What caused the Euro crises of 2010 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

What caused the Euro crises of 2010 - Essay Example To reiterate, the euro crisis was but a function of lack of a common regulatory system to moderate free-riding and/or inject firepower to member states [economies] faced with insolvency risks, and that other factors such as the globalization of finance as well as the global recession that followed the 2007-2009 global financial crisis only added fodder to a system precariously on the edge. The Eurozone as originally structured was more of a gentleman’s agreement requiring member states to follow a similar fiscal path, yet with much weird freedom to follow own fiscal policies that includes masking of internal monetary undertakings. This feature brought on board fiscally free riding peripheral economies as represented by Greece economic dynamics; pursuing parallel fiscal policies in total disregard of the Maastricht treaty, under which member nations had pledged to limit their debt spending (Cameron 2012; European Commission 2008). Though Greece became the pillar of focus in a crisis that has proved counterproductive to a number of the austerity measures implemented, the pursuit of wealth in non-approved mechanisms were widespread across Europe, with quite a number of states securing future cash flows [via sovereign rights]; in effect, providing governments with a vehicle to raise future revenues that kept up with the debt targets, but in contravention to the lon g regarded conventional best practices and internationally agreed standards: â€Å"In â€Å"Boomerang† Mr. Lewis captures the utter folly and madness that spread across both sides of the Atlantic during the last decade, as individuals, institutions and entire nations mindlessly embraced instant gratification over long-term planning, the too good to be true over common sense† (Kakutani 2011). Like the bursting of the US housing bubble that ignited a second global financial crisis in less than a

History of Architecture Editing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

History of Architecture Editing - Essay Example According to David young and & Young Michiko in their book â€Å"Introduction to Japanese Architecture†, Unlike some Chinese and Western architecture, the Japanese architecture tries to avoid the use of stone unless deemed necessary for specific purposes as noted in the temple of the pagoda and podia foundations. The structural layout includes lintels and posts. The style of building the shrines also contributed to the construction style for domestic and urban architecture characterized by the nature of the building materials and the design of the tower. Buddhism, therefore, cited as a major contributor in the enhancement of Japanese architecture as noted by the building of temples (Young & Young, 2004). Japanese history of architecture went through numerous periods of innovation. The beginning of the 7th century became mostly dominated by wooden structures noted by temples and shrines built by the noblemen. This period in history referred to Nara and Asuka periods of architecture. They were also periods that marked the heightened growth of Japanese art and culture. In the 9th century, referred to as the Heian period was essentially a continuation of the architectural developments in the previous periods. It also marked a period of the beginning of the Chinese influence as one of the formidable architectural forces as Japanese architects of the time traveled and studied Chinese design. Thereafter, wood temples started to spring up in large numbers, together with other styles that were totally new, and yet a reminder of the old order. According to Charles Jencks in his book â€Å"Modern Movements in Architecture†, this era got closely followed by the Muromachi and Kamakura eras that got characterized by simplicity in design. The basic designs were a perfect reflection of the fact that the Japanese had graduated to the leadership of Samurai, the warrior class.

Illegally evidence Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Illegally evidence - Case Study Example Within this framework consideration will be given of the factors that judges have taken into account when deciding whether or not to exclude such evidence. This will involve looking at policy issues in relation to the use of illegally obtained evidence in order to reach a conclusion as to whether in general terms the courts will opt to include or exclude such evidence. In reaching a decision as to the uniformity of the application of this discretion consideration will be given to whether changes that have occurred with regard to the rights of the suspect under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 have impacted on the admissibility of such evidence. Although there have been many changes in the law with regard to the use of evidence that has been illegally obtained many judges still use the case of R v Sang [1980]1 as a yardstick by which to measure whether evidence such be excluded. In this case Lord Diplock commented that "(1) A trial judge in a criminal trial has always a discretion to refuse to admit evidence if in his opinion its prejudicial effect outweighs its probative value. (2) Save with regard to admissions and confessions and generally with regard to evidence obtained from the accused after commission of the offence, he has no discretion to refuse to admit relevant admissible evidence on the ground that it was obtained by improper or unfair means."(at p 437) In this case In this case the court following the comments made by Lord Diplock concluded that the judge would have no power to exclude the evidence on the basis that it had been obtained through the use of an agent provocateur2. In many ways the decision whether or not to exclude illegally obtained evidence seems to centre on fairness. Sang remains as an authority of the rules on the exclusion of evidence as was demonstrated in the case of R v Nadir [1993]3 where Lord Taylor CJ said that if a judge "considers evidence the Crown wish to lead would have an adverse effect on the fairness of the trial, he can exclude it under s 78 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984....He also has a general discretion to exclude evidence which was preserved by s.82(3) of the 1984 Act which would allow the judge to exclude evidence he considers more prejudicial than probative." In the later case of R v Khan [1994] 4 All ER 4264, Lord Taylor seemed to change his opinion of the use of Sang as an authority stating that "Since, on any view, the discretion conferred on the judge by s 78 is at least as wide as that identified in R v Sang it is only necessary to consider the question of the exercise of discretion under s 78 - which is what the judge did." In general terms although the judge has the discretion to be able to rule the evidence as inadmissible it is more common for the courts to allow the evidence to be adduced. Many judges are of the opinion that the effect of s78 does not make very much difference to the cases brought before the court as most judges seem to decide in favour of inclusion rather then exclusion of such evidence as was the case of R v Mason [1987]5 and in the subsequent case of R v Samuel [1988]6. Mason was later quashed on appeal when it was discovered that the only real evidence against the defendant was the confession and that this had been obtained by telling the defendant that his fingerprints had been found

Religious Ethics Essay Example for Free

Religious Ethics Essay In this essay, I will be taking religious ethics to mean the ethical principles of Christianity, i.e. Christian Ethics. This includes the moral decisions based on the teachings of Christianity from such sources as the Bible. The term environmental issues covers a broad spectrum of concerns. As far as ethics is concerned, the issue is how far our moral concerns should extend to the environment and how we should live out our responsibility towards it. By environment, the earth and all its living entities are concerned. As our concern for the environment has increased and our general awareness heightened, debates about morality towards the environment have emerged. Issues such as climate change, pollution, global warming and the extinction of species can all be linked to the actions of humans (e.g. CFCs and the burning of fossil fuels). Therefore, as the damage to our environment becomes more problematic, the link between its deterioration and the actions of humans becomes more prominent. Anthropocenctrism, usually attributed to the teachings of Christianity, places humans at the centre of the world and therefore the environment. Aristotle taught that nature has made all things specifically for the sake of man; he basically states that humans are the only beings on earth that have intrinsic value, and that everything else placed on this earth has instrumental value and is to be used for the benefit of humans. Humanity is placed at the top of Aristotles hierarchy due to their possession of reason; animals can move and feel pain so come next; plants who can only grow and reproduce are placed at the bottom; and he appears to place no value on inanimate objects as they dont even have a vegetative soul. During the late 18th century and the early 19th century, the thinkers of the enlightenment period, also known as the age of reason, emphasised anthropocentric approaches and concluded that reason is the mark of authority. Scientific discoveries were made that bred confidence in mans ability and shifted philosophical thought away from the teaching that God and the church are the centre of morality. Capitalism emerged which taught emphasising the success of the individual. Immanuel Kant placed humans at the top of his hierarchy with their intrinsic worth due to their possession of reason. Kant also viewed animals as of no moral concern to humans; the only time it is wrong to hurt an animal is when it could instrumentally harm a human. However, by Kants reasoning that we can only have concern for animals if the impact is on humanity, he is contradicting himself as he looks to the consequence, which denotes it as a hypothetical imperative and therefore immoral. He also decides on moral action using formulations of the categorical imperative; 1. universalisability, where no contradictions can occur. Kant did not intend his theory to be used as an environmental ethic as it was not relevant at the time. 2. Kant declares that only moral rational agents need moral consideration as ends in themselves and we should exclude animals from moral worth which concludes it to be outdates and unsuitable to be used as an environmental ethic. Therefore, Kants ethic is likely to be an unsympathetic approach and would probably lead to damage to the environment. Christian anthropocentrism is mainly derived from the teachings of Genesis. The creation story (Genesis (1:26-28) teaches us to fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth. This implies that God has made all things for the sake of humans; that the only beings upon this earth that have intrinsic value are humans, and that everything else serves to benefit humanity (instrumental value). The only reason we need to have care for the environment is because our actions may have an impact, sooner or later, upon ourselves. St Thomas Aquinas also held this belief and stated that injury to an animals leads to the temporal hurt of man, either the doer of the deed, or of another. Dr Lynn White suggested that we need to re-examine our attitudes towards nature, which derive from our religious beliefs, in order to successfully address the ecological crises. He said Human ecology is deeply conditioned by beliefs about our nature and destiny that is, by religion. He develops this suggesting that our destruction and damage to the environment can be traced to the technological advances of the industrial revolution and the enlightenment period which are a result of the despotic interpretation of the Judeo-Christian teachings declaring Western Christianity as the most anthropocentric religion the world has seen. Utilitarianism is another approach towards ecological issues that one can consider when deciding the best approach towards environmental issues. Peter Singer is a preference utilitarian, who doesnt measure happiness in the measure of extent or duration of happiness but instead on the satisfaction of desires or preferences. Singer measures the importance of an individual or being, not on their possession of a soul or reason, but on their ability to suffer. To Singer, it doesnt matter whether the being in question is human or not and both humans and sensory non-humans are equally entitled to moral concern. As we can imagine that their preference would be to avoid pain. He accused many moral philosophers and scientists of Speceism; refusing respect to the lives of other species, not just humans, and proposed that we need to include animals in the expanding circle of moral worth; If possessing a higher intelligence does not entitle one human to use another for his own ends, how can it entitle humans to exploit non humans for the same purpose?. The problem that arises from Singers theory is whether or not plants, and lesser life forms and non-life forms are included in the expanding circle of moral worth as they are not conscious living entities so we dont know what their preferences would be. Initially, Singer does not consider lesser life forms to have any moral significance, but in the second edition of his book states the argument from intrinsic value of the plants, species or eco systems is at best problematic. Singers utilitarian argument has weaknesses in so far as it has no clear boundaries as to where our moral concern should lie. Unlike Christianitys anthropocentric approach which clearly places humanity as the centre of our moral concern, Utilitarianism only beholds vague ideas of where our moral concern should extend to. The utilitarian argument has its strength in its positioning of the capability of suffering above the possession of reason. This does bear a more sympathetic approach towards humans of lesser intelligence (i.e. those with special needs) but then suggests that they are on the same level as animals. This would suggest Christianity to be a better approach as it is more compassionate. Biocentrism, proposed by Paul Taylor, extends the circle of moral worth to include all living things and thus declares that humanity is not the centre of existence. Taylor argues that all life forms have intrinsic value which human beings have a duty to respect. We therefore have a moral responsibility towards them which would entail engaging in practices and policies aimed at specific ways of preserving the ecosystems. Taylor holds non-living things such as mountains to only hold instrumental value and therefore they bare no ethical status. Taylors argument is fairly balanced as it doesnt presume that human beings are the only beings with intrinsic value but he fails to introduce any sort of hierarchy and places humans on the same level as bacteria, which seems absurd. He also implies that we should all be vegans, but fails to address this, and doesnt consider whether a lion is acting immorally if it eats a zebra. Christianity therefore is more logical as it sets a clear hierarchy which allows mowing the lawn and eating meat. Ecocentrism is another approach to environmental issues. It recognises the importance of the ecosphere and the environment with out suggesting that any organism as more important than the other. Aldo Leopold proposed an ecocentric theory; The Land Ethic which simply enlarges the boundaries of the community to include soil, waters, plants and animals. Or collectively the land. He argued that current conservation policies are based on economic motives. He says it is inconceivable to me than an ethical relation to land can exist without love, respect, and admiration for land and a high regard for its value. By value, I of course mean something far broader than mere economic value; I mean value in the philosophical sense. He argues that Christianitys teachings of dominion saw us as conquerors of the land and that if we are to resolve the ecological crises we need to see ourselves as members of the community that also includes the land. Another ecocentric approach is that of deep ecology devised by Arne Naess. It was born out of appreciation for non-Christian religions that recognised the sacredness of natural phenomena. This includes the notion of biospheric egalitarianism which views that all living things have intrinsic value. Deep ecology views the world as a network of interconnected and interdependent phenomena; a web of life. These theories fail to determine how lesser life forms could have any moral interest, and how mountains and the like could have any moral interests whatsoever. This weakens it as Christianity. However it does appear to be more sympathetic as it concludes that other life forms have intrinsic value, not just humans. Another ecocentric approach is that of the Gaia Hypothesis proposed by James Lovelock. After discovering that it is the earths unique atmosphere that makes life on earth possible, he declared the difference between earth and the other planets was Gaia. All life forms are part of Gaia and he saw the earth as a self regulating living system. In his words Gaia is a complex entity involving the Earths biosphere, atmosphere, oceans and soil; the totality constituting a feedback or cybernetic system which seeks an optimal physical and chemical environment for life on this planet. He saw the ecosystems of the earth as intelligently organised, not by God, but by Gaias self engineering. He concludes that if humans were taken out of Gaia, it would survive without us; therefore, humanity is not integral to the environment. Lovelock later suggested that as the environmental issues increase, the planet may not be able to recover and we are in the process of killing the earth, which he refers to as matricide. This suggestion that the earth is intelligently organised has much evidence (for example the water cycle, the reproductive system). However, by suggesting that the earth is alive and therefore self regulates these systems is weak as it is hard to prove. For Christians, the intelligent organisation is of course a result of God. The despotic readings of the creation story present Christianity negatively as White argues. Because we are made in the image of God we believe that the world was made for our sake only. However, one must look at other interpretations of Christian teachings that would suggest a more considerate approach to the environment. One could interpret the use of the word dominion no as despotic, but as a call for stewardship. God has chosen humanity to regulate the response of the natural world to its creator so we must care and conserve and acts as the director of natures obedience to God. This makes Christian teaching more theocentric than anthropocentric as it suggests that the peak of creation is God. If we used this as a basic principle when approaching environmental issues, then it would be a strong theory, as it allows humanity to care for the land. Aquinass Natural Law theory is based on the thinking of Aristotle, that all things in nature are for the good of man. He extends this further to explain how things are not worthless, but valuable because they are what God intended them to be; they fulfil their own Telos. Humans are declared as the most valuable beings due to their creation in imago dei and possession of reason but we should follow stewardship rather than despotism. This would however suggest that despite the strengths of being stewards, being a Christian Ethic, one must have a belief in God to conclude this to be a valid approach to environmental issues. Another Christian approach is Joseph Fletchers Situation Ethics which emphasises the importance of love in moral decisions, but was never considered an environmental ethic. Fletcher believed in personalism; that people are placed before the laws, again being anthropocentric in that we are suggested to be able to do what we want. He promoted pragmatism; that one must do something that would produced the most loving consequences in that situation. This would be a positive approach to the environment as people would be loving towards it. This could perhaps places the environment second to human needs which would be a negative attitude. However, Fletchers ethic is too vague to be considered in any depth as we cant define what is the most loving thing, who its for or even what love means. Attfield suggests a deeper interpretation of Christian teachings in order to accurately devise an ethical basis towards the environment. He saw that in Job (38:25) for example, God is said to send rain for the plants and uninhabited wilderness. And to have made wilderness for the Ass. Also the proverbs inform us that a righteous man regardeth the life of his beast. This would be the understanding that Jesus would have had, following the Old Testament teachings. There are New Testament teachings that would instruct a more sympathetic attitude to nature such as Jesus time in the desert amongst wild beasts after his baptism, and the use of nature and animals in his teachings and parables. However, there are the passages of the Gadarene swine and the cursing of the fig tree that suggest a more inconsiderate attitude is permitted. In Hebrew tradition, Kings were answerable to God, not absolute monarchs in themselves, therefore according to Attfield the biblical dominion of man is no despotism. However, White argues that in medieval times the embrace of Christianity and the rejection of paganism changed the relationship between man and nature. The pagan ideas of living beings having a soul or a spirit (animism) encouraged a positive attitude towards nature, which were corrupted by the growth of Christianity. Attfield however counter argues these claims and says the ecological crises cant be blamed on ancient traditions as they have happened in more recent times (post 1945). Japan, for example, which is not a Christian country, shares many of the environmental problems that the West has. It is not just paganism and Buddhism that impose a limit on humankinds use of nature. Attfield then concludes that we neednt have a new environmental position; we just need to revert to stewardship rather than dominion. Walter H OBriant proposed a born again Christian belief in the rapture; that Christ will return and the bodies and souls of the saved will go to heaven. The earth is, according to OBriant, a temporary home therefore it doesnt matter what we do to the earth. After considering the theories discussed and evaluating their strengths and weaknesses I would argue that religious ethics are the best approach to environmental issues, provided we revert to a more stewardship attitude, rather than the despotic interpretation.

Universal Characters Of Human Rights

Universal Characters Of Human Rights One of the most essential characteristics of human rights is universality. The concept of universality has been analyzed, discussed, and used in several contexts and different ways by various scholars. This argument gives rise to the debate between realists and nominalists. The Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary simply defines the word universal (universus) as a general term or concept having universal effect or application at all times and in all places. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the word universal means a quality or property which each individual member of a class of things must possess. It further explains that universals are the qualities of individual things, or particulars. For example, the quality of redness (a universal) is possessed by all red objects (which are particulars). However, in other ways universals are quite unlike particulars. For example, redness, unlike red objects, cannot be picked up.  [1]   Michael J. Loux underlines that in metaphysics, a universal is what particular things have in common, namely characteristics or qualities. He analyses three major kinds of qualities or characteristics of universality basing on realists view: i) types or kinds to which things belong (e.g. mammal); ii) properties which they possess (e.g. short, strong); and iii) relations into which they enter (e.g. father of, next to). These are all different types of universal. It is known as shared entitles universals.  [2]  For St. Thomas Aquinas, the word universal can be considered in two ways: the universal nature may be considered together with the intention of universality viz. the relation of one and the same to many; the universal can be considered in the nature itself, for stance, animality or humanity as existing in the individual.  [3]   The Catechism of the Catholic Church uses the word universal in the sense of according to the totality or in keeping with the whole.  [4]  Hence, each particular Church is universal to which all men are called and belong in different ways.  [5]   Human rights advocates maintain that if human rights are the rights that belong to everyone regardless of sex, race, color or religion, simply because one is a human being, then they are universal by definition itself. It clearly states in the article one of UDHR: all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. Mary Ann Glendon, the author of The World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, notes: The title universal meant that the declaration was morally binding on everyone, and not only on the governments that voted for its adoption. The universal declaration, in other words, was not an international or intergovernmental document; it was addressed to all humanity and founded on a unified conception of the human being.  [6]   In his work on The Future of Human Rights, Upendra Baxi places the concept of universality in a Hegalian context. For Hegel, the combination of universality and particularity is already implicit in the moment of abstract universality, in the same way as a tree trunk and branches are implicit in a seed. So, referring to Hegels method, Baxi uses the synthesis of abstract universality and abstract particularity which brings about concrete universality so that we may understand the concept of universality of human rights more easily. He logically connects Hegalian method with the concept of universal human rights by distinguishing three moments: first, the UDHR is addressed to every human being; it is the objective movement of abstract universality; second, it is particularized by the series of norms such as workers rights, womens rights, rights of children, or right to life; third, the concrete universality can be achieved where rights and man meet in his life.  [7]  However, nomina lists do not agree with realists idea about the concept of universality and conceptualists accept it partly. Objection of Universality The question of whether universals exist is a tricky logical one. The rationalists believe that universals are real and they exist independently, whereas the nominalists believe that all that is real is particular, and therefore, universals are just words which at best apply to resemblances among real things. The conceptualists believe that universals exist as concepts. Antifoundationalists  [8]  argue that Universal human rights are simply impossible because what counts as human and as rights belonging to humans, are context-bound and tradition-dependent. There is no transcultural fact or being that may be called human to which universal human rights may be attached.  [9]   And yet, there are still various objections to the concept of human rights as universal. In her article History of Universal Human Rights up to WW2, Moira Rayner denies the idea of human rights as universal although she maintains that human rights are rights possessed by people simply because they are human beings. She says, The idea of human rights is not universal it is essentially the product of 17th and 18th century European thought and even the idea of rights does not necessarily exist in every society or advanced civilization. Universal human rights are, historically, the flower of what was originally a European plant.  [10]   For Blair Gibb, human rights are not necessarily universal because he argues that the rights established by the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights may not be applied to all nations. He then points out that even those nations that have singed it, and in practice they still have limitations and difficulties to realize them fully in their own territories. Furthermore, he argues that the UDHR pushes western values that are not always agreeable to eastern nations. He gives an example that civil or political rights such as the right to criticize the government openly or complete freedom of opinion and expression, threaten cohesive Asian societies. For him, the UDHR is a bit idealistic and it is better applied more to developed nations than developing nations.  [11]   According to Raimundo Panikkar,  [12]  the concept of human rights is a Western conception and it is not a universal concept.  [13]  However, he does not mean that we should abandon the responsibility of declaring or enforcing human rights. He accepts that human rights can bring an authentic human life in this contemporary world and the defense of human rights is a sacred duty. For him, no concept as such is universal. Each concept is valid primarily where it was conceived.  [14]  To put it in the other way, although the word God is universally used in all contexts of world religions, its concept is different from one another, because humankind presents a plurality of universal discourses. Panikkar believes that there should be at least two conditions to be fulfilled in order to make the concept of human rights become universally valid: (i) it should eliminate all the other contradictory concepts and (ii) it should be the common point of reference for any problem regardin g human dignity.  [15]   In order to clarify the debate on whether human rights are universal or not, the 1993 Vienna Declaration reaffirms the universal character of human rights as follow: All human rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated.  [16]   The Vienna Declaration invites the international community to treat human rights globally in a fair and equal manner, on the same footing, and with the same emphasis; and to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms. At the opening ceremony of the World Conference on Human Rights in1993, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, emphasizes on the important of the common essence of universality and underlines how human rights are necessarily to be common standard for all members of the international community. He invites the international communities to go beyond ones own culture and values in order to realize the true meaning of human rights in ones life, as he states, The human rights that we proclaim and seek to safeguard can be brought about only if we transcend ourselves, only if we make a conscious effort to find our common essence beyond our apparent divisions, our temporary differences, our ideological and cultural barriers.  [17]   Human Rights as a Common Language of Humanity Generally people accept that human rights are the product of history and they are born from historical events. The word right exists sine ancient time. In history, Egyptian, Geek, Roman and the like were known as great lawmakers who published codex of various laws and established series of rights and duties. The worlds religions such as Judaism, Hinduism, Christianity and Buddhism, have also established moral codes of conducts based on divine law or teaching in order to protect the rightful behavior of the people so that there might be peace in human society. These principles and laws are generally based on human dignity and concerned with responsibilities of man to his fellow men, to governors, to the nature, to God and to the whole creation. Then, as time passes by, the constant changing world has been always shaping social system and political order, sweeping away old regimes, old rivalries and old obstacles and replacing them with new system and ideas. Autocracy decreases and dem ocracy increases. Awareness of ones won rights and freedom is stronger and stronger. The people learn from the failures of the past and look for a better and peaceful society. The age of colonization is a good example to point out how the language of human rights is extended to the oppressed people. In that period, there were some human rights advocates who defended for the rights of indigenous people. For example: Bartolome De Las Casas (1484-1566), Spanish historian and Dominican missionary in the Americans, opposed the oppression of the Indian by European and called for the abolition of Indian slavery.  [18]  He defended against the ill treatment of native peoples by the Spanish colonists and advocated before King Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor on behalf of rights for the natives. His intentions are: to stop the suppression of all encomienda  [19]  ; to liberate the Indians from all forms of slaves; to restore the ancient Indian states and rulers; and to have the rightful owners of those lands.  [20]   Francisco de Vitoria (1485-1546), Spanish theologian, was best known for his defense of the rights of the Indians of the New World against Spanish colonists and for his ideas of the limitations of justifiable warfare. He was also known as one of international law pioneers because he contributed the theory of just war and international law.  [21]   Anthropologists such as Sally Engle Merry presume that the treaty of Westphalia (1648) is the foundation for the language of international human rights law. It is a series of peace treaties  [22]  and agreements among European states which end the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) and the Eighty Years War (1568-1648) in Europe. As result, these treaties and agreements gave birth to a new system of political order in central Europe, i.e., the system of sovereign state governed by a sovereign. During this period, international law and affairs were based on the notion of state sovereignty. However, the treaties did not restore peace throughout Europe because France and Spain remained at war for the next eleven years. But the Peace of Westphalia at least created a basis for international legal norms or the language of international human rights law.  [23]   In 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the UDHR which has become a universal standard for the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide. This adoption is a clear affirmation of the international coexistence which is commonly based on human dignity and respect for all peoples rights in everywhere. However, some criticize that the Universal Declaration was politically impossible during the Cold War to meet both civil or political rights and social or economic rights. Western human rights law focused on political and civil rights such as the right to freedom of speech or religion and so on, whereas socialist and communist countries focused on economic and social rights such as the rights to work, food, housing, etc. International human rights law, however, has developed a dominant language of global justice that ends the cleavages dominant during the Cold War. Today, the language of human rights has become the language common to all humanity, a global lingua franca addressing social, political, cultural and economic issues worldwide. It is shifted from political discourse to a more unified language of global justice. It is a language that guides every human being in an era of globalization. Mary Robinson, the former High Commissioner for Human Rights, once said that: All of us, in our different forms of expression, can speak the common language of humanity, the language of human rights, which is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  [24]   As the World Conference on Human Rights began on 14 June 1993, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, gave the opening statements to the assembled diplomats as follow: Human rights should be viewed not only as the absolute yardstick which they are, but also as a synthesis resulting from a long historical process. As an absolute yardstick, human rights constitute the common language of humanity. Adopting this language allows all peoples to understand others and to be the authors of their own history. Human rights, by definition, are the ultimate norm of all politics. As an historical synthesis, human rights are, in their essence, in constant movement. By that I mean that human rights have a dual nature. They should express absolute, timeless injunctions, yet simultaneously reflect a moment in the development of history. Human rights are both absolute and historically defined.  [25]   However, there are some politicians who use the term human rights in a very narrow sense for their own benefits. As a result of misinterpretation of the term, the UDHR becomes no worth than bourgeois rights or Western rights. Some argue that the fundamental idea of human rights does not go along with the specific characteristics of local or regional cultures and customs. For some, recognizing human rights differently in different contexts according to ones own culture and custom is a better solution for all. But the article 27 of the UDHR proves that the language of the declaration does not exhibit any cultural preference since human rights are a common language of humanity.

Scotch whisky research institute

Scotch whisky research institute INDUSTRIAL CASE STUDY REPORT SCOTCH WHISKY RESEARCH INSTITUTE (SWRI) INTRODUCTION The Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI) is a registered company in Scotland which serves the needs of distillery companies in Scotland and also worldwide. It is situated in the Robertson Trust building of Heriot Watt Universitys north research avenue campus at Riccorton, Edinburgh. It is a much focussed research organisation which helps various companies associated with it in Whisky research. It carries out research right from raw material to bottling of whisky, which includes every step in the manufacturing process. It was started by some Scotch whisky companies in 1979 with a common interest to carry out research based on the Scotch whisky. Primarily it was started by Jim Gray, Eric Dewar and Jim Swan. Scotch whisky has its unique reputation worldwide, basically due to its quality and flavour. But there was a lot to know about the manufacturing process, chemical/biological conversions taking place in the process. Whisky companies at that time recognised the need of enough research to be done in this area and also on identifying the flavours of whisky, and this is the reason why they required a common platform and hence established SWRI. It is a charity registered in Scotland which does research only for the benefits of the distillery industries. At SWRI, a wheel named Pentland Wheel was developed which is basically used to describe various flavour and aroma of whisky in a descriptive manner. Today all the Scotch whisky companies protect their unique identity in the market by producing the exact typical flavour which the customer likes. Hence flavour plays an important role for a whisky to sustain the competition in the market. This institutes main aim is to preserve the good wheel of Scotch whisky by developing techniques to identify the originality of whisky to be called as a scotch whisky, thus eliminating the imitating spirit products in the market which may affect the entire Scotch whisky industry. BUSINESS ASPECTS Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI) is a UKAS 1960 accredited laboratory which ensures customers of good quality results. It is basically an RD organisation. It has members from various countries around the world. Some of the companies associated with it are Chivas Brothers (France), Diageo (UK), Glenmorangie (France), Inverhouse (Thailand), Morrison Bowmore (Japan), Whyte Mackey (India), Bean Global (USA), Dranburie (Scotland), Ian Macleod (Scotland), North British Distillers (Scotland), John Dewar sons (Bermuda), Edrington (Scotland), WM Grant Sons (Scotland), etc. It also got knowledge transfer partnerships with universities like Heriot-Watt University, University of Birmingham, University of Nottingham, University of Abertay Dundee and Institutes like The Scotch Whisky Association, Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI), Brewing Research International (BRI), The Gin and Vodka Association (GVA), Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD), John Innes Centre, Food Standards Agency (FSA) etc. At present it has got around 24 full time employees. They work under four different groups, namely Executive Board, Main board, Research Management Committee and Technical Liasion Group. These divisions in turn accounts for the systematic and organised work in the research institute. SWRI addresses longer term technical issues to ensure distilling sustainability. It has a thoroughly trained sensory panel of 19 members, who are experienced in a range of spirit products. These sensory panel members carry out the sensory analysis of various whisky products. Is has UKAS (ISO-17025) accreditation for key methods used in the analysis and research process. Its research work is carried out in areas like Authenticity analysis, Flavour understanding, Linking Chemical Sensory profiles etc. It concentrates on the quality of the Scotch whisky and tries to make the production process much easier and economical to the manufacturers. Scotch whisky is the largest category of whisky sold in the world. It is sold in over 200 countries worldwide. The top ten countries which exported Scotch whisky from Scotland in 2008 were USA, France, Spain, Singapore, South Korea, Greece, Germany, South Africa, Taiwan, and Venezuela respectively. Also there is great demand for Scotch whisky in countries like India, China various gulf countries. In 2008, 300,475,617 litres of Scotch whisky has been exported. This equates to  £ 3,027,303,874 in value of business. It means that approximately 25% of UK food drink exports is only through scotch whisky. This tells us the demand of the product in the world market. Hence SWRI tries to monitor and save the whole whisky market of Scotland and world too. SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ACTIVITIES The research activities carried out by SWRI can be grouped under following categories: RAW MATERIALS Various research activities are carried out on the raw materials used in the whisky making like Barley, Wheat, Cereals, Starch, and Yeast etc. Genetics of all these raw materials are studied and also there is research work going on the action of Endogenous enzymes produced from raw materials during processing. PROCESSING The process of fermentation and distillation are studied in depth at SWRI and the whole whisky making process is made easier by implementing best methods and materials in the process. There is also very much interest about the flavour/Sensory aspects of the whisky and hence regularly the sensory characteristics of different whiskies are studied in detail at SWRI and work is going on to obtain best flavour for whisky. Apart from the above research, various areas like Maturation, Product Protection, Technical Support, Sustainability etc are also studied a lot at SWRI and appropriate research is carried out to protect the originality of Scotch whisky and to improve the whole whisky making process. ANALYTICAL EXPERTISE A range of analytical techniques specific methods are developed for whisky other spirits. Its research work include Authentic analysis Flavour understanding Linking chemical and sensory profiles Research is carried out on the Maturation Warehousing process as well so as to decrease the amount of alcohol loss during maturation in Oak casks. SWRI is also very keen in improving both the Malt and Grain whisky process on the whole by developing perfect methods and materials to get optimum results. Minimum alcoholic strength of the whisky must be 40% and has to be made from, processed and matured for at least 3 years in the Scotland in order to be called it as a Scotch whisky. The pot still design is very important in Grain Malt whisky process because it ultimately affects the final product by contributing to the flavour of the whisky. CONCLUSION Scotch whisky has a very good reputation worldwide for its taste and quality that it offers and hence there is a need to protect its brand image. There is also very much need for the Scotch whisky to sustain in a market where various duplicates to the Scotch whisky are constantly made. There is a need to identify the originality of Scotch whisky, thereby eliminating the duplicate ones. Also attention must be paid to increase the production level and to maintain a low product making selling cost in order to meet the ever growing demand to the Scotch whisky worldwide. Use of the genetically engineered strains of yeast for the fast and enhanced fermentation without altering the metabolic reactions must be considered in future for efficient whisky production. Amount of alcohol lost during maturation in casks must be eliminated by changing the cask design and environmental conditions at storage. Finally I think it is the duty of SWRI and Scottish government to protect the name and fame o f scotch whisky in the world market and also to improve the process technically and economically to sustain in the future global market in which scotch whisky has got some billions of pounds business to make. REFERENCES Scotch Whisky Research Institute [online]. Available from www.swri.co.uk [accessed 05 January 2010] Presentation by James Brosnan (research manager) at SWRI on 21 October 2009.

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The dynamics of the student population yields no two students who are exactly alike. For this reason, it seems unreasonable to use one form of instructional materials, curriculum delivery, and assessment standards for all students. Educators realize that students learn at different rates and through different avenues. Individualized instruction approaches attempt to make the learning experience suitable for each student in terms of his or her learning needs, interests, and developmental level. Individualized instruction programs focus on objectives that are personal for each child. The child is an active partner in decision-making in terms of activities, subject matter, and assessment. Because students learn at different rates, individualized instruction is flexible in instructional pacing and the scheduling of class material. Individual instruction should be varied for each student in order to provide a variety of learning modalities best suited for the student. Teachers must be de dicated to curriculum planning and instructional decision-making, and encourage students to be responsible for their learning and take an active role in the learning process. Individualized instruction is not just a philosophy, but rather is comprised of a specific plan for meeting every student’s educational needs. Individualized instruction begins with a system to diagnose student strengths and weaknesses. Teachers use this pre-assessment to define goals for the student and understand their academic interests. The next step is to determine the best possible arrangement to group students for instruction, whether it is by needs, interests, or developmental levels. Once the teacher has determined student needs and organized the students into groups for effective instruction, the teacher must decide how to instruct the students to produce maximum benefits for each individual student. This includes instruction delivery, course content, integrated activities, and a learning time frame. In order to evaluate the student’s progress, a design for record keeping and a variety of assessment techniques must be must be made. The purpose of this paper is to design a plan for implementing an individualized instruction program in mathematics education. The plan will focus on mathematics content in 4th to 5th grade. The content area for this plan is geometry, and will include components of mea... ...many tests do. Students must show that they can apply their learning to novel places and demonstrate a technique for using mathematical strategies. These performance tests will be beneficial for problem solving tasks, manipulation of objects, construction activities, and identifying patterns and relationships. Performance tasks can be evaluated in real-learning situations or learning centers through teacher observation using a rubric with performance indicators. This way, the teacher can describe the mathematical processes that the student is capable of doing, rather that simply assigning an arbitrary letter grade, which only compares a student with his or her peers. Achievement tests have their place in the evaluation process. While the process is nearly as important as the product, as educators, we want students to be solving problems appropriately. Parents, administrators, and school board officials (as well as teachers) want to know that students are learning skills that follow the curriculum. Additionally, students need to know that they are solving problems correctly, and if they are not, the teacher needs to determine why that is the case. Evaluation of This Plan Appendix