Impact of Technology on Human Interaction free essay sample

Put. It. Down. Whether it is a cell phone, a computer, a tablet or a TV, people in todays technological world always have their eyes in front of some kind of screen. Due to the misuse of technology, people today do not consider their surroundings important. Technology is everywhere, giving anyone who comes within its reach access to all kinds of information. There is evidence that shows technology is more efficient to use, but people pay too much attention to it rather than to each other. Society has shifted to a time where talking to someone face-to-face is no longer required, and this shift has become a growing problem in today’s world. Technology is being improved every day, but the new advancements being created are causing people to lose basic essentials needed for life. Rather than allowing technology to change important priorities, society should limit their use of technology and consider it as an asset to living a normal life rather than a necessity. We will write a custom essay sample on Impact of Technology on Human Interaction or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Technology has provided society with different ways of communication, but the excessive use of technology is causing a decrease in human interaction and the public’s human intelligence level, leaving children today to live a computer-only lifestyle. Scientists are continuing to improve technology at an accelerating rate while providing society with more access to different forms of technology. It has taken little time for the public to adapt to an age of cell phones, computers and tablets. Ray Kurzweil reveals, â€Å"It took 50 years for the telephone to be adopted by a quarter of the population; the cell phone did that in seven years. Social networks, Wikis, and blogs and tweets did that in three years† (Aamoth). People today are attracted to these networking sites due to the connection that they provide. The public considers social networking a great way to communicate with each other, though it is not in real time. Another journalist, author of â€Å"Technology is in your face: is it so bad? †, describes technology as helping â€Å"to ease the burden of separation, making transitions less stressful† (Johnson). Cheyenne Johnson uses her Skype account to talk to her boyfriend living 600 miles away. She likes the fact that she can keep in contact with her boyfriend though he live miles away. Johnson and many others would come to the conclusion that the advancements technology has made are helping the public connect with each other in ways that are not always possible, however, others would argue that the connection is not the same as face-to-face interaction. Due to the overuse of communication technology, the necessity for human interaction is decreasing. One necessity of the human race is the need for human interaction, a strong relationship between two or more individuals. This interaction begins before birth and helps humans develop socially and mentally as they age. In a lecture discussing Neuroscience and Sociology, there was an approach on how â€Å"an infant’s interaction with their mother helps them develop future relationships† (Brooks). This important interaction can be harmed by the overuse of technology. For example, a mother could spend more time talking on the phone rather than interacting with her child. The bond between mother and child would be replaced with the interaction between the cell phone and the mother. This parent-child relationship is essential because it aids other relationships in the future. Relationships play an important part on how the mind processes and what the body associates with. The Handbook of Psychology states, â€Å"The ways in which people understand their relationships plays a critical role in their social conflict and intergroup integration† (Dovidio 485). The relationships people form help develop a healthier social life. While many would agree that â€Å"technology has evolved in a social direction† (Brooks), it has the public forming a different kind of relationship, a relationship with a piece of technology rather than with a common human being. With all the new developments in communication technology, the motivation to interact with one another is being lost. Human intelligence in today’s society is decreasing due the excessive use of technology. Children today, especially teenagers, use technology constantly. Though it may seem that they are filling their minds with knowledge, some of these facts are not useful for them in everyday life. In an interview with Ray Kurzweil, an inventor and futurist at Techland, he describes how scientists plan to enhance the human-intelligence level through biological experiments. Kurzweil states, â€Å"The goal to human-intelligence level in machines is not some alien invasion to compete with us or displace us, but really to merge with us† (Aamoth). Kurzweil plans on working with other futurists on ways technology can help grow present knowledge with more useful information. Kurzweil also predicts a future with machines attaining high human intelligence levels. He highlights, â€Å"Technology is moving so fast that we won’t be able to follow it unless we enhance our minds with the technology we’ve created† (Aamoth). In order to accomplish this, the human intelligence would have to be improved. Though informational technology is efficient, the knowledge it provides the mind is decreasing human intellect rather than enhancing it. Kids and teens are being exposed to too many different forms of technology. This exposure is causing conflict in living a healthy lifestyle. Scientists have discovered that technology has affected them psychologically causing sound, social and emotional developments to be more difficult to attained due to technology advances (Brooks). There has also been a study showing the affect technology has on the academic level. Researchers wanted to see whether the use of social networking affected the environment of school classrooms. Social interactions in the classroom are critical foundations for helping students learn the material in a simple way (Dawson). With social networking occupying more of students time, the material they are required to learn is not being registered, causing students to miss important information in a course. In the academic world, technology has affected the performance of how students learn as well as develop intellectually. People in todays society spend more time using technology than keeping up with the basic essentials of life. In today’s generation, people do not pay attention to important aspects of everyday life such as eating dinner with the family, studying for exams or even driving. In 2011, the Jacksonville Examiner reported an article discussing the preferences of teenagers in today’s society. The study presented in this article displayed that 46 percent of teens and young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 would prefer using the Internet rather than driving in their car (Scheff). Researchers believe this is caused by social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. This study has led the auto industry to enhance â€Å"smartphone-type features like GPS devices, Bluetooth, and iPod docks into their cars† (Scheff). With these enhancements, those that drive can spend more time paying attention to the road than looking down at their phones. This issue of changing priorities also refers back to academic performance as well. Many students have the urge to spend more time on social networking sites rather spend their time studying or doing homework. A survey in Ohio State University discovered a correlation between those who have Facebook accounts and the affects it has on their academic performance. These students see Facebook as a way to keep in contact with friends and family and obtain a social life while professors see it as a distraction in the classroom (Villalobos). Technology is changing what people think should be important and is affecting the tasks of everyday life causing an increase in procrastination. Given these points, it is proven that the use of technology takes up more of peoples time and causes society to lose focus of what is around them. Once someone picks up their phone, plugs in their IPod or logs on to their computer, they no longer care for anything else. It is used in jobs, homes, and schools. Even while people drive, they chat and text on their phones. Society no longer sees the need to associate with their own kind. They would rather spend time with an object made up of metal and plastic. Social media is a great way to stay socially active, but on the other hand, the misuse keeps the public from spending time with important people and paying attention to important events. Instead of sitting in front of a computer screen or TV, go out and watch a movie or instead of texting a friend, meet up somewhere and hangout. The public needs to reconsider their use of technology, so that they can spend more time living life.

Albanian crises of 97 essays

Albanian crises of 97 essays It is not easy at all to try to understand and define what happened in Albania between end of 96 till summer 97. It is almost impossible to really tell why it happened, whether it was organized if it was, what went wrong and what should have be done to avoid that. One thing is for sure though The State did NOT function. The state didnt function in several aspects and dimensions. The government was not able to prevent the expansion of the pyramid schemes. It also was not able to warn its citizens in due time about the risk that they had taken. On the other side, the citizens themselves were expecting everything from their government. And when things went wrong, the Government was on the spotlight. Everybody blamed the state and forgot they the citizens form an integral part of the state. People didnt understand that by attacking the state and its institutions, they were attacking themselves. Dont ask what the Government can do for you, but what you can do for your Government-. Unfortunately most of the citizens didnt see it this way. There can be several factors that can explain why people reacted that way. History of regimes in Albania. Albania has had very short period that can be considered that they had an independent state and the government that served them, and that is from 1920 till the Italian occupation . For the rest of the time we have either been under occupation, thus not considering the government as Albanian, or under dictatorship so that the government was serving the dictator and not the people. Manipulation of the situation by the opposition. The opposition played a very destructive role by putting narrow political interests above wider national ones. Another notion that did not function was the hierarchy. The army, the police forces and other public officials/servant didnt ...

Financial Management case study 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Financial Management case study 2 - Essay Example Based on the probability distribution of the rate of return, you can compute two key parameters, the expected rate of return and the standard deviation of rate of return. This in fact is the measure of risk for a single asset. State Probability Return on Stock A Return on Stock B 1 20% 5% 50% 2 30% 10% 30% 3 30% 15% 10% 4 20% 20% -10% Given a probability distribution of returns, the expected return can be calculated using the following equation:Where, E [R] is the expected return on the stock; N = no: of states; pi is the probability of state i and Ri is return on the stock in state i. So we see that Stock B offers a higher expected return than Stock A. However, that is only part of the story; we haven't yet considered risk. Given an assets expected return, its variance can be calculated using the following equation and the standard deviation is calculated as the positive square root of the variance. Although Stock B offers a higher expected return than Stock A, it also is riskier since its variance and standard deviation are greater than Stock A's. Advantages of Risk and Return: It enables investors and entrepreneurs in taking capital budgeting decisions. In case of risk chances of future losses can be foreseen. Disadvantages of Risk and Return: Uncertainty lies in decisions taken based on these. Calculations might be difficult at times. (b) Explain, with examples, how you would measure the risk of a portfolio. Most investors invest in a portfolio of assets, as they do not want to pout all their eggs in one basket. Hence what really matters to them is not the risk and return of stocks in isolation, but the risk and return of the portfolio as a whole. Expected return of a portfolio: The expected return of a... Most investors invest in a portfolio of assets, as they do not want to pout all their eggs in one basket. Hence what really matters to them is not the risk and return of stocks in isolation, but the risk and return of the portfolio as a whole. Expected return of a portfolio: The expected return of a portfolio is simply the weighted average of the expected returns on the assets comprising the portfolio. For eg : when a portfolio consists of two securities then the expected return is Consider the following two stock portfolios and their respective returns (in per cent) over the last six months. Both portfolios end up increasing in value from $1,000 to $1,058. However, they clearly differ in volatility. Portfolio A's monthly returns range from -1.5% to 3% whereas Portfolio B's range from -9% to 12%. The standard deviation of the returns is a better measure of volatility than the range because it takes all the values into account. The standard deviation of the six returns for Portfolio A is *1.52; for Portfolio B it is *7.24.

Digital Marketing Plan for an online multi-brand retail Essay

Digital Marketing Plan for an online multi-brand retail - Essay Example It is targeting to cater to the online shopping needs of modern females of UK, by offering the next generation trends in the fashion segment. Situational Analysis The UK is recognized as one of the leading markets for manufacturing and evolution of the fashion in the global arena with textile industries producing 8.5 billion pounds of finished goods (Fashionunited, 2009). As of the year 2010, the UK fashion industry has been valued at around 21 billion pounds (Guardian, 2010).The recession and the slowdown in the markets all over the globe, created a down trend in the industry. Further slowdown happened in this particular sector, as more and more consumers tried cutting their expenses. Also, the continuous fear emerging out of the slowdown in the Euro zone and possible chances of a double dip recession has continued to impact the economy as well as public spending for the fashionable clothing sector (Centre For Retail Research, 2012). This has led to the retaliation of fears contributing to a possible bleak outlook for the UK fashion and garments sector. Also, there has been a unique factor that has been realised and noticed in this particular industry for the year 2011. The online model of purchase, which has been prompted by extensive promotion for the online model of shopping has started to cannibalize the in store sales. This has further impacted and hampered the sales that are happening in stores for the entire year of 2011 (Centre For Retail Research, 2012). Objectives The high end ‘New Waves’ is trying to act as a platform for providing a collaboration between the new and emerging pool of new designers as well as the fashion industry of UK. The primary focus of New Waves online model is to act as an online window for the fashion conscious consumers of UK and introducing them to the next big thing that is going to happen in the fashion industry of UK. They are making efforts to aim for a 65% recall from the total target segment, within a period of 6 months duration. It also is trying to achieve the objective of promoting itself as a national level clothing brand in the UK Market. Strategy Segmentation Marketing segmentation is an important and vital role, which is employed by all organizations large or small and is considered as an extremely strong weapon in identifying the target consumers (Charles, Hair & McDaniel, 2011, p. 260). New Waves, in an attempt to promote itself as a national level brand in the UK market are essentially targeting the modern fashion conscious female consumers of the UK zone falling within the age bracket of 18-36 yrs. Targeting The modern generations of consumers, who are mostly falling within the specified age group, are increasingly becoming tech savvy and are more increasingly inclined towards the internet. So, it will be very much essential for the brand to target and communicate as well as interact with the consumers in order to make the brand’s presence felt online to these young consumers. Positioning In an effort to communicate the brand well in the minds of the modern consumers of UK, New Wave should increasingly use a combination of st rategies and tactics for promoting the concept online. The best way to make this happen is to use a number of effective online promotional tactics. Tactics and Actions New Waves can utilize a variety of online promotional strategy and techniques in an effort to market its platform and communicate effectively to the young target segment. In an effort to communicate with the young fashionable modern consumers, New Waves should think of making its presence felt by tying up and collaborating with various online fashion magazines like MC Magazine,

Textin while driving Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Textin while driving - Research Paper Example The most important body parts that are involved in driving are the hands, legs, and eyes. When texting, a person is also using hands and eyes for maximum attention. When driving and texting are mixed, it implies that the concentration of the driver is on one thing. In most cases, it is usually on texting, considering the need to respond or convey a particular message. Driving while texting is a traffic offense, punishable by the law. It is, in fact, a form of attempted murder considering the dangers and risks that the person is exposing other passengers and pedestrians into. Various cases of accidents have been reported due to the negligence of the driver as they were texting. Apart from the loss of concentration, in the process of browsing and replying to text messages, a driver is likely to be exposed to some news that may ultimately take away their attention and even make them unable to drive (Klauer 56). Texting is sometimes considered a harmless activity for drivers especially when they have to reply to an important message. They feel it will only take a few seconds of their time, and they will; be done with it. However, within those few seconds on a busy road, the driver is likely to lose control or not notice a pedestrian crossing or an oncoming vehicle. It is understood that drivers also need to communicate and get in touch while they are driving, yet doing it while in the action of driving is risky. Instead, drivers are advised to pull off the road and carry on with the necessary communication instead of risking the lives of other commuters. In most cases, passengers watch driver’s texting as they drive without raising their voices and hence contributing to the risks and dangers they are being exposed to. Even though it is the driver involved in the risky affair of texting, once an accident happens, it will not just be for the driver but also other commuters. Passengers

Do New Wars Pose Difficult Challenges Politics Essay

Do New Wars Pose Difficult Challenges Politics Essay Civil wars in todays modern world have become increasingly described as new wars ever since the end of the Cold War era due to a perceived change in the format of warfare and the emergence of war economies as central to internal skirmishes. Some scholars argue this evolution in warfare and intrastate conflict requires adjustments and changes to the post conflict reconstruction process due to new challenges new wars creates in comparison to the old wars of the past. This essay argues that there is in fact little evolution in warfare since the end of the Cold War and in fact many of the characteristics of the so-called new wars are in fact present in conflicts in the past. It is for this reason that new wars do not pose more difficult challenges any more than the already complicated problems associated with post conflict reconstruction; although some changes are necessary to adjust the course of development, it is in fact the growth and advancement of media and the communications secto rs that have led to an increased focus on civil wars that has pushed them into the public arena and granted them a new status. The first part of this essay will analyse the new wars thesis posited by Kaldor and outline the characteristics attributed to new wars; this will be followed by the convincing criticisms by many academics that argue new wars are not in fact new and assists the final section of the essay that discusses the post conflict reconstruction process and argues contemporary conflict does not post a more difficult challenge to the post conflict reconstruction process anymore than old wars do. The concept of new wars was first written about in detail by Mary Kaldor at the end of the 1990s, as she attempted to define the characteristics of low-intensity conflicts and distinguish them from traditional state versus state conflicts of the past. Kaldor argues that towards the end of the 20th Century, in particular in the post-Cold War order, a new form of organized violence has emerged, with blurred distinctions between war, organized crime and large-scale human rights violations (2006, pp.1-2). This thesis has gained considerable academic support as scholars notice the trend in the decrease of interstate wars and the increase in violence within states (Holsti, 1996, p.40). New wars are characterised as criminal, depoliticized, private and even predatory in their nature, whilst the old wars of the past were ideological, political and noble (Kalyvas, 2006, p.100). Kaldor thus believes there has been a progression in the nature of warfare and conflict since the Cold War as intern al conflicts become the norm and interstate battles become far less common. Kaldor argues that New wars can be contrasted with earlier wars in terms of their goals, the methods of warfare and how they are financed (2006, p.7); these differences will be outlined in the following section to explain the new features of new wars. The goals of new wars are based on identity politics, especially ethnic identity, rather than ideological differences or geo-political ambitions, and often occur due to the erosion of state autonomy and state failure (Kaldor, 2006, pp.5-7). Groups will claim control of the state or certain areas of the state in the name of ethnicity, religion or tribe (Kaldor, 2005, p.212). The Bosnian conflict during the 1990s is often depicted as the archetypal example of a new war as it displays this identity conflict clearly (Kaldor, 2006, p.33). Due to its ethnic diversity of Muslims, Serbs and Croats (as well as several other ethnic identities), it was no surprise that conflict arose between the groupings as the Bosnian Serbs and Bosnian Croats set about ethnic cleansing in an attempt to establish ethnically homogenous territories (Kaldor, 2006, pp.34-5). Furthermore, the attrition of state power means the monopoly over violence is severely limited, which leads to widespread skirmishes and conf licts as groups compete to fill the vacuum created through state collapse (Newman, 2004, p.175). The warring parties in the Bosnian war described themselves as states and made use of the former state apparatus in order to finance, resource and run their campaigns (Kaldor, 2005, p.214). Globalisation has resulted in a cleavage between rich and poor that results in conflict and structural violence (Berdal, 2003, p.479) and also a cleavage between cosmopolitanism and the politics of particularist identities (Kaldor, 2006, p.7). There is a growing them and us divide as identity politics play a more dominant role in how individuals see themselves to each other. This of course increases the inevitability and the probability of conflict among groups of differing identities The form of combat has also changed as guerrilla and counter-insurgency tactics become the norm (Kaldor, 2006, p.8), as the nature of conflict adapts a distinctively politically chaotic and military atrocious character (Snow, 1996, p.105). In the past, guerrilla warfare has aimed to capture hearts and minds of civilians and the population; however, the new warfare uses counterinsurgency methods of destabilisation, aiming to create fear and hatred amongst civilians instead, using this to gain support or at least prevent citizens from disobeying orders (Kalyvas, 2001, p.109). New wars appear to lack military order or discipline (Angstrom, 2005, p.8) which often leads to extreme violence and barbarism, directed in particular at civilians as a deliberate strategy (Mello, 2010, p.299). This strategy of civilian targeting rests in the aim to control populations, inducing destabilization and terror in an attempt to remove those of a different identity through violent and barbaric killings a s well as techniques of intimidation (Kaldor, 2006, p.9). The genocide in Rwanda or the random atrocities committed against civilians in Sarajevo highlight this dark side of new war (Snow, 1996, p.105), and in situations such as Bosnia, Somalia, Rwanda and Liberia, the military objective was the systematic murder and terrorizing of civilian populations (Snow, 1996, p.ix). Civilian casualties and forced displacement has increased in proportion to all causalities in conflict since the 1990s, highlighting this deliberative civilian targeting, further assisted by a blurring of boundaries between civilians and combatants as public authority breaks down as part of state failure (Newman, 2004, p.175). The final feature that distinguishes new wars from old wars is the form of financing that occurs; war economies of the past focused on using resources to defeat the enemy (Broodryk, 2010, p.11), whilst the new wars utilise looting, criminal networks, diasporic support and taxation of humanitarian aid to provide resources for their conflict (Kaldor, 2005, p.216). The simplest form of financing the war effort is through looting, robbery, extortion and hostage-taking and is seen in a number of contemporary wars (Kaldor, 2006, p.108). However, some war economies utilise networks of legal and illegal trade, arms and drug trafficking, corrupt governments and supportive diasporas that influence the outbreak and perpetuation of violent conflicts (Mello, 2010, p.300). The new war economies involve the fragmentation of the state as it cannot monopolise production and employment in order to fund their war cause (Broodryk, 2010, p.11). Resources are instead traded outside of the country to private companies lacking any interest in the conflict, only aiming to profit on the internal disruption (Broodryk, 2010, p.11). Kofi Annan highlights the economic struggle as central to internal conflicts: The pursuit of diamonds, drugs, timber, concessions and other valuable commodities drives todays internal wars. In some countries the capacity of the State to extract resources from society and to allocate patronage is the prize to be fought over (Annan, 1999, emphasis in original). This creates a globalized war economy in which rivalry between criminal groups occurs over resources or illegal commercial activities (Newman, 2004, p.176). The process of resource capture thus means there is no real desire of victory as groups aim to maintain resource profitability and the power they capture (Newman, 2004, p.176) the state of war is preferred to peace as it provides a cover for illegal economic activities by warlords and non-state actors (Melander et al., 2009, p.511) However, there are a number of academics that criticise Kaldors new wars thesis, arguing that many of the new features of new wars can be found in earlier wars, and that the differences between old and new wars are not as dichotomous as made out and are often exaggerated (Newman, 2004, p.173; Mello, 2010, p.305). This essay agrees with this to an extent a number of the features of new wars that Kaldor outlines in her argument are also present in wars of the past and suggest there is little new about modern warfare in internal conflict situations, as will be outlined in the following section. In terms of empirical evidence for new wars, Newman accepts that civil war have been more frequent than interstate war, but argues that both forms of conflict have decreased since the mid-1990s, with the exception of a spike in intrastate conflict in the early 1990s (2004, p.180). This, as Newman believes, shows there has not been an evolution of new wars in the post-Cold War period, and infact, the probability of country being in conflict is not similar to that at the end of the 1950s (Newman, 2004, p.180). In addition, Melander et al. argue battle severity (the number of deaths in battle) has declined in the post-Cold War era, whilst violence against civilians in civil conflict has also decreased (2009, p.507). Kalyvas explores the features of the new war convention, contrasting them to those of old wars, and concludes there are probably more similarities than differences, and that the new wars thesis is flawed in a number of ways. Firstly, he takes the argument that ideological concerns were the motivations of old wars, claiming that in fact, many wars in the past have involved high levels of looting (such as the Russian and Chinese Revolutions) and that many combatants actually made decisions to fight based on local considerations (Kalyvas, 2001, pp.106-7). Many soldiers are usually stimulated due to group pressures such as comradeship, respect and network ties such as family or friendship ties (Kalyvas, 2001, p.108). This can be seen in Irish Revolution and Civil War, where often the ideology at the centre of the war was rarely discussed amongst combatants and the conflict was based instead on family factions and old feuds (Hart, 1999, pp.264-266). Moreover, the depiction of new wars as lacking any ideological movement can be challenged; many rebel forces of contemporary civil wars have been stigmatised as missing any ideological motivations for combat, but in fact many hold an in-depth understanding of their own participation from a political perspective, as shown in Sierra Leone (Kalyvas, 2001, p.104). The portrayal of contemporary warfare existing through a move from chivalrous fighting to that of barbarity by militia and warlords is unfounded (Newman, 2004, p.181); the use of gratuitous violence can be found in old civil wars such in America, Russia and Spain, whilst the practice of child abduction to create child soldiers may be associated with contemporary Africa, but was common in conflicts in Afghanistan (during the Soviet invasion), Peru, Guatemala and the China (Kalyvas, 2001, pp.114-5). The horrific violence and barbarism portrayed in Kaldors new war thesis is also visible in past wars; the deliberate targeting of civilians can be seen in the Mexican Revolution at the start of the 20th Century, whilst World War II represents perhaps the most widespread cases of atrocities in the form of the Holocaust, the German advance into the Soviet Union (with huge civilian displacement) and the Russian advance on Berlin (with numerous cases of rape or sexual brutality) (Newman, 2004, pp.182-3). It is for this reason that Madame de Staà «l remarks that all civil wars are more of less similar in their atrocity, in the upheaval in which they throw men and in the influence they give to violent and tyrannical passions (cited in Kalyvas, 2001, pp.114-5). It is also possible to argue that modern intrastate conflicts do not utilise senseless violence, and that actually the portrayal of violence is defined by culture those in the West find the use machete as more barbaric than mass killings through bombings (Kalyvas, 2001, p.115) who is it to say which is the more atrocious and inhumane? Furthermore, Kaldor contends the violence rebel and militia movements use is not as gratuitous as made out, and in fact it is often strategic and selective Kalyvas argues the Algeria massacres, or the tactics used by RENAMO in Mozambique were part of larger strategies, whilst the forced amputation of womens hands in Sierra Leone can be seen as calculated to instil fear (2001, pp.115- 6). This is not to deny the acts as barbaric, but it certainly weakens the depiction of the violence as undisciplined and random. A case study that suggests new wars are not in fact new can be found in the Congo civil war during the 1960s; Newman argues this conflict closely follows the new wars model and identifies with several characteristics of Kaldors thesis (2004, p.184). The conflict arose after Belgium withdrew from Congo in June 1960, resulting in a political crisis as the centralised government broke down and disorder erupted. The Katanga province, rich in minerals, declared independence from the Congolese state after receiving support from the Belgian mining companies who were protecting their interests and promoting secession in the background (Newman, 2004, p.184). Conflict and struggles against the new leadership of the Republic of Congo was motivated primarily by material aggrandizement, particularly amongst militias and private mercenaries; at the same time, ethnic and religious differences stimulated the violence further, with some fighting orientated around clear political agendas (such as the unitary state against Katangan secession), whilst most fighting revolved around the interests of warlords and local factions (Newman, 2004, p.184). State failure and the breakdown of authority led to social disorder and the emergence of a war economy as mercenaries attempted to perpetuate conflict due to the benefits they gained not only from their employers but also from illegal activities such as arms sales (Newman, 2004, p.184). This case study therefore highlights the presence of new war features during the Cold War period, with state failure and collapse leading to social disorder and conflicting identity groups competing for resources. This suggests that new wars are in fact not new but have always been present; it is instead the emergence from the Cold War era that simply brought these conflicts to the fore and the expansion of media and communications that has led to the reporting of the internal disputes around the globe. The essay will now turn to the question of whether new wars pose more difficult challenges to postconflict reconstruction, and whether new approaches to state rebuilding after internal civil war are required. Although the essay has argued throughout that new wars are not completely new, it has also noted that some characteristics of contemporary intrastate conflict have evolved from those of the past, and there have been some changed in the forms of conflict. It is for these reasons that the post conflict reconstruction process must make a few adaptations in order to assist a states recovery after civil war. As Newman outlines, evolution and advancement in historical, technological and social-economic terms have meant the nature of conflict has also changed (2004, p.185), and therefore the reconstruction process will face some new challenges. In many post-conflict nations, the levels of crime and human rights abuses remain high as warlords and militia remain at large, making use of t heir illegal economies created through civil war the are weaknesses in the reconstruction process that mean identity politics and the new wars rebuilding programmes are not tackled head on (Kaldor, 2006, p.x). At a basic level, post conflict reconstruction must address a wide and complex range of challenges in states ravaged by internal conflict the prevention of future armed conflict, the rebuilding of effective state institutions, recreation of a social fabric, redressing of human rights abuses and the nursing of a health civil society are all central to the reconstruction process (Call Cook, 2003, p.135). The prevention of further armed conflict is particularly important in the case of new wars as it is essential to discourage warlords, militia and other forces from restarting and perpetuating conflict in order to sustain the resource capture that is common in contemporary warfare. This therefore means the war economy that existed during the conflict must be replaced by an effective state economy that has a monopoly of the nations resources and can prevent resource competition from accumulating and resulting in a fresh break out of conflict. Furthermore, the prevention of future confl ict is not simply a matter of removing arms access and taking guns from the combatants, but it is also the establishment of accountably, transparent, and participatory systems of authority (Call Cook, 2003, p.135). In the aftermath of a new war, it is essential for restructuring forces to quickly create a form of state authority that is accountable to the people and is capable of solving the grievances of those involved in the conflict. Kaldor stresses the importance for reconstruction to primarily involve the restructuring of political authorities and civil society, in the forms of law and order and the mobilisation of political groups (2006, p.145). The integration of all identities is also essential in order to remove the binary them and us dichotomy than can threaten to reignite ethnic or religious differences and disputes. The establishment of law and order requires disarmament, demobilisation, policing or training police forces, arresting of war criminals and the re-establishment of the justice system (Kaldor, 2006, p.146). However, it is not that simple; disarmament through buy-back programmes results in the handing back of average or poor weaponry whilst the high-tech arms are held onto (Kaldor, 2006, p.146). Furthermore, as new wars are essentially a combination of war and criminality, law enforcement must involve both soldiers and police in order to provide adequate security and authority. Infrastructure s uch as basic services, transport and production needs to be restored at both regional and local levels in order to re-establish the economy and reduce the need to humanitarian aid (Kaldor, 2006, p.147). Humanitarian assistance also needs to become more targeted in order to remove war economies and their siphoning of aid, and also to prevent over-reliance on aid that means the economy cannot be rebuilt. For instance, in Somalia, food provisions were high and numerous in an attempt to ensure all of those in need actually received the aid; however, this meant food prices in the state fell, creating an environment where it was no longer economically viable for farmers to produce food (Kaldor, 2006, p.144). Another example of aid problems can be seen in El Salvador; here, and IMF stabilisation programme attempted to provide monetary assistance for the country to reconstruct. However, the strict spending limits of the IMF provisions meant the state could not afford to build a civil police force and enact buy-back schemes for disarmament that was required by the peace programme to help reintegrate combatants back into society (Kaldor, 2006, p.143). In this instance, therefore, humanitarian assistance in post conflict reconstruction needs to become more targeted and utilise local knowledge for it to be effective at rebuilding after a new war. This essay has only touched on the surface of the reconstruction process after a new war, providing a basic outline of state rebuilding. However, it explains the need to adapt certain procedures uses in reconstruction of the state after a new war the need to retarget and develop aid provision, the importance of establishing effective authoritarian institutions to enforce security and peace, and the importance of reconstructing state structures that enable grievances to be addressed, civil society to be rebuilt, war economies removed, and the implementation of policies to prevent future state failure and conflict. To conclude then, this essay points to the need for perspective when approaching new wars and post conflict reconstruction each struggle will need its own unique form of reconstruction, and therefore the post conflict rebuilding process is a case-by-case thesis, with no singular set of reformation practices or factors and the presence or lack of certain factors associated with new wars is down to the unique contexts and mitigations of specific conflicts rather than linear historical changes (Newman, 2004, p.180). There has indeed been a decrease in state vs. state conflict commonly associated with the past, whilst globalisation, decolonisation and the following state building, and the resurgence of identity politics have all suggested a shift from warfare of the past and therefore the need to adjust reconstruction policies (Newman, 2004, p.180), and indeed some changes are required. However, it is perhaps more appropriate to highlight the rise and expansion of the media and communic ations as an explanation for the perceived changes in conflict many of the factors Kaldor outlines in her thesis are not in fact new and have been present in past skirmishes it is simply the prominence and attention these conflicts now receive from the media that has resulted in changes of perceptions and ideas of civil wars (Newman, 2004, p.179). The first section of this essay outlined the basis of Kaldors New Wars argument and the factors attributed to contemporary civil war; following this, the essay provided and agreed with the criticisms of the new wars thesis, highlighting the fact than many of the characteristics of new wars are not as new as Kaldor makes out. Finally, the essay contended that contemporary wars do not provide many more difficult challenges for post conflict reconstruction in comparison to old wars, rather small adjustments must be made in order to account for the rise of globalisation and the modern world.

The Young Years of Queen Victoria Essay -- Queen Victoria Childhood Es

The Young Years of Queen Victoria Victoria was born on a spring day, May 24th, 1819, at Kensington Palace, in the then quiet suburb of London. "Plumb as a partridge" was her father's description of the baby, and she certainly bore a marked resemblance to her sturdy and robust Hanoverian ancestors who had ruled Great Britain for little more than a century at the time of her birth. By 1798 Victoria's grandfather, King George III, had reigned for nearly sixty years, but he was now old and feeble. The symptoms of his terrible illness, porphyria, seemed to his doctors to be those of madness, and for years the King had be confined in Windsor Castle while his eldest son, George, Prince of Wales, ruled in his stead. Victoria's father, Edward, Duke of Kent, was the old King's fourth son, but since his three elder brothers were without heirs, there seemed a good chance that he might one day himself become King. He had married late in life, when he was over 50, to supply an heir to the throne in the younger generation. Between the seven princes and five princesses of the royal family, not one of them had a legitimate child to carry on the succession, until 1819 saw three royal births within two months. The Prince of Wales had one child, the Princess Charlotte, who in time would have become Queen, but she died in childbirth in the autumn of 1817. It was her death, which drove her uncles into marriage, to father heirs to replace her in the line of succession. Indirectly, Charlotte herself had found her uncle Edward his bride: the Princess had married a minor German prince, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and, deeply in love with him, suggested to the Duke of Kent that he would find a wife in Leopold's widowed sister, Victoire. In fact, Edward and Victoire met in 1816, but then there seemed no urgency in the matter of their marriage. But soon after Charlotte's death, Edward proposed to Victoire, and the couple was married the following summer. Victoire of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was 31 years old when she married the English Duke, a pretty woman with dark hair, with a fine figure and lively ways. She had been married once before to Emich Charles who died in 1814, leaving his widow with two small children and the many demands of nobility which forced to test her wits and strength. Her marriage with the Duke of Kent seemed to promise Victoire a brighter future,... ...he Duchess of Kent regained her daughter's affection. â€Å"I love peace and quiet, I hate politics and turmoil. We women are not made for governing, and if we are good women, we must dislike these masculine occupations. There are times which force one to take interest in them, and I do, of course intensely.† (Victorian Station, P.2. 2000) Bibliography 1. Arnstein, Walter L. â€Å"Victoria (queen).† Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. CD-ROM. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 1993-1998. 2. Erickson, Carolly. Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1997 3. Farley, M. Foster. â€Å"Queen Victoria’s Childhood.† Online. Internet Explorer. Accessed 1 March 2000. Available http://www.thehistorynet.com/BritishHeritage/articles/1998/11982_text.htm 4. Miller, Ilana. â€Å"The Life & Issue of Queen Victoria.† Online. Internet Explorer. Accessed 1 March 2000. Available http://www.likesbooks.com/victoria.html 5. â€Å"Victorian Station.† Excerpts from Queen Victoria’s journals and personal correspondence. Online. Internet Explorer. Accessed 1 March 2000. Available http://victorianstation.com/queenquotes.htm