Biography of Babe Ruth, Home Run King

Babe Ruth (February 6, 1895–August 16, 1948) is often referred to as the greatest baseball player who ever lived. In 22 seasons, Ruth hit a record 714 home runs. Many of his numerous records for both pitching and hitting lasted for decades. Ruth won many honors during and after his baseball career, including being named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team and the Major League Baseball All-Time Team. In 1936, Ruth was among the first five inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Fast Facts: Babe Ruth Known For: Member of the New York Yankees who became the Home Run KingAlso Known As: George Herman Ruth Jr., Sultan of Swat, the Home Run King, Bambino, the BabeBorn: February 6, 1895 in Baltimore, MarylandParents: Katherine (Schamberger), George Herman Ruth Sr.Died: August 16, 1948 in Manhattan, New YorkPublished Works: Playing the Game: My Early Years in Baseball, The Babe Ruth Story, Babe Ruths Own Book of BaseballAwards and Honors: Monument Park  honoree (plaque at open-air museum at Yankee Stadium), Major League Baseball All-Century Team, Major League Baseball All-Time Team, Major League Baseball Hall of FameSpouses: Helen Woodford (m. 1914–1929), Claire Merritt Hodgson (m. April 17, 1929–August 16, 1948)Children: DorothyNotable Quote: â€Å"Never let the fear of striking out get in your way.† Early Years Ruth, born as George Herman Ruth Jr., and his sister Mamie were the only two of George and Kate Ruths eight children to survive childhood. Georges parents worked long hours running a bar, and so little George ran the streets of Baltimore, Maryland getting into trouble. When Ruth was 7 years old, his parents sent their incorrigible son to St. Marys Industrial School for Boys. With only a few exceptions, George lived at this reformatory school until he was 19 years old. Learns to Play Baseball It was at St. Marys that George Ruth developed into a good baseball player. Although George was a natural as soon as he stepped onto the baseball field, it was Brother Matthias, the prefect of discipline at St. Marys, who helped George fine-tune his skills. The New Babe By the time George Ruth was 19, he had drawn the eyes of minor league recruiter Jack Dunn. Jack liked the way George pitched and so he signed him to the Baltimore Orioles for $600. George was ecstatic to get paid to play the game he loved. There are several stories about how George Ruth got his nickname Babe. The most popular is that Dunn was often finding new recruits and so when George Ruth showed up at practice, another player called out, hes one of Dunnies babes, which eventually was just shortened to Babe. Jack Dunn was great at finding talented baseball players, but he was losing money. After only five months with the Orioles, Dunn sold Ruth to the Boston Red Sox on July 10, 1914. The Red Sox Although now in the major leagues, Ruth didnt get to play much in the beginning. Ruth was even sent to play for the Grays, a minor league team, for a few months. It was during this first season in Boston that Ruth met and fell in love with the young waitress Helen Woodford, who worked at a local coffee shop. The two married in October 1914. By 1915, Ruth was back with the Red Sox and pitching. Over the next few seasons, Ruths pitching went from great to extraordinary. In 1918, Ruth pitched his 29th scoreless inning in a World Series. That record stood for 43 years. Things changed in 1919 because Ruth demanded to spend more time hitting and thus less time pitching. That season, Ruth set a new record by hitting 29 home runs. The House That Ruth Built Many were surprised when it was announced in 1920 that Ruth had been traded to the New York Yankees for a whopping $125,000 (more than twice the amount ever paid for a player). Ruth was an extremely popular baseball player, and he seemed to succeed at everything on the field. In 1920, he broke his own home run record and hit an amazing 54 home runs in one season. The following season, he eclipsed his own mark with 59 home runs. Fans flocked to see the amazing Ruth in action. Ruth drew in so many fans that when the new Yankee Stadium was built in 1923, many called it The House That Ruth Built. In 1927, Ruth was part of the team that many consider the best baseball team in history. It was during that year that he hit 60 home runs in a season — a mark that stood for 34 years. Living the Wild Life There are nearly as many stories of Ruth off the field as there are on it. Some people described Ruth as a boy that never really grew up; while others just considered him vulgar. Ruth loved practical jokes. He frequently stayed out late, completely ignoring team curfews. He loved to drink, ate copious amounts of food, and slept with a large number of women. He often used profanities and loved to drive his car fast. More than a couple of times, Ruth crashed his car. His wild life put him at odds with many of his teammates and definitely with the teams manager. It also greatly affected his relationship with his wife Helen. Since they were Catholic, neither Ruth nor Helen believed in divorce. However, by 1925 Ruth and Helen were permanently separated, with their adopted daughter living with Helen. When Helen died in a house fire in 1929, Ruth married model Claire Merritt Hodgson, who tried to help Ruth curb some of his worst habits. Popular Stories One of the most famous stories about Ruth involves a home run and a boy in the hospital. In 1926, Ruth heard about an 11-year-old boy named Johnny Sylvester who was in the hospital after an accident. The doctors werent sure if Johnny was going to live. Ruth promised to hit a home run for Johnny. In the next game, Ruth not only hit one home run, he hit three. Johnny, upon hearing the news of Ruths home runs, started to feel better. Ruth later went to the hospital and visited Johnny in person. Another famous story about Ruth is one of the most famous stories of baseball history. During the third game of the 1932 World Series, the Yankees were in a heated competition with the Chicago Cubs. When Ruth stepped up to the plate, Cubs players heckled him and some fans even threw fruit at him. After two balls and two strikes, the incensed Ruth pointed out to center field. With the next pitch, Ruth struck the ball exactly where he had predicted in what has been termed the called shot. The story became immensely popular; however, its not exactly clear whether Ruth meant to call his shot or was just pointing at the pitcher. The 1930s The 1930s showed an aging Ruth. He was already 35 years old and although he was still playing well, younger players were playing better. What Ruth wanted to do was manage. Unfortunately for him, his wild life had caused even the most adventurous team owner to consider Ruth unsuitable to manage an entire team. In 1935, Ruth decided to switch teams and play for the Boston Braves with the hope of having a chance to be assistant manager. When that didnt work out, Ruth decided to retire. On May 25, 1935, Ruth hit his 714th career home run. Five days later, he played his last game of major league baseball. (Ruths home run record stood until broken by Hank Aaron in 1974.) Retirement and Death Ruth didnt stay idle in retirement. He traveled, played a lot of golf, went bowling, hunted, visited sick children in hospitals, and played in numerous exhibition games. In 1936, Ruth was chosen to be one of the first five inductees to the newly created Baseball Hall of Fame. In November 1946, Ruth entered a hospital after suffering a monstrous pain above his left eye for a few months. The doctors told him he had cancer. He underwent surgery but not all of it was removed. The cancer soon grew back. Ruth died on August 16, 1948, at age 53. Sources Thorn, John, and John Thorn. â€Å"Babe Ruths Autobiography, as Written in 1920.†Ã‚  Our Game, 6 Apr. 2015.â€Å"Babe Ruth.†Ã‚  Biography.com, AE Networks Television, 16 Jan. 2019.â€Å"Biography.†Ã‚  Biography | Babe Ruth.

Conformity and Obedience - 1770 Words

Conformity and Obedience Assignment In this assignment I intend to evaluate Stanley Milgrams studies of obedience and in particular the ethical issues broken. I hope to determine whether the knowledge gained justifies his experiments. After the destruction and atrocities committed in World War II many historians argued that there must be some sort of character defect that made the German people more obedient. Mailgram’s study was an attempt to test ‘the Germans are different’ hypothesis. The hypothesis states that Germans are more likely a person or people in authority regardless of what the act is. (Social psychology handbook pg.8) Milgram conducted an experiment into the nature of obedience in 1963 at the prestigious Yale†¦show more content†¦In the second ‘voice feedback’ condition 62.5 per cent went to the lethal 450 volts. He also found even though the participants hesitated and objected they still continued with the experiment. Although many were observed to tremble, stutter, dig their nails into their palms and even laugh, one participant had a seizure. (Gross, 2010, pg.416/417). Milgram evaluated his own experiment and devised nine factors that could explain the reason why such high levels of conformity were visible. To test the factors he devised further versions of his experiment. I believe that this strengthens the experiment the amount of control that Milgram was able to give and the different variations helped to strengthen Milgrams conclusion as to why we obey people in authority. (Gross, 2010, pg. 417). A weakness of the experiment is the sample used is not representable to the rest of the American population and can’t be generalised. Only males who read the advert and were prepared to take part in a laboratory experiment were used Milgrams have been accused of deliberately using an ethnocentric sample. (Class notes) I also believe that the experiment was not ecologically valid as laboratory is not considered a normal situation and this could contributed to the experiment having demand characteristics as the participant might have thought that they were in an controlled safe environment and were also encouraged to do so by the experimenter. Another big weaknessShow MoreRelatedHistory Of Obedience And Conformity1729 Words   |  7 PagesHistory of Obedience and Conformity With the utterance of â€Å"research in obedience,† Stanley Milgram is the epithet in social psychology. 56 years ago, Milgram tested the limits of a person s ability to commit deeds that would normally be directionally challenging to their moral compass when commanded to act by an authority figure. Just 15 years after the World War II Holocaust, the Milgram experiments was a social psychology response to a topic of â€Å"particular relevance† during that time (MilgramRead MoreConformity and Obedience Essay3326 Words   |  14 PagesConformity and Obedience Task: outline and evaluate findings from conformity and obedience research and consider explanations for conformity (and non-conformity), as well as evaluating Milgram’s studies of obedience (including ethical issues). The following essay will be about understanding what is meant by and distinguishing the differences between the terms conformity and obedience. It will show the evaluation of two key psychological studies which seek to explain why people do and do not conformRead MoreObedience and Conformity Essay508 Words   |  3 PagesObedience and Conformity Both obedience and conformity involve social pressure in obedience the pressure comes from behaving as you are instructed to do; whereas in conformity the pressure comes from group norms Behaviour in obedience is determined by social power, whereas in conformity it is influenced mostly by the need for acceptance. In nearly all societies, certain peopleRead MoreConformity and Obedience Essays2559 Words   |  11 PagesConformity and Obedience Why do we conform? Two basic sources of influence: normative social influence, the need to be liked, accepted by others and Informational influence: need to be correct and to behave in accordance with reality. Solomon Asch (1956) devised an experiment to see if subjects would conform even if they were uncertain that the group norm was incorrect. In his study he asked subjects to take part in an experiment. They were each asked to match a standard length line with threeRead MoreThe Phenomena of Conformity, Obedience, and Deviance2505 Words   |  10 Pagesï » ¿Effects of Social Influence on Ones Self This essay defines the phenomenon of Conformity, Obedience and Deviance in the light of historic research and contemporary experiments. Concluding to the fact that deviance is a valuable Human attribute that makes our life what it is today. Introduction: Man is a social animal and among his other social needs, is to be socially recognized and acclaimed by his fellow society members. This desire is so overwhelming that one might go to any extent toRead MoreEssay about On Conformity and Obedience1176 Words   |  5 PagesConformity and Obedience People have been changing their behavior or obeying someone else’s commands for years. This continues today in our everyday lives. Conformity and obedience seem similar but differ in several ways. Conformity is defined by psychologists as a change in behavior or belief to accord with others. Similar to this, is obedience. Obedience is defined acting in accordance with a direct order or command. Normally people conform to reap a reward or to avoid punishment. If we complyRead MoreConformity And Obedience Are Both Social Behaviors1935 Words   |  8 PagesConformity and obedience are both social behaviors that are influenced by those around us and determines our behavior in social situations. When we change our attitude or behavior based on those around us, we are conforming to their behavior. When we obey what we are told, by what we perceive to be an authority figure, we are being obedient. Conformity and obedience can have positive or negative results on our lives, dependin g on the situation and the individuals involved. Symbolic interactions areRead MoreAdaptive Social Behaviors, Conformity, Compliance And Obedience1369 Words   |  6 PagesAdaptive Social Behaviours Conformity, compliance and obedience are a set of adaptive social behaviours that one makes use of to get by in daily social activities. They are all some form of social influence, which causes a change in a particular person or group’s behaviour, attitude and/or feelings (Cialdini, 2000, 2006). Various forms of social influence have been used for a variety of reasons; sometimes to help individuals stray from harmful behaviour such as smoking; other times [not as altruisticRead MoreMajor Categories Of Social Influence : Conformity, Compliance, And Obedience2039 Words   |  9 PagesKatrina Venta PSY 226 Community College of Aurora March 11, 2016 Abstract There are three major categories of social influence: conformity, compliance, and obedience. Conformity is the change of behavior to be able to fit in and gain approval from other people. Compliance, on the other hand, is when a person changes their behavior in response to being asked directly. While obedience is a response to an authority figure directing an individual (Kenrick, Neuberg, Cialdini, 2010, p. 183). These social influencesRead MoreAsch s Conformity Experiment And Milgram s Obedience Experiment Essay1586 Words   |  7 Pagesexperiments; Asch s conformity experiment and Milgram s obedience experiment. The two experiments will be compared for validity and their ethics. In addition, this report will take into consideration Zimbardo s Stanford Prison experiment and the Lucifer Effect. To analyse how obedience and conformity theories can be used as an example of why good people can turn bad. This report will also look at how obedience and conformity can be applied to the c riminal justice system. Conformity Solomon Asch s

Misstatement Type on Achieved Audit-Free-Samples for Students

Questions: 1.Explain how your resultsIinfluence your Planning decisions for the audit for the year ending 30 June 2015. 2.Explain why it is a risk and how it may affect the risk of Material Misstatement in the Financial Report. 3.Based on the background Information for DIPL contained in the case, identify and explain two key fraud risk factors relating to Misstatements arising from Fraudulent Financial reporting to which DIPL may be susceptible. Answers: 1.In order to carry out the audit procedure auditor need to carry out various processes to provide opinion on the financial statement. For this the auditor need to conduct analytical procedure to provide the evidence for carrying audit activity. These procedures give the result that the organizations books of accounts are prepared without any error and misstatement. Analytical procedures are the detailed examination of the items and information provided in the financial statement. These are helpful in determining whether the transactions have been prepared in legible manner and without any fraud conducted by any of the employees on management of the company. The result obtained on the procedure supplied by the auditor helps in determining and preparing the plan for conducting audit and assurance procedure. Auditor gets the knowledge about the areas which he need to concern more and the areas which are less in priority. The evidence received on performing analytical procedures becomes the part of the documentation of the auditor for the future reference. A detailed plan can be made which includes all the areas of high concern and of high value where are the chances of fraud greater. On the basis of results obtained by the analytical procedure the auditor is in a position to ask from the person charged with governance about the reasons and the steps taken by them to correct the error in the financial statements. On the basis of the review of the financial statement of auditor decide upon the reply received from the management (Brown-Liburd, et. al., 2015). In the present case firm is conducting printing activity for which he takes orders on online basis. It is very important to check that the online orders received in confirmation to the delivery made for the orders. What is the auditor need to check whether the documentation is proper and all the documentation are related to the orders received through online mode. If any Outsourcing is carried by the firm it should be checked by the Outsourcing form and evidence should be taken to confirm with the firm books of accounts. Related to cash balance the auditor should tally the actual cash balance with the cashier with the balance shown in the cash statement. Also the cash can be verified by actual verification by the auditor. It can also be checked that the proper segregation of duties is undertaken by the firm to avoid fraud and error by the employees. All the payments which are large amount should be verified with the documents attached with the transaction undertaken. This will help the auditor in determining the strength of the internal control system of the organization and depth to which he has to conduct its activities to get the actual result for the operation undertaken. All these procedures provide auditor a direction towards which he has to work in order to get the result for which he can formulate report which depicts true and fair view on the financial statement. The results of the analytical procedures heavily affect the decision of the auditor in performing Audit and assurance. If the result obtained in performing this activity is positive he will conduct the audit in less detailed manner taking the reference of the internal control system of the firm. On the other hand if he encounters weakness in the internal control system he will focus more on the information provided by the organization and will go in detailed manner in order to provide opinion (Christensen, 2012). From the above discussion it can be proved that planning of the auditor is very important to carry out the activity in a planned manner. Therefore analytical procedures are performed in mathematical or physical manner in order to check the genuinity of the transactions recorded in the financial statement. The results obtained by the procedure applied make the altar in a position to question the management about the mismatch of the result with the transactions recorded. Whether the organization is small or large auditor need to apply these procedures in order to come to the result to get the direction of work to be performed by him. This not only provides him the knowledge to conduct the activity but also about the chances of fraud conducted by the management. 2.Inherent risks are the risks which are inbuilt in the internal control system of the organization. These risks are difficult to be detected by the auditor until he undergoes the detailed examination of the internal control system of the firm. This affects the quality of the financial statement but also the opinion and the report formulated by the auditor on the same. The inherent risks which the organisation can face are provided as: Material misstatement: This is a inherent risk which can be present in any type of organization. These are the errors which can be intentionally or non intentionally performed by the person providing the information in the financial statement. This can be happen even if the person takes due diligence in performing the activity. Therefore it is important to understand by the auditor about the knowledge possessed by the person who is recording the transactions so that he can form the opinion on the true and fair view of the financial statement. To check the auditor need to study the internal control system to make Reliance on the knowledge and capability of the person recording and preparing financial statement (Messier Jr, 2010). Person charged with governance: Where the person in management or those who are charged with governance to take care about the financial statement and to provide the information needed by the auditor it is necessary to check about the decision taken power and the knowledge possessed. If the management has proper knowledge about the financial statement and have the capability to analyze the mistakes it can we analyze that the internal control system of the organization is strong and the auditor is in a position to provide true and fair view on the financial statement. These inherent risks affect the quality of the audit performed by the auditor and the report formulated on the true and fair view of the financial statement. If the auditor is not able to check the inherent risk of the organization he will not be able to report correctly on the records of the organization. If the auditor is able to detect the inherent risk he will perform the audit procedure in that manner by which all the areas will be covered and he will be able to analyze every aspect connected with the inherent risk so that proper view can be taken 3.DIPL is a firm conducting printing activity. There can be chances of fraud in the organization either from the employees or through management. The chances of fraud can be occur through orders taken through online mode. The organization has to take care about the recording of the orders received and proper documentation should be present so that any person connected with the activity cannot perform fraud and take personal profit out of it (Norman, 2010). This firm is conducting its activity all over the world especially in Australia and other Asian countries so it is very important to check the recording of the transactions which are in different currencies. Proper conversion should be there by the person recording the transaction and should be followed by the management to check that proper care is taken and the person is not indulging in any fraudulent activity. The system should be developed in such a manner that there are no chances by the personal in carrying out fraudulent activity. Proper updating of the system should be there and each activity should be supervised properly. If proper care is not taken by the management it will affect the procedure undertaken by the auditor and he will not be able to perform does that procedure while conducting audit activity. This will also affect the reporting requirements and the opinion of the auditor which will ultimately affect the true and fair view of the report on the financial statement (Budescu, et. al., 2012) The higher the fraud risk is there will be more chances to lower the quality of the report and the results obtained. It is not necessary that order will be able to detect the error or fraud as he is placed to check the transactions and their fairness and he is not investigating the records. So it is very important for the firm to provide every assistance and documents to the auditor so that he can perform its duties in a proper manner. From the records obtained by the firm he will able to detect the chances of fraud and the strength of the internal control system which will help in preparing its report in a clean manner and we will be able to provide true opinion on the fairness of the financial statement. The quality of audit is dependent upon the strength of the internal control system which provides the chances of fraud in the firm. References Budescu, D. V., Peecher, M. E., Solomon, I. (2012). The joint influence of the extent and nature of audit evidence, materiality thresholds, and misstatement type on achieved audit risk. Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory, 31(2), 19-41. Norman, C. S., Rose, A. M., Rose, J. M. (2010). Internal audit reporting lines, fraud risk decomposition, and assessments of fraud risk. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 35(5), 546-557. Messier Jr, W. F. (2010). Opportunities for Task?Level Research within the Audit Process. International Journal of Auditing, 14(3), 320-328. Christensen, B. E., Glover, S. M., Wood, D. A. (2012). Extreme estimation uncertainty in fair value estimates: Implications for audit assurance. Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory, 31(1), 127-146. Brown-Liburd, H., Issa, H., Lombardi, D. (2015). Behavioral implications of Big Data's impact on audit judgment and decision making and future research directions.Accounting Horizons,29(2), 451-468.

Spirit On Two Strings free essay sample

Looking to add some exotic flavor to your CD collection? Search no more. â€Å"Spirit on Two Strings† is a beautiful, meditative collection of traditional erh-hu music, masterfully executed by Jie-Bing Chen and accompanied by Yang-Qin Zhao. Chen, considered the greatest virtuoso of the erh-hu in the world, delivers a performance filled with passion and vigor on the vertical two-stringed instrument often dubbed the â€Å"violin of the East,† invoking images of cherry blossoms blowing in a soft breeze, or gentle brooks babbling in the countryside. The music is distinctly Chinese, which makes it interesting, and also has a great calming effect when you’re stressed or worried. The CD opens with â€Å"Moon Reflects on the Erh-Chuan Spring,† a piece that begins simply and quietly, then becomes dramatic and urgent. This track is probably the strongest on the album, though there is not a single weak song. In â€Å"Birds Singing in a Deserted Mountain,† Chen gives the erh-hu a birdlike quality that makes the piece stand out; the final track, the march â€Å"Bright Prospects,† stands alone too, departing from the traditional feel of the album. We will write a custom essay sample on Spirit On Two Strings or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page If you’re in the mood for something different, don’t hesitate to try â€Å"Spirit on Two Strings.† I’m very selective about what I buy, but this CD suckered me in right away. Perhaps the greatest thing about it is that it gets better with every listen.

Organizational Psychology Essays - Behavioural Sciences, Free Essays

Organizational Psychology Essays - Behavioural Sciences, Free Essays Organizational Psychology Organizational Psychology Organizational psychology differs from traditional psychology. Organizational psychology focuses on the group aspect of psychology and goes a bit further. While focusing on groups organizational psychology also looks at each person in a group to help solve problems. ?Organizational psychology is a field that utilizes scientific methodology to better understand the behavior of individuals working in organizational settings? (Jex & Britt, 2008, p. 1). This paper will define organizational psychology, explain the role of research and statistics in organizational psychology, and describe how organizational psychology can be used within organizations. Organizational psychology plays an important role to any organization that exists. Organizational Psychology Organizational psychology is defined as ?The study of the structure of an organization and of the ways in which the people in it interact, usually undertaken in order to improve the organization? (Farlex, 2012). Organizational psychology is normally done in a formal group setting, which evaluates both the group setting as well as individual people. Organizations have a set of values that employees are expected to abide by without the set of values employees would just do their own things, and the job would not get done (Jex & Britt, 2008). Roles of Research and Statistics Research and statistics play an important role of any organization. Research is done to find the best method of action that an organizational psychologist should take to correct an action. According to Jex and Britt, ?organizational psychologists often us systematic research methods to provide organizational decision makers with information regarding employees attitudes? (2008, p. 21, para. 2). Research and statistics provide answers for organization. Without research and statistics questions could not be answered. There are different types of data collection methods that assist with research and statistics these different data collection methods are observational, archival data, survey research, and experimentation. First is an observational method, which is used to study the behavior of employees in organizations. Data is collected by observing employees in the workplace and recording the observations. Observation is a simple way of collecting data, employees act as if they would on any normal work day accurate information can be obtained. Second is archival data. Archival data is using the records that the organization already has on hand about the employees. This allows an organizational psychologist to look back and reflect on any employee?s history and correct behavioral or work related problems. Third is survey research. Survey research is the most common form of research. Survey research asks the employees about their past behaviors, or actions in the workplace. Survey research can also be done to test different theories in the workplace to see what works best within the workplace. Fourth is experimentation. Experimentation is highly controlled and can give accurate results. There are three components that constitute a true experiment these components are manipulation of an independent variable and measurement of a dependent variable, second random experimental treatment conditions, and third maximum control (Jex Without data collection methods research could not be done within an organization therefore no statistics would be available about an organization. Organizational Psychology in Organizations Organizational psychology can be used in organizations in different ways. One way to use organizational psychology is to correct any issues that may have arisen with employees either with coworkers or with a member of management. Another way to use organizational psychology is to correct the way employees are working. Organizational psychology can help correct ones attitude towards the place of employment. Organizational psychology can help an organization become more successful. Organizations can also save money using organizational psychology because a professional has come into the organization and helped solve problems that may arise again in the near future. This saves the organization not only money but time as well. Organizational psychology also helps increase customer service when an organization is running successfully the customers notice and have a more pleasant experience dealing with the organization. Organizational psychologists can also help hire better people for the workplace, improve skills, eliminate harassment and discrimination, and foster a team environment (Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2012). Conclusion Organizational psychology is the focus of working with an organization or a group of people to solve problems that may arise within that group of

#FreelancerFriday #7 - Yari Leon Suarez, Translator

#FreelancerFriday #7 - Yari Leon Suarez, Translator #FreelancerFriday #7 - Yari Leon Suarez, Translator Yari Leon Suarez offers translation services between English and Spanish. Yari has worked in a variety of genres ranging from technical translations to translating poetry and literary fiction. Yari is also a fan of Charles Bukowski, which is maybe the best quality any person could possibly have that makes you think â€Å"I want to know more about this person.† Enjoy!–REEDSYWhat’s the biggest difference in moving from technical translation to literary translation?YARI LEON SUAREZ You work longer! *laughs* When you translate a creative piece, it takes longer because you have to work closely with the author, more than you would with a corporation. I find that with technical translation you’re working with terminology. It narrows things down, and when you have a question you can just go to a database. With literary translation it becomes more tricky - you’re working with an author’s thoughts, feelings. I think for literary translation you need that communication.REEDSY Why is contact with the author important?YARI LEON SUAREZ I find that the key for literary translation is to connect with the writer as a writer. I’ve translated for friends before, but I knew them as friends, not as writers. When I talk with them about the work, I need to talk about what they were trying to say, and focus as specifically on the piece of work as possible. We don’t talk that much about the process of getting there. Working with friends can be easier, but at the same time it’s not - I have to *forget* that they’re my friends, and look at them as a professional - look at them as a writer, not the person I go for coffee with. It’s tricky but the key is to focus on the piece of work and the writer’s voice. There’s a skill of talking with authors that came from technical translation because I have to ask companies about how they want something translated as well. It teaches you to be precise and how to know what questions to ask. You have to be focussed.REEDSY Is the focus on being accurate, on being good for the reader, on doing right by the author?YARI LEON SUAREZ It’s about doing the best work possible for the author. As a translator you’re really not entitled to change anything for a piece of work. It’s the editor’s job to advise the author on changes if there’s something wrong. For the translator it’s more a communication *with* an author, trying to keep the author’s voice as it is, but in a different language. When I started working with friends and I fell in love with a piece of work, it was hard - I had to stop myself adding to the work. To be a translator you have to be passionate about what you’re translating, but at the same time have a lot of respect for the work. You have to try to write *exactly* as the author wrote, but in a different language.REEDSY How do you practice that? Does reading help?YARI LEON SUAREZ Once, I grabbed a book I like and actually tried to translate a part. It was just a personal exercise, basically. I tried to translate pieces of ‘Women’ by Charles Bukowski. Just as an exercise in how you would translate a book by an established author in an established market, to see how you would handle it. I just kept it to myself.Reading a lot is always going to help - it helps you understand structure. Understanding structure is important because when you’re translating a text you have to understand the form. At the same time I think that right now the most important thing is to be up to date on technology. With technology it makes it so much easier to be in communication with the author, and there are tools that make the work easier. You need the right tools for writing, and translating in particular.There’s specific software that helps you when you’re translating. Nowadays the world of translation is tied to a digital format. For technical tra nslation translators can use software to connect with other translators for feedback. Like Robert Faclo said, Evernote is also fantastic for translators. And it’s necessary, because it speeds up the process of translation.REEDSY Do you do a lot of research?YARI LEON SUAREZ Oh yes, you have to. As a translator you have to be a researcher. You can’t just be happy with your own translation, you need to share your work with other translators and keep communicating with other writers - it’s a collaborative process. Translators these days don’t just sit with a book and translate it into a new language - you have to have a wider knowledge about literature today, you could say, of how the publishing industry is working. You translate in an active, engaged way. Depending on the book you’re translating, you need to know the author, you need to know where this is coming from, you need to know who’s going to be the reader of this translation to make a work that’s accurate.REEDSY What do you need to know from authors, when you’re getting ready to work with them on a project?YARI LEON SUAREZ The first thing is to know the 'motive’ of the novel, how you feel about it, if I can borrow it and read it of course! Later on I would ask the author why they want to share the novel with a different market, how they want it to impact the reader in a different language. I’d ask what the author knows about Spanish, the Spanish market, if anything, if they’re familiar with their new audience.REEDSY What’s are the first steps in the process for you?YARI LEON SUAREZ I’ll read the manuscript and ask questions about the writing, the story, anything that comes up in it about the characters. I’ll ask how you feel about the main character, how the secondary characters are influencing the story, that kind of thing. If I have any doubts, if there’s something I don’t understand, I’ll clear that up. Then I’ll go through the translation work itself, and new questions will arise. In terms of the structure, for example, more specific questions about structure, about sentences where I’m not quite sure about the tone or the intent, that only comes out when you’re doing the work.REEDSY Should authors work with Spanish editors as well, after they’ve translated with you?YARI I†¦ would recommend it. It’s not my field. I can always try and I can suggest, but I would’t consider myself an editor.REEDSY When you’re translating poetry, how does that work? What are you keeping?YARI LEON SUAREZ To translate poetry you’re dealing with a different literary structure, depending on the type of poem. If it’s free-rhyming, that’s one thing, but if there’s a specific structure you’re facing a piece that will take longer. That’s in the sense that it’s not just the vocabulary you need to worry about, but also about the structure and the differences between languages. For example, English and Spanish are completely different languages in the way you structure sentences in them. A sentence in Spanish can be longer in a sentence than English, and that can break the structure of the poem. So I have to spend a lot of time just trying to do the work because I have to make sure the same amount of syllables of the original poem are in the translation.And then also, keep in mind that it’s not a literal translation but a poetic translation as well, so you have to use the right kind of language, with the right translation of the word, whi le keeping the tone of the author. It’s a big, big challenge that requires a lot of work. With prose, you can follow a different structure and just keep in mind the genre of the work. It’s still difficult, because translation has to be based on the work, it’s not your work.REEDSY Do you see any big differences between the English and Spanish markets?YARI LEON SUAREZ In the US, specifically, they seem to be getting more into drama†¦ You know, I’m thinking. They’re not too different. They both definitely prefer prose to poetry. The majority of authors are doing novels or a series of novels following the same character - like a saga, let’s say. In that sense, the markets are similar. In Spain they love the novel that’s elaborate in a historical way. They love a novel that has historical research behind it, but is still dramatic, is not too much of a psychological novel. They follow a mystery plot, that kind of thing.The differences aren’t so big - we’re talking about literature that doesn’t require a lot of psychological analysis of the character, that isn’t a heavy topic - it’s easy reading, especially in the United States. â€Å"A read that flows,† basically; that doesn’t take a lot of time to understand, especially that’s not metaphysical. In Latin America I think they like literature with secondary meanings hidden in the prose, but here in Spain and the United States it’s more about the flow of the prose.REEDSY Thanks for your time Yari.

Seven Years War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Seven Years War - Essay Example During these seven years of battle, Britain and France differed and took parallel side in battle because both of them were eyeing North America as a colony of choice. India was dragged into war since it was a place of colonial interest by the major European powers, Britain and France. France got involved in the seven year’s war because it was interested in the colonies which by coincidence were also the target of Britain. 3Because of this conflict of colonial interest with each of the two counties wanting to have a larger sphere of influence, war was inevitable. In this case India was just a victim of circumstances, drawn into war unprepared and unwillingly. The war ended with the signing of the Franco-British Treaty in 1963. In this treaty, Britain took Canada and Florida initially controlled by France and Spain respectively. France controlled the West Indian cane islands allowing Spain take Louisiana. Britain won the war as it managed to take both North America and India as its colonies4. The seven years war crowned Britain the master in abroad colonies. Frederick II the Great retained Silesia affirming Russia’s as the main European

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - Research Paper Example Another population that is showing emerging increase in PTSD is fire-fighters. More and more cases of major depressive disorder (MDD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are coming to light, making it important for understanding of the conditions and therefore development of effective treatments. Feczer and Bjorklund (2009) define PTSD as â€Å" an anxiety disorder characterized by a triad of symptoms following exposure or trauma, including persistent re-experiencing of the traumatic stressors through flashbacks, nightmares, and/or intrusive thoughts, avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma along with the numbing or general unresponsiveness; and persistent symptoms of increased arousal† (p.278). PTSD is classified as an anxiety disorder since although anxiety has many of the symptoms and signs of fear, it also lingers long after the event and the threat associated with it have passed. This is perhaps the most unique characteristic of PTSD. Vieweg et al (2006) follow the development of the definition. In 1980 the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders first described PTSD as an anxiety disorder. In a later revision in 1987 the diagnostic criteria were revised to emphasize the avoidance phenomenon and in the 1994 edition traum a was redefined. The definition of trauma is important to the understanding of how it is applied to PTSD. Grant et al (2008) define a trauma as â€Å"an event involving actual or threatened loss of life or personal integrity such that one experiences extreme fear, helplessness or horror† (p.662). The American Psychiatric Association expands the explanation of the traumatic event saying that it must involve actual or threatened death or serious injury of a threat to one’s physical being. Witnessing the actual death or threat to another’s

Dracula Essay Example for Free

Dracula Essay As Seward was called into the room, Renfield was found extremely injured, lying in a pool of blood that glistened under the light. His face was bashed and bruised, he had suffered severe damage to his head and it was evident that his back was broken as well. Renfield was kept in a straitjacket and his injuries left everyone wondering they could have been self-inflicted. As the story progresses, Seward sends the attendant to bring Dr. Van Helsing, who, after examination, later performs an emergency operation to the skull that would allow Renfield to regain consioucness and recount what had happen. As Renfield weakily began to recount the events that took place earlier that night. His story starts at the night Seward refuses to let him leave the asylum. Renfield admits to being visited by Dracula, who had appeared in a mist outside the asylum. After much attempt to resist the Count, Renfield was associated with Dracula for a period of time after he was promised several lives. Upon the presence of Mina Harker, Renfield notices that she appears extremely pale and seems to have lost alot of blood. This allows him to conclude and warn Seward and Van Helsing that Dracula had been visiting Mina. Prior to the moment Renfield was found on the floor, he explains that he encountered and tried to resist giving into Dracula, only to have been beaten up and thrown violently to the ground, crushing his head. The tale told by Renfield serves as new discovery that allows the characters of the book to carry out new ideas in order to bring down Dracula. His story seems to be the birth of a new discovery that represents the grande idea of resisting and going against Count Dracula. During his story, he appears to have been infuriated once he realized Mina was being violated by Dracula. This could represent how inaccepted actions that deteriorated purity were during the Victorian Era. Overall, his story serves as the final fuel that sets not only an ultimate goal but a time constraint as well, now knowing that Mina Harkers life was at risk. What can Mina see and hear when Van Helsing hypnotizes her? What does this indicate? Do you think Dracula can detect Minas interferance? Includes the October 11th entry of Dr. Sewards diary; the October 15th, October 16th, October 17th, and October 24th entries of Jonathan Harkers journal; telegram from Rufus Smith of Lloyds in London to Lord Godalming, dated October 24th; the October 25th, 26th, and 27th entries of Dr. Sewards diary; telegram from Rufus Smith to Lord Godalming, dated October 28th; the October 28th entry of Dr. Sewards diary. Mina makes the five men promise that if she becomes a vampire, they will kill her rather than allow her to be damned. She also asks her husband to read the burial service for her now, in case it should come to the worst. The heroes secure passage on the Orient Express from Paris to Varna, arriving there early to await the Count. Hypnotism of Mina brings the same news constantly: the sound of waves, masts, the movement of a ship at sea. Finally, they receive news that the ship has boarded at Galatz instead of Varna. The group takes the setback grimly, but they board the next available train to Galatz? knowing that they now may have to face Dracula on land. Van Helsing believes that the Counts unholy connection with Mina may have allowed him to discover their plans. He is optimistic, however, that the Count will not expect them to track him into his own country. A change comes over Mina, and Van Helsing believes that Dracula has released some of his hold over her spirit. The clue is in Draculas past, which Mina and Van Helsing analyze together: back when he was a mortal warrior invading Turkey, when the invasion failed he fled home and left his army to be cut to pieces. In the same way, he now thinks only of escape and has cut himself off from Mina? not realizing that because she has tasted his blood, Van Helsing can still hypnotize her and learn of Draculas whereabouts. Analysis Chapter 25 Although the Count is able to elude them at Varna, he makes a critical error when he cuts himself off from Mina (note, however, that Mina is still not free from the threat of becoming a vampire). He assumes that he is safe in his castle, and he does not understand that Van Helsings hypnotism, combined with Minas connection to the vampire, will give Draculas enemies a critical edge over him. Van Helsing and Mina both use the terms of physiognomy in this chapter, referring again and again to the Counts child brain. He is a criminal type (Mina even refers to two renowned physiognomists to back up her classification of the Count), and thus he has predictable limitations. He is selfish (he thinks of escape at all costs), and he uses the same strategy whether he is a mortal invading/escaping Turkey or an undead invading/escaping England. Here is another example of the heroes use of science as a weapon against the Count. It must be remembered that many intelligent people took physiognomy very seriously during Stokers time, and that for Stoker physiognomy was a viable tool for understanding and classifying human nature. Its racist/classist biases and unscientific methods are much easier to see in hindsight.

An Analysis of Selected Stanzas From Book II, Canto VII of Spenser’s Faerie Queene 1 :: Faerie Queene

An Analysis of Selected Stanzas From Book II, Canto VII of Spenser’s Faerie Queene 1 I Her face right wondrous faire did seeme to bee That her broad beauties beam great brightness threw Through the dim shade, that all men might it see: Yet was not that same her owne native hew, But wrought by art and counterfetted shew, Thereby more lovers unto her to call; Nath’lesse most heavenly faire in deed and vew She by creation was, till that she did fall; Thenceforth she sought for help, to cloke her crime withall. Philotime, at first glance, seems an aristocratic Acrasia. Both employ art to improve upon their natural beauty; captivate men with their looks—in every sense of the word; and lounge in luxury and ease. We also see a common insatiability: â€Å"Thereby more lovers unto her to call† (my italics), though Philotime’s desires never descend—or at least are never seen to descend— into the sexual realm of Acrasia’s. But here the similarities end. Philotime, like Acrasia, is—to coin a word—bedecked with seemingness. She sits â€Å"as in glistering glory†; and â€Å"wondrous faire did seem to bee,† (my italics). Clearly she is not all as she would seem2 and is making use of ornament to augment her beauty; but where Acrasia was possessed of only a surface beauty, Spenser, most importantly, brings a decided grandeur to Philotime, by tracing the source of her fairness to â€Å"creation.† Indeed, to further strengthen this allusion, Philotime seems to possess many of the qualities of Eve. Her beauty, though artificially maintained, for it vanished with her Luciferian â€Å"fall,† was nevertheless divinely ordained. Any artificiality we see in Philotime is used to help satisfy a greed and a vanity that feeds upon the attention of men. Accordingly, as we have said, her artfulness brings not simply lovers but â€Å"more† lovers. Like Mammon, the god of riches, it is quantity that counts, not quality. Notice, also, that Philotime lives in â€Å"dim shade.† Indeed, dimmer than dim: she lives in a cave. The light her looks beam, strangely, unnaturally, throw light not on others, but on herself. Here then is another indication of the unquestionable vanity of Philotime. If we might turn for a moment to Sir Guyon, still standing in the wings, and doubtless still feasting his eyes. We should remember that our noble knight represents no narrow Temperance, but a universal Temperance, one which addresses all temptations—and not only those of the senses.

Kanyon Information Technology Solutions

Kanyon Information Technology Solutions deals with CRM and ERP software, IT Tier 1& 2 Support, Security Solution (network security and such) and ITIL consulting services. The target consumers for these services are the other business houses. In this case, the best approach would be contacting the prospects or target consumers directly through company representatives. The best way for the company is to have a zero level or one level distribution channel.Business organizations can be contacted in various ways. The concerned people from the target organizations read business magazines and journals, IT magazine and journals, visit various websites, trade shows, technology shows, events and exhibitions and many others.   These marketing avenues can be capitalized in order to advertise and market these products.Print Media:Print media being traditional way of advertising and marketing are still acceptable people finding it convenient to carry a magazine and read it in their free time. Th ere are numbers of business journals, news papers, IT journals and others which advertise IT and business products. Companies can identify their target consumer and their reading habits and advertise its products and solutions in the same.WebsiteThese products are targeted for businesses. It will be beneficial for the company to advertise these on different websites. When a prospect consumer will start looking for IT solutions, he is most likely to check search engines first. The company can advertise as well as can have its own website. The advertising cost in website will be less.Trade shows and other Events:This is other important way to contact target consumers. Trade shows offers an opportunity to demonstrate your products and solutions to the prospective clients. The IT and industry specific trade shows will allow Kanyon Information Technology Solutions to develop their advertising material and business plan according to the industry specific needs.Competitive Sales Force:Comp etitive sales for can be hired and trained for the product demonstrations and selling. The sales team can comprise of experienced people from the industry or competitors. They can have aggressive sales targets and proper support and facilities to meet these targets.Retailers:KITS can also appoint retailers for marketing of their services. These retailers may have expertise of selling IT products and solutions to the market place. They can be dealing with products and solutions of other IT companies as well. This will allow company to have a retailer with experience and consumer data base. The retailer may contact its existing customers and cross sell or up sell KITS products.Using Wholesaler:Use of wholesaler for the IT products will increase the cost of final product. Wholesaler will contact retailers to sell the products and solutions to the market place. The control of KITS over the retailers would be less. The products may face the problem of different pricing and offers from di fferent wholesalers and their retailers. The channel conflict will be higher and company will have lesser control. IT products are prone to fast changes. It is dangerous for the company to have its product in the form of inventory. Higher the numbers of members in the distribution channel higher will be the inventory time. This will increase the risk of getting products and solutions out dated and out of market place.Reference:Kitchen, P.J. (1994), â€Å"The Marketing Communication Revolution: A Leviathan Unveiled?†, Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 12(.2) 19-25.Kotler, Philip (2001) Marketing Management, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 10th EditionLisa Hoecklin. (1995).Managing Cultural Differences: Strategies for Competitive Advantage. Wokingham:Addison-Wesley Publisher Ltd.Mà ¶ller, K. and Wilson, D. (1995), Business Marketing: An Interaction and Network Perspective. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell.Shimp, T.E. (1997), Advertising, Promotion and Supplemental Aspect s of Integrated Marketing Communication, 4th ed. Fort Worth, Texas: The Dryden Press

God and Mephistopheles Essay

In the prologue of Faust, Mephisto entered into agreement with the Lord. What are the terms of the agreement, and how does he go about attempting to win? What exactly does achieve in the process? In the beginning of the tragedy there is a dialogue between God and Mephistopheles. Mephistopheles says that people can’t use their mind in the right way. God argues and gives an example of Faust’s serving to Him and to people. Then Mephistopheles asks permission to put Faust on any trial because he wants to prove that Faust will fail. He obtains such permission but God is sure that Faust will feel the right way and that he will be saved. So, the struggle for Faust’s soul begins. As Faust is anxious about finding the highest sense of life, Mephistopheles wants to show the delights to Faust. They deal that if the scientist wants a moment to stay forever, he will be Mephistopheles’ servant. He tries to tempt him with the help of beautiful women Margaret and then Helen, but Faust can’t get a full happiness with them. The author reveals this idea by Helen’s words while her disappearing: â€Å"Alas, the ancient word proves true for me, as well: That joy and beauty never lastingly unite. † Mephistopheles also tries to arouse Faust’s desire to glory and worship but these attempts have no success. Finally Faust wishes the moment to stay forever, but Mephistopheles doesn’t win. It happens when he is building dam in order to help the people who suffer from floods. This wish is altruistic and that’s why Faust is saved. He finds the highest sense of life in common action that is necessary for everybody and that is realized by everybody. Outline some of the themes in Faust, and explain one briefly. In my opinion, it is possible to outline such themes of the tragedy as struggle between good and evil that occurs at global and private levels, the failure of the human ambitions to control and to change the nature and the natural phenomenon, the eternal search of the highest sense of life. The last theme is the main one of the tragedy, because Faust is anxious about getting absolute happiness. The temptations that Mephistopheles proposed to Faust couldn’t bring real and lasting joy. It means that people can hardly be happy when they rely on the things that pass soon as feeling in love and using the power upon people and glory. Feeling in love is wonderful, but it doesn’t guarantee the happiness. People are selfish and they do harm to their nearest very often. The example of the relationships between Faust and Margaret confirms this thought, because the main character’s selfish desire was a reason of Margaret death and the murders of her mother, child and brother. So, the idea of serving to people is contrasted to the selfish wishes of people. Faust was saved because his final deed was philanthropic. By the example of Faust Goethe shows us that a person always feel deep inside what is right and what is wrong but unfortunately it doesn’t mean that everybody finds the true sense of life. Compare and contrast the uses and/or criticism of religion in Hamlet and Faust. The Hamlet’s problem contains more philosophic and social aspects than religious ones. He struggles with the time he lives in and tries to improve it but he fails. Unsuccessful attempts of changing the world that doesn’t fit with Hamlet’s ideals results his fatalism and the final events of the tragedy. Hamlet doubts in the right of the events of global concern and that’s why his attitude towards religion is also doubtful. In his main monologue Hamlet supposes that death is a means of solving the problems of life. This thought doesn’t fit to the Christian ideas which had to be close for him. To my mind, the ideas of â€Å"Faust† are opposite to the ones of â€Å"Hamlet†. Goethe develops the plot of the tragedy with the help of such characters as God and Mephistopheles that demonstrates the authors’ persuasion that people are ruled by the supernatural essences. The fact that Faust is working on New Testament’s translation also reveals the idea of constant interaction between people and God. Goethe thinks that serving to people and serving to God are equal virtues. The fact that Mephistopheles couldn’t win the agreement also confirms the religious idea of constant victory of good. The main characters of the world literature’s masterpieces Hamlet and Faust are compared with each other frequently. Their personalities are alike because both of them try to struggle with the world order and challenge the destiny. Faust is going to know all the secrets of nature and his way to improve his own life and the whole world is scientific. What about Hamlet, he broadens the tragedy of his family to a global scale that’s why his thoughts about injustice concern not only his uncle but the human’s life. The first of act of Hamlet reveals that the ghost of his father assigns Hamlet an ambiguous duty. What are these duties, and using the text effectively, explain the one you think Hamlet’s satisfied? In the first act Hamlet knows from the Ghost of his father that he was killed and the Ghost asks him to revenge to Hamlet’s uncle for this murder. Though, the most important thing while revenging is to keep the soul innocent: â€Å"But, howsoever thou pursuest this act, Taint not thy mind, nor let thy soul contrive Against thy mother aught†¦Ã¢â‚¬  To my mind, Hamlet couldn’t execute such necessary conditions. Finally he revenges to Claudius, but as a result not only Hamlet’s mother died. Ophelia, Laertes, Polonius also became victims of the revenge. In the beginning the Hamlet’s soul doubted about the ways of the vengeance and he suffered a lot from these doubts, but the view of warriors has a great influence on him. The warriors are going to fight because of the land that their ruler doesn’t want to rent. The fact that twenty thousands of people are going to die because the honor of the king is wounded makes him decide that his thoughts and actions should be bloody and ruthless. He can’t keep his soul clear because, to my mind, his fault for the deaths of people that are close to him finally destroys his conscience.

Why do you want to attend ASDOH Essay Example

Why do you want to attend ASDOH Essay Example Why do you want to attend ASDOH Essay Why do you want to attend ASDOH Essay Being the only school of Dentistry and Oral Health in Arizona, I would consider it a personal honor if I am allowed to attend what is the most prestigious and premier dental school in the state. I have considered applying to and attending many out of state schools but my research has shown that no other school can come close to the benefits of studying at ASDOH. I want to become a student at this school because of the way the classes and students will always be community centered. That means that I will be able to put my volunteer learned skills to work while studying. I believe that dentistry is a job that requires the dental professional to have the abilities of patience and compassion in endless quantity and that ASDOH can teach and training me to become a future community and educational leader. I am a person who believes that hands on training beats theoretical training anytime. Which is why I am sure that I shall gain the most benefits out of the exemplary learning environment of the school. I believe that I am a perfect candidate for becoming a student at this school because of my ability to learn under any given condition with a team or alone. I have what is takes to succeed in this field not only because of my strict sense of self discipline, but also because after I have graduated with an ASDOH diploma under my belt, I will also have the most important qualities of compassion, community concern, and clinical experiences that ASDOH will have molded into each of their highly trained and capable graduates.

Let the Word Do the Work

Let the Word Do the Work Let the Word Do the Work Let the Word Do the Work By Maeve Maddox When language-mutilator Yogi Berra said that something was like deja vu all over again, everybody laughed. Lately I get the feeling that some people who say it dont know its a joke. Yogis belts and suspenders approach to words seems to be on the increase. Weve all seen ads that offer a free gift. Sometimes its an absolutely free gift. Its as if people dont trust a word to mean what it means. Some recent examples from the media include: adequate enough, a navy sailor, an army soldier, coupled together with, and the maroon-colored Jaguar. Sometimes explanatory constructions are necessary in certain contexts. One can refer to a Mafia soldier, for example, but if the context is the evening news about the Iraq war, a listener can be trusted to understand the word without tacking on army. Besides sounding foolish, the practice of bolstering a word with a a word that replicates its meaning weakens the expressiveness of the language. Here are some redundant combinations Ive heard or read lately in the media. The careful writer will avoid such nonsense. return back progress forward forests of trees other alternatives continue on evacuated out regress back penetrate through speeding too fast refinanced again a human person charred black a baby nursery reiterate again fast forward ahead socialize together two twin towers added bonus end result new innovation very unique Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:30 Religious Terms You Should KnowBetween vs. In Between5 Examples of Misplaced Modifiers

Exports and Imports of Kenya's government for the last decade Essay

Exports and Imports of Kenya's government for the last decade - Essay Example The major regional trade blocs for Kenya include EAC (East African Community) and COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) (EÃŒ tats-Unis. 2006, 45). Although Kenya makes large and diverse exports, the economy barely feels the impacts of exports. Between 2000 and 2010, Kenya registered a sharp decrease in its exports and subsequently the relative importance of the same. Due to the economic imbalances during the past decade in the country, Kenya may not easily attain economy growth. Research conducted by World Bank necessitated that Kenya should increase its export competitiveness. In the decade, Kenya’s exports appeared to be below its potential (Aswathappa 2010, 56). Between 2000 and 2010, Kenya registered an average annual growth rate of its export merchandise at only ten percent. Kenya, compared to other developing countries like Vietnam appeared to be underperforming. Vietnam registered higher rates of growth in export merchandise. Kenya is widely identified as a trade deficit nation. This remains to be the case since the major exports from Kenya tend to be vulnerable to weather conditions and international prices. These factors may greatly affect the economy (Greenaway 2010, 78) Agricultural products occur as the main focus on Kenya’s export industry. About seventy-five percent of the population relies on agriculture and its related activities as their main source of income. Additionally, agriculture contributes significantly towards national production at twenty-five percent. Mainly horticultural products as well as tea contribute majorly on exports merchandise for Kenya. In 2006, the collective share of these two products was ten times higher than the share of the other export items. Additionally, Kenya exports petroleum by products to its regional neighbours besides providing internal petroleum consumption. The fact that Kenya is an Agricultural State make it an

Research paper on drugstore retail management Essay

Research paper on drugstore retail management - Essay Example Rational for Investigating: As the drugstores increase in numbers across the country, its important to ensure that even those that are yet to come will have a scheme for success that will have been established earlier on. Teamwork in any organization is very important and it can see the company improve drastically as in the case of Walgreens, CVs and Albertsons. The increased number of drug stores is very much intriguing, which from previous research imply that the use of teamwork is very efficient in achieving greater sales. The Procedure: The research will be conducted via the library sources from which the mushrooming of drug stores and there strategic management will be explored by getting the answers to the following questions; - what determines the growth of drugstores; is teamwork a critical factor in growth of drugstores; how is the drugstore handling ethical issues. Some of the managers from successful drugstores will also be interviewed. In An interview, the then manager and founder of Walgreen, Charles R Walgreen Himself in 1925 claimed that then success of any organization was wholly dependent on the manager’s character. The same sentiments are again echoed almost 100 years down the line. Daniel L Jorndt 75 years after later reiterates that the success of the company was due to a very long history of work, positive interaction among workers, and work ethics. The success of any organization depends entirely on the management. From such words, it becomes clear that the success of this company is due to basically the efforts of the management and the workers combined. Working as a team towards common goal is very critical. The drugstore business in the US is lead by big stores that use teamwork as a stepping stone to success; Walgreen, Albertsons and CVS. Some people oppose that management is not fundamental claiming that Its very difficult to attribute the

What Does it Mean to be Machiavellian Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

What Does it Mean to be Machiavellian - Essay Example However, this does not approve violence for the wrong reasons, leading to one’s personal gratification or gains. Machiavelli’s aim in The Prince is to prepare the members of the ruling Medici family of Florence to handle the subjects of their principality. Machiavelli had the clear understanding that moral ideologies were not sufficient to meet the demands of real situations of governing a principality. In such a situation, the ruler has to deal with the needs and expectations of many people. In the present times too, there are debates about the emergence of terrorism as a response to the state policies that suppress the masses. This makes the Machiavellian principles of power in the governing bodies very significant. The ruler of a principality can remain in power only with a complete understanding of its subjects. The uprisings against the rulers may not always branch from a personal dislike to the ruler. Machiavelli observes that â€Å"men, thinking to better their condition, are always ready to change their masters, and in this expectation, will take up arms against any ruler† (6). To retain the power of the ruler over the dissatisfied and demanding masses, the principalities will have to use force when necessary. Machiavelli further states: â€Å"†¦let it here be noted that men are either to be kindly treated, or utterly crushed, since they can revenge lighter injuries, but not graver. Therefore the injury we do to a man should be of a sort to leave no fear of reprisals† (9). Though it is possible to interpret such remarks as cold-blooded decrees that decide the fate of numerous subjects in a principality, the ultimate goal Machiavelli aims at is the effective management o f the people with the help of force when gaining their consent in all issues seems unlikely. The use of violence serves a symbolic purpose as well, in setting an example. It is not a

Development of Powers withing the British Constitution

Development of Powers withing the British Constitution â€Å"†¦the description of British government as an elective dictatorship is no longer appropriate.† (V. Bogdanor The New British Constitution (2009) Oxford, Hart). Discuss, considering in particular Bogdanor’s argument that the separation of powers has been strengthened within the British Constitution in recent years. Britain is described as not having a written constitution, instead it is simply: a set of inductive generalisations[1] which have resulted in Britain not having a formal separation of powers. Due to this lack of structure, the power within the constitution can become concentrated to a single group. Consequently an Act which would be held as undemocratic in places where there is a written constitution e.g. the United States, will not be in Britain. This essay aims to analyse the doctrine of the separation of powers, focusing on how the principle operates in the British Constitution where the separation between the branches of government is not strictly adhered to. It will examine how this entwining relationship has led to Britain living in an elective dictatorship opposed to the democracy it is advertised to be. Additionally, it will consider how the recent developments of the constitution, including the introduction of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, has led to the separation of powers being strengthened therefore the democracy of Britain increasing. The separation of powers is one of these principles that is found, in one form or another, in most modern constitutions[2]. It is a feature predominantly in constitutions which operate a system of government that is based on the law. The importance of the doctrine is significant because it underpins the way the power is used within a state. Nowadays, it has been recognised as having a crucial role in the constitution; it remains important to distinguish the primary functions of law-making, law-executing and law-adjudicating. If these distinctions are abandoned, the concept of law itself can scarcely survive.[3] Poor division of power between the different organs would mean it is impossible to prevent abuse therefore a dictatorship could arise. The principle suggests that the correct way to separate the power is to divide it equally into three separate organs, each with independent roles from each other. If each of these branches perform a different function then the constitution will run efficiently. The branches today are known as; the legislative- who create law; the executive- responsible for the day to day running of the constitution; the judiciary- they apply the laws. This means if these divisions are adhered to then the constitution will successfully run as an organised democracy. The Greek Philosopher, Aristotle, was the first to classify the government as being split into three elements; The three are, first, the deliberative, which discusses everything of common importance; second the officials and third, the judicial element.[4] These distinctions are based purely on a political entity[5]whereas todays understanding of the principle focuses more on different branches of the government. Todays theory comes from the French Constitutional Theorist Montesquieu who popularised the doctrine in his book, the Spirit of the Law[6]. He breaks down the institutions as legislatures, executives and judges who exercise certain specific functions making laws, executing laws and adjudicating disputes about laws[7]. These branches can be translated to the British Constitution. The Legislative branch is made up of Parliament whose function is to pass legislation which regulates the citizens and to scrutinise the work of the executive in order to ensure that they are not abusing their powers. Britain has a bicameral legislative branch which means that it is composed of two chambers; the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The members of the House of Commons are elected by the British public and the party with the most seats form the government. This means that it is a fairly elected democracy. In Britain the role of the executive is to formulate and implement policies. It is led by the Prime Minister who is responsible for the overall conduct of the government and the ministers who are the head of each department. The role of the judiciary is to interpret the legislation and apply the law in accordance with how Parliament intended it when they created it. The judicial branch covers all judges however, it is those which sit in the higher courts who are most important to the operation of the British Constitution because they are in a position to challenge the government and ensure that it functions with the law. It has been argued that in Britain, the result of not having a codified constitution is that there is no consequences in place if one branch exceed the limit of power they have according to the separation of powers theory. The principle came under significant criticism around the 1980s. One of the main criticisms was by Brazier who stated that the arrangement of the British Constitution is: at best a weak separation of powers at worst a separation in name only[8]. Locke, an English Philosopher was concerned with the division of power and the consequence if the separation was not equal. Concentration of power can seriously affect the organisation and functioning of the constitution. He believes that: it may be too create a temptation to humane frailty apt to grasp for Power, for the same persons who have the power of making laws, to have also in their hands the power to execute them, whereby they may exempt themselves from obedience to the laws they make [9] This means if there is too much power concentrated to one person, or to one branch of the government, it would lead to the system as a whole being corrupt. It would provide people with the opportunity to use the system to their own advantage, essentially creating laws others do not agree with thus creating a dictatorship. The idea that too much power can result in one group using it to their advantage can be seen within the British Constitution, where there is many overlaps between the branches. This led to Lord Hailsham describing the structure of this constitution as an elective dictatorship[10] because although the government is elected by the public, they abuse the amount of power they have been given and use this to their own advantages- they act like dictators. In theory it appears that the roles of each branch are clearly distinguished however, this is not the case in practice. However, Montesquieu also recognises that the division of power between the organs of the state is not always amicable, there can be overlap between the branches and it still be a democracy. This idea there is overlap in the British Constitution can be supported by Parpsworth who claims: a separation of powers is not, and has never been a feature of the UK constitution. An examination of the three powers reveals that in practice they are often exercised by persons which exercise more than one such power.[11] This idea can be seen by the role of the Lord Chancellor who had a position within each of the three government branches. He had a legislative function of being the speaker of the House of Lords, an executive function of being a member of the cabinet and a judicial function as being the head of the judiciary. Being the head judge gave the Lord Chancellor the right to participate in judicial proceedings and to appoint judges. This shows that there is more than an overlap between the branches instead it shows that the same person clearly does exercise more than one power.[12] regardless of Montesquieu stating: all would be lost if the same man exercised these three powers[13]. Evidently this suggests that Britain is an elective dictatorship because there is no restriction on the amount of power that each branch can administrate within society, they can influence the functioning of the constitution without regard to the view of the public. The Lord Chancellor was in a strong position to abuse his powers; he could provide himself with more benefits or use the arrangement to influence the branches and allow one organ to dominate the whole constitution. Clearly, his position within all three arms of the government does not conserve the doctrine of the Separation of Powers. However, it could be argued that even though there is clear overlap between the roles, the question of abusing power was irrelevant as the Lord Chancellor optionally chose to remain impartial to each branch when undertaking the particular function it required; in recent years, the Lord Chancellor had rarely sat as a judge and never on matters affecting the government. This suggests that the British Constitution was never operating in a way which could be described as an elective dictatorship[14], instead it has always been an independent system[15]. However, there are exceptions to this; Lord Mackay, however, did sit in the leading case Pepper v Hart, [1993] AC 593, on which he offered a dissenting judgement[16] which shows that there are exceptions and the lines between the branches have been overstepped. Regardless of this only being an exception there was a clear overlap in the way the functions of the branches were being performed so the Labour Party, the current government at the time, introduced the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 which led to dramatic reforms, specifically regarding the position of the Lord Chancellor. His position at the head of the judiciary has now been replaced by Lord Chief Justice who is now in charge of the deployment of judges and allocation of work in Courts in England.[17] Additionally, his legislative function as the speaker of the House of Lords has been replaced by the Lord Speaker. This means that since the reform, his function is now purely in the executive branch of the government where he remains to be a member of the cabinet.[18] Evidently, the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 has strengthened the doctrine of the separation of powers in Britain as the overlaps between the arms have been reduced thus the power distribution has been equalised. However, not everybody agrees that the reforms towards the Lord Chancellor has increased the democracy in Britain. His role was described as a necessary evil vital to ensuring the smooth running of the separate estates. [19] This criticism suggests that the Labour Government removed the connection between the branches which may reduce the effectiveness of the organisation of each function. However, the reform was essential because if these distinctions are abandoned, the concept of law itself can scarcely survive.[20] Another problem with the separation of powers in the British Constitution is the overlap between the legislative and executive. Theoretically, the executive initiate the creation of new laws and it is for the legislatures to debate and pass the proposals once the content has been agreed upon. This means that the legislative is supposed to have control over the executive however, in practice it is clear that the Executive tends to dominate the legislature, because the party and electoral systems usually produce a strong majority government, what Lord Hailsham called an elective dictatorship[21]. This means that the executive is therefore present at the heart of Parliament.[22] Being at the centre of the government structure allows the executive to have strong persuasion over the legislatures, meaning they can get the result they wish without the House of Commons standing in their way. This supports Bagehots description of the British Constitution being; the close union, the nearly complete fusion of the legislative and executive powers[23] as it appears that they operate as one branch; the executive. This intertwining relationship can be seen as there is a strong convention that ministers are members of one or other House of Parliament[24] as well as the Prime Minister being a member too. As a result they will have strong influential powers over the decisions of both the executive and the legislative. This is because the ministers will be less likely to challenge the decisions of their party therefore their activities will not be questioned so they will be able to initiate any changes they wish. This means they are able to operate an elective dictatorship without checks to the amount of power they are using. However, it could be argued that the separation of powers still exists because there are procedures in place to ensure the doctrine remains a strength of the British Constitution. For example, there is a limit on the number of ministers who can be members of the House of Commons. This will ensure that the amount of influence they have is limited. Additionally, there is the opportunity for a backbench revolt. This is where a large number of MPs who are not ministers or in cabinet for the leader, vote against them to try prevent them from carrying out their propositions. One example is from 2001 where; more than 100 Labour backbenchers rebel over the attempted removal of two Labour MPs from the chairmanship of important parliamentary committees.[25] which led to the reinstatement of two Transport and Foreign Affairs Select Committees. This suggests that although the executive try and overstep their powers by going against the opinions of the public which could effectively mean Britain is a dictatorship, there are checks and processes in place for their decisions to be effectively challenged. Members of cabinet can, and have, also taken stands against their own parties. A recent example of this can be seen by Tony Blair who proceeded with the Iraq War despite the majority of his cabinet disagreeing with his actions and a further two resigning. This example shows that the government are not persuaded by the actions of their cabinet or backbench revolts. This shows the need for checks to prevent the abuse of power is essential. The legislature has the duty to ensure that the executive do not overstep this limit ensuring that control is maintained, reducing the chance of an elective dictatorship. These checks mean that Bogdanors suggestion that we are less of an elective dictatorship is correct; the rules ensure that nobody gains too much control. In conclusion, the doctrine of the separation of powers is a feature of the peculiarly British conception of the separation of powers that Parliament, the executive and the courts have their distinct and largely exclusive domain.[26] Before the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the power was not constrained to the three separate organs. Instead the distinctions were not clear therefore the power was subject to being abused and concentrated to different branches. The reforms led to a redistribution of power in the British Constitution which has effectively led to a decrease of living in an elective dictatorship, just as Bogdanor suggests. Bibliography Allan, T. R. S.. First principles: the Rule of Law and Separation of Powers. Constitutional justice: a liberal theory of the rule of law. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. 31-52. Barnett, Hilaire. Fundamental Constitutional Concepts; the separation of powers. Constitutional administrative law. 7th ed. London: Cavendish Pub., 2009. 71-91 Bates, Clifford The Fundamental Similarity between Montesquieu and Aristotle http://www.academia.edu/5192735/THE_FUNDAMENTAL_SIMILARITY_BETWEEN_MONTESQUIEU_AND_ARISTOTLE>. Blair Backbench reforms. BBC News. BBC, 26 Feb. 2003 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2802791.stm>. Bogdanor, Vernon. The new British Constitution. Oxford: Hart Pub., 2009. Bradley, Anthony, and Keith Ewing. The relationship between legislature, executive and judiciary. Constitutional and administrative law. 15 ed. Longman, 2010. 78-88 Brazier, Rodney. Constitutional reform: reshaping the British political system. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print. Constitutional Reform Act 2005. Constitutional Reform Act 2005 www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/4/contents> Lord Hailsham Elective dictatorship. The Listener, 21 October 1976 Lord Phillips, Lord Chief Justice. Interview by Marcel Berlins. Personal interview 2007 Montesquieu, Charles de Secondat. The spirit of the laws. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989. Parpworth, Neil. Separation of Powers. Constitutional and administrative law. 7th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012. 18-20 R Benwell and O Gay, The Separation of Powers www.parliament.uk/briefing-papers/sn06053.pdf‎> Watts, Duncan. Constitutions. Understanding US/UK government and politics a comparative guide. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2003. 26-43. 1 [1] V Bogdanor,The New British Constitution(1st, Hart, 2009) 22 [2] A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 78 [3] T. R. S. Allan,Constitutional Justice: A Liberal Theory of the Rule of Law (Oxford, 2003) 31 [4] Aristotle Politics as citied in H Barnett, Constitutional Administrative Law(7th, Routledge, 2009) [5] Clifford Bates, The Fundamental Similarity Between Montesquieu and Aristotle (academia.edu 2005) http://www.academia.edu/5192735/THE_FUNDAMENTAL_SIMILARITY_BETWEEN_MONTESQUIEU_AND_ARISTOTLE> accessed 11th January 2014 [6] C Montesquieu ,The Spirit of the Laws (Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought)(1st, Cambridge University Press, Oxford 1989) [7] Clifford Bates, The Fundamental Similarity Between Montesquieu and Aristotle (academia.edu, 2005) http://www.academia.edu/5192735/THE_FUNDAMENTAL_SIMILARITY_BETWEEN_MONTESQUIEU_AND_ARISTOTLE> accessed 11/01/2014 [8]R Brazier,Constitutional Reform: Reshaping the British Political System(3rd, Oxford University Press, Oxford 2008) 108 [9]J Locke,Two Treatises of Government(ed. Laslett), chX11, para 143 as cited in A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 81 [10]Lord Hailsham, Elective dictatorship The Listener (21 October 1976) [11]N Parpworth,Constitutional and Administrative Law(7th, Oxford, 2012) 20 [12]N Parpworth,Constitutional and Administrative Law(7th, Oxford, 2012) 20 [13]C Montesquieu ,The Spirit of the Laws (Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought)(1st, Cambridge University Press, Oxford 1989) [14]Lord Hailsham, Elective dictatorship The Listener (21 October 1976) [15] The Lord Chief Justice 2007 Interview[2007] [16] V Bogdanor,The New British Constitution(1st, Hart, 2009) 66 [17]Lord Chief Justice (www.judiciary.gov.uk 2014) http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/about-the-judiciary/the-judiciary-in-detail/judicial+roles/judges/lord-chief-justice> accessed 11/01/2014 [18]Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (www.legislation.gov.uk 2005) http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/4/contents> accessed 11/01/2014 [19]V Bogdanor,The New British Constitution(1st, Hart, 2009) 63 [20]Allan,Constitutional Justiceas cited in A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 88 [21] D Watts,Understanding US/UK Government and Politics: A Comparative Guide(Oxford 2003) 36 [22] R Benwell and O Gay, The Separation of Powers (www.parliament.uk 2013) accessed 11/01/2014 [23] Bagehot,The English Constitution 65as cited in A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 78 [24] A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 84 [25] Blairs backbench rebellions (www.news.bbc.co.uk 2003) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2802791.stm> accessed 11th January 2014 [26] R v Home Secretary[1995] 2 AC 513as cited in A W Bradley and K D Ewing,Constitutional Administrative Law(15th, Pearson) 78

Pink Floyd Biography :: essays research papers

Pink Floyd may have been a revolutionary band from the late sixties to today, but you truly can not appreciate the band until you know of its members. First off is, David Gilmour. He was born on March sixth, nineteen forty-six. He has eight kids, four with a past wife, Ginger, and three with his current wife, Charlie (Charlie had a kid from a previous marriage). David was raised by easy going parents, and was given his own guitar at thirteen. As a young teenager he was brought to the U.S. because of his father's job. He started playing at military bases in a band named Jokers Wild, and working odd jobs including modeling. In his spare time he enjoys flying and collecting vintage aircrafts. Next is Nicholas Mason the band's drummer. Born on January twenty-seventh, nineteen forty-four, Nick has three kids with his wife, Annette. He was born to a rich family and from childhood accompanied his father to car shows. Nick attended the Frensham Heights boarding school at which he is still remembered as a mischief maker. Today he races and collects cars such as Ferraris, Bugattis, and Macerates. Another important player in this awesome band was Richard Wright. Born on July twenty-eighth, nineteen forty-five, and has three kids: Gala, Jamie, and Benjamin. Met Nick and Roger at he Regent Street Poly. He enjoys taking his sixty-five foot yacht out when he is presented the opportunity. The second most important person in the band was George Waters or Roger As he preferred. Born on September sixth, nineteen forty-three. Roger has two kids and has recently divorced for the third time. Roger's farther was killed in the war and he never had a chance to know him. He tried the navy and quit soon after joining. The single most important person that truly got the band persona started was Roger "Syd" Barrett. Born on January sixth, nineteen forty-six. Barrett had an above average childhood with supportive parents with a fair amount of money. He was a good student with a lot of friends. His parents encouraged his music with providing the supplies necessary for it. Syd was the founder of Pink Floyd and gave the band its own personality. Since the sixties the band had pushed their music to the limit, mixing pop, classical, and rock they had a ground breaking formula to success. Most fans know of only the hits that the band had in seventies, and of none of the controversy and pit falls the band suffered throughout their career.

The Underwriting Challenges Facing P.S.V. Insurers in Kenya

Rational Choice Theory: An Overview by Steven L. Green Professor of Economics and Statistics Chair, Department of Economics Baylor University Prepared for the Baylor University Faculty Development Seminar on Rational Choice Theory May 2002  © 2002, Steven L. Green It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried. -Winston ChurchillIt seems easy to accept that rationality involves many features that cannot be summarized in terms of some straightforward formula, such as binary consistency. But this recognition does not immediately lead to alternative characterizations that might be regarded as satisfactory, even though the inadequacies of the traditional assumptions of rational behaviour standardly used in economic theory have become hard to deny. It will not be an easy task to find replacements for the standard assumptions of rational behaviour †¦ hat can be found in the traditional economic literature, both because the identified deficiencies have been seen as calling for rather divergent remedies, and also because there is little hope of finding an alternative assumption structure that will be as simple and usable as the traditional assumptions of self-interest maximization, or of consistency of choice. – Amartya Sen (1990, p. 206) 1. Introduction Rational Choice Theory is an approach used by social scientists to understand human behavior.The approach has long been the dominant paradigm in economics, but in recent decades it has become more widely used in other disciplines such as Sociology, Political Science, and Anthropology. This spread of the rational choice approach beyond conventional economic issues is discussed by Becker (1976), Radnitzky and Bernholz (1987), Hogarth and Reder (1987), Swedberg (1990), and Green and Shapiro (1996). The main purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of rational choice theory for the non-specialist.I first outline the basic assumptions of the ra tional choice approach, then I provide several examples of its use. I have chosen my examples to illustrate how widely the rational choice method has been applied. In the paper I also discuss some ideas as to why the rational choice approach has become more prevalent in many disciplines in recent years. One idea is that the rational choice approach tends to provide opportunities for the novel confirmation of theories. I argue that these opportunities are the result primarily of the mathematical nature of the approach.I then consider several issues raised by rational choice theory. First, I compare the limited meaning of â€Å"rationality† in rational choice theory with the more general definitions of the term use by philosophers. Second, I describe some of the main criticisms that have been levied against the rational choice approach. Third, I consider the limitations of rational choice models as guides to public policy. Fourth, I review some Christian perspectives on the rat ional choice appraoch.I end the paper by outlining three sets of questions I would like us to discuss in the faculty development seminar. Before I proceed, an apology and a caveat are in order. I apologize for the length of this paper. The British publisher Lord Beaverbrook once apologized to a friend for sending a five- page letter, saying he did not have time to write a one-page letter. I have the same sentiment here. The caveat is that my discussion of the rational choice theory in this paper is necessarily simplistic, so the reader should not take it as definitive.If some element of the theory seems suspect in some way, there will nearly always be an advanced version of the theory published somewhere that is more subtle and nuanced. Most statements in this paper are subject to qualification along many lines, so the reader should view what I present here keeping in mind the goal of the paper, which is only to give the reader some sense of the overall flavor of the rational choice approach. 2. Basic Assumptions about Choice DeterminationRational Choice Theory generally begins with consideration of the choice behavior of one or more individual decision-making units – which in basic economics are most often consumers and/or firms. The rational choice theorist often presumes that the individual decision-making unit in question is â€Å"typical† or â€Å"representative† of some larger group such as buyers or sellers in a particular market. Once individual behavior is established, the analysis generally moves on to examine how individual choices interact to produce outcomes.A rational choice analysis of the market for fresh tomatoes, for example, would generally involve a description of (i) the desired purchases of tomatoes by buyers, (ii) the desired production and sales of tomatoes by sellers, and (iii) how these desired purchases and desired sales interact to determine the price and quantity sold of tomatoes in the market. The typical toma to buyer is faced with the problem of how much of his income (or more narrowly, his food budget) to spend on tomatoes as opposed to some other good or service.The typical tomato seller is faced with the problem of how many tomatoes to produce and what price to charge for them. Exactly how does the buyer choose how much of his income to spend on tomatoes? Exactly how does the seller choose how many tomatoes to produce and what price to charge? One could imagine a number of answers to these questions. They might choose based on custom or habit, with current decisions simply a continuation of what has been done (for whatever reason) in the past. The decisions might be made randomly.In contrast, the rational choice approach to this problem is based on the fundamental premise that the choices made by buyers and sellers are the choices that best help them achieve their objectives, given all relevant factors that are beyond their control. The basic idea behind rational choice theory is tha t people do their best under prevailing circumstances. What is meant, exactly, by â€Å"best achieve their objectives† and â€Å"do their best? † The discussion in this section will emphasize the choices of consumers. 1] The rational choice theory of consumer behavior is based on the following axioms regarding consumer preferences:[2] 1) The consumer faces a known set of alternative choices. 2) For any pair of alternatives (A and B, say), the consumer either prefers A to B, prefers B to A, or is indifferent between A and B. This is the axiom of completeness. 3) These preferences are transitive. That is, if a consumer prefers A to B and B to C, then she necessarily prefers A to C. If she is indifferent between A and B, and indifferent between B and C, then she is necessarily indifferent between A and C. ) The consumer will choose the most preferred alternative. [3] If the consumer is indifferent between two or more alternatives that are preferred to all others, he or sh e will choose one of those alternatives — with the specific choice from among them remaining indeterminate. When economists speak of â€Å"rational† behavior, they usually mean only behavior that is in accord with the above axioms. I consider the definition of â€Å"rationality† in more detail near the end of the paper below. Rational choice theories usually represent preferences with a utility function.This is a mathematical function that assigns a numerical value to each possible alternative facing the decision maker. As a simple example, suppose a consumer purchases two goods. Let x denote the number of units of good 1 consumed and y denote the number of units of good 2 consumed. The consumer’s utility function is given by U = U(x,y), where the function U( ·, ·) assigns a number (â€Å"utility†) to any given set of values for x and y. [4] The properties of a large number of specific function forms for U( ·, ·) have been considered. 5] Th e analysis is by no means restricted to two goods, though in many cases the analyst finds it convenient to assume that x is the good of interest is and y is a â€Å"composite good† representing consumption of everything but good x. The function U( ·, ·) is normally assumed to have certain properties. First, it is generally assumed that more is preferred to less – so that U rises with increases in x and with increases in y. Another way of saying this is to say that marginal utility is positive – where the term â€Å"marginal utility† is the change in utility associated with a small increase in the quantity of a good consumed.The second property of U( ·, ·) is that of diminishing marginal utility, which means that the (positive) marginal utility of each good gets smaller and smaller the more of the good that is being consumed in the first place. One’s first Dr. Pepper after a workout yields quite a lot of satisfaction. By the fifth or sixth, the additional satisfaction, while still positive, is much smaller. An important result in consumer theory is that a preference relationship can be represented by a utility function only if the relationship satisfies completeness and transitivity.The converse (that any complete and transitive preference relation may be represented by a utility function) is also true provided that the number of alternative choices is finite. [Mas-Collel, Whinston, and Green (1995, p. 9)] If the number of possible alternative choices is infinite, it may not be possible to represent the preference relation with a utility function. Rational choice analysis generally begins with the premise that some agent, or group of agents, is [are] maximizing utility – that is, choosing the preferred alternative. This is only part of the story, however.Another important element of the choice process is the presence of constraints. The presence of constraints makes choice necessary, and one virtue of rational c hoice theory is that it makes the trade-offs between alternative choices very explicit. A typical constraint in a simple one-period consumer choice problem is the budget constraint, which says that the consumer cannot spend more than her income. Multi-period models allow for borrowing, but in that case the constraint is that the consumer must be able to repay the loan in the future.The use of utility functions means the idea of agents making the preferred choices from among available alternatives is translated into a mathematical exercise in constrained optimization. That is, an agent is assumed to make the feasible choice (feasible in a sense that it is not prohibited by constraints) that results in the highest possible value of his or her utility function. Constrained optimization methods (based on either calculus or set theory) are well developed in mathematics. The solution to the constrained optimization problem generally leads to a decision rule.The decision rule shows how uti lity-maximizing choices vary with changes in circumstances such as changes in income or in the prices of goods. A third element of rational choice analysis involves assumptions about the environment in which choices are made. Simple economic models are often restricted to choices made in markets, with emphasis on how much of each good or service consumers want to purchase (or firms want to produce and sell) under any given set of circumstances. A fourth element of rational choice analysis is a discussion of how the choices of different agents are made consistent with one another.A situation with consistent choices in which each agent is optimizing subject to constraints is called equilibrium. In the fresh tomato market, for example, the choices of buyers and sellers are consistent if the quantity of tomatoes consumers want to purchase at the prevailing price is equal to the quantity that firms want to produce and sell at that price. In this as in other simple market models, price pl ays a key role in the establishment of equilibrium. If consumers want to purchase more than firms are producing, the price will be bid upward, which will induce more production by firms and reduce desired purchases by consumers.If consumers want to purchase less than firms are producing, the resulting glut will force prices down, which will reduce production by firms and increase purchases by consumers. Fifth and last, in the absence of strong reasons to do otherwise such as the imposition of price controls by the government, the analyst employing rational choice theory will generally assume that equilibrium outcomes in the model are adequate representations of what actually happens in the real world.This means, in the above example, that a rational choice theorist would explain changes in the actual price of tomatoes observed in the real world by looking for possible causes of changes in the equilibrium price of tomatoes in her model. Extensions The basic rational choice theory des cribed above has been extended in a number of ways. I will consider four important ones in this section, though there are of course many others. First, the basic theory accounts only for choice at a given time – that is, the model is static.In contrast, a dynamic (or intertemporal) model allows the agent to plan for the future as well as make choices in the present. In a dynamic model, the agent is still assumed to maximize utility, but the concept of utility is generalized to include not only present satisfaction but also future satisfaction. The agent does not just make choices today – he makes a plan for current and future choices. In this case, it may well be â€Å"rational† to sacrifice (e. g. , consume less or work more) today in order to obtain some better outcome tomorrow. The dynamic formulation is an essential element of theories of saving and investment.One issue that arises in dynamic models is that of discounting. In most dynamic models, the agents under consideration are assumed to prefer (other things equal) a given level of consumption in the present to a given level of consumption in the future. Consider a model with two periods, 1 and 2. Let U1 denote the agent’s utility in period 1 and U2 denote utility in period 2. (U1 and U2 can depend on a number of factors, some of which can be controlled by the agent. ) The agent would then be assumed to formulate a plan for periods 1 and 2 to maximize the sum V = U1 + ?  ·U2, where 0 < ? < 1 is the â€Å"discount factor. [6] A specification of ? < 1 means that a given utility is worth less to the agent in the future than in the present, and is denoted a â€Å"positive rate of time preference† or simply â€Å"time preference. † A justification for time preference is given by Olson and Bailey (1981). Elster (1984, pp. 66ff) summarizes the opposing view that â€Å"†¦ for an individual the very fact of having time preferences, over and above what is justif ied by the fact that we are mortal, is irrational and perhaps immoral as well. † In any case, dynamic models with positive time preference are pervasive in the rational choice literature.The basic rational choice model assumes all outcomes are known with certainty. A second extension of the basic model involves explicit treatment of uncertainty. This is important in rational choice models of crime, for example, where a rational agent is assumed to consider the chance he or she will be apprehended while committing a criminal act. The rational choice model is extended to allow for uncertainty by assuming the agent maximizes expected utility. Uncertainty is characterized by a probability distribution that assigns a likelihood (probability) to each possible outcome.Suppose there are two possible outcomes (for example, the prospective criminal is apprehended while committing a crime, or not apprehended while committing the crime), which we can denote outcome A and outcome B. Let pA denote the probability that outcome A will occur pB denote the probability of outcome B. With these as the only possible outcomes, it is clear that pA + pB = 1 — that is, there is a 100% chance that either A or B will occur. Let U(A) be the agent’s utility with outcome A and U(B) be the agent’s utility with outcome B.The agent is then assumed to maximize expected utility, which is the sum of utility in each outcome weighted by the probability that outcome will occur: V = pA ·U(A) + pB ·U(B). In general, the choices of the agent can affect pA and pB as well as U(A) and U(B). A related (and third) area in which the rational choice model is extended involves incomplete information. In the basic model described above, the agent knows perfectly all the qualities of the goods under her consideration. More generally, an agent may have to make choices when she does not have full information.A university generally does not have full information about the future rese arch productivity of a new assistant professor, for example, and a used car buyer cannot be certain that he is not driving a â€Å"lemon† off the lot. The fourth area in which the basic rational choice model is extended involves strategic behavior. This generally occurs in situations in which there are only a few agents. The key issue is that each agent must take into account the likely effect of his actions on the decisions of other agents, all of whom are looking at the situation the same way.A classic ongoing example of this kind of interaction involves the crude-oil production decisions of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Acting collectively, OPEC members have an incentive to restrict production to keep the world price of crude-oil high. Thus each OPEC country is given a production quota – a limit on the amount it can produce. Each country acting individually, however, has an incentive to â€Å"cheat† on its quota and thereby be able to sell more crude-oil at the high price. This will only be successful if the other countries maintain their quotas, however, thereby keeping the price high.Thus when a country is contemplating the breach of a quota, it must consider how other member countries may react. The branch of economics that deals with strategic interactions is called game theory. [7] 3. A Brief Description of the Rational Choice Method Like most scholarship, rational choice analysis usually begins with a question. What determines church attendance? Are suicide rates affected by the state of the economy? Do seat belt laws make highways safer? Under what circumstances are â€Å"cold turkey† methods necessary to end addictions?Why are drivers of certain minority groups more likely to be pulled over by police? Which soldiers are most likely to suffer casualties in a war? Why can’t Yasser Arafat and Ariel Sharon just get along? Why did large mammals become extinct in the Pelistocene era? When are workers most likely to â€Å"shirk† their job responsibilities? Does a reported decline in â€Å"consumer confidence† portend a slowdown in the economy? Varian (1997, p. 4) describes the model-building process as follows: †¦ all economic models are pretty much the same. There are some economic agents. They make choices in order to advance their objectives.The choices have to satisfy various constraints so there’s something that adjusts to make all these choices consistent. This basic structure suggests a plan of attack: Who are the people making choices? What are the constraints they face? How do they interact? What adjusts if the choices aren’t mutually consistent? I will provide a slightly more detailed description here. Rational choice analysis may be characterized as working through the following steps: 1) Identify the relevant agents and make assumptions about their objectives. 2) Identify the constraints faced by each agent. ) Determine the â⠂¬Å"decision rules† of each agent, which characterize how an agent’s choices respond to changes of one kind or another – for example, how the quantity of tomatoes purchased might change with price or income. This task is usually accomplished mathematically by the solution of a constrained optimization problem. 4) Determine how the decision rules of various agents may be made consistent with one another and thereby characterize the equilibrium of the model. [8] Effective analysis of complex interactions between agents normally involves the use of mathematical methods, which can sometimes be quite sophisticated. ) Explore how the equilibrium of the model changes in response to various external events. That is, determine the predictions or implications of the model. Again, this step can involve substantial use of mathematics. 6) Examine whether the predictions determined in step (5) are consistent with actual experience. This step often involves the statistical anal ysis of data and can involve sophisticated techniques (to control sample selection bias, for example). 7) Draw conclusions and any implications (for government policy, for example) implied by (6).It is often the case that the question at hand may be addressed by reference to standard theoretical results (e. g. , people generally want to consume less of a product when its price increases). In these circumstances the analyst often will not specify and solve a rational choice model explicitly. Instead, she will assume the reader understands that the model could be specified and solved if necessary and would have conventional implications. A. Preference Specification In rational choice theory behavior follows from the pursuit of objectives, so preference specification is crucial.Frank (1997, p. 18) describes two general approaches. The self-interest standard of rationality â€Å"says rational people consider only costs and benefits that accrue directly to themselves. † The presen t-aim standard of rationality â€Å"says rational people act efficiently in pursuit of whatever objectives they hold at the moment of choice. † Frank contends that neither approach is obviously satisfactory. Many people would seem to care about more than their own material well-being, so the selfish egoism implied by self-interest standard is probably too narrow.In contrast, the present-aim standard puts no restrictions at all on preference formation, which means that anything can be explained by an appeal to preferences. Again quoting Frank (1997, p. 18): Suppose, for example, that we see someone drink a gallon of used crankcase oil and keel over dead. The present-aim approach can â€Å"explain† this behavior by saying that the person must have really liked crankcase oil. The main strength of the self-interest standard is that the associated preference specifications are generally straightforward.This approach, which dominates basic economic theory, usually assumes th at utility depends only on the consumption of material goods and services and that, for any given good or service, more is strictly preferred to less. Bergstrom (forthcoming) presents an analysis based on evolutionary considerations showing circumstances under which selfish behavior will become dominant. The present-aim standard has also been used in rational choice models, but its use is nowhere near as prevalent as use of the self-interest standard. The reasons are threefold.First, the self-interest standard has often been successful in the sense of yielding predictions that are consistent with experience. Second, there is no compelling way to specify preferences when the only criterion is â€Å"more than self-interest matters. † (People may care about others, but are teh jealous or altruistic? ) Third, self-interest standard models are more tractable analytically and are more prone than present-aim models to imply specific observable predictions. In particular, models in w hich agents care about each other in some way are prone to have multiple equilibria (sometimes an infinity of equilibria).Frank (1987) makes an evolutionary argument that preferences should include concerns for others. Bergstrom (1999) explores some possible solutions to the â€Å"multiple equilibrium† problem. B. Theory Revision It many instances step (6) will find that one or more of the predictions of a model are not borne out by the data. In these cases, the typical rational choice theorist will not even consider abandoning the assumption of utility maximization. Instead, she will conclude that she must have missed something about constraints or preferences and attempt to revise her theory accordingly.This issue of theory revision is very tricky, and space limitations (not to mention by limited understanding) permit only a brief discussion here. Suppose a theory T has prediction P, when in fact available data indicate the opposite (not P, or ~P). The theory might then be revised in some way to become theory T’, where T’ predicts ~P rather than P. My impression is that most economists would much rather change assumptions about constraints rather than change assumptions about preferences. 9] This viewpoint reflects a desire to avoid meaningless tautologies such as â€Å"he consumed more tomatoes because his preferences changed in such a way that he wanted to consume more tomatoes. † One can explain any choice in this way. Hausman (1984) summarizes the thinking of Lakatos (1970) as follows: A modification of a theory is an improvement if it is not ad hoc. Modifications may be ad hoc in three ways. First of all, a modification of a theory may have no new testable implications at all. Lakatos regards such modifications as completely empty and unscientific.Modifications that are not ad hoc in this sense are â€Å"theoretically progressive. † It may be, however, that the testable implications of the theoretically progressive mod ifications are not confirmed by experiments or observations. In that case modifications are theoretically progressive but not empirically progressive. They are ad hoc in the second sense. An extended process of theory modification is progressive overall if the modifications are uniformly theoretically progressive and intermittently empirically progressive.As one is modifying one’s theory in the hope of improving it, modifications must always have new testable implications, and those testable implications must sometimes be borne out by experience. But one crucial feature of science has been left out. Throughout this history of repeated modifications, there must be some element of continuity. No theoretical progress in economics is made if I modify monetary by theory by adding to it the claim that copper conducts electricity. The expanded theory has testable (and confirmed) implications, but something arbitrary has simply been tacked on.Such a modification is ad hoc in the thir d sense. One needs to recognize the role of something like a Kuhnian â€Å"paradigm. † Modifications of theories must be made in the â€Å"right† way. (p. 23) I believe that most rational choice theorists would adhere to these criteria for effective theory modification. As Stigler and Becker (1977) note: What we assert is not that we are clever enough to make illuminating applications of utility-maximizing theory to all important phenomena – not even our entire generation of economists is clever enough to do that.Rather, we assert that this traditional approach of the economist offers guidance in tackling these problems – and that no other approach of remotely comparable generality and power is available. (pp. 76-7) †¦. We also claim †¦ that no significant behavior has been illuminated by assumptions of differences in tastes. Instead, they, along with assumptions of unstable tastes, have been a convenient crutch to lean on when the analysis has bogged down. They give the appearance of considered judgement (sic), yet really have only been ad hoc arguments that disguise analytical failures. p. 89) In any case, one can change assumptions about preferences only if the new assumptions not only fix the failure of the previous model (that is, they imply ~P rather than P) but also have new predictions that are not rejected by the data. C. Why is the Rational Choice Approach so Popular? [10] Defenders of the rational choice approach – e. g. , Becker (1976) — argue that the approach is useful because it tends to generate non-tautological predictions. Suppose a scholar wants to account for some observed phenomenon P.For example, P might be the fact that wage rates paid to workers (after adjustment for inflation) tend to rise during good economic times [expansions] and fall during bad economic times [recessions]. It is generally quite easy to develop a theory T that predicts P, especially for someone who has studied P ca refully. In fact, many such theories can be constructed. Importantly, however, it is generally not good scientific practice to use the same data to both formulate and test a hypothesis or theory. If so, all theories would be confirmed.Instead, good methodology will develop a theory T that not only predicts P, but that also has other predictions Q1, Q2, Q3, †¦ Ideally, many of these predictions will be observable – that is, one should be able to determine if Q1, Q2, Q3 †¦. do or do not in fact occur. If these predictions are not observed – say not Q1 (~Q1) is observed rather than Q1 – the theory may be judged inadequate and either revised or discarded. If I may be allowed a lapse into imprecise language, a theory can never be right if there is not at least some possibility in the first place for it to be wrong. 11] This is not to say that rational choice theorists are pristine with respect to this requirement. The history of economic thought is no doubt full of bad theories (â€Å"bad† in the sense that one or more key predictions are not consistent with the data) that have been saved by ad hoc modifications. It is to say that proponents of the rational choice approach contend that ad hoc theorizing and the resulting empty tautologies may be less prevalent with their approach than with other approaches.I certainly agree that the rational choice method does in fact tend to generate many testable predictions, and in Sections 4 and 5 below I discuss several illustrative examples. Despite the fact that advocates of rational choice theory justify their approach in this way, I know of no study that explicitly compares methodologies along these lines. Is it really the case that rational choice models have more non-tautological implications than the models implied by other approaches? I am not sure anyone has examined this issue carefully.I believe the rational choice methodology is gaining in popularity not just because it tends t o generate lots of observable predictions, but also because it tends to generate novel predictions. This is an extension of the idea of novel confirmation. Novel confirmation embodies the sentiment expressed by Descartes (1644) that we know hypotheses are correct â€Å"only when we see that we can explain in terms of them, not merely the effects we originally had in mind, but also all other phenomena which we did not previously think. † [Quoted by Musgrave (1974), p. 1)] Campbell and Vinci (1983, p. 15) begin their discussion of novel confirmation as follows: Philosophers of science generally agree that when observational equivalence supports a theory, the confirmation is much stronger when the evidence is ‘novel’. The verification of an unusual prediction, for example, tends to provide much stronger confirmation than the explanation of something already known of something the theory was designed to account for. This view is so familiar that Michael Gardner has r ecently described it as ‘a lengthy tradition – not to say a consensus – in the philosophy of science. ’As seems to often be the case in the philosophy of science, the usefulness of novel confirmation is not as well established as the above quote implies. Campbell and Vinci (1983) also note that â€Å"†¦ the notion of novel confirmation is beset with a theoretical puzzle about how the degree of confirmation can change without any change in the evidence, hypothesis, or auxiliary assumptions. † (p. 315) Kahn, Landsburg, and Stockman (1992) maintain that the question of novel confirmation can be addressed meaningfully only in the presence â€Å"of an explicit model by which hypotheses are generated. † (p. 04) They find that the idea of novel confirmation is valid if there are unobservable differences in the abilities of scientists or if there is some chance of error in observation. [12] Campbell and Vinci (1993) distinguish between epistemic novelty and heuristic novelty. Epistemic novelty occurs when a theory has an implication that would be considered highly improbable in the absence of the theory. There is of course a question over the proper definition of â€Å"highly improbable. † Heuristic novelty occurs when the evidence predicted by a theory plays no heuristic role in the formation of the theory.Descartes would seem to be referring to heuristic novelty in the above quote. Rational choice theory is a useful methodology in part (perhaps in large part) because it tends to lead the researcher to novel implications, thereby making novel confirmation more likely than may be the case with other methodologies. Space and time considerations do not allow me to attempt a full-blown analysis of this conjecture, which in any case I am not really qualified to undertake because of my limited exposure to alternative social science methodologies not based on rational choice and my limited knowledge of the philosophy of s cience.In Sections 4 and 5 below I describe several examples of rational choice theory and some associated novel implications. I should note that the mathematical nature of rational choice theory would appear (to me) to be crucial here. Mathematics allows the theorist to make some sense out of complicated interactions between decision-making units that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to untangle. It is precisely those kinds of situations in which rational choice theories are most likely to have novel implications, because the implications are not immediately apparent even to scholars with knowledge, experience, and intuition.We now proceed to Section 4, which provides a detailed discussion of a rational choice model of church attendance. Section 5 gives shorter summaries of several other rational choice models, including models of suicide, auto safety regulation, addiction, racial profiling, Congressional influence on military assignments, political revolutions, megafauna extinction, and the predictability of consumption spending. 4. A Detailed Example: Church AttendanceAzzi and Ehrenberg (1975) develop a rational choice model of church attendance. This is a classic paper, which Iannaccone (1998, p. 1480) calls â€Å"†¦ the first formal model for religious participation (within any discipline) and †¦ the foundation for nearly all subsequent economic models of religious behavior. † [Italics in original. ] Their analysis begins with the assumption that the utility of a household consisting of two members, a husband and a wife, is given by: (1)U = U(C1, s1, C2, s2, †¦ , Ct, st, †¦ Cn, sn, q), where Ci is the household’s consumption of market goods and services in period i (i = 1, †¦ n), and si denotes religious participation in period i. The model assumes â€Å"for simplicity† that both members of the household know how long they will live and that both will die at date n. This is a dynamic model, because t he household cares about future as well as current consumption. The remaining variable in the household utility function, q, is the â€Å"expected value of the household’s afterlife consumption. Azzi and Ehrenberg assume that church attendance follows from a â€Å"salvation motive† (the desire to increase afterlife consumption) and a â€Å"social pressure motive† (where church membership and participation increases the chances that an individual will be successful in business), rather than necessarily a pure â€Å"consumption motive† (people simply enjoy the time they spend at church). Consumption in period i (any year during which the husband and wife are alive) is given by: (2)Ci = C(xt, h1t, h2t), here xt is denotes the consumption of goods and services purchases in markets, while h1t and h2t are the amounts of time devoted by the husband and wife, respectively, to market-based consumption. The idea here is that satisfaction involves not only the purc hase of a good (such as a television) but also time spent using the good. The social value of church attendance in period i, denoted by si, is determined as follows: (3)si = s(r1i, r2i) where r1i and r2i denote the time spent on church-related activities by the husband and wife, respectively, in year i.People get more current satisfaction from going to church the more time they devote to church-related activities. After-life consumption q is determined as follows: (3)q = q(r11, r12, r21, r22, †¦ , r1n, r2n), That is, the more time spent on church-related activities during all periods of life means the more the household members will enjoy their afterlife. Azzi and Ehrenberg (p. 33, fn. 7) note that â€Å"Our household’s view of the afterlife is not one of an all-or-nothing proposition (heaven or hell), it is rather that there is a continuum of possible outcomes. †The choices of the household are constrained by time and money. The two household members can allocate time in labor [which generates income that can be used to purchase the goods and services denoted by xt in equation (1) above], consumption-related activities [reflected in h1t and h2t in equation (2) above], and church-related activities [reflected in the r1i and r2i in equation (3) above]. The constraint here is that each day has 24 hours. Hence the couple can spend more time on church-related activities only if they spend less time earning income and/or consuming.The second constraint in the model says basically that, over the course of their lives, the couple cannot spend more than their combined income. â€Å"Over the course of their lives† means that it is possible for them to borrow early in life as long as they repay the loan (with interest) later in life. It is also possible to lend early in life, which means that consumption can exceed income later. The amount of labor income the couple earns depends on the amount of time spent working by the husband and wife and t he wage rate each is paid.The model also allows for â€Å"non-labor income† in each period, which might reflect investment returns. The distinction between labor and non-labor income turns out to be rather interesting and important with respect to church attendance. Azzi and Ehrenberg’s analysis is complicated in some respects and simple in others. It is complicated because it considers consumption over several periods rather than just one, and it allows for â€Å"consumption† to depend on time (the h1t and h2t) as well as purchases of goods and services in the market (xt).The model is simple in that it does not consider the â€Å"supply side. † That is, the model simply assumes that the household can â€Å"buy† any amount that it likes of consumption goods (xt) and that there are no effective limits on religious participation (st). The power of the rational choice approach is that rational choice models tend to have lots of observable implications , some of which are novel. The Azzi and Ehrenberg model implies that: (i) The frequency of church attendance increases with age; †¢ (ii) Females attend church more frequently than males; †¢ (iii) Nonwhites attend church more frequently than whites; †¢ (iv) People who believe in an afterlife attend church more frequently; †¢ (v) Having a spouse of the same major religion increases participation; †¢ (vi) As health deteriorates church attendance declines; †¢ (vii) An increase in the number of pre-school age children present in the household reduces church attendance; †¢ (viii) An increase in the number of school-age children present in the household increases church attendance; (ix) Females’ hours devoted to religious activities will rise more rapidly with age than will the hours devoted by males to religious activities; †¢ (x) For males who show sharp earnings increases in their 20s, religious participation may first decline with age and then increase; †¢ (xi) An increase in nonlabor income will increase religious participation; and †¢ (xii) The effect of a proportionate shift in wages (say, a 10% increase in the present and all future periods) on church attendance is ambiguous. Many of these implications are not surprising, but (ix) would appear to be somewhat novel.Item (ii) means that 40 year old women will attend church more frequently than 40 year old men. Item (ix) means that the change (increase) in church participation associated with aging from 40 to 50 will be greater among women than among men. Item (ii) follows directly from the fact that females tend to have lower wages. Thus if one could find couples in which the wife earns more than the man, the model predicts for those couples that the wife will probably not be inclined to attend church more frequently. Also, allowing for an uncertain time of death may overturn (i): â€Å"†¦ nce an individual is faced with a relatively high probabilit y of death in a period it may become optimal for him to concentrate his religious participation as early as possible, since he may not survive to ‘invest’ in future periods. † (p. 38) 5. Several Brief Examples This section presents a brief overview of several applications of rational choice theory. Unlike the church attendance example above, in which the form of the utility function was written out explicitly, the discussions in this section for the most part present only brief descriptions of the relevant optimization problems and some of the resulting implications. A.Suicide Hamermesh and Soss (1974) develop a rational choice theory of suicide. They assume that the utility of an individual in any given period depends positively on â€Å"consumption† and negatively on â€Å"a technological relation describing the cost each period of maintaining [oneself] at some minimum level of subsistence. † (p. 85) â€Å"Consumption† is a function of age a nd of â€Å"permanent income,† which is a measure of current and expected future income. Individuals are assumed to vary exogenously (according to a probability distribution) in their distastes for suicide – that is, some individuals are more averse to suicide than others.This framework implies that â€Å"†¦ an individual kills himself when the total discounted lifetime utility remaining to him reaches zero. † (p. 85). Thus in this model we have a rational individual who is forward looking, considering not only his present utility but what his future utility is likely to be. If total utility over the rest of his life is higher with suicide and life ending in the present than it is with the continuation of life, suicide is the â€Å"rational† option. Here are some of the major implications of the model. (i) The suicide rate should rise with age. †¢ (ii) The suicide rate should fall with increases in permanent income[13] and decreases in the unemp loyment rate. †¢ (iii) The marginal absolute effect of permanent income on suicide declines as permanent income increases. The first two effects are by no means surprising, but the third effect is certainly by no means obvious ex ante (at least to me). (ii) means that suicide rates will fall as income rises. (iii) means that the effect of increases in income gets smaller the larger income is to begin with.A $10,000 raise is much more likely to prevent suicide if the person is earning $50,000 to begin with than if the person is earning $150,000. This is quite plausible, but the point is that it is not something most analysts would think about ex ante. B. Auto Safety Regulation. Peltzman (1975) considers the likely effects of â€Å"legally mandated installation of various safety devices[14] on automobiles. †[15] The devices in question for the most part were designed to reduce the damages caused by accidents rather than to reduce the likelihood that accidents occur. Peltzm an notes that the auto safety literature estimates the impact of afety mandates by assuming that (i) the mandates have no effect on the probability that an accident will occur, and (ii) the mandates have no effect on the voluntary demand for safety devices. In effect, the regulations were implemented based on analysis that assumed the same number and nature of accidents would occur, but that automobiles would be better equipped to protect drivers and passengers from injury and death. He notes that â€Å"[t]echnological studies imply that annual highway deaths would be 20 percent greater without legally mandated installation of various safety devices on automobiles. (p. 677) Peltzman considers the behavior of a typical driver and postulates quite reasonably that he or she is made worse off by traffic accidents – or, equivalently, that he or she benefits from safety. Peltzman also assumes, however, that the driver benefits from what he calls â€Å"driving intensity,† by which he means â€Å"more speed, thrills, etc. † (p. 681). Other things equal, the driver can obtain more driving intensity only by driving less safely. Thus the driver faces a trade-off between two goods, intensity and safety, in which more of one can be obtained only by giving up some of the other.This kind of trade-off is in standard fare for rational choice theorists. In basic consumer choice theory the consumer with a given income can obtain more of one good only if he or she consumes less of some other good (or goods). The standard consumer choice problem also considers what happens when the consumer’s income rises. Rational choice theory predicts that, in the absence of very unusual circumstances, the consumer will buy more of most goods when income rises. Put another way, it is typically not the case that a consumer will allocate one hundred percent of an increase in income to increased consumption of a single good.Income increases tend to be â€Å"spread aro und† over several goods. Peltzman argues that the imposition of mandated safety devices in automobiles is rather like an increase in income in the sense that the devices make it possible for drivers to obtain both more safety and more intensity. Technological studies in effect assume that drivers will respond by consuming only more safety, but rational choice theory indicates that drivers can also respond by consuming more intensity (that is, by driving less safely). The extent to which drivers choose between more safety and more intensity is ultimately an empirical question.Suppose drivers choose to increase consumption of both safety and intensity — which is what economists have come to expect in these kinds of situations. In this case, the rational choice model implies that the number of total driving accidents[16] should rise because of increased driving intensity, while the average amount of damage per accident – as reflected, say in the number of fatalities among passengers – should decrease because of the safety improvements. This means that it is actually possible for total traffic fatalities to rise as a result of the safety mandates!This would happen if the increase in the number of accidents is sufficiently large relative to the decrease in average damage per accident. Once again we have an example of a rational choice model yielding implications that are not obvious ex ante. The novel predictions here are that the imposition of auto safety mandates (i) should increase the occurrence of traffic accidents, and (ii) should decrease the relative frequency of accidents involving passenger fatalities, and (iii) may increase or decrease the total number of traffic fatalities.After extensive empirical testing based on several data sets, Peltzman concludes that â€Å"regulation appears not to have reduced highway deaths. † (p. 714). There is indeed some evidence that the number of deaths increased, but in most cases that ev idence is not strong. In any case, there is no evidence that the regulations decreased traffic fatalities. Peltzman also finds that the safety mandates were followed by an increase in the number of accidents involving pedestrians and by an increase in the number of accidents involving only property damage with no injury to vehicle occupants.A related paper by McCormick and Tollison (1984) considers the effect on arrest rates of an increase in the number of police officers. Rational choice theory indicates that the quality of law enforcement should not be judged by arrest rates alone. If the number of police officers increases and as a result the probability of arrest for any given crime increases, rational prospective criminals will see the expected cost of crime rise and therefore undertake fewer criminal acts.Total arrests reflect both the number of criminal acts (which should fall) and the percentage of criminal acts for which an arrest is made (which should rise). Total arrests rise only if the latter effect is stronger than the former. McCormick and Tollison test their theory using data from the Atlantic Coast Conference in men’s college basketball. In 1978, the conference increased the number of officials from two to three. In this context, one may think of officials as police officers and fouls called as arrests.McCormick and Tollison find that this 50 percent increase in the number of officials caused a 34 percent reduction in the number of fouls called (p. 229). When my son Aaron (now almost 5 years old) was an infant, he attended the Baylor Child Development Center during the day. In the room where the teacher changed diapers, there was a pad on the counter but no restraint of any kind (such as a belt or guard rail). When I asked the director about this, she said that there was no restraint because she (the director) did not want to give the teacher a false sense of security.With a belt or rail, the teacher might be tempted to walk away for â €Å"just a minute† to check on something in the room. Whether restraints increase or decrease changing table accidents is an empirical question, though Pelzman’s analysis suggests the director made the right decision. C. Addiction Stigler and Becker (1977) propose a rational choice theory of addiction, a theory subsequently elaborated by Becker and Murphy (1988). In this theory, â€Å"a person is potentially addicted to [some good] c if an increase in his current consumption of c increases his future consumption of c. (Becker and Murphy, 1988, p. 81) The key feature of these models is that a consumer’s utility in any given period depends not just on consumption in that period, but also on â€Å"consumption capital†. Consumption capital is essentially the consumer’s ability to enjoy a particular good, which depends on past consumption of the good and perhaps on other factors. If past consumption enhances current enjoyment ability, the addition is s aid to be beneficial. This might be the case, for example, with listening to classical music. The more one listens to classical music, the greater one’s capacity to appreciate it.Stigler and Becker note that beneficial consumption capital might also be positively influenced by education. Highly educated people might have a greater capacity to enjoy things like classical music, opera, and art. If past consumption reduces current enjoyment ability, the addition is said to be harmful. This is the case with substances such as heroin and other substances normally considered to be addictive. The more heroin a person consumes in the present, the less will be his or her future enjoyment (â€Å"high†) from any given amount of heroin consumption in the future. 17] The formal setup in Stigler and Becker (1977, p. 78) is relatively simple. First consider beneficial addiction – to, say, classical music. Consumer utility (U) depends positively on two goods, M (music appreciat ion) and Z (other goods): U = U(M, Z). Music appreciation depends positively on the time allocated to music listening â„ ¢ and on music consumption capital (Sm): M = M(tm, Sm). Music consumption capital at date j, Smj, depends positively on the time allocated to music consumption in the past, Mj-1, Mj-2, †¦. and positively (perhaps) on the person’s level of education at time j (denoted Ej): Smj = S(Mj-1, Mj-2, †¦ , Ej). The addition is beneficial if Smj depends on positively on the past values of M. Alternatively, for harmful addition we may replace M with H, where H denotes the consumption of a good such as heroin. In this case, consumption capital S depends negatively on past values of H. The elaborated model of Becker and Murphy (1988) views addictive behavior as a situation in which the consumption of a particular good begins to increase rapidly. [18] Their model has a number of implications. Perhaps he most interesting is their finding that the demand for ad dictive goods should be quite sensitive to permanent changes in price (where the â€Å"price† of illegal goods includes the expected costs associated with apprehension by authorities, as well as any foregone earnings that may result from becoming addicted and, say, unable to work), but not necessarily to temporary price changes. A second implication is that strong addictions, if they are to end, must end suddenly (â€Å"cold turkey†). â€Å"Rational persons end stronger addictions more rapidly than weaker ones. † (p. 692). Other implications are that â€Å"addicts often go on binges† (p. 75), â€Å"present-oriented individuals are potentially more addicted to harmful goods than future-oriented individuals† (p. 682), and â€Å"temporary events can permanently ‘hook’ rational persons to addictive goods† (p. 691). Stigler and Becker (1977) and Becker and Murphy (1988) do not perform empirical tests of their models of rational addic tion. Tests have been performed by other authors, however. Because good consumption data are not available for illegal substances, tests have focused on tobacco and caffeine. Tests based on tobacco consumption are reported by Becker, Grossman, and Murphy (1994), and Keeler, et. l. (1993). A test based on caffeine consumption is reported by Olekalns and Bardsley (1996). These tests are generally supportive of the rational addiction theory. Becker and Murphy (1988) note that with a simple extension their model can explain cycles of overeating and dieting. Their basic analysis assumes there is only one kind of consumption capital. Suppose that with respect to food there are instead two types of consumption capital, one of which is simply the person’s weight (which might be called â€Å"health capital†) and the other of which is â€Å"eating capital. That is, eating can be both harmful and beneficial in the senses defined above. As eating increases, health capital falls ( weight gain has detrimental effects on health) and eating capital rises (the capacity to enjoy food is greater the more one eats). Under appropriate conditions, utility maximization results in cycles of dieting and binging. [19] Rational addiction theory has been applied to the analysis of religious behavior – see Iannaccone (1984, 1990) and Durkin and Greeley (1991). Iannaccone (1998) summarizes this approach. Utility depends on â€Å"religious commodities† produced, the value of which depends on â€Å"religious human capital. The stock of religious human capital depends on time and money devoted to religious activities in the past. These models have the following predictions, â€Å"nearly all of which receive strong empirical support† (Iannaccone, 1998, p. 1481): †¢ Individuals tend to move toward the denominations and beliefs of their parents as they mature and start to make their own decisions about religion; †¢ People are more likely to switch de nominations early in life; †¢ People tend to marry within religions; if they do not, one spouse is likely to adopt the religion of the other.D. Racial Profiling Law enforcement authorities in many jurisdictions have been criticized in recent years for racial bias in their choice of cars to search for illegal drugs and other contraband. [20] The fact that police are more inclined to stop and search cars driven by members of certain minority groups is well established. Knowles, Persico, and Todd (2001) develop a rational choice model that â€Å"suggests an empirical test for distinguishing whether this disparity is due to racial prejudice or to the police’s objective to maximize arrests. In their model, the typical police officer â€Å"maximizes the total number of convictions minus a cost of searching cars. † (p. 209) Motorists â€Å"consider the probability of being searched in deciding whether to carry contraband. † (p. 209) At least some motorists percei ve a benefit to carrying contraband. If they do carry, their expected benefit is positive if they are not searched and negative (that is, there is a positive expected cost) if they are searched. The model implies that if police officers are not racially biased, the frequency of guilt among motorists conditional on being searched will be independent of race. 21] In their empirical analysis based on 1,590 searches on a stretch of Interstate 95 in Maryland between January 1995 and January 1999, Knowles, Persico, and Todd find support for this proposition. They interpret this result as â€Å"the absence of racial prejudice against African Americans† (p. 212). The fact remains, however, that African Americans are searched more frequently than whites. If this does not arise from racial bias by police officers, then why does it occur?One possibility noted by the authors is that â€Å"race may proxy for other variables that are unobservable by the policy officer and are correlated w ith both race and crime. Possible examples of such unobservables are the schooling level or the earnings potential of the motorist. † (p. 212) While one may quibble with some elements of this study, for our present purposes the main point is that the rational choice theory, at least potentially, yielded implications that allowed the analyst to gain some insight (if not a final resolution) into the issue of racial profiling. E. Congressional Influence on Military AssignmentsPrior to the 1960s, economic theory tended to view politicians and other government officials (bureaucrats) as disinterested observers and regulators of economic activity. A group of economics led by Nobel Laureate James Buchanan then developed a branch of economics known as public choice theory, which views government officials as self-interested maximizers. Goff and Tollison (1987) take a public choice approach to gain some understanding of casualties in the Vietnam War. The typical soldier is assumed to p refer not to be placed in risky combat situations, and this preference is shared by the soldier’s family.A solider (or more likely his family) might therefore try to gain a low-risk assignment by asking for intervention in military decisions by his Senator or Representative. Senators and Representatives are assumed to desire re-election, which implies a desire to please their constituencies. The ability of a Senator or Representative to have this kind of influence, however, varies according to committee assignments, ties to the military/industrial complex, etc. Goff and Tollison assume that political influence depends on seniority, with more seniority implying more influence.Taken together, all these assumptions have the straightforward implication that soldiers from states with more senior (and hence more influential) Senators and Representatives should, other things equal, have experienced fewer casualties in Vietnam than soldiers from states with less senior (and therefore less influential) Senators and Representatives. Their empirical analysis (using data from January 1961 to September 1972) supports the hypothesis: In the House, the Mississippi delegation had an average seniority of 27. 7, while Hawaii had an average seniority of 61. . [A seniority ranking of 1 indicates the member had the highest seniority in his or her party. ] In terms of lives, this represents about 6 fewer war deaths for every 100,000 of population in Mississippi relative to Hawaii. Ceteris paribus, this difference in House seniority leads to a 55 percent higher casualty rate for Hawaii than Mississippi. †¦ In the Senate, Arkansas had an average seniority of 6. 2, and Maryland had an average seniority of 45. 4. Other things equal †¦, this difference leads to an 86 percent higher casualty rate for Maryland than for Arkansas.In terms of lives, this translates into about 7 more war deaths for every 100,000 of population in Maryland than in Arkansas. (pp. 319-20) In this case, the value of the rational choice approach is not so much in the fact that it yields surprising answers to a well-established question, but that it suggests a unique question to ask in the first place. It is by no means obvious that someone not thinking about self-interested Senators and Representatives would even think to ask the question addressed by Goff and Tollison. F. Ideology and IntransigenceRoemer (1985) applies game theory to the analysis of political revolutions. Specifically, he presents a two-player game between â€Å"Lenin† and the â€Å"Tsar. † Lenin’s objective is to maximize the probability of revolution, while the Tsar’s objective is to minimize that probability. As in any game-theoretic setting, when making decisions each player keeps in mind how the other player might react. Lenin tries to create revolution by lining up coalitions, where people are induced to join a coalition with the promise of income redistribution.The Tsar tri es to prevent revolution by promising to punish anyone who participates in revolutionary activities (assuming the revolution attempt is unsuccessful). Increased penalties reduce the number of individuals who are likely to join the coalition but increase the revolutionary fervor of those who do. An individual will join a coalition attempting to overthrow the Tsar if the expected benefit to him or her of doing so exceeds the expected cost. There is of course some uncertainty about the outcome. Roemer’s results include the following: it is shown that various â€Å"tyrannical† aspects of the Tsar’s strategy, and â€Å"progressive† aspects of Lenin’s strategy need not flow from ideological precommitments, but are simply good optimizi