Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812

Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812 The Battle of New Orleans was fought December 23, 1814-January 8, 1815, during the War of 1812 (1812-1815). Armies Commanders Americans Major General Andrew JacksonCommodore Daniel Pattersonapprox. 4,700-4,800 men British Major General Edward PakenhamVice Admiral Sir Alexander CochraneMajor General John Lambertapprox. 8,000-9,000 men Battle of New Orleans - Background In 1814, with the Napoleonic Wars concluding in Europe, Britain was free to focus its attention on fighting the Americans in North America. The British plan for the year called for three major offensives with one coming from Canada, another striking at Washington, and the third hitting New Orleans. While the thrust from Canada was defeated at the Battle of Plattsburgh by Commodore Thomas MacDonough and Brigadier General Alexander Macomb, the offensive in the Chesapeake region saw some success before being halted at Fort McHenry. A veteran of the latter campaign, Vice Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane moved south that fall for the attack on New Orleans. Having embarked 8,000-9,000 men, under the command of Major General Edward Pakenham, a veteran of the Duke of Wellingtons Spanish campaigns, Cochranes fleet of around 60 ships arrived off Lake Borgne on December 12. In New Orleans, the defense of the city was tasked to Major General Andrew Jackson, commanding the Seventh Military District, and Commodore Daniel Patterson who oversaw the US Navys forces in the region. Working frantically, Jackson assembled around 4,700 men which included the 7th US Infantry, 58 US Marines, a variety of militia, Jean Lafittes Baratarian pirates, as well as free black and Native American troops (Map). Battle of New Orleans - Fighting on Lake Borgne Desiring to approach New Orleans through Lake Borgne and the adjacent bayous, Cochrane directed Commander  Nicholas Lockyer to assemble a force of 42 armed longboats to sweep American gunboats from the lake.   Commanded by Lieutenant Thomas ap Catesby Jones, American forces on Lake Borgne numbered five gunboats and two small sloops of war.   Departing on December 12, Lockyers 1,200-man force located Jones squadron 36 hours later.   Closing with the enemy, his men were able to board the American vessels and overwhelm their crews.   Though a victory for British, the engagement delayed their advance and gave Jackson additional time to prepare his defenses.   Battle of New Orleans - The British Approach With the lake open, Major General John Keane landed on Pea Island and established a British garrison. Pushing forward, Keane and 1,800 men reached the east bank of the Mississippi River approximately nine miles south of the city on December 23 and encamped on the Lacoste Plantation. Had Keane continued his advance up the river, he would have found the road to New Orleans undefended.   Alerted to the British presence by  Colonel Thomas Hinds dragoons, Jackson reportedly proclaimed  By the Eternal, they shall not sleep on our soil and commenced preparations for an immediate strike against the enemy camp. Early that evening, Jackson arrived north of Keanes position with 2,131men.   Launching a three-pronged attack on the camp, a sharp fight ensued that saw American forces inflict 277 (46 killed) casualties while sustaining 213 (24 killed). Falling back after the battle, Jackson established a line along the Rodriguez Canal four miles south of the city at Chalmette. Though a tactical victory for Keane, the American attack put the British commander off balance, causing him to delay any advance on the city. Using this time, Jacksons men began fortifying the canal, dubbing it Line Jackson. Two days later, Pakenham arrived on the scene and was angered by the armys position opposite an increasingly strong fortification. Though Pakenham initially wished to move the army through the Chef Menteur Pass to Lake Pontchartrain, he was convinced by his staff to move against Line Jackson as they believed the small American force could be easily defeated. Repelling British probing attacks on December 28, Jacksons men began eight constructing batteries along the line and on the west bank of the Mississippi. These were supported by the sloop of war USS Louisiana (16 guns) in the river.   As Pakenhams main force arrived on January 1, an artillery duel began between the opposing forces. Though several American guns were disabled, Pakenham elected to delay his main attack. Battle of New Orleans - Pakenhams Plan For his main assault, Pakenham wished an attack on both sides of the river. A force under Colonel William Thornton was to cross to the west bank, assault the American batteries, and turn their guns on Jacksons line. As this occurred, the main body of the army would attack Line Jackson with Major General Samuel Gibbs advancing on the right, with Keane to his left. A smaller force under Colonel Robert Rennie would move forward along the river. This plan quickly ran into problems as difficulties arose getting the boats to move Thorntons men from Lake Borne to the river. While a canal had been constructed, it began to collapse and the dam intended to divert water into the new channel failed. As a result, the boats had to be dragged through the mud leading to a 12-hour delay. As a result, Thornton was late in crossing on the night of January 7/8 and the current forced him to land further downstream than intended. Despite knowing that Thornton would not be in place to attack in concert with the army, Pakenham elected to move forward. Additional delays soon occurred when Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Mullens 44th Irish Regiment, which was meant to lead Gibbs attack and bridge the canal with ladders and fascines, could not be found in the morning fog. With dawn approaching, Pakenham ordered the attack to begin. While Gibbs and Rennie advanced, Keane was further delayed. Battle of New Orleans - Standing Firm As his men moved onto the Chalmette plain, Pakenham hoped that the dense fog would provide some protection. This was soon dashed as the fog melted away under the morning sun. Seeing the British columns before their line, Jacksons men opened an intense artillery and rifle fire upon the enemy. Along the river, Rennies men succeeded in taking a redoubt in front of the American lines. Storming inside, they were halted by fire from the main line and Rennie was shot dead. On the British right, Gibbs column, under heavy fire, was approaching the ditch in front of the American lines but lacked the fascines to cross (Map). With his command falling apart, Gibbs was soon joined by Pakenham who led the wayward 44th Irish forward. Despite their arrival, the advance remained stalled and Pakenham was soon wounded in the arm. Seeing Gibbs men faltering, Keane foolishly ordered the 93rd Highlanders to angle across the field to their aid. Absorbing fire from the Americans, the Highlanders soon lost their commander, Colonel Robert Dale. With his army collapsing, Pakenham ordered Major General John Lambert to lead the reserves forward. Moving to rally the Highlanders, he was struck in the thigh, and then mortally wounded in the spine. The loss of Pakenham was soon followed by the death of Gibbs and the wounding of Keane. In a matter of minutes, the entirety of British senior command on the field was down. Leaderless, British troops remained on the killing field. Pushing forward with the reserves, Lambert was met by the remnants of the attack columns as they fled towards the rear. Seeing the situation as hopeless, Lambert pulled back. The only success of the day came across the river where Thorntons command overwhelmed the American position. This too was surrendered though after Lambert learned that it would take 2,000 men to hold the west bank. Battle of New Orleans - Aftermath The victory at New Orleans on January 8 cost Jackson around 13 killed, 58 wounded, and 30 captured for a total of 101. The British reported their losses as 291 killed, 1,262 wounded, and 484 captured/missing for a total of 2,037. A stunningly one-sided victory, the Battle of New Orleans was the signature American land victory of the war. In the wake of the defeat, Lambert and Cochrane withdrew after bombarding Fort St. Philip. Sailing to Mobile Bay, they captured Fort Bowyer in February and made preparations for attacking Mobile. Before the attack could go forward, the British commanders learned that a peace treaty had been signed at Ghent, Belgium. In fact, the treaty had been signed on December 24, 1814, prior to the majority of the fighting in New Orleans. Though the United States Senate had yet to ratify the treaty, its terms stipulated that fighting should cease. While the victory at New Orleans did not influence the content of the treaty, it did aid in forcing the British to abide by its terms. In addition, the battle made Jackson a national hero and aided in propelling him to the presidency. Selected Sources US Army Center for Military History: Battle of New OrleansAndrew Jackson: Leading the Battle of New OrleansJean Lafitte National Historical Park

The Bible and Archaeology

The Bible and Archaeology An important step forward in scientific archaeological research, and a 19th-century outgrowth of the previous centurys Enlightenment  was the search for the truth of the events written about in the ancient historical accounts of the past. The main truth of the Bible, Torah, Koran, and the Buddhist sacred texts among many others is (of course) not a scientific one but a truth of faith and religion. The roots of the scientific study of archaeology are deeply planted in the establishment of the boundaries of that truth. Is the Bible Fact or Fiction? This is one of the most common questions I get asked as an archaeologist and it is one for which I have yet to find a good answer. And yet the question is at the absolute heart of archaeology, central to the growth and development of archaeology, and it is the one that gets more archaeologists into trouble than any other. And, more to the point, it brings us back to the history of archaeology. Many if not most citizens of the world are naturally curious about ancient texts. After all, they form the basis of all human culture, philosophy, and religion. As discussed in the earlier parts of this series, at the end of the Enlightenment, many archaeologists began actively searching for the cities and cultures described in the available ancient texts and histories, such as Homer and the Bible, Gilgamesh, Confucian texts, and the Vedic manuscripts. Schliemann sought Homers Troy, Botta sought Nineveh, Kathleen Kenyon sought Jericho, Li Chi sought An-Yang, Arthur Evans at Mycenae, Koldewey at Babylon, and Woolley at Ur of the Chaldees. All of these scholars and more sought archaeological events in the ancient texts. Ancient Texts and Archaeological Studies But using ancient texts as the basis for historical investigation was- and still is- fraught with peril in any culture: and not just because the truth is hard to parse out. Governments and religious leaders have vested interests in seeing that religious texts and nationalistic myths remain unchanged and unchallenged- other parties might learn to see the ancient ruins as blasphemous. Nationalistic mythologies demand that there is a special state of grace for a particular culture, that the ancient texts are received wisdom, that their specific country and people are the center of the creative world. No Planet-Wide Floods When early geological investigations proved without a doubt that there was no planet-wide flood as described in the Old Testament of the Bible, there was a great cry of outrage. Early archaeologists fought against and lost battles of this sort time and again. The results of David Randal-McIvers excavations at Great Zimbabwe, an important trading site in southeastern Africa, were suppressed by the local colonial governments who wanted to believe that the site was Phoenician in derivation and not African. The beautiful effigy mounds found throughout North America by Euroamerican settlers were wrongly attributed to either the mound builders or a lost tribe of Israel. The fact of the matter is that ancient texts are renditions of ancient culture which may be partly reflected in the archaeological record and partly will not be- not fiction nor fact, but culture. Better Questions So, lets not ask if the Bible is true or false. Instead, lets ask a series of different questions: Did the places and cultures that are mentioned in the Bible and the other ancient texts exist? Yes, in many cases, they did. Archaeologists have found evidence for many of the locations and cultures mentioned in the ancient texts.Did the events that are described in these texts happen? Some of them did; archaeological evidence in the form of physical evidence or supporting documents from other sources can be found for some of the battles, the political struggles, and the building and collapse of cities.Did the mystical things that are described in the texts occur? Its not my area of expertise, but if I were to hazard a guess, if there were miracles that occurred, they wouldnt leave archaeological evidence.Since the places and the cultures and some of the events that are described in these texts happened, shouldnt we just assume that the mysterious parts also happened? No. Not any more than since Atlanta burned, Scarlett OHara really was dumped by Rhett Butler. There are so many ancient texts and stories about how the world began and many are at variance with one another. From a global human standpoint, why should one ancient text be more accepted than any other? The mysteries of the Bible and other ancient texts are just that: mysteries. It is not, and never has been, within the archaeological purview to prove or disprove their reality. That is a question of faith, not science.

Interviewing a relative or friend about managerial accounting Essay - 1

Interviewing a relative or friend about managerial accounting techniques used in their work and writing a summary of the interview - Essay Example I took the opportunity to go to Kim’s company since I did not want to interview him at home. I met his secretary who allowed me to go and see him. I wanted our conversation to be as formal as possible since I had interacted with him on other platforms. After some orientation on the operations of the company, I engaged Kim with questions. Firstly, I focused on understanding the costing systems in the company. Kim was aware that there was a cost accounting system that the company used though he did not know precisely what is was called. However, he was quite clear that the overall cost of production required to be considered in the resource management. Since the company does not have many operations, Kim said that they have simplified financial control system to ensure that operations are run efficiently. At Km’s company, the review of the costing systems is usually done after every one year citing issues of inflation and changing economic patterns. Being a senior manager, Kim has a role in financial decision making in the organization. The senior management usually meets weekly to deliberate on the company operations, trends, acquisitions among other issues. The company uses the break-even analysis in making its financial decisions. This ensures that the company is capable of getting to know its position relative to its profitability. Kim plays a major role in decision-making. As a senior manager, he has a vote in facilitating a consensus on the way the resources in the company are to be spent. In addition, he has the role of ensuring that his department ‘is allocated the resources that are required. In the management, he has the role to defend his projected expenditures as well as giving financial reports on the operations within the department. Kim tells me that the organization is very keen on its budgets. The budgets are

Theories of Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Theories of Development - Essay Example This theory was developed by Jean Piaget. The developer of this particular theory is a Philosopher who belonged to Switzerland. This theory has provided many central concepts in the field of development psychology. The theory of cognitive development is mainly concerned about the growth of an individual's intelligence levels. "The cognitive theory prides itself on taking into consideration all parts of the mind - thinking, knowing, memorizing, and communicating - and how they work together. In this sense, they see the mind as a computer, hardware and software interacting to form the personality. This perspective also points to general learning and how it is handled, rather than individual experience, as the main factor in shaping the personality. It sees the mind as a set-out frame waiting to be filled, rather than one shaped by experience. It is most like the behavioral view, but has humanized it by including the idea of individual thinking, personal reward, anticipated reinforcemen t, and social relationships (Phillips, 1999)." When the theory of cognitive development is applied to one's individual life, it can be surely said that it has got its own influence. This statement can be justified in the following way. As individuals, we learn many things as we grow up. Our knowledge levels are not the same when compared to our childhood days to our present day life. As we progress in our learning period in schools, colleges and the universities, out knowledge levels definitely improve and the amount of things about which we get aware of increase drastically. Socio-cultural Theory The socio-cultural theory was brought into light by a psychologist named Lev Vegotsky who hailed from the Soviet Union. According to socio-cultural theory, thinking and speaking are two different concepts. Though, according to the socio-cultural theory, thinking and speaking are two separate concepts, both of them are strongly interrelated. According to Vegotsky, individual cognition occurs in a social situation. They cannot be separated which correlates with the integrated nature of holism. The group is therefore vital to the learning process for all initiates who learn higher forms of mental activity via more knowledgeable peers and adults who jointly construct and transfer this activity primarily through language (Jaramillo, 1996). "Constructivism has a spectrum of contributors whose divergent theoretical orientations subsequently provided this theory with a range of teaching styles. Although one end of the spectrum is delineated by Piaget's notion that we learn in various stages of development, rather than in leaps and bounds, Vygotsky's view is a nonlinear learning sequence, which constitutes the other. Vygotsky's version of constructivism, then, is a non-development view of education whereby a child's intellectual personality and socio-moral knowledge is "constructed" by students internalizing concepts through self-discovery (Jaramillo, 1996). In the classroom setting, students learn through interacting with their peers, teacher, manipulative, and their contextual setting (Jaramillo, 1996)." This theory when applied to individual lives is something different from the cognitive theory of development. According to the former, human beings learn in a step-by-step process. They gain knowledge of many things in various stages of their life as part of their study or through the surroundings. But, according to the

Lawn Care Case Essay Example for Free

Lawn Care Case Essay 1) A) Currently Lawn Care focuses on quality and innovation. Their product is said to be the best available with the highest quality grass seed and fertilizer in the world. They are also a very well known company which is another competitive advantage. They specialize in providing the best and quickly delivering the product to the customer demanding the product. B) The company perceives the quality of their products, and their direct delivery to be the order winner for the company. They provide what is expected, in terms of high quality seed and fertilizer, making this also an order qualifier. Another company, such as their competitor may consider the installation they proved to be the order winner, in that it sets them apart from their competition. C) CBP 2) A) Lawn Cares competitor’s current strategic mission is to provide a bundle package. Their competitive advantage is that they also install the product. They save the customer time, and create convenience for the customer because they do not have to find and contact and plan with a third party to have the work done. B) The competitor perceives the need for seed, fertilizer, and sod as the order qualifier, and the installation and additional yard work they provide as the order winner because it sets them apart from their competition, Lawn Care. 3) If Lawn Care were to add the application business to their existing business they would need to secure more employees. They would need employees who have experience in landscaping and are able to do the physical labor. This could take months to find and train the new employees. They would also need to purchase equipment such as lawn mowers, trucks, trailers, etc. to  assist in the application side of the business. This would involve using some of their assets to purchase and later on repair and manage upkeep, but they would achieve a gain in capital equipment assets. Lawn Care would also have to use additional resources to market their new service bundle. The addition of installation would not do the company any good if nobody knew they were now offering the service. It may be beneficial to the company if they contacted previous customers as well to tell them of the changes and see if they need any more work done. Changing advertisements and adding new advertisements and promoti ons would also take months, but would benefit the company in the long run. 4) Lawn Care would have to consider how the community and previous customers would react to the changes and whether they would find the change beneficial and take advantage of the new services offered. Stakeholders would be affected as well with the relocation of assets and the risks being taken by Lawn Care to add such a substantial portion to their business. The changes and how they will effect stock in the company is an important economic sustainability factor for the company to consider. The company was accused of pollution and other damage application mistakes before implementing this new service bundle. The company should consider environmental sustainability and because they would have more control of the application process than they did previously they will need to be more aware of how they are affecting the environment and what they can do to prevent any future claims against them. The company should also determine how they will market the product and how this will affect social sustainability. What can they do to make everyone aware of the products and gain back any customers they lost to their competition before offering the service? Lawn Care needs to consider how sustainable the service will be and make sure that it will be a lasting effort before purchasing the new equipment and implementing new processes.

Dolores Claiborne :: essays research papers

The Eclipse   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On the day of the full eclipse, Dolores Claiborne’s life changes forever. True, it had been changed by events beyond her control long before this fateful day, but she chooses this day to end her husband’s life so she and her family can go on living. Steven King masterfully weaves this tale of love, abuse, and denial in his novel, Dolores Claiborne, which was later turned into a movie directed by Taylor Hackford. Although the movie adaptation of the novel follows the story line very closely, there are a few changes made, such as the role of Dolores’ daughter, Selena, the intended audience to Dolores, and the importance of Salena being raped by her father.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although Salena plays an important role in both the book and the movie, her roles in each are different. In the book, she is dependent on her mother until the point when her father begins to sexually abuse her. She then withdraws from everyone and tries to forget about the fact that it ever happened. In the movie, however, Salena has come back from New York to defend her mother after she has been accused of killing Vera Donovan. She has developed a drug abuse problem, just like her father. Salena is the reason for many of the scenes throughout the movie, as she is remembering them and discussing what really happened with her mother.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In both the novel and the movie, the story of the eclipse and the events leading up to it are told in a flashback. The difference is that in the novel, Dolores is telling her story to the police in the form of a confession. She wants to get it all out of her conscious so that she can be cleared of killing Vera Donovan. In the movie, however, she is talking to Salena, who doesn’t remember all of what happens, or is in denial about most of what happened. Many of the present time scenes in the movie are of Dolores trying to convince Salena that this really did happen.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Yet another important event in both the book and the movie is when Dolores finds out that her husband has been sexually abusing their daughter. It is at this time that she decides to kill him, after some prompting by Vera Donovan. She takes drastic measures in planning her husband’s â€Å"accident.† In the movie, however, the abuse is only acknowledged.

Greek Mythology and Greek Goddess Aphrodite Essay

The Greek Goddess Aphrodite is known as the Goddess of beauty, love, and pleasure. Aphrodite is equivalent to the Roman form Venus. She is a major goddess that was known to be youthful and the most appealing. As the god of love and affection, she has been involved in many affairs which also resulted in many children. The Goddess is believed to have been born from Ourano’s damaged genital thrown into the sea by Kronos after a fight. From the damaged part, she was born and arose with a foam in the sea. According to the Greek poet Homer, she was born from the God Zeus and the Goddess Dione. Because she was beautiful, many Gods wanted her for their wife. All of them argued over her along with Zeus. The arguments over Aphrodite continued; Zeus was rejected by Aphrodite. In punishment for rejection and for the good of ending all arguments, Zeus forced her to marry Hephaestus, an ugly god of blacksmiths. She was not faithful in her relationship with the God of Blacksmiths and had affairs with other gods such as Poseidon, Hermes, Dionysos, Phaethon, and others. her most famous affair was with Ares, the god of war. Hephaestus was suspicious of her and set up a trap to catch her while she was with Ares. He chained them and dragged them to Olympus to show their shame. They did not take it seriously, resulting in the two being freed and Ares paying a fine. Aphrodite had no children with Hephaestus; her children with Poseidon are Rhodos and Herophilos. Harmonia, Deimos, Phobos, The Erotes, and Anteros was with Ares. Hermes’s children are Tyche, Peitho, Eunomia, and Hermaproditos. The Charites and Priapus and children of Dionysos. Children from various others are Beroe, Astynoos, Aeneas, Lyrus, Lyrus, and Meligounis. Aphrodite played a major role in causing the Trojan War. She was involved in a disagreement with Athena and Hera that resulted in the Trojan War. Aphrodite promised the Helen of Troy to Paris while she was already married to King Menelaus of Sparta. Outraged by event and abduction of his wife, the King sent his army to fight in the city of Troy. The Trojan War resulted in the destruction of Troy.

Skepticism †the Foundation of Epistemology

How can we know anything for sure? What’s out there? How can we know that what we   know is â€Å"knowledge† and not just â€Å"belief†? Many mystics and metaphysicians have reported experiencing the world directly – utterly bypassing the senses. But barring such drastic transcendental experiences, the truth of which cannot be objectively ascertained, we are totally bound to experience the world via the medium of our senses and the mind. As a consequence of which, the great epistemological question arises — what is really out there, what is there all around us in reality? Can we know the objective ‘world around us’ at all? The simple definition of the ‘world around us’ is the world that may exist independent of our senses, perception, mind, and our very existence. If human beings did not exist, and no living creatures with sensory perception existed, would the world be still the same? How can we ever know? From whose perspective would we ‘see’ such a world? The ‘world around us’ is an intractably complex concept.   But the approach to it is simple enough. Not to automatically believe whatever we see around is at the heart of the quintessential epistemological enquiry of â€Å"Skepticism.† †Since at least the time of Descartes (First Meditation) in the seventeenth century there has been a philosophical problem about our knowledge of the world around us. Put most simply, the problem is to show how we can have any knowledge of the world at all. The conclusion that we cannot, that no one knows anything about the world around us, is what I call â€Å"scepticism about the external world.† (Stroud 1984 : 1) In a way it was Francis Bacon who started modern philosophical thinking, in a way it was Rene Descartes, and yet in another way it was Immanuel Kant. The three of them marked the beginning of modern skepticism, modern epistemological thinking and modern philosophy as well. Their thought signified a profound break with the dogmatic religious, theological and metaphysical thinking that dominated Western approach to the understanding of the world for numerous dark centuries before them. Truth is not a given thing, which should be accepted on the basis of faith, anymore. It has to be searched. Human enquiry is paramount. Nothing can be taken for granted. Bacon, Descartes, Kant, the three of them were into systematic demolition of traditional beliefs, paving the way to a new kind of thinking that would characterize the modern way of understanding the world. Perhaps Socrates can be regarded as the first skeptical philosopher, since he began from the premise that he knew nothing. Though at one period there was a special school of skeptical philosophers called â€Å"skeptikoi† (among whom Pyrrho of Elis, Arcesilaus, Carneades), skepticism influenced in a pervasive way all Greek and Roman philosophies. With the advent of Christianity however, skepticism and openness of enquiry gave way to fundamentalism and dogmatism (Hooker 1996). But during the ages of Renaissance and Enlightenment (16 – 18 centuries), skepticism was once again in full force. It had to be. Without it, there cannot be any true philosophy or even science, not to mention epistemology. Our beliefs about the external world can possess the certainty of knowledge only when they can be justified by irrefutable evidence. As it is, our knowledge of the external world is purely â€Å"inferential,† derived through our senses and mind. All supposed evidence we have about the external world is provided by our perceptual experience: that is to say, by how things look, sounds, smell, taste and feel to us. Our experiential beliefs, however, can never logically entail anything about the external world, because no intrinsic logical necessity exists for there to be an exact correspondence between our perceptions of the external world and the real world around us. There seems to be no feasible logical inference possible, which can bridge the gap between the world around us and ourselves either. As a result, there is no logical way to justify our core beliefs about the external world. We are not even in a position to assert the existence of an external world, as separate from our own minds. Hence skepticism. The crux of skepticism, which is in fact not just some school of thought but a fundamental reflection about human existence in the universe, is well presented by Descartes in his First Meditation.   Descartes starts with exploring the various grounds of skepticism, in order to arrive at some point of certainty, if possible. Descartes says what if we were all living in a dream? We all must have dreamed dreams that we thought were so absolutely real that not even the faintest suspicion of doubt arose in us as to the reality of our dream experiences until we awoke.   This single argument in itself is enough to cast a heavy shadow of doubt on the reality of our existence. Yet Descartes attacks from various angles the seemingly unshakeable certainty we have in our own existence and the existence of the world around us. Dream, hallucination, illusion, delusion – the very possibility of these things undermines the certainty of our individual existence, and the existence of our world as we perceive it. Descartes goes on even further to refute the certainty of mathematical equations such as two plus two equals four. What if, Descartes asks, the whole world is run by an omnipotent evil Deity who could be having fun deliberately misleading our logic? (Descartes) Thus ultimately even mathematical certainty is ruled out. Dreams are everyday experience to us, as are simple mathematical facts. To Descartes, one could be as illusory, a mere product of mind, as other. Nothing is left. Is there anything at all we can be indubitably certain about? Is any thing that the human mind can know reliable in the ultimate sense of the word? A large part of Kant's work too moves around the question â€Å"What can human mind know?† The answer, according to Kant, is that our knowledge is inherently restricted to mathematics and the science of the natural, empirical world. It is not logically possible to extend the scope of our thinking to comprehend supersensible realm, as it used to be done in speculative metaphysics. There are limits to human knowledge, human perception, and the reach of human mind. Yet it is with this mind we have to unrelentingly seek, to know and comprehend about our world. Kant lived in an age when the scientific spirit of man was freshly abloom. It is impossible to understand modern philosophy without considering the scientific revolution. Kant had to evolve a philosophical framework for newly emerging scientific attitudes. He focused attention on the way scientific theories are shaped by man’s creative investigations into nature. The rational reorientation in Western thinking was introduced by Copernicus (the so-called Copernican revolution), and was developed by Galileo, Bacon, Descartes, Kant, and Hume into a systematic and comprehensive framework to the new, scientific, rational and empirical way of thinking. Though skepticism may be most commonly associated with Cartesian Skepticism, or to the thought of this philosopher or that, just like in the ancient Greece the influence of philosophical and scientific skepticism permeates wide and deep into much of modern thought. The skepticism about the external world is an inevitable consequence of human experience, and perhaps is by its very nature insurmountable. Further, it is not only a question of what is out there – it is also a question of what is in here. We cannot be sure of the outside world, but equally, we cannot be sure of who we are ourselves; the nature of our own existence remains in dark. Rene Descartes asserts â€Å"I think therefore I am,† but on second thoughts he may be only thinking he is. References: Descartes, Rene. Meditations on First Philosophy. Retrieved May 3, 2007 from http://www.classicallibrary.org/descartes/meditations/4.htm Hooker, R. (1996). Skepticism. Retrieved May 3, 2007 Stewart, D. ; Blocker, H. G. (2005). Fundamentals of Philosophy (6th Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall. Stroud, B. (1984). The Significance of Philosophical Scepticism. New York : Oxford Univesity Press ;

Ready Case Business Concept in Apple Inc.

Ready Case Business Concept in Apple Inc. Because the Ready Case is the latest version of iPhone products introduced by Apple Corporation, the main task of the management team is to ensure the implementation of the corresponding techniques, tools, and processes for coordinating the work on a new business idea (Bygrave and Zacharakis 26). Because the technological advances constantly invade the market, the task of the management team is to attract the customers within the shortest period of time. In particular, it is necessary to introduce core business objectives and strategies.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Ready Case Business Concept in Apple Inc. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The management team is composed of three departments – the marketing department, R D department, and Quality Assurance Department. All these divisions should contribute greatly to the development and immediate distribution products (Barringer and Ireland 15). The fi rst step in launching the business concept involves organizing the advertising campaign. The marketing department, therefore, should work in cooperation with the R D department to grasp the entire idea about the Ready Case, including its advantages and disadvantages, as well as define which features are the most attractive ones for the buyers. With regard to the product description, the product will fit in a specific target group who searches for elegance, usability, and functionality. These features should be at the core of the business idea. The main task of R D department is to invest into the research on the mobile devices in related companies to assess the competitiveness of the proposed model and define what features should be presented during the advertising campaign. The second strategy should involve the development of new communication channels with the customers. Apart from creating the Internet posts and blogs, it is also possible to organize specialized crews that wil l work in the largest shops for conducting surveys. In this respect, the task of the marketing department is to develop a questionnaire that will be able to highlight the main customer’s needs and requirements. The questionnaire will specifically relate to the analysis of customer’s tastes and results. In addition, the management team can establish traditional and non-traditional retailing schemes. Finally, Quality Assurance department should take control of the production process to ensure that all the proposed features correspond to the official description. More importantly, the company should also introduce sufficient software for efficient information exchange between the consumers. The analysis of the project objectives should also be carried with regard to the quality standards. The managers of the department should also work on the development of new directions and strategies that will enhance the quality of the production.Advertising Looking for case s tudy on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Organizational Chart The efficiently structured organizational relations stand at the core of successful launching of a business idea into the market. The organizational chart, therefore, provides detailed information on the subordination schemes in a company. It also illustrates how a specific concept will be developed, as well as what responsibilities each department has to reach the objectives. The organizational chart presented below provides a clearer picture of the management team. In particular, the charts demonstrate the implementation of business plan is possible through coordination of three major departments – Marketing, R D, and Quality. As presented in the diagram, the marketing managers should be first to launch a new venture. They report directly to the advertising group and inform them about the main features that should be emphasized. The t ask of advertisers is to develop a creative concept that can be further advanced by the R D department. As soon as the idea is developed, the researchers should start conducting observations and scientific explorations to define what else could be advanced to attract the consumer demands. The data collected by this department is transmitted to the quality assurance specialist to verify the validity of the research. As soon as some pitfalls are detected, the Quality Assurance department provides corrections to the R D department for further analysis of the pitfalls. Finally, once the problems are defined and eliminated, the marketing department should introduce changes to advertising process, as well as distribute information through the established communication channels. Overall, the presented process creates the close cycle that is aimed at improving the business concept and increasing the quality of the product. The organizational chart, therefore, contributes to the expansion of the market segment and identification of potential buyers. Organizational Chart IS and Technology Plan Mission and Vision Statement The main scope of the venture consists in developing a multi-functional model for practical users who prefer using devices with built-in features (Bunton n. p.). The uniqueness of the product lies in a sophisticated synthesis of multiple functions and refined design of the Ready Case.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Ready Case Business Concept in Apple Inc. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Needs Assessment The product is design for people who like travelling and want to take the minimum of items. Therefore, the proposed iPhone case should involve useful components that will allow the customer to get the maximum benefit from its application (Bunton n. p.). Technology Description With regard to the above-established mission and objectives, iPhone involves the following functions: Headphone clip to keep the things tidy. USB drive performs several functions. It can be used for its primary purpose to load information from the laptop and serve as kickstand for the iPhone with an adjustable angle. Quick snap functions can also be adjusted to a variety of lenses. Built-in knife is also a benefit for those who are fond of extreme travelling. The width of the device is only 3 mm. The phone is waterproof and it can be taken with consumers everywhere. IPhone is also very easy to use. Objectives Because the main purpose of a business venture is to attract the customer group that is interested in using multi-functional and reliable products while travelling, the main objectives are the following: Create a product that should be of high quality and at a moderate price; Introduce high level of usability; Combine functionality with refined design; Define a new customer base with specific needs and requirements; Create a technical support team for consumers to be able t o ask questions concerning the usage of the device; Ensure professional training to the employees; Budgeting and Rationale The company should introduce appropriate budgeting to rearrange the production process and train the employees. The marketing and financial departments should be responsible for investing resource in research and development of new models, as well as introducing training programs for the employees. The advertising campaign should also be taken into consideration. Finally, there should also be resources for statistical data analysis, which can be efficiently introduced through high quality. Barringer, Bruce and R. Duane Ireland. Entrepreneurship: Successfully Launching New Ventures. US: Prentice Hall, 2008. Print. Bunton, Cam. â€Å"Ready Case: The Ultimate All-in-one case for the iPhone 5†. Today’s iPhone. 2012. Web. Bygrave, William D. and Andrew Zacharakis. Entrepreneurship. US: John Wiley and Sons, 2010. Print.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More

How Architect Louis Sullivan Influenced American Design

How Architect Louis Sullivan Influenced American Design Louis Henri Sullivan (born  September 3, 1856) is widely considered Americas first truly modern architect. Although born in Boston, Massachusetts, Sullivan is best known as a major player in what is known as the Chicago School and the birth of the modern skyscraper. He was an architect based in Chicago, Illinois, yet what many consider Sullivans most famous building is located in St. Louis, Missouri - the 1891 Wainwright Building, one of Americas most historic high-rise buildings.   Fast Facts: Louis Sullivan Born: September 3, 1856 in Boston, MassachusettsDied: April 14, 1924 in Chicago, IllinoisOccupation: ArchitectKnown for: Wainwright Building, 1891, in St. Louis, MO and his influential 1896 essay The Tall Office Building Artistically Considered. Louis is associated with the Art Nouveau movement and the Chicago School; he partnered with Dankmar Adler to form Adler and Sullivan, and he had a major influence on the career of Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959).Famous Quote: Form follows function.Fun Fact: The tripartite design of skyscrapers is known as Sullivanesque Style Instead of imitating historic styles, Sullivan created original forms and details. The ornamentation he designed for his big, boxy skyscrapers is often associated with the swirling, natural forms of the Art Nouveau movement. Older architectural styles were designed for buildings that were wide, but Sullivan was able to create aesthetic unity in buildings that were tall, concepts articulated in his most famous essay The Tall Office Building Artistically Considered. "Form Follows Function" Louis Sullivan believed that the exterior of a tall office building should reflect its interior functions. Ornamentation, where it was used, must be derived from nature, instead of from the Classical Greek and Roman architectural forms. New architecture demanded new traditions, as he reasoned in his most famous essay: It is the pervading law of all things organic, and inorganic, of all things physical and metaphysical, of all things human and all things super-human, of all true manifestations of the head, of the heart, of the soul, that the life is recognizable in its expression, that form ever follows function. This is the law. - 1896 The meaning of form follows function continues to be discussed and debated even today. Sullivanesque Style has come to be known as the tripartite design for tall buildings - three definitive exterior patterns for the three functions of a multiple-use skyscraper, with offices rising from commercial space and topped with the ventilating functions of attic space. A quick look at any tall building built during this time, from about 1890 to 1930, and youll see Sullivans influence on American architecture. Early Years The son of European immigrants, Sullivan grew up in an eventful time in American history. Although he was a very young child during the American Civil War, Sullivan was an impressionable 15-years-old when the Great Fire of 1871 burned down most of Chicago. At age 16 he began to study architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, near his home in Boston, but before completing his studies, he began his trek westward. He first got a job in 1873 Philadelphia with a decorated Civil War officer, the architect Frank Furness. Shortly thereafter, Sullivan was in Chicago, a draftsman for William Le Baron Jenney (1832-1907), an architect who was devising new ways to construct fire-resistant, tall buildings framed with a new material called steel. Still a teenager when working for Jenney, Louis Sullivan was encouraged to spend a year at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris before beginning to practice architecture. After a year in France, Sullivan returned to Chicago in 1879, still a very young man, and began his long relationship with his future business partner, Dankmar Adler. The firm of Adler and Sullivan is one of the most important partnerships in American architectural history. Adler Sullivan Louis Sullivan partnered with engineer Dankmar Adler (1844-1900) from approximately 1881 until 1895. It is widely believed that Adler oversaw business and construction aspects of each project while Sullivans focus was on architectural design. Along with a young draftsman named Frank Lloyd Wright, the team realized many architecturally significant buildings. The firms first real success was the 1889 Auditorium Building in Chicago, a massive multi-use opera house whose exterior design was influenced by the Romanesque Revival work of architect H. H. Richardson and whose interiors were largely the work of Sullivans young draftsman, Frank Lloyd Wright. Auditorium Building, Chicago, Illinois, 1889. Angelo Hornak/Getty Images (cropped) It was in St. Louis, Missouri, however, where the tall building gained its own exterior design, a style that became known as Sullivanesque. In the 1891 Wainwright Building, one of Americas most historic skyscrapers, Sullivan extended the structural height with exterior visual demarcations using a three-part system of composition - the lower floors devoted to selling merchandise should look different from the offices on the middle floors, and the top attic floors should be set apart by their unique interior functions. This is to say that the form on the outside of a tall building should change as the function of what goes on inside a building changes. Professor Paul E. Sprague calls Sullivan the first architect anywhere to give aesthetic unity to the tall building. Building on the firms successes, the Chicago Stock Exchange building in 1894 and the 1896 Guaranty Building in Buffalo, New York soon followed. After Wright went on his own in 1893 and after Adlers death in 1900, Sullivan was left to his own devices and is well-known today for a series of banks he designed in the midwest - the  1908 National Farmers Bank (Sullivans Arch) in Owatonna, Minnesota; the  1914 Merchants National Bank in Grinnell, Iowa; and the 1918 Peoples Federal Savings Loan in Sidney, Ohio. Residential architecture like the 1910 Bradley House in Wisconsin blurs the design line between Sullivan and his protege Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright and Sullivan Frank Lloyd Wright worked for Adler Sullivan from about 1887 to 1893. After the firms success with the Auditorium building, Wright played a larger role in the smaller, residential business. This is where Wright learned architecture. Adler Sullivan was the firm where the famous Prairie Style house was developed. The best-known mingling of architectural minds can be found in the 1890 Charnley-Norwood House, a vacation cottage in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Built for Sullivans friend, Chicago lumber entrepreneur James Charnley, it was designed by both Sullivan and Wright. With that success, Charnley asked the pair to design his Chicago residence, today known as the Charnley-Persky house. The 1892 James Charnley house in Chicago is a grand extension of what began in Mississippi - grand masonry subtly adorned, unlike the fancy French, Chà ¢teauesque style Biltmore Estate that Gilded Age architect Richard Morris Hunt was building at the time. Sullivan and Wright were inventing a new ty pe of residence, the modern American home. Louis Sullivan gave America the skyscraper as an organic modern work of art, Wright has said. While Americas architects were stumbling at its height, piling one thing on top of another, foolishly denying it, Louis Sullivan seized its height as its characteristic feature and made it sing; a new thing under the sun! Van Allen Building, Designed by Louis H. Sullivan, 1913, Clinton, Iowa. Carol M. Highsmith/Buyenlarge/Getty Images (cropped) Sullivans designs often used masonry walls with terra cotta designs. Intertwining vines and leaves combined with crisp geometric shapes, as displayed in the terra cotta detailing of the Guaranty Building. This Sullivanesque style was imitated by other architects, and Sullivans later work formed the foundation for many of the ideas of his student, Frank Lloyd Wright. Sullivans personal life unraveled as he got older. As Wrights stardom ascended, Sullivans notoriety declined, and he died virtually penniless and alone on April 14, 1924 in Chicago. One of the worlds greatest architects, said Wright, he gave us again the ideal of a great architecture that informed all the great architectures of the world. Sources Frank Lloyd Wright On Architecture: Selected Writings (1894-1940), Frederick Gutheim, ed., Grossets Universal Library, 1941, p. 88Adler and Sullivan by Paul E. Sprague, Master Builders, Diane Maddex, ed., Preservation Press, Wiley, 1985, p. 106Additional Photo Credits: Terra Cotta Detail, Lonely Planet/Getty Images; Guaranty Building, Reading Tom on flickr.com, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0); Biltmore Estate, George Rose/Getty Images (cropped)

U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Essay

U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) - Essay Example For a new employer who currently has no international ventures, and would like to go international, there are several key factors that require their attention. Such factors include the availability of adequate financial resources, human and social capital. In additional, for a new employer to get focused internationally, there is the first need to go through the domestic market entry barriers and gather the opportunities that lead to higher purchasing power of consumers from the developed economies. The employer must also carry out market analysis to ensure that it has fully engaged the domestic market enough before moving to the international market. It goes without saying that one major factor that would push an employer to the international market would be the availability of adequate financial resources. Such resources will be necessary for the creation of new offices in the countries where the business would decide to venture in. There is also this aspect of hiring the human capital that would perform the various duties in the business. The financial resources, apart from aiding in acquiring offices, will also be necessary for setting up the operational structures and activities of the company in the new areas. The company will also have to invest in the social capital to be sure that its investment get enough market in the public sphere through good social relations. In deciding to pursue international business, the main determining factors include economic, environmental, market and competitive factors. The market forces will determine the receptivity of the customers to a global product. When the consumers are more receptive to the product, the business is set to go global. However, if the consumers are less receptive to the product, the business is not yet ready to go global and the best thing to do is to do enough marketing to increase its receptivity. Economic factors

Discuss the evidence for and against schachters theory of emotion Essay

Discuss the evidence for and against schachters theory of emotion - Essay Example Interestingly, and significantly, some theories complement or reinforce each other, while some negate or refute each other. One of the most cited and discussed about theories on emotions is the Two-Factor Theory of Emotions which Stanley Schachter, together with Jerome Singer, proposed in 1962. It posits that emotion has two components or factors, the physiological arousal and cognition. In simpler terms, this means that our environment as well as our thought processes influence the kind of emotions we have in certain situations. What the theory tells us is that our emotional response to any given situation is influenced by an interplay of factors. First, the environment arouses bodily response such as change in heartbeat, sweating, etc., and, sensing these bodily changes, the individual now appraises what emotion he/she is feeling in that particular situation. Appraisal would be based on past experiences of similar events. To further understand the theory, it would be helpful to picture this out: A man is left alone in a big house which is believed to be haunted. He hears some noise upstairs. He suddenly feels his heartbeat quicken, his sweating becomes excessive. Realizing that he is alone in that house which is believed to be haunted, he now concludes it is scary and so he feels scared or frightened. Several experiments and further scrutiny by other scholars and psychologists to prove or refute the theory were conducted. There were some that supported or reinforced his theory, but there were also others that refuted it. Schachter and Singer themselves conducted experiments to prove the validity of their theory. They conducted the â€Å"Suproxin† experiment among 184 male students of a university wherein they grouped the subjects into informed and uninformed groups in two emotional conditions, which were euphoria and anger. The environmental factors introduced were the adrenaline