The Role Of Technology Essay Research Paper free essay sample

The Role Of Technology Essay, Research Paper Man is still the most extraordinary computing machine of all. John F. Kennedy Speech, May 21, 1963 As we look back in retrospect, civilisation has evolved greatly from coevals to coevals. Our promotion has been entirely dependent on one factor, the human head. The human head has brought us from the bondages of Neanderthal epoch to today s modern age. It has brought us legion of comfortss that are every bit simple as a cock to every bit sophisticated as the personal computing machine. These creative activities have multiplied exponentially and have been the crutch for our society. The anxiousness of Y2k exemplifies the magnitude in which we rely on these machines we have created. The quandary in which the development of engineering brings is a simple inquiry: To what extent should these machines govern our lives? This medium is the important reply to future endurance of our being. We will write a custom essay sample on The Role Of Technology Essay Research Paper or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page If we look back to a small over two centuries ago in our universe, engineering was non every bit outstanding as it is now. A twenty-four hours in which the Equus caballus cart broke did non greatly affect day-to-day life for people in that clip period. On the other manus, conceive of a twenty-four hours when electricity stops. Airports would be shut down, communicating failures, concern loss, and etc. Recently an temblor hit the state of Taiwan, where a bulk of the semiconducting material industry is located. During the temblor with a Richter graduated table of 7.4, many of the mills halted production on computing machine french friess. In the one of two yearss the workss were shut down, stocks associating to the computing machine industry plummeted. Dell Computer announced that its 3rd one-fourth net incomes would be lower than outlooks, Gateway portions dropped, and the harm went down the concatenation to companies that were related to the computing machine industry. If the craze o ver Y2k is accurate, we will see in first manus, the appreciation in which engineering has on our society. I have observed that a popular secret plan in sci-fi novels is the impression that someday in the hereafter, computing machines will regulate our lives and we will go slaves to them. The Terminator film series is a authoritative illustration that uses this secret plan. One must inquire himself if this fiction has become a world for worlds. Weapons of mass devastation were a changeless fright for all citizens during the Cold War and are still a menace to us. Reading about the Oklahoma City bombardment, the Columbine shots, the recent Xerox shots, and so forth makes me inquire if we have become slaves to our creative activities. To happen the medium in which we can equilibrate engineering with our lives, we must understand the differences and analogues that computing machines portion with us. An evident disparity is that computers/machines do non posses the ground and intuition that a human encephalon contains. Descartes foresaw this differentiation and grounds as follows: For whereas ground is a univeral instrument which can be used in all sorts of state of affairss, these variety meats [ of animate beings, like mechanisms in general ] need some peculiar temperament for each peculiar action ; hence it is for all practical intents impossible for a machine to hold adequate different variety meats to do it move in all eventualities of life in the manner in which our grounds makes us move. ( Descartes 1637, p.140 ) Descartes continues, even though such machines might make [ or state ] some things every bit good as we do them, or possibly even better, they would necessarily neglect in others, which would uncover that they were moving non through understanding but merely from the temperament of their variety meats. There is a common misconception that computing machines are perfect in their several maps and that they are the solution to the erroneous human being. Therefore, we trust it with all of our day-to-day responsibilities. Many continue to believe that since computing machines appear to be perfect and that we trust it with all our responsibilities, finally computing machines are smarter than worlds and someday may assist us carry through all of our undertakings. We have been fascinated by the capablenesss of the new cheat title-holder, Artificial Intelligence. The fact of the affair is that Artificial Intelligence can be flawed merely like worlds can be. The Chinese Room Argument proposed by John Searle gives us a glance to the abilities of AI. The experiment requires puting individual in a room with a clump of Chinese Hagiographas. Based on the batches of direction they give you are required to decode the Chinese characters. This carbon monoxide rrelation is evidently impossible to most existences and one of Searle s decisions is: If he doesn t understand so there is no manner the system could understand because the system is merely portion of him. Behind every computing machine system or package lays a plan or codification that was created by a human being. Therefore if you believe that worlds are erroneous, so the plans created would be besides flawed sharing a analogue between machines and worlds. In order to find whether to choose the consequences from the computing machine or the ace sawbones as given in the scenario, the benefits and disadvantages of computing machines must be underlined foremost. In the paragraphs above, I have tried to happen grounds to confute the impression that computers/machines are unflawed. However, computing machines can go a great complement to our day-to-day undertakings. The quandary we face is how much or how small we should trust on engineering before it controls us. The medium is simple ; blend the best of what worlds may offer such as the flexibleness of our heads with the increased truth and efficiency of the computing machine. In this given scenario, the computing machine that predicts the possibilities of a bosom onslaught should be viewed as a 2nd sentiment. Each bosom onslaught instance varies from patient to patient, computing machines may be accurate most of the clip but on the rare occasions it may besides be incorrect. Merely a phys ician would be able to take in history particular conditions such as a rare bosom status or a phenomenon that was neer discovered. The computing machine on the other manus would either give a false end product or syntax mistake. With the benefits of a physician and the computing machine as a 2nd sentiment, the patient would so be able to do an informed determination. However, if we become wooed by the computing machine s ability to do these anticipations and hope to replace physicians someday with these devices, we so cross the thin ruddy line from utilizing it as a tool to trusting on it. Promotions in the medical field have made medical specialty pattern today, more efficient and accurate. Inventions such as the X ray have become tools or nurses for physicians. Yet with these comfortss, most physicians do non trust entirely on generated informations but besides their experience and cognition learnt making a balance between adult male and engineering. Most resistance on this affair will reason on the virtue of a few points. First and first, cost efficiency ; if we are able to change over computing machines into physicians someday imagine the reduced cost of medical advice. There would be an obvious demand for these devices and therefore driving down the monetary values for medical attending. Peoples from all fiscal backgrounds would eventually be able to afford some kind of medical advice since surgery and advice presents have become extortionate in their costs. Second, this new signifier of medical specialty is clip efficient every bit good. Alternatively of leaping from physician to sophisticate for secondary sentiment, one computing machine will bring forth the same consequence as the other devices. Third, the computing machine may be able to give a more accurate diagnosing a individual physician today without the 2nd sentiments. However, there are many ethical issues that are involved in this state of affairs. Computers will n on be able to observe any new signifiers of diseases or rare conditions therefore giving many lives. My attack to this quandary from the article in the New Yorker is straightforward. I would take into consideration what the physician informs me of and besides the statistical informations compiled by the computing machine. However, I would non trust entirely on the computing machine but besides 2nd sentiments from other heart specialists besides the primary 1. Statistically wise, if I sought out three physicians and all three said I was all right and healthy. I would take their word for it and overruling the consequence generated by the computing machine. However, if the other two physicians agreed with the computing machine my obvious pick would be to understand that a bosom onslaught might happen. The most critical component I believe in this quandary is non to trust on engineering itself. The head is far more complex than computing machine french friess that were made by worlds. If the gift of our head were compromised, so they would be apparently no demand for them. Where there is the necessary proficient accomplishment to travel mountains, there is no demand for the religion that moves mountains. Eric Hoffer Man must understand its function with engineering before any continual patterned advance or else the sci-fi books we read may someday go a world.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgeralds greatest novel- a book that offers damning and insightful views of the American nouveau riche in the 1920s. The Great Gatsby is an American classic and a wonderfully evocative work. Like much of Fitzgeralds prose, it is neat and well-crafted. Fitzgerald has a brilliant understanding of lives that are corrupted by greed and turn out incredibly sad and unfulfilled. He was able to translate this understanding into one of the finest pieces of literature of the 1920s. The novel is a product of its generation- with one of American literatures most powerful characters in the figure of Jay Gatsby, who is urbane and world-weary. Gatsby is really nothing more than a man desperate for love. The Great Gatsby Overview The novels events are filtered through the consciousness of its narrator, Nick Carraway, a young Yale graduate, who is both a part of and separate from the world he describes. Upon moving to New York, he rents a house next door to the mansion of an eccentric millionaire (Jay Gatsby). Every Saturday, Gatsby throws a party at his mansion and all the great and the good of the young fashionable world come to marvel at his extravagance (as well as swap gossipy stories about their host who- it is suggested- has a murky past). Despite his high-living, Gatsby is dissatisfied and Nick finds out why. Long ago, Gatsby fell in love with a young girl, Daisy. Although she has always loved Gatsby, she is currently married to Tom Buchanan. Gatsby asks Nick to help him meet Daisy once more, and Nick finally agrees- arranging tea for Daisy at his house. The two ex-lovers meet and soon rekindle their affair. Soon, Tom begins to suspect and challenges the two of them- also revealing something that the reader had already begun to suspect: that Gatsbys fortune was made through illegal gambling and bootlegging. Gatsby and Daisy drive back to New York. In the wake of the emotional confrontation, Daisy hits and kills a woman. Gatsby feels that his life would be nothing without Daisy, so he takes the blame. George Wilson- who discovers that the car that killed his wife belongs to Gatsby- comes to Gatsbys house and shoots him. Nick arranges a funeral for his friend and then decides to leave New York- saddened by the fatal events and disgusted by the way lived their lives. Gatsbys Character and Societal Values The power of Gatsby as a character is inextricably linked to his wealth. From the very beginning of The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald sets up his eponymous hero as an enigma: the playboy millionaire with the shady past who can enjoy the frivolity and ephemera that he creates around him. However, the reality of the situation is that Gatsby is a man in love. Nothing more. He concentrated all of his life on winning Daisy back. It is the way that he attempts to do this, however, that is central to Fitzgeralds world-view. Gatsby creates himself- both his mystique and his personality- around rotten values. They are the values of the American dream- that money, wealth, and popularity are all there is to achieve in this world. He gives everything he has- emotionally and physically- to win, and it is this unrestrained desire that contributes to his eventual downfall. Social Commentary About Decadence In the closing pages of The Great Gatsby, Nick considers Gatsby in a wider context. Nick links Gatsby with the class of people with whom he has become so inextricably associated. They are the society persons so prominent during the 1920s and 1930s. Like his novel The Beautiful and the Damned, Fitzgerald attacks the shallow social climbing and emotional manipulation- which only causes pain. With a decadent cynicism, the party-goers in The Great Gatsby cannot see anything beyond their own enjoyment. Gatsbys love is frustrated by the social situation and his death symbolizes the dangers of his chosen path. F. Scott Fitzgerald paints a picture of a lifestyle and a decade that is both fascinating and horrific. In so doing, he captures a society and a set of young people; and he writes them into legend. Fitzgerald was a part of that high-living lifestyle, but he was also a victim of it. He was one of the beautiful but he was also forever damned. In all its excitement- pulsating with life and tragedy- The Great Gatsby brilliantly captures the American dream in a time when it had descended into decadence.

Capital Aasset Pricing Model and Techniques

Before understanding the relationship of sensitivity analysis to capital budgeting it is very important to understand the concept of capital budgeting and sensitivity analysis. Capital budgeting is a procedure which helps the businesses to take decisions with regards investing into a project or not. Basically it helps to determine the investment that an entity has to make in a particular project and the expected revenue and income that the project will generate in future for the entity. Sensitivity analysis is nothing but a method which helps to analyse the same in detail so that a more sound decision can be taken with regards the same. Sensitivity analysis helps the organization to gauge into various scenarios and circumstances with regards the project in case the estimates and circumstances do not fall into place and become undependable. It is basically changing the assumptions and applying a hit and trial method to the calculations basis the changed assumptions so as to find out the expected result out of such a change. Thus in this manner the decision makers can give a second thought before investing in their money (Koening, 2015). They can come to know what losses they may have to suffer by investing in any project basis this assumptions and estimate. The said analysis highlights upon the modification in the input that would affect the net result from any project. Change is constant and hence variations will happen to the base suppositions and it is this alteration which the sensitivity analysis details about. It helps to find out the most favourable levels of inputs in a project. Therefore this is a statistical analysis of the data basis changes in the numbers such as quantity and prices. Thus sensitivity analysis details about finding the extent to which changes can be made to the input factors so that the ultimate result remains unchanged. Thus sensitivity analysis helps in capital budgeting because of the following reasons: Helps in taking a more sound decision and thus testing the results in a more detailed manner. Helps to detect errors and thus try to mitigate the same Helps to develop the model more accurately by detecting errors and trying to find solution to mitigate those errors. Develop a will knitted linkage between the input and the output variables. Therefore it is understood that the main purpose of this analysis is not assess risk but to make certain the receptiveness of the NPVs to the various variables which help to calculate it. The same is because NPV is calculated basis assumptions which is why the scenario in which capital budgeting decisions are taken is uncertain (Zhamoida, & Matsiuk, 2011). It is the most acceptable method of analysis of various changes one by one in the variables and the assumptions being made which would in turn have a bearing on the cash flow and the return from a project. As the name suggest, scenario analysis helps in taking capital budgeting decisions and techniques by taking into account unconventional possible results. The analysis is conducted in a fashion which would help to find out the net result due to an action or activity under various other set of factors such as how an NPV of a project would differ if the inflation shoots up or down. However it is equally important to know that scenario should be such which can exist in actual sense and not fictional in nature. Generally three kinds of scenarios are considered good, base and worst for computing the NPVs of a project (Boundless.com., 2012). It is an analytical tool unlike the sensitivity analysis which uses statistical tool. After the NPVs are computed then a probability of occurrence of such a scenario is allotted to ease situation and then the expected NPV and standard deviation of the NPV is calculated. This is known as coefficient variation and a CV of 1 is considered to be ideal. However on comparing the two CV basis the scenario then the one with a lower CV is considered to be more preferable than the one with a higher CV. Thus it can be said that scenario analysis although is also a behavioural approach similar to sensitivity analysis yet the former defines the capital budgeting techniques more broadly. It takes into consideration various variables together such as cash inflows, outflows and cost associated with capital invested. For example an entity should take into consideration both high and low inflationary factors and compute the implication of the same on the project’s Net present value. Each situation will affect all the above mentioned variables at the same time thus resulting into differing levels of NPV. Thus giving the decision makers a more detailed method of analysing the capital budgeting techniques used by organizations before investing into a project. Furthermore scenario analysis used in various capital budgeting techniques helps to give a summary about the risk associated with the various assets wherein the assets with higher risk will have more volatile values and vice versa. Scenario analysis entails how much economic sense does it make in investing into any project for an organization. Further by doing the analysis taking into consideration the worst scenario as well, one can take proactive measures to try to reduce the risks associated with the worst scenario   (Kengatharan, 2016). Thus on a summarizing note one can say that scenario analysis helps in detailing investments during situations which are even unfavourable in nature. It helps to find solutions during worst cases also thus trying to consider investment in various projects minutely. Definition of the Capital Asset Pricing Model: The said model is built on the Markowitz’s mean-variance-efficiency model where the patrons who are reluctant towards taking risk on investments are concerned only about the returns and the profits they expect from their investment and the difference of returns and risk. Thus the said model defines the linkage between the return and risk associated with an asset. It enables determination of the appropriate required rate of return of an asset but only in theory. It helps to take calls about addition of assets or more investment securities to an already diversified portfolio (Fama & French, 2004). The graphical representation of the formulae of CAPM is known as the security market line. Definition of Capital Market line: The Capital Market Line is plotted on the capital asset pricing model which helps to illustrate the rate of return that could be expected to receive from a well built portfolio but depending upon the level of risk associated with the portfolio of the entire market and the risk free rate of return. It is a digression from the point of interception found on the efficient frontier stretched towards the return expected from an investment which is equivalent to the risk free rate of return. There lie a number of differences between the two mentioned terms. Similarities also exist but the same is very few in comparison to the differences. The similarities between a CAPM and CML would be discussed in the form of a relationship that exists between the Capital market line and the Security market line which is a graphical representation of the CAPM. The SML is considered to be an integral part of the CML in a Capital Asset Pricing Model specifically when the risk attached to a security or an investment is computed. Their relationship depicts the similarity as one shows the risk associated with individual securities whereas the other considers these individual securities and forms the entire portfolio.   Thus performance of a single security will impact the performance of the portfolio as well. Therefore we can say that both these help to depict the association of risk with various investment securities as well as portfolio as a whole. Thus the similarity is such that both the CML and SML hypothesize a straight line association between risk and return. The CML and SML also talks about systematic risks and portfolios whic h are risk free although the SML also includes the inefficient portfolios as well. Just as their exists a relationship between CAPM and CML due to similarities between the two, similarly the two concepts differ amongst each other for various reasons illustrated below. The CML is a line that depicts the rate of return which is dependent upon the rate of return which is free from adequate risk and the level of risk for various investment groups. However CAPM or the SML line used to represent the CAPM formulae is a graphical presentation of the risk and return in a market at a particular point of time. The measurement of risk factors is another difference between the two concepts. The CML uses standard deviation to gauge risk whereas for CAPM the risk factors are firmed via the beta coefficients. Therefore the former is a measurement basis which risk is calculated in totality whereas the later tells about the contribution of the security or the investment towards the risk on the entire portfolio. CML portrays only portfolios which are competent and proficient whereas the Security Market Line used to depict the CAPM, portrays both competent and non-competent portfolios. While calculating the return, the Y Axis depicts the return anticipated from a portfolio in case of a CML and the return that the individual investments gives are shown by the Y axis in case of the SML. The X axis of CML depicts the standard deviation whereas the X axis of the SML depicts the Beta of the shares and individual investments. The two axis is well depicted in the graphs below of both CML and SML wherein the horizontal axis of the SML depicts the methodical risk and that of CML is overall risk. The CML establishes the portfolio of the entire market and such assets which are free from any risks, SML establishes all the factors associated with investments made (Campbell, 2013). Boundless.com., (2012), Scenario Analysis, Available at https://www.boundless.com/finance/textbooks/boundless-finance-textbook/the-role-of-risk-in-capital-budgeting-12/scenario-and-simulation-assessments-99/scenario-analysis-427-7232/ (Accessed 19 th January 2017) Campbell, B., (2013), CAL vs. CML vs. SML., Available at https://luckyhy.weebly.com/uploads/3/9/3/2/39328787/cal_vs._cml_vs.pdf (Accessed 19th January 2017) Fama, E.F., & French, K.R., (2004), The Capital Asset Pricing Model: Theory and Evidence, Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol.18, no. 3, pp. 49-51 Kengatharan, L., (2016), Capital Budgeting Theory and Practice: A Review and Agenda for Future Research, Applied Economics and Finance, Vol. 3, no.2, pp.15-38 Koening, E., (2015), Sensitivity Analysis for Capital Budgeting, Available at https://smallbusiness.chron.com/sensitivity-analysis-capital-budgeting-10153.html (Accessed 19th January 2017) Zhamoida, O.A., & Matsiuk, M.S., (2011), Sensitivity Analysis in Capital Budgeting, Economic Herald of the Donbas, vol.4, no.26, pp.132-136

Comparative Design Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Comparative Design - Essay Example enefits spread over three categories affecting customers’ services and users, the service design program, as well as the entire institution involved in the design project. A product of 1946, the classic and styling oven has cooking efficiency. A classic cooker limited secures ovens from Rayburn in the UK. The cookers are reliable with new options still applicable to date. Currently, the supplier undertakes reconditioning duties and installs new parts fully. In a style that Mark Newson adopted, Rayburn ovens of 1946 have attractive colours running on smooth lines. The design developed a classic design blending precisely with various styles those chores in the kitchen demand. It cuts across from traditional through to modern aspects. The oven comes out in various designs and sizes that clients can choose from guided by their needs. Surprisingly, a Rayburn oven carries more responsibilities besides being a cooker. The oven is extremely resourceful. The Rayburn oven developed in 1946 is sustainable as well as self-sufficient. Mark Newson introduced extraordinary creativity constituting one of the most exciting designs in the world. He applied the creativity in developing domestic appliances such as ovens. Mark Newson is the established designer at Smeg products whose work is comparable to dynamic artworks. He represents the essence of the philosophy at Smeg. At Smeg, employees believe in technology with style. The style applied by Newson in designing his ovens comes through the soft lines applicable in environmental friendly manner. Differentiated use of colour and energetic application characterises ovens designed by Mark Newson. Surfaces are stainless steel products or have glassy features. Ovens are available in prolific FP610.The ovens come in a spectacular ray of colours. The colours range from white and black finishes, stainless steel through to bright shades of yellow, blue, as well as green. Mark Newson, the designer, o ften has a special way of having

Daycare Center Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Daycare Center - Case Study Example This high expense of a daycare is difficult for a parent to handle. A program called Children's Bureau also known as CCDF, is a form of relief for parents who for whom the cost of the daycare is a worry. However, the waiting list for CCDF is very long. When parents go out to look for a daycare, it becomes one of the most difficult tasks they have ever come across, as their child's security, safety, and management are of prime concern to them. Finding a daycare is stressful and tiresome as it is important to search for the best and the most qualified daycare facility available. Generally, the atmosphere at a daycare is cheerful and full of life. Apart from the general atmosphere of a daycare, it is necessary for parent to look into many more criteria. Some of the criteria that the parents should look into other than the cost are how well maintained the daycare is, it is important for the daycare to be clean and neat as the hygiene would affect the health of your child. Another criterion to look into is whether the staff is well trained or not. A well trained staff is required as it helps in the development of your child's learning ability. Another focus area is to check whether the staff and the daycare center focuses on learning s kills for your child and not just make your child play around. These are few things a parent should focus on when trying to decide on which is the best daycare center for their child. Looking for a daycare and then deciding on which is the best fit for your child can get frustrating as there is a huge variety of daycare centers available for you to choose from. As frustrating as it is, being patient while researching and deciding on the best daycare for your child is very important. This is primarily because the daycare lays the foundations for your child further education and behavior. It is also important to look for a daycare that fits your needs, not only with the atmosphere and above mentioned criteria but also with the time and the additional facilities provided. ABC Corner Day care is one of the latest day care centers established in 2006, and also offers Nursery. The day care is situated in Hermitage. ABC Corner is quite cost effective and offers excellent services, like Kindergarten, preschool, school age education, and the like. It offers a safe, home like environment and a friendly staff which makes the children feel very comfortable. The good quality of infrastructure is quite impressive; however the class rooms need to be improved. The friendly and safe environment allows the children to play, discover and explore at ABC Corner. It is an average day care and the parents can trust the well trained staff at this daycare. ABC Corner is one of the most trusted daycares in Hermitage. The security system is excellent and no unauthorized persons are allowed in the premises. ABC Corner focuses on giving quality services and in overall development of a child. One of the major concerns of ABC Corner childcare is the overall development of a child. The management believes that a child's urge to learn and explore should not be suppressed and they allow the children to take their own time in exploring, emoting and learning in their trusted environment. The children are not pressurized to select a subject which is not of their interest but the patient staff lets them understand the subjects and help them choose. "Adult caregivers have many roles as

Fuzzy Systems and Machine Intelligence Essay -- Artificial Intelligenc

Fuzzy Systems and Machine Intelligence Abstract: Our natural language is perhaps the most powerful form of communicating information for any given problem or situation. Combining natural language and numerical information into fuzzy systems provides the framework to represent knowledge, constraints and inference procedures. Fuzzy systems provide advantages in the development of systems solutions that perform tasks such as automatic modeling, prediction, pattern recognition, and optimal decision making, control and planning. With this, fuzzy systems are an essential tool for industrial and manufacturing systems engineering. Fuzzy logic is a different approach to representing uncertainty - it emphasizes the double meanings of words in describing events - rather than the uncertainty about whether an event will occur, and allows decision-making under that uncertainty. Fuzzy logic attempts to capture the imperfect way we describe concepts, and works with them to form conclusions. The wonderful thing about fuzzy logic is how you can apply everyday language to a problem. A descriptive sentence such as: "a little noisy, a lot of dirt, and deep carpet", can be decoded by a fuzzy logic system to perform various tasks based on the knowledge derived from the terms. An interesting thing about fuzzy logic is that it is always trying to work, and by tweaking the system, the programmer is simply "showing" the system how to do a better job. The operator is still in control, but the fuzzy logic is mimicking how an operator would react given the same situation. Introduction to the topic: Fuzzy logic is a system analysis and modeling approach that allows an easier transition between complex human thought processes and the ... ...sed to answer specific questions and provide definitions and examples of applications. Addresses are provided to those locations. The Fuzzy Logic Frequently Asked Questions Archive: ht tp://www.uni-passau.de/archive/faq/comp.answers/fuzzy-logic/ Brubaker, David I. "Fuzzy Rules and Membership Functions from Data," Huntington Technical Brief, July 1993, No. 40. Cox, Earl. The Fuzzy Systems Handbook: A Practitioner's Guide to Building, Using, and Maintaining Fuzzy Systems. Academic Press, New York, 1994. Kosko, Bart. Neural Networks and Fuzzy Systems. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, 1992. Mcneill, Daniel, and Freiberger, Paul, Fuzzy Logic, Simon and Schuster, 1992. Zadeh, Lotfi A. "Fuzzy Sets." Information & Control, Vol. 8, 1965, pp338-353. Zurada, Jacek M. Artificial Neural Systems. West Publishing Co., New York, 1992.

Race Is Real Essay

In society, people socially construct institution based on sensory perception. Race is in fact a social construct made from systems of constitutive rules. It is used to generalize people into specific groups characterized by supposedly distinctive and universal physical characteristics. Although humans have created this entity, there are many sources that provide proof that race is impossible to define biologically. Since colonization began, humans have been given racial identities which continue to cause uproar in nations and states. People simply assuming the existence of race makes it real. Despite this, the assumption of the existence of race does not make it valid. Race cannot be objectively specified, and it should be seen as a whole. There is only one human race. D’Andrade classifies a constitutive rule as â€Å"an entity created by the social agreement that something counts as that entity† (91). A simple understanding of a constitutive rule is a rule that exists only because society believes in it, and adheres to it. Marriage is a clear example of how constitutive rules create a social entity; it exists solely on the fact that a culture agrees that it exists, and agrees on the general guidelines in which it exists. Generally speaking, constitutive rules rely on people’s adherence and shared thoughts to exist. D’Andrade explains the differences between constitutive and regulative rules. Regulative rules are those which provide guidelines and restrictions for existing forms of behavior. A regulative rule is not involved with the creation or elimination of an entity, whereas a constitutive rule does exactly that through social agreement. D’Andrade said that â€Å"Institutions are systems of constitutive rules. Every institutional fact is underlain by a system of rules of the form ? X counts as Y in context C'† (91). In this formula, X is the ideas that a culture believes in, Y represents the institutions and rules that those ideas count as, and C is the specific situation or culture. Constitutive rules define situations and/or subjects that have an effect on the reactions which come from the situation itself. The entity of family is an example of this. The systems of ideas that make up what we consider family are constitutive rules. Families can be classified into different categories including immediate and biological families, teams/teammates, religious groups, organizations and/or clubs. In this example, C is considered the American culture and the different ideas of what makes up a family is X. Although many believe family to be biological, even the boundaries of that can be argued. The considerations of family types are indistinguishable throughout the world. Those involved within families, especially close immediate families tend to pursue and enjoy a contented lifestyle. Many families strive to be involved with those within the family and help out one another. This positive involvement can also be seen within a team or organization of some sort that may grow to call themselves a family. Since it is socially constructed, the exact definition of family is hard to create and so all these groups may be considered family. Although a family is usually viewed as a positive aspect in one’s life, just like other constitutive rules, they are overlooked because they are too involved within the cultural aspect. After extensive research, it has been proven that race cannot be biologically defined. In general, people categorize people within a certain race depending mainly on their skin color, the construction of their eyes and even the color of one’s hair. These characteristics are arbitrary. In attempts to prove this, Jared Diamond wrote the article â€Å"Race without Color. † He arbitrarily chooses the gene that causes sickle-cell anemia. By using this way to classify people, Greeks, Thai and New Guineans would be put together as once race, and some Africans and Norwegians in another racial group (84). Classifying people into certain races is not biologically acceptable or possible to do objectively. It only creates views about others through our own eye, and leads to subconscious differentiation and discrimination. However, it is common today for people to use race as a simple way to categorize people. Considering all of the different classifications, Diamond, along with many anthropologists suggests, â€Å"one cannot recognize any human races at all. † It is given through anthropologists’ studies that rules that separate races from one another are constitutive rules. A socially constructed institution is only possible through the thoughts and ideas of those within a society. Race continues to be one of these examples, although it is known through facts and research that race is not properly appraised. In American culture every one has been subjected to the question of their race at one point or another. While taking exams or signing up for SATs here in America, people are questioned about their racial back rounds. This shows that race is real. Another example is seen in â€Å"Hotel Rwanda. † In the film, although the Hutus and Tutsis are from the same nation and seem physically identical to one another, there was bloodshed amongst these two races because of socially constructed identities. Race has evolved as a worldview and system of perspective. Race creates a body of prejudgments that distorts our ideas about differences between humans. The simple existence of two races in Rwanda made it so that the groups of people perceived differences and problems between them. Regardless of ideas and falsely created identities, race is real and should be viewed as a whole. A great example of the reality and issues of race within our society date back to the Rodney Glen King incident which took place in Los Angeles in 1991. During the month of March, Rodney King led police on a high speed pursuit though red lights and stop signs. After eventually stopping, police proceeded towards the car and threw King to the ground. The police officers claim he resisted arrest and was continuously stuck with batons, tackled and even tasered. George Holiday, a private citizen video taped this incident from his apartment, creating an international media sensation. In 1992, the officers were acquitted by a jury. The acquittal was based in part on a 13-second segment of the video tape. The jury verdict created massive rioting in LA for four days. By the time order was able to be restored, an estimated $1 billion in damage, with â€Å"55 deaths; 2,383 injuries; more than 7000 fire responses; 3,100 businesses damaged† (Smith, Anna Deavere). Smaller riots ensued in other U. S. cities. After the riots occurred, federal charges of civil rights violations were brought up against the officers. Two of the officers were found guilty and sentenced to 30 months in prison, while the other two were acquitted. During the acts of violence and riots, King had appeared in public in front of news cameras stating, â€Å"People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? † (Keyes. 1992) Although these acts of racial incidents occurred, in the midst of it, the one who was beaten stepped out and asked for peace and camaraderie amongst all. As described earlier, there was uproar across the country as people believed that the police involved in the attacks were initially not persecuted because racial factors. As seen in King’s quote, it is evident that he spoke in respect to racial neutrality while asking if everyone can get along. He was able to show that race is real in that simple quote. He referred to â€Å"we† as people living within this world, making them seem as a whole, as one race. As observed through this case and many others, including the most recent Jena 6 trial, race is still a factor for individuals and groups. Yet race still remains impossible to define and use. Race fits the anthropological formula for constitutive rules, â€Å"X counts as Y in context C. † Race, seen as a biological entity, is in fact a social construct made from systems of constitutive rules and is used to generalize people into certain groups. Although society views race as separate divisions among people, through scientific knowledge it is clear that human populations are not categorical, biologically distinct groups.