The World Consensus GameTM :: Communication Technology Philosophy Papers

The World Consensus GameTM The World Consensus GameTM allows anyone to contribute to the creation of a world consensus on issues that divide people. Participants can look up positions that have been taken on topics that people disagree on and can contribute to the discussion of these topics. Participation is easy to do. Once you identify a question that interests you, a map is provided that shows the positions that have been taken on that question along with definitions of positions. You can examine arguments that have been provided for a position, including the argument judged best by philosophers and the argument favored by the general public, and you can express your judgment on positions and arguments. Finally, you can contribute new positions, new arguments, and criticisms of other individual's arguments. The world consensus game is like a huge symposium of the world's people with you as a participant. The World Consensus GameTM can be used in a classroom setting, a conference setting, by Fax, or by compu ter. Signing in to using the World Consensus GameTM After accessing the World Consensus Game through "Peacegames.com" participants are asked to sign in. This is necessary if participants want to vote or make comments, so that their vote or comments are recorded as the vote of a philosophy student, a professional philosopher, or a member of the general public. Groups can have individuals sign in b according to any identity typed in such as member of an organization, etc. Professional Philosopher Philosophy student Public voting for First Choose an Issue A, B, C A The first thing you do is identify the area you want to examine. Areas include the traditional areas of Philosophy (Moral , Social Philosophy, 1etc..) in addition to issues relating to world order, protection of the environment, and any other types of issues anyone wants to discuss. Just click on the issue that interests you. The current World Consensus Game is problems oriented, but could be redesigned to include a historical perspective. World Order Issues Global Survival Issues Moral Philosophy, Maps, Definitions, Simulation Social Philosophy, Map and Simulations Political Philosophy Map The Criminal Justice System Theory of Knowledge Metaphysics Philosophy of Religion

Budget Cuts in Education Essay

Drastic cuts in Florida’s educational system are in resulting increasing class sizes, the elimination of music, art, and other elective classes, the significant reduction in extracurricular activities, and a diminished ability to provide incentives for teachers to continue teaching. The effect of these changes will be a long term negative impact on teacher’s ability to teach and decrease our students’ ability to learn. Budget cuts are forcing qualified teachers out of the classroom where they are most effective and causing them to pursue other careers or academic endeavors. As stated in State Impact, because of the shortage of funds of over $170 million, Broward County alone has laid off more than 2,400 employees and most of them have been teachers (O’Connor, 2011). Andy Ford, president of the Florida Education Association, the statewide teachers union, said the union is expecting about 20,000 teacher layoffs (Castro, 2011). As a result of these layoffs, and current graduating teaching students, school districts are left with a surplus of teachers. Many have the opportunity to come back to work before the next school year begins but may not be at the same school or even teaching the same grade level. Because this is based on seniority, those teachers who have been laid off and unfortunately are not one of the chosen to go back to work, have been forced to go back to school to either continue to pursue their education career or pursue a completely different major. Recent layoffs have resulted in, expanded classroom sizes with potentially disastrous effect on student performance. There once was a time classrooms had a maximum of 20 students. In some states, classroom sizes have expanded to as much as 36 students in one class. According to Science Daily, reports show that students in small classes in grades four through six consistently have better results than students in large classes. Those in small classes that had better cognitive and non-cognitive skills, had better scores on standardized national tests in grades six and nine, and perceived themselves as developing more self-confidence and greater patience (Expertanswer, 2012). Budget cuts that result in inreased class sizes need to be made with these considerations in mind. Many people are not aware of the effect of music on students’ ability to learn and retain information, yet as documented previously, music classes are one of the first programs to be cut in this environment. According to Science Daily, there is now definitive proof of different brain development and improved memory of students who take music lessons when compared to those who do not (Press, 2006). â€Å"Not only do the brains of musically-trained children respond to music in a different way to those of the untrained children, but also that the training improves their memory as well. After one year the musically trained children performed better in a memory test that is correlated with general intelligence skills such as literacy, verbal memory, visuospatial processing, mathematics and IQ† (Press, 2006). If it costs $2. 5 million to have an art program, music program, and physical education program, one can see why school are making these cuts, however; in the light of this research provided, we can see that these cuts will be coming at the expense of our students cognitive abilities. As the budgets get smaller, and the expenses are getting bigger, specials and elective classes are being cut. Music and art have been eliminated in some schools. In others, it is just part time. Students are not getting the basic musical and artistic education, which were once available years ago. Teachers who used to teach elective classes are forced to teach core subjects if they still want a job. Physical education classes have also been cut in some schools or have been reduced significantly. Some teachers work at two different schools. For example, three days out of the week, they may work at an elementary school and the other two days; they may work at a middle or high school. As a result to physical education being reduced or eliminated, childhood obesity may be more of a concern. Because physical activity has been extremely reduced in many households because of television, it is important that students have physical education in school. Teachers do not have many incentives to continue teaching. There is no money to purchase simple materials for the classroom. As said in Public Good, Public Cuts; elementary schoolteachers have resorted to asking students to buy supplies at the beginning of the school year (Economists, 2011). A suggested list is available for the parents and these supplies are what the students will need for the duration of the school year. Many teachers spend their own money to purchase supplies as well. Students in middle school and high school do fundraisers to raise money for special events at their schools. The effects of these budget cuts are impacting every area of students’ academic experience including the frequency of the update in the school textbooks. Schools typically updated their textbooks every few years, however; with these budget cuts; this researcher has found that students may be using the same textbooks for 10-15 years due to the lack of funds. Although this may not be an issue with some subjects, there are subjects, such as History and Social Studies that are subjects that require updated information as years go on. If students used the same textbook for 15 years, a History book would be missing three presidents. Textbooks are an essential part of student’s education and if there are no funds to purchase new ones, students in the United States will be behind compare to other countries are much more advanced concerning education. Field trips and extracurricular activities have been reduced or eliminated. Students do not have the chance to go on all the field trips that were once upon a time offered. Field trips that are now taken tend to be at the cost of the parents. Parents have been forced to come out-of-pocket for the entire cost of field trips. Schools also sponsor fundraisers to assist these parents in paying for some of those costly trips. For example, fifth grade students who are going on their end of the year trip may sell donuts or candy boxes in efforts to raise money to pay for that trip. Some schools do not have funding to continue specific sports. Fees have increased and parents are having pay out-of-pocket for student’s uniforms and to travel to games in order to continue these sport teams. Budget cuts are now negatively affecting the actual physical environment in which students learn. According to State Impact, future possible district budget cuts in efforts to save jobs include â€Å"eliminating art, music, technology and/or reading teachers to save up to $4. 1 million, eliminating middle and high school athletic programs and saving $2. 2 million, and raising thermostats one degree to 78 degrees, the highest allowed by state law, saving $500,000† (O’Connor, 2011). With increasing class sizes and increase in temperatures, students will now be forced to learn in cramped, potentially uncomfortable conditions that will impact negatively student learning. Given the negative impact of described these budget cuts, it would be wise to consider alternative options to deal with budget shortfalls. Other options of saving money are available, such as teachers taking extended holidays without pay. School district saved millions of dollars by closing all public schools two extra days during thanksgiving break. Schools should only have been closed Wednesday through Friday but the district managed to get approval to close Monday and Tuesday as well. The economic condition has affected drastically the public schools due to the budget cuts they have faced. It has caused major setbacks because there is no money available to supply the materials these students need to learn effectively. At this rate, schools eventually will begin to shut down. Teachers have already begun to retire early because they can only foresee it getting worse. Something has got to give at this point, but it should not be at the expense of student’s education. If schools cannot teach students the simpler things, such as what encyclopedias are which may be an opportunity for parents to spend more bonding time with their children and take them to the library to learn new things. Sooner than later, students in Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten will be attending school for half a day only instead of a full day in efforts to save money. It is imperative that parents encourage educational activities at home as well as physical activities. Broward County Schools are suffering drastically. Although they seem to have it figured out, cutting art, music, physical education, and other special programs may not be what is best for the students.

Midwest Office Products

Questions for Midwest Office Products 1. Based on the interviews and data in the case, estimate: a. The cost of processing cartons through the facility 80000 total cartons Warehouse expenses = $2000000 Warehouse personnel expenses = $2570000-$250000 (truck driver expenses) = $2320000 Total warehouse processing expenses: $2000000 + $2320000 = $4,320,000 $4320000/80000= $54/carton b. The cost of entering electronic and manual customer orders Manual: . 15 hours setup time, . 075 hours to enter each line Electronic: . 1 hours to verify information on the electronic order 16 order entry operators 840000 in total compensation Each order entry operator worked 1750 hours per year but only 1500 hours per year of productivity 840000/16 = $52500 avg salary per operator $52500/1500hrs = $35 per hour Electronic orders: . 1hrs *$35/hr = $3. 5/electronic order Manual Orders: . 15*$35 +. 075*$35*number of lines= cost per order Input cost=. 15*35 = 5. 25 Cost per line = . 075*35 = 2. 63 c. The cost o f shipping cartons on commercial carriers 75000 cartons shipped $450000 spent on freight $450000/75000 cartons = $6 per carton d. The cost per hour for desktop deliveries vg delivery time=3 hours 5000 cartons shipped 2000 deliveries2. 5 cartons each delivery $250000 total compensation per year $200000 for delivery truck expenses Each driver worked 1500 hours per year $166. 67/hr Driver compensation: $250000/2000 = $125 per delivery Truck expenses: $200000/2000 = $100 per delivery Total cost for desktop deliveries: $225/3 hrs = $75/hr 2. Using this cost driver information, calculate the cost and profitability of the five orders in Exhibit 2. Compare these costs and profitability to those calculated by Midwest’s existing costing system? Exhibit 2| Five Orders| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Order| Â  | Â  | Â  | 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| Price| | | | $ 610 | $ 634 | $ 6,100 | $ 6,340 | $ 6,100 | Acquisition cost| | | | 500| 500| 5000| 5000| 5000| No. cartons in order| | | | 1| 1| 10| 10| 10| No. cartons shipped| | | | 1| 0| 10| 0| 10| Desktop delivery time| | | | -| 4| -| 4| -| Manual order| | | | no| yes| no| yes| yes| No. line items in order| | | | 1| 1| 10| 10| 10| Electronic order| | | | yes| no| yes| no| no| Payment period (months)| | | | 1| 4| 1| 4| 4| | | | | | | | | Warehousing costs| | | | 54| 54| 540| 540| 540| Shipping costs| | | | 6| 0| 60| 0| 60| Desktop Delivery cost| | | | | 300| | 300| | Manual Order cost| | | | | 7. 875| | 31. 5| 31. 5| Electronic order cost| | | | 3. 5| | 3. 5| | | Payment period cost| | | | $ 6. 10 | $ 25. 36 | $ 61. 00 | $ 253. 60 | $ 244. 00 | Total Costs| | | | 569. 6| 887. 235| 5664. 5| 6125. 1| 5875. 5| Profits| | | | $ 40 | $ (253)| $ 436 | $ 215 | $ 225 | | | | | | | | | | Current system profits| | | | $ 110 | $ 134 | $ 1,100 | $ 1,340 | $ 1,100 | 3. Explain the difference in profitability of the five orders calculated by the ABC system and the company’s existing cost system. In the company’s existing system, they markup the acquisition costs by a certain percentage to determine the price that they charge their customers. Using this method, all of the sales appear profitable because only the acquisition cost is directly considered in determining their pricing. However, several other activities drive higher costs for the company and a standard percentage markup does not always capture that cost. In some instances, they could even lose money by making the sale. By using the ABC system, the company can have a more realistic view on how much each order costs them by considering the activities which go into the process (the number of cartons, shipping costs, delivery costs, and order processing costs) and charge for these services accordingly. 4. Based on your analysis above, what actions should John Malone take to improve Midwest’s profitability? John should switch to an ABC system as it provides the proper visibility and clarity into the company’s costs. They can then markup the products based on the total costs instead of applying a standard percentage, which does not properly assess the actual cost to the company, to the acquisition cost. This ability to price based on their actual costs would eliminate some potentially unprofitable transactions (like the desktop delivery where the items price did not cover the costs) .

Child Sexual Abuse effects Essays

Child Sexual Abuse effects Essays Child Sexual Abuse effects Essay Child Sexual Abuse effects Essay Feb. 2012. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.. Currie, Janet, and Erdal Tekin. Does Child Abuse Cause Crime? IZA, Apr. 2010. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.. Garsden, Peter. Does Child Abuse Cause Crime? Inside Time Newspaper. N. p. , June 2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2013.. Impact of Child Abuse and Maltreatment on Delinquency, Arrest and Victimization. National Institute of Justice. N. p. , n. d. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.. Logan, Cassandra, Emily Holcombe, Suzanne Ryan, Jennifer Manlove, and Kristin Moore. Child Sexual Abuse and Teen Pregnancy. Nationa Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, Sept. 2011. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.. National Child Abuse Statistics. Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse. Child Help, n. d. Web. 01 Mar. 2013.. Parental Substance Abuse. Child Welfare Information Gateway. N. p. , 2010. Web. 23 Feb. 2012.. Preventing Child Sexual Abuse. Preventing Child Abuse America, n. d. Web. 23 Feb. 2013.. Understanding Child Sexual Abuse: Education, Prevention, and Recovery. Understanding Child Sexual Abuse: Education, Prevention, and Recovery. American Psychological Association, n. d. Web. 23 Feb. 2013..

Amerigo Vespucci, Italian Explorer and Cartographer

Amerigo Vespucci, Italian Explorer and Cartographer Amerigo Vespucci (March 9, 1454–February 22, 1512) was an Italian explorer and cartographer. In the early 16th century, he showed that the New World was not part of Asia but was, in fact, its own distinct area. The Americas take their name from the Latin form of Amerigo. Fast Facts: Amerigo Vespucci Known For: Vespuccis expeditions led him to the realization that the New World was distinct from Asia; the Americas were named after him.Born: March 9, 1454 in Florence, ItalyParents: Ser Nastagio Vespucci and Lisabetta MiniDied: February 22, 1512 in Seville, SpainSpouse: Maria Cerezo Early Life Amerigo Vespucci was born on March 9, 1454, to a prominent family in Florence, Italy. As a young man, he read widely and collected books and maps. He eventually began working for local bankers and was sent to Spain in 1492 to look after his employers business interests. While he was in Spain, Vespucci had the chance to meet Christopher Columbus, who had just returned from his voyage to America; the meeting increased Vespuccis interest in taking a journey across the Atlantic. He soon began working on ships, and he went on his first expedition in 1497. The Spanish ships passed through the West Indies, reached South America, and returned to Spain the following year. In 1499, Vespucci went on his second voyage, this time as an official navigator. The expedition reached the mouth of the Amazon River and explored the coast of South America. Vespucci was able to calculate how far west he had traveled by observing the conjunction of Mars and the Moon. The New World On his third voyage in 1501, Vespucci sailed under the Portuguese flag. After leaving Lisbon, it took Vespucci 64 days to cross the Atlantic Ocean due to light winds. His ships followed the South American coast to within 400 miles of the southern tip, Tierra del Fuego. Along the way, the Portuguese sailors in charge of the voyage asked Vespucci to take over as commander. While he was on this expedition, Vespucci wrote two letters to a friend in Europe. He described his travels and was the first to identify the New World of North and South America as a separate landmass from Asia. (Christopher Columbus mistakenly believed he had reached Asia.) In one letter, dated March (or April) 1503, Vespucci described the diversity of life on the new continent: We knew that land to be a continent, and not an island, from its long beaches extending without trending round, the infinite number of inhabitants, the numerous tribes and peoples, the numerous kinds of wild animals unknown in our country, and many others never seen before by us, touching which it would take long to make reference. In his writings, Vespucci also described the culture of the indigenous people, focusing on their diet, religion, and- what made these letters very popular- their sexual, marriage, and childbirth practices. The letters were published in many languages and were distributed across Europe (they sold much better than Columbuss own diaries). Vespuccis descriptions of the natives were vivid and frank: They are people gentle and tractable, and all of both sexes go naked, not covering any part of their bodies, just as they came from their mothers’ wombs, and so they go until their deaths...They are of a free and good-looking expression of countenance, which they themselves destroy by boring the nostrils and lips, the nose and ears...They stop up these perforations with blue stones, bits of marble, of crystal, or very fine alabaster, also with very white bones and other things. Vespucci also described the richness of the land, and hinted that the region could be easily exploited for its valuable raw materials, including gold and pearls: The land is very fertile, abounding in many hills and valleys, and in large rivers, and is irrigated by very refreshing springs. It is covered with extensive and dense forests...No kind of metal has been found except gold, in which the country abounds, though we have brought none back in this our first navigation. The natives, however, assured us that there was an immense quantity of gold underground, and nothing was to be had from them for a price. Pearls abound, as I wrote to you. Scholars are not certain whether or not Vespucci participated in a fourth voyage to the Americas in 1503. If he did, there is little record of it, and we can assume the expedition was not very successful. Nevertheless, Vespucci did assist in the planning of other voyages to the New World. European colonization of this region accelerated in the years after Vespuccis voyages, resulting in settlements in Mexico, the West Indies, and South America. The Italian explorers work played an important role in helping colonizers navigate the territory. Death Vespucci was named pilot-major of Spain in 1508. He was proud of this accomplishment, writing that I was more skillful than all the shipmates of the whole world. Vespucci contracted malaria and died in Spain in 1512 at the age of 57. Legacy The German clergyman-scholar Martin Waldseemà ¼ller liked to make up names. He even created his own last name by combining the words for wood, lake, and mill. Waldseemà ¼ller was working on a contemporary world map in 1507, based on the Greek geography of Ptolemy, and he had read of Vespuccis travels and knew that the New World was indeed two continents. In honor of Vespuccis discovery of this portion of the world, Waldseemà ¼ller printed a wood block map (called Carta Mariana) with the name America spread across the southern continent of the New World. Waldseemà ¼ller sold 1,000 copies of the map across Europe. Within a few years, Waldseemà ¼ller had changed his mind about the name for the New World- but it was too late. The name America had stuck. Gerardus Mercators world map of 1538 was the first to include North America and South America. Vespuccis legacy lives on through the continents named in his honor. Sources Fernndez-Armesto Felipe. Amerigo: the Man Who Gave His Name to America. Random House, 2008.Vespucci, Amerigo. â€Å"The Letters of Amerigo Vespucci.† Early Americas Digital Archive (EADA).

Abortion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Abortion - Essay Example There is little freedom of choice for women who are experiencing an unwanted pregnancy. The women themselves usually wish to bring their baby to full term. Other powerful influences in her life such as husbands/boyfriends, parents and friends are generally the forces that exact pressures on her to terminate the pregnancy. â€Å"Eight out of 10 women surveyed after abortion said they would have given birth if they’d had support and encouragement from family and friends† (Reardon, 2002). Legal abortion enables fathers to force their will on mothers. Some women resort to abortion in desperation because they fear continued abuse. That fear is substantiated as women who refuse to abort have been subjected to serious abuses which have escalated to murder if the women still persists in her refusal. Murder is the leading cause of death for pregnant women and for what other motive could there be? â€Å"Sixty-four percent of women surveyed report being pressured by others into unwanted abortions† (Reardon, 1992).   Ã‚  Immediately following an abortion, the one(s) coercing the decision are relieved and seldom, if ever, give the inconvenient issue another thought. Women, on the other hand, suffer long afterwards, racked by overwhelming guilt and agonizing over their irreversible decision. This pain may last a lifetime as they are never able to forgive themselves (Elliot Institute, n.d.). ‘Pro Choice’ activists argue that women should have access to safe abortions, that ‘a nation founded on and dedicated to civil liberties could allow its citizens to resort to dangerous self-abortion procedures.’ That too is a false premise. Ninety-seven percent of women who have had abortions describe intense pain experienced during the procedure despite the use of local anesthetics. â€Å"Compared to other pains, researchers have rated the pain from abortion as more painful than a bone fracture, about the same

How has minimally invasive robotic surgery affected patient care Term Paper

How has minimally invasive robotic surgery affected patient care - Term Paper Example The instruments that the system is made of rotate within the body as it would in the case of the surgeon’s hands allows the surgeon to gain the surgical access. This because of the small size that is approximately one to inches making what would be otherwise impossible for the traditional surgeon possible. The system was mainly designed for the removal of prostate but has in its lasts model been used in bladder and kidney diseases, otolaryngology, abdominal and gynecology. The system is also applied in thoracic, pediatric and cardiac surgery. A long incision is made by the surgeon in the case of the traditional open surgery. This means that the surgeon requires more access to the patient’s anatomy that is actually required to perform an operation at a particular site. This is not the case with the advanced robotic surgery. Rigid manual instruments are the ones used in the case of the traditional minimally invasive surgery (laparoscopic surgery). These instruments pass through small incisions. The patient’s anatomy is observed through s video monitor that is standardized. On the other hand the robotic system does all the operations using a computerized system that require minimal and at some point on human control. The surgeon’s mechanical movement that allows for the 3D vision millimetric precision is done by the Da Vinci Si full HD robotic system. This makes sure that there is even a single hand trembling making it very helpful to the surgeon especially in those operations where precision in critical and makes a lot of difference. In the case of the traditional surgery trembling is common. Based on the above study, it can be concluded the invention of the da Vinci HD surgical system has been a major breakthrough in the field of surgery. Many lives have been saved through this advanced robotic surgery system with surgeons and patients benefiting in equal measures. There