Alligator river story free essay sample

Morality of good and bad moral of people Ivan wanted to stay out of the situation because he did not want to get involved with a girlfriend and boyfriend drama. Gregory felt portrayed because his girlfriend Abigail slept with another mans name slug for a favor. Slug felt sorry for Abigail so he decided to get revenge for her by beating up Gregory because he left Abigail. Abigail committed an immoral act by sleeping with Sinbad; however, she did whatever it took to get across the river to see her boyfriend Gregory, even though it was teeming with alligators. Sinbad was an immoral person who wanted to sleep with Abigail because he wanted to receive a sexual payment from Abigail. A definition of moral action are base on ideals that are right or wrong, For instance, a good moral action is a person who does not have sex with others outside of their marriage or being honest on your income taxes. We will write a custom essay sample on Alligator river story or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Helping a homeless person by giving them shelter, food, water and clean clothes. Examples of bad morals would be stealing from a store and running from the police or a person or abusing animals such as not feeding dogs for days, or keep the dog on a very short leash where he is not able to get food or water for days at a time. People and animals in the world should be treated with respect and kindness, no matter if you are a animal or a hum being. it’s easy for people to commit bad morals but it’s hard for them to do good morals. 2_ Gregory 4__ Abigail 3__ Slug 5__ Sinbad 1_ Ivan Explanation of theory Kohlbergs theory was researched and interviewed using groups of boys of 10 through 16 years old; he presented them with a series of hypothetical moral dilemma stories. These stories presented a conflict between the two moral values. Kohlberg examined and followed the participants between three and four year spans within 20 years (Berk, 2010). Kohlbergs stages on moral development proved gradual and slow pace. Stage 1 and 2 diminish early adolescence, while stage 3 increases the mid-adolescence, and then it is rejected. While stage 4 rises over teenagers, until early adulthood, only a few people progress past the 4th stage. Kohlberg explains that only a few individuals would reach the 5th and 6th stages. Though, the individual needs to demonstrate morality and maturity; only few individuals measure up (Gibbs, 2010). Kohlbergs theory consists of cognitive developmental approach of morality, which has been faced with many major challenges. This radical conflict comes from researches, which inconsistency refers to a wide range of moral reasoning. Kohlberg stages for a series of inadequate morality in a person’s everyday life (Krebs Denton, 2005). Kohlberg’s moral reasoning gradually developed into three levels, which contains two different stages. The preconvention level is externally controlled by rewards such as punishments and authority figures. While the conventional level shows consistency among laws, rules and positive human relationships in the community. The post conventional level shows defined as total principles of Justice (Berk, 2010). Gilligan’s theory has a different prospective on Kohlberg’s theory. Gilligan believes that women’s morality give emphasis to the ethic of care, which Kohlberg’s system diminishes. Gilligan is apprehensive for others but for the moral judgment focuses on the impersonal rights. For instance, Gilligan argues how Kohlberg’s advances are misjudged to the moral maturity of females and how he does not support her theory (Turiel, 2006; Walker, 2006). The hypothetical dilemmas do not support everyday moral problems. Adolescents and adult females calculate the same stages as the male but their stages are often higher. Nevertheless, Gilligan makes a more prevailing point; females attended emphasis on care whereas males focus on justice (Berk, 2010). The point of this article is to show the two types of moral logic, Kohlberg’s justice and Gillian’s care which the issues seem to be unresolved. Gilligan does accept the ideal of development morality. Kohlberg’s has some theoretical issues on Gillian care. When comparing Kohlberg’s and Gilligan’s statement there seem to be some conflicts of moral and morality. For years the community has come to accept the two types of moral reasoning, specifically, Kohlberg’s justice and Gillian’s care (Reed, 1997). Gilligan’s theory of moral development supports the existence of moral philosophy. Kohlberg views have been prevailing to the conception of morality. These commitments were shared in order to provide their views against each other theories. However, Gillian’s analysis of Kohlberg is not for personal concern but it is important that he changes his ways of being distance toward females if he wants to gain their respect (Nagel, 1986). Analysis of moral development This interview was conducted on using good and bad morals. The teenager has to use their ideals of good and bad morals. This alligator river story was moral and sexiest toward young women. It was base on the women trying to find a way to see her boyfriend. Instead of the young man making a way to see his girlfriend, she did whatever it took in order for her to see him. In Kohlberg theory he was bias and sexist toward women. He mostly explains how women are virtually unchallenged and imbalance. While Gilligan thoughts on the male prospective was bias and sexist also. However, Gilligan track the cognitive development of models, but in her argument of Kohlberg concerning females was morality supported by the support of their moral thoughts and behavior. Kohlberg and Gilligan are both psychologists with different morals and values of the human race. Psychologists Kohlberg and Gilligan conducted their research studies on young men and women. Kohlberg conducted his research on young men and Gilligan conducted her research on young women. Kohlberg studied several young males on how they interact with other males while growing up to become young men. Kohlberg and Gillian had different ideas on young girls and young men. Gilligan and Kohlberg controversy shows the significance gender variety within the moral theory. Gilligan and Kohlberg theories can go on and on forever, they never come to an agreement but they can compromise in order to give each other a bit of happiness. Conclusion Kohlberg’s recommends that the moral maturity should be found in third and fourth stages. There seem to be a small amount of people who move to the post conventional level. The influences of factors on moral judgments suggest that Kohlberg moral stages should be viewed loosely without overlapping.  Gilligan seem to understand but do not underestimate Kohlberg theory of females. Children and teenagers display a more insubstantial reasoning about conflicts and their personal choice within the obligations of the community.

My First Resident †Creative Writing Essay

My First Resident – Creative Writing Essay Free Online Research Papers My First Resident Creative Writing Essay Listening to the clock ticking on the wall, I started to feel the burgeoning uneasiness. Over the quiet but melodious play of the strings in the cafeteria, cackling giggles of janitors, prattling chats of nurses, and chuckling laughs of doctors overlapped scenes with sweating doctors and overloaded nurses from Grey’s Anatomy. About ten minutes later, I was walking down a long and dark hallway with other volunteers and was stunned by a sudden contrast. The fastidious-looking volunteer manager parroted, â€Å"This side of the hospital is where all four of you will be volunteering,† over clattering noise of her hills. As glancing around the tranquil complex, I saw the dusty sign by the main door: Welcome to the Eagle Ridge Manor. When I skimmed through the list of offered volunteer positions, my heart palpitated wildly. I envisioned assisting nurses with their paperwork and doctors at special occasions; however, the offered task from the hospital disappointed me deeply. Feeding. The hackneyed term did not appeal to me. But I learned that my perception was very different. At five forty-five sharp, residents’ dinner trays were delivered to the dining room. I looked at the white board to check the appropriate resident whom volunteers were allowed to feed. My first resident was Marguerite. She was sitting erectly in her wheel chair at the very first corner of the dining table. â€Å"Marguerite,† I called her quietly as putting her tray down on the table, but she seemed not to hear me. I carefully tabbed her arm and introduced myself. She did not respond me. Suffering from Alzheimer for ten years, Marguerite had already lost the track of time, place and people. Smiling awkwardly at her, I opened up her tray. Tomato soup, roasted chicken with carrots, a raspberry yogurt, and a cup of tea were nicely sealed in scaled containers. Looking down at her tray confusingly, I started with a spoonful of her chicken meal, but she did not swallow it. Paranoid by impending mistakes, I tried to recall instructions from training sessions, but I ended up loo king at a nurse with a confused look on my face. She told me to wait. However, waiting for Marguerite was not the right answer, I thought. Puzzled by an unexpected dilemma, I began to massage her back to alleviate her tension, but she began to pour tomato soup on her dried chicken. She spilled the soup on the table and on her pants, but, suddenly, a burst of compassion emerged inside me. I could not stop her. My long journey resumed, and she seemed to forget that she was eating her dinner at every second spoon. I gently patted her arm or called her tenderly to remind her. Suddenly, I realized that I might have been one of strangers to her after all. I started talking about my day at school and promised her to take her out to the garden as soon as it stopped raining, and I was struck in awe. She smiled at me. Container after container, we started to empty her tray more quickly. Every Monday, I still visit her. Although my manager rotated volunteers to other complexes, I reminisce the very day when I had grabbed a fragile but warm hand. She taught me how I can make others smile. She taught me how I can be a trustworthy friend in a long journey. And she taught me how to love myself. Research Papers on My First Resident - Creative Writing EssayThe Hockey GameLifes What IfsThe Spring and AutumnQuebec and CanadaWhere Wild and West Meet19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenHip-Hop is ArtAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Standardized Testing

Woolfs A Room of Ones Own and Wollstonecrafts A Vindications of the Rights of Woman Essays

Woolfs A Room of Ones Own and Wollstonecrafts A Vindications of the Rights of Woman Essays Woolfs A Room of Ones Own and Wollstonecrafts A Vindications of the Rights of Woman Paper Woolfs A Room of Ones Own and Wollstonecrafts A Vindications of the Rights of Woman Paper Essay Topic: Literature The Heart Of a Woman Mary Wollstonecrafts A Vindication of the Rights of Woman was published in 1792, a period of radical reform in the wake of the French Revolution, and one of the first examples of feminist literature. Virginia Woolfs A Room of Ones Own, written over a century later and published in 1929, appeared in the wake of several feminist movements, the Suffragettes of the previous century and women being given the same voting rights as men just a year before, a result from womens involvement in the First World War. Both texts are in the form of an extended essay, in the written mode, with the purpose to inform and persuade. The audience for both texts is primarily the higher classes, educated people with the money to send their children to private schools, hence the discussion of schooling in both text excerpts. An immediate discrepancy is apparent in both texts; though both address an educated audience, the levels of formality differ. Woolf keeps a lower level of formaily with the reader, employing archaisms such as alas and hyperbole (in phrases such as I have shirked the duty and bowed down by the weight of the subject) for comedic effect, whereas Wollstonecrafts language contains phrases that would not be considered archaisms at the time, such as of a Sunday and babes, and therefore lacking the humourous tenor of Woolfs text, though employing the same style of language. Notably, both texts employ the use of a personal account to exemplify the texts content. Both accounts convey the rules regarding walking on grass, and are somwhat similar in style Wollstonecrafts formality dissipates to produce a passage not unlike Woolfs work, an abundance of the first person pronoun I is found as well as hyperbolic language (tyrant of this domain to refer to a school master and refering to the schoolyard as a prison yard), giving the short passage an almost conversational tone. However, unlike Woolfs work, this lower tenor is reserved for a passage placed outside the main body of text, implying a higher level of formality was expected of a text in Wollstonecrafts time, opposed to Woolfs ability to freely write with a low tenor throughout the essay. Grammatically, an obvious difference between the texts is the use of punctuation in determining sentence length. Wollstonecraft employs almost an excessive amount of punctuation, resulting in long sentences; In the best regulated schools, however, where swarms are not crammed together, many bad habits must be acquired; but, at common schools, the body, heart, and understanding, are equally stunted, for parents are often only in quest of the cheapest school, and the master could not live, if he did not take a much greater number than he could manage himself; nor will the scanty pittance, allowed for each child, permit him to hire ushers sufficient to assist in the discharge of the mechanical part of the business. The use of semi-colons to create verbose complex sentences are in direct contrast to Woolfs frequently shorter compound and complex sentences, despite even employing numerous semi-colons; I need not say that what I am about to describe has no existence; Oxbridge is an invention; so is Fernham; I is merely a convenient term for somebody who has no real being. Woolfs sentences, being shorter, remain more coherent than Wollstonecrafts frequently prolix passages, reflect a change in the standard of accessibility of texts, a 20th Century audience demanding concise information opposed to the 18th Century style of formal and complex language (indeed, the Romantic poetry movement of Wollstonecrafts era called for an end to the pretentious and exclusive styles of writing favoured by authors of the time). Woolf also uses grammar in the lowering of her tenor, using the second person pronoun you to refer to the reader directly, something the Wollstonecraft text declines to do, as well employing the impartial first person one (One can only give ones audience ) for an aloof, comedic effect. Though the use of one may be expected in the archaic, more formal text of Wollstonecraft, it is omitted. Instead, both texts are similar in their frequent use of the first person I. As both texts aim to convey the authors views, this is hardly surprising, though the frequency in which is appears in Woolfs text outstrips Wollstonecrafts usage again implying a change in the expected formality of their respective eras. Woolfs use of non-standard grammar (in opening sentences with a conjunction But however small it was ), dashes ( a subject is highly controversial and any question about sex is that one cannot hope to tell the truth. ), to give a sense of spontaneity, and parenthetical remarks all give A Room of Ones Own an almost conversational tone unsurprising considering it being based on a series of lectures given by Woolf. Again, this difference in language reflects the moving social trends Wollstonecraft would have been unable to give lectures, or even allowed inside a university, and the language in Rights of Woman reflects this; Wollstonecraft makes no use of parenthesis or dashes, and so the text lacks Woolfs spontaneity. A direct example of change in grammar is Wollstonecrafts an habit. An is the older form of the indefinite article (whereas in Woolfs text and the modern day both a and an would be used depending on pronunciation), originating from the German ein, reflecting the change in influence of other languages on English from the 18th Century. In terms of semantics, an interesting similarity is the shared usage of a smenatic field of nature noth works frequently use terms such as animal spirits blossoms of hope and ripened in Vindication, and Woolfs frequent references and analogies, such as comparing of a thought to the sort of fish that a good fisherman puts back in the water and describing the bushes and the bank of the river around her in vivid detail. However, their use differs; Wollstonecraft keeps the references short and aims to compliment the emotional appeals used in a persuasive text, whereas Woolf is highly literary and employs rhetoric in her descriptions, rich in modifiers, personification and latinate language; To the right and left bushes of some sort, goldren and crimson, glowed with the colour, even it seemed burnt with heat, of fire. On the further bank the willows wept in perpetual lamentation, their hair about their shoulders. Woolfs inclusion of the semantic field in her rhetoric again suggests a more relaxed attitude towards language in the 20th Century compared to the 18th considering the groundbreaking natural philosophy and metaphysical aspects of Wollstonecrafts comtemporaries poetry (the Romantics, such as Wordsworth, Keats and Shelley), it is hardly surprising there is a lack of richly decorated language and personification in Rights of Woman; as a persuasive text, it would not have been taken seriously. Lexically, further differences show a change in language. Wollstonecraft frequently makes use of emotional lexis, such as; he physical and moral evils that torment mankind, as well as of the vices and follies that degrade and destroy women This suggests that what influences language has also changed. Wollstonecrafts references to evil and vices and follies suggest a spiritual influence on language, not unsurprising considering the importance of the Bible in the 18th and 19th centuries. The decline of this influence can be seen in Woolfs text, where no mention of moral or spiritual matters are made, instead suggesting it is the ideas, the prejudices of people that are responsible for the hindrences facing women writing fiction. Other differences come in the graphology of the texts, Rights of Woman notably being printed with the long s (? ). The short form came into usage around 1800, and so was the norm by the time A Room of Ones Own was published, and is representative of the attitudes towards ease of reading, confusion with the letter f was common, and again shows English moving away from its Germanic roots, favouring the Antinqua Script as Germany continued with Blackletter styles (still evident today in the German Eszett i ). Ultimately, it is the context of the two texts that determines the differences and language change. As societys attitudes towards both language and feminism relaxed, so did the language, and this is reflected in the change of tenor between the two texts. Further contextual factors include education and womens rights Woolf, though not sent to school, received a literary education from her wealthy parents, and this high level of literacy and relaxed attitudes towards feminism shows in the rich language of A Room of Ones Own. While Wollstonecraft was writing it was still considered unthinkable for a woman to act outside the norm (after Wollstonecrafts death, her husbands recounts of her love affairs caused such a scandal her posthumous reputation was left in tatters), and as such Rights of Women is consistently written in a formal tenor, avoiding language that would be considered innapropiate (such as Woolfs description of a Beadle as a curious-looking object), instead choosing to keep well within societys norms.

Creating a Vehicle Using Green Technology Essays

Creating a Vehicle Using Green Technology Essays Creating a Vehicle Using Green Technology Essay Creating a Vehicle Using Green Technology Essay Solar Vehicle EGR 100 12/3/2013 Introduction Living on Michigan States campus, one is constantly reminded to Be Spartan Green, whether it is turning off the lights or taking a shorter shower, Spartans are always striving to b e the most eco friendly students that any university could have. The problem at hand is to create a v ehicle using only green technology, such as solar panels, and have this car race up a ramp as fast as possible, with a shorter time being ideal. There are many requirements for this project, first of them being that the team itself eeds to be qualified to tackle such a task. With two members majoring in mechanical engineerin g, two members majoring in computer science, and one in biosystems engineering, the team has a wi de range of engineers that all pose a special skill that will aid in the creation of this solar car. An other requirement for this project is materials. Some needed are solar panels, which are provided, whee Is, gears, axles and some form of a structure. Each week the group needs to collaborate on new ideas an d be willing to share their opinions. A major constraint for this project would be time management. With so many different schedules it can be difficult to find the time to meet with the entire group at once. Each week group members would meet up to accomplish their goal. From starting out with prototypes and ending with a finished project. The desired end result will be a solar c ar that is light, efficient, and able to use its energy source in a way that will help it go as fast as possi ble up the ramp. Methods There are many different possible designs that would have fit within the constraints o f this roject. The designs that were created initially were later discarded after realizing th at transporting a load was no longer a requirement. This meant that the solar car would only need to go as fast as possible. This could be accomplished by either reducing weight or increasing power. Reducing weight was ultimately the key factor to the design decided upon. Many different designs we re thought through all with pros and cons that eventually led to the final design. The first alternative design was relatively similar to the primary design in that it had f our wheels, he motor on the front end of the car, and the solar panel placed on top, but it did no t incorporate any space to carry a load. The second alternative design for the solar car only had three wheels as to minimize weight. The axle of the third wheel would be connected to the axle of the fr ont two wheels by rubber bands so that the motor would still power the third wheel. Both of the design s were to be built upon a base constructed of 4 small long blocks of wood. These designs were created knowing that there would be future improvement. A basis was needed to start of the design proce The design of the prototype is roughly the same as the alternative design. It consists ofa simple structure and base that act as a housing for the parts of the motor and the solar pan el. The design is aimed to use the least amount of parts as possible so that the vehicle will be lightwei ght yet sturdy. The motor and solar panels are at opposite ends to balance the car. There is a spot to ad d a load if necessary. The power is being sent to the rear wheels via a rubber band and gears. This prototype was not functional because of various reasons. One of the reasons was because it was to bulky and heavy for the motor to move the vehicle. The elasticity in the rubber band caused the whee Is to have a hard time turning. It was decided that gears would work better because they are not goin g to have any elasticity damping the power of the motor. The final design was decided upon because it was lightweight and proved to be the most cost effective of all the designs. The base of the car is in a triangle shape that has a slit in the top of the triangle. The slit is big enough so that the back wheel can fit inside of it without touc hing the sides. On

Employment law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 6

Employment law - Essay Example The company application form does not have a separate equal opportunities section. The managers notes are inconclusive as to why this young man did not get the job at interview the first time, and the second time on paper he was as well qualified as any of the other applicants who were interviewed, the form just shows that the manager wrote â€Å"unsuitable – no interview† on the top. At no time have any of his supplied references being taken up, including the one from his work experience at Mans. On this second recruitment application occasion there is one application form from another local young person called Paul Jones which shows almost identical qualifications, with work experience at another very similar company to Mann’s, who was offered an interview but withdrew their application, and did not come along. Lindsay is seeking advice on how to respond to the questionnaire, what happens if it goes to Tribunal (including how to avoid it), and also advice on what needs to be done to prevent such claims in the future. The following report will discuss and also evaluate how the company should respond to allegations that it racially discriminated against an Asian candidate for one of its vacancies. Employment (previously also known as industrial) tribunals presently consider the legal implications of alleged unfair dismissals, and also the actions of employers that that have discriminated against potential as well as actual employees. In order to do this effectively Employment Tribunal have been given the necessary legal authority and power to investigate and then subsequently pass judgement on alleged cases of discriminatory recruitment practices as well as unfair dismissal. In the vast majority of alleged unfair recruitment or dismissal cases disputes or disagreements are brought to the attention of the relevant Employment

Information Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Information - Essay Example One reason, the focus of my speech today, is the special protection that baseball (Major League Baseball) has been afforded by Congress. This protection comes in the form of antitrust law and, to a significant extant, insulates owners and other interested stakeholders from competition within the baseball industry. As an initial matter, it is important to define what is meant by antitrust law, a topic frequently foreign to baseball aficionados. Antitrust law is an umbrella designation that includes a number of laws dealing with fair competition; more specifically, because America deems itself a free market capitalist economy, there exist a number of laws designed to prevent such things as monopolies and unfair methods of competition. Strangely enough, baseball has for quite some time been exempt from a number of antitrust laws. As stated by Bartee, â€Å"professional sports are a textbook example of a bilateral cartel made up of club owners and unionized players engaged in intrastate and interstate commerce. The club owners exercise monopoly power in the product market† (2008: n.p.). Baseball, like steel or agriculture in certain respects, is a protected industry. It is not a monopoly per se but a competitive cartel in which owners compete with the unionized players. We read all of the time about competition between owners and players. There are disagreements about such things as free agency, salary caps, and collective bargaining agreements. The irony is that while the owners and the players often trade accusations about the other using unfair methods or misleading financial formulas the truth is that both reap the rewards of a non-competitive industry because of the antitrust exemption granted to Major League Baseball by the United States Congress. In addition, in a 1972 case called Kuhn v. Flood and decided by the United States Supreme Court, it was also decided that â€Å"baseball and its reserve system are also exempt from state antitrust

South China Sea and the possible construct of a multi-national joint Research Paper

South China Sea and the possible construct of a multi-national joint force command - Research Paper Example The study was undertaken through a qualitative analysis approach. The analysis was aimed at answering the question will multi-national joint force enable global unity? If so, what ways can we use to undertake the process. Information from previous sources concerning the same issue was used to come up with constructive details to answer this question. The independent variables identified were the multi-national force whereas global development depended on the national relationships between different countries in order for peace and harmony to prevail. Scholarly articles by distinguished researchers on the area were thoroughly relied on to bring out a clear picture. The study will aim at identifying the relationship between the multi-national joint force and its impact on the future stability on the world’s economy and security. The results that will be obtained will be useful in making amendments to daily decision in regard to the future prediction. Another objective of the study will be recognizing the factors in organizing the multi-national joint force to ensure that the interests of the affected countries are considered. The results that will be obtained will be used to ensure that necessary amendments are put into place for the equity of all parties involved. The hypothesis developed suggests that there exists a significant relationship between multi-national partnership between different countries and the stability of the future world’s economy and security. Due to the increasing and high probability that tension will continue in the South China Sea region, there is need to determine the impact of constructing a multinational national joint force structure on the world’s future stability. United States’ engagement in military, economic and social involvement with the pacific region has a positive impact. Various researches have been conducted to identify the

The Importance of Managing Change in the Air Transport Industry Essay

The Importance of Managing Change in the Air Transport Industry - Essay Example The paper suggests the steps that should be taken by the company to ensure success. The first step involves the creation of the ‘big message’. This step is important for Su as it will help her understand what is in for her. This step will make out the main message the individuals are involved in the change need to hear. In this case, Su was the only individual that was affected by this change. This message contains the major reasons for the change that include cost reduction, increased demand for the work force in Edinburg as well as to facilitate her skills and experience. Additionally, it should state the benefits that the organization will get from this change. This message should be done in a concise and clear language and communicated through the appropriate channels. This means that there should be official communication of the message by the human resource management team. Su should demonstrate acceptance of the terms and conditions of the change by signing an off icial agreement statement. It is important to get the support of the management while making this decision and find individuals that are influential within the organization to support this move. It is important to acknowledge that this influence could either be positive or negative and it is imperative to align oneself with the parties that support the decision. At this stage, it is significant to communicate to Su on the benefits that linked with the change. This is the couple with the communication of the benefits that accrue to both entities. There are various examples that should be communicated to her at this stage. First, the individual benefits such as improved flexibility with regards to the job location as well as a more challenging work environment that results in career growth and development. The company benefits should be efficiently communicated to Su including increased benefits from her skills and expertise as well as the benefits associated with having a diverse wor kforce. It can be concluded that the ‘big message’ defines priorities and establishes the tone for the subsequent steps.

SWOT analysis is deeply flawed and should not be applied as a modern Essay - 1

SWOT analysis is deeply flawed and should not be applied as a modern marketing tool - Essay Example These include evaluating the progress of the existing strategy (Aaker, 2001, p.18). Evaluation should be done from a qualitative perspective such evaluation of completeness, internal consistency, rationale and the suitability. More so, quantities point of view should be put into consideration including the strategic and financial outcomes for the strategy (Sanchez and Heene, 2010, p.11). With stronger company’s overall performance, there is no need for changes. Secondly, the evaluation is important because company’s competitive capabilities and the core competencies are identified. The capabilities which are most logical lay a foundation for company’s achievement (Aaker, 2001, p.19). The most strategic competences are competitive rare and hard to imitate or to find substitute. Previously, a good strategy to size up company’s resource strength was the SWOT analysis. It is powerful in determining the company’s strengths and competitive deficiencies, opportunities and other external threats empowering its future (Thompson, Strickland and Gamble, 2010, p.10). However, recent investigation has pointed out some weakness in SWOT analysis. Despite the longevity and extensive use of the analysis in firms and classrooms, SWOT analysis has been shown to yield misleading consequences that some of the authors have advised scrapping it (Smith, 2006, p.2). DOE analyzes the firms system resulting to better information when surveying internal and external nexus (Valentin, 2005 p.54). The paper addresses the intrinsic worth of SWOT analysis framework. SWOT analysis is a criteria used to define business internal context in terms of strength, weakness, opportunities and threats. It provides strategic insight of a business to fragment facts and figures for effective planning. Such superior and strategic approach enhances competitive advantage to a firm (Smith, 2006, p.4; Valentin 2005, p 53). Organization strengths include all the skills

Essay on Eiffel Tower Essay Example for Free

Essay on Eiffel Tower Essay In 1889, Paris hosted an Exposition Universelle to mark the 100-year anniversary of the French Revolution. More than 100 artists submitted competing plans for a monument to be built on the Champ-de-Mars, located in central Paris, and serve as the exposition’s entrance. The commission was granted to Eiffel et Compagnie. Eiffel, an architect and metal expert, receives full credit for the monument that bears his name but it was one of his employees—a structural engineer named Maurice Koechlin—who came up with the concept. Several years earlier, the pair had collaborated on the Statue of Liberty’s metal armature. Originally intended as a temporary exhibit, the Eiffel Tower was almost torn down in 1909. City officials opted to save it after recognizing its value as a radiotelegraph station. Several years later, during World War I, the Eiffel Tower intercepted enemy radio communications. It escaped destruction a second time during World War II. Over the years, the Eiffel Tower has been the site of numerous high-profile stunts, ceremonial events and even scientific experiments. The Eiffel Tower has also inspired more than 30 replicas and similar structures in various cities around the world. Now one of the most recognizable structures on the planet, the Eiffel Tower underwent a major renovation in 1986 and is repainted every seven years. It welcomes more visitors than any other paid monument in the world—an estimated 7 million people per year. Fulgence Bienvenà ¼e, an engineer at Ponts et Chaussà ©es, created the project, which was adopted by the Municipal Council on 9 July 1897. Work started on 4 October 1898. Line 1, which opened on 19 July 1900, connected the Porte de Maillot to the Porte de Vincennes and provided a service to the summer Olympic Games organised in the Bois de Vincennes. Parisians immediately loved this new means of transport. In 1901, Fulgence Bienvenà ¼e planned an additional network of lines which would not leave any point in Paris more than 500 metres from a metro station. Work quickly began on lines 2 and 3 and then 4 and 5, etc. The first six lines were opened to the public in 1910. Immediately prior to the First World War, the 91km-long network included 10 lines and carried 467 million travellers. The following decade saw the network continue to grow, in particular through the extension of the lines to the suburbs (lines 1, 12, 9, 11, etc.). During the Second World War, several lines were exten ded despite the shortage of electricity.

Utilitarian Response To Objections Regarding Justice And Supererogation Philosophy Essay

Utilitarian Response To Objections Regarding Justice And Supererogation Philosophy Essay In this essay I am going to firstly explain the concept of utilitarianism. I will then discuss the problems it faces regarding both justice and supererogation before evaluating whether the arguments for these objections are convincing and whether a utilitarian can give a response. Utilitarianism is a moral philosophy that relies on the principle of utility to determine the moral rightness or wrongness of an act token. It is therefore a consequentialist theory, since it relies fundamentally on the principle that the moral worth of an act token is judged solely on that acts ability to maximise utility. This utility can be defined in a variety of ways, for example knowledge or preference satisfaction, however for the purpose of this essay I am going to define utility as John Stuart Mill did: Actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness; wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. By happiness is intended pleasure and the absence of pain; by unhappiness, pain and the privation of pleasure.  [1]   A general definition of utilitarianism might therefore go as follows: An act token A is morally right if and only if it produces as much or more happiness for all those involved than any available alternative. Bentham proposed a system of calculating the total value of an actions consequences, which is known as the felicific calculus  [2]  . This takes into account the intensity, duration, likelihood etc. of the pleasures and pains which result from our actions and utilitarians suggest that by using this system we are able to compare the morality of actions. They believe that we ought always to choose the act that produces the most overall utility. Some of the main objections made in response to utilitarianism are based on the concepts of justice and fairness. Some people hold that utilitarianism is incompatible with justice and that it can imply that in certain situations it is morally right for us to treat people unfairly and violate what we intuitively believe to be their moral and civil rights. These objections arise out of the fact that utilitarians determine the rightness and wrongness of all actions by using what is known as the Greatest Happiness Principle (GHP). If an action satisfies this principle, then it produces the greatest happiness or utility for the greatest amount of people. This raises problems in regards to justice and in particular, the rights of the individual and democratic equality. The first justice-related objection I am going to consider is problem of the violation of rights, since, in a utilitarian society, rights are only justified if they are essential to the maximisation of happiness. Therefore if a right is not essential to the overall happiness of a given society, then a utilitarian society is not required to protect it. An example of this would be to imagine a minority group within a society who engaged in a religious practise of a sexual nature which offended the rest of the society. If this was a utilitarian society, the GHP would determine that preventing the minority group from performing these practises would be the morally right thing to do, because it would maximise the overall utility of the society. This seems intuitively problematic since it appears to violate the minoritys civil right to the freedom of religion. The second justice-related objection I am going consider relates to the nature of the GHP principle itself, and the notion that it is a purely collective principle, only concerned with maximising the overall amount of utility. An example of why this is problematic becomes apparent if we consider the act of genocide. It might be the case that in a given society, the extermination of a certain minority (E.G 100 people) would generate an increase in happiness for the majority (E.G 1,000,000 people.) Utilitarianisms GHP would determine that in this case, genocide was the morally right act to perform, since the consequence of the action would promote happiness in the larger portion of the population. However our intuitions tell us that genocide is never something we ought to do, yet in this case utilitarianism seems to tell us not only that we ought to do it, but that it is morally right. A third justice-related objection I am going to consider relates to the notion of punishment. An example of this would be to imagine that there had been a series of murders in a town that were generally believed to have been committed by a homeless man. Following these murders there has been an outbreak of rioting in the town and the murders of several other homeless people have occurred. The sheriff has a homeless man in his custody that has no friends or family and knows that by executing this man, the rioting and murders will stop. The sheriff however knows that this particular homeless man is innocent. In this case utilitarianism would determine that it is morally right to convict and consequently execute the innocent man, because it promotes the most happiness within the given community, and prevents the rioters from causing anymore pain. However this again goes against our intuitions that it is wrong to punish the innocent. These objections do at first seem very convincing because they appeal to our moral intuitions. However a utilitarian might respond to these cases by suggesting a variation on the classical version of utilitarianism: rule-utilitarianism. Rule-utilitarianism determines the rightness and wrongness of an act by finding the best rules of conduct that if followed by the majority of a society, would maximise the overall utility of that society. Rule-utilitarians may therefore suggest that in the long run, the rules protecting the civil right to the freedom of religion, not committing genocide and not punishing the innocent would create more overall utility, when followed by all or the majority of a society than not following them on these particular occasions. Rule-utilitarianism might therefore suggest that to follow these rules would be the morally right thing to do. I will now move on to look at some objections to utilitarianism regarding supererogatory actions. The problem is that utilitarianism does not appear to allow for supererogatory acts. An act is said to be supererogatory if and only if it satisfies the following conditions: 1) It is morally optional 2) It is morally praiseworthy 3) It goes beyond the call of duty Since utilitarianism requires that in any situation we may find ourselves in, we are morally obligated to perform the act that brings about the best possible consequences, it appears to leave no room for supererogation. An example of this would be to imagine a man faced with a decision of whether to run into a burning building and save the five people trapped inside it himself, or to stay at a safe distance and call the emergency services. We are inclined to say that both actions are morally right since both aim to preserve the utility of the people trapped inside the building, however utilitarianism would seem to suggest that the only action that is morally right and thus morally obligatory in this situation, is for the man to run into the burning building himself, since that would maximise the utility of all the people involved. It would seem then that utilitarianism leaves no room for doing more than duty requires. Some have claimed however that utilitarianism can accommodate the three conditions of supererogation; there will often be acts which are morally optional in case where there is more than one act which would maximise utility, and some of these acts will also be morally praiseworthy. The common example used to illustrate this is that of Smith, who is given the option to save his own life or Jones life, on the basis that utility will be maximised either way. If Smith saves Jones life instead of his own, he is doing something that is both morally optional and morally praiseworthy. Smiths action of saving Jones is also often considered to go beyond the call of duty, since he is doing more for others than he is required to. However this notion of requirement seems unclear and it seems that supererogation should involve doing more of what there is moral reason to do. In this case however, utilitarianism would deny that there was more moral reason for Smith to save Jones rather than himself, since both acts would maximise utility. Utilitarianism also seems to have the consequence of suggesting that many supererogatory acts are wrong. The common example used to illustrate this is the intuitively supererogatory act of Smith taking Jones out for lunch. If taking to Jones to the most expensive restaurant in town would maximise the overall utility of everyone involved, then utilitarianism inevitably leads to the suggestion that taking Jones to a moderately priced restaurant would be morally wrong. Objections such as these have led some utilitarians to a variation of the classical theory: satisficing consequentialism. This theory determines an action as morally right if it promotes a good enough outcome, however there are some obvious problems with this theory. The main challenge facing satisficing consequentialists is to explain when an outcome is good enough; it is not clear whether there is an absolute level of goodness which we ought to abide by or whether levels of goodness are relative to each individual situation. In conclusion it seems that although utilitarianism appears at first to be correct in focussing on the consequences of our actions, the principles which form the basis of the theory are not without their problems. The objections put forward about the issues such justice and supererogation that I have considered are all very convincing and although different variations of utilitarianism have attempted to, and often been successful in responding to those objections, there appears to be no unifying version of the theory which can respond to them all. Satisficing consequentialism for example, may be successful in responding to objections regarding supererogation, but may not necessarily be adequate in responding to objections regarding justice. This is obviously problematic because it means we are left with what appears to be an incomplete moral theory. Since it appears that all the objections to utilitarianism that I have considered are rooted in the notion that the morality of an action is determined by its consequences, we might perhaps be better advised to look to a non-consequentialist theory of morality, such as deontology, for a theory of morality that does not suffer from the same objections.

Graduation Speech: God, Grant Me Wisdom :: Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

The year is 2038. I, Bob Millings, am a retired multi-millionare relaxing on the porch of my beach house on the Northshore of Oahu in the Hawaii Islands. Having already earned my millions from selling the hundreds of Ichiro cards that I amassed throughout the past 20 years, I have nothing else better to do than lay on my beach chair and soak up the rays. Suddenly a flock of seagulls (yes, seagulls fly in flocks) crosses my line of vision, and a tear comes to my eye. Oh, how that magnificent bird reminds me of the best four years of my life at County High School, the home of the Seagulls. My mind suddenly floats back 26 years to the past to a time when I was finishing up my career at that prestigious academy of learning. I didn't know it then, but some of my most valuable lessons were learned during those four years. No, I am not talking about those smarts I learned my freshman year, like remembering never to fall asleep in Mr. Bull's Biology class, or realizing that it was in my best interest to steer clear of the Senior Lot after school. Nor am I speaking about those important things I was taught during my crazy sophomore and junior years, like how important Planning Team is, how Wendy's is the best lunchtime meal around, or how a hook is one of the most important parts of an essay. I'm not even talking about those skills I picked up my senior year, like being able to get ready in the morning in less than seven minutes, remembering to switch arms while sleeping on a desk so your arm won't fall asleep, or those great moves I learned during chess days in Mrs. Johnson' s class. No, I am talking about that word that came into play time and time again during my high school career: acceptance. I constantly found myself in a position where I was on the brink of insanity during school. Maybe I was mad at one of my friends, or I had three tests in one day, or I was given a 500-page book to read in less than two weeks. There was always that thought in the back of my mind that I could just quit and forget about it all and stop caring. But than that word would come up, and I would accept all those things and realize that my friend and I would make up, those tests would be over soon, and that book is actually not all that bad.

History of Streptococcus Pyogenes :: Biomedical

History of Streptococcus Pyogenes Abstract: With the earliest recordings coming from the Fifth Century B.C., streptococcus pyogenes, and more frequently, its symptoms have been prevalent among doctors and historians for hundreds of years. The first mentioning of streptococcus pyogenes is to be credited to Hippocrates, in which he describes the relative symptoms of the flesh-eating bacteria in its early stages. Then depicted by Billroth in 1874, patients carrying erysipelas were determined to have this certain bacterial infection. In 1883, the chain-forming bacteria were isolated by Fehleisen; and in the following year, Rosenbach applied the S. pyogenes name. Further advances in hemolytic and non-hemolytic studies were made by Lancefield in the 1930’s, in which the alpha, beta, and gamma subgroups of the hemolytic structures – detailed and defined by Schottmueller and Brown - were divided into serotypes. Although he lived four centuries before the birth of Christ, a man named Hippocrates recorded the symptoms of diseases we still see to this day. Known as the â€Å"Father of Medicine† (Hippocrates), Hippocrates was an ancient physician who studied and recorded his observances of the body’s infections and physiology. He set forth the foundation for future physicians, and in doing so, is accredited for our knowledge of infectious diseases in earlier centuries. During this time however, many believed the earth and its inhabitants were composed of four general elements: air, water, fire, and dirt. They also believed that any one person who fell ill was being punished by the gods. As a foresighted thinker though, Hippocrates encouraged the idea that humans became ill due to natural causes. In that wisdom, he recorded all his observances of his patients and their illnesses, taking careful note of the bodily symptoms and their progression. Described in his works, Hippocrates mentioned scarlet fever-like symptoms, 2 those that correlate to the flesh-eating bacteria now known as streptococcus pyogenes. Due to Hippocrates’ acts as a pioneer in the medical field, these chronicles are the first recordings we have of the existence of the bacteria. Centuries later, another man began to outline more thoroughly the features and symptoms of several afflictions. Theodor Billroth, a Viennese surgeon described streptococci, staphylococci, diplococci, and even rods found in pus as intervals regarded in a distinct species: Coccobacteria septica (Breed). He investigated the roles of the bacteria and entwined their origin. Billroth noticed specific bacteria in those with erysipelas; he named the bacteria streptococcus from the two Greek words strepto meaning a chain formed of links, and coccus meaning berry.

Effects of Technology on Relationships

Yana Feldman Professor Ebersole Analytical Reading and Writing 0802 November 2, 2010 Advances in Communication and Intimate Relationships Instant digital and online communication of the modern world influences love and courtship in relationships. The generations of today allow their interpersonal relationships to be formed and shaped according to the technology that is offered. This is one of the many important matters that are influenced by technology. Technology is manipulating the world with positive and negative effects; it causes scientific advancement, it affects the economy, and importantly, it changes communication between people.This change can be seen in intimate relationships. To see how communication technology has changed love as a whole, one can observe how technology has changed different types, or stages, of intimate relationships. Three possible stages are an early dating stage at which flirting and courtship occur, a marital stage in which commitment is vital, and a long-distance relationship in which a couple is temporarily separated. These stages of relationships have changed in history and will continue to adjust according to society and, of course, technology. Communication has continuously been evolving ever since language existed.Language gives the distinctive ability for the evolution of human society. Language starts at the basis of spoken words; information is conveyed through conversation aloud or written in forms of letters. Efficient communication has involved written messages even in the earliest of civilizations. Since 522 BC written messages were sent between people in the Persian Empire. For a message to travel 2000 miles, it would take 10 days for a man on a horse at a speed of 200 miles per day; clearly, there were no other options or methods to send a message such a long distance.Until much more recent centuries, the only way to speed up the transferring of a message was to speed up the messenger himself. In the 11th century messages were sent slightly faster using pigeons (Gascoigne 1). As a next big step in the 15th century, the new technology of printing was invented. It spreads so quickly that every European country soon uses this new invention. The invention of the telescope in the 17th century allows for optical signals to be sent across a longer distance (Gascoigne 1).The application of electricity to enable communication did not come until much later in the form of the static electrical telegraph in the 18th century. Another long time passed post-telegraph telecommunications technologies before the speaking telephone would be invented (Winston 28). But by the time that Queen Victoria had ended her reign in 1901, the telegraph also left its greatest days behind (Standage 1). Distant signaling by voice appeared only 2 centuries ago—a very recent advancement considering how long communication has existed (Winston 33).The telephone was invented in the late 19th century—within 20 years , 2 million telephones existed in the United States. â€Å"During Queen Victoria’s reign, a new communications technology was developed that allowed people to communicate almost instantly across great distances, in effect shrinking the world faster and further than ever before. A worldwide communications network whose cables spanned continents and oceans, it revolutionized business practice, gave rise to new forms of crime, and inundated its users with a deluge of information. Romances blossomed over the wires† (Standage 1).Finally, the 20th century brought the inventions of the radio, television, and internet into human society; another influential invention was the famous cellular phones. These inventions spread to all parts of the world generously and quickly. With internet abilities, electronic mail became an option, and soon a preference over post mail. Instant messaging, text-messaging, and video chatting are all continuing to spread. Additionally, the convergenc e of internet and cellular devices can currently allow web access anytime and anywhere (â€Å"Internet† 1).The modern day communication options are incomparable to the early civilizations’ options. Modern communication capabilities cannot even be compared to the communication 200 years ago; so much has changed. Intimacy and loving relationships have always had certain steps and stages along the way. Dating and marriage are often regarded as popular topics of discussion. One can picture ladies gossiping and journalists commenting on what women should do, on what men should do, or how both parties should act in certain situations.However, love and intimacy are also sometimes observed in a more general and objective sense. The relationships of today can be compared with each other as well as compared to equal relationship settings of the past. Early developing intimate relationships today is a very open and general topic as compared to what it once used to be. â€Å"Cour tship no longer occupies a vital place in American culture. The term itself seems quaint and outdated† (Cere 4). Some researchers believe that the traditions of courtship eroded in the 20th century.They also believe that courtship’s end caused the destabilizing of marriage in recent years (Cere 4). Research shows that a device such as a cell phone and the text messaging that it offers substitutes face-to-face communication and is killing relationships. This is vital in an early developing relationship because communication in this stage can either cause the progress or downfall of the whole relationship. Interestingly, researchers have found that the reason men and women spend so much time on the Internet is because of the easy communication management and the environmental control that is offered.Particularly for the early stages of developing relationships, internet communication and other technological forms do not have any benefits (Kasallis). While research shows t hat text messages can be endearing and sweet for couples to interact and communicate, men and women may develop opposite opinions about the issue of text messaging. It seems that because text messaging (along with some other new technology) is so new, ground rules have not yet been established in the etiquette of the text message, and so for this reason these new technologies have had such pressure on early dating and flirting relationships (Pressner 1).In addition to the effects of text messaging and online communication to already developed intimate relationships, there is the whole issue of relationships that have been created in cyber ways. Social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook, offer the communication between old and new acquaintances. Yet today’s technology does not nearly end there; in addition to such online social locations for communication, couples and singles are offered with online dating services, such as Match. com and eHarmony.Such online services (now also accessible on cellular devices ever since the Cell and Internet convergence) are lacking reality and are artificial. Yet this does not stop men and women. In fact, the disconnectedness often attracts their attention and is tempting and addicting. Another stage of relationships is marriage. The marital stage is considered the most committed and based on emotional attachment. In this stage, the couple is considered dedicated and can be referred to as family members; the couple can also bear children. Research shows that marriage, partially due to the previous dating stage, has also changed in recent times.In the past, the â€Å"courtship† dating stage set clear ground for marriage as a next step. Since early dating is affected in modern day, marriage is not regarded as the next conceivable step. Also with technology changes, divorce laws have changed, allowing marriages to end with no faults, and opening more options to couples. â€Å"Many of the essential features of lo ve as courtship — the longing for permanence, the desire to donate the self to another — must, in the economists’ story of courtship, be either submerged into contract theory or dismissed altogether as irrational† (Cere 10).The effects of online communication and text messaging on marriage are observed as well; with both positive and negative effects. Noticeably, a little free time along with the internet is possibly harmful and damaging to a married couple. With services on the internet such as dating, social networks, and pornography, a dedicated husband or wife could get carried away. Such services are easily accessed, easy to use, and emotionally easy to handle because no work is required to be put in as with a husband or a wife.Nevertheless, other researchers say that marriage has been made easier in recent years due to the interconnectedness. A husband or wife can always send an email, make a phone call, or even easier—send a text message to o ne another. With this ability, there appears yet another aspect: married couples do not experience the love and desire for each other when not together (Sahlstein 1). A simple phone call can eliminate any feelings the couple has of missing one another or of desire for the other. With such quick digital communication today there is less of this excitement as in previous years.A third type of a relationship is a long-distance relationship. A simple example of such a couple is when the husband must leave for the military for long periods of time. In the internet age today, this long distance relationship is aided by such programs like Skype. A couple can not only send quick e-mails, it can talk on the phone, send instant messages, and video chat. This is somewhat of a revolution in comparison to relationships even a hundred years ago. Long distance relationships have had problems in all cultures and times.Since beginning of history, long distance relationships was a matter that was avo ided at all costs. Yet in today’s world, technology has definitely benefited this form of intimate relationship, allowing a couple to stay in touch in numerous ways. Most interestingly, studies show that in such a relationship, being together and being apart mutually allow and constrain on another in multiple ways (Sahlstein 1). Modern society is enhancing and providing this ability for long-distance romantic partners to feel connected and still be separated at the same time.The technology, particularly for communication enhancement, has changed probably the most in recent years causing changes and adjustments in all areas. Relationships and interpersonal communication is just one area that is currently affected, and it is not yet clear if it for the ultimate better or the eventual downfall of intimacy between men and women. In dating, marriage, and long-distance relationships, the effects of communication technology are currently observable. However, new technology is being developed and new standards are being set; and so, one may only wonder where intimate relationships will end up next. New problems may arise, as they always do in time; yet with such an instinctive and desired emotion of love, humans and their relationships will have the ability to prevail.Works Cited Cere, Dan. â€Å"The Experts’ Story of Courtship. † Institute for American Values. 2000. 01 November 2010. . Gascoigne, Bamber. â€Å"History of Communication† HistoryWorld. 2001. 01 November 2010. . Kasallis, Theresa. â€Å"Text messaging affects student relationships. † Universe. 5 Jul 2006. 01 November 2010. . Perlman, Daniel. Intimate Relationships. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Humanities Social, 2008. Pressner, Amanda. Can love blossom in a text message? † USA Today. 29 January 2006. 01 November 2010. . Sahlstein, Erin M. â€Å"Relating at a distance: Negotiating being together and being apart in long-distance relationships. † Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. 2010. 01 November 2010. . Standage, Tom. The Victorian Internet. New York: Walker Publishing, 2000. Winston, Brian. Media technology and society: a history: from the telegraph to the Internet. New York: Taylor and Francis e-Library, 2003. â€Å"Internet. † Encyclop? dia Britannica. 2010. Encyclop? dia Britannica Online. 01 Nov. 2010 .

Is the Constitution a Living Document

â€Å"Is the Constitution a living document? † Well the meaning of the living document is the provisions by which it may be altered in order to remain current, address unforeseen circumstances and make legal provisions for those accordingly. By being a â€Å"living† document, the Constitution has grown and expanded, and now ensures women and minorities the right to vote among many other things. Most justices agree that the writers of the Constitution prudently chose to write this document in general terms so that modern-day justices can still apply its precepts to a world with changing laws, attitudes, and conditions through successive generations.Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes first advanced the concept of a living Constitution in 1920 in his opinion on the case, Missouri VS Holland. A second, and more controversial, view of a living Constitution contends that when the elected legislative and administrative agents of the government fail to redress a wrong or solve a par ticular social problem, then the courts may act to remedy the situation through the process of judicial review. Our written Constitution, the document under glass in the National Archives, was adopted 220 years ago. It can be amended, but the amendment process is very difficult.The most important amendments were added to the Constitution almost a century and a half ago, in the wake of the Civil War, and since that time many of the amendments have dealt with relatively minor matters. The American Constitution is long-lived, has enduring qualities, and was intended for many decades. The living document was founded on enduring principles, and was based on the authority of a people who are sovereign has been attested to by many of its leaders. That it can be changed when, and if, the people ordain such change is a part of its own provisions. For these reasons, it can be said to be a â€Å"Living Constitution†. Is the Constitution a Living Document â€Å"Is the Constitution a living document? † Well the meaning of the living document is the provisions by which it may be altered in order to remain current, address unforeseen circumstances and make legal provisions for those accordingly. By being a â€Å"living† document, the Constitution has grown and expanded, and now ensures women and minorities the right to vote among many other things. Most justices agree that the writers of the Constitution prudently chose to write this document in general terms so that modern-day justices can still apply its precepts to a world with changing laws, attitudes, and conditions through successive generations.Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes first advanced the concept of a living Constitution in 1920 in his opinion on the case, Missouri VS Holland. A second, and more controversial, view of a living Constitution contends that when the elected legislative and administrative agents of the government fail to redress a wrong or solve a par ticular social problem, then the courts may act to remedy the situation through the process of judicial review. Our written Constitution, the document under glass in the National Archives, was adopted 220 years ago. It can be amended, but the amendment process is very difficult.The most important amendments were added to the Constitution almost a century and a half ago, in the wake of the Civil War, and since that time many of the amendments have dealt with relatively minor matters. The American Constitution is long-lived, has enduring qualities, and was intended for many decades. The living document was founded on enduring principles, and was based on the authority of a people who are sovereign has been attested to by many of its leaders. That it can be changed when, and if, the people ordain such change is a part of its own provisions. For these reasons, it can be said to be a â€Å"Living Constitution†.

Battle of Frediericksburg Analysis

The Battle of Fredericksburg David P. Wrighten, CPT, MS Class 09-002 Small Group 6, MAJ Sims 03 April 2009 Abstract In early December 1862, the Union Army of the Potomac had massed on the northern bank of the Rappahannock River as it was in position to strike the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. The Union also position themselves to cut off the Confederate Army’s main supply route for the import and export of goods in the south. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia confronted the Union Army’s attempted strike on the south side of the Rappahannock by occupying the high ground overlooking the riverside town of Fredericksburg. Caught between the two opposing armies, Fredericksburg was destined to the battleground for a bloody prelude of major battles between the Union and Confederate armies in the open fields of the south. The Battle of Fredericksburg Introduction The Battle of Fredericksburg occurred on 11 December 1862 on the banks of the Rappahannock River near the small town of Fredericksburg, Virginia. Pitting three divisions of the Union Forces commanded by MG Edwin V. Sumner, MG Joseph Hooker, and MG William B. Franklin, approximately 120,000 Soldiers against the two Confederate Forces Corps of Northern Virginia commanded by LTG James Longstreet and LTG Thomas L. Jackson approximately 90,000 Soldiers. This battle emphasized the effective use of Weather, Maneuver, Observation Fields of Fire, Cover, and concealment, Obstacles, Key Terrain, and Avenues of Approach. The use of the Battlefield Operating Systems was instrumental in the success of the mission. The primary source used to gather information was, Decisive Battles of the Civil War: the Battle of Fredericksburg by LT. COL. Joseph B. MitchellDrama on the Rappahannock: the Fredericksburg Campaign by Edward J. Stackpole. Secondary sources used were The Battle of Fredericksburg a Special Edition of: Civil War Times by Edward J. Stackpole and Guide to the Battles of Chancellorsville and Fredericksburg by Jay Luvaas and Harold W. Nelson. Strategic Setting Fredericksburg, Virginia during the 1860s had developed into a family oriented community. This town happened to be the farthest point to navigate up the Rappahannock River. It was a very important site for trading for imported and exported goods. However, the larger, newer sailing vessels had difficulties in navigating the Rappahannock, which greatly hinder the international trade with other less modern customers of trade. This allowed members of Fredericksburg to live a more normal or less congested big city lifestyle. Militarily, this river is important for resupplying Soldiers critical supplies in order to fight effectively. The town of Fredericksburg changed hands many times throughout the war. Being located so closely to Richmond and Washington, it can greatly assist or resist in a potential attack on Richmond or Washington. In addition, this town could act as a staging area prior to launching an attack on the nation’s capital. Furthermore, four major battles fought within a seventeen-mile radius of Fredericksburg, Virginia. The major encounter during the Battle of Fredericksburg took place in Virginia. MG Ambrose Burnside’s Federal Army of the Potomac tried to countermine Gen Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia and capture Richmond. However, this would be a difficult task, since the Confederates were deeply entrenched into a defensive position west of town. Tactical Situation 1. Mission: Gen Burnside’s was to cross the Rappahannock River and seize the heights behind Fredericksburg, Virginia before Gen Lee’s army arrived. After seizing the town of Fredericksburg, the Army of the Potomac would then advance south to Richmond. In order to cross the Rappahannock Burnside had to build multiple bridges; for this purpose, support elements sent pontoon bridge equipment to Fredericksburg. The Union Forces arrived to the northern banks of the Rappahannock; there were no Confederate Forces in sight. It ould seem as if the advantage would be on the side of the Union Forces. 2. Equipment: Gen Hunt deployed riflemen to provide covering fire for the engineers at each end of the three construction points. He also possessed 147 artillery pieces to serve as the main deterrent to the Confederate Forces opposing the Union effort and accommodate a moderate logistics train. His ammo and other classes of supply were plentiful but the distance wou ld slowly cause these resources to erode. The Confederates had sufficient food and water, but other classes of supply were scarce, particularly their ammo. Many carried hunting rifles and shotguns of varying caliber. The Union Forces had a clear advantage. 3. Terrain: The city and its environs along the Rappahannock River in north-central Virginia were significant obstacles to Union advances on Richmond, the Confederate capital. The battlefield consists of a series of flood plains and river terraces with gentle slopes paralleled by north-south ridges that provide structural boundaries on either side, all comprised of Tertiary and Quaternary Coastal Plain sediments. The Confederates, led by Gen Robert E. Lee, effectively used natural terrain features to impede attacks made by the Union army. Tactical benefits also accrued by the Confederates from manufactured obstacles on the battlefield, e. g. , stone walls and fences. After crossing the Rappahannock River, the Union Army, had to attack uphill with little cover in their unsuccessful attempts to dislodge the Confederates. This gave the Confederate Forces the advantage against the Union strike. 4. Troops: Strategically the Union Forces had the advantage with the number of troops under Gen Burnsides command at nearly 120,000. The Confederate Forces had the advantage as having set up their defensive positions and direct access through their supply routes to their headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. The Confederate Forces did lack military training in the ranks as well as standard issue items that would help in the success of their campaign. The Union Forces had a clear advantage as far as personnel, but Confederate Forces had an advantage for their ability to resupply the units. 5. Time: This historic Fredericksburg Campaign planned and executed over a two-month period in November – December of 1862. This was during an extremely cold and harsh winter season. It reduced both the Union and Confederate forces from quiet movements, clear line of sight during pre-dawn hours (fog on the river), heavy snowfall, which restricted movements, thick terrain made of oak, maple, cedar, and highly thick entangled brush cause limited mobility, counter mobility and reduced eyes on the enemy. Therefore, even though the weather did not favor either side, it did not kept tactical goals of either side from being established. The Battle After, the Battle of Bull Run both armies devoted the second half of 1861 and part of 1862 to make serious adjustments for more important battles to come. Procurement of supplies, training, recruiting new soldiers, and other military activities was the primary training mission of both armies. Neither force was in any particular hurry to conduct an offensive operation. An impatient President waited in the White House to see how his popular commanding officer will retrain and utilize his powerful forces. Gen McClellan moved his forces in March 1862, via water, to the Virginia Peninsula between the York and James Rivers. The intent of this move was to take Richmond, Virginia. However, Johnston countered this plan by moving his Confederate soldiers overland in the same direction. Therefore, Gen Mc McClellan staged his troops at Fort Monroe. At the same time, Stonewall Jackson began his Shenandoah Valley Campaign, wounded in battle General Johnston was succeed by Robert E. Lee. On Oct. 6, the President instructed Gen McClellan to â€Å"cross the Potomac and give battle to the enemy, or drive him South. Your army must now move,† â€Å"he said, â€Å"while the roads are good. † Twenty-four days spent in correspondence before Gen McClellan obeyed the order of the president. Gen McClellan complained of a lack of men and supplies to make it prudent to move forward. At length, October had nearly passed by and Gen Lee’s army thoroughly rested and reorganized, and communications with Richmond re-established, the Army of the Potomac began to cross the river (Oct. 26), 100,000 strong. The Nationals led down the east side of the Blue Ridge, but failed to strike the retreating Confederates over the mountain in flank or to get ahead of them; and Gen Lee pushed Gen Longstreet’s troops over the Blue Ridge to Culpeper Courthouse, between the Army of the Potomac and Richmond, ready to dispute the advance of the Nationals. Quick and energetic movements were now necessary to sever and defeat, in detail, Gen Lee’s army. (See Map 1) On Nov. 75, the President relieved Gen McClellan of command, and Gen Burnside took command of the Corps. A sense of responsibility made the latter commander exceedingly cautious. Before he moved, he endeavored to get his 120,000 men well in hand. Gen Burnside determined Aquia Creek Landing as his resupply hub and main base for his assault. His overall decision was to, and he moved the army towards Fredericksburg down the Fredericksburg Route towards Fredericksburg. The allowed his forces to cover Washington and assure better protection of his lines of resupply and communication. Oon Nov. 150 Gen. Sumner led the movement from Warrenton down the left bank of the Rappahannock and covered almost 40 miles in two and one-half days to Falmouth. By November 21, Gen Longstreet's Corps had arrived near Fredericksburg, and Gen Jackson's (which had been downstream along the Rappahannock to prevent crossings there) was following rapidly. Gen Lee at first anticipated that he would fight Gen Burnside northwest of Fredericksburg and that it might be necessary to drop back behind the North Anna River. However, when he saw how slowly Gen Burnside was moving, he directed all of his army toward Fredericksburg. The first pontoon bridges arrived at Falmouth on November 25, much too late to enable the Army of the Potomac to cross the river without opposition. Gen Burnside still had an opportunity, however, because he was facing only half of Gen Lee's army, not yet dug in, and if he acted quickly, he might be able to attack Longstreet and defeat him before Jackson arrived. Once again, he squandered his opportunity. The bridges arrived at the end of the month, and by this time, Gen Jackson was present and Gen Longstreet was preparing strong defenses. Gen Burnside originally plannedplanned to use Gen McClellan’s original plan of to crossing his army east of Fredericksburg; 10 miles (16 km) downstream at Skinker's Neck, but Early's division arrived there and blocked him. Therefore,So he Gen Burnside decided to cross directly at Fredericksburg. On December 9, he wrote to Halleck, â€Å"I think now the enemy will be more surprised by a crossing immediately in our front than any other part of the river. †¦ I'm convinced that a large force of the enemy is now concentrated at Port Royal, its left resting on Fredericksburg, which we hope to turn. † In addition to, his numerical advantage in troop strength, Gen Burnside also had the advantage of knowing his army could not be attacked effectively. On the other side of the Rappahannock, 220 artillery pieces had been located on the ridge known as Stafford Heights to prevent Gen Lee's army from mounting any major counterattacks. (See Map 1) On the morning of December 11, Union Engineers began the construction of six pontoon bridges in preparation for the passage of Union Forces across the Rappahannock River. Two placed north of the Town Center, a third on the southern end of town, and three further south near the confluence of the Rappahannock and Deep Run. During the assembly of the pontoon bridges, Union Engineers came under punishing fire from the Confederate Forces primarily from the sharpshooters of the Mississippi Brigade commanded by Gen Barksdale. Gen Burnside. tThen ordered his Union artillery batteries then to shelled the city. The artillery fire lasted for an hour in terrific bombardment in hopes to drive the Confederate sharpshooters out of their positions. The bombardment failed to dampen the spirits of Barksdale’s sharpshooters, as soon as the artillery fire ceased the musketeers popped out of the holes and resumed firing. Thus, the first attempt to cross the river was a failure due to the Confederates’ fires on federal engineers constructing pontoon bridges on the river. Gen Burnsides’ staff immediately began mission analysis on another plan to cross the river. Gen Hunt suggested the only solution to cross the river are volunteers to cross by ferry rowing in pontoons to secure the opposite side of the river a lay suppressive fire on Confederate sharpshooters to cover the bridge layers. Because of a lack in confidence on his part, Gen BurnsideIf he was confident and swift in issuing was slow in issuing his tactical instructions,instructions; the Union Army of the Potomac may have caught the Confederates unready to defend their positions properly. In addition to the failure of the first attempt to cross, there wasAdditionally, a decrease in morale of the Union ForcesArmy of the Potomac and their senior commandeleadershipr due to the hesitation of Gen Burnsides decisionstheir overall commander on not just one critical occasion but several occasions. Other occasions of indecisiveness and lack of initiative in dealing with the blunder of getting the pontoons transferred from Washington also attributed to the decrease in morale of not only the Leadership leadership but also the Soldiers. Furthermore, the inability of Burnside to consider the advice advice, from Gen Halleck, was trying to give on where to cross the river showed the lack of communication from the field commander to Washington Headquarters. The Chief Engineer of the Army ordered his engineers in the following format (Stackpole, p122): (These were the actual orders that were issued) Engineers will place two pontoons bridges to be constructed at the site of old pontoon bridge, one of them to have approaches for artillery. One pontoon bridge at site of old canal-boat bridge; approaches for artillery. Additionally, we will place two pontoon bridges just below mouth of Deep Run, a mile below Fredericksburg one to have artillery approach. Major Spaulding to throw three uppe r ones: major Magruder to throw the next, and Lieutenant Cross the lowest one. Bridge equipage, now at White Oak Church, to move up and go into park near Phillip’s house by dark. At midnight trains to move down within 400 yards of river, and to move down and begin unloading a two in the morning. If enemy fire is kept down, bridges to be thrown as soon as are unloaded; if too hot, wait until artillery silences it† The battle opened south of the city at 8:30 a. m. on December 13, when Maj. Gen. William Franklin ordered two of the divisions from the Left Grand Division to maneuver themselves through an unseen gap in Gen Jackson's defenses on the right and head towards Hamilton’s Crossing. By 10 a. m. , a thick fog began to lift, and the initially sluggish movements picked up speed. Gen Meade's division of 4,500 men formed the main attack, in direct support of Gen Meade’sthese movements the divisions of Gen Doubleday and Gen Gibbon. The Virginia Horse Artillery under Major John Pelham stalled the attack, and an artillery duel between Pelham and the Union artillery batteries lasted for approximately an hour. MAJ Pelham started his artillery attack with only two cannons—a 12-pounder Napoleon smoothbore and a rifled Blakely—but continued with only one after counter-battery fire disabled one of the cannons. Gen Lee observed the action and commented about Pelham, age 24, â€Å"It is glorious to see such courage in one so young. † As Meade finally made traction, he ran into Brig. Gen. Maxcy Gregg's brigade, scattering it. Gen Gregg was shot and mortally wounded; he died two days later. To Gen Meade's right, Gen Gibbon's attack against the brigades of Brig. Gen. William Dorsey Pender and Edward L. Thomas made good progress, but Gen Meade and Gen Gibbon men became separated; by 1:30 p. m. , a heavy Confederate counterattack pushed them back to the beachhead of the Rappahannock. Because of the foggy conditions, Federal artillery could not provide much assistance because of the inability to discern between Union and Confederate Forces. Driven back and chased by the Confederate infantry, raised some concerns with Gen Burnside, his divisions may be trapped at the river. The Federal line strengthened with addition of Brig. Gen. Daniel E. Sickles and Brig. Gen. David B. Birney divisions, and Stonewall Jackson's counterattack grounded to a halt. The focus of action moved north to Marye Heights. The initial assaults west of Fredericksburg began at 11 a. . as French's divisiontwo divisions from Gen Couch’s Corps, Gen French’s division and Gen Hancock’s division, moved along the Plank Road, facing a steep-banked drainage ditch and a wide, open plain of 400 yards (370 m), dominated by Confederate infantry and artillery behind a sunken road and stone wall. Earlier, artillerist Edward Porter Alexander, â€Å"A chicken could not live on that field w hen we open on it,† had assured Gen Longstreet. The Union men attacking had to file d into columns over two small bridges across the drainage ditch, making them a massed target. Attempts to shift the attack farther to the right failed because of swampy ground. As in the south, Union artillery was prevented by fog from effectively silencing the Confederate guns as from Stafford Heights Union guns were unable to reach the Confederate positions. Gen Burnside had anticipated this attack on the right would be merely supportive of his main effort on the left, but Franklin had stalled and resisted entreaties to continue, so Gen Burnside shifted his emphasis. After French's division was repulsed with heavy losses, Gen Burnside sent in the divisions of Gen Hancock and Gen Howard, which met a similar fate. By this time, Gen Pickett's division and one of Gen Hood's brigades had marched north to reinforce Marye Heights. Gen Griffin's division renewed the attack at 3:30 p. m. , followed by Gen Humphrey's division at 4 p. m. At dusk, Gen Getty's division assaulted from the east and was repulsed. Gen Burnside sent six Union Divisions in, virtually one brigade at a time, for sixteen individual charges, all of which failed, costing them from 6,000 to 8,000 casualties. Watching the carnage from the center of his line, a position now known as Lee's Hill, Gen Lee quoted as saying, â€Å"It is well that war is so terrible, or we should grow too fond of it. The action on the heights also included the charge of the Irish Brigade, which lost 50% of its strength in the battle but advanced further up the heights than any other Union Brigade. Confederate losses at Marye Heights totaled around 1,200. The falling of darkness and the pleas of Gen Burnside's subordinates were enough to put an end to the a ttacks. Gen Longstreet later wrote, â€Å"The charges had been desperate and bloody, but utterly hopeless. † Thousands of Union soldiers spent the cold December night on the fields leading to the Heights, unable to move or assist the wounded because of Confederate fire. The armies remained in position throughout the day on December 14, when Gen Burnside briefly considered leading his old IX Corps in one final attack on Marye Heights, but with the suggestions of many of his officers, he reconsidered and abandoned his campaign sending his troops to northern bank of the Rappahannock River. That afternoon, Burnside asked Lee for a truce to attend to his wounded, which Lee graciously granted. The next day the Federal forces retreated across the river, and the campaign ended. SIGNIFICANCE 1. Short Term: The Battle at Fredericksburg clearly showed how disastrous the Union Army Tactics were; President Abraham Lincoln relieved Gen Burnside of command a month after this battle. 2. Long Term: This was a major victory for the Army of Northern Virginia and costly to the Army of the Potomac. Many believe that Gen Lee lost his best chances to destroy the Gen Burnside’s forces at Fredericksburg. Overall, the loss broke the morale of the Army of the Potomac and showed a weakness in the indecisiveness and lack of imagination in part of Gen Burnside. ANALYSIS Gen Burnside failed to achieve the tenant of Initiative and his overall objective of destroying the enemy forces securing the town of Fredericksburg because he violated the Principle of Security and the Battle Operating System of Intelligence. The bulk of his forces fought to cross the river and very few were concerned with providing suppressive fire for the unit crossing. Gen Lee’s forces upon making contact with what he believed to be the enemies fleeing main force at Devil’s Swamp, he committed himself to battle without pausing to use his cavalry to reconnoiter the country. Gen Lee used his CCavalry Troops conducted rereconnaissancecon'd to the east and west of the Rappahannock marshy lowlandsRiver;, an action that gave him an extreme advantage into witnessing the movement of Gen Burnside's forceswhich might have permitted him to cross unmolested at a point up or downstream from the swamp. Thus, outflanking Culpepper and forcing him to withdraw without an opportunity to spring his cleverly crafted trap. The use of the terrain also gave Gen Lee a clear advantage as the Rappahannock River and extended entrenchments gave Gen Burnside’s forces great difficulty. For his part, Brigadier CulpepperGen Lee effectively adhered to the Principles of Maneuver, Mass, and Economy of Force. Through the Tenant of Synchronization, these factors combined to create the culminating Principle of Surprise. Outnumbered and outgunned, he realized that he could not achieve his objective of ascertaining Morgan’s Gen Burnside’s force and denying it control of the rail and road junction, as well as Yearlingvilletown of Fredericksburg, by engaging in a conventional battle on anything approaching even terms he used unconventional tactics to achieve his goal. He possessed a clear understanding of what he had to accomplish and how he had to do so. He Gen Lee employed Maneuver and Mass of critical combat power at the decisive time and place while making effective use of both the weak and strong points of the units he led. By marring Morgan in the swampsstalling Burnside’s movement across the river, he placed his enemy in a position of disadvantage. He shifted the battle to one where he positioned his massed combat power into a fixed enemy whose only option was to sink and die discontinue its efforts of seizing the town of Fredericksburg and retreat to the north side of the Rappahannock River. Culpepper Gen Lee exercised effective Synchronization and Economy of Force, deftly controlling the movements and fires of the disparate elements of his force in accordance with the elements of an intelligently conceived and workable plan of action in order to bring about the desired combat power at the decisive point. His employment of his cavalry, guerrillas, and militia reflected a thorough thought process of utilizing each element in ana precisely orchestrated maneuver exact orchestration to achieve the desired effect of ousting the Army of the Potomac from the town of Fredericksburg back to the northern banks of the Rappahannock River. uring Morgan’s troops into the killing field of overwhelming force. His exploitation of Union Forces weaknesses in decisive movement and execution of a sound plan display Gen Lee’s his Seminole scouts’ superior knowledge of critical terrain features while denying the enemy the opportunity to effectively reconnoiter the same gro und gave the critical element of Surprise once the battle was opened in accordance with the time, place and circumstances of his own choosing. Stackpole, Edward J. Drama on the Rappahannock: The Fredericksburg Campaign. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 1991 P. 23 Stackpole, Edward J. Drama on the Rappahannock: The Fredericksburg Campaign. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 1991 P. 121 Stackpole, Edward J. Drama on the Rappahannock: The Fredericksburg Campaign. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 1991, P. 122 O'Reilly, Francis Augustin, The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War on the Rappahannock, Louisiana State University Press, 2003, P. 148 Goolrick, William K. and the Editors of Time-Life Books, Rebels Resurgent: Fredericksburg to Chancellorsville, Time-Life Books, 1985, P. 87 BIBLIOGRAPHY FM 3-0 Operations. Washington, D. C. : Headquarters Department of the Army, 2001. Goolrick, William K. Rebels Resurgent: Fredericksburg to Chancellorsville. Time-Life Books, 1985. Kennedy, Frances H. The Civil War Battlefield Guide. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990. Luvaas, Jay and Nelson, Harold W. The U. S. Army War College Guides to the Battles of Chancellorsville & Fredericksburg. Lawrence: the University Press of Kansas, 1994. Mitchell, Joseph B. Decisive Battles of the Civil War. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1955. O'Reilly, Francis Augustin. The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War on the Rappahannock. Louisiana State University Press, 2003. Palfrey, Francis W. The Army in the Civil War: The Antietam & Fredericksburg. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1885. Parish, Peter J. The American Civil War. New York: Holmes & Meier Publishers, Inc, 1991. Stackpole, Edward J. Drama on the Rappahannock: The Fredericksburg Campaign. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvannia: Stackpole Books, 1991.

Visit the Ringed Planet Saturn

Visit the Ringed Planet Saturn The Beauty of Saturn Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and among the most beautiful in the solar system. Its named after the Roman god of agriculture. This world, which is the second largest planet, is most famous for its ring system, which is visible even from Earth. You can spot it with a pair of binoculars or a small telescope fairly easily. The first astronomer to spot those rings was Galileo Galilei. He saw them through his home-built telescope in the year 1610. From Handles to Rings Galileos use of the telescope was a boon to the science of astronomy. Although he didnt realize the rings were separate from Saturn, he  did describe them in his observing logs as handles, which piqued the interest of other astronomers. In 1655, Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens observed them and was the first to determine that these odd objects were actually rings of material circling the planet. Before that time, people were quite puzzled that a world could have such odd attachments.   Saturn, the Gas Giant The atmosphere of Saturn is made up of hydrogen (88 percent) and helium (11 percent) and traces of methane, ammonia, ammonia crystals. Trace amounts of ethane, acetylene, and phosphine are also present. Often confused with a star when viewed with the naked eye, Saturn can be clearly seen with a telescope or binoculars. Exploring Saturn Saturn has been explored on location by the Pioneer 11 and Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, as well as the Cassini Mission. The Cassini spacecraft also dropped a probe onto the surface of the largest moon, Titan. It returned images of a frozen world, encased in an icy water-ammonia mix. In addition, Cassini has found plumes of water ice blasting from Enceladus (another moon), with particles that end up in the planets E ring. Planetary scientists have considered other missions to Saturn and its moons, and more may well fly in the future.   Saturn Vital Statistics MEAN RADIUS: 58232 kmMASS: 95.2 (Earth1)DENSITY: 0.69 (g/cm^3)GRAVITY: 1.16 (Earth1)ORBIT PERIOD: 29.46 (Earth years)ROTATION PERIOD: 0.436 (Earth days)SEMIMAJOR AXIS OF ORBIT: 9.53 auECCENTRICITY OF ORBIT: 0.056 Satellites of Saturn Saturn has dozens of moons. Here is a list of the largest known ones. PanDistance (000km) 134 - Radius (km) 10 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By Year Showalter 1990 AtlasDistance (000km) 138 - Radius (km) 14 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By Year Terrile 1980 PrometheusDistance (000km) 139 - Radius (km) 46 - Mass (kg) 2.70e17 - Discovered By Year Collins 1980 PandoraDistance (000km) 142 - Radius (km) 46 - Mass (kg) 2.20e17 - Discovered By Year Collins 1980 EpimetheusDistance (000km) 151 - Radius (km) 57 - Mass (kg) 5.60e17 - Discovered By Year Walker 1980 JanusDistance (000km) 151 - Radius (km) 89 - Mass (kg) 2.01e18 - Discovered By Year Dollfus 1966 MimasDistance (000km) 186 - Radius (km) 196 - Mass (kg) 3.80e19 - Discovered By Year Herschel 1789 EnceladusDistance (000km) 238 - Radius (km) 260 - Mass (kg) 8.40e19 - Discovered By Year Herschel 1789 TethysDistance (000km) 295 - Radius (km) 530 - Mass (kg) 7.55e20 - Discovered By Year Cassini 1684 TelestoDistance (000km) 295 - Radius (km) 15 - Mass (kg) ? Reitsema - Discovered By Year 1980 CalypsoDista nce (000km) 295 - Radius (km) 13 - Mass (kg) ? Pascu - Discovered By Year 1980 DioneDistance (000km) 377 - Radius (km) 560 - Mass (kg) 1.05e21 - Discovered By Year Cassini 1684 HeleneDistance (000km) 377 - Radius (km) 16 - Mass (kg) ? - Discovered By Year Laques 1980 RheaDistance (000km) 527 - Radius (km) 765 - Mass (kg) 2.49e21 Cassini 1672 TitanDistance (000km) 1222 - Radius (km) 2575 - Mass (kg) 1.35e23 - Discovered By Year Huygens 1655 HyperionDistance (000km) 1481 - Radius (km) 143 - Mass (kg) 1.77e19 - Discovered By Year Bond 1848 IapetusDistance (000km) 3561 - Radius (km) 730 - Mass (kg) 1.88e21 - Discovered By Year Cassini 1671 PhoebeDistance (000km) 12952 - Radius (km) 110 - Mass (kg) 4.00e18 - Discovered By Year Pickering 1898 Updated by Carolyn Collins Petersen.