The Nature of the Soul

In St. Thomas Aquinas' comprehensive Summa Theologica, the work consists of a detailed summary that pertains to the theological explanation on the notion of the existence of God and the relationship between God and man. The summa also tackles the divine reconciliation of man and how it is achieved through Christ. Aquinas also enumerates the nature of God and proofs of his existence through questions supported by arguments and claims. This method adopts several Aristotelian concepts where Aquinas explains the nature, origin, and purpose of the universe and how the totality of all concepts in a universal existence as an integral part in achieving that purpose. Aquinas attempts to explain the totality of universal existence of the soul, the existence of God, and Catholic doctrines through a rationalistic view. Aquinas attempts to explain the nature of the human soul by positing seven questions coupled with several objections in order to clearly define the soul’s nature. These questions ask whether the soul is a body and whether the soul is a subsistence. Aquinas’ inquiry is furthered into the question of the souls of brute animals, if man’s soul is composed of body, soul, matter, and form. The last two questions inquire on the soul’s corruptibility and its comparison to the species of angels. First, Aquinas asks whether the soul is a body and poses the following objections. The soul is a body since the soul is the foremost moving principle and the body cannot act without a soul. Thus, if there is a thing that moves but not moved, according to Aquinas, that thing is the main cause of eternal movement. Hence, Aquinas proves that the soul is a body since the soul is a mover that is moved, and every mover moved possesses a body. To further the objection, Aquinas elaborates that knowledge is caused by likeness that is integral in assuming corporeal things. â€Å"If, therefore, the soul were not a body, it could not have knowledge of corporeal things† (Aquinas 663). The nature of the soul then is defined as the main principle or essence that is present in all things that live, which Aquinas calls as animate, meaning having a soul. The inanimate are those that have no life. Life is separated by knowledge and movement. Furthermore, Aquinas criticizes the ancient philosophers of having to maintain the ideal that the soul is corporeal or specified in the physical aspect. â€Å"The philosophers of old, not being able to rise above their imagination, supposed that the principle of these actions was something corporeal; for they asserted that only bodies were real things, and that what is not corporeal is nothing†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Aquinas 663). The ancient philosophers (the pre-Platonics, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle) defined the soul as a material essence as a part of the universal order. If the soul is not corporeal or bordered by physical matter, then it cannot be construed as something real. Aquinas rejects this statement by manifesting the difference between the body and soul. â€Å"For it is clear that to be a principle of life, or to be a living thing, does not belong to a body as such; since of, that were the case, every body would be a living thing, or a principle of life† (Aquinas, 664). Thus, the soul is the act of the body, since the body in itself is the first principle that defines life. Aquinas attempts to differentiate the soul between the animate and inanimate as well as the rational and irrational souls. Unique to human beings, man has will of reason or the ability to conceptualize choice. This will of reason is also the rational appetite of the individual that attempts to fulfill its purpose and attaining the good. In addition, Aquinas answers his first objection through the soul as something that is moved. Everything that moves is definitely moved by something else but not every mover is moved. Thus, certain things remain stationary or permanent as an effect of preceding causes. This explains the nature of the soul as a thing that is not essentially moved but moved accidentally. The body is then a thing that is moved inessentially, contrary to the soul. To be moved means that the soul passes from being a potential to being real or actual. The soul transcends from bodily knowledge through the intellect – immaterial and universal. However, God is the source of understanding and therefore is the only being capable of true understanding. Furthermore, the soul is divided into the cognitive soul, wherein it has the choice of forming understanding and sensation. Contrary to Plato’s Theory of Forms where knowledge is derived, Aquinas argues that real knowledge comes from God: â€Å"Now participated existence is limited by the capacity of the participator, so that God alone, who is his own existence, is pure act and infinite† (Aquinas, 671). Knowledge is then formed through the combination of the potential or passive senses (body) and the active or actual intellect (soul). On the question of the soul’s subsistence, Aquinas equates the soul as an act of understanding, meaning that the soul is the action of the body. Thus, the soul necessarily becomes incorporeal (separate from the body) and subsistent. Man can only understand the nature of all physical things through the body. â€Å"For it is clear that by means of the intellect, man can have knowledge of all corporeal things. Now whatever knows certain things cannot have any of them in its own nature; because that which is in it naturally would impede the knowledge of anything else† (Aquinas, 665). Man’s experiences are then dependent on the body, which is the only avenue in understanding the physical knowledge, different from the understanding of the soul. Similar to the foremost arguments and objections, man’s soul is rational, and thus separates itself from that of animalistic reason. â€Å"The body is necessary for the action of the intellect, not as its origin of action, but on the part of the object; for the phantasm is to the intellect what color is for sight† (Aquinas, 666). Thus, these mental images are essential in acquiring knowledge as well as utilizing the use of sense experience in order to abstract such forms for understanding. On the notion of the soul’s incorruptibility, Aquinas argues that the soul may be corrupted in two ways: per se and accidentally. He argues that any substance that can be corrupted accidentally is impossible since corruption is considered as a thing, along with existence. â€Å"Therefore, whatever has existence ‘per se’ cannot be generated or corrupted except ‘per se’; while things which do not subsist, such as accident and material forms, acquire existence or lost through the generation or corruption of composite things† (Aquinas, 672). Man’s soul is then dependent on the subjective sensual experience that the individual experiences everyday in attaining the ideal since man is created in the image and likeness of God. The passage also implies causal explanations towards the nature of man’s choice—that every actions constitutes a reaction that necessarily ‘corrupts’ the soul of man. This corruption comes from man itself and not from another generation or cause. The soul remains pure while the body experiences corruption because of misleading sensual experiences that does not act as universals. In addition, Aquinas adds that even though the soul may be composed by matter and form, it still remains incorruptible for corruption possesses contradiction. â€Å"Since generation and corruption are from contraries and into contraries. Wherefore the heavenly bodies, since they have no matter subject to contrariety, are incorruptible†¦there can be nor contrariety in the human soul for it receives according to the manner of its existence†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Aquinas 673). The attainment of knowledge lies in the nature of man’s soul where the intellectual capability of the individual is a separate entity from that of the soul while remaining a part of the soul. The soul is also the capacity to reason, a similar term used by Platonic philosophers and the like as a means of attaining knowledge. Aquinas shares the same similarities with Aristotle as man’s essence is its rationality. However, Aquinas does not total man’s entirety with rationality, contrary to Aristotle. In addition, Aquinas also rejects the nature of innate ideas of Plato since the physical mind forms ‘phantasms’ that are derived mental images from sensual experience. From this, human being form passive knowledge from experience and the soul forms active knowledge. â€Å"Further, if the soul were subsistent, it would have some operation apart from the body. However, it has no operation apart from the body, not even that of understanding; for the act of understanding does not take place without a phantasm, which cannot exist apart from the body† (Aquinas, 665). These phantasms are not considered as universal knowledge since there is would be subjectivism instead of an objective standard of truth. According to Aquinas, God is the only source of knowledge contrary to a subjective sensual experience which contradicts the notion of an objective truth. The soul is then a reaction, the unmoved object that grants substantial truth as it relates itself to the function of the body. Moreover, the body is also an integral part of knowledge, as it provides sensual experience that directly hands abstractions. Though sensual experience does not necessitate in becoming universal knowledge, the soul’s active intellect filters the passive knowledge of the body into one. However, even though sense experience is necessary in formulation phantasms or mental images of an object as well as a universal concepts that applies to all things, it is impossible to have knowledge of a particular material object because there is already a conception of a mental image of it. Though the way to know the essence of a physical object is through abstraction, we cannot entirely have a real grasp of what that object is. All knowledge then is necessitated as abstract. This abstraction process leads to the use of scientific knowledge where there is an inkling of knowledge through cause and effect. On the other hand, it remains that the intellect has limitations with regard to abstract knowledge. We may have a concept or a grasp of what is sweet or sour through experience but we can never understand the real meaning of sweetness and sourness in itself.

Culinary Cookware Essay

Sales Promotion is a key ingredient in marketing campaigns which consists of a collection of incentive tools, mostly short term that are designed to stimulate quicker or greater purchase of particular products or services by consumers or the trade. Sales contests/incentives: Aims at including the sales force or dealers to increase their sales results over a stated period, with prizes (money, trips, gifts or points) going to those who succeed Appropriateness: From the findings of the 2003 survey, 50% would buy new cookware even without price discount or a free gift => retailers who are already carrying all the four lines owing to its greater GM compared to competitors, would be induced to promote the brand by featuring, displays, etc. This stimulates sales clerks to push the products further more improving the brand awareness (15% for under $75000 and 25% for above $75000 – much lower than close competitors) as only 15% would consider upgrading to higher end products and improves off-season sales which were very low. Promotion allowances: volume rebate/ quantity discount Appropriateness: There is a possibility of forward buying problem, wherein retailers buy a greater quantity during the deal period and the manufacturer will have to bear costs of extra work shifts. Since the manufacturer is giving a 4% points additional benefit on GM to retailers over the competitors, giving a promotion allowance might not yield as many benefits as anticipated. However, an equal amount could be spent on advertising/display allowances as the channels chosen are upscale kitchen specialty chains, department stores and local specialty stores. Sweepstakes: Sweepstakes involve marketing promotions targeted toward generating enthusiasm to purchase among customers by enticing consumers to submit free entries into chance draws that are tied to product or service awareness wherein the featured prizes are given away by sponsoring companies. As there is no assurance of benefit in this case, the scheme may not be very attractive to entice first-time customers. Also the lottery system promotion may not reflect highly on the ‘Premium’ brand image of Culinarian Cookware. Thus sweepstakes are not a good promotion strategy for Culinarian Cookware Premiums: Premiums are promotional items that can be acquired through proof of purchase. Exhibit 3 states that 20 % of the people would be motivated to buy cookware because of a free gift. Also a free gift does not damage the premium image of the cookware brand and is widely used by other players in this segment. Since the premium can be shipped after receiving proof of purchase, it reduces opposition from trade channels who would not have to block shelf space for the premiums unlike in the case of free gifts Rebates: Rebate is an amount returned on what already has been paid. Rebates may require paperwork submission and this can put off customers. Culinarian cookware distributes through high-end retail channels and invests in well-trained staff to give the best experience to the customers. However, the rebate mechanism requires effort on the part of the customers and can affect the Culinarian premium brand image. Cooperative advertising allowance: Culinarian cookware can give some allowances to retailers who prominently display its products or give it the desire shelf space. Also it can be used to encourage retailers to push Culinarian products to the customers who are unsure about the brand. The lure of getting reimbursement and additional money for doing advertisement for culinarian products on the company’s behalf will motivate Slotting Allowance: In slotting allowance a fee charged to produce companies or manufacturers by supermarket distributors or retailers in order to have their product placed on their shelves. Most of the products sold by Culinarian Cookware is through retail outlets. Also most of the products are in the premium end. So Culinarian Cookware can go for slotting allowance. However it should negotiate with retailers to reduce the margin to industry standard of 48% as against 52% now. Trade shows: Generally in trade shows people look for discounted products. It would not be good for culinarian cookware to sell the products at a discounted rate in trade shows. Howvere it can take part in trade shows to increase awareness especially of its CX1 brand. Point of purchase displays (functional discounts) Culinarian Cookware should not go for functional discounts because they already give retailers higher profit margins of 52% as compared to 48% by its competitors. This is a big enough incentive for the retailers to encourage customers to buy Culinarian Cookware products. Thus, no extra functional discounts are required. Seasonal discount The buying pattern given in Exhibit 2 suggests that there are two peak seasons for the sale of cookware, one during the May- June months and the other during the months of November- December. Thus, seasonal discounts will be very effective in capturing the customers and increase sales because of this buying pattern If we study Exhibit 4, we can observe that the sale of product lines PROX1 and SX1 is higher in the spring season while that of DX1 is higher in the fall season. This cyclical buying pattern tells us that Culinarian Cookware can go for sales promotion twice in a year wherein it can give sales promotion for different product lines in different seasons of the year.

The Return: Shadow Souls Chapter 27

Elena felt confident and just a little light-headed as they set out for the Silver Nightingale's gala. However, when the four of them arrived on litters – Damon with Elena, Meredith with Bonnie (Lady Ulma being forbidden by her doctor to go to any festivities while she was pregnant) – at the Honorable Lady Fazina's palatial home, she was struck with something like terror. The house was truly a palace, in the best of story-telling tradition, she thought. Minarets and towers soared above them, probably painted in blue and lavish gilt, but turned lavender by the sunlight, and looking almost lighter than air. To complement the sunlight, torches had been lit on either side of the path of the litters up the hill and some chemical had been added – or some magic used – to make their lights shine in varying colors so that they changed from golden, to red, to purple, to blue, to green, to silver, and these colors shone true. They took Elena's breath away, as the only things that were not tinged with red in the whole world that she could see. Damon had brought a bottle of Black Magic with him and was almost too high-spirited – no pun intended, Elena thought. As their litter stopped at the top of the hill, Damon and Elena were helped out and down a hallway that cut out much of the sunlight. Above them hung delicate, lighted paper lanterns – some larger than the litter they'd been in a moment ago – brightly lighted and fancifully shaped which gave a festive, playful air to a palace otherwise so magnificent that it was a little intimidating. They passed by lighted fountains, some of which had surprises – like the line of magical frogs that constantly leaped from lily pad to lily pad: plop, plop, plop, like the sound of rain on a rooftop, or a huge gilded serpent that coiled among trees and over the heads of visitors, winding from there to the ground and then back up to the trees again. Then again, it was the ground that would turn transparent with all manner of magical schools of fish, sharks, eels, and dolphins cavorting, while in the dim blue depths far below loomed the figure of a gigantic whale. Elena and Bonnie hurried quickly over this portion of the path. It was clear that the owner of this estate could afford any kind of extravaganza her heart desired, and that above all things what she enjoyed the chiefest was music, for in each area, splendidly – sometimes bizarrely – dressed orchestra were playing, or there might be only one famous soloist, singing from a high gilded cage perhaps twenty-five feet above the ground. Music†¦music and lights everywhere†¦ Elena herself, although thrilled by the sights, sounds, and glorious scents coming from huge banks of flowers as well as from the guests, both male and female, felt a slight fear like a small rock in her stomach. She had thought her dress and diamonds so elaborate when she had left Lady Ulma's estate. But now that she was here at Lady Fazina's†¦well, there were too many rooms, too many people, as fancifully and finely clad as herself and her sister â€Å"personal assistants.† She was afraid that – well, that that woman over there, dripping jewels from her delicate three-tier diamond and emerald tiara to her delicate diamond-circled toes, made her own unadorned hair look dowdy or laughable, at such a grand affair. Do you know how old she is? Elena almost jumped to hear Damon's voice in her head. Who? Elena replied, trying at least to keep her envy – her worry – out of her telepathic voice. And am I projecting that loudly? she added in alarm. Not all that loudly, but it never hurts to tune it down. And you know perfectly well â€Å"who†: that giraffe you were eyeing, Damon replied. For your information, she's about two hundred years older than I am, and she's trying to look around thirty, which is ten years younger than when she became a vampire. Elena blinked. What are you trying to say? Send some Power to your ears, Damon suggested. And stop worrying! Elena obediently increased slightly the Power to what she still thought of as her burst ear nodes, and conversations suddenly became audible all around her. †¦oh, the goddess in white. She's just a child, but what a figure†¦ †¦yes, the one with the golden hair. Magnificent, isn't she?†¦Oh, by Hades, look at that girl†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Did you see the prince and princess over there? I wonder if they'd swap†¦or – or – do a quartet, dear? This was more like what Elena was used to hearing at parties. It gave her more confidence. It also, as she allowed her eyes to sweep more boldly across the opulently costumed crowed, caused her to feel a sudden surge of love and respect for Lady Ulma, who had designed and overseen the construction of three glorious dresses in only a week. She's a genius, Elena informed Damon solemnly, knowing that through their mindlink he would see who she meant. Look, Meredith already has a crowd around her. And†¦and†¦ And she's not acting much like Meredith at all, Damon finished, sounding slightly uneasy. Meredith didn't seem uneasy in the least. She had her face turned deliberately to show off a classical profile to her admirers, but it wasn't the profile of level-headed, serene Meredith Sulez at all. It was a sultry, exotic girl, who looked as if she might very well be able to sing the Habanera from Carmen. She had her fan open and was gracefully, languorously fanning herself. The soft but warm indoor lighting made her bare shoulders and arms gleam like pearl above the black velvet dress, which seemed even more mysterious and striking than it had back at home. In fact, it seemed to have stricken one devotee to the heart already; he was kneeling before her with a red rose in his hand, so hastily picked from one of the arrangements that a thorn had pricked him and blood welled from his thumb. Meredith didn't seem to have noticed. Both Elena and Damon felt for the young man, who was blond and extremely handsome. Elena felt sorry†¦and Damon felt hungry. She certainly seems to have come out of her shell, ventured Damon. Oh, Meredith doesn't ever really come out, Elena replied. It's all playacting. But tonight I think it's the dresses that are doing it. Meredith is dressed like a siren, and so she's acting all sultry. Bonnie's dressed like a peacock and†¦look. She nodded down the long hallway that led to a huge room in front of them. Bonnie, dressed in what looked like real peacock feathers, had a crowd of her own followers – and that was just what they were doing: following. Bonnie's every movement was light and birdlike and her jade bracelets clinked together on her small rounded arms, her earrings chimed with each toss of her head, and her feet seemed to twinkle in golden sandals in front of her peacock train. â€Å"You know, it's strange,† Elena murmured, as they reached the large room and at last sound was muted so she could hear Damon's physical voice. â€Å"I didn't realize it, but Lady Ulma designed our dresses at different levels of the animal world.† â€Å"Hm?† Damon was looking at her throat again. But fortunately at that moment a handsome man dressed in formal Earth clothes – tuxedo, cummerbund, and so on – came by with Black Magic in large silver goblets. Damon drained his in one gulp and took another from the gracefully bowing waiter. Then he and Elena took seats – on the outside of the back row, even if this was a rudeness to their hostess. They needed to be free to maneuver. â€Å"Well, Meredith is a mermaid, which is the highest order, and she's acting like a siren. Bonnie is a bird, so that's the next highest order, and she is acting like a bird: watching all the boys display themselves while she keeps laughing. And I'm a butterfly – so I suppose I'll be a social butterfly tonight. With you beside me, I hope.† â€Å"How†¦cute,† Damon said heavily. â€Å"But what exactly makes you think you're supposed to be a butterfly?† â€Å"Well, the designs, silly,† Elena said, and she lifted her mother-of-pearl and gold and diamond fan and gave him a tiny butterfly rap on the forehead with it. Then she opened it to show him a masterly sketch of the same design as her necklace on its front, decorated with tiny dots of diamond, gold, and mother-of-pearl where they would not be harmed by the folds. â€Å"You see? A butterfly,† she said, not displeased with the image. Damon traced the outline with one long, tapering finger that reminded her so much of Stefan's that it hurt her throat, and stopped at six stylized lines above the head. â€Å"Since when do butterflies have hair?† His finger moved to two horizontal lines between the wings. â€Å"Or arms?† â€Å"Those are legs,† Elena told him, amused. â€Å"What kind of thing with arms and legs and a head has six hairs and wings?† â€Å"A tipsy vampire,† suggested a voice above them and Elena looked up, surprised to see Sage. â€Å"May I sit with you?† he asked. â€Å"I couldn't manage a shirt, but my fairy godmother did conjure up a vest.† Elena, laughing, scooted over a seat so that he could take the aisle seat by Damon. He was much cleaner than when she had last seen him working around the house, although his hair was still in long wild unruly curls. She noted however, that his fairy godmother had scented him with cedar and sandalwood, and provided him with Dolce & Gabbana jeans and vest. He looked†¦magnifique. There was no sign of his animals. â€Å"I thought you weren't coming,† Elena said to him. â€Å"You can say that? Garbed as you are in celestial white and gold? You mentioned the gala; I took your wish as a command.† Elena giggled. Of course, everyone was treating her differently tonight. It was the dress. Sage, murmuring something about his latent heterosexuality, swore that the image on her necklace and fan was a phoenix. The very polite demon on her right, who had deep mauve skin and small, curling white horns, deferentially submitted that it looked to him like the goddess Ishtar, who had apparently sent him to the Dark Dimension a few millennia ago for tempting people to sloth. Elena made a mental note to ask Meredith whether this meant tempting them to eat sloths, which she knew were some kind of wild animal that didn't move around much, or something else. Then Elena thought that Lady Ulma had called the dress a â€Å"goddess dress,† hadn't she? It was certainly a dress you could only wear if your body was very young and very close to perfection, because there was no way to fit corsetry into it or even to drape it to minimize an unflattering feature. The only things under the dress were Elena's own firm young physique and a pair of scant, soft flesh-colored lace underwear. Oh, and a spray of jasmine perfume. So it's a goddess I feel like, she thought, thanking the demon (who stood and bowed). People were taking their seats for the Silver Nightingale's first performance. Elena had to admit to a longing to see Lady Fazina, and besides, it was too early to try for a restroom trip – Elena had already noticed that guards were posted at all the doors. There were two harps on a dais in the middle of a great circle of chairs. And then suddenly everyone was on their feet and clapping, and Elena would have seen nothing, if the Lady Fazina had not chosen to walk down the same aisle Elena and Damon had taken. As it was, she paused right beside Sage to acknowledge the roar of acclamation, and Elena had a perfect view of her. She was a lovely young woman, who to Elena's surprise looked hardly older than twenty, and was nearly as small as Bonnie. This diminutive creature obviously took her sobriquet very seriously: she was dressed entirely in a gown of silver mesh. Her hair was metallic silver, too, swept high in front and very short in back. Her train was barely attached to her, by two simple clasps at the shoulders. It floated horizontally behind her, constantly in motion, more like a moonbeam or a cloud than like real material until she got to the central dais and ascended it, then walked once around the tall uncovered harp, at which point the suspended part of the cape fell softly and gracefully to the floor in a semicircle around her. And then came the magic of the Silver Nightingale's voice. She began by playing the tall harp, which seemed even taller in comparison to her small body. She could make the harp sing under her fingers, coax it to cry like the wind or make music that seemed to descend from heaven in glissandos. Elena wept throughout her first song, even though it was sung in some foreign language. It was so piercingly sweet that it reminded Elena of Stefan, of the times they had been together, communicating by only the softest words and touches†¦ But Lady Fazina's most impressive instrument was her voice. Her tiny body could generate an extraordinary volume when she wanted it to. And as she sang one poignant, minor-tuned song after another, Elena could feel her skin break out into gooseflesh, and a trembling in her legs. She felt that at any moment she might fall to her knees as the melodies filled her heart. When someone touched her from behind, Elena started violently, brought back too quickly from the fantasy world the music had woven around her. But it was only Meredith, who despite her own love for music had a very practical suggestion for their group. â€Å"I was going to say, why not start now, while everyone else is listening?† she whispered. â€Å"Even the guards are out of it. We agreed on two by two, yes?† Elena nodded. â€Å"We're just having a look around the house. We may even find something while everyone is still here, listening, for nearly another hour. Sage, maybe you could sort of liaise between the two groups, telepathically.† â€Å"It would be my privilege, Madame.† The five of them set out into the Silver Nightingale's mansion.

Interpersonal Process: Decision Making in Organizations Essay

The crucial part of any organization is making good decisions in the various contexts. To reach good decisions, they need reliable information, experience in interpreting information, and reaching a consensus. However, this process of decision-making remains incomplete without the consultation process as the view and expertise of other people in an organization can help to admit one or alter one’s mind. The process of decision-making is supported by various tools and techniques that help an organization better sort and analyze the information by adding numerical and objective precision to minimize the level of subjectivity. As organizational decision-making process is people-centric and it always has some level of subjectivity in it, some sort of training can enable managers to be better decision makers. A supportive environment where one is fairly criticized for making wrong choices and proper support from other group members and superiors enables managers to make better decisions (Kippenberger, T, 1998). The importance of interpersonal process of decision-making is obvious in all types of decisions made in the organizational context such as strategic decision of investment and direction of future growth taken by the board of director and tactical decision about material handling and effectiveness at departmental levels taken by managers. In addition, in the 21st century of market-oriented and customer focused approach also puts pressure on employees to make decision about their own tasks, responses to customers and improvement to business practice. The process of first collecting alternative possibilities and then converging on a solution is referred as decision making. In fact when we decide we try to cut off from all other alternatives as the Latin root of the world decision suggests and means. In the presence and emergence of new innovative solutions and huge variations in the ways business are being done, decision making process still remains a human process. However, the advance methodologies and MIS have reduced the level of human efforts in collecting  and sorting the information thus making the decision-making process comparatively less complicated and difficult. As we have already explained that decision-making is a human-centric process, the importance of interpersonal skills of influencing others, conflict resolving, communicating, and conveying the messages etc cannot be minimized. Decision-making is not only confined to only choosing among the alternative solutions and diverging but this process also involves dialogs, brainstorming, contemplative reflection, critique and conflict resolution. In addition, interpersonal processes of decision making is much evident in new types of organizational structures such as team-based matrix structure where collaborative and group decision-making are increasingly being used to enhance decision-making process as compared to the conventional decision-making processes. GLOBALIZATION: The fast spread of phenomenon of globalization is increasing the present level of complexity o the ways of decision-making as to collect and process the data becomes a difficult and cumbersome issue. As boundaries of the countries are getting wider and non-evident in the presence of globalization, organizations are under huge pressures to make decisions collaboratively to effectively manage the flow of goods, services, labor and capital. These organizations to win the increasingly competitive environment have started to rely on participatory and inclusive approaches to decision-making and knowledge creation. As global organizations have their offices spread across many countries of the world make use, they have to arrange meeting online, face-to-face discussions and group participations from distant and geographically disparate locations. This process of decision making utilizes certain online technologies and solutions to increase the level of efficiency, however, these tools only support the human-centric decision-making process and don’t become alternative to interpersonal process of decision-making. In addition, these tools enhance and improve  communication, learning, creativity and problem solving abilities of management (Anonymous, 2007). GROUP DECISION MAKING: Over the past few years group decision making has become much common and popular as its important function is to come up with a collective decision through discussions, and diversity of ideas, and thus making this process more interpersonal. Sometimes individual members’ enduring attitudes is shifted to the more polarized group position. One of the benefits of this interpersonal process of decision-making is the group members’ learning from each other and mutual persuasion. However, the view point of one member has strong influence on the behavior and attitude of other members even if they sometimes don’t give due importance to each other’s arguments (Isenberg, 1986). Seeking the arguments of most participants but also resolving and mitigating the minority objections is another from of group decision making referred as Consensus decision-making. It is more participative, collaborative and interpersonal approach of decision making. For instance, many organizations use Robert’s Rule of Order for structuring debate and passage of proposals to reach to a majority decision, however, the goal of full agreement and consensus is often missed. As this process often formulate adversarial debates and competing factions, disturbing group members’ relationships, it become much difficult for a group to cooperatively and collaboratively implement a contentious decision (Jeffery, A. B., 2005). REFERENCES: Kippenberger, T, (1998), â€Å"Strategic decisions: the value of diversity and conflict†, The Antidote, 3(7), Emeraldinsight [Online], Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com.ezproxy.scu.edu.au/journals.htm?issn=1363-8483&volume=3&issue=7&articleid=873429&show=html (Accessed: 02 December, 2010) Jeffery, A. B., Maes, J.D., Bratton-Jeffery, M.F., (2005), â€Å"Improving team decision-making performance with collaborative modeling†, Team Performance Management, 11(1/2), pp. 40-50, Emeraldinsight [Online], Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com.ezproxy.scu.edu.au/journals.htm?issn=1352-7592&volume=11&issue=1/2&articleid=1464479&show=html (Accessed: 03 December, 2010) Baron, R.S., & Kerr, N.L. (2002). Group Process, Group Decision, Group Action. 2nd edn. Buckingham: Open University Press

Critically evaluate the need for risk management in the event industry Essay

Critically evaluate the need for risk management in the event industry - Essay Example Risk management, as it relates to the event administration, may include action items such as fire evacuation procedures or it may be a minor problem from rowdy guests. Risk management, basically seeks to minimize the prospect of money or other forms of finance that can be utilized ineffectively or abused. It increases the profit margin for the company, by making sure that all resources are utilized safely, logically, and efficiently. Though, the actual process of risk management varies from company to company but in general, it requires support of owners, together with the management team, in order to filter the overall process and attain the lowest degree of risk possible. (What is risk management, 2003) As risk management is an integral part of any kind of business, it is also an essential component and a specific prerequisite for successful  event management. It combines many management disciplines, such as change management, knowledge management, strategy and leadership. Risk management can be considered as an informal decision making course that seeks to generate certainty from uncertainty.   The importance of risk management in the event industry has developed with the growing complexity and specialisation of service supply. Though, it does not prevent snow conditions from forcing event managers to cancel a festive marquee event, but not understanding and effective execution of useful risk management strategies can result in disastrous situations. Risk management, without any doubt, is significant part of the planning process. Analysing the risk, allows a firm to recognize the degree to which potential risks might impact the events. Risks can be measured in accordance to their possibility or likelihood of happening and they can also be considered in terms of the impacts of the risk or its consequences. Examining a risk and preparing risk matrices enable the managers to

Raga Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Raga Music - Essay Example The raga cannot be written down like other forms of music because of the complexity in its keys and notes; therefore, Persons interested in learning the music or understanding its meaning have to listen to it over a long period. Raga is associated with colors, animals, emotions, and magic among other factors (Titon 12). The notes, melodies, and organization of the raga are similar to those of the maqam music. The maqam is an Arabic music played in the Middle East region of the world. The music contains ornamental patterns and phrases that are similar to the Indian raga (Titon 12). This similarity between the two music genres indicates that there is a relationship between Arabs and Indian. The relationship is further manifested in the similarity in the cultures of maqam and Hindu. Researchers argue that the relationship between maqam and Hindu make it difficult to separate the two music. An example of a music that is categorized as maqam and raga is the Sufyana Kalam (Titon 15). The V edas culture that is practiced in India was brought about the Aryans who settled along the Indus valley during the revolutionary period (Titon 268). The Aryans intermarried with Indians while they settled along the valley, and this assimilated their culture into that of the Indians. The culture values horses and cattle besides agriculture. The culture believes in numerous gods and goddesses most of them which are made of calves. The Vedas culture also has hymns, which are in form of poems that the Indians recite in memory of their origin and beliefs. The culture also speaks the Vedic language, which was originally spoken by the Aryans (Titon 268). The Indian classic music, which contains consists of sounds of high and low notes originates from the Vedas culture. The Vedas culture believed that sound was the greatest charming thing to both human beings and animals. The culture had a theory known as the Gandhara Veda, which was metaphysics of various sounds (Titon 269). The sounds in the music differ according to the emotion that they expose, for example, tranquility, loneliness, and sadness among others. The classic music of India such as raga contains these elements of the Vedas culture. The music is based on the four Vedas hymns that contain the beliefs of the culture such as magic, gods and goddesses, and praising the calf among others. The Moghul Empire played part in the development of classic music in India, which is a fusion of Hindu and Islam (Toton 277). The rulers of the empire allowed the Islams and Hindus to mingle with each other in all aspects. Akbar, the first ruler of the Moghul Empire was also the first to show interest in images and texts of musicians. During the reign of the empire, the music was not sung, but rather it was spoken and written in form of texts. The rulers controlled music by allowing musicians to sing and dance within the royal grounds. The palaces of the empires were painted with images of musical texts indicating that they v alued music. The empire contributed in the development of the music by allowing musicians from Islam and Hindu origin to sing and dance together. Before the ruling of the empire, Islams and Hindus did not mingle with each other; thus, music was not common at that time, and it was prohibited in some regions (Titon 278). Karnataka Sangeeta is a classical form of music that is mainly sang in the southern parts of India. The music is a fusion of Persian and Indian culture. Karnataka Sangeeta is similar to Hindusthani music in that it is not preserved through writing; in this music, every performance is considered to be original and unique. The music is preserved in form of images and sculptures, which

Tuberculosis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Tuberculosis - Essay Example The disease is spread by people who have the disease when they either cough, sneeze, spit, or talk. One sneeze can send about 40,000 droplets full of the infection. A person with the disease can spread it to 10-15 people a year with prolonged contact. Tuberculosis is often a difficult disease to diagnose, because of how hard it is to grow the bacterium inside laboratory conditions. Various tests must be done, including x-rays, smears, cultures, skin tests, as well as a look at past medical history. New ways of faster more accurate types of detection of the disease are underway, hoping these quicker ways of detection can help with controlling the disease. Treatment for the drug is given in the form of antibiotics. Long terms of these antibiotics are needed in order to clear the entire bacterium from the body, and is often treated with a combination of antibiotics. However, there are risks involved when combining the different antibiotics, even thought it is helpful incase the bacterium becomes drug resistant to one of the antibiotics. Even with the fast spreading nature of the disease, prevention is still underway. In 1993, the World Health Organization declared that the fast spreading Tuberculosis disease was in fact a global health emergency, and a global plan has gone into effect which aims to save lives from Tuberculosis between 2006-20015. The prevention of Tuberculosis is split into two waves of attack. In the first wave, people who are known to have Tuberculosis are treated, and all people with immerse contact with that person are also found and treated. The second step in prevention the spread of the deadly disease is vaccines. Vaccines are given to children; however an effective vaccine is not available for adults. In some countries, the vaccines is being required to be given to all children under the age of three to try to combat the rapidly spreading bacterium. Several new methods of preventing the disease are also underway. One such