50 Essays Discussion Questions - 2127 Words

1. â€Å"Why Don’t We Complain† Question 2 Employing simple anecdotes, William F. Buckley argues in his essay â€Å"Why Don’t We Complain†, that as people continue to ignore rudimentary issues, their passivity is transferring into political indifference. Buckley begins with a simple story of how â€Å"train temperatures in the dead of the winter†¦ climb up to 85 degrees without complaint† and how â€Å"For generations, Americans who were too hot, or too cold, got up and did something about it†. Although there were many passengers on the train, all visibly uncomfortable, no one said a word to the conductor about the issue. Buckley implies that the recent disinclination of Americans to speak up about a problem with a simple solution is only the beginning of a†¦show more content†¦Her descriptions of people’s content being the same through images of junk in old bags allows her to drive home the point that people aren’t all the different, no matter the appearance. The small detail of Hurston claiming she has no race allows her to plunge into the powerful bag metaphor, effectively portraying her conception of race. Hurston’s simple details followed by powerful yet perceptible images powerfully portray her thoughts and points on racial conflict. 4. â€Å"No Name Woman† Question 2 In â€Å"No Name Woman†, Maxine Kingston’s ancestral line serves as a life lesson, whereas in â€Å"In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens†, Alice Walker inherits culture and hope. Kingston recounts the first time hearing of her aunt â€Å"who killed herself† due to the fact that she was pregnant, and â€Å"could not have been pregnant†¦ because her husband had been gone for years†; the mom adds a reminder: â€Å"Don’t humiliate us. You wouldn’t like to be forgotten as if you were never born†. Kingston’s aunt disrespected the honor of her family and her village by her lack of faith to her husband, and creating another person dependent on the village for food, which is always scarce. Her ancestry and aunt serve as a lesson to always respect family and their well being, or risk being forgottenShow MoreRelatedSdffdgdfgfdg1230 Words   |  5 Pages |1 paper @ 50 points | |Assignments (8) |8 assignments @10 points=80 points | | | | | |8 Discussion Boards @5 points each=40 | |Discussion Boards (8) Read MoreBa3300752 Words   |  4 Pagesviolations of the Universal Intellectual Standards and Logical Fallacies in the essay, â€Å"Sweatshirts from Sweatshops† on pages 406-408 of your textbook. On pages 387-402 of your textbook, you will meet Tanya, Kevin, Elise and Dalton, Tanya encounters a series of discussions—the first with Kevin and the second with Elise and Dalton. The textbook describes how to critically assess the arguments in these discussions (Kevin and Elise and Dalton). Use these ONLY as examples for how to use criticalRead MoreLegacy: Critical Thinking and Business Cornerstone Note Essay768 Words   |  4 Pagesviolations of the Universal Intellectual Standards and Logical Fallacies in the essay, â€Å"Sweatshirts from Sweatshops† on pages 406-408 of your textbook. On pages 387-402 of your textbook, you will meet Tanya, Kevin, Elise and Dalton, Tanya encounters a series of discussions—the first with Kevin and the second with Elise and Dalton. The textbook describes how to critically assess the arguments in these discussions (Kevin and Elise and Dalton). Use these ONLY as examples for how to use criticalRead MoreLop of Lop805 Words   |  4 PagesIodine test and ... Discussion: ... Why You Add Hydrochloric Acid in Hydrolysis of Starch. Ingestion of saliva during carbohydrate feeding by ... - SciELO www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0074-02762006000100016script... by RR Cavalcante - ‎2006 - ‎Cited by 5 - ‎Related articles Saliva ingestion by phlebotomine during the carbohydrate ingestion phase is ... The presence of saliva in each type of solution or substrate offered, as well as ... 0.2 ml of apyrase assay buffer pH 8 (50 mM Tris/HCl bufferRead MorePeer Review825 Words   |  4 PagesENGL112 Peer Review Worksheet INSTRUCTIONS: Peer Reviews will be conducted in class discussion forums during Week 7. Be sure to review the Lecture and the Discussion area for additional details and guidance. Please complete the following steps below, returning a separate peer review worksheet for each of the two classmates whose papers you review. This assignment is worth 50 points. * You will receive 10 points for submitting your draft by the required deadline. * You will receive 20 pointsRead MoreGraduation Speech : College Success882 Words   |  4 Pages As a group we decided to include a â€Å"College Success† course for freshman within out First Year Experience. Instead of making the course required, we would prefer to make the class optional and offered for 2 credits. The class would be for 50 minutes per day and either Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday and available both spring and fall semesters for first-year students at High Point University. The course would be recommended to all freshman for the fall semester in order to assist inRead MoreParents Responsibility1022 Words   |  5 PagesThis WebQuest is a follow-up lesson to consolidate what you have learnt about writing an argumentative essay. There are 2 components to this assignment: the Essay component and the Reflection component. Essay Component First, you are to research online on what an argumentative essay is all about, the grammatical features of an argumentative essay and how you should structure your argumentative essays. Secondly, you are to read the articles provided in this WebQuest and you are to figure out howRead MoreHp Value Chain Analysis1389 Words   |  6 Pages02:00pm – * Other hours: By appointment Course Expectations X Multiple-Choice Exams X Essay Tests X Written Homework X Written Papers/Cases X Internet Assignments X Library Assignments X Oral Presentations X Class Discussion X Make-Up Policy Students with Disabilities Students with Disabilities: Students who have a disability that may require assistance or accommodation, or students who have questions related to any accommodations for testing, note takers, readers, etc., please speak withRead Moreapollo 500851 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿Course Syllabus APOL 500 Introduction to Apologetics Course Description This course surveys the approaches, questions, and methodologies of Christian Apologetics. The student will be exposed to the major worldviews and belief systems that they will encounter in today’s culture. Upon completion, the student will have a basic understanding of world religions, as well as the knowledge to effectively communicate the gospel with people of other faiths. Rationale Scripture tells us, â€Å"ButRead MoreReading Skill : Reading Skills770 Words   |  4 Pageswithout any details and giving questions to answer them on the read passage (Mikulecky, B., 2008). Table (3): Activities of Reading Skill Percentage % Total SVU El Menia Helwan University Activity No Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes 16.77 83.22 26 129 6 44 5 50 15 35 Variety of reading texts 13.54 86.45 21 134 6 44 10 45 5 45 Discussion about the text Pre-Reading Activities 70.96 29.03 110 45 50 - 55 - 5 45 Predicting text content

Immanuel Kant Free Essays

This paper is meant to explore the legitimacy in disregarding ethics in the name of faith through an exploration of Immanuel Kant’s view on morality and religion and Soren Kierkegaard’s theory of distinction between ethics and faith and by comparing and contrasting both. It is further argued in this paper that non-rational leaps of faith can’t be subject to whether they are ethical or not as religion is higher than the ethical and as a dedicated Christian, I trust that true religion lies beyond what is rational. For that reason, this paper then chooses to uphold Kierkegaard’s theory. We will write a custom essay sample on Immanuel Kant or any similar topic only for you Order Now A Look into Kant’s Hypothetical and Categorical Imperatives   Kant holds that â€Å"Whoever wills the end, so far as reason has decisive influence on his action, wills also the indispensably necessary means to it that lie in his power† (Kant, 1785). Kant distinguishes hypothetical and categorical imperatives on the role of desire in guiding actions. If I do some action, that is a means to an ends, because of some desire on my part, then my action is based on a hypothetical imperative. Meanwhile, the reasons for following a â€Å"categorical imperative† are not merely that doing so will promote the ends that one happens to have, such as becoming rich or (more generally) being happy. Following categorical imperatives may often promote our personal ends, but it may not always do so. Making us happy and helping us get what we want is not what makes moral principles categorical imperatives; they are rational to follow, even if doing so does not make us happy or promote our personal ends. They express the idea that it is good and rational to act as they prescribe, but, unlike hypothetical imperatives, they do not simply say what is good to do as a means to getting or achieving what we want. To further explain, Kant’s categorical imperative requires that the principles of our actions command categorically and absolutely even though the results of these actions might be unknowable. It is a command that derives its significance not from the outcome of an action but from the necessity of the imperative. This is not to say, though, that morality should be viewed as something dictatorial, not intrinsically appealing or personally fulfilling or that categorical imperatives are like demands that we must obey with the attitude of a dutiful soldier following orders, respecting the authority of law without regard to anything else. Unlike commands from parents, military superiors, and legal authorities, they are conceived as expressing â€Å"objective principles†, that is principles that anyone in the context would follow if sufficiently guided by reason. They are supposed to tell us what is good in itself to do, not what someone demands that we do. In fact, he further upholds that basic moral requirements are laws we legislate to ourselves as rational persons with autonomy. We are not morally bound by any assumed requirement unless it is backed by principles that we can recognize as what we ourselves, as rational, self-governing individuals, want for ourselves and others. Kant holds that one â€Å"Categorical Imperative† (in the strict sense) that he formulated (in several ways) is an unconditional and unqualified requirement of reason, applicable in all human conditions and implicitly acknowledged in common moral judgments. Unlike the principle behind instrumental reasons, which we call â€Å"The Hypothetical Imperative,† it does not simply prescribe taking the necessary means to desired ends. That said, Kant’s categorical imperative then commands universally. The Teleological Suspension of the Ethical   Would it be possible to put the ethical on hold or â€Å"suspension† purposefully for the sake of something else such as faith? Most of you are probably familiar with the story in Genesis 22, but let me reiterate the first few lines to refresh your memory: â€Å"And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him: ‘Abraham.’ And he said: ‘Behold, here I am.’ And [God] said, ‘Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.’† Abraham is an individual asked by God to sacrifice his son Isaac as an expression of faith. Never mind that Abraham did not in the end go through with the act of killing his son. But is it intelligible to praise the father’s faith? Ethically he seems to be in the wrong, but can there be a teleological suspension of the ethical? Can a command of God suspend our obligation to act morally? That is the question with which Kierkegaard confronts us through the story of Abraham and Isaac.   What does it mean, first of all, to ask about a teleological suspension of the ethical? Kierkegaard explains, â€Å"[t]he ethical as such is the universal, and as the universal it applies to everyone, which from another angle means that it applies at all times.† For Kant, practical reason identifies the categorical imperative, which is defined precisely as that maxim which â€Å"could always hold†¦ as a principle establishing universal law†. All people in all places and times are obligated to act according to such a maxim whatever the particulars of their own experience or circumstances. We could say that Kierkegaard agrees with Kant’s categorical imperative in that both of them hold that the ethical is universal. But can there ever be a demand upon us that properly requires a suspension of the categorical imperative?   Kierkegaard wrote Fear and Trembling using the pseudonym â€Å"Johannes de Silentio.†Ã‚   He used the Biblical story of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac, not to eradicate ethics out of the picture, but to illustrate the distinction between ethics and faith: ethics has to do with universal morality, it’s based on reason; whereas faith, for him, is particular and paradoxical – it could seem absurd in a sense, but never irrational, totally separate from and even higher than rationality. In Kierkegaard’s terms, an ethical man is good, but the man of faith is best, and Abraham is the quintessential man of faith.   For Kant, the universal demand of ethics is the highest claim upon us. He ropes in Christian faith within a philosophical scheme or, as he himself put it, to construct â€Å"religion within the limits of reason alone†. In Kierkegaard’s view, that is a curtailment of Christian faith; it is a trimming of the gospel in order to make it look just like the ideas of the â€Å"good† life that we have come up with ourselves. In Kant’s case, of course, the good life to which all religion is directed is simply the consistent application of the categorical imperative, that product of practical reason through which is defined what is right and what is wrong. While, according to Kant, God is supposed to approve this scheme and act as the remote guarantor of its coherence, this does not allow to God the prerogative of disclosing his own view on what might constitute the life well lived. Such an intervention in the affairs of human beings – traditionally called revelation – would constitute, in Kant’s view, an intolerable violation of human autonomy. Faith on this account, â€Å"pure religious faith† as Kant calls it, in contrast with the historical or empirical faith of the church, must be purely rational and does not differ from the principle of a good course of life. Conclusion The conclusion arrived at is that while no ethical defence is possible, this is not sufficient reason for Abraham to be condemned. Kierekgaard is prepared to assume that Abraham has reasons that reason cannot tell. Abraham himself seems to know that he has passed beyond the limits of an intelligible defence of his actions. What this may suggest is that even Abraham himself cannot be sure that he is acting correctly. His conviction that he is acting in obedience to the command of God cannot be supported rationally and nor can it be easily supported by precedent, for this word of God seems to be in conflict with every other word that he has so far heard, most especially of course, the word that Isaac is the child of promise, the one through whom all nations will be blessed. Will God now take away that promise or has Abraham himself misunderstood? When Kierkegaard says that Abraham believes by virtue of the absurd, he has this in mind; that Abraham trusts God in two apparently contradictory directions, first, that Isaac is the first of many generations who will be blessed because of Abraham, and second, that Isaac is to be sacrificed on an altar before the Lord. Trusting God in both these things, â€Å"Abraham cannot speak, because he cannot say that which would explain everything.† Nevertheless, Abraham resists the temptation of the ethical and makes the â€Å"leap of faith.†   My view on this is that religion is separate from the ethical and the rational. To provide a justification of Abraham’s action would be to bring him back within the limits of reason alone, to measure him against a universal standard. Those standards, as proffered by Kant, cannot condone but only condemn Abraham. I venture the suggestion that there will be times in the life of faith when the individual must proceed without all reasonable objections having been resolved. Faith proceeds even though doubt has not been absolutely refuted. That is risky. To journey out beyond ethics and beyond common sense is to find oneself alone — perhaps even without God, perhaps just alone. People of faith are capable of, and often do get it wrong. But faith means trusting in God with the hope that one’s action is justified, not in the end by our own reason, but by God. References Kant, I. (1998). Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. (M. Gregor, Trans.). New York: Cambridge University Press. (Original work published 1785). Kierkegaard, S. (1985). Fear and Trembling. (A. Hannay, Trans.) Harmondsworth: Penguin. (Original work published 1843). How to cite Immanuel Kant, Essay examples

Artificial Life Essay Example For Students

Artificial Life Essay Artificial life (commonly called a-life) is the term applied collectively to attempts being made to develop mathematical models and computer simulations of the ways in which living organisms develop, grow, and evolve. Researchers in this burgeoning field hope to gain deeper insights into the nature of organic life as well as into the further possibilities of COMPUTER science and robotics (see ROBOT). A-life techniques are also being used to explore the origins and chemical processes of metabolism. Some investigators have even proposed that some digital life in computers might already be considered a real life form.BackgroundThe term artificial life was coined in the 1980s by Christopher Langdon, a computer scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Santa Fe Institute. Langdon organized the first experimental workshop on the subject at Santa Fe in 1987. Since then other a-life conferences have taken place, drawing increasingly wider attention and a growing number of participa nts.Theoretical studies of a-life, however, had been in progress long before the 1980s. Most notably, the Hungarian-born U.S. mathematician John VON NEUMANN, one of the pioneers of computer science, had begun to explore the nature of very basic a-life formats called cellular automata (see AUTOMATA, THEORY OF) in the 1950s. Cellular automata are imaginary mathematical cells-analogous to checkerboard squares-that can be made to simulate physical processes by subjecting them to certain simple rules called algorithms (see ALGORITHM). Before his death, von Neumann had developed a set of algorithms by which a cellular automaton-a box shape with a very long tail-could reproduce itself.Another important predecessor of a-life research was Dutch biologist Aristid Lindenmeyer. Interested in the mathematics of plant growth, Lindenmeyer found in the 1960s that through the use of a few basic algorithms-now called Lindenmeyer systems, or L-systems-he could model biochemical processes as well as tr acing the development of complex biological forms such as flowers. Computer-graphics programs now make use of L-systems to yield realistic three-dimensional images of plants.The significance of Lindenmeyers contribution is evident in the fact that so-called genetic algorithms are now basic to research into a-life as well as many other areas of interest. Genetic algorithms, first described by computer scientist John Holland of the University of Michigan in the 1970s, are comparable to L-systems. A computer worker trying to answer some question about a-life sets up a system-an algorithm-by which the computer itself rapidly grades the multiple possible answers that it has produced to the question. The most successful of the solutions are then used to develop new software that yields further solutions, and the cycle is repeated through several generations of answers.Evolutionary ModelingLangdon himself picked up on the work of von Neumann by attempting to design an a-life form on a comp uter screen. In 1979 he finally succeeded in developing loop-shaped objects that actually reproduced themselves, over and over again. As new generations spread outward from the initial organisms they left dead generations inside the expanding parameter. Langdon noted that the behavior of these a-life forms genuinely mimicked real-life processes of mutation and evolution. He eventually proposed that a-life studies could provide keys to understanding the logical form of any living systems, known or unknown.One of the most striking a-life simulations of evolutionary processes has been the work of Thomas Ray of the University of Delaware, who in 1990 set in motion a world of computer programs that he called Tierra. The world started out with a single ancestor, a program containing 80 instructions. A-life evolution proceeded as mutations rapidly appeared. The new forms included parasites that interacted with the original host forms, producing further mutations of hosts and parasites that learned to deal with one another anew in each succeeding generation.Bibliography:Braitenberg, Valentino, ;a href=http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAofferid=6424type=2subid=0url=http%253A//search.borders.com/fcgi-bin/db2www/search/search.d2w/Details%253F%2526mediaType%253DBook%2526prodID%253D2464171 ;Vehicles: Experiments in Synthetic Psychology;IMG border=0 alt=icon width=1 height=1 src=http://ad.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/show?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAbids=6424type=2subid=0 ; (1984)Langdon, Christopher, ed., Artificial Life (1988)Levy, Steven, ;a href=http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAofferid=6424type=2subid=0url=http%253A//search.borders.com/fcgi-bin/db2www/search/search.d2w/Details%253F%2526mediaType%253DBook%2526prodID%253D3045895 ;Artificial Life;IMG border=0 alt=icon width=1 height=1 src=http://ad.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/show?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAbids=6424type=2subid=0 ; (1992)Pagels, H. R., The Dreams of Reason (1988)Prata, Stephen, ;a href=http://click.lin ksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAofferid=6424type=2subid=0url=http%253A//search.borders.com/fcgi-bin/db2www/search/search.d2w/Details%253F%2526mediaType%253DBook%2526prodID%253D4440873 ;Artificial Life;IMG border=0 alt=icon width=1 height=1 src=http://ad.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/show?id=pcZ8g7DjAzAbids=6424type=2subid=0 ; (1993) .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .postImageUrl , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:hover , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:visited , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:active { border:0!important; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:active , .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0 .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u7e529aa00b257572d361fb41ddc41df0:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Technetium Essay