Wrestling

Today anyone that watches professional wrestling knows that it is sport mixed with entertainment. Over the years the sport has become popular worldwide but nowhere more than North America, Europe, and Japan. All the way into the 1920s professional wrestling was very much considered a sport that was real. It was after the 1920s that professional wrestling became associated with what we call fakery, which in other words is theatricals or admitting to fake outcomes. For a while it seemed that because of fakery, competition became low key and its popularity took a deep fall.It was hard for promoters to stand up for a sport that was admittedly not real. There was actually a bigger fight in the back rooms of professional wrestling, where the hosts and promoters wouldn't admit the fakery while all the sponsors knew exactly what was going on. (Professional Wrestling) In today's professional wrestling no one denies the fact that wrestling has predetermined matches, but they also do a great jo b of keeping the outcome a secret. In the 1950s the television opened a lot of doors for a lot of opportunities and professional wrestling was no exception .It was at this point that the face of professional wrestling was changed forever. Now it was being run to adapt to television and its growing viewers. Characters and story lines were being built bigger and better. Pro wrestling has been a form of entertainment for a very long time, and has seen its share of ups and downs, but the storylines that have been used in the WWF have become legendary and something similar to the soap opera of the sporting world. Wrestling began in the early days as a hot television product.Over time, they lost their spot on the air, and became highly regional in nature. Each area of the country had their own â€Å"stable† of wrestlers, and their own championships. Professional wrestling carried on for many years just gaining popularity until 1980 when professional wrestling blew up like nobody wo uld have ever thought. In the 1980’s, a time known as the 1980s â€Å"wrestling boom† represented professional wrestling's greatest period of televised entertainment, reaching widespread popularity among American youth, as well as producing some of its most spectacular characters.In comparison to the declining support of media outlets during the 1960s and 1970s, professional wrestling, notably the emerging World Wrestling Federation, received great exposure through its reappearance on network television. The WWF expanded nationally through the acquisition of talent from competing promotions and, because it was the only company to air televised wrestling nationally; it became the same with the industry, monopolizing the industry and the fan base.The WWF's owner Vince McMahon revolutionized the sport by coining the term â€Å"sports entertainment† to describe his on-screen product, downplaying the still claimed athletic competition in favor of entertaining viewers as well as enhancing its appeal to children. Most notable was the muscular Hulk Hogan, who marked the 1980s with his â€Å"all-American† persona. His sheer size, colorful character, and extravagance made his main events into excellent ratings draws. By 1984, Hulk Hogan's legions of fans and his dominant role in the industry were termed â€Å"Hulkamania. With â€Å"Hulkamania running wild Vince McMahon decided to have a super bowl of wrestling called â€Å"WrestleMania† in 1985. By WrestleMania 3 in 1987, over 93,000 fans showed up for the event. (The McMahons: Vince and Family) On April 1, 1990 WrestleMania VI took place and is recognized as the end of the 1980’s â€Å"wrestling boom†. The event saw the last wrestling appearance of the legendary Andre the Giant, who had become barely mobile in the ring due to his real life condition.One last time Nikolai Volkoff played his standard part as the evil Soviet Russian before turning face and embracing Ameri ca, reflecting the end of the Cold War. The main event not only put the WWF's two greatest good guys against each other, but was intended as the passing of the torch from Hulk Hogan, the star of the 1980s, to The Ultimate Warrior who was extremely popular and considered Hogan's successor. Hogan's clean pin fall loss to the Ultimate Warrior signaled the end of an era.However, the Warrior did not live up to expectations and Hogan lingered on in the WWF for the next three years, winning the title three times more. The fans who were kids in the mid and late 1980's were teens by the 1990's, and many eventually grew bored with the comic book style of wrestling of the 1980's, turning their attention away from their childhood favorites such as Hulk Hogan, Junkyard Dog, and â€Å"Superfly† Jimmy Snuka in favor of newer and grittier wrestlers like The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Mr. Perfect, Bret Hart, The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Triple H.This started a new attitude era movi ng forward into the 90’s and Vince McMahon took center stage. As the ratings kept soaring McMahon kept getting edgier. The 90s proved to be even bigger with professional wrestling setting all kinds of records when it came to viewership, and finances earned. It seemed that the WWF were the big boys on the block. Protesters claimed that the WWF’s shows were filled with violence, obscenity, and simulated sex. McMahon claims that movies have more sex and violence, and that his shows simply reflect the world at large. The McMahons: Vince and Family) McMahon said that it was his job to entertain, and it was the parent’s job to be responsible for what their children watch.The television ratings also opened many doors in many other ways for numerous professional wrestlers. Such stars as The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin moved on from being the top guy in the business to building great movie careers. By 1998 some of the topnotch guys like Stone Cold Steve Austin and B ill Goldberg from the WWF’s predecessor WCW were making over five million dollars a year. Pro Wrestling) Twenty years prior to 1998 professional wrestling wasn’t even worth five million dollars. Next, through wise business deals made by WWE owner Vince McMahon, pro wrestling became primarily run by the WWE. The World Wrestling Federation was easily the richest company, and began to completely dominate television. Their primary competition would be from the WCW, which evolved from Georgia, North Carolina, and the old NWA of the region. Billionaire Ted Turner purchased the WCW, and the Monday night wars began. The WWE had the ever popular Monday Night Raw, and WCW countered with Monday Nitro.Turner began using his cable muscle and money to lure some of the biggest stars in WWF history such as Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Bret Hart, and many others. It looked as though the WCW would overtake the WWF as the powerhouse in pro wrestling. Eventually, however, WCW was completely destroyed by poor booking, finances, and leadership. The upstart competitor was buried by the WWE, and they once again stood head and shoulders above the wrestling world. As the professional landscape of wrestling stands today, their are two major players.TNA wrestling has taken on the mantle of battling the giant WWE, though they are having less success than their WCW contemporaries. TNA may yet figure it out, but for now the WWE is the only major wrestling organization at the top. Although professional wrestling is a lot different today then it was forty years ago, greats like Gorgeous George and Lou Thesz during the mid 1900’s paved the way for today’s wrestlers to be on television. George and Lou wrestled, and they were glorified as being modern day gladiators who went to war with their enemy.They were seen as a superhero or a role model to kids. Today’s wrestlers although still considered super heroes to kids, now play a different role in being a role model for children. Now being a professional wrestler is like being a rock star. You travel all around the world, you’re seen on television on a weekly basis, and now you even get paid like a rock star. WWE programming is now beamed to 120 countries and translated into 11 languages. (Professional Wrestling) Wrestling today is so different from the traditional roots of professional wrestling, but maybe in a good way.The wrestling world has evolved in a way were the WWE’s show Monday Night Raw is now the longest running show in television history. Vince McMahon, whether you love him or hate him, he must be doing something right to be known as the man who took professional wrestling into the twenty first century.Work Cited Gerdes, Louise I. Professional Wrestling. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 2002. Print. Greenberg, Keith Elliot. Pro Wrestling: from Carnivals to Cable TV. Minneapolis, MN: LernerSports, 2000. Print. Kaelberer, Angie Peterson. The McMahons: Vince McMahon and Famil y. Mankato, MN: Capstone High-Interest, 2004. Print.

Dr. Roylott Character Analysis

How is Dr Roylott presented to the reader in â€Å"The Speckled Band†? Through out the story, Roylott is overall presented as threatening, dangerous and a intelligent man. This can be identified through his appearance, behaviour and motives, there is also evidence of this personality in the story. Also, Conan Doyle uses various phrases and words to describe him which suggests the man to be dangerous. When describing Dr Roylott ,Conan Doyle uses strong words to mould an image of him in the readers mind to be a horrible person.Phrases such as â€Å"a large face, seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow with the sun, and marked with every evil passion† can suggest a lot of things. † a large face† simply can give the image of quite a large or strong person, this can give the idea that Roylott is towering over everyone else and not someone who loses in physical or vocal arguments due to his threatening and fearsome build. † Seared with a thousand wrin kles† can show a serious and aggressive man and if we were to go deeper on this point, it could therefore show that he may be a man who is impatient and has a short temper.The word â€Å"seared† is normally used when something burns onto something else so when used in this context it adds a feeling of anger to Dr Roylotts character. â€Å"Evil passion† can suggest two things, one is that he is an evil man which can be supported by actions through out the story and â€Å"passion† shows he is someone who is quite relentless and sadistic because passion is often used to describe someone who is dedicated and interested with something. the door had suddenly been dashed open and a huge man had framed himself in the aperture† the words â€Å"suddenly† and â€Å"dashed† shows Roylott to be impatient, selfish and irrespective of others around him. He clearly isn't scared of anyone as â€Å"suddenly† suggests him to be confident about him self as he doesn’t care about any one. â€Å"he has no friends at all save the wandering gypsies† this can show a sense of loneliness and recluse about Roylotts character. This can lead to the reader thinking he may be quite dangerous because if you have no friends you tend to not be a very nice person. Among some other quotes, apart from just being trong and threatening he is portrayed intelligently and slyly. Quotes such as â€Å"He is so cunning that I never knew when I am safe from him† shows as well as being strong and quite psychotic, he is able to keep his thoughts in order and not constantly be aggressive which makes him even more dangerous. â€Å"cunning† is often used to describe foxes and Roylott does not have any resemblance to a fox but this is what makes the quote so effective because it shows the variety of things he is capable of. Also, a quite simple observation of Roylott is he is a Doctor which shows he is intelligent and also supports the fact that he is cunning.In the story, Roylott had beaten his native butler to death and narrowly escaped a capital sentence and this shows a large area of Roylotts character. The fact that he beat his native butler to death obviously shows he is not afraid of killing another human being but the fact that he escaped a capital sentence shows he is important and respected by some and also supports the point that he is intelligent as he's clever enough to escape the sentence. The reason why Dr Roylott murdered Julia was the intention that he would gain money which shows his greediness and the extent he would go to to get what he wants.Also, when he meets Holmes he treats him with hostility and bends a â€Å"steel poker† into a curve and throws it into the fire. He also calls Holmes â€Å"the meddler† and threatens him and tells him to keep out of his business. When he calls him â€Å"the meddler† it may show that although Roylott is intelligent, anger can drown his intelligent out because if he was intelligent he would not call Holmes â€Å"the meddler† and suggests he was up to something and didn’t wants Holmes to know anything about.Generally Dr Roylott is portrayed very negatively and insecure through out the book in a way that the reader will grow to hate him, this creates the ending climax when Roylott is killed by his own crime and wrong intentions. Through out the book his character is slowly revealed to be bold, threatening, intelligent and strong, these merge to create his character and gives more possibility to the mysteries of the main events through out the

The Story of Rosewood

Ingred Thompson Minority Groups 2390. 50 Dr. Dollarhide Texas Wesleyan University Fall 2012 This is the story of Rosewood, Fl. I chose this film because of its sensitive subject on Racism and Discrimination. Rosewood is the true story of a small Florida town, was inhabited that almost entirely by quiet, â€Å"middle-class† African- Americans (most of them home and land owners and better off than average at the time. ) On New Year's Day, 1923, the town was wiped off the face of the earth by angry whites from a neighboring community.It occurred because of the false testimony of one white woman. The massacre in Rosewood claimed dozens of African American's lives. At a time when racial tension was incredibly high, the black members of a small segregated community found themselves unprotected from the hatred of the neighboring white men. The director of this movie is John Singleton; he was on born January 6, 1968, he is a film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is a native of South Los Angeles. A lot of Singletons films deal with issues ranging from discrimination, racism, prejudice, and stereotyping.I will look to explore the different areas of conflict regarding the maltreatment of the African American people. I think that it was so unfortunate for them to be driven away from their homes and life as they knew it. Some of the areas that this film deals with are: Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination. The conflict theoretical perspective of Weber is utilized throughout the film. The whites were in control of everything, except for the land that the blacks owned (but they wanted to own it too).Prejudice is found throughout this film among the Anglo-Saxon community because of what one woman claimed happened to her. Prejudice is defined as the tendency to think and feel negatively about members of other groups. The main factor of Prejudice as seen it this movie reflects the same ideas that were learned in class. Stereotyping is also present, just because s he (Taylor) didn’t want to be found out she blamed a black man for assaulting and raping her. The fact that the sheriff didn’t really believe her account of what happened, he had to go along with the majority in order to save his ob. This was a case of selective perception, because they only seen it one way, the black man did it. Discrimination on the other hand is the unequal treatment of people based on their membership in a group. Because of what Fannie Taylor said happened to her a whole community suffered at the hands of a group of racist white people. On the morning of January 1, 1923 Fannie Coleman Taylor of Sumner Florida, claimed she was assaulted by a black man. No one disputed her account and no questions were asked.It was assumed she was reporting the incident accurately. Sarah Carrier a black woman from Rosewood, who did the laundry for Fannie Taylor and was present on the morning of the incident, claimed the man that assaulted Fannie Taylor was her white lover. It was believed the two lovers quarreled and he abused Fannie and left. No one questioned Fannie Taylor's account and no one asked Sarah Carrier about the incident. The black community claimed Fannie Taylor was only protecting herself from scandal.Fannie’s husband learned of the incident and became angry. The local white community became aroused at the alleged abuse of a white woman by a black man, which was an unpardonable sin against black men back then to look at a white woman. James Taylor summoned help from Levy County and neighboring Alachua County, who was ending a staged Klu Klux Klan rally leading up to January 1, 1923, on the court house square in downtown Gainesville, where a large number of KKK members had been rallying and marching in opposition of justice for black people.The accounts of what happened: 12/31/22: On New Year's Eve a large Ku Klux Klan Parade is held in Gainesville. 01/01/23: Early morning: Fannie Taylor reports an attack by an unidentified black man. Monday afternoon: Aaron Carrier is apprehended by a posse and is spirited out of the area by Sheriff Walker. Late afternoon: A posse of white vigilantes apprehends and kills a black man named Sam Carter. 01/02/23: Armed whites begin gathering in Sumner. 01/04/23: Late evening: White vigilantes attack the Carrier house. Two white men are killed, and several others wounded.A black woman, Sarah Carrier is killed and others inside the Carrier house are either killed or wounded. Rosewood's black residents flee into the swamps. One black church is burned, and several unprotected homes. 01/05/23: Approximately 200-300 white men from surrounding areas begin to converge on Rosewood. The negro section is destroyed by fire. Governor Cary Hardee is notified, and Sheriff Walker reports that he fears â€Å"no further disorder. † The Sheriff of Alachua County arrives in Rosewood to assist Sheriff Walker. James Carrier is murdered. 1/06/23: A train evacuates refugees, the Rosewoo d families, to Archer and Gainesville. 01/07/23: A mob of 100-150 whites return to Rosewood and burn the remaining structures. For over 60 years, the former citizens of Rosewood lived quietly with their grief and fear. Finally, through the determined efforts of Rosewood descendants, persistent journalists, and talented lawyers, the long-buried story was brought to light, and the survivors and their families were compensated with a $2 million payment of restitution from the state of Florida.Work cited http://www. africanaonline. com/2010/08/the-rosewood-massacre/ http://www. blackpast. org/? q=aah/rosewood-massacre-1923 http://www. displaysforschools. com/history. html http://www. imdb. com/title/tt0120036/ http://www. reelingreviews. com/reel148. htm#rosewood Like Judgment Day: The Ruin and Redemption of a town called Rosewood. D'Orso, Michael. New York: Putnam 1996. 1st Edition. 8vo. 373pp. http://www. africanonline. com/2010/08/the-rosewood-massacre/

Importance of Marketing on Organization's Goodwill Assignment

Importance of Marketing on Organization's Goodwill - Assignment Example G. and. Schneider, 1995). This is achieved by providing clients with company’s production. That’s why marketing is considered to be the one of the leading functions of the strategic management. For a great number of organizations marketing is the key function that secures their successful activity depending on how they follow their goals and which strategies they realize. Kotler & Keller (2012) state that according to the philosophy of management, the company should avoid just making unfavorable products trying to sell them to the client by all means, and in this case marketing is becoming something more than separate function of management (Kotler & Keller, 2012). In the modern world marketing influences all the spheres of company’s activity. The concept â€Å"goodwill† implies the readiness of the buyer to pay bigger or smaller sum of money than the net assets of the company that he wants to purchase may cost. The goodwill can be positive or negative. In many cases business owners tend to overestimate the influence of their intangible assets and as a result the realized value of business increases substantially (Massoud, M. F. and Raiborn, C, 2003). It is important to take into account the fact that intangible capital should convert into income and the index of this income should be substantially higher than the market average one. The given paper will discuss the importance of marketing for establishing goodwill. The review of literature will be implemented in order to answer the question. The main goal is to investigate the importance of marketing on organization’s goodwill Literature review a) The notion of goodwill According to Johnson and Petrone (1998), goodwill is a strong management team and developed market strategy, high level quality of production, high credit measures as well as corporate culture and favorable location, good relations with suppliers (Johnson and Petrone, 1998). Day states that â€Å"goodwill is the difference between the value of a business enterprise as a whole and the sum of the current fair values of its identifiable tangible and intangible net assets. Net assets are the assets that are left after subtracting the company’s liabilities. Goodwill is only recorded when its amount is substantiated by an arm’s-length transaction. Goodwill cannot be sold or acquired separately but has to be included in a purchase with the net assets of a business enterprise† (Day 2008: 1). It is clear that the cost of organization that is represented by the single property complex differs much from the assets and liability cost of the organization. The great amount of mergers and takeovers in the USA and Europe can serve as a proof of such statement. It is enough to recollect the time when companies were bought by the sums of money, which were considerably bigger or smaller than the cost of company assets (Samuelson, 1996). The difference between these two indicators is ca lled goodwill. It means that brand is less valuable in case if it fails the competitive struggle and does not allow to sell the product at the higher price than the similar product of the competitors is sold at. Accrodign to Stolley (2013), in this case goodwill is negative and has a negative impact on the final cost of the company. It can be easily explained as it will be more difficult to realize the production with the same tangible assets than with the positive goodwill (Stolley, 2013). b) The evaluation of goodwill According to Wang, the estimation is made with the help of management account and provides the owners and managers with the important information (Wang, 1995). In order to find the answer to the question, it is essential to determine how the goodwill is

Knowledge Workers and the Brooklyn Bridge 8 Essay

Knowledge Workers and the Brooklyn Bridge 8 - Essay Example engineers, namely Washington Robeling and those who worked with him, that were mainly concerned with design aspects such as knowledge of gradient, impact of erosion by water over time, angles for rafters and columns and related information. Designing and construction of a bridge requires a basic knowledge and comprehension of the many aspects constituting â€Å"optimum structural and mechanical performance.† (Fertis, xiii). In the case of a highway bridge, dynamic and vibration analysis that needs to be carried out requires knowledge of the basic properties of the materials and cables that are used to build the bridge. Such knowledge of material properties is then used in performing the static and dynamic analysis, in developing a bridge design that is safe as well as functional. The static and dynamic analysis will involve calculations to determine both static and dynamic deformations of the bridge, together with its frequencies of vibration. This will also involve conclusions to be drawn on how long the bridge span should be in order to ensure that its rigidity is maintained in a safe design. Hence a knowledge worker working on the design and construction of the bridge in Robeling’s day would also have required a basic knowledge of statics, mechanics and structural mechanics. A knowledge worker would thus need to be acquainted with basic engineering concepts in designing of bridges. Communication in those days when the Brooklyn Bridge was first built centered around personal contact, hence these were restricted to light signals and Robelais passing on his communications through his wife. As a result, workers had to possess communication skills in interacting with members of their teams, most of whom were likely to have been drawn from the same local area of New York and largely comprising immigrants. But the kind of communication systems being used in the present day is also different from those existing during the time of Robelais. Knowledge workers may

Task Environment of an organization of your choice Essay

Task Environment of an organization of your choice - Essay Example With all these features, the company is better placed to compete in the market with the normal iPod producing companies, with its features attracting a large clientele base. Task environment is inclusive of all the sectors that are directly correlate d with the organization so as to attain its goals and objectives. This environment is mostly related to the industrial aspect of the organization, the marketing aspect, as well as, human resource management. In essence, the task environment is much more concerned with the external environment of the business and all the factors that are directly correlated to the successful operation of the business. Daft (2010) indicates that the task environment comprises of factors that concern the production of services for the organization and the setting of the business. In the course of claiming its share in the marketplace, Company X must regularly aim to stay in touch with the clients’ needs, which are to provide efficient services to the children so that they maintain their clients. In terms of the company’s competitors, it is vital that, the company always offers quality products in a consistent and constant manner so as to beat other iPod producing companies in the market. This is done, by always being at par with the competitors’ new skills of production, market share and new inventions. This can be done through advertisements, reports, trade shows, amongst others. Company X must ensure that it suppliers of raw materials always offer the best raw materials, its labor force continually mobilized and adhering to the governments policies on conduction of business. In the course of compiling this paper, it is evident that, the external environment is vital in the success of a business. The management must constantly interact with the external environment so as to make certain that they remain relevant. All the elements

Elgin's Marbles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Elgin's Marbles - Essay Example Lord Elgin had risen through the ranks and asked for the post as Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in Constantinople. He met and married a Scottish heiress, Mary Nisbet of Earlton. Lord Elgin felt that he knew the best place to achieve architectural significance and wanted to bring some of the passion and style back to the British artists and architects, in order to uplift and inspire them. Lady Elgin and her wealth allowed him to achieve his desire. Greek architecture at that time was considered the ultimate experience and being of great significance and Lord Elgin ensured he was part of the society. He employed artists and architects to paint, sketch and make molds of what he considered to be the best artwork in Athens, Greece. He believed that the artistic work held the highest significance and expression of civilization and that this cultural experience would encourage the British artists of the day. Lord Elgin purchased sections of the marble frieze from the Ottoman Empire for a price of  £75,000. He then had the difficult task of getting a ship to transport them to England. This was during the Napoleonic wars and their friend Nelson was reluctant to provide a vessel for the shipment. Mary used her guile and persuasion to eventually gain a passage for the artifacts (Nagel, from front matter). Lord Elgin considered his purchases to be a great achievement for the British Empire. A Government Select Committee agreed to purchase the marbles from Lord Elgin for  £36,000 in 1816, a massive financial loss for Lord Elgin.... He then had the difficult task of getting a ship to transport them to England. This was during the Napoleonic wars and their friend Nelson was reluctant to provide a vessel for the shipment. Mary used her guile and persuasion to eventually gain a passage for the artefacts (Nagel, from front matter). Lord Elgin considered his purchases to be a great achievement for the British Empire. A Government Select Committee agreed to purchase the marbles from Lord Elgin for 36,000 in 1816, a massive financial loss for Lord Elgin (British Museum, newsroom, 1). They were then placed and still remain in the British Museum and given the collectors name of Elgin's Marbles (British Museum, Collection 2). Picture 4.0 A Section of the Elgin Marbles The British Museum initially placed the artefacts in a prefabricated gallery which had been designed by Robert Smirke (British Museum, Collection 2). Then they were transferred to another section aptly named the 'Elgin Room' in 1832 (British Museum, Collection 2) until Lord Duveen donated money to the museum to construct a purpose built gallery for the marbles. (British Museum, Collection 2). Picture 5.0 A Section of the Elgin Marbles Preparations were carried out to clean the sculptures ready for display in their new Duveen rooms. Wire wool was used to clean off the surfaces of all of the marbles in 1939. This cleaning method also included the use of copper chisels and carborundum (British museum collection, 3). It was believed that the original color of the marble was pure white and the intensions were genuinely administered in order to return the pieces back to their original state. This cleaning method removed the entire

Introduction to Criminal Justice Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Introduction to Criminal Justice - Coursework Example Another problem with UCR is that it only reports the most serious offense and does not collect all important pieces of information. To improve the reliability and validity of UCR data efforts are being done to improve how crime statistics will be reported and collected. Apart from UCR, there is now the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) which aims to provide a more detailed crime statistics and collect information in a more categorized and defines ways. 2. Victimization surveys refer to the method of questioning the victims of a crime about their experiences. These surveys collect a more detailed information about the crime incident, for instance when and where it occurred, how was the crime executed, and whether the victim was related to the offender. The advantages of Victimization surveys are: (1) provides more accurate estimates on the dark figure crime; (2) collected data help in understanding why some people choose to not report crime events to the law enforcement ; (3) the information gathered provides criminologists further explanation about the association of crime and social interaction that exists between the victim and offender. On the other hand, Victimization Surveys are also perceived to be limited in scope, unreliable due to memory errors, deception, sampling error, and telescoping. 3. Children are deemed to be one special population of crime victims. Since they are young and helpless, it is very easy for them to be abused by older family members. Different forms of abuse (physical, sexual and emotional) and neglect are the usual types of victimization that they confront, and the rate of victimization is on its highest among the youngest children. Another special population of crime victims is the senior citizens group. The usual types of victimization they face are nonfatal violent crime which is at 5%, and property crimes which is at 25%. The third special population of crime victims is the intimate partner. Intimate partners norm ally experience violent acts like murder, rape, robbery, and assault. Approximately, there are 570,000 women offended by their partners. 4. Often, the victims interact with the police in an uncomfortable and apprehensive manner because, first, the victims find the police’s process of questioning intimidating and, second, the victims are virtually always anxious about the result of the investigation which poses conflict to the â€Å"slowly but surely† process of the police. Similarly, the victims also feel uncomfortable and intimated whenever they interact with the prosecutors because of direct confrontation and vandalizing their property. In terms of the victims’ interaction with the parole boards, the conflict between the victims and parole boards usually arises when their offender receives an early release order, not to mention that majority of the parole boards give less credit to the statemenst of the victims. 5. The four main goals of punishment are general deterrence, specific deterrence, incapacitation, and retribution. 6. A punishment is deemed effective when, as much as possible, the offender is being punished immediately after the offense, the offenders are well-informed as to why they are being punished, there is consistency in the implementation of punishment, and there exist a strong and healthy relationship between the criminal and the punisher. Generally, punishment in the United

How to prevent Military Drill Sergeants from making the unethical Research Paper

How to prevent Military Drill Sergeants from making the unethical decision to Fraternize with Trainees - Research Paper Example eant who is an expert in the warrior duties and the in the battle drills is expected to live the values of the army by showing the warrior ethos which is the epitome of the army profession (Long, 2008). A military drill sergeant is expected to be responsible for coaching, providing counseling and giving mentorship to too many thousands of soldiers as he or she changes them from being a civilian to a ready soldier. A military drill sergeant starts his work before dawn and his with the soldiers throughout the day. Being a military drill sergeant, the soldiers’ looks up to you as the only person they know in the army. The soldiers always try to copy you in everything you do. Being a military drill sergeant is very difficult. The job is very demanding and can be attributed to the several tasks that are to be fulfilled. Just the same, way you will remember your military drill sergeant is the same way your soldiers will. It is for this reason that it is your duty to make sure you give a positive and a rewarding experience to the soldiers who are starting their journey in the army. Everything you do to the soldiers will affect them throughout their lives (Baker, 2008). There are different reasons that are attached to mistreatment of trainees by the military drill sergeants. The main reason why this happens is the notion since they were also mistreated they will have to do the same to others. It is a sort of revenge that the drill sergeants undertake. At other times, the chain is usually commanding from the highest order to the lowest order. The people in the higher ranks mistreat those who are under them. This continues in a chain until the lowest order where the military drill sergeants mistreat the trainees and their property. Gender also leads to mistreatment of some trainees. Male military drill sergeants feel that they should use the female trainees for their personal desires. This in most cases leads to cases of rape that become hard to handle. In addition,

Challenges Minorities Face Trying To Get Ahead in Corporate America Essay

Challenges Minorities Face Trying To Get Ahead in Corporate America - Essay Example As an initial matter, the barriers to minority success in the corporate world are well-known. A Glass-Ceiling Commission was formed by Congress in 1991 to study the barriers and to make recommendations. Robert Reich, the former Secretary of Labor, described this glass ceiling as "the existence of invisible, artificial barriers blocking women and minorities from advancing up the corporate ladder to management and executive level positions" (Good for Business, 1991, p.iii). The problem, therefore, is not whether such problems exist, for they most certainly exist, but how to remove the barriers to corporate advancement. The first barrier is defined as a societal barrier, and this type of barrier is considered to be outside the power of the corporation. This barrier refers to educational restraints and to stereotyping and bias, whether conscious unconscious, which affect minorities. Minorities need the educational qualifications to even begin to think about working for a corporation in a significant capacity. This, in turn, demands access to good schools, access to the money necessary to focus on studying rather than working part-time jobs, and a commitment by corporations, communities, and governmental organizations to provide minorities with the financial resources and proper education. This is a dangerous barrier. The lack of access to a good education can lead to failure in the very beginning of a person's life. The second barrier is referred to as an internal structural barrier. This barrier, in contrast to the societal barrier, is firmly within the control of corporations. This refers to a lack of commitment to minority hiring, training, and inclusion in the "pipeline" system of advancement. This barrier assumes that a minority has the educational qualifications for a particular job. Nonetheless, statistics demonstrate that minorities with the same educational qualifications are not treated equally. The Glass Ceiling Commission highlights this barrier, An analysis of 1990 U.S. Census data shows that Black men who hold professional degrees and top management positions earned 79 percent of what white men earn. Black women, also with professional degrees and in top management positions, earn 60 percent of what white men in comparable positions earn (Good for Business, 1991, p. 13). These statistics suggest that corporations are not doing enough to promote capable and well-qualified minorities within their own organizational structures. There is, in short, no disparity in educational qualifications. Indeed, the sole disparity seems to be in terms of compensation and access to promotion. The latter disparity, in a nation which prides itself on equality, is impossible to justify. The third barrier is a more generalized governmental barrier. This barrier ranges from the lack of data collection about minorities in private business to weak enforcement of government mandates and poor reporting of problems for minorities in the labor force. It must be admitted, in fairness to corporations, that their primary function is maximizing profits for shareholders. To impose costly and time-consuming governmental duties on corporations would result in dislocations of labor and inefficiencies. That said, it is the duty of the government, whether national, state, or local, to promote and protect the welfare of its

Role of Supreme Court in the Control of the Economic Legislation Essay

Role of Supreme Court in the Control of the Economic Legislation - Essay Example Premised on the said fundamental principle on the separation of powers, the Supreme Court in my opinion, should therefore, not be concerned with the wisdom or policy of legislation. The Supreme Court or the judiciary’s proper role should not comprise of economic control through judicial legislation but to properly interpret the law and if necessary to review if such a legislation is consistent with the Constitution. As Justice Harlan explains in his dissenting opinion in the case of Lochner v. New York, 198 U.S. 45 (1905), to which I believe should have been the correct opinion of the Court, â€Å"the state of New York should not be presumed to have acted in bad faith but presumed to have acted with due deliberation to the fullest attainable information and for the common good.†4 He further explained that the state alone should manage purely domestic affairs unless it appears that such acts of the state violated the Federal Constitution.5 Regulation of working condition s protecting and guarding the health and safety of the people in this case, is and should the primary concern of the state and to which the judiciary should not interfere with.6 As held in US v. Morrison, 529 U.S. 598, 120 S.Ct. 1740 U.S., 2000, the Supreme Court can invalidate a legislative enactment only upon a plain showing that Congress has exceeded its constitutional bounds.

Managing Human Resources Essay Example for Free

Managing Human Resources Essay This assissment is going to be about Human Resource Management and it’s going to contain information about different perspectives of human resources management and what the role involves. . HRM system is based on HR system , both work together to the same way. The example is HR strategies defining the direction in which HRM intends to go. We got few models of HRM , one I want to describe is Guest’s Model of HRM. David Guest’s model of HRM has 6 dimensions of analysis : HRM strategy HRM practices HRM outcomes Behaviour outcomes Performance outcomes Financial outcomes This model is prescriptive in the sense that it is based on the assumption that HRM is different from traditional personal management. How guest’s model is adopted in Harrods? In my opinion is adopted by having similar commitments for example the Guest model is prescriptive on the sense that it is bases on the assumption that HRM is distinctively different from traditional personnel management and rotted in strategic management. Also the Guest’s model of HRM outcomes are fairly similar as Harrods engages employees to continues success of the business by committing to what they are doing and one of the outcomes that the Guest’s model states is commitment. David Guest’s analysis financial outcomes in his model of HRM and when looking at the financial outcome at Harrods, we can see that they are loosing money due to the employee turnover. When looking at the case study it shows that the research that has been done about the turnover indicates that the employee turnover has significant cost and performance effects to the business. For example the employee turnover at Harrods measures the rate at which employees leave their employer normally after one year. The claim of the Guest model that it is superior to others is partly justified in the sense that it clearly maps out the field of HRM and delineates the inputs and outcomes. But the dynamics of people management are so complex that no model (including the Guest model) can capture them comprehensively. P. 1. 2 The purpose of HRM is to ensure that the employees of an organization are used in such a way that the employer obtains the greatest possible benefit from their abilities and the employees obtain both material and psychological rewards from their work. Personnel management is the traditional approach to managing. It deals with the reactive side, which are rules, and regulations, wages, pension, and leave administration. It is administrative in nature. Human Resource Management are people oriented an treats employees as an asset. It is the modern approach to managing an organisation and people in the organisation. It is the proactive side of managing which puts people first. The term industrial relations has developed both a broad and a narrow meaning. Industrial relations is increasingly being called employment relations or employee relations because of the importance of non-industrial employment relationships. Industrial relations has three faces: science building, problem solving, and ethical. In the science building phase, industrial relations is part of the social sciences, and it seeks to understand the employment relationship and its institutions through high-quality, rigorous research. From this perspective, an industrial relation covers all aspects of the employment relationship, including human resource or personnel management and employee relations. The difference between personnel management and human resource management is that personnel management basically deals with the employees, for example they deal with payroll recruitment. Where the HRM deals with the management of the work force, training and the well-being of all employees. Also we can say that Human Resources is to incorporate and develop personnel management tasks, while at the same time seeking to create and develop teams of workers to the advantage of the organization. Personnel management comprises mainly of administrative tasks that are considered to be traditional and routine. The Human Resources management at Harrods helps to build a competitive edge by positively getting involving the employees. The HRM at Harrods use an appropriate leadership style and they use two-way communication, which is very effective as it allows information to be passed on correctly and quickly. Similar organization which adopted IR practice and Personal is NHS. The NHS UK practice managers work within the primary care sector, where they manage the overall running of general practices surgeries. Practice managers come from a variety of backgrounds and do not necessarily need to be a qualified healthcare professional. Industrial relations in the UK health care sector are characterised by high levels of social dialogue and joint regulation, particularly in the public part of the sector. P. 1. 3 At Harrods the role of the line manager is to encourage communication targets and advice to employees through face-to-face interactions. This might involve sitting down in the staff room, or in a more formal setting, to agree objectives and to give advice about improvements and new ways of working. Acting as a coach helps the line managers to develop their managerial skills, build relationships and reinforce trust at Harrods. Employees play the most vital role in HRM because they are the key advantage and we also must remember that high-performing and innovative employees are the foundation of productivity. Some major implications for HRM are, they can set direction and implement a company strategy, which builds commitment to what they do. Employees at Harrods help to develop performance metrics for on going improvements in the business. In order to increase the productivity at Harrods the line manager or HRM support their employees by communicating effectively and giving them regular feedback on their performance and by them doing that it decreases the errors and frustration caused to employees at work. Also an effective reward system for employees at Harrods motivates them towards better performance. Non-monetary factors like better status can motivate employees in addition.

Violence in Video Games

Violence in Video Games The concern over how much of a child’s actions, if any, are influenced by the violence contained in the video games they choose to play, has been become a topic of debate in recent times. Certain heartbreaking events, such as the Columbine High School shooting in April of 1999 where two students open fired on their fellow classmates killing in total 13 victims followed by their own suicides, sparked a renewed interest in researching if video games could cause acts of violence in adolescents. (Baertlein, 2007) This apprehension is mostly due in part, because children are in theory, more inclined to behavioral influences when they actively participate, as opposed to when they are merely observing. The belief has been that, a child playing violent video games can have more of a tendency to commit violent acts. On the contrary, there has been no clear-cut substantiation to show these violent video games are to blame for youth violence. The fact remains; it is actually not an easy task to prove a real world connection between violence and video gaming. Youth violence reports show crimes rates have decreased while video game playing has become trendier. (Baertlein, 2007) In January of 2001, the Surgeon General David Satcher released his report findings concluding that, youth crime rate was not rising, and that the increase youth crime rate was merely a myth. â€Å"Since 1993, when the epidemic peaked, youth violence has declined significantly nationwide, as signaled by downward trends in arrest records, victimization data, and hospital emergency room records† (Satcher, 2001). Moreover, the study showed the amount of lethal violence has declined. This was primarily attributable to the decline in use of firearms among youth. (Snyder, 2006) This goes contrary to the claims of those who say that violent video games are teaching youth to use guns. The study performed by Surgeon General Satcher, along with other research performed on the topic, further substantiates the argument that violent content found within video games is not the cause for violent acts committed by the youth. According to the Surgeon General, the strongest risk factors for scho ol shootings centered on mental stability and the quality of home life, not media exposure. (Satcher, 2001) The reality is recent reporting has shown a decrease regarding violence in teens since games have become more graphic. The violent crime rate has decreased from a rate of 51 victimizations per 1,000 members of the population age 12 and over in 1994, down to 21 per 1,000 members in 2005. (Bureau of Statistics, 2006) In addition, the Juvenile Violent Crime Index has also shown a declining rate since 1994. Crimes of murder committed by juvenile offenders have actually fallen 65% from 1994 to 2002. (Snyder Sickmund, 2006) Although the crime rate has declined, concern regarding violent acts by juveniles is still an issue; the public continues to hold fast on its views that children participating in playing violent video games are being led to commit violent acts. Theorists such as Bruce Barthalow, Mark Sestir and Edward Davis have based their opinions according to a large quantity of research performed by many esteemed scholars. They state that a connection has been made known between real life violent crimes and violent content in video games. (Barthalow, Sestir Davis, 2005) The main positions in the argument for these theorists are derived from results of several types of studies, lab experiments, field studies as well as correlation studies. Correlations are a measure of how strongly associated two events are. However, co relational studies and other studies such as those cannot account for whether or not violent video games can cause aggression. Furthermore, some co relational studies find no sign ificant relationship with aggression. Even still, those studies cannot prove violence contained in video games is the cause of true-life violence. After all, what is lacking from the studies used video game research? Crucial factors are missing in research studies conducted on violent video games. The players in these particular studies are not in control. Their free will and freedom of choice are not included when researches test their theories. They are selected to play a video game not of their choosing, when the action of play is in essence, a self directed and voluntary activity. The element of forced exposure to a video game can alter the player’s reaction to the experience. Play is not an action that can be recreated in an experiment held in a laboratory. There are other questionable factors regarding the testing video games as well. For example, â€Å"the duration of play is too short, typically 5-15 minutes, for anything like the play experience to be duplicated† (Calvert Tan, 1994). In these laboratory studies, no individual really â€Å"plays†. A video game is played by individuals for entertain ment and therefore, being instructed to â€Å"play† a video game defeats the purpose of electing to play for amusement. The studies performed do not take in to consideration why individuals play video games at all. (Calvert Tan, 1994) Research on video games also fail to recognize that a player of video games participates freely and ceases to play when they so desire. (Calvert Tan, 1994) Players are free to enter the world they create for themselves in these games, and this freedom remains missing from the laboratory studies conducted on violent video games. Studies completed have concluded that there has been no definitive link between violent acts and violent content found in video games, and that some fashion; violent video games may actually provide a venue for children to vent their aggressions, rather than taking physically taking action. (OBrien, 2007) In studies performed by the U.S. Department of Justice’s, Office of Justice Programs, it is reported that the largest influential factor in adolescent delinquency is the family dynamics within the children’s homes. (Snyder, 2006) Parents have a certain obligation to their children. They play an important role in the child’s life and are responsible to provide them with guidance as to what is wrong or right. If children cannot clearly determine the differences between fantasy life in video games and reality, they cannot be blamed for committed violent acts such as those contained within video games. Without parental guidance, children are susceptible to misinterpret scenarios they come across in real life. (Anderson, et al., 2003) Violence from video games will not make submissive adolescents violent when they have been made aware of the limits within a fictional world. Many factors can cause a child’s incapacity to make a distinction regarding right from wrong, reality from fiction. An adolescent or teenager may be lacking the maturity level necessary to understand the impact of their actions, or perhaps can suffer from mental instability limiting their perception of reality. However, is it the violent content found within video games to blame? The studies suggest that when parents actively participate in a child’s life, discuss real life conflicts, the inappropriateness violent solutions, and help the child generate alternative solutions to violent actions, it can help reduce the actual impact of media violence on the youth. (Anderson, et al., 2003) Psychologists have also concluded that, children whose parents have regulated the length of time video games are played are less likely to show aggressive behavior. (Anderson, et al., 2003) It is the parent’s responsibility to monitor their children and to educate them. It is a par ent’s role to discipline their children and to teach them social norms and values. After all, it would be impossible maintain a child from the outside world. There will always be negative influences out there. It is the parent’s duty to their children, to ensure they are taught the consequences of their behavior, as well as right from wrong. Parents should be the ultimate decision makers of what they allow their child to watch, play or do. Parents have the responsibility to be aware of the content involved in the games their child plays. Video games are labeled to describe the content within them, as well as specify when they include strong language, violence, mature sexual themes, as well as other subject matter that may be unsuitable for a child. In 1994, the video game industry established the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), a self-regulating labeling body. (Entertainment Software Association, 2006) The ESRB ratings method is astonishingly all-inclusive. According to the ESRB, it rates over 1,000 games per year. Practically every title produced by major game developers for retail sale today carries an ESRB rating and content descriptors. â€Å"The ESRB rating system helps parents and other consumers choose the games that are right for their families. ESRB ratings have two parts: rating symbols that suggest what age group the game is best for, and content descriptors that indicate elements in a game that may have triggered a particular rating and/or may be of interest or concern† (Entertainment Software Association, 2006). These ratings provide the parents with information they need to determine whether the video games is suitable for their child to play. Even with the ratings and the violent content, some parents still purchase these games for their young children without screening the video games. According to the Entertainment Software Association, 89% of the time parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented, 61% of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives, and 87% of the time children receive their parents’ permission before purchasing or renting a game. (Entertainment Software Association, 2006) Parents, teachers, guardians, mentors or anyone else a child may look to for guidance, should be able to provide them with proper direction, lessons about choice and consequences in life that could affect them and those they hold close as well. â€Å"When the fantasy world is brought into the picture, these lessons should let the child know that certain actions in a fantasy world are not appropriate in the real world, thus the separation† (Goldstein, 2001). Video game violence contains simulated acts of aggression. Video games cannot actually emphasize acts of aggression if there is none to begin with. (Delamere, 2005) The same features that hold back the audience from rushing the stage during a murder scene in a play are present in video games. When and adolescent plays a video game that is labeled as violent, it is actually containing simulated acts of violence. (Goldstein, 2001) There is not an actual physically performed action taken, since the child is in an imaginary wor ld. They cannot abuse, damage or violate because there is nothing to abuse, damage or violate. (Goldstein, 2001) The child has ultimate control what occurs which is a major deciding point in separating reality from video games. In the real world, consequences are certain. When a child commits and act, either good or bad, something will happen. In video games, the player can suspend the game play and even bypass consequences. These factors provide cues that the game play is not real, and that they child is merely doing something for amusement. (Goldstein, 2001) Video games can actually be beneficial to children.They provide cognitive benefits such as system thinking, pattern recognition, strategy, decision making, and even patience. A book written by author Steven Johnson makes another point in favor of viewing video games from a new perspective. Johnson argues that video games are growing progressively more refined, they present players a mental exercise that is far more invigorating, satisfying, and even more educational than much of the media content they were force fed in the past. (Johnson, 2005) Particularly, Johnson states, modern games, including those filled with violent material demand children to mange resources, evaluate multifaceted social networks, and recognize long-term patterns. (Johnson, 2005) A common video game presents a predicament to be solved and diverse means to accomplish the resolution. Children playing video games are driven to play video games because they can achieve the impossible. (Simpson, 2005) Distribution of resources, trial and error and completing tasks are all part of the learning experience. (Simpson, 2005) The software embedded in these video games clearly establishes roles, powers, and limitations. Video game players have the ability decide their course of actions and recognize that they must take accountability for their own actions. The children playing these games are aware that there are both harmful and helpful consequences during game play. Games can mimic real-life consequences, and playing them teaches children that patience and perseverance lead to successful results. (Simpson, 2005) Violence in video games is not cause of violence in adolescents; this is a rumor or myth made by people looking for an excuse or a solution to why things happen. With the level of violence in video games increasing, adults have been linking the acts of violence contained in video games with violent acts that have been committed by children. Rather than look in to all the determining factors that can be reasons for children to act aggressively, they would rather lay blame on something new. The public has not even taken a moment to reflect on the past and realize that video games are just another source of media added to the list excuses justifying a child’s actions. Films, radio, novels, television programming, have all had been faulted for leading young people off course and stirring up aggressive or unsociable behavior. Video games violence is a handy scapegoat for individuals who do not care to explore deeper into the quandary of where the desire to murder comes from. The myth that video games reveal a new, excessive collective fixation with violent entertainment is untrue. Harold Schechter, in the manuscript Savage Pastimes: A Cultural History of Violent Entertainment, painstakingly documents the incidence of violent media all the way through the history of art and entertainment. Schechter remarks that even the purportedly quiet days of the 1950s were complete with violent media, most of it aimed at children. (Schechter, 2005) â€Å"The fact is that, contrary to popular belief, there was a shockingly high level of sadistic violence and gore in some of the most popular commercial entertainments of the 1950s† (Schechter, 2005). Violence and aggressive media and behavior have always been a part of civilization, so why it is receiving so much attention these days? Perhaps the degree of youth violence has not changed at all, but the factors mentioned above have simply created a heightened awareness of violence amongst youth. Perhaps a heightene d awareness and a lower tolerance for such acts have simply caused an increase in reporting violence, creating an illusion of an increase in youth violent behavior. There are extreme cases of youth violence in recent years that stand out, and were covered extensively by the media. The Columbine incident is an example. This type of incident is rare, but the media attention it received contributed to the perception of an increase in youth violence. Youth violence did not increase during this time; it just became more of social issue. Many factors contributed to those crimes, leaving the public many ways of laying blame. Youth violence is not caused by content found within a video game; it is more of an issue with the individual committing the violent acts. The underlying problem deals with the individual having a firm grip on reality and knowing the difference between those actions and the ones found within a video game. The adolescents are less apt to see violent video games in an unconstructive way if the individual is there not already a predisposition to violent acts. (Zarozinski, 2001) â€Å"Media in all forms can move people to consider things they had not considered before. But media cannot take over a mind and make anyone do something hes not predisposed to do† (Zarozinski, 2001). Stating, in essence, violent video games do not create violent children, however they may add to the troubles of an already violent youth. (Zarozinski, 2001) The public is quick to fault violence in the planet on video games, movies, television and music for the reason that they are effortless plausible targ ets. Although these media sources can influence and individual to a certain degree, the public has to look further than this particular focal point and start searching for the real cause for the violent behavior in civilization. A game cannot and will not make a human being kill another. Numerous individuals view violent images on a regular basis, yet only a small percentage of those actually commit crimes of violence. As studies by respected academics show, people that are already predisposed to violence are those that tend to gravitate towards playing video games. (Delamere, 2005) â€Å"The violence present in these media sources may help instigate a violent act; it is never the only cause† (Delamere, 2005). However, the groups of alarmed individuals that plead for the government to take action to against video games will not openly admit that the source for their civilizations problems may be due to their own actions. The people want a scapegoat that will appease their conscience and at the same token, avert the fingers of blame from pointing in their direction. This day and age, humankind is a world where real violence is everywhere, from neighborhood shootings to the war in Iraq. People are mostly helpless to stop it, and just have to live through it, but when a juvenile turns on a violent video game and spends endless hours playing, the question remains, does it change their perception of the real world and cause them to become delinquent? Violence in video games has been at the forefront of a lot of controversy recently. Incidents, like the Columbine High School shooting has come and gone, reopening old wounds and revisiting unanswered questions. What could have caused two seemingly average kids to go on such a rampage? Some of the blame has fallen on violent video games. Are these games actually part of the problem, or just an easy target? Fueled by myths of increased youth violence, and tragedies such as school shootings, youth violence is an increasing concern in for the public. Nevertheless, there is a lack of hard evidence to suppor t the supposed increase in youth violence, much less, that violence in video game plays a part in it. Violence in Video Games Violence in Video Games RQ: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behavior? Abstract: Introduction: People, nowadays, are always arguing about the problem of violence in video games; and violence, in this case, includes use of drugs, blood, gore, offensive language, and many other things, that exist in modern video games. According to the statistics, over a billion people play video games, and the majority of these people are children or young teenagers. Of course, there are games, which are perfectly fit for children, games, which do not contain any type of violence, and they are usually designed specifically for kids to play. But many children prefer playing violent video games, because they think it is more enjoyable. Even though, it is usually up to their parents or guardians to decide whether these children are allowed to play violent video games or not, in most cases, parents do not want to restrict their kids from playing games, they like, so they just allow children to play almost any games, they want to play. The problem here is, that psychologically underage people might be more vulnerable to impact, coming from video games, than adults are; so violent video games might have a negative impact on shaping childrens behaviour (Publications, Harvard). Even though, millions of children play violent video games, only a few actually become violent (John Bingham). And this controversy leads me to a question: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behaviour? I conducted the research, which provided me with the information about the ways, in which video games might affect childrens behaviour and the consequences of video game influence for children. That information will help me understand which restrictions should be applied to violence in video games, if any. Body: Even though, there is evidence of the link between violence in video games and the increase of childrens aggressive behaviour during the past two decades, there are still a lot of facts, which prove that there are many other factors, which could have caused negative effects on childrens behaviour. A lot of various psychological and media institutions, such as Oxford University, have conducted the research on the influence of violence in video games and other types of media. There are about 350 research papers conducted from 2005 to 2013, and non of them really explore every aspect of the effects of media violence on kids behaviour. For example, the combinations of effects of different risk factors, such as depression or stress with this kind of violence, or the differences between the effects on different genders. Such factors as the gender and living in poverty have greater impact on the outcomes (Bavelier, Green and Dye 692-701). In the majority of the studies kids younger than 10 years of age werent even included. The importance of these factors is certainly undeniable, especially considering the fact that there are not too many cases of chilren aggressive and violent behaviour, proved to happen due to violent video games. There was one of the high-profile incidents in the USA, which was caused by 17 year-old Dylan Klebold, and 18 year-old Harris Eric. It is called the Columbine High School Massacre. The shooting happened on the 20th of April, 1999, at Columbine High School, in Jefferson County. Two pupils killed twelve other pupils and a teacher (Library, CNN). The two shooters in the massacre were regularly playing weapon-based combat games. Specifically, the two shooters used to play Doom, which is a violent video game (The Columbine Shooters: Video Game Addicts?) Since the moment when violence was introduced to media, hundreds of studies have focused their research on viewing these acts of violence and aggression, such as Columbine High School shooting. When violent video games emerged, researchers started analyzing these acts much more closely. Many of the studies were focused on persons sex and studying male versus female aggression after viewing and playing violent video games. Some of them researched viewing violent video games against playing these games to find out if there was any link between the two ways of experiencing video game violence (Polman, de Castro and van Aken 256-264). Very little of these studies have researched the positive effects, which video games might have on chldren. For example, watching video games   improves hand eye coordination, and increases some of the persons abilities, for example some kids become better at solving puzzles (Ferguson 309-316). Ferguson found no connection between violent video games and negative behaviour. He concluded, that research made up of current studies, which have been analyzed, cannot link watching or playing violent video games to aggressive behavior afterwards (Ferguson 309-316). Each study, which has been reviewed, usually shows that there is some link between viewing violent video games and aggression. However, it doesnt completely prove the existence of this connection. Some evidence suggest that there is a link between exposure to violent video games and violent behavior (Porter and Starcevic 422-426). Can aggressive behavior with a good level of certainty be linked to watching video games? Or are there other circumstances that influence this kind of behaviour? Studies suggest a link between video watching and aggression, but researchers have not yet been able to find a direct relationship between the two. As in most behaviours, there are still loads of other factors that may contribute to the persons behaviour. Concluding, that experiencing violence in video games is linked to aggressive behaviour, is only possible if other factors, which influence a persons behaviour can be controlled. Those factors can include family history, sex, cases of aggressive behavior before watching video games, and many other potential factors that might influence childrens behavior (Persky and Blascovich 57-72). Not all studies have found a relationship (Ferguson et al. 109-122) between exposure to violent video games and aggression in children. However, the   most part of all the work actually shows a relationship. In a meta-analysis of 98 studies, which involved 36,965 participants, violent video games were convincingly shown to influence social behaviour (Greitemeyer and Mà ¼gge 578-589). The fact, that studies have taken many different forms, increases the certainty of the relationship. Jim Blascovich, at the University of California at Santa Barbara, in the study, he conducted, he concluded that the more realistic the graphics are the more of a possibility there is to display aggressive behavior right after viewing violent video games. Explicit viewing material usually looked more realistic, though letting aggressive behavior in the real world.   For example, Pacmans graphics were very simple in their content, and as graphics have become more realistic, the violence and death scenes have become a lot more realistic in modern video games (Persky Blascovich 57-72). Some of the work looks at the causal effect of game play. Some individuals have been asked to play violent games in the lab, while others were asked to play non-violent games. Then the behaviour of each group was measured in social tasks after the experiment. These studies have shown that playing violent games results in instantaneous changes to behaviour (Anderson, Carnagey and Flanagan 199-249). Young adults have shown physiological desensitisation to scenes of real life violence (Carnagey, Anderson and Bushman 489-49). Individuals who had played violent, in comparison with non-violent, games were less likely to report hearing a fight staged outside the laboratory, considered the fight more common and were slower to respond when some of them decided to help (Bushman and Anderson 273-27). Desensitisation to violence is considered to link violent game play with later aggressive behaviour (Engelhardt et al. 1033-1036). Other studies have included longitudinal effects, where individuals have been followed over a period of time; and video game play at one point in time has been related to aggression later, both in lab and in real life. The more violent play individuals took part in, the steeper the increase was in aggressive behaviour (Willoughby, Adachi and Good 1044-1057). The size of the effects found in most studies is either small or medium, but its quite consistent. This pretty much indicates that violent games do influence violent behaviour, rather than that violent children engage in video games. The most part of the negative effects, as a result of playing violent video games among children, can be blamed on the violent scenes included in these games. If a kid spends a big amount of time playing violent videogames, he or she becomes socially isolated. This basically means that this child doesnt have enough time to interact with his or her peers (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). The child who spends lots of hours per day playing videogames will have almost no time to make new friends. Such children may become more depressed and lonely in their homes. They are also very likely to stop spending time on other activities such as sports, reading, and studying.   Children stop being socially active, since they dont get involved in real-life events anymore. A child, who ends up spending most of his or her time playing videogames, does not get a chance to think creatively and independently, due to the fact that videogames reduce a childs imaginative thinking. This kind of thinking is crucial in developing a childs creativity. By encouraging isolation, videogames may also put a childs health at a serious risk. Since such kids do not lead a healthy lifestyle, due to the lack of sports and social activities, children, who are used to spending the majority of their time playing videogames, are very likely to suffer from obesity, and muscular and postural disorders. Quite a large number of videogames are addictive. Rather than studying or completing homework, a child spends time playing videogames, because the addiction wins over this child. When a child spends an large amount of time playing such videogames, he or she becomes socially isolated. Some of the negative effects as a result of playing these kind of videogames among children can be blamed on the addictiveness of these games. Due to the lack of time, which a child has while not playing games, he or she does not have an opportunity for rich social life (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). The child who spends almost the whole day playing videogames will have little time to meet and make new friends. They may very easily become more depressed and lonely in their homes. Children will also spend little time on other activities such as sports, reading, and doing homework. These children become socially inactive since they do not get involved in almost any social activities. Such video games redu ce a childs imagination as well. This basically means that children who spend most of their time playing videogames do not get a chance to think creatively or independently. Imaginative thinking is essential in developing a childs creativity. By promoting isolation, videogames may have some effects on a childs health. Quite some videogames may teach children wrong values (Gunter). Videogames encourage children to associate positive emotions such as happiness and pleasure with the ability to cause pain to others. They develop the feeling that they have to hurt other people in order to be happy themselves. Children who play videogames usually tend to develop selfish behavior (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). Videogames make the players depend on them. As a child is very often left alone, while playing a videogame, he or she can develop this dependent behavior. A study, which was done at a Minneapolis-based national institute for media, found out that kids can get addicted to videogames and exhibit social phobias. Video games are quite different from other visual types of media, because of their interactivity. The games allow players to be active participants in the storyline. In games the players, who benefit from acts of violence, are able to proceed to the next level. Violence in children behaviour has increased, as a negative result of playing videogames. There are a lot of incidents of violent and aggressive behaviour among children, who play violent videogames worldwide (Gunter).   Right after these incidents, the most of newspaper articles claimed that the key cause of that incident was violent videogames. The effects of violent games arent equal for everyone. Short-term effects in the lab are discovered to be bigger for undergraduate men than women (Bartholow and Anderson 283-290), and younger children are at a bigger risk of being affected by violent games if theyve got a high level on a personality trait, called neuroticism, and a low level on the traits agreeableness and conscientiousness (Markey and Markey 82-91). In terms of the game, playing with a customised avatar was found to cause more aggressive and violent behaviour, than when playing with a generic character (Fischer, Kastenmà ¼ller and Greitemeyer 192-195). Conclusion: Although the link between real-life violence and video game violence is still debated, and certainly other factors have a more significant influence on aggression. The impact of video games violence on the behavioural development of children is quite obvious both in the short-term and the long-term. The effectiveness of video games is a very important issue for society, and at the same time a benefit, because their effects can be both negative and positive; indeed it would be extremely hard to argue for one of these positions without the other. What is crucial is that we understand what aspects of game play behaviour have an influence, and on whom they have it. So whats the final answer to my question: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behavior? Its quite simple. No new restrictions should be applied to violent video games in the future. Partly, its because the effects of this kind of violence are differe nt from one person to another, so they can also be positive; and partly because other factors usually affect childrens behaviour more, than video game violence. Althogh, parents can take some action to prevent possible negative impact of video games. For example, limit the number of ours, their children spend playing, or simply not allow kids to play games, which they consider too violent. Bibliography: Greitemeyer, Tobias and Dirk O. Mà ¼gge. Video Games Do Affect Social Outcomes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 40.5 (2014): 578-589. Web. 22 Dec. 2016 Library, CNN. Columbine High School Shootings Fast Facts CNN.Com. CNN. N.p., 2017. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 The Columbine Shooters: Video Game Addicts?. NY Daily News. N.p., 2017. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 Bavelier, Daphne, C. Shawn Green, and Matthew W.G. Dye. Children, Wired: For Better And For Worse. Neuron 67.5 (2010): 692-701. Web. 4 Dec. 2016 Polman, Hanneke, Bram Orobio de Castro, and Marcel A.G. van Aken. Experimental Study Of The Differential Effects Of Playing Versus Watching Violent Video Games On Childrens Aggressive Behavior. Aggressive Behavior 34.3 (2008): 256-264. Web. 12 Dec. 2016 Ferguson, Christopher John. The Good, The Bad And The Ugly: A Meta-Analytic Review Of Positive And Negative Effects Of Violent Video Games. Psychiatric Quarterly 78.4 (2007): 309-316. Web. 17 Dec. 2016 Porter, Guy and Vladan Starcevic. Are Violent Video Games Harmful?. Australasian Psychiatry 15.5 (2007): 422-426. Web. 20 Dec. 2016 Persky, Susan and Jim Blascovich. Immersive Virtual Video Game Play And Presence: Influences On Aggressive Feelings And Behavior. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments 17.1 (2008): 57-72. Web. 25 Nov. 2016 Ferguson, Christopher J. et al. Not Worth The Fuss After All? Cross-Sectional And Prospective Data On Violent Video Game Influences On Aggression, Visuospatial Cognition And Mathematics Ability In A Sample Of Youth. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 42.1 (2012): 109-122. Web. 4 Dec. 2016 Carnagey, Nicholas L., Craig A. Anderson, and Brad J. Bushman. The Effect Of Video Game Violence On Physiological Desensitization To Real-Life Violence. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 43.3 (2007): 489-496. Web. 13 Dec. 2016 Anderson, Craig A, Nicholas L Carnagey, and Mindy Flanagan. Violent Video Games: Specific Effects Of Violent Content On Aggressive Thoughts And Behavior. 1st ed. 2004. Print Bushman, Brad J. and Craig A. Anderson. Comfortably Numb: Desensitizing Effects Of Violent Media On Helping Others. Psychological Science 20.3 (2009): 273-277. Web. 14 Dec. 2016 Engelhardt, Christopher R. et al. This Is Your Brain On Violent Video Games: Neural Desensitization To Violence Predicts Increased Aggression Following Violent Video Game Exposure. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 47.5 (2011): 1033-1036. Web. 21 Dec. 2016 Willoughby, Teena, Paul J. C. Adachi, and Marie Good. A Longitudinal Study Of The Association Between Violent Video Game Play And Aggression Among Adolescents.. Developmental Psychology 48.4 (2012): 1044-1057. Web. 19 Dec. 2016 Anderson, C. A. and B. J. Bushman. Effects Of Violent Video Games On Aggressive Behavior, Aggressive Cognition, Aggressive Affect, Physiological Arousal, And Prosocial Behavior: A Meta-Analytic Review Of The Scientific Literature. Psychological Science 12.5 (2001): 353-359. Web. 13 Dec. 2016 Gunter, Barrie. The Effects Of Video Games On Children. 1st ed. Sheffield, England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998. Print Fischer, Peter, Andreas Kastenmà ¼ller, and Tobias Greitemeyer. Media Violence And The Self: The Impact Of Personalized Gaming Characters In Aggressive Video Games On Aggressive Behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 46.1 (2010): 192-195. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 Markey, Patrick M. and Charlotte N. Markey. Vulnerability To Violent Video Games: A Review And Integration Of Personality Research.. Review of General Psychology 14.2 (2010): 82-91. Web. 18 Dec. 2016 Bartholow, Bruce D. and Craig A. Anderson. Effects Of Violent Video Games On Aggressive Behavior: Potential Sex Differences. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 38.3 (2002): 283-290. Web. 15 Dec. 2016 Publications, Harvard. Violent Video Games And Young People Harvard Health. Harvard Health. N.p., 2017. Web. 18 Dec. 2016 John Bingham. Study Finds No Evidence Violent Video Games Make Children Aggressive. The Telegraph. N.p., 2017. Web. 15 Dec. 2016

Effect of Print Media on Society and Social Change

Effect of Print Media on Society and Social Change How Far and in What Ways is it Reasonable to See the Development of Print as a Motor of Revolutionary Social Change? Abstract Print and the ways of presenting the written word have had a long history in which the ideas that were possible to be communicated through these written words profoundly influenced human history. The first movable type of print consisting of baked clay was developed in China in AD 1050. This was followed by the wooden movable type of print that was also invented in China in AD 1300. However, it was the invention of Gutenberg which brought together a number of technologies to bring about the first printing press which had a capability for conveniently and inexpensively bringing print to the masses. The Mid – 15th Century invention has since then assisted in bringing about profound and revolutionary changes in human societies and culture around the world. The development of print, which was by itself a revolution, made it possible for knowledge and ideas which had previously been the preserve of the privileged nobility to be brought to the masses. The media was born as a result of the invention of the print and this media not only brings culture and information into the private domain of individuals, but also sets societal standards, trends and a whole way of life through print advertising. Print made it possible for ideas to be discussed and a societal consensus to evolve as a result of these ideas being able to be communicated cheaply and effectively. Political revolutions, the evolution of science and technology, culture, religion and the interactions of humanity have all been profoundly influenced by print, which is still evolving from its earlier beginnings and has the capacity for inducing profound as well as revolutionary social change. This brief essay takes a look at how print can act as an agent for bringing about social change and also just how far print can go towards influencing such a change.   Contents (Jump to) Introduction The Capacity of the Print to Influence Revolutionary Social Change in the Future Conclusion Bibliography / References Introduction Ever since the Mid-15th Century when Gutenberg had discovered the idea of the first movable type printing press, the print media has profoundly shaped the world in which we live. Printing brought together the technologies of paper, oil based ink and the engraved lettering to quickly as well as cheaply make many copies of the content which was required to be printed. Although the written word had been discovered much earlier then the time of Gutenberg’s invention, its power and value had been limited because of the difficulties associated with its quick and inexpensive reproduction. Written manuscripts containing ideas, human knowledge and information had been very expensive and cumbersome to reproduce, limiting their access to the privileged and the noble classes with mostly oral traditions of communications being relied on. As a result of inventions such as the movable type and later the electronics communications technologies, humanity now lives in the information age when ideas abound and are communicated to millions instantly. The advent of electronics communications technologies has invariably propelled the print into a new light, making it easier to store, process and exchange information. Obviously, such capabilities expanded the breadth as well as the depth of thinking of an average individual and thus transformed the society in which they lived. Because the technologies associated with printing are constantly evolving, therefore, it is very likely that the evolution of these technologies will continue to have a revolutionary impact on the society at large. The invention of printing by itself was revolutionary and since its inception, the technology has continued to shape the world and humanity (Jones, 2000, Chapters 1 – 6), (White, 1979, Chapters 1 – 5) and (The University of Vermont, 2005, Complete). Literature related to history has indicated that printing profoundly influenced change in the Europe during the Middle Ages, assisting in bringing about the Reformation, Renaissance and the Scientific or Technological Revolutions. The Protestant Revolution and humanity’s change in the concept of the earth – centred to the sun – centred universe were also influenced by the print making it possible for the ideas to propagate. Print made it possible for the many millions to examine ideas, debate their usefulness and present their own views, resulting in a consensus being developed much more rapidly then would have been otherwise possible. A greater level of homogeneity was brought about then would have been otherwise possible. The print is something which could be understood and interpreted by humanity and its processing, reproduction, transmission or storage only assisted in making it more appealing or conveniently presentable to the mass audience. It is the conven ient and ready availability of sound ideas in print with a capacity for appealing to the mass logic which has the capacity for bringing about radical social change, if the ideas that are being presented in print are logically sound and appealing to the mass audience. It was the availability of information, ideas and the desire of the masses to be informed of these, along with their desire to have access to knowledge that was the birth of democracy. No longer was knowledge and wisdom in the sole custody of the privileged few and it was the collective will of all who could access as well as understand the print which determined the future of societies, cultures and nations. Nearly all political revolutions in the world after the Middle Age in Europe were made possible because there was the support of the masses which was pitted behind such changes and such support was only made possible because it was convenient to communicate through the print. Oral traditions had required a vastly s uperior effort and because of a limited capability for the oral message to be communicated to a large audience, societal decisions were made by a few. Even established religion benefited enormously from the capabilities of the print. Although the wine or olive oil screw type press had been in use in Europe much earlier then the invention of Gutenberg and block – print technology had been known of since the time of Marco Polo’s return to Europe from his travels to China at the end of the 13th century along with mass paper making techniques which produced paper that was considered to be too flimsy for use in books, it was Gutenberg’s invention that brought together many technologies to make print seriously feasible, opening up the way for a capacity to influence social change like it had never been possible before. The private experience that was made possible as a result of the print invariable led to the public expression of an individual’s personality, c haracter and beliefs which had been shaped by their private experiences (Eisenstein, 1979, Parts 1 and 2), (Eisenstein, 1993, Chapters 1 – 5) and (Briggs, 2001, Chapters 1 – 5). It was the development of the print which gave birth to the media which used print to bring culture and information into private spaces of individuals. In addition to bringing culture and information into the private spaces, the media also shaped society by presenting advertisements which prompted individuals to purchase, prefer a way of living, develop societal standards and highlight issues as well as setting trends. Having advertisements presented in print led to more print as more newspapers, magazines and journals were sold and print itself blended into the fabric of the society, transforming culture, thinking, values and expectations for the future. This domino effect also provided a vocation for many who are associated with the print industry and a new set of professions was introduced. It was print that assisted in the evolution of technology in general and the design of the new electronic communications media which is in the process of further changing societies (Dewar, 2000 , Complete), (Eisenstein, 1979, Parts 1 and 2) and (Eco, 1995, Pp 71 – 74). The history of the print had to be discussed in order to be able to make some sort of predictions about the future. The potential for bringing about revolutionary social changes in the future is still very much a possibility and it is worth investigating how print can influence and bring about social change. Technology and lifestyles are constantly changing and the way in which print technology influenced society is also evolving. Without the development of the print, humanity will be living in an oral society with its enforced illiteracy of the masses and the manipulation of the oral tradition or knowledge to suit the purposes of individuals or the state, as was the case in China prior to the development of the print. In such a society, the creation as well as the possession of knowledge is only restricted to the few creators of knowledge and there is a capacity for the masses to be fed what versions of oral truths that suited the political powers of the day. Development of exact sc iences, technology, logic and reason was, therefore, very much hindered in the oral society which emphasised more on rote memorising rather then an understanding of its knowledge (Dewar, 2000, Complete), (Eisenstein, 1979, Parts 1 and 2) and (Eco, 1995, Pp 71 – 74). In this brief essay, an attempt has been made to take a look at the development of print and its potential for as well as the manner of bringing about revolutionary social change in societies. The Capacity of the Print to Influence Revolutionary Social Change in the Future It is necessary to understand the historical influences of the print in bringing about revolutionary social change so that the future implications for social change can be considered. The history which has been discussed in the introduction to this essay was presented with this concept in mind. The modern educational systems around the world, the production of books, the growth of the literati culture and the popular culture are all made possible because printing and the economic reproduction of the written word is possible. Books on a subject have to accumulate in order to make a difference and these books must be logically correct and present the truth in order to be of lasting value. The ideas that are presented in print are still subject to criticism, debate, investigation and understanding prior to acceptance. Advances in technologies which continue to make the production of print easier, faster and more economical also attempt to present the print in more innovative ways. These technologies also free up humans to try and produce better quality of print and to try to understand the message instead of devoting more time to the production of the message. In developed societies, it is not just the print which counts but the quality of the ideas in print that are of the greatest importance. The qualities of ideas that are presented and recorded in print determine the state of intellectual development of the society and its capacity for improvement as well as gaining an edge over other societies. Some print is very highly regarded because it represents the essence of human knowledge, understanding or universal truths. Encyclopaedias, handbooks, the Scriptures and standard texts represent the print which the society has accepted as being of timeless importance after much debate, criticism and consternation. Often, the knowledge stored in print in these important books will represent the culmination of great struggles, triumphs of understanding, conflict and even bloodshed. However, print represents ideas and the truths which have to be utilised in order to be of benefit. The print must be of importance and it should be given importance for the benefits of the print to become available. Respecting print means that the ideas, knowledge and truths that are contained in the print are being respected, considered, given importance to and are held as being profoundly important for the individual, humanity and the society. Giving respect to the Holy book does not mean that there is respect for the paper, ink or the quality of craftsmanship but that there is respect for ideas. Hence, unless the print is capable of producing ideas which are accepted as being profound, important and of significance for the future, the capacity of the print to bring about revolutionary change is restricted. Therefore, a progressive society which has the capacity for benefiting from revolutionary change must also have a system for producing the ideas which are of profo und importance. These ideas must then be held as being important and acted upon or implemented into practical realities. Unless the message which is considered to be of importance is transformed into practical reality by a society, the society cannot benefit from the message or the ideas and hence the print itself is not able to induce change. In the context of social change, there has to be a requirement for change which is embodied in a vision of something better and this vision must be sufficiently appealing to the many, or to those who are important in the society, for the vision to be attempted to be transformed into practical reality by committing resources, effort, taking the risks involved in change, going against the established order, getting organised or the pitting of an organised movement against tyranny to produce change. A developed society has to have a system for using print to disseminate or generate ideas, conduct discussions and a scrutiny of these ideas. There h as to be a constant desire to have something better and to transform ideas into practical realities. Print can act as a vehicle for conveying ideas and their wider scrutiny but print by itself is important because it can do this in an economical, effective and appealing manner in order to effectively make the ideas available to the many (Jones, 2000, Chapters 1 – 6), (McGINN, 1991, Chapters 1 – 4) and ( Dewar, 2000, Complete). Although the basic reason behind the importance of print and its capacity for influencing change are the ideas that are contained in the print, the manner in which the print can be presented, communicated, stored, manipulated and the knowledge which is considered to be of importance retrieved from the print is also constantly being influenced by the force of ideas and changing. The capability of presenting the printed word as a sequence of signals in a computer and its rapid manipulation has made it possible for the society to consider and develop ideas much more rapidly then it was previously possible. This capacity has been of great benefit to the society but it has also had an impact on the printing of ideas on paper. Print on paper must now coexist with print as an electrical signal and the society has progressed sufficiently for the rapid and cheap transformation of the print on paper to the electronic print to be made possible. Hence, centralised printing presses are now still useful but they are being challenged by the distributed printing presses which are capable of quickly transforming the electronically stored print into print on paper when required. A cheap printer connected to a computer which is linked to the World Wide Web has the capacity for tapping into a huge reservoir of ideas and the human repository of knowledge. These ideas can be selectively printed as required on paper for the convenience of the human users. The larger press is used for printing material for which there is a confirmed demand and it is very likely that in the future all kinds of books will be downloaded from websites when and if required to be viewed on small or computerised portable reading equipment. The price of such computer equipment which need not be as sophisticated as a laptop computer, but which can also integrate a lot of other functions into it such as the communication function and the entertainment function is progressively declining. This does not mean that the printing press is likely to become idle, because humanity has a requirement for all kinds of packing, wrapping and informative material which is in constant demand. However, it is very likely that the high value added print material will be preferred in the electronic format and stored on web servers or the CD – ROM to be downloaded when required for payment by electronic means. The benefits of purchasing a book in the electronic format are much superior to having a published book on paper. New editions can be rapidly produced and information in the electronic book readily manipulated. This is already happening and the only reason why individuals still prefer to read paper books is because the display technologies which provide the written word in human readable form need to be improved and made more affordable. That this is happening is the beginning of another social revolution which is likely to gain momentum with time. Hence, humanity is moving towards an age in whic h there will be far fewer books in the paper print form and very many web repositories from which electronic books, newspapers and magazines can be downloaded. There is likely to be an emphasis on having small portable devices which will have the telecommunications capabilities and pleasant displays that are affordable. Such devices can usher in a new social revolution. Such a social revolution is not likely to be bad because the dwindling global forests require new attempts to conserve energy and reduce waste. A burgeoning repository of human knowledge means that permitting rapid access and manipulation of the electronic print is required. This, however, does not mean that there is not going to be a demand for the editors, the creative writers, researchers, scientists, technologists and philosophers etc who generate the content which could previously have been printed on paper only. There is in fact likely to be a greater demand for such creative individuals, especially those who a re capable of producing quality. The creative content industry will continue to boom and there will be a greater demand for good content because content will still be king. It is very likely that even schooling will be more distributed with pupils being able to download their lessons from a server rather then physically carrying backpacks of books to school. Universities will become more of a place for conducting research and generating new content then a place for disseminating this content through print on paper. The transmission of knowledge through the vastness of the globe and even into space and under the ocean will become an instantaneous affair rather then requiring the transportation of huge piles of bulky paper across the vastness of oceans, on ships, for the force of ideas and enlightenment to be unleashed in a dark region of the world. Language and the printed word, or rather the represented word is still important because this is what humans understand. However, the nee d to print this word on paper will be diminished. It is all a question of economics and developing newer and more capable computerised devices is gradually changing the way humans live. Sufficiently reduce the cost of portable computing equipment, software as well as the cost of telecommunications and the revolution will be very much accelerated. It is surprising that many publishers have not taken up the challenge and produced important books which can be downloaded from web stores. This most certainly has something to do with the price an individual has to pay for the right viewing hardware for electronic text. Widespread adoption of such hardware is also limited by its fragility and complexity. Young children and many elderly individuals can find it difficult to operate viewers of electronic text and hence prefer the printed word. Perhaps there is a need for the invention of a cheap device with the human / computer interface vastly simplified for the purpose of reading and intera cting with the electronic text. A new revolution is certainly possible and it is very likely already happening, in which humanity will live in a world without the printed book (Dewar, 2000, Complete) and (Smith, 1994, Chapters 1 – 4). Revolutionary social changes have always depended on the force of ideas which used to be conveyed through the print after an age of the oral tradition. However, the printed word on paper is now becoming rather inconvenient as a medium for transmitting and disseminating these ideas and humanity has found more convenient ways for doing this. However, for revolutionary social change to be possible there has to be a need for change, merit in the ideas and a capacity to topple the existing order or norms of the society. History has indicated that despite the force and the might of tyranny, it is the soundness of ideas and their appeal to the masses which are the engines for change. Hence, ideas presented through the written language must be widely available and considered to be important by the masses for revolutionary social change to take place. Because of the high cost of the computing equipment and the complexities involved in its operation as well as the fragility of the equipment, s uch equipment is still in the process of gaining a wider acceptance. Costs associated with communications and a decent bandwidth for telecommunications is also another deterrent. It will still take some time for the full effects of the information age to become apparent and there will be many unintended consequences of change in this age. However it is very likely that in the future, the print media will give way to the electronic text viewers / communicators as the most widely means for distributing these ideas and conducting social debates on them. Humanity has indeed come a long way since the invention of the printing press (Briggs, 2001, Chapters 1 – 5) and (Cooper, 2004, Complete). Conclusion The print media has contributed very significantly to bringing about social change since the invention of the Gutenberg printing press. The renaissance, the scientific revolution and many other political revolutions benefited from the capability of the print to cheaply and conveniently disseminate ideas. It was, however, the force of these ideas which was behind the revolutions and the print acted by accelerating the dissemination, debate and acceptance of ideas, something which was not possible to be done in the oral tradition. In the present age, the electronic word is gradually going to replace the printed word as a more convenient and faster means for disseminating ideas as the technology and its present limitations are gradually overcome. References/Bibliography American, p. International Printing Pressmen and Assistants Union of North America 1965, Development of the printing press, 1450-1965 : 75th anniversary of the American Pressman [Pressmens Home, Tenn. : International Printing Pressmen and Assistants Union of North America]. Atiyeh, G. N. 1995, The book in the Islamic world: the written word and communication in the Middle East Albany; [Washington, D.C.]: State University of New York Press: Library of Congress. Atton, Chris. (2002). Approaching Alternative Media: Theory and Methodology. Napier University, Scotland. Retrieved: August 25, 2005. From: http://www.ourmedianet.org/papers/om2001/Atton.om2001.pdf Banks, W. H., International Conference of Printing Research Institutes (, Krems) 1971, Recent developments in graphic arts research : (proceedings of the tenth International Conference of Printing Research Institutes held in Krems, Austria, 1969) Oxford : Pergamon Press. Barker, N. 1992, Aldus Manutius and the development of Greek script type in the fifteenth century, 2nd ed edn, New York : Fordham University Press. Batey, C. 1954, The printing making of books: an examination of tradition with an assessment of the trends of invention and the development of techniques presently discernible in the several crafts devoted to the making of books Oxford: Privately printed at the University Press. Baumgarten, J. Frakes, J. C. 2005, Introduction to old Yiddish literature Oxford: Oxford University Press. Bernard Quaritch (Firm) 1888, [A general catalogue of books offered to the public at the affixed prices], Monumenta typographica: a catalogue of books produced by the earliest typographers in all countries, arranged so as to illustrate the history of the origin and development of the art of printing; as well as the publications of the famous Aldine, Giunta, and Elzevir Presses; preceded by some examples of prae-typographical printing edn, [London]: [B. Quaritch]. Bijker, W, Hughes, T and Pinch, T (eds) (1988) The Social Construction of Technological Systems: New Directions in the Sociology and History of Technology, Cambridge MA: MIT Press. Blades, W. 1968, Books in chains, and other bibliographical papers Detroit: Gale Research Co. Bolton, C. Alembic, P. 1981, DeLittle, an English wood-letter manufacturer: including a brief history of the development of wood-type Winchester: The Alembic Press. Braden, C. S. 1970, Spirits in rebellion. The rise and development of New Thought. (Third printing.) Dallas: Southern Methodist University Press. Briggs, Asa and Peter Burke. (2001). A Social History of the Media: From Gutenberg to the Internet (Paperback). Polity Press. Retrieved: August 25, 2005. From: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0745623751/002-0897207-2795222?v=glance British Printing Industries Federation. Development and Technology Committees Composition Group 1984, The ASPIC handbook: a guide to authors symbolic pre-press interfacing codes London: British Printing Industries Federation. Cambridge University Press 1938, Cambridge University Press: notes on its history and development, 6th ed edn, Cambridge [Cambridgeshire]: The Press. Carter, R. Open University 1984, Systems, management and change: a graphic guide London: Harper Row in association with the Open University. Ceruzzi, P. E. 2000, A history of modern computing Cambridge, Mass.; London: MIT Press. Charles, R. H. 1914, Religious development between the Old and New Testaments London: Oxford University Press, 1914. Cooper, Mark and Steven Cooper. (2004). HOPE AND HYPE v. REALITY: THE ROLE OF THE COMMERCIAL INTERNET IN DEMOCRATIC DISCOURSE AND PROSPECTS FOR INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE. Stanford Centre for Internet and Society. Retrieved: August 25, 2005. From: http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/blogs/cooper/archives/HOPEALL.pdf Copinger, W. A. Priory Press, M. 1898, Handlist of a collection of incunabula: illustrating the progress and development of the art of printing prior to the year 1500, by specimens from over three hundred different presses [Manchester? Eng.] : Priv. print. and not for circulation. Cranz, F. E. 1964, An essay on the development of Luthers thought on justice, law, and society Cambridge, Mass. ; Oxford : Harvard University Press : Oxford University Press. Daud, P. 1934, The influence of Arabic poetry on the development of Persian poetry Bombay: Fort Printing Press. Deibert, R. (1997). Parchment, Printing and Hypermedia: Communication and world order transformation. New York: Columbia University Press. Dewar, James A. (2000). THE INFORMATION AGE AND THE PRINTING PRESS: LOOKING BACKWARD TO SEE AHEAD. RAND. Retrieved: August 25, 2005. From: http://www.rand.org/publications/P/P8014/P8014.pdf Eco, U A Medieval Library. (1995). D. Crowley P. Heyer (eds). Communication in history: Technology, culture, and society (2nd ed., pp. 48-57). White Plains, NY: Longman. Pp 71 – 74. Eisenstein, E. (1979). The printing press as an agent of change. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Eisenstein, E. L. (1993). The printing revolution in early modern Europe. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Fairhead, M. Pira, I. 1993, Latest developments in newspaper technology: a literature review Leatherhead: Pira International. Finkle, J. L. Gable, R. W. 1968, Political development and social change, 1st corr. print edn, New York : Wiley. George, A. J. Didot Family 1961, The Didot Family and the Progress of Printing A brief review of the development and accomplishments of the House of Didot, with facsimile pages and translation of Épà ®tre sur les progrà ¨s de limprimerie by Pierre Didot, printed in 1784, etc [Syracuse, N.Y.] : Syracuse University Press. Goody, J. (1986). The Logic of Writing and the Organization of Society. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Goody, J. and Watt, I. (1963). The consequences of literacy. Comparative Studies in History and Society. Vol. 5. Hacker, L. M. 1959, The triumph of American capitalism: the development of forces in American history to the end of the nineteenth century New York: Columbia University Press. Johnson, J. d. M. Bibliographical Society ( 1936, The development of printing other than book printing London : Bibliographical Society. Jones, Bruce. (2000). Manuscripts, Books, and Maps: The Printing Press and a Changing World. University of California, Davis. Retrieved: August 25, 2005. From: http://communication.ucsd.edu/bjones/Books/booktext.html Joos, M. American Council of Learned Societies. Committee on Language Programs 1966, Readings in linguistics I : the development of descriptive linguistics in America 1925-56, 4th ed edn, Chicago ; London : University of Chicago Press, 1966. Lehmann-Haupt, H. 1966, Gutenberg and the Master of the Playing Cards New Haven ; London : Yale University Press. McGINN, R. (1991), Science, Technology, and Society, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Prentice Hall. McLuhan, M. (1964). Understanding Media. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co. McLuhan, M. (1997). The Guttenberg Galaxy, University of Toronto Press. Moran, J. Royal Society of Arts 1971, The development of the printing press : a paper London : Royal Society of Arts. Moran, J. 1973, Printing presses : history and development from the fifteenth century to modern times London : Faber (1973). Moran, J. 1973, Printing presses; history and development from the fifteenth century to modern times Berkeley : University of California Press. Moran, J. C. 1971, The development of the printing press Colchester : printed by Benham Co.. Mulhall, M. G. 1971, The progress of the world in arts, agriculture, commerce, manufactures, instruction, railways, and public wealth since the beginning of the nineteenth century Shannon : Irish University Press, 1971. Myers, R. Harris, M. 1981, Development of the English book trade, 1700-1899 Oxford : Oxford Pol