Can I Become an Architect by Studying Online

Say you want to better yourself. You have a curious mind, and you wonder about the stuff that surrounds you—the buildings, the bridges, the patterns of roadways. How do you learn how to do all that? Are there videos to watch that would be like watching and listening to classroom lectures? Can you learn architecture online? The Answer Is Yes! Computers really have changed the way we study and interact with others. Online courses and videocasts are a wonderful way to explore new ideas, pick up a skill, or enrich your understanding of a subject area. Some universities offer entire courses with lectures and resources, free of charge. Professors and architects also broadcast free lectures and tutorials on websites like Ted Talks and YouTube. Log on from your home computer and you can see a demonstration of CAD software, hear prominent architects discuss sustainable development, or watch the construction of a geodesic dome. Participate in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) and you can interact with other distance learners on discussion forums. Free courses on the Web exist in various forms—some are actual classes and some are informal talks. The  opportunities for learning architecture online are increasing every day. Can I Be an Architect by Studying Online? Sorry, but not entirely. You can learn about architecture online, and you can even earn credits toward a degree—but rarely (if ever) will an accredited program at an accredited school offer a completely online course of study that will lead you to become a registered architect. Low-residency programs (see below) are the next best things. Online study is fun and educational, and you might be able to earn an advanced degree in architectural history, but to prepare for a career in architecture, youll need to participate in hands-on studio courses and workshops. Students who plan to become licensed architects work closely, in person, with their instructors. Although some types of college programs are available online, there is no reputable, accredited college or university that will grant a bachelors or masters degree in architecture solely on the basis of online study. As the Guide to Online Schools points out, to provide the best possible educational outcomes and career opportunities, any online course you pay for should be from an architecture program that is accredited. Choose not only an accredited school, but also choose a program accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB). In order to legally practice in all 50 states, professional architects must become registered and licensed through the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). Since 1919, NCARB has set the standards for certification and become part of the accreditation process for university architecture programs. NCARB distinguishes between professional and non-professional degrees. A Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch), Master of Architecture (M.Arch), or Doctor of Architecture (D.Arch) degree from a NAAB accredited program is a professional degree and cannot be fully accomplished by online study. Bachelor of Arts or Science Degrees in Architecture or Fine Arts are generally non-professional or pre-professional degrees and may be earned entirely online—but you cant become a registered architect with these degrees. You can study online to become an architectural historian, earn continuing education certification, or even earn advanced degrees in architectural studies or sustainability, but you cannot become a registered architect with online study alone. The reason for this is simple—would you want to go to work or live in a tall building that was designed by someone who didnt understand or have practice in how a building stands up—or falls down? Good news, however, The trend toward low-residency programs is increasing. Accredited universities like The Boston Architectural College with accredited architecture programs offer online degrees that combine online learning with some hands-on experience on campus. Students who already are working and have an undergraduate background in architecture or design can study for the professional M.Arch degree both online and with short on-campus residencies. This type of program is called low-residency, meaning you can earn a degree mostly by studying online. Low-residency programs have become a very popular add-on to professional online instruction. The Online Master of Architecture program at Boston Architectural College is part of NCARBs growing Integrated Path to Architectural Licensure (IPAL) program. Most people use online classes and lectures to supplement education instead of attaining professional degrees—to become familiar with difficult concepts, to expand knowledge, and for continuing education credits for practicing professionals. Online study can help you build your skills, keep your competitive edge, and simply experience the joy of learning new things. Where to Find Free Classes and Lectures Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs): Visit these top-rated websites to find a network of teachers and students along with free lectures, activities, and projects.Online College Courses in Architecture and Engineering: Many universities post lectures, assignments, and other resources on the Web, where you can enjoy them, at no cost. The courses are the same ones offered matriculated students, but they do not usually offer a way to interact with the instructor or other students.Ted Talks: This online video collection is a wonderful source for lively lectures about architecture and design. The lectures are short, easy-to-understand, and absolutely free. Write architecture in the search box to find grouped playlists like Amazing Creative Homes and Architectural Inspiration and individual videos like  Rachel Armstrongs  Architecture That Repairs Itself and Design at the Intersection of Technology and Biology by Neri Oxman.Open Education Database: Search for courses and degrees in a va riety of subject areas, including structural engineering, sustainability, and interior design. For learners of all levels.YouTube.com: Use the search box on the home page and youll find a variety of free videos about architecture. Examples include What Is Architecture? by MAYA Design and CAD Tutorials by Revit architecture. Remember that anybody can upload content to the Web. This is what makes online learning filled with warnings and stipulations. The Internet has very few filters to validate information, so you may want to look for presentations that have already been evaluated—for example, TED Talks are vetted more than YouTube videos. Source Difference Between NAAB-Accredited and Non-Accredited Programs, National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.

Transparency Is Key Aspect of Corporate Governance

The boards of directors are responsible for the governance of their companies so there has to be transparency in company reporting. Transparency is key aspect of corporate governance because of implementing corporate governance this will allow stakeholders and shareholders to review and evaluate performance of management and the company this ensures that the board of directors and the executive directors of corporations act in the best interest of shareholders and the corporations. It is implemented like a form of company law it is put in place so shareholders are protected and also so that the company is run up to standards is making profits and it is a way shareholders and potential investors know they can trust the management. This is†¦show more content†¦One of the aspects of corporate governance is making managers accountable to shareholders/stakeholders, as the shareholders are the owners of the company and the managers are seen to just run the company. This means the managers are required to justify their actions and will be held responsible for any activities/actions that will affect the company and share price, this will naturally cause conflict between shareholders and managers. This is because individuals who could not have prevented these results are unfairly punished. Accurate accountability is therefore important to stakeholders/shareholders and to achieve this accountability has to be used in combination with disclosure, legitimacy and responsibility. Corporate governance helps improves accountability of a business and to stakeholders/shareholders because management regularly have to report, explain and be answerable for resulting consequences, which could lead to fines, termination of jobs etc. This is because shareholders can monitor and control company management, which corporate governance allows .It implements a comply or explain aspect, if management does not comply with certain regulations and shareholders does not agree with them then as a result it can sanction them because of noncompliance. They can do this because as it states in the Hampel report (1998) that accountability is the board’s first responsibility because it enhances the prosperity of theShow MoreRelatedHistory And Meaning Of Corporate Governance1450 Words   |  6 PagesCorporate governance is a key term to understand and it is increasingly important part of running a successful company. The system has evolved over the years, guided by the challenge s and misjudgements of the corporate world. The following guide will help you look into the history and meaning of corporate governance and find out about the core principles of it. You can also read about the key models and guidelines that help companies implement strong corporate governance in the demanding and competitiveRead MoreThe Party State Monitoring Of The State Owned Enterprise1749 Words   |  7 Pagesby entirely independent legal individuals with some anonymity to operate on the commercial basis. However, various factors influence the corporate governance in China with the critical pillars including respect for the stakeholders in the enterprise and legal protection of disclosure and transparency. Irrespective of the essence of corporate government transparency, the irony remains that the government is operated without anyone checking what is being done. The importance of the business-governmentRead MoreSetting And Enforcing Clear Lines Of Responsibility Essay1461 Words   |  6 Pages2.4.2. Setting and Enforcin g Clear Lines of Responsibility Good corporate governance needs effective and appropriate regulatory, legal and institutional basis. A variety of elements which including the laws and regulatory framework, and financial accounting standards have an effect on the setting of clear lines of responsibility on auditing (Chiang, 2005). Effective enforcement of clear responsibility is thus necessary to identify who is responsible for auditing in the organization so as not toRead MoreCase Study: War at the Helm of Elicor1195 Words   |  5 Pagesthe company as CEO in 1993. Along with the accelerated growth of the company, Mr. Simons arrogance also increases which leads him to contravene board directives and abide to his own set of rules in managing the company. 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Authors suggest that to develop a clear understanding of any social system is important to clearly emphasize on the key institutional spheresRead MoreHong Kong Establishing an Audit Committee for Companies799 Words   |  3 Pagesindependent non executive of director wit sufficientand appropriate financial experience. Shareholders should be provided with information about the composition, role and function of the audit committee in order to assess its effectiveness. Corporate Governance Disclosure Source Details of the composition of the audit committee, the work undertaken during the year and the number of times the audit committee met during the year. GR Details of the composition of the audit committee. 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Good corporate governance and complexity of sustainable development demands for global cooperation, based mainly on joint co-ordination of strategies and adopting of the best decisions. 1.1 Definition of sustainable Development: the term sustainable development was popularized in our common futureRead MoreAccounting Theory Assignment 21710 Words   |  7 Pagesaccountability of directors to shareholders and companies to creditors. As companies grow larger and become more integrated with the society, this call for a focus towards sustainability and being accountable to a wider range of stakeholders (Perks, 1993). 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What Race and Ethnicity Means Free Essays

It seems as if some people still want to separate us depending on the color of our skin. Being that there’s so many races mixing, there’s no such thing as a pure race. Race seems to be unimportant to me. We will write a custom essay sample on What Race and Ethnicity Means or any similar topic only for you Order Now Ethnicity is a word that I prefer and enjoy when speaking of culture. Ethnicity makes me think of everybody’s struggle dating back from their ancestors to the present. Where did your ancestors originate? Where did you come from? Ethnicity is ones background and cultural differences.For example just because I am considered black doesn’t mean that I am from Africa; which means that I will be considered an African American. I thought for years that I was an African American till an African man that I was friends with broke it down to me and gave me some knowledge to read. He is considered an African American because he’s from Africa and now resides in America. I am considered to be a black American because I’m from America. This is weird being that my ancestors were American Indians.Your ethnicity is the group that others place you. I do have my personal opinion on all of this and why America still tries to identify us by race. Since my opinion was asked I felt the need to tell the truth on how I feel. Race and ethnicity are important in America because some people in the government still strives for division and don’t want us to come together as one. It seems as if the government gets more powerful when we separate ourselves from each other. If we all were to come together I feel as if they would consider us as a threat. How to cite What Race and Ethnicity Means, Papers

The Influences of Candide’s Development free essay sample

The story Candide or Optimism, written in 1759 by Francois Marie Arouet De Voltaire, is about a young man who experiences many misfortunes and who is exceptionally naive. His development throughout his journey in life is contributed and influenced by the people he comes in contact with. In the story, Candide has the opportunity to experience many different views on philosophical optimism by meeting different people who have all suffered from different experiences and misfortunes. Some of these people, such as Pangloss, Cacambo, and Martin are individuals who had a major impact on Candide’s development and perspective of life. Candide is a good-hearted but an extremely naive young man. His mentor Pangloss teaches him that their world is â€Å"the best of all possible worlds. †(Candide, 521) Candide travels the world and comes in contact with a variety of misfortunes. He idealizes Pangloss and his teachings, and continuously tries to apply these teachings to his life. As he is applying these teachings, he suffers from a series of misfortunes. His faith in Pangloss’ optimism is repeatedly tested. Due to Candide believing in Pangloss’ sayings, he does not have an opinion on many things. Candide is definitely â€Å"extremely ignorant of the ways of the world,† (523). The fact Candide can not make decisions for himself, causes his actions and opinions to mainly be determined and influenced by his surrounding factors. He is a less realistic character due to his innocence, simply because he accepts as true everything his tutor Pangloss tells him. Candide’s vulnerability unfortunately leads him to many misfortunes, which painfully teaches him about reality. The character Pangloss is Candide’s philosophical tutor. Pangloss’ optimistic philosophy contrasted greatly with the events that were occurring in Candide’s life. Often throughout the story, many disastrous things happened to Candide, but he continued to believe Pangloss. Although Pangloss’ own experiences throughout life contradict his belief, he remained faithful to the belief that â€Å"everything is for the best in this best of all possible worlds† (521). Pangloss, just like Candide is an unrealistic character. He too, is somewhat hopeful and refuses to accept bad, believing he could make their world a better place with his none sense optimism. As Candide continues to come in contact with all these misfortunes, it shows that Candide was a faithful young man, and indeed was a true believer in Pangloss’ theory that all was well in their world. Pangloss also taught Candide that â€Å"things cannot be otherwise than they are, since everything is made to serve an end† (521). Pangloss’ philosophy is stating that everything has a purpose and everything that happens, happens for a reason. No matter how bad things might be going, it is for a good cause and can only be as bad if one believes it to be. Cacambo is also one of Candide’s companions on his journey. He also acts as an advisor and a guide for Candide and helps him develop some knowledge towards the ways of the world. Unlike any other character in the novel, Cacambo is honest and highly intelligent. Cacambo shows confidence through his intelligence and moral unrighteousness. He is a good man, as well as kind and generous. Cacambo pushes Candide to view the world as it really is, instead of following Pangloss’ philosophy of â€Å"the best of all possible worlds. † He wants Candide to understand that bad things happen in the world and that everything is not good. During the journey, Cacambo is always able to get himself and Candide out of trouble with his quick thinking and advanced knowledge. He has good sense and knowledge and is able to make things better, whereas Candide always make a troubled situation even harder with his lack of knowledge and his inexperience in the world. The time Candide spent with Cacambo during his journey was a positive influence on the young man. Even though Candide did not have the analytical skills as Cacambo, he shows growth in self-sufficient decisions by the influences of Cacambo. The last and final character that had an influence on Candide’s development was a scholar named Martin. Martin is the third of Candide’s companions and advisers. His beliefs are completely opposite of those of Pangloss. Martin, just like the others has also suffered from a series of calamities. Identical to Cacambo, Martin is more intelligent than Candide and Pangloss. He is a more realistic character because he is scholarly and more likely to draw reasonable conclusions. In a conversation between Martin and Candide, Martin tells him â€Å"I find that everything goes wrong in our world† (561). He has difficulty seeing the world as it actually is and one can conclude that Martin constantly expects nothing but the worst to happen. He teaches Candide to see that the world is full of bad and evil just like Cacambo did. He also shows him the world is not all well as he once believed from listening to the philosophy of Pangloss. The conclusion of Candide would not be possible without the many changes that had taken place within Candide. During one point in the story Candied began to lose faith in Pangloss after seeing the horrific events that happened before him. â€Å"Oh Pangloss, you had no notion of these abominations! I’m through, I must give up your optimism after all† (552). At this time Candied began to have second thoughts on everything his tutor has taught him, yet he still kept the faith hoping that things really were for the good. Through his many experiences, Candied realized the impossibility of philosophical optimism. With the help of Pangloss, Cacambo, and Martin, as well as his experiences and observations, he learned to come up with his own solutions and acquired the ability to judge for himself, all which was apart of the development of Candide.

Terrorism And Security In The Olympics Essays -

Terrorism And Security In The Olympics Terrorism and Security in the Olympics Security is a fundamental notion in sports. Nowadays athletes are viewed often through the media, therefore they are recognizable. In the Olympics security measures must be taken to protect the athletes. There are many different nationalities involved therefore security has to be taken in order to ensure that there aren't conflicting views that could possibly be damaging towards another team. But quite often it cannot be prevented. On the morning of September 5, 1972, the members of the Israeli delegation awoke in their quarters in the Olympic village to the desperate cries of wrestling referee Joseph Gottfreund. Eight Arab commandos (from the Palestinian terrorist organization Black September) broke into the Olympic compound in Munich. In an attempt to create time for an escape, Joseph Gottfreund tried to block off the door to the quarters in order to stall the intruders. He told his colleagues to leave the premises. The terrorist shot and killed him immediately along with Yaakov Springer, the weightlifting referee. Those in the adjoining apartments who were not woken by the muffled cries were woken from the sounds of machine guns. The commandos then took nine others of the eighteen-member Israeli Olympic team hostage. They then settled into the compound for a siege. The terrorists imprisoned and tied up the athletes and their coaches inside the apartments. They were moved into one of the delegates' room where they were guarded by eight of the terrorists. Their weapons included sub-machine guns, pistols and grenades. Moshe Weinberg, a wrestling referee, and Joseph Romano, a weightlifter, were killed during an effort to free themselves from the terrorists. Their reasons for holding the Israelis hostage were that they wanted to persuade the release of two hundred Arab guerrillas that were being held in Israel. The terrorists demanded that the prisoners be flown from Israel to an Arab country, allowing them free passage. West German officials negotiated with the Arab commandos with the help of the Tunisian Ambassador and the representative of the Arab League from Bonn. But unfortunately, this has no effect on what the commandos were trying to accomplish. Their demands were unreasonable, and the Israeli side would not budge from its views. In an attempt to save some of the Israeli hostages, two West German ministers of the interior offered themselves as replacements for the hostages. The Arabs refused this offer. It was obvious that the negotiations over the release of the hostages were not going to work. A new plan was put into effect. West German officials started to focus their time on getting the Arabs and their hostages out of the Olympic Village. This would allow German sharpshooters to put some control over the commandos. This seemed like a better alternative a pose to storming the compound and dangering the lives of the Israeli hostages and other athletes. Negotiations lasted until shortly after 9:00 p.m. The West Germans has successfully persuaded the Arab commandos to leave the compound with their hostages. The commandos agreed to leave on a flight to an Arab country together with their hostages. They made their was towards the Furstenfeldbruck military airport, a fifteen mile trek away from Munich. The Arab commandos anticipated that something could threaten their plans. In order to control their hostages they split them up into two groups and tied and blindfolded them. They were also aware of two potential traps the West Germans had set for them. The sharpshooters were placed along the path the Arab commandos had to walk their hostage's two helicopters that had flown them from Munich to a waiting jet. The nine Israeli sportsmen were led out handcuffed to each other to two helicopters, which were to fly them to the airport. This was the only opportunity the West Germans had to prevent the Arabs from leaving the country. As the first group of Arabs and hostages walked to the jet, shots rang out. No one is certain who opened fire first (be it the West German Sharpshooters or the Arab commandos). However when the West Germans began firing, or firing back, that was the beginning of the shooting of the Israeli hostages. The second commando group had barely left their

Members of Congress by Profession

Members of Congress by Profession There are lots of professional politicians, those solons who hop from one elective office to another and always land on their feet - or at the helm of some federal agency or even in the Senate - because theres no such thing as statutory term limits  and theres no way to recall them. But many members of Congress came from real professions before being elected.  There have been actors, comedians, talk-show hosts, famous journalists and all sorts of doctors who have served in the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate.   Members of Congress By  Profession So who are these people and what did they do? There are the obvious non-politicians: actor and President Ronald Reagan,  Songwriter Sonny Bono was one-half of Sonny and Cher,  one of the most popular rock duos  of the 1960s and early 1970s,  author and  talk-show host  Al Franken, who  was  best known for his role on  Saturday Night Live.  Who can forget professional wrestler Jesse The Body Ventura, whose political resume ended at governor of Minnesota? But what about the common members of Congress? Where did they come from? What were their professions? Business and Law Data compiled regularly by the Washington, D.C., publication Roll Call and the Congressional Research Service have found that the most common professions held by burgeoning members of the House and Senate are in law, business and education. In the 113th Congress, for example, nearly a fifth of the 435 House members and 100 senators worked in education, either as teachers, professors, school counselors, administrators or coaches, according to the Roll Call and Congressional Research data. There were twice as many lawyers and businessmen and businesswomen. Professional Politicians The most common profession among members of Congress, though, is that of a public servant. Thats a nice-sounded term for a career politician. More than half of our U.S. senators served in the House, for example. But there are dozens of former small-town mayors, state governors, former judges, ex-state lawmakers, one-time congressional staffers, sheriffs and FBI agents, just to name a few. More Unusual Professions Of course, not everyone in Congress is a lawyer or professional politician or celebrity seeking to make a serious name for himself or herself. Some of the other jobs held by members of Congress include the following: Car dealerRodeo AnnouncerWelderFuneral home ownerSoftware engineerPhysicianDentists  Veterinarians  PsychiatristPsychologistsOptometristNurse  MinisterPhysicistEngineerMicrobiologist  Radio talk show host  JournalistAccountantPilotAstronautProfessional football playerFilmmaker  FarmerAlmond orchard ownerVintner  FishermanSocial workerStockbroker Are You Thinking of Running for Office? Before you launch that presidential campaign, there are some things you ought to know. These dentists and stockbrokers and astronauts didnt just jump headfirst into politics. Most were involved, whether it was through volunteering with campaigns, becoming members of the local party committees, giving money to super PACs or other political action committees and serving in small, unpaid municipal positions.

Human resources and strategic planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Human resources and strategic planning - Essay Example Human resource management constitutes an area of management that has embraced strategy management as dynamics continue to characterize business function and people in the organization. Today, convectional human resource practices can no longer be the basis to respond to the needs of market demands in the modern world and this has forced many organizations to remain adept in identifying the best management practices. As organizations look for the best practices of management, it is always advisable that, organizations should identify and adopt human resources practices that fit with the organization’s competitive business strategies (Savage 2010). This will ensure the practices are not outside the goals of the business in the market hence greater success is likely to be achieved. Many organizations adopt two basic human resource strategies. They include universalistic approach and contingency approach (Savage, 2010). Universalistic approach is concerned in identifying the best practices that can be used by diverse organizations (Savage, 2010). On the other hand, contingency approach is concerned with identifying practices that match and align human resource practices with competitive business strategies (Savage, 2010). Adopting any of these two strategies depend on varied factors that each unique organization has, therefore, it is always important for an organization to carry out thorough business and environmental scanning to know the position of the business before deciding to adopt any of the strategies. Human Resource Practices Human resource has been identified to play key role to an organization especially where an organization is attempting to asserts in the market and achieve competitive edge. Strategic human resource management has emerged as an area of human resource management that looks at Functionability of business from an innovative perspective. According to this new field, organizations are not insulated from looking for the best and appro priate strategies that can help them achieve established goals and objectives in the business environment. At the same time, strategic decisions are seen to give an organization an upper hand in determining the level of participation in the dynamic business environment (Allani, Arcand, and Bayad, 2003). Therefore, by innovating best practices to apply in the business or organization, the management may just be motivated by desire to have the best policies and practices in place that accelerate and enhance the performance of the organization as compared to its competitors. Two empirical approaches have emerged to explain the strategic decision-making in an organization as far as human resource management is concerned. The approaches consent that an organization cannot be effective and properly functional if it does not identify the best practices of managing people (Allani, Arcand, and Bayad, 2003). In addition, for human resource management to be effective, they should be seen to in crease performance for the organization. Universalistic approach is the first approach perfect human resource management practices can be identified. This approach postulates that, there are human resource practices that are better than others are, and all organizations have the responsibility of adopting the identified best practices. Accordingly, the approach establishes that there is a universal relationship between an individual identified practice and the performance of the organization that adopt the practice (Armstrong, 2012). Contingency approach, which is another approach widely used, hold slight contradiction position when compared with universalistic approach. The contingency approach posits that organization cannot divorce from the particulate aspects in the organization if it has to achieve the best strategy of management (Armstrong, 2012).

Plato and a More Definitive Understanding of Art and Philosophy Essay

Plato and a More Definitive Understanding of Art and Philosophy - Essay Example Plato bases his argument upon several highly subjective and controversial premises: a) art in the Republic should first be didactic with the purpose of inculcating the virtues of being a good person, b) Those who merely seek the reflections of the forms and not the forms themselves are not artists and c) Most people view illusions as reality; only the artists/philosophers see the light. Naturally, theses statements not only represent a great range of issues, they encourage detractors to focus upon the inherent flaws and weaknesses that are therein represented. In this way, the following essay will seek to provide the reade with an informed understanding of the inherent weakness of Plato’s approach to the issue of art/philosophy. Naturally, the first level of argument which can be discussed is with regards to how Plato defines virtue. As one might expect, many pages and indeed entire passages of Plato’s work have been concentric on defining virtue in the means through wh ich it can be maximized within our world. However, with that being said, it must be understood that virtue within the specific delineation of what defines arts and how it should be represented to the populace is ultimately a subjective understanding. In such a way, by promoting the belief that art should only be exhibited if it entails the possibility of fostering virtue and promoting the â€Å"goodness† of the person is something that cannot be defined by a single understanding and should not be presented as the benchmark by which art should be manifested. By providing something of a tangential analysis, the author can point to the fact that Nazi Germany fostered what they understood to be a â€Å"virtuous† society that fostered the goodness of the stakeholders that they deemed fit to be included within such a definition. Moreover, the totalitarianism of the Third Reich was not only visited upon the way in which ethnic minorities were treated, it also was expanded to the way in which political ideology, philosophy, and indeed art itself was presented. It does not take a great deal of historical analysis to point to the fact that the third right was heavily involved in promoting its own version of what art and artistry should entail. So much was the Third Reich interested in this specific understanding of redefining art that they even presented their own populace a traveling art exhibit which was dubbed as â€Å"degenerate art†. The ultimate purpose for referencing the third right within this understanding of Plato’s virtuous end good definition of art is with respect to the fact appointed to the ultimate subjectivity that a society and/or an individual may ascribe with regards to the way that art can and should look. Such inherent weakness points to the fact that an all-inclusive and simplistic definition of how art should be manifested should be shined and the individual should seek a more realistic delineation of the way in which art is defined and represented within a particular society/group. Another noted shortcoming with regards to Plato’s definition of art/philosophy and the means by which it should be integrated with the populace is with respect to the fact that he denotes that those who merely seek the reflections of the forms and not for themselves are not artists. Although it is with great respect that this author approaches the writings an understanding of Plato, it must also be understood that what is being referenced within this particular definition of what art should and should not be is a highly personal view upon what defines this genre. Ultimately, the definition of who is responsible for reflecting these forms and not focusing upon the form itself is a definitive right of the philosopher/artist to represent the subject matter in the

Uptake of heavy metals (arsenic and lead) by earthworms in a Literature review

Uptake of heavy metals (arsenic and lead) by earthworms in a contaminated soils - Literature review Example Despite healthy soil formed in the absence of earthworms, their presence within the soil indicates the soil is productive. As a result of the tedious activities by earthworms their importance for the soil community includes enhancing mixing and aggregation of soil (Weeks et al 2004, p.820). While looking for food, Weeks et al. (2004, p.821) observe that, earthworms engage in a task of moving to the surface and back down, ingesting particles of soil and other organic substances in their way. Further, earthworms excrete the substances it takes in to the soil, and the excreted matter by the earthworms, are nutrient-dense casts. The result in this sense, involves a process that shift the top layer of soil down to the lower strata, and dragging the bottom soil to the upper surface. When earthworms burrow through the dust, this enhances the soil structure by loosening the soil that are compact and establish numerous tunnels under the surface. The importance of such tunnels includes enhancing soil porosity and creating pathways that allows the intake of water and air into the soil. The process further facilitates absorption and the retention of water, and minimizing run offs and soil erosion (Weeks et al 2004, p.822). ... the soil surface and in the process, mix the organic material as a result of tearing the organic materials and depositing these materials deep within the soil. Their cast also deposits on the soils surface thus, contributing to the soil content. In addition, they enhance bacteria and fungi activity in the soil that consumes organic materials and transforming these materials to humus. Earthworms largely, forms part of the food web within the soil, which presents a large community, composed of organism that plays a significant role in soil formation. In the same note, soil food web encompasses soil-inhabiting organisms that include algae, insects, plants, reptiles, fungi and small mammals. The organisms, impacts on soil formation through burrowing, breaking down materials (both animal and plant materials) that is significant in adding organic matter when they die. Earthworms often provide a food source to the soil community and their cast is important in facilitating the survival of ot her organisms within the soil community. They assist in terms of facilitation the provision of oxygen, water and nutrition for other organisms (Hobbelen et al 2006, p.644). The ecological groups of earthworms and their feeding behaviors According to ecology studies on soils by Nahmani, Hodson and Black (2007, p.402), that focuses on linkages between fauna and microbes, identifies earthworms, as a significant soil invertebrate within the ecosystem and contributes, to biomass and activity which operate as ecosystem engineers. Nahmani et al (2007, p.402) agree that, soil consists of various microorganisms and forms part of earthworm’s diet. In this regard, three ecological groups related to earthworms and their feeding behaviors, exists in literature. They include epigeic, which is

The Impact Of The Internet On Entrepreneur Ventures

The Impact Of The Internet On Entrepreneur Ventures Introduction: In recent years, internet is more and more popular and closely to people in a variable fields. Internet was used as a tool for helping them to connect and seeking information or advising what they need. Almost entrepreneurs also use this tool as a part of creating successfully for their business but sometimes it also creates some problem. Some negative impacts of internet on the entrepreneur venture such as security or lost productivity that make the entrepreneur take a lot of problem. However, almost impacts of the internet on entrepreneurial ventures is good such as raise the capacity of accessing information through internet, increase communicate capability among entrepreneurs and others people, help to achieve the target specific venture firm, increase the efficiency of the submission process and specially support marketing strategy. Impact of the internet on entrepreneur ventures: Internet is a worldwide network of networks. It is also the network of networks that connects millions computers (called hosts). The Internet is the virtual space in which users send and receive email, login to remote computers (telnet), browse databases of information (gopher, World Wide Web, WAIS), and send and receive programs (ftp) contained on these computers. (linux.about.com, 2010) Negative impacts of internet can make the entrepreneur ventures have to face the risk such as security leak, hence they must find the ways to control and limit these problems. However, it is no doubt that internet has much more positive impact on the entrepreneur venture. As I mention below, I will discuss about the impact of internet on entrepreneur ventures and illustrate with some example to demonstrate the benefit of using internet. Firstly, the most effective impact of internet is the security of the information. Many businesses conducted online get the trouble and it becomes majors concerns. There are a number of cases which the transactions are able to become unsafe because the information can be leaked out when entrepreneur use internet in taking transaction. An example is in day by day transactions, major security threats such as hackers, virus, or e-terrorism. Breaches of security such as thefts of data and information on several occasions are able to lead investors or customers to question the safety of doing business online, which can hurt business further by lowering confidence levels. However, internet can push the ability to quick access more information of the entrepreneur ventures. The rich and sufficient of the internet help the businessman to search and find any information and data that are being supported for their plans. As can be seen, internet creates the wide environment business for all bus inessmen and it innovate the businessmen to search for business opportunities or investors whose are the same ideas and goal in business. Long times ago, when the internet have not yet development, the entrepreneurs had to waste a long time to find the information that might support for their business through books, newspaper, radio and others sources, however, these information might be not enough. Moreover, they just only collect information in a small area such as in their own country or several countries around them. The limitation of the information made many companies not able to connect and update the development of the world, hence the economic was limited. Today, basing on internet, the entrepreneurs can find and seek to whatever they want such as information of the competitors, update news of the business environment in the world, thus it is easier for entrepreneurs to catch up with orientations of the world market. Hence, if the entrepreneur can control the data security system, backup data and training employees, internet can support to the entrepreneur take the full advantage of it. Secondly, another impact of internet on entrepreneur ventures is the employees productivity. As can be seen, the entrepreneur ventures often worry that using the internet at work will reduce the jobs performance because their employees do not focus on their job or neglect their duty in the working hours. It is a fact that workers spend a substantial amount of their workday replying to personal email, web surfing, following live sporting events and so on. Even for scenarios in which employees are not required with computers, the availability of wireless internet on phone and other mobile devices creates a constant swarm of distraction that can cut into work time. But it is undeniable that internet can enhance communicate capability among entrepreneurs, their staffs and their partners. Some companies are using the internet to make indirect connections with their customer or intensify relations with some their trading partners for the first time. Using the internet technologies and acce ss options has expanded the capabilities of laptops, desktops and workstation. Thus, businessmen are able to communicate with each other via email, office intranet, local area networks, install message programs and wide area networks. In addition, internet is always up to date and it requires users improve themselves to control and taking full advantages from this tool. The entrepreneur ventures exchange news and information with their employees and their partners through internet such as information about analyse of finance, new potential competitors, the strategies to develop their product, the view of the others businessmen or the experience and strategies of the success businessman and so on. After that, the entrepreneur venture might be collect this information to evaluate the global market and fix the best strategy for their business. Therefore, internet makes entrepreneurs dynamic and catches up with changing of the world. Thirdly, internet is ability to affect on achieving the target specific venture firm. The information from internet allows a better understanding of the requirement connect with venture planning as well as providing a window into what the venture community perceives. The businessman can easily discover the potential market or hot areas in which to invest. An example is venture capitalist. The seekers submit their business plan to companies where they have the best chance of receiving funds. The ventures capitalists receive the types of applications and choosing what they are most interest in. Therefore, the entrepreneurs have a much larger selection of firms to work with, a better chance for a successful investment and a better in the relationships. In addition, the business plans online and applications can be accepted by some venture firms. The venture capitalist often considered business plans brought to their attention through industry contracts or previous clients in traditional ly. But now these limitations are changing because the venture firms use a web presence to open their doors to all entrepreneurs. Besides, the entrepreneur uses email to exchange executive summaries of business plans. All of partners can share a common mail server and it also allows people to route plans quicker because they can work at work or at home or even to read submissions when they are on the road. Internet also provides the system to support business. It allows members easy access to the pool of sources; it limited the resources available to outsiders and non-members. Moreover, the entrepreneur use internet to research reports, information on who is working on what technology, news and so on. Internet also allow the entrepreneurial ventures to use personal resources to stay abreast of what is happening, providing a quantum leap in productivity. Finally, internet also impact on the process to build image and reputation for the business. The entrepreneur ventures use their own website as a tool to closer with the world market. Internet helps customers to connect with the website of the company to find whatever they needs and wants. Website with its ability to create and display colourful graphic, sound, animation and video allows companies to compete and surpass with their large rivals Web presence. In particular, many small businesses with the limitation of capital and their power, they are not ability to match their marketing efforts of their large competitions, thus, using the website through internet that it is the best way for them to achieve the great equalizer. A business with a proper marketing strategy in place, it uses the web to expand its ability to provide customer service at minimal cost. The potential customers in all over the world just only need to click on the website and they can know about the product or s ervices of the company. In consequence, the entrepreneurs do not necessary to waste a lot of money for advertising in other media such as television or radio. Besides, products can be sold or ordered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year without the need for support staff. Hence, it can help to reduce the extra costs that are associated with ordering. In addition, using website allows entrepreneurs to support both existing and potential customers with meaningful information in an interactive rather than the passive setting. Company might display what they want to advertise for their customers such as background of the company and its history, kinds of products and services, benefit that customer can achieve and video of its product and service in use and so on. On the other hand, customers can collect information about a product or service, have their question answered, and place order easily and so on. One of the examples that internet and website help entrepreneur to expand the business is the case of Jill Anne Partain. She has a company that make unique handbags, and she received $500 as a college graduation gift. She chooses Lexington in Virginia instead of New York to locate her business and using her companys website to sell handbags. Ignorance a lot of the ideas which Partain think that they would be the ideal location for her business, she choose website. Partain explained since she was selling over the web, it did not matter where her manufacture is. Now, her company turn out about 5000 handbags a year and more than $ 1.3 million in sales from one of those old converted Virginia textile mills. It is easily to realize that Partain have a big success and benefit when she use website as a best strategy to connect her product with her customers. She set up her company in a small city where not a fashion capital is. However, basing on internet and website, a lot of shopaholics are still attracted and persuaded by her handbags design. Thus, the amount of handbags and profit that she achieves, are more and more increasingly. Conclusion: In conclusion, the impact of the internet on the entrepreneur venture is very enormous and it plays more and more important in the improvement of the business in the global economic. Although using the internet also have many problems, nevertheless, if the entrepreneur venture know how to solve these problem, they can solve their jobs better; information can be update faster, people can connect easier. For that reason, if the entrepreneur ventures know how to control and use internet, they will achieve great success in their business. 2) Discuss the importance of environmental issues and opportunities that can be tapped by entrepreneurs. Introduction: The importance of entrepreneurship to any economy is like that of entrepreneurship in any community. Entrepreneurial activity and the resultant financial gain are always of benefit to a country. Therefore, every country in the world has entrepreneurs, people who are creative and willing to take risks. But not all economies encourage their entrepreneurs to succeed in developing new products, ideas or services and getting them to consumers. An economic system must provide incentives that encourage entrepreneurs to risk trying something new. The most important incentives for entrepreneurs are the opportunities and environmental factors. Opportunity: Most entrepreneurial firms are started with finding the opportunities. The opportunity is very importance. It is a favourable set of circumstances that creates the need for a new product, service, or business idea. An opportunity has four essential qualities: it is attractive, durable, timely and anchored in a product, service or business that creates or adds value for its buyer or end user. The entrepreneurs usually use three ways to identify an opportunity. There are observing trends, solving a problem and finding Gaps in the marketplace. Entrepreneurial opportunities as situations in which new goods, services, raw materials, markets and organizing methods can be introduced through the formation of new means, ends, or means-ends relationships. These situations do not need to change the terms of economic exchange to be entrepreneurial opportunities, but only need to have the potential to alter the terms of economic exchange. In addition, unlike optimizing or satisfying decisions, in which the ends that the decision maker is trying to achieve and the means that the decision maker will employ are given, entrepreneurial decisions are creative decisions. One of the important opportunities is window of opportunity. When the window of opportunity open, it can help a firm enters a new market. As the market grows, firm enter and try to establish a profitable position. The computer, for example, paved the way for the Internet, which, in turn, paved the way for search engines and software to explore the World Wide Web, which, in turn, created a new way for people to shop and obtain valuable information, and on and on. A wealthy economy is one teeming with superior contributions and the entrepreneurial opportunities created by them. Opportunities can also be classified on whether the changes that generate them exist on the demand or the supply side. In general, the entrepreneurship literature implicitly focuses on supply side changes. For example, most discussions of opportunity concern changes in inputs, ways of organizing, production processes, or products. But changes in demand alone can generate opportunities. Customer preferences influence the allocation of resources because producers need to respond to the preferences and purchasing habits of consumers. Thus, demand changes from exogenous shifts in culture, perception, tastes, or mood can open up opportunities, as in the case of demand for American flags in response to a terrorist attack. The opportunity is created if the increase in demand outpaces investments in production capacity, generating opportunities to add more capacity, perhaps on more economic terms. In addition, growing markets might create new niches as well as the opportunity to specialize In fact, the entrepreneurs improve established products and services, or they create new ones. With them, the opportunities that can find in the recent business are very important. Therefore, they must use every condition to develop these opportunities. For example, the discovery that seaweed could be sold as a food in the United States as well as Japan generates the opportunity for entrepreneurial activity, as did the discovery that oil provided a better fuel than many other raw materials previously discovered. In brief, new methods of production, such as the assembly line or computer-aided drug discovery, have provided opportunities for entrepreneurial profit. The creation of a new good or service can create an opportunity for entrepreneurial profit, as is the case when the development of accounting software or a surgical device makes possible a product or service that can be sold for greater than its cost of production. However, as we have seen from the development of the Internet, new modes of organizing that do not require bricks and mortar locations also generate opportunities for entrepreneurial profit. Opportunity conditions are defined by the amount, variety, and source of feasible solutions. For example, some industries may benefit from advances in basic scientific understanding, such as biotechnology or semiconductors, while others may not. Opportunity conditions are most favourable when for a given investment the likelihood of achieving innovation is high and when it is possible to use a single development for multiple solutions. Environmental issues: Economic Forces: When study how economic forces affect opportunities, it is important to evaluate who has money to spend and who is trying to cut costs. As more teens enter the workforce, demand increases for products they buy, such as designer clothing, mobile phone, and concert tickets or backpacking tour for instance, took off so rapidly in part because teenagers have grow levels of cash to spend. In additional, Economic forces affect consumers level of disposable income. When income is high, people are more willing to buy products or services that enhance their lives. For examples, In Vietnam, the economy is developing. There are many rich people. They spend a lot of money to buy big house, luxury car or clothes of famous brand name. These are the opportunities for entrepreneurs invest or produce more quality products to service customers in there. Besides that, an increase in the number of women in the workforce and their related increase in disposable income is large responsible for the number of boutique clothing stores targeting professional women that have opened in the past several years. Another trend that is affected by economic factors is pressure on firms to improve their economic performance. Furthermore, many entrepreneurs have taken advantage of this trend by starting firms that help other firms control costs. In the chemical industry, for example, ChemConnect (founded in 1995) provides an online marketplace to make it less expensive for chemical companies to buy and sell chemicals on a global scale. Moreover, an industry might face macro-level inefficient allocation of resources, such as investments in large-scale production facilities that serve markets with cyclical demand. These cyclical enterprises are frequently accompanied by rising demand and poor performance, are typically profitable only at peak points in the industry cycle, and therefore signal that a superior business model or production plan may be more profitable. Social Forces: An understanding of the impact of social forces on trends and how they affect new product, service, and business ideas is a fundamental piece of the opportunity recognition puzzle. For example, the Sony Walkman was developed not because customers wanted smaller radios, but because people wanted to listen to music while on the move- while riding the subway and while exercising. Besides that, Shifts in societal demographics also generate and close off opportunities. For example, the aging of the baby boomers generates opportunities for reallocation of resources from products and services to children to products and services for the elderly and the growth of the Hispanic population in some areas of the United States has produced opportunities to start Spanish radio stations. Additional recent social trends that allow for new opportunities are the following: Family and work patterns The aging of the population The increasing diversity in the workplace The globalization of industries The increasing focus on health care and fitness The proliferation of computers and the Internet The continual increase in the number of cell phone users New forms of music and other types of entertainment Technological advances: The advances in technology frequently dovetail with economic and social changes to create opportunities. Many e-commerce sites are technological marvels, allowing a customer to order products, pay for them, and choose how quickly they are shipped. But again, it is not so much the technology that makes e-commerce attractive. The ultimate reason most people buy online is because they are busy and prefer to shop when they have free time rather than being restricted to traditional store hours and store location. Another aspect of technological advances is that once a technology is created, products often emerge to advance it. For example, RealNetworks was launched to add video capabilities to the Internet, which took the Internet to the next level. Moreover, the technological advances often provide opportunities to help people satisfy basic needs in better or more convenient way. In many areas peoples needs dont change over time. For instance, people who share have always wanted to minimize the number of nicks and shaving time and get as close a shave as possible. These and other shaving-related desires will probably never change. Political Action and Regulatory Changes: Political and regulatory changes also provide the basis for opportunities. For example, new laws create opportunities for entrepreneurs to start firms to help companies comply with these laws. The exercise of government power influences the volume, distribution, and types of opportunities available. For example, government actions to manage the macro-economy, such as efforts to change the money supply or interest rates influence entrepreneurial opportunities. Similarly, regulatory intervention has altered the structure of industries thereby creating opportunities for new entrants. Anti-trust and deregulation of industries by the United States Government has created opportunities in industries such as telecommunications, airlines, trucking, railroads, banking, and natural gas. Besides, in the electric power industry, for example, government actions have influenced the variety and amount of entrepreneurial opportunities. In that industry, federal regulation has (1) changed the market s tructure; (2) created markets through the establishment of purchasing guidelines for alternative power producers; and (3) regulated returns on capital. Political change also engenders new business and product opportunities. For instance, global political instability and the threat of terrorism have resulted in many firms becoming more security conscious. These companies need new products and services to protect their physical assets and intellectual property as well as to protect their customers and employees. Conclusion: The purpose of this part was to clarify the role of opportunities and environmental issues in the entrepreneurial process. It helps us make the successful business in the future. Besides that, finding the opportunities and evaluating the environment factors also help us to choose the perfect strategies to do business. Words: 3705 Reference Lists: Online: Juergen Haas, about.com guide 2010. Internet, viewed 28 March 2010, < http://linux.about.com/cs/linux101/g/Internet.htm> Dennis Hartman 1999. Negative impact of the internet on the business, viewed 1 April 2010, Jonathan T. Eckhardt, Scott A. Shane 2003, Journal of Management , 29(3) 333-3 , viewed 7 April 2010, Book: Thomas W. Zimmerer and Norman M. Scarborough, (2005). Essentials of entrepreneurship and small business management. 4th edition, Prentice Hall, chapter 6, p.203 Barringer, Bruce and Ireland, Duane (2008) Entrepreneurship Successfully Launching New Ventures, 2nd edn, Pearson International.

Process Drama Essay -- Theatre

Drama according to the Wikipedia free encyclopedia is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance, which comes from a Greek word (drao) meaning action. A dramatic production depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes, it put the characters in conflict with themselves, others, society and even natural phenomena. According to Learning Stream, â€Å"drama is a literary composition involving conflict, action crisis and atmosphere designed to be acted by characters on a stage before an audience.† Process drama according free Wikipedia encyclopedia is a method of teaching and learning, where both the students and teacher are working in and out of role. Cecily O'Neill, Brian Way (et al) (1995) further postulates that it is a teaching methodology used to explore a problem, situation, theme or series of related ideas. Process drama is unscripted; it eliminates some of the elements that other genres of drama consist such as a script and writing and memorizing of the script. It entails mostly the use o language skills, listening and speaking but not reading, writing or memorizing. Because of this, process drama is appropriate for students of all ages, as there are no steadfast rules of how to perform and no script is needed. It is an imaginary world created by students and teachers to solve conflicts that arise daily, placing themselves in another person’s position. Process drama is a self motivated tool that assists facilitators to reflect in action. To reflect in action f acilitators strategize and constantly add creative and distinctive changes to situations that need a novel approach. Process drama is used to promote literacy among students. Literacy is developed, while a vast am... ...drama is an interesting activity to foster and facilitate the role of the teacher and the student in the classroom setting. In facilitating and fostering process drama facilitators and student work collaboratively to create an intrinsic, imaginative world where through dramatic presentations problems are solved and harmonious solutions to aspects of real life experiences is conjured. The principles of process drama are a vehicle that is used to execute the role of the student and facilitator in adding to successive novelty approach to process drama in our classroom setting. Works Cited O'Neill, Cecily (1995) Drama Worlds: A Framework for Process Dram (The Dimensions of Drama). Heinemann Drama. Bowell, P., Heap, Brian S. Planning Process Drama, pp. 28, Osbourn,s.Learning Smart .lifestreamcenter. Vygotsky, L.,(1978). The child’s Mind and Society.