The Meanings of Lives
by Susan Wolf (2007)
The question, “What is the meaning of life?” was once taken to be a paradigm of
philosophical inquiry. Perhaps, outside of the academy, it still is. In philosophy
classrooms and academic journals, however, the question has nearly disappeared,
and when the question is brought up, by a naïve student, for example, or a
prospective donor to the cause of a liberal arts education, it is apt to be greeted with
uncomfortable embarrassment.
What is so wrong with the question? One answer is that it is extremely obscure, if
not downright unintelligible. It is unclear what exactly the question is supposed to be
asking. Talk of meaning in other contexts does not offer ready analogies for
understanding the phrase “the meaning of life.” When we ask the meaning of a
word, for example, we want to know what the word stands for, what it represents.
But life is not part of a language, or of any other sort of symbolic system. It is not
clear how it could “stand for” anything, nor to whom. We sometimes use “meaning”
in nonlinguistic contexts: “Those dots mean measles.” “Those footprints mean that
someone was here since it rained.” In these cases, talk of meaning seems to be
equivalent to talk of evidence, but the contexts in which such claims are made tend
to specify what hypotheses are in question within relatively fixed bounds. To ask
what life means without a similarly specified context, leaves us at sea.
Still, when people do ask about the meaning of life, they are evidently expressing
some concern or other, and it would be disingenuous to insist that the rest of us
haven’t the faintest idea what that is. The question at least gestures toward a
certain set of concerns with which most of us are at least somewhat familiar. Rather
than dismiss a question with which many people have been passionately occupied
as pure and simple nonsense, it seems more appropriate to try to interpret it and
reformulate it in a way that can be more clearly and unambiguously understood.
Though there may well be many things going on when people ask, “What is the
meaning of life?”, the most central among them seems to be a search to find a
purpose or a point to human existence. It is a request to find out why we are here
(that is, why we exist at all), with the hope that an answer to this question will also
tell us something about what we should be doing with our lives.
If understanding the question in this way, however, makes the question intelligible,
it might not give reason to reopen it as a live philosophical problem. Indeed, if some
of professional philosophy’s discomfort with discussion of the meaning of life comes
from a desire to banish ambiguity and obscurity from the field, as much comes, I
think, from the thought that the question, when made clearer, has already been
answered, and that the answer is depressing. Specifically, if the question of the
Meaning of Life is to be identified w.
This document summarizes the evolution of different philosophical views on the meaning of life. It discusses Hindu teachings which see the four purposes of life as virtuous living, prosperity, experiencing consequences of actions, and spirit progression. It then explains Daoist teachings which view fulfilling one's goal through understanding the five elements of nature. Finally, it outlines Confucianism where the meaning is following Confucius' ways to achieve your goal, and his view of ultimate control by Heaven.
1) The document discusses philosophical activity and what distinguishes a philosopher from others. It argues that philosophical activity involves critically analyzing ideas rather than passively accepting pre-packaged ideologies.
2) A philosopher wonders about fundamental concepts and questions socially accepted assumptions by thinking independently. However, philosophical activity requires more than just wondering - it is a search for truth and understanding of reality through dedication to knowledge.
3) True philosophical activity moves beyond just developing critical thinking skills. It requires gaining an accurate understanding of reality by exiting the cave of limited perspectives, as in Plato's allegory. A philosopher sees the true nature of things that others do not due to narrower horizons.
The existence we live is accepted to be a production of the heavenly being, God. As people, we have a specific timeframe in the middle of birth and demise which we know as life. Under notable convictions, our life has a reason and God has made every last one of us to satisfy a specific reason.
for more info: https://ugbootsaleol.us/what-is-the-meaning-of-life/
Writing an essay on the value of life is a challenging task that requires balancing philosophical ideas, ethics, and real-world examples. It also demands understanding diverse cultural and religious viewpoints that shape perceptions of life. To effectively argue about life's importance, one must address existential questions and moral dilemmas while relating life to broader contexts through thorough research and analysis. Moreover, articulating a compelling perspective requires awareness of varied individual experiences handled with empathy and objectivity. Exploring life's intricate complexities can be intellectually and emotionally draining but prompts personal growth and deeper understanding of one's own values.
Idealism: Personal Philosophy Essay examples
The Value of Philosophy Essay example
The Importance of Philosophy Essay
Personal Philosophy Of Education Essay
Essay on History of Philosophy
My Philosophy of Teaching Essay examples
Teaching Philosophy Essay examples
What is Philosophy? Essay
Philosophy of Ethics Essay
Essay about The Importance of Philosophy
Philosophy of Education Essay examples
My Teaching Philosophy Essay
I. FAITH AND VERIFICATION
II. THE EFFICACY OF FAITH
III. THE RECIPROCITY OF FAITH
IV. CONTROVERSY AND LIFE
3
V. "in a MIRROR — darkly"
VI. ON THE EDUCATION OF THE RELIGIOUS NATURE
VII. THE VALUE OF THE TRANSIENT ....
VIII. THE FOUNDATION AND SAFEGUARD OF RELIGIOUS Life
IX. WHAT IS SIN ?
X. THE SINLESSNESS OF JESUS ....
XI. THE GOOD PHYSICIAN
XII. CHRIST TASTING DEATH FOR EVERY MAN .
XIII. CHRISTIANITY A PREVENTIVE POWER 1.
XIV. CHRISTIANITY A PREVENTIVE POWER — II.
This document discusses nonduality from both epistemological and ontological perspectives. It argues that nonduality has more to do with epistemology than ontology. From an epistemological standpoint, our understanding of reality is fallible and partial, but this does not deny the empirical realities of self, God, or other concepts. Ontologically, it prefers the terms "unitary" rather than "unitive" and "intraobjective" rather than "intersubjective" but notes that epistemology can model ontology to a degree. Overall, it suggests that nonduality from an epistemic approach means reality is more dynamic and process-oriented than static substances.
This document discusses evoking spirituality in public education. It argues that spiritual questions are embedded in every subject area and waiting to be brought forth, not something that needs to be added to the curriculum. It advocates exploring the spiritual dimension of teaching, learning and living, which it defines not as any religious creed but as the human quest for connectedness. The document tells a story of how the author's history teachers failed to connect the big stories of history to his own life story, leaving him feeling distant from the Holocaust and unaware of its local implications. It argues teachers need to embrace the paradox that teaching requires thinking in both intellectual and spiritual terms as whole persons addressing the whole person of the student.
This document summarizes the evolution of different philosophical views on the meaning of life. It discusses Hindu teachings which see the four purposes of life as virtuous living, prosperity, experiencing consequences of actions, and spirit progression. It then explains Daoist teachings which view fulfilling one's goal through understanding the five elements of nature. Finally, it outlines Confucianism where the meaning is following Confucius' ways to achieve your goal, and his view of ultimate control by Heaven.
1) The document discusses philosophical activity and what distinguishes a philosopher from others. It argues that philosophical activity involves critically analyzing ideas rather than passively accepting pre-packaged ideologies.
2) A philosopher wonders about fundamental concepts and questions socially accepted assumptions by thinking independently. However, philosophical activity requires more than just wondering - it is a search for truth and understanding of reality through dedication to knowledge.
3) True philosophical activity moves beyond just developing critical thinking skills. It requires gaining an accurate understanding of reality by exiting the cave of limited perspectives, as in Plato's allegory. A philosopher sees the true nature of things that others do not due to narrower horizons.
The existence we live is accepted to be a production of the heavenly being, God. As people, we have a specific timeframe in the middle of birth and demise which we know as life. Under notable convictions, our life has a reason and God has made every last one of us to satisfy a specific reason.
for more info: https://ugbootsaleol.us/what-is-the-meaning-of-life/
Writing an essay on the value of life is a challenging task that requires balancing philosophical ideas, ethics, and real-world examples. It also demands understanding diverse cultural and religious viewpoints that shape perceptions of life. To effectively argue about life's importance, one must address existential questions and moral dilemmas while relating life to broader contexts through thorough research and analysis. Moreover, articulating a compelling perspective requires awareness of varied individual experiences handled with empathy and objectivity. Exploring life's intricate complexities can be intellectually and emotionally draining but prompts personal growth and deeper understanding of one's own values.
Idealism: Personal Philosophy Essay examples
The Value of Philosophy Essay example
The Importance of Philosophy Essay
Personal Philosophy Of Education Essay
Essay on History of Philosophy
My Philosophy of Teaching Essay examples
Teaching Philosophy Essay examples
What is Philosophy? Essay
Philosophy of Ethics Essay
Essay about The Importance of Philosophy
Philosophy of Education Essay examples
My Teaching Philosophy Essay
I. FAITH AND VERIFICATION
II. THE EFFICACY OF FAITH
III. THE RECIPROCITY OF FAITH
IV. CONTROVERSY AND LIFE
3
V. "in a MIRROR — darkly"
VI. ON THE EDUCATION OF THE RELIGIOUS NATURE
VII. THE VALUE OF THE TRANSIENT ....
VIII. THE FOUNDATION AND SAFEGUARD OF RELIGIOUS Life
IX. WHAT IS SIN ?
X. THE SINLESSNESS OF JESUS ....
XI. THE GOOD PHYSICIAN
XII. CHRIST TASTING DEATH FOR EVERY MAN .
XIII. CHRISTIANITY A PREVENTIVE POWER 1.
XIV. CHRISTIANITY A PREVENTIVE POWER — II.
This document discusses nonduality from both epistemological and ontological perspectives. It argues that nonduality has more to do with epistemology than ontology. From an epistemological standpoint, our understanding of reality is fallible and partial, but this does not deny the empirical realities of self, God, or other concepts. Ontologically, it prefers the terms "unitary" rather than "unitive" and "intraobjective" rather than "intersubjective" but notes that epistemology can model ontology to a degree. Overall, it suggests that nonduality from an epistemic approach means reality is more dynamic and process-oriented than static substances.
This document discusses evoking spirituality in public education. It argues that spiritual questions are embedded in every subject area and waiting to be brought forth, not something that needs to be added to the curriculum. It advocates exploring the spiritual dimension of teaching, learning and living, which it defines not as any religious creed but as the human quest for connectedness. The document tells a story of how the author's history teachers failed to connect the big stories of history to his own life story, leaving him feeling distant from the Holocaust and unaware of its local implications. It argues teachers need to embrace the paradox that teaching requires thinking in both intellectual and spiritual terms as whole persons addressing the whole person of the student.
The Mis-Education of the NegrobyCarter Godwin Woodson,.docxcdorothy
The Mis-Education of the Negro
by
Carter Godwin Woodson, Ph.D.
First published in 1933 in
Washington, D.C. by Associated Publishers
The contents herein is the same as the 1933 Associated Publishers edition, except for the capitalization of
‘Black’, and ‘Negro’; the converting of ‘tribe’ to ‘group’, and the correction of a few grammatical errors,
edited by JPAS editor Itibari M. Zulu. Second, in this exercise, we also recognize a need for gender
balance or neutrality in the phraseology of the author, therefore we ask readers to consider the historical
and social context of this in any analysis, and thus acknowledge that this work should open a door for a
full critical and scholarly analysis of this historic book.
Contents
Foreword 2
Preface 3
The Seat of the Trouble 5
How We Missed the Mark 9
How We Drifted Away from the Truth 12
Education Under Outside Control 15
The Failure to Learn to Make a Living 21
The Educated Negro Leaves the Masses 27
Dissension and Weakness 31
Professional Educated Discouraged 36
Political Education Neglected 40
The Loss of Vision 45
1
The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson
The Journal of Pan African Studies: 2009 eBook
The Need for Service Rather Than Leadership 52
Hirelings in the Places of Public servants 56
Understand the Negro 62
The New Program 67
Vocational Guidance 72
The New Type of Professional Man Required 80
Higher Strivings in the Service of the Country 83
The Study of the Negro 87
Appendix 88
Foreword
The thoughts brought together in this volume have been expressed in recent addresses and
articles written by the author. From time to time persons deeply interested in the point of view
therein presented have requested that these comments on education be made available in book
form. To supply this demand this volume is given to the public. In the preparation of the volume
the author has not followed in detail the productions upon which most of the book is based. The
aim is to set forth only the thought developed in passing from the one to the other. The language
in some cases, then, is entirely new; and the work is not a collection of essays. In this way
repetition has been avoided except to emphasize the thesis which the author sustains.
Carter Godwin Woodson
Washington, D. C.
January, 1933.
2
The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson
The Journal of Pan African Studies: 2009 eBook
Preface
Herein are recorded not opinions but the reflections of one who for forty years has participated in
the education of the Black, brown, yellow and white races in both hemispheres and in tropical
and temperate regions. Such experience, too, has been with students in all grades from the
kindergarten to the university. The author, moreover, has traveled around the world to observe
not only modern school systems in various countries but to study the special systems set up by
private agencies and governments to educate the natives in their colo.
The mission of policing was described by the author as covering six .docxcdorothy
The mission of policing was described by the author as covering six key areas: enforcing the law, apprehending offenders, preventing crime, predicting crime, preserving the peace, and providing services. With the advent of various forms of terrorism and transnational crime, the police mission has expanded beyond the traditional borders of burglaries and domestic disputes.
Beginning with the material conveyed in the assigned reading and presentation, select two scholarly articles from the university criminal justice databases, and integrate those resources to discuss the use of intelligence-led policing (ILP) and the development of fusion centers to equip law enforcement for their expanded mission. Finally, integrate within your discussion the impact of a Judeo-Christian viewpoint on ILP and the development of fusion centers.
500 words
.
The Miracle WorkerReflection PaperObjectiveCriteriaLeve.docxcdorothy
The Miracle Worker
Reflection Paper
Objective/Criteria
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Spelling
(0 Points)
Contains more than 5 spelling mistakes
(5 points)
Contains 2-5 spelling mistakes
(10 points)
Contains 1 or fewer spelling mistakes
Understanding of sensory loss and language development
(5 points)
Give a description of Helen’s sensory loss and how the sensory loss possibly occurred. Did she receive any treatment for her sensory loss?
(5 points)
Describe examples of heightened sensory awareness in other senses as portrayed by the actress and how Helen had adapted to her environment before the Ms. Sullivan arrived.
(10 points) Level 2+
Describe how Helen might have “babbled” (this would be after Ms. Sullivan began the “finger game”. How is this similar to infant “babble”?
Gender Roles observed in the film
(5 points)
Describe some gender role expectations in the film.
(5 points)
Give examples of gender role portrayal in the film.
(10 points) Level 2 +
Describe why you think it was important to Ms. Keller that Helen “folded her napkin”.
Identification of parenting style of Helen’s parents
(5 points)
Give few examples of how Helen’s parents “parent” her.
(5 points)
Identify the parenting style(s) of Helen’s parents and gives supporting examples; Observations of positive or negative punishment; positive or negative reinforment
(10 points) Level 2+
Describes Helen’s behavior as a result of her parent’s style of parenting. Describes how Ms. Sullivan disciplines Helen (a parenting style) and give examples of how Helen responds initially and ultimately.
Understanding of Association and Operant Conditioning; Learning and Memory
(5 points)
Discuss Helen’s use of language before her illness. (Receptive/Productive)
Describe the role of memory in her ability to regain language.
(5 points)
Defines Operant Condition and association. Give examples from the movie of positive and negative reinforcement
(15 points)
Discusses affects of positive and negative reinforcement as they pertain to Helen’s behavior and ability to learn. Describes the problems of Helen’s early learning (association). Give an opinion re: Helen’s learning (is it operant conditioning or learning by observation (imitation?)). Give examples supporting each from the movie.
.
The minimum length for this assignment is 2,000 words. Be sure to ch.docxcdorothy
The minimum length for this assignment is 2,000 words. Be sure to check your Turnitin report for your post and to make corrections before the deadline of 11:59 pm Mountain Time of the due date to avoid lack of originality problems in your work.
Discoveries in DNA, cell biology, evolution, and biotechnology have been among the major achievements in biology over the past 200 years with accelerated discoveries and insights over the last 50 years. Consider the progress we have made in these areas of human knowledge. Present at least three of the discoveries you find to be most important and describe their significance to society, health, and the culture of modern life.
.
The Milgram Experimentby Saul McLeod published 2007Milgram sel.docxcdorothy
The Milgram Experiment
by Saul McLeod published 2007
Milgram selected participants for his experiment by newspaper advertising for male participants to take part in a study of learning at Yale University. The procedure was that the participant was paired with another person and they drew lots to find out who would be the ‘learner’ and who would be the ‘teacher’. The draw was fixed so that the participant was always the teacher, and the learner was one of Milgram’s confederates (pretending to be a real participant).
The learner (a confederate called Mr. Wallace) was taken into a room and had electrodes attached to his arms, and the teacher and researcher went into a room next door that contained an electric shock generator and a row of switches marked from 15 volts (Slight Shock) to 375 volts (Danger: Severe Shock) to 450 volts (XXX).
Milgram's Experiment
Procedure:
At the beginning of the experiment, each participant was introduced to another participant, who was actually a confederate of the experimenter (Milgram). They drew straws to determine their roles – learner or teacher – although this was fixed and the confederate was always the learner. There was also an “experimenter” dressed in a grey lab coat, played by an actor (not Milgram).
Two rooms in the Yale Interaction Laboratory were used - one for the learner (with an electric chair) and another for the teacher and experimenter with an electric shock generator.
The “learner” (Mr. Wallace) was strapped to a chair with electrodes. After he has learned a list of word pairs given him to learn, the "teacher" tests him by naming a word and asking the learner to recall its partner/pair from a list of four possible choices.
The teacher is told to administer an electric shock every time the learner makes a mistake, increasing the level of shock each time. There were 30 switches on the shock generator marked from 15 volts (slight shock) to 450 (danger – severe shock).
The learner gave mainly wrong answers (on purpose) and for each of these the teacher gave him an electric shock. When the teacher refused to administer a shock the experimenter was to give a series of orders / prods to ensure they continued. There were 4 prods and if one was not obeyed then the experimenter (Mr. Williams) read out the next prod, and so on.
Prod 1: please continue.
Prod 2: the experiment requires you to continue.
Prod 3: It is absolutely essential that you continue.
Prod 4: you have no other choice but to continue.
Results:
65% of all the participants (teachers) continued to the highest level of 450 volts. All the participants continued to 300 volts. Milgram did more than one experiment – he carried out 18 variations of his study. All he did was alter the situation (IV) to see how this affected obedience (DV).
Conclusion:
Ordinary people are likely to follow orders given by an authority figure, even to the extent of killing an innocent human being. Obedience to authority is ingrained in us all from the way.
The Midterm Assignment consists of three questionsThe internati.docxcdorothy
The Midterm Assignment consists of three questions:
The international borders of African countries are a legacy of colonialism.
1. Describe the concept of a superimposed boundary.
2. Describe three political or cultural consequences of superimposed boundaries in Africa.
3. Identify and explain one challenge landlocked African countries face in developing viable economies.
.
The Migrants and the ElitesA humanitarian crisis threatens the f.docxcdorothy
The Migrants and the Elites
A humanitarian crisis threatens the future of Western institutions.
ENLARGE
Syrian refugees making their way to Greece, Sept. 10. PHOTO: REUTERS
By
PEGGY NOONAN
Sept. 10, 2015 6:32 p.m. ET
What a crisis Europe is in, with waves of migrants reaching its shores as the Arab world implodes. It is the biggest migration into Europe since the end of World War II and is shaping up to be its first great and sustained challenge of the 21st century. It may in fact shape that continent’s nature and history as surely as did World War I.
It is a humanitarian crisis. As Richard Haass of the Council on Foreign Relations notes, it will not soon go away, for two reasons. First, the Mideast will not be peaceful anytime soon and may well become more turbulent. Second, “The more that Europe responds the more it will reinforce the supply of migrants. Europe is caught.” If it doesn’t respond with compassion and generosity it is wrong in humanitarian terms; if it does, more will come and the problem grows. “This is now part of the architecture,” says Mr. Haass.
Opinion Journal Video
Editorial Page Writer Sohrab Ahmari on his interviews with Syrians, Iranians and others fleeing to safer shores. Photo credit: Getty Images.
Three hundred eighty-one thousand detected migrants have arrived so far this year, up from 216,000 in all of 2014. Almost 3,000 died on the journey or are missing. The symbol of their plight is the photo of the 3-year-old Syrian boy, Aylan Kurdi, who drowned along with his mother and 5-year-old brother when their boat capsized near a Turkish beach. Just as horrifying is what was found inside a Volvo refrigerated truck stranded on the shoulder of the A4 highway 30 miles from Vienna in late August. Inside were 71 bodies, including a 1½-year-old girl, all dead of suffocation. They’d been left there by human smugglers.
It is a catastrophe unfolding before our eyes, and efforts to deal with it have at least one echo in America, which we’ll examine further down.
According to the U.N. refugee agency, 53% of the migrants are from Syria, 14% from Afghanistan, 7% from Eritrea, and 3% each from Pakistan, Nigeria, Iraq and Somalia. Seventy-two percent are men, only 13% women and 15% children. Not all are fleeing war. Some are fleeing poverty. Not all but the majority are Muslim.
The leaders of Europe have shown themselves unsure about what to do. It is a continent-wide crisis that began in 2011, as Tunisians fled to the Italian island of Lampedusa. The following year, sub-Saharan Africans who’d migrated to Libya made for Europe after Muammar Gadhafi’s fall. Since then the European response has largely been ad hoc and stopgap. European Union President Jean-Claude Juncker has proposed a “permanent relocation mechanism” with EU members taking greater shares of the refugees, but it is unclear how exactly it would work.
In many EU nations there will be powerful pushback. Like the crisis itself the pushback will build. Europe is in econo.
The Midterm is a written response paper. Your paper should be at.docxcdorothy
The Midterm is a written response paper. Your paper should be at least 2 pages in length and follow APA style and format.
For further directions,
click here
.
Submit your Midterm Exam to the Assignment box
no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT
. (This Assignment may be linked to Turnitin).
.
The Middle Way.” Moderation seems to be a hard thing for many p.docxcdorothy
“The Middle Way.” Moderation seems to be a hard thing for many people to understand. Two great authors had radically different insights on moderation: “Complete abstinence is easier than perfect moderation,” (Saint Augustine) and “Moderation is a fatal thing. Nothing succeeds like excess” (Oscar Wilde).
We live in an age of abusive social media, so it seems even more difficult to “find the middle” now. What lessons can you apply to your life by addressing each of the items in the Eightfold Path of the Noble Way?
.
The Middle East faces many challenges to a potential regional frame.docxcdorothy
The Middle East faces challenges to developing a regional framework similar to what Europe established in 1975, but Europe also faced difficulties before reaching that agreement. The document asks what favorable conditions exist in the Middle East now compared to Europe in the 1970s, and what unfavorable conditions it faces, in working towards a similar regional framework.
The Michael Jordan effect Crawford, Anthony J; Niendorf, .docxcdorothy
The Michael Jordan effect
Crawford, Anthony J; Niendorf, Bruce . American Business Review ; West Haven Vol. 17, Iss. 2, (Jun
1999): 5-10.
ProQuest document link
ABSTRACT
In the period immediately following the rumors of Michael Jordan's return to basketball, the five companies that
Jordan had major endorsement deals with experienced a nearly $3 billion increase in the market value of their
equity. Jordan was labeled the $2 billion man in the press, referring to the value he created for the shareholders of
the companies he endorses. However, most of these reports failed to cite the simultaneous bull market that lead
the S&P 500 to record highs. The Michael Jordan effect is examined, and it is found that shareholders experienced
negative abnormal returns after the announcement of his retirement and positive excess returns when rumors of a
comeback surfaced. However, it is also shown that the positive excess returns following the rumors of Jordan's
comeback were only temporary and disappeared within weeks of the original rumors. While some evidence is
found in support of a Michael Jordan effect, it appears that the rumors of Jordan's impact have been greatly
exaggerated.
FULL TEXT
On October 6, 1993 Michael Jordan unexpectedly retired from basketball after leading the Chicago Bull's to three
straight NBA championships. The following spring he showed up for spring training with the Chicago White Sox.
Despite his early retirement Jordan maintained his five major endorsement deals from which he is rumored to
receive a total of approximately $30 million annually. These endorsements are highlighted in exhibit 1.
On March 2nd, 1995 Jordan ended his attempt at professional baseball and left the Chicago White Sox spring
training facilities. Shortly after his retirement from baseball, rumors of Jordan's return to basketball surfaced.
These rumors touched off a media frenzy as the popular press tied increases in the stock prices of the companies
Jordan endorses to speculation over his return. The Los Angeles Times reported that five days after the first
reports of his comeback, advertisers experienced a collective $2.3 billion gain in equity value. Time Magazine,
Newsweek, Sports Illustrated and nearly every major newspaper ran similar reports at about the same time. Jordan
was labeled the $2 billion man. The implication was that Jordan's rumored return to basketball increased his value
as an endorser resulting in an over $2 billion dollar gain to shareholders.
Table I illustrates the increase in the market value of the five companies which Jordan endorses. The collective
increase in market value over a nine business day period, from the date of the first rumors until the first trading day
after his comeback announcement, was more than $2.9 billion. The average return over those nine days was
4.59%. The return on the S&P 500 over the same nine day period was just 2.91%.
We examine two questions.
The Metropolitan Police Department had recently been criticized in t.docxcdorothy
The Metropolitan Police Department had recently been criticized in the local media for not responding to police calls in the downtown area rapidly enough. In several recent cases, alarms had sounded for break-ins, but by the time the police car arrived, the perpetrators had left, and in one instance a store owner had been shot. Sergeant Joe Davis had been assigned by the chief as head of a task force to find a way to determine the optimal patrol area (dimensions) for their cars that would minimize the average time it took to respond to a call in the downtown area.
Sergeant Davis solicited help from Angela Maris, an analyst in the operations area for the police department. Together they began to work through the problem.
Joe noted to Angela that normal patrol sectors are laid out in rectangles, with each rectangle including a number of city blocks. For illustrative purposes he defined the dimensions of the sector as
x
in the horizontal direction and as
y
in the vertical direction. He explained to Angela that cars traveled in straight lines either horizontally or vertically and turned at right angles.
Travel
in a horizontal direction must be accompanied by travel in a vertical direction, and the total distance traveled is the sum of the horizontal and vertical segments. He further noted that past research on police patrolling in urban areas had shown that the average distance traveled by a patrol car responding to a call in either direction was one-third of the dimensions of the sector, or
x
/3 and
y
/3. He also explained that the travel time it took to respond to a call ( assuming that a car left immediately upon receiving the call) is simply the average distance traveled divided by the average travel speed.
Angela told Joe that now that she understood how average travel time to a call was determined, she could see that it was closely related to the size of the patrol area. She asked Joe if there were any restrictions on the size of the area sectors that cars patrolled. He responded that for their city, the department believed that the perimeter of a patrol sector should not be less than 5 miles or exceed 12 miles. He noted several policy issues and
staffing
constraints that required these specifications. Angela wanted to know if any additional restrictions existed, and Joe indicated that the distance in the vertical direction must be at least 50% more than the horizontal distance for the sector. He explained that laying out sectors in that manner meant that the patrol areas would have a greater tendency to overlap different residential, income, and retail areas than if they ran the other way. He said that these areas were layered from north to south in the city. So if a sector area were laid out east to west, all of it would tend to be in one demographic layer.
Angela indicated that she had almost enough information to develop a model, except that she also needed to know the average travel speed the patrol cars could trav.
THE MG371 CASE Growth Pains at Mountain States Healthcar.docxcdorothy
THE MG371 CASE
Growth Pains at Mountain States Healthcare
Background
Mountain States Healthcare (MSH) is a regional system of hospitals located
in several large metropolitan areas of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Colorado,
and in Acapulco, Mexico. MHS started as a single hospital in Salt Lake City,
Utah, and, due to the business acumen and experience of its officers and
Board of Directors, was quite successful and profitable.
Over the years, Salt Lake Hospital began purchasing other hospitals and
clinics in the state that were not as profitably operated, and eventually
changed its name to Utah Health Group (UHG). Each facility continued to
operate as an independent entity, except that its name was changed to
include “Utah Health Group” and UHG instilled its own successful
management style in the newly purchased facilities. When a hospital was
bought in Denver, Colorado, the firm created a medical facility holding
company in Salt Lake City, named Mountain States Healthcare. MHS treated
each facility as a separate subsidiary, except for the clinics, which were
associated with a larger hospital in the area. MSH continued to grow, adding
facilities from the states it declared as its strategic area.
Later, they added a new division of several clinics, an assisted living facility,
and a hospital in the resort city of Acapulco, Mexico, to take advantage of
medical needs of the large tourist and American retirement population there.
The Mexico venture was the most profitable and fastest growing of the MHS
family.
MSH was a profitable venture, but began to realize that some of its
administrative costs were, collectively, much higher than other medical
holding companies, and reducing the profits that could be used for the
benefit of shareholders. Additionally, the higher overhead costs were
affecting the advantage of some hospitals to compete within their districts.
The divisions had historically set themselves apart from other medical
facilities by offering a full line of specialties within their service packages.
The corporate holding company supported this by sharing resources,
technology, and even personnel between the divisions when needed. This
allowed each of the hospitals to position themselves as medical technology
competent full service providers.
A consulting firm pointed out several areas of administration which could be
consolidated, using the latest technology, to realize a tremendous reduction
in costs. The new VP of Finance, Aaron Nelson, newly promoted from the
state billing office manager’s position, suggested that medical billing should
be the first to consolidate. He reasoned that as each of the facilities had
consolidated the billing operations for all facilities within their five geographic
areas a few years ago, they should be able to completely consolidate all
billing with the latest database technology in a fairly short time, and.
The Methods of Communication are Listening, Writing, Talking, Rea.docxcdorothy
The Methods of Communication are: Listening, Writing, Talking, Reading, and Non-Verbal.
Listening - speaking by using words and terminology that others can comprehend
Talking - the ability to read and comprehend the written word
Writing - tone and inflection of one’s voice facial expression, posture and eye contact
Non-Verbal - using the written word in a manner that others can understand the intended message
Reading - the ability to hear and understand what the speaker is saying
Review the five methods of communication you would use in the given scenarios:
Scenario 1: An irate customer comes to your store and is very upset with a defect in a product he ordered. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Listening)
Scenario 2: A customer is in your store looking for a new computer. You quickly surmise that the customer’s first language is not English and in addition he appears to not have a clear understanding of the type or brand of computer he is looking for. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Talking)
Scenario 3: On your store’s Facebook page, a customer comments on your store’s appearance and how disrespectful the salesperson was during a recent visit. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Writing)
Scenario 4: A customer comes into your store looking for a new phone. He appears overly confident about his knowledge level. When you approach him, he looks at you in a condescending manner. Which method of communication is being displayed by this customer? (Non-verbal)
Scenario 5: You need to take two online courses available from your employer about Customer Service. You need to receive an “A” in both courses. You must write five components that you will use for the Final Course Project. Which method of communication will you use to complete your assignments?
Competency
Discuss the importance of communication in Customer Service.
Instructions
In order to provide excellent service to customers, a business must have employees who are able to effectively communicate with those customers. Looking at the five methods of communication (Listening, Talking, Writing, Non-Verbal, and Reading), write a paper that includes 2-3 paragraphs for each method of communication. Please include an explanation on why communication is important in the introduction. Also, please include a conclusion that summarizes your paper.
NOW, THIS IS THE RUBRIC QUESTIONS
1. Included paragraph(s) for each of the methods of communication with clear examples.
2. Did include an explanation for the importance of clear communication using examples and research for support.
3. Did include an introduction and conclusion, including examples and/or research for support.
PLEASE INCLUDE REFERENCES AND CITETATIONS
The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas
by Ursula K LeGuin, 1974
1
The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas
With a clamor of bells that s.
The Meta-themes Paper requires you to bring together material from t.docxcdorothy
The Meta-themes Paper requires you to bring together material from throughout the term and use it to illustrate what you have learned about the cross-cutting themes of the course. You should be able to complete parts of the Meta-Themes Paper over the course of the term ( using the various discussion posts).
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The Medication Paper OutlineThe purpose of this assignment is to.docxcdorothy
The Medication Paper Outline
The purpose of this assignment is to draft and submit a complete, organized, detailed outline of your medication paper in APA format with sources cited and referenced accurately.
Recommended: Before you begin, review the Writing Resources area on your
Student Resources
tab located on the top menu of your main Blackboard page for examples and review chapters 9, 13, and 14 in
A Pocket Style Manual
(APA).
Adhere to the following guidelines for drafting and submitting your outline:
Use standard alphanumeric outline format.
Include a rough draft of your abstract.
Include APA in-text citations.
Include an APA formatted reference page.
Include a title page.
Use APA format throughout.
The outline includes several high quality, thought provoking ideas/points which are skillfully used to creatively and completely support the thesis. Outline demonstrates a well-balanced approach to researching the topic (subcategories are of equal significance under each body paragraph). Subtopics are specific and avoid generalities. Subtopics demonstrate extensive research and thought on the topic.
The thesis is concise and clearly articulated in the beginning. Subtopics are pertinent and highly relevant to the main body paragraphs. Detailed, meaningful quotations and paraphrases aptly and accurately support the topic evenly throughout each subtopic.
.
The median is often a better representative of the central value of .docxcdorothy
The median is often a better representative of the central value of a data set when the data set: Source Top of Form Is bimodal. Has a high standard deviation. Is highly skewed. Has no outliers. Bottom of Form The histogram below plots the carbon monoxide (CO) emissions (in pounds/minute) of 40 different airplane models at take-off. The distribution is best described as is: Source Top of Form Uniform. Heteroskedastic. Normal. Skewed right. Bottom of Form
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The media plays a major part in all facets of U.S. society. Incr.docxcdorothy
The media plays a major part in all facets of U.S. society. Increased attention on criminal justice issues and criminal justice administration by the media creates opportunities and threats to the status quo of criminal justice policies and actions. Chapters 11 and 16 in your text discuss the influence of the media on criminal justice and the theories of justice. For this assignment, you will support the evaluation of public issues that criminal justice organizations face in ethical decision making and the creation of a set of standards for ethical and moral conduct in criminal justice situations. In your paper,
Create an ethics policy for the media in handling the reporting of criminal justice issues and news;
Examine the significance of political bias in reporting; and
Create a foundation for the accurate and ethical reporting of news about the criminal justice system.
The paper
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The media does have a very significant role in how U.S. citizens are.docxcdorothy
The media does have a very significant role in how U.S. citizens are exposed to political actors, policies, and processes that comprise American government.
Assignment Guidelines
Select 2 particular media forum types from the following list:
Newspapers
Radio
Television
Internet
Address the following in 750–1,000 words:
What specific roles do both media forums have in exposing the various aspects of a political process? Explain in detail.
How persuasive are these media forums in terms of influencing the public about a politician or a campaign issue? Explain.
Provide 2–3 examples of media influence with regard to politics and democracy.
Describe and explain the specifics of each example.
Be sure to reference all sources using proper APA style.
.
The media is expected to play a watchdog role of keeping governme.docxcdorothy
The media is expected to play a "watchdog" role of "keeping government honest." Is the media doing this effectively? Why do you think so?
Respond at least once to this initial post and at least once more to another student or to a later post by the instructor. Remember the rules of etiquette.
**Paragraph or 2 long please
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A Strategic Approach: GenAI in EducationPeter Windle
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies such as Generative AI, Image Generators and Large Language Models have had a dramatic impact on teaching, learning and assessment over the past 18 months. The most immediate threat AI posed was to Academic Integrity with Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) focusing their efforts on combating the use of GenAI in assessment. Guidelines were developed for staff and students, policies put in place too. Innovative educators have forged paths in the use of Generative AI for teaching, learning and assessments leading to pockets of transformation springing up across HEIs, often with little or no top-down guidance, support or direction.
This Gasta posits a strategic approach to integrating AI into HEIs to prepare staff, students and the curriculum for an evolving world and workplace. We will highlight the advantages of working with these technologies beyond the realm of teaching, learning and assessment by considering prompt engineering skills, industry impact, curriculum changes, and the need for staff upskilling. In contrast, not engaging strategically with Generative AI poses risks, including falling behind peers, missed opportunities and failing to ensure our graduates remain employable. The rapid evolution of AI technologies necessitates a proactive and strategic approach if we are to remain relevant.
Executive Directors Chat Leveraging AI for Diversity, Equity, and InclusionTechSoup
Let’s explore the intersection of technology and equity in the final session of our DEI series. Discover how AI tools, like ChatGPT, can be used to support and enhance your nonprofit's DEI initiatives. Participants will gain insights into practical AI applications and get tips for leveraging technology to advance their DEI goals.
The Mis-Education of the NegrobyCarter Godwin Woodson,.docxcdorothy
The Mis-Education of the Negro
by
Carter Godwin Woodson, Ph.D.
First published in 1933 in
Washington, D.C. by Associated Publishers
The contents herein is the same as the 1933 Associated Publishers edition, except for the capitalization of
‘Black’, and ‘Negro’; the converting of ‘tribe’ to ‘group’, and the correction of a few grammatical errors,
edited by JPAS editor Itibari M. Zulu. Second, in this exercise, we also recognize a need for gender
balance or neutrality in the phraseology of the author, therefore we ask readers to consider the historical
and social context of this in any analysis, and thus acknowledge that this work should open a door for a
full critical and scholarly analysis of this historic book.
Contents
Foreword 2
Preface 3
The Seat of the Trouble 5
How We Missed the Mark 9
How We Drifted Away from the Truth 12
Education Under Outside Control 15
The Failure to Learn to Make a Living 21
The Educated Negro Leaves the Masses 27
Dissension and Weakness 31
Professional Educated Discouraged 36
Political Education Neglected 40
The Loss of Vision 45
1
The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson
The Journal of Pan African Studies: 2009 eBook
The Need for Service Rather Than Leadership 52
Hirelings in the Places of Public servants 56
Understand the Negro 62
The New Program 67
Vocational Guidance 72
The New Type of Professional Man Required 80
Higher Strivings in the Service of the Country 83
The Study of the Negro 87
Appendix 88
Foreword
The thoughts brought together in this volume have been expressed in recent addresses and
articles written by the author. From time to time persons deeply interested in the point of view
therein presented have requested that these comments on education be made available in book
form. To supply this demand this volume is given to the public. In the preparation of the volume
the author has not followed in detail the productions upon which most of the book is based. The
aim is to set forth only the thought developed in passing from the one to the other. The language
in some cases, then, is entirely new; and the work is not a collection of essays. In this way
repetition has been avoided except to emphasize the thesis which the author sustains.
Carter Godwin Woodson
Washington, D. C.
January, 1933.
2
The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter Godwin Woodson
The Journal of Pan African Studies: 2009 eBook
Preface
Herein are recorded not opinions but the reflections of one who for forty years has participated in
the education of the Black, brown, yellow and white races in both hemispheres and in tropical
and temperate regions. Such experience, too, has been with students in all grades from the
kindergarten to the university. The author, moreover, has traveled around the world to observe
not only modern school systems in various countries but to study the special systems set up by
private agencies and governments to educate the natives in their colo.
The mission of policing was described by the author as covering six .docxcdorothy
The mission of policing was described by the author as covering six key areas: enforcing the law, apprehending offenders, preventing crime, predicting crime, preserving the peace, and providing services. With the advent of various forms of terrorism and transnational crime, the police mission has expanded beyond the traditional borders of burglaries and domestic disputes.
Beginning with the material conveyed in the assigned reading and presentation, select two scholarly articles from the university criminal justice databases, and integrate those resources to discuss the use of intelligence-led policing (ILP) and the development of fusion centers to equip law enforcement for their expanded mission. Finally, integrate within your discussion the impact of a Judeo-Christian viewpoint on ILP and the development of fusion centers.
500 words
.
The Miracle WorkerReflection PaperObjectiveCriteriaLeve.docxcdorothy
The Miracle Worker
Reflection Paper
Objective/Criteria
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Spelling
(0 Points)
Contains more than 5 spelling mistakes
(5 points)
Contains 2-5 spelling mistakes
(10 points)
Contains 1 or fewer spelling mistakes
Understanding of sensory loss and language development
(5 points)
Give a description of Helen’s sensory loss and how the sensory loss possibly occurred. Did she receive any treatment for her sensory loss?
(5 points)
Describe examples of heightened sensory awareness in other senses as portrayed by the actress and how Helen had adapted to her environment before the Ms. Sullivan arrived.
(10 points) Level 2+
Describe how Helen might have “babbled” (this would be after Ms. Sullivan began the “finger game”. How is this similar to infant “babble”?
Gender Roles observed in the film
(5 points)
Describe some gender role expectations in the film.
(5 points)
Give examples of gender role portrayal in the film.
(10 points) Level 2 +
Describe why you think it was important to Ms. Keller that Helen “folded her napkin”.
Identification of parenting style of Helen’s parents
(5 points)
Give few examples of how Helen’s parents “parent” her.
(5 points)
Identify the parenting style(s) of Helen’s parents and gives supporting examples; Observations of positive or negative punishment; positive or negative reinforment
(10 points) Level 2+
Describes Helen’s behavior as a result of her parent’s style of parenting. Describes how Ms. Sullivan disciplines Helen (a parenting style) and give examples of how Helen responds initially and ultimately.
Understanding of Association and Operant Conditioning; Learning and Memory
(5 points)
Discuss Helen’s use of language before her illness. (Receptive/Productive)
Describe the role of memory in her ability to regain language.
(5 points)
Defines Operant Condition and association. Give examples from the movie of positive and negative reinforcement
(15 points)
Discusses affects of positive and negative reinforcement as they pertain to Helen’s behavior and ability to learn. Describes the problems of Helen’s early learning (association). Give an opinion re: Helen’s learning (is it operant conditioning or learning by observation (imitation?)). Give examples supporting each from the movie.
.
The minimum length for this assignment is 2,000 words. Be sure to ch.docxcdorothy
The minimum length for this assignment is 2,000 words. Be sure to check your Turnitin report for your post and to make corrections before the deadline of 11:59 pm Mountain Time of the due date to avoid lack of originality problems in your work.
Discoveries in DNA, cell biology, evolution, and biotechnology have been among the major achievements in biology over the past 200 years with accelerated discoveries and insights over the last 50 years. Consider the progress we have made in these areas of human knowledge. Present at least three of the discoveries you find to be most important and describe their significance to society, health, and the culture of modern life.
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The Milgram Experimentby Saul McLeod published 2007Milgram sel.docxcdorothy
The Milgram Experiment
by Saul McLeod published 2007
Milgram selected participants for his experiment by newspaper advertising for male participants to take part in a study of learning at Yale University. The procedure was that the participant was paired with another person and they drew lots to find out who would be the ‘learner’ and who would be the ‘teacher’. The draw was fixed so that the participant was always the teacher, and the learner was one of Milgram’s confederates (pretending to be a real participant).
The learner (a confederate called Mr. Wallace) was taken into a room and had electrodes attached to his arms, and the teacher and researcher went into a room next door that contained an electric shock generator and a row of switches marked from 15 volts (Slight Shock) to 375 volts (Danger: Severe Shock) to 450 volts (XXX).
Milgram's Experiment
Procedure:
At the beginning of the experiment, each participant was introduced to another participant, who was actually a confederate of the experimenter (Milgram). They drew straws to determine their roles – learner or teacher – although this was fixed and the confederate was always the learner. There was also an “experimenter” dressed in a grey lab coat, played by an actor (not Milgram).
Two rooms in the Yale Interaction Laboratory were used - one for the learner (with an electric chair) and another for the teacher and experimenter with an electric shock generator.
The “learner” (Mr. Wallace) was strapped to a chair with electrodes. After he has learned a list of word pairs given him to learn, the "teacher" tests him by naming a word and asking the learner to recall its partner/pair from a list of four possible choices.
The teacher is told to administer an electric shock every time the learner makes a mistake, increasing the level of shock each time. There were 30 switches on the shock generator marked from 15 volts (slight shock) to 450 (danger – severe shock).
The learner gave mainly wrong answers (on purpose) and for each of these the teacher gave him an electric shock. When the teacher refused to administer a shock the experimenter was to give a series of orders / prods to ensure they continued. There were 4 prods and if one was not obeyed then the experimenter (Mr. Williams) read out the next prod, and so on.
Prod 1: please continue.
Prod 2: the experiment requires you to continue.
Prod 3: It is absolutely essential that you continue.
Prod 4: you have no other choice but to continue.
Results:
65% of all the participants (teachers) continued to the highest level of 450 volts. All the participants continued to 300 volts. Milgram did more than one experiment – he carried out 18 variations of his study. All he did was alter the situation (IV) to see how this affected obedience (DV).
Conclusion:
Ordinary people are likely to follow orders given by an authority figure, even to the extent of killing an innocent human being. Obedience to authority is ingrained in us all from the way.
The Midterm Assignment consists of three questionsThe internati.docxcdorothy
The Midterm Assignment consists of three questions:
The international borders of African countries are a legacy of colonialism.
1. Describe the concept of a superimposed boundary.
2. Describe three political or cultural consequences of superimposed boundaries in Africa.
3. Identify and explain one challenge landlocked African countries face in developing viable economies.
.
The Migrants and the ElitesA humanitarian crisis threatens the f.docxcdorothy
The Migrants and the Elites
A humanitarian crisis threatens the future of Western institutions.
ENLARGE
Syrian refugees making their way to Greece, Sept. 10. PHOTO: REUTERS
By
PEGGY NOONAN
Sept. 10, 2015 6:32 p.m. ET
What a crisis Europe is in, with waves of migrants reaching its shores as the Arab world implodes. It is the biggest migration into Europe since the end of World War II and is shaping up to be its first great and sustained challenge of the 21st century. It may in fact shape that continent’s nature and history as surely as did World War I.
It is a humanitarian crisis. As Richard Haass of the Council on Foreign Relations notes, it will not soon go away, for two reasons. First, the Mideast will not be peaceful anytime soon and may well become more turbulent. Second, “The more that Europe responds the more it will reinforce the supply of migrants. Europe is caught.” If it doesn’t respond with compassion and generosity it is wrong in humanitarian terms; if it does, more will come and the problem grows. “This is now part of the architecture,” says Mr. Haass.
Opinion Journal Video
Editorial Page Writer Sohrab Ahmari on his interviews with Syrians, Iranians and others fleeing to safer shores. Photo credit: Getty Images.
Three hundred eighty-one thousand detected migrants have arrived so far this year, up from 216,000 in all of 2014. Almost 3,000 died on the journey or are missing. The symbol of their plight is the photo of the 3-year-old Syrian boy, Aylan Kurdi, who drowned along with his mother and 5-year-old brother when their boat capsized near a Turkish beach. Just as horrifying is what was found inside a Volvo refrigerated truck stranded on the shoulder of the A4 highway 30 miles from Vienna in late August. Inside were 71 bodies, including a 1½-year-old girl, all dead of suffocation. They’d been left there by human smugglers.
It is a catastrophe unfolding before our eyes, and efforts to deal with it have at least one echo in America, which we’ll examine further down.
According to the U.N. refugee agency, 53% of the migrants are from Syria, 14% from Afghanistan, 7% from Eritrea, and 3% each from Pakistan, Nigeria, Iraq and Somalia. Seventy-two percent are men, only 13% women and 15% children. Not all are fleeing war. Some are fleeing poverty. Not all but the majority are Muslim.
The leaders of Europe have shown themselves unsure about what to do. It is a continent-wide crisis that began in 2011, as Tunisians fled to the Italian island of Lampedusa. The following year, sub-Saharan Africans who’d migrated to Libya made for Europe after Muammar Gadhafi’s fall. Since then the European response has largely been ad hoc and stopgap. European Union President Jean-Claude Juncker has proposed a “permanent relocation mechanism” with EU members taking greater shares of the refugees, but it is unclear how exactly it would work.
In many EU nations there will be powerful pushback. Like the crisis itself the pushback will build. Europe is in econo.
The Midterm is a written response paper. Your paper should be at.docxcdorothy
The Midterm is a written response paper. Your paper should be at least 2 pages in length and follow APA style and format.
For further directions,
click here
.
Submit your Midterm Exam to the Assignment box
no later than Sunday 11:59 PM EST/EDT
. (This Assignment may be linked to Turnitin).
.
The Middle Way.” Moderation seems to be a hard thing for many p.docxcdorothy
“The Middle Way.” Moderation seems to be a hard thing for many people to understand. Two great authors had radically different insights on moderation: “Complete abstinence is easier than perfect moderation,” (Saint Augustine) and “Moderation is a fatal thing. Nothing succeeds like excess” (Oscar Wilde).
We live in an age of abusive social media, so it seems even more difficult to “find the middle” now. What lessons can you apply to your life by addressing each of the items in the Eightfold Path of the Noble Way?
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The Middle East faces many challenges to a potential regional frame.docxcdorothy
The Middle East faces challenges to developing a regional framework similar to what Europe established in 1975, but Europe also faced difficulties before reaching that agreement. The document asks what favorable conditions exist in the Middle East now compared to Europe in the 1970s, and what unfavorable conditions it faces, in working towards a similar regional framework.
The Michael Jordan effect Crawford, Anthony J; Niendorf, .docxcdorothy
The Michael Jordan effect
Crawford, Anthony J; Niendorf, Bruce . American Business Review ; West Haven Vol. 17, Iss. 2, (Jun
1999): 5-10.
ProQuest document link
ABSTRACT
In the period immediately following the rumors of Michael Jordan's return to basketball, the five companies that
Jordan had major endorsement deals with experienced a nearly $3 billion increase in the market value of their
equity. Jordan was labeled the $2 billion man in the press, referring to the value he created for the shareholders of
the companies he endorses. However, most of these reports failed to cite the simultaneous bull market that lead
the S&P 500 to record highs. The Michael Jordan effect is examined, and it is found that shareholders experienced
negative abnormal returns after the announcement of his retirement and positive excess returns when rumors of a
comeback surfaced. However, it is also shown that the positive excess returns following the rumors of Jordan's
comeback were only temporary and disappeared within weeks of the original rumors. While some evidence is
found in support of a Michael Jordan effect, it appears that the rumors of Jordan's impact have been greatly
exaggerated.
FULL TEXT
On October 6, 1993 Michael Jordan unexpectedly retired from basketball after leading the Chicago Bull's to three
straight NBA championships. The following spring he showed up for spring training with the Chicago White Sox.
Despite his early retirement Jordan maintained his five major endorsement deals from which he is rumored to
receive a total of approximately $30 million annually. These endorsements are highlighted in exhibit 1.
On March 2nd, 1995 Jordan ended his attempt at professional baseball and left the Chicago White Sox spring
training facilities. Shortly after his retirement from baseball, rumors of Jordan's return to basketball surfaced.
These rumors touched off a media frenzy as the popular press tied increases in the stock prices of the companies
Jordan endorses to speculation over his return. The Los Angeles Times reported that five days after the first
reports of his comeback, advertisers experienced a collective $2.3 billion gain in equity value. Time Magazine,
Newsweek, Sports Illustrated and nearly every major newspaper ran similar reports at about the same time. Jordan
was labeled the $2 billion man. The implication was that Jordan's rumored return to basketball increased his value
as an endorser resulting in an over $2 billion dollar gain to shareholders.
Table I illustrates the increase in the market value of the five companies which Jordan endorses. The collective
increase in market value over a nine business day period, from the date of the first rumors until the first trading day
after his comeback announcement, was more than $2.9 billion. The average return over those nine days was
4.59%. The return on the S&P 500 over the same nine day period was just 2.91%.
We examine two questions.
The Metropolitan Police Department had recently been criticized in t.docxcdorothy
The Metropolitan Police Department had recently been criticized in the local media for not responding to police calls in the downtown area rapidly enough. In several recent cases, alarms had sounded for break-ins, but by the time the police car arrived, the perpetrators had left, and in one instance a store owner had been shot. Sergeant Joe Davis had been assigned by the chief as head of a task force to find a way to determine the optimal patrol area (dimensions) for their cars that would minimize the average time it took to respond to a call in the downtown area.
Sergeant Davis solicited help from Angela Maris, an analyst in the operations area for the police department. Together they began to work through the problem.
Joe noted to Angela that normal patrol sectors are laid out in rectangles, with each rectangle including a number of city blocks. For illustrative purposes he defined the dimensions of the sector as
x
in the horizontal direction and as
y
in the vertical direction. He explained to Angela that cars traveled in straight lines either horizontally or vertically and turned at right angles.
Travel
in a horizontal direction must be accompanied by travel in a vertical direction, and the total distance traveled is the sum of the horizontal and vertical segments. He further noted that past research on police patrolling in urban areas had shown that the average distance traveled by a patrol car responding to a call in either direction was one-third of the dimensions of the sector, or
x
/3 and
y
/3. He also explained that the travel time it took to respond to a call ( assuming that a car left immediately upon receiving the call) is simply the average distance traveled divided by the average travel speed.
Angela told Joe that now that she understood how average travel time to a call was determined, she could see that it was closely related to the size of the patrol area. She asked Joe if there were any restrictions on the size of the area sectors that cars patrolled. He responded that for their city, the department believed that the perimeter of a patrol sector should not be less than 5 miles or exceed 12 miles. He noted several policy issues and
staffing
constraints that required these specifications. Angela wanted to know if any additional restrictions existed, and Joe indicated that the distance in the vertical direction must be at least 50% more than the horizontal distance for the sector. He explained that laying out sectors in that manner meant that the patrol areas would have a greater tendency to overlap different residential, income, and retail areas than if they ran the other way. He said that these areas were layered from north to south in the city. So if a sector area were laid out east to west, all of it would tend to be in one demographic layer.
Angela indicated that she had almost enough information to develop a model, except that she also needed to know the average travel speed the patrol cars could trav.
THE MG371 CASE Growth Pains at Mountain States Healthcar.docxcdorothy
THE MG371 CASE
Growth Pains at Mountain States Healthcare
Background
Mountain States Healthcare (MSH) is a regional system of hospitals located
in several large metropolitan areas of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Colorado,
and in Acapulco, Mexico. MHS started as a single hospital in Salt Lake City,
Utah, and, due to the business acumen and experience of its officers and
Board of Directors, was quite successful and profitable.
Over the years, Salt Lake Hospital began purchasing other hospitals and
clinics in the state that were not as profitably operated, and eventually
changed its name to Utah Health Group (UHG). Each facility continued to
operate as an independent entity, except that its name was changed to
include “Utah Health Group” and UHG instilled its own successful
management style in the newly purchased facilities. When a hospital was
bought in Denver, Colorado, the firm created a medical facility holding
company in Salt Lake City, named Mountain States Healthcare. MHS treated
each facility as a separate subsidiary, except for the clinics, which were
associated with a larger hospital in the area. MSH continued to grow, adding
facilities from the states it declared as its strategic area.
Later, they added a new division of several clinics, an assisted living facility,
and a hospital in the resort city of Acapulco, Mexico, to take advantage of
medical needs of the large tourist and American retirement population there.
The Mexico venture was the most profitable and fastest growing of the MHS
family.
MSH was a profitable venture, but began to realize that some of its
administrative costs were, collectively, much higher than other medical
holding companies, and reducing the profits that could be used for the
benefit of shareholders. Additionally, the higher overhead costs were
affecting the advantage of some hospitals to compete within their districts.
The divisions had historically set themselves apart from other medical
facilities by offering a full line of specialties within their service packages.
The corporate holding company supported this by sharing resources,
technology, and even personnel between the divisions when needed. This
allowed each of the hospitals to position themselves as medical technology
competent full service providers.
A consulting firm pointed out several areas of administration which could be
consolidated, using the latest technology, to realize a tremendous reduction
in costs. The new VP of Finance, Aaron Nelson, newly promoted from the
state billing office manager’s position, suggested that medical billing should
be the first to consolidate. He reasoned that as each of the facilities had
consolidated the billing operations for all facilities within their five geographic
areas a few years ago, they should be able to completely consolidate all
billing with the latest database technology in a fairly short time, and.
The Methods of Communication are Listening, Writing, Talking, Rea.docxcdorothy
The Methods of Communication are: Listening, Writing, Talking, Reading, and Non-Verbal.
Listening - speaking by using words and terminology that others can comprehend
Talking - the ability to read and comprehend the written word
Writing - tone and inflection of one’s voice facial expression, posture and eye contact
Non-Verbal - using the written word in a manner that others can understand the intended message
Reading - the ability to hear and understand what the speaker is saying
Review the five methods of communication you would use in the given scenarios:
Scenario 1: An irate customer comes to your store and is very upset with a defect in a product he ordered. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Listening)
Scenario 2: A customer is in your store looking for a new computer. You quickly surmise that the customer’s first language is not English and in addition he appears to not have a clear understanding of the type or brand of computer he is looking for. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Talking)
Scenario 3: On your store’s Facebook page, a customer comments on your store’s appearance and how disrespectful the salesperson was during a recent visit. Which method of communication would be the most effective to use with this customer? (Writing)
Scenario 4: A customer comes into your store looking for a new phone. He appears overly confident about his knowledge level. When you approach him, he looks at you in a condescending manner. Which method of communication is being displayed by this customer? (Non-verbal)
Scenario 5: You need to take two online courses available from your employer about Customer Service. You need to receive an “A” in both courses. You must write five components that you will use for the Final Course Project. Which method of communication will you use to complete your assignments?
Competency
Discuss the importance of communication in Customer Service.
Instructions
In order to provide excellent service to customers, a business must have employees who are able to effectively communicate with those customers. Looking at the five methods of communication (Listening, Talking, Writing, Non-Verbal, and Reading), write a paper that includes 2-3 paragraphs for each method of communication. Please include an explanation on why communication is important in the introduction. Also, please include a conclusion that summarizes your paper.
NOW, THIS IS THE RUBRIC QUESTIONS
1. Included paragraph(s) for each of the methods of communication with clear examples.
2. Did include an explanation for the importance of clear communication using examples and research for support.
3. Did include an introduction and conclusion, including examples and/or research for support.
PLEASE INCLUDE REFERENCES AND CITETATIONS
The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas
by Ursula K LeGuin, 1974
1
The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas
With a clamor of bells that s.
The Meta-themes Paper requires you to bring together material from t.docxcdorothy
The Meta-themes Paper requires you to bring together material from throughout the term and use it to illustrate what you have learned about the cross-cutting themes of the course. You should be able to complete parts of the Meta-Themes Paper over the course of the term ( using the various discussion posts).
.
The Medication Paper OutlineThe purpose of this assignment is to.docxcdorothy
The Medication Paper Outline
The purpose of this assignment is to draft and submit a complete, organized, detailed outline of your medication paper in APA format with sources cited and referenced accurately.
Recommended: Before you begin, review the Writing Resources area on your
Student Resources
tab located on the top menu of your main Blackboard page for examples and review chapters 9, 13, and 14 in
A Pocket Style Manual
(APA).
Adhere to the following guidelines for drafting and submitting your outline:
Use standard alphanumeric outline format.
Include a rough draft of your abstract.
Include APA in-text citations.
Include an APA formatted reference page.
Include a title page.
Use APA format throughout.
The outline includes several high quality, thought provoking ideas/points which are skillfully used to creatively and completely support the thesis. Outline demonstrates a well-balanced approach to researching the topic (subcategories are of equal significance under each body paragraph). Subtopics are specific and avoid generalities. Subtopics demonstrate extensive research and thought on the topic.
The thesis is concise and clearly articulated in the beginning. Subtopics are pertinent and highly relevant to the main body paragraphs. Detailed, meaningful quotations and paraphrases aptly and accurately support the topic evenly throughout each subtopic.
.
The median is often a better representative of the central value of .docxcdorothy
The median is often a better representative of the central value of a data set when the data set: Source Top of Form Is bimodal. Has a high standard deviation. Is highly skewed. Has no outliers. Bottom of Form The histogram below plots the carbon monoxide (CO) emissions (in pounds/minute) of 40 different airplane models at take-off. The distribution is best described as is: Source Top of Form Uniform. Heteroskedastic. Normal. Skewed right. Bottom of Form
.
The media plays a major part in all facets of U.S. society. Incr.docxcdorothy
The media plays a major part in all facets of U.S. society. Increased attention on criminal justice issues and criminal justice administration by the media creates opportunities and threats to the status quo of criminal justice policies and actions. Chapters 11 and 16 in your text discuss the influence of the media on criminal justice and the theories of justice. For this assignment, you will support the evaluation of public issues that criminal justice organizations face in ethical decision making and the creation of a set of standards for ethical and moral conduct in criminal justice situations. In your paper,
Create an ethics policy for the media in handling the reporting of criminal justice issues and news;
Examine the significance of political bias in reporting; and
Create a foundation for the accurate and ethical reporting of news about the criminal justice system.
The paper
.
The media does have a very significant role in how U.S. citizens are.docxcdorothy
The media does have a very significant role in how U.S. citizens are exposed to political actors, policies, and processes that comprise American government.
Assignment Guidelines
Select 2 particular media forum types from the following list:
Newspapers
Radio
Television
Internet
Address the following in 750–1,000 words:
What specific roles do both media forums have in exposing the various aspects of a political process? Explain in detail.
How persuasive are these media forums in terms of influencing the public about a politician or a campaign issue? Explain.
Provide 2–3 examples of media influence with regard to politics and democracy.
Describe and explain the specifics of each example.
Be sure to reference all sources using proper APA style.
.
The media is expected to play a watchdog role of keeping governme.docxcdorothy
The media is expected to play a "watchdog" role of "keeping government honest." Is the media doing this effectively? Why do you think so?
Respond at least once to this initial post and at least once more to another student or to a later post by the instructor. Remember the rules of etiquette.
**Paragraph or 2 long please
.
A Strategic Approach: GenAI in EducationPeter Windle
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies such as Generative AI, Image Generators and Large Language Models have had a dramatic impact on teaching, learning and assessment over the past 18 months. The most immediate threat AI posed was to Academic Integrity with Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) focusing their efforts on combating the use of GenAI in assessment. Guidelines were developed for staff and students, policies put in place too. Innovative educators have forged paths in the use of Generative AI for teaching, learning and assessments leading to pockets of transformation springing up across HEIs, often with little or no top-down guidance, support or direction.
This Gasta posits a strategic approach to integrating AI into HEIs to prepare staff, students and the curriculum for an evolving world and workplace. We will highlight the advantages of working with these technologies beyond the realm of teaching, learning and assessment by considering prompt engineering skills, industry impact, curriculum changes, and the need for staff upskilling. In contrast, not engaging strategically with Generative AI poses risks, including falling behind peers, missed opportunities and failing to ensure our graduates remain employable. The rapid evolution of AI technologies necessitates a proactive and strategic approach if we are to remain relevant.
Executive Directors Chat Leveraging AI for Diversity, Equity, and InclusionTechSoup
Let’s explore the intersection of technology and equity in the final session of our DEI series. Discover how AI tools, like ChatGPT, can be used to support and enhance your nonprofit's DEI initiatives. Participants will gain insights into practical AI applications and get tips for leveraging technology to advance their DEI goals.
Main Java[All of the Base Concepts}.docxadhitya5119
This is part 1 of my Java Learning Journey. This Contains Custom methods, classes, constructors, packages, multithreading , try- catch block, finally block and more.
A workshop hosted by the South African Journal of Science aimed at postgraduate students and early career researchers with little or no experience in writing and publishing journal articles.
বাংলাদেশের অর্থনৈতিক সমীক্ষা ২০২৪ [Bangladesh Economic Review 2024 Bangla.pdf] কম্পিউটার , ট্যাব ও স্মার্ট ফোন ভার্সন সহ সম্পূর্ণ বাংলা ই-বুক বা pdf বই " সুচিপত্র ...বুকমার্ক মেনু 🔖 ও হাইপার লিংক মেনু 📝👆 যুক্ত ..
আমাদের সবার জন্য খুব খুব গুরুত্বপূর্ণ একটি বই ..বিসিএস, ব্যাংক, ইউনিভার্সিটি ভর্তি ও যে কোন প্রতিযোগিতা মূলক পরীক্ষার জন্য এর খুব ইম্পরট্যান্ট একটি বিষয় ...তাছাড়া বাংলাদেশের সাম্প্রতিক যে কোন ডাটা বা তথ্য এই বইতে পাবেন ...
তাই একজন নাগরিক হিসাবে এই তথ্য গুলো আপনার জানা প্রয়োজন ...।
বিসিএস ও ব্যাংক এর লিখিত পরীক্ষা ...+এছাড়া মাধ্যমিক ও উচ্চমাধ্যমিকের স্টুডেন্টদের জন্য অনেক কাজে আসবে ...
Introduction to AI for Nonprofits with Tapp NetworkTechSoup
Dive into the world of AI! Experts Jon Hill and Tareq Monaur will guide you through AI's role in enhancing nonprofit websites and basic marketing strategies, making it easy to understand and apply.
Assessment and Planning in Educational technology.pptxKavitha Krishnan
In an education system, it is understood that assessment is only for the students, but on the other hand, the Assessment of teachers is also an important aspect of the education system that ensures teachers are providing high-quality instruction to students. The assessment process can be used to provide feedback and support for professional development, to inform decisions about teacher retention or promotion, or to evaluate teacher effectiveness for accountability purposes.
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How to Build a Module in Odoo 17 Using the Scaffold MethodCeline George
Odoo provides an option for creating a module by using a single line command. By using this command the user can make a whole structure of a module. It is very easy for a beginner to make a module. There is no need to make each file manually. This slide will show how to create a module using the scaffold method.
The Meanings of Lives by Susan Wolf (2007) The questi.docx
1. The Meanings of Lives
by Susan Wolf (2007)
The question, “What is the meaning of life?” was once taken to
be a paradigm of
philosophical inquiry. Perhaps, outside of the academy, it still
is. In philosophy
classrooms and academic journals, however, the question has
nearly disappeared,
and when the question is brought up, by a naïve student, for
example, or a
prospective donor to the cause of a liberal arts education, it is
apt to be greeted with
uncomfortable embarrassment.
What is so wrong with the question? One answer is that it is
extremely obscure, if
not downright unintelligible. It is unclear what exactly the
question is supposed to be
asking. Talk of meaning in other contexts does not offer ready
analogies for
understanding the phrase “the meaning of life.” When we ask
the meaning of a
word, for example, we want to know what the word stands for,
what it represents.
But life is not part of a language, or of any other sort of
symbolic system. It is not
clear how it could “stand for” anything, nor to whom. We
sometimes use “meaning”
in nonlinguistic contexts: “Those dots mean measles.” “Those
footprints mean that
2. someone was here since it rained.” In these cases, talk of
meaning seems to be
equivalent to talk of evidence, but the contexts in which such
claims are made tend
to specify what hypotheses are in question within relatively
fixed bounds. To ask
what life means without a similarly specified context, leaves us
at sea.
Still, when people do ask about the meaning of life, they are
evidently expressing
some concern or other, and it would be disingenuous to insist
that the rest of us
haven’t the faintest idea what that is. The question at least
gestures toward a
certain set of concerns with which most of us are at least
somewhat familiar. Rather
than dismiss a question with which many people have been
passionately occupied
as pure and simple nonsense, it seems more appropriate to try to
interpret it and
reformulate it in a way that can be more clearly and
unambiguously understood.
Though there may well be many things going on when people
ask, “What is the
meaning of life?”, the most central among them seems to be a
search to find a
purpose or a point to human existence. It is a request to find out
why we are here
(that is, why we exist at all), with the hope that an answer to
this question will also
tell us something about what we should be doing with our lives.
If understanding the question in this way, however, makes the
question intelligible,
it might not give reason to reopen it as a live philosophical
3. problem. Indeed, if some
of professional philosophy’s discomfort with discussion of the
meaning of life comes
from a desire to banish ambiguity and obscurity from the field,
as much comes, I
think, from the thought that the question, when made clearer,
has already been
answered, and that the answer is depressing. Specifically, if the
question of the
Meaning of Life is to be identified with the question of the
purpose of life, then the
standard view, at least among professional philosophers, would
seem to be that it
all depends on the existence of God. In other words, the going
opinion seems to be
that if there is a God, then there is at least a chance that there is
a purpose, and so
2
a meaning to life. God may have created us for a reason, with a
plan in mind. But to
go any further along this branch of thinking is not in the
purview of secular
philosophers.1 If, on the other hand, there is no God, then there
can be no meaning,
in the sense of a point or a purpose to our existence. We are
simply a product of
physical processes – there are no reasons for our existence, just
causes.
At the same time that talk of Life having a Meaning is banished
from philosophy,
4. however, the talk of lives being more or less meaningful seems
to be on the rise.
Newspapers, magazines, self-help manuals are filled with essays
on how to find
meaning in your life; sermons and therapies are built on the
truism that happiness is
not just a matter of material comfort, or sensual pleasure, but
also of a deeper kind
of fulfillment. Though philosophers to date have had relatively
little to say about
what gives meaning to individual lives, passing references can
be found throughout
the literature; it is generally acknowledged as an intelligible
and appropriate thing to
want in one’s life. Indeed, it would be crass to think otherwise.
But how can individual lives have meaning if life as a whole
has none? Are those of
us who suspect there is no meaning to life deluding ourselves in
continuing to talk
about the possibility of finding meaning in life? (Are we being
short-sighted, failing
to see the implications of one part of our thought on another?)
Alternatively, are
these expressions mere homonyms, with no conceptual or
logical connections
between them? Are there simply two wholly unconnected topics
here?
Many of you will be relieved to hear that I do not wish to revive
the question of
whether there is a meaning to life. I am inclined to accept the
standard view that
there is no plausible interpretation of that question that offers a
positive answer in
the absence of a fairly specific religious metaphysics. An
5. understanding of
meaningfulness in life, however, does seem to me to merit more
philosophical
attention than it has so far received, and I will have some things
to say about it
here. Here, too, I am inclined to accept the standard view – or a
part of the standard
view – viz., that meaningfulness is an intelligible feature to be
sought in a life, and
that it is, at least sometimes attainable but not everywhere
assured. But what that
feature is – what we are looking for – is controversial and
unclear, and so the task
of analyzing or interpreting that feature will take up a large
portion of my remarks
today. With an analysis proposed, I shall return to the question
of how a positive
view about the possibility of meaning in lives can fit with a
negative or agnostic view
about the meaning of life. The topics are not, I think, as
unconnected as might at
first seem necessary for their respectively optimistic and
pessimistic answers to
coexist. Though my discussion will offer nothing new in the
way of an answer to the
question of the meaning of life, therefore, it may offer a
somewhat different
perspective on that question’s significance.
1 Thomas Nagel has what might be thought to be an even more
pessimistic view – viz, that even if
there is a God, there is no reason God’s purpose should be our
purpose, no reason, therefore, to
6. think that God’s existence could give meaning, in the right
sense, to our lives.
3
Let us begin, however, with the other question, that of
understanding what it is to
seek meaning in life. What do we want when we want a
meaningful life? What is it
that makes some lives meaningful, others less so?
If we focus on the agent’s, or the subject’s, perspective – on a
person wanting
meaning in her life, her feeling the need for more meaning - we
might incline toward
a subjective interpretation of the feature being sought. When a
person self-
consciously looks for something to give her life meaning, it
signals a kind of
unhappiness. One imagines, for example, the alienated
housewife, whose life
seems to her to be a series of endless chores. What she wants, it
might appear, is
something that she can find more subjectively rewarding.
This impression is reinforced if we consider references to
“meaningful experiences.”
(The phrase might be applied, for example, to a certain kind of
wedding or funeral.)
The most salient feature of an event that is described is
meaningful seems to be its
“meaning a lot” to the participants. To say that a ceremony, or,
for that matter, a job,
7. is meaningful seems at the very least to include the idea that it
is emotionally
satisfying. An absence of meaning is usually marked by a
feeling of emptiness and
dissatisfaction; in contrast, a meaningful life, or meaningful
part of life, is
necessarily at least somewhat rewarding or fulfilling. It is
noteworthy, however, that
meaningful experiences are not necessarily particularly happy.
A trip to one’s
birthplace may well be meaningful; a visit to an amusement
park is unlikely to be
so.
If we step back, however, and ask ourselves, as observers, what
lives strike us as
especially meaningful, if we ask what sorts of lives exemplify
meaningfulness,
subjective criteria do not seem to be in the forefront. Who
comes to mind? Perhaps,
Ghandi, or Albert Schweitzer, or Mother Theresa; perhaps
Einstein or Jonas Salk.
Cezanne, or Manet, Beethoven, Charlie Parker. Tolstoy is an
interesting case to
which I shall return. Alternatively, we can look to our
neighbors, our colleagues, our
relatives - some of whom, it seems to me, live more meaningful
lives than others.
Some, indeed, of my acquaintance seem to me to live lives that
are paradigms of
meaning – right up there with the famous names on the earlier
lists; while others
(perhaps despite their modicum of fame) would score quite low
on the
meaningfulness scale. If those in the latter category feel a lack
of meaning in their
8. lives – well, they are right to feel it, and it is a step in the right
direction that they
notice that there is something about their lives that they should
try to change.
What is it to live a meaningful life, then? What does
meaningfulness in life amount
to? It may be easier to make progress by focusing on what we
want to avoid. In that
spirit, let me offer some paradigms, not of meaningful, but of
meaningless lives.
For me, the idea of a meaningless life is most clearly and
effectively embodied in
the image of a person who spends day after day, or night after
night, in front of a
television set, drinking beer and watching situation comedies.
Not that I have
anything against television or beer. Still the image, understood
as an image of a
4
person whose life is lived in hazy passivity, a life lived at a not
unpleasant level of
consciousness, but unconnected to anyone or anything, going
nowhere, achieving
nothing - is, I submit, as strong an image of a meaningless life
as there can be. Call
this case The Blob.
If any life, any human life, is meaningless, the Blob's life is.
But this doesn't mean
9. that any meaningless life must be, in all important respects, like
the Blob's. There
are other paradigms that highlight by their absences other
elements of
meaningfulness.
In contrast to the Blob's passivity, for example, we may imagine
a life full of activity,
but silly or decadent or useless activity. (And again, I have
nothing against silly
activity, but only against a life that is wholly occupied with it.)
We may imagine, for
example, one of the idle rich who flits about, fighting off
boredom, moving from one
amusement to another. She shops, she travels, she eats at
expensive restaurants,
she works out with her personal trainer.
Curiously, one might also take a very un-idle rich person to
epitomize a
meaningless life in a slightly different way. Consider, for
example, the corporate
executive who works twelve-hour, seven-day weeks, suffering
great stress, for the
sole purpose of the accumulation of personal wealth. Related to
this perhaps is
David Wiggins' example of the pig farmer who buys more land
to grow more corn to
feed more pigs to buy more land to grow more corn to feed
more pigs.2
These last three cases of the idle rich, the corporate executive
and the pig farmer
are in some ways very different, but they all share at least this
feature: they can all
be characterized as lives whose dominant activities seem
10. pointless, useless, or
empty. Classify these cases under the heading Useless.
A somewhat different and I think more controversial sort of
case to consider
involves someone who is engaged, even dedicated, to a project
that is ultimately
revealed as bankrupt, not because the person's values are
shallow or misguided,
but because the project fails. The person may go literally
bankrupt: for example, a
man may devote his life to creating and building up a company
to hand over to his
children, but the item his company manufactures is rendered
obsolete by
technology shortly before his planned retirement. Or consider a
scientist whose
life's work is rendered useless by the announcement of a
medical breakthrough just
weeks before his own research would have yielded the same
results. Perhaps more
poignantly, imagine a woman whose life is centered around a
relationship that turns
out to be a fraud. Cases that fit this mold we may categorize
under the heading
Bankrupt.
The classification of this third sort of case as an exemplification
of meaninglessness
may meet more resistance than the classification of the earlier
two. Perhaps these
2 David Wiggins, “Truth, Invention, and the Meaning of Life,”
in Proceedings of the British
11. Academy, LXII, 1976.
5
lives should not be considered meaningless after all.
Nonetheless, these are cases
in which it is not surprising that an argument of some sort is
needed - it is not
unnatural or silly that the subjects of these lives should
entertain the thought that
their lives have been meaningless. Even if they are wrong, the
fact that their
thoughts are not, so to speak, out of order, is a useful datum.
So, of course, would
be the sort of thing one would say to convince them, or
ourselves, that these
thoughts are ultimately mistaken.
If the cases I have sketched capture our images of
meaninglessness more or less
accurately, they provide clues to what a positive case of a
meaningful life must
contain. In contrast to the Blob's passivity, a person who lives a
meaningful life
must be actively engaged. But, as the Useless cases teach us, it
will not do to be
engaged in just anything, for any reason or with any goal - one
must be engaged in
a project or projects that have some positive value, and in some
way that is
nonaccidentally related to what gives them value. Finally, in
order to avoid
Bankruptcy, it seems necessary that one's activities be at least
12. to some degree
successful (though it may not be easy to determine what counts
as the right kind or
degree of success). Putting these criteria together, we get a
proposal for what it is
to live a meaningful life: viz., a meaningful life is one that is
actively and at least
somewhat successfully engaged in a project (or projects) of
positive value.
Several remarks are needed to qualify and refine this proposal.
First, the use of the
word "project" is not ideal: it is too suggestive of a finite,
determinate task,
something one takes on, and, if all goes well, completes. Among
the things that
come to mind as projects are certain kinds of hobbies or careers,
or rather, specific
tasks that fall within the sphere of such hobbies or careers:
things that can be seen
as Accomplishments, like the producing of a proof or a poem or
a pudding, the
organizing of a union or a high school band. Although such
activities are among the
things that seem intuitively to contribute to the meaningfulness
of people's lives,
there are other forms of meaningfulness that are less directed,
and less oriented to
demonstrable achievement, and we should not let the use of the
word "project"
distort or deny the potential of these things to give
meaningfulness to life.
Relationships, in particular, seem at best awkwardly described
as projects. Rarely
does one deliberately take them on and, in some cases, one
doesn't even have to
13. work at them - one may just have them and live, as it were,
within them. Moreover,
many of the activities that are naturally described as projects -
coaching a school
soccer team, planning a surprise party, reviewing an article for
a journal - have the
meaning they do for us only because of their place in the
nonprojectlike
relationships in which we are enmeshed and with which we
identify. In proposing
that a meaningful life is a life actively engaged in projects,
then, I mean to use
"projects" in an unusually broad sense, to encompass not only
goal-directed tasks
but other sorts of ongoing activities and involvements as well.
Second, the suggestion that a meaningful life should be
“actively engaged” in
projects should be understood in a way that recognizes and
embraces the
connotations of “engagement.” Although the idea that a
meaningful life requires
6
activity was introduced by contrast to the life of the ultra-
passive Blob, we should
note that meaning involves more than mere, literal activity. The
alienated
housewife, presumably, is active all the time – she buys
groceries and fixes meals,
cleans the house, does the laundry, chauffeurs the children from
school to soccer to
14. ballet, arranges doctors’ appointment and babysitters. What
makes her life
insufficiently meaningful is that her heart, so to speak, isn’t in
these activities. She
does not identify with what she is doing – she does not embrace
her roles as wife,
mother, and homemaker as expressive of who she is and wants
to be. We may
capture her alienated condition by saying that though she is
active, she is not
actively engaged. (She is, one might say, just going through the
motions.) In
characterizing a meaningful life, then, it is worth stressing that
living such a life is
not just a matter of having projects (broadly construed) and
actively and somewhat
successfully getting through them. The projects must engage the
person whose life
it is. Ideally, she would proudly and happily embrace them, as
constituting at least
part of what her life is about.3
Finally, we must say more about the proposal’s most blatantly
problematic condition
– viz, that the projects engagement with which can contribute to
a meaningful life
must be projects “of positive value”. The claim is that
meaningful lives must be
engaged in projects of positive value - but who is to decide
which projects have
positive value, or even to guarantee that there is such a thing?
I would urge that we leave the phrase as unspecific as possible
in all but one
respect. We do not want to build a theory of positive value into
our conception of
15. meaningfulness. As a proposal that aims to capture what most
people mean by a
meaningful life, what we want is a concept that "tracks"
whatever we think of as
having positive value. This allows us to explain at least some
divergent intuitions
about meaningfulness in terms of divergent intuitions or beliefs
about what has
positive value, with the implication that if one is wrong about
what has positive
value, one will also be wrong about what contributes to a
meaningful life. (Thus, a
person who finds little to admire in sports - who finds
ridiculous, for example, the
sight of grown men trying to knock a little ball into a hole with
a club, will find
relatively little potential for meaning in the life of an avid
golfer; a person who places
little stock in esoteric intellectual pursuits will be puzzled by
someone who strains to
write, much less read, a lot of books on supervenience.)
The exception I would make to this otherwise maximally
tolerant interpretation of
the idea of positive value is that we exclude merely subjective
value as a suitable
interpretation of the phrase.
3 It seems to me there is a further condition or qualification on
what constitutes a meaningful life, though it
does not fit gracefully into the definition I have proposed, and
is somewhat peripheral to the focus of this
essay: namely, that the projects that contribute to a meaningful
16. life must be of significant duration, and
contribute to the unity of the life or of a significant stage of it.
A person who is always engaged in some
valuable project or other, but whose projects don’t express any
underlying core of interest and value is not, at
least, a paradigm of someone whose life is meaningful. Here
perhaps there is something illuminating in making
analogies to other uses of “meaning,” for what is at issue here
has to do with there being a basis for ‘making
sense’ of the life, of being able to see it as a narrative.
7
It will not do to allow that a meaningful life is a life involved in
projects that seem to
have positive value from the perspective of the one who lives it.
Allowing this would
have the effect of erasing the distinctiveness of our interest in
meaningfulness; it
would blur or remove the difference between an interest in
living a meaningful life
and an interest in living a life that feels or seems meaningful.
That these interests
are distinct, and that the former is not merely instrumental to
the latter can be seen
by reflecting on a certain way the wish or the need for meaning
in one’s life may
make itself felt. What I have in mind is the possibility of a kind
17. of epiphany, in which
one wakes up – literally or figuratively – to the recognition that
one’s life to date has
been meaningless. Such an experience would be nearly
unintelligible if a lack of
meaning were to be understood as a lack of a certain kind of
subjective impression.
One can hardly understand the idea of waking up to the thought
that one's life to
date has seemed meaningless. To the contrary, it may be
precisely because one
did not realize the emptiness of one's projects or the
shallowness of one's values
until that moment that the experience I am imagining has the
poignancy it does. It is
the sort of experience that one might describe in terms of scales
falling from one's
eyes. And the yearning for meaningfulness, the impulse to do
something about it
will not be satisfied (though it may be eliminated) by putting
the scales back on, so
to speak. If one suspects that the life one has been living is
meaningless, one will
not bring meaning to it by getting therapy or taking a pill that,
without changing
one's life in any other way, makes one believe that one's life has
meaning.
To care that one's life is meaningful, then, is, according to my
proposal, to care that
one's life is actively and at least somewhat successfully engaged
in projects
(understanding this term broadly) that not just seem to have
positive value, but that
really do have it. To care that one’s life be meaningful, in other
words, is in part to
18. care that what one does with one’s life is, to pardon the
expression, at least
somewhat objectively good. We should be careful, however, not
to equate objective
goodness with moral goodness, at least not if we understand
moral value as
essentially involving benefiting or honoring humanity. The
concern for meaning in
one’s life does not seem to be the same as the concern for moral
worth, nor do our
judgments about what sorts of lives are meaningful seem to
track judgments of
moral character or accomplishment.
To be sure, some of the paradigms of meaningful lives are lives
of great moral
virtue or accomplishment – I mentioned Ghandi and Mother
Theresa, for example.
Others, however, are not. Consider Gauguin, Wittgenstein,
Tchaikovsky – morally
unsavory figures all, whose lives nonetheless seem chock full of
meaning. If one
thinks that even they deserve moral credit, for their
achievements made the world a
better place, consider instead Olympic athletes and world chess
champions, whose
accomplishments leave nothing behind but their world records.
Even more
important, consider the artists, scholars, musicians, athletes of
our more ordinary
sort. For us too, the activities of artistic creation and research,
the development of
our skills and our understanding of the world give meaning to
our lives – but they do
not give moral value to them.
19. 8
It seems then that meaning in life may not be especially moral,
and that indeed lives
can be richly meaningful even if they are, on the whole, judged
to be immoral.
Conversely, that one’s life is at least moderately moral, that it
is lived, as it were,
above reproach, is no assurance of its being moderately
meaningful. The alienated
housewife, for example, may be in no way subject to moral
criticism. (and it is
debatable whether even the Blob deserves specifically moral
censure.)
That people do want meaning in their lives, I take it, is an
observable, empirical fact.
We have already noted the evidence of self-help manuals, and
therapy groups.
What I have offered so far is an analysis of what that desire or
concern amounts to.
I want now to turn to the question of whether the desire is one
that it is good that
people have, whether, that is, there is some positive reason why
they should want
this.
At a minimum, we may acknowledge that it is at least not bad to
want meaning in
one’s life. There is, after all, no harm in it. Since people do
want this, and since
there are no moral objections to it, we should recognize the
20. concern for meaning as
a legitimate concern, at least in the weak sense that people
should be allowed to
pursue it. Indeed, insofar as meaningfulness in one’s life is a
significant factor in a
life’s overall well-being, we should do more than merely allow
its pursuit: we should
positively try to increase opportunities for people to live lives
of meaning.
Most of us, however, seem to have a stronger positive attitude
toward the value of
meaningfulness than this minimum concession admits. We do
not think it is merely
all right for people to want meaning in their lives – as it is all
right for people to like
country music, or to take an interest in figure-skating. We think
people positively
ought to care that their lives be meaningful. It is disturbing, or
at least regrettable, to
find someone who doesn’t care about this. Yet this positive
assessment ought to
strike us, at least initially, as somewhat mysterious. What is the
good, after all, of
living a meaningful life, and to whom?
Since a meaningful life is not necessarily a morally better life
than a meaningless
one (the Olympic athlete may do no more good nor harm than
the idly rich
socialite), it is not necessarily better for the world that people
try to live or even
succeed in living meaningful lives. Neither is a meaningful life
assured of being an
especially happy one, however. Many of the things that give
meaning to our lives
21. (relationships to loved ones, aspirations to achieve) make us
vulnerable to pain,
disappointment and stress. From the inside, the Blob’s hazy
passivity may be
preferable to the experience of the tortured artist or political
crusader. By
conventional standards, therefore, it is not clear that caring
about or even
succeeding in living a meaningful life is better for the person
herself.
Yet, as I have already mentioned, those of us who do care that
our lives be
meaningful tend to think that it is a positively good thing that
we do. We not only
want to live meaningful lives, we want to want this - we
approve of this desire, and
think it is better for others if they have this desire, too. If, for
example, you see a
9
person you care about conducting her life in a way that you find
devoid of worth -
she is addicted to drugs, perhaps, or just to television, or she is
overly enthusiastic
in her career as a corporate lawyer – you are apt to encourage
her to change, or at
least hope that she will find a new direction on her own. Your
most prominent worry
may well be that she is heading for a fall. You fear that at some
point she will wake
up to the fact that she has been wasting or misdirecting her life,
22. a point that may
come too late for easy remedy and will, in any case, involve a
lot of pain and self-
criticism. But the fear that she will wake up to the fact that she
has been wasting
her life (and have difficulty turning her life around) may not be
as terrible as the fear
that she won’t wake up to it. If you came to feel secure that no
painful moment of
awakening would ever come because your friend (or sister or
daughter) simply
does not care whether her life is meaningful, you might well
think that this situation
is not better but worse. We seem to think there is something
regrettable about a
person living a meaningless life, even if the person herself does
not mind that she
is. We seem to think she should want meaning in her life, even
if she doesn’t realize
it.
What, though, is the status of this “should”, the nature or source
of the regret? The
mystery that I earlier suggested we should feel about our value
in meaningfulness
is reflected in the uneasy location of this judgment. If my own
reaction to the woman
who doesn’t care whether her life is meaningful is typical, the
thought that she
should, or ought to care is closer to a prudential judgment than
it is to a moral one.
(If there is a moral objection to a person who lives a
meaningless life and is content
with that, it is not, in my opinion, a very strong one. The Blob,
after all, is not hurting
anyone, nor is the idle rich jet-setter. She may, for example,