...strategic errors committed by US in Afghanistan in the past and these errors are haunting them now. The strategic errors committed are difficult to undo. But , correcting them will be worse. It’s like leaving Saddam in power after the first Gulf war and then tried correcting it with Gulf War II...with worse results and losing all the goodwill and invincibility they had built after the first gulf war. The coalition forces were welcomed by Afghanis when Taliban was dismantled because they looked powerful, asserting and someone who could improve lives of normal Afghani. Today, things seem different. They look powerless, difficult and worse something which is making ordinary Afghani life more difficult than it was under Taliban. For coalition forces , If someone like Taliban can make them look like novice in war-fighting then they have to take a hard look at their national, operational and tactical strategy. I would like to start with what is AIM of coalition forces....is it making life of ordinary Afghani more prosperous and peaceful or ensuring security of US. These aims look different but actually they are co-terminus. One will lead to the other but start point has to be to develop Afghanistan and not the other way around which Secretary of State Hillary enunciated a few days back. If the strategy is making Afghanistan prosperous and peaceful (something which US successfully achieved in Japan and Germany after WWII) and therefore keep people on its side then some thrust areas should...
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...Chapter 5 Review Questions 1. Describe systems analysis and the major activities that occur during this phase of the systems development life cycle. During systems analysis, you determine how the current information system functions and assess what users would like to see in a new system. Requirements determination, requirements structuring, and alternative generation and selection are the three primary systems analysis activities. 2. What are some useful character traits for an analyst involved in requirements determination? Requirements determination is a crucial part of the systems development life cycle; therefore impertinence, impartiality, relaxing constraints, attention to details, and reframing are important characteristics. 3. Describe three traditional techniques for collecting information during analysis. When might one be better than another? Traditional techniques for collecting requirements include interviewing and listening, observing users, and analyzing procedures and other documents. Interviewing and listening involve talking with users individually or as a group to discover their views about the current and target systems; it also involves carefully preparing an interview outline and guide before conducting the interview. Interviews are best done when only a few people are involved, when you need open-ended questions or the questions vary from individual to individual, or when a more personal method is needed. 4. What are the general...
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...interviews, questionnaires, , and documents analysis. The modern requirements determination techniques include Joint Application Design (JAD), group support systems, prototyping, and CASE tools. Business Process Reengineering (BPR) is a radical method for determining system requirements. Each of these approaches has advantages and disadvantages to system implementation and operation. 1. Briefly describe systems analysis and the major activities that occur during this phase of the systems development life cycle. (4 Marks) Answer: Systems analysis involves determining how the current information system functions and assess what users would like to see in a new system. Requirements determination, requirements structuring, and alternative generation and selection are the three primary systems analysis activities. 2. Describe THREE (3) traditional techniques for collecting information during analysis. When might one be better than another? (6 Marks) Answer: Traditional techniques for collecting requirements include interviewing individuals, interviewing groups, observing users, and document and procedure analysis. (a) Interview: Interviewing involves speaking with users individually or as a group to discover their views about the current and target systems; it also involves carefully preparing an interview outline and guide before conducting the interview. Interviews are best done when only a few people are involved, when...
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...wait a few minutes as there is a possibility the internet provider is fixing it. Half an hour goes by and I became really impatient. I took it upon myself to solve the issue. I went to the router and pressed all the buttons on the router, but it seemed that I made the problem worse. Then I unplugged and plugged the power to the device thinking it would reset the problems. To my surprise, the red light next to the globe turned green. From that experience, I noticed I had a valuable trait of dealing with technology....
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...Change” In “ Mind over Mass Media” by Steven Pinker he writes how technology is not making us stupid, but is actually making us smarter: “ The Internet and information technologies are helping is manage, search and retrieve our collective intellectual output at different scales, from Twitter and previews to e- books and online encyclopedias. Far from making us stupid these technologies are the only thing keeping us smart.”(Pinker). The constant updates that these devices are giving us are yes, more convenient but not making us stupid. Pinker believes that the technology is very much distracting, but not if the users have some self control. Pinker said “ Distraction is not a new phenomenon. The solution is not to bemoan technology but to develop strategies of self-control, as we do with every other temptation in life. Turn off email or Twitter when you work, put away your Blackberry at dinner time, ask your spouse to call you to bed at a designated hour.” He argues that although these devices can distract us and interfere sometimes, they can easily be shut off to allow full focus. It is the users of these devices who are at fault, not technologies. In the essay, Pinker is very much disagreeing with Carr. While Carr takes the other side and argues that technology is altering the way we think in a negative way causing us to skim through things and expect the obvious answers, Pinker believes that using technologies like PowerPoint and search engines are causing us to be smarter and...
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...Advances in technology have brought about changes in almost every part of the world. People from opposite ends of the earth can now be in constant communication. The health industry is making effective use of modern technology, enabling people everywhere to live longer, and healthier lives. Many schools are integrating aspects of modern technology into the classroom. Teachers today have new tools and methods at their disposal, to pass knowledge to students. As a child, I took computers for granted, and could hardly imagine the thought of living without them. This makes me question how the advancement of modern technology could be shaping our lives in many ways for the better, or worse. In 1950, the average life expectancy of a man living in the United States was almost seventy. For the last sixty years that number has increased steadily. A man born in 2014, in the United States, would have a life expectancy of almost eighty years. Many factors likely contributed to the increase in life expectancy. Most pivital, were the advancements made in the study of medicinal technology. Doctors now have access to technology that would have seemed like fantasy, a few years ago. Machines like an x-ray can now look into our bodies, and capture images with great detail. The images can then analyzed by a doctor, and if necessary, immediate action can be taken. As a result of the great deal of information available to doctors today, the need for exploratory surgeries has diminished...
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...BEHAVIORAL INFLUENCE OF MODERNIZATION ON THE CULTURE OF AUSTRALIA Over the years, technology in many ways has crept into the society having a huge moral hold on decision-making and our culture. The purpose of the study is to stimulate a reflection on the relationship between modernization and culture. My case study will examine the general behavior over time of Australians, through the regular monitoring of their Sources of information and technological advancement throughout this time, asking the question, how is modernization affecting behavioral and cultural change? A recent study by Professor Andrew Urevbu (1997) focused on the relationship between media, age, sex, religiosity and its influences on the culture of people. The study examined the given variables in an external or international context with the aim of Australia holding the same results (Merchant, 2007, 432). In recent years, technology has been internalized in almost every sector including the information sector and industrial sector. This has led to modernization of the world. Through the study of sociocultural influences, a look at the incorporating technological diversity into culture and its effects over time (Eshun and Gurung, 2009, 176-236). In every society, attitude, vices, values and behavioral patterns define the way of life. Across Europe and the USA, the media have influenced many of these behaviors. There has been a long list of finds particularly on media showing that viewing of violent media...
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...speech made by Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in July 1957 during a Conservative Party rally in Bedford which means that all that is said in the rally is to ensure that all the supporters of the party are pleased with the progress that is being made. As it is a speech made at the rally of the party that implemented policies in order for this situation to happen they would only discuss the positives of their policies and only talk about the benefits it has for people, it would not discuss the limitations or the negative impact it may have had on the lives of some. The use of the word ‘most’ in the starting of the speech clearly shows that not everyone benefited from the policies he had out in place, in fact some people were left in a much worse condition as they were not able to enjoy all the benefits the majority of the people had available to them. Source 1 is simply a rally speech that is in need of being treated with caution as it is designed to please all the people...
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...How technology has made life more difficult? Technology everyone loves it everyone uses it but at what cost? In my opinion we have sacrificed a lot just to use technology. Technology has made life easier to an extent but at same time it has made some people too dependent on it. Life is only going to get more difficult with technology advancing the way it is. How technology makes life more difficult? With all of our advancement in technology things are getting more simplified to the point of difficulty. For example eBooks they are more difficult to use n read while doing your school work, but at the same time it’s cheaper and more available for students. Another good example of how technology has made things difficult is with the gps systems. The new advancements in gps makes some people think without it they couldn’t go anywhere without getting lost. How much is too much for technology? I got a lot of information from news articles. There are only few you will need to know are gps, and eBook. Gps is a graphical position system used to add a destination and find routes to it or just to know where you currently are. EBooks are the new way most students are having to get the books called an electronic book. There are no other key definitions needed for this paper. I have tried to find someone articles with good rebuttals. But most people seem to agree with my position on this paper that technology does in fact make life more difficult some times. We just keep finding ways to...
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...front of my desk. I was so immersed in the diversity of different culture and different countries’ policy. At that time, I was only 10 years old. I always dreamt of having a friend from different country. Two years ago, the first time I came to America, I attended a language school whose students were from over 60 countries. That was really a mixture of culture and background. I learned to say “hello” and “I love you” with 8 languages. But at first, I had a lot of misunderstanding with other students because of the different way of greeting, the different way to express our feelings and the different life attitude. As time went on, we can all understand and accept these kinds of difference. It made life beautiful and interesting because of this diversity. Then I come to Brandeis International Business School, which is very similar to the language school I attended. I enjoy the life here very much. To my family, globalization means more in a business way. My father owns a company that sells furniture to other countries. Ten years ago, he only bought furniture at a lower price and sold them at a higher price domestically. Later he learned that the price of furniture in America and German is much higher than it in China, he realized that he could get more profits if he could export the...
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...individuality manifests itself from the convergence of important factors: genetics, adolescent development and cultural influences. All these elements and circumstances combine to form one singularity: identity. Genes, the basic unit of heredity are a combination of nucleic acid and evolutionary black magic. They’re the mechanism behind one’s genesis; the framework on which their identity is fastened. These characteristics are immutable (current technology withstanding). Passed on from one’s biological parents; an homage to their legacy. Subjectively speaking, genetics are profoundly constitutive of self. A person identifies and is identified to a large degree by their phenotypes, or the outward expression of their genes. From eye color to skin color, genes have a profound impact on social development and ultimately, identity. For example, genetic traits that influence attractiveness and athleticism are contributing factors to the social strata of a person. There is little that a person can do to challenge their genetic makeup. For better or worse: it is theirs, and they are it. However, much can be attributed to the final summation of one’s identity. While genes are...
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...Andrew O’Ferrall Professor Kellen English 1101 19 September 2014 Googling for Convenience In The Atlantic magazine article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid,” the author, Nicholas Carr, conveys his complications with concentration while reading long articles and books. Carr blames the Internet for retraining his brain and states that, “Over the past few years I’ve had an uncomfortable sense that someone, or something, has been tinkering with my brain, remapping the neural circuitry, reprogramming the memory” (1). There could be many reasons for the change that Carr has noticed. Perhaps his age is changing the way his brain processes information. I doubt that the Internet is the cause of his concentration issues. Contrary to Carr’s opinion of the Internet creating concentration difficulties, I believe the Internet works as a tool to enable us to use our time more wisely, efficiently, and productively. I can now use my time more wisely, because the days wasted on trips to the library have become a thing of the past. Nowadays, the library comes to me. I find this to be a better use of my time and allows me time to pursue more enjoyable activities. Even Carr agrees that research has become easier, through the use of the Internet, when he states, “The Web has been a godsend to me as a writer. Research that once required days in the stacks or periodical rooms of libraries can now be done in minutes. A few Google searches, some quick clicks on hyperlinks, and I’ve got the telltale...
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...After the civil war, technology for farming was evolving rapidly. This included better tractors, better plows and combines. These inventions helped increase the cultivated land percentage three times than what it was before. Due to this, farmers needed more land to grow more crops. The government made it easy, cheap and appealing to buy new land. So farmers had no problems buying land for more crops. Many farmers ended up purchasing land. In the 1930s, many people started plowing the land making it loose and ready for crops. That is what started the dust bowl, soon to devastate many. In April 18th, 1935, a big black cloud of dust came over the horizon killing everything in its path. Many people started to move away, scared that it...
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...What has Technology Become? By: April Wright November 30, 2015 Soc/100 – Jennifer Hudgins Technology is the scientific term for engineering, making something better, problem solving, a machine, etc. Technology is constantly changing to meet every individual’s personal needs. Social change refers to change in society over time. It could mean behavioral changes, changes in beliefs, or values as time goes on. I believe technology and social change go hand in hand. With the way technology has advanced since the beginning of the 20th century, social change along with it. The older generation now own a cell phone, and had never heard of a mobile phone in their younger years. With access to the internet, every question you could ever imagine can be answered within a few seconds. Now that most of the population has access to the internet and cell phones, the lack of problem solving is more prominent. People rely on a device to solve their problems when in reality they should be racking their own mind to figure out exactly what they should be doing. Each sociological perspective (evolutionary, conflict, and functionalists) has a different views on technology, social change, and the effects of society, and some of the same views along with the equilibrium model. With so many people of society owning a cell phone and having access to the internet at their fingertips, they rely on this a form of communication instead of a face-to-face setting. Families are more connected to the outside...
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...train!” but my mom would never take me unfortunately. The Little Engine That Could was a frequent bedtime story for years on years; this story did not leave my house for the duration of childhood. I did not realize this book was impacting my life in such a tremendous way, as I got older I remember myself repeating on the elementary playground “I think I can I think I can” whether I was sliding down the slide, climbing the rock wall, or trying to go as high as I can on the swing set. If you don’t know, that is the famous quote from the book, the train struggles up a steep hill and he eventually gets the drive and courage to make it up with a little help from these words. These four very powerful words have shadowed over my head through childhood, and still to this day I sometimes go back and repeat these words for guidance and support. Examples of times I use these words is when I play basketball, any time I play on a competitive team or just play around with my friends, if I get to the free throw line I say “I think I can I think I can” the pressure of having every one glaring at me while a shooting a free throw spooked me out so I would say these words in my head to shake me out of reality for a couple seconds to have me focus on making the basket. Another example of me referring to these words is when I played baseball. When I would be up to bat I would always take the first pitch, no matter what that was my routine. Most of the time I would like to swing at the second pitch...
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