A Diet of Worms in the Digital Age :: Digital Technology Technological Papers

A Diet of Worms in the Digital Age I can’t prove it, but there is no doubt in my mind that textual arguments have been raging in scholarly circles for as long as there has been text to debate. In my mind’s eye I can see them: ancient Sumerian scribes lecturing each other about clay types and wedge depth; early Semitic peoples voting â€Å"no† on the vowel; medieval European scribes boldly pushing forward with punctuation, spaces between words, and the lower-case alphabet, and having heated debates on the long-term viability of the capital letter. And then came the printing press! Can you imagine the contention! What bold new vistas were opened up for scholarship! But anyone could publish anything—no matter what the quality! And surely, this spelled the doom of calligraphy. With the advent of the digital age, scholarly textual debate has simply entered a new phase. At issue here: what is the potential of digitally-powered scholarship, and how can that potential be realized? What approaches should we take in terms of format and methodology? William H. O’Donnell and Emily A. Thrush (â€Å"Designing a Hypertext Edition of a Modern Poem†) discuss the issues involved in designing hypertext editions of literature. Specifically, they refer to the edition of Yeats’s â€Å"Lapis Lazuli† that they designed. The main work to be studied, they feel (be it â€Å"Lapis Lazuli† or something else), must not be cluttered with visible links. They have devised a method of windowing that anticipates the modern â€Å"frames† format of Internet documents, and stress that any attempt at electronic analysis of a work of literature must be intuitively structured, easy to use, and customizable. Their edition of â€Å"Lapis Lazuli† appears well-constructed and functional and seems to have fairly broad appeal, but it seems also to be intended more as an aid to understanding the poem than as a tool for scholarly research. This distinction separates this article somewhat from the others considered her e, though the basic format could be applied to other projects. Peter Shillingsburg (â€Å"Principles for Electronic Archives, Scholarly Editions, and Tutorials†) frankly admits that what we all secretly want is to have every conceivable kind of information—textual, visual, audio—related to a given topic all sorted for us and available right at our fingertips. This is, of course, impossible, but he feels that electronic editions of scholarly works have the potential to come closer to that ideal than any other medium. He systematically lays out the main problems facing those who create electronic editions and suggests some ways to address them.

Malachi Stacks in the Matchmaker Essay

In the world of business there are always those men and women who are not recognized for the contributions they make to certain products, projects, or works even though without them the result would never exist. Nonetheless, these people go on with their daily lives working hard, knowing that all their dedication is going to benefit others and not them. Yet, they can’t blame the big companies for not being recognized, because these men and women do this willingly. They are fully aware that their actions serve a purpose to the greater rather than a personal one, and for them that is enough. Such people do not need the recognition of others because they themselves know the importance of their actions. One example of such a human being is portrayed in Thornton Wilder’s The Matchmaker. His name is Malachi Stacks, and though he only shows up on stage two or three times, he is the one who gives the entire production meaning. Malachi is the person who sets into motion a series of events that completely change not only the characters, but also their lives. With this character, Thornton Wilder takes what used to be just a regular farce comedy and gives it meaning which makes all the difference, Malachi Stacks makes all the difference. Thornton carefully crafted the role of Stacks in such a way that made him distinct from the rest of the characters. Even with being in his fifties, sadness and depression are entirely absent from his life. Every line spoken by him has a joyful feeling to, and almost puts a smile on the reader’s face. Even at times when he is being put down by Mr. Vandergelder, joy is felt in his words. Wilder makes Malachi seem like a little adolescent, who has not yet been exposed to reality, and still thinks the world is perfect. However, all this is just an image that Malachi establishes for his own purposes. He makes people believe he can be trusted by pretending to be respectful and following orders. Malachi creates a relationship between himself and the others, especially Mr. Vandergelder, which makes him seem gullible and easy to control when in fact it is he who controls them. This sort of maneuver is portrayed very well in his first scene with Mr. Vandergelder, in which he says â€Å"You’ll never regret it, Mr. Vandergelder. You’ll never regret it.† It is such a simple line, and yet there is so much there. Malachi makes it seem like he is just another man who is happy about getting a job, when in reality he is masking his true intentions behind these innocent words. The real reason Malachi is happy to have gotten the job, is because he now has the ability to fix the inequality which exists between Vandergelder and the others. Truth be told, Malachi is actually the only individual who see this flaw amongst the characters, and he knows it should not be there. Therefore, by formulating this sort of innocent personality, Malachi Stacks gives himself the perfect opportunity to finally bring equality into the lives of the characters. It all happens in Act III when Mr. Vandelgelder is having his coat taken off as his purse filled with money falls to the ground. Malachi, knowing that the primary reason for such inequality amongst the characters is their financial situations, takes his chance to balance the scale. However, he does not make a big deal out of it. Malachi simply takes the purse, asks Vandelgelder if it’s his, and since the response is no he gives it to Cornelius. It’s very quick, subtle, and seems like the right thing to do. Yet, even though what he did was so simple, it was enough to bring equality into their lives and he knew that. By asking Vandergelder whether or not the purse was his, Malachi tested him to check if he deserves the money. For in his short little monologue that he has right after picking up the purse, Mr. Stacks says â€Å"The law is there to protect property, but- sure the law doesn’t care whether a property owner deserves his property or not, and the law has to be corrected†. Therefore when he asked Vandelgelder â€Å"Did you drop something† the real question was â€Å"Are you worthy of all this money that you have†. Vandelgelder responding quickly said no, and that was enough for Malachi to know that the money deserved to be in the hands of someone else, Cornelius. It is also at this point that inequality begins to slowly disappear between the characters. First, Cornelius and Barnaby are able to pay for their expensive dinner and truly impress Mrs. Malloy along with Minnie. Then Mrs. Levi finally tells Mr. Vandergelder what she thinks of him when he cannot pay the bill, and that is when he finally realizes what kind of man he is. Slowly through scenes like these, the balance between the characters begins to even out and by the end, everyone is happy, joyful, and most of all the inequality amongst them completely vanishes all thanks to Malachi Stacks. Though Thornton chose Malachi to be the tool for equilibrium amongst the characters by having him â€Å"redistribute the superfluities†, the part also is important when it comes to the moral of the story. Of course, after reading The Matchmaker it safe to say that there are multiple lessons to be learned from this play, but one of the main ones shows up in Malachi’s monologue. Right after discussing the entire matter of redistributing property, Thornton has the character talk about how one man should not have more than one vice. In fact, he ends his line with the words â€Å"One vice at a time†. Now this entire concept might seem abstract, because after all even in today’s world vices are looked down upon. However, Thornton shows what two vices can do to a man by having Malachi use Vandergelder’s wrongs against him. His first true frailty is that in his own world Mr. Vandergelder sees himself a king, where no one can stop him because he has so much money. The second is his passion for money. In fact, his first vice comes from this one, because to him a person who has more money has more authority. So instead of merely having Vandergelder destroy himself through his vices, Thornton uses Malachi to show how having more than one vice is recipe for destruction. First, he uses Vandergelder’s attitude towards himself to gain his trust, by pretending to be loyal to him. Next, once Vandergelder thinks he has him under his control, Malachi uses the second frailty against him taking that which is most precious, his money, and giving it away. By using both of these flaws in his master’s character, Mr. Stacks brings Vandergelder into a state of despair where he has lost everything that made him, a King in his own mind. One man. Three Scenes. Yet without him, The Matchmaker would never be the same. Thornton Wilder made a smart decision in imgaging such a character, because he is developed in such a way that his importance to the whole play is not realized until the conclusion. For with just a simple action of handing off a purse to Cornelius, Malachi made a ripple effect which changed the course of the entire production and made all the difference. Malachi Stacks made all the difference.

Aquiring Admissable Statements Essay

1. When reviewing the legal requirements to acquire an admissible statement, what similarities did you find among the four states? In general the similarities among the four states pertain to the use of public records such as religious ones, family history, documents more than 20 years old, recorded recollections, the absence of public records, vital statistics, statements about the declarant’s present sense impressions or the declarant’s the existing mental, physical or emotional state, statements about the person’s medical condition. Arizona, Illinois and New York also allow telephone conversations to be admitted into evidence as long as one part has consented to such recording (Pilgrim Software, 2007). 2. What differences did you find among the four states? California requires both parties’ consent to telephone conversation recording for the telephone call to be admitted as evidence (Pilgrim Software, 2007). California has admitted hearsay statements by victims who were murdered, as demonstrated by the (Colb, 2008) Giles v. California. New York Evidence Law (2006) does not allow prior consistent statements. They can only be used to disprove misassigned motive, as demonstrated by People v. Seit, 86 N.Y.2d 92 (1995) (p. 15).However, New York has made exceptions to such statements when they apply to present impressions (p. 15). Out-of-court identifications made by persons not present is treated as hearsay (p. 15). This is also true for California (DiCarlo, 2001). In Arizona, former testimony in a non-criminal action or proceeding is admissible. If it relates to criminal actions or proceedings it is inadmissible (â€Å"Arizona rules,† 2009). Yet, Arizona allows firsthand written accounts of the person’s activities or routines (2009). Illinois (2011) contends that one must â€Å"[†¦] prove the content of a writing, recording, or photograph, the original writing, recording, or photograph is required, except as otherwise provided in these rules or by statute† in order to be admitted. If the original is unavailable, exceptions might be made (2011). 3. What do you consider the most interesting concept regarding your comparison of admissible statements for these states? Perhaps, the most interesting concept regarding the comparison of admissible statements and hearsay exceptions for these states lie within the small and pivotal differences between them. Almost every difference is explained by a court case in that particular state. when one considers that each state has a few exceptions to the federal rules of evidence and hearsay, I cannot help but wonder whether such exceptions are constitutional.

Three Gorges Dam: Its Background and Relevance

This report examines the Three Gorge dam project and its impacts on the environment, the people it will effect and measures that can be taken as an alternative to the dam. I will discuss the Chinese government's reasoning for constructing the dam and the negative aspects of such a construction. Then I will explain the more environmentally friendly and logical alternatives. The concept of the Three Gorge dam is over 75 years old, dating back to when it was first proposed by the nationalist leader Sun Yat-Sen, in 1919. The dam was a dream of communist leader Mao Zedong, who felt it would be a potent symbol of China's self-sufficiency and ability to develop without western aid. The state media has reported only the rosy side of the Three Gorges project, presenting it as a powerful symbol of a new, prosperous China. Outgoing Premier Li Peng said the Three Gorges Dam would †demonstrate to the world that the Chinese people have the ability to build the biggest and most beneficial irrigation and hydro-electric project in the world†. The Three Gorges refers to a 120-mile stretch of limestone cliffs along the upper reaches of the Yangzi River where the water drops precipitously through the Qutang, Wu, and Xiling gorges. The region is linked to folklore and important historical events, and its beauty has inspired Chinese painters and classical poets such as Li Bai for centuries. The dam, which will be 1. 3 miles long and 610 feet high, is expected to be completed by 2009. It will create a 385 mile-long reservoir stretching back up the river that will totally engulf the Three Gorges, as well as 115,000 acres of rich farmland, thirteen cities, hundreds of villages, and countless historic temples and archaeological sites. Between 1. 4 and 1. 9 million people will need to be resettled. The proponents of the dam claim that the introduction of such a large amount of clean hydroelectric power into China's rapidly expanding economy will mean a significant reduction in the emission of fossil fuel pollution. First, it will generate 18000 megawatts of electricity, which would reduce the country's reliance on coal by one tenth. Hence reducing China's overall greenhouse gases. Second, it will prevent the periodical flooding of the Yangzi, which has already claimed the lives of half a million this century alone. The dam is expected to cut incidents of serious flood from once in 10 years to once in 100 years. At present 15 million lives are at stake as the river rises higher above the surrounding land because of sediment deposits on the riverbed, while dikes can no longer be raised safely. Third, it will make the upper part of the Yangzi more navigable, â€Å"raising the river's navigable tonnage by a big margin†. Improved navigability would allow ocean-going freighters to penetrate the depths of China's remote Southwest, bringing much needed economic development and prosperity to the region. The project is also expected to develop reservoir fisheries, stimulate tourism in and around the reservoir, improve water quality downstream, protect the lake areas downstream, and enable south-to-north water transfer sometime in the next century. 4. 0 Dilemmas surrounding dam construction There are many problems entangled with the construction of such a dam, two of which stand out. First, the fact that so many civilians have to be moved against their will. 13 cities, 140 towns, more than 1600 villages, and 300 factories will be submerged, and nearly 1. 5 million people relocated. Second, the effects that the rise in level of river will have on the environment. This includes the destruction of habitats for at least four indigenous species in the area. According to official figures, 10. 2 million people have been relocated for the construction of dams in the past in China. In each case, there have been economic or political problems that has often led to intimidation and sometimes violence to force the people to resettle. This is due to people's reluctance to leave their homes, which can be attributed to poor planning on the government's part. The number of people to be resettled in the Three Gorges dam project has been estimated to range between 700,000 to 1. 98 million. Such variation in figures is due to the fact that it depends on whether the information was gathered by the dam's supporters or critics. There has been a large amount of local opposition to the dam. Their opposition is mainly based on the poor record of China's Ministry of Water Resources, which includes the collapse of 62 dams in the past due to poor design. However, since the Chinese government never acknowledged such disasters in the past, it could not be brought up in hearings on the Three Gorge project. People in the effected area who have in the past organised against the dam were arrested and sentenced to prison for â€Å"counter-revolution† and the police presence in the area has since been increased. The local officials are not quite helping ease the situation. The distribution of compensation money by local authorities (US$1300 per person) offered to people displaced by the dam has been tainted by corruption. 105 local party officials involved in the project have been arrested already. Almost half of the project's resettlers are farmers. But since there is an inadequate amount of farmland left to be shared, the officials have planned for moving the resettlers into industrial jobs. This is quite an impossible task considering that the farmers have been farming in their area for generations and have absolutely no expertise in industrial work. It is a great concern that the construction of the dam will result in the destruction of the natural habitats of many of China's indigenous wildlife species. This includes the Chinese alligator, the white crane, the river dolphin and the prehistoric Chinese sturgeon, a fish unique to Yangzi waters. Experts warn that, by forever changing the hydrology of the river for thousands of miles, the dam will destroy commercial fish stocks and deprive the complex floodplain agricultural systems of the water and silt they need. Hence threatening the livelihoods of 75 million people who live on fishing or farming along the Yangzi's bank. Even if the 75 million people find another source to live on, there is yet another problem to be solved; toxic pollution. The factories along the Yangzi river are so polluting that over 200 paper mills and tanneries have already been closed down around the Three Gorges dam site to boost environmental protection. The contamination of the river by the toxic chemicals may increase due to the 1600 factories in the area that are not cleaned up and moved before the waters begin to rise. China is the world's second leading producer of greenhouse gases. If China's current growth rates continue, it will need to develop an additional 17,000 megawatts of energy per year for the next decade. And if coal is used to generate this energy, the environmental impacts could be disastrous. Whether or not the dam is constructed, hydropower will only account for no more than 20% of China's electricity generated by year 2010. This shows that coal will be used even more widely than it is now, to meet energy needs. Hence the dam will not have much impact on helping meet energy needs. China needs to find a cleaner, more efficient way of creating power. The Three Gorge reservoir is currently designed to hold 20 billion cubic meters at the flood level. But this capacity is only equivalent to 4% of the total run off water in the region. â€Å"It is obvious from common sense that this capacity could not hold back flood waters enough to reduce significantly the flood risk at the lower reaches. † Another problem is the fact that the Yangzi carries a large amount of silt. This silt can be carried all the way to the dam and a big ‘mud pond' could result. There is no such technology available to divert or collect the silt at the dam. From an ecological point of view, the dam will be clogged by the large silt deposits, in the Yangzi, and will also trap much of the pollutants that normally would be washed out to the ocean. Along the Yangzi, about 80 percent of the cities do not have sewage systems, and it is cheaper to dump the waste in the river instead of a sewage treatment plant. Burial grounds in both Wushan and Fengjie counties, Sichuan are known to have been dynamited to make way for scientific excavations in advance of the dam project. One thousand tombs dating between the Han and Ming periods (206 BC to AD 1644) were also blasted away. The problem lies with lack of funding. The initial budget (US$250 million) for excavation and preservation was reduced to US$37. 5 million. Only a small amount of this sum has been distributed to local authorities because government officials have been unable to decide which agency should administer the funds. The Three Gorges dam will be the most expensive single construction project in history. The Chinese leaders are so determined to build the dam, that they haven't considered whether it is economically viable. In 1992 the official cost of the dam was set to US$11 billion. Estimates now exceed US$75 billion. This could slow down China's recent economic boom. The dam project is heavily funded by foreign export agencies. If people in foreign countries were to stop foreign investors and government organisations which support the project, the Chinese officials would have no choice but to reconsider their plans. But since it is not in the foreign investors' best interest monetarily, they have kept supporting the Chinese government. Hydrological experts have argued that effective flood management includes dyking, flood proofing, flood warning systems, diversion areas, and development restrictions in floodplain and designated diversion areas and that dams are not always the answer. The Chinese officials' mentality is that the â€Å"biggest structure† is the best structure, but what they must realize is that it does not mean the best structure. That Chinese hydropower could be produced on a number of tributaries that flow into the Yangzi. This procedure has been proven by scientific examples that prove that separate dams will produce more power and last longer then one main dam. Sedimentation of separate dams would be less and these dams would be able to preserve China's cultural history. The greater amount of smaller dams would cause less soil erosion and more power for a much lower cost. It would be able to compete with China's booming industrial sectors and preserve the aquatic life. The construction of these smaller dams could also mean that it would lesson the amount of people to be resettled, and would save the Chinese government billions of dollars. However, the smaller dams would not allow large transportation of cargo down the river. Based on a recent study by United States and Chinese energy research institutes, which compared conventional sources with advanced generating technologies, cleaner alternatives, such as smaller gas turbines or cogeneration plants were found to be more economical for power generation than big hydro dams. Combined cycle gas turbines could provide power with lower capital costs and greater reliability than the Three Gorges dam and with far fewer emissions than conventional coal plants. Combined cycle plants are commonly fuelled with natural gas, which burns more thoroughly than solid or liquid fuels. And unlike coal, it contains no heavy metals or sulfur emissions that cause acid rain. Combined cycle plants can be installed and generating power reliably within nine months to two or three years for larger units. Three Gorges dam is scheduled to take 17 years. In addition energy specialists argue, that switching from coal to gas, and using new technology of combined cycle gas turbines or cogeneration, would create greater environmental benefits than the Three Gorges dam by a 60% reduction of carbon dioxide emissions. Whereas the Three Gorges dam would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by only 5%.

Beautyism in the Workplace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Beautyism in the Workplace - Essay Example for their beauty and this knowledge comes to them by whatever means, they would have no reason to work as hard as they would have in the opposite circumstances. As is human nature, they focus more on being attractive and remaining in that state as that is what got them the position in the first place. Even though it is humanly impossible to overlook one’s attractiveness, it is important to try to analyze that in comparison to their skill set (Sartore, 2006). Hiring people based on their attractiveness does very little for the motivation of other employees. Employees should be made to direct their efforts towards increasing their productive ability. The observance that the management’s focus is in the opposite direction rubs off on them and sends them into confusion. The action of the one person in the management body affects the outlook of employees towards the entire body and not of that particular person. In the case facing the College of Business Administration, the chairperson’s action could be interpreted as the stand of the entire management body, inclusive of human resource. The staff body usually works in parallel direction with the management. Therefore, if they not that the management focus is on productivity in terms of skills, then they equally focus on that. However if they find that other aspects such as beauty are more important they shift focus to that rather than to improving and sustaining their skills. From the same management-employee relationship perspective, Beautyism damages the faith of employees in their management. In whatever circumstances, the management is meant to illustrate integrity in order to establish faith and goodwill (Commisso, 2012). In the event that beautyism becomes a management’s limitation, employees begin to question other aspects of that relationship. Employees begin to worry that they could be biased on other aspects as well leaving them on the losing side. For this reasons, it is important to avoid

Royal Mail Privatisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Royal Mail Privatisation - Essay Example For purposes of this brief analysis, the author will consider the case of the Royal Mail with regards to its upcoming privatized nation. Rather than delineating whether or not this is a positive or negative in, per se, the analysis will be contingent upon the activities and obligations that the Royal Mail engenders, how privatized nation might impact this industry, a discussion and analysis of what privatized nation actually entails, a discussion of the market structure of the parcel and packet delivery industry, and analysis of the way that this might impact upon performance, business, industry, and the consumer, and finally a discussion and analysis of whether such a level of privatization might in fact be in the best interests of these respective stakeholders or not (Houghton et al., 2013). It is the hope of this author that such a level of analysis will help to elucidate a further level of understanding in the mind of the reader with regards to the Royal mail and how it is likely to be defined and evolved within the coming years (Whyman, 2009). Q1: As it stands today, the Royal Mail is responsible for delivering and processing tens of millions of pieces of mail, both domestic and international, that transit within the United Kingdom. Tracing its origins back as far as Henry VIII, the Royal Mail service has existed and evolved with the needs of the United Kingdom throughout the years. Currently, the Royal Mail is the primary and most prolific provider of posts and parcel service within the United Kingdom and its territories (The Guardian, 2012). As with many other nationalized entities, the Royal Mail has not operated with ultimate profitability as the core contingent. Although solvency and a level of profitability has been considered, the main driving force that denotes business interactions within the world has not, at least up until this time, then a prescient concern. One of the defining compliments of the Royal Mail is what is known as the â€Å"univer sal service†. This â€Å"universal service† regards the compunction that the Royal Mail has to service all corners of the United Kingdom and provide post and parcel service, as well as a litany of other services, to these individuals; regardless of whether they live in far-flung reaches of the UK (Yarker, 2013). Naturally, privatization threatens to fundamentally redefine the way in which the Royal Mail operates. Consequently, before delving too deeply into the process of privatization itself, or seeking to analyze the means by which privatization will impact upon the Royal Mail, it is necessary seek to understand privatization itself as well as the core fundamentals of what it entails for any operation that engages with such a model of production. As has briefly been referenced above, the Royal Mail has not previously operated within the bounds of seeking to maximize a level of profitability. However, by very definition, privatization is a process through which singula r or joint ownership of a given entity/business seeks to exploit the overall level of profitability that can be realized. As a function of this, privatization threatens to fundamentally shift the way in which such an industry as the Royal Mail might be evidenced within the future. Q2: Whereas the Royal Mail had a near monopoly upon the United Kingd

International Law Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International Law - Dissertation Example But two aspects are fundamental to all political systems. One is that power--the ability to influence behavior--is the main means by which the political system directs behavior and allocates resources. The other is that law is always one form in which political decisions are formed and perpetuated. Law translates political decisions into binding instructions to the society's members about how to behave. This dependent relationship of law to politics has important consequences. Another thing that will be discussed in the paper will be Law and Politics. A brief introduction of how this portion will be discussed in the paper is as follows: One consequence is that the inadequacy of the contemporary political system to maintain social order reliably is necessarily reflected in the law. The insistence of states to be sovereign, i.e., to be their own ultimate authority in determining their behavior, disables the law to perform its ordering function most efficaciously. The immediate cause of this weakness is the diffused, horizontal distribution of power among states. The institutions that maintain an efficient legal system in national political systems are lacking. There is no central government, no formal legislature, no executive, and no fully developed judiciary, because sovereign states aim at performing all these functions for themselves and, if possible, for the entire society. Another consequence is that international laws, like all laws, mostly represent a prevailing power constellation in the society.