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View Buddhism Essay The academically inclined often choose to view Buddhism as an outgrowth of environment or preexisting religions, but Dhammanda (2002) observes that this does not accord it recognition as an intellectual approach to reality. As such, Buddhism is the evolved result of religious and philosophical development derived from a pragmatic form of introspection which yields an emphasis on mental development that evokes the intellectual stance of the scientific method. Verhoeven (2001) notes that, because modern science is regarded as difficult to reconcile with the religious orthodoxy of Western culture, the growing Western interest in Buddhism is largely predicated on its potency as an â€Å"alternative altar† that may seek to fulfill the need to acquire a religious code that can reside comfortably alongside post-Darwinian science. Watson (2001) remarks that exponential progress in the fundamentals of cognitive science have resulted in an increased reception towards the Buddhist tradition, which is preoccupied with the varying modes of human experience. Part of this sudden appeal comes from Buddhism’s remarkable empiricization of psychology and philosophy, which asserts that the emotional well-being of man is contingent upon his ability to realign his perspective on experience and use this realignment to bring about positive change. But the other more crucial component to this sudden appeal is that Western science has begun to reconsider the traditional mind/body binary which situates consciousness within the brain and the body as anatomic extensions of consciousness. As Watson (2001) notes, â€Å"the mind is not just a program in the brain, but [†¦] its processes are distributed throughout the body.† However, Verhoeven (2001) cautions that we should be careful not to equate the resonance between Buddhism and Western science with absolute paradigmatic compatibility. While â€Å"adapting new and unfamiliar Buddhist conceptions to †¦ Western thought† may enrich the field of science, he warns that this also â€Å"threatens to dilute [Buddhism’s] impact and distort its content.† Still, Watson (2001) reasons that Buddhist’s real potential to enrich science is not its quasi-logical structure, but its attempt to propose an epistemology that is not rooted in dualism. â€Å"†¦Its purpose is †¦ to relate to an embodied way of being.† To this end, Buddhism endorses an engagement with the world that is based on process and agency rather than on products and essences. As such, Buddhism’s greatest boon is its potential to confer centuries of results in the domain of first-person experience to further the sophistication of the West’s third-person research. This receptive approach extends beyond enabling the flexibility of fundamental notions of reasons and into the theoretical framework which governs the production of art. Conventional generalizations regarding Eastern and Western art propose that, where Western art give emphasis to form and verisimilitude, Oriental art places an emphasis on abstraction and the representation of the spirit. Under such a dichotomy, the philosophical orientation of Western art is geared towards the imposition of meaning over reality, whereas Eastern art either yields to the primacy of forms, or chooses to receive it as a source of interpretation rather than a tool for representation. Lieberman (1997) proposes that aesthetics in Western art is used to establish a link between the emotions of the artist and the audience. The Western artist accomplishes this by working within the intersection in which form and content operate to produce meaning to create mood. As such, verisimilitude to real forms is not merely a question of creating â€Å"aesthetically pleasing reproduction[s],† but expressing a personal reaction to them. He then contrasts this with Zen Buddhist art, noting that it forgoes verisimilitude in favor of using the simplest possible means to express the â€Å"the inherent nature of the aesthetic object.† As such, regardless of aesthetic peculiarity, any form may inspire painting, be expressed through verse or utilized in music, rather than insisting on dogmatic notions of what can be utilized or expressed in them. (Lieberman, 1997) Lieberman (1997) quips, â€Å"The job of the artist is to suggest the essence, the eternal qualities of the object, which is †¦ a work of natural art before the artist arrives on the scene.† Achieving this goal comes from comprehension of the aesthetic object’s inner nature, what Lieberman terms to be â€Å"its Buddha nature,† and essentially promoting an inquisitive engagement with aesthetic forms not unlike the scientific endeavor. The fashion by which Buddhism enriches civilizations lie in, not merely its ability to open up the modes we engage in science and art through inquisitiveness and receptiveness, but in the fact that these cultural gains are extensions of an entire philosophy which promotes the thinking power of human beings. As Dhammanada (2002) observes, it effectively frees them from the dogmatic approach to life resulting in fanaticism and myopic thinking and â€Å"produces the feeling of self-reliance by teaching that the whole destiny of humanity lay in their own hands, and that they themselves possess the faculty of developing their own energy and insight in order to reach the highest goal.†   REFERENCES Dhammanada, K. S. (2002) What Buddhists Believe. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia. Lieberman, F. (1997) Zen Buddhism and Its Relationship to Elements of Eastern and Western Arts. Retrieved May 16, 2008 from: http://arts.ucsc.edu/faculty/lieberman/zen.html Verhoeven, M. J. (2001, June) Buddhism and Science: Probing the Boundaries of Faith and Reason. Religion East and West, Issue 1. Pp. 77-97 Watson, G. (2001, January) Buddhism Meets Western Science: A dialogue on the mind and consciousness. Religion and the Brain, Issue 19.

Get Smart: I.Q. and Emotional Intelligence Essay -- Biology Essays Res

Get Smart: I.Q. and Emotional Intelligence Intelligence is considered to be one of the most desirable personality qualities in today's society. Expectant parents are told to read and play music to the fetus, in order to stimulate its brain. Being bright is often thought of one the keys to success in life, and highly intelligent people such as Albert Einstein are celebrated. However, despite all the tests and criteria that measure intelligence, the question still remains: what is intelligence? How can it be measured? Is there only one kind of intelligence, or do humans possess several? These seemingly simple questions have proved to be some of the most perplexing and contentious topics in both public and scientific circles. Everyone differs in their ability to understand complex ideas, to adapt to the environment, to learn from experience, and to engage in various forms of reasoning. A person's intellectual performance can vary on depending on the occasions, environment, or criteria used to judge it. No current theory has been able to sufficiently answer all the critical questions or establish a consensus. The recognized method of measuring intelligence is the psychometric approach. It is the basis of I.Q. tests and other modern intelligence tests. However, a new theory called emotional intelligence has gained prominence with its more fluid and encompassing definition of intelligence. This has only added fuel to the debate over understanding and measuring intelligence. The psychometric approach was developed by Alfred Binet in 1904 to identify mentally retarded students who would benefit from special education. He designed the test to be an indicator of school performance and measured skills such as vocabulary, comprehe... ...act that all humans possess all these intelligences, everyone has different profiles of intelligences (6). Originally comprised of seven intelligences, its author, Howard Gardner, is considering adding naturalist and existential, because he feels it is necessary. One can only hope that others will see the necessity of a broader definition of intelligence. WWW and Bibliographic Sources 1)This paper reflects the research and thoughts of a student at the time the paper was written for a course at Bryn Mawr College. Like other materials on Serendip, it is not intended to be "authoritative" but rather to help others further develop their own explorations. Web links were active as of the time the paper was posted but are not updated. Contribute Thoughts | Search Serendip for Other Papers | Serendip Home Page http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/serendip/a2z.html

Role of Public Libraries in bridging the Digital Divide

The United States National Telecommunications and Information Administration popularized the term ‘Digital Divide’ in the mid 1990s to indicate the societal split between those had and those who did not have access to computers and the Internet (Warchauer, 2003). With the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) revolution sweeping across the world, the term has since caught the imagination of social scientists, administrators, media-persons, economists and politicians alike.They have interpreted it in turn as a social, economic and political problem from their respective perspectives, and sought to offer a variety of solutions to ‘bridge’ the Digital Divide. ICT was initially heralded as a great equalizer. The general impression was that by providing interconnectivity and access to information to all, ICT would provide equal opportunities, and therefore reduce inequalities.But it was soon clear that the ‘Mathew Effect’ of Merton (1973) c ould come into play and increase the inequalities even more by translating the initial advantages of those who gained early access to computers and the Internet into increasing returns over time i. e. by widening the Digital Divide. The Social and Community Context The basic problem however lies in defining ‘Digital Divide’. According to Mark (2003) any attempt to bridge the Digital Divide without consideration of the social context could lead to failures and frustrations.He cites a project undertaken by the Municipal Government of New Delhi in India through which computer kiosks with dial-up Internet connectivity were set up for the urban poor children in New Delhi. According to the policy of minimal invasive education adopted in the project, there were no teachers or instructors to guide the children in computer usage. The project could not achieve much beyond children learning to play games and use simple applications to paint and draws.On the other hand, The Gyandoo t Project in rural areas of the state of Madhya Pradesh in India achieved success because of its community orientation. In this case, the use of computers fulfilled social and community needs. The role of public libraries in providing access to computers and the Internet also has to take all these factors into consideration. The responsibility of public libraries does not end with the provision of the equipment for computer and Internet access.Public libraries have to take on the role of the educator and the instructor so that users are able to utilize the ICT services efficiently and effectively. The larger orientation of all such services has to be around the fulfillment of social and community requirements in line with the ideals of social and community informatics. The Five Components of Individual Access The concept of ‘Digital Inequality’ as defined by Hargittai (2003) identifies Technical Means, Autonomy of Use, Social Support Network, Production of Content Acces s and Political Access as the five components of individual access.Public libraries therefore have to concentrate on providing all the five components to the individual. This would imply that libraries provide state-of-the-art equipment so that users are in no way limited or restricted by the state of the facility itself. Ensuring autonomy of use would suggest providing convenient access to a wide range of users taking into consideration the different timings that could be convenient to different categories of users. This could even entail public libraries offering round-the-clock access to their users.Public libraries will have to play an active part in building up social support networks for their users. This will not only help the users in picking up Internet usage skills faster but will also bring in new users into the network. Content is a very vital issue that determines the quality of online access of any user. Any effort to reduce digital inequality will have to ensure that the user is able to locate relevant information on the net. Hargittai (2003) differentiates between ‘available’ information and ‘accessible’ information.The available information may not be easily accessible. The phenomenon of information gatekeepers in the form of search engines and other indexing and searching mechanisms adds complexity to the situation. Commercial interests on the Internet more often than not lead the unwary browser away from relevant sources of information. Public libraries will have to take on the added responsibility coaching the novice user in looking for and locating relevant information.Each library will also have to ensure that they adopt an indexing and searching mechanism linked with their digital subscriptions so that users can find information customized to their requirements. Public libraries will also have to play their part in ensuring that users have access to the institutions that regulate the technologies that they are u sing so that they are also able to participate in policy formulations and decision-making exercises. ConclusionThe role of librarians and library staff will have to undergo vast changes in order to fit into the new responsibilities. Foster (2000) opines that the underlying concerns surrounding the issue of the digital divide are actually more about the nature and future of education than about the current distribution patterns of technology. Librarians and library staff will thus have to don the mantle of technical educators and social activists to contribute meaningfully to the reduction of the Digital Divide.

Mabati Rolling Mills Case Study - 2331 Words

Q1. Using the Mabati Rolling Mills Case Study, explain the various sources of funds as discussed by the management of Mabati Rolling Mills. Give the advantage and disadvantage of each source. Issue Commercial Papers – It is identified in (Short Term Finance:Commercial Paper, 2008) that a commercial paper is simply unsecured short-term debt instrument issued by an organization for meeting short-term liabilities. An advantage of issuing commercial papers is that only companies with high credit ratings can do so, therefore, a company like MRM can enjoy the prestige with such an issuance. Also it is cheaper than a bank loan as it has low interest rates. However a disadvantage could be that there are no flexibilities with regard to†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Collateral: The primary source of repayment. Sometimes can be larger than the borrowing sum. †¢ Capital: The bank needs to know what assets the organization owns that can be quickly turned into cash. †¢ Comfort/confidence with the business plan: It analyzes the revenue and expense projections. Q3. Does the company have any other sources that it could use to raise the funds it requires? Explain. (In your answer consider the amount required and the purpose of the funds). In which market can these funds be sourced from? Mabati rolling mills need to raise funds of about 2.3 billion shillings, to include 55% of aluminum zinc to their state of the art continuous galvanizing line at Mariakani. This facility would add product diversity and would fasten the growth of the company in the competitive steel industry. Aluminum zinc in comparison with the ordinary steel coated with zinc was more durable and had a longer life span around 4 times more than the steel coated. Apart from the funds already mentioned like the commercial paper, loans from local and international banks and the issue of ordinary shares, other funds that could help Mabati Rolling Mills are the issue of bonds and rights issue to existing shareholders. Bonds: bonds are also long term debts that are issued by government or business, which indicates that an amount of money hasShow MoreRelatedThe Expansion Of The Mabati Rolling Mills Production1151 Words   |  5 PagesIn order to finance the expansion of the Mabati Rolling Mills production in 1999, the company considered four options to amass funds for their Continuous Galvanizing Line. The first is issuing commercial paper. Commercial paper refers to a short-term promissory note that has the following characteristics: †¢ Unsecured- this means that MRM requires no collateral from those issued with commercial paper. It is offered on goodwill. †¢ Is paid at a specific date †¢ Has specified amount (par/face value)