Urban Planners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Urban Planners - Essay Example Planners who are in the public role often serve the public and act as valued technical advisors in the community's political environment (Garvin, 2002). Urban planners develop often develop long and short term plans for the use and revitalization of land. These plans facilitate the growth of urban and rural communities, as well as the region in which they are allocated. They assist the regional officials to reduce economical, social and environmental problems. This is done by proposing the location of schools, roads among other infrastructure. In addition to that, they recommend the zoning regulations for private possessions (Smith, 2006). According to Grogan (2002), Planners promote the best utilization of public land resources which are meant for commercial, residential, institutional and recreation purposes. They often formulate plans relating to development of new infrastructure, for instance new schools, new roads and public housing. Moreover, they help in making decisions about resource development and protecting the environment in its totality. Planners and developers are often involved in environment issues like wetland preservation, pollution control, location of new landfills and forest conservation. Planners may assist in the drafting of legislation of social, environmental and economical matters, for instance sheltering the homeless, new park, or making the region very attractive to businesses (Smith, 2006). Urban planners study and report on the current utilization of land for residential and community purposes before making plans for the community development. Their reports include information on the capacity and location of schools, airports, highways, libraries, recreational and cultural sites. They also provide records on the characteristics of the community, industries in the community, and employment and economic trends. They try to use the data obtained to optimize land use for public structures and facilities (Robert, 2003). The planners often prepare reports that show the cost of their programs and how they are carried out. Furthermore, they examine the suggested facilities, to know whether they will meet the needs of the growing population. They keep the records legal and economic issues, which are responsible for the building codes, zoning codes and environmental regulations. In addition to that, they ensure that the developers and builders are in apposition to follow the codes and the regulations (Garvin, 2002). Planners also deal with the land issues that arise due to the population movements. For instance, in Huntsville, the population growth and economic development has led to creation of more jobs out side the urban areas (Robert, 2003). As a result, the need for public transportation will increase, and it is the responsibility of the planners to model and develop suitable transportation systems and report them to the planning boards as well as the public (Garvin, 2002). Computers are very necessary urban planning process; planners use them to analyze and record information collected, and to prepare reports and proposals for government executives. Spreadsheets, computer databases, and analytical techniques are used to forecast future trends of employment, transportation, housing, or population. Urban

Colonial theory questions and joe turners come and gone Essay

Colonial theory questions and joe turners come and gone - Essay Example The play also chronicles the conflicts of slavery, identity, discrimination and racism and migration that the African-Americans had to deal with during the western colonization. Generally, the events in the play represent the kind of life that Africans were exposed to during the period of western colonization. The three main themes covered by the play are identity, migration and racial segregation. Racial Discrimination During the colonial period, western countries established colonies on other continents with the aim of making profit, expanding their territories and power, and for political and religious reasons. In Africa, the move of the western nations to colonize the continent exposed Africans to slavery, migration, discrimination and loss of African identity (Bloom, 135). Thus, in his play, August Wilson highlights the oppressions that the African people were exposed to during the colonial period. Similar to the period of western colonization, August Wilson, in his play present s African-Americans as being exploited and discriminated against by the whites. And, just as Africans were forced to migrate to other areas due to racial discrimination, August presents the life in the American South as marred with intense discrimination thus forcing some African-Americans such as Martha to migrate to Pennsylvania.

Sanlu milk powder Essay Example for Free

Sanlu milk powder Essay Consequentialism, as its name suggests, is the view that normative properties depend only on consequences. This general approach can be applied at different levels to different normative properties of different kinds of things, but the most prominent example is consequentialism about the moral rightness of acts, which holds that whether an act is morally right depends only on the consequences of that act or of something related to that act, such as the motive behind the act or a general rule requiring acts of the same kind. Utilitarianism is a theory in normative ethics holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes utility, usually defined as maximizing total benefit and reducing suffering or the negatives. It also makes classic utilitarianism subject to attack from many angles. Persistent opponents posed plenty of problems for classic utilitarianism. Each objection led some utilitarians to give up some of the original claims of classic utilitarianism. By dropping one or more of those claims, descendants of utilitarianism can construct a wide variety of moral theories. Advocates of these theories often call them consequentialism rather than utilitarianism so that their theories will not be subject to refutation by association with the classic utilitarian theory. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) Corporate social responsibility (CSR), also known as corporate responsibility, corporate citizenship, responsible business, sustainable responsible business (SRB), or corporate social performance, is a form of corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model. Milton Friedman and others have argued that a corporations purpose is to maximize returns to its shareholders, and that since only people can have social responsibilities, corporations are only responsible to their shareholders and not to society as a whole. They assert that corporations have no other obligation to society. (Freeman, 1984) Corporate social responsibility (CSR) essentially requires companies to conduct business beyond compliance with the law and beyond shareholder wealth maximization. It suggests that companies should do more than they are obligated under applicable laws governing product safety, environmental protection, labor rights, human rights, community development, corruption, and so on; it also suggests that companies should consider not only the interests of shareholders but also those of other stakeholders (e. g. , employees, consumers, suppliers, and local communities). CSR requires companies to provide not only the quantity of goods, services, and employment but also the quality of life for those whose interests are affected by corporate activities. (Carroll, 2008). Facing the challenge, in order to protect and expand the market, on one hand improve the Sanlu milk purchase cost, on the other hand, through the continuous low prices, unfair competition and reduce the product quality. At the same time, Sanlu Company launched the infant formula milk powder or occupation of the rural market, adding excipient, is as high as 40%. If the production in accordance with national quality standards enterprises not only profits, but also serious losses. Vicious competition led to price higher than the cost, one of the value and price inversion phenomenon is the direct cause of Sanlu milk powder incident. (Wu, 2007) Rethink of Corporate Social Responsibility by Sanlu Milk Incident Ethic problems in Sanlu Incident have the following aspects: (1) Ethic relationship between the enterprise and the government; (2) Ethic relationship between the enterprise and the competitors; (3) Ethic relationship between the enterprise and the consumers; (4) Ethic relationship among the enterprise, consumers, and government. The analysis is made step by step as follows.

European Union’s Democratic Deficit: A Critical Assessment

European Union’s Democratic Deficit: A Critical Assessment Introduction The European Union is in a middle of a crisis. The worst part of its economic crisis has passed but it still faces even more severe issue: a trust crisis. People do not feel represented by the European Union and have turned their support towards populist and radical movements. What is the basis of this crisis? Some authors incline to say it is the EU’s democratic deficit. Thus, since there is a wide gap between what EU citizens want from their politicians and how the EU bureaucrats and institutions act. This leads to a situation where the public’s opinion and desires are not taking into account by the body that should represent them[1]. Yet, first we need to analyse in detail what a democratic deficit means to then address this problem. Democratic deficit is a tricky issue as it does not have a widely accepted definition between politics and law scholars. Depending on the author and its background, the term can be used with different connotations and meanings; hence, the results of the analysis tend to depend on the notion of democratic deficit the author uses[2]. Therefore, first, we shall develop our own democratic deficit conceptual approximation. Then, we will be able to lead a critical assessment on representation and participatory actual problems of the European Union. Afterwards, we will have all the tools necessary to address in detail if there is a true democratic deficit problem in the European Union and to propose some possible alternatives to solve it. The European Union and Democratic Deficit If a hyperbole is permitted, democratic deficit may have as many meanings as authors have discussed it. It is not an easy issue to address or to encompass in a single-simple definition. First of all, especially because, even though we can agree on some basis for democracy, in wide terms it is an ambiguous subject. So, what an author considers a democratic deficit will be highly influenced by what he considers to be a democracy. One of the first scholars to use this term was British David Marquand. He used it to define the democratic legitimacy faintness of –then- European Community. He suggested direct elections for representatives before the European Parliament. When this was adopted, the issue around European Community democratic legitimacy arose even further, as for the European Parliament represented the voice of the European Community citizens but the Community was not ready to give more powers to the Parliament, causing more tension. After the approval of the Maastricht treaty, the problem grew. Two pillars were added to the Union (common Foreign and Security Policy and Home Affairs), and in none of them the Parliament had any control[3]. Other authors propose the democratic deficit problem in the terms of a backwards Hume’s is/ought as they consider there is a discrepancy between is and ought/ should in the European Union[4] institutions and democracy as the transfer of substantial amounts of political decision-making towards the supranational level on non-elected institutions has diminished the democratic influence and the basic control the citizens have on their political institutions. It is obvious that at the first stages of the European Community it was reasonable and necessary to keep citizens away from decision-making as it was initially designed to be an economic community and not a political institution[5], but its goals mutated in time. The Community passed from a purely economic institution to a political one. As it was a community formed by democratic countries, one could expect that the supranational body they formed would also have democratic and participatory channels. Nonetheless, European Union turned into a bureaucratic and political giant that has slowly diminished the national entities and directly-elected supranational bodies -European Parliament- and passed it to its hands. Yet, other approaches[6] suggest that, even though the democratic deficit issue is real, it has to be attributed to the Union’s member states, rather than the Union itself. Integration between European states was responding to a series of already-existing democratic legitimacy issues within the states. They argue that the Union is not democratic enough because the member states have not been able to democratise their integration. The issue of the lack of democracy within European Union institutions is not considered as the cause of the problem, but the natural consequence of the democratic deficit of European Union members. This perspective must be necessarily rebuked. Even with their flaws, most of the European Union members have developed and stable democracies. If an institution poses itself as the supranational ruler of a continent and its legitimate representative, it must follow the same form of government that those national units it intends to rule, which is democracy. Where could European Union legitimacy come if not from its citizens? The Union’s decisions directly impact its citizens, as much as a national government decision, or even more. It also breaks citizens’ capacity to rely on the regular channels of influence –voting- to ensure they are being listened and to participate in political process[7]. The lack of democracy of the Union and is tightness to evolve and accept citizens demands only causes further disgust and loss of legitimacy. European Union is a sui generis institution, as it is not a state but it represents them and takes decisions in their name, therefore it should be held accountable for its decisions in direct elections. One cannot fail to notice that there is a deep democratic deficit in the European Union from the turnout in its elections. Ever since legislative powers were transferred to the Council of Ministers of the European Union from the national governments, the setup of the European Union shifted from that of an economic block to that of a political one. The lack of democracy in the Union has been evident in the voter turnout. From the first vote in 1979, the turnout has been going lower and lower with the 2014 election having a disappointing turnout of 42.54%. Compared to the individual member nations where the average voter turnout is 68%, this is a sign that the members of the European Parliament have noted something wrong with the setup and are thus silently revolting. This has led to the debate as to what ought to be done to get the Union back on track. While one side states that reforms are enough to make the Union serve its needs, others think the European Union should be simply debunked. The fact that the European Union has a lot of benefits for its member states and the world in general, however, means that its abolishment is not the best solution. To get the best solution for the case, therefore, requires an in-depth analysis of how the Union works and where it is failing. The Origin of the Democratic Deficit of the European Union Looking at the origins of the European Union, it is easy to make the conclusion that it was primarily meant to be purely economic and the introduction of the political aspects only complicated issues. The Treaty of Paris in 1951 saw to the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) which was meant to provide a trading bloc for coal and steel in Europe as suggested by its name. In 1957, the Treaty of Rome saw to the establishment of the European Economic Community (EEC). The EEC’s original members were known as the European Communities. In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty would see to the establishment of the European Union. With the European Union came the introduction of European citizenship. The latest of the treaties in this regard is the 2009 Treaty of Lisbon. While a lot has changed in the structure and function of the European Union to the present moment, some of the problems that plague the Union are the same.   The Manifesto for the Young European Federalists by Richard Corbett first raised the issue of the lack of democracy in the European Union in 1977 where the term democratic deficit was first used. David Marquand would later use the term in reference to the workings of the European Economic Community. The coining of the term primarily focused on the European Parliament, which was previously referred to as the European Assembly, and why it had a deficit of democracy. The primary argument behind this assertion is that the Parliament was made up of members who had not been directly elected by the citizens of the European Union. As such, the European Union was not serving the needs of its citizens but those of a few people. Effectively, the European Union is thus not democratic enough given that it does not meet the definition of a democracy where there is a government for the majority. The fact that the majority is not represented through free and fair elections of the members of the European Parliament is one point to the fact that there is a deficiency of democracy in the Union. The European Constitution The European Union prides itself in democratic legitimacy through various aspects of the constitution. The first of these aspects is the European Parliament. The Parliament is subject to the electorates of the member states. The other organs are the Council of the European Union also called the Council of Ministers, and the European Council made up of the heads of national governments of the member states. The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union appoint the European Commission members. This system of making decisions is supposed to give the European Union democratic legitimacy in the same way the US House of Representatives and the US Senate give democratic legitimacy to the United States. Decisions are thus to be reached by both bodies agreeing, and a third organ in this case the European Commission. The intended democratic legitimacy has, however, not been entirely attained by the European Union. The construction of the Union itself has occasioned what the German Constitutional Court called a structural democratic deficit in the Union. This court established that the process of making decisions for the European Union was primarily those of an international organisation rather than those of a government. The difference is that, as an international organisation, the European Union based its democracy on the equality of the member nations rather than the citizens of these countries. It is thus difficult to reconcile the needs of the citizens and those of the member nations of the European Union provided its operation as an international organisation rather than a government. Similarly, the British Electoral Reform Society filed a report in 2014 to the same issue of the EU constitution having a structure which focused on the needs of the member states rather than the citizens. The r eport stated that, while the European Union has focused on upholding the principles of democratic engagement, accountability and representativeness, there is the need to focus on the needs of the minority in any democracy. The European Union, being mostly made up of minorities, thus needs to have a focus on serving the needs of the citizens rather than those of the member governments[8]. Democratic Deficit and the European Commission One of the main structures put in place by the European Union in support of democracy is the European Commission. First, there has been criticism concerning the legitimacy of the European Commission and its role in the initiation of legislation in the European Union. However, this criticism does not have the backing of facts as similar bodies within national governments have yielded similarly poor results. However, its position as a body that legitimises the European Union and its take on democracy has failed by a large extent. The main weakness with such a body, as also noted in the case of the United States government, is that the regulations may be so detailed that the member states have little freedom in making their decisions on legislation[9]. While the issue of a democratic deficit was noted as far back as the 1970s when the idea of a united Europe was still in development, democratic legitimacy has always been an issue the Union has been dealing with ever since. When the Treaty of Lisbon was put in place, its primary aim was to provide room for better democracy in the region. The Treaty of Lisbon required that the President of the European Commission ought to take account of the results of the European Union parliamentary elections. This simply means that the President of the European Commission should be nominated by the   most dominant group in the parliament. This step effectively makes the European Union a political body rather than the economic one meant for the over watch of the economic activities of Europe. In fact, the European Union, owing to this kind of structure, has become partly a federation and also an international organisation[10]. The President of the European Commission would thus be partly elected and partly appointed. This position gives the president less power than is needed to win the confidence of the population, and too much power to earn the trust of the governments of the member nations. The resulting model is one where little democracy is accorded to the citizens of the European Union and their governments as well. The European Parliament and Democratic Deficit When the European Parliament was set up, a lot of people were ready to voice its weaknesses in seeing to the implementation of legislation. However, political scientists would come to the rescue of this organ by stating that, first, the European Parliament is different from the parliaments of single countries due to various factors such as the lack of a divide between the government and the opposition, the presence of a divide between the executive and the legislature, the presence of political parties that are decentralised, bipartisan voting, and the roles of the various committees. For this reason, the European Parliament has been compared to the US House of Representatives but with the advantage of not having a governing body over it like the latter house. The fact that the majorities in the European Parliament have to be built each time while depending on negotiations, persuasions, and explanations ought to make it better in function than the US House of Representatives. This is true given that the lack of interference between the executive and the legislature has made the European Commission and the European Parliament more effective. For instance, the member states of the European Union have less than 15% of their legislative initiatives becoming the law. This is largely due to the lack of support from the executive. The executive bodies, on the other hand, rarely require the input of the legislature in the same nations to pass amendments. The role of the European Parliament is the propositioned amendments to the existing laws. The success rate of these amendments is as high as 80% with the lowest levels recorded (mostly for the hotly contested topics) is at 30%. To an extent, however, the structure of the European Parliament allows for a level of lack of accountability and weakness when it is compared to parliaments with an overwatch body like the case of the US House of Representatives. Voter Turnout in European Elections and the Impact on Democratic Deficit With any democracy, the legitimacy of the leaders in power heavily relies upon the turnout of the voters during elections. The European Parliament has had some of the lowest levels of elections voter turnout hence the reduction in its democratic legitimacy. This is based on the fact that the turnout of the European Parliament elections has been declining consistently since its formation. However, the President of the European Union, Pat Cox, said that the 1999 European Parliament elections and a far much better turnout than the presidential elections in the United States. Compared, the voter turnout for the presidential elections in the United States in 1996 was 49%. However, the voter turnout in the European Parliament elections for 1999 was at 49.51 percent. For both types of elections, this turnout was among the very lowest. While both are at their lowest, it is difficult to use this as an excuse for the lack of democracy in the European Union. As a matter of fact, the case of the United States is very different from that of the European Union and the reasons for the low voter turnouts. For the European Union, the people have an option of whether to belong to the Union or not. And the way they can show their willingness to belong or not belong to the Union is through participating (or not participating) in its activities such as elections. The social aspect of the European Union, that of being accepted or rejected by the people, has been observed in the way the people have turned out in low numbers at each European Parliament vote[11]. The massive lack of knowledge for the common citizen of the European Union has led to the lack of participation by the voters. On the other hand, the United States electorate can have a low voter turnout for many other reasons none (or very little) of which is being against the union that is the United States. As it is, the European Union is not a very effective and efficient democracy given that its workings are not in line even with the developing democracies of the world. First, it is torn between being a government, and an international organisation. Secondly, the citizens, having seen that the democracy of the Union does not work (and it is too complex to understand), are increasingly ceasing to buy into the idea of the European Union being there to improve their lives through fostering democracy. Democratic Deficit and the Council of the European Union Another organ of the European Union is the Council of the European Union. This Council is also part of the efforts of the union to foster democracy among the member states. Its primary role is acting as the voice of the member governments of the EU while adopting the laws European Union and coordinating the polices of the union as well. Depending on the policies of the union, the government ministers of the members states are the members or the Council of the European Union. The presidency of the Council is held on a rotating basis (among the states) with each president holding the office for 6 months only. The Council carries out voting on legislation and discussions with both exercises being held in public. The decisions are based on a qualified majority whereby at least 55% of the countries (which is about 65% of the total population of the European Union) are required. In blocking a decision, 4 nations are needed (being the equivalent of 35% of the European Union population). For issues that are of an administrative and procedural nature require a simple majority while a unanimous vote is needed for the very sensitive topics such as taxation and foreign policy. While the structure of the Council of the European Union seems to read democracy all through it, the same weaknesses that plague the European Parliament plague it hence it is just another example of democratic deficit in the EU. For one, own-initiative reports from either the European Parliament or the Council of the European Union do not have legal consequences as such to the member states. Also, both bodies cannot play major roles in the amendment and repealing of legislation that is already in place. Lastly, and most importantly, the bodies do not address the needs of the citizens of the member nations. Looking at the structure of the European Union, it is easy to conclude that the reason it has not met the needs of the citizens is because there is too much bureaucracy between the top organs of the Union and the common citizens for the member states. The organs are too separated from the citizens in that the decision made take a very long route to reach the citizen. The representatives also have to make decisions which serve the needs of the Union and those of their respective countries; an issue which often introduces a conflict of interest. What the European Union has Done to Better Democratic Legitimacy All the concerns expressed here about the democratic legitimacy of the European Union have been expressed before by various persons and bodies and they have been heard by the people at the helm of the Union. For this reason, the Union has put in place various changes to the constitution with the focus being on doing away with the noted weaknesses in the laws and constitution of the Union in general. Among the changes made include the introduction of the Maastricht Treaty. This was a landmark treaty which is credited with the introduction of citizenship of the European Union. This citizenship would grant EU citizens voting rights to the European Parliament in each of their countries. Even municipal elections of the European Union were also included in the treaty. The treaty would also introduce co-decision procedure in which the European Parliament was given powers that gave it an equal footing to the Council of the European Union in making legislative decisions[12]. These steps would make the European Parliament much more functional and powerful but not powerful enough to overcome the issues of being a purely democratic entity.   The other change made to the constitution of the European Union is the Treaty of Lisbon. Becoming effective from the 1st of December 2009, the treaty saw to better representation of the EU citizens both directly in the European Parliament and indirectly through the Council of the European Union. This was meant to foster democracy and representation. The treaty would also see to the implementation and acceptance of the co-decision procedure as the primary procedure for the legislative dealings of the Union. The Treaty of Lisbon is also credited with tremendously increasing the powers of the European Parliament by a large extent[13]. One of the main areas in which the Treaty of Lisbon helped focus on the EU citizens was in giving the citizens the right to make petitions to the European Parliament concerning any matters of material effect[14]. This increased the powers of the citizen and their levels of participating in the making of decisions. Further on, the treaty would ensure th at Council of the European Union meetings which discussed public matters are made public for all to see. In this way, the citizens can better understand the debates and the workings of the European Union. The Treaty of Lisbon also receives credit for improving on the role played by the national parliaments of the member nations in putting in place the laws and legislations of the Union[15]. Lastly, the Treaty of Lisbon is credited with giving the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union full legal effect. This meant that various steps taken by the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, and the European Parliament would have full legal effect in areas where they apply[16]. Conclusion The workings of the European Union in seeking democracy have been so far ineffective on various levels as observed above. While there is intention from the leaders of the European Union to remedy these weaknesses in the workings of the Union, the fundamental reason why there have been low levels of success when it comes to attaining democracy for all citizens is its structure. It aims to operate like a government yet at its basic form it is an amalgamation of governments. Each of these governments have different needs, goals, histories and fundamental principles. The rest is that the leaders of each country first take care of their countries’ needs before those of the European Union. Also, its structure makes it difficult to make laws that will lead to better governance as each piece of legislation needs to have the needs of the many member states at heart. With time, it can be hoped that better legislation will be enabled for all the democracy to be attained. References Avbelj, M. 2005. Can the New European Constitution Remedy the EU Democratic Deficit?. EUMAP.org Campbell, M (2012) The Democratic Deficit of the European Union. Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union, p. 25. Castro, C. (2015). Assessing the Democratic Deficit in the EU: towards a Participatory Approach. RIPS, 14 (1), p. 63. Craig, P; Grainne De; P. P. Craig (2007). Chapter 11 Human rights in the EU. EU Law: Text, Cases and Materials (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 379. Dilek, K. (2011). The Problem of â€Å"Democratic Deficit† in the European Union. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 1 (5) p. 244. Electoral Reform Society — Close the Gap — Tackling Europes democratic deficit. European Parliament: Relations with National Parliaments. Innerarity, D (2015). The Inter-Democratic Deficit of the European Union: The Governance of Europes Economic, Political and Legal Transformation. Pp. 173-174. Kelemen, R. (2012). The Rules of Federalism: Institutions and Regulatory Politics in the EU and Beyond. Harvard University Press. pp. 21–22. Milev, M. (2004) A ‘Democratic Deficit’ in the European Union? Master Thesis, I.H.E.I. p. 10. Schà ¼tze, R (2012). European Constitutional Law. Cambridge University Press. p. 99. [1] Castro, C. (2015). Assessing the Democratic Deficit in the EU: towards a Participatory Approach. RIPS, 14 (1), p. 63. [2] Milev, M. (2004) A ‘Democratic Deficit’ in the European Union? Master Thesis, I.H.E.I. p. 10 [3] Milev (2004), pp. 11-12. [4] Dilek, K. (2011). The Problem of â€Å"Democratic Deficit† in the European Union. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 1 (5) p. 244 [5] Castro, C. (2005), p. 66. [6] Innerarity, D (2015). The Inter-Democratic Deficit of the European Union: The Governance of Europes Economic, Political and Legal Transformation. Pp. 173-174 [7] Campbell, M (2012) The Democratic Deficit of the European Union. Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union, p. 25. [8] Electoral Reform Society — Close the Gap — Tackling Europes democratic deficit. [9] Kelemen, R. (2012). The Rules of Federalism: Institutions and Regulatory Politics in the EU and Beyond. Harvard University Press. pp. 21–22. [10] Charlemagne. 2013. A democratic nightmare: Seeking to confront the rise of Eurosceptics and fill the democratic deficit. The Economist. [11] Avbelj, M. 2005. Can the New European Constitution Remedy the EU Democratic Deficit?. EUMAP.org [12] Schà ¼tze, R (2012). European Constitutional Law. Cambridge University Press. pp. 31–32. [13] Schà ¼tze, R (2012). European Constitutional Law. Cambridge University Press. pp. 43–44 [14] Schà ¼tze, R (2012). European Constitutional Law. Cambridge University Press. p. 99. [15] European Parliament: Relations with National Parliaments. [16] Craig, P; Grainne De Burca; P. P. Craig (2007). Chapter 11 Human rights in the EU. EU Law: Text, Cases and Materials (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 379.

La Cultura Cubana Essay -- Essays Papers

La Cultura Cubana Yo sueno con los ojos abiertos, y de dia y noche siempre sueno y sobre las espumas del ancho mar revuelto y por entre las crespas arenas del desierto... ~Jose Marti The media has always been one of the most important ways that human beings communicate. It is a form of personal and political expression that reveals important and intimate information about a culture. In the case of Cuba, where society is influenced by many peoples, and political alignments are in constant reform, culture is very rich. By examining the information presented in the media and the public's reaction to it, the heart of a nation is revealed and the world is brought closer together through television, newspapers and radio. In Cuba, the mass media â€Å"are an essential channel for mass mobilization and control, management of domestic conflict, and the maintenance of the Cuban revolutionary process† (Nichols, 71). The media is a force often employed by the revolutionary government; the New York Times described it as the â€Å"government of television†(71). However, it is not a government of exclusively television communications: radio and print media reach virtually the entire population and television reaches most (Nichols, 72). All television and radio stations are controlled by one central government agency, the ICRT. There are more than one hundred newspapers and magazines published independently by separate government run organizations: â€Å"it would not be and exaggeration to say that most organizations have their own publication† (Luis, 66). Regardless of which agency is in control, all media in Cuba in controlled by the government (Nichols, 75). This has an enormous eff... ... Despite the embargo with the United States and government control of all forms of communication, the flow of knowledge cannot be stopped. With the flow of information comes the ability to think and to learn, the hunger for knowledge in Cuba is strong. People seek out the media and respond to it. Cuba is a nation that is rich in intellect, culture and diversity and this is reflected in all their interactions and forms communication. Works Cited 1. Casablanca. Ed. Dolgin, Gail and Franco, Vincente. Videocasettte. San Francisco: Cuba Va Video Project, 1993. 2. Luis, William. Culture and Customs of Cuba. Westport, Ct: Greenwood Press, 2001. 3. Hichols, John Spencer, â€Å"The Mass Media: their functions in social conflict†. Cuba and Internal Affairs. Ed. Dominguez, Jorge I. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1982. 71-106.

The Rhetoric of Terror Essay -- Essays Papers

The Rhetoric of Terror From the writer: In the wake of September 11, the United States retreated into intense patriotism. However, love for this country is something more than hanging an American flag outside your home. True love of America is something more; it is civic virtue, practicing good citizenship. Vote on Election Day, read the newspaper and write letters to members of Congress. Failing to take advantage of freedom and democracy may lead to the rise of evil. From the teacher, Vivian Rice: The events of September 11, 2001, dramatically affected the work in many of our writing classes during the 2001-2002 academic year. For many students from that morning on, the semester was an emotional time of worry, grief, and finally questioning. Joshua Lax’s essay was written in response to a research argument assignment. Lax used the opportunity to consider why and how Osama bin Laden was able to inspire his followers to accept his vision of the world. Lax draws on his understanding of the theory of media and propaganda from his Newhouse classes as well as our class’s activities in writing this piece. From the editor, Patrick Dacey: Joshua Lax rips through the images that have plagued Americans since September 11th. But he does not antagonize the media; instead he focuses on how propaganda, rhetoric, and language are used to produce social change. The piece reveals reasons why America has become a target for war through the power of an outspoken, persuasive leader. Whether your opinions on the war are different, based on fear, or just hidden; Lax does not shy away from his views and uses powerful research to make his opinions known, and in a sense, justified. The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in ... ....S. Department of State. Bureau of Public Affairs. 25 November 2001 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/. "Encyclopedia Britannica: Lebanon." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 25 November 2001 http://www.search.eb.com/bol/topic?tmap_id=118138000&tmap_typ=gd. Finch, Lynette. "Psychological Propaganda: The War of Ideas During the First Half of the Twentieth Century." Armed Forces & Society: An Interdisciplinary Journal 26.3 (2000): 367. Plato. "Gorgias." The Collected Dialogues of Plato. Ed. Edith Hamilton and Huntington Cairns. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1961. 229-307. Ranstorp, Magnus. "Terrorism in the Name of Religion." Journal of International Affairs 50.1 (1996): 41-63. Shomar, David. "United States and the Muslim World: How We See Each Other." The University Forum: The Global Response to Terrorism. Byrd Library, Syracuse. 18 October 2001.

Media Supporting Information Technology

? ROLE OF MEDIA TO PROMOTE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ROLE OF MEDIA TO PROMOTE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SUBMITTED TO: Ms. Tazeen Erum, Faculty Business Communication Institute of Business Management SUBMITTED BY: Hozefa Rasool, (MBA-IM) Ather Khan, (MBA-IM) September 02, 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction A. Introduction to Information Technology 1. Application of Information Technology. B. Historical Background. 1. Pre-Mechanical Age 2. Mechanical Age 3. Electro Mechanical Age. 4. Electronics Age. C. Introduction to Media 1. Forms & Applications of Media II. Media Promoting Information Technology A. Broadcasting Revolution B. Printing as |Stronger Media C. Virtual University D. Efficient Media Reporting E. Electronic Newspaper III. Analysis of Infra-Structure IV. References September 02, 2007 Ms. Tazeen Erum, Faculty Business Communication Institute of Business Management Korangi Creek Karachi. Dear Ms. Erum: Here is the report on â€Å"Role of Media to Promote IT,† which you assigned us on August 5, 2007 at Iobm. I hope you find our effort according to your requirments and expectations. The contents of this report prove that Media has been major player in the promotion of IT. The report is based on our observations, technical know how and various sources which have been mentioned at the end of this report. Humanity has progressed from agricultural revolution to the industrial revolution and is now moving to an information revolution, where knowledge is the prime resource for production of goods and services. Just as machines have extended man's mechanical power and his convenience and comfort. The invention of printing was the first big break-through in Information Technology. It enabled literacy and education to go up from 10% to over 80% within 50 years by making available vast amount of reading material. That reading also led to the Reformation in Europe. Other break-through for Information Technology were the inventions like telegraphy, telephony, wireless or radio, television, broadcasting, computers (from room size to desk top to lap top to palm top and very soon, wearable ones. ) Information Technology as commonly picturised by computers, is extending man's mind or brain or intellectual power. Information Technology devices like microprocessors are becoming mass appliances from pace makers for the heart, hearing aids, and efficiency enhancers in automobile engines and devices to steer space vehicles on the moon. The computing power in the few micro processors that are now in a Ford Motor Car is much more than all the computing power that was put in the space vehicle that landed the first men on the moon and brought them back. I hope the report will be self explanatory, if not or you have any ambiguity, please contact us [email  protected] om Sincerely Hozefa Rasool Ather Khan INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Information technology (IT), as defined by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), is â€Å"the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of computer-based information systems, particularly software applications and computer hardware. † In short, IT deals with the use of electronic computers and computer software to convert, store, protect, process, transmit and retrieve information, securely. Recently it has become popular to broaden the term to explicitly include the field of electronic communication so that people tend to use the abbreviation ICT (Information and Communications Today, the term information technology has ballooned to encompass many aspects of computing and technology, and the term is more recognizable than ever before. The information technology umbrella can be quite large, covering many fields. IT professionals perform a variety of duties that range from installing applications to designing complex computer networks and information databases. A few of the duties that IT professionals perform may include: Data management Computer networking Computer engineering Database systems design Software design Management information systems Systems management or System administration The use of information technology is penetrating a still wider part of human life, linking areas of human life and making different media and technologies converge and dissolve into new ones, broadening the scope of interest for ISD research accordingly. Various academic disciplines deal with issues related to the use and development of information technology: information systems research, human-computer interaction, computer supported collaborative work, theoretical computer science etc. As these disciplines are getting more and more intertwined and interdependent the need for an integrating conceptual basis is becoming urgent. The hypothesis behind the present collection of papers is that activity theory is such a suitable theoretical basis. Ultimately, information technology is about some familiar ideas: Improved access to information Increased staff productivity Lower operations costs APPLICATIONS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Because new technologies such as personal computers are complex and an element of uncertainty exists in the minds of decision makers with respect to the successful adoption of them, people form attitudes and intentions toward trying to learn to use the new technology prior to initiating efforts directed at using. Attitudes towards usage and intentions to use may be ill-formed or lacking in conviction or else may occur only after preliminary strivings to learn to use the technology evolve. Thus, actual usage may not be a direct or immediate consequence of such attitudes and intentions. (Bagozzi et al. 1992) PC Revolution is now well into its third decade and the continuing improvements in the user friendliness of PCs and Macs, printers and scanners, and software and the Internet has been enormous. The major application areas of Information Technology are briefly described. Data Management Data management comprises all the disciplines related to managing data as a valuable resource. The official definition provided by DAMA is that â€Å"Data Resource Management is the development and execution of architectures, policies, practices and procedures that properly manage the full data lifecycle needs of an enterprise. † This definition is fairly broad and encompasses a number of professions which may not have direct technical contact with lower-level aspects of data management, such as relational database management. Computer Networking Computer networking is the engineering discipline concerned with communication between computer systems or devices. Communicating computer systems constitute a computer network and these networks generally involve at least two devices capable of being networked with at least one usually being a computer. The devices can be separated by a few meters (e. g. via Bluetooth) or nearly unlimited distances (e. g. via the Internet). Computer networking is sometimes considered a sub-discipline of telecommunication, and sometimes of computer science, information technology and computer engineering. Computer networks rely heavily upon the theoretical and practical application of these scientific and engineering disciplines. Examples of networks are the Internet, or a small home local area network (LAN) with two computers connected with standard networking cables connecting to a network interface card in each computer. Data Base Management System The Data Base Management System accepts requests for data from the application program and instructs the operating system to transfer the appropriate data. When a DBMS is used, information systems can be changed much more easily as the organization's information requirements change. New categories of data can be added to the database without disruption to the existing system. Organizations may use one kind of DBMS for daily transaction processing and then move the detail onto another computer that uses another DBMS better suited for random inquiries and analysis. Overall systems design decisions are performed by data administrators and systems analysts. Detailed database design is performed by database administrators. Computer Software Computer Software of programs, enables a computer to perform specific tasks, as opposed to its physical components (hardware) which can only do the tasks they are mechanically designed for. The term includes application software such as word processors which perform productive tasks for users, system software such as operating systems, which interface with hardware to run the necessary services for user-interfaces and applications, and middleware which controls and co-ordinates distributed systems. Management Information System Management Information Systems (MIS) is a general name for the academic discipline covering the application of people, technologies, and procedures. Collectively called information systems, to solve business problems. MIS are distinct from regular information systems in that they are used to analyze other information systems applied in operational activities in the organization. Academically, the term is commonly used to refer to the group of information management methods tied to the automation or support of human decision making, e. g. Decision Support Systems, Expert systems, and Executive information systems. Computer Simmulation A computer simulation, a computer model or a computational model is a computer program that attempts to simulate an abstract model of a particular system. Computer simulations have become a useful part of mathematical modelling of many natural systems in physics, chemistry and biology, human systems in economics, psychology, and social science and in the process of engineering new technology, to gain insight into the operation of those systems. Traditionally, the formal modeling of systems has been via a mathematical model, which attempts to find analytical solutions to problems which enables the prediction of the behaviour of the system from a set of parameters and initial conditions. Computer simulations build on, and are a useful adjunct to purely mathematical models in science, technology and entertainment. HISTORY OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY History of Information Technology is Characterized by a principal technology used to solve the input, processing, output and communication problems of the time: 1. Pre-mechanical 2. Mechanical 3. Electromechanical and 4. Electronic THE PRE-MECHANICAL AGE: 3000 B. C. – 1450 A. D. A. Writing and Alphabets–communication. 1. First humans communicated only through speaking and picture drawings. 2. 3000 B. C. the Sumerians in Mesopotamia (what is today southern Iraq) devised uniform 3. Around 2000 B. C. , Phoenicians created symbols 4. The Greeks later adopted the Phoenician alphabet and added vowels; the Romans gave the letters Latin names to create the alphabet we use today. B. Paper and Pens–input technologies. 1. Sumerians' input technology was a stylus that could scratch marks in wet clay. 2. About 2600 B . C. , the Egyptians write on the papyrus plant 3. Around 100 A. D. , the Chinese made paper from rags, on which modern-day papermaking is based. C. Books and Libraries: Permanent Storage Devices. . Religious leaders in Mesopotamia kept the earliest â€Å"books† 2. The Egyptians kept scrolls 3. Around 600 B. C. , the Greeks began to fold sheets of papyrus vertically into leaves and bind them together. D. The First Numbering Systems. 1. Egyptian system: The numbers 1-9 as vertical lines, the number 10 as a U or circle, the number 100 as a coiled rope, and the number 1,000 as a lotus blossom. 2. The first numbering systems similar to those in use today were invented between 100 and 200 A. D. by Hindus in India who created a nine-digit numbering system. 3. Around 875 A. D. the concept of zero was developed. THE MECHANICAL AGE: 1450 – 1840 A. The First Information Explosion. 1. Johann Gutenberg (Mainz, Germany), invented the movable metal-type printing process in 1450. 2. The development of book indexes and the widespread use of page numbers. B. The first general purpose â€Å"computers† 1. Actually people who held the job title â€Å"computer: one who works with numbers. † A. Slide Rules, the Pascaline and Leibniz's Machine. 1. Slide Rule. Early 1600s, William Oughtred, an English clergyman, invented the slide rule Early example of an analog computer. . The Pascaline. Invented by Blaise Pascal (1623-62). The Electromechanical Age: 1840 – 1940 The discovery of ways to harness electricity was the key advance made during this period. Knowledge and information could now be converted into electrical impulses. A. The Beginnings of Telecommunication. 1. Voltaic Battery: late 18th century. 2. Telegraph: Early 1800s. 3. Telephone and Radio: Alexander Graham Bell. 1876 4. Followed by the discovery that electrical waves travel through space and can produce an effect far from the point at which they originated. 5. These two events led to the invention of the radio: Guglielmo Marconi. 1894 B. Electromechanical Computing 1. Herman Hollerith and IBM. 2. The International Business Machines Corporation (IBM). 3. Paper tape stored data and program instructions. THE ELECTRONIC AGE: 1940 – PRESENT. A. First Tries: Early 1940’s, Electronic vacuum tubes. B. Eckert and Mauchly. 1. The First High-Speed, General-Purpose Computer Using Vacuum Tubes: Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) The ENIAC team (Feb 14, 1946). Left to right: J. Presper Eckert, Jr. ; John Grist Brainerd; Sam Feltman; Herman H. Goldstine; John W. Mauchly; Harold Pender; Major General G. L. Barnes; Colonel Paul N. Gillon. 2. The First Stored-Program Computer: The Manchester University Mark I (prototype). 3. The First General-Purpose Computer for Commercial Use: Universal Automatic Computer. B. The Four Generations of Digital Computing. I. The Second Generation (1959-1963). 1. Vacuum tubes replaced by transistors as main logic element. AT's Bell Laboratories, in the 1940s Crystalline mineral materials called semiconductors could be used in the design of a device called a transistor 2. Magnetic tape and disks began to replace punched cards as external storage devices. 3. Magnetic cores (very small donut-shaped magnets that could be polarized in one of two directions to represent data) strung on wire within the computer became the primary internal storage technology. II. The Third Generation (1964-1979): Advanced programming languages like BASIC developed. III. The Fourth Generation (1979- Present). INTRODUCTION TO MEDIA †Materials that holds and transmit data in any form including Newspapers, Multimedia Presentations, Disk Drives, Optical disks, Magnetic Tape, Cable and many more. In other definition Media is defined as, â€Å"Messages that are distributed through the technologies, principally text in books, study guides and computer networks; sound in audio-tapes and broadcast: pictures in video-tapes and broadcast; text, sound and/or pictures in a teleconference are termed under Media. † There are three main types of media: Print Electronic Published FORMS & APPLICATIONS OF MEDIA Journalism Journalism is a discipline of collecting, analyzing, verifying, and presenting information regarding current events, trends, issues and people. Those who practice journalism are known as journalists. News-oriented journalism is sometimes described as the â€Å"first rough draft of history† (attributed to Phil Graham), because journalists often record important events, producing news articles on short deadlines. While under pressure to be first with their stories, news media organizations usually edit and proofread their reports prior to publication, adhering to each organization's standards of accuracy, quality and style. Many news organizations claim proud traditions of holding government officials and institutions accountable to the public, while media critics have raised questions about holding the press itself accountable. Broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video signals to a number of recipients (â€Å"listeners† or â€Å"viewers†) that belong to a large group. This group may be the public in general, or a relatively large audience within the public. Thus, an Internet channel may distribute text or music worldwide, while a public address system in; for example, a workplace may broadcast very limited ad hoc SoundBits to a small population within its range. The sequencing of content in a broadcast is called a schedule. Internet The Internet (also known simply as â€Å"the Net† or â€Å"the Web†) can be briefly understood as â€Å"a network of networks†. Specifically, it is the worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP). It consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and governmental networks, which together carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pages and other documents of the World Wide Web. Advertising Advertising is paid, one-way communication through a medium in which the sponsor is identified and the message is controlled. Variations include publicity, public relations, product placement, sponsorship, underwriting, and sales promotion. Every major medium is used to deliver these messages, including: television, radio, movies, magazines, newspapers, the Internet and billboards. Advertisements can also be seen on the seats of grocery carts, on the walls of an airport walkway, on the sides of buses, heard in telephone hold messages and in-store public address systems. Advertisements are usually placed anywhere an audience can easily and/or frequently access visuals and/or audio. MEDIA PROMOTING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Just as chemical or metallurgical or electrical technologies enable the processing of raw materials into usable goods, to satisfy man's and societies' needs so does information technology help the storage, processing, transmission and exploitation of information to satisfy a person's, company's, society's or government's needs for information. The invention of printing was the first big break-through in Information Technology. It enabled literacy and education to go up from 10% to over 80% within 50 years by making available vast amount of reading material. That reading also led to the Reformation in Europe. Other break-through for Information Technology were the inventions like telegraphy, telephony, wireless or radio, television, broadcasting, computers (from room size to desk top to lap top to palm top) BROADCASTING REVOLUTION Digital audio and digital video have revolutionized broadcast engineering in many respects. Broadcast studios and control rooms are now already digital in large part, using non-linear editing and digital signal processing for what used to take a great deal of time or money, if it was even possible at all. Mixing consoles for both audio and video are continuing to become more digital in the 21st Century, as is the computer storage used to keep digital media libraries. Effects processing and TV graphics can now be done much more easily and professionally as well. Other devices used in broadcast engineering are telephone hybrids, broadcast delays, and dead air alarms. See the glossary of broadcast engineering terms for further explanations. PRINTING AS STRONGER MEDIA Within fifty or sixty years of the invention of the printing press, the entire classical canon had been reprinted and widely promulgated throughout Europe. Now that more people had access to knowledge both new and old, more people could discuss these works. Furthermore, now that book production was a more commercial enterprise, the first copyright laws were passed to protect what we now would call intellectual property rights. A second outgrowth of this popularization of knowledge was the decline of Latin as the language of most published works, to be replaced by the vernacular language of each area, increasing the variety of published works. Paradoxically, the printing word also helped to unify and standardize the spelling and syntax of these vernaculars, in effect ‘decreasing' their variability. This rise in importance of national languages as opposed to pan-European Latin is cited as one of the causes of the rise of nationalism in Europe. VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY The Virtual University is based completely on modern Information and Communication Technologies. It provides extremely affordable world class education to aspiring students all over the country. Using free-to-air satellite television broadcasts and the Internet, the Virtual University allows students to follow its rigorous programs regardless of their physical locations. It thus aims at alleviating the lack of capacity in the existing universities while simultaneously tackling the acute shortage of qualified professors in the country. By identifying the  top Professors of the country, regardless of their institutional affiliations, and requesting them to develop and deliver hand-crafted courses, the Virtual University aims at providing the very best courses to not only its own students but also to students of all universities worldwide. EFFICIENT MEDIA REPORTING As newspapers, magazines, trade publications and newsletters creep on to the Web; this swells the demand for reporters, who can keystroke simple sentences and strings of numbers. New media positions do not increase the job market for journalists. For this purpose, reporting is defined as nuts-and-bolts, no-nonsense information-gathering and packaging. Reporting wants just the facts. Journalism entails investigation, explanation and a point of view. Journalists are story-tellers, fascinated with the human experience, alert to the drama of conflict and struggle, infinitely curious about the motives and meanings behind events. Reporters use nouns and verbs as blunt utilitarian instruments. Journalists indulge in figures of speech; they use words as symbols, to evoke empathy, indignation, pity or anger. Most of what appears in Star or the National Enquirer is journalism, albeit of a very ripe kind. Most of Investor's Business Daily is reporting. ELECTRONIC NEWSPAPER In the late 1990’s newspapers began offering their content on the Internet in record numbers. By the end of the decade, more than 1,000 North American newspapers offered online versions, most available to Internet users free of charge. Electronic newspapers spared publishers one of their highest expenses—newsprint—and many brought publishers additional advertising revenue. Today Newspapers on the web offers readers the same content as its print publication as well as stories and features available only in its online version. ANALYSIS OF INFRA-STRUCTURE The government firmly believes in bringing the Pakistani media at par with the international standards and a total of 52 media development projects are being launched in the year 2007-08 with record allocation of six billion rupees, according to Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Muhammad Ali Durrani. Rs. 148. 039 million has been earmarked for the media development projects in NWFP, which demonstrates the government’s firm resolves to take all the federating units along in the development process. The Laram Top RBS has been established at the cost of Rs. 27. 97 million and is designed to serve around 450,000 people, while the RBS at Bajaur Agency, established with the total cost of 34. 733 million, is expected to cover 75,000 households, he said. The projects will not only carry the benefits of the modern age to distant regions of the country but will also bring affordable entertainment at the doorsteps for the common public. Islamabad Media University will be launched in the federal capital within next two months at a cost of Rs. 500 million, followed by setting up of its provincial campuses, including the Peshawar campus, in the second phase. Media University will not only offer specialized courses in media and journalism but will also initiate various research projects on media related issues. Rs. 35. 55 million will be spent to ensure full FM Radio coverage on Motorways sections M-1 which links Peshawar with Islamabad, and M-2, connecting Islamabad to Lahore. FM facility on the motorways will not only make the 500 KM-long journey from Peshawar to Lahore informative and pleasant but will also provide better opportunities to the media sector to expand itself in those gaps which are desperately needed to be filled in. Beside s this, up-linking stations will also be established in Islamabad as well as in all the provincial capitals, including Peshawar, which will cost around 49. 81 million rupees. These up-linking facilities would provide efficient and high quality information flow between the network and the subscriber. Snap-shot of Current Pakistan IT and Communication are stated below: TV sets70 million Cable Connections 35 million Daily/Periodical Papers 1500 Telephone Connections 65 million Mobile Connections 95 million Internet Connections 1 million References Internews Asia Pacific; www. internews. org/regions/asia/default. shtm The Media Handbook; by Hellen E Katz, 2003 Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority; www. pemra. gov. pk Pakistan Telecommunication Authority; www. pta. gov. pk Statistics Bureau of Pakistan; www. statpak. gov. pk Media Technology and everyday life in Europe; Roger Silverstone, 2005. World Bank; www. worldbank. org Wikipedia Encyclopedia; www. wikipedia. com University of Alabama, Dept. of Telecom and Film; http://www. tcf. ua. edu/AZ/ITHistoryOutline. htm. University of Arhus, Dept. of Computer Science; denmarkhttp://www. cs. aau. dk/SJIS/journal/volumes/volume12/articles/01-intro_p3-14. pdf.