Metaphor and Translation Essay

Abstract Metaphor has been widely discussed within the discipline of Translation Studies, predominantly with respect to translatability and transfer methods. It has been argued that metaphors can become a translation problem, since transferring them from one language and culture to another one may be hampered by linguistic and cultural differences. A number of translation procedures for dealing with this problem have been suggested, e. g.  , substitution (metaphor into different metaphor), paraphrase (metaphor into sense), or deletion. Such procedures have been commented on both in normative models of translation (how to translate metaphors) and in descriptive models (how metaphors have been dealt with in actual translations). After a short overview of how metaphor has been dealt with in the discipline of Translation Studies, this paper discusses some implications of a cognitive approach to metaphors for translation theory and practice. Illustrations from authentic source and target texts (English and German, political discourse) show how translators handled metaphorical expressions, and what effects this had for the text itself, for text reception by the addressees, and for subsequent discursive developments. # 2004 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Conceptual metaphor; English; French; German; Metaphorical expression; Translation Studies 1. Introduction Metaphor, as a typical feature of communication, presents a challenge for translation too, both for the practising translator and for its treatment in the discipline of Translation Studies. In the literature on translation, the two main issues have been, ? rstly, the translatability of metaphors, and secondly, the elaboration of potential translation * Tel. : ? 44-121-359-3611Ãâ€"4224; fax: ? 44-121-359-6153. ? E-mail address: c. schaeffner@aston. ac. uk (C. Schaffner). 0378-2166/$ – see front matter # 2004 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved. doi:10. 1016/j. pragma. 2003. 10. 012 1254 ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 procedures. In most cases, the argumentation is based on a traditional understanding of metaphor as a ?  gure of speech, as a linguistic expression which is substituted for another expression (with a literal meaning), and whose main function is the stylistic embellishment of the text. It is only recently that a cognitive approach to metaphor has been applied to Translation Studies. In this article, I want to illustrate on the basis of some examples from the language pair, English and German, what a cognitive approach could offer to the description of metaphors in translation. The discussion proceeds primarily from the perspective of the discipline of Translation Studies. In taking this approach, it is also possible to explore how the cross-linguistic and cross-cultural perspective of translation can contribute to metaphor theory. 2. The treatment of metaphor as a translation problem Translation and interpreting as activities have existed for many centuries, and there is a long tradition of thought and an enormous body of opinion about translation (cf. Delisle and Woodsworth, 1995; Robinson, 1997). But it was not until the second half of this century that Translation Studies developed into a discipline in its own right (cf. Holmes, 1988; Snell-Hornby et al.  , 1992). Although at ? rst conceived as a subdiscipline of applied linguistics, it has taken on concepts and methods of other disciplines, notably text linguistics, communication studies, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, pragmatics, comparative literature, and recently, cultural studies. Instead of a uni? ed theory, we have a multiplicity of approaches, each of which focuses on speci? c aspects of translation, looks at the product or the process of translation from a speci? c angle, and uses speci? c ? terminology and research methods (cf. Chesterman, 2000; Gentzler, 1993; Schaffner,  1997b; Stolze, 1994). The phenomenon of metaphor has regularly been of concern to translation scholars who have argued about problems of transferring metaphors from one language and culture to another. The arguments brought forward need to be seen within the context of a heterogeneous discipline, i. e. , with respect to the speci? c model of translation within which the scholars approached their topic. I will therefore begin by giving a brief overview of the most prominent approaches to translation and provide a short account of how metaphor has been dealt with in the discipline of Translation Studies. Linguistics-based approaches de? ne translation as transferring meanings, as substituting source language (SL) signs by equivalent target language (TL) signs (e. g. , Catford, 1965). The source text (ST) is to be reproduced in the TL as closely as possible, both in content and in form. Since the aim of a translation theory has often been seen as determining appropriate translation methods, language systems (as langues) have been studied in order to ? nd the smallest equivalent units (at the lexical and grammatical levels) which can be substituted for each other in an actual text (as parole). Textlinguistic approaches de? ne translation as source text induced target text (TT) production (Neubert, 1985). The text itself is treated as the unit of translation, and it is stressed that a text is always a text in a situation and in a culture. Therefore, consideration needs to be given to situational factors, genre or text-typological conventions, addressees’ knowledge and expectations, and text functions. The central notion of equivalence is now ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 1255 applied to the textual level, and de? ned as communicative equivalence, i. e., a relationship between the target text and the source text in which TT and ST are of equal value in the respective communicative situations in their cultures. Functionalist approaches de? ne translation as a purposeful activity (cf. Nord, 1997), as ? ? transcultural interaction (Holz-Manttari, 1984), as production of a TT which is appropriate for its speci? ed purpose (its skopos) for target addressees in target circumstances (cf. Vermeer’s ‘skopos theory’, e. g. , Vermeer, 1996). The actual form of the TT, its textual– linguistic make-up, is therefore dependent on its intended purpose, and not (exclusively) on the structure of the ST. The yardstick for assessing the quality of the target text is, thus, its appropriateness for its purpose, and not the equivalence to the source text. More modern linguistic approaches acknowledge that translation is not a simple substitution process, but rather the result of a complex text-processing activity. However, they argue that translations need to be set apart from other kinds of derived texts, and that the label ‘translation’ should only be applied to those cases where an equivalence relation obtains between ST and TT (House, 1997; Koller, 1992). Equivalence is probably the most controversial notion in Translation Studies. Some translation scholars reject this notion outright, arguing that by retaining ‘equivalence’ in the vocabulary, translation scholars sidestep the issue that ‘‘it is difference, not sameness or transparency or equality, which is inscribed in the operations of translation’’ (Hermans, 1998: 61). This view is also expressed in current approaches that are inspired by postmodern theories and Cultural Studies, which argue that texts do not have any intrinsically stable meaning that could be repeated elsewhere (e. g. , Arrojo, 1998; Venuti, 1995). For Venuti, the target text should be ‘‘the site where a different culture emerges, where a reader gets a glimpse of a cultural other’’ (Venuti, 1995: 306). In the course of its development, the focus of Translation Studies has, thus, shifted markedly from linguistic towards contextual and cultural factors which affect translation. Major inspiration for the development of the discipline has also come from research conducted within the framework of Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS), aiming at the description of translating and translations ‘‘as they manifest themselves in the world of our experience’’ (Holmes, 1988: 71). Research here includes studying the socio-historical conditions in which translations are produced and received, identifying regularities in translators’ behaviour and linking such regularities to translation norms which operate both in the social event and the cognitive act of translation (cf. Toury, 1995). DTS and postmodern theories thus de? ne translation as norm-governed behaviour (Toury, 1995) and/or a cultural political practice (Venuti, 1996: 197). The contrast between normative models (what a TT should look like) and descriptive models  (what TTs actually do look like) is also evident in the discussions about metaphor translation. Metaphor has traditionally been described as an individual linguistic phenomenon (a metaphorical expression) which can become a translation problem. Most scholars use the same terms as those applied in semantic theories (cf. Goatly, 1997), i. e. , terms like ‘image’ or ‘vehicle’ for the conventional referent, ‘object’ or ‘topic’ for the actual unconventional referent, and ‘sense’, ‘ground’, or ‘tenor’ for the similarities and/or analogies involved. Newmark (1981) explains these terms on the basis of the example rooting out the faults as follows: the object, that is, the item which is described by the metaphor, is faults. The image, that is, the item in terms of which the object is described, 1256 ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 is rooting up weeds. The metaphor, that is, the word(s) used in the image, is rooting out, and the sense, which shows in what particular aspects the object and the image are similar, is (a) eliminate; and (b) do so with tremendous personal effort. He argues that in translating this ?  metaphor, a verb such as eliminer in French, or entfernen in German, would not do, ‘‘unless the phrase was of marginal importance in the text’’ (Newmark, 1981: 85). These arguments re? ect the two main concerns in Translation Studies, the translatability of metaphors, and procedures to transfer them from a source language into a target language. In equivalence-based approaches, the underlying assumption is that a metaphor, once identi? ed, should ideally be transferred intact from SL to TL. However, cultural differences between SL and TL have often been mentioned as preventing such an intact transfer. For Dagut (1976: 22), a metaphor is an ‘‘individual ? ash of imaginative insight’’, a creative product of violating the linguistic system, and as such, highly culture speci? c. Its main function is to shock its readers by creating an aesthetic impact. In Dagut’s view, the effect of shock is to be retained in a translation, and if linguistic and cultural factors hinder this effect, then he maintains that the metaphor cannot be translated. For illustration, he uses Hebrew metaphors translated into English, and shows, for example, how Hebrew metaphors are closely connected to Biblical stories and thus culture speci?  c (as in the case of the verb form ne’ekad—‘bound’, i. e. , metaphorically, ‘bound like Isaac for the sacri? ce’). Most authors agree that the image in the ST cannot always be retained in the TT (e. g. , because the image that is attached to the metaphor is unknown in the TL, or the associations triggered by the SL metaphor get lost in the TL), and subsequently several translation procedures have been suggested as alternative solutions to the ideal of reproducing the metaphor intact. For example, van den Broeck (1981: 77) lists the following possibilities. 1. Translation ‘sensu stricto’ (i.e. , transfer of both SL tenor and SL vehicle into TL). 2. Substitution (i. e. , replacement of SL vehicle by a different TL vehicle with more or less the same tenor). 3. Paraphrase (i. e. , rendering a SL metaphor by a non-metaphorical expression in the TL). Van den Broeck provides these modes of metaphor translation as a tentative scheme, i. e. , as theoretical possibilities. By linking them to categories of metaphor (lexicalized, conventional, and private metaphors) and to their use and functions in texts, he presents some hypotheses about translatability. In the tradition of DTS, van den Broeck sees the task of a translation theory not in prescribing how metaphors should be translated, but in describing and explaining identified solutions. He therefore argues that detailed descriptive studies of how metaphors are actually translated would be required to test the suggested modes and his hypotheses. In contrast to van den Broeck’s descriptive framework, Newmark’s translation procedures are presented in a prescriptive way, with the aim of providing principles, restricted rules, and guidelines for translating and translator training. He distinguishes between ? ve ? types of metaphors: dead, cliche, stock, recent, and original. In his discussion of stock metaphors, he proposes seven translation procedures, which have frequently been taken up in the literature. These procedures are arranged in order of preference (Newmark, 1981: ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 1257 87–91). Newmark’s focus is on the linguistic systems, and his arguments can be linked to the substitution theory of metaphor (cf. Goatly, 1997: 116f). (All examples given here for illustration are Newmark’s own examples). 1. Reproducing the same image in the TL, e. g. , golden hair—goldenes Haar. 2. Replacing the image in the SL with a standard TL image which does not clash with the ? TL culture, e. g. , other fish to fry—d’autres chats a fouetter. ? 3. Translating metaphor by simile, retaining the image, e. g. , Ces zones cryptuaire ou s’ ? ? elabore la beaute. —The crypt-like areas where beauty is manufactured. According to Newmark, this procedure can modify the shock of the metaphor. 4. Translating metaphor (or simile) by simile plus sense (or occasionally a metaphor plus ? sense), e. g.  , tout un vocabulaire molieresque—a whole repertoire of medical quackery ` such as Moliere might have used. Newmark suggests the use of this compromise solution in order to avoid comprehension problems; however, it results in a loss of the intended effect. 5. Converting metaphor to sense, e. g. , sein Brot verdienen—to earn one’s living. This procedure is recommended when the TL image is too broad in sense or not appropriate to the register. However, emotive aspects may get lost. 6. Deletion, if the metaphor is redundant. 7. Using the same metaphor combined with sense, in order to enforce the image. Toury (1995: 81ff) points out that these translation procedures start from the metaphor as identified in the ST, and that the identified metaphor (the metaphorical expression) is treated as a unit of translation. He argues that from the perspective of the TT, two additional cases can be identified: the use of a metaphor in the TT for a non-metaphorical expression in the ST (non-metaphor into metaphor), and the addition of a metaphor in the TT without any linguistic motivation in the ST (zero into metaphor). This view deals with metaphor not as a translation problem (of the ST), but as a translation solution. In his descriptive study of ? the translation of verb metaphors (for the language pair Swedish and German), Kjar (1988) included such an inverse analysis as well, but did not go much beyond a presentation of statistical findings. Kurth’s (1995) findings, too, are derived from a descriptive analysis of actual translations. Based on the interaction theory of metaphor (cf. Goatly, 1997: 117ff) and on scenes and frames semantics as applied to translation (Vannerem and Snell-Hornby, 1986), he illustrates how several metaphors interact in the construction of a macro-scene. In German translations of works by Charles Dickens, he shows which TL frames have been chosen for a SL scene (e. g. , ‘humanizing’ objects by anthropomorphical metaphors) and what the consequences are for the effect of the text (e. g. , weakening of an image). 3. Metaphors from the cognitive linguistics perspective: consequences for Translation Studies The cognitive approach to metaphor, largely initiated by Lakoff and Johnson’s Metaphors We Live By (1980), can contribute new insights into translation as well. This approach, however, is only gradually taking root within Translation Studies (e. g. , Al? Harrasi, 2000; Cristofoli et al. , 1998; Schaffner, 1997a, 1998; Stienstra, 1993). The main 1258 ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 argument of the cognitive approach is that metaphors are not just decorative elements, but rather, basic resources for thought processes in human society. Metaphors are a means of understanding one domain of experience (a target domain) in terms of another (a source domain). The source domain is mapped onto the target domain, whereby the structural components of the base schema are transferred to the target domain (ontological correspondences), thus also allowing for knowledge-based inferences and entailments (epistemic correspondences). Such models are largely encoded and understood in linguistic terms. In cognitive linguistics, the term ‘metaphor’ is used to refer to this conceptual mapping (e. g. , ANGER IS THE HEAT OF A FLUID IN A CONTAINER),1 and the term ‘metaphorical expression’ is used to refer to an individual linguistic expression that is based on a conceptualization and thus sanctioned by a mapping (e.g. , ‘I gave vent to my anger’). Establishing the conceptualization on which a particular metaphorical expression is based is relevant to translation, too. Such a perspective provides a different answer to the question of the translatability of metaphors. Translatability is no longer a question of the individual metaphorical expression, as identi? ed in the ST, but it becomes linked to the level of conceptual systems in source and target culture. In what follows, some implications of  such a cognitive approach to metaphors for translation theory and practice are illustrated. On the basis of authentic source and target texts, I describe how translators have handled metaphorical expressions. This description is linked to a consideration of the effects of such translation solutions on the text and its reception by the addressees. The examples come from political texts, and the languages involved are primarily English and German. The focus of this paper is the description and explanation of identi? ed translation solutions. It is thus related to DTS, but, in contrast to van den Broeck, for example, I do not pretend to test pre-established translation schemes or hypotheses. My starting point is authentic TT structures for metaphorical expressions in STs. That is, the description is predominantly product-oriented,2 with the explanation being linked to text, discourse, and culture. In my conclusion, I point out some ways in which the discipline of Translation Studies can contribute to metaphor theory. 4. Metaphor and text In the following two examples, we have an identical metaphorical expression in the ? German ST, Brucke (bridge), but it has been handled differently in the TTs (both extracts come from speeches by the former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl): 1 In this metaphor, ontological correspondences are, for instance, ‘the container is the body’, ‘the heat of fluid is the anger’; epistemic correspondences are then, for instance, ‘when the fluid is heated past a certain limit, pressure increases to the point at which the container explodes’ (source) and ‘when anger increases past a ? certain limit, pressure increases to the point at which the person loses control’ (cf. Kovecses, 1986: 17f). 2 A process-oriented analysis, i. e. , an analysis of the actual cognitive processes in the translator’s mind during the translation act, would add valuable insights as well. Moreover, such a perspective would also test the validity of Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980) theory. For example, one could test whether translators, as text receivers and interpreters, actually do access conceptual metaphors when constructing interpretations of metaphorical expressions (cf. Glucksberg, 2001), and how this might influence the decision-making for the TT structure. Research into translation processes (e. g. , most recently Danks et al., 1997; Kussmaul, 2000; Tirkkonen-Condit ? and Jaaskelainen, 2000) has not yet been conducted primarily with metaphors in mind. ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 1259 ? ? Wir wollen die Brucke uber den Atlantik auf allen Gebieten—Politik und Wirtschaft, Wissenschaft und Kultur—festigen und ausbauen. We aim to strengthen and widen the transatlantic bridge in all spheres, in politics and commerce, science and culture. 3 ? So sind die amerikanischen Soldaten ein wichtiger Teil der Freundschaftsbrucke ? uber den Atlantik geworden. (literally: . . . an important component of the translatlantic bridge). The American forces in Germany are thus an important component of transatlantic friendship. (emphasis are mine) How (if at all) can traditional translation procedures account for these different solutions? Applying Newmark’s translation procedures, we could say that in the ? rst case, the procedure is metaphor for metaphor (i. e. , reproduction of the image), whereas in the second case the metaphor has been deleted. These texts would be examples of what Newmark calls ‘authoritative texts’, and in his guidelines to translators he states that in such texts, metaphors should be preserved. As a second criterion to guide the translator’s decision, Newmark suggests the importance of the metaphor in the text. The ? rst extract comes from Kohl’s speech on receiving the Honorary Freedom of the City of London (18 February 1998), the second one from his speech at the ceremony at Tempelhof Airport to commemorate the Berlin Airlift on the occasion of the visit of President Clinton (14 May ? 1998). The Berlin Airlift is known in German as Luftbrucke (literally: ‘bridge in the air’). In the London speech, the 50th anniversary of the Airlift is shortly mentioned, but it is not the ? actual topic of the speech. In the Tempelhof speech, however, the Luftbrucke is the actual topic, and it is used frequently in the short text, thus contributing to the structure of the text. Based on these considerations, Newmark’s recommendation presumably would be: metaphor into same metaphor in the ? rst case, but metaphor into sense in the second case. If we describe this authentic example on the basis of a cognitive approach, ? metaphorical expressions such as Brucke are considered ‘‘in the light of the metaphorical concept of which they are manifestations, and not as individual idioms to be ?tted into the target text as well as they can’’ (Stienstra, 1993: 217). In this case, one and the same historical event was conceptualized in different ways by different cultures, using different metaphors. The source domain of the English ‘airlift’ is a TRANSPORT domain, focusing on the medium (air), the action, and involving a direction (from–to). In the German ? Luftbrucke, the source domain is an ARCHITECTURAL STRUCTURE, focusing on the ? medium and the structural object. As said above, the anniversary of the Luftbrucke is the actual topic of Kohl’s Tempelhof speech; but is the bridge indeed the dominant metaphor in the text as a whole? In other words: what is the underlying conceptual metaphor by which ? the metaphorical expression Freundschaftsbrucke is sanctioned? A closer analysis of the text above shows that the argumentation is structured around the central idea of American–German friendship. In the ? rst ? ve paragraphs, Kohl gives an ? account of the historical event itself and of its political signi? cance. Luftbrucke occurs six 3 Translators are normally not identified by name in the case of translations being produced for the German government. 1260 ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 times in these ? rst paragraphs, each time translated as Airlift, since each time it is used as a proper name. Kohl then links the historical aspect to the development of American– German friendship over the last 50 years, both at a personal level and at the governmental ? level. And it is here that he speaks of the Freundschaftsbrucke (exploiting the bridge image as a rhetorical means for the argumentative function of a political speech): [. . . ] in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten haben rund 7 Millionen amerikanische Soldaten bei uns in Deutschland Dienst getan. Gemeinsam mit ihren Familien waren es etwa 15 Millionen Amerikaner, die fernab ihrer Heimat, ihren Beitrag zur ? Erhaltung von Frieden und Freiheit leisteten [. . . ]. Im taglichen Kontakt mit ihren ? ? deutschen Nachbarn haben sie viele personliche Beziehungen geknupft. Diese wurden ? [. . . ] eines der Fundamente der engen Freundschaft zwischen unseren Volkern. Es ? ? ? sind ja nicht zuletzt die alltaglichen Erfahrungen und Eindrucke, die personlichen und menschlichen Begegnungen, die in diesen Jahrzehnten die deutsch-amerikanischen ? Beziehungen mit Leben erfullt haben. So sind die amerikanischen Soldaten ein ? ? wichtiger Teil der Freundschaftsbrucke uber den Atlantik geworden. 4 What we can see from such an analysis is that Kohl’s speech is structured around a metaphorical understanding of friendship: Germany and the USA are friends. Seeing the state metaphorically as a person seeking friendship involves a metaphorical conception of closeness. Thus, all references in Kohl’s speech to Kontakte, Beziehungen, Begegnungen (contacts, a dense network of personal ties, personal encounters) can be described as metaphorical expressions that are sanctioned by the conceptual metaphors A STATE IS A PERSON and INTIMACY IS CLOSENESS (see also Gibbs’ comments on primary metaphors (Gibbs et al., this issue)). One of the means which allows friends who live far apart to experience close personal contact, is a bridge. A bridge links two endpoints, here the USA and Germany (ontological correspondence), thus providing an opportunity for mutual contact (epistemic correspondence). ? From such a conceptual perspective, we can say that rendering Freundschaftsbrucke as transatlantic friendship does not really constitute a case of metaphor deletion. The conceptual metaphors A STATE IS A PERSON and INTIMACY IS CLOSENESS are present in both ST and TT. It is these conceptual metaphors that are relevant for the structure of the text and its overall function as a political speech. At the macro-level, the conceptual metaphors are identical in ST and TT, although at the micro-level a speci? c ? metaphorical expression in the ST (Freundschaftsbrucke) has not been rendered in exactly the same way in the TT. However, transatlantic friendship in the TT can equally be characterized as a metaphorical expression which is justi? ed by the same conceptual metaphors. 4 The authentic English translation of this passage reads as follows: Over the past decades some seven million American servicemen have been stationed in Germany. Together with their families, that makes about 15 million Americans who, in this country far from home, have helped, [. . . ] to safeguard peace and liberty. In their day-to-day contacts with Germans the American community here has built up a dense network of personal ties central to the close friendship between our two nations. It is not least this wealth of personal encounters, these everyday impressions and  experiences which make German–American relations a meaningful part of daily life. The American forces in Germany are thus an important component of transatlantic friendship. ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 1261 If we take a cognitive approach, a ? rst aspect of metaphors in translation can therefore be described as follows: not all individual manifestations of a conceptual metaphor in a source text are accounted for in the target text by using the same metaphorical expression. This argument is in line with one of Stienstra’s (1993) ? ndings. On the basis of several Bible translations into English and Dutch, she illustrates that the conceptual metaphor YHWH IS THE HUSBAND OF HIS PEOPLE, which is a central metaphor of the Old Testament, was preserved at the macro-level, even if speci? c textual manifestations were changed or not accounted for in each individual case. There is another example in Kohl’s Tempelhof speech which provides insights into strategic uses of metaphors and their treatment in translation. In elaborating on German– American partnership in the world of today and tomorrow, Kohl says: ? Unser Ziel, Herr Prasident, ist es, den Bau des Hauses Europa zu vollenden. Dabei wollen wir, da? unsere amerikanischen Freunde in diesem Haus auf Dauer ihre feste Wohnung haben. (literally: [. . . ] We want our American friends to have a permanent apartment in this house. Our goal is to complete the construction of the European house—with a permanent right of residence for our American friends—and enable the family of European nations to live together side by side in lasting peace. (italics are mine) From a cognitive perspective, we can say that the metaphorical expressions Haus Europa, Haus, and feste Wohnung are all sanctioned by the underlying conceptual metaphor EUROPE IS A HOUSE, which is an example of an ontological metaphor (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980). Whereas in the ST, the structural elements have been lexicalized, the TT has made the entailments of the source domain explicit; that is, an apartment ensures a right of residence, and these are epistemic correspondences. Both ST and TT remain within the conceptual metaphor of a house, while the additional information in the TT  (‘‘and enable the family of European nations to live together side by side in lasting peace’’) can be seen as elaborating on this metaphor, thus also providing a conceptual link to the metaphor INTIMACY IS CLOSENESS which structures Kohl’s speech. Identifying metaphors and describing target text pro? les is a legitimate research aim for a translation scholar. An additional question concerns the causes and effects of particular translations (cf. Chesterman, 1998). I will illustrate this ? rst, by reference to the Haus Europa again, and then by commenting on the effects of a speci? c translation solution (fester Kern—hard core). Such an analysis needs to put the text into its historical context, accounting for its function, its addressees, etc. Metaphor is, thus, no longer a translation phenomenon of one particular text, but becomes an intertextual phenomenon. 5. Metaphor as an intertextual phenomenon The metaphorical expression Haus Europa ? gured prominently in the discourse of Helmut Kohl in the 1990s, speci? cally with reference to issues of European integration. Actually, the metaphor of the common European house was introduced into political discourse in the mid-1980s by the then leader of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev. As a 1262 ? C. Schaffner / Journal of Pragmatics 36 (2004) 1253–1269 re? ection of the ‘new political thinking’ in the Communist Party under Gorbachev, the conceptual metaphor EUROPE IS A HOUSE was to represent the idea of all European states, East and West of the ‘Iron Curtain’, living and working together in peaceful coexistence. The base schema for Gorbachev’s metaphor was a multi-story apartment block with several entrances, in which several families live, each in their own ? ats (i. e. , the prototypical house in bigger Russian towns). In his own discourse, Gorbachev hardly elaborated on the structural elements of a house, but most frequently stressed the rules and norms for living together in this common house. The rules of the house have to guarantee that every family can live their own lives, without interference from their neighbours, so that the common house is protected and kept in order (cf. Chilton, 1996; ? Schaffner, 1996). The Russian metaphorical expression dom was rendered as house in English5 and as Haus in German political discourse in reporting on Gorbachev’s new political ideas and aims, which were not readily welcomed in Western European countries. But more often than being rejected outright, the metaphor EUROPE IS A HOUSE was taken up and conceptually challenged. In British political discourse (especially in the second half of the 1980s), the structural aspects dominated in the argumentation, determined by features of the prototypical English house. That is, there are references to detached and semi-detached houses, to fences, and to questions such as who is to live in which room or on which ? oor.

Ocean Noise Pollution

For millions of years, the oceans have been filled with sounds from natural sources such as the squeaks, moans and clicks of whales and dolphins, the snapping of shrimp, the sound caused by wind upon the surface and even the occasional rumble from earthquakes. Over millions of years, the ocean's marine species have developed into what they are today, with their own specialized acute hearing abilities, communication skills and echo location abilities at natural sound levels.Hearing is generally as important to many marine creatures as sight is for humans. The oceans once referred to as the â€Å"The Silent World† by Jacques Cousteau, has now become an increasingly noisy place since the industrial age. According to Wikipedia, Noise Pollution is excessive, displeasing human, animal or machine-created environmental noise that disrupts the activity or balance of human or animal life. Noise pollution could also be defined as a type of energy pollution in which distracting, irritatin g, or damaging sounds are freely audible.As with other forms of energy pollution (such as heat and light pollution), noise pollution contaminants are not physical particles, but rather waves that interfere with naturally-occurring waves of a similar type in the same environment. Thus, the definition of noise pollution is open to debate, and there is no clear border as to which sounds may constitute noise pollution. In the narrowest sense, sounds are considered noise pollution if they adversely affect wildlife, human activity, or are capable of damaging physical structures on a regular, repeating basis.Hearing is the universal alerting sense in all vertebrates. Sound is extremely important because animals are able to hear events all around them, no matter where their attention is focused. Sound travels far greater distances than light under water. Light travels only a few hundred meters in the ocean before it is absorbed or scattered. Even where light is available, it is more difficu lt to see as far under water as in air, limiting vision in the marine environment It is similar to looking through fog on land.So, the best opportunity for long-range vision underwater especially in murky water is to swim beneath objects and see their silhouettes. In consequence, most marine animals rely on sound for survival and depend on unique adaptations that enable them to communicate, protect themselves, locate food, and navigate underwater. Animals change the rate of sound production and the structure of the sounds to send different messages. Underwater sound allows marine animals to gather information and communicate at great distances and from all directions.The speed of sound determines the delay between when a sound is made and when it is heard. The speed of underwater sound is five times faster than sounds traveling in air. Sound travels much further underwater than in air. Thus marine animals can perceive sound coming from much further distances than terrestrial animals . Because the sound travels faster, they also receive the sounds after much shorter delays (for the same distance). It is no surprise that marine mammals have evolved many different uses for sounds. Marine mammals, such as whales, use sound to identify objects such as food, obstacles, and other whales.By emitting clicks, or short pulses of sound, marine mammals can listen for echoes and detect prey items, or navigate around objects. This animal sense functions just like the sonar systems on navy ships. It is clear that producing and hearing sound is vital to marine mammal survival. Whales and dolphins are celebrated for their sounds, but many species of fish and marine invertebrates also use sound. Fish produce various sounds, including grunt, croaks, clicks, and snaps, which are used to attract mates as well as ward off predators.For the toadfish, sound production is very important in courtship rituals. Sound is produced by the male toadfish to attract the female for mating and is especially important in the murky waters that toadfish inhabit where sight is limited. Fishes also produce sound when feeding. When a fish eats hard food, such as coral, it will produce a sound. Fishes sometimes gnash their teeth without the presence of food, which may be a way to scare away predators. As you can see, sound is very important to its underwater inhabitants.It allows them to navigate, to hear approaching predators and prey, and is a way of communicating with other members of the same species. There are a lot of sources of noise in the marine environment. Naturally occurring noises include underwater volcanic eruptions and storms. Background noise in the ocean is produced by breaking waves, wind and rain, and by the huge number of small crustaceans and other animals. A typical background noise level is about 100 decibels (dB), which is about the same in energy terms as 40 dB in air.Wind and waves in storms, and choruses from fish and invertebrate can increase this level to about 120 dB. Measurements show that the Pacific Ocean is still relatively quiet and that most of its background noise is produced by wind and by marine creatures. This is in contrast to the Atlantic Ocean, where most of the background noise is from the churning propellers of ocean-going ships. There are also several man-made (anthropogenic) sources of ocean noise, some of which are the unintended by products of human activity (e. g. essel propulsion), while others are produced for a specific purpose (e. g. military sonar). Whales, dolphins and porpoises today face a wealth of man-made threats including hunting, ship strikes, entanglement in fishing gear and issues arising from climate change. However, one man-made threat that is not as commonly acknowledged as others is ocean noise pollution. This is partly due to the fact that it is not a visible threat, so can be easily overlooked. The noise becomes problematic and highly hazardous when it is man-made.In the past several year s many studies have shown that man-made ocean noise emanating from such sources as are military sonar equipment, ship traffic, and underwater drilling, commercial shipping seismic surveys for oil and gas exploration, mineral and aggregate extraction, construction (e. g. drilling, dredging and explosions), acoustic deterrent and harassment devices(e. g. pincers on fishing nets used to deter predators) and recreational activities(e. g. boating). Noise pollution in the oceans has been shown to cause physical and behavioral changes in marine life, especially in dolphins and whales, which rely on sound for daily activities.However, low frequency sound produced by large scale, offshore activities is also suspected to have the capacity to cause harm to other marine life as well. It can also cause hemorrhage or other trauma to the marine mammal’s auditory system, sometimes leading to permanent hearing loss, and, indirectly, death. It also causes displacement from their natural habita t, disruption of feeding, breeding, nursing, and other behaviors vital to the species survival. Some of the sounds produced by these man-made sources can travel for hundreds of kilometers in marine environment, potentially affecting many marine animals over a huge are.The growing amount of human noise pollution in the ocean could lead fish away from good habitat and off to their death, according to new research from a UK-led team working on the Great Barrier Reef. Noise pollution might also severely affect the distribution of fish, and their ability to reproduce, communicate and avoid predators. For example, some studies have reported that Atlantic herring, cod and blue-fin tuna flee sounds and school less coherently in noisy environments. That could mean that fish distributions are being affected, as fish avoid places polluted by man-made noise.Not only can squids and octopuses sense sound, but as it turns out, these and other so-called cephalopods might be harmed by growing noise pollution in our oceans—from sources such as offshore drilling, ship motors, sonar use and pile driving. Giant squid, for example, were found along the shores of Asturias, Spain in 2001 and 2003 following the use of air guns by offshore vessels and examinations eliminated all known causes of lesions in these species, suggesting that the squid deaths could be related to excessive sound exposure.The effects of noise pollution on whales depend, among other things, on the distance the whales are from the source of the noise. If the sound is very powerful and close to the animals it could well bring about permanent ear damage, internal injuries, and even death. Even sounds less powerful can induce temporary deafness, as was shown by studies carried out on seals, dolphins and belugas in captivity. Knowing just how dependent whales are on sounds, there is much cause for concern.During March of 2000, at least 17 whales stranded themselves in the Bahamas and the population of beaked w hales in this region disappeared. A federal investigation identified testing of a U. S. Navy active sonar system as the cause. There are many things we can do to decrease ocean noise,† Ocean Link, an organization dedicated to ocean education, says on its website. â€Å"The first would be to simply recognize that there is a noise problem in the oceans, which some governments have begun to do. With formal recognition, it may be possible for national and international agencies to work together to help reduce this problem.For any new policies regarding ocean noise, scientists should follow the precautionary principal to ensure that no further harm will come to marine mammals. From this perspective, governments should adopt legislation with the habitats of marine mammals in mind, ensuring that important areas would receive the least impact possible. † While these may come too late for hundreds of sea animals that have already been damaged by underwater noise, with the right and concerted action, the seas may resonate with the sounds of whale songs, not the human-produced lethal noises of engines and machinery.

Plasmodium

Life Cycle of Plasmodium vivax (Malarial Parasite) Systematie Position Kingdom      :      Protista Phylum          :      Protozoa Class               :      Sporozoa Genus             :      Plasmodium Species          :      vivax Habit s and habitat:- Plasmodium is an intracellular sporozoan parasite causing malaria in man. The parasite lives in the RBC’s and liver cells of man and alimentary canal and salivary glands of female Anopheles mosquito. Structure:- Structure of plasmodium is different stages of its life cycle. A fully grown malarial parasite is amoeboid and uninucleated structure known as trophozoite.Trophozoite is surrounded by double layered plasma lemma. Cytoplasm contains Palade’s granules, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosome, mitochondria, vesicles and vacuoles having haemozoin. Cytoplasm contains nucleus having nucleolus and granular nucleoplasm. Life Cycle of  Plasmodium  vivax Hosts:- Plasmodiu m completes its lifecycle in two hosts (digenetic): Man and female Anopheles mosquito. 1. Primary or definitive host: Female Anopheles mosquito is the primary host of Plasmodium in which it completes its sexual life cycle. 2. Secondary or Intermediate host: Man is the secondary host of plasmodium in which it completes its asexual life cycle.The lifecycle of Plasmodium can be divided into three phases: 1. Asexual sehizogony 2. Sexual gamogony 3. Asexual sporogony ASEXUAL CYCLE OF Plasmodium, IN MAN Infective form of Plasmodium is known as sporozoites. Sporozoites are 11-12 µ long slender, uni-nucleated. Sickle-shaped structure present in the salivary glands of infected mosquito. When an infected female Anopheles mosquito bites a healthy man, a large number of sporozoites enter into the blood stream of man. Within half an hour, sporozoites enter the liver cells and undergo asexual multiplication called schizogony. 1. Asexual Schizogony:-Schizogony is the asexual phase of reproductio n of Plasmodium. It takes place in liver cells and RBC’s of man. Schizogony can be divided into following phases: a) Pre-erythrocytic schizogony b) Exo-erythrocytic schizogony c) Erythrocytic schizogony d) Post- erythrocytic schizogony a. Pre-erythrocytic schizogony: In the liver cells, sporozoites grow to form a large and spherical schizont. Schizont divides by multiple fission and forms a large number of cryptozoites. They may either pass into the blood circulation to start erythrocytic schizogony or enter fresh liver cells to start Exo-erythrocytic schizogony.Pre-erythrocytic schizogony takes 8 days to complete. b. Exo-erythrocytic schizogony: After re-entering fresh liver cell each cryptozoites divides to form a large number of metacryptozoites similar to pre-erythrocytic schizogony. Meta-cryptozoites are two types: Smaller micro-metacryptozoites and larger macro-metacryptozoites. The micro-metacryptozoites enter the RBC’s to start erythrocytic schizogony, while th e macro-metacryptozoites invade fresh liver cells to continue exo-erythrocytic schizogony. It takes normally 4 days to complete. c. Erythrocytic schizogony:-As stated above, the erythrocytic schizogony begins when the RBC’s of blood are attacked either by pre-erythrocytic cryptozoites or by exo-erythrocytic micro-metacryptozoites. It takes normally in 8 to 12 days after above 2 phases. Stages of erythrocytic schizogony are: i. Trophozoite Stage:- The merozoites (cryptozoites and micro- metacryptozoites) after entering into the blood stream, feed on erythrocytes, become rounded and modify into trophozoite. ii. Signet Ring Stage:- As the merozoites grow a vacuole appears in the center and the nucleus is pushed to one side.It gives a ring like appearance and known as signet ring stage. The parasite ingests haemoglobin and decomposes it into protein and haematin. Protein is use as food whereas unused haematin forms toxic. Yellowish brown malarial pigment, haemozoin. iii. Amoeboid Stage: – As the signet ring parasite grows, vacuole disappears and the parasite becomes amoeboid in appearance, thrusting out pseudopodial processes. This stage is called amoeboid stage. At this stage RBC develops numerous granules, the Schuffner’s granules. iv. Schizont Stage:- Parasite grows in size, becomes rounded and almost completely fills the RBC called Schizont. . Rosette Stage:- The nucleus of schizont divides by multiple fission to form 6 to 24 daughter nuclei. These nuclei arrange at the periphery, while the toxic haemozoin granules accumulate at the center of RBC. It appears as a flower rose, so called rosette stage. Nuclei of rosette stage are surrounded by a little cytoplasm and are develop into merozoites. With the rupture of the RBC, these merozoites are liberated into the blood plasma along with toxic haemozoin. These normally attack fresh RBC’s to repeat the erythrocytic cycle or may change into gametocytes.One complete erythrocytic cycle take s 48 hours in Plasmodium vivax. d. Post-erythrocytic schizogony:- Sometimes, some merozoites produced in erythrocytic schizogony reach the liver cells and undergo schizogony development in liver cells. This is called post-erythrocytic schizogony. SEXUAL CYCLE OF Plasmodium in MAN 2. Sexual Gamogony:- Formulation of gametocytes: After many generations in about 4-5 is the blood some merozoites increase in size to form two types of gametocytes; larger macro (9-10 µ), less numerous and contain large nucleus.Macro gametocytes are larger (10-12 µ), more numerous and contain smaller nucleus. SEXUAL CYCLE OF Plasmodium IN MOSQUITO When a female Anopheles sucks the blood of a malaria patient, the gametocytes reach the stomach of mosquito and formation of gametes take palace as follows: a. Gametogenesis (gemetogony) : Process of formulation of gametes (male and female gametes). i. Formulation of male gametes: The nucleus of microgametocyte divides to form 6-8 daughter nuclei. The cytoplas m gives out same number of flagella like projections and daughter nuclei enter in each projection.These projections separate from the cytoplasm and form 6-8 haploid microgamete or male gametes. This process of formation of microgamete is called exflagellation. ii. Formation of female gamete:- The mega gametocyte undergoes some reorganization to form a single haploid mega gamete or female gamete which is ready for fertilization. b. Fertilization: The male gamete enters the female gamete through the fertilization cone formed at female gamete and form diploid zygote or synkaryon. Fusion is anisogamous. c. Ookinete stage:The zygote remains inactive for sometimes and then elongates into a worm like Ookinete or vermicule, which is motile. The Ookinete penetrates the stomach wall and comes to lie below its outer epithelial layer. d. Oocyst stage: The Ookinete gets enclosed in a cyst. The encysted zygote is called Oocyst. The Oocyst absorbs nourishment and grows in size. 3. Asexual Sporogon y The nucleus of Oocyst divides repeatedly to form a large number of haploid daughter nuclei. At the same time, the cytoplasm develops vacuoles and gives numerous cytoplasmic masses.The daughter nuclei pass into each cytoplasmic mass and develop into slender sickle-shaped sporozoites are formed in each Oocyst. This phase of asexual multiplication is known as sporogony. Lastly, the Oocyet brusts and sporozoites are liberated into the haemolymph of the mosquito. They spread throughout the haemolymph and eventually reach the salivary glands and enter the duct of the hypopharyx. The mosquito is now becomes infective and sporozoites get inoculated or injected the human blood when the mosquito bites. The cycle is repeated. In mosquito whole sexual cycle is completed in 10-12 days.Incubation period: The period between infection and the appearance of first symptoms is called incubation period. It is about 10-14 days in Plasmodium vivax. Pre-patent period: The duration between the initial sp orozoites infection and the first appearance of parasites in the blood is called as pre-patent period. It takes about 8 days in Plasmodium vivax. Symptoms of malaria †¢ Mouth becomes dry, nausea and loss of appetite †¢ Headache, muscular pain and joint pain †¢ Chill, fever (106 ° F) and sweating all every 48 hours. †¢ Chill to sweating lasts for 8-10 hours. Liver and spleen become enlarged. †¢ Due to loss of RBC’s anaemia is caused. Control of malaria Malaria can be controlled by three ways 1. Destruction of vector 2. Prevention of infection(prophylaxis) 3. Treatment of patient 4. Public awareness 1. Destruction of vector (Anopheles mosquito) †¢ Mosquito can be killed by spraying DDT, BHC, Dieldrin, Malathion etc. †¢ Filling up ditches, gutters and pits where the mosquito breeds. †¢ Water surface can be poisoned by spreading kerosene oil, petroleum etc. †¢ A speedly flow of water prevents the mosquito larva and pupa flourishing. Biological control: Certain fishes (trouts, minnows, stickle back), ducks, dragon flies etc feed on larva and pupa of mosquito. 2. Prevention of infection (Prophylaxis) †¢ Use of mosquito nets. †¢ Screening doors, windows and ventilators. †¢ Using mosquito repellent creams (e. g. odomus), anti mosquito mat (e. g. Supermat) etc. 3. Treatment of patient: There are several drugs that kill different stages of parasite in patient. The oldest drug is Quinine; Paludrine kills almost all stages of parasite. Daraprism (single dose of 25 mg) is the most effective drug.Write short note on Plasmodium falciparum Plasmodium falciparum causes malignant tertian type of malaria. Fever reccurs every second or third day, that is, after 36 to 48 hours. Death rate is very high because the infected red blood corpuscles tend to clump into masses, thus blocking up small blood vessels of internal organs, such as brain, spleen, lungs, etc. It is also known as the tropical epidemic malaria of m an. Exo-erythrocytic schizogony is absent in P. falciparum. Read more:  http://www. hsebguides. com/2012/04/plasmodium-vivax-malarial-parasite. html#ixzz2G57xlaK6

Micro enterprises Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Micro enterprises - Essay Example equires ethical values that will enable them treat the workforce equally, regardless of the gender, race, religion, culture and abilities (Harvey, 2012). Through adopting a non-discrimination policy, the leaders can afford to treat all the members of the workforce with equality, thus promoting the feelings of appreciation amongst the workforce. The creation of teams and groups that embraces and comprises of different elements of the workforce serves to promote the management of diversity, in that all the members of the workforce feels considered and represented in the groups and teams. Valuing and considering the contributions made by all members of the workforce serves to make the workforce more vibrant, creative and innovative, in that they feel that their ideas and inventions will be recognized and appreciated by the organization (Jeffs, 2008). Receiving and treating the grievances and the concerns raised by members of the workforce, without discrimination or favoritism on any basis that creates diversity in the workforce, is another successful step towards having the leaders of the macro enterprises manage the diversity of the workforce specializing in decision support system (Harvey, 2012). Through the effectiveness of diversity in the workforce, the leaders are assured of a motivated team, which guarantees success. Some characteristics are relevant for small business to be considered as appropriate in the selection process for developing the decision support systems. A small business requires being technologically oriented, an aspect that serves to ensure that the business is in a position to test and try novel technological innovations, ensuring that they can develop a system that is most appropriate for the business (Power, 2002). This is most essential since technology keeps changing and the types of decisions to be made are dynamic, thus calling for constant improvement in the business DSS so established. Another requisite characteristic of such a

Introduction to Global Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Introduction to Global Business - Assignment Example To manage the plant the CEO of the company feels that someone from top management from the headquarters Boston who needs to manage the integration of the site. Therefore the proposal is as follows First and foremost it is important to understand the culture of Malaysia so that the manger that comes from Boston can easily adapt to the culture and act accordingly. Malaysia is multi-cultural society making it easier for the manger to adapt the culture. In addition the proposed staffing model to be used in the new plant based outside Kula Lumpur is ethnocentric staffing model. The CEO plans to send from its home country for the global operation which is emphasized by the particular staffing model also. With the implementation of this staffing model, the CEO would need to focus or monitor less and the candidates are often known at the headquarters of the company (Steers & Nardon, p. 277). The training and recruitment will be conducted in headquarters. Candidates will comprise mainly from Boston and few from Malaysia and the organization would seek candidates having an extrovert nature, flexible and able to adjust in every situation and having good knowledge about different culture. But since the employees have no idea about the culture of Malaysian people and this might prove it to be difficult to adapt to the situation. Hence proper training is essential for effectiveness of the working of the plant in Kula Lumpur both for the top level management and also for the chosen employees. Assuming that the person selected is well adverse with technicality and the only thing required is training on adoption of new location. Cross culture training are required for the managers so that they adapt to the culture of the particular country. An expert from Malaysia can be hired by the company to provide the manger with cross cultural training so that the expatriates experience fewer incidence of failure. Problem 2 Transferability of Practices: The Mazda Example Third Culture The modified version of management practice is termed as â€Å"third culture†. Usually companies tend to face difficulties in setting of plant internationally mainly in transferring management practice to different culture and this was seen in Mazda situation. The American decided to work on for the Japanese and thus adopted a mix of both American and Japanese styles referred to as third culture. The case itself explains that the concept of â€Å"third culture† did work but at the same time it had to face many difficulties in the management practice. As stated in the case study the Japanese worked for United Auto makers and named it Mazda management. It used extensive testing methods to select their workers and adopted the system similar to that of Michigan plant. As per the study of Fucinis, there were several areas in the transfer of management style. The employees quit the plant as they did not see any future prospect. The Japanese had all the powers and were dictating the decisions. However after much issue the problem was solved and the Japanese’s adopted a flexible management practice. Therefore it can be said that transfer of management practice should be adopted but both the nations entering the â€Å"third culture† should have an equal participation and power to make the concept work in a managerial practice. Across Societies Transfer of managem

Portfolio AT&T Horizontal and Vertical Analysis Essay

Portfolio AT&T Horizontal and Vertical Analysis - Essay Example AT&T had a net margin of 11.93%. In comparison with the industry average net margin of 7.8% the firm’s net margin is 4.03% higher (Dun & Bradstreet, 2012). As of September 30, 2012 the total assets of AT&T were $266,849 million dollars. In comparison with fiscal year 2011 the total assets of the firm decreased by 1%. †Total assets include cash and other items of value that can be converted into cash that are owned by a person or company† (Crutchfield, 2012).The current assets of the company in 2012 were $18,958 million which represents a decline in current assets of $4,069 million in comparison with the previous year. Based on the vertical performed the current assets of the company represent 7% of total assets. The current and total liabilities of the company during 2012 were $30,758 million and $165,575 million respectively. The current ratio shows the ability of the company to pay off its current debt. AT&T’s current ratio during 2012 was 0.62. The curren t ratio of the company is bad considering the fact that a good current ratio is above the 1.0 threshold. The formula to calculate current ratio is current assets divided by current liabilities. AT&T must improve its current ratio; otherwise the company might face liquidity problems. The return on assets (ROA) metric measures how profitable a company is in relation to its total assets (Investopedia, 2012). A high ROA is the preferable outcome. During 2012 the return on equity of the company was 4.24%. In comparison with the industry average of 17% AT&T is not exploiting and generating sufficient income from its assets (Dun & Bradstreet, 2012). The return on equity of AT&T in 2012 was 11.17%. Return on equity (ROE) is calculated by taking a year's worth of earnings and dividing them by the average shareholder equity for that year (Fool, 2012). The firm’s debt ratio is 0.62. A debt ratio is a financial metric that measures how much debt a company has in relation to its assets. T he firm’s debt to equity ratio is 1.63. The debt to equity ratio is calculated dividing total equity by the total assets of the company. The financial analysis performed on AT&T shows that the company has good profitability, but the firm seems to be using too much debt to finance its operations. The low current ratio of the company is a warning sign. Assuming the company enjoys the same revenue growth of 1% in the following fiscal the projected sales of the company in 2013 are $95,162 million. Credit Worthiness The creditworthiness of a corporation can be evaluated in a variety of ways. Corporations just like individuals have credit scores from the major credit agencies. This information is private and not accessible to the general public. Banking institution gain access to a firm’s credit scores whenever a firm applies for a loan or others financial instruments. An investor can evaluate the credit worthiness of a firm using a combination of ratios. The current ratio m easures a firm’s ability to pay off its current or short term debts. The debt to equity and debt ratio are two good indicators of how much leverage a firm has in the long term. Comparing these ratios to the industry standard is a good way to determine the credit position of the firm. Management Discussion and Analysis Four key findings for the MD&A section of the annual report of AT&T are: The future of wireless growth depends on the ability of companies to provide new innovative services and devices. The managerial staff

Oppression and power within diversity and inclusion Essay

Oppression and power within diversity and inclusion - Essay Example The concept of oppression and power within educational systems and from social stigmas create different expectations within society. Specifically, there is a sense of oppression and power that is based on creating and defining boundaries and expectations among specific identities. While the forms of oppression come with associations from race, class and gender, there are also more subtle forms of oppression which I have noted among the classroom and those that are categorized according to various formats. For the terms and conditions of oppression and power to change, a different concept of power needs to be formed. This is based on changing characteristics of leadership while redefining both personal and institutional powers that lead to forms of oppression while creating a sense of diversity and inclusion. The concept of oppression and power is one which is formed with a sense of lacking equality among groups. Specifically, there is social stratification that takes place among grou ps and which creates an imbalance among groups that hold a specific identity. The problem which arises is one that is based on social and institutional powers that combine to change the lack of justice and equality among groups while defining and creating boundaries that are accepted among groups at higher levels. As this moves into the individual mannerisms, it begins to create social stigmas and formats of how one should behave and approach others. The dividing lines then begin with the powers of those who define the institutional and social powers that are unequal and lead to individual behaviors that continue with this particular problem (Sensoy & DiAngelo, 2012). While the power of oppression has led to institutional and social alterations, there is also an understanding that the group and individual powers have altered with the understanding that this needs to change. The result has been a backlash in the format of oppression and power. This has led to a sense of deculturaliza tion within institutions. Not recognizing differences or identities has become one of the growing trends, specifically with promises for equality and justice that have become more important. This particular concept is based on changing the levels of education and development within society while creating even more value to the educational expectations among those that are receiving an education (Spring, 2006). The backlash that has been taken with oppression and power is one which I have found to not create consistent efforts for change. The first problem is that many within social orders still recognize the identity differences. At the same time, many teachers and administrators continue to exercise a sense of oppression by labeling others in a different way, such as through learning systems. The concept of inclusion by trying to not notice the culture within a classroom is creating even more difficulties with developing a sense of inclusion from other formats. While the concept of deculturalizaation works at an institutional level to form policies while creating gaps within the system at a social level, others are formatting different responses which are expected to alter the educational system and the sense of oppression or inclusion. The recognition and trend has moved from not recognizing culture and focusing on equality into one which is based on the multicultural classroom. The initiative which this is creating is one which is based on understanding the different levels of diversity while noticing that there are differences between each student based on various cultures and formats. This particular application is one which demands equality but at the same time recognizes a sense of diversity is required for those that are within the classroom. This is continuous with trying to define the identity and behaviors while welcoming the diversity that is within the school system and which is a part of the main format for those that are working at an institutio nal level (Pang & Shimogori, 2011). It is the format of believing in multicultural

Transparency in Corporate Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Transparency in Corporate Governance - Essay Example Transparency in a company is vital because it increases the confidence in the management of the company by its shareholders and other stakeholders. This consequently leads to the shareholders willing to invest more in the company which in turn, eventually, reduces the cost of capital. Being transparent also helps a company’s management to fight off corruption and fraudulent activities that would otherwise be rife and detrimental (Hermalin &Weisch, 2007). With all these factors put together, the company’s productivity, and eventually, its productive capacity increases. For a long time now, corporate governance has undergone different overhauls so as to increase the level of transparency. This is through various means such as an increased control on how financial reporting gets done and who exactly does it. These control mechanisms ensure that what gets measured, accepted and reported to the public is true and fair. There are also various trends currently in the market th at give the procedure on how a company should be audited. Auditing is when an external entity, separate from the company, goes through the company’s reports and records. It gives its assessment and opinion of fairness and truthfulness of the company reports to the public (Shleifer, 1996). There are also other measures that ensure transparency gets achieved. These measures include laws, policies, Companies Act, Parliamentary Acts (Hermalin &Weisch, 2007). Reporting and adhering to these policies, laws and acts, however, comes at a price. Governments around the world exempt the small companies from fully complying with these stringent measures. It is mandatory, however, for these small companies to prepare their own reports as a performance measuring tool (Hermalin &Weisch, 2007). In the McBride scenario, the CEO of the McBride Financial Services receives an email from a recently added investor. The Beltway Investment is the investor that has invested in McBrides Company. It is in the email sent by their principal in who reiterates the need for transparency and use of best practices. He tells the CEO to run his company as would see fit but in turn, the investment firm would need to be shown the reports of the company’s progress. This is a way of ensuring transparency in corporate governance gets achieved by equitable treatment and rights of the shareholders getting observed. The management should do this by openly and effectively communicating the information to the stakeholders. They should also encourage them to participate in the company’s general meetings, so as to give their thoughts and opinions (Solomon, 2010). In the scenario, one also sees the management chain of command. The CEO, Hugh McBride makes the crucial decisions such as who will sit in the company’s board of directors and his subordinates implement these decisions. They deal with a wide range of matters from public relations to issues to do with governance of the com pany (Solomon, 2010). We also see that when the stakeholders, in this case Beltway Investments, know of their rights and practice these rights keeping the management on toes. This gets clearly seen when Doug, the Beltway Investment’s principal sends the CEO the email. The CEO, in the following days, communicates to his subordinate to get an accounting firm to audit their reports. The urgency becomes also portrayed when he says

The Era of Reconstruction in American History and its Aftermath Essay - 1

The Era of Reconstruction in American History and its Aftermath - Essay Example The proposal culminated in the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment, which formally abolished slavery in America. After the demise of Abraham Lincoln, who was the champion of reconstruction, Andrew Johnson continued his policies and vowed to abolish slavery altogether and reconstruct America. Various states moved fast to institute fundamental laws that curtailed the full acquisition of the rights of slaves. Mississippi quickly instituted the anti-black codes limiting the free movement of the freed slaves (Franklin 210). The Civil Rights Act occasioned a move by the Congress further to assert the changing status of former slaves. The Civil Rights Act conferred on former slaves the right to own and transfer property and the right to equal treatment as the white Americans. However, even with the ratification of the civil rights act, the definition of a â€Å"citizen† still remained obscured. In an affirmative move, the Congress passed the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution in 1867. The fundamental aim of the 14th amendment was to confer liberty and citizenship to the freed slaves. Prior formation of the civil rights act, various states employed various attempts to limit the freedom of former slaves. For instance, Louisiana adopted the grandfather clause that only allowed men to vote if their grandfathers were eligible voters prior to the civil war. The blacks in the south responded to these limitations by the states through mass migrations to the urban northern states. However, in a tactical move to stifle the interests of freed slaves, Washington in his Atlanta Compromise asserted the need for the slaves to engage in economic production and disenfranchise from social agitation. Du Bois philosophically attacked Washington for his stance against the freed slaves. In his â€Å"the souls of Black folks,† Du Bois agitated not only for education but equal access to education for the blacks (Franklin 254). He strongly expressed

My Perception of John Keats Ode to a Nightingale Essay

My Perception of John Keats Ode to a Nightingale - Essay Example To my mind, this poem is an interlacement of themes, symbols, and mysterious images accompanied by perfect verse forms. My goal in this paper is to express my perception of the poem in terms of its themes and symbolism. Thematically, â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale† explores a few directions. First of all, there is the author’s changing reality. To be more precise, real world somehow turns into the world of fantasy. Sometimes the divide is so slight in the poem that it is hard to pinpoint which reality the speaker is in. On a closer look, however, it becomes clear that by the fourth stanza the speaker has already united with the nightingale in a fantasy world which is lush, as well as dark. In particular, having heard the song of the nightingale, the author wishes to taste fine French wine in order to experience such condition of mind that will provide him with enjoyment of the nightingale: â€Å"that I might drink, and leave the world unseen, And with thee fade away into t he forest dim† ( Keats, â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale†, lines 19-20). Still, it crosses the poet’s mind that wine is not necessary to be with the bird, so he uses his metaphorical wings of poetry to escape to the forest. Away! away! for I will fly to thee, Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards, But on the viewless wings of Poesy, Though the dull brain perplexes and retards: Already with thee! tender is the night (Keats, â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale†, lines 36, 37). Next, in this changing realities context, the author is taken close to death experience in his mysterious journey. Yet, the bird flies away and this seems to breaks the spell. Throughout the poem, one may feel the author’s changed mental state, which he says is rooted in his natural condition rather than intoxication by some drug or alcohol. Furthermore, the theme of happiness/unhappiness is evident in the poem. Specifically, we get to know that the speaker feels extremely unhappy about his l ife burden placed on him by his age and time. He even expresses his hatred at the very thought that young and handsome people of the Romantic Movement will once become old and disabled. However, the author claims that what he feels is happiness for the singing nightingale, which makes his heart ache: 'Tis not through envy of thy happy lot, But being too happy in thine happiness, That thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees, In some melodious plot Of beechen green, and shadows numberless, Singest of summer in full-throated ease. (Keats, â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale†, lines 5-10). Another theme to reflect upon is the relationship between the man and Mother Nature. The author feels admiration for a tiny bird that represents Nature – everlasting and self-renewing. In particular, the nightingale is perceived as an embodiment of nature which is able to restore its natural cycles of both life and death, and thus stays immortal. Indeed, it seems the author’s perception of N ature is rather mysterious and even magical. So he grants some magical powers to the subject of his admiration. In particular, the nightingale singing on a tree is compared to a â€Å"dryad†, which is a spirit of the forest. To add, Nature leaves the speaker’s imagination spellbound and this thought is developed further in the poem. To illustrate, O for a draught of vintage! that hath been Cool'd a long age in the deep-delved earth, Tasting of Flora and the country-green (†¦) (Keats, â€Å"Ode to a Nightingale†, line 13) Symbolically, the image of nightingale is quite

Research Plan Essay Example for Free

Research Plan Essay As part of your research plan, you must first draft a research question for your research paper that will guide the rest of your writing. A research question, which is more specific and focused than a general topic, is the question that your research paper will be answering. For example, if your general area of interest is Social Security, a possible research question might ask â€Å"How could low-income families save more money if the United States had a reformed Social Security plan that included personal retirement accounts? † As you develop a research question, keep in mind that you will need to research sources to support your topic. Do not pick a one-sided question that will limit your research. Instead, develop a research question that lends itself to further exploration and debate—a question you genuinely want to know the answer to. Try to pick a research question that is not too broad (covering too much) or too narrow (covering too little). It should be broad enough to be discussed in a short research paper. What is your general topic or area of interest? Recycling What is it about your general topic of interest that interests you? The topic of recycling interests me because there are some cities that so not make recycling a priority and I believe it is important to preserve for future generations. What questions do you have about the topic that you would like to investigate? List them. What is the history of recycling? What is being done in school systems to promote recycling? What are the benefits of recycling? What can be done in cities where recycling is not a priority to make residents recycle? The effects if recycling is not made a priority. What are the financial benefits to a community where recycling is a priority? Would any of the questions you listed about the topic make a good subject for a research paper? Pick or adapt one question and make it into a research question. What are the benefits of recycling? Why do you think this research question is appropriate for a research paper? I think this is an appropriate question for a research paper because there are many benefits with much information of the benefits. How is your research question significant or relevant to a wider community? My research question is relevant to a wider community because it is a worldwide issue in today’s society with much room for improvement. What background information provides the preliminary grounds for your research? I was shocked at how many people I have come to know that do not make it a priority because it is simply easier to toss it away. What are some expert or authoritative sources of information on this research question? The University of Phoenix library What type of materials will you need to review for your research paper? Plenty of articles to support the bases of my paper. What procedures will you follow to conduct your research? I will need to further brain storm and take notes on the articles I will be using for my paper and conpilling several other sources to ensure I have enough material to use. What difficulties do you anticipate in conducting your research? There is plenty of research out there and I need to cut it down to what is most important and relevant to what I am writing. Write a 250- to 300-word paragraph summarizing your reearch plan. Include the following: †¢The topic you have chosen for your final project. †¢What you hope to learn from your research. †¢What aspect of your topic you plan to focus on in your research and writing. This paragraph is just an intro of sorts. Dont begin with The topic I have chosen, or My topic is write in 3rd person (he, she, it, or in general terms) Recycling is a relatively new concept with very few states enforcing this as a law. Although recycling has only been around for about forty years it has come a long way in how it is viewed by many people and states. People across the country have now come to see the long term benefits to recycling and how it will benefit our society by reducing their carbon foot print and how it benefits the environment. While recycling has made big strides there is still much room for improvement with public awareness. There has been a big push in elementary schools recently, children are being taught from a young age, the benefits of long term recycling. There are many states such as California and, Oregon requiring deposits when purchasing drinking beverages to promote recycling by its residents, regardless if the person lives there or not, the deposit must be paid. This is just an example of ways other states are making recycling a priority. By being vigilant and constantly making recycling a priority we can reduce the amount of waste in landfills each year thus eliminating the effects of global warming and the release of methane emitted into the atmosphere and the pollution of the waterways. By committing to recycling not only is there a benefit to the environment but there can be other ways recycling can contribute to a community financially. By implementing an efficient program recycling can yield great profits. Now more than ever it is so important to make recycling a priority. Its imperative that we create a future, for the future generation to enjoy and if not made a priority children of the future will suffer.

Fourty famous studies that influeneced psychology Essay Example for Free

Fourty famous studies that influeneced psychology Essay Born First, Born Smarter This study involves a persons intellectual development in correlation to the order in which they were born in relation to their siblings. Two research psychologists, Robert B. Zajonc and Gregory B. Markus, developed a theory in an attempt to explain the relationship between birth order and intelligence. They conducted this study by gathering information from previous research and applied it to the data they collected themselves. A research project was conducted n the late 1960s that involved testing the intellectual abilities of children born at the end of WWII. They found a strong relationship between the birth order and the Raven test scores. The ones born first scored higher, and the score decreased with the declining birth order. However, the average Raven score for the first born in a two family is only about 5 points higher then that for a last born in a family with nine children. So the more children you have, and the smaller the gap between each child is, the more intelligent each child in succession will be. In Control and Glad of It Researchers Ellen J. Langer and Judith Rodin conducted a field experiment using elderly people in an elderly home to test the outcome of when people are given control as opposed to when people have everything done for them. Langer and Rodins prediction was that if the loss of personal responsibility for ones life causes a person to be less happy and healthy, then increasing control and power should have the opposite effect. Two floors of the elderly home were randomly selected to be observed. One floor was given options for certain things such as there furniture arrangement and which movie they would like to attend. The other floor, was given no such options and had everything arranged and done for them by the staff. The staff was asked to fill out questionnaires about the patients on their floor (the staff new nothing of the experiment). The questionnaires had questions on it to comment about things such as if the patents were sociable, happy, alert, and even how much they visited other patients. The differences between the two groups were incredible. They determined that overall, the increased responsibility groups condition improved over the three weeks of  the study, while the no-control group was doing progressively poorer. They concluded that when people who have been forced to give up their control and decision-making power are given a greater sense of personal responsibility, their lives and attitudes improve, as is true with the opposing side. More Experience = Bigger Brain Mark R. Rosenzweig and Edward L. Bennett wanted to find out if the brain changes in response to experience. Because this experiment involved long periods of observation and even autopsies to observe the changes in the brain, the two researchers couldnt use human subjects, so they used rats for the experiment. Three male rats where chosen to participate and assigned to one of three conditions. One rat remained in the colony cage with the rest of the colony. One rat was placed in an enriched environment and one was placed in an impoverished environment. There were 12 rats in each of these conditions for each of the 16 experiments. The standard cage had many rats and had adequate space with food and water always available. The improvised environment was a slightly smaller cage, isolated in a separate room, where the rat was alone with adequate food and water. Finally, the enriched environment was a large cage filled with many toys and furnished with every luxury a rat could want. The results indicated that the brains of the enriched rats were highly different from those of the impoverished rats. The cerebral cortex of the enriched rats was significantly heavier and thicker then those of the impoverished rats. Also, the study found a significantly greater number of glial cells in the enriched rats brains compared with the rats raised in the dull environment. After 10 years of experiment and research the researchers could clearly and confidently state that there is no doubt that many aspects of brain anatomy and brain chemistry are changed by experience. However, many scientists were skeptical of there findings because there were factors that Rosenzweig and Bennett didnt take into consideration. The enriched rats were handled more which could have been a brain stimulus and the impoverished rats could have been stressed from having no contact with anyone or anything at all. See AggressionDo Aggression One of he most famous and influential experiment ever conducted in psychology history demonstrated how children learn to be aggressive. This study by Albert Bandura and his associates Dorothea Ross and Shelia Ross was carried out in 1961 at Stanford University. The researchers asked for the help of the Stanford University nursery in obtaining thirty-six boys and thirty-six girls raging from ages 3-6. The average age for he children was 4 years and 4 months. Twenty four of the children were assigned to the control group which was the group that wasnt exposed to any model. The rest of the children were divided into two groups: one exposed to aggressive models and one exposed to non-aggressive models, they were also divided by sex. They eventually had 8 experimental groups divided by gender and level of aggression. First, the experimenter brought a child from one of the groups to a playroom with an adult model. The adult model beat a Bobo doll with a fake mallet while the child played with other toys. Another child was brought in after and the adult model ignored the Bobo doll. This went on for all the groups. 1) The children who were exposed to the violent models tended to imitate the exact violent behaviors they observed when left alone with the Bobo doll. 2) Overall, girls were more likely to imitate the verbal aggression toward the Bobo doll, while the boys showed more physical violence. 3) Boys were significantly more physically aggressive then girls in nearly all the conditions. 4) The boys used the mallet significantly more then girls in almost all of the conditions. 5) The control group was generally less violent then the experimental group.6) in cases with a non-aggressive female, the children used hardly any aggressive language. What You Expect Is What You Get This study involves teachers expectancies of pupils and how that affects the students I.Q. gains. Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson conducted a study where they theorized that when an elementary school teacher is provided with information (such as I.Q. scores) that creates certain expectancies about a students potential, either strong or weak, the teacher might unknowingly behave in ways that subtly encourage or facilitate the performance of the students seen as more likely to succeed. An elementary school was chosen and  all the children grades 1-6 were given an I.Q. test near the beginning of the year. The teachers were told that there students were taking the Harvard Test of Inflected Acquisition. This was told to them because this test was supposed to be a predictor for a childs academic blooming. Teachers believed that students that scored higher would enter a period of increased learning abilities. This was also not true. Children were chosen at random to be within the top 20 percentile of this test and the teachers were informed of this. All other children were the control group of this experiment. At the end of the year the children were tested again using the I.Q. test and the children originally chosen for the top 20% showed a significantly increased score then those of the control group in grades one and two. In grades 3-6 the difference was not so great. The reason for the 1st and 2nd grade development was thought to be because of how younger minds were more malleable then older children and how younger children dont have a reputation from previous school years. I Can See It All Over Your Face Researchers Paul Ekman and Wallace V. Freisen conducted a study about how facial expressions and emotions are a universal language. The first problem with this experiment was that the researchers had to find subjects that had never been exposed to media or magazines because this would enable the subjects to not truthfully identify a certain emotional expression. Ekman and Freisen found a group of people like this in the Southeast Highlands of New Guinea called the Fore people. They were an isolated Stone Age society with not much contact of any other people outside there environment, let alone any media. They had not been exposed to emotional facial expressions other then those of there own people. The two researchers showed there experimental groups of adults and children pictures of different facial expressions of people from the United States and told them a sentence. They asked them to identify by pointing, to the correct matching facial expression. The adults were given three pictures to choose from and the children were given two. There was not much difference between male and female recognition of expressions, however the children did fair a little better in the experiment. This could have been attributed to the fact that  the children only had to choose between two pictures instead of three. The results for both adults and children clearly support the researchers theory that particular facial behaviors are universally associated with particular emotions. The only trouble that the Fore people had was distinguishing between fear and surprise, and this was because these people closely associated fear and surprise as one emotion. Racing Against Your Heart Using their earlier research and clinical observations, two cardiologists, Meyer Friedman and Ray H. Rosenman, developed a model of traits for a specific type of persons behavioral pattern that they believed was related to growing levels of cholesterol and to heart disease. The first pattern, pattern A, had characteristics such as a drive to achieve your goals, a competing personality, multi-tasking that involves meeting deadlines, and extreme alertness. Following this is another type of people, called pattern B. Pattern B is the exact opposite of pattern A. They lacked drive, ambition, desire to compete, and involvement in deadlines. A third set of behaviors developed was called pattern C. This was very much like pattern B but involved anxiety and insecurity. Friedman and Rosenman interviewed about 166 men for there experiment. They first questions they asked them were about there familys medical history, so they could see if they had CHD. While in this interview the researchers cat egorized each man into a pattern A or B category by the way he answered questions, or his tone, or body language. Each subject was asked to keep a log of there diet over the course of a week and blood tests were taken from each of the men to measure cholesterol levels. Friedman and Rosenman matched each man into pattern A and pattern B easily. Each man fit into one of the developed patterns. The researchers found that the men in Pattern A group had significantly higher chances of heart disease and that type A behavior was a major cause of blood abnormalities. However there could be other reasons why Type A had higher chances of heart disease such as, there familys history. More men in the pattern A group had parents with heart disease. Another difference was that pattern A men smoked more cigarettes a day then did the subjects in group B. This study was very important in the history of psychology for a few  reasons. One way was that it proved certain behavioral patterns can cause major heart related illness. Another is that this study began a new line of research and questioning into the relat ionship between behavior and CHD. The largest long-range outcome from this study that has played an important role in creating a new branch of psychology called health psychology. Not Practicing What You Preach This study involves attitudes and actions toward different racial groups. It was determine if what people say is actually what they will do if they come face to face with the problem. Richard T. LaPiere traveled extensively with a young Chinese couple in 1930 and 1931. The couple was very nice and personable and he was glad to be traveling with them. During this time there was a lot of prejudice in the U.S. against Asians. So, LaPiere was very surprised when the Asian couple was graciously accommodated at a very fine hotel that had a reputation for greatly disliking Orientals. Two months later he called the same hotel and asked if they would accommodate a very important Chinese man and they said defiantly not. LaPiere then developed a theory that stated What people say is often not what they do. The study was conducted in two separate parts. First, LaPiere went with his Chinese friends to many hotels and restaurant throughout the U.S. over the course of two years. He took record of how the couple was treated and made sure to first stay out of site of the managers of the establishments to ensure that the couple wouldnt be treated differently in his presence. The second part of the experiment was for LaPiere to wait 6 months after there trip (to make sure the effect of the Chinese couples visit had faded), and then call each establishment that they went to or stayed at, and asked them if they would accommodate a Chinese person. After almost three years, LaPiere had enough information to make a comparison of social attitudes social behavior. Out of the 251 hotels and restaurants they attended, only one refused the couple and LaPiere service because of the couples race. Aside from that instance, all other places accommodated them with average or above average service. When he received most of the letters back with an answer from the hotels and restaurants over 90% of them said they would absolutely not accommodate anyone of the Chinese race. This confirmed LaPieres theory that what people  say, is not always how they will act. The Power of Conformity Research psychologist Solomon E. Asch conducted a study to see if people will give into peer pressure and conform to there friends ideas. A person was let into a room (Subject A) with seven other subjects. These seven people, without subject A knowing, were not participants in the experiment, they were helping the experimenter. Each person was asked which line was longer on a card that was shown to them. Subject A went first and then followed was the seven other subjects and then subject A was asked again. They did this several times until one time, all the other subjects disagreed with subject A and all picked the same one, different form his choice. When the card came back to subject A he picked the one everyone else picked. Seventy-Five percent of the time the first subject will conform to the groups consensus at least once. The powerful effects of group pressures to conform were clearly demonstrated in Aschs study. There are four factors that could have an effect on the reduction of conformity. These factors are social support, attraction and commitment to the group, size of the group, and gender of the group. If you have people on your side you are more likely to stay with your answer rather then conform. Crowding Into The Behavioral Sink The effects of crowding on our behavior are something that has interested psychologists for decades. One man in particular, John B. Calhoun was especially interested in it when he conducted this study on crowding and social pathology. It may be hard to believe but rats do have a social side. The reason Calhoun used rats were because he needed many subjects for long periods of time that were willing to crowd together for a while. Humans wouldnt be very good at this. He used a 1014 foot room and divided it into 4 sections. Section one was connected to section 2 by a ramp, section 2 was connected to section 3 by a ramp, and section 3 was connected to section 4 by a ramp. The walls were electrified so in order to get from section 1 to section 4 you needed to go through all the rooms. The rooms were also filled  with shreds of paper, in order for the rats to make nests. The experimenter filled the rooms with rats. They started with about 4 rats and waited or the rats to multiply until they reached 80. When over 80 were reached some rats were removed so they always had a constant number. When the rats got older, they started to fight with each other for space even though it wasnt necessarily too crowded. The two end rooms were soon fought for because they got the most space and privacy so the rat that won the fight always stayed on guard at the end of the ramp for security. Some rats became submissive and others always fought. Some of the rats were very sexually active and some wanted nothing to do with it. Some of the mothers in the two middle pens became inadequate. They often left their children and lost all maternal abilities. One environment where the same thing that happened to the rats might happen to humans is in an overcrowded prison. It was found in a very crowded prison where each inmate has approximately 50 square feet, as opposed to one with more room, there were more cases of homicides, suicide, illness, and disciplinary problems. Crowding also has negative effects on problem-solving abilities. When in a small room thats crowded subjects had a more difficult time listening to a story and putting tighter a puzzle, then did another group with more space and the same tasks. Relaxing Your Fears Away Researcher Joseph Wolpe was a research psychologist specializing in the systematic desensitization treatment of neuroses. The word phobia comes from Phobos, the name of the Greek god of fear. Phobias are divided into three main categories. Simple phobias are phobias that involve irrational fears of animals or specific situations such as small spaces or heights. Social phobias are irrational fears about interaction with others. Agoraphobia is the irrational fear of being in an unfamiliar, open, or crowded space. These are all irrational and all can be treated in similar ways. Systematic desensitization is a behavioral technique that was credited to Wolpe as perfecting and applying it to the treatment of anxiety disorders. Systematic desensitization is the way of unlearning a learned behavior. Reciprocal inhibition is when two responses inhibit each other, and only one may exist at a given moment. There are three steps that a patient must follow in order  to rid themselves of a phobi a. Wolpe says that you cannot be in a complete relaxed state and have an irrational fear at the same time, so the first step is relaxation. He taught the patient to go into a deep state of relaxation whenever they wanted or needed too. The process involves tensing and relaxing your muscles until you have reached a state of complete relaxation. Wolpe also incorporated hypnosis to ensure full relaxation. The next step in the process is for the therapist and patient to develop a list of high anxiety-producing situations involving your phobia. Starting with the least stressful and ending with the most stressful. The final stage is called the unlearning stage. The patient has to go into a deep state of relaxation and the therapist will read off to you your fears of the list. If at any point you feel anxiety the therapist stops you return to your relaxation mode and the therapist will continue. This process continues until the therapist can go through the entire list with you feeling the least bit anxious. The success of their therapy was judged by the patients own reports and by the occasional direct observation. He had a success rate of 91% with the 39 cases he had. The average number of treatment sessions needed was 12.3. Wolpe said that he hasnt had any patient relapse after a complete desensitization recovery. Whos Crazy Here, Anyway? David L. Rosenhan conducted an experiment with sane people going into mental facilities claiming to hear voices, to see if the patients would be immediately released if acting completely sane. Rosenhan questioned whether the characteristics that lead to psychological diagnoses reside in the patients themselves or in the situations in which the observers find the patients. Eight subjects including Rosenhan committed themselves to eight different mental hospitals. Each subject was completely sane and in perfect mental health. When committing themselves to the hospital they complained of hearing voices and all but one where admitted and on record as having schizophrenia. Each patient once admitted, acted perfectly sane and showed no signs of schizophrenia yet were treated as though they did have a mental illness throughout their entire stay. They were given medication which they disposed of and were not treated as normal people. It was as if because they  were in the mental hospital, they were automatically considered to not be a real human being. Rosenhans study demonstrated rather strongly that normal patients cannot be distinguished from the mentally ill in a hospital setting. According to Rosenhan, this is because of the strength of the mental setting has over the patients actual behavior. Once patients are admitted to such a place, there is a strong inclination for them to be viewed in ways that strip them of all individuality. This study surprises me. Im taken aback that these professionals that have worked with mentally ill patients cannot decipher between a truly mental patient and a completely mentally-healthy patient. It is extremely unprofessional that the staff member/nurse did at one of the facilities by adjusting her bra in front of patients as if they werent real people. Thanks For The Memories One of the leading researchers in the area of memory is Elizabeth Loftus at the University of Washington. She has found that when an event is recalled it is not accurately recreated. Instead its whats called reconstructive memory. Loftus defines a presupposition as a condition that must be true in order for the question to make sense. For example, suppose that you have witnessed an automobile accident and I ask you, How many people were in the car that was speeding? The question presupposes that the car was speeding. One experiment done by Loftus was having students in small groups watch a car accident video that was about 1 minute long. After the film ended the students had to answer questions. For half the students the first question was How fast was car A going when it ran the stop sign? The other students had a question that read How fast was car A going when I turned right? The last question for both groups was Did you see the stop sign? In the group that had been asked about the stop sign 53% of the subjects said they saw a stop sign for car A, while only 35% in the turned right group claimed to have seen it. Based on these and other studies, Loftus argues that an accurate theory of memory and recall must include a process of reconstruction that occurs when new information is integrated into the original memory of an event. There is little doubt that in the course of criminal prosecutions, eye witness reports are subject to many sources of  error such as post event information integration.