ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Francis Hutcheson, a famous and respected Scottish philosopher, is well known for his contribution to the fields of political rights, liberalism, and human nature. His activities and theories had a significant influence almost all around the world, and they were especially crucial for moral sentimentalism. The philosopher’s writings are mostly concentrated on human nature and promote a natural benevolence as opposed to Hobbes’s egoism and Pufendorf’s reward and punishment system. In his book, An Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue , Hutcheson supports the sensibility and internality of beauty, giving one argument for each. First, since pleasure is necessary and immediate, and it discerns beauty, this discernment becomes sensible (Shelley, 2020). Then, Hutcheson does not entirely agree with Shaftesbury regarding the idea of the mind alone being beautiful and states that the five external senses are insufficient for the discernment of beauty. Thus, perception of beauty is only a specific kind of internal sense that is irrational and has nothing to do with knowledge. As for the actual proof of its discernment, Hutcheson does not provide it in An Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue . However, in An Essay on the Nature and Conduct of the Passions and Affections , he mentions that an internal sense is “one whose ideas arise only if certain other ideas have already arisen” (Shelley, 2020, para. 1.2). Another Scottish philosopher, David Hume, suggests that the usefulness of objects at least in part defines their beauty, while Hutcheson disagrees with this idea since taste judgments are disinterested and usefulness perception is interested. As for me, I find Hutcheson’s theories and ideas quite engaging. I agree with his thoughts regarding beauty and usefulness and the lack of dependence between them. Indeed, some objects are just beautiful without being quite useful, while those that are actually useful may not be perceived as beautiful by certain people. What is more, the idea of beauty not depending on knowledge appeals to me. It is not necessary to be aware of an object’s history or purpose to find it beautiful or not. Reference Shelley, J. (2020). 18th century British aesthetics . The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Web.
Genre A Perfect World is a very good example of exploiting the key elements of the criminal drama genre to the maximum. The movie matches the expectations of the audience perfectly, offering them the stock characters of a typical “good criminal” and just as obviously “bad criminal.” Set in a typical suburbia, the background of the movie creates a conflict with the theme of crime and punishment, which it renders, therefore, creating a unique conflict. The shooting scene, for instance, represents a contrast between calm and sunny suburbia and the dark scene of Phillip making the most difficult choice in his life and shooting at Butch: “I told him it was the right thing to do” ( A Perfect World 01:27:51). What movie does differently from the rest of criminal dramas is touching upon the despicable issue of child molestation, thus, warranting a PG-13 rating. As soon as the issue is raised, it becomes clear that Butch and Perry, the boy are very compelling characters. The idea of these two developing father – son relationships in the midst of a criminal drama is very clever and anything but trivial. Culture Despite a relatively short running time, the movie manages to incorporate several major themes into the narrative; apart from the legal thread of the film and the related dilemmas, the culture of the law enforcement and religious concepts are represented in A Perfect World quite successfully. Though religious issues are typically considered an element, which is alien to the criminal drama aesthetics, Johnson manages to integrate complex religious problems into the movie as well. In fact, the very title of the film hints at the religious context of the plot: A Perfect World can be seen as a metaphor for Heaven, and the characters’ journey can be interpreted as Butch’s path of cleansing of a sin. The attempt at approaching the complex issue of redemption can be seen in the mise-en-scene of taking Lottie and her family hostages: “Our Father, which are in heaven, Hallo be thy name” ( A Perfect World 01:41:09). The editing of the scene, the camera switching from one motionless character to another, shows the incredible emotional strain. Morality Apart from the molestation controversy, th
Good Samaritan Conduct There are a few people who perform random acts of kindness in our society. One of the most publicized random acts of kindness in the recent past involved the New York Police officer who gave a pair of boots to a homeless man. This law enforcement officer, identified as DePrimo, saw a homeless man who was seated barefooted on a freezing pavement. The police officer approached the homeless man and engaged him in conversation. He asked the man for his shoe size and went to a nearby shoe store where he purchased a pair of boots. The shoes cost $100 but the store attendant offered Officer DePrimo a 25% discount since he was moved by his kind action. The officer went on to give the boots to the homeless man who was very thankful for the kind act. This action was captured on camera by an employee of the Arizona County Sheriff’s Office and it was later posted online where it was viewed by millions of people. Officer DePrimo was recognized by the Mayor for his act and the entire nation applauded his kind act to the homeless man. Another notable act of random kindness was carried out at a pizza place in Florissant, Missouri. A lady wanted to honor the memory of the children and adults who were killed during the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shootings of December 14, 2012. She therefore decided to buy dinner for a random couple at the pizza and pasta shop in memory of one of the children who died in the shooting. Instead of receiving a bill for their meal, the couple was given a note explaining that a stranger had covered their bill so that they would be reminded that in addition to the bad things going on, there are also good things. The beneficiaries of this kind act were shocked and impressed by the action. The note requested the couple to do something kind for someone in the future so that this tradition could go on. The identity of the Good Samaritan woman is unknown but the owner of the food store hoped that she would go back to the store for dinner at in future so that people could thank her. The final Good Samaritan conduct that I came across involved a highway accident in Chicago. A young man called Austin Ketelsen was driving home at night when he happened to witness an accident involving a woman whose vehicle lost control. The woman’s minivan ended up crashing into a light pole and the impact left her disoriented. Instead of driving past the accident like the other motorists, Ketelsen decided to stop and see if he could offer assistance. He observed that the woman who had been driving the crashed car was bleeding. She also seemed dazed and was not getting out of the car. Ketelsen asked the woman to get out of the car and proceeded to help her out of th
Introduction One of the most significant issues in the credit market is discrimination. In practice, not every American has the privilege of enjoying equal access to the many benefits which the market has to offer. Discrimination occurs in a number of areas such as mortgage transactions and the home-buying process. It has been found that people do not always receive equal treatment from real estate professionals, such as lenders, insurance brokers, appraisers, agents, and others (Turner 2). The United States Federal Laws prohibit this act, with a number of laws instituted for the sake of promoting equal and fair lending practices in the US credit market. This paper focuses on this issue and explains a number of aspects of issues such as the regulations and the types of discrimination. Discrimination Discrimination is an act involving the adverse or unfair treatment of an individual property buyer, mortgage or loan applicant, or renter based entirely on their affiliation with a specific racial, social or ethnic group (O’Hara 210). In the housing business, discrimination is likely to occur in the event of a leasing agent, or a realtor showing more properties to a white applicant than to a black one, though they may both have mutual housing needs. Actual discrimination cases in the mortgage business happen when an applier is not given a loan or charged higher rates for the loan. If by any chance, the applicant is offered a contract which is to some extent less advantageous, such as higher closing costs or down payments, only due to their social, racial, or ethnic affiliations, it is discrimination. Discrimination in credit provision is considered to be illegal on the grounds of civil rights, as well as the bank laws (Seidman 197). Discrimination is said to start even at the earliest stages of the credit lending procedure. Therefore, it may occur in the pre-application stage during inquiries by prospective borrowers. There is a likelihood that a member of a minority group may be provided with lesser information by lending officers (O’Hara 210). In addition to that, they may find themselves being given higher quotes for interest rates. This will all constitute lending discrimination at the pre-application stages. At the subsequent stages of the loaning process, discrimination occurs in a number of ways such as minorities being charged higher rates. Possible causes of discrimination occur in a number of areas that involve lending. Such areas include credit card lending, mortgage lending, and small business lending (O’Hara 210). There are various consequences, which arise as a result of these discriminatory actions in lending markets. For instance, real-estate related discrimination has adverse impacts on African Americans and other minority groups (O’Hara 211). It levies significantly higher costs for searching for properties. In addition to that, it is
Introduction: Overview of Education in the State of Georgia Education in the USA is one of the most problematic issues that the federal, state, and local government faces in the 21 st century for the sake of national advancement, development, and evolution. Obviously, there are a number of state educational standards, and each state has its own number of private and public schools, administers a set of statewide testing and certification procedures, etc.; however, the disapproval of existing norms, policies, and regulations in the educational field is growing. The reasons for disapproval and discontentment may be found in irrational curriculum, excessive focus on pursuit of good certification grades, low access to prestigious educational establishments, and rising costs of education. As noted by the librarian Joseph Curasso, “this is what the education revolutionaries have sowed: dumbed-down standards, narrow curriculums, meaningless test drilling, and union busting…. Through large grants to cash strapped states, dependent on such stipulations as not granting teacher tenure in less than three years and ‘ensuring successful conditions for high performing charter schools and other innovative schools’, large donations to both political parties, and hundreds of millions of dollars in media advocacy… big money philanthropists have been able to shape the education debate and be fawned upon by the national media (cited in Richardson, 2011, para. 2)”. However, approaching the US educational system at the nationwide level is highly ineffective, since all US states enjoy a considerable level of autonomy from the federal government, which explains serious gaps between state standards of healthcare, education, and quality of life. Therefore, it proves more efficient to treat the problem at the statewide level in order to identify its common practices, rules, policies, and regulations for the sake of further identification of strengths and weaknesses thereof. The comprehensive analysis of the educational system of any state is likely to provide a realistic picture of the current situation with its pros and cons; it will enable the researcher to produce a set of feasible recommendations regarding the ways to improve and advance the educational practices, curriculum, and related issues. Taking into account these considerations, the researcher focuses on the analysis of the educational system in Georgia in the present paper; educational options and programs, standards and certifications, curricula and educational success rankings will be analyzed for the sake of making a conclusion about the current state of Georgia’s education development as well as the ways to introduce the optimal and constructive reform to it. According to the NEA Research (2011) estimate, the total revenue receipts in Georgia accounted $22,328,160,000, state and local revenue receipts equaled $20,330,754,000, which is 46.8% for the state and local revenues, and 48.9% of local revenues as compared to
Memories can be formed at three levels: molecular, cellular, and system. Long-term potentiation (LTP) is the basis of memory formation at the molecular level. It is a process in which the connections between neurons become stronger, and memories are formed. The memories then can either be lost or turned into long-term ones, if this synaptic strength is constantly increased or sustained. Hippocampus plays an essential role in the memory formation process because it is the part of the brain where short-term memories become long-term memories. These memories are then stored in other regions of the brain. Therefore, the whole brain is involved in the memory formation process. Different brain regions store different types of memories and, although they are interconnected, each plays a specific part in memory formation. Normal forgetting differs from amnesia in the way that the first type of memory loss is connected to occasional events, while with the second condition, people lose whole segments of memories. Therefore, one can call an absent-minded person amnesic if their memories are affected in a much broader way than in most people, and they tend to forget something that people normally do not forget. In addition, people with amnesia are often unable to form new memories from particular time points in their lives. I believe that a memory that can record information objectively and accurately is better than a memory that can be updated to support newer levels of understanding, because the first type encompasses the second. If someone can record objective and accurate memories, it means that their brain can effectively form new synapses and maintain their strength. This ability can allow a person to update their memory to understand concepts and subjects of increased complexity.
Southwest airlines’ primary business function is the transportation of cargo and passengers. The airline has made use of sustainable and efficient strategic management principles which have given the company good performance records, despite the recession, terrorist threats, and the high fuel prices that shook the airline industry. These were achieved through the company’s main principle of low operational costs, high cash flows, and low borrowing from domestic and international markets (Southwest airlines, 2010). These principles are the products of the strategic management plans laid down by their finance office. All internal and international financial decisions and management plans are directed by the office of finance and chief financial officer (Forbes, 2011). This office is headed by Laura Wright H. who is the senior vice president at southwest airlines and a member of the planning committee and has served in this position since July 2004 (Forbes, 2011). Before this, Laura Wright served as the vice president for finance and the treasurer of the company from June 2001 to July 2004 (Forbes, 2011). This post had been preceded by the post of treasurer from the year1998 to 2001, assistant treasurer from 1995 to 1998, and as the director of corporate finance from 1990 to 1995 (Forbes, 2011). Laura has been with southwest airlines for over two decades, following her employment in 1988 as the director of corporate taxation. This implies that as the vice president in charge of finance, she has a wealth of experience in corporate finance, international financial markets and is familiar with the managerial principles and vision of the company. Strategic financial management plans have been associated with the ability of the low-cost carrier to enjoy increased profit margins during the turbulent global financial crisis. One of the financial strategies used to maintain the airline in the international financial market is position logic, where the airline successfully linked its resources together to reinforce activity systems (Southwest Airlines, 2011). Southwest’s management plans of finances involved the use of readily available resources, like the purchase of a single type of plane, the use of less popular airports and gates to increase their market positio
Abstract Green building movement is one of the most topical issues nowadays. It addresses many environmental issues and human health problems. Despite its quite long history, the movement has gained its high status in society only a decade ago. The hypothesis of the present research can be formulated as follows: Indoor air quality can be increased with the help of green building, and this positively affects people’s health. The hypothesis is proved to be true since numerous data suggest that high indoor air quality is beneficial for people since it decreases the number of health threats and leads to budget savings. More so, nowadays air quality is one of the major concerns of the green building movement, so numerous effective strategies are being worked out. Thus, indoor air quality is regarded as one of the most important elements of the green building movement which is beneficial for people from different perspectives. Introduction The development of science and technology has brought many opportunities for construction, but has led to numerous environmental problems and human health issues. Fortunately, people have found the way to minimize the construction negative impact on the environment and people’s health as well. Green building is this fortunate way. On one hand, green buildings improve environmental situation due to the use of environmentally friendly products while construction. On the other hand, the use of “green products” during construction positively affects people’s health, since they are not harmful, in contrast to the products conta
Introduction Variations between individuals within any culture remain a significant defining factor across the world. Koppelman (2011) defines culture as a learned system of behaviors, values, beliefs, and norms that are practiced by a given group of individuals. A belief system, social status, education, gender, religion and rituals, family, and eating habits are the most prominent factors that distinguish cultures. Creating attention to beliefs and cultural variations can provide a stranger in a certain culture a smooth opportunity to assimilate. There are values, traditions, folkways, beliefs, and norms that constitute a certain culture, and it is important to build an understanding concerning these cultural concepts. This paper provides a case study whereby I had an opportunity to visit a Spanish speaking family in Florida. The family under study is Juan’s; whom I realized is an immigrant from Puerto Rico. I had been tutored before my visit that Hispanic communities are often polite. In the course of my two-day visit and experience with a different culture, I learned several things regarding value and belief system of Hispanics. These findings will be compared to the mainstream American culture to provide a clear picture about the uniqueness of the Hispanic culture. The cultural concepts The main cultural concepts that are reflected in this discussion include tradition, beliefs, folkways, norms, and values. Tradition refers to the customs, rituals, and habits in a particular society. For instance, the eating habits, family customs, and etiquette among the Hispanic society are different from the mainstream American culture. During my visit, I established that Hispanics believe that visitors must be offered something to eat. Folkways involve some specific behavior followed by a certain ethnic group. For example, I established that visitors are normally accorded a high level of respect and privacy. Beliefs are defined as attitudes and ideologies of a certain ethnic group (Noble, Lacasa, & Noble, 1991). Hispanics believe that formal greetings are a sign of respect. Values entail the ethical measures that define civility. The Hispanics have various approved set of rules to guide them and the failure to adhere to these guidelines may lead to sanctioning. The Hispanic culture Hispanic is a term coined by the U.S government during the mid-20 th Century to provide a general reference to a large, but diverse, population linked to Spanish origin. The Hispanic culture has many key features that distinguish them from the mainstream American culture. These features include the concept of family, social organization, communication, greetings, etiquette, and eating habits. In most cases, observations regarding values and beliefs are established on scientific observations. According to Lichter, Brown, Qian, and Carmalt (2007), Hispanics tend to maintain firm eye contact and make more body conduct. Contrary, based on my experience during the visit, I did not establish frequent body contact. The frequent conduct was only observed in exceptional cases based on certain social contexts involving married couples. Most of the differences betw