Psychological Analysis Essay -- essays research papers

Patient Analysis Arleen has been a police officer for ten years. Currently she is on paid medical leave for three months and has three weeks left before she is due back at work. Arleen’s parents have been divorced for sixteen years. She still keeps in touch with her mother, and talks to her on a regular basis. Her father is an alcoholic with a history of physical and mental abuse towards his children. Arleen has two brothers, one that she keeps in contact with and one that she does not. She stated that her aspirations to become a police officer originate from her not being able to protect her family from her father when she was a child. On her first visit, Arlene seemed very tense and said that she had been feeling very stressed since leaving the force following her incident. Her and her husband have also not been getting along due to her nervousness. She has not been able to sleep, does not want to go back to work and dreads visiting any of her fellow colleagues. Arleen also stated that she has been having dreams and flashbacks about the incident causing her leave. This incident occurred during a routine traffic stop while Arleen was on duty. The suspect in the car was a known drug dealer, after being asked to get out of the car the suspect brandished a firearm, then fired a single shot ricocheting off Arleen’s arm. The bullet then went into oncoming traffic striking the passenger side door of a passing car, causing that car to crash, in turn killing a five year old boy that was inside. Arleen has feelings of guilt and responsibility for the boys’ death. Even though there was nothing she could have do ne. She still feels she could have done more to prevent what happen. She has daydreams and nightmares of seeing herself killing the boy. These feelings of guilt have plagued Arleen since the incident happen, over two months ago. Diagnosis It is because of these behaviors and duration of time that I diagnosis Arleen McCoy with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is an Axis I Disorder found in the DSM. The characteristics of PTSD as described by the DSM are: response to an extreme traumatic event elicits fear, helplessness, or horror (CCU 1). Characteristic symptoms include: dreams, recurrent feelings of event, psychological distress and physiological reactivity. &nbs... ...ith PTSD. The MAOI’s are not as widely used as the other classes of drugs due to their many, many food restrictions. They also cannot be combined with other prescription and over the counter drugs. Of course drugs are not always the answer, they might be a quick fix, but nothing long term. I have always agreed that a therapy along with some drugs can have the best and most lasting effects. The best ways for patients with PTSD to get through such a traumatic experience in my professional opinion is to commit to treatment and try to establish a therapeutic alliance with their psychologist. The next step would be to acknowledge and accept the trauma and its effects on the survivors and their relationships. From there both patient and counselor can breakdown any barriers that may arise in the future. References Cross Country University. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Effective Diagnostic and Treatment Options. Course Materials Dr. Martha Rosenthal. Study guide packet for test two "Emotions" Gerald C. Davison, John M. Neale, Ann M. Kring. Abnormal Psychology (9th edition) Neil Carson, Allyn and Bacon. Foundations of Physiological Psychology (5th edition) Psychological Analysis Essay -- essays research papers Patient Analysis Arleen has been a police officer for ten years. Currently she is on paid medical leave for three months and has three weeks left before she is due back at work. Arleen’s parents have been divorced for sixteen years. She still keeps in touch with her mother, and talks to her on a regular basis. Her father is an alcoholic with a history of physical and mental abuse towards his children. Arleen has two brothers, one that she keeps in contact with and one that she does not. She stated that her aspirations to become a police officer originate from her not being able to protect her family from her father when she was a child. On her first visit, Arlene seemed very tense and said that she had been feeling very stressed since leaving the force following her incident. Her and her husband have also not been getting along due to her nervousness. She has not been able to sleep, does not want to go back to work and dreads visiting any of her fellow colleagues. Arleen also stated that she has been having dreams and flashbacks about the incident causing her leave. This incident occurred during a routine traffic stop while Arleen was on duty. The suspect in the car was a known drug dealer, after being asked to get out of the car the suspect brandished a firearm, then fired a single shot ricocheting off Arleen’s arm. The bullet then went into oncoming traffic striking the passenger side door of a passing car, causing that car to crash, in turn killing a five year old boy that was inside. Arleen has feelings of guilt and responsibility for the boys’ death. Even though there was nothing she could have do ne. She still feels she could have done more to prevent what happen. She has daydreams and nightmares of seeing herself killing the boy. These feelings of guilt have plagued Arleen since the incident happen, over two months ago. Diagnosis It is because of these behaviors and duration of time that I diagnosis Arleen McCoy with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is an Axis I Disorder found in the DSM. The characteristics of PTSD as described by the DSM are: response to an extreme traumatic event elicits fear, helplessness, or horror (CCU 1). Characteristic symptoms include: dreams, recurrent feelings of event, psychological distress and physiological reactivity. &nbs... ...ith PTSD. The MAOI’s are not as widely used as the other classes of drugs due to their many, many food restrictions. They also cannot be combined with other prescription and over the counter drugs. Of course drugs are not always the answer, they might be a quick fix, but nothing long term. I have always agreed that a therapy along with some drugs can have the best and most lasting effects. The best ways for patients with PTSD to get through such a traumatic experience in my professional opinion is to commit to treatment and try to establish a therapeutic alliance with their psychologist. The next step would be to acknowledge and accept the trauma and its effects on the survivors and their relationships. From there both patient and counselor can breakdown any barriers that may arise in the future. References Cross Country University. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Effective Diagnostic and Treatment Options. Course Materials Dr. Martha Rosenthal. Study guide packet for test two "Emotions" Gerald C. Davison, John M. Neale, Ann M. Kring. Abnormal Psychology (9th edition) Neil Carson, Allyn and Bacon. Foundations of Physiological Psychology (5th edition)

Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Good evening. Some of you out there may not realize this but those of you who attended Suntime Middle School have been with this guy for the last seven years. I would like to ask you all, not just Suntime Middle School grads and who all else, to join me in thanking Mr. Weather for his patience and dedication to the success of our education over the years. We are the Class of 2000. The first graduating class of the new millennium. The past four years have been pretty wild. We started out as a bunch of rats in a small cage, but as time went by we learned and matured and became big rats in a new small cage, but in any case, the cage door is now opening; the handlers turning us wild things loose. As we leave "Where the Wild Things Are," home to some of the best cat fights, fist fights and food fights this side of the Cascades, I have a little surprise for all of you sitting in front of me here tonight in your caps and gowns †¦ we ain’t seen nothing yet! One of my favorite books when I was little was "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak. I’m sure many of you here tonight are quite familiar with it. It is about a young boy named Max who loves to dress up in his wolf suit and cause trouble. When his mother disapproves, Max creates a world of make-believe with his imagination in which he is king of all wild things. Here he is accepted and revered for his savage behavior. I loved it in my younger days because of the pictures of the big monsters and was jealous of the boy who got the chance to live with them. I always wanted to be that boy. To be a "wild thing," carefree, with no responsibilities or authority figure to answer to. "The night Max wore his wolf suit and made mischief of one kind and another his mother called hi... ...ere he found his supper waiting for him and it was still hot." It is now time to step out of high school and enter a world of choices. It is time to leave "where the wild things are," taking our experiences, memories and knowledge and follow our hearts and dreams. It is time to give thanks to all who have supported and helped us down this path. Thank your friends for being there for you, thank your teachers for preparing you, thank your parents for guiding you and thank all others who always made sure your supper was still hot. So as you hop in your sailboat and follow to where good smelling things are to eat, remember what you’ve learned from being in the world of the wild things. Take this experience and utilize it towards your future, because I guarantee you that what lies ahead for us is gonna make being a wild thing look like a walk in the park. Thank you.

Kite Runner Reflection Essay

Narrated by Amir, a novelist living in California, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini tells the riveting story of a young friendship destroyed by jealousy, fear, and the kind of ongoing evil that develops at some point during politics. A parallel joining the loss and redemption in this novel is the story of today’s inhospitable environments in Afghanistan and of Amir’s guilt-ridden relationship with the rundown city of his birth. â€Å"If you went from the Shar-e-Nau section to Kerteh-Parwan to buy a carpet, you risked getting shot by a sniper or getting blown up by a rocket-if you got past all the checkpoints, that was. You practically needed a visa to go from one neighborhood to the other. So people just stayed put, prayed the next rocket wouldn’t hit their home.† (Hosseini 256). In the modern world, Afghanistan is just as it is portrayed in this novel. The climates have not changed and the community acceptance has diminished. The Kite Runner begins in the final days of an Afghan king’s 40-year reign and traces the country’s fall from a loving community to a tasteless, inhospitable environment controlled by the Russians, followed by the trigger-happy Taliban. When Amir returns to Kabul to rescue Hassan’s orphaned child, the personal and the political get tangled together. Today’s laws are based for majority on past ones. Laws and regulations in Afghanistan have merely gotten worse over the past few decades and there doesn’t seem to be any hope for any betterment in the future. It’s very heart wrenching when I see on television pictures of children, much younger than us, that have significantly nothing compared to what we have today. It makes me think and appreciate everything that’s been given to me in my lifetime. I know it is much more than most and I am very appreciative of it. There are a few similarities between Canada and the Middle East, but very few. There are laws; yes, however the severity of the punishment only worsens. In this novel, we see that when the Taliban are ruling Kabul, they are very persistent when it comes to abiding the law. If you look at them the wrong way, your life could be taken very easily without them thinking twice. They will never regret it. In the novel they are monsters who thrive on the punishment of others. No regrets hang over them. No matter what, it will always be that way.

The Travels of Marco Polo

It was in 1254 when Maffeo Polo, a rich Venetian merchant, and his business partner brother Niccolo Polo were engaged in a journey outside Venice, Italy for trading in Constantinople and Far East.   Traveling on a Silk Road was a long sail, good enough for merchants like them.   However, as they planned going back home using the same route, they were trapped by the civil war between Hulagu and his opponent cousin Barka in Bukhara, and thus decide to use an eastward route although it was unfamiliar to them.There they meet an ambassador of Hulago who became an instrument of the meeting between the Polos and the great emperor as the latter was excited meeting a Latin for the first time.   The Polos were treated with high respect especially when the emperor learned about the Catholic faith.   He sent off the Polos to go home and ask the Holy See to send 100 educators and teach Khan’s citizens become Christians.   However, the death of Pope Clement IV made the Polos stran ded again but this time in Acre, Italy, year 1269.The College of Cardinals’ anointing of a new Pope happened in the late 1271.   Handling gifts and letters from Pope Gregory X (Teobaldo) of Piacenza, Polo brothers sailed themselves off again, with two friars and Niccolo’s 17-year old son Marco Polo.   Reaching the war zone, the two friars were discouraged and hesitant to continue the journey with the group.   The mission that was originally tasked to supposedly 100 educators was forcedly fall solely to Marco Polo.   This was the beginning of the latter’s meaningful journey to Asia, parts of Africa and Europe.Long after Marco Polo’s travel and escapades to Asia, he was able to sum up his accounts in a book written by him with the help of his romanticist writer friend Rusticiano de Pisa.   It has the full documentation of Marco, accounted diligently in four parts and given the title The Description of the World a.k.a. The Travels of Marco Polo..Ma rco Polo’s Travel Account on the Silk RoadMiddle East and Central AsiaOn their three and a half years of journey in the Silk Road, Marco had plenty of systematic observations from Middle Easter’s custom, religious practices, traditions, food, food preparations, history, climate, geographical, and natural resources to having a fascination on civilizations, tribes and beautiful Persian women, which Marco expressed in his original words as â€Å"a handsome race, especially the women, who, in my opinion, are the most beautiful in the world.†The group sailed from Laias port to Armenia until they reached the Persian Gulf.   From Homurz to Kerman, passing Herat, Balkh, Badakhshan, they were able to get on Pamir, a plateau between Afghanistan and Tibet, and described as the highest place on earth.   They traded with Tibetan Buddhists in Campichu.China (Cathay) and Kubilai Khan’s courtAs planned, the group reached their destination in Kublai Khan’s cour t, which is located in Shangtu, almost 200 miles away from Peking to deliver the oil as Pope Gregory X’s gift to the emperor.   Marco Polo observed Kublai Khan’s splendid living as royalty and nobleman with wisdom power, wealth and skill.   He discovered how Chinese give importance in record-keeping, feasts and festivals, and wondrous inventions such as monetary systems using stamp, paper and wood as money, literally running man as express messenger, fine highways, and the use of â€Å"black stone† or coal for fuel.   He expressed his praises in his line â€Å"To this city everything that is most rare and valuable in all parts of the world finds its way.†East Coast: Asia, Southeast Asia and AfricaThe fluency of Marco Polo in four different languages made the Polos ambassador of Khan Empire in some countries.   At the same time, Kublai Khan was successfully conquered the whole of China.   The Polos were allowed to go home in Venice with 600 crewm embers, which mostly did not survive believing that some were drowned, some were lost in storms, and some were died due to some malignant illnesses.There they encountered adventurous travels as they sailed south from Vietnam to Indochina.   He also made beautiful accounts of the place such as Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Japan, Siberia, Ethiopia, and the coast and islands of the Indian Sea.   On his accounts, he still admitted having this line, â€Å"I have only told the half of what I saw!†Wars and the Northern RegionWhile en route, the group heard the sad news that the great Mongolian emperor and conqueror of China Kublai Khan is already dead.   Afterwhich, they arrived in their homeland Venice in 1295.   Soon after their arrival, Marco Polo was engaged in a war against Genoa, which happened to be the most difficult rival of Venice’s sea-going trading.   Marco Polo was imprisoned.   He started his storytelling and then put it in writing afterwards.   He clear ly gave emphasized his praises as he was impressed in the Chinese civilization under Mongol ruling.He concluded his book with this explanation, â€Å"I believe that it was God's pleasure that we should get back in order that people might learn about the things that the world contains. Thanks be to God! Amen! Amen!†Analysis and ConclusionMarco Polo is not just a famous traveler and a relative of Venetian merchant during their times.   He could be called anthropologists.   Based on his great accounts traveling to the Silk Route or Silk Road, he made thorough information not just about the geographical route, but mostly its noteworthy and interesting details, which made his travel story a travelogue.He was able to educate his readers in his generation and even up to this modern era.   His book was not just about Chinese civilization, Mongolian wars and Kublai Khan’s Empire although his utmost impression with it was given full attention.   Furthermore, he gave focu s on some facts in Asia and its people; how they were differ from each other, Christianity as well as other religious belief and practices, etc.   He also managed completing his document without making any biased statements.This is the irony, trading as the primary goal of the Polos during their journey in the Silk Road was given sufficient justification in the book because in the end, trading serves as the main reason of the great traveler Marco Polo’s captivity in Genoa.R E F E R E N C ELatham, Ronald. The Travels of Marco Polo. New York: Penguin, 1958.

Spyware on Children’s Computers; Regorian Rhetoric

Parents as Undercover Cops Spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. On the internet, spyware is programming that is put in someone’s computer to secretly gather information about the user and relay it to advertisers or other interested parties. In this case, the ‘other interested parties’ are parents. Parents are becoming more and more protective of their kids. Many are now becoming open to the idea of putting spyware on their children’s computers when previously that was unthought-of.No matter what ones particular outlook on this subject is, there are pros and cons of each side, and most seem to lean largely on one side or the other, as opposed to being more in the middle. There are many harmful traps on the internet, but does that justify tracking children’s every keystroke on their computer? Harlan Coben believes spyware is more than justified. In Coben’s article, à ¢â‚¬Å"The Undercover Parent,† Coben states that parents are overprotective of their kids in many other aspects, such as knowing their passwords to their phones, supervising them at all events, and so on.So why give them their independence when it comes to the internet? I understand what he means and even agree with his reasoning in some ways. Coben says that the ones doing the surveillance are not some government officials; they are loving parents trying to protect their offspring. This argument is valid because it shows that the parents who choose to put the software in computers are really just trying to keep their kids best interest in mind, and those who compare it to being surveyed by a government agency or something of the like is ludicrous.Some children are at risk of being harmed through the internet, and do require that surveillance. The children that are unknowingly communicating with a pedophile, or the â€Å"43% of teens [that] have been victims of cyber bullying in the last year,† could have had a possibility of being helped if their parents had spyware software downloaded onto their computer. (Stop Cyber Bullying Before it Start’s) Of course, ‘what-if’s’ are always going to be asked, and there is no way that spyware can solve these problems fully. Pedophilia and cyber bullying are both serious issues and need to be stopped.Yes, spyware could help the problem. Yes, spyware could alert or notify a parent if one of these two activities is going on, which could be extremely beneficial. I agree that spyware should be used in these very specific situations. Coben also believes that having this program reinforces to children the fact that the internet is not a haven of privacy. In an academic journal article regarding Facebook, a website that many children and teens are using, it is written that â€Å"We need to teach them that NOTHING IS PRIVATE online, especially their social networks† (Fodeman).All child ren need to understand and acknowledge that the internet is not private, but even more so those who use social networking, because once something is typed and sent, uploaded, or anything, it can never be taken back or deleted. Sure you can remove certain things, but somewhere it is still out there, and it can be retrieved if deemed necessary. Everyone has access to posts online, and if the reason they are not misusing the internet is because of their fear of the spyware, then so be it.There is a fine line between being responsibly protective and irresponsibly nosy, Coben argues. If a parent is going to have spyware on their children’s computer, they need to be doing so for the correct reasons. Doing so because there is a harmful behavior being engaged without another way to stop it is sufficient enough of reasoning. However, trying to be filled in on the latest gossip and happenings in the child’s life is not going to cut it. Parents are supposed to be responsible and looking out for harmful and negative behaviors.They should not be abusing their powers or the tools given to them to help ensure their loved child’s online safety and protection. I do tend to agree with the various arguments that Coben uses to validate his claims, yet I have two different opinions on the use of spyware technololgy. If ones child is dishonest, engaging in suspicious or risky behavior, install the spyware. If a parent has real evidence that their child is harming him or herself, then the parent has a responsibility to help and protect the child even though their child may not want the watchful eye.It is more than fair for parents whose children have engaged in some kind of dangerous behavior, to tell them â€Å"If you don’t meet your responsibilities to take care of yourself and to stay safe, then I’m going to take whatever steps necessary. If that means looking in your room, looking in your drawers and looking on your computer, that’s exa ctly what I’m prepared to do† (Lehman). That way the child will know there is a possibility of a spyware being put on their computer and are not caught off guard if something from the spywares report were to be brought up in the future.The safety of one’s children should be number one on the parents list and they need to be able to do what is deemed necessary in order to protect. Reading emails, having the knowledge of what they search for online, and seeing all of their communications may be necessary for certain situations. The situations where spyware should be put on children’s computers are only in extreme cases of dishonesty, incriminating behavior, or suspicious activities. Spyware may not be the most effective way to protect children, but in such cases the spyware could definitely help the situation.Besides extreme cases, ultimately parents having spyware on their children’s electronic devices without their knowledge are more harmful than be neficial. A survey conducted of undergraduate students in the United States showed that â€Å"64% indicated they strongly disagreed with the statement that ‘spyware is more beneficial than harmful. ’†(Freeman) The main reason putting spyware on a child’s computer that has done nothing wrong is harmful, is because the relationship between parent and child will most likely be impacted negatively when the child figures out there is spyware on their computer.If parents have children that meet their curfew, take care of their responsibilities, and the like, there is no reason to snoop on them. Good behavior should be rewarded, and telling your child that the lack of interference in her personal space is a direct result of her good behavior reinforces the trust given to that child. Spyware does not aide in creating independence or individuation. A goal of parenting should be to raise a young adult who can make independent decisions and who can have a life of the ir own. Teenagers are always trying to be individuals and want more independence.Part of having a life of their own is having a space of their own. When parents spy on their responsible child, the message they are sending is that even though the child has not done anything wrong, the child still needs to be watched and is not trustworthy. Also, children and teenagers usually know an awful lot more about computers and technology than adults do. Because of the difference in generations, most teens and children know how to check for spyware, how to disable it, and how to get around it, more often than not without the parent knowing what has happened.It is impossible for a parent to keep tabs and know absolutely everything their child does, which they should not, and sometimes it is better this way. Even if a child does not find a way around the spyware, are parents really prepared to know their child's secrets that are not harmful to themselves, such as sexual activity, although can be harmful in some cases, or sexual orientation? Sometimes it is best to be ignorant. Parents should not go looking for things that if they knew would cause issues in the family tearing them apart.What is the worst that children can get into on the internet? Parents have to understand that their kids are human, and in turn let them be human. They are going to want to try new things, and exploring the internet is probably going to be one of those things. What is so bad about that anyway? It will not corrupt them; nothing â€Å"corrupts† people but other people. It is not the internet doing the corrupting, it is those behind what is being shown and put out there, those that are typing in chat rooms and writing their blogs.It is easy to view kids as possessions, like pets that have to be pampered and hidden from the world, but they are people just the same, and they have to make their own decisions even if they aren't â€Å"good† ones. A teenager deserves their privacy just as much as anyone, including their parents. I believe that if parents have taught their children well, with morals and the ups and downs of life and the internet, they need to trust that their child has been taught well enough to not misuse the internet and all of its capabilities.Joe Kelly, founder of a national advocacy group called Dads and Daughters, states that â€Å"Markets play on this fear that something horrific is going to happen to your child, when the odds of that are minuscule. It might happen, but to have their whole childhood predicated on this remote possibility is, in the aggregate, even more damaging. â€Å"(Crary) Spyware really undermines all of the trust that the parent and child have with one another. In a survey of 1,006 AOL users, â€Å"74. 2% said they perceived spyware to be a personal threat. (Poston) Spyware is seen as a personal threat to so many citizens because of its demoralizing and disrespectful nature. I would not want it done to me, my parents would not want it done to them, and I do not think teaching children that it is okay to have a spyware on someone else is healthy or just. The choice between installing spyware on a child’s computer or not too, can relate to one another and meet in the middle. In some extreme cases where there is no longer an ounce of trust, spyware should be put on children’s computers to protect them from themselves and others.Although in most cases, spyware is not acceptable because of the harm it does to the relationship between parent and child, and the toll it takes on trust, individualism, and privacy. Parents should have some type of control over their child’s internet usage. Blocking some sites, such as porn or self-harm/suicide related sites, is beneficial and sufficient. Having the computers in the house being put in open areas, such as an office or living room, can also control what children do on the computer because of the fact that they are aware that anybody can walk by and see what is on the screen.There are also parental controls that make it so the internet is only available at the times set up by the parents. Parents that are still uncomfortable with these alternatives could also have a password set up that one would need to log onto the computer, and only the parent would know that password. That way, if a child wants to use the computer, the parent will always know if they are on it. You should also talk to your children about the dangers of the internet so that they recognize suspicious behavior or activity.In order to teach more about internet safety instead of simply trying to avoid it, parents need to â€Å"Discuss the risks of sharing certain types of information (e. g. , they they’re home alone) and the benefits to only communicating and sharing information with people they know. † (Householder) All of these alternative suggestions, used solely or by incorporating them all, is a much more useful tool in monitoring computer and internet usage rather than using a spyware. The alternative to spyware does not damage trust, lets the child have needed amounts of privacy, and yet still lets the reins be in the parent’s hands.Works Cited Coben, Harlan. â€Å"The Undercover Parent. †Ã‚  New York Times  16 Mar. 2008: n. pag. Print. Crary, David. â€Å"USA TODAY. †Ã‚  USATODAY. COM. N. p. , 05 Sept. 20122. Web. 17 Mar. 2013. Fodeman, Doug, and Marje Monroe. â€Å"The Impact Of Facebook On Our Students. †Ã‚  Teacher Librarian  36. 5 (2009): 36-40. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. Freeman, Lee A. , and Andrew Urbaczewski. â€Å"Why Do People Hate Spyware? †Ã‚  Communications Of The ACM  48. 8 (2005): 50-53. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. Householder, Allen, and Mindi McDowell. Security Tip (ST05-002). † Keeping Children Safe Online. US Department of Homeland Security, 16 Feb. 2013. Web. 20 Mar. 2013   Lehman, James. â€Å"Newslette r Signup. †Ã‚  Empowering Parents. N. p. , n. d. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. Poston, Robin, Thomas F. Stafford, and Amy Hennington. â€Å"Software: A View From The (Online) Street. †Ã‚  Communications Of The ACM  48. 8 (2005): 96-99. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. â€Å"Stop Cyber bullying Before It Starts. †Ã‚  NCPC. com. National Crime Prevention Council, n. d. Web. 17 Mar. 2013.

Philosophy Plato& Personal Opinion

Philosophy Providing Answers for Questions & Questions for Answers Kristen Riso 5250378 PHIL 1F91 Professor: Dr. Lightbody TA: David Corman Word Count: 1941 The Apology written by Plato’s is an excellent piece of philosophical literature that can teach us many things. Most importantly this fine literature gives us the utmost insight into the philosophy of Socrates’. As well it teaches us the idea of asking questions and probing for answers when we don’t understand so we can uncover the truth and learn rather than thinking we know and being ignorant.The intention here is to describe the philosophy of Socrates’ and use what I’ve learned from his ideas to present my own beliefs on what philosophy is and relate it to my personal life. The start of the essay will be devoted to deciphering the ethics and ideals of Socrates’ philosophy and describing the three key components being Socratic method, irony and ethos as well as how they are engrained wi th Socrates’ belief that, â€Å"the unexamined life is not worth living. During the second portion of the essay I will discuss my belief that philosophy is the process of consistently asking questions to gain understanding and insight to life’s mysteries and challenges. Similar to Rauhut I would describe philosophy as open questions but I would conclude that definition to be incomplete. Philosophy needs constant discussion and revision, yes it does begin with a simple belief or question but the whole purpose is discussion and explanation to gain further comprehension and understanding of the subject in question.In Plato’s The Apology Socrates’ uses the Socratic method as a way to prove his innocence and show the misconceptions of others. The Socratic method is a process of debate between individuals with contradictory beliefs. The debate is used to promote critical thinking and cause the individuals to consistently prove their hypothesis. In attempts to prove their beliefs they are in turn constantly trying to disprove and eliminate the ideas of anyone opposing them.To defend your opinion, questioning can be used to cause deep thought by the opposition about their beliefs and force them to provide supporting evidence to verify their perspective. Socrates’ constantly uses this technique by forcing people to explain what they think they know and by asking the right questions he is able to show the flaws in their ideas. These questions can lead a defendant to contradict himself therefore strengthening the ideas of the opposition. â€Å"And yet, I know that my plainness of speech makes them hate me, and what is their hatred but proof that I am speaking the truth? (Plato, 24a-24b). This method creates a much greater chance for a successful and applicable hypothesis and analyzes and dissects ideas to see how they fit or contradict with other beliefs. Socratic Irony is a tool used in the Socratic method in attempts to get the oppo sition to expose their deficiency of understanding or an error in their rationality. The process uses very specific questions in which the person who is questioning pretends that they lack knowledge on something that they actually know.This is displayed when Socrates’ questions Meletus and causes Meletus to bring up facts which contradict his accusations against Socrates’, â€Å"†¦ if a man with whom I have to live is corrupted by me, I am very likely to be harmed by him; and yet I corrupt him, and intentionally, too – so you say,† (Plato, 25e-26a). With this technique the person asking the question knows the answer all along and therefore when the opposition supplies an answer that is incorrect or flawed they are able to clearly illustrate the mistake that is made thus proving their point without any doubt or contradiction. But either I do not corrupt them, or I corrupt them unintentionally; and on either view of the case you lie. † (Plato, 25 e-26a). This process is very effective due to the sole reason that you can make your opponent prove your point for you. The irony of this technique therefore lies in the simple fact that by pretending to display your own ignorance on a subject you con your opponents into openly presenting their own ignorance, therefore causing them to work against themselves to your advantage. Socrates’ displays the Socratic method and clearly illustrates the ffectiveness of Socratic irony when he defends himself and his ethos to the court and jurors. Ethos being the Greek word for character depicts the defining ethics, principles and views of the person or group in question. When discussing the philosophical beliefs of Socrates, â€Å"†¦ a man who is good for anything ought not to calculate the chance of living or dying; he ought only to consider whether in doing anything he is doing right or wrong – acting the part of a good man or of a bad. † (Plato, 28b-28c) it is evide nt that he is ethically, academically and politically opposed to the majority of the population of Athens during his life.Socrates’ does not fear death and therefore he would not change his opinions or who he is even when he is put on trial with a possible death sentence. He believes in honesty and cares about enriching the lives of others, â€Å"I did not go where I would do no good to you or to myself; but where I would do the greatest good privately to every one of you, thither I went, and sought to persuade every man among you that he must look to himself, and seek virtue and wisdom before he looks at his private interests. † (Plato, 36c-36d). Socrates’ is said to be very wise and yet he always claims to have no knowledge. I am better off than he is for he knows nothing, and thinks that he knows; I nether know nor think that I know. † (Plato, 21d-21e). This brings forth the idea of ignorance and how false overconfidence combined with some knowledge can lead to less wisdom than no knowledge at all. When Socrates interacts with the Artisans he finds that they have knowledge about life that he does not know and thought that they would be wiser than him. He later found that they overshadowed their wisdom with the idea that they knew more than they actually did. †¦ Therefore I asked myself on behalf of the oracle, whether I would like to be as I was, neither having their knowledge nor their ignorance, or like them in both; and I made answer to myself and to the oracle that I was better off as I was. † (Plato, 22d-22e). The idea presented by the oracle portrays the concept that men who are not overconfident and believe that they know nothing would therefore ask questions and be the most willing to learn thus giving them the advantage to become wiser and not miss out on opportunities that life presents.This implies that Socrates’ is not in fact the wisest man but that anyone who is open to new ideas and asks questions in attempts to understand is wiser than anyone who believes that they are more knowledgeable than the rest and are thus ignorant to knowledge. I would say that knowledge is a very broad term that encompasses a great deal of different skills that can be absorbed through either experience or education and can be either practically or theoretically applied. In philosophy the study of knowledge is known as epistemology.Philosophers in this area try to define knowledge and gain understanding of how it is obtained as well as connecting it to our own beliefs through explanation and rationalization. I would say that Rauhut’s claim that philosophy is the study of open questions does have some validity but it only convers part of what I would describe as philosophy. Philosophy needs to have verbal debate between many individuals to ensure that thought provoking questions are asked to probe at the brains of people causing them to really think and have to support their theories with vali d evidence and reasoning.It is not just about answering what something is but also why and how it happens. I would say that everyone uses philosophy in their everyday life, whenever we analyze something and ask others and ourselves questions we are philosophizing by forcing ourselves to search for answers that are unknown to us. Philosophy thrives on logical rational thinking and being able to verbally justify and clarify your ideas while enlightening others.A personal experience in my life, which I would directly relate to philosophy, would be the time that my best friend and I watched Inception. The movie was extremely thought provoking and had a particularly interesting concept. After the movie was finished my friend and myself were immediately diving into a conversation about perception and reality. The idea of dreams is very philosophical in my own opinion, which is why the discussion that this movie instigated was perfect.Originally we conversed about the idea of whether or no t he was still in the dream and to back up our ideas we provided evidence. Information such as the fact that at the end of the movie the spinning top started to wobble which never happened in the dream world would provide support to the idea that he had managed to escape from the dream world and make it back to his family. On the other hand looking at the fact that his children still looked the same and were in the backyard in the same position reinforced the idea that he was still in the dream world.By asking questions and seeking answers we were being philosophical and therefore gaining knowledge and understanding by asking how and why and providing rational reasoning for our explanations. This then lead us into a discussion about dreams and reality and how we can determine the truth. It made us ask questions such as, how do we know what is real? This brought up the possibility of us being in a dream world and the idea that maybe only one of us was real and the other person was a figment of imagination created by the mind of the real person to create questions and drive for deeper thinking and increasing intellect.I would conclude that discussion as being an enlightening and philosophical experience in my life due to the nature of its content as well as the thought provoking questions asked. In my mind that is philosophy and to put it elegantly, â€Å"I think therefore I am† (Rene Descartes, 1596-1650). Philosophy is all about thought; one must think to create idea and to make connections between anything. The mind must be constantly analyzing the world and asking question to obtain knowledge and understanding of the world around them.If you close your mind you give yourself up to ignorance and choose to live in a world and false beliefs and misconceptions unaware and the beautiful depth of philosophy. The idea that ignorance is bliss I would have to disagree with in a philosophical sense due to the fact that analyzing and questioning the aspects of o ur world to further your comprehension of anything that interests you has got to be one of the most important and enriching aspects of life, as we know it.If we did not ask questions and search for answers we would never grow and advance. Questioning is the key to understanding and that is a tremendous factor in expanding, developing and progressing the world as we know it. Philosophy is the study of open questions such as what, why and how as well as the process of gaining answers through rational thought, deliberation and verification. References The Apology by Plato

U.S. Federal Reserve Monetary Policy

The United States is one of the few industrialized country in the world.   It is a country that is admired by many. The Americans have managed their finances quite well. The Federal Reserves system of the United States is one institution that handles financial fraction of the United States of America. It is the central bank of this developed country that was created by the Congress in 1913 to aid in having a safe, flexible and stable monetary and financial system (http//www.federalreserve.gov). To keep up with the mission of the Federal Reserve, they have created Monetary Policy. This policy is about all the actions taken by the Federal Reserve System regarding the cost and availability of money as well as in promoting economic goals. The Monetary policy is a very powerful tool; it can make or break the status of economic variables like employment and prices of goods and services. This is a responsibility is very crucial for the economic status of the country since their decisions dictates the would be trend. The task of handling monetary policy lies in the hand of able team members of the Federal System, the Federal Open Market Committee. This committee includes the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Reserve Bank presidents (http//www.federalreserve.gov). Making monetary policies is a task that requires close scrutiny and careful examinations of data at hand. The Federal Open Market Committee has tools that aid them in making sound decisions about the policies that will be made by them and implemented country-wide. These three tools are open market operations, discount rate and reserve requirements. An open market operation is one tool used for monetary policies. This tool of monetary policy concerns controlling the supply of money by a buy and sell of U.S. Treasury and federal agency securities. They guide their decisions from the current status of the country’s economy regarding exchange rates or interest rates. The decisions are also based on an objective that is set by the Federal System. This objective is stipulated by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). The objective that is set by Federal Open Market Committee each economic year varies accordingly (http//www.federalreserve.gov). Though there is one thing that is constant is that they base their assessment on how to maintain the stability of prices in the market to encompass a sustainable growth. An open market operation has also change through time. Nowadays, it can also be done electronically. The discount rate is the second tool of monetary policy. The federal system has regional banks and they also give loans to other commercial banks and institutions. The interest rate charged to these intuitions is the discount rate (http//www.federalreserve.gov). This is not given to just any bank or any depository institution though. They have to still meet a specific set of requirements to be able to loan and on what level of credit scoring from the federal system. Reserve requirements are the third tool in creating a monetary policy. The Board of Governors has the exclusive right to amend a change regarding these requirements (http//www.federalreserve.gov). This dictates the minimum reserve regarding customers’ deposits and notes. This year, the recorded reserve requirements in America is ten percent on transaction deposits and zero on time deposits and all other deposits. The booming field of information technology has helped lift the economic conditions in the country. In 2005, it has recorded 12.41 trillion dollars as its gross domestic product (GDP). GDP is one of the measures used to indicate how good the economy of a country is doing. This rate will include the measures of all finished products created and services produced (Wikipedia). It is wise that companies and businesses in the United States have the flexibility to adapt innovations in the field of information technology to make them more profitable. Koznar (2005) has said in his speech that the current stability in the economy is also because of the labor markets contribution. He has attributed some qualities of the American economy that makes it successful. These qualities include flexibility,  Ã‚   trade liberalization, and The monetary policy of the United States has been into ups and downs but the Federal Reserve team members are determined to succeed and to maintain a high standard. They are aiming on a more efficient and effective operation by having just a few locations. Federal Reserve is an independent entity, it is neither under the government’s jurisdiction nor is it to be called a private institution. They make sure that the monetary policies that they implement are in accordance to what the economy needs to succeed by careful deliberating the information presented and analyzing diverse views of the team members. Each of the monetary policy council member also its own team help them in formulating their positions for the economy. The team is complete from an economist and a financial analyst to translate the trends in the market, a payments system expert to check if the policies will an advantage, to an attorney to make sure that every policy is in accordance with the law thus it will not be questioned. Success is nothing if you can not measure it. In an international trade scene, economies of scale will play a critical role in determining the unit cost that will increase returns. Better organizational skills are needed by a management team that is gearing towards success. These factors include how we perceive the environment, time, power, structures and space; the emphasis we place on relationships or tasks, on individuals or the collective; how we think and communicate. Productivity within a team needs to be established for this is critical regarding the success of a company or an institution. Each component contributes to the behavior of the system. No component has an independent effect on the system. The behavior of the system is changed if any component is removed or changed. Reference: Krozner, Randall S. â€Å"Remarks by Governor Randall S. Kroszner   At The Forecasters Club of New York†, September 27, 2006. Federal Reserve. Retrieved November 04, 2006 from http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2006/20060927/default.htm Federal Reserve System. Monetary Policy. Retrieved November 04, 2006 from Wikipedia. Economy of the United States. Retrieved November 04, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_United_States