Onset Ventures Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Onset Ventures - Case Study Example Early-stage ventures are very young firms with limited operational resources and are usually in the development, startup or survival stages. The seasoned firms are usually in rapid-growth or maturity stages (Leach & Melicher, p.21-22). Seed financing is represented by the funds required to determine if an idea can be a viable business opportunity. This is usually necessary at the development stage of a venture. Other sources of financing are startup financing, first-round, second-round, liquidity stage, mezzanine and seasoned financing, depending upon the ventures life cycle stage. Onset Ventures is a top-tier seed investor which has raised three funds till now. The partners at Onset have analyzed and set six principles, based on which they provide seed financing to a startup venture. The principles address the skill set and experience of the entrepreneur, continuously evolving business model, validation of business model followed by hiring the CEO, the funds spent only to add value perceived by the capital providers, product’s Unique Selling Proposition and the skills of personnel hired. These principles have been refined over time and lead to the development of incubation process through which the company develops, refines and pursues or rejects business ideas. During the first phase, pre-seed phase of incubation process, Onset analyzes if the business concept can be an attractive investment. Based on the outcome of the pre-seed phase, it proceeds to the seed phase and provides seed financing to the business. Onset analyzes the possible risks and tries to address those risks during this phase. The five risks are market, technical, operating, pricing risks, as well as the risk related to the operational capability of the business team. Onset has a comprehensive process of screening the ideas and identifying profitable ventures but it has lost the opportunities of making more profits due to tight funding of the ventures and by being too careful and risk- averse. II. Facts of the Case A. Stated Facts Onset Ventures was set-up with an initial $5 million fund in 1984 and subsequently raised $30m (Onset I) and $67m funds (Onset II). Out of these funds, two-thirds have been invested in seed and follow-on investments, and the rest is kept as reserves in Onset II. In 1996-97, the size of an average VC fund increased by 40% to $71 billion. The company plans to raise $80m-$95m fund, it’s the largest fund till now. Onset has provided seed financing of $1m for the company TallyUp to develop a viable software product. Onset operates on a model of five business principles and a specific incubation process of pre-seed phase and seed phase to screen the business ideas. The company’s minimum target IRR of a fund is 30% over 12 year cycle. Onset puts in a company around $1m in seed round, $1.5m in the next round, and $2m in the third round. Onset I gave positive IRR within 4 years of its inception (appendix 1) and Onset II took only th ree years to give positive IRR (appendix 2). The average number of investment has increased in subsequent funds, i.e. $2.5m in Onset I, $3.5m to $4m in Onset II and expected $4.5m to $5m in Onset III. B. Implied Facts Over the last 13 years, Onset has invested mainly in seed-stage and early-stage financing. Onset II has performed better than Onset I (appendix 3). III. Problem Definition A. Source Problem How many funds must be raised for Onset III? Whether Onset should invest an additional $1m into TallyUp for

Cores of Realism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cores of Realism - Essay Example This essay examines the relevance of the core ideas of Realism in a contemporary world. It explores the roots of the theory, from Machiavelli, Hobbes and Rousseau to Morgenthau, Beitz and Doyle. The core assumptions are that states are inherently self interested, unitary actors performing on an anarchic global stage.It looks at modern problems of Realism presented by a re-emergence of liberalism, the emergence of globalisation and its apparent incompatibility with democracy. Realism is a term we commonly use to define a motivation for behaving in accordance with truths and facts which exist independently of sentiment, emotive persuasions or overtly ideological tendencies. Within politics and more specifically, international relations, Realism has come to mean to mean a rejection of moralistic or ethical concerns in favour of a more pragmatic approach to policy and diplomacy. Realism places emphasis on the national security of a state rather than focusing on the application of moral c oncepts such as justice. Are these ideas still relevant in today's society or is there significant evidence to suggest states are primarily motivated by concepts of what is right, rather than what is necessary These issues will be explored throughout this essay, beginning with an investigation into the history of Realism. The roots of Realism can be traced back centuries to Machiavelli (1513) and Hobbes (1651). Both have had and continue to have a major influence on the shaping of political theory, particularly with their most celebrated works, The Prince and Leviathan. The latter claims that "in the nature of man, we find three principle causes of quarrel. First, competition; secondly, diffidence; thirdly, glory. The first, maketh men invade for gain; the second for safety; and the third, for reputation" (Hobbes 1651/1996, p. 83). Because of Man's natural tendency to be driven by competition and aggression, he will find himself in a perpetual state of war. Though the implementation of a sovereign will, in some way, offer salvation from the immediate state of war between individuals, it will not prevent conflict between states, which have their own interests to protect. It is therefore "the office of the sovereign for which he was trusted with the sovereign power, namely the procuration of the safety of the people; to which he is obliged by the law of nature." (Hobbes 1651/1996, p.175). This overriding aim of national security takes precedence over the individual concerns of those within the state. Indeed, Hobbes argues that the sovereign "can be no injury to any of his subjects" (p.117) which essentially gives the sovereign carte blanche to act upon their own decision without appeal to the general public. In particular, "is annexed to the sovereign the right of making war, and peace with other nations and commonwealths." (Hobbes 1651/1996 p.119). Machiavelli takes a similar and arguably, more radical view with regards to the implementation of policy (1513/1999). The thrust of his book, The Prince is in how to maintain the most powerful state. His view of man is that they "are ungrateful, fickle, liars and deceivers, they shun danger and are greedy for profit; while you treat them well, they are yours" (Machiavelli 1513/1999, p. 54). The thrust of the book is in how to maintain the most powerful state. It offers an early form of utilitarianism, which is an important aspect within the core ideas of Realism. He argues that, "By making an example or two he will prove more compassionate than those who, being too compassionate allow disorders while lead to murder and rapine. These nearly

Article summary example Essay Example for Free

Article summary example Essay Will Rasmussen in the article â€Å"Egypt fights to stem rapid population growth, writes about Egypt’s dilemma of trying to stop a vastly growing population. Egypts population doubled since President Hosni Mubarak took office in 1981 and it’s likely to double to 160 million by 2050. The nation’s growth has been quite high, in recent years the fertility rate is about 3.1 children per woman in contrast to the United States’ 2.1. Most of the country’s 82 million people compressed in urban areas near the Nile River where some districts host 41k people per square kilometer in comparison to the city of Manhattan that holds 27k people per square kilometer. The state’s officials are having a difficult time trying to find solution to the so called â€Å"pressing problem† as journalist and former member of parliament states The population explosion is a crisis the government doesnt know how to handle. President Mubarak spoke once in a government sponsored conference about the population increase saying, cutting the population growth was urgent. However, Mubarak doesnt mention an exact number of children on the other hand the government prefers a family of two. The countrys urgent problem presents many concerns, one of which is the economy. The nations financial system is frail as estimated recently to be 7 percent and unfortunately has not been steady enough to construct a middle class. Such economy cant support a large population whose one fifth is living on less than a 1$ a day. Additionally, Egypt does not processes many resources as it depends heavily on the water from the Nile and imported goods. Many are concerned about the general welfare of the people as Magued Osman, chairman of the cabinets Information and Decision Support Center states The consequences are areal deterioration in the quality of life and in agriculture land per person. Furthermore, the government has tried to use incentives to modify the nations behavior. A few measures taken to restrict large families maternity benefits that sparked protests. Egypt is not going to legalize abortion which helped Tunisia bring down fertility rate and vasectomy is  barely heard of in the state . Egypt being a predominantly Muslim country, and generally the religion allows contraception. However many Egyptian people oppose the idea of limiting the number of kids to a family. A few believe having a large family is a source of economic strength. Others deem it not for the states or government to decide on such a matter as they say it is up to the creator. Work Cited Rasmussen, Will. Egypt Fights to Stem Rapid Population Growth. The New York Times.The New York Times., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2012. .

Improvement of Warranty Management Using Logistics

Improvement of Warranty Management Using Logistics Improvement of WARRANTY MANAGEMENT using logistics Abstract The purpose for the paper is to build up a calculated system that incorporates the innovation and business issues ahead of schedule at the outline stage to limit warranty costs in the most compelling and effective way. These days, giving a decent post-buy benefit has turned out to be critical then the effectiveness of warranty administration programs is by all accounts urgent. On warranty administration programs through calculated bolster arranging. Beginning from a reference structure for warranty administration, the paper traces the part that the calculated support can play in expanding process productivity. Specifically, extraordinary angles are tended to, such as order of framework segments, meaning of repair levels and support errands. The introduced structure is alluded to the military business in which calculated methodologies are broadly connected. Regardless of this, proposed technique can be considered all around substantial and effortlessly pertinent to various setting. INTRODUCTION of Articles Because of the increasing customer expectations, item exhibitions and qualities are no longer the sole perspectives to consider in a focused worldwide market. For buyers satisfaction product, must perform to their fullest. To achieve this performance, the part of post-deal administrations, especially amid warranty period becomes crucial so that an efficient warranty program represents a competitive asset. The administration of warranty is not simple task as it includes various parameters like technical terms, managerial issue and administration. During the warranty period, things must be kept up or reestablished to a state in which it can play out the required capacity, expected to give a given administration (Gonzalez Diaz et al. 2009). There are distinctive sorts of warrantys every one suited an alternate sort of item (purchaser, business and modern, standard versus custom-constructed, and so forth.) (Lyons and Murthy 2001, Menezes and Quelch 1990). A writing survey uncovers vital collaborations amongst  warranty and different order (Gonzalez Diaz et al. 2009, Murthy and Djamaludin 2002, Murthy and Blishke 2005, Gonzalez Diaz and Crespo Marquez 2010, Murthy et al. 2004) affecting warranty effectiveness. Among every one of them, especially essential are the followings: Outsourcing: warranty benefit or by and large, the after-deals branch of an organization, is generally one of the most defenseless to be  outsourced because of its okay and due likewise to the way that, among other highlights, outsourcing gives lawful protection to such help administrations (Gomez et al. 2009). Quality: a reliability and quality improvement of the product has not only an advantageous and favorable impact in front of the client; it also highly reduces the expected warranty cost (Chukova Hayakawa 2004, Lutz Padmanabhan 1998). Maintenance: In some cases, amid the warranty  period the maker still has a solid control over its item and its conduct. Furthermore, the normal warranty costs depend  regularly not just on warranty necessities, yet, likewise on the related upkeep plan of the item (Yeh and Lo 2001, Dimitrov et al. 2004, Kim et al. 2004, Wu and Li 2007). Costs: about cost estimation, there are nowadays methods to estimate accurately the final cost of a specific acquisition contract as, for instance, the Estimate at Completion (EAC) method  (Christensen 1993), a management technique that can be used in a project for the control of the costs progress. The paper addresses the problem of warranty management efficiency, for complex system such as a custom-built product where huge number segments and conditions must be considered. The paper is sorted out as takes after. In segment 2 a system for warranty administration is proposed, suggesting the utilization of settled strategies, coming from different disciplines, to improve process efficiency. In section 3 the main issues of warranty logistics are presented, whereas in section 4 the proposed methodology for the application of logistic support to warranty management is illustrated. Finally, conclusions and hints for further research are presented. THE WARRANTY MANAGEMENT The proposed process for warranty management consists of four steps, following the PDCA cycle and principles of Quality Management Systems as per 9001:2008. The initial step of a warranty administration handle comprises in the meaning of nonspecific and destinations. This choice is central for the key detailing of warranty arrangements and it must consider alternate point of view. To stay away from inconsistencies between the warranty program and the general business system the utilization of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) in this stage is suggested. Other useful methods to use during the planning phase are Criticality Analysis (CA) and Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) to focus actions on those high impact specific failures showing rare and high failure frequency (Gonzà ¡lez Dà ­az et al. 2011 a). study on reliability based design of a series-parallel system and used GA to obtain optimal values of system design, burn-in period for different lengths of warranty, PM intervals and rep lacement time. Deb (1999, 2001) and Hu et al. (2007) used multi-objective GA to solve the goal programming problems. Some of the literature also focused on achieving customer satisfaction through improvements in the warranty parameters by making changes in the design. Manna et al. (2006) and Maronick (2007) focused on maximization of customers utility in terms of warranty duration for the different warranty policies. The last stride of the procedure is warranty program change. Considering the extensive number of conceivable approach, the selection of Customer Relationship Administration and Six Sigma appear to be especially viable. Different devices that can be utilized for the change are identified with the usage of new innovations, for example, e-warranty methodologies, where e-warranty can be characterized as a warranty program bolster which incorporates the assets, administrations and administration important to empower  proactive choice. This support not just incorporates e-i nnovations, additionally e-warranty exercises such as e-checking, e-conclusion, e-visualization, and so forth. WARRANTY LOGISTIC AND SUPPORT Warranty and logistics literature is vast, the problem of logistics of warranty servicing has not been deeply analyzed (Murthy et al. 2004). Murthy proposes the following classification of strategic, tactical and operational issues concerning warranty servicing. (Table 1). Strategic Tactical and operational Location of material Spare part inventory stocking points Location of service centers Material transportation Location of warehouses Replace versus repair Demand for spares Scheduling of jobs, repairs Service channels repairs and travelling repairman problem In facing these issues, product characteristics are fundamental as for warranty polices. In this field, literature contributions are mainly related to commercial products, dealing with specific problems. For example, Considering the replace or repair issue, there are numerous approaches to support this decision (Murthy Nguyen, Jack Vander Duyn Schouten 2000, Jack Murthy 2001, Zuo  et al. 2000). On these considerations, in this paper some of the above mentioned tactical and operational logistics issues are discussed, focusing the attention on complex products which need to be maintained over their life. For these systems, such as military aircrafts, logistic support becomes a crucial part of the warranty management policy, considering characteristics of products and existent constraints, especially in the military field. Logistic support deals with provisioning, procurement, materials handling, transportation, distribution and warehousing of items and the support  infrastructure needed for carrying out these activities over the life of the product (Murthy et al. 2004). According to this definition, it becomes clear how many aspects of a product logistic support  influence the efficiency of a warranty management policy. Moreover, to this, an underlying support arrange, connected to the warranty time skyline, can give a first way to deal with warranty  scope quantification, save parts provisioning, warranty assignmen t timetable, professionals aptitude levels and so on. Arranging and booking change connected to a warranty program can obviously improve the adequacy and proficiency of program approaches. Such change will rely on upon the time skyline of the examination. classification of critical components of the product which, due to their significance per several factors, deserve to be specially analyzed for the warranty management; choice of repair levels, which are those maintenance levels that are more effective to take the proper actions during the development of a warranty program; tasks definition which refers to those methods that define the maintenance and warranty tasks when a component, in a specific product, fails; required spare parts and allocation. Above are the aspects which are concerned in this section reference models to guide the decision-making process. 3.1 Classification of components: In the definition of logistic support strategy particularly important is the identification of candidates, which are elements to be considered for the logistic support process. According to MIL-STD- 1388-2B logistic support candidates can be defined as follows: Logistic Support Full Candidate: components requiring that their logistic support is analyzed. The knowledge about the logistic support of crucial elements or parts of the product is highly relevant in order to plan, schedule, and organize a proper maintenance and warranty program. Logistic Support Administrative Candidate: these are components that do not require a complete analysis of their logistic support, but they are necessary to be taken into consideration to perform the complete analysis of full candidates. In other words, an administrative candidate is the one which must be manipulated in order to access other candidates of the product. 3.2 Repair Levels: Table 2. Repair levels (MIL-STD-1390D). Repair level Echelon 1 Echelon 2 Echelon 3 Echelon 4 Code C (crew) O(Organizational) F(Intermediate-Forward) H(Intermediate Rear) Significance Developed by the user. Preventive maintenance tasks by the operator General changes for parts and adjustments. Preventive tasks and correction (e.g. durationà ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¬4 man/hour) In-place repair. Change of damaged assemblies. Preventive tasks and correction. (e.g. 4 man à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  h. duration General repair of damaged sets and subsets. Preventive tasks and correction, determined by maintenance manuals when duration à ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¾Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  50 man/hours. Cost C1 C2 C3 C4 Table 3. Comparison between alternatives. A B C MTBF1 1000 1,000 1,000 MTBF2 1000 8,000 800 L (cost unit) 100 20 40 M (cost unit) 100 40 80 P (cost unit) 200 500 200 N 60% 60% 50% The proposed system recommends an approach to assess whats more, decide how and where a support or, then again warranty errand ought to be executed, to bear the cost of the most minimal cost. Utilizing the officially created documentation for the military part (Table 1), it is conceivable to characterize the levels or echelons at which different costs (direct labour, material, handling.) for the different maintenance echelon. Then, it is possible to minimize an objective function to determine which echelon is the most recommendable to face a repair. A fifth echelon related to reconstructions and major changes performed by the own industrial maintenance (overhaul)is sometimes considered we will analyse if it would be more economical to discard the faulty Camera, rather than repair it. For that intention. we will compare the relative value of a repaired Camera with the cost to buy a replacement (for this generic case, the possibilities in the market will be denominated as A, B and C): Condition applied by the manager to take a  decision: If (MTBF2/MTBF1) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ N Nomenclature MTBF1 = MTBF of a new Camera MTBF2 = MTBF of a repaired Camera N = Predetermined acceptance level (set by the company or contractor) L = Labor required to repair the Camera M = Material required to repair the Camera P = Unit price of a new Camera Possibilities: Computations Results: A: 0.60 B: 0.48 > 0.12 C: 0.30 Decision: A: Discard B: Repair C: Discard Basically, this simplified example shows that if the cost for the repair exceeds a given percentage of the cost of a new item, the decision should be to discard the failed item. A similar way can be followed  to decide between the other repair levels 3.3 Task Definition: In writing, numerous techniques are portrayed to characterize upkeep and warranty task when part of particular item come up short. Considering the military industry, one possible approach is certainly the use of Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) (MIL-STD-1629 6A). In a warranty management context, RCM becomes a trustworthiness examination for the meaning of those undertakings to be performed amid the warranty time frame. The utilization of RCM procedure to characterize the warranty program can be effortlessly clarified considering a common RCM prepare which comprises of the  taking after strides: Selecting systems and collecting information System boundary definition System description and functional block diagram System functions and functional failure Criticality analysis Task definition. Within RCM, the criticality of a failure mode can be assessed by using the Safety Hazard Severity Code (SHSC) as catastrophic, critical, marginal and minor failure (already mentioned in section 3.1) or through a more quantitative assessment (MIL-STD-882): Where, -Cm (modal criticality number): it is calculated for each failure mode of each logistic support item. -Cr (item criticality number): it is calculated for each logistic support item. -ÃŽÂ »P (failure rate): it is usually obtained from fail-ure rate predictions (MIL-HDBK-217, RIAC 217 Plus). -ÃŽÂ ± (failure mode rate): It is usually obtained from failure modes database sources such as (RAC FMD-97). -ÃŽÂ ² (conditional probability): It is the analysts best judgment that the failure will occur, based on the item severity classification. -t (mission phase duration): in military or aero-space sectors, it is an average data of the usual system functioning. After the maintenance task, have been determined which is to be applies during warranty period next task comes which is to define task frequency. Where: TF = Task Frequency MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) = It indicates system reliability which is calculated using known faikure rate. MTBM (Mean time between maintenance) = One of the categories of maintenance events contributing to the mean time between maintenance actions (MTBMA) value. MTBMnd = (Mean Time Between Maintenance No Defect): One of the categories of maintenance events contributing to the mean time between maintenance actions (MTBMA AOR= Annual Operating Requirements. Once got the recurrence for a particular task, it is possible to decide the required extra parts. For that reason, it is important to know previ-ously the accompanying parameters: Task Frequency every Year and Product Unit (TF) Spares Quantity per Task (QT) With these information, it is conceivable to acquire the Spare Parts Frequency every Year and Product Unit. Considering an exceptionally complex framework, similar to the military flying corps or naval force, this information permits the definition of extra parts assignment in distribution centers of various echelons. In some cases, the whole logistic support process is outsourced to the manufacturer. In this context warranty program efficiency is sensibly affected by logistic decisions such as spare quantity and allocation. In fact, logistic support for military systems is usually carried out in strong collaboration with the manufacturer during the warranty period and longer. . An example of spare parts allocation and inventory management for military aircraft components can be found (Costantino et al. 2010). Summary All through the paper different parts of proficiency identified with the change of the warranty management have been examined. After introducing most critical issues of warranty administration and proposing a system for its administration, it has been analyzed the logistic support applied to complex products and how this support can be focused to facilitate and improve the decision-making process. Furthermore, it has been indicated how segments ought to be repaired, deciding ideas as assignment recurrence and recognizing different levels of repair. Upgrades in warranty administration effectiveness, and in addition the ensuing increment in consumer loyalty, may speak to a key angle in a worldwide rivalry. About the logistic support applied to the warranty management, further research in this field should be focused on the calculation of different costs, combining warranty assistance and maintenance tasks once the warranty period has been expired (to possibly extend the warranty contra ct). Another fascinating improvement could be the blend of RCM with CRM (Customer Relationship Management), considering this as a phase incorporated into the reference system proposed for the warranty administration. Moreover, the incorporation of RCM arrangements with an ERP framework (Enterprise Resource Planning) can enhance not just the meaning of new maintenance and warranty methodologies, additionally the development of constant change. References Blischke, W.R. Murthy, DNP, 2002. Case Studies in Reli-ability and Maintenance. Wiley, New York, (661 xxiii). Chattopadhyay G.N, Murthy D.N.P. 2000. Warranty cost analysis for second-hand products. Math Comput Modelling; 31(10-12):81-88. Chattopadhyay, G. Rahman A., 2008. Development of lifetime warranty policies and models for estimat-ing costs. Reliability Engineering and System Safety 93:522-529. Christensen, D., 1993. Determining an accurate Esti-mate At Completion. National Contract Management Journal ­ 25, 17-25. Chukova, S. Hayakawa, Y. 2004. Warranty cost analysis: non-renewing warranty with repair time. John Wiley Sons, Ltd. Appl. Stochastic Models Bus. Ind. 20:59-71. Gonzà ¡lez Dà ­az V., Parra, C., Gà ³mez J.F. Crespo A. 2010. Reference framework proposal for the manage-ment of a warranty program. Proc. of EURENSEAM, Congress Euromaintenance 2010, Verona, Italy.Gonzà ¡lez Dà ­az, V. Crespo Mà ¡rquez, A. 2010. Book Review: Reliability Engineering. Warranty Manage-ment and Product Manufacture (By Murthy D.N.P. . Blischke W.R). Production Planning Control: The Management of Operations, 1366-5871, Volume 21, Issue 7, 2010, Pages 720-721. Gonzà ¡lez Dà ­az, V., Gà ³mez Fernà ¡ndez, J.F., Crespo Mà ¡r-quez,. A. 2011. Practical Applications of AHP for the Improvement of Waranty Management, Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering (JQME), Emerald Wagner, Stephan M.; Jà ¶nke, Ruben; Eisingerich, Andreas B. California Management Review. Summer2012, Vol. 54 Issue 4, p69-92. 24p. 3 Diagrams, 5 Charts. DOI: 10.1525/cmr.2012.54.4.69.

Readers Find Simple Faith in Karons Books Essay -- Jan Karons Mitfor

Readers Find Simple Faith in Karon's Books Since 1994 Jan Karon's Mitford series of novels has sold more than three million copies, with the latest, A New Song, occupying the number one position on Amazon.com's list during the last week of April this year (Jones 71). The Mitford books focus on inspirational stories, spiritual themes, and small town humor. Readers identify with the realistic characters in the stories. Rogene Kellar, 83, in a Newsweek article said she has read each book four times. Kellar further remarked, "I think you feel better having read them, but it's not goody-goody." Kellar's daughter, Carol Montgomery 57, said, "It gives you peace." The Mitford books enjoy a following of devoted readers and have also become marketable in another way. Hallmark plans to release the Mitford collection of greeting cards and collectible knick-knacks soon. Penguin Books publishes a quarterly Mitford reading group discussion guide and the newsletter, More from Mitford. Additionally, respected women's magazines such as Victori a have retained Karon as Writer in Residence publishing pieces of short fiction about Mitford. However, despite all of the attention, some readers want more of Karon. Lauren Winner in a recent article, "Karon's Agenda," published in Christianity Today finds: The Mitford books are strikingly bereft of anything controversial--no women priests or church wardens, for example, are ever mentioned, nor is the issue that is currently threatening to divide the Episcopal church in America--homosexuality. . . .I believe Karon would only do her readers a service by tackling these admittedly explosive questions head-on. (Winner 65) Winner asserts Karon avoids such issues in the books "presumably because they... ..., but they remain the issues that most, common, citizens face in their communities. So perhaps a simple, "day-to-day" faith is sufficient after all. Works Cited Jones, Malcolm. "Touched by Angels." Newsweek May 3, 1999: 71-72. Karon, Jan. At Home in Mitford. New York: Penguin Books, 1994. Karon, Jan. A Light in the Window. New York: Penguin Books, 1995. Kaorn, Jan. These High, Green Hills. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. Karon, Jan. Out to Canaan. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. Karon, Jan. A New Song. New York: Viking Books, 1999. The Student Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Bible Publishers, 1986. Tompkins, Jane. Sensational Designs: The Cultural Work of American Fiction 1790- 1860. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985. Winner, Lauren. "Karon's Agenda." Christianity Today July 12, 1999: 64-65.

Comparing My Papas Waltz by Theodore Roethke and Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Comparing "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke and "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden My Papa's Waltz, by Theodore Roethke, and Those Winter Sundays, by Robert Hayden, are two somewhat similar poems about respected fathers. To most people a father is not just the man who fertilizes their mother's egg, but a man that spends time with and takes care of them. While doing this, he gains their love and respect. In these two poems Roethke and Hayden take an admiring look back at the actions of their fathers, although; they both imply that their parents were not perfect. In My Papa's Waltz, Theodore Roethke describes an episode in his childhood. In this, what seems to be regular, occurrence his drunken father comes home for the night reeking of alcohol and begins dancing with him. Roethke describes his father's hands as being battered on one knuckle and extremely soiled. They "romped until the pans slid from the kitchen shelf" (5-6). This made his mother so upset that she could do nothing but frown. Finally, his father "waltzed" him on to bed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In ?Those Winter Sundays'; by Robert Hayden, the poet also relinquishes on a regular occurrence in his childhood. On Sunday mornings, just as any other morning, his father rises early and puts on his clothes in the cold darkness. He then goes out in the cold and splits fire wood with which he uses to start a fire in the house. After the entire house is warm he calls the rest of his family out of bed. He does not get any thanks for doing this, but that does not seem to matter.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In both poems the poets seem to look back on their childhoods with much love and respect for their fathers. In ?My Papa?s Waltz'; the title suggests a sense of love and honor. Usually when a child calls his father Papa they have a very close relationship in which the child respects and admires his father. Also, the use of the word Waltz suggests a Happy dance of high class people. This is ironic because Roethke?s father is drunken and dirty when this dance takes place, but when one thinks of the waltz they think of a dance between two high-classed people in an extravagant ballroom. Another example of the child?s love and respect for his father is illustrated in the things he overlooks just to be able to carryout the dance. Although ?The whiskey your [his father?s] breath could make a small boy dizzy'; (1-2), the child ?hung on like death'; (3). The speaker also overlooks the pain of his ear

Philosophy Metaphysics Essay

Plato was a Greek philosopher who has written different articles and books on different subjects including poetry, politics, music, biology and zoology, physics and metaphysics and logical books. He was and is a very important figure on western culture philosophy. He was the first and founder of who created the comprehensive philosophical system on the above mentioned subjects. His complex views on practical sciences completely shaped and gave a direction to medieval scholars, their influence expanded far well into the culture although they were later replaced by modern physical science. According the study his work in biology was confirmed to be perfect and accurate as early as nineteenth century and contained the earliest known formal study with logics that were transformed to modern form of study. He was also a mathematician and the founder of Athens academy which was the first institution of higher learning in the western world. He was a Socrates student who was much influenced by his complex thinking. Plato’s sophisticated wrings can be witnessed by reading his Socrates articles. Though Plato was a lecture in his academy, none of his pedagogical dialogues is known with a proof. Bibliography Early life The Plato’s exact birth date is not known, but according to ancient sources estimates that he was born in Athens approximetry between 429 and 423 BC (Irwin,1995) He was a son to Ariston. Ariston traced his descent from the king of Athens, Codrus, and the king of Messenia, Melanthus. Plato’s mother was called Perictione, whose family had a undoubted relationship with the highest ranked and famous lawmaker of Athens and Solon the poet. Plato, Ariston and Perictione the sister to Chamides of the thirty tyrants had three other children; two sons, Adeimantus and Glaucon, and a daughter Potone. According to research conducted by ancient writers, his mother conceived through a virginal conception. Apollo the ancient Greek god appeared to Ariston in a vision, and this was a resulted why Ariston left Perictione unmolested. Another legend says that when Plato was sleeping as an infant, bees had settled on his lips a sign of the sweetness that would flow for he would discourse philosophy. Ariston believed to have died during the Plato’s early life, although the exact date of his death is hard to know. Plato used to introduce his distinguished relatives into his dialogues, or to mention them with some precision: (Richard, 1993) Naming Plato was formally known as Aristocles, he was named after his grand father, his wrestling coach, Ariston of Argos, nicknamed him â€Å"Platon†, which was to be his future name meaning â€Å"broad† on account of his robust figure. Plato derived this name from the breadth of his eloquence, or else because he was very wide across the forehead. (Eric, 2005) Socrates Plato made it clear in his apologies of Socrates that he was among the member of Socrates young devoted followers. In the dialogue, Socrates name Plato as one of the corrupt youths who are close to him if he was in deed guilty of corrupting the youth, he would question why his relatives did not step forward to testify against him if he really committed the crime. Plato was also fined together with Crito, Critobolus, and Apollodorus on behalf of death penalty against them. (Taylor,2001). The relationship between the Plato and the Socrates is full of problems, Aristotle tries to attributes a different doctrine with respect to the ideas of Plato and Socrates but Plato always use other people to speak in his dialogues. In another letter of Plato states that no letter of Plato will exist, this brings in a question of whether the letters believed are his are really his of from Socrates. The relationship between the Plato and Socrates is an area that that answers the scholars’ question. (Roy, 2001) The Metaphysics of the Phaedo This is Plato’s eulogy to Socrates. This recounts the last moments of Plato and his teacher. He emphasizes that we ought to care and there is a concrete need to care for our soul for this is to live in what he called philosophically. Plato tries to bring into contrast between the changing form of life and materials. Plato never gave deep description on whatever he wrote about this was referred to as Plato’s doctrine. Perhaps the scholars tend to think Plato’s way of expression on metaphysics is not complete for he does not emphasize much on the changing form and souls and metaphysics this tends to give scholars a task of trying to understand what are the set principles Plato’s tried to bring forward. Plato never gave a definition of anything though it could give a clear picture of what is in his mind (Mitchell,2004) Plato’s narration Plato, though in his narration, he never participated as a character. He never claims that he has ever heard anything to do with his narration at first place with an exception of Socrates apology. In so me of his dialogues, there is no narrator examples of these are, Meno, Gorgias, Phaedrus, Crito, Euthyphro in other dialogues, they have been narrated by Socrates where he speaks as a first person examples of this are Lysis, Charmides, Apology, Republic. Socrates narrates to anonymous person. Plato’s absence in his own dialogues and character is identified as his holding his actual view. The question of why Plato distanced himself from the author ship of his own dialogues is an issue that went against the tradition of Socrates. (Edward,2007). Late life of Plato Plato the philosopher traveled to various countries world wide which include. Cyrene, Egypt, Italy and Sicily. He returned to Athens at an age of about forty. According to history, he found a school which is believed to be one of the most organized by then in western culture on a piece of land in the Hecademus Grove. It was a big school on a piece of land owned by a citizen of Athens called Academus. The academy operated until its closedown at around AD 529 by Justinian I of Byzantium who found the academy as a threat to Christian propagation. Many intellectuals were educated at the academy including the Aristotle. Plato died at an age of 84 in Athens. (John, 1999). Conclusion Plato set a formula to be followed by modern scholars. His writings stand unique among other scholars for he never used himself as a character in his dialogues. Though not known why he used other people, he stands to be among the ancient greatest scholars. The establishment of the academy paved way forward for those who were ready to learn including the Aristotle. He is to be remembered as far formal education is concerned. Footnotes Plato was 84 years old at his death [37] The academy operated until its closedown at around AD 529[33] The Plato’s exact birth date is not known, but according to ancient sources estimates that he was born in Athens approximetry between 429 and 423 BC [36] He was also a mathematician and the founder of Athens academy [23] Crito, Critobolus, and Apollodorus on behalf of death penalty against them [46] Reference: Irwin, T (1995) Plato’s ethics, oxford university press, USA Richard, K. (1993) The Cambridge companion to Plato, Cambridge university press Eric, H. (2005) preface to Plato, Belknap press Roy, J. (2001) Plato. London, Holder and stroughton Mitchell, M. (2004). The Philosopher in Plato’s Statesman. Parmenides Publishing Edward, M. (2007). Plato. Philosophy Insights Series. Tirril, Humanities-Ebooks. Taylor, E. (2001). Plato: The Man and His Work, Dover Publications John, S. (1999). Chorology: On Beginning in Plato’s â€Å"Timaeus†. Indiana University Press.