Need Help ?

Our Previous Samples

Building on on-line shopping success, the genius of Alexa was to bring the on-li ...

Building on on-line shopping success, the genius of Alexa was to bring the on-line experience into the home without the keyboard and screen interface. These are two major barriers to a continuing digital experience. People used to (and still do) use VAD in their car through programs such as Siri and Cortana and bringing it in-home was the next logical step. And mobile phones still have limitations with their small screens and awkward inputs.

Get original essay

The real value in VAD for Amazon and its competitors is threefold; consumer value, direct vendor value and indirect vendor value. The perceived value the device brings to the consumer should not be underestimated. The device is seen as ‘cool’, ‘leading edge’, ‘futuristic’. Many people like to identify themselves as early adopters, and this device fits their need perfectly. The value of having contextual information provided on-demand is also a compelling driver for early consumer adoption and the ease of use provided through voice (removing the need for physical (keypad and mouse) interaction) is a novel and compelling driver for the consumer.

Driven by this value proposition, the vendor sees value both directly and indirectly. Obviously, profits generated from the sale of the devices themselves (albeit at presumed modest margins) is one value source. Tied to use of the device is a subscription service (e. g. Amazon Prime) that generates valuable recurring subscription revenue, as well as being able to offer other products and services to the customer on-line (e. g. video streaming). Perhaps the most lucrative and long-term value the vendors of VADs receive is indirect. VADs record all instructions given to them and pass these requests to the vendor’s cloud service. A massive volume of data is thus acquired; data that is sourced from the heart of the consumer; the living room, the kitchen, the car etc. Analysis of literally terabytes of this data is a goldmine to the digital marketer. This includes demographic data, information requests, items purchased etc, and it is this data that provides a basis for Amazon to create parity with Google search through the inputted search terms the Google engine retains. Amazon can utilize this data to hone their digital marketing strategy, advance their Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities and sell the data at a premium to third parties for their marketing analysis.

What is truly elegant about this approach to modern digitized marketing, is that is creates virtually a win-win situation. Consumers are obviously demanding more VADs. New York consulting firm Activate Inc. estimated that Amazon sold 4. 4 million Echo units in its first full year of sales, after becoming available to the general public in 2015. CIRP also reported that awareness of the Echo continues to increase, climbing to 69 percent of U. S. -based Amazon. com customers in September, up from 20 percent in March 2015.

With a VAD device in millions of homes, vendors have established seamless tendrils into the hearts and minds of the consumer from the comfort of their sofa. To illustrate how this data can be used to effect by the digital marketer, let’s look at an example: An Amazon Prime account enables you to enter details about you and your family, and to get the optimum use from Alexa, you need a Prime account. Let’s say a family makes a series of enquiries via Alexa around summer holidays, “What is the temperature in Greece in July?”, and “What airlines fly to Crete?”. Amazon collects and correlates this data with demographic comparatives over time. Given enough trend data on these enquiries, Amazon can then use Prime to target holidays, airline discounts, summer books etc. to Prime members with a similar demographic profile. Amazon also has the option to sell this (anonymized) data to on-line travel companies such as Expedia, booking. com etc. Companies pay huge amounts for this data, since this is now becoming the only real way to compete in this digitized environment. Now imagine this similar process for hundreds of thousands of other correlated enquiries (cars, houses, clothing, groceries etc. The list is potentially infinite). The uplift in revenue created from these insights pales into insignificance compared to VAD sales and on-line subscriptions. They are merely vehicles to provide intelligent recommendations and derive resultant behavioral data.

Bringing voice to the user experience takes creativity and a shift from traditional marketing strategies. Establishing an impactful VOD marketing strategy takes time and research. Like any marketing strategy, you need to firstly establish the needs of your consumer and secondly you need to link your product or service to the consumer by adding conversational interfaces to your product. On Amazon Alexa or Google Home the best way to do this is through a “skill” or “Action”. A skill is effectively a voice driven app that can bring products and services to life on VADs. You can enable and disable them through the Alexa App. But like any marketing medium, creating relevant and interesting voice content, is the first step to success.

The popular “Ask Purina” skill is a clever trust building strategy that enhances the likelihood of the consumer picking that brand over another when purchasing dog food. The skill provides detailed and educated answers about dogs, food, best breed for children etc. providing a trusted information hub for dog owners. So although not resulting in direct sales, it builds brand awareness and improves Purina’s brand reputation. Impressively, Purina has also integrated it’s content on Amazon’s integrated inhome product the “Echo show” displaying images of various dog breeds. Echo show is a product containing mini speakers and a touch screen which shows visual output for responses from Alexa assistant. Marketing integration at its best!

US antihistamine brand Zyrtec is another brand that has cleverly embraced bringing the voice to the user experience through its Alexa skill which informs consumers of the pollen count before leaving their home. Inevitably if the count is high, allergy sufferers are encouraged to pick up allergy medicine from the pharmacy. It doesn’t overtly mention the brand name but in order to find out the pollen count by saying “Alexa Start Zyrtec” the brand is top of mind and a likely choice for the consumer when purchasing.

With no imagery on the Echo assistant (and the Echo Show is of limited distribution currently), the script has to be very clever with a clear call to action without going overboard. For example, if there are too many ads during the skill, your consumer is likely to lose interest with consumers never liking to feel like they’re being “sold to”. Amazon has pulled together a very useful skills kit for businesses which helps a brand consider what users will ask and therefore design the voice content around them in a natural and effective way.

With the rapid progress of Artificial Intelligence (AI) whereby consumer behaviour is constantly analysed through purchasing behavior, reviews, queries etc. the ability to meet consumer needs and tailor offerings is stronger than ever. This changes the marketing strategy from the traditional (and costly!) approach of building a relationship with the consumer to optimising their product’s position on VAD or AI platforms. Marketers basically need to optimise their products or services for voice assistants by making the brand names easy to understand and ensuring their brand ranks high in voice search. A software called “Schema markup” will help voice search engines link to the content of your website. The marketing budget is arguably better spent on ensuring a high or preferential position rather than on relationship marketing campaigns such as loyalty programs or even awareness programs such as poster or TV campaigns. “30% of smart speaker owners say that their speaker is replacing time spent with traditional AM/FM radio and TV. ”

As with any advent of new technology, there are not only massif benefits but massif drawbacks as well. It’s common knowledge that web services are already gathering date and information about each and every one of us, so does the rise of this technology run a bigger risk of invasion of privacy as users are more likely to have their guard down around VAD (as it’s “always on”) over inputting words on a keyboard/ search engine. Alexa is clearly recording our information through the Amazon servers and that information/ data is very valuable. It’s useful to them and valuable to their customers who want this data. We have all heard of the accidental orders and also of conversations being accidentally recorded and sent to a contact etc The security of the device itself is also of major concern. The war on cybercrime is akin to an arms race, and VAD will almost definitely become part of the cybercriminal’s arsenal for compromise. Although VADs have seen a significant early adopter reaction, the much larger pragmatic market will likely be waiting to see what privacy and security flaws present themselves before comprehensive adoption occurs. In the future, perhaps, hackers might be capturing our voice and using a key piece of our identity for dark reasons. .

Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.

Get custom essay

Finally, perhaps the most significant threat to the success of VAD is the sophistication of the voice recognition technology itself. VAD is far from understanding conversational prose, despite decades of research and technological breakthroughs. Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced in 217 that the company’s speech recognition technology has now achieved a 4. 9 percent word error rate. Put another way, Google transcribes every 20th word incorrectly.


READ MORE >>

Apple is one of various American innovation organizations that has gathered a lo ...

Apple is one of various American innovation organizations that has gathered a lot of money. It had $34.7 billion in the put money on June 30, 2015. This is producing calls for higher corporate tax collection in the United States, where wage inequality has turned into a noteworthy political issue.

Get original essay

Apple is intensely subject to bring down cost producing in China. Social and political distress in China could disturb assembling or increase fabricating costs in that nation. There have been additionally been calls to limit Chinese imports in the United States with an end goal to help American assembling.

Apple's reliance on Chinese assembling and markets makes it powerless against political tension in that nation. Apple's nearby relationship with China could turn into a political issue in nations like the United States and Japan if China somehow managed to be seen as a danger.

Expanded work costs in China could take away the cost preferred standpoint of some Apple items. Stagnating working-class wages in some created nations, including the United States, could recoil the potential market for higher-end customer products, for example, those showcased by Apple. A solid U.S. dollar could expand trade rates, making it costlier for Apple to work together in key markets like Europe and China.

There is a reaction against costly and sleek items among a few clients in the United States and Europe. Apple's nearby relationship with China could annoy some potential clients in different locales, for example, North America and Europe, especially if pressures with China rise. Apple's music showcasing technique has made customers angry and prompted open feedback from customers to make the service better.

Contenders, for example, Google and Samsung have shown a solid capacity to copy Apple's items and administrations. It took not as much as a year for Google to reveal an instalment application; Android Pay, with a similar ability from Apple Pay. Developing utilization of mobile phones and tablets will bring down interest for Apple's mainstream PCs.

Apple is intending to enter another much-managed area: vehicle manufacturing. Entering the auto business could build administrative, protection and case costs at Apple. Apple relies upon a variety of items secured by protected innovation laws, for example, programming and music, for quite a bit of its pay. This leaves the organization exceedingly powerless against both theft and prosecution.

The greatest natural issue confronting Apple is the transfer of utilized or nonworking electronic gadgets. The cost of discarding gadgets, especially those containing lithium batteries, could be high. Apple could be compelled to accept that cost in light of worries about such gadgets in landfills. Contamination and other natural symptoms from assembling offices in China are a developing concern. This could prompt expanded direction and higher assembling costs sooner or later. China's endeavours to cut nursery gasses and restrain petroleum product utilize could build power rates and assembling costs for Apple in that nation. Environmental change made by an unnatural weather change could disturb transoceanic transportation and Apple's store network.

Apple Inc.’s ability to design and develop its own hardware, software, applications and services allows the company to introduce unique, innovative and easy-to-use products and solutions for its customers. Unique, innovative and easy-to-use products and services that integrate seamlessly into one Apple ecosystem are the reasons why customers buy Apple’s premium products and enjoy using them. In other words, it creates a competitive advantage no other company can match. Apple’s ecosystem is the result of the company’s ability to design a wide variety of integrated proprietary, hardware, software, applications and services.


READ MORE >>

Table of contentsIntroductionApple vs FBIConclusionIntroductionIn today’s soci ...

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Apple vs FBI
  3. Conclusion

Introduction

In today’s society, technology has grown into one of the most used and most wanted events of the millennium. This essay about Apple vs FBI controversy centers on whether Apple should be forced to create new software that would allow the FBI to access data from locked iPhones, and I argue that Apple should not comply due to concerns about personal information, setting a dangerous precedent, and potential harm to their reputation.

Get original essay

Apple vs FBI

Although the FBI cooperates with Apple to investigate of a domestic terrorist attack, I argue that Apple should not cooperate with FBI because of, personal information/User’s trust, Dangerous precedent, and harm their international reputation.

Apple argues the court cannot force speech form the company, particularly when the speech would be against Apple’s own interest. Customers want their personal information to be secure so that others won’t have access to them without permission. Apple access to personal and confidential data to defend customers store on its devices. Value of personal data and how people feel about it Indeed, personal information’s are important to all of everyone. Giving the authority the power of invading our privacy, creates an effortless way for them to violate their power and take away citizens of their constitutional rights.

The invention of the new operating system will also make a dangerous precedent for future corporations that will influence everyone negatively. Apple firmly believes that creating this necessary backdoor system will build a risky chain of effects that will affect everybody from smartphone users to social media companies and their privacy. Apple, a famous billion-dollar company have been so successful at protecting their customer's information protected. In “Forcing Apple to Hack That iPhone Sets a Dangerous Precedent,” Darrell Issa oversees statistics and past evidence to effectively convince his audience of governors that they need to believe Apple should force to hack it or not because it may possibly bring people to a dangerous situation and neglect the purpose of protecting people’s privacy.

Eventually, Apple could have possibly lost customers for the reason of their reputation by changing the protection of their cellular products. Had Apple chosen to make software for this particular issue, there would be no restrictions to government invasion of data. The topic has already been raised that making software to access one locked device could possibly allow accessing for hackers to attack lots of other people’s devices. I concur that Apple should not build new software to unlock the phone because once a lock is built there are no limits to who or how the coding can be applied. Although Apple’s products wound up looking that less safe, the result does improve Apple’s reputation as a defender of privacy, and its claim that powerful encryption isn’t a security damage. At the end of the day, it’s rare for cell phone information to be totally and completely inaccessible.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the debate over whether Apple should create new software to allow the FBI to access data from locked iPhones is a complex issue with significant implications for personal information, precedent, and reputation. While the FBI argues that such access is necessary for national security, Apple contends that creating a backdoor to access this information would set a dangerous precedent and could harm their reputation. In light of these concerns, I agree that Apple should not comply with the FBI's request, as doing so could potentially undermine the privacy and security of all smartphone users. Ultimately, it is essential to balance the need for security with the fundamental rights of individuals to protect their personal information.


READ MORE >>

Table of contentsIntroductionDesign of wind turbine bladeSimulation to proof out ...

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Design of wind turbine blade
  3. Simulation to proof out the chosen aerodynamic profile
  4. Modelling of the wind turbine blade in Cad system
  5. Conclusion

Introduction

Wondering if students or engineers living in the 21st century consider themselves fortunes as a lot of problems which previously solved by scholars, engineers, programmers from the past, simplified the solutions and consolidate into various tools to make solving some of the problems easier than ever. With the help of all these tools, engineers or students nowadays are able to solve problems more effectively, productively and more innovative.

Get original essay

Computer-Aid Design software is one of those tools. This leads us to the following case study report which will show an example of the process of design, simulate and modelling a wind turbine blade by a design team with the application of Computer-Aid Design software, engineering knowledge and simulation software. The design team mentioned in the following report are a team of personnel from the reference report.

Design of wind turbine blade

The reason of choosing win turbine blade as a case study example is because of its complexity on not only shape but also involve heavy simulation on a designed model for performance and calculation on how to manufacture and bring the designed product to live. CAD (Computer-Aid Design) program are able to produce 2D and 3D sketches which used in the manufacturing process and simulation.

The creation process required high accuracy and reliability works performed as it involves a large number of variants and calculation for the surface profile, working parameter for the specific working environment and material for the turbine blade. For an example quote from reference documents, “For a 3D object with m types of materials and n number of variations for each material, the modelling space is E3 x nm dimensional. That is to say, for a turbine blade made of modestly three constituent materials with volume fraction 2% as the resolution, there are 1. 25 x 105 possible designs even with geometry assumed to be the same. Due to such heavy computation involved, this approach becomes practically very challenging even with the advanced computational power”.

The first step of the design process for a turbine blade involves choosing the aerofoil profiles for the blade. The selection is based on constraint from the environment, budget, requirements from the regulation and performance. Based on the information above mentioned, the calculation was done which involve calculation for the force that generated in the aerodynamic profile and lifting 4 forces produced by the aerodynamic blade profile.

The design team later perform an analysis on the designed aerofoil profiles with a WIATRAK 1. 1 software with a set of wind speed and required span of the rotor. Forces generated in an aerodynamic profile with various symbol which used for calculation Shape and forces generated are determined by the aerodynamic profiles and which can be found on Aerospace Institutes. Details parameters of aerodynamics profiles can be downloaded from Aerofoil Investigation database.

The design team utilize those data to create the blade model. This further improve the accuracy of the data collected. Based on geometry which calculated in the CAD software a 3D model of the blade will be created. For its creation, Solidworks software is used by the design team. It allows the team to create a 3D model from an existing 2D aerodynamic profile which chosen from the Aerospace Institutes Database in the earlier stage.

Simulation to proof out the chosen aerodynamic profile

Based on the provided working environment and constraint by manufacturing technology, the design team then further evaluate the performance of the chosen turbine blade profiles, size 5 and shape on simulation software WIATRAK 1. 1 From the simulation result, the team are able to collect data including forces generated with various wind speed and angle of attack with respect to specific aerodynamic profile.

From the collected data, the team may determine to continue with the design or re-design it to get better performance. This simulation reduced a large amount of time which consume to produce prototype and perform wind tunnel experiment. It’s extremely helpful when one trying to compare various ideas and selection of aerodynamic profiles for the turbine blade.

Modelling of the wind turbine blade in Cad system

One of the research team consist of Xiaoping Qian and Deba Dutta presented an approach to design for design heterogeneous turbine blade based on physic based modelling method back in 2001. The approach using a B-spline tensor representation for heterogeneous object to shorten the computational time, a diffusion process and finate element method for the design process. This method helps designer to get better understanding on material property variation during different circumstances. But in this case study, the design team based on the calculated geometric and analytic parameters, a 3D model of a given blade will be created.

The process starts with the creation of the aerodynamic profile curve. This size of the curve is adapted to the first section of the blade which is located nearest to the rotor’s axis. Next, based on the knowledge of the parameters of the last section of the blade and its angle of incidence, its geometry is created on the surface at the distance equal to the given length of the blade. Having the two characteristic sections, when creating a given solid, it is possible to create the required section of the blade when connecting the two surfaces.

The last part is the creation of connection between the blade and the rotor. This element was constructed in a schematic manner in order to visualize its existence. It is not the subject of the research and shall not be subjected to machining. The prepared 3D model was visualized on 4 projection planes in sketch view and realistic view. The first visualization shows the construction lines of the element, the existing angle changes and the support structure, and the next visualization shows the general view of the geometry of the construction and its factual appearance.

Conclusion

From the above case study on a design team designing a wind turbine blade, observation can be made that how various CAD software helps on designing, simulation, evaluate and modelling and provide accurate, reliable data to prevent catastrophic failure during design and later stage and reduce waste from prototyping, testing and analysis. Without the assistance of CAD software, thousands of hours might require to calculate how much force generated by different aerodynamic profiles curve and error might occur easily during the early stage of design.


READ MORE >>

Criminologists have defined a serial killer as a person who kills three or more ...

Criminologists have defined a serial killer as a person who kills three or more persons in three or more separate events. Jeffrey Dahmer, an infamous serial killer and sex offender had an accomplished 17 murders and assaults before being caught. Questions arise as to how someone could even bare to do this to another human. To understand more of why Dahmer behaved the way he did, the use of criminological theories focus on how Dahmer’s life and experiences played a role and model reasoning for his motives.

Get original essay

To give a brief history, Jeffrey Dahmer was a well-known American sex offender and serial killer. He was born in the 60s and said to be brought up in a normal lifestyle. Jeffreys family moved a bit when they were younger but settled in Ohio. Being a young kid, he wasn’t interested in much and as he got older, Jeffrey became more socially distanced, showing little interest in hobbies besides drinking. Right after he graduated high school, Dahmer killed his first victim. The victim was a male hitchhiker that Dahmer picked him up and took to hangout and drink at his home. The victim eventually started to head out but Dahmer wanted the company so to keep him from leaving he proceeded to attack and hit him on the back of his head. He then strangled the victim to death and masturbated on his body. Dahmer drug the body under his house, dissected it, and then buried it.

For a while life continued as usual, Dahmer attended college and enlisted in the military. Due to his ongoing drinking issues, neither of these options worked out and he returned home. Dahmer was arrested here and there for petty crimes, including indecent exposure and being disorderly. After 9 years passed, Dahmer began searching for his next victims. “Between the years of 1978 and 1991, Dahmer murdered 17 males in truly horrific fashion. Rape, dismemberment, necrophilia, and cannibalism were all parts of his modus operandi.

Dahmer’s victims all fit the profile of being male. He seldom dated women but would hang around the gay bars. He picked men up there, though not all his victims were black he often times picked men being in the African American race. This overall led to the killing of his second victim, which he has no recollection of doing. Again, murder wasn’t all Dahmer was charged for. Between his third and fourth murder, Dahmer was arrested and tried for sexually assaulting a child. He pled guilty and served only 10 months of his sentence in jail. Just after being released, continuing on his spree, Dahmer went from 4 bodies to 17.

As he progressed, Dahmer began to develop rituals or patterns in his murders. Choosing wisely, he prayed on men who were on the outs of society. Whether they be previous criminals or not involved in keeping up with society. The key was to make their disappearance unnoticeable. As far as the abuse went, he often times experimented on the bodies. Pouring acid into the bodies, drilling, to even consuming part of the flesh. Dahmer stated had no intentions of getting this out of control, but the more he killed, the more he wanted to be satisfied. It was known Dahmer would cutout and keep the remains of some victims. This could include anything from the genitalia to other organs including the heart. “The only motive that there ever was to completely control a person; a person I found physically attractive. And keep them with me as long as possible, even if it meant just keeping a part of them”.

To conclude Dahmer’s murders, his last suspect didn’t go as planned. Tracy Edwards had been lured into Dahmer’s home, when things took a twist. Edwards fought to escape Dahmer after he knew what was happening, ran into the street, and flagged a cop down. The cops raided Dahmer’s home and found nothing but evidence to what he was capable of. Dahmer was arrested and later tried for his murders. At first, he plead not guilty, despite the fact he openly admitted to the crimes during police interrogation. Eventually he plead guilty due to insanity and was convicted for his crimes. “It’s hard for me to believe that a human being could have done what I’ve done, but I know that I did it”.

With much history and research, criminologists have developed theories that fit profiles of experienced criminals. The goal of these theories is to gain understanding of the crime and mind of the criminal. There are more than a handful of theories that could apply to Dahmer. Census theory, labeling theory, or development theory. One of the more fitting theories to explain Dahmer’s erratic behavior could be general strain theory. This theory views that multiple sources of strain interact and with an individuals emotional traits and responses to produce criminality. This theory focuses on sources of strain and the results of negative stimuli, leading to their effective states of anger, frustration, depression, etc. Although it was described that Dahmer grew up in a typical American home, he still witnessed his parents argue and avoid spending enough time with him because of full time working. His parents did separate during his high school years, just before his first murder. Dahmer lacked social and emotional support through his adolescent years.

Social control theory is the view that everyone has the potential to become a criminal. As most people are controlled to their bonds to society, crime can occur when the force that binds people to society are weakened or broken (textbook). Dahmer fits this theory practically to the core. This theory holds Though it has been stated that Jeffrey grew up in a typical American home, things shifted early in his childhood. He became less communicative and more isolated as the years went by. When he began schooling, his lack of communication and shyness marked his name as a social outcast, following the lines of social control theory. Dahmer’s morals, social norms, and commitment to conformity were all inconsistent. His attachment to people and relationships continued to divide Not only was he bullied throughout high school, but began his drinking habit at this early age. “Sampson and Laub find that attachments or social bonds in adulthood increase some individuals' social capital, leading to desistance from most types of deviant behavior, with the exception of men involved in drunkenness and violence”. With Dahmer having little to any social involvement and attachment to anyone, his bonds to social involvement have significantly decreased.

Overall criminologists take years to evaluate and research the minds of criminals. No theory can be definite as to why someone committed a crime but can be very accurate in the way that evidence is gathered. One must always take into account the facts of the case but also what the criminal himself is willing to say. Dahmer wasn’t afraid to speak up and share the reasons he did what he did, but was he telling the truth, or was he telling people what they thought they wanted to hear.  


READ MORE >>

Table of contentsHow Does Bitcoin Work?What Validates Currency Transactions?Sign ...

Table of contents

  1. How Does Bitcoin Work?
  2. What Validates Currency Transactions?
  3. Signature and Hashes
  4. Transaction and Malware in Transactions (Attacks)

Digital signatures algorithm uses to secure transactions of Bitcoin. In all peer to peer electronics transactions don’t need any third party to check the ledger for transfer the amount. Without using any authority, this platform secures all transactions among different people together. It provides security, integrity and non-repudiation for safe and secure transaction.

Get original essay

A decentralized electronic peer-to-peer currency system was launched as Bitcoin in 2009. In end october 2009, this e-currency was launched as more secure with no controlling authority. That time in financial market nobody has taken this seriously. The reason behind developing this e-currency was building most secure public currency in global market. In 2011, a Japanese company MtGox started to exchange Bitcoins against money, Bitcoin arose media’s attention and an increasing number of miners got involved in mining Bitcoins. Bitcoins and all other cryptocurrencies prices goes up and down according to demand, not supply. Why? Because supply or total number of bitcoin is fixed. Cryptography is the science behind security. To secure these transactions without any authority, the evolution begins with security system that we call Digital Signature. A digital signature is a mathematical scheme for demonstrating the authenticity of a digital message or document, as analogous to a physical signature on paper. Authentication can be defined as a process by which one corroborates that someone is who they claim they are The purpose of digital signature is to provide a means for an entity to bind its identity to a piece of information. The process of signing entails renovating the message and some secret information held by an entity into a tag called signature. Digital signature represents one of the most widely used security technologies for ensuring un-forge-ability and nonrepudiation of digital data.

Improved version of current security on Digital signatures or Digital authentication is hot topic for researchers in cryptography because of severe crimes and funding of terrorist groups through Cryptocurrencies. Economic warfare to financial havoc, illegal weapons to fund for terrorism is happening through different sources or wiping the amount of bitcoin or security breaches. That’s why this is an important topic.

2018, February 19, University of Oxford, Professor Sean Foley and Jonathan R. Karlsen published a paper on illegal activities related to Cryptocurrencies with collected data from various resources. According to this paper, they find that illegal activity accounts for a substantial proportion of the users and trading activity in bitcoin. For example, approximately one-quarter of all users (25%) and close to one-half of bitcoin transactions (44%) are associated with illegal activity. The estimated 24 million bitcoin market participants that use bitcoin primarily for illegal purposes (as at April 2017) annually conduct around 36 million transactions, with a value of around $72 billion, and collectively hold around $8 billion worth of bitcoin.

A digital signature algorithm (DSA) refers to a standard for digital signatures. It was introduced in 1991 by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as a better method of creating digital signatures. Along with RSA, DSA is considered one of the most preferred digital signature algorithms used today. DSA, on the other hand, does not encrypt message digests using private key or decrypt message digests using public key. Instead, it uses unique mathematical functions to create a digital signature consisting of two 160-bit numbers, which are originated from the message digests and the private key. DSAs make use of the public key for authenticating the signature, but the authentication process is more complicated when compared with RSA.

How Does Bitcoin Work?

Bitcoin is a decentralized peer-to-peer digital currency based on public-key cryptography first proposed by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008, and fully operated in 2009. Bitcoin has various nice properties which makes this cryptocurrency so popular worldwide. The existence of bitcoin is non-inflationary. But according to demand and supply the price goes ups and down with world currency as per exchange. Number of transactions at single time is the highest transaction as per safety and speed. The currency is own by the owner. It provides the separate key to make it more safe. “We will talk about the security logic and how are incidents happening in bitcoin mining and Bitcoin transactions?” It is a proof-of-work based cryptocurrency which allows miners to mint Bitcoin through computation. Different from other traditional financial currencies, willing parties make secure transactions relying on cryptographic protocols rather than trust on third parties. Since there are no central authorities to keep records of transactions, they are confirmed by consensus procedure and stored in a distributed manner. Thus, privacy of users in public transactions is protected using pseudonyms called Bitcoin addresses.

In every electronic document creation or modified document, we use time stamp. You must have seen that on Google Docs or Microsoft Word or any other Word Processor “Last time Modified at 6:30 pm. ” So Time stamping is a use of electronic timestamp to prove the temporal sequence among events. It is first proposed by Haber and Stornetta in 1991 certifying when an electronic document created or last modified. Since Bitcoin transactions are publicly announced, timestamp system is needed for participants to agree on the order of the transaction. The principle of timestamp is that information stored in the blocks is arranged in a chain, and hash of block of items is timestamped while each timestamp includes previous timestamps in its hash value. With the timestamp, data has existed at the time can be proved.

What Validates Currency Transactions?

Till digital currency, we all were verifying from third party( Bank or Government) to verify the details before transaction. In Cryptocurrency transaction, use a cryptographic scheme that is easy to verify but hard to produce the defined form of result without getting a large amount of computational work. This scheme is proposed in Adam Back’s Hack-hash. The principle of proof of work is that for many hash functions, finding an input to generate a value with a predefined leading substring is a low probability event and requires a lot of trial and error. In Bitcoin, finding such suitable inputs is used in block creation which is called mining. The main block in Bitcoin contains transaction to be validated, hash of previous block (implements the timestamp) and a nonce. The hash algorithm used is secure hash Standards (SHA256), and different nonces will be tried until the SHA256 hash value of the block satisfied with the requirements. This will consume a lot of computational power and it is a proof of the miners’ work. Besides validating the transaction to ensure the block integrity, proof-of-work protocol is also used to regulate the Bitcoin supply and reward miners Merkle tree is an important element in Bitcoin. It is a binary tree of hashes proposed by Ralph Merkle that is used to verify data integrity efficiently and securely.

In this tree, every non-leaf node is the ‘concatenate then hash’ value of its child node, and the leaves are computed over data blocks. The final hash value - n in the Merkle tree - is called Merkle root which will be stored in the block header. Since the non-leaf node is expected to have two child nodes, the missing child node is a special case of Merkle tree, just like child node. In this kind of situation, the solution in Bitcoin is straightforward. When forming the nodes in a row, if there are an odd number of nodes, the last node will be duplicated. One of the strengths of Merkle tree is that there is no need to recompute the hash of all data if one data block changes. For example, if the block changed, only one branch from, and finally root n will be recomputed. It requires a much smaller number of hash computations and makes the process more efficient.

Signature and Hashes

In Bitcoin transaction, two cryptographic primitives are used to prevent malicious users breaking the system. A digital signature is used to make sure that the information is signed by the claimed person as well as to test whether the information is modified by some malicious people. Signature process contains signature generation and signature verification. Given a message, the signatory generates a signature by using his private key, and the verifier can use signatory’s public key to verify the message’s authenticity. A cryptographic hash function is applied to the original message to produce a message digest for performance reason. Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) was the first digital signature scheme accepted legally by government of USA and proposed by NIST in August 1991. ECDSA is a digital signature scheme based on public key cryptosystem ECC, instead of working in a subgroup of Zp ? in DSA, ECDSA works in the group of elliptic curveE(Zp). It has been standardized by many standard committees such as ISO, ANSI, IEEE and FIPS. Hash function is any function that maps data with arbitrary length to a fixed-size, hard-to-inverse value. A little modification on the inputs will produce outputs with big difference. Therefore, hash functions can be used to ensure data integrity. Hash functions are adopted by Bitcoin system mainly in

  1. Bitcoin address generation
  2. Transactions and blocks generation.

Bitcoin addresses are generated by hashing the public key of ECDSA. As for Bitcoin transaction and blocks generation, two consecutive SHA256 hashes are used.

Transaction and Malware in Transactions (Attacks)

Transaction in Bitcoin is the process of transferring Bitcoin ownership from one Bitcoin address to another. A Bitcoin address is a 160-bit hash of ECDSA public key and stored in Bitcoin wallet together with its related private key. Bitcoin wallet stores one or more Bitcoin addresses and each one can be used only once. One Bitcoin transaction contains zero or more inputs and outputs. An input is reference to outputs of another previous transactions, and the values of transactions are added up and used in the current transaction. An input normally contains three parts: Previous tx is hash of previous transaction, Index is referenced transaction output, and ScriptSig contains a signature and a public key. The ECDSA signature is generated by signing the hash of the transaction, and public key belongs to the payer. Both the signature and public key prove the transaction is created by the owner of the Bitcoin address. An output has two parts: one is value, which is the number of Satoshis that are to be transferred, the other is scriptPubKey, specifying Bitcoin addresses of the one of more payees. Satoshi gave a simplified description of how transaction functions. Considering the middle transaction from owner 1 to owner 2, owner 1 uses his private key sign over the hash value of previous transaction together with owner 2’s public key to create owner 1’s signature. The signature can be verified using owner 1’s public key. Once validated, the transaction is confirmed and put into the block.

Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.

Get custom essay

Malware in transaction or getting the key without knowing by third party. First time in the history it was raised by a Japanese company MtGox. All the withdrawals happened because of this attack. Basic process of attack into a system to break the code is get the unique ID or Change/Modify the Unique ID. Unique ID is the cryptographic hash of the entire transaction including the signature to identify the Transaction. All the information involved is protected by the signature and cannot be modified by attackers. Because of scripting language that Bitcoin uses, signatures can be modified in some way but still considered as valid. The changes in signature will lead to change of the hash value, that is the transaction ID. If client or exchange software makes Bitcoin transactions by only identifying transaction hashes, it will cause a lot of problems. If one transaction has two different hashes then they need to modify the hash, ScriptSig and scriptPubKey use script language which is a stack-based, complete language using single byte opcode. The original transaction scriptSig specifies that N-bytes of data is pushed onto stack by using opcode PUSHDATA, and the modified scriptSig uses OP PUSHDATA2 (0x4d) to specify the number of bytes to be pushed is its next two bytes.


READ MORE >>

Table of contentsIntroductionNewton's law of motion and its application in sport ...

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Newton's law of motion and its application in sports
  3. BasketballGymnasticsBallet
  4. Conclusion

Introduction

Sports are most easy and convenient ways for the very good physical and mental exercise. Sports bring a lot of benefits to everyone. Sports provide a person the feeling of well-being and encourage living a healthy life. It keeps us fit and healthy as away from problems of drug addiction and crime. It keeps body in shape which makes us strong and active however it also keeps mind peaceful which brings positive thoughts and keeps us away from the many diseases and disorders. It gives people lots of energy and strength as well as removes all the tiredness and lethargy by improving the blood circulation all through the body and promoting the physical and mental well-being. It improves ones capability, work efficiency and prevent from being exhausted mentally and physically. It is the integral part of improving the quality of education among students. Sports and education both together are the best ways of achieving success in life. Moreover, sports can be a tool for creating peace. Nowadays, sports are used to compete with each other between countries rather than warring. The Olympics is an example of a large event that can be showcased as a friendly competition between each countries. When many people think of sports, the topic of physics doesn't always come to mind. They usually don't think about connecting athletics with academics. In reality math, science, and especially physics, tie into every aspect of sports. Physics plays a dominant role in the way athletes perform and the way the sport is played. Almost in every sport there is a great importance of physics.

Get original essay

Newton's law of motion and its application in sports

Basketball

First and foremost, basketball is a team sport. Each team requires to score by tossing the ball through the opponent’s goal, an elevated horizontal hoop and net called a basket. The ball can only be moved by dribbling and passing the ball to each player. Basketballs bounce due to the pressurized air inside of them, gravity and Newton’s Laws of Motion. When a player dribbles a basketball, his hand and gravity push the ball towards the ground. It is Newton’s First Law of Motion that states that every object will continue in its state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless a resultant force acts on it. The ball accelerates as it drops. It is Newton’s Second Law of Motion that states when a resultant force acts on object of a constant mass, the object will accelerate in the direction of the resultant force. The product of the mass and acceleration of the object gives the resultant force. Then, the ball pushes into the ground and compressing the air inside when it hits. The ground pushes up with an equal but opposite amount of force causing in the ball bouncing back up in to player’s hand. It is Newton’s Third Law that states if body A exerts a Force F on body B, then body B will exert an equal and opposite force F on body A. The energy in the compressed air is transferred back to the ball pushing it back into motion. If player stops dribbling, the ball would continue to bounce due to Newton’s first law, but it would start to slow down and after some time it stops due to friction. Besides that, the bumps on the surface of the ball, called pebbling is all about friction. When forces collide, friction naturally slows things down over time and the more points of contact an object has with another surface the more friction comes into play. The bumps on the basketball can increase the surface area of the ball and the amount of friction acting on it. The pebbling on the ball lets player to grip, pass quickly, and dribble without fear that the ball will slip away in a random direction.

Gymnastics

Secondly, gymnastics is a sport that includes exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination and endurance. In the Olympics it is one of the most popular sports and certainly one of the most interesting to watch. In gymnastics, gymnasts learn to manipulate their bodies in order to take advantage of Newton’s laws of Motion so that they can pull off spectacular tricks. During a handspring vault, the gymnast runs toward the vault, jumps onto the springboard with both feet and places both hands on the vault. Once the gymnast pushes off his hands, he can perform a variety of twists, flips and maneuvers. The gymnast reaches her maximum velocity after running down the runway to get the greatest force onto the springboard. The force applied to the board causes the springs to compress, resulting in an action-reaction force that causes her to go into the air with greater acceleration. After leaving the table, she accelerates upward then reaches a maximum height, following a parabolic path. When in the air, the gymnast will rotate, starting immediately after leaving the table. The rotational speed is important, in order to reduce air time, the speed must be greater, ensuring a safer and better landing. When twisting, gymnast will pull their arms in as tight as possible, reducing their radius and therefore increasing their angular velocity. This is because of the formula of angular velocity, w=v/r, which v is velocity and r is radius. Angular velocity is inversely proportional to angular velocity, thus gymnast can increase their angular velocity by reducing their radius. Then, gymnasts are going against the force of gravity and on their descent, they will reach the ground with a great force acting down. There are mats used to land on that are approximately 8 inches wide. These increase the contact time before the contact time before gymnast hits the ground, reducing the forces that act on their knees. This is about the impulse. Impulse has a formula, F=p/ ?t which F is force, p is momentum and ?t is change in time. Force is inversely proportional to time. Thus, increasing the time of the impact results in a decrease in the force. Furthermore, gymnasts wear grips on their hands for bar. It is to reduce the rubbing of their palms on the bars, thus giving them a better “grip”. They will also use sand paper to roughen the grips so there is even more friction between the bar and the grips. Gymnasts also have to use chalk to prevent slipping. The chalk creates friction between their hands and grips and the bar allowing them to hold on without slipping and safely. Additionally, tumbling involves Newton’s laws, conservation of momentum, inertia and energy. For instant, when a gymnast does a simple cartwheel, they lean forward. Then, begin to fall. Their inertia carries them forward until their hands reach the ground, then momentum and angular momentum brings their feet around and back to the ground. Newton’s Third Law also applies here. When a gymnast tumbles, they apply a force pushing down on them and use the reaction force to gain power in their tumbling.

Ballet

Ballet is also considered as a sport. The most important piece of physics used in all types of dance is being able to find a centre of balance. Without this, a dancer cannot turn, leap, arabesque or even stand on relevé. In order to balance while standing still, net torque and net force must equal to zero. A dancer’s body must be in equilibrium in order to execute any of these moves. When it comes to turning in dance the most important thing, besides finding a center of balance is torque and friction. Torque controls how fast a ballerina turns and comes from when a ballerina brings her arms in and out or from first position to second position while turning. Most turns in ballet are done on one foot, which makes it harder to find equilibrium and a center of balance. The weight on each side of the body must be equal in order to do these turns without falling over. Another thing that helps with turning is spotting, which is whipping head around. This keeps a ballerina from getting dizzy while turning. It is also used to keep head at the axis rotation and help to keep the center of balance. In a pirouette, a dancer begins from a deep plié in fourth position. Then the ballerina springs from her plié into relevé and bring her arms created momentum. The most important part of a pirouette is making sure you have a deep plié to create enough momentum to get a dancer around. In fouettes turns, a dancer plies with her leg extended, then as the ballerina relevé, she moved her leg around which is called “rond de jambe” out to second position before bring her leg to passe. This leg movement creates torque and momentum for the ballerina’s turn. The faster the ballerina’s leg whips around, the faster she turns. On the other hand, rosin is used to stop dancers from slipping or sliding while dancing. It creates friction between the satin of the ballerina’s shoe and the wood of the floor. In all leaps in dance, a ballerina needs strength and a deep plié. Leaps are easier when a dancer can run or sashe into the leap which causes momentum. In addition, a ballerina requires momentum to execute a beautiful grand jeté. Gravity is the main force acting on a ballerina. It is a force that sends the dancer back to the ground. In order the illusion of floating, the dancer should go into a “split” position in the air. Thus, changing the distance between the center of gravity and ballerina’s head. Next, when doing grand battements and jumps, the Newton’s Third Law is applied. Before kicking the leg up, ballerina need to brush into the ground or plié, because the force ballerina uses to brush into the ground or plié is the same amount of force that will act on upward movement. Therefore, if ballerina use enough force into the ground, her jumps and extensions will be much freer.

Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.

Get custom essay

Conclusion

As conclusion, sports are connected to physics till the end. Understanding the science behind sports can make athletes to be improved such as run faster and swim further. However, to achieve the goals in sports is not only about the science, there are many other factors too. For example, physical ability, natural talent, endurance and courage. Thus, hard-working and perseverance is the most important attitude to achieve success.


READ MORE >>

Table of contentsIntroductionWhat is CoachingWhat Does Coaching Mean to Me?The J ...

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. What is Coaching
  3. What Does Coaching Mean to Me?
  4. The Journey – Key Insights & Learning

Introduction

Alexander (2005: 15) notes that ‘Coaching is an enabling process to increase performance, development and fulfilment’. The purpose of this essay is to explore my understanding and application of non-directive coaching. This will be achieved through a combination of personal reflection and a review of literature.

Get original essay

Moreover, we will be looking at Alexander (2005) idea that a ‘SuperCoach’ pushes people to go beyond what they thought was possible. Firstly, a working definition of coaching will be discussed before going on to explore how it relates to me in my professional development. Specifically, my key insights and learning will be considered alongside my journey through the Coaching in Leadership (CIL) course. Secondly, sessions with my coaching partner will be examined alongside the tools used for non-directive coaching. Finally, I will reflect on how I will apply (CIL) in my practise whilst undergoing self-assessment to conclude with my self-development needs.

What is Coaching

A key part of my journey through (CIL) was understanding what the term ‘Coaching’ meant in this professional context. For me a coach was someone who throughout my childhood and professional life was someone with a whistle directing physical activity. Alexander (2005) notes that there are numerous definitions of coaching. For example, Whitmore (1996) describes coaching as unblocking a person’s potential to maximise their own performance. Connor (2012) adds to this noting that coaching is a learning relationship that supports someone taking charge of their own development.

A coach is a collaborative partner who works with the learner to help them achieve their goals. Alongside Alexander (2005) I understood that coaching in a professional context was about enabling, helping and supporting others reach their true potential. “A coach trusts that people have their own solutions and that they have inherent talents”. Whilst I did not enter into (CIL) with this rationale I certainly left with it. The main part of my development on this course came with understanding the rationale of non-directive coaching.

Alexander (2005: 13) notes that, “coaching was predominately a non-directive method of working with people to enable them to tap into their own capacity and, in the process, to find ways to perform more effectively, to resolve issues and to learn to grow”. Connor (2012) adds that clients must be enabled to take charge of their own development, thus realising their own potential.

Alexander (2005) explains that a SuperCoach will use non directive methods such as questioning and open comments rather than offering their opinion. My understanding of this is that you are creating a relationship with your client, to go on a journey, rather than simply suggesting solutions to their problems. This makes the process more authentic and worthwhile as you have pulled them rather than push them towards solutions. Without imparting any wisdom, simply listening and questioning. By grasping this process the penny finally dropped that whilst I have lots of opinions I don’t have the answer for everybody, they must decide what their success is.

What Does Coaching Mean to Me?

Simply put, I believe in following Alexander (2015) advice of being the best version of me I can be. As an Active Schools Coordinator working in Fife I have massive variations in the type of work I am involved in. It is a very difficult role to explain and can range from being involved in high level strategic meetings, working with schools, clubs, communities, young people & various partners both locally, regionally & nationally.

A huge part of the role is working with various people which involves wearing many different hats. I chose to attend (CIL) as I am at a point in my professional development where I am influencing and making decisions at a more strategic level. A colleague had recommended studying ‘SuperCoaching’ as a way to improve my leadership skills and in turn get more from partnership work.

Coaching in Leadership was going to help me build capacity in the people I am working with along with enabling me to learn about my strengths & weaknesses. My key strengths in a professional context are that I am a very proactive person who genuinely enjoys the job I do and care about the clients I work with. Whilst this falls into Covey (2015) description of very successful people; I have issues with keeping an end in mind. I found myself doing a good job at everything rather than a great job at a select few specific projects. This was not giving me job satisfaction where I had become caught up in what Holden (2005) describes as the busy generation. Little time was spent following Connor (2012) principle of reflecting and evaluating, while all time was spent doing, then jumping from task to task without feeling success.

My weakness was enabling and allowing my peers to support me with projects. Through (CIL) I began to understand the value of coaching and for me, the success of the whole thing was underpinned by relationships. The quote from Socrates that “I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think” was really telling during the course. I learned very quickly that I needed to spend more time listening, reflecting and learning rather than simply doing. I already possessed values like being supportive, honesty and being self-aware. Although, as explained in Covey (2015) I hadn’t spent enough time just listening, rather I listened only to respond. Thankfully, this is something that really struck home with me once I grasped the concept of non-directive coaching.

The Journey – Key Insights & Learning

A big part of the journey through (CIL) was the paired coaching sessions. This allowed me to put into practise the things I was beginning to understand. As someone who advocated John Dewey’s ‘Learning by doing’ I found this process essential. My coaching partner was like me initially cautious and a bit sceptical about the idea of listening, questioning and reflecting rather than offering advice. Alongside this she was also having very similar issues my wife (teacher) was experiencing in her school – allowing me to practise both through coaching sessions and at home.

Reflecting on the first coaching session we had I can only imagine Graham Alexander covering his ears. It’s clear our proactive “this is what you need to do” mind-set was actually inhibiting the process. I thought about what Alexander (2005: 123) tells us, “Why, within 10 minutes of meeting a coach, would somebody reveal aspects of himself, his concerns, hopes and dreams that he may not have previously shared with anyone? Over the years, we have come to recognise that one of the primary factors that enables this to happen is being non-judgemental. ” Upon reflection and gaining a better understanding of non-directive I started practising listening.

The work of Covey (2004) was very helpful in teaching me the importance of empathetic listening which resulted in my coachee becoming much more open and trusting in me. We began to get much deeper into the issues my coaching partner had which I interpreted as a successful session.

During the coaching process we had a range of tools we were shown alongside the outlined coaching skills required for success. The one I found most useful was the GROW model. Whitmore (1996) notes that the GROW model was formulated on the back of himself & Graham Alexander being tasked to create an underpinning framework for coaching. Alexander (2005) explains the model as the following 4 stages; Goal, Reality, Options & Wrap Up. Alexander (2005: 229) notes that “Grow captures a key aspect of what coaching is and does: enabling people to grow, to develop their capabilities, achieve high performance and gain fulfilment”.

Alexander (2005) comments that the GROW model when applied to coaching involves agreeing a ‘Goal’, looking at the ‘Reality’ of the situation, looking at available ‘Options’ before finally outlining a way forward in the ‘Wrap Up’. Whilst my coaching partner and I used this tool it was very interesting that as we progressed our initial goal changed. Alexander (2005) explains this well noting that when we finally begin to truly reflect, we are able to look objectively at our issues rather than make quick judgements on them. Our realities were not as we had first imagined them, neither was our goals and success criteria.

As my coaching skills improved and our relationship developed I started to realise that the majority of my coaching partner’s frustrations came from a need to control. Moreover, she couldn’t understand that others didn’t have the same work ethic and emotional attachment to their job as her. In her own words “they didn’t do the job to the level she wanted therefore she is better off doing it herself”. Evidently, this wasn’t a productive way for her to lead. I read about Alexander (2005) point regarding the need for a coachee to have a mission statement that captures their reason for being.

I then utilised the 3 chair role play tool outlined by Alexander (2005). The coach had a turn formulating her mission statement which as expected related to emotional attachment to her work and a drive to do her absolute best. We then switched to her playing one of her employees. Whilst role playing the difficult employee she noted that the job was just a job to them, they weren’t as emotionally attached and they performed the job in different ways.

Finally, switching her into the chair of the observer the coachee realised that not everyone is like her. Other people have their own measures of success and ways of working. At this point my coachee broke down in tears which I found very unnerving for a coaching session, worried I had pushed her too far and upset her. However, after I comforted her she admitted we found eureka moment where she realised not everyone shares her mission statement and measure of success. Through my non directive questioning we agreed she would think more about how her employees feel and look at tasks rather than expecting others to be as fantastic as she clearly was.

Alexander (2005) comments that a main benefit of coaching is having time to think. Our way forward was simply a change in the coachee’s thought process rather than any wholesale changes in practise. I felt really happy that without a massive inside knowledge of her situation I managed to provide a positive outlook. This was supported by the Hay Paper (2013) note that coaching does not require the coach to be knowledgeable in the subject matter, only experts in the art of coaching. Reflection:I thoroughly enjoyed the (CIL) course.

A big success for me was going away feeling like I understood my own parameters for success. Alongside this I felt as if I was less stressed about a large workload. Subsequently, I was able to reflect much better as I internally thought about my coaching questions and the GROW model. My focus and job satisfaction was back plus I no longer feel stressed in the workplace. Moreover, I now feel like I get much more from partnership work & mentoring. What I learned from Alexander (2005) allowed me to set clear achievable goals and get the best form the people I work with. This is something I have applied on both personal and professional life – which I also thank Covey’s (2015) 7 habits for.

Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.

Get custom essay

The next steps for myself are to continue to challenge myself to be the best person I can be. I will continue to remind myself of the importance of listening to understand as well as assigning real time to reflect. Moreover, I will use the principles I have learned through (CIL) to support my colleagues, peers and myself to be successful. Simply using the language, listening skills, empathy & self-awareness in my day to day life. In practical terms I am using non directive coaching along with the grow model with my employees, volunteers and peers through regular catch ups. Subsequently, I am an advocate of the (CIL) course and sell the ideology to people regularly.


READ MORE >>

The Letter from Birmingham Jail played a very vital role in the civil rights mov ...

The Letter from Birmingham Jail played a very vital role in the civil rights movement. Written by Dr. Martin Luther King in 1963 with the purpose of fighting for African Americans’ equalities. He persuades his audience by using three different techniques: pathos, ethos, and logos to justify his reasoning of why segregation needs to be put to an end. By the use of pathos, he appeals to a more personal viewpoint, logos are used to explain his logic and reasoning behind the letter, also he establishes his credibility on the subject of racial discrimination and injustice through ethos.

Get original essay

Dr. King applies rhetorical appeals to ethos signifying his credibility on the subject of racial injustice and discrimination. He states, “My Dear Fellow Clergymen,” which establishes his character. He is inferring to them they are equal, as he isn’t beneath them, and they are not above him. He states at the end of the second paragraph going into the third, “So I am here, along with several members of my staff, because I have basic organizational ties here. Beyond this, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here.” At the beginning of the letter, King establishes his integrity expressing the issues with racism and injustices. King demonstrates his eagerness to fight against the injustices for his people, thereby warranting his need to be in Birmingham. Meanwhile, he also states that he is the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, reminding the clergymen he was invited to Birmingham through the affiliation of conferences He also composes the ethos of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference by informing them about the operation and affiliation being conducted in the southern states.

Moreover, he also conveys logos throughout the entire letter. He shares not only his beliefs on the situation but also inputs facts to address the cruel conditions being placed in Birmingham. King explains to his audience brutality is known everywhere in the country. He addresses the courts biasness toward Negroes, stating “there have been more unsolved bombings of negro homes and churches in Birmingham than in any other city in this nation”; staing there are “Hard, brutal and unbelievable facts. Following these statements he became dissapointed as many catergorized him to be a extremist as he states “I gradually gained a bit of satisfaction from being considered an extremist.” He then begins to speak about other influencers who have done great things impacting the world. Some of the people he mention who were extremist are Jesus, Amos, Paul, Abraham Lincoln, and Thomas Jefferson. He uses this to make the argument of being an injustice or justice extremist. Would you rather be an advocate for the goodwill of people or spread hatred towards those individuals who don’t deserve it?

Meanwhile, Martin Luther King Jr uses pathos throughout the entire letter to appeal to the emotion of his audience. He highlights a sensory or image as what if this was your brother, sister, mother, or father being mistreated and lynched, drowned, or killed just for being colored. Also conveying the idea of the innocence of a child being taken away by stating through several occasions such as stating “when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television.” A child not being able to be a kid for a few hours just because she is colored. His audience especially parents and grandparents relate more than anything telling a good child with no behavior issues they can't do something they hear or see other children doing. Secondly, he expresses another example of life as an African American confused child “when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?”Explaining the effect that segregation had around this period of time. When a child becomes aware his color is the issue of his character and childhood.

In the conclusion of his letter Dr. King turns the emotions onto his audience stating that they wouldn’t feel the same way about the treatment if they were placed in a similar position and policemen were attacking whites instead of colored . For instance he describes the way they were being handled as angry violent dogs biting, the ugly treatment in the jails, pushing and cursing at women, and slapping and kicking men. He portrays a picture for the readers to imagine how they would have experienced the situation if they were in their shoes.

Finally Martin Luther King Jr uses pathos by responding to his critics and his current situation in a sassy tone. Stating “I’m afraid it is much too long to take your precious time. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from a comfortable desk, but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters, think long thoughts and pray long prayers?” He answers his critic’s arguments in a jail cell with his own argument while using ethos, logos, and pathos to assist him. He begins his argument with the use of ethos and logos. Which benefited his argument very well, also his inclusiveness of pathos operated very well in his letter due to the reason he vividly portrays conceptions of imagery for the readers to understand him better with his words.

References

  1. Fulkerson, R. P. (1979). The public letter as a rhetorical form: Structure, logic, and style in king's “letter from Birmingham jail”. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 65(2), 121-136. (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00335637909383465?journalCode=rqjs20)
  2. Leff, M. C., & Utley, E. A. (2004). Instrumental and Constitutive Rhetoric in Martin Luther King Jr.'s" Letter from Birmingham Jail". Rhetoric & Public Affairs, 7(1), 37-51. (https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/26/article/55773/summary)
  3. King Jr, M. L. (1992). Letter from Birmingham jail. UC Davis L. Rev., 26, 835. (https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/davlr26&div=31&id=&page=)
  4. Leff, M. (2003). Rhetoric and dialectic in Martin Luther King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’. Anyone who has a view: Theoretical contributions to the study of argumentation, 255-268. (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-007-1078-8_20)
  5. Doss, J. J. V. ‘LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL’–DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.: TOKENISM TO SIMPLE CONCRETE STEPS TO MASSIVE SOCIAL CHANGE. (https://shanlax.com/wp-content/uploads/SIJ_English_V4_N4_009.pdf)

READ MORE >>

Table of contentsIntroductionWhat is restorative justice?What are some of the st ...

Table of contents

  1. Introduction
  2. What is restorative justice?
  3. What are some of the strategies that The Bahamas can apply to facilitate restorative justice?
  4. Conclusion

Introduction

A 2016 IDB report entitled the IDB Series on Crime and Violence in the Caribbean, has confirmed what the Bahamian public has long known, that the consistent rise of the crime rate in The Bahamas is alarming and a cause for concern. The abstract states that the objective of the series is to “establish a baseline in the crime prevention arena against which progress can be assessed.” Based on data obtained from a variety of sources including the Royal Bahamas Police Force and public health sources, the upward surge in crime has occurred over a ten year span, with a spike in violent crime in particular (including but not limited to murder, armed robbery, and rape. According to the report, The Bahamas’ murder rate has more than doubled within this 10-year span and is now among the highest in the Caribbean region.

Get original essay

Various methods have been proposed and implemented by the past and present administration to curtail the crime issue that plagues our society. But it is important to assess whether any of these approaches to crime prevention/deterrence have been as successful or promising in application as they have been in theory. A segment of the report entitled Laws, Policies, and Strategies for Reducing Crime and Violence acknowledge two initiatives that commenced in 2011 and 2013 under two different administrations respectively. Within these “anti-crime legislative packages” both administrations proposed that sentences for particularly grievous crimes be increased. In response to this, The IDB made an astonishing observation:

“Given the challenges within the criminal justice system discussed in this report – including unsolved crimes, the significant obstacles to efficiently processing criminal trials, and the overcrowding of the prison system – it is worth asking if longer and more severe sentences is truly the solution to the perceived problem of criminal impunity.”

In the spirit of this statement, I intend to use this paper to explore the ways that restorative justice processes, having proved itself to be an effective deterrent to crime and recidivism in numerous other jurisdictions, could be used in The Bahamas to help with the societal control of crime. I would go so far as to posit that restorative justice may, in fact, be the solution to most of The Bahamas’ crimes. To begin, it must first be explained:

What is restorative justice?

For the implementation of the restorative justice theory to be effective, it is important that Bahamians be educated on what exactly it entails. This is especially true as it relates to individuals who hold a peculiar interest in the eradication of crime. This would include parliamentarians, law enforcement officers, public health officials, legal professionals, perpetrators and their victims. Perhaps most importantly, a successful implementation of restorative justice strategies would require the Bahamian public, as stakeholders in their own right, to buy into the idea and educate themselves.

The United Kingdom’s Restorative Justice Council, on their website, describe restorative justice as follows: “Restorative justice is about victims and offenders communicating within a controlled environment to talk about the harm that has been caused and finding a way to repair that harm.”

Albert Fiadjoe, author of the book ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Developing World Perspective’ summarises at page 122 that “The basic principle of restorative justice is that crime is a violation of people and relationships, and a disruption of community peace. It challenges the conventional view that crime is only an offence against the state.”

Restorative justice proponents purport that its processes remedy the deficiencies of the criminal justice system, particularly: the neglect for the emotional and material needs of victims of crime; the failure to address the harm done to interested parties; the fact that the only available remedies (fines and imprisonment) are inadequate of providing true restitution; and the fact that trials are not only time-consuming but move at a sluggish pace.”

The criminal justice system, as it is, fails to take into account the needs of victims, leaving them feeling side-lined, vulnerable and victimized afresh. It makes the injustice they suffered a matter between the offender and the State, ignoring them altogether. It robs offenders of an experience that may be integral to their rehabilitation: the opportunity to take accountability; to understand and come to terms with the fact that victims are not abstract ideas or simply means to an end. Victims are not only the immediate victims of the crime (who may be deceased) but other interested parties such as family members, and entire communities of other humans who were adversely affected by the consequences of their actions. While such conversations between offenders and victims may at times become contentious, with offenders rationalizing their actions, the overall experience can prove to be of value to both parties.

Fiadjoe posits that the following are key principles which underpin restorative justice:

  1. The offence is primarily against the victim and secondarily against the state.
  2. Restitution is important in restoring the relationship between victim and offender.
  3. Restitution may be achieved by way of reparation, usually in the form of compensation or some form of community service.
  4. Reconciliation between victim and offender is also seen as an important objective of restorative justice, but not universally so. Some people feel that victims should not be pressed to forgive and become reconciled with their offender until they are ready to do so.
  5. Communication and negotiation between the victim and offender is possible and often desirable to consider how to redress the wrong.
  6. Offenders are required to take responsibility for their actions and are given the opportunity to make amends.

It has been found that the reason restorative justice has such a strong effect in reducing recidivism is that when facilitated by trained personnel, such interactions between offenders and their victims can be therapeutic. In effect, it provides closure for both parties by allowing victims to express how they were personally affected and ask questions, and by allowing offenders an opportunity to explain things from their perspective (often humanising them in the eyes of the victims), take responsibility for their actions and make amends for their behaviour. It also creates an opportunity for both offender and victim to collaboratively negotiate a restitution plan that serves their mutual interests.

This allows the parties room to be creative in how restitution is made. For some, restitution may mean restoring losses by physically giving back what was taken or by paying money. For others, it may mean doing manual labour for the victim or engaging in community service. Failing this, victims may also table other forms of restitution that they find satisfactory. The ultimate aim is that whatever is done is done in the spirit of providing closure and re-integrating either the victim or the offender into the community.

What are some of the strategies that The Bahamas can apply to facilitate restorative justice?

There are three modes of restorative justice that are generally used. Namely, (a) family group conferencing (where there is a larger number of participants, inclusive of community representatives); (b) victim-offender mediation (where two parties are facilitated by a trained mediator); and (c) sentencing and healing circles (which hearkens back to earlier forms of alternative dispute resolution in which elders of a community would facilitate the process). It would often take place during sentencing or post imprisonment, allowing the offender to acknowledge responsibility for harm caused and to be re-integrated into society.

The United Kingdom’s Restorative Justice Council, on their aforementioned website, describes one of the strategies of restorative justice employed in the United Kingdom, in particular:

“Restorative justice conferences, where a victim meets their offender, are led by a facilitator who supports and prepares the people taking part and makes sure that the process is safe. Sometimes, when a face to face meeting is not the best way forward, the facilitator will arrange for the victim and offender to communicate via letters, recorded interviews or video…For any kind of communication to take place, the offender must have admitted to the crime, and both victim and offender must be willing to participate.”

As an example of a circumstance in which face to face meetings are not the best way forward, we can look at domestic crimes such as sexual assault. In a 2005 paper entitled ‘The Limits of Restorative Justice.’, Arlène Gaudreault, president and founding member of the Quebec Victims Advocacy Association, posited that restorative justice ought not to be “immediately accepted as an answer to all crimes.” Ultimately, she believes that it is an imperative part of the restorative justice process that victims and their interests have primacy, and that questions of whether a conversation is desired and whether certain relationships ought to be preserved warrant consideration.

This is a sentiment that has been echoed by key stakeholders in even our society, such as Dr. Sandra Dean-Patterson, director of the Bahamas Crisis Centre. She is quoted in a 2005 article from The Bahama Journal as saying: “The psychological element of restorative justice can be helpful for the offender as well as victims where perpetrators take responsibility for the pain and the injury they have inflicted.” She continued, “My only reservation is instances of sexual violence. Officials really want to make sure that the victim would have gone through his or her own healing. We also need to make sure that they are ready for this kind of healing.”

Yet others, are of the belief that the key to forgiveness is the refusal to seek revenge, like columnist Giles Fraser, a priest in London, in his article of the same title. He argues:

It is a similar uneasy feeling one can have with forgiveness itself, that it undermines the basic logic of proportionality that underpins most moral thinking – that the scales of justice require some sort of balance. Crime needs to be offset by a proportionate amount of punishment. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Forgiveness ignores all of that, which is why it exists beyond right and wrong.

Yet the problem with the retributive model of justice, constructed as it is upon the moral instinct for proportionality, is that it can easily serve to perpetuate violence and hatred – one act of violence leading to another in response, which can provoke yet another, and so on. The blood feud that can exist between families is the most striking example of how answering violence with violence can be a potentially endless business, with old hatreds forever spawning new ones.

In his article he examines the peculiar restorative justice experience of Brighton bomber Patrick Magee and Jo Berry. Patrick Magee had planted 16 bombs in various cities in the years 1978 and 1984, one of which blew up Brighton's Grand Hotel during the Conservative party conference, killing five people. Berry’s father, Sir Anthony Berry, was killed in the 1984 blast. Patrick Magee planted 16 bombs in various cities in the years 1978 and 1984, one of which blew up Brighton's Grand Hotel during the Conservative party conference, killing five people.

Alternatively, there are also those who believe that restorative justice processes should not be applied where serious crimes are concerned. This is the view held by Tom Whitehead, author of the article ‘Violent offenders avoid courts with soft on the street justice.’ To do so, he opines, would be to flout widely held social conventions about what justice truly is. If offenders aren’t required to appear before a judge and are not given a criminal record, this leaves victims and their communities with no sense of resolution. Further, he is wary of the danger of restorative justice being abused and used as a tool to keep offenders out of jail.

As was mentioned before in the introduction, restorative justice has proven to be an effective deterrent to crime and recidivism in numerous other jurisdictions. In the text, Fiadjoe states that restorative justice has, in fact, proven to be even more effective than the criminal justice systems. In terms of improving satisfaction for both parties and ensuring offender compliance with restitution orders, statistics show that restorative justice processes are more effective.

As an example, Fiadjoe refers to comments made by the Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program Information and Resource Center of Canada, who report that “after facing the victims of their crimes, offenders commit fewer and less serious offenses than similar offenders who are processed by the traditional juvenile or criminal justice system.”

Fiadjoe opines that this can happen only when states such as The Bahamas take an integrated approach to crime control, implementing strategies that “help society devise collective approaches to conflict in every sphere of society.” According to him these include:

  1. Community initiatives which engage the public in constructive alternatives to the present model of criminal justice, the development of restorative justice initiatives, training and evaluation schemes.
  2. Schools and youth initiatives which must involve children in early learning and practice in conflict resolution, support for teachers and schools which teach and practise the creation of a peaceful learning environment, and improve problem solving opportunities in schools.
  3. Environment and public policy initiatives which engage citizens in consensus building processes on important public issues.
  4. Organisational and workplace initiatives which encourage approaches to conflict in the workplace that support healthy, respectful relationships.
  5. Media and conflict portrayal initiatives which help media personnel develop analytical skills in conflict resolution designed to educate the public rather than sensationalise crime.
  6. Teaching and training support initiatives which promote education and skills training in conflict resolution, especially for facilitators who must have ‘good understanding of local cultures and communities’ and excellent interpersonal skills.
  7. Legislative framework to embrace those initiatives through the Ministry of Legal Affairs and crime prevention units, and the correctional services.

Guidelines and standards which should have the backing of law may involve the following:

  • the conditions for the referral of cases to restorative justice programmes;
  • the handling of cases following a restorative process;
  • the qualifications, training and assessment of facilitators;
  • the administration of restorative justice programmes;
  • standards of competence and ethical rules governing operation of restorative justice programmes; and
  • procedural safeguards for all the parties.

According to the IDB Series on Crime and Violence in the Caribbean, The Bahamas has made a slow but promising start to implementing the strategies espoused by Fiadjoe. Some of the setbacks we face are:

That most of our programmes had either been in place for under two years, or was undergoing major structural and programmatic changes, which was in some instances attributable to a change in government (e.g., Urban Renewal 2.0) or, with regard to NGOs, to a lack of funding.

No data was supplied by any of the programmes or projects with regard to how much was being invested in the initiatives, how many personnel were devoted to the task. So there were no metrics to assess how much progress had been made, let alone whether there had been any changes at the outcome level.

Taken together with the previous point, the fact that none of the programmes were long-running is indicative of the absence of “long-term sustainable prevention initiatives.” Such programmes would have a greater chance sustainability, they posit, were violence and crime prevention programmes to be insulated from politicisation and the lack of long-term funding.

The IDB referred to several pieces of legislation, namely the 2007 Domestic Violence Act, the 2007 Child Protection Act, and the 2008 amendment to the 1991 Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act. These laws, in their estimation were beneficial to the government’s crime initiative as they “helped to better define certain types of violence as crimes, provide tools and protection for victims, and protect children and juveniles within the justice system.”

The report reveals that at that time, the major crime and violence initiatives of the then PLP administration were incorporated into the framework of Project Safe Bahamas, with four direct offshoots: Operation Ceasefire, Urban Renewal 2.0, Swift Justice Initiative, and Safe Bahamas. In addition to that, the report acknowledged and analysed a number of other national plans and strategies including the 2012–2016 National Anti-Drug Strategy, Commissioner’s Policing Plans (2011–2014), the Strategic Plan to Address Gender-based Violence (2014) and the 10-Year Education Plan and Safe Schools Protocol.

Under the subheading Programmes and Projects for Reducing Crime and Violence in The Bahamas, the IDB reports that they were able to identify 33 programmes and/or projects with a mandated objective of crime or violence prevention or reduction:

Using the public health approach to categorize violence prevention based on the continuum of when the intervention takes place, the identified programmes fell into the following categories:

Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.

Get custom essay
  • Nine primary prevention initiatives (five focused on situational and community level prevention, and four focused on changing individual behaviours);
  • 12 secondary prevention initiatives (eight focused on services for victims and five targeting early delinquent behaviours of perpetrators);
  • Five crime suppression interventions;
  • Seven tertiary prevention interventions (many focused on substance abuse, but also on rehabilitating ex-offenders).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it has been demonstrated through the successful implementation of restorative justice processes in other jurisdictions that The Bahamas would stand to benefit by following suit. Reports from international organisations reflect that there are not only members within our society who are enthusiastic about the idea, but also non-governmental organisations that are inclined to the idea of working in tandem with their communities and the criminal justice system to restore goodwill to their communities and make crime prevention and reduction a personal mandate. This, I think is a positive indication that the public has bought into the idea that the criminal justice system is in dire need of alternative methods of dispute resolution and criminal rehabilitation.


READ MORE >>
WhatsApp