ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction For years, the company has relied on itself for all business operations, hiring in-house specialists. However, as it started to land various high-profile projects, the CEO has realized that the existing internal resources might not be sufficient for completion. For this reason, the company is currently considering contracting but still has some reservations regarding the cost-benefit analysis and the ethical side of things. This report discusses the ethical issues that may arise in the process of contracting as well as the potential benefits that may outweigh the hassle. The paper stresses the importance of the communication process in building rapport and clarifies risks and responsibilities in the contractor–customer relationship. The Ethical Issues in Contracting When it comes to hiring contractors, a dilemma may arise as to whether to operate ethically or push one’s agenda for a bigger profit. Unfortunately, too many a firm choose the latter and prefer to pursue their commercial interests with little to no regard for ethics. Adnan, Hashim, Yusuwan, and Ahmad point out the detrimental impact of unethical practices, especially concerning the construction and civil engineering industries (1). Among the consequences, the scholar’s name wasted tender expenses, inadequately high project costs, tendering uncertainty, blackmail, criminal charges, fines, blacklisting, and damage to reputation. In a greater scheme of things, Adnan et al. highlight waste of public resources missed opportunities, and a less transparent business environment on the whole (1). While between 2005 and 2013, the industrial accident rate declined by 35%, the construction industry, notorious for poor contracting ethics, saw a 5.6% increase. It is safe to conclude that malpractices not only ruin employee morale but also directly compromise the safety of working sites. Adnan et al. stress the fact that both parties can be unethical: it is not only clients or contractors who refuse to navigate the business environment in an ethical manner (1). The scholars single out several types of unethical practices that, in their paper, characterize the construction industry but may apply to many sectors. Unfair conduct takes many forms that include but are not limited to unfair competition, unfair labor practices (e.g. promotion or dismissal), and unfair business practices (1). One party may put the other one in a position where the latter will have little to no ability to negotiate the legal terms of the contract (pro forma “take it or leave it” contracts). There may be inadequate disclosure of relevant information from either side that may especially hurt the weaker party that will not be a
Introduction Railway transport development in America can be understood better if we first and foremost look at the genesis of American transportation in general. Those who built the first railways in America were faced with a lot of problems like political differences, social misunderstanding as well as topographical. Although they were confronted by these problems, they were still determined, and at last, they made it. This achievement marks the most inspiring achievement in the history of America. The development of railroads has brought a great difference in the transport system of America. 1 In the early nineteenth century, the largest number of residents of what is now the United States of America was principally concentrated in the region lying next to the Atlantic coastline. The west was sparsely populated and the pioneers started venturing into the west though faced with a lot of challenges. Many of them died along the way due to diseases and massacres. The latest colonists went after the pioneers down into the great river valleys ahead of Allegheny Mountains. This innovative region was largely subjugated by Ohio, Missouri, and the Mississippi rivers as well as their streams. The pioneers made use of these interior shipping canals presented by nature. During this period, that is when steamboats were invented in 1783. They also started building canals though without the motorized assistance which are readily accessible these days. Later, several thousands of miles of canals were built which became the main means of transport, including linking New York to New Orleans. Some canals were built to combine both canals and railways sin
Introduction These days, statistics of car crashes even per one day is scary, and this type of vehicle is perceived the most dangerous, comparing to other options. Therefore, cases of car crashes and behavior leading to such catastrophes are actively explored by modern scientists in order to promote driving safety. Hot debates arose around the question of using hand-held cell phones while driving, as it may involve risks of car crash occurrence (Oviedo-Trespalacios et al.; Papadimitriou et al.). Taking this fact into consideration, it is worth prohibiting hand-held cell phone use while driving in all 50 states in the United States. Limiting the Reaction Time First of all, communicating via hand-held cell phone at the moment of driving a car may be extremely dangerous, increasing the likelihood of a car crash. While holding a gadget in one hand, a person controls the movement of a vehicle only by one hand. Consequently, an individual is not ready to respond to unexpected situations on the road, such as slipping on ice or a pedestrian in an inappropriate place. Moreover, the fact that a driver is conversating or listening to a speaker may aggravate the situation, diverting their attention from the road. Choudhary and Velaga (“Modelling Driver Distraction Effects”) marked: “in case of pedestrian crossing event…simple conversation, complex conversation, simple texting and complex texting caused 40%, 95%, 137% and 204% increment in the reaction times” (para. 1). They also highlighted: “in case of road crossing event by parked vehicles, the tasks caused 48%, 65%, 121% and 171% increment in reaction times respectively” (Choudhary and Velaga “Modelling Driver Distraction Effects” para. 1). This problem was also researched by these scientists further, examining effects on speed and effectiveness of compensatory driver behavior. They claim: “the logistic models for accident probabilities showed that the accident probabilities increased by 3 and 4 times respectively when the drivers were conversing or texting on the phone during the driving” (Choudhary and Velaga “Mobile Phone Use during Driving” para. 1). Therefore, in order to increase attention during driving and improve the reaction to road events, it is advisable to prohibiting hand-held phone use while driving in all 50 states. Ability to Drive without Cell Phones Arguing against this prohibition, a large number of people claim that mobile phones have become an integral part of the modern world and modern lifestyle, and it is impossible to limit their use while driving. However, in the recent past, people did not struggle to drive cars without the help of these gadgets. In general, life has not changed considerably enough so that people c
Introduction One of the greatest problems that harass people with low self esteem is their exaggerated self-criticism. Dr. Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning in their book Self-Esteem: A Proven Program of Cognitive Techniques for Assessing, Improving, and Maintaining Your Self-Esteem teach readers how to overcome the critic inside of them, so that they could understand who they really are. The authors have developed the issue of self-esteem for a long time and achieve really impressive results. In the preface to their later book devoted to this problem Dr. Matthew McKay defined it as the crucial landmark in people’s problems or success: “Success stories begin with a sense of confidence, a belief in oneself. Self-esteem is the ingredient that makes strong and lasting relationships, builds a nurturing community, and turns dreams into achievements” (McKay, M., 2005, p.VIII) Main text The book under discussion is a piece of non-fiction writing specializing in Psychology. Self-Esteem is a complete program that highlights several cognitive-behavioral techniques which help readers cope with their problems connected with low self-esteem. Since the first publication in 1987, the book under consideration has become very popular among therapists and readers who look for a self-care approach to increasing personal power. More than 500,000 copies of Self-Esteem have helped millions of people achieve greater success in their lives. The book is well-structured; its first chapter is focused on a discussion of the structure of self-esteem with a brief summary, highlighting how each following chapter of the book consider the definite aspect of self-esteem. The authors point out that there is an inner impulse in people to judge. And Dr. Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning believe this to be the source of poor self-esteem. When people begin judging parts of themselves as defects, low self-esteem will follow. The value of the book is enhanced due to the illustrations of the authors’ points via definite situations, and, of course, due to useful exercises which are characterized by complexity and comprehensiveness. Self-Esteem presents deep analysis of the problem and makes readers step by step overcome the whole problem sticking to each component of it. After the defining the nature of self-esteem the authors teach how to disarm the inner critic; and then go to another set and depict cognitive distortions; which is followed by the very important part of handling mistakes and responding to Criticism; and finally readers are taught how to use hypnosis for self-acceptance and why it is important; the book ends with the technique of building self-esteem in children. Due to the strict form and apprehensible language, simplicity of the examples and effective exercises this book is really helpful. One of the most astonishing points of the
Oxygen is a vital gas that occupies up to twenty one percent of the earth’s atmosphere. Animals and human beings require oxygen for their survival while it is the excreted by plants as an end product of photosynthesis. As a matter of fact, oxygen is present almost everywhere forming two thirds of the body mass of a healthy human being, it accounts for half the mass of the crust of the earth as well as nine tenths of water masses. Its discovery was therefore one of the most successful discoveries on earth. But the question is who really discovered oxygen? There have been many debates disputing on who the first person to discover oxygen was. Some will argue that it was discovered by Carl Scheele a Swedish chemist; others will give credit to Priestly while others would associate Lavoisier with its discovery. Born in 1733, Joseph Priestly I believe is the man behind the discovery of oxygen gas. Priestly made discoveries of oxygen gas in a Bowood House laboratory in the year 1774. In his laboratory experiment, he took a glass container and inverted it then inside it put a lump of reddish mercuric oxide and focused it using sunlight through a wide glass burning lens. This experiment resulted into an emission of a gas that in his opinion was six times better than the common air. To validate his discovery, Priestly carried tests and noticed that the ‘gas’ could burn intensively. He also found out that the ‘gas; discovered was able to keep a mouse alive up to four times longer than the common air. He later on named the gas ‘dephlogisticated air’ since it lacked phlogiston and supported combustion. Apart from the lab experiments, Priestly found out that a mouse kept in jar with a plant would survive unlike that kept in a jar of air only. In addition to his discovery, Priestly found out that a jar that had a sprig inside for twenty seven days rekindled a candle. In all these he was confirming the discovery of the oxygen gas. However, he decided to share the news of his discovery with Lavoisier who disapproved his theory of ‘dephlogisticated air’. After several experiments Madame Lavoisier discovered that air had an element that had the ability of combining with hydrogen to form water. This element was oxygen referred to as dephlogisticated air’ by Priestly. Given the above contributions made in the discovery of oxygen, it is difficult to make a decision on who should be credited with the discovery of oxygen. This controversy has been confusing even at the Nobel Committee panelli
Introduction The digital space has become one of the most lucrative marketplaces for most organizations in the 21st century. As a modern company, Lee’s Artificial Flowers greatly benefits from online marketing and sales. Currently, most of the company’s inventory sales come from its website, which implies that it is gaining a lot from online activities. To effectively enter and dominate more international markets, it will be instrumental for the firm to develop and apply critical digital marketing strategies. Part One: India’s Demographics One of the most lucrative international markets that Lee’s Artificial Flowers can consider investing in is the Indian market. India is one of the most populated countries globally, with approximately 1.39 billion people as of January of 2021 ( List of industries in India , 2021). The population of internet users in the country in January 2021 was 624 million, which was about 8.2% more than the population registered in the same period in the previous year (“ National Account Statistics Releases 2020, 2021 ”). The country’s economy has been relatively stable; in the 2020 financial year, the economy recorded a gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.708.77 billion U.S. dollars which was a slight deviation from the 2,870.5 billion U.S. dollars GDP recorded in the year 2019 (“ National Account Statistics Releases 2020, 2021” ). The population of the country, its enormous internet users, and the high GDP make it an appropriate international market for Lee’s Artificial Flowers. There are other notable trends that India, similar to other countries of the world, has adopted, making it a viable international market for the company. For instance, business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce is widely embraced in India. Factors such as the increased use of smartphones, high penetration of the internet in urban and rural areas, and hectic lifestyles, among others, have contributed to the popularity of (B2C) e-commerce in India (Kalia et al., 2021). The average online spending in India has been on a sharp rise since 2014. The average online spending in India in 2020 was significant at approximately 64 billion U. S dollars. India’s annual commercial retail sales have also been impressive in the past years ( List of industries in India , 2021). In 2020, the Indian Brand Equality Foundation (IBEF) estimated the country’s Annual commercial retail sales to be 883 billion U.S. dollars ( List of industries in India , 2021). From all the factors analyzed above, it is evident India has numerous market opportunities for the company. The concept of network readiness is highly instrumental in the determination of appropriate international markets to venture into. Network readiness reflects a country’s ability to use Information, Communication Technologies (ICT) to improve its wellbeing and competitiveness in the global market. It is also a fundamental indicator showing the performance of a country in the digital world. In 2019, India ranked at position 79
Introduction The reasons for the fall of the Roman Empire have been discussed by the modern historians at length. The most popular reason that has been accepted by many scientists is the barbarian expansion that was not eliminated or addressed properly at the time when changing the situation was still possible. At the same time, the possibility of the so-called “barbarian” tribes overcoming the highly-developed Roman Empire appears to be unbelievable and causes doubt. The leading opinion on the matter suggests that the true reasons for the collapse of the state include both internal and external factors; brought together into a system, they have served to destroy the once great Roman Empire. The Fall of the Roman Empire Hands present numerous suppositions concerning the possible reasons for the collapse of the Roman Empire. Even though the author appears to advocate the barbarian invasion as the primary reason, other featured explanations also should be mentioned. The internal weaknesses that would be described by historians included the drawbacks of slavery, 1 a decline of the population, 2 the growing spirit of pacifism among the population along with a questionable decline of production, 3 decreasing the popularity of Rome, 4 and others. The external factors that are noteworthy include the plague, 5 climatic change, exhaustion of the soil, malaria. 6 At the same time, the most famous external reason for the collapse oft he Roman Empire is the barbarians invasion. It is not unlikely for one to wonder how the uncivilized barbarians could have conquested the highly developed Roman Empire. The article by Goffart is devoted to this question. As Goffart points out, “barbarians” is the generic name that the Romans used for all the foreign tribes. In fact, Goffart points out that the barbarians did not have to be uncivilized. 7 Technically, the word means “foreigner,” but it contains a negative connotation. It is not surprising, therefore, that an Empire collapses under the pressure of foreign force. However, as Goffart also points out that the Romans had centuries of experience of fighting these tribes (for example, the 390 B.C. burns of the Rome by the Celts). Apart from that, even though the invasion is normally associated with Germanic peoples, these tribes have not been homogenous; there was no unity among the barbarians 8 This means that the Roman Empire did have the chances of eliminating the danger. Goffart advocates that the state did not try to. It allowed the problem to persist, mostly due to internal reasons. Even though Goffart claims to be targeting the problem of the barbarians, he devotes a great part of the paper to the internal difficulties of the Roman Empire, which demonstrates the correlation between the two sources of deterioration. By the time of its collapse, the Roman Empire has learned to value peace. It no longer sought to expand or eliminate rivals. In fact, Roman emperors tended to
Introduction The United States is a haven for business. The country has a powerful economy that fosters trade and investment. Unfortunately, some unscrupulous individuals have taken advantage of the naivety of some investors to engage in dubious financial activities. This has resulted in some of the worst financial scandals ever witnessed in the country. The Scandals The Panic of 1792 hit the United States in its infancy. The main players in the scandal included William Duer, George Washington, and Alexander Hamilton (Lund). Duer used the opportunity to corner the market. He bought all the existing shares with borrowed money and used them as collateral. He tried to establish a rival bank which led to the liquidation of his holdings. His friend, Alexander Hamilton attempted to intervene to contain the financial damage (Lund). The Ponzi scheme is another major financial scandal that hit the United States. The player was Charles Ponzi who created an ‘investment company’ aimed at expanding his scheme. The American people invested millions of dollars into the company hoping to earn higher interest rates (Lund). The initial investors were paid their dues, but the new ones lost all their investments. The scheme was uncovered by the authorities who shut it down. Ponzi was imprisoned. In 1921, the Teapot Dome scandal hit the United States of America. The players were President Warren Harding and Albert Fall (Lund). The Interior Secretary, Albert Fall, awarded the drilling rights to some private firms while ignoring competitive bidding (Lund). He accepted bribes worth $7 million in the process. The Senate Committee uncovered his scandalous dealings when he failed to explain his new net wealth (James). Hitler Defaults came in 1933 as a result of the Versailles Treaty that ended World War I in 1919. The parties responsible were Adolf Hitler, the Wall Street bankers, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Lund). The German president, Adolf Hitler declined to pay the war reparations that Germany had paid using bonds. The Bonds found themselves on Wall Street and became worthless. Eron Bankruptcy also tainted the United States’ corporate environment. The responsible persons were Jeffrey Skillings, Andre Fastow, and Ken Lay (Lund). Enron was named the country’s most innovative company for six years in a row by generating over $101 billion by 2001. In reality, the revenue had been generated by planned accounting fraud. It resulted in limited liability with special purpose entities where Enron hid its liabilities. The scandal was uncovered by Sherron Watkins, the whistleblower, who revealed it to the authorities (Lund). In the Madoff Investment Scandal , Bernie Madoff ran a Ponzi scheme based on falsifying digits and defrauding new investors. Due to the unexpected 2008 financial crisis, investors r
The article “The Nineteenth Amendment and Gender Identity Discrimination” written by Romero A. for the American Bar Association journal reveals the legislative approaches related to gender diversity. The author describes the limitations of different states, cases that affected the law system, new policies, and issues that transgender people experience due to the inability to vote. The article’s main statement is that a crucial civic procedure like voting should not be affected by the gender identity of a citizen. The Nineteenth Amendment that initially granted the women’s rights to vote is the constitutional act used by the author as the argument of required protection for transgender people. Romero (2020) states that “discrimination “on account of sex” within the meaning of the Nineteenth Amendment encompasses discrimination on account of one’s gender identity, or transition from one gender to another or no gender at all” (para. 4). He explains the contemporary gender identity and protects diversity as such people help society thrive and must not be discriminated against. Transgender individuals might experience mental issues due to their inability to behave the preferred way (Brumbaugh-Johnson & Hull, 2019). The article points out that every citizen deserves equal rights that should be protected by laws. Although the United States is one of the countries that respects its citizens’ self-identification and legally allows people to change their gender, there are still laws and states that do not comply with these conditions. Romero (2020) claims that “in places such as Florida, Georgia, and Texas, it is perfectly legal under state law to fire a worker, evict someone from his or her home for being transgender” (para. 10). There is no established federal protection strategy from transgender discrimination, yet some existing legislation can be applied as assistance. The author mentions Title VII and the Fair Housing Act that do not include any defense for the right of gender identification (Romero, 2020). However, federal civil rights statutes prohibit sex discrimination in employment, healthcare, banking, education, and other sectors. The author highlights that the laws and constitutional acts that can protect the rights of transgender people already exist, and the Nineteenth Amendment is an example. The article encourages the legislators to revise the gender identification and the perception of “sex” in laws. The Nineteenth Amendment appliance for transgender voters is a step closer to eliminating gender identity discrimination.