Social Constructionism in Environmental Sociology Essay Example

Social Constructionism in Environmental Sociology Paper This construction of perceptions and meanings are what this essay is about. It is called social construction. The assay focuses more explicitly on the social construction Of environmental problems and issues. It does this by looking at examples of how and why certain societies can come to consider certain natural phenomena as environmental threats or issues, and asks the question of whether their perceptions are right or not. It focuses the concept of social constructionist and determines the relevance of it in environmental issues. It does this by looking at past findings of attempts at deconstructing the perceptions some societies have on their own identified environmental problems to be able to see if it helped with solutions to the problems. And lastly, it identifies criticism leveled against social constructionist in environmental sociology. All to support the following hypothesis: It is important to take the social construction aspect into consideration when looking at certain environmental problems to be able to identify hidden agendas when it comes to solving the perceived problems. But first, a brief definition of the social construction of environmental issues is necessary (As there are many- and some contradictory). It will serve as a foundation for building an understanding of what is going to be discussed. When something is socially constructed it then eggs the question of whether the threat or issue is in fact a real threat or issue because according to Hardballs and Holbrook a social construct is a product of social definitions, not natural, biological categories (2008: 752). We will write a custom essay sample on Social Constructionism in Environmental Sociology specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Social Constructionism in Environmental Sociology specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Social Constructionism in Environmental Sociology specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Now according to Marsh, Keating, Punch and Harden (2009) the environment as a concept, is always contested and changing and he says that it means different things to different populations at different times. What the social construction of environmental issues and problems then means is that people in different populations perceive an issue on the environment differently from one another. An environmental issue for one society may not be one for another society. It is because they constructed their realities independent from each other. The independent development of perceptions allowed several dominant social constructs about the environment to emerge as separate independent realities. These realities were shaped and formed by power players in each society. The power players that shape a societys opinion in contemporary lifer and therefore its perspective on things are among others the media, activists, [and] scientists (Marsh et al, 2009). The following examples will illustrate how environmental issues may come to be instructed and considered important in one society, but not in another. When the media of a particular population informs its members about the poor condition of their local water, the water may have been of poor quality even before the media announced it, but since the announcement was made it has been added to the members environmental reality. In effect of the announcement the people may start buying bottled water, local government would start addressing the issue, they could create jobs to fight the issue, and certain entrepreneurs may see potential for business. All of which that loud not have happened if the media did not bring the knowledge of it into the societys reality. In another society, the media may be focusing on how behind they are economically rather than writing about water quality. Even though it has a quality similar to the other society, people does not worry about it because people arent aware of it. In both societies people dont get sick when drinking the Water, but the one society gave it an environmental issue label because of the media coverage it got. Another example is where scientists does research on something that is not considered dangerous to he environment, but after which it becomes an issue. It happens because scientists usually have an elite status. They are considered experts in their fields, and most people do not have the knowledge or qualified degree to grant them alternative knowledge which would enable them to disregard scientists opinions and findings. So when a scientist, based on his own interpretations and gained knowledge, in one society declare something as an environmental issue, the people generally respond with acceptance. Another example of a construct of an environmental issue is one from an article based n dingo management on an Australian island (Heathen, K. Burns G, 2007). They look at the Fraser Island Dingo Management Strategy (FIDS) to deconstruct key assumptions about management of dingoes on Fraser Island. What they found was that the FIDS were trying to prevent dingo aggression towards humans, and that the FIDS constructed the issue of the aggression as deriving from human-dingo interactions via feeding. The prevention techniques were composed of many ways to prevent that type of interaction. Despite that, the dingoes remained as they were, still hurting people. Heathen ND Burns concluded that the management should take to account a wider range of interpretations of human-dingo interactions (2007: 55). One can see the importance the social construction aspect has in shaping priorities of societies when looking at the above examples. It is clear that when a society does not have knowledge on a subject, it is as if it does not exist. And when making the knowledge freely available as the only relevant knowledge, the society can do no different than to accept what they are being told by power players. The construction can be deliberately created by power players in society. The government or managing scientists in a particular field can use their power to change perceptions of the society by publishing rational substantiations for their claims on a matter so that they can employ a policy or action that will benefit themselves or one that will contribute to solving a related problem of the matter without the society complaining about why they do it. It is clear from these examples that some constructed environmental issues are not real in terms true intentions as there are additional economic or monetary goals often hidden it the actions to solve he environmental problems identified by power players. This is where social constructionist in environmental sociology comes in. When social environmentalists look at an environmental issue they try to consider the social construction aspect in the origin of the issue. By doing this they are able to deconstruct what has led to the construction of the problem, and thus identify the hidden agendas associated with policies claimed to solve the problem. They can then ask the question: is it really an environmental problem if the social, cultural and economic spheres of human life are not actively affected by it? The question may leave policy makers with a conscious thought about their true agendas, and enables them to determine for themselves whether or not they will be addressing a true environmental issue or not. The study on Dingo management shows how social constructionist has deconstructed a social construction of an environmental issue to bring hidden agendas to the surface. The notion that nature should be managed by humans has led to the notion that humans are in charge of it. Humans feel that they can use and manipulate nature to generate income (like tourism to wildlife parks etc. , and that is where the problem in management comes in. The wellbeing of the nature and the economic capital it may generate produce a mixture of interests. One that wants to be green and one that wants to gain monetary profits. These two interests are contradictory because a monetary gain is sometimes gained at the expense of a green environmental gain. Now at the dingo management park, social constructionist showed why dingoes may be aggressive against humans. It showed that humans may not even belong there, or try to manage the dingoes because the fact is that dingoes are just a wild animal that react on instinct, and humans trying to control them could be causing the aggressive incidents. It showed that the management is actually catering for the safety of the humans at the expense of the dingoes (they kill dingoes deliberately to reduce their population). They cater for their safety because they bring in money, and the more safe they can make it for them, the more money they may receive. The hidden agendas (to generate monetary wealth) in the management and conservation of dingoes are actually letting dingoes getting killed instead Of getting conserved (Heathen, K. Cooper, G, 2007:48-55). Even Hough social constructionist in environmental sociology may bring the question of whether an issue is real or not under discussion when policies need to be made, it still remains just that -a question. It does not provide an answer. It is not possible to give an answer because by stating that an environmental issue is not this, but it is that, would be contradictory to what social construction stands for. That is, that people construct definitions on matter by the available knowledge they have. But knowledge is limited by a persons senses.

Gore and Florida essays

Gore and Florida essays November 7, 2000. Over a hundred million people turned out to vote for our nations president. The election was decided by 537. Twenty-five controversial electoral votes were given to George Bush, and thus giving him the presidency. I am here to inform that there is statistical evidence that shows Al Gore won the state of Florida, in turn making him our 43rd president of the United States of America. Although there are numerous studies, that haven proven the statement that Al Gore actually received more votes in Florida, there are two that I would like to focus on. One is a statistical analysis done by the Miami Herald and the other is a physical count of the uncertified ballots done by the National Opinion Research Center. The first analysis was done by non-partisan newspaper, The Miami Herald. After the election, the Miami Herald spent thirteen months on a study to see who the outright winner of the state and therefore the winner of the presidency. The outcome was astonishing. The Miami Herald reported that under a fair, full and accurate count of the ballots, Al Gore would have won the state by 23,000 votes. This report was conducted by statistically analyzing the voting behaviors of the 5,885 precincts in the state of Florida as well as analyzing the several categories of disputed votes. These categories included illegal solicitation of absentee voters, illegally duplicated votes, the confusing ballots of Palm Beach, overseas ballots and illegal votes by felons. Stephen Diog, at statistics professor at Arizona State University and head of the study, found through extensive research that Gore would receive 117,000 more votes, while Bush would only receive 75,000 more. Keep in mind that this was a conservative estimate, meaning Bush most likely received fewer votes. Pollsters and statisticians from around the country have all called this study very reasonable. ...

The Weaving Contest Between Athena and Arachne

The Weaving Contest Between Athena and Arachne While Athena was a friend to Greek heroes, she wasnt so helpful to women. The story of the weaving contest between Arachne and Athena is one of the most familiar myths about Athena, and its central theme is also popular. Greek mythology repeatedly hammers home the danger of comparing oneself with a goddess. The theme appears in the story of Cupid and Psyche, where Aphrodite is offended. While ultimately there is a happy ending, to avert Aphrodites wrath, Psyches family abandons her to death. In the mythological story of Niobe, Artemis punishes the mortal mother for boasting that she is a more fortunate mother than Artemis mother, Leto: Artemis destroys all Niobes children. The punishment Athena inflicts on her capable, but the merely mortal victim is more direct. If Arachne wants to claim to be a better weaver than Athena, so be it. Thats all shell ever be good for. Arachne Suffers a Metamorphosis The Roman poet Ovid writes about the metamorphosis Arachne suffers in his work on transformations (Metamorphoses): One at the loom so excellently skilld,That to the Goddess she refusd to yield, ( Ovid, Metamorphoses VI) In the myth, Athena challenges Arachne to a weaving contest in order to prove herself. The expert crafts goddess Athena is favorably impressed with Arachnes weaving of divine debaucheries: This the bright Goddess passionately movd,With envy saw, yet inwardly approvd.The scene of heavnly guilt with haste she tore,Nor longer the affront with patience bore;A boxen shuttle in her hand she took,And more than once Arachnes forehead struck. Athena cant tolerate the affront to her pride, though, so she turns Arachne into a spider doomed to weave forever. From the unfortunate spider-woman comes the name for the 8-legged creatures arachnids. Bulfinch on Athena (and Arachne)

The C7 (5.56 mm rifle) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The C7 (5.56 mm rifle) - Research Paper Example Its is equipped with direct gas system, full length hammer forged barrel, and rotating bolt very much identical to the U.S made M16 assault rifle in internal parts. The C7 is currently being used by the military forces of Canada, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Iceland, and the United Kingdom. In 2007, the Canadian military forces announced supporting the build-up capacity of Afghan National Army (ANA) with C7 rifles in the fight against terrorism. However, those 2500 rifles were later returned back, and M16s were preferably adopted by the ANA. This paper attempts to investigate the capabilities, specification and working of the C7 rifle. It also reflects on the durability, reliability and accuracy of the rifle for adoption in enemy combats. Discussion The rifle is capable of firing a single shot as well as more rounds per trigger. It possesses a structurally strong 51 cm long, cold hammer forged barrel designed for accuracy, consistency and durability. The operating rod is replaced by direct gas chamber to enhance the precision and reliability of the firing forces. The C7 is produced in two basic variations/configurations; C7A1 and C7A2. The former is a full length fixed stock battle rifle, whereas the later is an upgraded version with adjustable stock. The 5.56 x 45 mm NATO cartridge is designed for longer range combat capabilities. The rifle has a flat top that can be manufactured in Weaver rail or the Picatinny rail. A standard C7 rifle is illustrated in figure 01. Figure 01 The C7 Rifle Source: Colt Canada Corporation Website (www.coltcanada.com). 1 - 51 cm (20 inch) cold hammer forged barrel, 2 - Flash suppressor, 3 - Bayonet lug, 4 - TRI-AD 1TM MIL-STD-1913 accessory mount, 5 - Coloured furniture to break up weapon outline, 6 - Improved chamber and gas system, plus Elastomeric Receiver Retainer, 7 - Accepts all STANAG magazines, 8 - Integrated sight rail (Weaver or Picatinny), 9 - Optional ambidextrous controls, 10 - Single or double sided sling loop, 11 - Standard 4 position buttstock with no slip rubber butt pad (C7A2) or fixed buttstock (C7A1), 12 - Battery stowage pistol grip insert. The C7 rifle can be further divided into two main components; the upper receiver group and the lower receiver group as shown in figure 02. The upper receiver is attached to the barrel of the rifle and contains the bolt and the cocking handle. A rear sight is also mounted on the upper receiver. The trigger mechanism, pistol grip and the magazine opening are incorporated in the lower receiver group. There is also storage space for keeping of cleaning kit in the fiber-glass or wooden butt. A labeled description of all components is illustrated in figure 03. Figure 02 Major Components of C7 Source: Chief of the defense sta ff (1987). Figure 03 Labeled C7 Components Source: Chief of the defense staff (1987). The weapon is simple in designed for effective operations and easy maintenance. It is equipped with ambidextrous controls. The C7A1 variant can be mounted with traditional iron sights or the ELCAN C79 optical sight specifically designed for eye relief. Manufacturer claims that C7 rifle has commonality of 97% parts with other available models. The field and operational conditions are strictly considered while selecting the material. The rifle is 39.6 inches long with a fire rate of 800 rounds per minute. It has a 3.4x power optical sight with accuracy up to 400 m. The wide adoption of the C7 rifle by Canadian forces and other military units is for so long is indicative its effectiveness in the battle field. The C7A2 is modified model of the C7A1 improved for the Canadian forces deployed in the Afghanistan region. The improvements include the ambidextrous configuration of selector lever, magazine rel ease, and the charging handle latch.

Merger Of Mittal And Arcelor Steel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 7250 words

Merger Of Mittal And Arcelor Steel - Essay Example Having reached the number one position in steel manufacturing and assessing the need to consolidate and to take advantage of the economies of scale, in January 2006, Lakshmi Nivas Mittal of Mittal Steel Netherlands took a historical decision to make an attempt to acquire the next biggest steel company Arcelor S.A. Having gone through the basics idea about the world steel industry and the rationale behind the Mittal Steel's decision to acquire the next ranking Arcelor S.A, this paper attempts to bring out an analytical review of the whole scheme of merger with respect to the effect of the merger from the point of view of the investors, the appreciation in their holdings, reasoning behind the merger from the point of view of Mittal Steel as well as Arcelor S.A. The paper also studies the role played by Severstal, the Russian Steel major in the merger deal. With the advent of globalization the large companies have broken their geographical barriers and this has resulted in the cross border mergers and acquisitions of bigger companies. Especially in Europe the purchases by way of takeovers of companies had been at $ 418 billion whereas it was only $ 211 billion for the American companies in the first quarter of the year 2006. This includes the fierce battle of the hostile takeover by Netherlands based Mittal Steel of Luxembourg based Arcelor. This hostile bidThis hostile bid for takeover was put forth by Mittal Steel to Arcelor for taking over the latter at a consideration of US $ 22.4 billion and this bid was made on the 27th January 2006. This takeover once completed would result in an aggregate sale of seventy billion US dollars and ten percent of the world steel production. This also means that the combined production of the new company would be three times more than that of the closest competitor Nippon Steel Corporation of Japan. After the merger the new entity would provide employment for 320,000 people. The operations of the new company would spread over four continents of the world. The company would also expand its market to the United States where there is a high potential for growth. This would also entail the new company commendable bargaining power and economies of scale. From the following table, one can observe the size and magnitude of the takeover bid made by Mittal Steel Source: The Hindu. Business Line Newspaper Dated 1st February 2007 3.0 A BACKGROUND: A brief background of the Buyer (Mittal Steel) and the Target (Arcelor S.A.) is presented below: Mittal Steel N.V: Head Quartered in Rotterdam/London 225,000 employees Steelmaking facilities in 16 countries Customers in 120 countries Shipped 49.2m tons in 2005 Revenues of $28.1bn in 2005 (Breaking News Article 2006) While production of steel of various kinds is the main activity, the Mittal Steel is presently operating in countries like United States, Mexico, Trinidad, Canada, Germany and France. Specialisation of Mittal

Assignment 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Assignment 5 - Essay Example They appear different from another angle as the question based on qualitative research design focuses on multiple realities that can be constructed from different sources, unlike the other question that targets valid statistics. The news outlet shares the results of a study where two groups of teenagers are measured against two variables; tendency to carry weapons and tendency to carry none based on the amount of soft drinks drunk. The study focuses on the effects of nutrition on behavior. The outlet points out that the study does not establish whether soft drinks cause violence. The news outlet does well to focus on the facts realized from the study. It interprets the information right without signs of the misconception. I am conducting a research to examine females’ attitude towards engineering and the popular stereotype that engineering is a male career. I am concerned about the career choices made by learners based on gender. I plan to conduct interviews that will involve teachers, students, parents and other members of the society. If you agree to participate, I will ask you to fill out a questionnaire form regarding your dream. Moreover, I would need to know why you chose such careers, how your cultures affect such choices and your opinion on who fits in engineering as a career. If you do not want to contribute, there will be no consequence involved and your results will not be pretentious. Participation is voluntarily. You can withdraw midway if you want to. Your inconspicuousness will be secured. The author is concerned with the need to enhance spelling in young elementary children. Spalding instruction is based on a language art strategy that has a number of positive outcomes for the elementary students. It does provide sequential, multisensory guidance in spelling phonics and handwriting. Learners can diligently put points across in

Space Age Furniture Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Space Age Furniture - Term Paper Example 3079) which needs machining on a particular lathe equipment applied for the making of that special part only. Ed Szewczak, an able and experienced machinist is in charge of this special lathe machine. Once the lathe gets started it can run on its won without being attended by someone. However it is necessary for the machinist to be present during the operations of any machine, including the lathe. Recently it has become essential for Ed to opt for overtime in order to finish producing the part 3079 on time. Due to the increased overload, Ed has become unhappy and this news has been communicated to the operations manager, Coral Snodgrass. Coral has been finding solutions to solve the overtime issue. Recently the company started using an MRP system which has helped it in reducing the inventories and improving the timing of the deliveries. There are two different sub-assemblies where the part 3079 is used and the lathe machines are used for producing both the sub-assemblies of Saturn an d Gemini. Ed Szewczak is supposed to get a 50% additional payment for the overtime work. Thus the whole scenario has got certain advantages and certain disadvantages which when studied carefully provide a framework for the better functioning of the organization. Questions & Answers 1. ... Overtime is expensive and the variation between a profitable week and a losing week is represented by overtime. If the demand is constantly surpassing the facility, then Coral can consider either adding more employees or adding more facilities. While taking this step, he should attempt to improve the efficiency of the plant by eliminating waste and dropping bottlenecks. Whenever measures are taken to remove overtime, either by increasing capacity or improving efficiency, it is necessary to understand the consequence of such a step on the employees. As in this case the overtime is not consistent, therefore extreme measures are not required; however Coral should be conscious of when the overtime is taking place which will help him to recognize the grounds for overtime. There is an alternative way-out that can be applied instead of adding more people to the organization which is outsourcing the jobs and getting things done away from the workplace. This would of course incur more expense s but it would reduce the costs of material consumption, overhead costs, labor costs, electricity consumption and other related expenditures. Therefore in simple terms it can be concluded that Coral can either add more people to the company or add more machinery to the organization or a third option is there where he can include an additional shift between the regular shifts. These steps would be helpful in reducing the workload on Ed. 2. How would reducing the minimum quantity of subassemblies help? The Saturn and Gemini tables are made up of part 3079 which is exclusively manufactured by the lathe machine and the lathe machine is not used for any other purpose. Also the part