Interview With Socrates Essays - Socratic Dialogues,

Interview With Socrates Greek philosopher and educational reformer of the fifth century B.C.; born at Athens, 469 B.C.; died there, 399 B.C. After having received the usual Athenian education in music (which included literature), geometry, and gymnastics, he practised for a time the craft of sculptor, working, we are told, in his father's workshop. Admonished, as he tells us, by a divine call, he gave up his occupation in order to devote himself to the moral and intellectual reform of his fellow citizens. He believed himself destined to become a sort of gadfly to the Athenian State. He devoted himself to this mission with extraordinary zeal and singleness of purpose. He never left the City of Athens except on two occasions, one of which was the campaign of Potidea and Delium, and the other a public religious festival. In his work as reformer he encountered, indeedhe may be said to have provoked, the opposition of the Sophists and their influential friends. He was the most unconventional of teachers and the least tactful. He delighted in assuming all sorts of rough and even vulgar mannerisms, and purposely shocked the more refined sensibilities of his fellow citizens. The opposition to him culminated in formal accusations of impiety and subversion of the existing moral traditions. He met these accusations in a spirit of defiance and, instead of defending himself, provoked his opponents by a speech in presence of his judges in which he affirmed his innocence of all wrongdoing, and refused to retract or apologize for anything that he had said or done. He was condemned to drink the hemlock and, when the time came, met his fate with a calmness and dignity which have earned for him a high place among those who suffered unjustly for conscience sake. He was a man of great moral earnestness, and exemplified in his own life some of the noblest moral virtues. At the same time he did not rise above the moral level of his contemporaries in every respect, and Christian apologists have no difficulty in refuting the contention that he was the equal of the Christian saints. His frequent references to a divine voice that inspired him at critical moments in his career are, perhaps, best explained by saying that they are simply his peculiar way of speaking about the promptings of his own conscience. They do not necessarily imply a pathological condition of his mind, nor a superstitous belief in the existence of a familiar demon. Socrates was, above all things, a reformer. He was alarmed at the condition of affairs in Athens, a condition which he was, perhaps, right in ascribing to the Sophists. They taught that there is no objective standard of the true and false, that that is true which seems to be true, and that that is false which seems to be false. Socrates considered that this theoretical scepticism led inevitably to moral anarchy. If that is true which seems to be true, then thatis good, he said, which seems to be good. Up to this tome morality was taught not by principles scientifically determined, but by instances, proverbs, and apothegms. He undertook, therefore, first to determine the conditions of universally valid moral principles a science of human conduct. Self-knowledge is the starting point, because, he believed, the greatest source of the prevalent confusion was the failure to realize how little we know about anything, in the true sense of the word know. The statesman, the orator, the poet, think they know much about courage; for they talk about it as being noble, and praiseworthy, and beautiful, etc. But they are really ignorant of it until they know what it is, in other words, until they know its definition. The definite meaning, therefore, to be attached to the maxim know thyself is Realize the extent of thine own ignorance. Consequently, the Socratic method of teaching included two stages, the negative and the positive. In the negative stage, Socrates, approaching his intended pupil in an attitude of assumed ignorance, would begin to ask a question, apparently for his own information. He would follow this by other questions, until his interlocutor would at last be obliged to confess ignorance of the subject discussed. Because of

Write a College Term Paper

Write a College Term Paper Write a College Term Paper Write a College Term Paper Students are often intimidated about writing college-level term papers. By reviewing key prewriting strategies, you will learn how confidently begin writing formal college term paper. This lesson is designed to show how thinking about purpose, audience, and role can shape your writing and make it easier for you narrow down a topic. Being able to generate ideas is also a key skill for writers of term papers as you continue to narrow down your topic. You probably have already heard what a thesis statement is, and by reviewing key strategies for writing the thesis, you will be able to craft your own thesis. Once you have a preliminary thesis, you can begin to outline ideas, which will help you to organize your thoughts and make the writing process much easier. Term paper: Considering Your Writing Context The writing context includes three key factors: The writers purpose The writers audience The writers role Term paper purpose Think about any recent writing that youve done, whether it was writing an term paper for one of your classes or sending an email home to your parents. No matter type of writing youre doing, there is a reason why youre writing. In general, there are four main reasons for writing: To entertain the reader To relate an experience and/or express feelings To inform the reader about something interesting or important To persuade the reader to think or act in a particular way Understanding your purpose before you start writing is an important part of the argumentative term paper writing process: Term paper audience Having a clear idea of who your audience will be is just as important as identifying your purpose. First, you need to have a clear sense of who your reader is, and second, you need to know what the reader is like. Just about every decision you make about your writing will be influenced by your audience. For instance, what type of vocabulary would be appropriate for your audience? Will you need to define certain terms or can you assume your audience already knows the given terminology? Interesting posts: Dissertation Paper PhD Thesis My Dissertation What is a Thesis? Thesis Methodology

What Is Plagiarism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

What Is Plagiarism - Research Paper Example Even though the presence of plagiarism can be witnessed everywhere in the writing world, academic world seems to be the most affected one. Current academic curricula are developing with the help of assignments, project works and term papers. As part of the home works, teachers often ask students to prepare some assignments on different topics. Students on the other hand prepare assignments with the help of illegal channels. According to a study conducted among American High school students in 1998, â€Å"83% of the students found to be actively engaged in cheating activities and 67% had copied someone’s home work† (Foss& Lathrop, p.3). This paper briefly analyses various dimensions of plagiarism. We are living in a world of shortcuts. The generations in the past were ready to do hard work. On the other hand current generation and the upcoming generation are not much interested in doing hard work for learning something. For many students, earning an academic qualificatio n at any cost is the major objective of education rather than learning. The development of technologies such as internet helped them a lot in passing academic examinations without much hard works. It should be noted that internet is an ocean of knowledge. Moreover, it helps students to get their assignments done through others. When such shortcuts are readily available to them, many students use it to avoid the agony of self-preparing difficult assignments. Roberts (2007) mentioned that â€Å"lack of research skills and writing skills, problems in evaluating internet sources, confusion about how to cite sources, pressure, poor time management and organizational skills, cultural factors etc are the major reasons for the students’ habit of plagiarism† (Roberts, p.2). It should be noted that it is difficult for the students to prepare academic papers without using the ideas of others. However, while using the ideas of others, it is necessary to acknowledge it. When a stud ent deliberately uses the ideas of others without giving credit to them, it can be labelled as intentional plagiarism. On the other hand â€Å"Unintentional Plagiarism occurs when students use the words or ideas of others but fail to quote or give credit, perhaps because they don't know how† (Intentional and unintentional plagiarism). Many students have the habit of copy paste the ideas of others in their academic papers. Some students may describe the ideas of others in their own words which are referred as paraphrasing. In any case, proper citation is necessary to acknowledge that these ideas were indebted to others. While using the ideas of others; directly and indirectly, students should cite it in the body of the paper as well as in the bibliography. Direct quotations should be enclosed in the paper within quotation marks. Moreover, bulk quotations (More than 40 words) should be marked as a separate block in the paper. On the other hand, while paraphrasing, it is not nec essary to mark it as a separate block; however, the sources of the ideas should be mentioned at the end of the paraphrasing paragraph. In some cases, students may generate ideas which might have already expressed by others. It is difficult for them to know whether these ideas were already generated or not. In such cases, plagiarism checking software can help. For example, â€Å"Washington College has contracted with Turnitin.com, a web-based plagiarism prevention service. Students can use this service to avoid plagiarism† (Guidelines for the Use of the Turnitin.com Plagiarism Detection System). Moreover, plagiarism detection software has the ability to detect the percentage of plagiarism in a paper. Students can use such software to detect and eliminate plagiarism as much as they want. Under citing and over citing are not good while

Immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Immigration - Essay Example However, in the pursuit of the freedom and success that people dream about, many migrate to foreign countries, risking so many things and achieving nothing but being trapped in similar or even worse situations than those which they have left at home. This paper will look deeper into the political and economic issues which are the issues people leave home and the same problems which they face in their new residents as well as possible remedies for such situations. In Flight from Oaxaca, the author shares why Luz Dominguez, Marcela Melquiades and other Mexican immigrants have left their homes. It is revealed that the primary reason for their flights is poverty. They all agree that life in their country of origin is difficult where the minimum wage cannot even be enough to feed their families. Their poverty, though, is not because they are lazy. Instead there are forces that are out of their control. For instance, the political situation in Oaxaca, a state of Mexico, brought about too many difficulties to the citizens. In 2006, there had been so many protests because of the belief that there was fraud in the July presidential election. This led to the paralysis of major businesses. In addition, other grievances came out due to the situation. For instance, citizens claim that Mexico is not a poor country but it has become one because the oil which is being exported does not go back to the people which, they have now questioned. Mexicans say that if the government will only do its job well, the people will not suffer and will not have to choose moving out of the country. For reasons of poverty and political issues, Dominguez and other Mexicans crossed the borders to the United States. However, they seem to have forgotten to consider that even in the United States, there are political issues and poverty is also a common problem to the residents. It may be true that

Environment Pollution Essay Example for Free

Environment Pollution Essay As you know, China is well known on its 5000 years history, and it’s also famous for producing poisonous food and the worst environment pollution. Living in a developing country, Chinese develop industry and handicraft industry, and making money as much as they can. Compare with environment pollution, Chinese business man more care about how much money they could make per day. There are millions of factories in China mainland. And thousands of factories are being built right now. Before factories were built, owner or designer usually choose the factory location which nearby the river or lake. Locals usually drink and take water from the river or lake. Some rivers even provide water to several cities. Usually, an industry factory could produce poisonous waste water 350 m? /h and exhaust gas or smog 14000m? /h. But each factory could treat poisonous waste water 30m? /h. that means over 300m? /h poisonous waste water cannot be treated and be discharged into river or lake. In each factory, the equipment for exhaust treatment is required, but the most factories discharge exhaust treatment into air without treatment. Industry community usually is the high incidence area of cancer and oaf. Animals which are living nearby or living in the rivers and lakes, are bigger or with strange appearance. Farmers who are local, usually take water from river or lack for irrigation and raising livestock. Locals get disease on drinking poisonous water, eating poisonous food, and breathing in seriously polluted area. In China, living healthier become people’s dream and hope. Everybody hopes long live and having a healthy life. Over 70% Chinese are not covered by health insurance, and medical bill is going higher and higher, over 85% locals cannot handle it. People usually stay at home and wait for death when they get disease. Living in polluted area make people more worry about their descendants. People start to move to foreign country for a better environment. Let descendants have a chance to live in a healthier living environment also become their goal.

Essay --

â€Å"The process of learning continues throughout one’s life says an old adage†. As one goes on learning new things, one realizes that there are many more things which one needs to learn to quench one’s thirst for knowledge. During the course of my undergraduate study I have learnt many things but I have also realized that I need to learn more to advance frontiers in my field of interest. A graduate study is the next step in my quest for knowledge and to bring out my forte to the fore. I Pavan Kumar Vanga completed my Bachelor of Technology in Computer Science Engineering at Joginpally B.R.Engineering College affiliated to Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University at Hyderabad, one of the renowned institutes for undergraduate study in India. My decision to pursue graduate study has been motivated by my objective of seeking meaningful graduation related to computers. I firmly believe that I possess the requisite background and aptitude for pursuing graduation in this field at your university with the complete knowledge of programming languages like C, C++, Java. I was fascinated by the concept of Object Oriented Concepts, Operating System and Computer Networks, which virtually shrunk the globe and its omnipresent nature. This diverse nature of these subjects with its new avenues for research motivates me to be part of this exciting field. I have excelled in academics at every step of my education. I completed my schooling from Bhashyam Public School, Hyderabad securing 83.3%. In my pre-university at Narayana Junior College, Hyderabad. I took Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry as majors and secured 90.7%. My undergraduate study was the most pivotal period for shaping my future in the right direction. I took Computer Science Eng... ... to pursue my further education in your esteemed university, as my most important years of learning stretch right ahead. The journey ahead, promises to be a challenging one, it may well be arduous and demanding at times. After a careful study of various schools and the courses offered by universities, I finally decided to apply for your university owing to the quality of courses it offers. I strongly feel that I can match the high standard of your university and contribute fruitfully for the research endeavors at your university. An assistantship besides providing financial support would give me invaluable research-teaching experience. I am keen to join as a graduate student at your esteemed department with suitable financial assistance. I thank you in anticipation for considering my candidature and giving me an opportunity to express myself. . Pavan Kumar Vanga

Down the Road: My Personal Authentic Leadership Journey Essay

Born in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, where arms and ammunition for armed forces of Pakistan are made and distributed to different locations of the country, my leadership timeline reflects that leaders are moulded by the events they encountered and overcome to become who they are today. My story begins with a father whose sole goal in life was to provide us the education that he knew was vital to our aim to be successful as role models and leaders. Because education is not all about â€Å"book† learning, my family paid special attention to educating us about morals and ethics. Via religious education, I found the virtue of being a good man with a healthy belief system. To a leader you need to have a strong foundation in values and how those values shape our every activity. Discussion Because of this emphasis on education, I found myself even more drawn to furthering my own knowledge and uncovering my strengths and weaknesses as a contributing member of society. I saw my father as a role model who placed his family’s needs above his own. By moving out of his native village, he took the first steps towards providing his children with the best possible opportunities to get good standard education and develop high moral values and ethics in their personalities. As my father is well educated, he expected that his children too reach their full potential. Unfortunately, during my higher curriculum courses I performed poorly and was forced to work even harder to improve myself. Upon reaching college, I selected to be a class representative because I saw myself as having both good interaction skills as well as the aptitude for solving problems between individuals. This was the first time that I realized that my goals to become a good leader were indeed possible and attainable. In hindsight, I see that this interaction was the basis for some leadership traits (http://www. stewart-associates. co. uk/leadership-models. aspx). For example, during conflicts I rose to the occasion and alleviated group stresses, persistently overcame dilemmas, cooperated with my fellow classmates in solving problems, was seen as a dependable role model for lower class men, and easily adapted to situations when required. This initial experience began to give me the confidence that I needed to feel that I could successfully aid my fellow college students and being a strong representative of their requests and voices (http://www. buzzle. com/editorials/9-3-2004-58861. asp). It was only due to this confidence that I persistently applied for admission to several universities in Pakistan even though I had failed to obtain admission into any high ranking universities. To my parents, this was an embarrassment and the shame that they felt tore at my heart but though I was upset I realized I was not de-motivated. Instead, I adapted and improvised to the situation and selected to do my last year in college once again so as to receive higher marks. My self-restructuring efforts paid off and I achieved higher marks than anyone had expected from me. These implemented efforts are once again the markings of a young leader and can be visually seen in the graph below: Image taken from : (http://images. google. com/imgres? imgurl=http://api. ning. com/files/pAqrWCqLQC2AgQvsxfBsUXwOyx42-xPKmO6TQFFNQ5tMD1CBzFkfU7rWUpMX6Siqa6k*LAJmr*e4wYGKq7zMGn6UmTHdk6fy/Leadershipmodel. gif. jpg&imgrefurl=http://mylinkingpowerforum. ning. com/xn/detail/u_3jluv5gj6mp9a&usg=__AwGvnrelt3BvpCbfy005kjVXiE4=&h=278&w=320&sz=13&hl=en&start=10&um=1&tbnid=7oYMmH6hwuxfUM:&tbnh=103&tbnw=118&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dleadership%2Bmodel%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26um%3D1) My hard work would never go to waste and this renewed energy gave me the needed push to start my higher education at some good university. This effort ties in to the leadership model reflected by T. McGregor (1906-1964) which specifies that managers â€Å"tend to make two different assumptions about human nature. These views he explored in his theory X and theory Y† where in theory Y he states that â€Å"The expenditure of physical and mental effort in work is as natural as play or rest. † (http://www. stewart-associates. co. uk/leadership-models. aspx) My effort had indeed paid off and my father was able to send me to the UK for my higher education. It was hard, after starting the application process, Sept 11th occurred and the British embassy in Pakistan elected to close down it’s visa division for 6 months; which forced me to postpone my studies until Oct 2002. In spite of this delay, my only recourse was to kept up the hope and continue my computer course, IELTS, and TOEFL studies until April of 2002. I believe that this element of hope despite such hardships falls under the concept of a required â€Å"trait leadership† because without hope you will not feel the drive to continue on in projects, goals or objectives. While research may have shown that there are no consistent traits which make a leader there is merit to the argument that a â€Å"hope-less† leader will not be a successful one (http://www. leadership-studies. com/documents/mgmt_standards. pdf). So here I was in April of 2002 in the UK, and excited to being a new life on my own but fully aware of the hardships that I would encounter faced with a different culture. This driving difference would force me into getting a place to live, finding myself a job, and saving while I took time off from my college, Financial Training Company (FTC). I was lucky to find a living place with my childhood friends who were very supportive and I also found a job at Burger King, a local fast food restaurant. I started my Associate Accounting Technician (AAT) qualification and completed this qualification by December 2004. It was during this time that I also made several mistakes and suffered from heavy losses, both on a socially and financially level. It was not easy adapting but I learnt from any mistakes that I made. I learnt how to deal my 5 friends (both younger and older than me) living together and how to explain and assert myself when needed. I also learnt how to juggle the complexities associated with both working and going to school full time because in March of 2003 I was forced to get a job at Sainsbury’s local store. After working for Sainsbury’s for six months, I had an opportunity to step up as a supervisor and take on more responsibilities. During the interview process, I was the lucky candidate selected to become a supervisor. There were interviews held for this position and I was the successful candidate. This was very encouraging for me as my hard work and commitment to this job had paid off. The managers checked my performance track record and they found me to be perfect fit for this role. I was taken aback when they decided that I would have to undergo more training prior to being able to run a shift by myself as manager. During this period, I completed a 3 month training only to find that upper management itself changed. So here I found a challenge: when the new managers arrived at the branch they refused to promote me and official stated that I would need training for another 4 to 6 months. At that time, this became a very depressing situation for me. Even though I had passed all required tests for the position, it was under the manager’s end discretion to allow the promotion or not. Though I was disappointed, I did not lose hope and continued to struggle to my end goal. It took me another six weeks to prove myself as a good team leader who had the necessary capabilities to lead by example. That was a victorious moment for me when the store manager called me in the office and signed my promotion certificate. Due to my exposure at Sainsbury to various leadership models and techniques, I felt especially drawn to the concept of the action centered leadership structure. Via this model, I was introduced to the value of having a leader who performs activities and through these actions shows his or her employees the significance of balancing the needs of the employees with the requirements and expectations of the team. I came across many managers with different leadership styles; e. g. manager or morning shift used to prefer shop faced up and tidied while the one running the evening shift always focussed more on tills and customer service activities. For me, I saw that the true objective of an action plan is to effectively gauge what tasks must be accomplished in order for a project to be successfully completed. The leader of this situation is portrayed as a helicopter lightly gliding over the situation and having a positive overview of what is occurring through the project lifecycle. This allows for the task to been seen and directed to ensure that clear objectives are being met, and procedures are being adhered to. In the beginning I faced resistance from my own colleagues. They sometimes refused to do what I told them or argued and made lame excuses about why they could not accomplish a task. The reason for this behaviour was obvious. They felt that I who had been their co-worker just days before was now their boss. The assignment of jobs from me made them clearly uncomfortable and they rebelled. I had to handle the situation very carefully by delegating the work as well as helping them, by assuring them that though I was a team leader I was also part of the team. I could also see if there was evidence of progress and ensure that all deadlines are being met for the assignment (http://www. skagitwatershed. org/~donclark/leader/leadcon. html). This elevated view allows for the leader to guide his employees while functions are being performed to complete the project. From a higher perspective, such a leader is enabled with the vital component of seeing all aspects of the situation from the viewpoint of the task, the team, and the individual within the team. The team will see my commitment to the task assigned, and feel the same level of purpose that I feel. This will allow the team to grow in their cohesion, drive for success, and gleam trust from each other. To an individual, this status allows for individual growth in their career objectives because they feel that their contribution is being acknowledged and is evident in the team circles. Feedback both for the leaders as well as from the leadership capacity allows for better commitments, respect, security, and change of direction if required. Key to this model is the evidence of plans being successfully outlined and modified if required (http://www. stewart-associates. co. uk/leadership-models. aspx). Such leaders are aware that sometimes change is necessary for a project to be successful. Some of my workers were habitually taking longer breaks, not turning up for work and even stealing stock. Because of my strong leadership traits I able to convert many of them into giving up their bad habits and feeling that they could be good workers. This act of situational leadership enforced the concept that I needed to coach, direct, support, and delegate activities and behaviours for my co-workers (http://www. chimaeraconsulting. com/sitleader. htm). One supportive characteristic was my decision was my decision to not take illegal action against one of my co-workers who my deputy manager disliked. I found myself faced with extra work and stress because of his anger, but because I was a strong believer in Thorton’s 3C leadership model (challenge, confidence, coaching) I felt that my personal challenge in this case was to bear up under the difficulty and coach my employees into sharing my goals and becoming inspired by them (http://www. quickmba. com/mgmt/leadership/3c/). If I had given into the deputy manager’s illegal tactics I would destroy the confidence that they had begun to feel in my and my efforts to help them be successful. My self-confidence and ambition led me to seek employment in a company which also felt similarly attuned, Dixons Plc. At Dixons, I was hired as a sales advisor, where within weeks I showed my employers my excellence in performance. They rewarded me with huge bonuses and commissions. They too believed in the Thorton’s 3Cs Leadership Model and challenged me to benchmark my progress and highlighted my strengths and how I could become even more successful. Enriched by this experience, I was only too happy to continue my learning in how to arrange credit agreements with the HFC bank and how to facilitate our customers with after sales services. This continued to build up my confidence because the challenging goals that were set by my company were attainable and they showed me that I had the ability to reach the sales goals and quotas expected from me. Concluding Remarks: My experiences have molded me from a timid young man to an assertive one. Without the guide my father, my manager, and my exposure to the working world and its expectations from me I would be unable to be the leader that I am today. I hope that by learning about new leadership techniques I may one day be able to progress into an even more experienced managerial role. I believe that my leadership traits and qualities have enriched my life and aided me in my attempts to overcome the hurdles and challenges thrown my way. References: Bass, Bernard (1990). From transactional to transformational leadership: learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 18, Issue 3, Winter, 1990, 19-31. Bolden, R. , Gosling, J. , Marturano, A. and Dennison, P. A REVIEW OF LEADERSHIP THEORY AND COMPETENCY FRAMEWORKS (2003). Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. leadership-studies. com/documents/mgmt_standards. pdf Clark, Don. Concepts of Leaders. Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. skagitwatershed. org/~donclark/leader/leadcon. html Chimaera Consulting Limited (1999). Situational Leadership. Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. chimaeraconsulting. com/sitleader. htm Thornton, Paul B. Be the Leader, Make the Difference Thornton, Thornton’s 3-C Leadership Model. Website. Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. quickmba. com/mgmt/leadership/3c/ Models and Theories. Website. Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. stewart- associates. co. uk/leadership-models. aspx Leadership Qualities. Retrieved March 27, 2009 from http://www. buzzle. com/editorials/9-3-2004-58861. asp