The Russian-speaking communities in Portland and NorthWest Pacific Research Paper

The Russian-speaking communities in Portland and NorthWest Pacific - Research Paper Example The Russian Americans are currently reported to be about three million currently. Most Russian Americans no longer speak Russian. This is because they are born and raised by English-speaking Russian American parents. Statistics however suggest that by the year 2007, Russian was the principal language used by about eight hundred thousand Americans based on U.S. census results in that year (Spickard 2007). Further statistics by the Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard submit that by 1990 there were over seven hundred thousand ethnic Russian Americans in the U.S.A. The Ukrainians and Carpatho-Rusyns who trace their ancestry to Carpathian Ruthenia in the 19th century and early 20th century also identify themselves as Russian Americans. The recent emigres often refer to these people as the starozhili which when translated means â€Å"old residents†. These â€Å"old residents† were most instrumental in establishing the Russian Orthodoxy religion in America (Marrows 1997). These ethnic Russian Americans have in the recent decades been assimilated into the American society and culture but their ethnic traditions are still very much alive and are observable primarily around the Russian Orthodox Church. 3. ... The first wave begun around the 18th century during which time the Russians who were expanding their territory begun venturing into northwest America areas in search of furs. Fort Ross was established in 1812 by members of the Russian American company (Marrows 1997). This was where they established a hunting and trading company. This company was wholly owned by Russia’s elite society referred to as the tsar. This company had been in business for about a century before the fort was built. The conditions that necessitated the immigrations of the Russian Jews in the 1800’s were quite squalid and could be compared to Ireland’s â€Å"throes of famine†. There abodes were sparsely furnished and overly crowded with sickly elderly relatives and malnourished children who had to share meager rations of food. Some of the areas were so devastatingly poor that residents had to make do with bread and water. In areas such as Galicia for instance, many Jews starved to deat h annually. Basic human rights such as the freedom of worship and legal autonomy of citizens were revoked prompting the emigration by the Russian Jews. For most of the peasant Jewish immigrants, the journey to America was extremely trying and quite a life threatening adventure. The steamships they used to cross were rather small and large numbers of these poor Russian Jews were crammed into the limited space. The conditions in the ships were despicable and these travelers had to contend with little rations of food and disease (Spickard 2007). The normal procedure was that the husband went to America and got a job after which he would save up and send for his wife and children back

Natural monopoly Essay Example for Free

Natural monopoly Essay This report studies what are the various sources of monopoly and real life examples for each source. It analyses how each of these businesses grew into a monopoly and substantiates the analysis with actual facts figures (wherever available). Methodology of study: The subject has been divided into sub-topics based on the source out of which the monopoly arises. The report begins with the introductory analysis of the monopoly functioning. Each source has then been studied with reference to one real life example followed by the conclusion. What defines a Monopoly – Its Characteristics: Profit Maximizer, Price Maker, High Barriers to Entry, Single seller, Price Discrimination: Major sources of monopolies: 1. Ownership of strategic resources: A monopoly is likely to arise if a firm has complete control over a key input or resource used in production. Famous example is diamond trade monopoly firm De Beers. 2. Government regulations: A government-granted monopoly (also called a de jure monopoly) is a form of coercive monopoly by which a government grants exclusive privilege to a private individual or company to be the sole provider of a commodity. Potential competitors are excluded from the market by law, regulation, or other mechanisms of government enforcement. 3. Patents: Patents grant the inventor the exclusive right to produce a product for 20 years (new worldwide patent period established with a 1995 GATT agreement). By granting the right to produce a new product without fear of competition, patents provide incentive for companies or individuals to continue developing innovative new products or services. For example pharmaceutical companies spend large sums on research and development and patents are essential to earning a profit. 4. Natural monopoly: A natural monopoly is a company that experiences increasing returns to scale over the relevant range of output and relatively high fixed costs. A natural monopoly occurs where the average cost of production declines throughout the relevant range of product demand. When this situation occurs, it is always cheaper for one large company to supply the market than multiple smaller companies. An early market entrant that takes advantage of the cost structure and can expand rapidly can exclude smaller companies from entering and can drive or buy out other companies. Monopoly through ownership of key resource: De Beers Diamonds are one of the worlds, and specifically Africa’s, major natural resources. An estimated US$13 billion worth of rough diamonds are produced per year, of which approximately US$8. 5 billion are from Africa (approximately 65%). Global diamond jewellery sales continue to grow, increasing three-fold in the past 25 years, and are currently worth in excess of US$72 billion every year. Chronology over which DeBeers has become one of the world’s most powerful monopolies:1. Ownership of all South African diamond mines: Smaller groups needing common infrastructure form diggers committees and small claim holders wanting more land merge into large claimholders to form larger ones. In no time, it could establish De Beers consolidated mines. 2. Supply and Demand control: The Diamond Trading Company has been formed. The mantra is: Create a scarcity of diamonds and high prices will follow. And while other commodities have seen price fluctuations over the years, diamonds prices have climbed since the Great Depression mostly. Demand has also been consistently good over the years irrespective of economic scenario. [pic] [pic] 3. Business model: De Beers and its Central Selling Organization established exclusive contracts with suppliers and buyers, making it impossible to deal with diamonds outside of De Beers. The structure remained the same for much of the 20th century: A De Beers subsidiary would buy the diamonds. De Beers would determine the amount of diamonds they wanted to sell, and at what price, for the whole year. How the monopoly functions: Sends invitations to 250 chosen clients to attend the 10 annual â€Å"sights â€Å"client receives a small box: uncut diamonds price of the box ($1-$25 million) client can only buy the whole box and he cannot resell it in a rough form. Thus, De Beers decides: How many diamonds of each quality will be distributed in total. How this supply will be divided among the clients and the Price of diamonds. 5. The creation of Debswana: A joint venture between the company and the nation of Botswana meant a significant shareholding claim in De Beers by the African country. 6. Marketing campaigns: Coined world famous marketing campaign, A diamond is forever† 7. Antitrust laws of US and conflict with various governments: During its initial years, it controlled over 90% of world’s diamond production but over time, it has lost its monopoly to various controversies and oppositions from countries with great stockpiles. [pic] Source: CNN Money Report 8. Statistical graphs showing how De Beers fared over years in its sales, production and profitability: [pic] Source: De Beers Group Website [pic] [pic] Source: Rapaport Trade Report [pic]. Above graph indicates how competitors have dampened the monopoly of DeBeers over the years. Like ALROSA, De Beers needs to be assured of a sustainable level of demand for its goods. Monopoly through govt. owned strategic resources: Coal India limited CIL is the worlds largest coal mining company both in terms of proven coal reserves and coal production. It is entirely owned by the union government, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Coal. It is involved in coal mining and production and contributes around 81. 1 per cent of Indias coal production. It produced around 431. 32 million tons of raw coal in fiscal 2011. CIL currently operates eight subsidiaries, of which, seven are involved in coal production while the eighth is Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) which is involved in mine planning and other consultancy services related to mining. The seven coal-producing subsidiaries of CIL: Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) ,Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL),Central Coalfields Ltd (CCL),Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL),Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL),South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL),Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL)[pic] Outlook on demand, supply, and imports of non-coking coal and cooking coal in India over the next five years: CRISIL Research expects the total demand for non-coking coal to grow at 10 per cent CAGR over the next 5 years (2012-13 to 2016-17). Production of non-coking coal is expected to rise only at a CAGR of 7 per cent from 2012-13 to 2016-17. Consequently, imports are set to increase to 196 million tonnes by 2016-17 from 83 million tonnes in 2011-12. Growth in steel production through the blast furnace route and pig iron production are expected to increase coking coal demand, to 68 million tonnes in 2016-17 from 38 million tonnes in 2011-12 rising at 12. 4 per cent CAGR over the next five years. On the other hand, coking coal production is expected to rise to 60 million tonnes in 2016-17 at a CAGR of only 6. 6 per cent. CIL hike domestic coal prices in February 2011 Coal India Limited (CIL) has increased the prices of different grades of coking and non-coking coal with effect from February 28, 2011. For the first time in its history, CIL adopted a differential pricing approach by increasing the prices of coal for industrial end-use sectors such as steel, cement, paper, and aluminum, while effecting only a marginal increase in the prices of coal for deemed essential services such as power utility, fertilisers, and defense sectors. This differential pricing is intended to bring the prices of coal consumed by non-priority sectors in line with the international coal prices. Cement and sponge iron players to be affected. The Economic Survey has said that Coal India Ltds (CIL) â€Å"near monopolistic† position has also led to â€Å"supply bottlenecks†. Calling for infusing competition in the domestic coal sector, due to the CIL’s dominance there have been delays in development of new coal fields and inadequate emphasis on cost reductions at operational levels. [pic] Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said the Government should take steps to end the monopoly of Coal India and allow private players in coal mining. As regards coal, today our imports are 15 per cent. By the end of the 12th plan, imports are going to be 28 per cent, he said, adding currently power plants with 22,000 MW capacities are suffering due to lack of availability of coal. What can be done to reduce monopoly of CIL India 1. The gap between demand for coal and domestic availability is widening at a faster pace. There is perhaps need to introduce competition in this sector India must bring in more private miners to develop coal reserves which majority state-owned Coal India Ltd has left untapped.. It will push up the cost of power generation and the resultant pressure on the regulated tariffs in the power sector. Therefore, both the factors should be considered. 2. Coal pricing is also a major issue. It has to be transparent, flexible and based on global norms. Monopoly through the ‘Patent’ way : In the highly competitive pharmaceuticals sector where development programmes last for years and have budgets ranging into six-figure sums, maintaining a monopoly position for an important drug is key to commercial success. Only by securing a monopoly can a company justify the very significant investment of time and funding into the pre-clinical and clinical development necessary to support the stringent requirements for grant of a marketing authorization. The mechanisms for achieving this include: †¢ Patent protection †¢ Supplementary protection certificate †¢ Data exclusivity †¢ Orphan drug status. The European framework for pharmaceutical regulation and authorization attempts to protect the investment of companies in their innovations by providing periods of so-called data exclusivity. The Food and Drug Administration can also protect the company’s exclusive access to the market, independent of the patents. Such exclusivity prevents FDA approval for a competing drug for up to seven years, depending on the type of drug. In addition to the market exclusivity and patents, drug companies already receive incentives to develop so-called orphan drugs used to treat rare diseases. These incentives include FDA research grants, tax credits for up to 50 percent of the cost of clinical research and a waiver of FDA fees. Fewer drug companies competing in a therapeutic class leads to fewer prescription drugs being developed within that class and allows the companies to use their patents and market exclusivity to further increase prices. Effect on price of the Drug before and after Patent expiry The following graph shows the effect on price of the drug when the patent gets expired and more and more generic manufacturers enter into the marketplace. Initially the price of the drug is very high but as patent gets expired and more manufacturers comes in the price of the drug falls[pic] Effect on revenues earned by company before and after patent expiry: The following graph depicts the effect of the revenues due to patent. Initially the revenues earned are in negative because of huge initial investment that is required for the launch. The next few years the revenues earned increases every year till the year when the patent gets expired and more players enter into the market and the revenue earned by the company goes down. [pic]. The case of Zyprexa : Zyprexa (olanzapine), an antipsychotic for the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder is an atypical antipsychotic medication by Eli Lilly. The patent of which got expired in October 2011, generated more than 20 percent of the company’s total revenue in the year-ago quarter. With new generics now competing in the market, revenue from the drug slid 44 percent to $749. 6 million from $1. 34 billion [pic] The case of Ambien (Zolpidem by Sanofi aventis): The first drug to compete with Ambien was Sonata (active ingredient Zaleplon) introduced to market in 1999, but did little to compete with Ambien. In fact, it did not even make the list of top 200 selling drugs from 2003-2007. By that time Ambien had already captured most of the United States insomnia market. Ambien and Sonata held the market until 2005 when Lunesta (active ingredient eszopiclone) was approved. Lunesta’s popularity steadily grew and sales remain around $900 million. All three drugs are structurally similar, and act on the same class of receptors. The sales of Ambien continued to stay strong until its patent expired in 2007. Shortly after, 13 generic drugs manufactures got approval to manufacture Zolpidem and the sales of Ambien fell from about 2 billion to less than 1 billion. [pic] Total yearly sales of Ambien and Lunesta. A case of Natural Monopoly: Indian Railways At the centre, there is a Union Minister of Railways, under whom there are two Minister of State for Railways. At the national level, the Railway Board is responsible for formulation of policies and effective operation of railways. Operating ratio was 91. 1 percent in 2010-11, improved to 95. 0 percent in 2011-12. How it became a monopoly: IR is a classic example of a public monopoly. Historically, this monopoly was a necessity since construction of railway infrastructure required large resources, investment involved long gestation periods and returns were uncertain. Capital Intensive venture, which can be understood from the fact that Indian railways has a separate budget each year 1. Economies of scale, as Indian railways operate all over India and thus have sufficient operating domain to achieve economies of scale which a new entrant cannot easily replicate 2. Government rules and regulations Factors that enabled railways to engage in price discrimination using up part of consumer surplus: 1. The products or services of Indian railways are not resalable and thereby restricts its discount customers to become resellers and benefit from arbitrage. 2. It has monopoly and hence is able to dictate the pricing terms and conditions to a greater extent, in spite of being owned and regulated by Indian government. Degrees of price discrimination, the tools that express monopolist’s power and capacity of price making: Second degree price discrimination: Usually monopolist sets the block prices, under which prices are highest for first block of quantity bought and it is reduced for each successive purchase. Indian railways charge for every kilometer which is reduced as one travels longer and longer. Thus a train ticket for the Rajdhani’s 1st AC between Bangalore to Delhi (Rs 4555) is lesser than the cost of two 1st AC tickets one from Bangalore to Nagpur (Rs 3245) and Nagpur to Delhi (Rs 2845). The cost differences are negligible if any for providing the same seat on the same train on same day. The price differences are much more than what can be explained by cost, hence this is a case of second degree price discrimination. | |Bangalore to Delhi |Bangalore to Nagpur |Nagpur to Delhi | |Rajdhani 1st AC fares |4555 |3245 |2845 |. * Source: www. irctc. co. in Third degree price discrimination: Here, price usually varies by attributes such as location of purchase, customer segment etc. Indian railways heavily employs third degree of price discrimination as below: |Train |Child (5-12 years) |Citizen (12 60 years) |Senior Citizen (M, F) | |Sampark Kranti |1873 |3560 |2548, 1873 | |Rajdhani |2330 |4555 |3220, 2330 | |Karnataka Express |1806 |3427 |2455, 1806 | |Discount Code |Description |Discount Percent | |SPORTN |Sports National Level |50% | |STDNT |Student Concession |50% | |TEACHR |Teacher |25% | |TLSMIU |Thalassemia Patient |50%. | |KIDNEU |Kidney Patients |50% | |YTH2SR |Unemployed Youth for Interview |100% | * Source: www. irctc. co. in Statistical data showing the indispensable monopoly of Indian railways: [pic] [pic][pic] Conclusion: Whilst we want to be in a perfect competition, sometimes it isn’t possible due to multiple constraints. Sometimes, it is also useful especially when it comes to cost efficiency in terms of natural monopolies. And then there are cases of strangle holding system to exert monopoly like De Beers. All these play different roles under different situations. Going by the examples we discussed, there may not be complete monopoly due to inherent monopoly’s inefficiencies and a constant push to improve market equilibrium for the social welfare of the society. References: 1. Unvieling the diamond industry – 2011 report – Bain and Company 2. www. diamondcouncil. org 3. http://www. businessinsider. com/history-of-de-beers-2011-12? op=1#ixzz25KFAEdXk 4. Crisil Research Report – Coal India Limited 5. Railway Budget Highlights 2011-2012, Govt. of India report. 6. www. irctc. co. in 7. Indian Pharmacy Society Report 8. Sanofi Aventis Annual Report.

A Safe Society Going Risky Sociology Essay

A Safe Society Going Risky Sociology Essay Nothing worth having in life is ever attained without taking risk (Nansen, 1927 p36). Nansen; a great Arctic Explorer and Nobel peace prize winner said this in his speech about the human need for excitement. Not only this man, but up to 50% of Norwegian people are willing to take risks in life (Norwegian national survey, 2003). The number of people participating in extreme sports seems to be growing (sportbusiness.com, xtremesport4u.com), as is the number of championships in these sports. It seems there is more news about extreme sports and there are more advertisements. An example of a recent risk taking event that made the news in the Netherlands is a thirteen year old girl who wishes to sail around the world on her own. The news of this girl became prime news and many different institutions interfered with the girls plan. The Dutch child protection tried to stop her. Eventually they succeeded; the girl was not allowed to execute her plan by court order. The example in the last paragraph shows a paradox; the contrast in risk-seeking behavior and the risk avoidance or risk minimization in national policies. Modern policies are aimed on risk avoidance, all risks should be minimized (Beck YEAR, Giddens YEAR, Breivik YEAR). Modern societies do this very obviously. Clear examples; bridges, car, airplanes, nuclear reactors, elevators, toys and electrical devices, all should be safe. People all need to behave according to guidelines (i.e. laws) if you do not you will end up in jail. Different kind of examples but good examples nevertheless are an organizer of a raft event was sued for being negligent when in 2007 two young women died when their raft slipped of a dam, insurance companies giving a discount on their insurance if enough smoke detectors and other safety equipment is present in a house, or the building of gas stations outside of urban areas and dozen more examples could be given. What these different exemplifies is a seemed tensi on between the deeply rooted need for excitement on one hand and the risk avoidance policies by societies nowadays. Where could this seemed tension come from? Elias and dunning (YEAR) write in their book -Quest for Excitement: Sport and Leisure in the Civilizing Process- that modern society constitutes of routines and relative lack of risk. The comparison is made between Greek wrestlers and Roman boxers to modern ones in order to exemplify the extraordinary violence permissible in antiquity and the soft and rule controlled society of present time. There are also empirical data which raise questions about the theory that the quest for the excitement of sports is an escape from the routines of modern life. This data shows a difference between the ‘richer and the ‘poorer side of society. Poorer, more often the most routinized people (i.e. factory workers), seem less prone to look for excitement in sports than the less routinized richer people of society. On the contrary of this empirical data that thrill seeking, risk taking, sensation seeking and all other synonyms of people looking for excitement has been found to be a personality trait and therefore has genetic roots. The genes involved in this trait are closely related to major personality dimensions like extraversion and psychoticism (Eysenck Eysenck, 1977). A paper by Fulker, Eysenck, Zuckermann (1980) discards sensation seeking almost as a disease. ‘Sensation seeking was found to relate to both extraversion and psychoticism but not to neuroticism. The general pattern of relationships to other trait tests suggests that sensation seekers are impulsive extraverts, but not necessarily neurotic or anxious (Fulker et al., 1980 p262). There does not seem to be an at hand answer to the question: Does a safety-orientated society make people want to look for excitement in for example extreme sports? This is the research question for this paper. We hypothesize that a safety orientated society makes people want to look for excitement in for example extreme sports. This paper is a review of articles present about the raised topic and will try to get an insight in if, why and how people are looking for excitement nowadays. In the first chapter we described what we mean by a safety orientated society. In the second a definition is given of excitement and in the thirth excitement is related to risk. The fourth chapter explores whether extreme sports are truly sports. In paragraph one this is done from the perspective of autonomy, and in paragraph two from institutional embeddedness as proposed bij Tamboer Steenbergen (2007). Chapter five gives an answer to the question why people participate in extreme sport. The last chapter mentions in what way extreme sports are influenced bij our safety orientated society. In the conclusion we give answer to our main question. We do this literature study as an assignment of the Sport and Society course as a part of the Master Human Movement Sciences but the outcome of this paper could be meaningful to others interested in the human need for excitement. 1. A safety-orientated society As mentioned in the introduction the safety-orientated society does play a major part this research. Many examples have been given of this supposed risk avoidance society. But what is it and is the society that different than we world we lived in, in the past? Ulrich Beck, a respected sociologist, wrote about the risk society in 1998 (Beck, 1998; Kelman, 2003). Beck describes a risk society as risk avoiding because everything in daily live seem to be focused on risk. Society wants to know everything about risk and want to avoid every risk. All risks should be controllable, calculable and predictable. In other words each task, each product or each activity is at least statistical analyzed for hazards. Although this definition is useful to understand the term ‘risk society Beck and Giddens decided in a collaboration paper to extend the term risk society into six parameters of risk society. Every parameter is interconnected. The parameters are: the omnipresence of risk, risk is ev erywhere. At the very core reflexive modernity is characterized by an awareness of living in a society of increasing vulnerability to the unpredictable, unfamiliar and unprecedented risks manufactured by modern science and technology. Different understandings of risk, the proliferation of the risk definitions, the reflexive orientation to risk and risk and trust. These six parameters make the definition is more comprehensive, because †¦ Besides this cooperation between Giddens and Beck they did not agree completely. Giddens didnt settle with the first short definition. He insisted that ‘risk is not the same as hazard or danger. Risks refer to hazards that are actively assessed in relation to future possibilities (Giddens, 1999). Further contributions of the definition of risk have been made by Wells, Douglas, Luhmann, Joffe and Fox. They represent different disciplinary approaches to risk. To mention all these different approaches would be beyond the purpose of this paper . But the scope of the different authors may be clear. Modern society is a risk society because societies are focused on risk. Although we completely understand the point of view of the different authors we strongly believe that society is, for the same reasons as proposed by the authors, focused on creating a safe society. The reason why we chose for this contrast is based on our point of view. We have a propensity to look at this society as a safety-orientated society, because we feel that societies aim on safety. From this save society we look into the risks of extreme sports. This contributes to the contrast between these factors. Hereby we presume that a person who starts doing extreme sports started his live in this safety-orientated society (i.e. a predictable and therefore maybe boring society). The people who step out of the safety-orientated society to participate in an extreme sport; what are they looking for? 2. Excitement Zuckermann (1983 and 1994) wrote that some sports activities might provide a method by which sensation seekers satisfy their appetite for excitement. Potgieter and Bisschof took it a little further and proposed that sensation seekers are not interested in low risk and low excitement activities such as marathon running (Potgieter, Bisschof 1990). But what is this need for excitement? This chapter will provide a definition for the need of excitement and explain the sub factors that come forward from this definition. In his paper Sensation seeking: Beyond the optimal level of arousal Zuckerman provides a definition which fits seamless in this paper. He states the need for excitement as: ‘Look for excitement is a trait defined by the need for varied, novel, and complex sensations and experiences and the willingness to take physical and social risks for the sake of such experience(Zuckerman 1979, p.10). Between 1979 and the present there has been done much research on this topic. Other researchers added some dimensions and that is why (Zuckerman 1994, p.26) came with a new definition for looking for excitement: ‘sensation seeking is a trait defined by the seeking of varied, novel, complex, and intense sensations and experiences, and the willingness to take physical, social, legal and financial risks for the sake of such experience. Although this better defined definition there was still the need to define it into four sub factors which are: Thrill and Adventure seeking represents the desire to engage in sports or other physically risky activities that provide unusual sensations of speed or defiance of gravity, such as scuba diving or skiing. Experience seeking involves seeking of novel sensations and experience through the mind and senses, as arousing music, even psychedelic drugs, art and travel. Disinhibition describes the seeking sensations through drinking, partying, gambling and sexual variety. Items of this scale indicate seeking of stimulation through other persons. Boredom susceptibility items indicate intolerance for repetitive experience of any kind including routine work and boring people. 3. Excitement related to risk Can we relate look for excitement to risk? Is it a relation? Or can you have excitement without taking risks? If you relate excitement to extreme sport you can answer this question with yes. Besides this perspective, (Highhouse 1996) showed a view from the perspective of society. He uppers that risk could also be taken by threats and opportunities. Threats are related to loss and opportunities are related to gain. (Highhouse 1996) Present an interesting empirical study. This study concludes that people want to take risks but there is a clear leverage beneficial to threats. This basically means that i.e. Program A 400 people will die. Program B 1/3 probability that nobody will die 2/3 probability that 600 people will die. According to Highhouse people will chose for program A. The results typically reveal a framing effect with choices involving gains revealing more risk aversion. The example shows that not always excitement can be related to risk. This test clearly showed that people are risk avoidance. They dont grap the excitement to win 400 lives in fact they chose for not loosing another 200 people. According to (Zuckerman) sensation seeking is always related to risk he wrote biosocial trait of sensation seeking as a predictor of risk-taking behavior. There are good reasons for this as the sensation-seeking motive can illuminate why some people take risks and others do not, and several studies have shown the validity of the concept in this field. Zuckerman related to this concept , behavioral expressions of sensation seeking have not only been found in various kinds of risk-taking behaviors such as driving habits, gambling, health, financial activities, alcohol and drug use, sexual behavior and sports but the trait was found to be also involved in vocational preferences and choices, jobs satisfaction, social; premarital and marital relationships, eating habits and food preferences, creativity, humor, fantasy, media and art preferences and social attitudes. This list of Zuckerman covers all the four sub factors of the definition ‘look for excitement. 4. Extreme sports Many philosophers have askes themselves the questions: ‘what makes sport sport? and ‘what makes sports populair? Like ‘normal or ‘mainstream (Rinehart, 2005) sports, ‘alternative or ‘extreme sports are described by the use of these words while they are never clearly defined. In literature there has not yet been a comprehensive definition, although some have tried. Tamboer Steenbergen (2004) have proposed that sports can be seen from two different perspectives: from its autonomy and from its institutional embeddedness. For the use of this paper the difference between sports and extreme sports is explored by using these perspectives. Extreme sport and its autonomy Bernard Suits describes sport as similar to game and play, and he came up with the following definition (Meier, 1988): ‘to play a game is to engage in an activity directed towards bringing about a specific state of affairs (1), using only means permitted by rules (2), where the rules prohibit more efficient in favor of less efficient means (3), and where such rules are accepted just because they make possible such activity (4). This somewhat philosophic definition can be clarified by an extreme sport example. In downhill mountainbiking a competitor has to follow a specified set out course (1), he is only allowed to use a mountainbike which is approved by the competition organization (2), the course set out by the organization is more difficult than the easiest way down (3) but all competitors apply to these rules because this is the game/sport they are playing Meier (1988) wanted to distinguish sport from game and added a fifth element to the definitions. This fifth element is the demonstration of physical skill. Extreme sports can even better be described by this definition (i.e. think of all the extreme sports with a jury like halfpipe snowboarding, skateboarding, BMX, freestyle windsurfing), but there remain some characteristics which could make extreme sports different from other sports. Most sports that people call extreme are associated with taking (physical) risk. Extreme sports are about the mastering of a skill (Willig, 2008) to overcome the risks mostly caused or provided by the environment. Mastering a skill is highly individual and this makes extreme sports very indivually aimed sports. There is not even a need for an opponent in most cases because it is about the person mastering a skill or overcoming the dangers of the environment, the environment can be seen as the opponent. In extreme sport there are less rules then in many other sport. The natural surroundings make obstacles. This makes the second element in Suits definition of sports less appropriate for extreme sports (i.e. offpiste skiing or snowboarding this is often the most efficient way down). The risk that is associated with extreme sports could be a factor that makes these sports more exciting or more sensational than other sports (or other activities). Also the environment in which these sports take place can account for the feeling of excitement and therefore be a reason to do an extreme sport. Extreme sports and its institutional embeddedness The national and international championships that are organized for many kinds of extreme sports show that there is an institutional embeddedness. Mountainbiking and windsurfing are even at the Olympic sports and are regularly seen on TV. According to Rinehart (2003) extreme sport is mostly developed by young people who are looking for excitement. After this first phase entrepreneurs starting to get in the sport by two ways: firstly businesses develop gear and products, which reduce the risk of an extreme sport. And secondly the sport becomes popular by magazines and TV programs. The results of entrepreneurs who enter the extreme sport is that it becomes popular in general and possible to do for the safe society. A second distinction between extreme sport and a mainstream sport is that the persons who are doing extreme sports aligning themselves with sport in addition to a lifestyle. Which again opens a new market for business ventures and entrepreneurs i.e. clothes and drinks such a s Red bull. These institutions want something to say about the sport. They all profit when extreme sports becomes bigger. There will be more media attention, more sponsors, and more people to buy their products. Extreme sport is highly dependent on expensive material, so as for instance in cycling good material is a never ending business. Could this be the reason for the problem Elias and Dunning proposed? As mentioned in the introduction extreme sports are often done by the ‘richer members of society. This is easily explained by the highly dependence of expensive materials. The members that can afford to escape the routinized boring society. Extreme sport is surrounded by the concept of lifestyle. Extreme sport is not just participating in the sport activity but also in de kind of life that is a part of this sport. In many of these sports, but for instance bicycle motorcross (BMX) and surfing, ‘chilling is a part of the lifestyle. This lifestyle can be seen in de clothe s that people wear, the drinks, the shoes, sunglasses and caps or scarfs. 5. Participation in extreme sports Because it seems extreme sport has become very populair but is also associated with risk (for physical harm or even death) there is the question: ‘Why do people want to participate in extreme sport? Extreme sport seems to distinquish themselves from other sport because of the risk involved. Could it be possible that participators do so because of the risk? And do they need this in order to escape our (boring) safety-orientated society? Taking risk is associated with thrill- and sensation-seeking behavior. This would mean that people are taking risk because of the excitement that comes with it. As mentioned before, in Zuckermans definition of sensation risk-taking behavior is not an essential part, people are only willing to take the risk to experience the sensation. It is possible to experience excitement without risk. Whether people want to experience excitement with or without risk is dependent from the situation. Highhouse (1996) showed risk is perceived as an opportunity when in a loss position, but as a threat when in a gain position. Perceptions of threat or opportunity could have effects on risk taking (Highhouse, 1996). Catar (2006) proposes there is a difference between real risk and perceived risk. Real risk a numerical estimation of the likelihood of an event and perceived risk is influenced by cultural factors. In adventure tourism (activities like bungeejumping, raften, paragliding, etc.) 94% of the participants found there was a very low or non-existent possibility for los, which ment that almost everybody thought the activity was without risk (Catar, 2006). Besides this, the participants evaluate the activities in relation tot the risk of everyday experiences, like driving a car at high speed (Catar, 2006). There can be concluded that de perceivement of risk is dependent on situational factors, and that people do not seek risk but the experience of sensation. Catar (2006) states: ‘Although participants are safe in this knowledge of an outcome, there is no knowlegde as to what the experience might feel like, which is where the attraction really lies. This experience might be so different from everyday experiences, and in combination with an outstanding environmental view the reason for people to participate in extreme sport. At this point rises the question wheter extreme sport is still extreme without the risks involved. And do the experience and environment make extreme sport different from other sports? There are also empirical data which raise questions about the theory that the quest for the excitement of sports is an escape from the routines of modern life. If this is the case, and it certainly seems plausible, how can we explain the well-attested fact that the advantaged rather than the disadvantaged members of society are more likely to do and to watch sports? In other words, those whose lives are least routinized, e.g., professionals, are more likely to seek excitement in sports than those whose lives are most routinized, e.g., factory workers. Perhaps the answer lies in the kinds of sports that are popular with different groups of people. Before people participate in new activities there are two very important elements that must be met. First, people have to be aware of the existence of the activity and the possibility to participate. And, secondly, people have to be in the circumstances that it is possible for them to participate in terms of time, skill, and money. Most extreme sports are quite new and many people are probably unaware of the existence of these activities. By television, advertisments, and stories from friends they become acquinted with the new sports. But before people decide to take part in these sports they have to be in de right circumstances to do so. Most material is very expensive, and there are many sports that cannot be done anywhere. For mountainbiking their have to be tracks or a natural environment, for skiing snowy mountains are needed, for surfing their have to be big waves etc. People who are looking for these circumstances can probably be called sensation-seekers. Donnelly (2006) point out that the way in which research has been done on extreme sports often only includes the core participants. Their mode of participation has come to be called ‘authentic in contrast to the participation of so-called wannabes, posers and nonparticipants. Their relationship with extreme sport is a commercial one. The identification with extreme sport relies for a big part on the adoption of the related lifestyle (Donnelly, 2006). This points out what big influence media, advertisements and groups have on people. And it shows that there are very different kinds of people who participate in extreme sport. Of course this is also the reason why there isnt a simple answer to the question why people do extreme sport. Extreme sport may be so popular in contrast to other sport because most participants are attracted to the lifestyle, the products and may not even be practising the sport itself. 6. Are extreme sports under influence of the safety-orientated society? It could be concluded from chapter 5 that there is a safety-orientated society because people are looking for safety. It is not only our society, but people arent looking for the risk of death of great physical harm. When there are many people who want to take part in extreme sports, safety has to be guaranteed. But when extreme sport becomes safer, there will be more people who want to take part. It seems extreme sport has a very succesfull image which has been made by media and companies. Advertisements and the way the media shows extreme sport make it sound very exciting. But these sports also have a lifestyle that is known as chilling and relaxing. Not only the sport itself but also the special places to go for participating in that sport make it also special and exciting. In this way extreme sport mirrors our safety orientated society. Because the risks have decreased, and physical safety is assured, people can seek their needed thrills and sensation in extreme sport. Conclusion Does a safety-orientated society make people want to look for excitement in for example extreme sports? Our safety-orientated society makes it possible for all kinds of people to seek excitement in extreme sports. Implications Government: If you want excitement then please do an extreme sport instead of experimenting drugs and alcohol because being physically active keeps you healthy and thats safe! References Donnelly, M. (2006). Studying extreme sports: beyond the core participants. Journal of sport and social issues, 30, 219 Elias, N. Dunning, E. (1986). Quest for Excitement: Sport and Leisure in the Civilizing Process. Oxford, Basil Blackwell Fulker, Eysenck Zuckerman, M. (1980). A Genetic and Environmental Analysis JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 14, 261-281 Highhouse, S. Yuce, P. (1996). Perspectives, perceptions, and risk-taking behavior. Organizational behavior and human decision processes, 65, 159-167 http://www.xtremesport4u.com/extreme-sport/extreme-sport-growing-in-popularity/ http://www.sportbusiness.com/news/143916/surge-in-popularity-of-extreme-sports Meier, K.V. (1988). Triad Trickery: Playing With Sport and Games. Journal of the Philosophy of Sport, XV, 11-30. Nansen (1927) ‘Adventure, in G. Breivik, THE QUEST FOR EXCITEMENT AND THE SAFE SOCIETY, journ. Safety science Potgieter, J., Bisschoff, F., 1990. Sensation seeking among medium and low risk sports. Perceptual and Motor Skills 71, 1203_/1206. Stranger, M. (1999). The aesthetics of risk. A study of surfing. International review for the sociology of sport, 34 (3), 265-276 Tamboer, J. Steenbergen, J. (2004). Sportfilosofie. Nederland, Budel: Uitgeverij DAMON. Willig, C. (2008). A phenomenological investigation of the experience of taking part in extreme sports. Journal of health psychology, 13, 690 Zuckerman, M., 1983. Sensation seeking and sports. Personality and Individual Differences 4, 285_/292. Zuckerman, M., 1994. Behavioral Expression and Biosocial Bases of Sensation Seeking. Cambridge University Press, New York. Zuckerman, M. (1979): Sensation seeking: Beyond the optimal level of arousal. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Ruch, W. Zuckerman M. ( ). Sensation seeking in adolescence. 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A Tragedy Makes A Hero Essay -- essays papers

A Tragedy Makes A Hero Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy. A tragedy can be described and executed in many ways, whether it is through cinema, television or a play for theatre, as long as it has a solemn kind of ending. It is characterized as a very sad event, action, or experience for a certain character in the piece. According to Aristotle’s â€Å"Poetics,† a tragedy needs six elements, a plot, character, language, thought, spectacle, and melody, as in many dramas do, but the organization of the plot is how tragedy is brought about. (747) The plot – is the end for which a tragedy exists, and the end or purpose is the most important thing of all. (748) Tragedy often reveals a very basic message; whether or not actions are thought before hand, actions hold consequences that must be recognized and tolerated. Drama always circulates around a hero or protagonist in a tragic epic, whose sufferings are brought about by his or her actions and creates a standpoint in relation to them. The story of â€Å"Medea† by Euripides is a tragic one indeed. Medea, a sorceress and a princess, used her powers and influence to help Jason, find the Golden Fleece. During the escape she kills her brother as a getaway. After several murders, Medea and Jason move to Corinth, which is where the play takes place. Here, Medea gives birth to two children by Jason establishing a family. Jason later moves out, divorcing Medea and moving in with Glauce, the daughter of Creon. The play looks at Medea’s anger and rage, as a she moves from suicidal to revengeful. Medea eventually kills her own children and Glauce, all to get back at Jason. The nurse in the play opens the play, expressing her desire to undo the past. â€Å"How I wi... ... Once Creon has found out about the family tree, Oedipus and his children are banished from Thebes, later to meet their fate in the following plays. A tragedy does indeed make a hero in ancient world literature. Every single being has a fate, no matter what level of society that being is on. One cannot change his or her fate; it is left up to the gods. Eventually all roads of life leads to death, it is how that being dies brings about the tragedy. As Aristotle mentioned in â€Å"Poetics†, What is more, without action there could not be a tragedy, but there could be without characterization. Bibliography: Works Cited Aristotle. â€Å"Poetics.† Lawall and Mack 746-750 Euripides. â€Å"Medea.† Lawall and Mack 640-672 Lawall, Sarah and Mack, Maynard, eds. The Norton Anthology World Masterpieces. 7th ed. Vol 1. New York: W ·W · Norton & Company, 1999.

Attendance and Daily Time Record System

Today, magnetic swipes are mostly used by many establishments and organizations to provide both security and convenience. Hotels use these as a replacement for the key system. Schools, specially the universities and college campuses also use these in the form of ID swipe system. (Ramsbrock, D. and Moskovchenko S. , 2011, p. 4) Researchers tested University of Maryland's Lenel System where the ID's of the students include their Social Security Number. The ID information can be used by the outsider for identity theft. Copying of these existing cards can be done without the help of electronics expertise. The internet provides the sale of commercial card reader and writer and can be used to create a duplicate of these ID cards. A more complicated but still basic attack on the ID is creating a card from a certain two information without actually having an access to the card. These information has been disclosed by the author due to security purposes. (Ramsbrock, D. and Moskovchenko S. , 2011, p. 4) Boarding School Student Systems (E-ID) Using Radio Frequency Identification RFID or Radio Frequency Identification does not require a person to do a manual scanning, but it uses radio waves to identify man, animals, or other materials plugged with RFID tag. This method compared with the manual ID scanning reduces man power and time to input data. RFID system is mostly made up of three components: An antenna or a coil, a tranceiver or a decoder, and an RFID tag which is very tiny and can be placed inside a human body for data storage and retrieving purposes. (Abdul Kahir H. , et al. 2009) RFID Matrix Card System was tested by researchers and proven efficient and handy. Students coming in and out the establishment can be monitored. Any individual without an RFID will trigger an alarm and the management can pull the students' information on the computer from their ID cards. (Abdul Kahir H. , et al. , 2009) Sampling in statistics, and survey methodology in selecting a subset, or a subgro up of individual within statistical population, to estimate characteristic of the whole population. Advantages of sampling are lower cost, faster data collection and a smaller data set improves accuracy and quality of data. Sampling involves several key stages defining the population concerned, specifying a sampling frame, specifying a sampling method, determining sample size, implementing the sampling plan and sampling with data gathering. The researchers chose to use non-probability sampling method (Arboleda, C. Writing a Thesis Proposal First Edition. 1998), specifically the incidental or accidental. The researchers first decided on the sample size by consulting with different school professors and with a thesis lecturer. After the consultations, the researchers decided to collect 100 surveys, as advised by the consultants. The researchers then proceeded to conduct the survey by handling out the surveys to the first 100 students who were more likely to return and re-enroll, were given more significance by the researchers as advised by those who were consulted. The researchers chose this sample method for three reasons. First, they had limited time, budget and workforce. Second, it was highly suggested by those consulted by the researchers. Third, it made statistical compilations easier by setting the size at 100. To maintain the quality and effectiveness of this survey research, the researchers chooses to have at least 100 samples. This survey evaluates the effectiveness and the impact to the student and faculties.

We All Fall Down – Plus Related Text

Nelson Mandela, Former South African President, said â€Å"After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb† a journey is full of obstacles, Mandela believed this on his quest to unify the South African people whether they were black or white, he aimed to make them one. For a journey to be effective, they require self-belief and perseverance, when you fall down you have to get back up, and the most important thing that will inspire and influence a change is the reflection one undergoes once it has come to an end.Robert Cormier author of We All Fall Down, Clint Eastwood, director of Invictus and Rosemary Dobson, the poet behind Folding the Sheets all relate their pieces of work to a journey directly or indirectly. In Robert Cormier’s We All Fall Down he uses character development to express a journey. Two key journeys that are represented are the ones in which relate to Buddy Walker and Harry Flowers. Buddy has a problem with alcoholism and his dysfunctional family due to his father walking out on them.Harry is a manipulative character and he acts like he can control anyone especially Buddy. It is ironic that Cormier gave Buddy the last name Walker to demonstrate that it was inevitable that Buddy’s father was going to walk out on them and contribute to what fuels Buddy to drink. The relationship between Buddy and Harry is subtle and hidden as they don’t share many things in common apart from the fact that they are both lost and don’t seem to fit in.Although once compared to each other after the trashing of Karen and Jane’s house Buddy shows the beginning of his development through his feeling of guilt and demonstrating that he has some part of human respect in him, Harry on the other hand doesn’t show any remorse and continues on with his life not caring about how he acts and how he always gets his way. One of Buddy’s major developing moments is when he begins to move away from the group and continues to follow his own path rather than joining in with drinking and the other plans they make.Buddy’s two major inspirations to stop his drinking are Jane and Addy, Addy finds Buddy’s bottles and hides them and will not give them back to him and states â€Å"the sins of omission† the sin of doing nothing. Buddy won Jane on the base that he would give up drinking for her, although he still drinks it isn’t as meaningful compared to the relationship he has with Jane. Harry changes dramatically as through out the novel he has a key moment at the end of the novel after Jane breaks up with Buddy.Harry calls Jane and says â€Å"I took advantage of his shitty life†¦ he is a good guy and don’t be so hard on him† this shows that Harry has began to show remorse on his actions during the trashing is on a â€Å"road to recovery†. The similarity between all of the characters and journeys in this novel is that they all want to belong. Similarly to We All Fall Down, Invictus also follows a journey of wanting to belong, reconciliation, and progression. Nelson Mandela was a prisoner for several years and on his release made President of South Africa.Eastwood used Mandela and Francois Pienaar as key protagonists to bring two divided nations within the one together. Eastwood uses character development to represent the journey of unity. Black against white. Mandela’s goal was to unite South Africa and create equality for black and white people. â€Å"he’s unlike any person I’ve ever met† Mandela is not any ordinay person, he inspired an entire group of people to fight for rights and at the end of the film this is achieved. â€Å"The Rainbow Nation starts here. Reconciliation starts here.Forgiveness starts here too. † Mandela always believed in creation the Rainbow Nation, he was motivated and was inspired. His inspiration inspired he rest of South Africa. Eastwood use s the Rugby as Mandela’s message to the world, he uses Pienaar as a way to get to his team and unify them to share his views on black and white South Africa. The key part to Mandela’s success is the fact he spent several years in prison sacrificing a significant amount of time in his life to change the nation, and change it he did. Undefeated, Unconquerable, Invictus.Mandela wasn’t defeated, he wasn’t conquered but he conquered the South African common attitude and changed it to create equality for black people. â€Å"The Rainbow Nation starts here. † Mandela inspired a nation and the world, helped Pienaar motivate his team an his country to support them trough a rough time and lead themselves to the victory and the glory of winning the World Cup and gave something to all South Africans to share, a reborn nation and the glory of success. Invictus and Folding the Sheets share the similarity of recognising unity.The unity of a nation and the unity of a world and the elements. Dobson uses unity to represent her journey â€Å"from Lapland†¦ to India†. Dobson’s message in her poem is achieving world peace and unity â€Å"You and I will fold the sheets†. He folding of the sheet represents a job that is hard to be completed by ones elf but requires several people to make it easy if they work together, which also relates to how we can work together to achieve world peace and unity between all nations rich or poor, great or weak.The use of mentioning three of the elements earlier on it the poem and stating the fourth in the end represents unity and the coming together of a balance of the earth which van also relate to the coming together of the world â€Å"Together we will match the corners†, it is not possible to achieve unity single handed, it requires a shared belief in achieving it. These three text-types all relate to journeys as they share the commonality of unity and character development.They s how how a journey can either be completed by moving away from people and showing you can stand for yourself and not be controlled by a manipulator, or if you wish to achieve unity or justice then you cant change the world or a nation by your self, you require to share a common belief that it can be done. In their own unique ways We all Fall Down, Invictus and Folding the Sheets all relate to a journey. The two texts and the film all show that we encounter heartache along the way but perseverance and motivation can help us continue no matter how hard the path ahead is.