Sunday, April 19, 2020
Struggles in Society free essay sample
Struggles in Society In the short story, The Golden Kite and Silver Wind by Ray Bradbury, we are exposed to the issues concerning competition between mankind. When locked in deadly competition, we feel the need to always be one step ahead. As people, we want to win and out show our enemies, which can create more issues. In reality, it is usually much more efficient to combine forces and work together to eliminate the problem. This concept is demonstrated perfectly in The Golden Kite and Silver Wind. The two rulers of each village are constantly trying to build a better city wall than each other. By doing so, the citizens and builders are faced with poverty, hunger, and overall weakness. The production is slower, people more hungry, supplies more limited, and the conflict of having a better wall is still alive. When one analyzes this situation, one realizes neither force is stronger nor winning and both are actually creating more of a difficulty. We will write a custom essay sample on Struggles in Society or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page By uniting forces, it improves both civilizations quality of life and ceases the need to always fght. The mandarins daughter realizes this and decides to teach the rulers of both villages to apply this to their ongoing quarrel of city-walls. Instead of competing, she has one village be a silver wind and another village be golden kite. Both symbols complement each other and help solve the problems. By coming together, the walls no longer need to be habitually remodeled in order to stay ahead. This tale is Bradburys way of hinting at the faults of the human need of being selfish and always needing to win. We feel the need to overlook reasonability and do anything to go ahead. More often than not, this results in a dilemma and more troubles arise. The daughter stops and thinks, which is what society needs to do more often. The rulers symbolize societies in history fighting for power. Bradburys tale signifies to us that winning isnt always beating competition, but sometimes, winning is working together on a common obstacle.
Sunday, March 15, 2020
Dentistry Personal Statement Essays
Dentistry Personal Statement Essays Dentistry Personal Statement Paper Dentistry Personal Statement Paper Scientific knowledge, I believe is crucial if we are to improve the quality of human life and I am consequently pleased that my studies in this area have significantly increased my understanding of both scientific theories and of the human body itself. I view dentistry as a scientific art due to the close relationship which exists between a small alteration of the teeth and a persons psychological confidence about their appearance as it can have a huge effect on the whole well-being of a person and this is the foremost appeal of the profession for me. Part of my inspiration and motivation to become a dentist originated from my own experiences of undergoing dental treatment. My interest has been further developed by the diversity of dentistry, which was highlighted during my work experience placement at the Louise Southworths Dental Surgery. I shadowed the dentists doing standard fillings, rubber dams and administering local anaesthetics. This enabled me to see the wide range of oral conditions from which patients may suffer. I am particularly interested in the developments in preventative and cosmetic dentistry, as I listened to the advice patients were given regarding improving their oral health and saw crowns and veneers being fitted. Whilst on this placement I saw patients of varying ages and this enhanced my desire to study dentistry. To ensure that I have a realistic appreciation of what the career involves, I also spent a week at the Blackburn Orthodontic Centre. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, as it gave me a valuable insight into the relationship of the teeth and jaws, and observed how abnormalities and irregularities regarding this matter can be corrected with the sheer use of braces. I enjoyed talking to the patients and putting them at their ease, an experience that allowed me to develop my communication skills. It was an unforgettable insight into the world of a busy practice where I could observe the importance of teamwork and co-operation in the department. I feel that I am a very much a people person and that I would relish the opportunity of being part of such a team. I was appointed Administrations Director of a Young Enterprise company, thisà experience made me much more conscious for the need of careful notes and the functioning of businesses. Whilst I was at the dental practise I also observed the need for such careful notes, as I saw the patients records being written. The British Heart Foundation and RSPCA are both organisations of which I am an active member. I have also worked with people in a completely different capacity whilst working as a craft assistant. This involved teaching children aged 4-11 years various skills including clay moulding and papier-mà ¢chà © at a nearby community centre. I also help out regularly with the elderly when day trips are organised. I experienced that the elderly could be quite challenging and self-conscious, but I have been able to deal with them in a caring and friendly way. I am very creative as I enjoy intricate henna painting using both my own designs and those from a henna guide. These hobbies have helped to develop my skills in delicate practical techniques. Outside of school I pursue my interests of sport through swimming, tennis and football; I also play cricket, which helps to improve my hand-eye coordination. I am also taking part in an under 18s football tournament as I believe an active social life is an imperative ingredient to complement my studies and so be ultimately successful. I would be committed to become a dentist and to put into practice the skills I have acquired. I believe I have an interest in the study of science, the commitment to academic achievement, the interpersonal skills and the desire to make a real and useful contribution to peoples quality of life, which will be necessary to sustain me through a course and a career in the dentistry profession.
Thursday, February 27, 2020
Commercial Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Term Paper
Commercial Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles - Term Paper Example Both ideas failed however, but the concept lived on. In the 1960s, the US started developing drones for spying and reconnaissance missions and extensively used them in the Vietnam War (UFL, 2011). With the development of artificial intelligence, today, UAV are a regular feature in military missions and are extensively used for various operations from reconnaissance to defensive and offensive missions. With increasing reliability of the UAVs, they have also now been identified for various commercial uses. This paper discusses these commercial applications where UAVs are increasing finding use. 2. Commercial uses of UAVs As the UAVs are free from human limits of fatigue and endurance, they can perform several functions very efficiently and in areas where it is not possible or too costly/risky to reach in a piloted aircraft. With improvements in technology, efforts to reduce the operating costs of UAVs, and by complimenting the UAVs with other advanced technology and devices, several ar eas of commercial applications have been identified for UAVs where they can prove to be not only more cost effective but also much more efficient than conventional methods used today to do those tasks. The following sub-sections describe each of these commercial applications. 1. 2. 2.1. ... ay, this work is done by men walking in the field, using manned small aircrafts, and using other farm equipments like tractors with a sprayer fitted at the back. These methods are often time consuming and using small aircrafts is costly. Also, in order to reduce drift on the sprayed materials, aircrafts must be flown very low. Since, fields are generally surrounded by obstacles like trees, buildings, telephone and electricity lines, pilots must be very careful. With a UAV, this task can be accomplished with much less hassles. Estimates suggest that UAVs take 1/15th the time to complete the task as compared to other conventional means (Wong, 2001) and it costs 1/10th the hourly rate of a manned helicopter (Hanlon, 2004). Figure 1: UAV helicopter being used for crop dusting Source: Gizmodo, 2006 Crop monitoring refers to monitoring the health of crops in the fields. With sensors and high resolution image processors on board the UAVs, farmers can remotely monitor the crops and take time ly actions to save the crops. Also, farmers and governments can use it for making crop yield forecasts and assessment of damage due to external factors like flooding, pests, and draught. Further, color images from UAVs can be useful for mapping invasive weed outbreaks and for revealing irrigation and fertilization irregularities in the vast farmlands. Another example of regular use of UAVs in crop monitoring is at Vineyards. Current frost detection techniques do not provide accurate and consistent data for temperature across the entire farmland. UAVs with real-time thermal imaging could provide an excellent solution to this problem. Another area of application in agriculture industry is monitoring soil and moisture. One of the most important aspects for maximizing the crop yield is to know
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
American fast food in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words
American fast food in China - Essay Example However, McDonald's is the easily recognizable Fast-food brand in China. KFC has got the largest chains of fast-food restaurants in China with approximately 4000 fast-food restaurants. These restaurants are both domestic and foreign brands. The founder of this fried chicken chain of restaurant, Colonel Sanders, is one of the most recognized American faces among the Chinese. There have been emerging scandals that have been aired in relation to the excessive levels of antibiotics that have been used by American fast-food restaurants in China. Brands like KFC and McDonalds have been held responsible for claims that they have led to an epidemic of obesity in China. This weight gain can also be linked to the Chinese breakneck development. Other developing nations are rapidly undergoing an economic transition but China seems to be dragging behind as a result of a large majority of people gaining weight thus cannot manage to work properly to build the nation.The number of obese people in Ch ina grew from 18 million to 100 million in 2005 and 2009, whereas its national GDP doubled at that same period. However, it is quite surprising that even though China is known to have a population that eats a lot, the situation tends to be worse because China is considered to have another problem of having a malnourished nation. Other nations that experience the same are Vietnam and India. Diseases that are caused by consumption of excess sugar and fat have become popular in China. These diseases include high blood pressure, heart diseases, and Type 2 diabetes. An estimate of 9.7 per cent of Chinese country have diabetes especially, Type 2. This data is close to the findings of America which are 11 per cent of the total population. These findings were from a study conducted by New England Journal of Medicine. There are various reasons which have made the contribution towards the realization of massive profits by American fast food restaurants in China. This paper concentrates on the reasons as to why these changes have occurred and why they happen as they do. A lot of research has been done in an effort to investigate this phenomenon and Smith (2006) notes that localization of meals is what has contributed to the attraction of native customers in the foreign country. Localization of mea
Friday, January 31, 2020
Conflict Resolution Styles in Organizational Behaviour Essay Example for Free
Conflict Resolution Styles in Organizational Behaviour Essay Conflict is a process that every one of us has experienced throughout our lifes. There are various definitions of conflicts as described by different authors but generally, conflict is a process whereby one individualââ¬â¢s interests is opposed or negatively affected by the other party (McShane et al. 2010). Workplace and organisational conflicts are usually more complex. Isenhart and Spangle (2000) points out that at the beginning the conflict may start because of improper placement of workers and their responsibilities in a workplace, but it may get worse if they faces unfair rules, ineffective management, unclear responsibilities or too much work assigned. Organisational conflicts can result in many possible outcomes, the negatives ones such as damaged employee relations, violence, increased tension between bosses and employees but it can have positive outcomes too such as increased employee-cohesiveness and increased motivation. How it will be achieved will be discussed through the elements of conflict and will be listed in greater details. Ways in which people approach conflict Avoiding Avoiding is probably the fastest way of resolving a conflict but at the same time it is not the best way because most of the time the avoider will remain unhappy even after the conflict. It does not permanently resolve the conflict (McShane et al. 2010) and in my opinion it is just ââ¬Ëpostponingââ¬â¢ the problem to have it solved at a later date. McCollum et al. (2009) states that the person who is avoiding thinks that confronting the conflict will bring more trouble than it is worth. The avoider also decides to not deal with the conflict because he or she might not have the confidence to do so. This seems like the more popular choice amongst the five ways in which people approach conflict based on my experiences because people simply do not want unnecessary trouble or aggravate the problem, especially if it is a minor issue. Avoiding pays no attention in concerns of either self or others (Kotthoff Spencer-Oatey 2008). This is the least-sought option amongst the five approach es but however, McCollum et al. (2009) suggests that avoiding can be a tactical approach when the other party has more strength and authority over you; and/or the avoiding the conflict will bring little or no devastating consequences. Problem-Solving I deemed this to be the most effective way in resolving organisational conflicts because both parties will benefit if they manage to find a double-win solution to the problem. This is considered to be the most desirable approach to conflict as there are no negative impacts at all. Only positive results will surface. Runde Flanagan (2009) suggests that there might be a link between avoiding and problem-solving. Because many people tend towards avoidance, they often rush through problem solving and immediately use the first solution that they can think of so as to quickly get over the conflict, without any beneficial solutions. The key in using problem-solving as an approach to resolve conflicts lies in having patience to create multiple potential solutions. Careful reflection and consideration will progress into agreements that are both satisfying and successful (Runde Flanagan 2009). Therefore when undergoing problem-solving, both parties must not rush to a solution immediately or else the solution may backfire or do not satisfy both partiesââ¬â¢ needs. Three strategies that help people manage conflict Before discussing about the three different strategies that help people to manage conflict, the strategies used are basically divided into three categories and they are interest-based, rights-based and power-based (Jameson 2001). Three different strategies from the three categories will be discussed respectively. Jameson (2001) advises that all resolutions of disputes and conflicts should start with a interest-based strategy, and if it does not resolves the conflict, it is followed by a rights-based strategy and if conflict persists, power-based strategy is then applied. Mediation (Interest-based) Jameson (2001) suggests that mediation is a form of ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution). Research has shown that interest-based strategies such as mediation had the best long-termed results such as improved relationship between parties, greater commitment to solutions and reduced future conflicts from happening. This is why involved parties in a conflict should use this approach as it reaps the most benefits. Even though there are many theories and various methods underlying mediation, it is generally defined as an intervention by a neutral third party which facilitates the process but allow participants in the conflict to control the outcome (Jameson 2001). Depending on the severity of the conflict, the mediator is to provide useful information in legal issues, help the participants into perspective thinking, provide a guide in finding the most satisfying and realistic settlement, help to improve the working/personal relationship between participants, or engage in some combination of the above methods. Inquisitorial Intervention (Rights-based) This describes intervention by a person of a higher authority; in most cases is the manager, who will make a final decision. Managers who adopt this strategy allow employees more or less control over presentation of their arguments before deciding on an appropriate solution (Jameson 2001). Because the third party(manager) listens to every partyââ¬â¢s arguments before making a judgment, the manager acts as a ââ¬Ëjudgeââ¬â¢ and this usually results in a win-lose situation, unlike Mediation which results in a win-win situation most of the time. Employees are given the opportunity to present their arguments and influence the final decision and this result in higher amount of fairness and satisfaction with outcomes. Employees involved in the conflict usually agree that the outcome decided by the third party is fair, but it could be better if they are able to retain the outcome control. Restructuring (Power-based) This is the more realistic popular method amongst power-based strategies because they are efficient (at least in the short run) and it follows a problem-solving procedure that is actually part of the managerial role (Jameson 2001). A powerful third party restructures the work and responsibilities of employees in order to solve problems. For example if employees does not see eye-to-eye with one another and it affects efficiency or quality of work produced, restructuring may simply solve this issue even though parties involved are not satisfied but at least they will not be able to see each other, proving restructuring to be a efficient method in the short run. This method may be efficient if time issues are being involved, such as the organisation needs to achieve a certain target by a certain date. Influence of culture in conflict resolution styles The three cultural values dimensions that are popularly discussed are individualism-collectivism, power distance and high-low context (McShane et al. 2010). Low/high context: refers to the amount of information contained in a clearly-expressed message versus implied message (Adair et al. 2004). Low-context culture is direct and negotiations are analytical and fact-based, while high-context culture is indirect and high-context negotiators tend to use an indirect communication method with usually contains implied meanings. An example of a low-context culture would be the United States of America and a high-context culture will be Japan (Adair et al. 2004). Individualism/Collectivism: Individualism refers to a society where the relationships between people are loose and they are expected to look after themselves or their immediate families only. Collectivism which is the opposite, refers to a society that people focus on being harmonious and emphasize on cohesiveness within themselves. In organisational context, individualism means individuals only care about their own goals and prefer to work alone and collectivism means working harmoniously in a teams and it emphasizes on teamwork. Power distance: McShane et al. (2010) defines power distance as the degree of importance that people place on status and power to control. Basically it means that human inequality may occur in many fields such as status, wealth, power, rules etc. In organisational settings it refers between superiors/managers and employees mainly. In a high power distance working environment, employees tend to just do their work without raising doubts or question their bosses, due to fear in the difference of their power, low power distance means otherwise, where employees and their superiors work hand in hand to resolve issues. A few decades ago, managers can spend up to twenty percent of their time in resolving conflicts. Nowadays, conflicts are generally much more complex and take up more time to resolve due to technological advances, worldââ¬â¢s exponential growth rate and globalization which led to increase contacts between people of many different cultures (Kotthoff Spencer-Oatey 2008). This suggests that our modern world has an increase of numbers of cultural conflicts and they are usually hard to resolve due to the extreme range of differences in thinking, values, ethics etc between individuals of different cultures. To further elaborate on this point, Brigg (2008) states that most experts in this field now come to an agreement that culture frames the experiences of conflict of people, their reactions and responses to other people in conflict, and the types of strategies they might consider to manage or otherwise address disputes. Therefore when facing against a cultural conflict issue, one must understand that the other party does not grow up in the same environment as him/her, had not been taught the same teachings and values since young. To put in simpler terms, the definition of what is right and what is correct might not be the same between the two parties. This also explains why it is so difficult in applying conflict resolution styles when it comes to cultural conflicts because it is hard to accept the other partyââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"correctâ⬠values which may be the ââ¬Å"wrongâ⬠values of one as both of them have been gorged those values since young in their growing up environment. Conclusion Two ways of conflict-handling styles were discussed and avoiding can be a good approach sometimes despite many of its negativity and although problem-solving is the best approach, it cannot be rushed and many potential solutions must be raised in order to finding the best solution. Three strategies from three different categories of conflict resolution styles were discussed and despite the major differences in terms of popularity of usage and way of handling, all the three strategies can produce effective results in organisational settings if they were applied in the correct circumstances. Three cultural values dimensions were discussed and it was also explained that influence of culture in conflict resolution styles remains fundamentally significant and it is currently the most challenging in conflict resolution.
Thursday, January 23, 2020
Silence and the Notion of the Commons :: essays research papers
The title of this essay ââ¬Å"Silence and the Notion of the Commonsâ⬠gives the same idea of people as programmable and unprogrammable similar to the idea seen in the Matrix. Whereas programmable people, who are the commons, are the people inside the matrix they are also known as the sheep, the people that believe in everything they are told. The unprogrammable people, who are the silence, are the people outside of the matrix. Ursula Franklin uses a variety of techniques in order for the audience to fully understand her message, and to inform them of the topics discussed in her essay, as is particularly apparent in paragraph 5 of her essay ââ¬Å"Silence and the Notion of the Commons.â⬠Franklin addresses her audience in first person in paragraph 3, ââ¬Å"I would like to thank everyone involved in this conference, and the organizers in particular, for inviting me to deliver this talk. I am very obviously an outsider and wish to come to this group to talk about something that is central to all work that you people are doing.â⬠Franklin addresses her audience personally. She speaks to them about something not necessarily of her interest but of the audienceââ¬â¢s interest. Her audience is perhaps mature but may have some people that English may not be a language the understand, therefore by emphasizing very drastically on the important words in her essay by saying them frequently. It is a psychological tact that the more times you repeat a word the better the chance there is of the audience remembering it. In paragraph 4, Franklin uses repetition to emphasize sound and its sources. She uses ââ¬Å"sâ⬠sounds throughout the whole passage to imbed the sounds into her audiences mind. The use of alliteration can first be seen in the title ââ¬Å"Silence and the Notion of the Commonsâ⬠, the sound that standout are the ââ¬Å"Sâ⬠sounds of Silence and in Commons. This idea is used in paragraph 4 by the repetition of sound and source that is then incorporated into soundscape and landscape. She also uses the phrase ââ¬Å"mix soundsâ⬠which is ironic to the fact that she only uses the alliteration of the ââ¬Å"sâ⬠sound in mix and in sounds. The use of alliteration also allows the audience to pay close attention to the important words. Another technique Franklin uses to maintain the audienceââ¬â¢s attention is her sentence structure. She uses very long sentences throughout paragraph 4 and has 2 short sentences in the middle of the paragraph.
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Choicepoint and Sony, an Ethical Analysis Essay
Ethics refers to what comes off as right or wrong to an individualââ¬â¢s conscience .The internet age has brought about new ethical issues, not only for an individual but for the society as well as it has eased anonymous manipulation and distribution of information, creating new and easier paths for committing crimes like piracy, identity theft, infringement of an individualââ¬â¢s privacy etc. In this paper we will be analyzing the Choice-point case and the ââ¬ËSony data breach ââ¬Ëcase from an ethical point of view. (Laudon &Laudon, 2010, p.128) Background: The ChoicePoint Data breach: On September 27 of 2004, ChoicePoint,a company that aggregates and stores personal information, suspected that some of its small business customers were involved in suspicious activities and informed the police. (Paine, Phillips, 2008)On February of 2005, ChoicePoint only notified those residents of California whose data had been leaked to the illegal customers, since a certain law in California requires it. A protest from the public, however, forced the company to notify the details of the breach to the other involved parties residing in the other states. The swindlers who scammed ChoicePoint had created over 50 accounts with previously stolen identities over the course of a year or even longer. (Pantesco, 2006) Look more:à the issues concerning identity theft essay Changes in business practices (Otto, Anton & Baumer, 2007): ChoicePoint made numerous changes after the 2004-2005 data breach. The company closed the 50 fake accounts and made a policy to refuse any faxed business licenses in the future .The Company formed a new policy, that all nongovernmental organizations need to be re-credentialed in order to do business with it, and increased its procedures in verifying the identity of the company. More stringent and better business policies in ensuring the safety of their customerââ¬â¢s data, for e.g. partial masking of social security numbers were employed. The company continued its investigations of its databases for further indications of foul play and brought in outsiders to assess and rectify their practices. The Sony Data Breach: The Sony data breach was a result of an intrusion from an outsider party, causing an outage in the PlayStation Network and Qriocityââ¬â¢s services between 17th April 2011 and 19th April, 2011.A confirmation from Sony revealed that pieces of personal information had been stolen from each and every 77 million accounts. This breach resulted in Sony shutting off the PlayStation Network for 23 days. (Hirai, 2011) Sony stated that the chairman of the company had submitted explanations wanted by United States House subcommittee regarding the attack and that they were taking some measures to prevent further breaches. When questioned about the delay in making the breach public, Sony explained that theyââ¬â¢d sought help from outside officials to conduct an investigation in order to comprehend the nature and magnitude of the incident; and hence forensic analysis and investigation had caused the delay since they wanted to have all the necessary details before making the breach public. On May 14, 2011, Sony released a security patch called PlayStation 3 firmware version 3.61 requiring users to change their password upon signing into their account in the PlayStation Network. (Seybold, 2011) Compensation: In compensation for this outage, Sony announced hosting of special events for their users. Sony wanted to appreciate the loyalty of the customers who stuck to using Play Station network and didnââ¬â¢t look for other alternatives. Hence Sony announced an extension of free 30 days of its various services for its existing users. Also, few of their games in the PlayStation network were made free, though these games are available only in some regions or countries. In addition to that Sony also offered one yearââ¬â¢s worth of ââ¬Å"free identity theft protectionââ¬â¢ to all of its customers. (Wesley, 2011) Ethical Analysis According to Culnan and Williams (2009, p.679),the two aspects of morality that are principal to the relationship between information aggregators and information providers are vulnerability and avoiding harm. Aspect of Vulnerability Analysis: Since the customer gives away his data in exchange for something in return, he loses control on how that information would be used in the future.(Culnan& Williams, 2009, p. 681) The firm that is aggregating the data has the duty to exercise caution in protecting the consumerââ¬â¢s vulnerability, not only for the sake of the customer but also to build its own reputation. However, in the cases of both ChoicePoint and Sony breach, the consumers were vulnerable. Individuals whose data ChoicePoint and Sony stored lacked knowledge about the risks posed by ââ¬â Choice Pointââ¬â¢s credentialing procedures or the way personal information was stored by Sony. Aspect of ââ¬Å"Do No Harmâ⬠Analysis: Most ethicists are of the opinion that data aggregators have the minimum duty of doing no harm whenever there is an issue concerning information privacy rights (DeGeorge 2006; Goodpaster 1987; Marcoux 2003; Valesquez 2003 as cited in Culnan& Williams, 2009), even more so when their treatment of the consumerââ¬â¢s sensitive personal information makes the consumers unnecessarily vulnerable. (Culnan& Williams, 2009, p. 682) In both the cases of ChoicePoint and Sony Data breach however, the ââ¬ËDO NO Harmââ¬â¢ principle was violated and moral responsibility was clearly absent in the behavior of the officials of these firms. (Culnan& Williams, 2009, p. 682)ChoicePointââ¬â¢s questionable intentions in delaying the notification of the breach to the public and the fact that ChoicePoint only bothered to search records that were leaked within 15 months to the date of the search ,until pressurized, were criticized heavily.( Evers, 2005)Further investigations revealed that ChoicePoint had been subjected to a similar scam in 2002.( Paine, Phillips, 2008) The fact that ChoicePoint could be duped so easily within two years proved that ChoicePoint hadnââ¬â¢t done anything to improve its practices since the last breach. Similarly, Sony also had a delay in notifying the users of PlayStation network about the breach. The public disputed Sonyââ¬â¢s reason for its delay by speculating that, if Sony judged the situation to be so grave that it felt the need to shut down its PlayStation network, then they should have warned the public without any delay as well. Moreover, Sony failed to give any concrete reports regarding the breach and merely stated that they cannot rule out the possibility of a ââ¬Ëusername or password ââ¬Ëleak. One more thing to be noted is that the fiends could have possibly gotten information like email addresses and first names of the customers who had consented to receiving information about new deals or products from Sony or its partners.Now, there is a pretty good chance that the fiends might send emails in the format of a Sony webpage template and extract valuable information from those customers. Hence this breach indirectly paved the way for more unintentional breaches in the future. (Eddy, 2011) According to, (Laudon &Laudon, 2010,p.135),the basic Concepts of ethics are as follows: Responsibility: where the individual or the organization should accept the duties, costs and obligations for the decisions that it made. Accountability: where the organization should be aware of what decision is taken by whom. If it is impossible to find out who was responsible for what action then that organization is basically incapable of ethical analysis. Liability: this basically extends the concept of responsibility to legal actions where the affected individuals should be able to get compensation for their damages. Analysis : In my opinion, both ChoicePoint and Sony showed half-hearted ethics on these incidents as a whole. While Choicepoint did inform officials about the breach as soon as it found out, yet it only felt necessary to inform the public because of the California law. The people in the other states were notified because of public outcry. Also limiting the search results for leaked records to only 15 months prior to the date of the search just because it was necessary by the law was another mistake on ChoicePointââ¬â¢s part. Thus ChoicePoint violated the ethical concepts of responsibility and accountability yet they seemed to have understood their mistake when they were making changes in their policies and practices after the 2004-2005 breach, and were willing to take corrective actions. But it is debatable whether ChoicePointââ¬â¢s corrective measures were taken to save its own business or whether it genuinely cared for the affected individuals. Similarly, though Sony did do necessary investigations, it failed to concretely identify which parties had been affected or what kind of information have been stolen. Similar to ChoicePoint, there was a delay in notifying the public regarding the breach. Hence, there is a dearth of responsibility and accountability from Sonyââ¬â¢s side as well .The compensations given can similarly be argued to be a ploy for keeping itself in the market. While, ChoicePoint and Sony offered free credit monitoring and free identity theft protection respectively for one year, they disregarded the possibility that the thieves might lie low and take advantage of the stolen information after the passage of a year. Hence these companies showed half-heartedness in being ethically liable as well.
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