ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
People often wonder where writers get their ideas for books. Many might be surprised at how old some of the stories may seem to be when they are traced back to their original source. In Cormac McCarthy’s novel The Road, one can see some of the journeys toward the moral and ethical, the enlightened, man described in Plato’s writing as the main character and his son make their way from the north to the south in a post-apocalyptic North America. As Plato was a disciple of Socrates, Socrates’ concept of ethics is relevant to an understanding of Plato’s views on enlightenment as well as the discoveries of the characters in Cormac McCarthy’s novel. According to Socrates, it is the man who does not know himself who cannot accurately judge his capabilities and his unique path to the greatest good based on the accurate use of his strengths and knowledge of his weaknesses. Socrates takes this another step by suggesting that knowledge of oneself will instruct from within regarding those things which are good (moral and ethical) and those things which are not. As the man and boy travel through the barren landscape in McCarthy’s novel, it can be seen that the ethics of the boy have developed along different routes than the ethics of his father, leading them each to different paths of salvation. This progression toward enlightenment can be most clearly seen by making a comparison between Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and the situation in which the man and boy find themselves within McCarthy’s novel, particularly in terms of the characteristics of the cave, the nature of the forms presented and the ultimate enlightenment each character receives, revealing that much of the concepts underlying the book actually comes from ancient philosophy. To understand how McCarthy’s novel echoes Plato’s philosophy, it is necessary to understand Plato’s philosophy. Plato’s allegory begins with the placement of all humans within a dark cave, positioned in such a way that they can only see what their captors have elected to allow them to see. In the dialogue he presents, Socrates explains “here they [human beings] have been from their childhood, and have their legs and necks chained so that they cannot move, and can only see before them, being prevented by the chains from turning round their heads” (Kreis 2004). From where they sit, the world is composed of the shadows of things that are passing behind them, illuminated by a light source that cannot be seen. What the people know about their world is two-di
Implications of State Decision Texas is one of the states that have adamantly opposed the Obama Care program that proposes the expansion of the Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act. This implies that there are millions of citizens in the state that will not be covered by the Medicaid program in the state. The lack of expansion will see the state losing over $100 billion in the next decade from the federal cash. Additionally, hospitals in the state will continue spending more than $5 billion in treating uninsured members of the community. It is also apparent that the big health care bills will be footed by taxpayers in Texas. It is also clear that the citizens of the state will also be involved in financing the expansion programs adopted by other states on a federal level without reaching the benefits of their contributions (Zwelling & Kantarjian, 2014). More than 1 million Americans in the low-income bracket live in Texas, and they will continue living without insurance cover for health care services because the administration of the state is not willing to negotiate the expansion of the Medicaid program. While the expansion program aims at covering all adults from 19 to 65 years old within the poverty level, citizens in Texas will not obtain the cover; hence, the cost of health care will escalate over the future. Potential Opportunities A state that opts to adopt the expansion of the Medicaid program will see a reduction in the cost of health care for the newly eligible adults in their jurisdictions. The Federal government is set to bare at least 90% of the cost of health care for the newly elected members, and this will enhance the accessibility of preventive and treatment health care for the poor citizens. The respective states will also make hefty savings from the elimination of the current spending on uninsured citizens (Price & Eibner, 2013). The program will eliminate the uncompensated spending for the associated states, and this will alleviate the costs of covering the new eligible citizens on the part of the states. One of the main challenges that the states might face is the allocation of funds to expand coverage to the people who are already eligible for care. It is also expected that the states will have to increase their health care budgets to meet the 10% or less cost of covering the new eligible citizens for coverage (Angeles, 2012). Alternate Approaches Arkansas and Iowa are two of the states that have pledged to opt-out of the Medicaid expansion program, and they have proposed the development of alternative approaches. Arkansas has proposed the development of the Arkansas Health Care Independence Program, which covers the newly eligible citizens through private plans in the federal health care facilities. Just like the Medicaid expansion program, it will increase eligibility for adults in the 19-64 year
The Three Witches: Introduced to us in the opening scene, the Three Witches set Macbeth upon his fatal path. They tell Macbeth that he will be Thane (Lord) of Cawdor and later the King. Later by use of the Three Apparitions, they prophesy his doom. Symbolic of both the underworld and the mysticism of the 1500s, they are tantamount with the idea of immorality in this play. The three witches drive the plot because of the power Shakespeare gives them. Their power gives them the upper hand, and drives Macbeth to lunacy. It is their prediction that leads Macbeth and Banquo to believe their fate is set. Set in medieval Scotland, ‘Macbeth’ charts the gory climb to power and catastrophic downfall of the soldier Macbeth. Macbeth begins in “an open place, with the appearance of the three “weird sisters,” as they later call themselves. The Old English word “wyrd” or “weird” means “Fate,” which is exactly the origin of these Witches: They are the Fates of classical mythology, one of whom spun the thread of a person’s life, one of whom measured it, and one of whom cut it. The bleakness of the scene is a dramatic representation both of the wild Scottish landscape in which the play is set and the more universal wilderness of man’s existence. Macbeth’s opening words, “So foul and fair a day I have not seen”, ironically recall the Witches’ “foul is fair” in Scene 1, but Banquo is the first to spot the weird sisters, remarking on the Witches’ ambiguous and confused appearance: They “look not like the inhabitants of the earth, / And yet are on it”; they seem to understand him, and yet he cannot be sure; they “should be women,” and yet they are bearded. Later in the scene, Macbeth remarks that the Witches “seem’d corporal [physical]” and yet they vanish like bubbles “into the air.” In the opening scene of the play, the three witches introduce the contrary nature of this world with two paradoxes. The lines “When the battle’s lost and won” and “Fair is foul and foul is fair”, paradox suggesting that whatever appears good is “foul” implying the murder of Duncan appearing to be a “fair” idea to Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, for Macbeth would accede to the throne. The world of Macbeth is a world of contradiction. Good is bad. True is false. Light is dark. The Three Witches’ speech is written in short rhyming verse that imitates the casting of a spell. Their language is also full of the imagery of witchcraft and of chaotic weather: thunder, lightning, rain, fog, and “filthy air.” Already a successful soldier in the army of King Duncan, Macbeth is informed by Three Witches that he is to become “Thane of Glamis!”, “Thane of Cawdor!” and “ki
In Between Days (2006) What aspect of immigration is revealed in the film? The hardships of assimilation are put to the fore in the film In Between Days (2006). The teenage girl, Aimie, has to assimilate into Western society, which is quite a challenge for her. She has recently come from South Korea to a city in the USA or Canada where everything is so different from her home city ( In Between Days ). The viewer does not know about the feelings the girl experiences before leaving South Korea. The viewer knows little about the family bonds or any other bonds that are mainly left behind. The focus is made on Aimie’s emotions in the new society. She alienates herself from the rest of the people and is reluctant to develop relationships with her peers. She feels like an alien in the new environment. The only person Aimie wants to build some bonds with is another teenage immigrant who is also trying to assimilate. It is necessary to note that the vast majority of the challenges immigrants face are not in the spotlight. For example, financial constraints are only slightly touched upon when the girl’s mother is depicted. At the same time, feelings and internal struggle are central to the movie. The filmmakers decided to choose teenagers’ experiences to be able to focus on emotions related to assimilation. Identity is also central to the movie. The teenager’s search for self and the immigrant’s search for identity are intermingled. Each of these experiences can be quite traumatic, but a combination of the two is especially challenging. What coping strategies are available for immigrants as shown in the movie? Immigrants choose various coping strategies to address the issues related to assimilation. Some families try to find support within their families while others seek help in the community. The protagonist is looking for help in the romantic relationships she is trying to develop with her peer ( In Between Days ). It is necessary to note that adolescence is one of the most difficult stages in human life as the individual finds himself during this period. Of course, being disconnected from people and places one knows is a very traumatic experience especially for a teenager. Thus, Aimie has a load of emotional issues to cope with. Her family bonds are not as strong as she is rather disconnected from her mother who raises the daughter without a husband. The girl has no siblings to find some support. Her assimilation into the new society is manifested in her relationships with an immigrant boy. Aimie wants to be closer to the boy she likes, but she often feels that he does not feel the same way, which often makes her angry and even violent. Likewise, the girl has to become a part of the new society, but she feels that some people are not as eager to accept her, which also makes her frustrated. She chooses romantic emotions rather than feelings associated with assimilation (development of friendships, new acquaintances, and so on). It is noteworthy that the boy tends to choose quite a similar strategy as he tries to develop
Introduction People always engage in various activities throughout their lives. The main reason as to why human beings do various things is because they have a purpose that drives them every time. According to experts, motivation refers to a psychological feature that arouses someone to act towards a desired goal. It gives someone a reason and energy to take action. Motivation gives purpose and direction to behavior (Beck 30). Studies have established that motivation plays a crucial role in the ability of human beings to set and achieve their goals. For example, people have the ability to determine their level of motivation by identifying various needs, understanding the requirements for meeting them, and using numerous abilities to achieve satisfaction. Basically, the concept of motivation involves the elements of needs, behavior, and satisfaction (Beck 45). People have needs to meet and rely on their abilities to achieve satisfaction. There are two types of motivation, namely intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation refers to a reason for action derived from within an individual’s fundamental nature (Beck 52). On the other hand, extrinsic motivation refers to an incentive that gives purpose and direction to behavior influenced by external forces (Beck 52). Theories of motivation According to experts, there are numerous theories of motivation. The various theorists who explain this concept use certain beliefs that explain factors that influence human behavior. Some of the common hypotheses used to explain motivation include the drive or needs theory and arousal theory. According to the drive theory of motivation, human beings have needs that must be met in order to have the required level motivation (Beck 100). There are five levels of human needs, namely psychological, safety, social, admiration, and self-actualization (Beck 100). According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, it is important to meet the lowest ranked needs in the hierarchy before those in the higher level are triggered (Beck 104). The higher someone goes in the hierarchy, the more motivation one gets. According to experts, people get the drive to push for their goals in life whenever they have enough motivation and belief to do it. According to the arousal theory of motivation people are driven into doing certain things in life in order to maintain a state of heightened physiological activity (Beck 123). Experts argue that people often feel bored when their levels of arousal are low. In such situations, people often look out for ways of elevating their arousal levels using various stimulating activities. A good example is people who go to night clubs or engage in sporting activities because it helps to keep their arousal levels high. However, in some instances the arousal level can be very high and unpleasant. In such cases, people often look out for more relaxed e
The aim of this paper is to review a case of the company that produces Levi’s products and define the causes of the problem it faces. In order to provide a detailed examination of the issue, Fishbone and Duncker diagrams will be used. The paper will also explore the steps that the company has to take in order to reach the desired outcome. After careful examination of the company’s case, it is clear that Levi’s is facing the issue of brand decline. The following causes have contributed to the problem: multiple levels of management, wholesale merchandising, lack of customer focus, brand competition, and lack of association with youth. It could be argued that the company has not put enough emphasis on reaching its main objective of staying competitive and meeting customer requirements. Appendix A illustrates the causes of Levi’s problem. If Levi’s wants to regain competitiveness and stop the process of brand decline, it has to consider the option of repositioning its brand (Calkins 158). To this end, it is necessary to change the perception of the brand. The company must review different social media in order to have a better understanding of “what people really think about a brand” (Drummond-Dunn par. 8). This understanding will help to create a better advertising campaign. Moreover, the management has to examine current market dynamics and to adjust the following four Ps accordingly: product, place, price, and promotion. Furthermore, in order to change customers’ perception of the brand, it is necessary to consider entering a new distribution channel (Calkins 158). However, management should take into account that it is a slow process that can discourage existing customers from buying the company’s products (Aaker 76). It can be argued that a centralized company structure has slowed down the decision-making process, thereby exacerbating the process of brand decline. In order to solve this problem, it is necessary to employ delegation as the main form of decentralization within the Levi’s company. To this end, it is necessary to provide local management with more authority as well as to increase the pace of the decision-making process (Kokemuller par. 12). Appendix B illustrates the steps Levi’s has to take in order to solve its problem. Works Cited Aaker, David. Three Threats to Brand Relevance . Wiley, 2013. Calkins, Tomas. Breakthrough marketing plans. Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. Drummond-Dunn, Denyse. “How to Stop Brand Decline.” C3 Centricity , Web. Kokemuller, Neil. “Decentralized Company Business Structure.” Chron , Web. Appendix A: Causes of Levi’s Problem Appendix B: Steps for Solving Levi’s Problem
Conservatism This is an opinionated and social philosophy that advocates on promotion of the traditional institution through support and maintenance. Some conservatives will try to preserve things by leaving them in their original forms while others will try to change things by use of modern mechanisms. From the time of its establishment, the term has been used in the description of a broad range of views about political science. Conservative has far been viewed as an attitude, a force and a function of time aimed at developing a free society in response to the basic requirements of human nature (Mintz, Close, & Croci, 2011). A category of conservatism that combines the aspects of conservatism with liberalism is referred to as conservative liberalism. This ideology owes its origin from the beginning of liberalism when the political class was formed under conservative liberalism. The impact of the First World War brought a more variable classical liberalism that brought this ideology. Libertarian conservatism combines the two and was common in US and Canada and lobbies for economic and personal freedom. This ideology supports free trade and opposes national banks, and business regulations (Mintz, Close, & Croci, 2011). Fiscal conservatism is an economic principle that calls for wisdom in government spending. Conservatism argues that the government should be responsible for its debt accumulation and should not throw the responsibility to its citizens. Green conservatism entails involvement of green concerns into their ideologies. They are mainly concerned with finding efforts in curbing environmental issues, conservation of the natural resources and protection of human environmental health (Mintz, Close, & Croci, 2011). Social conservatism calls for sharing of culture s between nations. They have a strong faith in traditional values in politics in trying to maintain nationalisms. Social conservatism is much different in that, the government has responsibility to enforce and encourage these values so as to preserve morality and social norms (Mintz, Close, & Croci, 2011). Religious conservatism will try to accommodate the teachings of a specific religion in politics, by fixing their values into their teachings and in some cases trying to make those teachings influence the law. The incorporation of religious beliefs into the helps in shaping the religious power that can be used in governance. These religious values can be included in the making of the laws by the bodies concerned. Psychologists’ researchers in their studies argue that relationship that exists between conservatism and racial related issues is strong. This will only depend on different levels an individual has attained in terms of education and relationships.the correlation between conservatism and racism is also dependent on the society dominance in terms of orientations than in terms of laid down principles (Mintz, Close, & Croci, 2011). Nationalism This is an ideology concerned with the identification of groups or individuals with political stands nationally. The identity of a person is created by the nationalism. Different strands of nationalism can al
The principal-agent model shows compensation that an agent should receive from the principal for the work done. The agent aims at making as much money as possible, while the principal would like to pay the agent as little money as possible. An agent chooses an option that maximizes the payoff. The main aim of this paper is to analyze the principal-agent model that is applied to different organizations. Principal-Agent Model Application The principal-agent model applies to me because incase I go to a hospital; the doctor will treat me and therefore create an agency relationship. Either the principal or the agent may hold more information than the other party, thereby making the problem of information asymmetry. In this case, the doctor serves as an agent, and I serve as the principal. The doctor may decide to give me more than the required services in order for me to pay more money. I will try to maximize the utility of the services offered by the doctor, and the doctor will maximize the profit by charging me high charges. When an employer employs me, the firm will try to pay me as little as it can, and at the same time, I will try to ask for as much payment as possible. In this case, the principal-agent model applies to me when I am trying to maximize the utility of services offered by my agent in the hospital case. In the case of my organization, company, and business function, employees are the agents, and the business is the principle. In a company, the management is the agent, and the shareholders are the principals. Business organizations employ workers to carry out their operations that bring in revenues. For them to maximize their profits, they are being forced to use several tactics, one of them being giving employees attractive pay packages for them to be motivated in order to produce a high output. My business organization pays me wages according to the revenue at hand, given that high income attracts high wage payments and low revenues attract low wage payments. In this case, my organization will hold as much information as possible to the employers since my company wants to pay small wages to the employees while retaining huge profits. On the other hand, employees will try as much as possible to get high salaries despite their production. An employee will also receive utility from the number of units he/she delivers at the end of the day, which is the effort cost per unit. The model explains that it is not all time that an employee is motivated by the number of incentives offered by the employer. Effects of Change on Management Identity is useful since it suggests a natural way of behavior-changing within a population. I