Compare and contrast Essay Example for Free

Compare and contrast Essay People are always looking forward to their vacation period. There are many options where to choose. I think that the three most common places people choose for taking a vacation are the beach, mountain, and an amusement park. All three places offer a variety of fun activities. The beach offers activities that the mountain or amusement park cannot offer and vice versa. All three places are totally different. The purpose of this essay is to contrast the climate, types of activities and locations of beaches, mountains, and amusement parks. First of all, the three aspects I’m going to discuss about the mountains are climate, types of activities and location. Climate is always important in order to enjoy vacations. If a person dislikes cold weather, he or she might have a hard time in the mountains. The cold climate in the mountains is the first barrier to enjoying them. As I said before, many people don’t enjoy cold temperatures. The climate and the temperature of these zones are what determine the types of activities they offer. Snowboarding, mountain climbing, mountain biking, hiking, and skiing are some of the activities people can enjoy when going to the mountains. There are many regions that have mountains where people can go and have a great vacation. Canada is a country located in North America and full of mountain vacation sites. Inside Canada there are many interesting places where people can go and have fun. Second of all, the three aspects I’m going to discuss about the beach are climate, types of activities and location. Warm climate is one of the most important features that the beach has. Sun and fun are two words that describe the beach. The temperature in those places is always hot. The sea and the warm climate determine the activities that are available at the beach. People can swim, play volleyball, play soccer, and ride water bikes. In most of the coastal sites, there are discos and restaurants where people can dance or party throughout the night. Mexico offers many amazing coastal sites to visit. Acapulco and Cancun are two of the most beautiful and famous beaches in the world. Last but not the least, the three aspects I’m going to discuss about amusement parks are climate, types of activities and location. The climate for an amusement park is almost always hot. If a person doesn’t want to go home with sun burns then the amusement park would not be the place for them. Finally, it doesn’t matter what place a person decides to choose. The fun is 100% guaranteed. People often choose one of these three options to spend their vacations. Depending on what the person likes is what he or she will choose. I like amusement parks better than the mountains or the beach, but sometimes it is better to take a risk and try different places to enjoy.

Knowledge From Western And Chinese Philosophy Perspective Philosophy Essay

Knowledge From Western And Chinese Philosophy Perspective Philosophy Essay In this paragraph the authors will discuss different points of views towards the definition of knowledge. In literature we can find differences but also similarities between Western and Chinese philosophy. To work with Knowledge Management Systems it is necessary to understand how to capture, store, share, learn, exploit and explore knowledge. The Western world may already have more experience in this process since knowledge management in China has just recently developed. Ancient philosophers in both worlds already had ideas how to define knowledge and how to transfer it among society and individuals. This paragraph should clarify how those ideas can be made useful for Knowledge Management. 4.2 Knowledge in the Western world First the authors will give a short overview on the Western perspective of knowledge. For this it is necessary to have a look on Western philosophers and their understanding towards knowledge. On some of those philosophers we will be able to reflect their theories on modern Knowledge Management. The goal is to find out how modern Knowledge Management gets involved with some ideas of philosophers or react in an opposite way towards their ideas by not adapting them in Knowledge Management Systems. J. Kaipayil writes in his book The Epistemology of comparative Philosophy (1995, S. 32) about Western philosophy according to the critiques of P.T. Raju. He is an Indian writer on Chinese and Western philosophy. According to Raju, the main subject of Western philosophy is its intellectualism, united with humanism. The cosmological interests of the Ionian philosophers and the humanistic interests of the Sophists are the two starting-points of Western philosophy. These two tendencies met and blended in Aristotle and Plato and for them, humans are rational beings and their essence is reason (the rational soul). The Greeks philosophy established a rational (intellectual) analysis of reality, and in the consequences the Western world became strongly outward-looking. Epistemology, logic and scientific methodology developed. In his Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle presents five virtues of thought that can mapped to levels of knowledge. Epistà ©mà ©: Factual or scientific knowledge Tà ©chnà ©: Skills-based technical and action-oriented knowledge Phrà ³nà ©sis: Experiential self-knowledge or practical wisdom based on experience Noà »s: Intuition Sophà ­a: Theoretical knowledge of universal truths or first principles Butler (2006, pp. 1-9) argues that Aristotles tà ©chnà © and phrà ³nà ©sis need to be the core of knowledge management attempts, and while they are not able to be directly applied to IT applications, they must be among the elements upon which knowledge management is based. Tà ©chnà © deals with subjects that vary rather than the constant relationship found in epistà ©mà ©. The use of tà ©chnà © is one of the most challenging but at the same time one of the most fertile of knowledge-management pursuits. The dynamic nature of knowledge is reflected in tà ©chnà ©. Artificial intelligence and decision-support systems seek to automate tà ©chnà ©. From that point of view, Aristotle has given us a clearly defined and delimited type of knowledge that can be related to information technologies (c.f. D. G. Schwartz, 2005, pp. 1-11). Phrà ³nà ©sis is practical knowledge dealing with action and handling things to an end. According to Aristotle, phrà ³nà ©sis is obtained through experiencing the actions being learned and hands-on training. From a learning-through-action point of view the difference between phrà ³nà ©sis and tà ©chnà © lies in terms of each type of knowledge can be shared. Aristotle says that tà ©chnà © can be taught from practitioner to student, phrà ³nà ©sis on the other hand can only be shared through actual mutual experience. On the perspective of the value of knowledge, Sveibys (1997, pp. 3) focus on the knowledge-action value chain can find significant roots in phrà ³nà ©sis. In terms of knowledge management, phrà ³nà ©sis escorts us on the way of simulation, rich media, e-learning, and other types of the experiental presentation of knowledge or captivation on a virtual environment in which the experience rendering phrà ³nà ©sis can be realized (c.f. D. G. Schwartz, 2005, pp. 1-11). J. Kaipayil (1995, pp. 33) says that the Melesians understood the principles of the universe in terms of something outward no matter how the origin and substance of the world was conceived, be it water, the indefinite, or air. This tendency was continued by the Atomists to find the source of the world in something outward. On the other hand, the Pythagoreans developed the idea that what is given to reason and not to the senses is the truth about the world. The important thing about Pythagoreanism was that it did not regard reason as an abstract concept rather as an existential and ethical entity. Yet, that does not mean that the world-view of Pythagoreanism had a clear idea of inward spirit; the viewpoint was still outward and cosmic. Heraclitus not only mentioned some rational order in nature, he also spoke about the Logos, which is called as the primordial fire and this is responsible for the world order. Still, his interest was in its foundation cosmological and did not perceive t he differences between the inward and the outward, spirit and matter. Von Loh ( 2009, pp. 1-2) writes about Heraclitus who says Everything is in a state of Flux, by reflecting his words on modern knowledge management and on the foundation that the words of Heraclitus are true knowledge organizations systems (KOS) like classification systems, thesauri, nomenclatures are all objects of permanent change and all bibliographical records are in the state of flux as well, which is not widely accepted in information science and practice. In modern technology information can be stored even if it is in a state of flux. According to the problem statement of that paper this proves how important it is to use technology in knowledge management applications. The Sophists shifted the philosophical attention from the cosmos to human and took a new turn in Greek philosophy. The human being was the centre of their philosophy, but Socrates had to fight against subjectivism and skepticism raised by the standpoint of individualism. The criterion of philosophic activity according to Socrates, is objectivity and universality. This not only restored confidence in reason but also clarified the philosophical basis of morality and state. Socrates was insisting on the cultivation of the inner self, he was remarkably rationalistic but also deeply inward-looking. For the stable foundation of morals and politics Plato continued the Socratic search for this subject. Aristotle toned down the inwardness explained by Plato in order to safeguard the reality of outward to introduce the idea of an intelligent first cause (Kaipayil, J., 1995, pp. 34). In his article A Knowledge Management Environment for Research Centers and Universities (2006, p 652 667) Jonice Oliveira writes that for Socrates knowing a subject or concept of consisted of gathering the components of a singular thing, or of a real substance, and joining the similar ones, and separating the unsimilar ones, to form the concept or the definition of the singular thing. In his thinking, in order to join the similar ones it is necessary for somebody to have demonstrations, definitions, axioms and principles for a concept to be proved as true. Which means that the knowledge resulting from scientific activities, is scientific knowledge. Its goal is to demonstrate a solution to a problem by argumentation. Scientific language leads to three main interpretations: knowledge how (know-how), knowledge that (objective knowledge) and knowledge by acquaintance. R. Hagengruber (2008, pp. 6) gives an example on that. Socrates once mentioned that knowledge is not createt because of a concrete situation, in fact the human mind is able to create knowledge in ones own imagination. Literately he claims that You do not need to walk the correct road to Larissa, it is enough if you imagine it in the correct way. To prove his hypothesis Socrates shows how a completely uneducated child can solve a difficult mathematical problem. Even though the child fails at the beginning and gives a wrong answer still due to the way how Socrates asks the child questions and gives him orders, the child is able to get to the answer. So, apparently even on a base of minimum knowledge, through disciplinary processes it is possible to create complex knowledge. This is very useful for information technology which collects and stores data and makes it accessible. Through algorithm this stored data can be merged and can be made useful. This shows how ancient Western philosophers already knew how important it is to get knowledge by experimenting through science. It is necessary to find a logi cal way to solve a problem. This way of capturing knowledge is important to make information technology useful for knowledge management. Later this paper will show how the eastern philosophy thinks about logic and the way/road in itself. In the post-Aristotelian Greek understanding the ethical and political interest was continued, so it lost much of the taste of universality and inwardness and people became isolated from society and moved towards individualism during that time. During the Middle Ages there was a tendency towards the destroying of confidence in human reason and powers through Christianity and mare reason subservient to faith. In fact the medieval philosophy was not able to make much contribution to the growth of Western thought. The following period of the Renaissance gave back the lost confidence in Greek rationalism and humanism. Rene Descartes started to consider the human self to be thought of reason. But he had to face empiricist critique on its mind-body dualism for forgetting the inward in the name of the outward. J. Aarons (2004, pp.6) mentions the method of doubt developed by Rene Descartes. In his Meditations on First Philosophy (1640) he writes that the real challenge lies in skepticism so if there is any sign of doubt about so-called knowledge being true then it cannot be genuine knowledge. But Knowledge Management stays in clear contrast to that, for Knowledge Management there is much more than just personal certainty about the world, it must involve conceptual understanding as well as practical ability. Furthermore justification of knowledge doesnt play the biggest role, it is more concerned with storage, production and processing of knowledge in a group or shared sense. So, here it is to see that the Western philosophy cannot always deliver useful suggestions towards Knowledge Management. In the case of justifying knowledge, it is quite different from its relevant philosophers. Other than Descartes the empiricism laid emphasis on the outward through its doctrine of knowledge as derived exclusively from sense experience. The unfortunate consequence of all these was the unsuccessful attempt to tackle the question of human inwardness as if it was a problem of the outward and the failure to see the mind as the mediating link between inwardness and outwardness. Kant kept a balance between the inward (the transcendental ego) and the outward (the phenomenal world) from the side of human experience. He had to keep God out of theoretical knowledge to keep this balance. Human inwardness was left in the background or sometimes ignored or rejected by the explaining the law of nature in the wake of modern scientific attempts. As a result many thinkers wanted philosophy to follow the methods of science, especially of physics to liberate the outward from the inward. What gave importance to the world was pragmatism, positivism, and analytic philosophy. Here Kaipayil points out, according to Raju, to take its dominant movements and latest accomplishments into consideration, and may say that the general trend of Western philosophy was to liberate the outward from the entanglement of the inward, the subjective, by disregarding or lessening the importance of human inwardness, at least for philosophical reasons. This does not mean that the Western philosophy is exclusively outward-looking and absolutely dissipated in objectivity. The West did realize human inwardness but did not explain it completely and did not give it due importance. The West was more consistently outward-looking in its scientific-objective attitude and it sometimes confused inwardness with faith and preventing inwardness from having its proper role in philosophy. The value what Western philosophers achieved on the other hand lied in its rigorous scientific analysis and conceptual reconstruction of reality. Hence, the West was able to make significant progress in logic and epistemology. This chapter shows that the main influence on Knowledge Management had the ancient philosophers like Plato, Aristotle and Socrates. They point out that it is important to see knowledge as a very complex source and needs to be looked at form different views. Aristotle for instance points out that there are different types of knowledge which can be captured, stored and shared in different ways. Socrates came to a similar conclusion by saying that knowledge creation can be achieved in a way of process. Thinking in a logical way was one of the main legacies ancient philosophers gave to the modern world. Knowledge Management learned from philosophers of the renaissance era, such as Rene Descartes that emphasizing on technology development is necessary to integrate effective Knowledge Management in an organization of the modern information era. To manage knowledge in a right way is a very complex and takes a lot effort and concrete analysis. This also proves the hypothesis mentioned at the beginning of this paper. It needs long and intensive approach to manage knowledge. Besides using mind-based managing of knowledge it is also very important to understand the necessity of technology development whci already was mentioned in the problem statement of this paper. After getting an overview of Western philosophy, in the following pages the authors will show how Chinese philosophy had its impact on Knowledge Management. Knowledge in China After we discussed the Western point of view how to define knowledge, now the authors will give the reader and impression of the Chinese philosophy and the understanding of knowledge and how their ideas might be able to reflect on modern Knowledge Management. The goal is to understand what impact Chinese philosophy has on knowledge management systems and how companies are able to deal with it or what they can do in the future. The next pages will show the development of Chinese philosophy. On certain aspects the authors will get deeper in to detail and reflect some ideas on modern Knowledge Management. W. Riegler (2007, p. 219) mentions that the ancient Chinese philosophy is part of a culture which does not know a kind of Genesis. Hence, it is not necessary to ask a cause to understand an effect. In the understanding of Daoism there is an everlasting cycle of recreation by the effect of changing Yin and Yang by the rules of the 5 phases (wood, fire, earth, metal, water). It is kind of strange for those who are not familiar with this kind of thinking. However it is very natural and also pragmatic for those who are. Riegler also asks why this kind of thinking is so important for us longnoses too? Because we are also part of nature and we act by these rules too. Most important, it is a natural way of how our brain works and we can call this thinking too. The essence is that people can synthesize single parts of information to a whole that is bigger than its parts. After this short introduction the authors will now have a closer look on the complex development of Chinese philosophy. J. Kaipayil (1995, p. 28) writes in his book The Epistemology of comparative Philosophy about Chinese philosophy according to the critiques of P.T. Raju. He is and Indian writer on Chinese philosophy. As for Rajus understanding of Chinese philosophy, humanism is its main feature. It is said that the Chinese tradition is to be primarily humanistic, because human nature, both individual and social, was the basic subject of thought in China. The Chinese extolled life and wanted to live it fully. The question of Chinese wisdom was how to be fully human. But this interest in human person and society was characterized, not by a spiritual inwardness as in India or by an intellectual analysis as in the West, but by a pragmatic immediatism. What means that the Chinese humanism was not a metaphysical humanism interested in explication of human nature but a pragmatic humanism that put emphasis on immediate and concrete human relations. The Chinese thinker was concerned with practical affairs of society and life, and, accordingly, that which has immediate application to the benefit of people and society was considered good and true. All theories were meant for immediate application to people and society for their benefit. One could therefore say an immediatistic and humanistic pragmatism characterized the entire Chinese philosophy. Confucius exemplified Chinese philosophys confirmed purpose of explaining the ideal form of society and state. As a social reformer his goal was it to put order and stability into society and state. The foundation of a good society consist in every one following ren (human-heartedness) and discharging the duties of ones state of life and vocation. The ethics in Confucianism were more or less completely devoid of metaphysics. Heaven meant for Confucius a kind of moral order only. Zhu Z. (2004 p. 67 79) says when China realized that their competitors especially from Japan, U.S.A. and Europe all engaged in knowledge management, the Chinese companies were shocked and decided to welcome knowledge management. They created a connection to wuli-shili-renli (WSR) framework, which has its origins in Confucianism. In WSR: Wuli claims the material-technical aspect of managing knowledge. Shili is to facilitate the constructive-cognitive knowing process and Renli denotes in the governing of social-political relations among knowers. The Chinese style is less focusing on debating on the nature of knowledge, nor in expressing well-ordered processual knowledge creation models. For WSR technological and institutional dimensions of knowledge are equally important. Chinese found out how to reflect Confucianism on their organization structure and how to use it to manage knowledge. They realized that it is important to put more effort into technological development. Later in this paper this technological importance will be researched in detail. The Moists (Mohists) also developed a social ethics, but there goal was it more to gain social discipline. To mention Mencius, we find in him a tendency towards human inwardness, as he saw the basis of all morality in human nature (the mind). Nevertheless, his ethical idealism was not metaphysical. Mencius wanted to build a morality on the goodness of human nature. Xunzi on the other hand maintained that human nature is basically evil and it should be controlled by education and state laws so that a good society is made possible. He was the teacher of the Legalists Han Fei Zi and Li Si. The Legalists came to the conclusion to have harder demands for enforcement of laws with rewards and punishments (J. Kaipayil ,1995, p. 29). Deli Yang (2002, p.7) explains that legalism resulted in the consequences of central planning and anti-elitism in China. The ruler (which can be any authority in a hierarchical position) establishes the law without the participation of any individuals. This affected the performances of different governments and resulted in a high level of bureaucracy. These distinctive features we can still find in many modern Chinese companies. Bureaucracy can easily hinder a fluent knowledge transfer across the organization. Not having influence on making laws and rules is a disadvantage for knowledge creation. Another fact would be that the knowledge flow goes only from the top to the bottom, so potential knowledge from the bottom cannot be reached. Further in this paper the authors will explain more about knowledge sharing and the knowledge flow. The Logicians also were not uninterested in society and state. They emphasized the absoluteness and predominance of the universals over the particulars and thereby demonstrated the harmony of things and the need for universal love. The Daoists advocated individual happiness by a life of purity, simplicity, and spontaneous union with nature. They also were interested more in human things than in material things. The Dao is not any material principle external to human being but the principle internal to humans and inherent in nature (J. Kaipayil ,1995, p. 30). Ai Yu (2008, p.4) argues that many people believe that Laozis philosophy is primarily based on Wu Wei, which is a central thought of his Daodejing and means non-action or not-acting. But Wu Wei is actually more complex and also focuses on wholeness and partiality. Laozi explains the Way (Dao) is wholeness and infinity, while everything else is partiality and finitude. Based on Daodejing as the ideal of all existence the Way is unseen, not transcendent, powerful and also humble which means it is the root of all things. In fact humans should live their life in harmony with the Way for being as true and pure as an infant. Laozis concepts considers to emotions, knowledge, rationalities and sensations and not directing ambiguity, chaos and oppressions to the outside world. People should look into their minds and should try to find explanations. Ai Yu (2008, p.5) also says that today the field of knowledge management has been changed as a model of value creation to a great deal due to the shift of demanded resources. Edvinsson (2002, p.47) argues that value is usually more than just money, knowledge management should give value a second thought because it is a cross-disciplinary area. The modern Chinese business world is changing and in 2005 Hu Jintao came up with his policy of building a harmonious society. China Mobile and domestic Chinese insurance companies had to face extra-economic challenges like income inequality, environmental degradation, rural poverty etc. and for that the Chinese companies reacted with providing support for less-privileged citizens. According to Laozi this means paying more attention to the altered value preference and therefore discovering a new way of doing business. An alternative to both Confucianism and Daoism would be Buddhism but itself was transformed under their influence none the less. Buddhism is a philosophy based on human nature alone, and therefore it was easily assimilated by the Chinese mind with its characteristics pragmatic humanism and immediatism. Cheng-Fong Wu (1989, p. 90) already said that in Buddhism giving Dharma means to deliver wisdom to living beings without pay, wisdom is designed to mentally benefit others. Which means using knowledge to inspire the poor and teaching them the knowledge of a skill can make them stand on their feet by acquiring jobs. Those thoughts of Buddhism are possible reasons that the Chinese way of thinking about intellectual property rights is far different from the Western world. They might see China as the poorer country and count on the richer countries to share their knowledge with them without getting paid in return. Further in this paper the authors will get back to the topic of intellectual property rights in China. Another philosophy called Neoconfucianism also marked a very important development in the history of Chinese thought. With its rich metaphysics Buddhism stimulated the Chinese mind to an intense interest in metaphysical problems about nature and life. Together with the revival of the Daoists way of thinking, demanded on the part of Confucian scholars to provide a more systematic cosmology that would serve as the metaphysical foundation for Confucian ethics and political thought. In Zhou Dunyi the Daoist and the Yin-Yang conceptions combined with Confucianism to make a cosmology to defend Confucian ethics. Everything is created by the Dao, called this time the Great Ultimate (Taiji), from beginning to end of yin and yang forces; and human beings are the highest creation which continues this creative process by spiritual cultivation leading to wisdom. Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi were the brothers who developed the concept of li (principle), which became a major theme in Neoconfucianism. As the source of all the laws of nature and the principle of all diversified things, li is the same as the Dao. The rationalist wing of Neoconfucianism was developed by Zhu Xing who was following Cheng Yi. Lu Xiangshan who was following Mencius and Cheng Hao was founder of the idealist wing. According to Zhu Xi the Great Umtimate, which is the highest li , is found in each individual. This is the all-inclusive and wholly good Dao. Each particular thing is a combination of qi and li, and in humans this li is ren, and this is called spiritual cultivation if followed this inner nature. Lu Xiangshan and Hao on the other hand rejected the very idea of qi and focused that everything is composed to li and li is essentially the mind. Wang Yangming goes further with this idealist doctrine and says that the substance of mind is nature of things and this is li. Li is to understand by looking within, since all things, heaven, earth and humans are one. To exercise this unity is to love people (J. Kaipayil ,1995, p.32). J. Kaipayil writes on the prospect of philosophy in the post-Qing communist China, that Raju commended that the Marxian ideology with its activism and pragmatism agreed well with the naturalistic, humanistic, and pragmatic tendencies of the general Chinese tradition and it would be no wonder if a Confucian variety of communist philosophy should emerge at some future time that will meet the philosophical needs of the Chinese people perhaps more adequately than the communism of Marx, Lenin, and Stalin in its western robes. Raju supposed that the history of Chinese philosophy shows that the Chinese mind on the whole avoided the extremes of inwardness and outwardness. It is neither wholly inward-looking nor wholly outward-looking. It tries to get a balance between the inward and outward characteristics of human existence, and this attidue is best illustrated by the Daoist ideal of sageliness within and kinglingness without. The whole of human life was made the topic of philosophical investigation. The cultivation of inner human nature was insisted upon and not only for its own sake however for the creation and sustainment of a good society. All philosophical questions were used to find answers in a practical life and so China could create some of the best ideas of social and political thoughts and ethics. According to J. Kaipayil the previous words showed the positive side of Chinese philosophy but there also is another side of this philosophy. Kaipayil says that Chinese philosophy fails when ultimate qu estions are brought up. It accepted man and their life as basic facts for philosophy, not because it came to this sort of conclusion in the light of answers to ultimate questions, but because it did not come up with them and avoided these questions when raised, so that the life of human beings does not discover any foundation for its significance. Raju believed that Chinese philosophy lacked a metaphysical foundation and Chinese social thought a certain philosophical depth. The Chinese philosophy, compared to the Western philosophy, lacks logical rigour and is less epistemological and metaphysical. For the cause of not coming up with ultimate questions about human inwardness and outwardness, it is hard to find great systems of metaphysics and epistemology in China as in the West. It does not say that China lacked completely in logic, epistemology, and metaphysics. China had thoughts about that but they were explained only to that extent that was hardly enough to understand some prac tical human affairs, the hard facts of state and society. There were no serious efforts made to unknot the philosophical foundations of human existence. After getting an insight in Chinese philosophy, the authors will now highlight the more import philosophies. Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism and Legalism are mentioned as high influential thinking schools. People learned from their philosophies what is useful or less useful to integrate Knowledge Management in an organization. One result in Confucianism suggests to realize the importance of technology which is also mentioned in the problem statement of this paper. Legalism can be a problem for Knowledge Management because it hinders knowledge flow and knowledge transfer. This is a very common problem in China, because society and organizations are often use legalism as their foundation. If Chinese companies want to achieve success by introducing Knowledge Management Systems into their organization it is necessary not to use Legalism as a companys philosophy. Buddhism also shows how Chinese express their feeling towards intellectual property and how Western companies might find some re asons for being afraid of the loss of their technology knowledge. Further research in this field would be highly recommended. On the other hand this paper shows that Daoism not necessarily means do nothing , it also animates to seek for the creation of value, which some Chinese organizations already adopted. To give a short conclusion about Western and Chinese philosophy, then next chapter will show how to compare those two different cultures and find out that they are not so different in some aspects. Comparison of Western and Chinese Philosophy The comparison of those two philosophies should show how Knowledge Management can react on the influence of philosophy on two different cultures. In modern Knowledge Management both cultures lies their focus on the development of technology to capture, store and share knowledge. The Western philosophy already realized the importance of logic and scientific approach while on the other hand the Chinese philosophy mainly concentrated on inner values which should be good for society. The West has a character of individualism while the East is trying to create a harmonies society by less focusing on individualism. Here Legalism can be seen as one of the biggest problems which results in not using all advantages of Knowledge Management. The problem that Chinese companies are focusing on technology has not necessarily to be seen as a problem. But leaving personal interaction behind can be seen as a major problem. The goal of Knowledge Management in China is to form transparent organizations to create knowledge and to share knowledge among their employees. As the hypothesis says it is important to take intensive care of Knowledge Management and this also cannot be realized in a short term period. Especially in China with their long history of philosophy and its great impact on their society it takes much longer to integrate Knowledge Management Systems in a company than it would take in Western company. Tacit and Explicit Knowledge After the discussion of certain perspectives on knowledge in Western philosophy and Chinese philosophy and their influence on Knowledge management, the authors will now explain the two important aspects of tacit and explicit knowledge. It is necessary to focus on the characteristics of tacit knowledge, since this is more difficult to access. During this work the reader should understand how important it is to get access to tacit knowledge and how to make it useful in a cross-cultural business environment. Faxiang Chen (2006, p.2) says that the term of knowledge refers two different forms: tacit and explicit knowledge. Explicit knowledge can be documented, transmitted, codified, stored, shared and learned indirectly. Tacit knowledge on the other hand originates from personal accumulated experience and learning and can be shared in direct ways vi

Macbeth | Analysis | Morality

Macbeth | Analysis | Morality The question of morality goes well in hand with the story of Macbeth, the wayward man who chose, at the encouragement of his wife, to kill the king. Morality is more than just the typical right and wrong, its also about good and evil. The only elements that have proved satisfying in Shakespeares ending is the clear and unambiguous triumph of good over evil (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1620). So, with the question of good and evil swinging in the balance and Macbeth losing sight of his morals, were his wrongs truly righted? Initially, Macbeth disputed the witches prophecy that he would be king, but upon telling his wife the news, she could not let the idea die. She was determined that not only would her husband succeed, but so would she. She derived the plan to rid the world of dear King Duncan and after some difficulty persuading Macbeth to follow through with it, all plans were a go. Harry Jaffa wrote, Lady Macbeth had been the force driving her husbands ambition (Jaffa, 2007). This seems to be true. After all, Macbeth was deadest on not killing Duncan. The king had been good to Macbeth, good to everyone in fact, and there was no reason to kill him. Nevertheless, Lady Macbeth gets what Lady Macbeth wants. Relaying the plan to Macbeth she says, And well not fail. When Duncan is asleep,/ Whereto the rather shall his days hard journey/ Soundly invite him, his two chamberlains/ Will I with wine and wassail so convince/ That memory, the wander of the brain, Shall be a fume, and the receipt of reason/ A lim beck only (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1628). Shes a conniving little madam, thinking things through so far that she has a scapegoat, two poor guards that never knew what hit them. Almost instantaneously, guilt begins to enrapture Macbeth and his wife, maybe even before the murder, with Macbeth vision of a dagger. This initial hint of remorse is not recognized by the pair, for they are still focused on what they have just done. Perhaps, it is also not recognized because they have not felt shame like this before. Immediately after the killing of King Duncan, the couple begins to notice the sounds of an owl, but there is really nothing to be heard. This is the first of their strange hallucinations brought on by unconscious guilt. Later on, Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo sitting in his chair at dinner after he [Macbeth] is named King. He believes that someone is playing a joke on him, but his dinner guests believe he has gone mad. Other visions present themselves as the play progresses, and Macbeth seems to lose his grip on sanity each time one occurs. Meanwhile, Lady Macbeth is dealing with her own guilt, which she is feeling only during sleep while sleepwalkin g. As she sleeps, she believes she is talking to herself and then to her husband, but a doctor and gentlewoman are with her. She says, Out, damned spot! Out, I say! One- / two-why then tis time to dot. Hell is murky. Fie, my/ lord, fie! A soldier and afeard? What need we fear who/ knows it, when none can call out power to account? Yet/ who would have thought the old man to have had so/ much blood in him? (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1646). Clearly, despite the way both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth appear, they know the difference between right and wrong. Lady Macbeth all but says that she doesnt care what has to be done as long as her husband becomes king. They may not outwardly show that they feel remorse over the conspiracy, but their conscience is certainly telling them what they did was wrong. Its as if they had Jiminy Cricket tagging along with them saying you really shouldnt have done that. Ultimately, justice was served to Macbeth and his lady. They conspired to kill a beloved king, and in the end, they got what they deserved. Rightly so, Lady Macbeth took her own life. As readers, this isnt known until the very last scene of the play when Malcolm makes his speech. He says, Who, as tis thought, by self and violent hands/ Took off her life (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1650). Macduff, seeking his revenge on Macbeth for his family being slaughtered, served Macbeth his justice. Afterward, Macduff chops Macbeths head off and brings it to Malcolm. Malcolms closing statement is, As calling home our exiled friends abroad/ That fled the snares of watchful tyranny, /Producing forth the cruel ministers /Of this butcher and his fiendlike queen (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1650). Some argue that justice was not served since it was Macduff and not Malcolm that delivered Macbeths death sentence. Historically, this is what happened: Macbeth was killed in battle by Malcolm, not Macduff (Orgel and Braunmuller, 2002, p. 1620). While Justice may not have been served the way everyone wanted, it was served accordingly. Justice always prevails in some way, be it in the form of death or some other tragedy. While this justice may not have occurred the way some people wanted, or even expected, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth paid for their crime. Morality is being able to distinguish the difference between right and wrong and good and evil. The pair knew what they were doing was both evil and wrong, yet they chose to proceed anyway because they wanted to succeed. It is only appropriate that the couple be punished for the murder of King Duncan. Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth will be punished with eternal, fiery torment in hell, the lady for taking her own life and Macbeth for taking Duncans. After all, the old saying goes, theres no rest for the wicked.

Appreciating a Gothic Cathedral: Milan Cathedral Essay -- Architecture

All over the world people still come to admire the beauty of European cathedrals. Many of the cathedrals are fragile due to age, neglect, pollution, and insufficient funds available to restore these historical and beautiful buildings. Nevertheless, visitors to these architectural masterpieces are fascinated by the design and structure of these churches. The cathedral builders using their own ingenuity, expertise, and limited resources were able to defy the laws of gravity and time. (Icher 30) There were two main types of architecture during the middle ages, the Romanesque style and the Gothic style. The Romanesque period took place approximately between 1096 and 1270 (the eleventh and twelfth centuries) and the Gothic period took place approximately between 1150 and 1450 (the thirteenth through the fifteenth centuries) (Bersson 383). Evidence of both styles of architecture emerged throughout Europe. The political landscape had changed and the Christian church provided a measure of unity throughout the centuries of this medieval era (Stalley 13). The Romanesque period began a time when the interest in religion intensified. The church was a place that all people could belong to regardless of their status. It was during these times that big churches called cathedrals began to emerge. The age of the Crusades took place emphasizing the need for places of worship and a place for the community to gather together. People sought the churches not only to see the relics housed in the church brought back from the Holy Lands by the Crusades but also to seek redemption as well. This influx of seekers brought in money to help then pay for the churches. This allowed for the emergence of new towns, the exchange of goods and services, which ev... ...stinations. Web. 22 Nov. 2010. . Icher, Francois. Building the Great Cathedrals. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1998. Print. "Italian Gothic." Encyclopedia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Web. 22 Nov. 2010 . . Keyes, Zachariah. Personal Interview. Denise Keyes. 21 Nov. 2010. Stalley, Roger. Early Medieval Architecture. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999. Print. Tyler, Ellen. "Milan Cathedral - Symbolizing the Gothic Structure." 14 May 2010. Ezine Articles. Web. 22 Nov. 2010. . Wilson, Christopher. The Gothic Cathedral: The Architecture of the Great Church. New York: Thames & Hudson, 1990. Print.

Comparing the Movies Wall Street and Boiler Room Essay -- Film Compare

Comparing the Movies 'Wall Street' and 'Boiler Room' Profit, profit and more profit - the golden pillars of capitalism. In the movies 'Wall Street' and 'Boiler Room' this is the ideology that the characters uphold. While, there are many variances in the two movies, the basic aim of both lead characters i.e. Gordan Gekko (Wall Street) and Seth Davis (Boiler Room) is to make money. Both men are stockbrokers who deal in high finance in the exclusive world of Wall Street. However, with both movies are set in different decades the way they go about doing so differs. 'Wall Street' is set in the 'roaring eighties' - a decade that has become synonymous with greed, the so-called era of plenty. With an economy just recovering from recession, as well as oil crises (which incidentally led to higher gas prices, that in turn led to the introduction of a nationwide speed limit in America). The eighties was the time that Regan took office and instituted his economic policies that were to pull America out of the recession and resuscitate its economy. His approach, known as 'Reganomics' - did in...

Case Study: Nature of CPA Firm Essay

For this case study I looked at a broad range of CPA firms’ websites from the large national firms such as Deloitte, PWC and Ernst & Young to the smaller local firms including KDV, Copeland Buhl & Co and Schechter, Dokken & Kanter. While examining these websites, the first thing that became apparent to me is that the content and functionality from website to website is very similar. All of the websites I looked at include an ‘About Us’ page explaining who they are and what they do, which typically includes their mission statement. They all include a ‘Services’ page detailing the service provided which includes but is not limited to advisory, assurance, tax, consulting, financial and technology. All of the websites I looked at also featured a ‘Careers’ section which includes current job opening and detailed information about the organization’s culture and benefits. The large national firms include a listing of the industries they support. Some of the firms include a resources page which may contain links to a variety of calculators to assist with financial decisions as well as links to various publications and forms. There are many reasons a firm may invest in a website. In fact, I would argue that it is essential for CPA firms to have a strong web presence if they want to be competitive in today’s marketplace. If you are a smaller firm, having a website can allow you to compete with the large national firms, as anyone with internet access can find your website. Having a website is also a much cheaper way to advertise when compared to the more traditional methods such as newspaper, television, radio, direct mail, etc†¦ Having a website can allow you to reach millions of people something newspaper and radio cannot do. Having a website also improves your ability to enhance customer service because you have the ability to provide customers with information instantly. It also provides an avenue for recruiting a talented workforce. In my opinion the website of a CPA firm need not be highly sophisticated. For CPA firms, a website’s primary role is to advertise and market to existing and potential customers by providing information regarding the services they offer. The internet has changed how CPA firms do business from communicating with client to hiring and retaining employees. The internet has allowed CPA firms to go paperless. Paper no longer needs to be printed and photocopied. Financial statements and reports can be delivered electronically in an instant. Now, information is delivered via the web and the recipient has it within seconds at no additional cost. One example of how the internet has changed how CPA firms do business is through the increase in electronic tax returns and payments. The internet can also be used to transfer information back and forth with customers through the use of an online portal. In my line of work, nearly all of the audit firms we do business with use the internet to receive and transmit information. The Internet has also increased efficiency by giving accountants the ability to manage a client’s computers and software, and retrieve information from them, remotely. With the appropriate permissions and software such as LogMeIn. com or PCanywhere. com, an accountant can take control of a client’s computer from afar and do everything that someone located in the office could, except physically load discs. The CPA can virtually â€Å"visit† the client at any time without the need for the client to be physically present. For any organization that has a website there are certain liabilities that must be considered. Often CPA firms are providing financial information and advice to their customers. Providing inaccurate information that causes financial harm to a customer is a concern that CPA firms must consider. Additionally, many CPA firms use an online portal as a way of transferring information back and forth with customers. As a result security should be a primary consideration. If an online hacker were to hack into the computer systems of a CPA firm and obtain confidential information such as social security numbers or personal tax information the results could be devastating.

Drug Testing for Welfare

The Push for Drug Testing of Welfare Recipients United States lawmakers face one of the most pressing issues of our time-welfare reform. New screening processes, often considered a direct violation of constitutional rights, have already been enacted in many states. Strong evidence exists, asserting that the practice of administering drug testing to welfare recipients will cost the U. S. taxpayers more money in the long run, stigmatize applicants and participants, and serve only the purpose of making the pharmaceutical companies more powerful.In order to protect the constitutional rights of potential welfare recipients, United States awmakers should avoid further criminalizing the poor by submitting them to drug testing and/or a nationwide welfare registry. This year, 29 states have either proposed or already passed legislation calling for drug testing to receive welfare benefits. Brian Kelley reports that of those 29 states, several are seeing a great deal of financial loss as a resu lt of this legislation: During the past year, the state of Utah has spent over $30,000 giving drug tests to welfare recipients.In that time period, only 2. 6 percent of those tested were found to have used illegal substances † well below the national use rate of 8. 9 percent (1). Kelley goes on to report: In 2012, three years and 87,000 screenings later, only one person had failed a drug test. Total savings from denying that one person benefits? $560. Total benefits paid out in that time? $200 million. Even if we include the savings from cutting benefits to the 1,633 people who didn't return the pre-test survey, it brings the total to only 0. percent of the amount distributed over that period (1). The numbers do not lie†little evidence exists that supports the claim that drug testing recipients will save money. Striving to prove that the main source of the drug problem in the United States lies in he recipients of the welfare program, policymakers continue to work ferven tly. The overgeneralization of the poor as drug users has become common practice in Washington. Lawmakers seem to feel that because recipients receive government funding, they in turn give up their constitutional rights as U. S. citizens.The practice of criminalizing the poor has become commonplace in the creation of U. S. governmental policy. Karen Gustafson is someone who knows a lot about the criminalization of the poor. She has spent much of her time researching and writing about Just that. According to Gustafson, â€Å"The public desire to deter and punish welfare cheating has overwhelmed the will to provide economic security to vulnerable members of society (644). † Because of the misuse of welfare funds by a few, the entire underprivileged population has been targeted as criminals†as lazy, drug abusing sponges.Over the past several decades, the United States government has spent billions of dollars in an effort to catch and prosecute those who are abusing the wel fare system. This practice is necessary in order to rid the welfare system of abusers. However, often verlooked is the fact that there are many recipients who are not drug users and are still in need of aid. It is the duty of the U. S. government to provide aid without encouraging potential participants to teel like they are being considered as potential criminals from the very beginning of the application process.The cross-agency process involved in the welfare and criminal Justice systems is unconstitutional and an invasion of the privacy of the American underprivileged. As welfare reform began to take place so did the social misconception that recipients are criminals did as well. In fact, welfare recipients often receive the same treatment as parolees and probationers. This is in part due to the fact that too many law enforcement techniques are embedded in the welfare system.Gustafson tells us: Her social security number has been matched against state and national criminal recor ds The financial information she has provided has been matched against various employment databases, IRS records, and Franchise Tax Board records Her personal information has been entered into the welfare system's database, which may be accessed by law enforcement officers without any basis for suspicion All f this has occurred before she has received a single welfare check (645). There is no doubt that those Americans in need of assistance have been subjected to unconstitutional treatment by the welfare program.As a result of the criminal actions of a few, all of the needy are being unfairly scrutinized. The implementation of unfounded drug testing in addition to the already criminalizing application process will only serve to further stigmatize the needy†and all in the name of the mighty dollar. Some believe that it is not the quest to save money that is the driving force behind the push for this legislation. Rather, it is a desire to make millions for the pharmaceutical com panies that lawmakers are seeking to achieve.Lobbyist interference from multi-million dollar pharmaceutical companies has heavily influenced Washington lawmakers' policymaking. These pharmaceutical companies have their hand in much of the United States lawmaking practice. These powerful corporations stand to make a lot of money from the sale of drug testing supplies and services to the U. S. government. Macdonald reports: several Republican lawmakers in Congress have pushed hard for the mandatory drug testing of anyone, nywhere, applying for welfare.Leading the charge in the senate is Orrin Hatch who received $8,000 campaign contributions in 2012 from the political action committee of Laboratory Corporation of America (LabCorp), $3000 from another political action committee to which LabCorp contributes, as well as $4000 in campaign contributions from another company with major interests in drug testing, Abbott Laboratories (15). According to Macdonald, Orrin Hatch is not the only la wmaker with these corporations in his pocket. â€Å"GOP Congressman Charles Boustany received $1 5,000 from Abbott Laboratories (15).The fact that Congressmen and women are receiving contributions from pharmaceutical companies is disturbing to say the least. The American underprivileged do not stand a chance at ever overcoming their circumstances as long as lawmakers continue to be driven by greed, rather than their best interest. If United States lawmakers really had the best interest of the underprivileged in mind, they would be focusing fewer resources on treating those who test positive for substance abuse and more on the underlying mental and physical causes for the abuse.Pollack tells us, â€Å"Even among women who eported recent illicit substance abuse, depression, physical health problems and limited education were actually more common barriers to self-sufficiency and social tunctioning(2) † Pollack turtner states, â€Å"Most weltare recipients [ . ] were casual mar ijuana users who didn't meet screening criteria for marijuana (or other substance use) disorders. Ironically, chemical testing technologies were most sensitive to identifying marijuana users who rarely needed addiction services (2). Mental and physical disabilities and the lack of healthcare are often the underlying cause of drug use to begin with as a means of self-medication. These issues receive far too little attention in the U. S. government policy decisions, unlike that of drug use. Pollack's research outlines the statistical data on illicit drug use as it compares to mental and physical health problems: However one runs the numbers, illicit drug use disorders are not common among welfare recipients. Other physical and mental health problems are far more prevalent. Drug Testing for Welfare The Push for Drug Testing of Welfare Recipients United States lawmakers face one of the most pressing issues of our time-welfare reform. New screening processes, often considered a direct violation of constitutional rights, have already been enacted in many states. Strong evidence exists, asserting that the practice of administering drug testing to welfare recipients will cost the U. S. taxpayers more money in the long run, stigmatize applicants and participants, and serve only the purpose of making the pharmaceutical companies more powerful.In order to protect the constitutional rights of potential welfare recipients, United States awmakers should avoid further criminalizing the poor by submitting them to drug testing and/or a nationwide welfare registry. This year, 29 states have either proposed or already passed legislation calling for drug testing to receive welfare benefits. Brian Kelley reports that of those 29 states, several are seeing a great deal of financial loss as a resu lt of this legislation: During the past year, the state of Utah has spent over $30,000 giving drug tests to welfare recipients.In that time period, only 2. 6 percent of those tested were found to have used illegal substances † well below the national use rate of 8. 9 percent (1). Kelley goes on to report: In 2012, three years and 87,000 screenings later, only one person had failed a drug test. Total savings from denying that one person benefits? $560. Total benefits paid out in that time? $200 million. Even if we include the savings from cutting benefits to the 1,633 people who didn't return the pre-test survey, it brings the total to only 0. percent of the amount distributed over that period (1). The numbers do not lie†little evidence exists that supports the claim that drug testing recipients will save money. Striving to prove that the main source of the drug problem in the United States lies in he recipients of the welfare program, policymakers continue to work ferven tly. The overgeneralization of the poor as drug users has become common practice in Washington. Lawmakers seem to feel that because recipients receive government funding, they in turn give up their constitutional rights as U. S. citizens.The practice of criminalizing the poor has become commonplace in the creation of U. S. governmental policy. Karen Gustafson is someone who knows a lot about the criminalization of the poor. She has spent much of her time researching and writing about Just that. According to Gustafson, â€Å"The public desire to deter and punish welfare cheating has overwhelmed the will to provide economic security to vulnerable members of society (644). † Because of the misuse of welfare funds by a few, the entire underprivileged population has been targeted as criminals†as lazy, drug abusing sponges.Over the past several decades, the United States government has spent billions of dollars in an effort to catch and prosecute those who are abusing the wel fare system. This practice is necessary in order to rid the welfare system of abusers. However, often verlooked is the fact that there are many recipients who are not drug users and are still in need of aid. It is the duty of the U. S. government to provide aid without encouraging potential participants to teel like they are being considered as potential criminals from the very beginning of the application process.The cross-agency process involved in the welfare and criminal Justice systems is unconstitutional and an invasion of the privacy of the American underprivileged. As welfare reform began to take place so did the social misconception that recipients are criminals did as well. In fact, welfare recipients often receive the same treatment as parolees and probationers. This is in part due to the fact that too many law enforcement techniques are embedded in the welfare system.Gustafson tells us: Her social security number has been matched against state and national criminal recor ds The financial information she has provided has been matched against various employment databases, IRS records, and Franchise Tax Board records Her personal information has been entered into the welfare system's database, which may be accessed by law enforcement officers without any basis for suspicion All f this has occurred before she has received a single welfare check (645). There is no doubt that those Americans in need of assistance have been subjected to unconstitutional treatment by the welfare program.As a result of the criminal actions of a few, all of the needy are being unfairly scrutinized. The implementation of unfounded drug testing in addition to the already criminalizing application process will only serve to further stigmatize the needy†and all in the name of the mighty dollar. Some believe that it is not the quest to save money that is the driving force behind the push for this legislation. Rather, it is a desire to make millions for the pharmaceutical com panies that lawmakers are seeking to achieve.Lobbyist interference from multi-million dollar pharmaceutical companies has heavily influenced Washington lawmakers' policymaking. These pharmaceutical companies have their hand in much of the United States lawmaking practice. These powerful corporations stand to make a lot of money from the sale of drug testing supplies and services to the U. S. government. Macdonald reports: several Republican lawmakers in Congress have pushed hard for the mandatory drug testing of anyone, nywhere, applying for welfare.Leading the charge in the senate is Orrin Hatch who received $8,000 campaign contributions in 2012 from the political action committee of Laboratory Corporation of America (LabCorp), $3000 from another political action committee to which LabCorp contributes, as well as $4000 in campaign contributions from another company with major interests in drug testing, Abbott Laboratories (15). According to Macdonald, Orrin Hatch is not the only la wmaker with these corporations in his pocket. â€Å"GOP Congressman Charles Boustany received $1 5,000 from Abbott Laboratories (15).The fact that Congressmen and women are receiving contributions from pharmaceutical companies is disturbing to say the least. The American underprivileged do not stand a chance at ever overcoming their circumstances as long as lawmakers continue to be driven by greed, rather than their best interest. If United States lawmakers really had the best interest of the underprivileged in mind, they would be focusing fewer resources on treating those who test positive for substance abuse and more on the underlying mental and physical causes for the abuse.Pollack tells us, â€Å"Even among women who eported recent illicit substance abuse, depression, physical health problems and limited education were actually more common barriers to self-sufficiency and social tunctioning(2) † Pollack turtner states, â€Å"Most weltare recipients [ . ] were casual mar ijuana users who didn't meet screening criteria for marijuana (or other substance use) disorders. Ironically, chemical testing technologies were most sensitive to identifying marijuana users who rarely needed addiction services (2). Mental and physical disabilities and the lack of healthcare are often the underlying cause of drug use to begin with as a means of self-medication. These issues receive far too little attention in the U. S. government policy decisions, unlike that of drug use. Pollack's research outlines the statistical data on illicit drug use as it compares to mental and physical health problems: However one runs the numbers, illicit drug use disorders are not common among welfare recipients. Other physical and mental health problems are far more prevalent.