.9%, while they fell by 3.6% in the manufacturing sector as a whole. The extent of this drop in each industry depends on the behaviour of the firms. The impact of the SMP on the respective market shares in the manufacturing sector as a whole is negative for the home industries, and positive for both the EU and the rest of the worlds market shares in the home country. Cournots model correctly predicted that the home firm would sell more while the partner firm would sell less in the home market. However, it predicts that the rest of the worlds share of the home market would fall. The SMR carried out two ex-post simulations; one with no direct external trade effects and one with. All of Cournots predictions regarding changes in the market shares hold true for the former simulation. However, the latter simulation is more accurate in reflecting the actual changes in market shares that were experienced over this integration period. This implies that the Cournot model does not take into account the increasing liberalisation of external trade over this period that also led to a reduction in extra-EU trade costs, either as a result of the CU formation or due to increasing globalisation. In terms of welfare, the changes support Cournots prediction that welfare increased in both H and P. The change in welfare measured as a percentage of GDP was greater than the percentage change in GDP in each of the EU countries analysed. The main goal of creating the single market in the EU was to increase its competitiveness with respect to large economies such as the USA through economies of scale. This implies that Cordens model should offer a more accurate picture of the EU. However, certain assumptions do not reflect the EUs characteristics. The assumption that the CU-forming countries are small may hold true for some of the EU countries; however, the implication of this that the customs union will be unable to affect world prices may not hold. Given the size of the EU, it is large enough to compete with the large economies such as the USA and Japan. Cordens predictions regarding changes in price and market shares are not appropriate to the EU situation, due to the strong assumptions that there was no international trade prior to the formation and thus no trade with the rest of the world after. Also, with the partner firm exiting the market, it is assumed that there is no increase in competition following CU formation, thus no change in the prices. However, there is evidence supporting the main conclusion of this model that the welfare gain is a result of restructuring, which leads to increasingly concentrated industries as firms can benefit from economies of scale as the size of the market that they have access to increases. Between 1987 and 1993, the four-firm concentration ratio increased by 2.3% across 71 industries in the EU.[7] This was partly due to increased restructuring; between 1987 and 1990, the percentage of MAs involving countries from two different member states jumped from 9.6% to 21.5% in anticipation of the Single Market. This replaced MAs within country borders which fell from 71.6% to 60.7% over the same period.[8] While it is true that EU industry concentration has increased, this is cannot be attributed solely to an expansion in the market size. Many industries already operated internationally in the 1980s and hence, a market size expansion would not have had as big an impact on the concentration level. The single market also led to a reduction in non-tariff barriers (especially barriers to entry) between EU member states, through public procurement liberalisation, increased ease of cross-border knowledge transfer and the free movement of capital. Cordens comparative static model fails to take into account the dynamic effects of EU integration. The aim of the SMP was much more ambitious than a mere elimination of the tariff barriers and thus both theories, which focus on the effects of a CU, are too simplistic to be wholly appropriate. Certain aspects of both models are comparable to the EU situation. However, Cordens model seems to be more suitable; while Cournots results regarding changes in the prices and respective market share were more accurate, Cordens underlying characteristics are much more appropriate to the current EU situation. 1 Friedman, James (1983), Oligopoly Theory, Cambridge University Press Frankel (1997) (Ali El-Agraa P175) Kreinin (1979b) (Ali El-Agraa P175 European Commission/CEPR (1997) Trade Creation and Trade Diversion, Subseries IV/ volume 3 of The Single Market Review Buigues, Ilzkovitz and Lebrun (1990) EC/CEPR, 1997, Trade creation and trade diversion Subseries V, Volume 4, Economies of Scale AMDATA in European Economy (1999)

Symbolism in The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe Essay -- essays re

Symbolism in The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe Like many of Edgar Allen Poe's works, 'The Tell-Tale Heart' is full of death and darkness. Poe used many of the real life tragedies he experienced as inspiration for his gothic style of writing. Poe dealt with many aspects of death and madness in his stories, madness again is playing a key role in the plot. In this short story Poe used literary devices such as point of view and symbolism to give it a more dramatic effect and add to the madness the narrator portrays.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Poe's use of the point of view device is very evident in ?The Tell-Tale Heart?. The madman that speaks through the entire story talks in an unreliable first person view. Because of the man?s obvious madness you are not sure what is taking place in the introduction and what the actual events of the story were. Although there is a definite madness in the man?s attitude and he is constantly aware of it yet he makes many claims that he is not mad at all. ?You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded-with what caution-with what foresight-with what dissimulation I went to work!?Ha!-would a madman have been so wise as this He is obviously well aware of his madness but he tries to justify it by saying that he is not mad because he puts so much effort and wisdom into his deeds. It is kind of an ironic statement that he justifies his madness in the wisdom he shows in the insane act itself. This is like a student saying he is not cheating because he had to ?do work? to get the plagiarism. There is ironically no ?method to the madness? in his argument. After the narrator commits the murder he again tries to justify his present madness. ?If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned, and I worked hastily, but in silence.? Even after the thought of possible murder has left his mind and he has done the act, he again justifies his deeds by his precautions. In his mind things are not what they actually are in reality in the least bit. In another part of the story the narrator tries to explain wha t he says we see as his madness. ?And now have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the senses The resulting madness the narra... ...The end of the story however is when the heartbeat really does take on meaning though. Even though he had been good to get rid of the body and the policemen in his house did not suspect anything, it was the ?beating of the heart? that gave him away. ?The ringing became more distinct:?until, at length, I found that the noise was not within my ears?I gasped for breath-and yet the officers heard it not?It grew louder-louder-louder! And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled?no, no! They heard!-they suspected!-they knew!-they were making a mockery of my horror!-this I thought, and this I think?I felt that I must scream or die!-and now-again!-hark! louder! louder! louder! louder! louder!? I think that the beating of the heart the narrator is his guilt for killing the old man, and just like in the old man's room, it derived from his madness. His madness was the thing that drove to murder and to confess to it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ?The Tell-Tale heart is kind of saying that your own heart knows what you?ve done and in the long run guilt will find you out. In this story Poe used point of view and symbolism together so that this truth could be seen actually how it is written. Symbolism in The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe Essay -- essays re Symbolism in The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe Like many of Edgar Allen Poe's works, 'The Tell-Tale Heart' is full of death and darkness. Poe used many of the real life tragedies he experienced as inspiration for his gothic style of writing. Poe dealt with many aspects of death and madness in his stories, madness again is playing a key role in the plot. In this short story Poe used literary devices such as point of view and symbolism to give it a more dramatic effect and add to the madness the narrator portrays.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Poe's use of the point of view device is very evident in ?The Tell-Tale Heart?. The madman that speaks through the entire story talks in an unreliable first person view. Because of the man?s obvious madness you are not sure what is taking place in the introduction and what the actual events of the story were. Although there is a definite madness in the man?s attitude and he is constantly aware of it yet he makes many claims that he is not mad at all. ?You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded-with what caution-with what foresight-with what dissimulation I went to work!?Ha!-would a madman have been so wise as this He is obviously well aware of his madness but he tries to justify it by saying that he is not mad because he puts so much effort and wisdom into his deeds. It is kind of an ironic statement that he justifies his madness in the wisdom he shows in the insane act itself. This is like a student saying he is not cheating because he had to ?do work? to get the plagiarism. There is ironically no ?method to the madness? in his argument. After the narrator commits the murder he again tries to justify his present madness. ?If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned, and I worked hastily, but in silence.? Even after the thought of possible murder has left his mind and he has done the act, he again justifies his deeds by his precautions. In his mind things are not what they actually are in reality in the least bit. In another part of the story the narrator tries to explain wha t he says we see as his madness. ?And now have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the senses The resulting madness the narra... ...The end of the story however is when the heartbeat really does take on meaning though. Even though he had been good to get rid of the body and the policemen in his house did not suspect anything, it was the ?beating of the heart? that gave him away. ?The ringing became more distinct:?until, at length, I found that the noise was not within my ears?I gasped for breath-and yet the officers heard it not?It grew louder-louder-louder! And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled?no, no! They heard!-they suspected!-they knew!-they were making a mockery of my horror!-this I thought, and this I think?I felt that I must scream or die!-and now-again!-hark! louder! louder! louder! louder! louder!? I think that the beating of the heart the narrator is his guilt for killing the old man, and just like in the old man's room, it derived from his madness. His madness was the thing that drove to murder and to confess to it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ?The Tell-Tale heart is kind of saying that your own heart knows what you?ve done and in the long run guilt will find you out. In this story Poe used point of view and symbolism together so that this truth could be seen actually how it is written.

Editorial - Letter to the Editor :: Editorial Newspaper Article Letter

Dear Editor, C. S. explains in his article â€Å"The Daily We,† the experiences that bring closeness in people that share a common identity. An experience that brings the knowledge of this is the recent freshman orientation that happened this past weekend. This brought closeness with all of the incoming students and warmth to be welcomed into the Dayton community. â€Å"The Daily We,† applies to this experience as a tool to understand the past weekend as complete fun. Throughout, the beautiful sunny day of August 28, upperclassmen helped new students put away their belongings. As time went on before even entering my room, I met many new faces and met many new friends. All day the upperclassmen sold t-shirts, lemonade and drinks and other memorabilia in front of the three freshman dorms. Rudy’s Fly Buy, a student store was right in front of Marycrest selling memorabilia. The day was very much complete. By midday I was very much packed into the room. After meeting my roommate, a friend who I met over summer classes, I knew right away this was going to be great year. All day, the experience was fun and exciting. Using the new student’s orientation as an example to â€Å"The Daily We,† I figured that it made the most sense to the closeness of people coming together as one. The first day will remain a memory in my mind. When I was apart of the orientation, the excitement grew, I felt happy, and the impact became a big part of my college experience. The first thoughts that came across my mind when I entered my room was this is my home for the next nine months, I am going to be sharing the bathroom with my whole wing, I am independent, and I am going to not have people telling me, â€Å"You have this due when?† or â€Å"You have to go to class?† This decision is your own. Your parents are not with you. You don’t have your dad or mom looking over your shoulder. Editorial - Letter to the Editor :: Editorial Newspaper Article Letter Dear Editor, C. S. explains in his article â€Å"The Daily We,† the experiences that bring closeness in people that share a common identity. An experience that brings the knowledge of this is the recent freshman orientation that happened this past weekend. This brought closeness with all of the incoming students and warmth to be welcomed into the Dayton community. â€Å"The Daily We,† applies to this experience as a tool to understand the past weekend as complete fun. Throughout, the beautiful sunny day of August 28, upperclassmen helped new students put away their belongings. As time went on before even entering my room, I met many new faces and met many new friends. All day the upperclassmen sold t-shirts, lemonade and drinks and other memorabilia in front of the three freshman dorms. Rudy’s Fly Buy, a student store was right in front of Marycrest selling memorabilia. The day was very much complete. By midday I was very much packed into the room. After meeting my roommate, a friend who I met over summer classes, I knew right away this was going to be great year. All day, the experience was fun and exciting. Using the new student’s orientation as an example to â€Å"The Daily We,† I figured that it made the most sense to the closeness of people coming together as one. The first day will remain a memory in my mind. When I was apart of the orientation, the excitement grew, I felt happy, and the impact became a big part of my college experience. The first thoughts that came across my mind when I entered my room was this is my home for the next nine months, I am going to be sharing the bathroom with my whole wing, I am independent, and I am going to not have people telling me, â€Å"You have this due when?† or â€Å"You have to go to class?† This decision is your own. Your parents are not with you. You don’t have your dad or mom looking over your shoulder.

College Education Is Essential In Todays Society :: essays research papers

College Education is Essential In Today's Society   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In today's society a college education is an essential part of pursuing a career. While in college a person can determine his strengths and weaknesses in whatever path he decides to take in life. A college education is also the first step in being self-sufficient and living by yourself. College life also gives a person a chance to express his ingenious and creative abilities and to supplement the skills that he learned in high school. City University will give me an unprecedented opportunity to achieve these goals and to reach a new plateau in my scholarly studies.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In my life I plan to pursue a career in the aerospace field. To get a job in this field one needs a college education and City University fits the bill. Its curriculum and accomplished professors will give me the chance to achieve my goal. Each of the independent colleges of the university system is highly specialized and particular to its own field of training. This will help applicants like me concentrate on my specific career path. I have visited the university campus twice and each time I have been impressed by the devotion of the faculty to ensure that the student's educational needs are met and surpassed. I perceive that the university is concerned about the educational well-being of its students. This is exemplified by the abundant tutoring opportunities that the university offers. Not only is the staff exceptional, City University has phenomenal technology.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  City University is on the cutting edge of technology which is indispensable in the aerospace field. The EOS computing environment is a substructure for building a bridge to the future. This system will give me many opportunities to use its resources to intensify my skills while pursuing my occupation. Having access to millions of computers all over the world, with the information I need at my fingertips will propel me to a higher level of intellectual aptness. The immense number of computer clusters available at the university enables a student to arm himself with the knowledge needed to aid him

An application of Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to Carl Rogers 10 Principles of Learning

An application of Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to Carl Rogers 10 Principles of LearningIntroduction The objective of this paper is to explore the relevance of applying Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to the 10 principles of learning put forward by Carl Rogers in ‘Freedom to Learn’ (1969).Rogers was one of the founders of the humanistic approach to psychotherapy and he was also a fervent educationalist. ‘Freedom to Learn’ (Rogers,1969) and ‘Freedom to Learn for the 80’s’ (Rogers,1983) were both a direct challenge to the education system in the United States. His introduction starts: ‘Our education system is, I believe, failing to meet the needs of our society’ (Rogers,1983).He questioned those who were saying ‘We must tell children what is right and wrong, that we must teach and they must follow’ (Rogers,1983). He noted that large and powerful groups were  insisting that students must not read certain books and believed teachers operated in a climate of fear, unable to encourage children to grow to their full potential. The very title ‘Freedom to Learn’ was a statement of discontent with the system.Maslow, in contrast to looking at the educational system, focused on the individual. His theory of human motivation was published towards the end of the World War II (1943). Maslow was heavily influenced by Freud (but did not consider himself a Freudian). In simple terms, Maslow took an optimistic view of life in contrast to Freud’s pessimism.Maslow’s views in many ways mirrored Jung and Adler but again, he did not consider himself a Jungian or an Adlerian. He formed his own theory that all humans are motivated to achieve their true potential providing that their basic psychological needs are met.He took a holistic view of life that the human creature begins as a kind of acorn, with all the characteristics of a fully grown tree inside it. His theory of human motivation became known as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.In this essay I point out the congruence of the two psychologists’ theories – Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Rogers’ 10 principles of learning. What is learning?  Ã¢â‚¬ËœHuman beings have a natural potential for learning’ (Rogers first principle,1969). Rogers (1994) puts learning along a continuum, whereby at one end learning is not experiential and there is little or no meaning, with ‘syllables’ quickly forgotten. At the other end, ‘significant, meaningful experiential learning’ occurs. A very simple explanation of the two would be, one can read a book on swimming or, talk to a coach, but until any meaningful experiential work has taken place (i.e. one gets into the water)  learning will not commence.Rogers furthered his argument by saying that the education system had traditionally thought of learning as an orderly type of cognitive, left-brain activity w hich could be measured, ranked and ordered. However in his view, if a student is conditioned or even forced under threat to learn in this way then he may be capable of ‘regurgitating’ knowledge but not necessarily understanding it. Rogers believed that also utilising the right side of the brain was required in order to involve the whole person in the learning process. This would appear to be a more complete understanding of learning.Maslow stated that theory separated from experience and practice could be very dangerous. ‘On the other hand, the practical person who does not understand theory is also handicapped’(Goble,1970). It is clear Maslow supports Rogers view of experiential learning.Our Basic Needs Maslow perceived the human as driven, motivated and propelled by potent forces and called these forces human needs: ‘Human needs arrange themselves in hierarchies of pre-potency, that is to say the appearance of one need usually rests on the prior sat isfaction of another, more pre-potent need. Man is a perpetually wanting animal’ (Maslow,1943). He also added that no need or drive could be treated as if it were isolated or discrete and that every drive was related to the state of satisfaction or dissatisfaction of the other drives.Maslow presented his theory of motivation as a pyramid-like structure covering five levels of need; psychological, safety, love and belonging, esteem and – at the pinnacle – self-actualisation.  The psychological needs are somatic (i.e. they relate to the body not the mind) and as such are not strictly motivated actions. Maslow defines the somatic drives as: air, food, water, sex and secretion. Once the somatic drives are met, motivated drives will follow.Significantly, Maslow was the first to expound the premise that learning can only commence once the psychological needs have been satisfied and that at least part of each stage of learning must be achieved before progressing up t he pyramid.He was particularly concerned that once the basic needs have been met, children need to ‘learn to be responsible for each other, to care for each other, not only for the sake of others but for their own sake’ (Goble,1970).Maslow also believed there was no fast track route to self-actualisation and that learning could slip backwards if circumstances changed. For example, the child when frightened clings to his mother or the child berated by parents for not getting the grades brings fear and insecurity, leaving him to scurry anxiously back down the stairs to relative safety and security.With the above point in mind let us continue our focus on Rogers’ principles and explore where there are similarities in approach. ‘Those learnings which are threatening to the self are more easily perceived and assimilated when external threats are at a minimum’ (Rogers’ fourth principle,1969). Conversely when external threats are present, learning st ops and we seek safety and comfort.Rogers’ example is of a boy with reading difficulties being forced to read aloud in class and then ridiculed by his peers. Another would be the school bully who exploits the weaknesses of their classmates. This stops learning and may even lead to retreat to a lower level of Maslow’s hierarchy where such threats are at a minimum. Life has changed  considerably. Special needs schools and provision within schools for dyslexia and the less able are further examples.‘When threat to the self is low, experience can be perceived in differentiated fashion and learning can proceed’ (Rogers’ fifth principle, 1969). It is this point that also underpinned Rogers humanistic approach to psychotherapy.He, the teacher, facilitator and the therapist must have: regard to the serious and meaningful problem, he must demonstrate congruence, show unconditional positive regard to his client or student and give empathic understanding. Wh ile I have condensed these four significant statements into a single sentence, together, they form part of the foundation stones of Rogers Humanistic and Person-centered approach to learning and understanding.Following these foundation stones has enabled many teachers, managers and therapist alike to help facilitate learning and assist the student or client reach the third level of Maslow’s hierarchy, love and belonging.Maslow stated that love was not to be confused with sex which is a psychological need. He likened Carl Rogers’ definition of love to ‘that of being deeply understood and deeply accepted’ (Goble,1970). He rejected Freud’s tendency to assert that love derived from sex. Maslow also felt the absence of love stifled growth. Crucially both Rogers and Maslow saw love and acceptance as a pivotal point in both learning and the path to self discovery.Humans who reach this stage carry with them an awareness of life. I have introduced Carl Jung (1955) as he described this awareness or imprint as containing: ones collective unconscious, their personal unconscious (which  includes social conditioning) and their ego.It is likely that this presents the most difficult stage in the learning process. ‘Learning which involves a change in self organization in the perception of oneself is threatening and tends to be resisted ’(Rogers’ third principle,1969).There is a whole new genre of ‘self help’ books designed to address this very challenge. A simple example, ‘It is through the pain of confronting and resolving problems that we learn’ (Scott Peck,1983). The writings of Aldous Huxley, Eckhart Toll and Ken Wilber are but a few of the many teachers who’s books have assisted parents, students and clients alike take the next step from love and acceptance to self-esteem along Maslow’s hierarchy.To change ones perception of life is for many the first stage of determining just what ‘self’ represents. Early adulthood is often a time to challenge parents, religious beliefs and much of the social conditioning one has accepted as ‘truth’ for much of one’s life.Once the student/client can believe in him/herself, be willing to break through past conditioning, great discovery and learning is possible.  Ã¢â‚¬ËœSignificant learning takes place when the subject matter is perceived by the student as having relevance for his own purposes†¦and [when] relevant to the goal, learning takes place with great rapidity’ (Rogers’ second principle,1969). Maslow would appear to concur. His concept of the ‘peak experience’, a moment of oneness with self and the universe is a breakthrough moment in the journey. To have such a moment and rush to a higher level of existence is a ‘moment of selfactualisation without the recipient becoming self actualised’ (Maslow,1970). It does provide a key motivator to continue.These peak experiences motivate and provide renewed energy and confidence, ‘Much significant learning is acquired by doing’ (Rogers’ sixth principle,1969). As the student grows, motivated by peak experiences, feeling safe and solving problems are an effective builder of self-esteem.Maslow extended his ideas in later years and found that people have two ‘categories’ of esteem needs; self-esteem and esteem from other people. It was the development of esteem from others which caused concern to Maslow in his later life and its impact upon his hierarchy. Even up to his death in 1970 he was reformulating and refining his opinions of the concept of self-actualisation. He held the view, esteem for many had become the only or most important goal. He believed the individual who allows his desires to distort his perception of self, diminishes his psychological health.This concurred with Rogers’ ninth principle, ‘Independence, creativity a nd self-reliance are all facilitated when self criticism and self-evaluation are basic and evaluation by others is of secondary importance’(1969). Rogers’ eighth principle makes a similar point, ‘Self-initiated learning which involves the whole person of the learner – feelings as well as intellect, is the most lasting and pervasive’ (1969). In the current economic climate, status and esteem from others appears to be the ultimate goal for many. Maslow noted, ‘The commonly seen hatred or resentment of or jealousy of goodness, truth, beauty†¦is largely†¦determined by threat of loss of self-esteem’ (Maslow 1968). As such, self criticism and evaluation by others will be resisted, the very opposite of Rogers’ ninth principle. ‘and evaluation by others is of secondary importance’ (1969).Openness to such higher learning requires responsibility. ‘Learning is facilitated when the student participates responsibl y in the learning process’ (Rogers’ seventh principle,1969). The opinions of Maslow would indicate protection of self-worth, ego and opinion of others to block a willingness to continue learning. At this stage the student/client remains at the level of esteem or may even retreat down the hierarchical stairs for love and comfort.Maslow saw rising above esteem to self actualisation as the most difficult steps to climb. He believed that even if all the lower needs are met, a new discontent and restlessness will follow unless ‘ the individual is doing what he is fitted for†¦ if he is to be ultimately happy’ (Maslow 1943). This statement dovetails perfectly into Rogers’ tenth and last of his principles:- ‘The most socially useful learning in the modern world is the learning of the process of learning, a continuous openness to experience and incorporation into oneself of the process of change’.Conclusion Having applied Maslow’s hi erarchy of needs to Rogers ten principles, I am able to see the obvious synergy, the seamless way that all learning must follow the five stages of needs and the benefit to any education system that using his theory of motivation would bring.Maslow's basic needs could therefore underpin an education syllabus that teaches everyone (rich and poor) that we live on a planet of limited resources for food, water and the energy to provide shelter and warmth.Maslow has always called for freedom to speak, freedom to do what one wishes  as long as no harm is done to others. In his later life Maslow questioned his theory that if the entire human species is growth orientated, why do so many fail to reach their full potential?He concluded that there was an innate human tendency towards inertia, which he explained as being psychological – the need for rest and recovery and to conserve energy. Perhaps he saw an unsustainable world, tired and exhausted, the body scrambling down his hierarch y to a place of safety. I think so. The tired exhausted body retreats, takes shortcuts. Add to this recession, political uncertainty and fear. Ultimately we remove our freedom to learn and indeed our freedom to reach our highest natural potential.A combination of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Rogers 10 Principles of Learning provide the perfect templates for a 21st century education system. Clear for all who wish to embrace it.

Lessons from Rs Mcnamara

Walking Along a Familiar Path In Errol Morris’ documentary Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara, we follow the life and times of former United States Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara. The insightful piece follows his life from birth during World War I, his success at college, cunning business career at Ford Motor Company, to his involvement in World War II and his controversial political career during the Kennedy and Johnson presidential terms.Morris highlights the documentary around these eleven lessons that McNamara passes through during an interview for the film. In my opinion some of these ‘lessons’ are merely some opinions of McNamara and some seem to be spurred along by Morris, who is asking the questions in the background. I believe it is through some of these lessons that Morris uses McNamara’s success and failures to relate them to current issues such as the Iraq and Afghanistan wars; and how we seem to be treading do wn a familiar path.LESSON #5: PROPORTIONALITY SHOULD BE A GUIDELINE IN WAR? â€Å"In order to win a war should you kill 100,000 people in one night, by firebombing or any other way . . . Proportionality should be a guideline in war. Killing 50% to 90% of the people of 67 Japanese cities and then bombing them with two nuclear bombs is not proportional, in the minds of some people, to the objectives we were trying to achieve. † Robert McNamara This comment by McNamara resonated through out the film. I knew that there was some bombing in Japan but not to this extent.Morris puts forth one of the most powerful uses of imagery to captivate the audience and bring these death tolls to a whole other level. McNamara resentfully cites a series of Japanese cities that were partially or largely destroyed and matches them to American cities of comparable size, and asks us to imagine those U. S. communities similarly ravaged. It's a strong point, graphically supported by Morris on screen by flashing names and statistics at accelerating speed. â€Å"In that single night, we burned to death 100,000 Japanese civilians in Tokyo: men, women, and children. McNamara. Through this outrages example, I believe Morris was alluding to the large deployment of troops launched to fight small forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. Having twenty-five thousand troops fighting insurgent forces made up of small groups of guerrilla factions can be scene in some eyes as excessive and ill proportioned.LESSON #6: GET THE DATA and LESSON #7: BELIEF AND SEEING ARE BOTH OFTEN WRONG. â€Å"At one point, the commander of the ship said, ‘We're not certain of the attack. At another point they said, ‘Yes, we're absolutely positive. ‘ And then finally late in the day, Admiral Sharp said, ‘Yes, we're certain it happened. ‘ So I reported this to Johnson, and as a result there were bombing attacks on targets in North Vietnam. † McNamara The important fact from McNamara is that the escalation of the Vietnam War started based on a misinformed from a single crew thinking they had been torpedoed. This seemed to be a decent excuse to start bombing runs, mobilize troops and deploy them in to South East Asia.The parallels between these chain of events leading to the Vietnam War and the actions taken by the US government in launching campaigns against Afghanistan and Iraq are very similar. While the terrorist attacks on 9/11 were a violent catalyst to the conflict in Afghanistan, it was an isolated attack by a handful of terrorist. The US turned 9/11 into a raid on Afghanistan harboring factions of these terrorists, eventually overturning the government in power. Another similar lesson in which McNamara states we should â€Å"Get the data,† can be strongly related to the US government’s poor excuse to invade Iraq.The speculation that Iraq was in the process of making or in possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) was largely fabricated o rdeal backed by speculation and no quantifiable evidence. Since 2003, the US has still not found WMDs and have quickly skirted this issue under the rug while they change their war song as an action of freedom against tyrannical Iraqi government. LESSON #8: BE PREPARED TO REEXAMINE YOUR REASONING. ?†Were those who issued the approval to use Agent Orange: criminals? Were they committing a crime against humanity?Let's look at the law. Now what kind of law do we have that says these chemicals are acceptable for use in war and these chemicals are not. We don't have clear definitions of that kind. I never in the world would have authorized an illegal action. I'm not really sure I authorized Agent Orange. I don't remember it but it certainly occurred, the use of it occurred while I was Secretary. † Another one of McNamara’s strong comments that relate to that there is a consequence to every action we take and that we must live with that consequence.His job was tough, and he had to make some critical decisions for the ware fare of millions in which he, â€Å"Never had hindsight in making decisions at the time. † This, I believe, was Morris’ big punch in the mouth to the powers of the George W. Bush administration and their actions surrounding the invasion of Iraq. Now, at the time of release of this documentary the Iraq war was still in the infant stages of development- Morris had no clue how the war would turn out but left us with a strong statement that someone would have to be accountable for starting an unjust war.I was once told in a high school history class that, â€Å"History is written by the victors. † McNamara sums this quote up with a brilliant look back into some of his actions during World War II â€Å"[General Curtis] LeMay said if we had lost the war, we would have been prosecuted as war criminals. And I think he's right . . .. What makes it immoral if you lose and not immoral if you win? † Morris alludes through this lesson that someone will have to answer to these actions and wash the blood off their hands. Can we learn from history? Are we fated to repeat the mistakes that we've made in the past, again and again?Or can we learn from history and from the past? These are some serious questions I believe Morris forces us to ask ourselves. I believe that Morris was trying to bring up similarities of the past rather than actually relating the Vietnam War specifically to the Iraqi War, showing us that we are still treading upon our past mistakes. If we don’t learn from history and the events that pass we will be doomed to repeat history, over and over again. â€Å"Don’t make the same mistake twice†¦one mistake can destroy a nation. † Robert Strange McNamara