Phone Booth Essay -- essays research papers

Phone Booth, a sort of Speed-meets-Twelve Angry Men, is kept basically within the confines of a single "room" and focuses on a life-or-death dynamic between two men, one of whom is a psychopath with a dangerous weapon. At 84 minutes, the premise of Phone Booth just reaches the stress breaking point at its climax. In other words, you can suspend disbelief only so long, and about 75 minutes is it for this one. Still, it ¡Ã‚ ¯s a tense, taut thriller while it lasts. Colin Farrell plays Stu Shepard, a fast-talking, fast-pulling publicist who wants everyone who ¡Ã‚ ¯s anyone to think he's on top of the world. Wearing Italian suits and a knock-off designer watch, he struts down the sidewalks of Manhattan (somewhat reminiscent of the Saturday Night Fever scene), talking on two cell phones and a payphone. The payphone is to call his sweetie-on-the-side so that a record of her number doesn ¡Ã‚ ¯t show up on his cell bill and alert his wife to his deception. Stu ¡Ã‚ ¯s daily routine, unbeknownst to him, has caught the attention of a psychotic sniper with a God complex. The sniper calls Stu in the phone booth, and tells him that he is "guilty of inhumanity to your fellow man" and the "sin of spin." Parties guilty of such grievances may not leave the phone booth, under any circumstances. The mental game of cat-and-mouse unfolds amidst the murder of a pimp who wants to use the phone, the showdown with police (Forest Whitaker as the captain is excellent), and the sho...

Summary and Analysis of The Pardoners Tale Essay example -- Canterbur

Summary and Analysis of The Pardoner's Tale (The Canterbury Tales) Prologue to the Pardoner's Tale: The Host thinks that the cause of Virginia's death in the previous tale was her beauty. To counter the sadness of the tale, the Host suggests that the Pardoner tell a lighter tale. The Pardoner delays, for he wants to finish his meal, but says that he shall tell a moral tale. He says that he will tell a tale with this moral: the love of money is the root of all evil. He claims that during his sermons he shows useless trifles that he passes off as saints' relics. He proudly tells about how he defrauds people who believed they have sinned. He states explicitly that his goal is not to save people from sin, but to gain money from them. The Pardoner says that he will not imitate the apostles in their poverty, but will have food, comfort, and a wench in every town. Analysis Among the various pilgrims featured in the Canterbury Tales, the Pardoner is one of the most fully realized characters. The only character to whom Chaucer gives greater detail is the Wife of Bath. The Pardoner is a fraudulent huckster who shows no qualms about passing off false items as the relics of saints, but he also demonstrates a great sense of self-loathing. The Pardoner shifts from moments of direct honesty to shameless deceit, openly admitting the tricks of his trade to the travelers but nevertheless attempting to use these various methods on these travelers who are aware of his schemes. The Pardoner is in many senses a warped character, unable to hold to any consistent code of moral behavior. Even in his physicality he is deformed. The General Prologue, suggesting that the Pardoner resembles a 'gelding or a mare,' hints that the Pardoner may be a ... ... only expression of any spirituality contained in the Pardoner's Tale. The Pardoner has little concern with actual religious matters and makes no real reference to Christianity. His concern is money, and the Christian religion is only the means to achieve this end. The Tale itself is a relatively simplistic moral fable that hinges on the distinctions between literal and figurative language. The initial personification of death that the young child uses as a metaphor and euphemism leads to the actual physical manifestation of Death as a tangible object: the piles of gold that the three rioters find. The plot of the tale derives from the rioters' literal interpretation of euphemism  ­ since death has taken their friend, they must find death. This personification of death finally becomes metaphor once again when the piles of gold represent the death that they find.

Colombia Report Essay -- essays research papers

The Deaf population in the United States is composed both of individuals Deaf since early childhood and individuals who lost their hearing later in life. The "Deaf Community", a heterogeneous mix of people from all walks of life, represents every socio-economic and racial category. However, this group of people consider themselves "a community" because they are bound by a common culture, history, heritage and, most importantly, a common language. This language, which forms the foundation of the Deaf Community, is known as American Sign Language (ASL). ASL is a beautiful and expressive visual language that holds the Deaf Community together. (Lake) Unfortunately, deaf/Hard of hearing people have long been victims of discrimination. Lacking a â€Å"voice†, hearing people have assumed that Deaf people are incapable, and have made decisions for Deaf people on their behalf. Even today the attitude toward Deaf people is that they are incapable of accomplishing anything including their own dreams. This message of incapability is sinking into the heads of many Deaf children and adults. Deaf people as a group are underemployed or unemployed period. Many community based services are unwilling to make accommodations to meet the needs of this unique population. Being deaf means that you can’t hear the conversations in supermarkets, in banks, at the post office, at work, at school, etc. All of these which hearing people take for granted. This means that a deaf person is often found in situations where they can’t follow what is being said and are often confused, scared, and isolated. The attitudes of hearing people toward Deaf people tend to pervade deaf/HOH people’s relationships with their family, educational environment, employers, and fellow co-workers. Some examples are, accepting lower expectations of themselves based on perceptions of hearing people, and lacking confidence as a result of being raised in an overprotective environment, or having things done for them. When it comes to education, deaf/HOH people are also discriminated against. Unfortunately, residential schools for the deaf are often sorely deficient in actual education. The teachers rarely use ASL or teach Deaf history and in most places are not required to. The administrations are often made up of hearing people who are still... ...imination that goes on is to start raising awareness of the deaf community. There are some very easy things that you can do to learn about the deaf culture. One very easy way is to attend a deaf awareness event. Many amusement parks such as Paramount Kings Dominion in Virginia and Six Flags hold deaf awareness days. There are also many baseball teams that hold deaf awareness nights at the ballpark. Many schools, programs, and organizations for the deaf also hold annual deaf awareness events or festivals. These are some very easy ways to learn about the deaf culture and have fun at the same time. Another way is to join or volunteer to an organization. There are many deaf groups and organizations that are in need of volunteers to get involved and help with the deaf community. As I said before, we are lacking interpreters and people to interact with the Deaf and we can start to improve that area by having more people get involved and learn about the deaf community. In conclusion, deafness is a disability of communication. Given equal opportunities to communicate at home, in school, and at work, the Deaf individual can and will succeed and make a positive impact on the community.

The Importance of Family

For most people, family are the people that are always reliable and trustworthy. Friends can come and go but family is always there. For this reason you should never turn your back on family. Loyalty within a family is crucial for the emotional stability of each individual. They provide support, guidance, which is important for everyone. In Drew Hayden Tailor's Only Drunks and Children Tell the Truth the characters struggle with family loyalty and values. Support from family members Is very important and can have very negative effects when It Is absent.People often rely on support from family when In troubling circumstances or situations. It can be comforting to have help from family when it is needed so it is beneficial to have a loyal and reliable family to count on or help. In the play Barb says, When Dad died, I held the family together. When Paul died, I held the family together. I'm used to this now. † (Taylor, page 34. ) Barb supported her family during troubling times e ven when her mother, who should have played this role couldn't. Her willingness to help her family Is something everyone should have.Giving support to family members instead of keeping to her emotions sustained the family dynamic. With her support she helped the individuals in her family feel more secure after the loss of a loved one. This same idea connects with the book The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. In the book the main character, Catkins is very supportive with her family. Like Barb, Catkins has to support her family after the loss of a loved one because her mother loses the motivation to even take care of herself after her husband dies.Catkins assumes the role and takes care of both her mother and her little sister _ Supporting her family is essential to Catkins because without each other they have nothing. Catkins also supports her friend Gale who she considers family, by hunting to help feed both his family and hers. He does the same for her when she is sent to the Hung er Games. This shows the dependence people have on their families. Nobody wants to go through life alone. Guidance from family Is essential in shaping character and development of the children.Without family, people will have no one o gulled them through childhood and assist with decisions through adulthood. The role of parents and sibling can have a huge impact on the development off child. If one member breaks their commitment to family values, the next generation may lack the optimal environment to grow up in. The play successfully portrays how people can differentiate depending on how they are raised and by whom. Barb's sister Janice was raised by a different family and therefore has values and beliefs than Barb even though they are sisters.Barb tells Janice, † Back In Otter Lake, If embosomed not home, we wait inside† (Taylor, 28). This quote shows an example of a difference in social customs between the two because of where they were raised. Although the quote does n't show why guidance is essential, it does show how guidance can shape whom someone is regardless of where they were born. With that In mind one can imagine what it would be like for someone without a family to provide guidance. People should stay true to their family because everybody relies guidance is important is very prevalent in the real world.There are many studies written on the subject including one by Grace Keener. She says guidance plays a huge developmental role in self-confidence, learning from mistakes, and optimism. Imagine someone who lacked those three things. Guidance from family is key for the well being of a person. This is why you cannot turn your back on your family, they rely on you and you rely on them. Staying loyal to family is of most importance because a good family dynamic is required for healthy development as well as physical and emotional security.They provide support and assistance when you need it. Barb Helps her family deal with the emotional stre ss of the death of her brother and father. Families give guidance to each other throughout their lives, which shapes whom they are. Janice and Barb's difference in culture and beliefs comes from their different families. Family is what brings us together, makes who we are, and what gets us through life. Being disloyal to ones family is like being disloyal to one's self so family should be the one thing that is always held true to.

The Financial Detective 2005

[The Financial Detective 2005 Introduction Each industry is distinctive. One might be unique in its high fixed assets; other would be differentiated of its increasing intangible assets and many other financial footprints that each industry leaves on its balance sheet. Nonetheless, industries are distinguished furthermore; fingers of one hand are not the same as said. Businesses in the same industry can be characterized differently according to their strategic plan and capital structure. The following case highlighted some characteristics of different industries and different businesses within those industries. From pharmaceuticals to music and books, those differences, supported by numerical financial data, are explained in the following section. Books & Music General information provided: Company 1 1. Selling through a vast retail-store presence 2. Traditional book retailing 3. Online presence and owns publishing imprint Company 2 1. Sells books, music, videos solely through the internet website 2. Three quarters of the sales are media 3. Sells electronics and other merchandise 4. Recently became profitable 5. Followed a strategy of acquiring retailed online business recently Assessing the provided information about the two companies and looking deeply at some of the financial data, it was concluded that company 1 is designated by the letter H and company 2 is designated by the letter G in Exhibit 1 (see appendix 1). Investigating the financial data, it was found that Company 1 (H) had a higher inventories account of 38. 6 this supports the fact that it is a traditional book store that needed to keep book inventories at all times to maintain its retail presence. This is further seen in its inventory turnover, is has a lower turnover of 2. 2x this reflects the nature of the company which traditional book retailer that experience slow turnover. Moreover, company 1 (H) has an 11. 1 in intangible assets, again this reflects the companies intangible assets such as publishing imprints. Also, company 1 (H) owns about 24. 4 in fixed assets as a results of its vast retail network. For company 2 (G) , inventory account is much lower than company one (14. 8) this reflects the fact that company 2 is online based business that sells mostly digital products such as media along with few other general electronics and merchandise. Thus, its inventory turnover is much higher (13. 56x) correspondent to the nature of most of the sold product (digital media) that are highly demanded and easily accessible. Regarding its fixed assets account, company 2 (b) has lower fixed assets of 7. 6 this mainly reflects the activities related to electronics and other merchandise that probably requires some fixed assets, but for its E-commerce, it needs minimal- none fixed assets. Considering the type of this business (online based) it was noticed that its receivables account is very minimal compared to company 1. This is probably due to the fact that online products are delivered upon payment, thus it is rare to purchase music on credit. Assessing some of the income statements components, depreciation is recognized to be low (1. 1) this is highly related to its low fixed assets. Last but not least, SG& A expenses of 16. 9 is lower than company 1 , this is logical because company 1 depends on a network of retailers that impose higher general and administrative expenses while company 2 depends solely on its o0nline channel. Finally, net profit of 8. 5 (which is higher than company 1) indicates the mentioned recent profitability. Newspapers Information provided: Company 1 1. Centered largely on one product 2. Fierce competition 3. Recently built a large office building for its headquarters. 4. international Company 2 1. Owns a number of local newspapers 2. Has a significant amount of goodwill 3. Recent acquisitions 4. Decentralized decision making and administration Taking a closer look to the provided data, it was concluded that company 1 is designated by letter P and company 2 is designated by letter O (see Exhibit 1) this selection was based on a number of factors: company 1 (P) have more receivables ( 9. ) than company 2 O, this is due to the fact that company 1 (P) operates on a larger, international scale than company 2, this larger customer base requires better and more receivable terms. Whereas company 2 , which operates on a smaller local level has lower receivables of 4. 6. Company 1 (P) has almost the double in fixed assets account t in company 2 (o) (34. 6, 14. 1) explaining the new purchase of th e headquarter building by company (p). Assessing the intangibles account of both companies, it was noticed that company 2 (O) enjoys a high level of goodwill (76. ) while company 1 (P) has far less intangibles of 37. 1. Evaluating company’s 1 (p) focused and centralized strategy of producing and distributing one newspaper internationally, it was noted that this focus led to a decreased cost of goods sold (cost/ unit is inexpensive) this is evidenced in the lower COGS of 40. 5 compared to 49. 7 in company 2 (o). moreover, company’s 1 (P) Debt/ asset ratio is higher than company 2 (O) ( 26. 81 compared to 15. 2) this indicated that it is more cost efficient for company 1 that operates internationally to finance its strategy implementation by using more debt than equity. This boosted the ROE of company 1 to reach 20. 89 relative to a lower ROE of company 2 (9. 86) which follow a more conservative financing mix. As a final point, looking at the SG&A expenses, it was observ ed that company 1 (P) has higher admin expenses due to its strategy of operating internationally while company 2 enjoyed less Admin expenses due to its local strategy ( 39. 7 compared to 23 ).

An Overview of Altruism from Darwin to the Present

Altruism itself is considered a virtue in today’s society and is present in many religions, humanitarian and philanthropic causes. This selfless concern for others of helping behaviour is not something that is only found in humans but can be found in most species and is actually a type of behaviour that has evolved with species. Though Charles Darwin first made note of com/common-core-ela-9-2014-ela3009-a-ic/">altruistic behaviour in his seminal work, The Descent of Man, the actually theory of altruism was not recognized until the early 1900s (Darwin, 1871, Kropotkin, 1902).Altruistic behaviour is difficult to understand and its evolution has proven to be interesting as the reason for behavioural changes cannot completely be defined. Additionally pure altruism is rarely found in nature, as those noble animals tend to die before they can pass down their genetic traits. Though Darwin did not completely understand altruism his work, the Descent of Man, is one of the first scienti fic published works that describes altruistic behaviour.His observation of animals helping others actually opposes his evolutionary theory of the survival of the fittest because in order for an individual to survive they need to take care of themselves and not sacrifice for others. According to natural selection theory, benevolent behavior should not evolve because it, technically, costs or even harms the doer’s fitness. Darwin did attempt to explain this phenomena by including it in group selection, as in order for groups to survive natural selection may actually favour groups of individuals and in this case the altruistic behaviours would be passed down to the next generation.(Darwin, 1871). This phenomenon of cooperation was not completely described until Kropotkin published a book, a collection of essays, dealing with mutual aid (Kropotkin, 1902). This work was a direct response to social Darwinism. Kropotkin was able to build a more satisfactory tie to individual natural selection and cooperation, displaying that mutual aid selection directly benefits individuals own struggle for personal success, so that cooperation between species will actually be the best path for individual success (mutual aid, 1955).Altruistic behaviour has since been researched and discussed by many scientists since its recognition in evolutionary biology. Scientists have thought that altruistic behaviour may be instinctual and that helping behaviour survives because it makes the individual feel good, particularly in humans (Wilkinson, 1988). There is also the theory that if an animal helps another then they may have the favour repaid back in the future, which can be found in human society (Kreb, 1952).Much research delving into altruistic behaviour and evolutionary biology cannot find a firm fit for altruism in general evolutionary terms. Inclusive selection or kin selection, in which species display behaviour that selections for those in their family to reproduce, cannot co mpletely explain altruism as it does not attempt to explain why differing species help each other (Hamilton, 1964). Symbiotic relationships, in which both species benefit, are based on specific conditions such as long-lives, dependence for food, performing a necessary service etc.(Trivers, 1971). In symbiotic relationships the help is eventually repaid by the species even if it takes a long time as the species my loss a little fitness at the current time but in the end the long term benefit will far outweigh any previous problems or disadvantages, known as reciprocal altruism. Much work has been done to investigate reciprocal altruism and inclusive fitness, particularly as evolutionary biology has evolved to include theories such as the game theory and predictive behaviour.Game theory points out that reciprocal altruism can also include negative behaviour, such as a cheater can expect to be punished in the future for its behaviour to others. (Trivers, 1971) It has been argued that t hese two types of behaviour, inclusive selection and reciprocal altruism are not truly altruism, as with altruism the species providing help does not get anything in return; much of research is devoted to study these evolutionary ideas (Rothstein and Pierotti, 1980). In the 1980s altruistic behaviour began to be investigated in Primates particularly with grooming behaviour.Primatologists noted that an individual’s status in a hierarchy seemed to be related to their relationships with others. Aiding dominant members seemed to be favoured. Juveniles needed to ingratiate themselves in the group and aiding a dominant female is a means of securing status in the hierarchical society of bonobos. (de Waal, 1989) Certain primates will chose to groom other primates and later they will gain some sort of benefit. A more recent study has shown a different aspect of reciprocal altruism as dominant female primates were found to groom subordinate primates, a type of grooming-down which had n ot been observed yet (Parr, et al.1995). Current altruism research is based around game theory and includes behavioural manipulation, bounded rationality, conscience, kin selection, memes, mutual aid, selective investment theory, sexual selection, reciprocity, and pseudo-reciprocity. The Price equation was developed to redefine Hamilton’s work on kin selection and describes natural selection and evolution. In this mathematical equation altruism is defined as a behavioural genetic predisposition that increases the fitness of the group which in turn causes the individual that belongs to that group to benefit.(Frank, 1997). A fantastic example of this is with slime mould. Slime mould live as individuals until they are starving when the aggregate and form a multicellular organism and some cells sacrifice themselves for the benefit of the group. Altruism in humans has begun to be investigated and shown that specific regions of the brain will trigger charitable or helping behaviour . It was found that altruism does not suppress selfishness but actually very basic to brain function and triggers a pleasurable response (Moll and Grafman, 2006).The theory of group selection has re-emerged when looking at aboriginal lifestyle in Africa. Individuals of groups were found to be more closely related then previously believe suggesting that the nicest really do survive. Those that shared food and other goods would reproduce and pass on their genes as individuals would ban together during difficult times (Fischer, 2006). Interestingly it is through religion that altruism is spread throughout the human population. Buddhism, Judaism, Sikhism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism all place particular importance on altruism.There are many individuals that oppose altruism saying that it is a morality, more of an ethics branch than evolution, as individuals do not need to be altruistic to survive. Though as social beings an altruistic natural may make you more social it will not ul timately cause your death or the inability to pass on your genetics. Most of the controversy with altruism today revolves around the factor that altruism may not apply to humans, though humans do have symbiotic relationships with other species, (think of the bacteria in your digestive tract).There is a split between real altruism and psychological altruism though most will agree that those individuals that care for others, such as parents for their children will be able to survive in society much easier than those that do not care for anyone. Most of altruism in humans is psychological and not due to a selfish gene. Also due to advances in technology ands science natural selection has taken a bit of a turn or slowed down so understanding altruism in humans is possible quite different then observing altruism in other species. References;Darwin, C. (1871). The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, New York: Appleton Fischer, R. , (2006), â€Å"Why altruism paid off for our ancestors† (NewScientist. com news service) Frank, S. A. , (1997), The Price Equation, Fisher's Fundamental Theorem, Kin Selection, and Causal Analysis, Evolution 51 (6): 1712–1729 Hamilton, W. (1964). The genetical evolution of social behavior. J. Theor. Biol. 7 I: 1–16. Moll and Grafman, (2006), Human fronto–mesolimbic networks guide decisions about charitable donation, PNAS, 103 (42);15623-15628Parr, L. , Matheson, M. , Bernstein, I. & de Waal, F. (1996). Grooming down the hierarchy: allogrooming in captive brown capuchin monkeys, Cebus paella. Rothstein, S. & Pierotti, R. (1980). Reciprocal altruism and kin selection are not clearly separable phenomena. Journal of theoretical biology, 87(2), 255-261. Trivers, R. (1971). ‘The Evolution of Reciprocal Altruism’, Quarterly Review of Biology, 46: 35-57. Wilkinson, G. (1988). Reciprocal altruism in bats and other mammals. Ethology and sociobiology, 9(2), 85-100. Ã'‹

Economic exploitation in America Essay

As a historian, James Blaut became so popular because of his criticism with the idea of Eurocentrism. From the word itself, Eurocentrism promotes the idea that European civilizations are superior to others and they have a lot of advantages compared to other civilization in Asia and Africa. In his book entitled 1492: The Debate on Colonialism, Eurocentrism, and History, Blaut argued with some of the famous philosopher and authors who are known for their Eurocentric ideas. Blaut tried to weaken their arguments and show to this modern world that our idea that Europeans have superior culture is only a delusion. Why 1492? According to the author, that year is the start of cultural evolution in Europe that brought them so much success in terms of dominating the world. According to Blaut, Europe is not ahead of Asia and Africa in terms of development and even the precondition of development. Europe just take advantage of the situation which is opposite to the beliefs of the proponents of Eurocentric idea that it has something to do with their superior culture. The year just inaugurated a set of historical process the helped the Europeans to develop their economy. One good example is their triumph over feudalism which was later on replaced by capitalism. We can say that Blaut was able to give good arguments and strong evidences that disprove the arguments presented by famous Eurocentric author such as Karl Marx and strengthen his theory that Europe’s exploitation of America paves their way to world domination. His arguments are the following: (page 2) 1. â€Å"Europeans had no advantage over Africa and Asia prior to 1492. Indeed, we cannot say that European culture is superior to those of Africa and Asia for the later two regions has their own economic and cultural advantages. † As oppose to the idea of Eurocentric theory which says that their weak culture resulted to their weak civilization, African and Asian civilization has their own cultural strengths that helped their economy to flourish. 2. â€Å"Colonialism is inevitable, it will happen even if there is no capitalism in Europe. † It is oppose the Eurocentric idea that the success of capitalism in Europe is the reason for their colonial expansion in different parts of the world. It is a very Eurocentric idea because it implies that colonialism starts in Europe as capitalism birthed in that region. Blaut argues that even if capitalism didn’t develop in Europe, powerful countries will still colonize other regions of the world. The birth of colonialism is a destiny for human civilization and an inevitable product of the natural characteristic of human society. 3. â€Å"Economic exploitation in America in 16th and 17th century was vastly intensive. † It is the main reason and explanation why Europe dominates the world not the rise of capitalism in Europe. Thus, the transformation of European society is just a mere product of major historical events and Europe just grabbed the opportunity. It contrasts the Eurocentric idea that the superiority of European culture and the weakness of others is the cause of their cultural transformation. 4. â€Å"There was no transition from feudalism to capitalism, rather a sharp break, a historical unconformity between medieval Europe and the Europe of bourgeoisie revolution. † Blaut disprove the belief that Europe experienced a social transformation which they triumph over the medieval feudalism. The idea of this social transformation implies that Europe of capable of transforming its society which can be attributed to their cultural superiority. Blaut theory vs. Eurocentric diffusionism For a long time, Eurocentric diffusionism is the dominant belief of the Europeans as well as other historians. It implies that the diffusion of Europe’s superior culture has brought progress throughout the world and caused worldwide social revolution. Eurocentric diffusionism believes that there is no need to look at other cultures which are lesser than those of the Europeans. Instead, historian believes in tunnel history as a source of historical reasoning. â€Å"Historical reasoning thus looks back the tunnel of time for causes of important changes in their history†. ( Blaut, p. 8). Because they see themselves as superior, they use their own history to interpret their society and disregard the contribution of the lesser civilization. The only exemption to this kind of social reasoning is when those lesser civilization caused so much decivilizing change such as barbarian invasion, plagues, and heresies. This reflects how the Europeans see the outside world. The significance of the outside culture is based on their effect on the ethnocentric Europeans. Another doctrine which is part of Eurocentric diffusinism is the outward diffusion of European intellect and spirituality that brought social evolution to the outside world of Europe. Actually, we cannot separate European intellect from spirituality for European intellect was shaped by Christian faith. As written by Blaut: â€Å"Two centuries ago it was axiomatic that God and his church were the fountainhead of progress. A Christian God ofcourse will put ideas in the heads of Christians particularly those Christians who worship him the right way and he will lead his people toward civilization. Gradually this explicit doctrine became implicit and Christians Europeans were themselves seen as the source of innovative ideas and hence evolutionary change for reasons not usually grounded in faith. †