Understanding Logic And Reason Behind Everything - 996 Words

Professor Joel Bettridge Ways of knowing April 12, 2016 Acting for a Reason Trying to understand logic and reason behind everything can be complicated. Some old mathematicians believe, for instance, that we cannot represent the greatest number, if it exists, because N+1 or when adding 1 to the greatest number, N will no longer be the highest number. Similarly, morality makes sense only as long as it remains in the practical domain. Generally, there are two important factors that affect our moral actions which are rationality and reason. Rationality is the way of analyzing the relationship between cause and effect, but reason is just an approach that is used to understand what the moral and immoral actions are. Some people may say we act morally because it makes our society function better, as well as our and other’s lives. Others may believe that acting morally can be due to the existence of religion and God, to whom we owe obedience and calls us to follow his moral commandments. These reasons make differences in relativeness which can differ from per son to person. There are different moralities in different situations. In other words, when someone sees certain beliefs from other person’s reasoning, he may see them as immoral. Accordingly, a rational person may use reason to justify the immoral actions. According to Kantian ethics, actions should be reason-based or rational to be ethical. In other words, the rational behavior is the most ethical when it is reason-basedShow MoreRelatedEthos And Pathos In The Achievement Habit By Bernard Roth958 Words   |  4 Pagesor to trust them or not. In the novel â€Å"The Achievement Habit† written by Bernard Roth, while still showing emotion towards his audience, Roth makes sure to have reliable credentials and logic behind his reasoning. Roth has a passionate attitude and strong morals about what he preaches in chapter two, â€Å"Reasons are Bullshit† that is reassuring and fitting to the reader. His communication is established through personal relations and stories, professionalism, and awareness. A paradigm is the wayRead MoreDescartes and God Essay820 Words   |  4 Pagesdebates on many things. Logic is often employed in order to understand and come to an agreement on these debated topics. One such topic, which is arguably the greatest topic of debate occurring in modern day, is the existence of God. Sure, many people believe in some sort of higher being, but how many of them try and use logic and rational thought to prove the existence of God. Many probably, however we will only look at one such person. Rene Descartes attempts to use his own logic to come up with theRead MoreMaterialism And Rationalism Of Ancient Greek Philosophers1027 Words   |  5 Pagesmaterial interaction. Everything is made up o f something. Because of this, Materialists believe that matter is primary and spirit body ideas were secondary. Materialisms explains there is a world outside of the mind and how our mind is just a part of it. This paradigm was supported by an example of materialism can be shown through the Milesian school. The Milesians first laid down the foundations of Materialisms by removing the gods from famous stories and looked at the nature behind the destruction theRead More Nature of Logic and Perception Essays1127 Words   |  5 PagesNature or Logic and Perception Outline: 1. Definition of logic and its connection with critical thinking. 2. An everyday example is given when use of logic and critical thinking takes place. 3. Nature of logic defined. 4. Perceptual shortcuts and factors influencing it. 5. How these shortcuts affect our decisions. 6. My personal experience of perceptual shortcut. 7. What I learned from this experience. 8. Importance of logic and critical thinking. 9. Read MoreSaint Anselm, A Strong Believer On The Existence And Essence Of God1534 Words   |  7 Pagesexample of the nature of the God that crafted it. Sometimes, Christian’s aren’t always called to understand everything about this world and the things beyond it. Yes, they are called to seek wisdom, like in Proverbs when it says one needs to, â€Å"[make their] ear attentive to wisdom and inclining [their] heart[s] to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fearRead MoreAn Alternative Form Of Implication1562 Words   |  7 Pagesthe sense of classical logic, we can derive the statement q from p, or namely p implies q. And as such, implication can be seen in classical logic within the format of antecedent,horseshoe,consequent or antecedent,arrow,consequent (P âŠÆ' Q (P - Q). I will delve into the following topics in regards to whether it is necessary for an alternative form of implication, namely strict implication. Such as, the properties of strict implication and its uses within modal logic, other logics and how they interactRead MoreGalileo on religion and science Essay1657 Words   |  7 Pagessuggesting that the truth can only be sought out if the notion under consideration can be accurately tested and if the opposing view can be founded as false. Galileo’s goes into depth about the truth of scripture and the sciences, intertwined with the reason of man, in his letter to Christina of Lorraine, Grand Duchess of Tuscany. Early on in the letter Galileo, infers from St Augustine that the Holy Ghost did not intend to teach â€Å"how heaven goes† rather â€Å"how one goes to heaven†. Galileo interprets thisRead MoreThomas Paine And The Undermining Of American Democracy1012 Words   |  5 Pagesdemocracy, then that religion should be based on reason and logic. Any other religion that isn’t based on those principles would undermine American democracy. The religion that Paine is advocating and referring to is called deism . Paine gives a depiction of deism with this passage, â€Å"The true Deist has but one Deity; and his religion consists in contemplating the power, wisdom, and benignity of the Deity in his works, and in endeavoring to imitate him in everything moral, scientifically, and mechanical.† Read MoreThe Underground Man Essay971 Words   |  4 Pagesthat he abhors was the way in which progressive thinkers of his era worship reason. This was amusing because at the same time, he does not entirely reject reason. From analyzing the text, it is apparent that the Underground Man values reason, but he also sees it as incomplete and an underestimation of the power of free will. The Underground Man’s is not extreme, but quite moderate, because he does see values in reason, and he constantly exhibit logical thinking in his words. For instance, he emphasizesRead MoreThe Difference Between Truth And Belief1585 Words   |  7 Pagespositive thing, and do not get me wrong, it can be. I am not trying to say that faith is bad, what I want to make clear is that faith is secondary. I do not consider myself one without faith, I just feel like I have come to a somewhat unconventional understanding of faith. Or perhaps just a new, slowly growing grasp on it. Faith does not necessarily have anything to do with religion. For many, faith and religion are two separate things. But I do think it is far easier to explain faith when using religion

Poverty and the American Dream Essay - 2446 Words

Poverty and the American Dream Research Paper Final Draft Jeffery White English 101 Section 7 December 20,2012 The American Dream has driven many people for a long time. The dream has been presented in Hollywood movies showing a family or person striving to succeed in America. When the dream is mentioned it is done so as a powerful symbol inspiring a whole nation of immigrants. However, the â€Å"Dream† is misleading because it implies there is only one rather than many. Moreover, there are many perceptions of the American Dream and its fulfillment depends on culture, age and citizenship. This misperception of the American Dream has led to the downfall of many immigrants who came in search or pursuit of the American dream. For example†¦show more content†¦They show that you can come to America and achieve greatness by doing a little. They have to wear designer clothes and in a suburban home. This view is sometimes defined as: â€Å"A delusion, an illusion meant to keep people dissatisfied and hungering to spend more money, in the hopes that the next purchase will be the one that buys them the happiness they are promised. What no one told our framers is that happiness isnt a commodity. It is something that is internal, easily found, and free of charge. Happiness and the reality of the American dream are found in abandoning the false dream, and creating one of your own. Understanding that all the trappings of Western culture are props in a badly acted movie, and that you can throw their script away and make one of your own is a liberating experience. It is possible to have a wonderfully rich and fulfilling life without designer clothes, a wedding register, minivan, suburban house, or even a TV (Johnson, 2001).† This delusion does not only prevent you from societies true identity, but leads to the downfall of a person. â€Å"For an immigrant the American dream is to achieve economic wellbeing and good quality of life through hard work and perseverance. As well as, the aspect of family and emotional and physical wellbeing.† (Van de Rijt, 2008). Even though this is the view of many immigrants, they are hindered to achieve that success. One has to ask themselves this question: How can immigrantsShow MoreRelatedPoverty And The American Dream919 Words   |  4 PagesIn 2000, the poverty rate among children was 16.2% (Reef 253)! Poverty is a relevant issue that isn t going away. It s ruining minds and lives at the same time. Poverty changes how people view the American Dream, achieve the American Dream, and even affect how people s brains work and develop. With all of the media s hatred of poor people, it must affect their self-confidence and how they view the American Dream. Through her experience, Jennifer Mayer has noticed that very problem. While workingRead MorePoverty And The American Dream933 Words   |  4 Pages42% of kids born in poverty will not get out. Today, more Americans are falling below the poverty line and are struggling trying to find a way to get out. The Inequality gap in America has increased for the past few decades. Resulting from Economic Inequality in America, 400 Americans share more than 50% of America’s total wealth. These 400 Americans are the Top 1%. While the Top 1% are living luxurious lives, the Bottom 99% is struggling to make ends meet. Inequality is nothing new to the UnitedRead MorePoverty and the American Dream4620 Words   |  19 Pagesâ€Å"The American Dream† as defined by James Truslow Adams in 1931 is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes the opportu nity for prosperity and success, and an upward social mobility achieved through hard work. Truslow states life should be worse and poorer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement regardless of social class or circumstances of birth. The idea of the American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of IndependenceRead MorePoverty And Chances Of Accomplishing The American Dream Essay1239 Words   |  5 PagesLewis Teofil Husar ENG-111 11/30/16 Poverty and Chances of Accomplishing the American Dream. Everyone has heard of the American dream but is it even achievable? As the years go on, many children are born into poverty and stuck with the possibility of not making it out of the lower class. â€Å"The nations official poverty rate in 2015 was 13.5 percent, with 43.1 million people in poverty, 3.5 million fewer than in 2014. The 1.2 percentage point decrease in the poverty rate from 2014 to 2015 representsRead MoreWage Crisis By Michael Maher : Money, Power And The American Dream : Why Poverty?1189 Words   |  5 Pageswhen the future actually comes. The films Wage Crisis by Michael Maher; Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream: Why Poverty? by Alex Gibney; and The Secret of Oz by Ben Still, are some of the films that highlight the future or work and the how the wages and economy are really affecting those who are looking for work and trying to work towards a common goal – achieving the American Dream. Throughout this review, these movies will be compared to t he content that have been covered in the FutureRead MoreEssay on Poverty and Sociology1344 Words   |  6 Pages2 million people were considered poor. The nation’s poverty rate rose to 15.1 percent, whereas in 2009, 14.3 percent of people in America were living in poverty (Censky, 2011). That is an increase of 2.6 million people in 2010. In the United States, the federal poverty line – an absolute measure of annual income – is frequently used to determine who is categorized as poor (Ferris Stein, 2008, 2010). Currently the government defines the poverty line as an income of $11,139 for an individual and $22Read MoreThe American Dream : The Myth Of The American Dream1296 Words   |  6 PagesThe Myth of The American Dream   Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Over the years immigrants have come to America in hopes of achieving their dreams and finding success. But is America really what it’s thought to be? Can their American   dream become a reality?   Everyone in America has the dream of achieving success and wealth through their own hard work and determination. But due to the vicious cycle of poverty most are unable to achieve their American Dream.   The cycle of poverty in America is affected by many factors includingRead MoreEssay on How Debt Affects Americans822 Words   |  4 Pagesstruck by debt, they might have trouble recovering. Debt can cause Americans to lose their homes and stability they need to feed, and shelter their families. Although debt comes upon us Americans quickly, people can see debt as terrible thing to be stuck with. It has many disadvantages that can devastate to people. Within debt there are subtopics that can be debated. We have the poor and the people who are living in poverty. Poverty is seen as a big problem within America. â€Å"It is defined as the stateRead MoreThe Poverty Of The United States1486 Words   |  6 Pageslegally and socially poor in the United States tend to stay in a cycle through life, not always by choice, but because they are given less opportunities, education and tools to achieve their success. The poverty stricken class has a significantly larger income gap than the upper class, the American Dream is weakened through opportunity and is shown through statistics. Inequality exists and is high in America due to the amount of income and wealth that is distributed through power. In America the incomeRead MoreThe American Dream : The American Dream1014 Words   |  5 Pages The American Dream. The American Dream is made up of many different aspects and ideas. Like moving up the social , escaping poverty , freedom ,equality , pursuing our interests and passions , opinions and safety. Most of the dreams are different for an individual depending on their situation. Poverty is a struggle in life. Not having enough to eat , not having heat and shelter. For the kids , life in poverty is much tougher to overcome than those who already have help with wealth.

Sustainable Competitive Advantage free essay sample

Resources are the assets, capabilities, processes, information, and knowledge that an organization controls. Firms use their resources to improve organizational effectiveness and efficiency. Resources are critical to organizational strategy because they can help companies create and sustain an advantage over competitors. 3 Organizations can achieve a competitive advantage by using their resources to provide greater value for customers than competitors can. For example, iTunes and iPod created competitive advantage for Apple and value for its customers by combining elements of design, price, and capability in a unique way. But the most important advantage was being the first company to make it easy to legally download music to digital devices. (Prior to the iTunes store, the only means of acquiring digital music was illegal file swapping. ) Apple negotiated agreements with virtually all of the major record labels to distribute their songs from a central online library, and iTunes quickly became the premier platform for music downloading. The easy-to-understand site came with free downloadable software customers could use to organize and manage their digital music library. 4 The goal of most organizational strategies is to create and then sustain a competitive advantage. A competitive advantage becomes a sustainable competitive advantage when other companies cannot duplicate the value a firm is providing to customers. Sustainable competitive advantage is not the same as a long-lasting competitive advantage, though companies obviously want a competitive advantage to last a long time. Instead, a competitive advantage is sustained if competitors have tried unsuccessfully to duplicate the advantage and have, for the moment, stopped trying to duplicate it. It’s the corporate equivalent of your competitors saying, â€Å"We give up. You win. We can’t do what you do, and we’re not even going to try to do it any more. † As Exhibit 5. 1 shows, four conditions must be met if a firm’s resources are to be used to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. The resources must be valuable, rare, imperfectly imitable, and nonsubstitutable. Valuable resources allow companies to improve their efficiency and effectiveness. Unfortunately, changes in customer demand and preferences, competitors’ actions, and technology can make once-valuable resources much less valuable. 5 For sustained competitive advantage, valuable resources must also be rare resources. Think about it: How can a company sustain a competitive advantage if all of its competitors have similar resources and capabilities? Consequently, rare resources, resources that are not controlled or possessed by many competing firms, are necessary to sustain a competitive advantage. When Apple introduced the iPod, no other portable music players on the market used existing hard-drive technology in their design. The iPod gained an immediate advantage over competitors because it was able to satisfy the desire of consumers to carry large numbers of songs in a portable device, something the newer MP3 systems and older individual CD players could not do. One of Apple’s truly rare resources is its ability to reconfigure existing technology into a package that is easy to use, elegantly designed, and therefore highly desired by customers. As the example shows, valuable and rare resources can create temporary competitive advantage. For sustained competitive advantage, however, other firms must be unable to imitate or find substitutes for those valuable, rare resources. Imperfectly imitable resources are those resources that are impossible or extremely costly or difficult to duplicate. For example, despite numerous attempts by competitors to imitate it, iTunes has retained its competitive lock on the music download business. In addition to its customer friendly software and its extensive media library, Apple has developed a closed system for its iTunes and iPod. iPod owners cannot download music from sources other than Apple’s iTunes store, but for many this is not a problem. Many devotees won’t even consider another brand. Kelly Moore, a sales representative for a Texas software company, says of her iPod mini, â€Å"Once I find something I like, I don’t switch brands. †6 She’s not alone: Since iTunes was launched, customers have downloaded over a billion songs. No other competitor comes close to those numbers. Valuable, rare, imperfectly imitable resources can produce sustainable competitive advantage only if they are also nonsubstitutable resources, meaning that no other resources can replace them and produce similar value or competitive advantage. To compete effectively against iTunes, competitors may need to change their business model. That is, competitors need to propose substitutes for iTunes that consumers will accept. For example, Napster founders Shawn Fanning and Wayne Rosso have created a subscription-based service called Mashboxx that charges $15 a month for unlimited downloads. Yahoo! Music uses a similar model but charges as little as $6 per month for complete access to its entire library of 2 million songs. 7 In addition to straight subscription models, some companies are experimenting with price. Where iTunes charges 99 cents per song, period, Amazon’s online store will allow the record companies to charge different amounts for different songs based upon popularity. At Amie Street, a newly posted track can be downloaded for free, but as the number of downloads increases, so does the song’s price, until it reaches the maximum of 98 cents. 8 In response to competitors’ experimentation, Apple has stated that its one-flat-price model has been both effective and lucrative and has no plans to change. It will take years to find out whether these new means of purchase will constitute an effective substitute to iTunes. 9 In summary, Apple has reaped the rewards of a first mover advantage from its interdependent iPod and iTunes. The company’s history of developing customer-friendly software, the innovative capabilities of the iPod, the simple 99-cent-pay-as-you-go sales model of iTunes, and the unmatched list of music and movies available for download provide customers with a service that has been valuable, rare, relatively nonsubstitutable, and, in the past, imperfectly imitable. Past success is, however, no guarantee of future success: Apple needs to continually change and develop its offerings or risk being unseated by a more nimble competitor whose products are more relevant and have higher perceived value to the consumer. Review 1 SUSTAINABLE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Firms can use their resources to create and sustain a competitive advantage, that is, to provide greater value for customers than competitors can. A competitive advantage becomes sustainable when other companies cannot duplicate the benefits it provides and have, for now, stopped trying. To provide a sustainable competitive advantage, the firm’s resources must be valuable (capable of improving efficiency and effectiveness), rare (not possessed by many competing firms), imperfectly imitable (extremely costly or difficult to duplicate), and nonsubstitutable (competitors cannot substitute other resources to produce similar value). 2Strategy-Making Process Companies use a strategy-making process to create strategies that produce sustainable competitive advantage. 10 Exhibit 5. 2 displays the three steps of the strategy-making process: 2. 1 assess the need for strategic change, 2. 2 conduct a situational analysis, and then 2. 3 choose strategic alternatives. Let’s examine each of these steps in more detail. Review 2 STRATEGY-MAKING PROCESS The first step in strategy making is determining whether a strategy needs to be changed to sustain a competitive advantage. Because uncertainty and competitive inertia make this difficult to determine, managers can improve the speed and accuracy of this step by looking for differences between top management’s intended strategy and the strategy actually implemented by lower-level managers (that is, looking for strategic dissonance). The second step is to conduct a situational analysis that examines internal strengths and weaknesses (distinctive competencies and core capabilities), as well as external threats and opportunities (environmental scanning, strategic groups, and shadow-strategy task forces). In the third step of strategy making, strategic reference point theory suggests that when companies are performing better than their strategic reference points, top management will typically choose a risk-averse strategy. When performance is below strategic reference points, risk-seeking strategies are more likely to be chosen. Importantly, however, managers can influence the choice of strategic alternatives by actively changing and adjusting the strategic reference points they use to judge strategic performance. Corporate-Level Strategies Corporate-level strategy is the over all organizational strategy that addresses the question â€Å"What business or businesses are we in or should we be in? † Exhibit 5. 4 shows the two major approaches to corporate-level strategy that companies use to decide which businesses they should be in: 3. 1 portfolio strategy33 and 3. 2 grand strategies. Review 3 CORPORATE-LEVEL STRATEGIES Corporate-level strategies, such as portfolio strategy and grand strategies, help managers determine what businesses they should be in. Portfolio strategy focuses on lowering business risk by being in multiple, unrelated businesses and by investing the cash flows from slow-growth businesses into faster-growing businesses. One portfolio strategy, the BCG matrix, suggests that cash flows from cash cows should be reinvested in stars and in carefully chosen question marks. Dogs should be sold or liquidated. Portfolio strategy has several problems, however. Acquiring unrelated businesses actually increases risk rather than lowering it. The BCG matrix is often wrong when predicting companies’ futures (as dogs or cash cows, for example). And redirecting cash flows can seriously weaken cash cows. The most successful way to use the portfolio approach to corporate strategy is to reduce risk through related diversification. The three kinds of grand strategies are growth, stability, and retrenchment/recovery. Companies can grow externally by merging with or acquiring other companies, or they can grow internally through direct expansion or creating new businesses. Companies choose a stability strategy—selling the same products or services to the same customers—when their external environment changes very little or after they have dealt with periods of explosive growth. Retrenchment strategy, shrinking the size or scope of a business, is used to turn around poor performance. If retrenchment works, it is often followed by a recovery strategy that focuses on growing the business again. 4Industry-Level Strategies Industry-level strategy addresses the question â€Å"How should we compete in this industry? † Let’s find out more about industry-level strategies by discussing 4. 1 the five industry forces that determine overall levels of competition in an industry and 4. 2 the positioning strategies and 4. 3 adaptive strategies that companies can use to achieve sustained competitive advantage and above-average profits. Review 4 INDUSTRY-LEVEL STRATEGIES Industry-level strategies focus on how companies choose to compete in their industry. Five industry forces determine an industry’s overall attractiveness to corporate investors and its potential for long-term profitability. Together, a high level of new entrants, substitute products or services, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, and rivalry between competitors combine to increase competition and decrease profits. Three positioning strategies can help companies protect themselves from the negative effects of industry-wide competition. Under a cost leadership strategy, firms try to keep production costs low so that they can sell products at prices lower than competitors’. Differentiation is a strategy aimed at making a product or service sufficiently different from competitors’ that it can command a premium price. Using a focus strategy, firms seek to produce a specialized product or service for a limited, specially targeted group of customers. The four adaptive strategies help companies adapt to changes in the external environment. Defenders want to â€Å"defend† their current strategic positions. Prospectors look for new market opportunities by bringing innovative new products to market. Analyzers minimize risk by following the proven successes of prospectors. Reactors do not follow a consistent strategy, but instead react to changes in their external environment after they occur. 5Firm-Level Strategies Microsoft brings out its Xbox 360 video-game console; Sony counters with its PlayStation 3. Sprint Nextel drops prices and increases monthly cell phone minutes; Verizon strikes back with better reception and even lower prices and more minutes. Starbucks Coffee opens a store, and nearby locally run coffeehouses respond by improving service, increasing portions, and holding the line on prices. Attack and respond, respond and attack. Firm-level strategy addresses the question â€Å"How should we compete against a particular firm? † Let’s find out more about the firm-level strategies (direct competition between companies) by reading about 5. 1 the basics of direct competition and 5. 2 the strategic moves involved in direct competition between companies. Review 5 FIRM-LEVEL STRATEGIES Firm-level strategies are concerned with direct competition between firms. Market commonality and resource similarity determine whether firms are in direct competition and thus likely to attack each other or respond to each other’s attacks. In general, the more markets in which there is product, service, or customer overlap, and the greater the resource similarity between two firms, the more intense the direct competition between them. When firms are direct competitors in a large number of markets, attacks are less likely because responding firms are highly motivated to quickly and forcefully defend their profits and market share. By contrast, resource similarity affects response capability, meaning how quickly and forcefully a company responds to an attack. When resource similarity is strong, attacks are much less likely to produce a sustained advantage because the responding firm is capable of striking back with equal force.