...The Conditional Acquittal: On a Supposed Contradiction in Plato’s Apology and Crito Ben Blanks, Lynchburg College (Editor’s note: This essay by Ben Blanks is the winner of the North Award for the best paper in the 2012 Agora. Ben presented an earlier version of this paper at the ACTC Student Conference at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, in March, 2011.) When reading the Apology and the Crito of Plato, one inevitably comes upon a seeming fundamental contradiction between the two dialogues. The Apology presents readers with a defiant Socrates who declares in his trial that, if acquitted on the condition that he never philosophize again, he would continue to practice philosophy in spite of the jury’s order to the contrary: . . . if you said to me in this regard: “Socrates, we do not believe Anytus now; we acquit you, but only on condition that you spend no more time on this investigation and do not practice philosophy, and if you are caught doing so you will die”; if, as I say, you were to acquit me on those terms, I would say to you: “Men of Athens, I am grateful and I am your friend, but I will obey the god rather than you, and as long as I draw breath and am able, I shall not cease to practice philosophy . . . (29c-d).1 The passage from the Apology seems to present a defiant argument for civil disobedience in the face of injustice. In the Crito, however, when given a chance to escape prison and his upcoming execution, Socrates reasons that such an action would...
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...Socrates Philosopher Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, Wikipedia “Personal background” Born: 469 BC, Athens, Greece Died:399 BC, Athens, Greece Full name: Socrates Nationality: Greek Era: Ancient philosophy Region: Western philosophy School: Classical Greek Main interests: Epistemology, ethics Notable idea: SocraticMethod, Socratic irony Influenced: Most subsequent Western philosophy; more specifically, Plato, Aristotle, Aristippus, Antisthenes Spouse:Xanthippe Children:Menexenus, Lamprocles, Sophroniscus Aristotle Philosopher Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great “Personal background” Born: 384 BC Stagira, Chalcidice Died: 322 BC (aged 61 or 62) Euboea Nationality: Greek Era: Ancient philosophy Region: Western philosophy School: Peripatetic schoolAristotelianism Main interests: Physics, Metaphysics, Poetry, Theatre, Music, Rhetoric, Politics, Government, Ethics, Biology, and Zoology Notable ideas: Golden mean, Aristotelian logic, syllogism, hexis, homomorphism, Aristotle's theory of soul Plato Philosopher Plato was a philosopher in Classical Greece. He was also a mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western...
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...The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living “The unexamined life is not worth living,” is a familiar saying that Socrates said at his trial for heresy, that is, encouraging his students to challenge the accepted beliefs and think of themselves instead and this led to his death sentence. Socrates could have avoided death by choosing life in prison or exile but he refused claiming that, these alternatives will prevent him from examining the world around him and see how to make the world a better place. He argued that with the absence of his examined life will, there was no value of living. Therefore, Socrates claimed that for a human being to live a worthy life, everyone should question, examine and re-examine the values of their lives daily (Kamtekar, 154). This paper explores the meaning and the significance of the Socrates claim that “the unexamined life is not worth living” focusing on the Apology and Euthyphro. The words, ‘the unexamined life is not worth living’ by Socrates comes from Plato’s Apology when Socrates is sentenced to death after being accused of corrupting the youth and impiety (Ahbel-Rappe & Rachana, 229). Patterson posits that apology is one historical account of Socrates’ defense during his trial (Patterson, 16), and these words appear at the end of the Apology when Socrates is going through possible punishments for charges against him. Socrates utters these words when the jury has already found him guilty and has to decide on what kind of punishment to impose...
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...decision making and leadership skills. The summation of findings concludes that the values and virtues required of an ethical leader is far more extensive than I originally thought and is not limited to the primary three that I have chosen to argue. Major financial tragedies like the 2008 financial crisis, can only be attributed to unethical decision making. I believe there can be a definitive list, but not limited to, three primary value/virtues of an ethical leader. In the following report I intend to argue for what I believe to be the three values/virtues of leaders ( as section headings) who possess not great decisions making skills, but one step beyond that into ethical decision making skills. I will argue my position through a brief analysis of situations in which a single decision gave way to a multitude of unethical behaviours and even tragedy through cases in which social contract theories suffered unethical justifications. I believe good leadership is borne through going beyond the necessary into what the French call and Japanese have adopted “noblesse oblige”, roughly translates into, those of positions of power or respect have an obligation to protect those less fortunate even in intellectual ways. “noblesse oblige - the obligation...
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...Visual Analysis Essay: “The Death of Socrates” by Jacques Louis David As the highlight of the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century, the French Revolution not only changed many structures and beliefs of society, but also had a considerable impact on the arts, specifically on the style and subject matter of art produced. The years leading up to the French Revolution, in particular, which were filled with change, can be fully understood and appreciated through one of the primary artists of this era, Jacques Louis David, and his magnum opus, “The Death of Socrates”. Painted in 1787, just two years before the Revolution commenced, David’s style focused on the morality and civic duty of man, while frequently incorporating a heavy...
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...Character Sketch MY FRIEND LIZ My friend Liz is the most amazing friend anybody could ask for. We’ve been through so much together, we’re basically like sisters. We met on the first day of school in sixth grade, both of us terrified by the massive size of the middle school. She had the locker right above mine. I told her I didn’t know anybody in our class and she said “You do now.” We’ve been friends ever since. Most boys think Liz is cute. She has long red hair, cascading over her shoulders. She laughs about everything and when she does, you see about a hundred white teeth – so bright, you almost need sunglasses. When she laughs, her eyes grow wide, glowing emerald green. Liz likes to dress kind of skater-ish, in camouflage pants, sweatshirts, and wristbands. But, she’s unpredictable, too. Sometimes she’ll wear overalls or a fancy dress. She must have three closets full of clothes, because she barely ever wears the same outfit twice. Liz is the most lively, animated character I’ve ever known. She’s always rushing around, trying to get the latest scoop on everybody. It’s like she’s in the FBI. Right before she shares important news, Liz tosses back her hair, takes a deep breath, and quickly looks side to side, to be sure the coast is clear. She never says anything mean about people, she just wants to know what’s going on. She always supports me in everything I want to do. Not many girls in our group of friends play sports, but when I told Liz I wanted to go out for basketball...
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...The Project Gutenberg EBook of Phaedo, by Plato This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: Phaedo The Last Hours Of Socrates Author: Plato Translator: Benjamin Jowett Release Date: October 29, 2008 [EBook #1658] Last Updated: January 15, 2013 Language: English Character set encoding: ASCII *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PHAEDO *** Produced by Sue Asscher, and David Widger PHAEDO By Plato Translated by Benjamin Jowett Contents INTRODUCTION.PHAEDO | INTRODUCTION. After an interval of some months or years, and at Phlius, a town of Peloponnesus, the tale of the last hours of Socrates is narrated to Echecrates and other Phliasians by Phaedo the 'beloved disciple.' The Dialogue necessarily takes the form of a narrative, because Socrates...
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...Political Obligation First published Tue Apr 17, 2007; substantive revision Fri Apr 30, 2010 To have a political obligation is to have a moral duty to obey the laws of one's country or state. On that point there is almost complete agreement among political philosophers. But how does one acquire such an obligation, and how many people have really done what is necessary to acquire it? Or is political obligation more a matter of being than of doing — that is, of simply being a member of the country or state in question? To those questions many answers have been given, and none now commands widespread assent. Indeed, a number of contemporary political philosophers deny that a satisfactory theory of political obligation either has been or can be devised. Others, however, continue to believe that there is a solution to what is commonly called “the problem of political obligation,” and they are presently engaged in lively debate not only with the skeptics but also with one another on the question of which theory, if any, provides the solution to the problem. Whether political obligation is the central or fundamental problem of political philosophy, as some have maintained (e.g., McPherson), may well be doubted. There is no doubt, however, that the history of political thought is replete with attempts to provide a satisfactory account of political obligation, from the time of Socrates to the present. These attempts have become increasingly sophisticated in recent years, but they have...
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...Becker, J. (2001) School investments in instructional technology. Teaching, learning, and computing report, report 8. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www.crito.uci.edu/tlc/findings/report_8/startpage.htm Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT). (2000) Influences and barriers to the adoption of instructional technology. In Proceedings of the mid-south instructional technology conference. Retrieved April, 20, 2008, from http://www.mtsu.edu/%7Eitconf/proceed00.htm Van Dusen, J. (2000) Integrating technology into the classroom: eight keys to success. J Technol Teach Educ 10(1):95–100 Perkins, L. (2001) Putting the pieces together. Paper presented at the international conference on learning with technology, does technology make a difference? Temple University, Philadelphia, March 2000 Erickson, N. (2002) Combining universal access with faculty development and academic facilities. Commun ACM 41(1):36–41. doi:10.1145/268092.268106 CrossRef Roblyer, L. (2007) Oversold and underused: computers in the classroom. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA 1. Glyn, P. (Winter 2005) High access and low use of technologies in high school classrooms: explaining an apparent paradox. Am Educ Res J 2. Debard R, Guidera S (2000) Adapting asynchronous communication to meet the seven principles of effective teaching. J Educ Technol Syst 28(3):219–230. doi:10.2190/W1U9-CB67-59W0-74LH CrossRef 3. Dede C (2000) Rethinking how to invest in technology...
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...Critical Analysis of The Apology of Socrates by Plato Socrates was an orator and philosopher whose primary interests were logic, ethics and epistemology. In Plato’s Apology of Socrates, Plato recounts the speech that Socrates gave shortly before his death, during the trial in 399 BC in which he was charged with "corrupting the young, and by not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, also being a busybody and intervene gods business". The name of the work itself is not mean what it is appeared; here, Socrates is not apologizing, but merely speaking in defense of his beliefs and actions – the word apology is used in the context of its original meaning. During this apology, Socrates attempts to explain himself and the decisions that led to his action, educating his audience in the philosophical questions he chooses to pose. Socrates does not try to avoid death in the trial; instead, his goal is to enlighten the public for the last time before his own passing. Socrates was always fascinated with the solving of questions, both big and small; his approach was to use the Socratic method of inquiry, wherein he would break the problem down into several questions, and then systematically find the answers to each question in order to find the larger answer. It was a methodical and practical approach to show his ultimate quest for seeking the true knowledge. He says, "His wisdom is truly worthless"; this is indicative of his unending search for more and more knowledge (Apology...
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...In Conjunction with History of Ethics Instructor: Robert Cavalier Teaching Professor Robert Cavalier received his BA from New York University and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Duquesne University. In 1987 he joined the staff at Carnegie Mellon's Center for Design of Educational Computing (CDEC), where he became Executive Director in 1991. While at CDEC, he was also co-principal in the 1989 EDUCOM award winner for Best Humanities Software (published in 1996 by Routledge as A Right to Die? The Dax Cowart Case). He also coauthored the CD-ROM The Issue of Abortion in America (Rountledge, 1998) Dr. Cavalier was Director of CMU's Center for the Advancement of Applied Ethics and Political Philosophy from 2005-2007. He currently directs the Center's Digital Media Lab which houses Project PICOLA (Public Informed Citizen Online Assembly), and is also co-Director of Southwestern Pennsylvania Program for Deliberative Democracy. Co-Editor of Ethics in the History of Western Philosophy (St. Martin's/Macmillan, England, 1990), Editor of The Impact of the Internet on Our Moral Lives (SUNY, 2003) and other works in ethics as well as articles in educational computing, Dr. Cavalier is internationally recognized for his work in education and interactive multimedia. He was President of the "International Association for Computing and Philosophy" (2001 - 2004) and Chair of the APA Committee on Philosophy and Computers (2000-2003). Dr. Cavalier has given numerous addresses and...
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...ACER: AN IT COMPANY ACER: AN IT COMPANY LEARNING TO USE INFORMATION LEARNING TO USE INFORMATION CENTER FOR RESEARCH ON INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ORGANIZATION University of California, Irvine 3200 Berkeley Place Irvine, California, 92697-4650 AUTHORS Jason Dedrick Kenneth L. Kraemer Tony Tsai October, 1999 Center for Research on Information Technology and Organizations TECHNOLOGY TO COMPETE Acknowledgement: This research has been supported by grants from the CISE/IRIS/CSS Division of the U.S. National Science Foundation, and the NSF Industry/University Cooperative Research Center, whose members include: ATL Products, The Boeing Company, Canon Information Systems, IBM Global Services, Nortel, Rockwell, Seagate Technology, Sun Microsystems and Systems Management Specialists (SMS). The authors would like to acknowledge the research assistance of Bryan MacQuarrie. They would also like to acknowledge the cooperation and assistance of numerous Acer Group executives and managers who agreed to be interviewed and provided vital data and information Acer_case_10-99.doc 2 Acer: An IT Company Learning to Use IT to Compete Jason Dedrick, Kenneth L. Kraemer, Tony Tsai I. INTRODUCTION Acer Computer is an unusual company in the personal computer industry. Companies such as Dell, Compaq and Gateway focus on designing, configuring, marketing and servicing PCs and increasingly leave the manufacturing to contract manufacturers and OEM producers. By contrast, Acer is a diversified...
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...METHODS OF TRAINING IN THE WORKPLACE James Danziger Debora Dunkle Center for Research on Information Technology and Organizations, School of Social Sciences University of California, Irvine CA 92697-4650 This research is part of the People, Organizations, and Information Technology project of the Center for Research on Information Technology and Organizations (CRITO) at the University of California, Irvine. This material is based upon work funded by the U.S. National Science foundation under Grant No. 0121232. Any opinions, findings and conclusions reflected in the material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Survey Brief METHODS OF TRAINING IN THE WORKPLACE “IN THIS BUSINESS, YOU ARE WHAT YOU KNOW! Keeping your skills and abilities up-to-date in today's on-demand environment is a critical component to your success. IBM now makes it easy for you to enjoy the technical training you need to maintain that edge!” IBM email, August 2005 Virtually all modern organizations accept that a well-trained workforce is a critical success factor. American organizations spend more than $62 billion per year on formal training of their employees. It is impossible to estimate the full costs of the additional informal training that occurs. Ability to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) is among the most important skills that many employees need. Yet there is more speculation than wellgrounded, factual...
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...CHAPTER 8 WHISTLEBLOWING AND EMPLOYEE LOYALTY* Three Mile Island. In early 1983, almost four years after the near meltdown at Unit 2, two officials in the Site Operations Office of General Public Utilities reported a reckless company effort to clean up the contaminated reactor. Under threat of physical retaliation from superiors, the GPU insiders released evidence alleging that the company had rushed the TMI cleanup without testing key maintenance systems. Since then, the Three Mile Island mop-up has been stalled pending a review of GPU’s management.1 The releasing of evidence of the rushed cleanup at Three Mile Island is an example of whistleblowing. Norman Bowie defines whistleblowing as “the act by an employee of informing the public on the immoral or illegal behavior of an employer or supervisor.”2 Ever since Daniel Elsberg’s release of the Pentagon Papers, the question of whether an employee should blow the whistle on his company or organization has become a hotly contested issue. Was Elsberg right? Is it right to report the shady or suspect practices of the organization one works for? Is one a stool pigeon or a dedicated citizen? Does a person have an obligation to the public that overrides his obligation to his employer or does he simply betray a loyalty and become a traitor if he reports his company? There are proponents on both sides of the issue––those who praise whistle-blowers as civic heroes and those who condemn them as “finks.” Glen and Shearer who wrote...
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...Design + Culture: New Directions for Interior Design Scholarship and Pedagogy Date: March 15-16, 2015 Fort Worth, Texas Guest Editor: Tasoulla Hadjiyanni Associate Professor, Interior Design University of Minnesota Title: Design as a malleable structure: Reframing the conceptual understanding of design and culture through George Kubler’s morphological approach to the history of things Author: Joori Suh, Assistant Professor, Interior Design Department, Iowa State University Under the banner of globalization and internationalization, what actually happens in design? Has today’s blended culture lost the identity unique to the context? What should be the interior design educator’s attitude toward teaching design and culture in the current age? We encounter dilemmas in global design, the results of which are sometimes almost identical regardless of unique settings because of our tendency to grasp design as a whole with respect to particular style or trend without fully apprehending the core and the deviation. Perceiving the entire design project as a mere symbolic expression also hinders our true understanding of design and culture. In this article, I attempt to answer fundamental questions regarding the complex, innate relationship between design and culture and suggest restructuring a conceptual framework applicable to related research and education that effectively reveals the multi faceted characteristics of design and culture in the present age. From the perspective of morphology...
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