Choice overload Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Choice overload - Essay Example The most widely referenced source in this regard is Schwartz’s. It is due to this reason that the following paper will be greatly based on the source or the book written by Schwartz entitled, â€Å"The Paradox of Choice†. It is imperative to understand the basic definition of the concept choice overload before looking at various perspectives on the subject of matter. It is an evident fact that choice overload is associated with the ability of the consumers to buy more products. The consumers observe the choices when they are given more than one product of a same kind. It does not only make consumers think about the limitless options they have but also think of better ways to consume the product. At times, it is also noted that the concept of choice overload is a behavioural aspect to be learned within the field of psychology. The term Choice Overload is also known as Overchoice. Choice overload is defined in many aspects; it has directly linked to the consumer behaviour and decision-making. Choice overload is now considered as a major problem facing by consumers at the time of purchase. It is also defined that manufacturers, retailers, and other businesses have not increased the choice overload in term of giving options in products, but they have also overloaded the related information. Giving multiple alternatives and bundle of choices does not satisfy the need of a consumer, it rather drive them in psychological depression and thrive their stress level. Consumer start losing their confidence and level of confusion arise which eventually resulted in disturbing their personality (Lee & Lee, 2004). As per the study conducted by Cherev, Bockenholt, and Goodman (2012), it has been noted that despite a lot of stress on providing options to the consumers, it is still not sure that assortments can be beneficial for the

Autonomous Vehicles and Software Architectures Essay

Autonomous Vehicles and Software Architectures - Essay Example Thus, this is a challenge since one cannot predict whether or not the system will fail. In addition, such vehicles are unreliable. For instance, when the control system is affected or rather fails completely, the vehicle cannot be operational. This is a challenge because it inconveniences the owner of the vehicle for he or she cannot use it for daily businesses. There is a difference between designing distributed architecture and non-distributed architecture since the distributed architecture tend to split the middle and presentation tiers logically and physically to perform in several servers whereas in non-distributed architecture, the middle tier and the presentation tier perform in one server. The following reasons explain why there is a difference in designing the two architectures: To start with, the distributed architecture permits distribution of the application elements across various physical servers whereas the non-distributed architecture permits the application to run in only one server and its elements are freely allocated. Secondly, the distributed architecture’s design is complex for web application since it affects performance of the remote calls. On the other hand, the non-distributed architecture’s design is the simplest in web applications since it has no effect on remote calls. Moreover, the distributed architecture is more expensive to design because more materials and procedures are involved in setting up several servers whereas the non-distributed architecture is less costly since it entails a number of stable and easy procedures in setting up a single server. Lastly, in the distributed architecture, the applications are difficult to test and debug for it is fully dependent on the container server. In non-distributed architecture, the application is easily developed, tested and

Current ethical issue of abortion

Current ethical issue of abortion Abortion in relation to Natural Moral Law and Utilitarian Ethics Aran Cauchi The current ethical issue of abortion is a broad and complex ethical issue which can be approached from many moral and ethical directions. Two such directions can be the deontological Natural Moral Law and the teleological or consequentialist Utilitarian ethics. Abortion, from the Latin aborior, to pass away, is an induced termination of a pregnancy. Historically, as today, an abortion is the focal point of much controversy. The laws governing abortion have changed considerably in the last fifty years to accommodate abortion as an option for a pregnant woman. A landmark US case giving a mother right to wilful abortion occurred in 1973 set in motion by a woman called Jane Roe in Dallas, Texas. Roe wished to terminate her pregnancy, but in Texas at the time, only victims of rape or incest could procure a legal abortion. The case reached the Supreme Court where the judges ruled that abortion was a constitutional right to women, overturning laws in every state which denied abortion to women through medically qualified doctors. Abortion is now legally allowed in many western countries for women. Since the legality of abortions came into effect, much debate has occurred from opposite so called pro-choice and pro-life groups, gathering many argumen ts from both deontological and teleological ethics. Utilitarianismis the idea that themoral worthof an action is determined solely by its contribution to overallutility: that is, its contribution to happiness or pleasure as summed among all people.[1] Utilitarianism places no emphasis on whether an action is right or wrong, right is only so once the pleasure has been decided to outweigh the pain in the circumstances resulting from the decision. Pleasure, in early Utilitarian thinking, was only concerned with the physical, e.g. being well fed. John Stuart Mill later argued that pleasure was also quantifiable in intellectual and spiritual terms. These higher pleasures he argued outweighed the lower pleasures. Mill proposed, for example being well fed, at the expense of a mans spirituality was a lesser pleasure, and in effect, not as right as a spiritually enlightened man who was hungry. The hungry man experiences higher pleasure, as spiritual enlightenment lasts significantly longer than the feeling of being well fed. Consequentialist Utilitarians would argue that abortion is an entirely neutral act. The consequences resulting from the abortion determine the rightness. A specific system of measuring the pleasure against pain can be utilised called Hedonic Calculus. Hedonic Calculus first proposed by Jeremy Bentham, measures pleasure/pain through eight categories: Certainty Duration Extent Intensity Remoteness Richness Purity[2] This calculus subjectively determines if the pain outweighs the pleasure in a scenario of a potential abortion. A mother may need an abortion to save her own life if it is in peril due to her pregnancy, she cannot afford to leave her children motherless. This scenario, shown through Hedonic Calculus allows abortion to be the right choice as 1. There is a high certainty the mother will die, 2. The duration of mourning for the family would be very long as would the duration of risk to her other children, 3. The pain and suffering for her surviving family would be very great and so on. A different scenario in which the mother seeks an abortion so she can go on a holiday would be morally wrong as from categories: 2. the pleasure of a child will last years compared to that of a comparatively short holiday, 4. The intensity of the pleasure of a child is much greater and higher significance as it is emotional and spiritual than a physical and emotional holiday. The taking of a life can be justified in Utilitarianism as there are no standing rules of what is right or wrong for a general scenario, i.e. abortion. Every circumstance is different and warrants a separate evaluation to determine the correct action. Natural law is a branch of deontological ethics, deon meaning duty in Latin. Natural lawor thelaw of natureis a theory that posits the existence of a law whose content is set bynatureand that therefore has validity everywhere.[3] These laws, created by God, are discernible to all peoples and are thought of as moral absolutes, natural moral law theory implies that wediscovermorality we do notinventit,'(J.P. Moreland, What Is Natural Moral Law). It is mans duty to be rational, and as God is rational too, it is rational that humans must love God. Thomas Aquinas, a figurehead for natural moral law proposed five primary precepts and other secondary precepts. The primary precepts proposed where: The continuation of the species through procreation The education of children The desire to live in society The worship of God The preservation of the self These precepts are considered in natural moral law to be the most basic aspirations of all humans. Aquinas believed that all humans wished to do good and follow the precepts but through ignorance to the Natural Moral Law, some could do wrong. Aquinas argued that good ethical decisions could be arrived at by reason alone. Humans have the power of deducing what is good and what is wrong through application of their conscience. Natural Law, being deontological, imposes inalienable rules that cannot be broken. Natural Law can be seen as order provided by nature which exists for a purpose. A common criticism of Utilitarianism would be the difficulty of its real world application. The theory of a decision may be morally sound, but the limitless unexpected permutations prevent proper ethical conduct from occurring once theory is put to practice. The Tribunal of the Holy Office, a catholic authority was once queried on the 4th of May, 1898 as to whether a foetus was allowed to be removed from its womb before natural course did so. The tribunal resolved that there was no exception to natural birth, even inducing premature labour with the intention of saving the babys life. However, if life saving surgery were to be performed on the mother, which would have consequences on the growing foetus, it should not be maintained that the fetal(sic)lifeis thereby directly attacked. Theevilis not made a means to obtain thegoodeffect; for this would be to doevilthatgoodmight come of it.'[4] This fulfils the Natural Law requirement of the act of being good as separate from the concept of doing good. To be morally correct, one must not embark on a course of action which is right purely to obtain an evil or vain end. The right must be to cause neutral or correct consequences. This certainty of rules and moral action allows the system of Natural Law to be an unquestionable authority if placed alongside Utilitarian ethics which are in permanent flux. The Catholic Church supports the notion of ensoulment, where at conception a foetus is given a soul by God. A soul is viewed as a separate form to the physical body, but is linked inextricably until death. The act of abortion goes against the first precept of Natural Law, denying the continuation of the species through abortion. Even if that abortion would lead to saving a life, the authority to kill a foetus does not rest in humans hands. It is inhumane to end the life of a baby, as natural law theory holds;one may never directly intend to kill an innocent human being[5]. After conception, Natural Law argues that the foetus is human so is equal in right to life as its mother. There is no greater worth placed on the mother living than the child as both are considered equal. Utilitarianism would argue against the inflexibility of the rules of Natural Law regarding to the preservation of a childs life. Utilitarians would argue that greater suffering may be caused by the preservation of a foetus life. The mother of the child may be a chronic drug addict, and the chances of the baby growing up disadvantaged are high. It could be argued that the mother may not be fit to care for a child and the child would suffer a hard life, through mal-parenting and possible separation from the mother in later years. A possible course of action would be a wilful abortion by the mother to prevent suffering of a child. The rigidity of Natural Law allows no exceptions to be made, even if the pleasure resulting from an abortion vastly outweighs the pain. This rigidity of laws could cause unnecessary harm to many people. Correct decision making can stem from both deontological and consequentialist ethics. While Natural Moral Law argues that the laws of nature are absolute, Utilitarianism argues that no laws constantly serve the greatest good, and only through flexibility can good be achieved. The primary precepts of Natural Law indicate clearly that abortion is wrong so far as the taking of an innocent life, and interrupting the natural result of procreation. Utilitarianism states that abortion, like all actions is an entirely neutral act until the consequences are evaluated. Both ethical systems allow an opportunity for an individual to formulate an understanding of, and ethically right decision on abortion. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism http://tutor2u.net/blog/index.php/religious-studies/comments/abortion-and-ethical-theory/ Natural Law,International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01046b.htm http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_08natlaw.html

The Effects of September 11 on US Economy :: September 11 Terrorism Essays

The Effects of September 11 on US Economy Since the horrific attacks on the United States on Sept 11th, the nation’s economy has greatly dropped into a recession, although the economy was already in trouble before Sept. 11th. Due to this incident and all the effects it has caused, it is right to blame this recession on the terrorist attacks of Sept 11th. Almost half of the states faced budget shortfalls for 2001 or 2002, which caused most peoples lives to change after the attacks. Even the U.S. economy effectively took a vacation for the rest of September. It fell greatly and caused multibillion dollar losses to many companies and industries around the nation. Some of these companies and industry were a great part in the turning wheel of the U.S. economy. (Sivy, n.pg.) Prior to Sept 11th, the slowed US economy still however showed good signs of growth. Some signs were that companies were producing products for stores at a higher rate to provide the customers with more and more choices to choose from. This undoubtedly helped the economy grow for a while. The nations production of American made products were on the move before the attacks but have still slowly bounced back as more and more people buy American made products. For North American Natural Gas, "prices weakness, and growth in domestic and import gas supply, and a strong position combined with the potential weakness in the US economy are likely to dampen US natural gas demand even further." (Khan, n.pg.)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It’s unclear how the attacks will affect the economic picture in most states, but in some places it’s already obvious. New York faces a very painful situation, and will need more federal help, even though federal spending has passed the $40 billion mark just in aid for these cities. States that depended on tourism for their income have greatly felt the impact of the recession. Places like Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, and California, are hurting as more and more people cancel vacations and stay close to home. Many people are still scared and skeptical to fly. That is also why many Airplane fares have risen since the staggering number of people purchase tickets to fly away. Many companies have filed bankruptcy and are stuck in the recession with billion dollar debts. (Theophanous, n.pg.) California’s economy also depends on tourism, the energy crisis cost the state $6 billion. And manufacturing states, like Ohio and Michigan, already hurt by the slowdown, are unsure when things will get better.

Do curfews keep teens out of trouble Essay

Should people take more responsibility for solving problems that affect their communities or the nation in general? I feel like people should take responsibility for solving problems in their community because you could make a difference in your community and help someone in your little community. Like if you do it nationwide, you probably could help someone but not everyone. In a community you could help just about anyone. Like creating little businesses to give jobs and little community get together. I honestly think its way better to help a community; because if you don’t have a community how will you have a nation? You need a community to even form in to a nation. Like what if no one took responsibility in the communities and went straight to the nation? Like that wouldn’t be good. I mean it’s not bad but it’s leaving the little communities out. Like who would be there if someone’s house gets robbed? Who will put a stop to it? Who will take char ge and find the criminal? The nation has more problems than worrying about a little community break in. that’s how I see it. Like who would be there to even pick up the trash in front of your house on the normal day? The nation would even know about that problem. I think the government needs to have at least 1 person checking up on EVERY community just to make sure if they are alright. Secondly, creating a little business to create new jobs for the community would be such a great idea. Those people could be helping out so many families in that could be in need of money. The government should donate money to some communities that really needs it. The government takes a lot of peoples taxes so why not donate some to money to needy communities? I feel as if the government doesn’t help people at all only like the big problems. I feel like people should take responsibility for solving problems in their community because you could make a difference in your community and help someone in your little community. Like if you do it nationwide, you probably could help someone but not everyone. In a community you could help just about anyone. Like creating little businesses to give jobs and little commu nity get together. So people should take responsibility in their communities. Prev Page

Development of the Ancient Roman Navy Essay

Naval warfare was considered a second thought to most ancient Romans. It never carried the same prestige as that of a legionary. Before the First Punic War the Roman navy consisted mainly of allied ships and a few Roman ships that had crews that were very inexperienced. When entering the First Punic War they realized they needed to develop a navy to match the superior Carthaginian fleet. The fleet that the Romans had before the war would never withstand any naval battles. In building their navy, the Romans were able to utilize their resources, their allies’ resources, as well as some ingenuity to help overcome their naval weaknesses and defeat the Carthaginians in the First Punic War. The Romans lost many fleets and sailors throughout the course of the war but their persistence and determination ultimately helped them prevail. In the beginning, Rome founded colonies to provide coastal defence as opposed a naval force to police the shores of the surrounding territories. They used the warships and crews from naval allies, freedmen, and marines from lowest class eligible for military service. Romans dominated the sea by gaining possession of the land. Given the limited range of ships, this was an effective strategy. Ships were only constructed as a last solution to a military problem. As soon as a victory was achieved, the ships were left to wither and the naval needs were met by relying on allies. It was Rome’s success on land that made such indifference about naval battles. However, if there was ever a need for naval battle, their small navy could never withstand such a task. There was very minimal naval conflict between Rome and its enemies leading up to the First Punic War. Once the Punic War began they knew the only shot they had to defeat Carthage was to create a navy that would rival that of the mighty Carthaginians. In order to rival Carthage’s navy, they would need a design for their ships, a way to build them and people to man them. The ships were built based on a sunken Carthaginian quinquereme off the west coast of Sicily. The Roman’s then set out to build one hundred quinqueremes and thirty smaller ships such as triremes (Sage 285). Quinqueremes were the heaviest ship of the time. They had three banks of oars and 180 oars. There were two people on the upper oar and one on the lower oar. The trireme had 170 oars, there were three banks of oars and there was one rower per oar (Mitchell). They were able to gather the necessary resources from Rome and get the ships built or borrow from naval allies. The crews were assembled from naval allies, freedmen and marines from the lowest class eligible for military service. The navy was never held in the same esteem as legionaries so they never got the same quality of recruits. This ability to utilize their resources was key in helping in creating the future of the Roman navy. The Roman’s lack of any skill on the sea should have cost them the naval battles of the First Punic War but that was not the case. The Romans invented a device to essentially create land battles on the sea. This device was called a corvus or the raven. Polybius’s description of the corvus and how it was used is as follows: â€Å"†¦ a round pole stood on the prow of the ship sixteen feet high and about one foot in diameter. It had a pulley on its top and around it was placed a boarding bridge made of crossed planks nailed together which was four feet wide and twenty four feet long. There was an oblong hole in the bridge, which was placed around the pole twelve feet from its end. There was a knee-high railing on each side of the boarding bridge and at its end was fastened an iron object shaped like a pestle pointed at one end with a ring at the other end so that the whole apparatus looked like a device for grinding grain† (Polybius)The corvus proved vital during the First Punic War, especially at the Battle of Mylae. It would be swung around and brought down hard on an enemy ship. Then the troops would charge over the plank two by two. The first two men protected the rest by raising their shields. The men behind would place their shields over the railing and protect from the sides. The Romans captured the first thirty two ships that attacked them. The rest of the Carthaginians then approached and saw the devastation that the corvus had done. They turn to try and attack the sides or stern of the Roman ships but the corvus was able to turn and attack from different angles. After seeing this, the Carthaginians fled in fear after what had happened and after losing fifty ships (Polybius). The Romans won a decisive victory through the use of the corvus and made their presence known on the Mediterranean. The Romans ingenuity through creating the corvus is very clear and helped through the early development of the Roman navy. Though the corvus has many positive features, some of its negative features were starting to come about as the Romans started to sail more and farther. The corvus was placed at the bow of the ship so it made the vessel unstable during rough weather. As a result, most of the casualties of the First Punic War were at the hands of Mother Nature as opposed to the Carthaginians. This, and the Romans inexperience at sea cost them heavily as they lost 284 ships in a storm off the outer coast of Sicily. They had lost a lot of ships and only had 80 remaining at the time (Tarn 53). However, Rome’s success came from its superior manpower resources which allowed it to man new fleets despite these sever losses. To prove the Roman’s determination, they built a fleet of 200 ships. This did not go without disaster either. Another storm cost the Roman’s 150 brand new shipsin 253 BC off the Lucacnian coast and subsequently the Romans lost their only major naval defeat of the war in 249 BC when a surprise attack failed at Drepana. Thirty Roman ships were able to escape but 93were captured (Tarn 54). The Romans appeared to have given up on their naval efforts. It looked as though Carthage ruled the sea once again. No ships were being built and the Romans were sticking to the land the tactics that they knew best. However most of the Roman’s naval losses can be attributed to bad luck and inexperience on the sea. By 242 the Carthaginian General, Hamilcar Barca, had enjoyed success in Sicily and by now the Romans felt the war had dragged on for too long. They were determined to return to the sea and finish the Carthaginians once and for all. There was one problem though. The Roman treasury was empty and they had no money to spend on building another fleet. The government then turned to the wealthy citizens of Rome and begged for money to build a new fleet. The wealthy agreed in a sign of patriotism and they went ahead and successfully financed construction on a fleet to end the war (Rickard). This shows the Romans determination, persistence and ability to utilize the wealth of Rome. The Romans felt they didn’t need to repeat what had happened with the corvus again so they omitted it from their new ship designs. This resulted in the Roman ships being much lighter and much more manoeuvrable then the Carthaginian ships. The Romans met the Carthaginians in 241 BC where they cut them off at the Battle of the Aegates Islands. The Carthaginians ships had very inexperienced crews as they were newly enlisted men who had just signed up for this battle. They couldn’t handle the heavy and unwieldy Carthaginian ships with their lack of skills and experience. Similar to the way the Romans were before the beginning of the First Punic War. The Carthaginians were commanded by Hanno and the Romans were commanded by Catulus. The fighting was predictably one sided as the Romans captured 70 ships and sunk 50 ships. Hanno was subsequently executed for his failure in this battle. After the Battle of the Aegates Islands, Hamilcar was allowed to negotiate terms of surrender. The terms included money to pay for the newly constructed fleet and no Punic war ships were allowed in Italian waters (Rickard). The Romans were victorious and the Punic War came to a close. Through fierce determination to rebuild the Roman Navy in 242 BC and their ability to adapt their ships to the new circumstances led to a Roman victory and a strong development of the Roman Navy. The development and redevelopment of the Roman navy during the First Punic War shows a number of qualities that were key to Roman domination in the next centuries. Their adaptability and ability to make a strategic assessment of the Carthage navy and how to overcome it was very important in leading to a victory in the First Punic War. Through their determination and persistence they were able to learn from their mistakes and overcome what had cost them their early losses. It was the Romans ability to utilize available resources to reconstruct their destroyed navy. They also came up with a creative solution to a problem of attacking ships to help benefit their strengths of hand to hand combat. This was a very strong development of the Roman navy and led to their stranglehold on the Mediterranean for the majority of the next centuries. In fact, during the Second Punic War, Hannibal abandoned his once powerful Carthage fleet to focus on conquering by land. The victories in the sea bred confidence in the Roman navy. They were able to bring the battle directly to the Carthaginians and take it out of Italy. With the final destruction of Carthage and the end of the Third Punic War, Rome was the master of the Mediterranean. This as a result reduced any threat of a naval power and the navy had reached its height (Gabriel). In conclusion, the First Punic War was the spark that set off the Romans to put a lot of time, resources and manpower into developing and redeveloping their navy to become the super power that it was.