Saturday, October 12, 2019
The Power And The Glory :: essays research papers
The Power and Glory writing assignment à à à à à ââ¬Å"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weakâ⬠.(Matthew 26:41) These words of Jesus are thematic in both the novel, The Power and the Glory, by Graham Greene, and the poem, ââ¬Å"Batter my heart, three-personed Godâ⬠, by John Donne. Both the whiskey priest and the speaker of the poem are involved in a battle between their sinful flesh and their spirit, which seeks the Divine. They also admit their sin and commit themselves to God. In both the novel and the poem, the authors use similar paradoxes to describe the characterââ¬â¢s relationship with God while the search for holiness takes each on a different path. The speaker and the whiskey priest describe themselves as sinners, yielding to temptation. The speaker of the poem says, ââ¬Å"But I am betrothed unto your enemyâ⬠(ln.10), showing the speaker is subdued by the devil. The priest, a drunkard with a child, thinks of himself as a transgressor and a disgrace to the Church. While in the prison, the priest says to the pious woman, ââ¬Å"But Iââ¬â¢m a bad priestâ⬠¦I know from experience-how much beauty Satan carried down with him when he fell.â⬠(p.130) When he is arrested the priest says to a soldier, ââ¬Å"You mustnââ¬â¢t think they are like meâ⬠¦Itââ¬â¢s just that Iââ¬â¢m a bad priest.â⬠(p.191). In addition to recognizing their betrayal of God, they believe that a sacred life is the ultimate victory. The speaker confesses, ââ¬Å"Yet dearly I love you and would be loved fain.â⬠(ln.9) The priest also desires to love God above all, ââ¬Å"He knew now at the end there was only one thing that counted ââ¬â to be a saint.â⬠(p.210) However, each character pursues the Divine in a different way. Even though the whiskey priest perceives himself as a sinner, his way of life resembles the good of the Holy Spirit. The priest resembles Jesus in many places in the novel. The prison scene is very much like the Last Supper, when Jesus said to his apostles that one of them would betray him. The priest thinks, ââ¬Å"Surely one of these people will betray me first.â⬠(p.128) He also cleans the pails of the cells in the prison just as Jesus washes the apostlesââ¬â¢ feet. The night before he is executed the priest prays alone as Jesus did in the garden. The priest embarks on a mission to keep his religion alive in Mexico while helping the individuals he meets, and he finally dies because of his faith and sense of duty. The Power And The Glory :: essays research papers The Power and Glory writing assignment à à à à à ââ¬Å"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weakâ⬠.(Matthew 26:41) These words of Jesus are thematic in both the novel, The Power and the Glory, by Graham Greene, and the poem, ââ¬Å"Batter my heart, three-personed Godâ⬠, by John Donne. Both the whiskey priest and the speaker of the poem are involved in a battle between their sinful flesh and their spirit, which seeks the Divine. They also admit their sin and commit themselves to God. In both the novel and the poem, the authors use similar paradoxes to describe the characterââ¬â¢s relationship with God while the search for holiness takes each on a different path. The speaker and the whiskey priest describe themselves as sinners, yielding to temptation. The speaker of the poem says, ââ¬Å"But I am betrothed unto your enemyâ⬠(ln.10), showing the speaker is subdued by the devil. The priest, a drunkard with a child, thinks of himself as a transgressor and a disgrace to the Church. While in the prison, the priest says to the pious woman, ââ¬Å"But Iââ¬â¢m a bad priestâ⬠¦I know from experience-how much beauty Satan carried down with him when he fell.â⬠(p.130) When he is arrested the priest says to a soldier, ââ¬Å"You mustnââ¬â¢t think they are like meâ⬠¦Itââ¬â¢s just that Iââ¬â¢m a bad priest.â⬠(p.191). In addition to recognizing their betrayal of God, they believe that a sacred life is the ultimate victory. The speaker confesses, ââ¬Å"Yet dearly I love you and would be loved fain.â⬠(ln.9) The priest also desires to love God above all, ââ¬Å"He knew now at the end there was only one thing that counted ââ¬â to be a saint.â⬠(p.210) However, each character pursues the Divine in a different way. Even though the whiskey priest perceives himself as a sinner, his way of life resembles the good of the Holy Spirit. The priest resembles Jesus in many places in the novel. The prison scene is very much like the Last Supper, when Jesus said to his apostles that one of them would betray him. The priest thinks, ââ¬Å"Surely one of these people will betray me first.â⬠(p.128) He also cleans the pails of the cells in the prison just as Jesus washes the apostlesââ¬â¢ feet. The night before he is executed the priest prays alone as Jesus did in the garden. The priest embarks on a mission to keep his religion alive in Mexico while helping the individuals he meets, and he finally dies because of his faith and sense of duty.
Friday, October 11, 2019
Is English killing other languages Essay
Abstract Is English Killing other languages? As we went on to know and find out what people think about question, we learned and observed peopleââ¬â¢s different opinion, rather we should term it as conflicting. Some say we cannot blame the English to be a language killer, world is changing and those who couldnââ¬â¢t survive die out, same theory goes for the languages also. While on the other hand people are very critical of the growing usage of English. A section of people also see it as a means of connecting cultures and promoting globalization. What we learned through working with questionnaires and interviewing people, is we cannot generalize anything, like yes this is it because majority thinks so, may be the next person you go to have a totally different opinion to say about it. Itââ¬â¢s the personââ¬â¢s circumstances in life, his age, occupation, the environment he lives in, is brought up, that mainly shape his thinking process. Keeping in mind all these differences, and what we learned from people. We gave our best efforts to get a conclusion about this question. Contents Introduction Definition of Language Findings from people and sites, online discussions Extinct Languages in India Conclusion from interviews and questionnaire Final Conclusion Reference Appendix Introduction All over the world there is a concern about the disappearance of languages. Languages are dying in a very big way everywhere in the world. And who is to blame is the much asked question. And our topic for the project, ââ¬Å"Is English Killing Other Languagesâ⬠is a big question, whether we can blame alone English as the cause of increasing number of extinct regional languages or other factors are also at work. We went on to find out peopleââ¬â¢s notion to this question. Definition of Language We will begin by delving into the question that what exactly is a language. The answer that we get most often is that, it is a means of expressing oneself, and of communicating with each other. The dictionary will tell us that it is the method of human communication, either spoken or written, consisting of the use of words in a structured and conventional way. We can also add non-verbal communication on top of this. What we think often is true, but it is just one small aspect of what really a language. Language is much more. A major part of is dependent on communities of speakersâ⬠. In truth, language is far more than a means of communication; it is a carrier of the entire social history and cultural heritage of a people. Through language, we communicate words, norms, ideas, social practices, values and emotions . The entire culture of a people is encapsulated in what we call language. So it is just not a means of communication that we are talking here of, it is the entire culture that is at stake with a language becoming endangered or extinct. Gatherings from blogs and online discussion groups Having this definition of language in mind, we begin with what we gathered from people over the internet .Talking firstly about the Mark Tully, former BBC India correspondent who sees English from a completely different viewpoint. Mark definitely doesnââ¬â¢t see English as a language killer infact he makes one think the growing usage of English from a different perspective. What he says is ââ¬Å"English is one of the advantages India has, which are said to be propelling it to economic superpower status. So Why not use itâ⬠. He clearly means us to reflect towards the job opportunities and many other things that English has created how it has helped India to improve its economy. Also Former editor of the Economist, Bill Emmott saidà India fell short of china in almost every measure except ability to speak English .So why should not India built on its one advantage. Not only Mark and Bill many other people also see English as the means of creating more opportunities. People have also cited life changing experiences when they acquired the ability to speak fluently in English. On the other hand we also have people criticizing the growing usage of English language . As Nicholas Ostler founder of endangered languages [ELF] said ââ¬Å"English is killing off scores of minority languages in its wake to spread, with English creeping in among younger generations everywhere as the language of mass communications and symbol of progress minority regional languages are becoming increasingly difficult to accommodateâ⬠. Marc Ettlinger PhD linguistics UC, Berkeley had also quite the same opinion. He says often Languages associated with a nation state kill minority languages as a function of Nationalized school where success is determined by knowing the dominant language. Also in Centralized government dominant language is crucial to finding a job. Social pressure to fit in with what everyone is doing. Urban migration and many other reasons. Fortunately in India government does promote other languages also. But by default nowadays the main language seems to be either Hindi or English. Because of English becoming a global language as well as important for getting a job. What mostly people think is that English is just a requirement in this globalized world. It makes us a global player. It makes us versatile. One definitely needs to adapt to it. This was all in what we found through people on net. Extinct languages of India Now looking at the extinct languages of India, referring to a survey and the reasons they say behind the increasing extinct languages. According to Peopleââ¬â¢s Linguistic Survey of India, India speaks 780 languages, 220 lost in last 50 years. The survey was conducted over the past four years by 3,000 volunteers and staff of the Bhasha Research & Publication Centre. It concludes that 220 Indian languages have disappeared in the last 50 years, and that another 150 could vanish in the next half century as speakers die and their children fail to learn their ancestral tongues. Now the looking upon the reasons that they saw during the survey behind the languages beingà extinct, is the small group of people using a language, increased use of English or other reasons that are responsible for this extinction. Firstly ruling out the option that the small group of people using a language is the reason for language extinction. Because history provides evidence that very large languages had also gone down sometimes. Latin is one example. The (ancient) Greek language is another, Sanskrit is the third one. A language does not have to be small in order to face extinction. That is the nature of language. So this equation that the government will come will do something, then language will survive, that has to be taken out of all thinking. It is a cultural phenomenon. And we can see that all over the world there is a concern about the disappearance of languages. Languages are dying everywhere in the world. Secondly, wherever the English language has gone in the last 200 years, it has managed to wipe out the local languages. But in India, English did not manage to do that because Indian languages have a historical experience of having to deal with two mega languages in the past ââ¬â one was Sanskrit, and after that, Persian. So Indians know how to cope with English. And that is why even today, though so many of us use English as if it is our first language, we still do not pray in English, and we do not sing our songs in English. So English is not the reason. When a language imbibes words from outside, it grows. Languages grow by taking words from other languages. Every language is from beginning to the end, a polluted language. The threat will come. Hindi has its roots ââ¬â there are 126 languages surrounding the Hindi belt.Because they are feeder languages, they feed into Hindi, they are the roots for Hindi. So the bottom line is Hindi definitely will not extinct and English certainly is not the reason for language extinction. English is the sky. The sky will not harm the tree, but if you chop the roots, a mighty tree can fall. This happened with Latin, and should not happen with Hindi. Out attitude of neglect towards smaller languages is a threat to larger languages, English is nowhere to blame.
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Marketing Project (Jeans) Essay
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Paige Premium Denim is one of the worldââ¬â¢s leading denim brands with its signature ââ¬Å"perfect fitâ⬠and unmatched variety of styles that flatter the body. Paige Premium Denim was founded in 2004 by fit model Paige Adams-Geller on the principle that you donââ¬â¢t have to be a size zero to look great and feel great in a pair of designer jeans. Committed to using the highest quality materials, the denim line infuses considered, unexpected details into each and every design, combines Southern California casual with pure sophistication. Since the fit model known for having ââ¬Å"the best butt in the businessâ⬠, soon became known as the designer who makes ââ¬Å"the best butt jeansâ⬠in the business. She used her expertise and unique values to create the ââ¬Å"perfect fitting jean.â⬠1 Promising its clientele style they can make all their own, the brand has become a favorite among fashion influencers due to its impeccable styling, exceptional fit and fabric innovation. In constant development, Paige Denim has successfully created an inclusive, complete, and quality label; Paige products are sold in select, high-end retailers and specialty boutiques throughout the world.2 This report will analyze how Paige Premium Denim uses the 4 Pââ¬â¢s of product, price, place, and promotion to deliver a quality product to its target market. Target Market The target market can be classified as simply as celebrity style. Geographic Segmentation: Paige Premium Denim brand of jeans was created in the US and is focused around women who are located in California and surrounding area, and where jean trends are highly changing. The market numbers for this area are quite high as the climate doesnââ¬â¢t change with the seasons. With innovated technology and the ability to ship products worldwide, Paige Premium Denim is sold in 80 countries where jeans trends are highly sought after, such as London, England, and Pairs, France. Demographic Segmentation: Paige Premium Denim targets women between the ages of 18-50 with a healthy lifestyle and an above average income. Generally these women have purchasing power with dominate careers and driven oriented in the fashion industry. Women who are still highly involved in family values are a prime target for this brand of jeans, especially North American women who value their health, career and family. Psychographic Segmentation: Paige Premium Denim is an advocate of healthy and positive self-image. It focuses on a status that allows women to feel like a celebrity. Trend setting actresses such as: Blake Lively, Katie Holmes, and Sarah Jessica Parker wear Paige jeans and allows for them to set trends to their followers.3 This product gives women the opportunity to wear celebrity clothing and in turn have a sense of status. Benefit Segmentation: The idea of making such a high quality product for women gives them the sense of purpose; and that by purchasing Paige jeans the benefit they will receive is a sense of being a part of a celebrity trend setting genre. It gives a sense a power and confidence that each pair of jeans is designed with the customer in mind and fulfills that sense of purpose by feeling great once wearing them.4 Usage-Rate Segmentation: Jeans are a top article of clothing found in any personââ¬â¢s wardrobe not just women; however when it comes to clothing the market adapts to womenââ¬â¢s needs in terms of usage and purchasing power. Once a new product is developed by Paige Premium Denim; loyal brand followers tend to purchase the product as soon as it comes available.â⬠It is delivered as a ââ¬Ëmust haveââ¬â¢ new itemâ⬠says Marc, the owner of ââ¬Å"The Art of Denimâ⬠clothing store in downtown Guelph, Ontario. Product Strategy As the first woman to break into the male-dominated denim world, the ââ¬Å"jeaniusâ⬠of fit-model-turned-designer; the brand founder, Paige Adams-Geller, designs Paige Denim with her uniquely feminine perspective and fifteen years of ââ¬Å"behind the seamsâ⬠experience to create a denim brand that is designed by a woman that focused specifically on the desires of a woman. The product promises that every style delivers a drop dead fit and each style is designed with the customer in mind. Fabrics used include: denim/ twill, fencel/ knit, corduroy, and coated leather.5 Paige uses only the finest fabrics and materials while each design is infused with thought and considered elements of womenââ¬â¢s bodies. Styles include: ultra-skinny fit, skinny, straight leg, cropped, boot cut, flare, wide leg, curvy, petite, extra-long, and maternity fits. Paige jeanââ¬â¢s goal is for women to have a tighter thigh area to create the look of a lifted backside, and while it is effective; it isnââ¬â¢t always the most comfortable. Paige Denim is committed to using the highest quality materials and infusing, unexpected details into each and every design. For example, in the skinny leg style the back right pocket has a tiny pocket sewn into it that a credit card or ID card fits perfectly into. This allows women who are tend not to carry hand bags the opportunity to have a pair of jeans that will fit their needs. Colour is never just navy blue for Paige denim. It is, however; washed in dark, medium, and light denim, as well as non-traditional colours for denim such as red. Paige is from Alaska, and during her time when she visits, that when her inspiration takes place.6 The culture brings in different colours to experiment with as well as texture and materials. Size range from 23 to 34 waistband size or some labels can be read as, XS (extra small), S (small), M (medium), and L (large). Paige jeans do come in a more extended range of sizes, such as its maternity fits with elastic waistbands. The length of each pair is also important; they range from 30 to 34 in length or from petite to tall. 7 Labelling is another important aspect for Paige jeans as they have re-launched its design to fit the growth of the company, as shown in Figure 1. Labelling is the one element of those changes. Here is the labels and tags in comparison to the original ones. Old Paige Tag New Paige Tag
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Identity Theft: Exaggerated Risk or Real Threat? Essay
Introduction ââ¬Å"You have $92.13c left in your Chase bank account, contact us today with your details to switch from telephone banking to online bankingâ⬠ââ¬â I was in the country barely 72 hours and I was already subject to someone attempting to steal my Identity! I am referring to the past summer that I spent in America working under a student visa. After registering my mobile phone and opening my first American bank account, I started getting texts like the one above. This my was my first personal exposure to the problem of Identity theft, and after a quick Google search to enquire what I was dealing with, I found that it was a very common occurrence in America; More than 57 million American adults receive ââ¬Å"phishingâ⬠attack emails & texts every year ââ¬â from hackers or cyber thieves who pretend to be trusted service providers to steal consumer account information, and more than half of those who responded become victims of Identity Theft (Gartner Research, Phishin g Attack Victims Likely Victims for Identity Theft). Lucky I didnââ¬â¢t respond to that text then, arenââ¬â¢t I? That was just my small run in with what has become a global problem over the last decade. And, the more I delved into the reading for this topic, the more I became aware of the vast amounts of literature available to me. I felt none of the other topics for this assignment had such in depth reading, which was mostly available online to me. There was online e-books, some of which I purchased; ââ¬Å"Identity Theft Secrets: Exposing The Tricks of The Tradeâ⬠ââ¬â By Dale Penn, and ââ¬Å"Double Troubleâ⬠ââ¬â by Neal Oââ¬â¢Farrell. Research websites were also helpful, like the Gartner Research website. I found some very interesting websites online, one of which Iââ¬â¢ll give a mention; ââ¬Å"Publications USAâ⬠ââ¬â an American government run website, it had a section to provide American consumers with information on Identity Theft. Sites like these helped me understand the impact of Identity Theft on the consumer, how the consumer battles it ââ¬â and ultimately this showed me how business must deal with it, in their every day transaction s with consumers. There was a vast amount of Scholar articles I found online, through Google scholar of course, they took very interesting views on the problem, and posed some very good questions. These articles included; ââ¬Å"Did Privacy issues cause identity theft?â⬠to articles such as ââ¬Å"Identity theft: Myths, Methods and the New Lawâ⬠. Also, simply with a quick look at the papers every Sunday for the past few weeks, I found plenty of material in them ââ¬â Papers such as the Sunday Business Post, The Financial Times, The Guardian & The Irish Times. They always provided me with something to read that was related to identity theft. After reading all this material, I saw both sides of the argument. Most do believe Identity theft is a Real Threat to business and consumers alike. I will quickly look at how much of a problem this has become, and I will then point to some of the major cases, and the impact of these cases on business. However, there are the those that believe Identity theft is over exaggerated, I will look closely at how researchers collect their data for research, and I will also look at the impact of this over-exaggeration within business, how it has sparked some companies within the protection business to come under scrutiny for over-exaggerating the risk of Identity Theft. Why and how do Identity Thieves do it? ââ¬Å"Cybercrime has surpassed illegal drug trafficking as a crime enterpriseâ⬠ââ¬â [Symantec Corporation, 2009] Identity thieves use the Internet as a weapon against individual consumers by taking personal and financial information, such as credit card numbers and social security numbers, and then using that information to, purchase products or launder money (Identity thieves have been known to purchase cars and homes or even create criminal records under another individualââ¬â¢s identity) [Overseas Digest, When Bad Things Happen To your Good Name]. Such a scheme can be devastating for an identity theft victim and can create financial costs for credit card companies and other commercial entities. According to Columbus state university research, computer fraud in general, within the U.S. alone, exceeds $3 billion each year, and in the U.K. exceeds à £2.5 billion each year [Columbus State University, 2011]. These statistics alone show the huge impact of computer fraud and identity theft on the economy and businesses in the world we live in today. It shows what a lucrative business Identity Theft has become today. Cases of Identity Theft Causing a ââ¬Å"Real Threatâ⬠in Business Arguably the most famous case of Identity Theft is that of Frank Abagnale, who was depicted in the 2002 Hollywood blockbuster movie ââ¬Å"Catch Me if You Canâ⬠[DreamWorks (film), 2002]. In the 1960ââ¬â¢s, Abagnale eluded authorities by posing as characters such as an airline pilot, doctor, assistant Attorney General, and history professor, all the while racking up $4 million in bad cheques [Posing Facts, 10 bizarre cases of Identity Theft]. This bizarre case of Identity theft is portrayed in a comical sense in the film, with Tom Hanks left chasing shadows. But for businesses in todayââ¬â¢s society it is far from comical, as the protection of consumersââ¬â¢ information poses major issues within business today. The best way to see the affects of Identity Theft on business is to actually take a look at some of the major cases within the last few years. This will show the business issues and the impli cations it is having on business on a daily basis. The headlines within the last few years have highlighted the threat that Identity Theft poses. In what was dubbed at the time the largest ever case of identity theft to be prosecuted by the American Department of Justice [CBS News, 23rd Feb 2010], the ââ¬Å"Miami Hack Packâ⬠(dubbed that by [Miami New Times, May 20th 2010]) stole over 100 million credit Card details over the course of 4 years. The credit card details, which they hacked, were stored by a number of companies; one of which was T.J. Maxx, a British retailer (they would be known here in Ireland for their chain of stores called ââ¬Å"T.K. Maxxâ⬠). The hackers gained access to the company systems of T.J. Maxx and stole personal information of over 45 million credit card and debit cards in July 2005. These cards belonged to the companyââ¬â¢s customers who purchased items from January 2003 to November 23, 2003, however the company did not discover the theft until much later in 2007 [Identity Theft Awareness, 2011]. Deepak Taneja, chief executive of Aveska, a firm that advised the company on information security commented at the time; ââ¬Å"Itââ¬â¢s not clear when information was deleted, itââ¬â¢s not clear who had access to what, and itââ¬â¢s not clear whether the data kept in all these files was encrypted, so itââ¬â¢s very hard to know how big this was,â⬠[St. Petersberg Times, 30th March 2007] ââ¬â This quote shows the issues TJ Maxx faced at the time. They simply didnââ¬â¢t know how large this was, added to this was the fact that it took nearly 2 years to find the breach. A combination of the above led to huge consumer outrage at the way T.J. Maxx handled their customersââ¬â¢ information, and left consumers baffled as to why T.J. Maxx held onto the details for 2 years after the transactions had taken place. Many experts speculated that TJ Maxx would pay dearly for the incident. Customers would abandon the brand for fear their personal information would be exposed, and investors would avoid the brand because of crippling fines and costs faced by the company. However, in the 12 months that followed the announcement of the breach, TJ Maxx never looked better. Revenues increased Profits increased, and share price increased [Neal Oââ¬â¢Farrell, Double Trouble; 12 Reasons why weââ¬â¢re Losing the Battle against Identity Theft]. But what does this mean? Could this have been contrived as a clear message to TJ Maxx and other businesses that not only is a data breach no big deal any more, but it may just be another acceptable cost of doing business? Perhaps. But there is still no doubting the potential impact of a companyââ¬â¢s consumer information being breached. And, in the case of TJ Maxx, if the right procedures were followed, this kind of occurrence may have been preventable. Despite the fact their Brand and profits didnââ¬â¢t suffer, TJ Maxx realised this was a major wake up call. And it was still a learning curve for any business looking in. Lessons must be learnt: 1) Collect only the minimum personal customer information needed to complete a business transaction. 2) Retain the collected personal information for only as long as needed per business and legal requirements. 3) Monitor systems to detect unauthorized software and suspicious network traffic such as unusual data download in terms of size and time. [Identity Theft Awareness, 2011]. Businesses must constantly consider their risks and assess their internal controls to prevent costly incidents and their unintended consequences. As far as TJ Maxx, the company spent over $130 million to deal with the consequences of this international identity theft case. Even though their Brand didnââ¬â¢t seem to suffer, and profits rose and investment wasnââ¬â¢t hindered, TJ Maxx couldnââ¬â¢t afford to take this risk again. [Neal Oââ¬â¢Farrell, Double trouble] The second case Iââ¬â¢ll look at is that of Sonyââ¬â¢s PlayStation Network hack earlier this year. The details of 77 million of Sonyââ¬â¢s online PlayStation Network customers were breached. This most recent major intrusion has shown that Identity Theft is still a major issue for large corporations. This case again raised major questions about online transactions [The Guardian, April 2011]. Confidence in E-Commerce has always been a major problem for business [OECD; Reinforcing consumer confidence- Key to Boosting e-commerce], it has been for years, after all, itââ¬â¢s the reason that most think twice before making an online purchase, itââ¬â¢s that lingering feeling that overshadows an online purchase. It is an obstacle that is being slowly removed, but set backs like this do not help, as Steve Curran, creative director at the Brighton-based studio Zoe Mode, told Develop Magazine; ââ¬Å"From my perspective, the bigger issue is not about the PlayStation Network, but confidence in digital distribution generally. For every story like this that breaks in the mainstream press, consumer confidence about their details being safe is eroded. Confidence [in online transactions] has been building up, and I think will continue to, but this is a blip. It could be a little step backâ⬠[Develop Magazine, â⬠Digital distrust could followâ⬠, 2011]. This hack was a major set back for the companyââ¬â¢s on going battle for control of the gaming market with Microsoftââ¬â¢s Xbox. And it was up to Sony to rebuild confidence in their brand after the major breach [The Guardian, April, 2011]. Is it an ââ¬Å"Exaggerated Riskâ⬠? One thing I did notice when I was doing my research was that, most of the information we have on cyber crime losses is derived from surveys. But can one form an accurate estimate by survey alone? J. Ryan & T. Jefferson claim in their book ââ¬Å"The Use, Misuse, and Abuse of Statistics in Information Technologyâ⬠, that losses are extremely concentrated, so that representative sampling of the population does not give representative sampling of the losses as a whole. They also argue that losses are based on unverified self-reported numbers. Not only is it possible for a single outlier to distort the result, we find evidence that most surveys are dominated by a minority of responses in the upper tail [J. Ryan and T. I. Jefferson; The Use, Misuse, and Abuse of Statistics in Information Security Research]. In the 1983 Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances an incorrectly recorded answer from a single individual erroneously in inflated the estimate of US household wealth by $1 tr illion. This single error added 10% to the total estimate of US household wealth [Dinei Florencio & Cormac Herley, Microsoft research; Sex, Lies and Cyber-Crime Surveys]. In the 2006 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) survey of Identity Theft the answers of two respondents were discarded as ââ¬Å"not being identity theftâ⬠and ââ¬Å"inconsistent with the recordâ⬠. Inclusion of both answers would have increased the estimate by $37.3 billion, in other words it would have changed the estimate 3 fold [Federal Trade Commission, 2007]. In surveys of sexual behaviour men consistently report having had more female sex partners than women report having had male sex partners (which is impossible). The difference ranges from a factor of 3 to 9. It is pointed out that a tiny portion of men who claim, e.g., 100 or 200 lifetime partners account for most of the difference. Removing the outliers all but eliminates the discrepancy [Florencio & Herley, Microsoft Research]. These seem like simple mistakes, which could be avoided, however safeguards against producing these erroneous results seem largely ignored when it comes to Cyber-Crime surveys [Florencio & Herley]. So, what does this potential over exaggeration mean for business? This over exaggeration and bad estimates can have huge consequences on both resource allocation and in policy issues within business and government alike. Imagine this, in a simple scenario; a research company comes out with staggering new figures about the rise in Identity theft, online fraud, and the number of companies being sued by customers who were affected by their bad data protection protocols. This type of scenario has happened before; take for example the research conducted by the ITRC (Identity Theft Resource Center) in 2008. They reported that Data Breaches soared by 47% over 2007 [ITRC, 2008 Data Breach Totals Soars]. These kind of estimates can cause alarm bells to ring for some businesses, they in turn may pump more funds into the data protection systems in their own firm to prevent what they believed were ââ¬Å"Real Threatsâ⬠. Yet, as highlighted above there could be major issues with these statistics, and Florencio & Herley even mention the discrepancies of the ITRC yearly surveys in their book. Again, imagine the implications of such research on policy issues, especially government policy issues. If the government take the results of a certain survey on Identity Theft as a perceived ââ¬Å"Real Threatâ⬠, and adopt major measures to tackle it, it could have major implications on business. For starters, it could damage consumer confidence in E-Commerce. Like I mentioned before, itââ¬â¢s the reason we all think twice before making a purchase online and isnââ¬â¢t it the reason for the introduction of Prepaid Credit Cards? People who have never experienced Identity Theft take measures to avoid it. And this could be all down to policy measures. Exaggerated Risk on business in the industry On 29th March 2011, CPP Group PLC, a British based company selling life assistance products, announced that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) would be launching an investigation into the sale of one of its products to U.K. customers. The product included services such as credit-score monitoring, an Internet search facility alerting the user of inappropriate use of their data and a caseworker to help the person reinstate their identity [The York Press, 30th March 2011]. The financial services Authorityââ¬â¢s investigation centres around allegations that CPP overstated the risk of identity theft when selling insurance for that purpose. As a result in the investigation, CPP had to suspend all sales of its identity theft protection product with immediate effect. The product includes services such as credit-score monitoring, an Internet search facility alerting the user of inappropriate use of their data and a caseworker to help the person reinstate their identity. And, after announcing the news to the London stock exchange, shares in CPP fell a staggering 46% from à £2.35 to à £1.50, within one day of trading [Financial Times, March 2011]. The reason for this dramatic fall was, as Chief Executive Eric Woolley stated, ââ¬Å"Card and identity protection products in the U.K. accounted for more than 60 per cent of CPPââ¬â¢s businessâ⬠[Eric Woolley, March 2011]. This shows how exaggerating the risk of Identity theft within this type of organisation can cause massive losses for a business. In one fowl swoop CPP Croup PLC lost almost half its market capitalisation, just because they were ââ¬Å"under investigationâ⬠for over stating (A.K.A Exaggerating) the risk of Identity theft through calls to potential customers. This example shows that some can, and do, overstate the risk of Identity theft, and they reap the rewards as a result, as they can sell the technology to tackle it. Conclusion In the introduction I provided an overview of some of the literature and then within the assignment I took a look at both sides of the argument. Through the major cases above I have shown how Identity Theft is a Real Threat to business. However it is also a threat to small businesses, small businesses must follow the same guidelines as highlighted in the TJ Maxx instance. Failure to could possibly lead to the damaging effects of major fines, lawsuits and the damaging of the brand image of a company, as well as deterring investors. Donââ¬â¢t forget the wider implications for business, with the growing trend towards e-commerce, many companies want to take advantage of this, however major data breaches as seen above can hamper the consumer confidence and set back this industry. Again this is a threat to business in this area. Is Identity theft over-exaggerated? You may think I strayed from the point a little here, but I felt it was important to look at this side of the argument, and what drives it. What mainly drives it is that backing of the argument that the surveys conducted are unreliable. I am personally not over awed by this argument, however the people who make the argument point to some interesting evidence of the inaccuracy of surveys from some top researchers in Identity Theft. A look into the CPP Group case gives another side to the exaggerated risk argument. Do people/corporations over-exaggerate the risk for their own benefit? Perhaps. But that is where regulation steps in, and in the case of CPP they had to change their marketing strategy within a few weeks once the FSA began an investigation. Overall, this was a very interesting topic to research, and it opened my eyes to some new areas of IT within business and some of the problems it must tackle. Bibliography 1.Gartner Research, Phishing Attack Victims Likely Targets for Identity Theft, 4th May 2004; (http://www.social-engineer.org/wiki/archives/IdTheif/IdTheif-phishing_attack.pdf) 2.Symantec Corporation; ââ¬Å"Cyber Crime has Surpassed Illegal Drug Trafficking as a Criminal Money-maker; 1 in 5 will become a Victimâ⬠ââ¬â Sept 10th 2009; (http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=20090910_01) 3.Overseas Digest; ââ¬Å"Identity Theft: When Bad things Happen to your Good Nameâ⬠. ââ¬â February 2001; (http://www.overseasdigest.com/odarticles/idtheives.htm) 4.Columbus State University;ââ¬Å"Is There a Security Problem in Computing?â⬠-17 February 2011; (http://csc.columbusstate.edu/summers/notes/security.htm) 5.DreamWorks (film); ââ¬Å"Catch me if you Canâ⬠ââ¬â December 25th 2002; (http://www.angelfire.com/biz7/netmeeting/catchme.html) 6.Stefan Nagtegaal; ââ¬Å"Data Theft: 100 million Records stolenâ⬠ââ¬â 13th August 2008; (http://whereismydata.wordpress.com/tag/tjx/) 7.CBS News; ââ¬Å"11 Indicted in Largest ID Theft Case Everâ⬠ââ¬â Feb 23rd 2010; (http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/08/05/tech/main4323211.shtml) 8.Miami New Times; ââ¬Å"The Biggest Identity case ever. Right here in Miamiâ⬠ââ¬â May 20th 2010; (http://www.miaminewtimes.com/content/printVersion/2270696/) 9.Identity Theft Awareness; ââ¬Å"TJ Maxx Identity Theftâ⬠ââ¬â 2011; (http://www.identity-theft-awareness.com/tj-maxx.html) 10.St. Petersberg Times; ââ¬Å"TJX Hacker Theft May be Largest Security Breach. Data from 45.7-million Cards illegally Obtainedâ⬠ââ¬â March 30th 2007; (http://www.sptimes.com/2007/03/30/Business/TJX_hacker_theft_may_.shtml) 11.Neal Oââ¬â¢Farrell; E-BOOK: ââ¬Å"Double Trouble; 12 Reasons why weââ¬â¢re Losing the Battle against Identity Theftâ⬠ââ¬â 2011; (http://www.identityguard.com/downloads/ebook-double-trouble.pdf) 12.The Guardian; ââ¬Å"PlayStation Network Hack: Industry Reactions and Theoriesâ⬠ââ¬â 29th April 2011; (http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2011/apr/29/psn-hack-industry-reactions?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487) 13.OECD; ââ¬Å"Reinforcing consumer confidence- Key to Boosting e-commerceâ⬠ââ¬â 16TH November 2009; (http://www.oecd.org/document/20/0,3746,en_21571361_43348316_44078356_1_1_1_1,00.html) 14.Develop Magazine; ââ¬Å"Dvs on PSN hack; digital distrust could followâ⬠ââ¬â 27th April 2011; (http://www.develop-online.net/news/37568/Devs-on-PSN-hack-Digital-distrust-could-follow) 15.J. Ryan and T. I. Jefferson; ââ¬Å"The Use, Misuse, and Abuse of Statistics in Information Security Researchâ⬠ââ¬â 2003. (http://www.belt.es/expertos/HOME2_experto.asp?id=5752) 16.Dinei Florencio & Cormac Herley, (Microsoft Research) ââ¬Å"Sex, Lies and Cyber-Crime Surveysâ⬠. (http://www.belt.es/expertos/HOME2_experto.asp?id=5752) 17.Federal Trade Commission; ââ¬Å"2006 Identity Theft Survey Reportâ⬠ââ¬â November 2007. [http://www.ftc.gov/os/2007/11/SynovateFinalReportIDTheft2006.pdf] 18.ITRC; ââ¬Å"2008 Data Breach Total Soarsâ⬠ââ¬â June 15th 2009; (http://www.idtheftcenter.org/artman2/publish/m_press/2008_Data_Breach_Totals_Soar.shtml) 19.The Financial Times; ââ¬Å"CPP in free fall amid FSA worriesâ⬠ââ¬â March 29th 2011; (http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/89a516dc-5a38-11e0-86d3-00144feab49a.html#axzz1eB8FvcKU) 20.The York Press; ââ¬Å"FSAââ¬â¢s concerns contested as CPP Claims ââ¬Ëhighest level of integrityââ¬â¢ ââ¬Å"- March 30th 2011; (http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/business/news/8941469.Watchdog___s_concerns_contested_as_CPP_claims____highest_levels_of_integrity___/)
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Subject is American Government Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words
Subject is American Government - Essay Example American Dream dwells on the philosophy of working hard in order to succeed (Jenkins, 1997) and this is the reason that the American government has encouraged their citizens to work hard in order to achieve success. Following the aftermath of the September 2011 terrorist attack, the then President of the United States of America, George Bush Jnr encouraged Americans to work hard in order to rebuild the country (Woodward, 2002). During that great speech, he told Americans that, all hands must be on deck in order to revitalize the economy of America (Woodward, 2002). The implication of this is that, the American government believes that, the economic growth of America depends on the individual efforts of every American and this is a fundamental principle of the American Dream. Thus, it has been established that, the American Dream is an important political culture in the country as a vast population of Americans believe that hard work and perseverance leads to economic success. Depending on how one looks at it, the truth of the matter that, the American Dream remains an important part of the political
Monday, October 7, 2019
How the Nuclear Power Impact our Life Research Paper
How the Nuclear Power Impact our Life - Research Paper Example Nuclear power deals with nearly four waste matter streams which might cause in deterioration of atmospheric conditions. These include: (a) Creation of nuclear fuel at the atomic reactor which also brings Plutonium waste into account. It also involves the most harmful elements and isotopes plus more than 100 perilous radio-nuclides and carcinogens e.g. Cesium-137, Iodine-131, and Strontium-90 which are exactly the same poisons present in the fallout associated with nuclear weaponry (Sovacool, 2011). (b) Production associated with tailings from uranium mines as well as generators (c) Discharge of small amounts of radioactive isotopes throughout the nuclear operations (d) Discharge of large quantities of harmful radioactive materials (in the event of mishaps) Effects of Nuclear Power Accidents Three Mile Island On March 28, 1979, the discussion regarding the safety and security of nuclear power turned from assumption to truth. A sad accident took place at the nuclear power plant of the Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. The Unit-2 of the plant discharged almost 50% the plantââ¬â¢s radioactive contaminants. Although the disaster finished without a major discharge of harmful radioactive contaminants, however, the widespread release of nuclear toxins created a widespread fear in general public, therefore, a large amount of people evacuated from the surroundings of Pennsylvania. The evacuating area was extended on 30th March and almost 140,000 people left the area of 20 kilometer radius within few days (http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/history.html). The disaster set new horizons in the field of nuclear power and highlighted that a regulated disaster management system regarding the nuclear power accidents is essential. Consequently, new strategies were formulated to deal with nuclear power which include human training, minimizing the human error at nuclear plants, application of latest technology, and techniques to control and plan the emergency conditions (http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/history.html) Chernobyl Disaster In 1986, the disaster took place at the atomic reactor Chernobyl in the Ukraine is still considered as the worldââ¬â¢s worst accident in terms of a nuclear plant accident and the aftermaths of this incident are still persisting although a lot have been controlled or minimized. Almost 06% of active radioactive contents of the nuclear plant were discharged into the atmosphere. The mishap forced the evacuation of local population. Almost 0.3 million people evacuated from Kiev and highlighted a harmonious territory to civilization for an indefinite timeframe (Sovacool, 2008). These radioactive contents also included Iodine and Cesium which have a great correlation to human health.
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Relationship between Neoliberalism, Austrian school of economics and Essay
Relationship between Neoliberalism, Austrian school of economics and Chicago school of economics - Essay Example These developments have been accompanied by mathematical tools that gradually helped old contents to be converted into new theories. In this manner, traditionally, the meaning of basic terms also changed such as competition, markets, unemployment, etc. These developments have encouraged establishment of many theories. At the same time applicability of those theories became more prominent and global. Communication networks also became internationalized between economists and governments that have resulted in complex perceptions and harder applications. Although several schools have tried to retain national label like the Austrian school of economics, the latter has become international.1 Bearing this in mind, from the end of 19th century to the early of 20th century, classical economics was threatened by world economic issues. Principles of classical economics include laissez faire, limited government intervention, private property rights, freedom of the individuals, and minimal welfa re provision, etc. However, classical economists have failed considerably to describe the causes of global financial and economic crises experienced by several economies in past many years. Classical economics have failed to explain the reasons for economic booms and busts. Unfortunately, this tendency of world economy relates back to the major recessions in 1873-75 and 1893-96 and stock market crash of 1929-30, which was well known terms as ââ¬ËThe Great Depressionââ¬â¢. During this time the unemployment rate reached to 25% in the United States2, and 30% in Germany.3 With application of the Keynesian economic theory, the world economy seemed to recover and indeed has experienced high growth with respect to some economic variables compared to ââ¬ËWashington Consensus periodââ¬â¢. For instance, the average proportion of global growth in Keynesian period was higher than Washington Consensus period along with the unemployment rate which was lower compared to global status.4 The economic system was dominated by Keynesian theory from post Second World War till the seventies. It has been observed that during this time the primary goal for whole world was to develop each countryââ¬â¢s economy, rather than repeating of the Great Depression.5 He observes that ââ¬Å"the embedded liberalism that had delivered high rates of growth to at least the advanced capitalist countries after 1945 was clearly exhausted and no longer working.â⬠6 Neoliberalism: On the other hand, when another global economic crisis came, there emerged different opinions which have shown perspectives against the Keynesian point of view. The term ââ¬Ëneoliberalismââ¬â¢ was created by political opponents; however it is used by supporters with neoliberal policies.7 Neoliberalism means economic liberalism that focuses on the efficiency of the private ownership and control, liberalization of trade, promotion of open markets necessary to augment the growth path of globalization. Ne o-liberalists claim that all kinds of central planning destroy personal freedom. Although the role of a government is to maintain the rule of law, government intervention leads to totalitarianism. Markets should maintain freedom and efficiency without any kind of government intervention. In other words, economic and social policies are driven by the market. The theories emphasize on private enterprise, independent trade, and open market for private sector. In the global level of economy, economic crisis chronically spread out at the end of 1970s and the downfall of the Communist philosophy towards the conclusive years of 1980s.These world trends led to reform policies in order to
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