Internet Structure Essays - Media Technology, Cultural Globalization

Internet Structure The Internet connects nearly 400 million users worldwide and is an essential part of how we work, play, communicate, and conduct commerce. We use the Internet in ways that seemed unimaginable The term Internet refers to the global information system that -- (i) is logically linked together by a globally unique address space based on the Internet Protocol (IP) or its subsequent extensions/follow-ons. (ii) is able to support communications using the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) suite or its subsequent extensions/follow-ons, and/or other IP-compatible protocols; and (iii) provides, uses or makes accessible layered on the communications and related infrastructure described herein., either publicly or privately, high level services. Computers speak to one another and send information back and forth, which is accomplished, by sending and receiving electronic impulses and decoding them into messages. In order to communicate with one another the computers are link ed up in a network. In 1972, the first e-mail program was created by Ray Tomlinson of BBN. The Web began in 1989; it wasnt released to the world till the early 90s, thats when it became the World Wide Web. Statistics say that 1 in 3 people use the Internet for e-mail, 1 in 6 use it because they want to find out how it works, 1 in 8 want business information and 1 in 2 go to the Internet for education, hobbies, job listings, and entertainment. In 1993 less than 1% of users paid for the use of the Internet. By 1995, it rose over 200% due to the profits companies made from providing the service. Because of the demand for the Internet around the World, and the amount of capital a business could make that provides this service, is surprising. An example of this is Cisco Systems, a once Silicon Valley based business, which is now an Internet Technology provider, brought in $10 billion in 1986, this is 14 years before what the Internet is today. In 1999 they became the third company in his tory to exceed $300 billion in market capitalization, second is Microsoft, and first is General Electric (Bunnell 29).. One thing certain is that the Internet has revolutionized the computer and communication technology. The Internet is a worldwide broadcasting capability, a mechanism for association and interaction between individuals without regard to geographic location (Comer 81). Technology Essays

buy custom Love as the Highest Law in Antigone and Death of a Salesman essay

buy custom Love as the Highest Law in Antigone and Death of a Salesman essay Love is a flash of light that gives meaning to the life of an ordinary man. It is bright as the sun, delicate as the shimmering lunar glare, deep as a bottomless ocean, and great as a boundless spring sky. Many artists have been trying to analyze the feeling, as well as find the answer to the eternal question what is love? The following paper will discuss two plays Antigone and Death of a Salesman. Despite the fact that Antigone and Death of a Salesman were written in different times and societies, they can be compared, since the engrossing love for family is the main aspect of both plays. In Antigone, a brave girl, Antigone proves love to her brother, sacrificing her life for the sake of love. In Death of a Salesman, Linda proves her love to Willy and Biff, forgetting about her life, feelings, and desires. However, I believe that love is about selfless giving and protection; it is the highest law in human lives. Being written many centuries ago, Antigone is the play that gives the useful lessons to the modern generations, because the little but brave girl challenges the society, demonstrating the endless love towards her brother and sister. The society determined Antigone`s fate. She had to choose between obeying the law and following her heart. For Antigone, a law is no more than just a set of rules, while love is the feeling and the energy that exists beyond the rules. The feeling is not predictable, and it cannot be subordinate. The tragedy begins when Creon refuses to bury Antigone`s brother Polynices, because the law sentenced him to a shameful death. Under the possible punishment by death, Antigone decides to bury her brother by herself. She believes that everyone should have the right to be buried as a human, especially her brother. Creon was very angry at her, and he decided to bury Antigone alive for her crime. Indeed, Antigone acted out of love and devotion. The love killed her. An tigone is shown for the readers as the light, which is a guarantee that the humanity is not doomed to the hopeless darkness. The world, where a sister can stand for her brother, cannot be hopeless. From the very beginning of the novel, the audience sees Antigone as a strong woman, who is strict to herself and the surrounding world. However, till the end of the play, the reader understands that she is tender inside. In her final monologue, Antigone says that she loved the joy of the sun, the streams, and the trees. She loved her parents, her unborn children, and her sister, who did not support her decision at first. However, most of all, Antigone loved her brother. In his drama, Sophocles is trying to say that no human being can find the strength to die without love in his heart. Antigone`s soul is overflowing with love. An intimate tenderness is inherent to the nature of a loving woman. The deep affection, the fiery, and almost reckless love made her strong before the face of death. Death of a Salesman is one more perfect example of the endless love to the family in the world literature. The protagonist Willy Lomen has many illusions, and he does not have the life that he always wanted to have. He is not a perfect family man. He does not treat his wife as a beloved woman, and has affairs from time to time. The family life lies on the shoulders of a tender woman, Willies wife, Linda. She provides understanding and support for her husband and two sons. Willy is the most important man in Linda`s universe. The woman is the example of understanding, support, and patience. She is a good wife and a mother, even though everyone tries to test her limits of patience. Being an ideal woman, Linda demonstrates her lifelong attention to her husband and romanticizes their relationship. She does not see the flaws of Willie`s behavior considering him the best man in the world. However, some aspects of her behavior are wrong. Indeed, a woman should provide support for her man, bu t she should not blindly follow his every word. Sometimes, a man can be mistaken, and there should be somebody, who can point to his flaw and give some advice. Linda tries to be the best woman so that her husband feels comfortable and safe. I opine that sometimes Linda just wanted to escape from the problems. Even noticing that her husband plans suicide, she does nothing to stop him. Linda has the great heart that allows her forgetting all the offences. No matter how Willy treats Linda in different situations, she never shows her dissatisfaction. Undoubtedly, man and woman should be close friends, who can always help each other. Lindas ability to comfort and satisfy Willy leads him to create the world of illusions. Eventually, the man finds it difficult to accept the unpleasant reality. To weaken the tension, Linda fails to help her husband to see the world. Moreover, she refuses their sons to help with their problems and sins. Besides being a loving and faithful wife, Linda is also a caring mother. She does not have strong ambitions towards their children as her husband does. She accepts them as they are - not very successful and determined people. Perhaps, only a mother can love her children in a devoted manner. Unlike her husband, she understands that Biff and Happy are her kids, and they will always be the main reason for her pride, no matter what potential they have. Unfortunately, Linda has to be a judge in the family, where children and father accuse and offend each other. However, the woman expresses loyalty, patience, and submissive nature that make her the most sympathetic character in the play. Buy custom Love as the Highest Law in Antigone and Death of a Salesman essay

MANAGEMENT OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE, EXPLORING KEY CONCEPTS IN CARE Essay

MANAGEMENT OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE, EXPLORING KEY CONCEPTS IN CARE DELIVERY - Essay Example id blockage is referred to as plaque which can be composed of different types of materials that can be carried by the blood including fat, cholesterol, calcium, etc. The blockage of the arteries then is one of the main causes of the CHD thus it is often referred to as atherosclerosis. Other terms that are applied to the said diseases are coronary artery disease, hardening of the arteries, heart disease, Ischemic heart disease and narrowing of the arteries. There are different causes of the disease such as smoking, high levels of fats and cholesterol in the blood, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. Unhealthy lifestyle and the effects of the modern human activities can lead to such effects in the heart. For that matter, vigilance and medical attention is one of the basic and most important methods to prevent and save patients (National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, 2008). In addition, there are different related conditions to the occurrence of plaques in the arteries such as angina or heart attack or chest pain, heart failure and arrhythmias. It can also be connected to other diseases such as diabetes. Due to the said relationship, increase in cases lead to the being the leading cause of Death in the US for both sexes (National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, 2008). The study undertaken is aimed to present a study in the care delivery and management of patients with CHD. Upon the achievement of the said goal, the analysis of the different concepts that are related to cardiology nursing can be achieved. This is with special focus on the empirical and evidence-based approach. Incorporated in the study are the results of clinical trials on the said field. In addition, the study of case of a patient with a particular aspect of care and provision of the different forms of interventions is one of the main issues included. The patient is a 55 year old woman who is discomfort for the past 6 months in relation to pain of the chest, back and neck. It

Cookie jar accounting Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cookie jar accounting - Coursework Example This can occur as an intentional plan of management in order to increase sales revenue. The incentives as to why managers would resort to extreme earnings management technique such as Channel stuffing include, First is to increase earnings, in given instances, managers and sales personnel are paid commissions and bonuses based on the overall performance of the company and since extreme earnings management technique such as channel stuffing increases sales volumes thereby having a positive result in relation to sales (LAI, et, al. 2009). This increases their earnings. This technique also creates some sense that the performance of the company is well hence in some ways assist in attracting financial institutions and investors to continue investing in the company with a hope of better proceeds (LAI, et, al. 2009). Secondly, these techniques do help a company to have a competitive advantage over their rivals. This is achieved by making sure that jamming effect is achieved for instance co nstant premature shipment of products into the market (LAI, et, al. 2009). This will give their competitor hard time to sell their products due to so many goods being offered in the market through this technique. Therefore the second reason gives a clear picture of how an organization can benefit from this technique which shows a well organized team of management (BRIGHAM, et, al 2010). Sales maximization will be achieved through these techniques and hence issues related to forecast analysis will be able to be achieved by the company. Thirdly is that the given company will be able to enjoy large scale production of goods and services and also distribute large volumes of the company’s product (BRIGHAM, et, al 2010). The effect of this is that the company will cut down their production costs that are fixed or variable because of the advantages associated with large scale production and hence higher returns (BRIGHAM, et, al 2010). This therefore helps managers in minimizing cost of production by producing and distributing large volumes of goods that results in low cost operations. The effect on this on the financial statement is that the company is guaranteed of good profits as will be reflected on the statements since the main objective of any business is to look for ways of reducing operational cost while maximizing profit (BRIGHAM, et, al 2010). The fourth reason is that the company may want to increase its proceeds from initial public offer. Most companies do raise their capital through initial public offer and so in order to gain the trust from the public, it has to indicate to the public that it is able to make high returns (LAI, et, al. 2009). This is because no investor would want to place its money in the company that will go down very soon. In order to gain such trust, the company has to be able to produce goods and services that can meet the demand in the market (LAI, et, al. 2009). Effectiveness of stuffing the channel from the stand point of a single year From the stand point of a single year, stuffing the channel seems effective because it is hard to detect and given that such can only be identified in the course of full disclosure, such as sales by product, segment, or area. Through careful analysis, the company will be able to reveal abnormal sales patterns. Nevertheless, it is not a guarantee for the company to provide full disclosure unless the auditor insists or as stipulated by (BHATTACHARYYA, H. 2004). Â  Incase of too much inventory, wholesalers can refuse to stock more inventory since they are not formally company employees. It is also difficult to keep these wholesalers from complaining to regulators. In order to avoid such complaints, the company can resort to

Articles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Articles - Essay Example This conclusion is justified since the researcher gained ample proof of the statement after conducting the research. The research questions were, ‘Based on 30-min pretest and posttest essays, will mean accuracy scores from the treatment group posttest essays be significantly greater than those from the contrast group? Based on 30-min pretest and posttest essays, will rhetorical competence scores, fluency scores, or complexity scores from the treatment group posttest essays be significantly lower than those from the contrast group?’ (Hartshorn, et. al., 2010) The sample population for the study was 47 ESL students ranging from advanced-low to advanced-mid category. Of these 47, 28 students belonged to the treatment group and 19 students belonged to the contrast group. Random sampling was used in this study. The questions in the survey were well-designed since they dealt with the core of the issue while dealing with ESL students. The idea was to improve upon the writing skills of the students and this meant allowing students to express their words in writing. It was concluded that WCF does indeed improve the writing skills of ESL students. Though, students being taught under the program did slightly less better in terms of sentence complexity and length of the writing piece but their writing skills considerably improved when compared with traditional teaching methods. The data is well-justified. The pedagogical implications suggest that using WCF teaching method is likely to result in improved writing skills. This is because traditional teaching styles are less focused on gaining accurate and timely feedback which delays the understanding process among students. The questions in the interview were well designed since they were semi-structured. This means that the interviewer did not follow predetermined questions that did not take into account the

The Impact Of Internet Marketing

The Impact Of Internet Marketing Internet marketing is also known as digital marketing, web marketing, online marketing, or e-marketing. As the name states, it is the advertising of products or services over the Internet. However, it also implies marketing through the wireless media and through e-mail. Electronic Customer Relationship Management (E-CRM) systems are also categorized under Internet marketing. IM can be creative, as well as, technical through its design, development, advertising, and sales over the Internet. In the past ten years, the Internet population varied a lot (Sandelands, 1997); an estimation of about 50 percent increase of the World Wide Web (WWW) per month and the numbers of websites double every 53 days (Gilbert, Perry and Widijoso, 1999). A 60 percent of large companies and 30 percent of midsize companies were estimated to make use of the Internet for marketing purposes by the year 2000 (Crain, 1994). In 2003, the first generation of internet users was fresh graduates fast to get the concepts of online commerce and shopping. The WWW is an electronic technology which is an effective means for marketing hotels and it also develops customer relationship in the long-run (Gilbert, Perry and Widijoso, 1999). The Internet allows firms to open a Web site in an electronic mall, have their products available to millions of potential customers and only in a short time period. GE, IBM, Ford, Kraft, and Proctor Gamble were the first to register domain names (Herbig and Hale, 1997). Because Internet grew in only five years (Lagrosen, 2005) and there are no barriers for time or location, internet marketing has become the new era in E-commerce with petty variable cost per customer (Deighton, 1997). Marketers use full color advertising that appeal similar to both -young and old- to attract people all over the world. The Internet is now considered as a much greater resource than traditional means of marketing (Herbig and Hale, 1997). All industries have subject matter experts (SMEs) (Marquis, 2001) who are responsible to unify and apply knowledge from different vendors and sources to solve industry problems. To prepare a Web site merging SME knowledge with other reference sources is one of example of Internet model, (Strauss and Frost, 1999), to retain and attract customers (Heinen, 1996). A well designed Web site can lead to an interesting, low cost means for sales promotion to worldwide customers (Hamill, 1997). Marketers should also refer to the AIDA model-Attent ion, Interest, Desire and Action- to successfully attract customers by introducing the right marketing on Internet (Lagrosen, 2005). 2. Objective of Study The generalized objective of the research is to assess the contribution of internet marketing on effectiveness of marketing and customer relationship management operations in specific reference to Indian organizations and Multi National Corporations (MNCs) operating in India. In the light of the above, the research attempts to have the following specific objectives: 1 To study the impact of internet marketing in attracting buyers to the websites/organizations. 2 To study the impact of internet marketing in retaining buyers of the websites/organizations. 3 To study the impact of internet marketing in maintaining customer loyalty towards the websites/organizations. 4 To study the impact of internet marketing in providing brand experience to the customers of the websites/organizations. 5 To study the impact of internet marketing in maintaining CRM for the customers of the websites/organizations. 3. Scope of Study its Limitations The proposed study would include selected organizations in India, which have used internet marketing for enhancing effectiveness of marketing operations. The impact of internet marketing on attracting buyers, retaining buyers, maintaining customer loyalty, providing brand experience and maintaining CRM would be assessed through structured research techniques. There are some limiting factors that can be called inherent in a research of this nature. These factors advise the following precautions to be observed in understanding and comparing the results. 1. The entire population of the organizations will not be covered under the study. An attempt to study the nature of the population through the limited sample will be made. All the limitations of a sample study shall apply to this research. 2. The values will be sampled from literature, but the problems of representative sample of such values may remain unresolved. 3. The assessment of relative impact of internet marketing is not wholly objective. Evidently, the research would provide rather inadequate basis for generalization about the entire organizational world. 4. The methodology for identification, grouping and measuring of several variables is only one of the different possibilities and is not a perfect one. As such, in an explorative study on assessment of relative impact of internet marketing, these weaknesses are unavoidable and one will have to use the findings with ones maturity and insight to arrive at logical conclusions. 5. The findings of the study may be expected to hold good for top-level and middle-level executives involved in internet marketing in India. 4. Hypothesis The basic hypothesis of the study is that internet marketing positively affects marketing operations. Some of the specific hypotheses are listed below: 1 Higher attraction of customers is positively correlated with usage of internet marketing. 2 Higher retention of customers is positively correlated with usage of internet marketing. 3 Higher loyalty of customers is positively correlated with usage of internet marketing. 4 Better brand experience of customers is positively correlated with usage internet marketing. 5 Better Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is positively correlated with usage of internet marketing. 5. Research Methodology The proposed study is to assess the impact of internet marketing on effectiveness of marketing operations. The functioning of the organizations, which have adopted internet marketing, will be compared against functioning of the same organizations, when internet marketing was not in practice. The backbone of this research is to establish and sustain a clear link between conceptual framework and empirical analysis. The main importance of this consideration comes from the belief that unless the conceptual framework and empirical study are highly integrated, each one of them individually would present a partitioned and distorted image of the research points. For that this study will depend on: Conceptual framework: depending mostly on the secondary data. Empirical study : depending mostly on the primary data. A combined research strategy based on survey and secondary will be carried out in the research by using structured questionnaires and interviews as a primary data collection methods. Suitable statistical techniques like Weighted Mean Analysis and Chi Square Test would be used to analyze the collected data and the conclusions would be drawn for making the recommendations. The proposed study is intended to be carried out for Indian organizations and MNCs operating in this country. The data for the study will be mainly generated through structured questionnaires to be filled up by different managerial personnel and secondary data (research reports) would also be used, wherever necessary. 6. Review of Literature The Internet plays an important role in many companies marketing communication strategies, accounting for $18.5 billion in total spending in 2005. Online advertising now ranges from directory listings of the early days to the more recent multimedia ads enabled by video streaming. Although online advertising technology has advanced to a great extent, consumers reaction toward online advertising did not improve over the years. To the contrary, banner ad click-through rates have steadily declined. Some intrusive online advertising formats have stimulated intense negative reactions from consumers (Edwards, Li and Lee, 2002). Despite its start as an interactive advertising format that should draw consumers, online advertising now faces the danger of becoming another push media and being rejected by consumers as with traditional advertising. These developments run against the trend of integrated marketing communications (IMC). IMC purports the coordination of marketing activities to form a purposeful dialogue with stakeholders (Duncan 2002), which implies the participation of consumers and a need to take consumer preferences into consideration. As a result, two-way interactive communication with consumers should be at the center of marketing communication efforts (Duncan and Moriaty, 1998). The same thinking is reflected in relationship marketing, which treats consumers as a partner in the marketing process and advocates a more intimate approach to marketing (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). This suggests that, for advertising to be truly effective to todays more wary and demanding consumers, it needs to put consumers back into the equation and empower them while getting the message across. This issue is especially critical to online advertising, as it is considered the most interactive form of advertising and has the potential o f leading the advertising industry toward the right direction. While traditional marketing strategies focus mostly on conveying information to consumers and persuading consumers, recent theories argue for a much more active and powerful role of consumers in marketing (Stewart and Pavlou, 2002, Vargo and Lusch, 2004). Consumers are no longer just receivers at one end of the communication continuum but instead actively participate in the marketing process, including the development and distribution of advertisements. As a result, consumers co-construct the meaning of marketing messages and develop a more effective personal relationship with companies. Reflecting this line of thinking, Duncan and Moriaty (1998) argue that the key to communicating effectively with consumers is a two-way exchange built on balance, symmetry, and reciprocity. This calls for attention to consumers needs and preferences in marketing communication. It advocates building long-term relationship with consumers at their willingness rather than pushing products to consumers to create near-term sales. Evidence of the need to attend to consumers needs and preferences can be gleaned from research on the general attitude toward advertising and advertising avoidance. Studies in these areas show that advertising forms that are forced onto consumers without regard to their choices are generally received negatively (Shavitt, Vargas and Lowrey, 2004). Ads in such forms are more likely to be avoided (Speck and Elliott, 1997) and tend to have adverse effects on brand recall and subsequent attitudes (Mehta, 2000). These negative effects have been attributed to the intrusiveness of ad exposure, the disruption of normal communication, and the ensuing annoyance (Shavitt, Vargas and Lowrey, 2004, Speck and Elliott, 1997). Supporting these academic findings, the advertising industry has witnessed in recent years the steady decline of dependence on TV commercials, an advertising form that has been consistently rated as the most negative by consumers due to its intrusive and pushy nature (Mittal, 1 994, Shavitt, Vargas and Lowrey, 2004). Advertisers are now resorting to much softer approaches such as product placement in TV programs and are shifting their focus to less offensive media such as print media and the Internet. Taken together, academic and industry evidences both point to a need to incorporate consumers communication preferences into advertising. As a newly emerged advertising medium, the Internet has the most potential for incorporating consumer preferences into the advertising process and overcoming the negative denotation that comes with traditional media advertising. It is an interactive medium that allows two-way communication between consumers and advertisers (Hoffman and Novak, 1996). With a diverse set of online advertising tools, advertisers can engage in effective multi-stage communication with consumers. For example, with the initial help of banner ads or search engine listings, companies can pull interested consumers to their websites for rich product information and immersive brand experience. The use of online communities can further deepen consumers identification and relationship with the brand. At each step of the process, consumers can actively participate by offering feedback to companies and by controlling the information they receive. Some online advertising formats, such as search engine advertising, del iver highly targeted advertising messages to consumers right when they need the information. All of this contributes to potentially better understanding and incorporation of consumer needs and preferences, which should lead to more effective marketing communication. The same characteristics of the Internet media also present unique challenges to advertisers. The interactive capability of the Internet endows consumers with more control. As a result, they tend to be more demanding and to be less tolerant of forced communication from advertisers. The more goal-oriented and high-involvement nature of Internet media use also means that disruption by advertisements will create more annoyance among consumers. Since some online advertising formats such as interstitials force consumers to deviate from their main goals to respond to the ads, they have been found to create reactance among consumers and to lead to negative perceptions of the advertiser and the advertised products (Edwards, Li and Lee, 2002). This equivocal nature of interactive communication is reflected in the interactivity literature. Although some existing studies have found interactive ads to be more persuasive than non-interactive ads (e.g., Fortin and Dholakia, 2005, Sundar, Kalyanaraman and Brown, 2003), other studies have revealed no or even negative effects of interactivity on persuasion (e.g., Bezjian-Avery, Calder and Iacobucci, 1998, Coyle and Thorson, 2001, Lohtia, Donthu and Hershberger, 2003). Consequently, researchers have pointed out that interactivity may not be advantageous across all consumers and/or all situations (Liu and Shrum, 2002). These conflicting findings show the intricacies of interactive communication and a need to consider how individual consumers may react to interactive advertising messages differently according to their own needs. The key consideration for an online advertiser is to maximize the benefits of the self-selected and interactive nature of the online media, and in the meantime avoid offensive and excessively interactive advertising messages to consumers who do not want to interact. The first step toward this direction is to understand how much consumers are willing to use the Internet in an interactive fashion (rather than as a passive information source as with traditional media) and what drives their desire to do so. In academic research, perceived value is an important component of the Technology Acceptance Model proposed by Davis, Bagozzi and Warshaw (1989) found that perceived usefulness is the most important predictor of peoples intention to use a new information technology, and this finding has been replicated in various other settings, including consumers adoption of online tools and consumers intention to shop at an online store (Gentry and Calantone, 2002, Koufaris, 2002). Within the arena of dyadic communication and relationships, value perception is considered a key contributor to the decision to engage in interactive relationship-oriented behavior. Sheth and Parvatiyar (1995), for example, proposed that consumers are more prone to engage in relational market behavior if the behavior brings values such as efficiency and risk reduction. In an online environment, Ko, Cho, and Roberts (2005) found that consumers needs for convenience and social interaction and the perceived ability of the Internet to fulfill such needs have a positive impact on consumers interaction intentions. While perceived value is a motivator of online interaction, perceived risk can deter a consumer from interacting online. Following Stone and Gronhaug (1993), perceived risk is defined as subjective expectations of loss as a result of interacting online. Research on traditional communication demonstrates a link between perceived risk and an individuals willingness to interact. When individuals perceive a certain situation to be uncertain and risky, they are likely to withdraw socially and exhibit a reluctance to engage in interaction (McCroskey, 1984, Neuliep and Ryan, 1998). Risk is a central topic to online marketing (Olivero and Lunt, 2004). On the Internet, face-to-face communication is replaced with screen-to-face communication. This virtual nature of the Internet brings uncertainty and risk to online communication and may prevent consumers from interacting more online. For example, an advertiser may attempt to elicit interaction from a consumer by sending a promotional email linking to additional information. But if the consumer perceives clicking on such email links as risky, he or she is unlikely to take the further step even if there is some interest in the product. Indeed, studies by industry, government, and academic resea rchers all recognize perceived risk as a big obstacle to the expansion of e-commerce (Federal Trade Federal Trade Commission, 2000, Grabner-Kraeuter, 2002, Miyazaki and Fernandez, 2001, Olivero and Lunt, 2004). The research has shown that the degree of an individuals privacy and security concerns vary with the individuals education (Burke, 2002), Internet experience (Miyazaki and Fernandez, 2001), and his or her general propensity to trust (Lee and Turban, 2001, Uslaner, 2000). The different degrees of concern can lead to variations in perceived risk and thus lead to different levels of willingness to engage in online interaction. Time-pressedness refers to a consumers general lack of time in completing the tasks in daily life. Lack of time is a common syndrome of todays fast-paced lifestyle. This time-pressedness, felt to different degrees by different consumers, can have a double-edged effect on consumers usage of the Internet. Consumers may use the Internet more because of its timesaving benefits (Alba, Lynch, Weitz, Janiszewski, Lutz, Sawyer and Wood, 1997). For example, instead of consulting daily newspaper and TV for availability of products and services, consumers can quickly research a large assortment of products on the Internet. The constant availability of the Internet also appeals to consumers with a tight schedule. However, two-way communication is highly engaging and time-consuming (Liu and Shrum, 2002). In studies of interactivity, researchers have demonstrated that the speed of a communication constitutes an important dimension of how interactive the communication is. A more synchronized communication leads to higher satisfaction and more positive attitude toward the communication target (Liu and Shrum, 2002). Industry research shows that consumers who have a faster broadband Internet connection engage in a wider variety of activities than consumers with regular dial-up connections (Horrigan, 2003). Some of these activities, such as email and online chatting, are especially communication-oriented. Such differences between broadband and dial-up Internet users can be attributed partially to the fact that a constant-on broadband connection provides greater convenience than a dial-up connection. Not only does it provide the consumer more opportunities to interact online, its high connection speed also allows richer communication formats such as voice chatting and rich media advertising . This makes the Internet a better choice for substituting or complementing other communication channels (Daft and Lengel, 1986). 7. Chapterization Scheme Chapter 01 Introduction The first chapter of the proposed research would be devoted to the history of internet marketing and would review the transformation of marketing from traditional to customer centric internet marketing. In particular, this chapter would discuss various possible contributions of internet marketing towards fulfillment of strategic goals of organizations with special reference to India. This chapter would elaborate the research plan and objectives. This chapter would also outline the hypotheses and conclusions. Chapter 02 Research Methodology This chapter of the proposed research would be devoted to establish and sustain a clear link between conceptual framework and empirical analysis. There would be special emphasis on integrating conceptual framework with empirical study. The research tools, data collection tools, data analysis tools would be elaborated in this chapter. The sample size, sampling method and justification for usage in research would also be elaborated. Chapter 03 Attraction and Retention of Customers This chapter of the proposed research would differentiate between Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C) marketplaces. This chapter would further describe how and why customers purchase online and why consumers are attracted to particular suppliers. Online and off-line customers would be compared in order to understand reasons for observed differences. Various antecedents of the online experience would be addressed to determine influences on satisfaction and buying behavior. Web site efficacy (usefulness and ease-of-use) would be addressed in light of its importance in customer satisfaction and retention for online shopping. The chapter would conclude with insights for internet marketers to attract new buyers, satisfy, and retain them. Chapter 04 Customer Loyalty This chapter of the proposed research would discuss the importance of an integrated framework for understanding the impact of corporate image, customer trust, and customer value on e-customer loyalty in a B2C e-commerce context. This framework would incorporate cognitive and affective components in order to gain customer mind share, nurture emotional ties, and influence future purchase decisions. Chapter 05 Brand Experience This chapter of the proposed research would make a case for the importance of branding efforts by reviewing major approaches to brand development in both offline and online marketing environments. The concept of Interactive Brand Experiences (IBE) would be created and explored via the use of marketing tools, such as personalization, co-creation, purchase-process streamlining, self-service, brand community, rich media, product self-design, dynamic pricing, and customization. This chapter would deal with two major challenges involved in integrating branding efforts in online and off-line spaces: (1) identifying the appropriate techniques and the media best suited to deliver them and (2) executing seamlessly at all touch points in the process. Chapter 06 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) This chapter of the proposed research would elaborate how the Internet has emerged as a powerful electronic customer relationship management tool. This chapter would emphasize that this tool is of practical use only when consumers are willing to provide the type of information that is of value to the internet marketer. Consumer willingness to provide personal information is a cornerstone of customer relationship management. This chapter would explore how consumers self-confidence in using the Internet impacts their willingness to provide personal information online. Chapter 07 Analysis and Interpretation of Data This chapter of the proposed research would analyze the collected data and would also interpret the findings after application of statistical tools. Chapter 08 Summary of Findings, Conclusions, Limitations and Further Scope of Research This final chapter of the proposed research would summarize findings, draw conclusions and elaborate on limitations of the proposed research. This chapter would present a futuristic look at internet marketing in the decades to come through future research. In particular, this chapter would highlight the needs of organizations towards adoption of internet marketing in congruence with business strategies. In addition, this chapter would offer some valuable suggestions for the internet marketing professionals of the future. References Alba, Joseph, John Lynch, Barton Weitz, Chris Janiszewski, Richard Lutz, Alan Sawyer, and Stacy Wood. Interactive Home Shopping: Consumer, Retailer, and Manufacturer Incentives to Participate in Electronic Marketplaces. Journal of Marketing 61, 3 (1997): 38-53. Bezjian-Avery, Alexa, Bobby Calder, and Dawn Iacobucci. New Media Interactive Advertising Vs. Traditional Advertising. Journal of Advertising Research 38, July/August (1998): 23-32. Burke, Raymond R. Technology and the Customer Interface: What Consumers Want in the Physical and Virtual Store. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 30, 4 (2002): 411-432. Coyle, James R., and Esther Thorson. The Effects of Progressive Levels of Interactivity and Vividness in Web Marketing Sites. Journal of Advertising 30, Fall (2001): 65-77. Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. Organizational Information Requirements, Media Richness and Structural Design. Management Science 32, 5 (1986): 554-571. David C. Gilbert, Jan Powell-Perry and Sianandar Widijoso (1999), Approaches by hotels to the use of the Internet as a relationship marketing tool, Journal of Marketing Practice: Applied Marketing Science, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 21-38. Davis, Fred D., Richard P. Bagozzi, and Paul R. Warshaw. User Acceptance of Computer Technology: A Comparison of Two Theoretical Models. Management Science 35, 8 (1989): 982-1003. Deighton, J. (1997), Commentary on exploring the implications of the Internet for consumer marketing, Academy of Marketing Science, vol.25 No.4, pp.329-46. Duncan, Tom, and Sandra E. Moriaty. A Communication-Based Marketing Model for Managing Relationships. Journal of Marketing 62, 2 (1998): 1-13. Duncan, Tom. IMC Using Advertising and Promotion to Build Brands (International Edition), New York, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2002. Edwards, Steven M., Hairong Li, and Joo-Hyun Lee. Forced Exposure and Psychological Reactance: Antecedents and Consequences of the Perceived Intrusiveness of Pop-up Ads. Journal of Advertising 31, 3 (2002): 83-95. Eric Sandelands (1997), Utilizing the Internet for marketing success, Pricing Strategy Practice, Volume 5, No 1, pp.7-12. Federal Trade Commission. Privacy Online: Fair Information Practices in the Electronic Marketplace, available online at http://www.ftc.gov/reports/privacy2000/privacy2000.pdf, 2000. Fortin, David R., and Ruby Roy Dholakia. Interactivity and Vividness Effects on Social Presence and Involvement with a Web-Based Advertisement. Journal of Business Research 58, 3 (2005): 387-396. Gentry, Lance, and Roger Calantone. A Comparison of Three Models to Explain Shop-Bot Use on the Web. Psychology Marketing 19, 11 (2002): 945-956. Grabner-Kraeuter, Sonja. The Role of Consumers Trust in Online-Shopping. Journal of Business Ethics 39, 1/2 (2002): 43-50. Hoffman, Donna L., and Thomas P. Novak. Marketing in Hypermedia Computer-Mediated Environments: Conceptual Foundations. Journal of Marketing 60, 3 (1996): 50-68. Horrigan, John B. Adoption of Broadband to the Home. PEW Internet and American Life Project, available online at http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Broadband_adoption.pdf, 2003. Jim Hamill (1997), The Internet and international marketing, International Marketing Review, Vol. 14, No. 5, pp.300-323. Joseph Heinen (1996), Internet marketing practices, Information Management Computer Security, 4/5, pp. 7-14. Ko, Hanjun, Chang-Hoan Cho, and Marilyn S. Roberts. Internet Uses and Gratifications. Journal of Advertising 34, 2 (2005): 57-70. Koufaris, Marios. Applying the Technology Acceptance Model and Flow Theory to Online Consumer Behavior. Information Systems Research 13, 2 (2002): 205-224. Lee, Matthew K. O., and Efraim Turban. A Trust Model for Consumer Internet Shopping. International Journal of Electronic Commerce 6, 1 (2001): 75-91. Liu, Yuping, and L. J. Shrum. What Is Interactivity and Is It Always Such a Good Thing? Implications of Definition, Person, and Situation for the Influence of Interactivity on Advertising Effectiveness. Journal of Advertising 31, 4 (2002): 53-64. Lohtia, Ritu, Naveen Donthu, and Edmund K. Hershberger. The Impact of Content and Design Elements on Banner Advertising Click-through Rates. Journal of Advertising Research 43, 4 (2003): 410-418. Marquis, S. (2001), Lets not ignore the potential of the Web as a mass ad medium, Marketing, March, p. 26. [14] Boutie, P. (1997), Tales from the Web: What do Marketers Do on the Internet Today? What Works? Why?, European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR), Amsterdam. McCroskey, James C. The Communication Apprehension Perspective. In Avoiding Communication: Shyness, Reticence, and Communication Apprehension, J. A. Daly and J. C. McCroskey, eds., Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1984. Mittal, Banwari. Public Assessment of TV Advertising: Faint Praise and Harsh Criticism. Journal of Advertising Research 34, 1 (1994): 35-53. Miyazaki, Anthony D., and Ana Fernandez. Consumer Perceptions of Privacy and Security Risks for Online Shopping. The Journal of Consumer Affairs 35, 1 (2001): 27-44. Neuliep, James W., and Daniel J. Ryan. The Influence of Intercultural Communication Apprehension and Socio-Communicative Orientation During Initial Cross-Cultural Interaction. Communication Quarterly 46, 1 (1998): 88-99. Olivero, Nadia, and Peter Lunt. Privacy Versus Willingness to Disclose in E-Commerce Exchanges: The Effect of Risk Awareness on the Relative Role of Trust and Control. Journal of Economic Psychology 25, 2 (2004): 243-262. Paul Herbig and Brian Hale (1997), Internet: the marketing challenge of the twentieth century, Internet Research: Electronic Networking Applications and Policy, Volume 7, Number 2, pp. 95-100. Shavitt, Sharon, Patrick Vargas, and Pamela Lowrey. Exploring the Role of Memory for SelfSelected Ad Experiences: Are Some Advertising Media Better Liked Than Others? Psychology Marketing 21, 12 (2004): 1011-1032. Sheth, Jagdish N., and Atul Parvatiyar. Relationship Marketing in Consumer Markets: Antecedents and Consequences. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 23, 4 (1995): 255-271. Speck, Paul Surgi, and Michael T. Elliott. Predictors of Advertising Avoidance in Print and Broadcast Media. Journal of Advertising 26, 3 (1997): 61-76. Stephan lagrosen (2005), Effects of the internet on the marketing communication of service companies, Journal of Services Marketing, 19/2, pp. 63-69. Stewart, David, and Paul Pavlou. From Consumer Response to Active Consumer: Measuring the Effectiveness of Interactive Media. Journal of The Academy of Marketing Science 30, 4 (2002): 376-396. Stone, Robert N., and Kjell Gronhaug. Perceived Risk: Further Considerations for the Marketing Dis. European Journal of Marketing 27, 3 (1993): 39-52. Strauss, J. and Frost

Vioxx and Merck & Co. Essay -- essays research papers

Vioxx/Merck Summary The painkiller Vioxx was introduced in 1999 by Merck & Co. It has been used by over 20 million Americans since it was put on the market. Vioxx remained on the market for approximately five years without adequate warnings about its risks. In September of 2004, Merck took Vioxx off the market after a study revealed that it doubled the risk of heart attack or stroke for patients that used it for more than 18 months. Although Merck claimed that they had no idea of these possibly lethal side effects, some internal documents imply that they had been aware of the problem for years and had not made moves to change it. Over 300 lawsuits have been filed against Merck, and it is expected that thousands more will arise.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Further studies were conducted on the drug, but Merck adamantly fought Vioxx findings. Even thou Merck funded and agreed with the design of the study, it publicly discredited its findings. Other reports showed that in older patients, Vioxx made no provide as much protection as it is expected to. One study links Vioxx to 88,000 to140,000 cases of heart disease. Most of this information had been kept private for quite a long time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Despite the obvious health risks, in February of 2005, government advisers concluded that the benefits of Vioxx outweighed the dangers and that it was the patients decision whether or not to keep using the drugs. They stated that the prescription products should ... Vioxx and Merck & Co. Essay -- essays research papers Vioxx/Merck Summary The painkiller Vioxx was introduced in 1999 by Merck & Co. It has been used by over 20 million Americans since it was put on the market. Vioxx remained on the market for approximately five years without adequate warnings about its risks. In September of 2004, Merck took Vioxx off the market after a study revealed that it doubled the risk of heart attack or stroke for patients that used it for more than 18 months. Although Merck claimed that they had no idea of these possibly lethal side effects, some internal documents imply that they had been aware of the problem for years and had not made moves to change it. Over 300 lawsuits have been filed against Merck, and it is expected that thousands more will arise.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Further studies were conducted on the drug, but Merck adamantly fought Vioxx findings. Even thou Merck funded and agreed with the design of the study, it publicly discredited its findings. Other reports showed that in older patients, Vioxx made no provide as much protection as it is expected to. One study links Vioxx to 88,000 to140,000 cases of heart disease. Most of this information had been kept private for quite a long time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Despite the obvious health risks, in February of 2005, government advisers concluded that the benefits of Vioxx outweighed the dangers and that it was the patients decision whether or not to keep using the drugs. They stated that the prescription products should ...

Great Gatsby Chapter Journals

Daisy says these words as she describes to Nick and Jordan her hopes for her young daughter. Daisy is not a fool herself but because of her surroundings intelligent women are not viewed as valuable. Opposite of the older generation, the younger generation enjoys the thoughtless minds of the young and vulnerable women only seeking pleasure and not those that cater to their needs. Daisy’s remark is somewhat cynical: while she addresses the social values of her era, she does not seem to mind them. Rather, she describes that she is bored with life and it seems like she implies that a girl can have more fun if she is beautiful and simplistic. Daisy often conforms to the social expectation of the American woman in order to avoid issues. â€Å"He had one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced, or seemed to face, the whole external world for an instant and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself. As a part of Nick’s first close examination of Gatsby’s character and appearance he describes that Gatsby’s smile captures both the theatrical quality of Gatsby’s character and his personality. Additionally, it captures the manner in which Gatsby appears to everyone in the outside world. His smile seems to be both an important part of the role in the character. Here, Nick describes Gatsby’s rare focus—he has the ability to make anyone he smiles at feel as though he has chosen that person out of â€Å"the whole external world. † â€Å"With an effort I managed to restrain my incredulous laughter. This is when Gatsby is telling Nick about his life. Nick is trying to restrain himself from laughter because he knows that there is something wrong with what Gatsby is saying. As he continues, Jordan looks like she knows he is lying so when Nick looks at her he feels that it’s all bogus. From what Nick believes, what Gatsby is saying is so in the moment because there isn't a lot of detail in his story to go on and see if it’s true or not. Gatsby is saying that he lived so well after his family had all died and that he travelled a lot and that he ha d his life pretty much made for him. If that was all true why would he be living in a place like west egg? â€Å"The truth was that Jay Gatsby, of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God—a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that—and he must be about His Father’s business, the service of a vast, vulgar, and meretricious beauty. So he invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen year old boy would be likely to invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end. † When Nick is describing Gatsby he uses this bold comparison between Gatsby and Jesus Christ to illuminate what Gatsby has created himself to be. Jesus is described to be â€Å"faithful to his self-created dream but scornful of the factual truth that finally crushes him and his dream†Ã¢â‚¬â€an appropriate description of Gatsby. Though the comparison between Gatsby and Jesus is not an important event in The Great Gatsby, it is nonetheless a suggestive comparison, as Gatsby transforms himself into the image that he envisioned for himself as a youngster and remains committed to that idea, despite the obstacles that society presents to the fulfillment of his dream. â€Å"’God sees everything,' repeated Wilson. These were the last words that George Wilson had said before he murdered Gatsby in the end of the chapter. It is showing the madness that came from his realization of the affair and the death of his wife, but maybe this could be indicating that he was the only sane one of all the characters in the end. With the rough life that George had, he did not experience the immorality of society in the 1920s. The abuse of money, the new crimes developed, and the other aspects of life were not able to corrupt his lifetyle in the Valley of Ashes. Being a poor man, it was his dream to be rich and make a life for himself and his wife in New York City, but living, isolated, in the Valley of Ashes kept his morals. All of the characters seemed to be blinded by the lifestyle that surrounded them. They were rich, or wanted to be in George's case, and were blinded by the corruption of society. They could not see what harm they were doing to each other and themselves and started keeping secrets, having affairs and causing unneeded destruction. God was the only one that could see their flaws and lies; he could look past their secrets and see the real people on the inside – the bad people they had become. â€Å"Tom and Gatsby, Daisy and Jordan, and I, were all Westeners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly inadaptable to Eastern life. † Gatsby had the dream of coming back with Daisy. He got money just to achieve his dream, and try to make it work, but it did not work. Gatsby tried to put the values into the wrong place. Gatsby also cared too much about people’s feelings and he made friends to easily.

Berlin Blockade essays

Berlin Blockade essays On June 26, 1948 the largest airlift began as the American and British forces began the Berlin Airlift. To understand how the airlift came to be, we have to look all the way back to the Yalta Conference. The Yalta Conference began in February 1945 in which the three superpowers, America, Russia and Britain, met to discuss the future of post war Europe. America and Russia were emerging as the two superpowers, and their deteriorating relationship would soon lead to many problems that would develop in post war Europe. Yalta saw the beginning of this deteriorating relationship. First, Stalin put a communist government in place in Poland. Poland had been the route that enemies had used to invade Russia on three separate occasions and Stalin felt he needed a friendly government in power. Stalin had agreed to hold elections in liberated countries following the war which he broke when he established a communist government in Poland. Although the U.S. and Britain had done the same thing when they put their own government in Italy following their defeat, Stalins move in Poland still upset the other two superpowers. U.S. still needed Russias help to fight the war in Japan so President Roosevelt had to be careful not to upset Stalin. The communist government was allowed to stay in Poland but the government was extended to include the Poles living in London that were suppose to form the government. Stalin made sure that the communists always had the majority. Also in an attempt to keep good relations with Russia, Roosevelt agreed to allow Russia to remove ten billion dollars from defeated Germany. Also at Yalta, it was agreed that post war Germany be divided into four occupational zones, which would become one of the main problems leading to the Berlin Airlift. Russia was given the north east, the U.S. was given the south east, Britain the north west, and France the south west. Berlin, German...

Free Essays on Recycled Concrete

INTRODUCTION Nothing lasts forever. The same is true for concrete. Trouble with this rubble is that it can't be compacted, and it doesn't decompose. Putting waste to work is not a new concept. Reducing, reusing, recycling and recovering waste has become and everyday occurrence. Nearly a half a billion tons of waste every year, approximately eight pounds (3.6 kilograms of waste for every person every day)[i]. The use of recycled materials helps save material as well as energy. This trend has recently been increasing. Portland cement concrete can be reclaimed during demolition and crushed into a coarse granular material that can be used as a substitute for virgin crushed rock and used as structural fill in many applications. Aggregate processors are beginning to accept reclaimed concrete for a "tipping fee" significantly lower than the cost of landfilling the waste material.[ii] The main parts of the report will discuss: (1) Material and energy savings (2) Background on how recycled concrete is checked (3) Test descriptions of these methods when used for structural fill MATERIAL AND ENERGY SAVINGS The usage of recycled concrete as a structural fill material instead of natural aggregate is steadily increasing. In many regions, recycled aggregate may cost 20% to 30% less that of natural aggregate.[iii] Landfill costs for debris continue to rise and the landfills become more heavily regulated, it makes economic sense to use alternative means of disposal of concrete from construction and demolition operations. More disposal sites are opening up and contractors are incorporating recycling into their operations to decrease disposal costs. Recycled concrete aggregate is increasingly available and is often an economical alternative to new aggregate. Project managers can ensure that their contractors are aware of opportunities to recycle this material and can require the use ... Free Essays on Recycled Concrete Free Essays on Recycled Concrete INTRODUCTION Nothing lasts forever. The same is true for concrete. Trouble with this rubble is that it can't be compacted, and it doesn't decompose. Putting waste to work is not a new concept. Reducing, reusing, recycling and recovering waste has become and everyday occurrence. Nearly a half a billion tons of waste every year, approximately eight pounds (3.6 kilograms of waste for every person every day)[i]. The use of recycled materials helps save material as well as energy. This trend has recently been increasing. Portland cement concrete can be reclaimed during demolition and crushed into a coarse granular material that can be used as a substitute for virgin crushed rock and used as structural fill in many applications. Aggregate processors are beginning to accept reclaimed concrete for a "tipping fee" significantly lower than the cost of landfilling the waste material.[ii] The main parts of the report will discuss: (1) Material and energy savings (2) Background on how recycled concrete is checked (3) Test descriptions of these methods when used for structural fill MATERIAL AND ENERGY SAVINGS The usage of recycled concrete as a structural fill material instead of natural aggregate is steadily increasing. In many regions, recycled aggregate may cost 20% to 30% less that of natural aggregate.[iii] Landfill costs for debris continue to rise and the landfills become more heavily regulated, it makes economic sense to use alternative means of disposal of concrete from construction and demolition operations. More disposal sites are opening up and contractors are incorporating recycling into their operations to decrease disposal costs. Recycled concrete aggregate is increasingly available and is often an economical alternative to new aggregate. Project managers can ensure that their contractors are aware of opportunities to recycle this material and can require the use ...

Shaping An Individual As A Person And as A Learner Essay

Shaping An Individual As A Person And as A Learner - Essay Example You teach, you should be more goal focused, and you cannot be a good teacher with a bad plan, and it does not mean that having a good plan makes you a good teacher definitely† (Wiggins, 2013). In every sense, curriculum design and implementation shapes an individual as a person and learns. It is evident that curriculum designs can have the profound influence on the lives of students and learners. It may also affect the approach that students have towards life and how they approach life in general. Basically, proper curriculum designs and their effective implementation will positively impact the lives of student and learners. This being the case, the vice versa is true. When I was a kid, I had an experience unlike any of my classmates then. When I was in lower primary school, Most of the mates with whom I was schooling liked reading a lot. It was hard for me to be found studying on my own; much of the things I was interested in related to science, especially physical science. I loved science so much that my dream was always to be a scientist. I liked the practical bits of almost all lessons, including the Physical Education lessons. I never was interested in history and such lessons which demanded that I spend much time reading. This was due to the fact that my teacher used science as an approach to almost all subjects, thus I increasingly disliked non science based subjects. This was advantageous to me since I loved the scientific approach, but was a headache to most of my mates who did not have science related careers as their aspirations. This was in a way not addressing the general students whose likeliness of doing the sciences was low. â€Å"Jesuit’s curriculum  is structured to develop disciplined habits, to stimulate critical thinking, and to develop the skills necessary for the expression of that thinking. The school strives to instill five characteristics in its students. The goal is to educate our young men to be open to growth, intellectually competent.

Foundationalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Foundationalism - Essay Example This essay shall briefly state the concept of 'foundationalism' with an example, and analyze some criticisms against foundationalism. The essay shall argue that foundationalism presents itself as a very weak and debate-able theory of epistemic justification for it to be accepted as plausible. The essay shall cite appropriately from researchers and other works, to support its argument. As can be deduced form its very name, 'foundationalism,' is a view that as states that, some beliefs become the foundation for others. It is worthwhile to enter into a discussion of the theory of foundationalism, because, only if one understands clearly what foundationalism is, can one understand why it presents a weak and debate-able theory for plausible epistemic justification. As stated earlier, is rooted in the idea that knowledge is 'justified true belief' (JTB). This means that all our knowledge has to be based on some sort of justified belief that is true. This concept of a chain of justified beliefs, one based on another and that based on another, leading to innumerable regress of justified beliefs, appeared unconvincing to some thinkers, and the foundationalists sought to solve this problem by introduction of basic beliefs and non-basic beliefs or 'inferentially justified beliefs'. For example, one knows that 1) plants are living things and 2) all living things need oxygen, then one can deduce from this, that 3) plants need oxygen. Statement three (plants need oxygen) then becomes the new, justified belief, which is inferred from the justified beliefs of the statements 1) and 2). This is called 'inferentially justified belief' while the first two are 'non-inferentially justified beliefs' and foundationalists hold "that there must be a kind of justification that does not depend on the having of other justified beliefs" which then becomes the foundation of all our beliefs and knowledge (Fumerton, 1). In other words, "if one has a non-basic belief, then-at rock bottom-it owes its justification to at least one basic belief" (Howard-Snyder, 1). Interestingly, foundationalists state that some beliefs need no further explanation; for example, when one is in pain, or feels a sense of pleasure - this needs no further justification because one knows that it is true. It is based on personal knowledge or empiricism. Similarly, there may be another belief that one cannot sleep because of the pain. This is derived form the belief that one is in pain, or derived belief. Relationships like the one mentioned, between basic and derived beliefs, in terms of justification, are more basic than others, since in "they cannot be justified by reference to other beliefs (call them the 'Derived Beliefs') whereas derived beliefs can be justified by reference to basic beliefs" (Fumerton, 1). Types of Foundationalism and Their Criticisms Descartes may be cited as "the paradigm of a classical foundationalist" (Fumerton, 1). Classical foundationalism holds that the basics or the 'foundations of knowledge' must be absolutely protected, and that they must be invulnerable to skepticism (University of Reading, Foundationalism