Free sample - The Pros and Cons of Video Games. translation missing

The Pros and Cons of Video Games. The Pros and Cons of Video GamesThe world of electronic gaming has undergone radical transformation since it was conceived more than two decades ago. At the beginning, games like Super Mario Brothers, and Pong were just childish, enjoyable, and essentially harmless. However, today, video gaming has become a thriving industry that has a wide range of customers, spanning various ages, genders, nationalities, and moral beliefs. Just like books, television, and movies, some video games are aiming at the older audience through the use of violence, sex, and adult content. Despite the existence of a rating system and recognition for people wishing to purchase adult video games, some politicians and parents claim that video games have a hugely negative impact on the young generation. In efforts to locate the blame about the content of video games, politicians and developers alike seem to have forgotten that parents have a responsibility to make decisions on the type of material that is suitable for their children. Farrales observes that Video game content appears to have become an issue for the first time when Mortal Kombat was released in 1993 (12). Many parents complained the high degree of violence evident in the graphic depictions of blood, fighting, and death. The ESRB (Electronic Software Ratings Board) was formed by the Entertainment Software Association with the aim of coming up with a rating system for monitoring the content of video games. Fernandez indicates that video games stand accused of bringing about violence, obesity, and lousy grades (3). However, some people beg to differ, pointing out that the games are ideal for children’s mental well being. Video games are not just hard, they are adaptively hard. The games tend to challenge the players at the edge of their mental abilities. As players become better and score higher points, they are challenged to move up the ladder of more demanding play levels. This adaptive challenge can be stunningly powerful in the case of entertaining video games. Scientists point out to the importance of video games in ascertaining the extent to which the human brain is malleable. In this regard, fast-paced video games that are action-packed have been proven, in different studies, to boost spatial perception, visual acuity and the ability to pick out objects easily in a scene. Complex games that are strategy-based can significantly improve many cognitive skills, including reasoning and memory. These findings fit in well with the scientists’ increasing understanding of the malleability of the human brain. Researchers are now aware of the way in which practicing and learning an extremely challenging task can change the human brain. The question of generalizing gaming situations to non-game situations remains one of the main issues that surround many emerging game software being marketed as a way of keeping the human neurons spry as we continue to age. It is still unclear whether these games are helpful in situations that are outside the context of the game. However, in a promising study carried out in 2008, senior citizens who began playing Rise of Nations, a game devoted to nation building and acquisition of territory, started improving on many cognitive abilities, thereby performing impressively on various subsequent tests of memory, multitasking, and reasoning. The tests were administered after training was carried out for eight months. Unfortunately, no follow-up testing was carried out to determine whether the gains lasted or not. There are attempts by researchers to concentrate on the most crucial aspects of off-the-shelf games, potentially allowing designers to come up with many new games that can boost the human brain power. In the same light, there has also been some focus on determining how video games can be used to promote socially acceptable behaviors, particularly actions that can be of help to other people. Unlike, say books and movies, video games do not just have content, they are also defined by rules that are clearly stipulated. In every video game, certain actions are rewarded while others are punished. For this reason, they contain an immense potential to train children about values and ethics. However, the same games could also be used to reward antisocial behavior just as easily as the pro social behavior. A significant number of off-the-shelf games contain strong pro-social themes, for instance, the Oregon Trail or The Sims. These two video games make the players fully responsible for the well being of each other. A big challenge for developers of new games will be to figure out ways of wrapping virtuous features into a highly engaging package. Ultimately, quips Gallagher, every video game should be an entertaining experience (2). On the other hand, it is true that some of the most popular video games are the violent ones. The reason why the market is flooded with violent games is that violence sells. People enjoy action-packed violent games most. It is rarely a matter of contention whether a game is violent or not. The contention arises regarding how violent the games actually are. In an interview with Dr. Craig Anderson, a leader in the current research on the various effects of prolonged exposure to violent computer and video games on aggressive behavior, the General Aggression Model was discussed at length. Dr. Anderson pointed out that he was motivated to research about aggression in video games by the work he did on the model as well as on media violence literature. Dr. Anderson pointed out that although there were hundreds of studies on aggression and violent video games, many questions remained unanswered. Students were looking for compelling and publishable research topics, and in this way, they were able to come up with many gaps in the literature. In the beginning, Dr. Anderson looked at priming issues in the context of media violence effects. However, after debating with cognitive psychologists, the researcher thought about modifying the Stroop test, although he chose to adopt reading reaction time tasks among participants. Dr. Anderson pointed out that many researchers in the media violence generally think that everyone who is high on trait aggression is influenced more by exposure to media violence than by anything else. In other words, the conviction among many scholars is that highly aggressive people are the ones who are most susceptible to the video games’ harmful effects. In the early years of video gaming, violence used to be cartoonish. In games such as Space Invaders and Wonder Boy, when a player killed an enemy, this would be shown by the unfortunate subject disappearing in a small explosion or a cloud of smoke and debris. At the time and with the technology that was current, these games were considered violent. Today, with improvements in technology, people no longer disappear in a cloud of smoke and debris. Today, enemies have to bleed before they die. The grotesque image of the corpse also has to appear, complete with a gunshot wound. A game such as Metal Gear Solid 2 portrays enemies performing elaborate maneuvers when a player shoots them. It is always thoroughly entertaining to shoot them at the limbs and to see them go limp, or to shoot at their radio, rendering it useless. Some people say that what has increased is the level of realism and not violence, since the aim has always been to shoot and kill anything that comes in one’s way. However, this very aspect of realism makes some forms of violence appear acceptable, for example, in Wonder Boy, and others unacceptable, for example, in Metal Gear Solid 2. Yet others do not notice any difference in various types of violence, insisting that violence of whatever nature brings about the same effect on society. Farrales highlights the views of General Everett Koop, a U.S. surgeon, who once claimed that home and arcade video games are among the top three reasons where there is family violence (4). There are many instances that would perfectly make Koop’s statement on the negative impact violent video games on behavior agreeable. However, there are also many instances that portray violence as having little or no any negative effects on the individuals playing them. Some kids play video games and end up becoming violent people. Others play them but do not become increasingly aggressive. These varying outcomes make it difficult for the effects of video violence on all players to be determined accurately. Meanwhile, the most undesirable aspects of violence in video games include lack of punishment for killing, constant killing and hurting of other people, and perpetual justification for killing other people. This situation makes players to start accepting killing as an acceptable means of solving problems. They are also made to believe that there is nothing wrong with violence. In other words, violence is desensitized, and players start seeing human beings as mere objects rather than human beings, thus drastically lowering their empathy levels. Of course older players can differentiate between fantasy and reality, but children cannot. Surprisingly, argues Anthes, these older people are affected by video games as well, though not in the same way as kids. Among kids, the violence contained in video games leads to increase in aggression. A common effect of video games is to make players developed abnormally high adrenaline rates, which may result to hyper-aggressiveness together with the symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder. Increase in adrenaline rates leads to stimulus addiction, a common response among children who are often immersed in violent video games. People who suffer from stimulus addiction require stimulation that is increasingly strong in order to attain the same emotional experience. Sometimes, this search for stimulation leads them so go looking for more violent video games. Meanwhile, the question of whether video games result in violence in the real world remains unanswered. Many parents are worried that violent games will not only bring about restlessness in their children, they will make them more violent their behavior as well. Farrales points out to the research that was done in 1998 on a group of children aged between 5 and 7 years (9). In this study, the children were observed to imitate during free play whatever they had experienced in video games. Children who had played games with violent themes were aggressive, while those who played active, nonviolent games reflected their experiences in their play. The level of stimulation in both cases appeared to be more profound in girls than in boys. This could be because, generally, males are exposed to violence more, making a significant increase in aggression to be more profound in females. Unlike TV or movies, which present a predominantly passive viewing experience, violent video games require an individual to shoot, stab, rob, and kill enemies actively. With a movie, even if one was to watch it several times, some additional details may be obtained but it is fundamentally about the same thing. With a video game, many things can be changed according to one’s way of thinking, level of play, and dexterity in pressing the control buttons. Fernandez points out that Cho Seung-Hui, a student who killed 32 people at the Virginia Tech Campus back in 2007, is reported to have been played video games obsessively, and many commentators have been instinctively linking game violence with the killings in the campus. Claims of Cho Seung-Hui’s stint with obsessive video games were debunked by the campus panel that investigated the killings. The obvious problem with the desensitization claim made on video games after the Virginia Tec incident is that millions of adults and kids play violent video games every day and they never engage in any violent behavior. In fact, during the past decade when video games have surged in popularity, violence by youth has declined. According to a study that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention released, the number of school killings reduced considerably between 1992 and 2006. However, this is not where the debate ends. Although video games may not directly result in school shootings, it is undoubtedly strongly linked with aggressive feelings. Those who are opposed to computer and video games would want to see them censored. These people cite many reasons for their stance. They insist that over-dependence on video games fosters social isolation, since in some cases the games are played alone. They also point out that women are portrayed as the weaker sex, sexually provocative and always helpless. Moreover, game environments are always based on gender bias, aggression and plots of violence. Additionally, video games have inspired criticism because of the way in which they fail to provide actions that require creativity and independent thought. Instead, they confuse fantasy with reality. In most of these games, there is no alternative route to winning other than being a violent player. Furthermore, not surprisingly, academic achievement tends to be negatively related to the overall time that is spent playing computer and video games. Anand indicates that there is a correlation between use of video games and academic performance, if the grade-point average (GPA) and scholastic aptitude tests (SAT) on students who use video game are anything to go by (555). According to Anand’s study, there is a negative correlation between the time spent by student playing video games and the student’s SAT and GPA scores. The research findings presented by Anand suggest that video and computer games could be having a detrimental effect on the GPA of the individual, and possibly, on SAT scores as well. Although the results portray statistical dependence, it still remains rather difficult to prove a cause-and-effect relationship. This difficulty arises from the complex nature of academic performance as well as student life. In a New York Times article published on the November 15, 2010 edition, the question of whether stores should sell violent video games to minors was raised. Indeed, the question was not of the article writer’s own making, it was being debated by the Supreme Court in an attempt to determine what the writers of the Bill of Rights would have thought about a violent video game like Postal 2. In the New York Times Article, Adam Liptak wrote that the justices struggled to define the manner in which the First Amendment ought to apply to video games. A suggestion was made on the imposition of a $1,000 fine on all stores that continue to sell violent video comes to minors. The violence in the computer games, according to the Supreme Court, is characterized by acts of killing, dismembering, maiming, and sexually assaulting a human being’s image, in a manner that is ‘patently offensive, lacks serious artistic, scientific, political or literary value’, and appeals to the deviant and morbid interests of minors. In summary, the cons of video games by far outweigh the pros. There is a need for these games to be regulated, particularly with regard to access by minors. The regulation standards imposed by the ESRB should be revised to reflect the need to protect children and students from being lured into the world of aggressive video games.       Anand, Vivek. â€Å"A Study of Time Management: The Correlation between Video Game Usage and Academic Performance Markers†, CyberPsychology Behavior, 10.4(2007): 552-559. Anthes, Emily. â€Å"How video games are good for the brain.† The Boston Globe, NY Times Co., 12 Oct. 2009. Web. 18 Oct. 2010 Farrales, Bernard. â€Å"Violence in Video Games.† Violence in Video Games,   N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2010 Fernandez, Alvaro. â€Å"Playing the Blame Game: Video Games Pros and Cons.† SharpBrains, SharpBrains, 26 Sept. 2008. Web. 18 Oct. 2010 Gallagher, Richard. â€Å"Video Games: Cons and Pros.† Education.com. NYU Child Study Center, n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. National Society Honor in Psychology, Sarah Howe, Jennifer Stigge, and Brooke Sixta interview with Dr. Craig Anderson: Video Game Violence, Web, (n.d) The New York Times, Should Stores Sell Violent Video Games to Minors? November 15, 2010.

Starbucks Marketing Strategy How to Create a Remarkable Brand

Starbucks Marketing Strategy How to Create a Remarkable Brand Starbucks is one of the most recognizable brands  in the world. Their brand recognition has reached epic heights thanks to the strength of their marketing and their commitment to keeping their brand consistent. Not all of us have multi-million dollar marketing budgets, which makes replicating Starbucks’ marketing tactics at the same level nearly impossible. However, there are some basic core principles behind the Starbucks marketing strategy that nearly any brand can borrow and implement. In this post, we’ll cover how their commitment to consistent branding made Starbucks the successful brand it is today. We’ll also go over the tactics they are currently using that are continuing their tradition. Plus, we’ll cover actionable takeaways you can use to implement those marketing strategies and basic branding principles yourself. Whats ? is the industrys leading marketing calendar platform, helping over 8000+ marketers get organized. See how you can plan content + social media marketing better. How can you build a brand like Starbucks? Start learning here:Download Your Marketing Strategy Template Bundle Once you’ve read how Starbucks has mastered the art of  branding and marketing strategy, use these templates to get organized, document your strategy, and build brand consistency into everything you do. In this bundle, you’ll receive: A marketing strategy template to format all your ideas into a workable outline for you and your team to follow. A marketing calendar  template to organize all your projects. A brand style guide template to help your marketing team maintain branding consistency. Each of these templates will help you get your marketing team organized and outline the expectations  that need to be met to keep everything consistent. Starbucks Marketing Strategy: How to Create a Remarkable BrandThe History Of Starbucks Starbucks was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker. At first, the coffee company only sold coffee beans and didn’t offer the premium coffee drinks it's known for now. The famous logo, inspired by Norse woodcutting  that contained a siren, the mermaid-like figure has been with the company since its inception (although it has undergone a few redesigns). In 1986, the original owners sold Starbucks to former manager Howard Schultz, who took the brand and helped build it into the coffee behemoth it is today. Here is a brief overview of the growth the company has experienced in the last 47 years:

Education leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Education leadership - Essay Example ?s model relies on the personal responsibility of the individual participants within the system to administer the policies that ensure a safe environment to all involved. The first and primary goal is to focus on the end that leads to the maximalization of utility for the learning process. As such, the ways in which strategic goals and plans are implemented are entirely concentric around this. Rather than getting caught up in the minutia that many other educational approaches are so oftentimes ensnared, Clark’s approach seeks to focus on the end goal as a means of attempting to gain both educator and student buy in for the strategic goals and changes that will be pursued. This model helps to keep both parties focused on the true goal rather than becoming distracted by minutia. What is unique about Clark’s approach is the fact that many of the positions that may be required at a traditional school such as substitute teachers are not a requirement for his model. Rather, it is beholden upon the other staff members to shift their schedules and classes so that the subject matter can be covered with the class regardless (Clark 2011). Again, this focuses on the personal responsibility framework and encourages educators to not miss a single day of class for any reason other than a legitimate one. What is unique about Ron Clark’s approach to education is that he fully embraces corporate sponsors in attempting to recruit the raw capital that is required to perform the educational experimentation and development that his model encompasses. Although many forms of education have actively sought to separate themselves from such â€Å"corporate† sponsorship, Clark has embraced this due to the fact that it is highly likely that many of the students that he serves to educate will at least at some point in their life be employed by such a sponsoring entity. In this way Clark does not see that such sponsorship dilutes the educational process; rather, it is a form of

Impact of International Trade and Globalisation on Corporate Strategy

Impact of International Trade and Globalisation on Corporate Strategy - Essay Example This word of "Globalisation" is not strange to a lot of people. The globe is getting in imperative respects, a solitary social arrangement owing to globalization which is made up by the association and interconnection amongst the societies and states. Such association and linkage is a multi-dimensional course but not the latest one -in the end, of19th century, there was previously unfasten global financial system, with a great deal of business, including business in currency (Gratton, Hope, Stiles & Truss C, 2008, 45). The blurry perception of globalization has been clearly explained in financial vocabulary. Corporate globalization may be viewed as the movement of items, services, and money assets or savings across global boundaries and in this manner turned into a predominately financial happenings of the world, all over which, national organisations develop into international corporations and countries are no longer seen as self-governing and closed monarch states, but as a fraction of single large financial system. If we abide by the 'best fit' theory in order to achieve the objectives of the corporate strategy, these elements must be continuously linked back, in order to reflect the business strategy employed. 1. Employee relations. This relates to the partnership between employers, and employees. It has strong connotations of 'involvement' and several key theorists advocate that without this, the strategy cannot work; it must demand a commitment to overall objectives and be practiced on every level of the business. (Macdonald, 2006, 07).

Determination of the End Point of the Acid Base Titration

Determination of the End Point of the Acid Base Titration Table of Contents (Jump to) Introduction Acids and Bases Properties of acid Strengths of Acids and Bases How to detect acid and Bases? pKa and Dissociation Equilibrium Equipment Procedure Results and conclusion Bibliography Introduction Acids and Bases Every liquid we see will probably have either basic or acidic properties. Water can be a base and acid, it depends on the reaction you add with water. It can be a base in some reaction and an acid in some reactions. Also water can react with itself to form bases and acids but it happens in small quantities so it will not change your experiments. 2H2O > H3O++ OH- The hydrogen ion was transferred to form Hydronium ion. The negative and positive ions in water are equal and cancel each other. Most of water we drink from the tap has others ions in it. Those ions in solution make something basic or acidic. For example, in our Bodies, there are small compounds called amino acids and in fruits there something called citric acid. According to Santà © Arrhenius, in 1887, he came up with new definitions of acids and bases. He said when we mix water to molecules , they break down and gives a hydrogen ion and at another times it gives hydroxide. In general, a hydrogen positive ion is released, the acidic solution increases. When a hydroxide ion is released, the solution become base For example HA +H2O H3O + + A Hydronium ion is formed and it is acid. That hydrogen ion is the reason it is called an acid. Chemists use the word dissociated to describe the breakup of a compound Properties of acid Acids taste sour Acids react strongly with metals (Zn + HCl) Strong Acids are dangerous and can burn your skin Bases Bases are ionic compounds that break apart to form a negatively charged hydroxide ion (OH-) in water. The strength of a base is determined by the concentration of Hydroxide ions (OH-). The greater of the concentration of OH ions the stronger the base. Example: NaOH in water NaOH Na+ + OH Strengths of Acids and Bases Strong Acids and Weak Acids: Strength of acid is related to ionization of acids in water. Some of the acids can ionize 100 % in water solutions; we call them strong acids. HCL are examples of strong acids.in other hand, some of the acids cannot ionize like strong acids. We call acids partially ionize in solutions weak acid. CH3COOH, HF, H2CO3 are examples of weak acid that partially ionize in solution Strong and Weak Bases: Bases ionize completely in solutions are called strong bases. NaOH and bases including OH- ion are strong bases. Bases that ionize partially in solutions are called weak bases. For example [ NH3] Ionization of Water: Water ionizes gives: H2O(l) ↔ H+(aq) + OH(aq) In pure water concentrations of H+ and OH ions are equal to each other and at 25 °, they have concentration 110-7 M. then concentration of ion in pure water is too low, it is a bad electric conductor. As in the case of pure water mediums having [H+] = [OH] concentration are called neutral mediums. In water solutions multiplication of [H+] and [OH] is constant and at 25 0C it is 110-14. This number is also called ionization constant of pure water. If concentration of [H+] ions equal [OH-]= 10 -7M, then solution is neutral. If concentration of [H+] ions > [OH-] or [H+] > 10 -7M and [OH-] -7 M, then solution is acidic. If concentration of [OH-] ions > [H+] or [H+] -7 M and [OH-] > 10-7 M, then solution is basic. How to detect acid and Bases? Scientists use something called pH scale to measure how basic or acidic the liquid is. Also there are many types of ions in a solution, pH focus on concentration of hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions. The scale measures values from 0 to 14. Distilled water is 7 in the middle. The strength of an acid or base in a solution is measured on a scale called a pH scale. Any pH number greater than 7 is considered a base and any pH number less than 7 is considered an acid. 0 is the strongest acid and 14 is the strongest base. The acid strength depends on the concentration of positive hydrogen ions in the solution. The greater and more hydrogen ions is the stronger acids likes Hydrochloric acid HCL and Sulphuric acid. pH=-log[H+] and pOH=-log[OH-] If 7>pH>0 acidic solution If 14>pH>7 basic solution If pH=7 neutral solution pKa and Dissociation Equilibrium 1. pH When acids is added to water, the pH scale decreases. The acidity of a solution is examined by the hydrogen ion concentration ([H+]), where pH provides a simple index for expressing the [H+] level., when pH is small which means that the smaller the number of pH , the stronger acid. pH=-log10[H] pKa and Dissociation Equilibrium Strong acid , which they are dissociate in solution, and weak acids that partially dissociate in solution. When dissociation of strong acid happens, it gives a proton In which make the solution more acidic, However, weak acids have a dissociated state (A-) and undissociated state (AH) that appears according to the following dissociation equilibrium equation. AH A + H+ . The definition of Ka is Ka= The brackets of the product to the brackets of the reactants pKa was introduced as an index to express the acidity of weak acids, where pKa is defined as follows. pKa= log10Ka Relation between Ka and Pka , it is inversely proportional so when ka is high which means storng acid which means pKa is low and vice versa Equipment Burette Beaker Magnetic stirrer Ph meter Acid and Bases Pure water Procedure Clean all equipment in order to get accurate conductivity Add some of NaOH into the receiving cup and then add slightly 1 ml of HCL and make sure you adding the receiving cup on the magnetic stirrer Repeat this steps to get the conductivity from volume 0 ml to 17 ml Get titration curve ,the differential curve and the end point For CH3COOH + NaOH We will make same steps and record the conductivity pH Results and conclusion NaOH + HCL Results of volume of HCL and the conductivity Ml pH is clear that end point occurs at 10 ml of HCL which pH drops to 6.34 Titration curve Differential curve Ch3COOH +Naoh It is clear that end point at 10 ml of Naoh the end point occur , the ph difference is very big Titration curve Differential curve Bibliography http://www.chemistrytutorials.org/content/acids-and-bases/ph-poh-and-ionization-of-water/58-acids-and-bases-cheat-sheet http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Chem_AcidsBasespHScale.shtml http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/184ph.html http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/students/erlinger/water/background/ph.html http://www.humboldtmfg.com/graduated_glass_beaker.html http://www.shimadzu.com/an/hplc/support/lib/lctalk/29/29intro.html https://www.boundless.com/chemistry/acids-and-bases/strength-of-acids/the-acid-dissociation-constant/ http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Acid_dissociation_constant.html

The Causes of the Collapse of the Bretton Woods System

When U. S. President Richard Nixon formally ended the backing of U. S. currency by the gold standard system in 1971, the noble attempts of the Bretton Woods delegates finally ended. . This paper will examine the causes of the death of the Bretton Woods System: Some have blamed it on the changing situation of the international economic system; others blamed it on the failure of the System itself. We will explore the Bretton Woods System, its ideals and contradictions, in an attempt to discern what indeed went wrong.Fixing the exchange rate between the U. S.  dollar and other currencies was doomed to failure because of various principles of macroeconomics which will be analyzed herein. However, in spite of its failures, the Bretton Woods System played a crucial role in the economic development of Europe and Japan in the decades immediately after World War II.Its original purpose was the economic rehabilitation of Europe and Japan, and in this, the Bretton Woods System was indeed succ essful. The collapse of the Bretton Woods System in 1971 could be traced to a number of reasons. The most important of these was the increasing trade imbalance of the U.S. economy. The Cold War between the United States and the USSR drained the U. S. Treasury, leading to deficit spending, and a surge in imports.In particular, the Vietnam War became a veritable black hole of runaway spending. Furthermore, the rehabilitated economies of Europe and Japan soon made up for lost ground, and caught up to the United States’ economy. The U. S. economy, booming throughout the Fifties and Sixties, finally reached the point of deficit in the early 1970s. At this time, the U. S. started to experience massive cash outflow to the rest of the world.This was certainly instrumental in the collapse of the Bretton Woods System, but not the only reason. A second reason for the end of the Bretton Woods System was the lack of autonomy to maintain its workings. As the U. S. currency came to a crisis in the early 1970s, the System collapsed. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), the authority to control the currency exchange rate, had no power to stop the System from collapsing, and the System subsequently spiraled out of control.The powerlessness of the IMF was due to the lack of autonomy of the U.S. currency dominance based on the gold standard. In this paper, we will show that these reasons were the main causes of the end of the Bretton Woods System, by analyzing the economic data and considering the economists’ and historians’ arguments. The origin of the Bretton Woods System will be explored to clarify the theory behind the System. Additionally, we will review the world economy of the 1950s, when the Bretton Woods System was working effectively, and compare it to the world economy of the 1960s, when the System began to lose effectiveness.The comparison is necessary to answer to the question why the Bretton Woods System became ineffective although it was func tional at the beginning. This paper will also analyze the structure of the International Monetary Fund, to see how that too was instrumental in bringing the Bretton Woods System to its close. It is important to understand how the IMF had been trying to standardize the currency until 1973, the year in which the world transferred to the exchange currency system from a pegged exchange rates system.The United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, better known as the Bretton Woods Conference, was a meeting among 730 delegates representing the 45 Allied nations of the Second World War. The conference was held at the Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The conference followed the conclusion of the Second World War and convened from July 1 to July 22, 1945. The purpose of the delegates at this Conference was to establish a new global economic order following the trauma of the war, not simply a re-hash of the world economic system of the 1930s.Most economists agreed that that system had not been efficient during the period between world wars. Depression hit the United States in 1929, and recession gripped the world economy in the thirties. While some nations let their currencies float, others set a policy of pegging their currency to gold or other currency. This system had outbreaks of â€Å"competitive devaluation†. In order to keep their reserve at a high level, governments introduced exchange control, restricted the use of foreign currency and imposed higher tariffs barriers to limit the volume of imports.World trade declined because of these restrictions, and the world faced very slow economic recovery in the 1930s. Delegates at the Bretton Woods Conference worked to revamp these short-sighted, restrictive policies. They felt the need to establish economic institutions which would transform the world economy into a well-oiled machine, one which promoted international trade for all countries..The delegates created three major structur es: the International Monetary Fund (IMF); the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) or the World Bank; and the International Trade Organization (ITO). However, in 1950, the U.S. Congress nixed the formation of the ITO, and it never got off the ground. In place of the ITO, a treaty was agreed upon by most of the world economic powers and the rest of the world.The treaty was commonly known as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which took over the ITO ideology. The other two institutions, IMF and the World Bank, were to take responsibility of being the bi-pillar system of the Post-Second World War global economy. The purpose of the World Bank was to promote development, and that of the International Monetary Fund was to maintain order in the international monetary system.The delegates of the Bretton Woods Conference based the new global economic structure on a code of what they felt to be economic fairness. This code related to a global regime of fixed but adjustable exchange rates. This system of adjustable rates was designed to implement equity on a world economic scale. The adjustable fixed rate provided exchange rate stability in the short run, just like the gold standard system. At the same time, it also allowed the possibility to adjust the exchange rate when a national balance of payment is in a crucial state of disequilibrium.However, the weakness of this adjustable exchange system was that it lacked the stability, the certainty of the gold standard and the flexibility of the flexed exchange rate regime. Despite the demerits of this currency exchange mechanism, the Bretton Woods System worked fairly well in the 1950s and early 1960s. The adjustable-fixed exchange was successful in increasing international trade and supporting the recovery of the economy in Europe and Japan.The system resulted in the per rate system, under which currencies of the member countries were fixed within 1% of the value of the U.S. dollar, which was pegged to the value of gold. With this system, the IMF was successful between 1946 and 1966, although it had its kinks. The Bretton Woods delegates hastened the integration of the world economy, but they could not so easily achieve a smooth currency exchange system, because the destruction of the Second World War was too massive to recover without unilateral action such as discarding the pegged exchange rate system. Some nations set up their own restrictions on trade and currency exchange so that the IMF could not get those countries into the world currency system.Moreover, the ruined European nations requested massive funding from the IMF until 1950. In spite of IMF mistakes, the global economy progressed after 1951. The Fund successfully spread its economic activities to all members, not just to the fund users. However, after 1966, the world economy changed substantially once again. The problems inherent in the Bretton Woods System started to be exposed gradually in the mid-1960s. Richard N. Cooper, in his book The International Monetary System, listed the features of the Bretton Woods System as well its contradictions..The first characteristic of the system was that member countries of the Bretton Woods System would determine their own domestic economic policies. This permitted autonomy of domestic economies, enabling nations to pursue their own internal economic objectives, such as assuring low inflation or achieving the â€Å"natural† unemployment rate. The second feature of the Bretton Woods System, according to Cooper, was that the U. S. currency be pegged to gold. The third feature was that other nations adopted the adjustable-exchange rates system.Cooper argues that these three features of the Bretton Woods System contradicted each other:: Countries could not frame their national economic policies independently and still maintain fixed exchange rates and currency convertibility except by luck and coincidence. That potential conflict w as recognized by the Bretton Woods architects†¦ Cooper suggests that to fix these contradictions, the creators of the system, the delegates, added two elements. One was the establishment of the IMF, and the other was altering exchange rates under the condition that a nation comes to a severe economic imbalance.According to Cooper, the Bretton Woods System architects assumed that new gold production coming into monetary reserves would be an ample supply to fuel adequate growth. The US dollar, they further assumed, would be able to provide for the required liquidity to keep the exchange rate at the fixed level. However, until the 1970s, growth in the global gold demand had been increasing faster than new gold production. World monetary reserves outside the United States increased by $54 billion, a 4. 5 per cent per annum growth rate.United States gold reserves departed to other countries to the tune of $9 billion, while only $4 billion came from new gold production. Foreign excha nge, which was overwhelmingly in dollars as the medium of choice, supplied $30 billion of the growth in reserves. Additionally, the IMF started, in 1970, to provide Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), which is the new type of international reserve assets generally called â€Å"paper dollars†. U. S. gold reserves declined dramatically during this period because its stock of gold had gone to much of the rest of the world.The reasons for this exodus of American capital were complicated and controversial. Military expenditures involved with the Cold War and the Vietnam War predominate. As the result of heightened expenditures, the United States tried to increase its money supply regardless of being able to back it up with gold reserves. The rest of the world accumulated these lost U. S. reserves until the beginning of the 1970s, which caused uncertainty in the value of the US dollar itself. The second reason for the exodus of U. S. capital was that the European and Japanese economies had caught up to the United States’ economy.Due to the increased economic clout of revived nations, the United States began suffering from the trade deficit. European nations and Japan were taking advantage of the underestimated price of their currency, enabling them to increase the volume of their exports. The United States suffered because of the high price of the dollar relative to other currencies. After accumulation of the wealth, European countries and Japan embarked on converting reserve surpluses into dollar reserves. They practiced this policy because of the interest that could be earned on U. S. dollars.Moreover, if it ever became necessary the U. S. dollar could be converted to gold. These were miscalculations of the International Monetary Fund creators.. In these ways, the Bretton Woods economic structure was undermined, as the nominal price and real value of U. S. currency came into conflict. In 1970, in order to restore the system, the IMF introduced a new inter national reserve asset. Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were expected to supplement the other components of global reserves, i. e. U. S. dollars and gold. The need for liquidity in the international monetary system was the reason for the creation of SDRs.In 1970, when the SDRs were first allocated, the United States had the largest share, totaling about $867 million, followed by the United Kingdom, at $410 million. According to Acheson, â€Å"A problem†¦ is the prospect of conflict over the amount of SDRs to be created. † The development of the new asset system was eventually unsuccessful. Richard Harper argues that the failure of IMF came from a fundamental problem within the system itself. The problem, he says, is that a fixed exchange-rate system requires national governments to arrange their monetary policy in problematic ways.If, for instance, one nation has continuously higher inflation rate than others’, it cannot compete in the world market, and its citizens would be buying more expensive imported products, leading to trade deficits. Therefore, the government has to be adjusting to its trading partners all the time. Harper goes on to say that under the pre-1914 gold standard system, there would no such problem because the inflation rate would spill over to the countries around it and achieve a convergence. By contrast, under the par value system, the mechanism of self-converging is missing.Harper summarizes his thoughts about monetary cooperation between nations: Lack of co-ordination of monetary policies and, in particular, the implementation of inappropriate policies by any individual member, resulted in the countries in question facing runs on their currency when there was perceived to be an imbalance between their internal monetary policies and external exchange rates. He argues that this systematic flaw was closely related to the ultimate obsolescence of the Bretton Woods System. Instability of the System came to a head, and it co llapsed, like a house of cards.The real signal of its death was in 1971, when U. S. officials declared suspending the convertibility between dollars and gold, making other nations’ currency float. The fixed exchange rates between U. S. dollars and other world currencies disappeared, and the Bretton Woods System went the way of the dinosaurs—extinction. After its collapse, on March 19, 1973, the central banks of the world economic powers gave up their commitment to stabilize exchange rates between their currencies and the dollar.After suspending the convertibility from dollars to gold, the fixed exchange rates between U. S. currency and others began to disappear, even though many nations insisted on keeping the pegged exchange rates of the Bretton Woods System. Riccardo says: It now seems clear that the really essential characteristic of Bretton Woods was not the maintenance of party but the convertibility of the dollar†¦ After March 1973, the central banks rapidly discovered that it was simply not possible to abandon exchange rates to market forces completely. In this way, the Bretton Woods System lost its key component—convertibility from dollars to gold–in 1971, then an ancillary key component—adjustable-fixed exchange rates in 1973.Henceforth, currency valuations were determined according to market fluctuations. The IMF lost the function of setting exchange rates.. Conclusion The Bretton Woods System came to an end in 1973, almost three decades after the Conference. The System contained contradictions and flaws since its foundation in 1945. Some economists argue that the system’s defects were negligible, and that the problem lay in the changing world economy, not the Bretton Woods System itself. However, it is undeniable that the mechanisms of the Bretton Woods System were not flexible enough to adjust to a changing world economy.Adaptability is the key to survivability, and in this sense, the Bretton Woods Sys tem was doomed to failure. The revivals of European nations and Japan were predictable, given the scope of international policy to revive these moribund economies. More than thirty years have passed since the collapse of the Bretton Woods System. Some economists say that Bretton Woods II is emerging in the world today.. The fact that China pegs its currency to the US dollar seems similar to the situation at the Bretton Woods Conference of yesteryear.Because of the fixed exchange rate system between the Chinese Renminbi and the U. S. dollar, the United States suffers a huge trade deficit with China today. . Matthias Kaelberer argues that Bretton Woods II would be different from the classic one, for the Bretton Woods System from 1944 to 1973 was agreed upon by its members, while the emerging system of today comes from Chinese de facto unilateral behavior pegging its currency to the U. S. currency. However, he also emphasizes that, no matter what their origin, reviewing the classic Bre tton Woods System will be helpful and important to predict the consequences of the Chinese-American fixed exchange rates relationship.The Bretton Woods Conference helped ease the world’s economy through a tumultuous period after the Second World War. Although the economic solutions they espoused seem anachronistic today, we should also thank the architects for playing a vital role in restoring some semblance of equilibrium to a world in tatters.BibliographyAcheson A. L. K. , Chant, J. F. and Prachowny M. F. J. Bretton Woods Revisited: Evaluations of the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Papers Delivered at a Conference at Queen's University, Kingston, Canada.Toronto, On, Canada: University of Toronto Press. 1972.Chacholiades, Miltiades. International Monetary Theory and Policy. New York: McGraw-Hill. 1978.Cooper, Richard N. The International Monetary System: Essays in World Economics. Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press. 1987. Harper, Richard. Inside the IMF: Ethnography of Documents, Technology, and Organizational Action. San Diego: Academic Press. 1998.Parboni, Riccardo. The Dollar & its Rivals. London, England: Verso. 1981. Witteveen, H. J and Szabo-Pelsoczi, Miklos (ed. ).Fifty Years after Bretton Woods: The New Challenge of East-West Partnership for Economic Progress. Brookfield, Vt. , USA: Avebury. 1996Stone, Randall. Lending Credibility: The International Monetary Fund and the Post-communist Transition. Princeton University Press, 2002 Matthias Kaelberer. â€Å"Structural Power and the Politics of International Monetary Relations. † The Journal of Social, Political, and Economic Studies. Washington: Fall 2005. Vol. 30, Iss. 3;http://proquest. umi. com. myaccess. library. utoronto. ca/pqdlink? Ver=1&Exp=04-03-2012&FMT=7&DID=911841951&RQT=309 Accessed on April 3, 2007. Via ProQuest.

The Scourging of Christ, Giulio Cesare Procaccini Essay

Upon walking into Gallery 250 of Bostons Museum of Fine Arts, one will find on the wall a particularly eye-catching piece of art. The piece, set high on the corner of the wall encompassed by pictures depicting scenes from the life of Jesus Christ, is Giulio Cesare Procaccinis The Scourging of Christ. In this piece, Procaccinis masterful use of light and shadows in a technique called chiaroscuro dramatically portray the torturing of Christ, and it is this very application of chiaroscuro that immediately caught my eye. Through his masterful rendition of value, Procaccini successfully evoked within me a crushing sensation of agony. While I did not initially realize that the piece was one of Christ, research enabled me to witness how†¦show more content†¦Very similar to this is the use of light and shadow in Procaccinis The Scourging of Christ. In it, the main figure, the body of Christ, is basked in a light that draws him forth from the background. Behind him are the people sco urging him, and these people are only acknowledged with a bit of light here and there to indicate their presence. A majority of the figures are concealed by the strong contrast and shadows in the piece while the main figure is brought forth by light, making the use of chiaroscuro in this piece very reminiscent of the Baroque style. With a firm understanding of the piece, the significance of the piece becomes much easier to comprehend. One of the main reasons why Procaccinis The Scourging of Christ is important is due to its display of the evocative powers of art. One of the most striking traits of this piece lies in its use of chiaroscuro. Through the use of dramatic lighting, Procaccini is able to evoke within the audience a clear sense of the pain and agony of Christ. This sensation is further augmented by the ominous faces that lurk behind Christ, and Christs expression of extreme agony. Even for somebody like myself, who did not at once recognize it as a piece about Christ, it w as inevitable to understand that the piece depicted some form of extreme