Subliminal Perception, Neuropsychology, and the I-Function :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Unconscious Processing: Subliminal Perception, Neuropsychology, and the I-Function In his 1957 book The Hidden Persuaders, Vance Packard warned the American public that "Large-scale efforts are being made, often with impressive success, to channel our unthinking habits, our purchasing decisions, and our thought processes... Typically these efforts take place beneath our level of awareness; so that the appeals which move us are often, in a sense, hidden" (1). Packard was convinced - perhaps rightly so - that advertisers were "professional persuaders" whose marketing techniques were deceptive and overly manipulative. Not only were advertisers becomingly increasingly adept at developing campaigns, pitches, and slogans to send specific messages to targeted consumer populations, but some had gone so far as to suggest that such messages could be effective even if they were presented below the level of conscious awareness. James Vicary, one of the market researchers and entrepreneurs profiled in Packard's book, claimed to have developed a machine capable of flashing such unnoticeable, "subliminal messages" within big screen movies. Vicary had allegedly tested his technique by altering movies so that messages urging viewers to "Eat Popcorn" and to "Drink Coke" were displayed at regular intervals throughout the film for such brief durations that they could not be consciously perceived. Vicary claimed that his subliminal messages resulted in a significant increase in sales of popcorn and coke (1). Although no experiment involving subliminal messages has ever replicated the success which Vicary claimed to have achieved and, in fact, Vicary later admitted that it had been no more than a marketing gimmick, the possibility of subliminal or unconscious perception has not been dismissed. In fact, although the use of subliminal messages is generally considered a foolish and invalid practice, the more general phenomenon of subliminal/unconscious perception deserves to be reevaluated in light of current debates surrounding the nature of consciousness. Subliminal or unconscious perception refers to the idea that stimuli presented below the threshold for conscious awareness can influence an individual's thoughts, feelings, or actions (2). The possibility that an individual can acquire and act on input without being aware of doing so has implications for the study of consciousness and the larger set of processes which characterize the I-function. It is generally assumed that that conscious perception of a stimulus is necessary in order to act on that stimulus, and this conscious decision to act is one of several processes which characterize the I-function.

Journal of the Plague Year and Frankenstein

The Plague and Frankenstein The quest for knowledge is eternal and almost never-ending. People devote their lives to studying and advancing their knowledge, but their advancement is always held in check by society and the people who studied before them. Several novels have been written which explore the effect knowledge and its limitations can have on society. This paper will focus on Defoe’s Journal of the Plague Year, and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus. Even though these two novels were written about 100 years apart, they still exemplify many aspects as to why knowledge has limitations. While Defoe’s Journal centers on how to prevent and cure the plague, with a heavy emphasis on religion, Shelley’s Frankenstein has little to no religious affiliation, and focuses on how science and knowledge can potentially lead to evil and misfortune. The plague was a severe and devastating disease which affected Europe multiple times throughout history; each time killing every person who came down with the disease. People are fortunate enough today to have a cure for this disease, but during the 1700s, there was no cure and very little knowledge about proper medical practices. Defoe mentions how signs were posted throughout London, claiming of people who knew of a cure or treatment for the plague, however some of these treatments â€Å"prepared their bodies for the plague, instead of preserving them against it. †1 Thieves and pick-pockets robbed and cheated poor people out of their money with scams, sometimes even poisoning their victims with tonics or â€Å"physicks† that could include such poisons as Mercury in them. These scammers were all throughout the city, appealing to the desires and abundance of the poor. There was no regulation of such business practices and advertisements made ridiculous claims of free help, only to deceive the poor once they got there, forcing them to pay for what may (or may not) help them. These practices were quite cruel and unjust, but people were so scared for their lives that they were willing to do anything which would allow them to live. Not every person in the city fell victim to these scams. Many people once they heard news that the plague had reached London decided to flee and head to some far off town where they might be able to avoid catching the disease. This plight from the city was not only a rational decision, but a religious one as well. Much debate between people in London was sparked about the religious justification for staying in the city, and trusting in God to protect them where they were, or to leave London and â€Å"trust God with [their] safety and health†. 3 For the main character in this novel, H. F. struggles with this decision because he can leave London and live with his relatives, and risk losing all of his possessions, but he ultimately decides to stay, viewing his decision as remaining faithful to God. Upon informing his brother of this decision, he learns that the person, who he was going to entrust with his property during his leave, became ill with the plague, only enforcing H. F. ’s feelings that he made the correct decision to stay in God’s faith. 4 Once the plague hit London with full force, the city was forced to find a new way in which to contain this disease. Instead of looking to the filth with which people lived in, and regarding that it could be carried by animals such as rats, the town determined that each house was to be inspected by doctors, and if the plague should be found within a home, the inhabitants would be locked inside the house, only to come out if they died or the disease had passed. Each home which the plague was found in had a red cross painted on the door, marking it for all to see, and a Watchman was assigned to make sure nobody went in or out of the house, and to run errands for the family if need be. This cruel idea caused many families to parish in their own homes, while others tried to escape by either sneaking out or attacking/threatening the watchmen. In the book Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley, the underlying theme is how knowledge and power can lead to misery and destruction. In the book, Victor Frankenstein goes off to college and becomes obsessed with several different types of philoso phy and science. He becomes absorbed in â€Å"the secret of life† and he ultimately tries to recreate it. He is successful and brings life to a monster so hideous that even he cannot bear to be around. Frankenstein tries to desert the monster which he created, but he is never fully able to, as the monster follows and spies on Frankenstein and kills part of his family. Frankenstein is appalled that his creation could have begun to cause such horror and pain to people around him, but is worried that if he tells anyone about the monster which he has created, then he himself will look like a madman. The monster himself is eager for affection from humans, but everywhere he goes, he is shunned and forced away from the town due to people being in fear of him. The monster spends much time watching the actions of a family of peasants, where from his hiding place he is able to learn how to speak French as well as read. After some time he ultimately decides that they are a very compassionate family and that he should reveal himself to them, upon doing this, they are disgusted and chase him away. The monster vows to get revenge on Frankenstein and first begins by killing his little brother whom he stumbles across in the forest in Geneva. He then plants the child’s necklace on a friend of Victor’s, to make her appear as the murderer. She is tried for the crime and hung for it. The monster realizes that his only chance for happiness lies within Frankenstein creating him a female companion. He persuades Frankenstein to create him a female saying that he will leave mankind alone forever and go live in some distant land if he has a companion to go with him. 7 As Frankenstein has begun work on his second monster in Scotland, he is reminded of how crazy he became when creating his first monster, and upon catching a glimpse of his monster watching him through the window, Frankenstein freaks out, and destroys the second body which he is creating. The monster upon seeing this is enraged and promises to kill the rest of Frankenstein’s friends and family. This promise holds true, for Frankenstein loses his best friend that night, his wife on his wedding night, and his father. Rather than heed to the monster’s wishes and create a wife for him, Frankenstein was overcome with the guilt of the deaths of his monsters first two victims. He worries that in creating another, he will be creating a duo of evil that will wreak havoc upon the human race. For it was his fault in the first place which let his imagination get a hold of himself and he wanted to create life for himself. This intense lust for knowledge which Frankenstein has ultimately leads to his demise. He becomes mad in his quest and ends up destroying everyone dear to him as well as himself in the end. Both The Journal of the Plague Year and Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus have heavy themes about knowledge. Defoe’s Journal specifically focuses on how disease was treated and what the methods were to try to cure it. The Journal also has a heavy religious force in it as well. The people in the story as well as the main characters, look towards Bible versus and quotes for guidance in their decision making. This is not the same as in Frankenstein where the main character becomes god-like himself with his creation of life. This major difference is most likely due to the fact that the novels were written about 100 years apart from each other and people’s views how religion affected their daily lives had greatly changed. There is very little mentioned in Frankenstein about religion at all. In each novel, there is excess knowledge than what people have the capacity for; therefore in The Journal, London makes the harsh decision to lock people in their own homes in order to prevent the spread of the plague; while in Frankenstein, his ever persistent quest for knowledge winds up killing him and those dearest to him. The novels are almost a warning as to what effect knowledge can have on society and suggest, that as Socrates said, â€Å"the only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing. †

Crucible Belonging Short Summaries

John Proctor -Proctor is an individual who has not put a high priority on ‘Belonging' in his life. The fact that he hates and distrusts Parris adds to this sense of not belonging: â€Å"I have trouble enough without I come five mile to hear him preach only hellfire and bloody damnation. (visual imagery related to hell) Take it to heart Mr Parris. There are many others who stay away from church these days because you hardly ever mention God anymore. † -Proctor chooses not to belong to Salem society.His sin, even when only Elizabeth knows about it, makes him uncomfortable in terms of belonging in Salem society. He says, â€Å"l cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. (metaphor) It is a fraud. I am not that man† -Proctor doesnt' belong in his own family. At the beginning of the play his sin is still having a negative influence on his relationship with his wife, Elizabeth. Proctor says: ‘Spare me! You forget nothin' and forgive nothin† Proctor uses repetitio n and alliteration to make his point to Elizabeth that she has not forgiven him. Proctor doesnt belong in the court. Danforth: ‘a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between' -ln the end Proctor belongs to his own values. As he chooses truth over lies. He makes peace with himself and decides to die rather than sign a false confession and have it hung on the church door. Elizabeth says, ‘He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him! ‘ Elizabeth's use of the personal pronoun ‘his' shows she appreciates that Proctor must judge himself. Abigail Williams Abigail is seventeen and therefore a ‘child’ in Salem society and so the only legitimate way for her to belong is to accept this status of ‘child and obey the rules. Her exclamation to Proctor- ‘How do you call me child! ‘ shows her resentment of the status of ‘child' -Abigail ‘belongs' in the sense that she finds a place, a role and power within Salem society Elizabeth immediately twigs to Abigail's real motives, as shown in her words ‘She wants me dead. I knew all week it would come to this’ -Abigail lies in order to remove Elizabeth and have Proctor belong to her.The audience shares Abigail's view shown in her words ‘I never knew what pretence Salem was' -Abigail can be seen as someone who wants to belong as a woman, but there are no socially acceptable ways for her to achieve this. In her words ‘You loved me, John Proctor, and whatever sin it is, you love me yet! ’ Abigail's repetition of the word ‘love' is an attempt to pull Proctor back into a relationship with her. Elizabeth Proctor -initially, Elizabeth belongs in Salem society as a member of a family (the Proctors) and as a respectable Christian wife.As she says, ‘I am a covenanted Christian woman’ – At the end of the play, Elizabeth is removed from belonging to Salem society . ‘Do as you will, do as you will! ‘ The repetition indicates the strength of Elizabeth's resolve to allow proctor to die if he chooses to. Reverend Hale -Reverend Hale walks into Salem as the great saviour of the community and belongs instantly. Parris greets him: ‘Mr Hale! Oh! It's good to see you again! ‘ (Happy thankful tone) -By Act 4 Hale does not belong to conventional Salem society. His conscience alienates him from the court which he denounces at the end of act 3. I denounce these proceedings! I quit this court! † Mary Warren -Mary's story is all about belonging. As a seventeen year old, she has no status or rights in adult society in Salem. Proctor tries to get Mary to act as a member of his family in order to save Elizabeth: ‘Mary, remember the angel Raphael – do that which is good’ -Mary’s fall in the court is a triumph for belonging. ‘I’ll not hang with you! I love God, I love God’ The command and repartition shows Marys choice to belong with Abigail even know she knows it is wrong.

Romeo And Juliet Analysis Film And Play Versions

In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses many ways in which he builds tension in certain scenes. In Act 3 Scene 1, Shakespeare uses a whole variety of ways to show and build tension in the play and between the characters. The film director Baz Luhrmann also made an adaptation of the play as a film. In his film there are many different visual ways in which Luhrmann builds and creates tension. My first point is, right at the start of the scene, Mercutio keeps pushing for a fight. Benvolio on the other hand, keeps telling Mercutio to retire, but Mercutio will not.In lines one and two, Benvolio says, ‘I pray thee, good Mercutio, let’s retire: the day is hot, the Capels are abroad, and if we meet we shall not scape a brawl†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This suggests that Benvolio is aware of the Capulet presence, and is not comfortable with where they are, this builds tension. However Mercutio’s reply is quite sarcastic and confident and it taunts Benvolio, ‘Thou art like one of t hose fellows that, claps me his sword on the table, and says ‘God send no need of thee! † This basically says to Benvolio that, if he carries a weapon, but does not use it, why does he carry it in the first place?This suggests that Mercutio carries a weapon for its purpose. In Baz Luhrmann’s version of Romeo and Juliet, there are many more Montagues than we get in the play. Then Tybalt and Petruchio enter, just two against around six, you just know something’s going to happen. Mercutio starts off just agitating Tybalt, but then when Romeo arrives and Tybalt says, ‘Well peace be with you sir, here comes my man. ’ Mercutio gets really angry that Tybalt wishes to see Romeo. This hectic mood is portrayed by the camera getting jerky, as if it has turned into a handheld camera, like a documentary following a war scene.Mercutio starts shouting at Tybalt which definitely builds tension because he chases him at the same time. This leads to the fight. In Baz Luhrmann’s version Romeo is getting badly beaten up by Tybalt, and Romeo does not fight back. Mercutio sees this as an act of giving in, as shown in line 66 when he says, ‘O calm, dishonourable, vile submission! ’ Mercutio then gives chase of Tybalt, he drops his gun into the sand, suggesting he does wish to kill anybody, let alone Tybalt, all he wants to do is aid Romeo. This builds tension with the viewers because they do not know what the outcome is going to be.In the film and the play, Mercutio helps Romeo by fighting for him, however Romeo does not wish for them to fight at all and the audience knows this as Romeo keeps trying to intervene. In the film, Mercutio fights Tybalt and eventually slams Tybalt to the ground onto a mirror which shatters underneath him; this builds tension as the audience believes that Mercutio has done some serious damage to Tybalt. However after this Mercutio goes to strike Tybalt again with a plank of wood, but Romeo stops hi m by getting in the way and holding him back.Whilst doing so, Mercutio gets struck by Tybalt with a shard of glass. This builds tension as Mercutio was one of the main characters of the scene, he did a lot and now he has been killed by Tybalt, the audience know something is going to happen. In the film, a lot of tension is built by pathetic fallacy, which is where the weather reflects the mood at the time. At the start of the scene, the sun is burning and is very hot and hazy, suggesting that it is unclear what is going to happen or that a person is unclear about something such as Benvolio being unclear on why Mercutio will not leave.Also, in the fight it could suggest that the outcome is unclear. When Mercutio dies, the weather changes dramatically to a very turbulent, stormy weather. This shows the chaos that is involved in the scene. The weather also turns from day to night, light to dark, which suggests that there is lots of deceit in this scene because Romeo is confused about M ercutio dying in his arms. The darkness also reflects Romeo’s mood as he gets angry and evil. He then set out to kill Tybalt. In the darkness Romeo also kills Tybalt by shooting him multiple times in the back.I have found that Shakespeare has used many ways in which he makes the play chromatic and exciting for the audience. I have discovered that the main fight itself is spurred on by Mercutio building tension between the characters and in the scene. I have also found that in Baz Luhrmann’s interpretation of the play that he used many techniques such as pathetic fallacy to create drama and tension in this scene. Overall Shakespeare has used many ways to build drama and tension, he has conveyed excellently in this scene love and hatred.

Legal Questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Legal Questions - Assignment Example 1) Civil Rights Act of 1964: This legislation ended racial segregation and discrimination in public accommodations, such as schools, hospitals and transport system. It also made it illegal for an employer to discriminate against anyone based on race, color, religion, or sex (Scheb and Stephens, 2011). 3) Voting Rights Act (1965): This piece of legislation gave all Americans the right to vote regardless of race, sex, color, or religion. In addition, it brought to an end the literacy tests. Further, it mandated the U.S. attorney to intervene in case of discrimination. The civil right legislations supplement the Equal Protection Clause in the sense that it protects citizens from all forms of discrimination that the Equal Protection Clause also protects people against. The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment protects citizens from being denied equal protection of the law by the state. This implies that the state has an obligation to treat every person equally in similar circumstances and conditions (Scheb and Stephens, 2011). Normally, when a police officer suspects that an individual is likely to commit a crime, he is allowed to stop the person, tie the suspect’s hands in the outer garments, and search if the suspect may be carrying a hidden weapon. This act of stopping and tying and searching a suspect is what is termed stop and frisk (del Carmen, 2012). Reasonable suspicion and probable cause and legal standards used by police officers in the enforcement of law. Reasonable suspicion is the presumption made by a police officer that a crime has committed or is about to be committed. These reasonable presumptions are based on facts and the situation, which are informed by the police officer’s training and experience. Reasonable suspicion is applicable when a police strongly suspect that an individual has committed a crime or is likely to commit a

None Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 5

None - Essay Example Stable dividend also creates a platform for investment of other companies with that particular firm. There is also the regular dividend policy where payment of dividend is at usual term. This is mostly maintained by companies with stable earnings for a long period of time (LEASE, 23). The constant payout ratio implies that the rate of dividend payment is in accordance to the earnings received by the firm. This means that the two are directly proportionate, hence a firm pays dividend according to its ability at that particular time. Irregular dividend policy is where there is uncertainty in the earnings of a company and thus a company cannot operate on regular dividend basis. Besides, the no dividend policy is simply no payment of dividend due to plans for future company expansion and hence need for the funds. West Innovation Inc. (WPRT) is a company interested in creating an environmental friendly (natural gas) engine that performs the same as fuel and with the same price. Since WPRT dividend information is not available, it might mean they have no dividend policy yet. The E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DD) is a science and technology based company that uses stable dividend policy. General Electric Company (GE) a lighting power company that also uses stable dividend policy. This is because their financials show a constant amount paid for a certain period of time. Working capital is the firm’s investment in short-term assets such as cash, marketable securities, accounts receivable and inventories. In which net working capital is the difference between current assets and current liabilities. Thus, working capital management is process of utilizing to both short-term assets and short-term liabilities. This is important in order to keep costs to a minimum and to control risks. Considering a company growth over time, then its assets can be decomposed into three categories; fixed assets, permanent current assets and fluctuating current

Discuss the advantages of analysing organizations as incentive Essay

Discuss the advantages of analysing organizations as incentive mechanisms - Essay Example Hence, financial stability and economic prosperity is the basic motive behind all the efforts made by the individuals for obtaining different skills, degrees and qualifications. Theorists are of the opinion that the higher the level of education and technical skill or both, the brighter the probabilities of attaining respectable socioeconomic status in individual and collective life of the people. â€Å"In the age of globalisation, the knowledge economy discourse has become a way to characterise the new relationships between the state, society and economy and rendered higher education increasingly important for the international competitiveness of the nation states through their central tasks of generation, application and dissemination of knowledge and training high skilled labour force.† (Macerinskiene & Vaiksnoraite, 2006) Consequently, the efforts made in learning and studies certainly carry the purpose of enjoying incentives in the form of salaries, profits, facilities an d promotions in professional career. All corporate firms and organisations are well aware of this very reality that managers, employees, staff members and workers stick to one company provided it continues the policy of offering various incentives in the form of reasonable salary package, announces bonuses on showing excellent performance, assures job security, medical allowances and regular promotions on the basis on capabilities, dedication and targets achievement. The present study looks for analysing the companies as incentive mechanisms in the light of the theories articulated by the scholars and philosophers time and again pointing out the advantages of incentives in the growth of the organisations on the one hand, and in the performance of the work force on the other. Celebrated psychologist theorist Abraham H. Maslow has articulated his Need Hierarchy Theory in 1943 on the very notion of motivational effects, where he submits to state that five basic motivational scales are inevitable for the companies for the maintenance of the employees’ satisfaction. These levels include fulfilment of physiological needs, safety assurance, social/professional recognition, ego and self- actualising. (Maslow, 1943) The theorist argues that since motivational factors aptly rise from the lowest possible scales, so the most fundamental needs and requirements of the employees must be satisfied in precedence for the upgrading of their performance on the one hand, and for accelerating the pace of their interest in the tasks they are expected to accomplish on the other. Maslow vehemently declares the fulfilment of physiological needs as highly supportive for the job satisfaction of the workers. He is of the opinion that the employees should be assigned the tasks keeping in view their aptitude, interest, dexterity and command, which will not only turn out as the most inspirational factor of motivation for them, but also may pave the way towards the growth and developme nt of the organisation at large. Consequently, the more attractive and relevant to the disposition and aptitude of an employee the work, the higher will be the level of his motivation while performing his obligations and giving results to the organisation. In addition, if an employee's salary or wages are not sufficient to buy basic necessities including food, clothing and shelter for him and his family, his motivation level will surely be low and he will be unable to pay due heed to his work. Furthermore, job