Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Addiction of Second Life Online Game Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words
Addiction of Second Life Online Game - Essay Example They can as well chip in to the world around them, forming buildings and a number of other things, even simulations. Resident inclusions to the virtual world are known as user produced content, and this content is among the aspects that makes Second Life only one of its kind online setting, and have a huge number of users who are badly addicted to this game. For those who play Second Life, this is a game that is a lot more than just an ordinary game. For the players, it is an online word where they can have a chance to get a fresh start as well as a new ââ¬Å"lease of lifeâ⬠(Kim et al, 2008, p. 214); and when people have a chance to make a fresh start thing, it can become somewhat hard not to get overly-involved in it. Each day, more and more people joining the Second Life and spending the most of their time within this virtual world. Whereas more or less everyone states that they play the game only for enjoyment, for the greater part of them, this is ââ¬Å"more than just a g ameâ⬠(Kim et al, 2008, p. 215). Second Life utilizes the ââ¬Å"Havok 1 physics engineâ⬠(Boulos et al, 2007, p. 236). This software creates actual physics inside a virtual setting. The physics engine decides the way avatars act inside the virtual world, together with crash recognition - the engine informs the software how the each item should respond as soon as they get are in touch, automobile activities and what simulations seem to be. The more refined the physics engine, the more realistic animations utilizing it will be.
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Oswestry Mutual Insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words
Oswestry Mutual Insurance - Essay Example In 1991, the company decision-making process was highly centralized. The growth experienced by OMI in the mid to late 1980's and the need to become more responsive to the dynamics of the industry, top management decided to change the operating structure. In 1991, they reorganized into 6 sectional-regional profit centers. The branch offices remained at 68, each branch office reports to a specific sectional profit centre and sectional office. The sectional office is responsible for approving all policies written and claims filed through both branch offices and the independent agents located in that region. The head office's is suppose to establish overall corporate policy and provide support to 6 sectional offices. The head office in Oswestry and the sectional offices were organized on a functional basis. The functional units in all locations are: Premium Audit, Underwriting, Sales, Claims/Losses, Finance, Human Resources, Loss Monitoring and Support. However, even though the operational structure was decentralized, most of the information services still remain centralized in the head office, which includes related planning, control, budget authority and decision- making stays at the head office. Computers were used, at first, for financial and statistical report production: standard MIS reports included, profit/loss, operations, claim data, loss ratios, and marketing information. In the 1980's, it became painfully obvious to OMI that the companies method of processing policy and claim data needed a major overhaul. John Robson, at the time, director of Information Systems called for a serious review of information service operations. He wanted to know what data was being collected, processed, and how the information was being used by every department and branch office. In 1991, a committee was established. Representatives came from Information Systems, and the major functional area user groups. They studied current information system problems, determined future requirements, and developed specifications for new systems to meet their needs. The project was completed in 1993, implemented was: an automated policy-writing system which would issue policies, cancellations, changes and renewals, marketing and financial reports were regularly prepared, directly from the data already entered into the policy writing and claim system, an automated claim input system which automatically issue claims cheques, online retrieval of policyholder information became possible at all branch offices, online retrieval of claim information became possible at all branch offices Overall Process To Implement Change The new systems were not perfect, but was a great improvement. When a new application for insurance was received by the Underwriting department in a sectional office, relevant data was entered by a sectional office by a PPD clerk over a telephone line link into the company's large IBM 3090 central mainframe located in Oswestry. Data would then be processed in overnight batch mode to produce a policy which could be printed in multiple copies the next day in Oswestry, and on a remote printer in the sectional office. Also, an online policy-holder file would also be available the next day for retrieval on the sectional office terminal which was also connected to the 3090 in Oswestry. Prior to the systems development, work that took place between 1991-1993 and before, the establishment of the sectional offices, handling personal policy information was a semi-automated clerical
Monday, October 7, 2019
Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
Marijuana - Essay Example Now, with better research and newly developed technology, scientists have found that all natural supplements are healthier for treatment of certain illnesses. Medicinal application marijuana, for instance, has many benefits and some doctors prescribe marijuana to patients with diseases ranging from Alzheimer to HIV, to help with treatments. The common people could also use it to control their stress or become less depressed, which makes life a lot simpler and easier to handle when time gets rough. Even though marijuana portrays many medicinal benefits, it should not only be used for medical purposes but should also be regulated like alcohol (which is toxic) and tobacco, whose consumption is in some cases worse than using marijuana. There are currently big debates going on in Congress and all over the world, on whether to legalize marijuana or not. This occurs at a time when most of the Americans have at least tried marijuana, or are using it to help them overcome stress. The drug is also an ââ¬Ëall-naturalââ¬â¢ plant that can be grown anywhere in the world; it has a high demand, and its supply is high. Drug lords and its growers however started adding chemicals that cause users to become addicted to their product and after a while of use, the consumers start using stronger drugs. That is why marijuana is called a gateway drug. If the bill in Congress passes for marijuana, the Food and Drug Administration will supervise the product. It will be offered, for everyone to buy, at the pharmacy. Gangs and drug dealers will not sell it on the streets, due to the vast drop in prices from the legalization of marijuana, and its consequential easy access to the public. Right now, if there were no marijuana in the streets, people would have no other choice but to use worse drugs, like cocaine, or crystal meth; those types of drugs that can affect a personââ¬â¢s health physically, mentally, and they become desperate to obtain these drugs at any necessary means. In S audi Arabia for instance, the people do not accept drugs socially or religiously. However, I feel that if the government looked into the positive effects of marijuana, there would be a change in the view of marijuana among the citizens of Saudi Arabia. If everyone smoked a little of it every day, the euphoria feeling would overcome all other emotions and there would be fewer problems, and less crimes. People will become more relaxed, and better able to communicate with each other respectfully. It would also develop an environment where people love each other; everyone would have less stress, and become mellower and the world would become a more peaceful place. More research should however be done to test the pros and cons of marijuana, then the government should weigh out the results. As a democracy, the United States of America should allow its people to vote on whether to legalize it or not. In my opinion, I believe that whether Congress will legalize it or not, it will take the n ext five years for them to reach a final decision. I however do not think it is necessary to prolong the debate on whether to legalize it or not. This issue should be resolved soon because it could change peopleââ¬â¢s lives in the United States, even people who have never tried this drug. In conclusion, marijuana is a useful and helpful drug that Americans need in their lives. It has both medicinal and social value that promises benefits to the society. Its
Saturday, October 5, 2019
Juvenile courts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
Juvenile courts - Essay Example hat, by creating a separate court system for juvenile offenders, these young offenders will not be punished in a way that will have effect on their current behavior. While he agrees that young offenders do not require the harsher punishments seen within the regular court system, he believes that treatment will still be dismal if the two courts were separated. In regards to changing the current state of the juvenile court into involving social welfare to the offenders, Feld is against this because, in previous attempts, there were odds between how the offenders were treated and punished. As nothing was being done as it should have been, Feld believes that there is simply no point in having a juvenile court. Feld would like to abolish the juvenile courts altogether because he has not seen anything to suggest that they are doing any good. He thinks that there is nothing wrong with juveniles being tried in the typical court, just as long as they are given proper punishments that reflect how young they are (as well as the crime that they committed). The "cushions" that Feld recommends for juveniles being adjudicated in adult courts involve the young offenders avoiding punishments that are meant for adult offenders; this is a fear that he has with keeping them in the typical court, yet he believes things could be worse if there were separate courts. These "cushions" include the creation of waivers for specific offenses - these waivers would allow offenders to go free without imprisonment or a lengthy punishment, but perhaps community service or something similar to that effect. Another "cushion" allows that young offenders will have a maximum punishment, so that they are never given the sam e punishment as their adult counterparts. These "cushions" can prove to be helpful as they do take into consideration that young offenders do not deserve the same punishments as people older than them, and those that might have committed more serious offenses. They can prove to be
Friday, October 4, 2019
Teaching Plan Breast Feeding Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Teaching Plan Breast Feeding - Essay Example The milk from the human breast is considered as the healthiest form of nutrition for infants. (Picciano, 2001) However, most women are not ready to deal with breastfeeding in the aftermath of childbirth because of a lack of education. A lack of appreciation for breastfeedingââ¬â¢s advantages and the cumbersome routine forces most women to bottle feed their infants which has higher risks associated with it. In the given scenario, the mother is new to the concept of breastfeeding and so needs education as well as intervention in order to facilitate her and her child. Various aspects related to breastfeeding will be clarified using a teaching plan which will include typical problems, sources of confusion and their solutions along with focus on the patient. Bottle Feeding versus Breast Feeding Education The learning objectives will concentrate on making breastfeeding seem like a better choice than bottle feeding to the client. The client will be provided with a comparison of both bott le feeding and breastfeeding from the aspects of nutrition, comfort and cost. The client is new to childbirth and care so is confused between breastfeeding and bottle feeding. It could be expected that she would be eager to learn about these concepts to clarify her confusion. The content covered will delineate that breast milk is nutritionally superior to formulas and is easily digested and absorbed by the baby. Moreover the contents of breast milk change automatically to suit the babyââ¬â¢s needs while formulas require constant intervention on the part of the paediatrician. Moreover breast milk is free while formula milk costs between $54 and $198 each month depending on brand. Breast milk does not need any preparation or conditioning while formula milk does. However breastfeeding is uncomfortable initially and care must be taken to avoid certain kinds of medications. (American Pregnancy Association, 2011) The motherââ¬â¢s learning will be evaluated through oral quizzing and her concepts will be reinforced as required. Proper Nutrition and Fluids during Breastfeeding At the conclusion of the learning session the patient will be expected to know what kinds of nutrients are required during breastfeeding and what foods could be expected to provide such nutrition. Moreover the patient will develop an understanding of why fluids are needed and what quantity should be consumed each day to facilitate lactation. The patient will be told to increase the amount of milk and starch based products in diet and to consume the prenatal vitamins during breastfeeding in the originally prescribed quantity. The consumption of calories will be increased by around 500 while fluid intake would be enhanced by 8 to 12 glasses each day with preference provided to milk. Furthermore the patient will be told to consume fruits in preference to fruit juices so as to avoid too much calorie intake. (Health Pages, 2011) The patient will be told to record food intake for at least a few w eeks and this will be monitored. Any intervention required would be based on these records. The patient will further be evaluated for sticking to the instructions provided. Nipple and Breast Care The patient will be expected to learn why breast and nipple care is necessary and what extents should be taken to avoid infection and swelling. The proper latching techniques will be demonstrated to the patient through the use of diagrams and videos to enhance understanding as mere
Thursday, October 3, 2019
Fair Value Accounting Essay Example for Free
Fair Value Accounting Essay Topic: To what extent is ââ¬Å"Fair Value Accountingâ⬠an effective method in measuring the values of financial instruments in financial statement? In recent years, the breakout of global financial crisis has raised controversial debates about whether or not fair value accounting (FVA) is an effective method in measuring the values of financial instruments (Laux Leuz, 2009). As two main accounting standards around the world, both International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and US Financial Accounting Standards (FAS) have adopted FVA as an accounting method to judge the values of some financial instruments (Mala and Chand, 2011). This essay will argue that although FVA can provide timely and transparent price information to the users of accounting information in some cases, there are potential problems of FVA in measuring the values of financial instruments on account of unreliable evaluation models, biased prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. There are three main parts in this essay. Firstly, it will give the definition of FVA and then it will analyze why the effectiveness of FVA may be limited from three aspects, namely unreliable evaluation models, biased prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. At last, it will consider the pros of FVA regarding the timely and transparent information it provides in some cases and analyze the pros. According to Financial Accounting Standards 157, fair value accounting can be defined as ââ¬Å"an accounting method to measure the values of assets and liabilities based on the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement dateâ⬠. That is to say, FVA relies on the actual market prices of the financial instruments and records the exact market prices on the financial statements. In fact, FVA replaces historical cost accounting (HCA) with the development of accounting standards (Boyer, 2007). Compared with FVA, historical cost accounting can be described as an accounting measurement of values based on the original or historical cost when the company got the assets or liabilities. For example, a company bought a stock for 50 pounds last year. In this year, the price of the stock increases to 100 pounds. Under FVA, the company should record the value ofà the stock at 100 pounds this year while 50 pounds will be recognized under HCA. As the replaced FVA has been regarding as accelerating the global financial crisis, it draws a lot of attention in respect of its potential weaknesses in the accounting field. Firstly, the model to estimate fair values of financial instruments in illiquid markets seems to have insufficient reliability (Laux Leuz 2009 and Mala Chand 2011). If the markets for the identical or similar financial instruments whose values need to be evaluated are active, the available prices can be used to evaluate the fair values of them (Laux Leuz 2009). However, if the markets do not exist, which means the the markets are inactive or illiquid, the fair evaluation model is needed to estimate the fair value of the financial instruments (Ball 2006). Specifically speaking, the model to evaluate fair values of financial instruments rely on the future cash flow of the financial instruments and borrowing rate of the company. The future cash flow can be described as the future cash inflow (income) and outflow (expense) brought by the financial instruments whilst the borrowing rate of a company can be considered as the cost of capital which can be invested in other investments rather than the financial instruments. The users of the evaluation model should firstly predict the future cash flow of the financial instruments and then use the borrowing rate of the company to calculate the present fair values. Ljiri (2005) states that using model to estimate the values of financial instruments provides significant discretionary power to the users and gives uncertainty, which may influence the objectivity of the valuation of financial instruments. Indeed, the same financial instrument could be evaluated differently on account of different estimation of future cash flows and distinct borrowing rate. Because the users of the evaluation model have the power to forecast the future cash flow, different users may have distinct estimations of the same financial instrument based on their perspectives of its future profitability. In addition, different companies may have different borrowing rates due to distinct industries involved. Thus, the above two uncertain factors affects the objectivity of the fair evaluation of the financial instruments, which limits the reliability of the evaluation model. Secondly, the inefficient markets could distort prices, which has a negative effect on the basis of FVA (Laux Leuz 2009). An inefficient market can be defined as a market in which the prices of financial instruments can not be measured accurately due to the inefficient information it provides (Aboody et. al 2002). Additionally, Lim and Brooks (2010) review the empirical literature about the evolution of market efficiency over time and find that the market cannot be always efficient and market inefficiency can be easily caused by investor irrationality and liquidity problems. That is to say, the market prices of financial instruments could be distorted by biased behaviors of investors, such as overconfidence or overreaction to a stock, and liquidity problems, such as illiquid market for a long-term bond. Whatââ¬â¢s more, the distorted prices can not reflect the real values of financial instruments, which makes FVA lose the reliable basis to measure the fair value of financial instruments. Therefore, the biased prices in the inefficient markets tend to the appropriateness of fair evaluation of financial instruments. Thirdly, Laux and Leuz (2009) argues that FVA could enforce negative price contagion in the financial markets, which has been considered as the main cause of rapid spread of global financial crisis. It is argued that FVA has stimulated the financial crisis in a vicious spiral and leading to the spread and depth of the financial crisis (Begtsoon 2011, Allen and Carletti 2007, Appelbaum 2009 and Jones 2009). To be specific, after financial crisis broke out, the liquidity of financial instrumentsââ¬â¢ markets dried up, which means very few trades of the financial instruments existed in the markets (Begtsoon 2011). As a result, the market pricing mechanism became dysfunctional because the prices should be evaluated from very few trades, which resulted in low prices of financial instruments (ibid). In turn, the low prices put pressure on the financial statements of some financial institutions in terms of assets depreciation under FVA (Allen Carletti 2008). In order to keep capital requirements, the financial institutions had no choice but to sell assets at low prices, which led to lower prices of financial instruments in the markets and stimulated further assets depreciation on other financial instrumentsââ¬â¢ financial statements under FVAà (Plantin et al. 2008a). To sum up, the prices in the market could negatively influence the evaluation of financial instruments under FVA and at the same time, the evaluation of financial instruments under FVA could have a further negative effect on the market prices, which forms a vicious circle that can speed up the price contagion and fluctuations. Nevertheless, supporters of FVA believe that FVA can provide transparent and timely information for the users of accounting information (Brown 2008). As Hughes (2009) says, the function of FVA is ââ¬Å"like that of the thermometer-it mirrors reality, it does not create itâ⬠. Since FVA can reflect what is happening in the market on the financial statements immediately, it allows the information users to get easy access to the most timely and transparent market information. In addition, Hinks (2009) argues that the useful information provided by FVA allows the investors and regulators to approach to the up-to-date position of financial institutions and encourage them to make corrective decisions. Indeed, it cannot be denied that FVA can provide prompt and transparent price information in some cases. However, it is not always the case which contributes FVA to an effective measurement to value financial instruments. First of all, in an illiquid or inefficient market for some financial instruments, even if FVA could provide timely price information of the financial instruments, the timely information provided is unreliable, which leads to the uselessness of the timely and transparent information provided by FVA. Secondly, even though the financial instruments have an active or efficient market, FVA cannot result in increased transparency of information in financial statements as expected (Krumwiede 2008). Thirdly, under FVA, timely price information would lead to volatility of financial statements (Barth 2004). The continuous volatility of financial statements causes confusion for the users of accounting information and raises the companyââ¬â¢s cost to keep accounts. Hence, although FVA could offer some timely and transparent information to the users, these information limits to some extent because of unreliable information, limited transparency and volatility of financial statements. In conclusion, this essay has discussed three aspects limiting the effectiveness of FVA to measure the values of financial instruments, including evaluation model, inefficient markets and price contagion effect. In addition, it also considers the pros of FVA in terms of timely and transparent information provided in some cases. It can be concluded that even though up-to-date and transparent information could be provided by FVA occasionally, the effectiveness of FVA to measure the values of financial instruments has been limited due to the unreliable evaluation model, distorted prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. Because of word limit, this essay cannot cover the detailed application of FVA to specific kind of financial instrument. However, the above discussion can clearly show that FVA has some general problems in measuring the values of financial instruments. Based on above analysis, it can be suggested that the problematic aspects of FVA could be improved or revised by providing more clear explanation and more specific regulations by the constitutors of accounting standards and for some specific financial instruments with illiquid or inefficient markets, it is better to use some other methods to measure their values.
Effect of Enlightenment on Punishment
Effect of Enlightenment on Punishment Punishment is a concept which is open to many definitions in a sense that, when looking at crime and punishment, the definition depends purely on the place, culture and beliefs that an individual associates themselves with. When we look at crime and punishment in particular, the meaning behind punishment differs due to it being a concept that can be defined in many different ways, for instance, a ââ¬Å"the legal process whereby violators of criminal law are condemned and sanctioned in accordance with specified legal categories and proceduresâ⬠(Garland, 1990, p. 17) or in a more general sense ââ¬Å"the act of inflicting a consequence or penalty on someone as a result of their wrong doing, or the consequence or penalty itselfâ⬠(Your Dictionary, 2015). Throughout history we have seen a drastic change in not only the way that a criminal receives punishment, but also the environment in which the individual is placed, shifting from the general public humiliation and intense p hysical punishment to punishment of oneââ¬â¢s personal ability to think and reason in a private sphere. Furthermore, this paper is going to look further at the movement of intense punishment of the body in the public eye to seeing how punishment has lessened over time by punishing the mind in a private environment, also critically analysing what it is that we consider to be ââ¬Ëpunishmentââ¬â¢ today. Throughout the early eighteenth century, offenders were prone to incapacitation devices and corporal punishment such as stocks, the pillory, flogging, stretching, etc. which were located in a public space in an attempt to humiliate or deride the offender hoping to prevent future offending or re-offending (Miethe Lu, 2005). In saying that, these systems did not only apply to those criminals who went against societal norms but they also applied to individuals or groups of people who did not follow the law properly in terms of religion. Classen (2012), mentioned that throughout the Middle Ages, it was known as the period that was filled with law-breaking criminals, violence, blood feuds, anarchy, vengeance and also exposing the people to groups of criminals such as gangs and murderers. In saying that, due to the shortage of surveillance and technology in this period of time, this meant that innocent people were more likely to be punished if there were no eye witnesses present at the ti me of the ââ¬Å"crimeâ⬠. Knowing that there was a lack of surveillance and technology meant that an innocent individual were more likely to be punished for a crime that they did not commit. Furthermore, when looking at the huge impact that violence had on this time period and combining it with the understanding that the law was not systematized, this could have welcomed not only the opportunity to use public corporal punishment in assorted ways but also punish an individual tyrannically no matter how severe the crime is (White, Haines, Asquith, 2012). As we begun to approach the eighteenth century, we not only saw the rise into the Enlightenment era, but we also begun see some movement in terms of punishment where it focussed on independence, reason and logic over tradition. Not to mention, that this was the time period in which we saw the arrival of Classical Criminology, which then gave the view that criminals were considered to be rational thinkers who committed an offence of their own accord. However, the main key here is that this idea saw punishment as being prompt and corresponding to the offence that was committed. Classical theorists created a starting point in terms of authority systems which contradicts tyrannical punishment by offering other ways in which they can punish an offender through non-violent means. One major example of this would be from that of Michel Foucault, who further developed Jeremy Benthamââ¬â¢s concept of the Panoptican. The make of the panoptican is seen as a circular structure which contains a surveillance tower which contains prison cells around it. In saying that, the main reason behind this panoptican was to try and prevent the occurrence of bad behaviour by presenting prisoners with the delusion that they are put under surveillance watch 24/7. Even though the inmate knows that they are constantly being watched, they still do not know when it is exactly that the guards are watching them. This ends up leading to why this model was created, to increase good behaviour (Foucault, 1977). In addition, it is evident that a plan set up to shift public corporal punishment to the mind and the private sphere through using Benthamââ¬â¢s notion of the panoptican model as one of the many alternatives, although, this then meant that inmates freedom was taken from them by punishing offenders through the introduction to prison. That being said, the delusion that inmates are being watched constantly could possibly considered to be a move toward the punishment of the mind in a way th at the prisoner knows that they are on watch 24/7, perhaps resulting in mental health issues, an example of this is paranoia. Furthermore, notions that were put forward throughout the Enlightenment era have been developed and are the reason as to why there is a huge emphasis on alternative punishment instead of corporal todayââ¬â¢s society. Throughout the Enlightenment era, the work that was proposed by many theorists has had a huge impact on punishment that is seen in more modern societies. When looking back to the traditional way in terms of punishment and how much of an emphasis there was on the punishment of the body in the public eye and comparing it to the alternative ideas of punishment that had appeared throughout the Enlightenment period, this has introduced brand new and more effective notions which transform from punishments of the body to the punishment of the mind. In addition, this is evident in todayââ¬â¢s societies with the increase in the number of offenders who are being sentenced to prison, illustrating the shift where instead of forcing pain on the body, it is instead inflicted on the mind through not only restricting an inmateââ¬â¢s rights and independence but also restricting them from coming into contact with the public. This idea is visible in combination with other forms of punishment that are exercised inside and outside of the prison. One of the many alternative ideas that are exercised in the prison is that of solitary confinement which is also known as an individual who is prohibited from coming in to contact with anyone outside apart from prison staff where one may be prone to conditions where they are sent to windowless or close-confined rooms. In addition, exercising this practice by depriving an inmate of contact with the outside world can potentially create mental health issues for this individual such as emotional damage, a breakdown in terms of language development and in a more severe case, it could possibly make an inmate hallucinate or become deluded. Solitary confinement is one of many practices which show that the change from the public corporal punishment to the mind in the private sphere is evident in contemporary societies. One can argue that the movement from public corporal punishment to an individualââ¬â¢s mental thinking in a private space has not changed and this can be seen in many modern societies where there are many faults in the system of punishment. Though the system is encouraged to punish an offender in a non-violent way, there are a lot of defects present in todayââ¬â¢s society that negate the idea of punishment of oneââ¬â¢s mind in a private location. This can be seen in the way in which the environment that an offender is sentenced to. In addition, whilst an offender is sent to prison, it may not be seen as ââ¬Å"non-violentâ⬠, however, the conditions inside that environment may be the exact opposite. An example of this can be seen in movies like Shawshank Redemption, when the offender (Andy Dufresne) became exposed to violence and many other horrific acts, not to mention that he also became a target for other prisoners which, he then had no choice but to defend himself in order to survive. This goes to show that the environment in which an individual is exposed to in the prison, can force those who are non-violent to turn to violence in an attempt to defend oneself from the chance of being attacked. Therefore transforming a non-violent offender into a violent one (Gilligan, 2001). Moreover, in terms of what has been said, the real question that we must ask ourselves is what is actually counted as punishment? Is it the sentence that has been given or is it also the conditions that one receives inside the prison? Another defect that is seen in terms of the shift from punishment of the body to the mind is shown where, although capital punishment is known as pain forced on to the body through violent means, there is another way in which punishment may not be necessarily considered to be corporal but it is, it is just that the way in which they are dealt with are done through non-violent means. One example can be seen where an offender is designated a hard labour job (as seen in the 1800ââ¬â¢s and still present today) for example, the treadwheel, building roads and stone breaking where although it may not be seen as physical pain inflicted to the body, as time goes on, it will show as the inmate gets older and their body slowly starts to break down (Scarre, 2003). A second example is seen where prisoners are also deprived of the necessities in life such as a clean environments and good nutrition. Although, this may not be seen as direct pain to the body, it does affect the individual in a way that eating choices and food preferences and food intake are limited whilst in prison. Not only does this limit the prisoner of the health and nutrition that is required to help them make it through the day but also it could expose the prisoner to problems in terms of the kitchen staff such as the concern of cooking standards, hygiene and illnesses. As mentioned by Smith (2002), majority of women that she had interviewed in prison were concerned about the effects that the food would have on them such as weight loss and gain, diarrhoea, vomiting and constipation. Again, this may not be considered as corporal punishment, but it still punishes the body in terms of health. Furthermore, we again have to question whether the sentence is the punishment or is it also the conditions that come with it. It can also be argued that there has not been a complete shift in terms of the punishment in the eye of the public to the private sphere. When looking at the history of punishment and comparing it to contemporary society, punishment is nowhere near is public as it used to be. However, punishment is still visible to the public. An example of this is seen in community service workers where they ââ¬Å"serve their sentence in the community rather than in the prisonâ⬠(Department of Corrections, 2015). This means that an individual is exposed to the community, knowing that the public know that they are on probation and they are not doing it voluntarily. This is seen in New Zealand where community service workers are put in front of public places. It is easy to distinguish community service workers from your average worker as they usually work in groups doing hard labour jobs but the main thing that gives it away is the clothing, usually you will notice that there is a strip on the b ack of their clothing mentioning ââ¬Å"community serviceâ⬠. Another flaw that contradicts the idea that punishment has moved from bodily punishments in front of the public eye to the private sphere is seen within the court system. What is meant by that is, the courts are the main place in which sentences are usually given to criminals and also a location where the community are welcome to observe the sentence that is being given to a criminal. Moreover, this is the case in New Zealand where the public are able to, in a sense, contribute insofar by observing the punishment that is handed to an offender, bearing in mind that there are some cases in which the public are unable to view (Courts of New Zealand, 2015). In saying that, this just goes to show that in terms of punishment, although it may not physical, public humiliation is still present in modern societies but to an extent when comparing it to the eighteenth century. Social media and the media in general allows for punishment to become visible by allowing the public to gain access to it by using several mediums such as the radio, the internet through live streaming or looking at online news articles, television programmes, such as the crime investigation channel or by simply watching the news. Not only does this illustrate that punishment is accessible to members of the public but it also allows them to become more knowledgeable by being exposed to crime and punishment through what is used by individuals daily. Although the public may not observe the punishment that is given to an offender, they are given the opportunity to get up to date through news reports, articles or even if they are lucky, through a photo which is then taken of the individual receiving the sentence. In addition, we must keep in mind that reporters look in particular for crimes that are more gruesome or crimes that they know would be of public interest so they are more like ly to exaggerate the crimes to get more of a following from the public (Bradley Walters, 2011). Furthermore, these examples show that punishment in the public eye is still present in todayââ¬â¢s society but not as bad as it was in the past. However, when looking at this example in particular, it shows the power that reporters have over people not only in terms of making punishment and crime visible to the public but also the way in which they can distort the crimes knowing that they will keep the public interested. In conclusion, this essay has shown how the enlightenment era has had a major impact on the practices that are seen in terms of punishment today. In addition, it has also looked at how punishment has altered over time and periods where the intensity of punishment has lessened by shifting from the traditional corporal punishment and public humiliation to a more modern shift of punishment of the mind and in the private sphere looking more at taking away an offenders rights and freedom. However, even though the shift of bodily punishments in front of a general public setting to the punishment of an individualââ¬â¢s mind in more of a private location is present in modern societies, it is still seen in some cases that this may not be true as mentioned in the examples given above. The question that still stands in my essay is in todayââ¬â¢s society, has there really been a shift from public capital punishment to private punishment of the mind. Bibliography Bradley, T., Walters, R. (2011). Introduction to criminological thought. Auckland: Pearson. Classen, A. (2012). Crime and Violence in the Middle Ages: The Cases of Heinrich der Glicheares Reinhard Fuchs and Wernher der Gartaneres Helmbricht. In A. Classen, C. Scarborough (Eds.), Crime and Punishment in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Age (pp. 131-158). Berlin, Germany: Walter de Gruyter. Courts of New Zealand. (2015, April 03). The Role of the Courts. Retrieved from Courts of New Zealand: https://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/about/system/role/overview Department of Corrections. (2015, April 02). In the Community. Retrieved from Department of Corrections: http://www.corrections.govt.nz/working_with_offenders/community_sentences.html Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and Punish: The Birth of Prison. (A. Sheridan, Trans.) London: Penguin. Garland, D. (1990). Punishment and Modern Society. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Gilligan, J. (2001). Preventing Violence. London: James Hudson, Ltd. Miethe, T., Lu, H. (2005). Punishment: A comparative Historical Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Scarre, G. (2003). Corporal Punishment. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 6(3), 295-316. Smith, C. (2002). Punishment and Pleasure: Women, Food and the Imprisoned 1. The Sociological Review, 50(2), 197-214. White, R., Haines, F., Asquith, N. (2012). Classical Theory. In R. White, F. Haines, N. Asquith , Crime Criminology (pp. 23-41). Sydney: Oxford University Press. Your Dictionary. (2015, April 02). Punishment. Retrieved from Your Dictionary: http://www.yourdictionary.com/punishment
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