ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Executive Summary Economies around the world are going through turbulent times. We are facing the worst crisis what some refer to as the worst since the ‘Great Depression. Fiscal and trade deficits are high, stock markets crumbling despite interventions from the central banking and financial institutions. Organizations once deemed as ‘safest’ are now belligerent to reduce their operating costs by cutting jobs, increasing unemployment. This could pose a serious threat for new emerging economies as they are also feeling the shockwaves of the financial crises. Governments, central banks, and financial institutions have also intervened injecting huge sums to stimulate the economy, enhancing limits of credit and payment to businesses, encouraging external investors, however, this has caused very small progress in the stabilization of the world economy, faced by dangers of nuclear wars, energy, and imminent food crisis, unemployment and others. This paper is aimed towards discussing the current economic outlook globally today and factors imminent in the decline of economies. A part of this discussion will also shed light on how these factors are slowly gaining part in affecting the emerging economies and how these may affect them in the future. With breakthrough technological advancements, businesses have entered into new arenas, so have the economies. Although globalization has played a larger role in connecting us to the farthest parts of the world, it also has some downsides. This would also be briefly discussed in this paper. We will also discuss the opportunities offered by the globalization of economies as well as the threats facing the economic outlook. Current Economic Trends Economies around the world are facing a major slowdown in terms of growth, productivity, competitiveness, and trade, etc. In light of the tremors of global recession, the world growth has slowed down to 3½ percent in 2008 (HM Treasury UK, 2008) approximately, in wake of crises contributing to economic, political, energy, and other factors, primarily in wake of the current US financial crisis, trade deficits, fragile international financial markets, and weakening stock markets that pose a real threat of affecting the emerging markets. Policies have failed to result in diminished confidence and demand, in wake of increased energy requirements. Emerging economies, in wake of this crisis, have become more protected about their accumulated surpluses, feeling at risk to invest in dwindling economies, to support their operations. Only a minor few are supporting weakened economies indirectly through investments by international financial institutions. At the same time when this crisis is pressing down on major world powers, it has now started to affect emerging markets and economies, such as China, India, etc, projected to represent 50% of the world’s GDP within the next 30 years (Stewart, 2007). Factors Impacting the Global Economy There is a new face of the global economy that we see today. Technological advancements, innovation through new methods of doing business, acquisitions, and mergers across continents, and various other reason
In technology, one of the most challenging tasks to complete is to manage workers and understand that these geeks require more attention and more creativity. Paul Glen in his article Leading Geeks: Technology and Leadership introduces one of the most successful structure according to which it becomes easier to define who geeks are, what makes them different from other workers, and why geeks’ leading processes should differ from the already known forms of leadership. There are three rational points that have to be taken into consideration: “geeks are different from other people; geek work is different from other work; power is useless with Greeks” (Glen, 2008, 248). This author admits that it is crucially important to consider environment, where geeks work, and define clearly geeks’ duties, missions, and responsibilities. When a geek comprehends own role in the working society, this worker is ready to present the best results and help own colleagues achieve success. In comparison to Glen’s ideas, Mitchell Neubert and his team notice that the idea of ethical leadership has to be noted as well because it has a significant influence on job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Leaders and managers have to perform the roles of model agents and keep in min the fact that “power and status enhance credibility and attractiveness” (Neubert et al., 2009, 158). Almost the same idea has been supported by Toor and Ofori, who discover leadership as an activity that constantly lacks properly establishes ethical conduct and organizational culture. Their investigation shows that there is no concrete structure according to which leadership should follow. This is why many leaders and mangers face challenges because of their inability to use their actions, behavior, and decisions as a perfect model to rely on (Toor & Ofori, 2009). The article by Carey, Patsalos-Fox, and Useem about the lessons of leadership contradicts to some points of the two above-mentioned articles and supports the words by Paul Glen. This team of the authors mentions one simple truth that “the world moves at a pace that requires strategy to be front and center all of the time” (Carey, Patsalos-Fox, & Useem, 2009). In comparison to geek leadership, the ideas of the leadership presented by these authors are based on courage and ability to control workers. It becomes unnecessary to use imagination and creativity to run the workers but pay more attention to such ability like proper establishing of goals and their achieving. Elizabeth Fisher (2009) is a talented writer, who touches upon social work management that aims at “motivating employees to perform well in their jobs” (p.347). In its turn, the Bible says that it is necessary to encourage servants and suggest them sharing their talents with the others (Matthew 25: 23). This is why it is possible to find many common things in the biblical concepts and in the ideas, offered by modern and sophisticated writers. People have all chances to work well, and the only thing that can improve workers’ cooperation and their desire to work, and promote productivity is properly arran
The Business’ Market MOCA GA collects and preserves local contemporary art primarily for the Georgian audience. MOCA is located in Atlanta, Georgia, which has an estimated population of 456,002 with 82.9% of them being aged 16 years and over (“ U.S. Census Bureau: Atlanta Region” par. 11). The number of people with a high school diploma or higher constitutes 88% of the population. Household median income and median age stand at $46,631 and 33.2 respectively (“ FactFinder: Community Facts: Atlanta City” par. 4). Atlanta city is a multiethnic city with the dominant races being African American (54%) and White (38.4%). Dominant industries in the local economy include accommodation and food services, manufacturing, and trade. Atlanta has a buying power index of 1.265 with much investor activity being concentrated in the real-estate sector. Contributions to the Local Economy MOCA GA contributes to the contemporary visual art sector of the community in Georgia. The institution collects and preserves contemporary works created by local artists. Since beginning its operations in 2002, MOCA GA has 119 exhibitions of contemporary artworks, screened several films, and engaged local artists and the community in panel talks (“ Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia [MOCA GA]: Strategic Plan” par. 2). The panel talks expand social engagement and information sharing, contributing to the growth of visual arts and artists in Atlanta. Local artists also benefit from MOCA GA’s resource center and training program. Type of Customers Targeted MOCA’s targeted customers include visitors, donors, and institutions that value local contemporary art and artists. The institution targets visitors seeking to experience contemporary Georgian art at reasonable prices. MOCA GA generates its revenue from exhibition event/program tickets. The contemporary art market has seen a sharp rise in prices by over 70 percent between 2004 and 2014 (McGurran par. 11). Globally, growth in the art market stood at 12% in 2014 with the contemporary sector accounting for 15% of the growth (McGurran par. 12). Curators and consultants are the speculators driving prices upwards. The global sales are projected to grow by over 12% in 2015 to hit the $2 billion mark (McGurran par. 12). Figure 1: Trends in contemporary art sales (in million euros). Source: Artprice.com Market Research The growth of the contemporary art market in Georgia depends on investor bidding that drives demand for local art and artists. The increase in investments and donations has seen demand rise substantially with artworks s
The problem of evil covers the possibility of God directing every occurrence in the universe without reducing human beings to mere automated agents. The problem of evil also covers the possibility of human beings possessing true freedom if God is genuinely sovereign (Towns 460). This paper looks at the problem of evil and its implications on the concept of an omnipotent, benevolent, and omnipresent God. The problem of evil is classified into moral and natural evil. While moral evil is attributed to individual actions, natural evil occurs in the natural order of the universe. Moral evil is caused by individuals who have the ability to distinguish between good and bad. For instance, theft, murder, rape, and torture are performed by people who can choose alternative courses of actions. Tornadoes and tsunamis, on the other hand, are events outside the control of human beings. In theology, moral evil can be explained as human beings’ defiance of God’s directives. Natural evil, conversely, encompasses harmful events such as poverty, diseases, epidemics, and natural disasters. In the biblical context, Paul asserts that the creation yearns for completion of divine redemption (New International Version, Rom. 8:19-22). Moral evil, which is ultimately the cause of natural evil, can be traced to the beginning of creation when Adam and Eve defied God’s explicit directive not to eat fruits from the tree at the center of the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:16-17). Their contravention of God’s command had significant consequences for the whole human race and the entire creation (Elwell 436). Human beings inherited the consequences of Adam’s disobedience because Adam was the father of the entire human race (Rom. 5:15-19). Though Adam and Eve had the free will to choose their actions, they chose to disobey God’s directive (Gen. 3:6). Various theologians approach the problem of evil using theodicies. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, for instance, argues that human beings are naturally flawed in the way they are created and that free will is controlled by natural phenomena (Elwell 1185). The main weakness of this theodicy is that it lacks a sound biblical foundation. In Leibniz’s view, God is obligated to create a perfect universe out of many possibilities. Though Leibniz’s theodicy seems to be internally consistent, it necessitates the existence of a perfect universe, which ceased to exist after the fall of man. A theodicy by John Hicks seems to disagree with Leibniz’s notion of a perfect creation. Instead, Hicks argues that God created man as a creature in need of moral improvement towards ultimate perfection. Hicks’ soul-making theodicy asserts
Knowing one’s history and learning from experience constitute the basis of human wisdom. Since people are mortal beings, there emerge certain difficulties when it comes to restoring the past of the humankind: no living witnesses are left of events that took place centuries ago. The issue is partially solved when there exists some written records of the time. However, even without those there still is a way of discovering the past: it is through the science of archaeology that we can learn about the events of the bygone times. In the history of the United States, one of the most significant archeological excavations has been held on the banks of the James River. The first permanent English settlement reveals the secrets of its first inhabitants through more than one million artifacts dating to the first half of the 17th century (Preservation Virginia, 2010). An analysis of just three of them — an iron cooking pot leg, a horse bridle bit, and the so-called JR102C — can provide some significant insights into the lifestyle, the social structure, and even the political intrigues of the Jamestown settlement. The lifestyle of the first colonists in Jamestown was far from luxurious and prosperous. With no women to take care of their daily nutrition, the men had to survive on a scant diet of wild animals they could catch. It would be logical to assume that not much time could be spared for cooking the game: the dishes had to be as easy and labor-saving as possible. For this purpose the colonists chose a most primitive way of cooking food in iron pots on legs that could be placed directly over coals (Preservation Virginia, 2010). Such a construction could be left unattended on the fire all day long, and produced a simple yet nutritious stew that would nourish the settlers after a day of hard work. For seventeenth-century people it was rather significant to demonstrate their social status by the items they used in everyday life and by their outfit. Some of the first settlers in Jamestown could boast an aristocratic background and did not fail to display it even during all the hardships they had to survive. For instance, a horse could have belonged only to a gentleman at the time. Therefore, an elaborate horse bridle bit found at Jamestown excavations and used to control battle stallions confirms the presence of blue blood at the settlement (Preservation Virginia, 2010). Another artifact that reveals the mysteries of the early Jamestown settlement is a skeleton of a man called “Anglo-America’s oldest unknown soldier and perhaps her oldest unsolved murder” (Preservation Virginia, 2010). Indeed, the remains of a man labeled JR102C according to the archeological catalogue bear a lead bullet that cuts a major artery under the knee. Such a wound would mean death within a minute and leaves archeologists wonder about the causes of the lethal shot. Among the theories, there has been voiced an idea that JR192C actually represents a young gentleman who fell into disfavor with the Virginia Company president and
Death has always been one of the greatest mysteries for people as it is impossible to cognize it. The interest in this topic is evidenced by the existence of multiple works offered by different philosophers and ideas formulated to speculate about death and its role in the development and functioning of societies. Starting with the assumptions that fear of this phenomenon is one of the most important stimuli in the life of people and ending with the suggestions that death is not bad for the deceased, thinkers tried to formulate their own vision of this concept and explain the role it plays in human society. The diversity in people’s thinking patterns preconditioned the emergence of various theories, which might even oppose each other. Thus, Epicurus’ idea and deprivation theory view death from different angles; however, it seems that the ancient philosopher’s idea is more relevant as it offers the logical reasoning for central assumptions. Epicurus formulated his own unique vision, which became popular among his followers. He stated that death could not be bad for the deceased as he does not experience it. This idea comes from the statement that something can be bad for a person only if he/she feels it, while death is experiential blank (Fisher, 2019). However, the deprivation theory does not accept this premise and claims it is false. Following this theory, death is the harm of deprivation, presupposing lack, loss, or absence of some future goods (Fisher, 2019). At the same time, people deprived of things valuable for them try to acquire them joining some movements or struggling for some privileges (Fisher, 2019). For this reason, deprivation theory does not agree with the reasoning offered by Epicurus. One of the central objectives implied by the given framework is that deceased people cannot enjoy all benefits of life available for other people. From this perspective, death is worse when it deprives people of many good years, meaning that it is worse the earlier it occurs (Murphy, n.d.). Because the desire to have multiple advantages and live a full life is one of the basic ones for every human being, the complete inability to acquire various things is a dramatic loss for every person, and he/she views it as a bad thing. Furthermore, following the deprivation theory, the fear of death, or the fear of being unable to enjoy all good things, motivates people to move further and evolve (Fisher, 2019). For this reason, Epicurus’s idea is rejected by the deprivation theory and is viewed as an inappropriate one. Furthermore, Epicurus explains his logic by the statement that something can be bad for a person only if he/she experiences it at some time. This assumption contradicts the deprivation theory, which offers the perspective that not the possession but the inability to posse
Introduction Deirdre Madden is an Irish writer, who creates really worthwhile works and wins various awards, which serve as the best recognition among the writers and the readers. Among her awards, there are the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature and the Hennessy Award. Her vision of the reality and the ability to present the idea paying attention to numerous details – this is what attracts the readers of different ages and ranges. Her best known works The Birds of the Innocent Wood (1988), Nothing Is Black (1994), and One by One in the Darkness (1996). Each of these works has its own genre and peculiarities. The peculiar feature of One by One in the Darkness is the fact that this novel is all about social realism, its troubles, and consequences. The theme of women and their role in the society is burning indeed. They face too many troubles and try to solve any problems in different ways: some of them prefer to keep silence and stick to the rules offered by someone else, and some women want to underline their significance and have the right to follow their own desires. One of the issues reflected in One by One in the Darkness by Deirdre Madden is the idea of how women cope with the difficulties they face almost each day because of the Troubles. The Plot of the Story One by One in the Darkness is the story about three sisters, with rather different ambitions and life purposes, and their mother, Emily, who is a strong Catholic woman, suffering after her husband’s death. Emily lives in the shadow of that terrible event, when her husband was shot. She does not want to demonstrate her fears and dependence on the society. However, her restraint and keeping silence reveal her. This novel is mainly about women’s lives, their struggles, and challenges of the Troubles. The society creates certain rules in order to subdue people and make the live in one and the same way. One of the sisters, Sally, accepts such way of life without any doubts – she stays in the town and works as a teacher in one of the local schools. After her father’s death, she cannot but afraid everything outside. She was afraid to be killed, to be forgotten, to be alone. Her fears and constant thinking about someone else is one of her best troubles. This is what was on her way and this is what she could not solve at all. In her turn, another sister, Helen, chooses an absolutely different style of life. She becomes an independent solicitor and deals with numerous terroristic cases in order to render justice. When Helen was a child, she remembered one day, when Tony killed a fox and brought its skin to the class. The smell was terrible; that smell never left little Helen, even when she grew up. Tony said once that there was no one on the world who could be braver than Tony was. One day, Tony died. When Helen looks at the field with numerous foxes running there, she remembers Tony’s words and realizes how unfair and unpredictable the life is. She heard how the bomb exploded, the bomb that killed Tony and their father. This sound, that smell, and all those words cannot leave Helen
Bello’s article offers an assertive critique on the functioning of the WTO. The article is an important document which offers valuable insights on the nature of global markets. Bello argues that the WTO is only serving the interests of the wealthy countries and not the poor. In his arguments, Bello gives an assertive assault on the operations of the WTO, which are aimed at benefiting the wealthy countries. From an economic perspective, Bello’s arguments are a critique of the WTO. The article demonstrates the nature of exploitation the wealthy nations exert on the poor nations by adopting the WTO. The article is comprehensive in demonstrating the nature of global trade, which is facilitated by GATT-WTO in favor of developed nations particularly the US. In his critique, Bello demonstrates the manipulation of trade tariffs by removing barriers of trade so as to create markets for developed nations’ products. The WTO and GATT are criticized for creating a liberal global market which is aimed at killing domestic industries in poor countries by encouraging imports at low or no tariffs. In light of this analysis, it is true arguing that the WTO serves the wealthy not the poor countries. From a personal perspective, Bello’s arguments are authentic. It is true that the WTO is serving the interests of rich countries at the expense of poor countries. The WTO among other trade institutions like GATT, IMF, and World Bank are instituted by the developed nations. It is logical to argue that the developed nations have made these institutions to protect their interests. The US brought agriculture to GATT-WTO in 1995 to ensure the developing nations rely on US food products. The expansion of WTO jurisdiction was motivated by US interests of eliminating trade barriers. This was not aimed at benefiting the poor nations but rather help the developed nations market their products. The overall policies and guidelines offered by the WTO are aimed at encouraging cross-border trade without restrictions. This is a strategic plan by the developed nations to exploit the poor nations due to their weak competitive power. The dispute-resolution mechanisms adopted by the WTO are maliciously aimed at exploiting the developing nations. The WTO operations are compromised by the interests of wealthy countries who seek to reduce and eliminate trade barriers. This subjects poor countries to undue competition, which leads to killing of domestic industries. Bello’s critique is appealing and authentic in addressing the issue of international trade. The critique is positive and acceptable based on the factual support offered by the author. The involvement of US in WTO affairs by pr