Economic Problems And Issues Essay Example for Free

Economic Problems And Issues Essay Does big business own by corporations synonymous with monopoly? Let us first check the nature of the capitalist market how large firms dominated the market. When only a number of large companies dominated a specific market, what resulted would be an oligopoly. This means that only the larger and selected companies had the command in the market thus excluding smaller firms. This resulted in reducing competitive pressures in the market. In this manner, there is a tendency that the price of commodities may rise above what would be the market level. The oligopolistic producers do not have rivals or competitors coming into their market circle because of relatively high capital costs. The domination of a trade commanded by few big firms especially when they are incorporated into one large organization may result in exploitation and monopoly. In the market economy, if a market is marked by an oligopolies practice, exploitation affects the consumers because they will be charged with higher prices as compared to the price in the competitive market. The Big Businesses therefore are having a bigger slice of the oligopolistic profits because of this unfair competition at the expense of smaller firm. To know more why big business gets more profits due to oligopoly and monopoly, we need to look into the economics of production and marketing in relation to capitalism. Capitalism comes in a way that it focuses on distribution not on fair production. Instead of equal trade, capitalism is guided by hierarchy and inequality to all business concerns. Usually the privately owned businesses do their production mainly for profit where investments, income, distribution and pricing of goods and services are estimated through the operation in a market economy. In the world of business economics, this is how capitalism makes an impact in the regulation of the price of the commodity. Unfortunately due to the potential of the big business to engage in capitalism, they sometimes monopolize the market. According to the economic theory of Malcom Sawyer, within the market trade there exists a certain degree of monopoly. This indicates that profits come to those businesses with monopolistic power. As always, an increase in the monopoly of large firm always directed the profit to them instead to the small businesses. This explains that the degree of monopoly within a market will determine how poorly the small firms will be able to survive as compared to those small firms who are earning more in a more competitive market. The degree of monopoly can be graded with few factors being exhibited by the big business in the market. Their market power is obvious in the volume of their market share, the extent of their advertising, the barriers that prevent small businesses to enter the mainstream and so on. The higher and stronger of these factors, the higher the degree of monopoly. There is however an argument of the monopolistic practice of big businesses. Accordingly they put up higher prices in their product because of the prices of the materials being purchased and used in the manufacturing of goods. Another reason was the unpredictable inflation and the need for sustaining the salaries of their employees. However, any reason would still result in profits for them. Such alibis only undermine the status of their employees as according to their profits. If these companies are forced to lower their prices the employees will suffer due to lower wages and compensations. Also, poor quality materials will be used which result in poor quality products and the demand will fall as well as its production. Basically large firms can always maintain their prices and profits more than the normal price in the market without assistance from the government due to their big financial back-up and market power. The existence of Big Businesses and their influence in the economy has their impact on every nation’s future. In some ways economist always compare them to be practical capitalist building their market world in their own hands. Another bad effect of capitalism and oligopoly is that when big business are lording it over other business, the tendency would be for the smaller firms to also merge and have a fight for a competition. This is to improve their market power and have larger slice of the profits. In effect there is another monopolistic tendency in the market. Although competition is also beneficial to the consumer since they would have many choices with products, and the price would temporarily go down, the competition will most affect smaller and weaker firms. The formation of oligopolies within capitalism will result in the loss of profits for small capitalist directing the profit to Big Business. For this reasons, small and medium sized businesses ends up detesting Big Business and will be blaming the government for unfair and unequal treatment of trade (Mattick, 1974). In conclusion, the capitalists always have the tendency to use monopoly power so they can manipulate the price, the quality and quantity of the commodities. There is no real opportunity for smaller firms when the trade is being ruled by the oligopolistic and monopolistic big businesses. Although there are few advantages with competition, the smaller firms are always outside the room full of opportunities. What they lack is the power to push the big blockade blocking their road to profiteering because of the giants in the trade. The answer to the question now would absolutely be, Yes. Free Trade against Ptotectionism? What is a Free trade and what is Protectionism? Free trade is defined as a market model in which trade in goods and services between or within countries flow freely by government to government laws and restrictions. Included on the restrictions are taxes (tariffs) and other non-tariff trade barriers. On the opposite side is Protectionism. Protectionism is the economic policy of controlling trade between nations or countries such as imposing high tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas and other government regulations made to discourage imports from other countries. It also includes anti-dumping laws to protect local industries from a certain foreign nation who could take-over the competition especially in business. Some people call protectionism as â€Å"fair trade† and it may sound alluring at first. Some supporters of protectionism agree that keeping out foreign commodities will save domestic jobs and give a chance for jobs to recover and enrich themselves. It will also sustain trade deficits as well. But are these claims have enough economic basis? Protectionism in effect raises tariffs and imposes quotas on the volume of commodities the government allows to come into the country. Although tariffs is one of the major financial resources of a country, such laws restriction control the choice of consumers to have freedom of choice as well as it also opens job to the trade. According to the US Department of Labor’s statistics, eight jobs are getting lost compared to one job saved in a protected industry due to protectionism Let us give an example, in Japan the government was protecting their own farmers against the influx of imported rice from other countries but in return they are paying five times more as compared with the rice in the world market. Even the European and U. S. consumers are paying more than double the price of their own commodities on certain products as compared to price in the world market take for example agricultural products such as sugar. When the U. S. Semiconductor Trade Pact pressured the Japanese to cut back production and exportation of their computer memory chips, the result was a worldwide shortage of this parts and the eventual rise of demand and short of supply. Eventually, this has caused price increase and the technology was badly hurt by such restriction. The laws of protectionism force you to pay more on taxes on foreign and imported commodities but also increase your domestic taxes as well. This happens when governments enlarge their Customs Department Bureaucracies to guard and enforce rules with trade restrictions. So if there is no benefit for protectionism, why is it being imposed and who gains from it? Those who gain specially from it are usually groups with their special interest. Such as big corporations, unions, and farmer’s groups whom they want to command higher prices as much as getting higher wages. Such groups are thought to have special political and influential clout to politicians which pass laws favorable to their counterpart. Who are the losers with protectionism? The answer would be very clear the people and their government. Then what are the benefits of a free trade? Substantially, all countries benefits from free trade. In the US, every agreement within the free trade must be checked and balanced critically. At present, the U. S. economy is being augmented by more than $12 trillion in gross income from tree trade. American exports in the 2005 has totaled to an estimated of $1. 2 trillion. Jobs that are connected with production of goods for export are 13 to 18 percent higher. The free trade policies have made competition today on a higher level in the open market. This led to better innovation and better products, higher salaries, new markets and more savings for the employees and the government. Free trade has been bolstering America’s high standard of living and there would be more opportunities and income if trade restrictions could be alleviated further. For the past 50 years, trade liberalization has made an extra $9,000 per year for each American household according to the study made by The Institute for International Economics. The relaxation of regulations by the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Uruguay Round of the WTO—the two major agencies that impose agreements between nations has generated an annual additional benefits of $1,300–$2,000 for the standard American family of four. In conclusion to this, freer trade facilitates more goods and services to reach consumers at lower prices, providing families additional income which they can use to buy other consumer goods. It does not only help families but helps to widen global freedom, follows international law, and provide economic development especially on poor or third world countries. The World Bank also reported in 1990 that the per capita real income is three times bigger in developing countries that has opened their markets to free trade or loosen up strict regulations on certain imported products. Freer trade and market reforms have lifted more than 500 million people from poverty for the last 25 years. This in every opinion is enough to agree on trade liberalization rather than stayed embrace with the so called â€Å"fair trade† and remained stocked from a world full of opportunities (Markheim, 2007).

High School and Competition Essay Example for Free

High School and Competition Essay Competition makes people try to be better than others and forces them to beat themselves. People will work on giving their best; therefore, they will always make their best effort. As a result, success will come. People will never stay the same when forced to compete; they will become better, improving themselves to be the best they can be. Cooperation is important, I can realize that, but isn’t the recipe to succeed. As you help other ones, they will help you; however no one can make you successful; success comes through individual determination. Cooperation makes you focus on the group, not in your objective that is to succeed. Cooperation could be helpful, but without competition it makes them forget where are you going to and where you want to get to while competition provides the opposite. An example of why competition grants more success than cooperation relates to children. In a world where competition is appearing more frequently, children must learn how to assert themselves. Although cooperation is taught in elementary school and used throughout their grade school lives, it doesn’t teach the child that in the real world, competition is used to determine whether they get a job or what college they go to. Obviously, cooperation helps a child develop social skills, but competition develops a drive to do better and succeed in everything that they do. The idea of competition will bring some benefits such as independence and self-confidence in their character and will develop as an important part in their future. Achieving success in competition is also prevalent in admission factors for colleges. As the rate of people that are going to college rises, so does the competition that helps you get into those colleges. For this, cooperation does not get you anywhere when going to college. Competition helps because it is based on many factors: GPA, SAT, extracurricular activities, and community service. These factors are not achieved by cooperation, but by individual determination. This makes applicants competitive to get into colleges. As a result, the more competitive you are, the greater the chance that a good college will accept you, and a greater chance that you will succeed in life. In conclusion, competition gives a person a greater chance at succeeding at life than cooperation. Without competition, everyone is the same and everyone lacks individuality. However, with competition, people are given the opportunity to rise above a person who is not achieving and eliminates equal academic standards. It lets people go above and beyond and gives the person more room to see more opportunities.

Using animals in medical research

Using animals in medical research Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout history, animals (refers to ‘non-human animals, excluding human) are widely used in different fields. However, the issue of using animals in medical research notably attract public attention because, to many people, it appears unnatural and cruel, even though the number of animals used for other purposes and the ill-effects exposed (eg. blood sport) may often be greater, because the estimated 50 million animals used annually in experiments worldwide only account for about 0.2% of all animals used (Mepham, 2008).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The debate about animal experimentation ranges broadly over two distinct questions. Firstly, do animal research yields useful knowledge that could not be gained from other source and secondly, is it morally acceptable to use animals in a way that cause them harm (Nuffield Councils on Bioethics, 2005). The question of scientific justification is, obviously, fundamental to the question of moral justification. Scientific Justification Justified ‘There could have been no oral polio vaccine without the use of innumerable animals. Without animal research, polio would still be claiming thousands of lives each year. (Sabin, 1995) The primary reason given for using animals in research is that most medical advances since the 19th century have resulted from research using animals (Mepham, 2008). Among the examples are the extraction of first hormone (1902), a chemical treatment for syphilis (1909), isolation of insulin (1920), modern anaesthetics (1920s), kidney transplants (1940s), chemotherapy for leukaemia (1960s), and meningitis vaccine (1980s) (Monamy, 2009; Mepham, 2008). According to Sabin (1995), those who view animal experimentation as useless overlook the fact that it has been instrumental in developing medicines that saved countless human lives, such as the development of polio vaccine in 1957. Next, halting animal research would have unfavourable consequences for human health and welfare since there are no viable alternatives to animal experimentation yet (Mepham, 2008). Paris (1994), too, expressed that ‘all of the work being put into improving health care system will be for nought if we allow a powerful band of self-righteous activists to deny us the privilege of studying non-human animals medical sciences most valuable tool in the fight against disease. Lastly, animal experimentation is justified due to the extensive biological similarities between the physiology of humans and non-human animals (Mepham, 2008). This is supported by Bernard (1865), who stated that ‘the vital units, being of like nature in all living beings, are subjected to the same organic laws Even if the knowledge itself cannot be directly applied to humans, they add to the level of understanding that may eventually be exploited in human medicine (LaFollette Shanks, 1996). In short, animal experimentation is essential to ensure scientific progresses. We live in a modern age where life-threatening diseases are kept at bay to an extraordinary degree, bringing about the majority of us to forget that as recently as 60 years ago, many diseases (eg. TB, polio) were common killers in our society (Monamy, 2009). Unjustified However, there are also people who believe that animal experimentation is scientifically unjustified. For example, Burgos (1996) brought forward the argument that ‘it is impossible to cure a sick human by experimenting on animals, just like how it is not possible to cure a sick cat by experimenting on humans. Every species have different biomechanical and biochemical entity, and it is difficult to extrapolate data from one species to another. Moreover, every species reacts differently to different substances. For instances, aspirin kills cats and penicillin kills guinea pigs. Yet, the same guinea pig can safely eat strychnine- one of the deadliest poisons for human, but not for monkeys. Sheep can swallow enormous amount quantities of arsenic. Potassium cyanide, deadly for humans, is harmless for owl. Supposing that one has chosen the best model for a human disease, it is still difficult to decide the dosage of the drug for humans. The thalidomide tragedy is one of the many examples of how things can go wrong. The sedative drug thalidomide was introduced in 1956 and widely used by pregnant women to reduce nausea and vomiting. But by 1960s, it was identified as the cause of phocomelia- a devastating birth defect in which the limbs do not form properly and long bones in the arms or legs are absence (Mepham, 2008). Another example that shows the limitations of animal studies in assessing human reactions to drugs was dramatically illustrated by the detrimental effects experienced by the six male volunteers to the oral administration of TGN1412, a drug developed to treat rheumatism (Mepham, 2008). Although the drug had been tested on animals without deleterious effect, it produced life-threatening reaction on humans. Ethical Justification Cartesian Today, few will argue that animals are like machines and have no souls, hence granting us the rights to use animals in any ways that we see suited. However, back at the 17th century, this human-centred view was very prevalent. Rene Descartes (1596-1650), especially, played an important role in the early debate. Descartes (1637) believed that ‘the divine gift of soul distinguished the human from all others and the reactions of animals were dismissed as mere reflex. This, as a result, provided a convenient ideology for early vivisectionists (Monamy, 2009). Descartes statement was, also, supported by British psychologist Nicholas Humphrey. ‘Descartes was as nearly right as makes no matter. If we walk down on English country lane, we walk by ourselves. Trees, birds, bees, the rabbit darting down its hole, the cow heavy with milk are all as without insight into their condition as the dummies on show at Madame Tussauds. (Humphrey, 1983) Such views are not widely held anymore, partly due to the fact that studies of self-recognition using chimpanzees and mirrors have shown that some animals are capable of recognising themselves and have self-consciousness (Monamy, 2009). Kantian   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Immanuel Kant echoed the voice of ancients: non-human animals are non-rational, and hence demonstrably inferior to humans. However, he added a philosophical twist that helps ground one very common argument used to morally justify our treatment of animals (LaFollette Shanks, 1996).He believed that as far as animals are concerned, we have no direct duties. Animals have no self-conscious and are there as means to an end. Our duties towards animals are merely indirect duties towards humanity (Kant, 1963; Monamy, 2009). ‘Animal nature has analogies to human nature, and by doing our duties to animals in respect of manifestation of human nature, we are directly do our duty towards humanity. However, he argued that overt cruelty to animals was to be avoided because how we threat animals does affect how we threat humans. ‘he who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Within Kant we, therefore, identify two elements of current moral thought about animals: the belief that humans are superior to animals because of our intelligence, and that we have some duties towards animals. These uphold the belief that although we should not be cruel to animals, we can use them for our purposes (LaFollette Shanks, 1996).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The problem with Kantian theory is its failure to make a theoretical distinction between animal species beyond human sphere. This theory can morally justify the use of a chimpanzee in an experiment where a mouse would suffice, because neither species has moral autonomy (Monamy, 2009). Animal Welfare/Interest ‘The day may come when the rest of the animal creation may acquire those rights which never could have been withholden from them but by the hand of tyranny The question is not, can they reason? Nor can they talk? But, can they suffer? (Jeremy Bentham, 1789) The first person to bring up the idea of equality was Bentham. He pointed out that the capacity to suffer should be a vital characteristic that gives a being the right to equal consideration. This was further upheld by Peter Singers Animal Liberation. Singer, reviving Benthams utilitarianism, argued for the liberation of animals based on equality of consideration and their capacity to suffer (Monamy, 2009). ‘The capacity for suffering and enjoying things is a prerequisite for having interest at all. Hence, it would be nonsense to say that it was not in the interest of a stone to be kicked along the road. A stone does not have interest because it cannot suffer. Nothing that we can do to it could possibly make any difference to its welfare. A mouse, on the other hand, does have an interest in not being harm, because it will suffer if it is. Moral judgements must be made based on equal interest and, we should never be influenced by species, in the same way as we should never be influenced by race or sex (Monamy, 2009). ‘If an animal suffered, there can be no moral justification for refusing to take suffering into consideration. No matter what the nature of the being, the principle of equality requires that its suffering be counted equally with the like suffering- in so far as rough comparisons can be made- of any being. (Singer, 1974) Singer argued that since laboratory animals were capable of feeling pain, their interest must be considered morally by humans. If the level of suffering in an experiment is not outweighed by any increase in the quality of human life, it is morally indefensible to allow such an experiment to continue (Dolan, 1999; Monamy, 2009). The idea put forward by Singer have provided a sensible starting point for debate over the moral issues essential in any discussion of animal experimentation. Virtually everyone, now, acknowledges that many animals, certainly mammals, feel pain- even though there is still disagreement about the severity or nature of the pain. Plus, majority too agrees that we cannot do whatever we want to the animals, at least if it causes the animals pain (LaFollette Shanks, 1996; Monamy, 2009). However, there are still some weaknesses concerning Singers argument. Firstly, moral calculations become impractical when all factors are taken into consideration. How do you quantify an amount of pain and pleasure? Or the benefits of an experiment to mankind? Secondly, Regan (1986) argued that utilitarianism has ‘no room for the equal rights of different individuals because it has no room for their equal inherent value or worth. What has value is the satisfaction of an individuals interest, not the individual itself. Regan believed that this theory can easily be exploited since an evil means can be justified as long as there is a good end. Lastly, some suggested that it simply do not go far enough- there is more to life than pleasure and pain (Monamy, 2009). Charles Birch (1993) posed an interesting question: ‘If all animals used for human purposes were to be constantly anaesthetised for all their lives, thereby eliminating the pain/pleasure argument, would such a proced ure be morally defensible? Animal Rights   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Animal rights moral view was brought forwarded by Tom Regan (1986). According to him, basic moral rights should be assigned to all beings who are ‘subjects of life, due to the fact that ‘these animals have a life of their own, of importance to them apart from their utility to us. They have a biography, not just a biology. They are not only in the world, they have experience of it. They are somebody, not something. Regan claimed that all creatures should be treated equally unless there is some relevant reason that justifies otherwise. It thereby rules out discrimination based on irrelevant reasons. He proposed that every individual of any species should be considered to have an ‘intrinsic value (or ‘inherent value), the value of conscious individuals, disregarding of their usefulness to others and independent of their ‘goodness. Equal rights for such individuals protect their ‘inherent value and give them moral status (Mepham, 2008; Monamy, 2009). When it comes to animal experimentation, Regans view is unequivocal: ‘the rights-based view is categorically abolitionistthis is just as true when animals are used in trivial, duplicative, unnecessary or unwise research as it is when they are used in studies that hold out real promise of human benefitsthe best we can do is not to use them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nonetheless, some claims that ‘rights can be attributed only to individuals who can claim them, and that they can only apply in circumstances where that individual understands the notions of ‘rights. However, Regan has countered this by pointing out that such a viewpoint would also withhold rights form infants, the mentally retarded and senile. Apart from that, many find the concept of animal rights confusing. Exactly what rights do animals have? Do every single animal, including insects, has the same right, or just mammals? (Mepham, 2008; Monamy, 2009; Dolan, 1999) Reverence for Life   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) believed that an ethic that advocated goodness towards all life and, not just to humanity, would be derived from emotion, not from rational thought. This belief contributed to his theory of ‘reverence for life. ‘The most immediate fact of mans consciousness is the assertion: I am life which wills to live in the midst of life which wills to lifehe feels a compulsion to give every will-to-live the same reverence for life that he gives to his own.He accepts as being good: to preserve life, to promote life, to raise to its highest value of life which is capable of development.'(Schweitzer, 1936) It is an ideology which makes no distinction between ‘higher and ‘lower life forms, plants and animals, human and non-human. Acceptance of the ethic does not mean that it is wrong to cause death of another creature, it is the causing of pain or death when it can be avoided that is wrong. Anyone guided by this belief will only cause death or suffering of any animal in cases of inescapable necessity, never from thoughtlessness (Monamy, 2009).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ËœThose who experiment with operations or the use of drug upon animals.must never quiet misgivings they feel with the general reflection that their cruel proceedings aim at a valuable result. They must first have considered in each individual case whether there is a real necessity to force upon any animal this is sacrifice for the sake of mankind. And they must take the most anxious care to mitigate as much as possible the pain inflicted. (Schweitzer, 1936)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In short, Schweitzer urged that all life must be given the same respect: the need for every experiment must be carefully reasoned based on the ideal of reverence for life, not sentience an argument that gives a place to emotion (Monamy, 2009). Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœthere are no simple answers to be found and there is no single guiding principle that will answer the questions that are raised about the problems of animal welfare and the use of animals in our society.where ethical principles are concerned, there is no possibility of proving the validity of an ethical principle (Stone, 1989) In conclusion, the debate on animal experimentation is extremely complicated and it involves both rational discussion and personal feelings. Every one of us must, therefore, attempt to form an opinion of our own about the extent to which we use research animals.

Essay on Dr. Eckleburg of The Great Gatsby -- Great Gatsby Essays

Dr. Eckleburg   of The Great Gatsby      Ã‚   Throughout the course of events in The Great Gatsby, the watchful eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg stare into the depths of each character, while the Doctor serves as a god of conscience from his middle ground between two worlds. As the creations of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the characters whose stories unwind before us live twisted webs of lives in which there is a distorted view of a greater force outside their worlds. Dr. Eckleburg merely watches over the "grey land and the spasms of bleak dust which drift endlessly over it" at the spot where "when the drawbridge is up to let barges through, the passengers on waiting trains can stare at the dismal scene for as long as half an hour" (27-8). This is where Dr. Eckleburg reigns; this is the site of a final...

Popes An Essay on Criticism -- Religion Essays Papers

Pope's An Essay on Criticism When Samuel Johnson ascribed to a new work "such extent of comprehension, such nicety of distinction, such acquaintance with mankind, and such knowledge both of both ancient and modern learning as not often attained by the maturest age and longest experience," he was speaking of young Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism (1711), written when he was about twenty, and published when he was only twenty-three years old (in Mack 177).1 Others have not been as generous in their comments about the prodigy's efforts. One history of criticism textbook describes the work rather ingloriously: "There are repetitions and inconsistencies, some conventional pronouncements along with injunctions of lasting value; but nowhere . . . are the principles organized into a coherent whole, and no cut-and-dried theory [of criticism] therefore emerges" (in Morris 145).2 Despite this harsher pronouncement, Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism 1 Johnson's evaluation of Pope's Essay has been upheld if f or no other reason than that so many of the work's bon mots have established noteworthy careers in daily household English. As Mack observed (177), "Pope will sometimes manage a verbal maneuver so simple in appearance, so breathtaking on reflection, that the common sense of mankind has plucked it out of the poem and made it a part of speech: 'A little Learning is a dang'rous Thing' (205); 'To err is Humane; to Forgive, Divine’ (525); `For Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread' (625). And several more. Next to Shakespeare, we may recall, Pope has contributed more to our common language than any other poet. It is a gift not lightly to be dismissed." One primary complaint against the work is that it plagiarized the ... ...he Scriptures and in Pope, the goals of cosmic and poetic restoration are ones for which we can and must give thanks. Works Cited Clark, Donald B. Alexander Pope. Twayne's English Author Series. New York: Twayne Publishers, Inc., 1967. Isles, Duncan. "Pope and Criticism," in Alexander Pope, edited by Peter Dixon. Writers and their Backgrounds. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1972. Mack, Maynard. Alexander Pope: A Life. New York: W. W. Norton and Company in association with New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985. Morris, David B. "Civilized Reading: The Act of Judgment in An Essay on Criticism," in Alexander Pope, edited and with an introduction by Harold Bloom. Modern Critical Reviews. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. Williams, E. Audra and Aubrey, eds. Pastoral Poetry and An Essay on Criticism. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1961.

Cyberculture and the Future of Print :: Technology Writing Technological Papers

The technology that is available to the public today is mind-blowing. In my lifetime alone, I have seen astounding technological progress: from the home computer to the DVD player, to truly surreal medical breakthroughs. A new era is taking hold of society. We are faster, better educated, richer, and livelonger. All of these things can be attributed to the technological advances that have occurred within the last fifty years. Thanks to the â€Å"modern marvels† of our time, we can watch big-screen quality movies in our own homes, brew an awesome cup of French espresso without leaving the kitchen, and cooler still—communicate with someone in China, without ever picking up the phone or using a pen. Although electronic mail (a.k.a. email) is mainly used, at least in societies perception, for â€Å"quick† (and therefore not terribly important) conversations, I believe email has an important role precisely because it gets rid of the quick and unimportant details before face-to-face communication can take place. Allowing the face-to-face communication to focus more on significant issues. Erin Karper, a graduate student at Purdue University, writes this about an interview she conducted with a fellow student: Yes, I think [email] is important. I think that it allows us to prepare in advance for face-to-face meetings by allowing people to enter the conversation in a written mode, perhaps more carefully and well stated compared with the time-limited, real-time, face-to-face group discourse. So, what I am saying†¦I think email is important because it allows for pre-meeting communication that is of a different nature in terms of turn taking, temporality, and so forth. This different nature allows for more participation and more diverse modes of communication centering upon a given issue. I am not a knowledgeable user of technology; nor can I even claim to be an efficient one, but some technology I admit I can’t live without; such as: Microsoft word and, my best friend, email—though I use it for personal and educational correspondence; not nearly as fancy as Erin and her colleagues. I’m a busy person, and don’t have time for face-to-face communication with my friends and family, and I definitely don’t have the time to write and mail a letter. Email is an excellent alternative to face-to-face meetings, phone calls, and letters. I can describe important details of my day to people who mean the most to me, or I can update a classmate on upcoming assignments.

Computer networks assignment

Cable Maximum data rate speed cat 5 Single Mode Fiber cable gasps Recommendations Connector Reasons Category e, reasons for purchasing cat depute cable. Cat e cable is the most popular of all http cables, Has a superior bandwidth as compared with cat cable. RAJA 45 connector since it is the standard connector used to connect to a device and also for wall-plate connections. Multi-mode fiber-optic cable Straight tip connector (SC). Commonly used as a backbone, fast, intensity susceptible to eavesdropping.Straight tip connector is commonly used in Ethernet networks that use fiber-optic backbones, more so it is popular for use with multi-mode fiber-optic cable. Network Topology for the office Office 1 Task 2 The same design applies to the other offices. Methods for secure intranet 1. Use intranet based VPN 2. Use of Authentication. Advantages of intranet based VPN They enable secure broadband connections (through cable modems, DSL, etc. ). They can create significant communication saving s in particular when lots of remote users dial-in from outside the local calling area.Secure the connection between the client and ‘SP. Provide unauthorized users from tapping into the intranet. Extended connectivity and lower cost. Altered. Disadvantages of intranet based VPN Are not scalable and are more complex that NAS initiated VPN. The need to manage software on the client machines. NAS-initiated Access VPN connections are restricted to pops that can support VPN. Do not encrypt the connection, between the client and the ISP, but rely on the security of the EST..Advantages of using authentication User id and password is the least expensive authentication method to use. User ids and passwords can be changed anytime at the user's choice, furthermore most users know how to change them. No need to install extra software in the case of using ids and passwords. Token authentication can be used for login and transaction authentication purposes effectively. Biometric authenticati on is difficult to compromise. Disadvantages of Using Authentication d and password authentication is Weak and susceptible to numerous attacks.Token authentication involves additional costs, such as the cost of the token and any replacement fees. Token authentication requires some amount of user training. Security depends on the users' ability to maintain the user ID and password secret. Biometric authentication usually involves cost for support and maintenance. Protocols Intranet VPN protocols Pipes or IP Security is used to secure Internet communications. It's normally used as a security overlay for the other protocols. It's considered the â€Å"standard† VPN protocol, specially for site-to-site VPN.PPTP-Point to point tunneling protocol, a data link protocol that establishes a connection between two networking nodes, it creates the virtual connection across the internet, and provides connection authentication, transmission encryption and compression. LOTT, Layer Two Tunnel ing Protocol, it does not provide encryption and it relies on PPTP protocol to do this. Authentication One way authentication protocol. Mutual way authentication protocol-protocol that enables both the point of origin and the point of termination of a communication link to verify or authenticate each other.Amended-Schroeder Protocol Media required for connecting the offices Internet medium: It acts as a connection medium Router: I. E router to router VPN is used to connect separate offices in various locations. Software-network management software. Internet-To act as medium for connection purposes. Software to enable the devices to communicate and be able to send and receive information. Sips Hardware requirements to connect the Four Offices 2. Switch. 3. Firewall How access can be provided to the company intranets via extranet.Staff access their computers in whatever the location they are, they then provide their ids or swords to the company's website upon which they are verified t o be the genuine staff, after being authenticated through the extranet VPN, they are finally allowed to access the offices, if a user tries to forcefully access the intranet the firewall in between detects and shuts of the intruder. Intranet and extranet Diagrams Task 3 Security issues related to Intranets and extranets Unauthorized Access – An unauthorized person gains access to a company's computer system and access sensitive information.Misuse of user privileges – An employee or supplier authorized to use the system for one purpose misuses it for another purpose other than for what it is should be. Users or telecommuters accessing the corporate intranet from their home can or sometimes expose sensitive data as it is being sent over the wire. Security breaches- at certain times the intranet will experience unusual traffic like spam, pushing, Edward and mallard. Networks attacks- there can be a network attack in form of forceful intrusion into the intranet or extranet .Lack of encryptions – at sometimes confidential information is shown to unauthorized personnel because of the lack of using encryption. Usability problems- omen users will use the intranet improperly through not knowing how to search, retrieve, send and receive information. Weak passwords – some users use weak passwords, they write them down, never change them and in the end forget their content – users are vulnerable to dangerous content like Trojan, worms and viruses that attach on emails.Violations of security policies – some users make an attempt to penetrate the network forcefully and illegally without clearance and permission. Protection From viruses Trojan and other threats 1) Adoption of intrusion detection prevention system in the network to offer retention against network attacks. 2) Deployment of effective email filters and firewalls to block against suspicious traffic from entering the network. 3) Authentication through use of passwords, smar t cards and biometric scanners to overcome unauthorized access in the network. ) Use of intranet monitoring soft wares by companies so as to check and monitor what their employees are doing on the intranet or on their own PC. 5) Strict adherence to the security policies put in place by the company any violations of the security policies should be met with strict consequences. 6) Users on the intranet must remember to always update and maintain their security software on every PC and server on the network to ensure protection. 7) Formal training should be given to new employees who don't know how to use the intranet so that they will know how to perform searches, send and retrieval of information. ) Network administrators should encourage users to use strong or hard to guess passwords as well as not to show their passwords to any other party. 9) Use of SSL Digital certificates to help secure the intranet from lack of encryption. 10) Setting up firewall rules to only allow messages th at come from within the internal server. Recommendations to counter any threats to the network. Use of anti-virus toolkits so as to safeguard the computers on the network, the anti virus toolkits should be updated regularly and used to scan both PC and servers on the networks.Security policy – should be put in place so as to protect the company's resources and information. Physical countermeasures: such as CATV cameras, gratitude's, data backup and recovery systems should be embraced so that the company will be able to monitor and protect its equipments and information safe. Authorization – Access rights and privileges should be given to certain users in the many. Authentication-users and systems must be authenticated; authentication can be through passwords, digital certificates and other methods.Conclusion The network project was a success though it seemed hard; I find that I have acquired some certain skills that I didn't have during the beginning of this module. Am grateful at least that I have managed to do my best in this module. The project was about creating a network that would be used to connect the four offices which currently house about seven computers. Weaknesses One of my weaknesses as displayed in my project is that I did not manage to show a actuarial representation of the various cables, servers and other equipments which would have otherwise enabled me to illustrate my project in a clear and visible manner.In task 1 1 was required to come up with and identify the type of media I will propose for the company, I chose a wired media category e cable as the best option to go for, the cat e cable altogether needs a connector hence I chose the RAJA-45 connector which is the standard that can be used by the cat e cable. I provided the cost of cabling and installing such a cable in a network, the assumption made was that the many did not have any networks and so I included them in the cost and installation section.As for the data speed I gave the maximum speed that can be achieved by a category e cable which is Mbps. L provided recommendations for the category e cable to purchased together with raja-45 connector . In task 2 after researching on the methods that can provide a secure intranet I finally ended up choosing three methods and these are Intranet based VPN, Authentication and Digital signatures, I named a few protocols which are applied in the above methods such as layer two tunneling protocol for the intranet VPN.The media required to connect the offices such as Internet form the service of the hardware that can be used to connect the offices are Routers, switches and firewalls. In task 3 1 gave a listing of the security issues that are prominent with such a network some of them include, network attacks and lack of encryptions such issues can cause a company a great loss as much time will be spent trying to solve the problems which at times are difficult to solve.To protect the workstations in the networ k from attacks from viruses, Trojan and worms I gave the following suggestions, that the company et up strict security policy that the staff should adhere to so as to ensure the resources and information in the company are in safe condition, adoption of intrusion detection and prevention systems in the network to secure the network form any forceful entry into the network.Using methods such as updated antimatter toolkit, the staff can be able to operate under a conducive environment which is free from any malicious software attacks, second thing is that authorization rights and privileges should be given to certain staff or members in the company, so s to prevent information from being accessed by unauthorized user who possess a threat to the company.