Author: chris

Due Week 4 and worth 100 points

Choose one (1) of the topics below and develop a three to four (3-4) paragraph essay (of at least 250-500 words) which adequately address the topic you have chosen.

Topic Choices

• There have been many theories regarding how the pyramids at Giza were constructed. Most experts agree that they were constructed as burial monuments for pharaohs, but “how” these ancient people constructed monuments of such great size without modern machinery is a mystery which is still being debated.
• No one can say for certain what happened to the great urban Mayan civilization, but theories abound and include varied possible alternatives to explain the relatively abrupt and mysterious disappearance of the Mayan civilization.
• Tutankhamen died young, at approximately eighteen (18) years of age. However, his cause of death has been the subject of quite varied scholarly theories and conclusions. Did he die of an injury, of illness, of murder, or something else?.
• Minoan Crete was a major civilization in its time, but several theories have been advanced to explain its demise, including speculations associating it with mythical Atlantis. What were the causes of Minoan Civilization’s decline?
• Great Zimbabwe is an enormous complex of structures in East Africa. Since the builders and occupants left no written records, several theories have developed as to the identity of its builders and the functions of the structures. Which theory makes the most sense?
• The monumental size and complexity of the Tomb of Shihuangdi is astounding, yet its location and construction details were to be kept secret. What was the emperor’s purpose for such an elaborate, secret burial place?
• Other topic choice recommended and approved by the professor and supported by the grading rubric.

Write a three to four (3-4) paragraph paper in which you:

1. Clearly state the “mystery” and provide a brief summary of at least two (2) reasonable and scholarly theories which could explain the mystery. Because some theories may sound far-fetched, include the source or promoter of each theory – such as a scientist, a historian, a theologian, etc.
2. After summarizing at least two (2) scholarly theories, identify one (1) of the theories as the most plausible and provide at least two (2) convincing reasons why the theory you have chosen is the best one to explain the mystery. This will involve some critical reasoning skills on your part.
3. Use at least two (2) sources plus the class textbook. (Three [3] sources total as the minimum) Note:Wikipedia and other similar Websites do not qualify as academic resources. You are highly encouraged to use the Resource Center tab at the top of your Blackboard page.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA style format. Both in-text citations and a References list are required. Citations and references must follow APA style format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. (Note: Students can find APA style materials located in the course shell for guidance).
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length. For our purposes, you may omit any abstract page.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

• Explain how key social, cultural, and artistic contributions contribute to historical changes.
• Explain the importance of situating a society’s cultural and artistic expressions within a historical context.
• Examine the influences of intellectual, religious, political, and socio-economic forces on social, cultural, and artistic expressions.
• Identify major historical developments in world cultures during the eras of antiquity to the Renaissance
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in the study of world cultures.
• Write clearly and concisely about world cultures using proper writing mechanics.

Assignment needs to be 800 words or more in apa format and apa referncing.

 

Part of your role as a leader is to think critically about the information presented to you.

In the article by Owen and Dietz in our Course Pack, the authors present a section called “Myths and Other Dangerous Half-Truths About Change.”

For each of the four myths, find a research article dated within the last decade that conflicts the authors’ position(s).

• Provide a brief overview of the article that you find and explain why you believe the article conflicts with the stated myth.
• Finally, based on the information presented in the Owen and Dietz article along with the articles that you find that conflict with the four myths, explain which of the myths you agree with and which of the myths you disagree with…and why.

An appropriate-length response to the Forum questions should be between 800 – 1000 words and should include a minimum of three scholarly source

Describe the current Canadian healthcare system. Explain the five principles of the Canadian Health Act, which include: Comprehensiveness, Universality, Portability, Accessibility, and Public Administration. This assignment should be 2-3 pages. Document any sources you use in APA format. For more information on APA, please visit the Online Library, which is available through the Resources tab.

What was going on in Europe that was influencing American Artists?

 

The wide range of styles present in early American Modernism Is demonstrated by the Chinese restaurant paintings of Max Weber and John Sloan. After reading Chapter 3, how would you describe these two styles of Modern American art? What do they have in common?  What was happening in Europe that influenced America?  Or did it?

 

What reasons are given for the enduring popularity of Edward Hopper? Do you think that the themes of loneliness, separation and the disillusionment with materialism continue to be prevailing characteristics of modern American life?

Provide an example from your own experience where you acted in accordance with one or more of the patterns of irrational or unethical decision making. Explain the egocentrism or sociocentrism, as well as any pathological tendencies of mind, involved in your thought process. How could you have applied the keys to sound decision making to approach the situation more rationally?

 

If you prefer not to discuss your own decision making experience, you may instead discuss someone you know, a historical figure, or a fictional character.

 

Your response should be at least one page in length, and in Times New Roman 12pt. font. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations in APA format. The title and reference page do not count towards the one-page minimum.

Find at least one internet source which questions the validity of homology as evidence of evolution then briefly summarize their argument. Then find and describe a response by proponents of evolutionary theory and evaluate the evidence supporting their positions.  Cite your source(s) at the end of your post.

 

Within these responses, you do not need to worry about grammar, spelling, or proper organization of your ideas—the short written response is a place for you to practice writing as a means of discovering what you think, working out your ideas so that you may better articulate them during our discussions.

 

Some questions to consider to get you started include (but are not limited by):

What are some first impressions and questions that come to mind during and after your reading?

What confuses you? What piques your curiosity or makes you want to know more?

What words or phrases affect you most?

Do you identify with any of the characters or situations? If so, does this sense of identification help or interfere with your response? How so?

What do you find most interesting or compelling about the work?

 

You might also consider answering any questions provided by the text after each poetry, drama, or fiction selection.

 

 

**The short written responses as a whole are worth 10% of your grade for the course—points will be given based on successful completion of each response and evidence of engagement with the texts.

We have discussed happiness a bit from the standpoint of contemporary science. Now, let’s consider where ancient philosophy might contribute to the discussion by overlapping with or extending these perspectives.

This lecture is a running commentary on the philosopher Aristotle. The large question it seeks to address is: ‘What does it mean to say that ethics is about happiness?’

Human Agents

Aristotle started his consideration of ethics with something so fundamental one might almost overlook it: the structure of human actions.

Every human action deserving of the name aims at something; and that ‘something’ is (or, at least seems) a good. Therefore, we might say paraphrasing Aristotle, “the good is that at which all  human actions aim.”

Another way to say it, is that ethics is rooted in desire, for we need to be ‘moved’ to action, and for that we need a felt desire.  Where the direct aim of study might be knowledge, the point of human life—where we are defined as “agents”—is the good attainable by and through our actions. Ethics, as a “science,” meant helping us to attain what we desire. In other words, to act well and successfully achieve the goals we set.

But in our lives we pursue many good things, and even different kinds of goods. When I pump gas at the filling station, my goal is to get my car in a state to take me somewhere. I had a student once who played soccer well enough to gain a college scholarship. While the latter was an aim, he also confessed that playing soccer for him can be its own reward.

These kinds of considerations led Aristotle to start searching for a term and a concept that would capture the life of human desire and action in one great sweep. He thought that finding this would give ethical study something to aim at. He asked, is there one good for human agents that sums up all the rest? If so, he thought, it would have to be an “ultimate good.” That is, this good is not made good by its leading to something else (e.g., gassing up the car). This good would not be one of the things we seek in order to get something else. Further, he said, in addition to being ultimate this good would have to be “self-sufficient.” The one who possesses it would not be in a state of wanting anything else.

Is there a name for a good like that (i.e., ultimate and making its possessor self-sufficient)? Aristotle claimed that this what most people have in mind when they use the word “happiness.”

“For the present we define as self-sufficient that which taken by itself makes life something desirable and deficient in nothing.  It is happiness, in our opinion, which fits this description.  Moreover, happiness is of all things the one most desirable, and it is not counted as one good thing among many others.”

 

Now, while Aristotle thought everybody had some idea of happiness when they use the word, most would not be able to give a very good definition. This leads him to start examining what people usually say happiness is. Here are some of the most popular responses:

• Happiness is wealth
• Happiness is health
• Happiness is power
• Happiness is fame
• Happiness is honor

 

But on examination, Aristotle finds that each of these definitions is wanting: either not really ultimate or not able to make its possessor self-sufficient. For instance, it was clear to Aristotle that wealth couldn’t be ultimate, because money was only good when you traded it in for something you really want. (Aristotle couldn’t have foreseen the seeming endless shopping made possible by the internet of course.) Being famous, on the other hand, makes you dependent on lots of other people who must continue to know of you. Hardly self-sufficient.

The Human ‘Function’ and Happiness

Aristotle turns in another direction for a definition of happiness. His view of the natural order assumed that every existing thing was designed for something, had a “function” of sorts. Rocks are designed to fall to the ground when dropped. Knives, a human artifact, are designed to cut.  Among living things, functions are identified with respect to the kind of life an organism has. Plants take in nutrition (soil, water) and sunlight, and grow. Animals, in addition, have senses like sight and hearing, issuing in a distinctive way of inhabiting an “environment.” To understand the human function, or what our life is for, we need to identify the distinctive life proper to us.

We share in the life of plants, he implies, in taking in nutrition to grow. We also share in animal life, since like them we respond to stimuli in our environment through our bodily senses. But above these, humans have reasoning. Because it’s what distinguishes us, Aristotle states that our function is a life guided by reasoning. Further, the word that Aristotle uses for reason, logos, also signifies the capacity of language. So, it becomes clear that for Aristotle, a reasonable life was a life undertaken with others in societies. (In a later unit, will come back to the idea of “moral reasoning.”)

So, for Aristotle happiness will be defined in relation to the kind of life fitting for humans, one that involves reasoning in important ways. Putting this with our earlier point that humans are bodily agents, we can now conclude that happiness will be a life of reasonable actions. Just one more point needs to be made here. Aristotle notes that in ordinary talk we evaluate many things that have a function. The function of a knife is cut, but “a good knife,” we say, is one that cuts well. Thus, while human lives generally will reflect reasoning, a “good human life” will be one that ‘reasons and acts well.’ Thus for Aristotle, happiness has everything to do with a life that expresses reasoning, and does so excellently.

Here are his words:

“…we state the function of man to be a certain kind of life, and this to be an activity or actions of the soul implying a rational principle, and the function of a good man to be the good and noble performance of these, and if any action is well performed when it is performed in accordance with the appropriate excellence: if this is the case, human good turns out to be activity of soul in accordance with virtue, and if there are more than one virtue, in accordance with the best and most complete.” Nichomachean Ethics, Book I

Questions (For Reflection/Notes):

1.What do you find appealing in Aristotle’s account of human happiness?

2.What do you find most puzzles about it?

 

Prompt: Find an Op-Ed that discusses any law enacted by the Texas Legislature in the last six years. Find an interesting, controversial law that generated a good deal of discussion. Especially look for law that could affect your life or the lives of those you know. Read the Op-Ed. What does the law call for – what will be its effect? What is the argument made by the author of the Op-Ed – is it for or against the law. What arguments on the other side do you think could be made. What do you think of the law – make sure you make arguments and cite evidence to support your position.

Leviathan Chapters 10-20

 

should include a quotation and two interpretative paragraphs, the first of which should explain the meaning and importance of the quotations and the second of which should explain how the ideas illuminate our understandings of the author’s theorizing and the significance of these concepts for the development of western political thought. For example, discuss the theorist’s views of human nature, or social relations, or the basis of legitimacy of the state, or the structure of government. Please focus your analysis so that you write a one-page summary.