Language analysis Essay

Feature article ‘Application failed: Tortured by hi-tech’ written by Sally Morrell in the Wednesday, June 13 issue of the Herald Sun contends that instead of machines making our lives easier, they have now become the control center of our daily activities. This feature article written in a reasonable and colloquial tone shows her views towards the topic of hi-tech as well as the visual showing a woman using a computer as a drug to help encourage readers to support her views. The title of the article makes her opinions on ‘hi-tech’ clear and the piece is filled with many reasons on why technology has overdone its natural purpose. Referring to life experiences in her opening sentence indicates that Morrell has an understanding of the topic and is able to relate to what she’s writing about. Her writing attempts to show readers that their lives have been over controlled by technology and machines. The juxtaposition of the title and visual shows an ironic analogy which helps strengthen matter at hand. ‘Application failed’ is entitled to compel reader’s think of a software program making it relate to the topic of technology. By using the image of a crazed woman ‘connected’ to her computer, strikes the reader’s attention enabling them to see how in order to function in our everyday lives, we need to have that addiction of being dependent on our technology resources. The technology around us is like a drug and Morrell forces readers to see that having machines is a pleasure but it can also be an over dominate resource thus agreeing with her in saying that it has ruled our lives. Colloquial language such as ‘twig’ and ‘conned’ throughout the text is used to personalize Morrell’s article. Relating to experiences and referring to them throughout the text, presents her as a person who has knowledge and understanding of matter. This helps supports her opinions and allows her to disagree on the statement ‘all these gadgets would make us all independent’. Her experiences show that even she has become a person who has relied on her device especially for communication with others. The way she personalizes her text makes what she is stating more believable and true. This obliges readers to see that instead of become more independent individuals; we have become more dependent on our gadgets enabling them to be the focal point of our lives. Readers do not have the time to enjoy time in the bathroom, at a cinema or at the dinner table because we are addicted to our gadgets and devices. ‘No wonder the World Wide Web is so named – webs are meant to trap people aren’t they?’ and ‘doesn’t it sounds like a lame excuse to say your computer was stuffed?’ are rhetorical questions Morrell uses to build up the arguments she wants to discuss. Her opinions and experience draws the reader to think about how idiotic it sounds that not rippling to an email within hours is late but when you don’t receive a letter for a week or two it’s okay. Having technology is meant to be ‘freedom’ but what’s freeing about having people contact you day and night about a crisis at work when you’re trying to relax and be free from the stress of work. Not only does Morrell state about freedom she also writes about how life 100 years ago wasn’t based on the devices and that now in our lives we are hostage to what is around us. Readers will see that we have become so reliant on their devices that they are basically our control center. Having experience on the topic, Morrell articles leaves readers to think about the affect technology has on their lives and how controlling the have become. Having caught the readers attentions through the life examples are her personal views throughout the article allows readers to be at one with her opinions and agree on the fact that technology and the World Wide Web have now become the control center of our daily activities.

Theory of International Politics by Kenneth N.WALTZ Essay

Theory of International Politics by Kenneth N.WALTZ - Essay Example make some claim to being theoretically important; to construct a theory of international politics that remedies the defects of present theories† (p.1). On this basis, in Chapter 1, Waltz addresses pre-existing theory pertaining to the correlation between laws and international behaviour. Whilst he acknowledges that legal compliance and laws may provide a correlation to state behaviour and international politics, Waltz feels that is theory that explains them and to this end attempts to reconstruct classic realism through a somewhat scientific approach. On this basis, Waltz’s book seeks to go beyond the classic realist position of politics in terms of state characteristics and state interaction with each other and he argues that â€Å"the idea that international politics can be thought of as a system with a precisely defined structure is neorealism’s fundamental departure from traditional realism.† Therefore Waltz’s central theory of neorealism in international politics is underpinned by Waltz’s proposition that the system of international politics is inherently dependent on a system of anarchy. This system of anarchy according to Waltz effectively creates the international order of hierarchy, which is further defined by states who are unitary rational actors on the one hand and rational actors on the other. To this end, Waltz’s discussion of the Cold War, highlights his propensity towards viewing the international political order from a systemic perspective as opposed to considering the intentions of individual states and human behaviour, which is arguably the inherent weakness of the book in context of contemporary international politics. For example, in focusing on the international politics as a whole state system as opposed to individual state level factors, Waltz avoids assumptions about human nature and morality and power in international politics. Waltz’s neo-realist paradigm proposes that the central factor in international politics is

Stengths and weaknesses of biometrics mechanis,s Essay

Stengths and weaknesses of biometrics mechanis,s - Essay Example Facial recognition is one of the best technologies but fails perform perfectly (â€Å"Biometric technologies). Voice recognition on the other hand has facilitated hands-free technology but is easily disrupted by additional sounds. Retinal and Iris recognition are one of the safest technologies but can be latent due to database searching. DNA is also a great feature that has solved crimes in this generation. The problem with DNA is that again it takes a long time and has a sample size in erroneous rate (â€Å"Biometric technologies†). Fingerprint has been a dominant technology for years as it is used for identification. The problem with this is the fact that individuals that are disabled cannot use that technology. Hand geometry, similar to its predecessor of finger ID has been a solid technology for integration as well, but layers of debris can play in some role of giving erroneous results. Gait technology has been a prominent force that has been the driving force for signatu re recognition to drive security in which police officials use radar gun, but can never be

Is Jazz Black Music Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Is Jazz Black Music - Research Paper Example It is obvious that jazz music has black origins just as obvious as classical music has European origins. European music is no longer simply European because it can be composed and played by anyone. But can this be said about jazz? This question is important because even though jazz has black origins, jazz music also has a special relationship to black people in a way European music does not have a special relationship to white people. Now that is a strange expression I have just made. But I believe in trying to answer it I will come up with reasons explaining why jazz was once a definitive black music, and why I write 'was once' in italics. One feature that jazz shares with classical music is that it is universal. This statement means nothing unless one rephrases to include something of its origin. Jazz was created by black people and it gradually or immediately became universal. 'Gradually' is used to demonstrate how it eventually was heard by others in the world and was immediately accepted as a special kind of rich music. 'Immediately' is italicized to say that it is an infectious, shoe-stamping kind of music. Of course not all of it is shoe-stamping. This is just to make a point. But jazz ballads or slow-tunes would also fall in this 'immediately-felt' felt category. The point is that some down-trodden people who were black skinned emerged their rhythm and their ability to make rich music into a white setting of harmony and rhythm. What they poured into that setting or form overtook it and produced something that was immediately appreciated by the world. That statement is itself a mouthful. But any book on jazz history would say the same. This is that jazz was created by black people who poured their feelings and their kinds of expression, which were originally and importantly African, into western music forms. That is a simple statement which put forwards in a simple way the theme of this essay identifying jazz as black music. A year or so ago, looking at a television show, there was a jazz music program on. It was rather strange because it was a Japanese jazz quartet playing music. This event cannot be compared to European classical music because today it is regularly accepted that some of the best classical string players are Japanese or of other non-white or non-European origin. A Japanese musician playing saxophone like Charlie Parker or Dexter Young would still be an anomaly as far as history goes. But this is for people who recognize history like those who can’t get over the fact that the South loss the Civil War and it was a good thing that they did. The important point that is trying to be made here is jazz as a social construction is black music in the way that the United States of America is a social construction. In fact America as a social construction has all the elements of jazz in it and, of course, even more. Where America differs or departs from jazz as a social construction is the reason why jazz is black mus ic and why it seems strange at this stage at this stage of American history to have a Japanese band play jazz. This should not be seen as a racist statement because it has already been admitted that jazz is a universal music. This means anyone so skilled can play jazz. In fact probably the skill level demanded of the music also compares it in a favorable way to European classical music. ‘European’ is used as a description only to point to the history of classical music. Today there are good

Discuss the pros and cons of unions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discuss the pros and cons of unions - Essay Example This implies that if benefits are increased, then workers will increase productivity that translates into profits for the company. Unions are also important for negotiating for better facilities at the work place such as maintenance services, new tools or equipment (Phillips and Gully 443). The introduction of such facilities implies that workers are willing to increase productivity and quality. However, unions also pose challenges to organizations and workers. For instance, unions breed laziness and rudeness in situations where the management fails to act. This causes industrial riots or unrests, which reduces the productivity and earnings of an organization (Phillips and Gully 443). Another setback of unions is that they create social groups in the workplaces where workers spend more time gossiping instead of working. Organizations where social groups are prevalent tend to suffer from misuse of resources and low productivity. This arises because the workers are attached to social groups that subscribe to their preferences. It is also apparent that unions are not good if it leads to shifting of strategic plans to respond to workers’ demands (Phillips and Gully 443). This gives the rival firms a competitive advantage since they are capable of working towards the faulted plans of the

Internet Technology, Marketing and Security Research Paper - 1

Internet Technology, Marketing and Security - Research Paper Example Social media, though an emerging trend is becoming part of everyday life and most businesses ranging from SMEs to corporate companies are now using social media marketing strategies. With today’s dynamic world social media platforms is also increasing tremendously with the current trends in information and communication technology (ICT) making the world more or less a global village. Businesses that have been swift to move with the current trend have seen great success whereas those that are not dynamic enough to embrace technology have often collapsed. Social media marketing has gained tremendous popularity and use in the recent past by entrepreneurs at all levels of business. There are very many companies that have succeeded and benefited from using social media marketing including Pepsi Co. and Ford just to mention a few, and others like Kodak have faced great decline because of not being swift in embracing technology and dynamism. There are very many reasons why social med ia has become increasingly popular among entrepreneurs in the recent past as the state of the art marketing tool. Many people have switched from the traditional telecommunication tools to adopt the emerging technologies in the ICT sector. There has been a paradigm shift from the traditional media such as television, radio, newspapers and magazines, which are seen as one-way and static communication technologies, to the current trend of online sources and social media as communication tools (Zarrella, 2010). In a way, it can be said that the traditional media has lost a lot of its popularity to the new social media thus, companies can only reach many people through the social media. The paradigm shift in communication has also shifted consumer markets to a great extent changing the orientation of the business playing field (Evans, 2010) People are no longer seeking News as it was in the recent past but instead News is looking for them, all this courtesy of the recent developments in ICT (Zarrella, 2010). People are no longer buying information and knowledge but it has become free in the social networks. The information has also become free of constraints of place, free of control of content and free of restrictive access on consumption. The social media dramatically levels the playing field by making the information plentiful and available just like it levels the businesses and organisations that work on the principle that make information scarcer (Evans, 2010). Social media platforms somehow create virtual communities by bringing people together in creating, manipulating and sharing information. Companies that use social media marketing are able to reach out to these social communities and interact with them more closely in a way that they share information thus strengthening the communities (Qualman, 2012). The organisation using social media has a more interactive and deep relationship with their customers compared to companies using traditional media. In th is way, the company can get instant feedback from the customers regarding their products and thus learn more about the feelings and perception of the people/consumers concerning their product and services. In this way, they can improve their products to suit the needs of their customers in a more appropriate manner (Zarrella, 2010). On the other hand, those companies using traditional media cannot have a deep dialogue with the customers because the communication is one-way. For instance if you do not agree with an advertisement

Star Trek Technology We Use Everyday Essay Example for Free

Star Trek Technology We Use Everyday Essay Star Trek technology has become reality that we use in our daily lives. There are many different forms of technology fields that have been shown in Star Trek as a first that have become a reality rather than a Science Fiction (Sci-Fi) fantasy. Star Trek technology came from the great imaginative minds of writers and designers with little to no knowledge of science in the original series. It wasnt until the second series that they started to incorporate actual scientific methods and terms. Advancements in science have come about through the influence of creative people thinking of the future. This technology has been instrumental in how we conduct our lives. Contemporary technology has been influenced by Star Trek in many ways. Phones were around for many years before Star Trek; however, they were tied down to the house or office by wires and the bulkiness of the devices. No one could possibly make a phone call on the go, yet they could by using a phone booth. However, using a phone booth would not be of much use since it couldnt be carried around. One of the greatest inventors of this decade, Dr. Martin Cooper, decided to come up with a new form of communicating with the rest of the world. Dr. Martin Cooper found himself tripping over his phone cord when he saw Star Trek appear on the TV playing in the background. Cooper watched with envy as Captain Kirk calmly conversed while walking across an alien landscape. (Laytner, 2011) While Cooper watched Captain Kirk with his communicator, he was bewildered â€Å"And, suddenly theres Captain Kirk talking on his communicator,† remembers Cooper. â€Å"Talking with no dialing!† (Handel, 2005) With the idea set in his mind, he set out to make it a reali ty. In 1973, Martian Cooper, While working for Motorola, he [Cooper] created the first personal cell phone, citing Captain Kirks communicator on Star Trek as an inspiration. His first call on the 28-oz. (800 g) cordless cell phone — dubbed the brick — was to his rival at Bell Labs Research. (Grossman, 2007) However, this big brick of a phone didnt match the likeness of the communicator that Captain Kirk used, so in 1996, Motorola made the first flip phone named StarTAC. (Kessler, 09-0) These clamshell phones were highly sought after and held the cell phone design for many years until touch screen phones recently became more popular. Many Star Trek fans and even older more stubborn non-techies still try to keep the flip phone for the nostalgia of Star Trek and to keep pocket dialing to a minimum. In 1974, Ed Roberts created the Altair 8800, the first minicomputer that came in kits for consumers to put together, yet it wasnt a friendly user system since software wasnt invented yet. The Altair 8800 was named after a space system from the Star Trek series and was the basis for the basic computer language that Bill Gates of Microsoft, Steve Jobs of Apple, and Gordon Moore of Intel used to create new and more user friendly computers. This basic language that Ed Roberts created was inspired by Star Trek (Handel, 2005). When computers became a household name and personal were computers available to the general public, a new development occurred that would be called a laptop. Adam Osborne of Osborne Computer Corporation, the father of portable computers, introduced the first commercially available portable computer with software to run it, named Osborne 1 in 1981 (Scott, n.d.). In 1968, Alan Kay of Xerox made a concept and prototype of a portable information manipulator, named Dynabook, a different form of a portable computer that wasn’t user friendly or available to the general public (Maxwell, 2006). Without software, the Dynabook was hard to understand and use, so the Osborne 1 with its software and graphic interface to allow users to see what they were doing made it a true portable computer. Portable computers got an even newer facelift in 1993 when Robert Haitani developed the Palm Pilot, a first in personal data assistant (PDA) and a new form of portable computers. Robert Haitani, the designer of the Palm Pilot, said his first sketches were influenced by the Enterprise bridge panels and produced it. A few years later there was a combination of cell phones and PDAs since they shared hardware which resembled to the communicator in Star Trek. You could stand there and talk into it like Captain Kirk (Laytner, 2011). The Palm Pilot spanned PDAs which transformed into the current popular trend of tablets and smart phones. All the different technologies incorporated into the tablet and the smart phone can be traced back to their Star Trek influenced roots. Advancements in technology and science have been influenced by many sources. Star Trek played a large role in evolution of the modern technology by influencing many inventors. Even though the original series of Star Trek was written and designed with little to no knowledge of the technological advancements of the times, Gene Rodenberry wrote many views of how life would be with various forms of technology that weren’t even a reality, yet. Works Cited Grossman, Lev. (2007). Best inventions of 2007. Time. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1677329_1677708_1677825,00.html. (Grossman, 2007) Time listed the best inventions and inventors of the 2007, and they had Martin Cooper listed for creating the first mobile telephone that wasnt mounted in a car in 1973. Laytner, Lance. (2011). Edit international. Retrieved from http://www.editinternational.com/read.php?id=4810edf3a83f8 (Laytner, 2011) Talks about the documentary How William Shatner Changed The World and the many inventions of many inventors help shaped the world now because they were influenced by Star Trek to reach for the future. Maxwell, John (2006) Tracing the Dynabook: A Study of Technocultural Transformations http://thinkubator.ccsp.sfu.ca/Dynabook/Maxwell-DynabookFinal.pdf (Maxwell, 2006) This thesis paper was great detail on Alan Kay, who made a from of portable computer that manipulated information, and his accomplishments and how the Dynabook became what it did. Handel, Alan. (Writer) (2005). How William Shatner Changed The World [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u304yVYoCJs