knowledge and evidence Essay -- essays research papers fc

One definition of knowledge is true belief based on strong evidence. What makes evidence â€Å"strong† enough and how can this limit be established?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The making of knowledge is the process in which personal opinion is fortified by pragmatic evidence. It is to my belief that, evidence is a keystone in the justification of truth, because it is something solid and concrete. Significance of evidence is also magnified by our society as we develop. In major areas such as: scientific investigations, judicial examinations, historical assessments and many other field of knowledge, the value of creditable evidence are strongly advocated. While evidence is a strong factor in eliminating doubts of knowledge, different types of evidence can also affect the reliability of the truth claim which it supports. The fine line dividing valuable evidence and unreliable proof has since been drawn and debated over from the first schools of thoughts to today’s broad fields of knowledge. Likewise, I will also call upon my own experience and understanding to draw my own line in the grey vicinity of this spectrum.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Before the declaration of my knowledge claims, I would like to clarify my understanding of evidence and its characteristics; which will be the foundation of this discussion. On a broad view, evidence can be identified as a fact-like assertion that proves or disproves  ¯ to a certain degree  ¯ a notion to be true, and trustworthy. On a closer examination, I realized, it is the evidence’s degree of relevance and authenticity that establishes its value and strength. Relevance, I believe, is the relationship which the evidence has with the theory that it is trying to uphold. As two things with strong connections tend to support each other, evidence with close relationship to the hypothesis, is also able to support the truth within that assumption. Authenticity, on the other hand, is the creditability of evidence. Only when the evidence is valid, will the knowledge that it is trying to justify be accurate. Furthermore, evidence’s strength also lies wi thin its objectivity and creditability. With less personal bias, evidence will be regarded as objective, therefore easier to admit universally. At the end, creditability finalizes strong evidence through the influence of trust. Even though strong evidence can stand as a fact of i... ... imperfection of evidence can only be minimized, but cannot be eliminate, this eventually will result in few controversies. As we find better ways of finding stronger knowledge, the frequency of the controversies will also decrease. Subsequently, I believe, relevance, authenticity, objectivity and creditability are all strong factors in the acquirement of strong evidence, which ultimately affects the validation of knowledge. With different situation and within different fields of study, the degree of these four factors that determines strong evidence may vary, because of the difference in how truth is viewed. In this essay, I have presented my own view and draw my own line which may incorporate my own personal predisposition, but I believe, parts of my mark will still remain on that spectrum as genuine knowledge. (1,560) Bibliography  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Committee On The Judiciary House of Representatives, Federal Rules of Evidence, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 2001  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Evans, Colin: A Question of Evidence – The Casebook of Great Forensic Controversies, from Napoleon to O.J., John Wiley & Sons Inc., New Jersey, 2003

abuse :: essays research papers

Its natural for children to be raised in a warm and loving home and growing up in a nice environment ,but in todays society that is not what our children get to experience. On Feb. 14th,Albany police removed three unattended children from a home on Sheridan Ave.. Conditions in the apartment included rats and mice running around. Feces clogged the bathtub and squalor throughout the apartment and endangered the safety of the children. The children were taken and removed quickly from the apartment and placed in a caring household. Police told reporters that they had been at the house for three months earlier on November 4th, however, caseworkers found conditions better than what they were on the 14th. The apartment was warm and clean and also had food. The mother told caseworkers she was to get foodstamps the next day but caseworkers insisted on getting some more food . On Dec. 6th, the mother visited the office of child protection services with her children. She was offered assistance and told them she needed some help. At no time, however, the caseworkers note the condition in the house that justified the removal of the children. The county is required to do everything possible to keep a family together . This story is still being looked into, but as of now the children are staying in a warm home. This is strictly child abuse, not much as hitting but neglect. These children were left for days without food, water, baths, or a place to use the restroom. It is said each day in the United States, more than three children die as a result of child neglect and/or abuse. Most of the children who die are younger than the age of five. These children are innocent and have done nothing wrong, but the mother seemed not to be able to take care of them. Child abuse is reported on average every ten seconds, and these types of abuse are as follow, Neglect- 53.5percent, Physical Abuse- 22.7percent, Sexual Abuse-11.5percent, Emotional Abuse-6percent,and Medical Abuse 6percent. The statistics say that neglect is the number one abuse that children experience. Parents are not understanding when a child is abused, it effects their whole life, and it will stay with them forever. Men and women who today are serving time in jail and prison have incidence of

Aum Shinrikyo Terrorist Group

Introduction The Aum Shinrikyo is a Japanese ‘New Religious Movement Organisation’ but they are also labelled as a terrorist organisation in many countries across the world. The group originated in 1984, in Japan. It started as a cult where the founder and leader, Shoko Asahara, promised followers that they would have the power to hover or levitate if they joined. Since its establishment in 1984, it has committed at least two terrorist attacks. The group was popular in the 1990’s and had many members (10,000 in Japan and approximately 30,000 in Russia) but following the Sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway, the numbers diminished due to the group being targeted by the police. They changed the name of the organisation from Aum Shinrikyo to Aleph. History The infamous Cult began in 1987 and was founded by Shoko Asahara. Aum Shinrikyo has elements of Buddhism and Christianity although Christians and Buddhists have no association to the group. The founder, Shoko Asahara, was born in 1957 and is partially blind. He spent his life studying acupuncture which is a common career in Japan for the blind. He was arrested by the Japanese authorities and held in prison for a short period for selling useless medicines to cure diseases, with the claim that they give the user special powers. He later travelled in the Himalayas where he supposedly learnt his divine powers and was teleported to the year 2006 where he spoke to soldiers who had survived World War III. Asahara formed the Cult in 1987 in a small yoga studio and convinced people that if they joined they would have special powers such as the ability to levitate and they would fight in World War III, which was to occur at the end of the millennium. Asahara grew a beard when he started the Cult as a way of appearing as a mystic. The reason the Cult was able to recruit so many members was that the vulnerable sought the belief that they could posse supernatural powers and could achieve a different life to the busy, non-stop working life of most people in Japan. The Cult members were loyal to Asahara and treated him as a type of ‘Christ’. He brainwashed his followers and taught a range of extreme theories such as the doomsday and apocalypse that was his World War III. He brainwashed people into thinking that if they left they would die in the apocalypse and there were cases of members leaving and being killed by other members, acting on Asaharas orders. In 2000, the name of the organisation was changed from Aum Shinrikyo to Aleph. Aleph is the first letter of the Jewish alphabet. It is somewhat of an enigma that they changed the name to Aleph as the group is strongly opposed to Judaism. The reason for the change of name served to prove to the public they had changed and were no longer Anti-Semitic and to recruit new members that were unaware of the Cult’s previous history. The Cult still exists today, although many countries such as Australia and the USA have placed Aleph and Aum Shinrikyo on terrorist alert lists. Interestingly, Japan has not classed Aleph as a terrorist organisation, yet and current worldwide membership as of 2005 is 1,650 according to Japanese government records. Chemical Weapons The Aum Shinrikyo made sarin using over the counter products purchased at a chemist and processed themselves. The Aum Shinrikyo maintained large warehouses where they would develop nerve agents and other chemical weapons. The Cult even had a headquarters in Western Australia that was closed at the end of 1993. In Western Australian it is asserted they tested chemical weapons (Sarin gas and VX which is the most toxic nerve agent created and is classed as a Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) by the United States) on 29 sheep. The Cult also maintained chemical warehouses throughout Japan but in many cases, local residents petitioned for them to move away. Tokyo Subway Sarin Gas Attacks In 1995 the Aum Shinrikyo committed the first, and worst, of their terrorist attacks. In the early morning rush hour on the Tokyo subway, five Aum Shinrikyo members each released two bags of the lethal chemical, Sarin and the attack was carried out at peak hour in the subway stations where there was the largest number of people and greatest potential impact. The perpetrators were driven to the designated subway stations carrying 2 bags of liquid Sarin wrapped in newspaper. Some wore disguises while others had medical masks (which are quite common in Japan). All boarded the subway carriages and placed the bags on the floor, puncturing them with umbrellas before hopping off at the next stop. The liquid evaporated and commuters began to feel light headed and nauseas. The subway carriages were forced to stop and were then evacuated. At one station a commuter told a staff member of a leaking bag which the staff member immediately picked up with her hands and then placed in a bin – the staff member died shortly after. Chaos followed outside the subway stations as Tokyo’s road systems were already congested with traffic and emergency services found it difficult to reach victims. In total, 12 people died, 50 were severely injured and possibly 1000 more had temporary blindness and vision loss. The attack remains to this day the worst terrorist attack committed in Japan. Aum’s Other Illegal Activities Although the 1995 Tokyo Subway Sarin Gas attacks received the most publicity, it is certainly not the only terrorist and illegal act. The second most notorious and infamous reason for the Cult’s media coverage were the Sakamoto murders. Sakamoto was an anti-cult lawyer who was working against the Aum Shinrikyo in 1989. Sakamoto convinced Asahara to take a blood test to see if there was anything unusual in his body that would give him his supernatural powers. The test came back normal suggesting suggest that Asahara was a fraud and had no supernatural powers. This would have been devastating for recruitment into the Aum Shinrikyo and embarrassing to Asahara. This was the reason Asahara sent his loyal followers to kill Sakamoto and his family. The method they chose to kill Sakamoto and his family was with 14 hypodermic syringes filled with potassium chloride and their bodies were mutilated to hinder identification. The perpetrators were only arrested and prosecuted because other members of the Cult were linked to the sarin gas attacks gave evidence. There has also been evidence and accusations that the Aum Shinrikyo had torture chambers at some of the warehouses and headquarters. It is asserted that they placed members who tried to leave the Cult in large shipping containers where they deprived them of sleep along with committing other tortures before then killing them. ———————– Shoko Asahara – A very famous photo of Asahara on trial in Japan. This photo has had a lot of coverage and even taking the cover of Time Magazine. Source: www. my. dek-d. com The clean up after the Sarin Gas attacks on the subway. Source: www. angelingo. usc. edu Large containers of Chemical weapons such as Sarin and VX were found in an Aum Shinrikyo warehouse throughout Japan and one in Western Australia. Source: http://www. semp. us This image shows many test tubes filled with the deadly gas used in the Tokyo Subway attacks, Sarin. Source: jafproject. net/images3/sarin. jpg This photo was taken outside a subway station after the Sarin was released. The gas made people feel nauseas and sick and they can often loose their sight or even die. These victims are most likely only suffering from temporary blindness. Source:http://www. semp. us/_images/biots/Biot171PhotoA. jpg Tsutsumi Sakamoto, his wife and one year old son. This photo was taken shortly before they were brutally murdered by members of Aum Shinrikyo under Shoko Asaharas orders. Source: http://japanfocus. org A wanted photo that has been stuck on a wall outside a subway station where two sarin bags were released. The photos are of the perpetrators, Ikuo Hayashi, Kenichi Hirose, Toru Toyoda, Masato Yokoyama and Yasuo Hayashi. Source:http://content. answers. com Bibliography http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo#1995_Tokyo_sarin_gas_attacks_and_related_incidents http://www. religioustolerance. org/dc_aumsh. htm www. angelingo. usc. edu

Multi-state E.coli Outbreak

A person having diarrhea with loose stools greater than 3 bowel movements in a day with or without abdominal cramps, who is a resident of Michigan, having onset of symptoms between the 15th of June and 15th of July and the   stool cultures yielding E.coli 157:H7. (Lautenbach, E., 2008).   (Multistate Outbreak of E.coli O157:H7 Infection, 2008)It is an infection leading to severe abdominal cramps and bloody diarrhea. Non bloody diarrhea can also occur, or it may also be that the patient will have no symptomatic complaints. The causative organism is E.coli O157:H7 which has an incubation period of 3 to 8 days with a median of 3-4 days. (Lautenbach, E. 2008).   . In people in extremes of age groups I.e. elderly and children under 5 years of age, the infection can also lead to complications like Hemolytic uremic syndrome.AdvantagesBy including a lab test as criteria for case confirmation, the specificity of the case definition increases hence the power of the test increases and so do the chances to detect the source.DisadvantagesInvestigation: by making lab investigations like stool cultures and PFGE a criterion, people who had the symptoms but were not able to visit the doctor were not counted as having the disease, hence the sensitivity of the definition decreased.By only taking residents of Michigan into consideration, people who were visitors and might have got infected were excluded from the count.Slight alterations could be made to the case definition.Proposed Case DefinitionA person having diarrhea with loose stools greater than 3 bowel movements in a day with or without abdominal cramps. The person may be a resident or may have visited Michigan a week prior to having onset of symptoms between the 15th of June and 15th of July. A person with clinically compatible picture who is epidemiologically linked with a confirmed case of E.coli infection. The stool cultures yielding E.coli 157:H7.The lab testing requirement still has to remains, to ensure specifi city and power of the definition.Comparison between age groups:In the Michigan outbreak, it was noted that more than twice as many females were infected as were males. People in age groups of 20-39 and 40-59 were reported most frequent cases in the Michigan outbreak. Food net on the other hand reported nation wide distribution of cases almost equally in males and females, i.e. 162 to 178 respectively. They also documented that largest segmented of population infected in 1997 was in the age group of 1-9 years.This pattern shows that in the Michigan outbreak, the source most probably started with some sort of interaction between source and the adult females of age between 20-59years.  Inquiry about diseaseE.coli infection is mainly an oral-fecal transmission pathway. Hence poorly chlorinated water, unpasteurized milk are common fluid sources. Uncooked or improperly cooked beef another forms of meat are another likely source of transmission. Vegetables directly from farms or stores, which are not properly washed, like lettuce, spinach alfalfa etc are another source of infection. (Escherichia coli O157:H7, 2005).   Exposure to farm animals, or contact with infected people are also risk factors. In the United States infected children in daycare centers also a major source of spread. So questions pertaining to contact and handling of the above stated risk factors should be asked.Source of the outbreak according to the currently present evidence is alfalfa sprouts. Contaminated alfalfa seeds initially caused the outbreak and then the infection easily spread through person to person transfer. The leading hypothesis is that contaminated alfalfa sprouts or seeds of alfalfa sprouts were the initial cause of the outbreak.People who consumed these foods in the area of Michigan got infected with E.coli O157:H7 and then the infection were further transferred to other people with whom they came into contact.REFFERENCES:Escherichia coli O157:H7 (2005). Division of Bacteria l and Mycotic Diseases, Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved March 6, 2008, from http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/escherichiacoli_t.htmLautenbach, E. (2008).   Outbreak Investigation: Discussion Group. Pennsylvania department of health. Retrieved March 6, 2008, from http://www.dsf.health.state.pa.us/health/lib/health/Outbreak_Investigation.ppt.Multistate Outbreak of E.coli O157:H7 Infection, (2008). Foodsafety.net  Retrieved March 6, 2008, from http://www.foodsafetynet.info/NEHA/EpiSlides/Ecoli_122803.ppt.   

Global Development Strategy of Siemens AG Case Study

Global Development Strategy of Siemens AG - Case Study Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that in order to capitalize on the strength of the systems that the company has produced over the years as well as opportunities with the advancement of information technology, Siemens AG has come up with the â€Å"EWSD NetManager project.† This project aims to integrate the EWSD network nodes and networks into a user-friendly and graphics based software product to telecoms customers. This integration aims to provide the customers a complete range of facilities in order for them to operate, administer, and maintain the functions of their customers EWSD network nodes and networks. This project requires the expertise in the EWSD technology as well as expertise in desktop computing languages. Siemens over the years has developed distinct specializations in its independently running RDCs. The company RDC in Florida, for example, has developed a significant technical expertise in handling EWSD. However, because the Boca Raton RDC in Florida has been given much independence in their operations, their expertise is usually tailored to those of the needs of the local customers. Thus, the expertise that they have developed has been different from those of the main office in Munich, Germany. Siemens another RDC in Bangalore, India, however, has the technical expertise when it comes to desktop computing languages. These RDCs provide different advantages when it comes to the decision of which one should handle the NetManager project. In pursuing this project, Horst Eberl and Karl-Friedrich Hunke, the two subdivisional co-heads of Siemens Information and Communications Network, have unearthed several hindrances to the implementation and commencement of the NetManager project. When the company has decided to give the task to its Bangalore RDCs because of its technical expertise on desktop computing languages as well the lower costs of operations, the difference in the RDCs way of doing things has to lead to a major crisis in Si emens.

Teaching Strategies for Students that are Mental Retarded Essay

Teaching Strategies for Students that are Mental Retarded - Essay Example The mutilation of students who are mentally disturbed in reading skills of comprehension display differences in accordance with their disability level. Many people do not see the possibility for such students (mentally retarded) to learn writing and reading skills. The problems of these students are evident in the dimension of reading comprehension. Appropriate methods of teaching have become suggested to help students conquer these difficulties. The major areas in which mentally retarded students experience difficulties are finding the textual components in their reading and associating these components. The reasons for these difficulties as suggested include lack of repeating strategies, memory problems, short attention span and problem in transferring the leant work (Iskdogan & Kargin 3). Strategies One of the reading comprehension technique taught is story map. It is the representation of some section of or the entire story and how fundamental components of the story are linked t o each other in the form of graphics (graphical form). It is also a technique of constructing a schema, which involves teaching the relationships of sections of a story with each other to the person who reads, and providing the necessary components of the story in a schema so as to draw the attention of the individual who reads. The purpose of this method is help students build the story about the fundamentals of the story in their minds with no use of the visual material given as a story map after a certain time. The technique is also meant to improve thinking structures, which provide text comprehension. This method (story map) is effective in separating the information which is significant and insignificant in the story, providing active participation, activating foreknowledge, predicting, directing students, and transferring data into long term memory (Iskdogan & Kargin 4). The didactic approach is another strategy of teaching. This is based on games and exercises. Modern commun ities of researching and teaching agree that learning is effective, despite the philosophy or educational model used, when students get involved in games and exercises. In accordance with the socio-cultural theory, learning is majorly a social process. The most effective practices of education should be constructed upon all the ways in which people are specifically gifted at getting information kinds and causal patterns. Games and exercises are all about interactions with other persons. The interactions of the mentally disturbed students with each other will help them understand and improve their relations with others, and also learn from them. Children acquire most of their knowledge through others, and that knowledge occurs outside school settings such as museums, toys, televisions and other artifacts, or even different games activities like playing soccer, doing athletics, and playing chess (Reis et al 3). Traditionally, the main learning form has been the known teacher directed learning or guided learning. This is where the teacher or trainer makes all the appropriate decisions and the student follows him or her. In such a model of learning, the teacher decides about the learning goals, the strategies of learning, ways of measuring outcomes, and deals with judgment, results and feedback. The other two types of learning experiences are experiential and action learning. Serious awareness have become made on the benefits of new

Lean Production Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Lean Production - Term Paper Example minimal defects and variety of output with least input. The important aspect is ‘half ‘that symbolizes reduction by human power, investment, manufacturing and engineering hours (Black, pp. 6-15). It forms the systematic approach on cost reduction, quality, time management, delivery aspects, safety, and morale. It also models the ongoing customer pull and continuous flow of improvement. Gallus group also justified the lean production by eliminating 50% inefficiencies in their processes and saving on millions of Euros per year by a limited outlay. An important aspect of the lean philosophy is ‘Elimination of Waste’. It works on the excellent epitome of Zero’s i.e. zero waste. It features zeros in â€Å"defects, over production, waiting or lead-time, inventory, inappropriate processing, transportation movement† (Creative Class, pp. 25-29). The re –engineering not only implies in business process but also to people’s attitude, efficien cy, and input. The JIT (Just in Time) will eliminate the inventory holding cost by pull production of ‘zero’ strategy. The Toyota City is the best example of the just in time system that not only caters the main production but also its suppliers. The Japanese strategy of lean transplant was to bring an innovative approach to work practices such as work force, apparent skills and knowledge, quality management etc.