Plato Apology Essay Example for Free

Plato Apology Essay The Apology is Plato’s accurate depiction of the Socrates’ own defense at the trial provoked by Meletus. However, besides current accusers, Socrates has to speak out to defense against former accusers who have created prejudices of him for long time. Former accusers prosecute Socrates for â€Å"studying things in the sky and below the earth† and â€Å"[making] the worse into the stronger argument† (Plato 18b-c). Moreover, Meletus, who is one of recent accusers, charges Socrates of â€Å"[corrupting] the young and not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, but in new spiritual things† (Plato 24c). The dialogue between Socrates and the jury as well as Meletus describes the true personality of Socrates and answers the question if Socrates is guilty or innocent of those charges. First, Socrates is accused of studying â€Å"things in the sky and things below the earth† (Plato 23d). In this time period, Athenian people believe that gods are the ones who create and rule the world. Everyone must believe in and worship with no doubt. Therefore, if anyone tries to study and explain matters in terms of natural phenomenon instead of religious belief, he or she is immediately charged of not believing in gods and receives punishments from whole society. In this case, older accusers believe that what Socrates is doing is as same as other philosophers who trying to oppose religious belief and negatively impact the society. This is reflected by the comedy of Aristophanes depicting Socrates as a person who has ability to â€Å"walk on air† and present â€Å"a lot of other nonsense† matters (Plato 19c). However, Socrates proves that he is not that type of person and he does not have any knowledge of those matters by saying â€Å"I do not speak in contempt of such knowledge† and asking if anyone has ever heard him discussing about these subjects (Plato 19d). In fact, Socrates’ occupation is a wisdom searcher who dedicates his life to find wise men and to discuss about virtues (Poage). Therefore, the first accusation is not true, and Socrates is not guilty because Socrates does not â€Å"[study] things in the sky and things below earth† to oppose the trust of gods. Second, the earlier accusers prosecute Socrates for â€Å"[making] the worse into the stronger argument† as many Sophists do (Plato 18b-c). The accusers claim that Socrates is one of many Sophists who are â€Å"very good speakers. Indeed, they [have] reputations for being able to convince a crowd that up [is] down, that day [is] night, that the wrong answer could be the right answer, that good [is] bad and bad is good, even that injustice is justice and justice would be made to appear as injustice† (Pecorino). Furthermore, Sophists are paid for delivering speech and only care about winning debates and lawsuits more than anything else. Thus, most of them are feared and hated by Athenian people. Nevertheless, Socrates distinguish himself from Sophists by giving evidence that he â€Å"live[s]in great poverty because of [his] service to the god† (Plato 23b). While Sophists such as Gorgias of Leontini, Producs of Ceos, and Hippias of Elis charge fee for their services, Socrates never asks or receive money from anyone whom he approaches and asks questions regarding to wisdom and virtue. Unlike Sophists who are wealth and famous, Socrates is so poor because of his free service. In addition, Socrates’ intention is to help other people understand virtue and become wiser rather than teaching them how to become good speakers as Sophists do. Therefore, Socrates is not guilty of â€Å"[making] the worse into the stronger argument† (Plato 18b-c). Another charged brought by later accusers against Socrates is â€Å"corrupting the young† (Plato 23d). Socrates teaches his young men be wiser and think about themselves. This annoys the Athenian government and officials because they think those young could break the laws and create rumor among the society. Hence, Meletus prosecutes Socrates for teaching the young to go against the government and emphasizes that all the Athenians make the young become better except Socrates (Plato 25b). In order to reverse that accusation, Socrates uses example of horse breeders who are trained and have experience to take care of horses and make them better while the majority lacking of skills and knowledge cannot. As a result, it is impossible for all the Athenians to know what benefits the young. Only Socrates who has knowledge and skills is able to teach the best for the young. Moreover, Socrates indicates that no one wants to harm oneself; neither does Socrates. If he intentionally corrupts the young, he is putting himself at risk because â€Å"the wicked people do some harm to their closest neighbors while good people do them good† (Plato 25e). Therefore, it is impossible for Socrates to teach the young in the way to harm him. After Socrates disproves Metelus’ charge, he criticizes Metelus’ prosecuting procedure. If Socrates harms the young unintentionally, Metelus has to â€Å"get hold of [Socrates] privately, instruct and exhort [Socrates]† (Plato 26). In contrast, Meletus brings Socrates straight to the court â€Å"where the law requires one to bring those who are in need of punishment, not of instruction† (Plato 26). As a result, Socrates again shows that he is not guilty. The last accusation brought against Socrates is â€Å"not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, but in other new spiritual things† (Plato 24c). In order to prove that Socrates does not trust in gods, Meletus states that Socrates â€Å"says that the sun is stone, and the moon earth† (Plato 26d). If Socrates does say this statement, he denies the presence of Apollo the god of the sun and the presence of Selene the goddess of the moon. Nevertheless, Socrates claims that Anaxagoras of Clazomenae is actually the one who said those matters. Moreover, Socrates catches Meletus’s contradiction when he claims that Socrates does not trust in gods. To make Meletus admit his contradiction, Socrates asks Meletus â€Å"[d]oes any man believe in spiritual activities who does not believe in spirits? † and Meletus answers there is no one (Plato 27c). Socrates believes in the Oracle of Delphi which is related to spiritual activities, and everyone in Athens including Meletus knows that. This means that Meletus agrees that Socrates also believe in spirits which are â€Å"either gods or the children of gods† (Plato 27d). Now, Meletus contradicts himself by saying Socrates believe in gods. Consequently, Socrates successfully shows Meletus’s false and prove that he not guilty of the charge. In conclusion, Socrates is not guilty of the charges from the earlier accusers as well as the recent ones. Socrates provides many evidences and uses his excellent argument skill to prove that he is innocent, but the jury still is not convinced and sentences him to death. What Socrates does is not harmful to anyone in Athens; he only try to question about wisdom and discuss about ethics in order to find the answer for the Oracle. Socrates teaches his students to realize that they are not wise as they thought and show them the way to better themselves by seeking more wisdom. Unfortunately, jealous people and conservative culture does not understand his divine destiny and fallaciously accuse him like a criminal. Works Cited Pecorino, Philip A. An Introduction to Philosophy: An Online Textbook. Study Web. n. d. Web. 13 July 2013. Plato. Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo. 2nd ed. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. , 2002. Print. Poage, Nathan. Apology Outline. Behavioral Social Sciences Department. Houston Community College. n. d. Web. 13 July 2013.

Value of Health Care Essay -- United States Healthcare

The Value of Health Care The development of value based healthcare reimbursement systems between healthcare payers and healthcare providers is evolving from the need to provide patients with beneficial healthcare technologies under conditions of significant economic uncertainty. The concept examined centralizes on shifting the focus of the healthcare system from volume to value. Value is measured by outcomes achieved based on a full cycle of care not volume of services rendered based on each service performed. Summary of Article The article chosen for this assignment was published on December 23, 2010 in the New England Journal of Medicine (Porter, 2010). The author, Porter (2010) examines the role of value in the healthcare system in the United States. According to Porter (2010) â€Å"Value should define the framework for performance improvement in healthcare.† Porter indicates that value in healthcare should be measured by outcomes achieved not the volume of services rendered. According to Porter (2010), â€Å"The proper unit for measuring value should encompass all services or activities that jointly determine success in meeting a set of patient’s needs. Posistive and Negative Affects, Cost, Quality, Access, Trade-offs The national pay for value based system development has positive and negative aspects. System implementation will require multiple entity participation. Hospitals, physicians, outpatient centers, and clinics all will be responsible for collaboration in developing an integrated communication system which will present additional expense on the front end. Government mandates will be required; from implementation dates to specified circumstances in which assistive funding may be available. Multi provider ... ...g outcomes are important actions towards improving outcomes. True reform will require both moving toward restructuring the care delivery system and a national system of consistency, regulation and payment. References Lee, T.H. (2010). Putting the value framework to work. New England Journal of Medicine. 363:2481-2483 Porter, M.E., (2010). What is the value in healthcare? New England Journal of Medicine. 363:2477-2481 Porter, M.E., (2009) A strategy for helath care reform – Toward a value-based system. New England Journal of Medicine. 361:109-112 Carlson, J.J., Sullivan S.D., Garrison, L.P., Neumann, P.J., Veenstra, D.L. (2010). Linking payment to health outcomes: A taxonomy and examination of performance-based reimbursement schemes between healthcare payers and manufacturers. Health Policy, 96(3), 179-190. doi: 10.1016/j.healthpol.2010.02.005

God-given attributes Essay

The 19th century held some of the very best traditions and practices the United States had. Yet, some of them today are not existent anymore due to the fact that the concept of the â€Å"American Dream† is slowly fading from the recesses of our very consciousness. If we are to examine the art of the late 19th century, we can observe that the paintings project an old fashioned way of American life, where people do what is right and honorable; a peaceful way of life. It is a life full of hopes and dreams that the American people will work and progress further together into the future. Each individual, as a free man, can do what he can with his God-given attributes. The concept of the â€Å"American Dream† has changed so much to the extent that the perception nowadays is that financial stability is the gauge of living this dream. Working parents are always scampering out of their homes in search of monetary gain, leaving their kids behind to care for themselves. This effectuates circumstances of broken homes, where children are neglected and not taught the honest ways of life; thus, they grow as individuals lacking good character traits. This eventually leads to the erosion of the American society; the breaking down of the social structure based on the â€Å"American Dream† concept. If we are to retain the things that make us good Americans, then we have to compromise with ourselves and with our fellow man for the benefit of everybody. Development is not at all bad; yet, we have to integrate some of the fine old-fashioned ways of the 19th century with that of the present in order to alleviate the effects brought upon by some of the destructive ways of present living.

Barnard College Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores

Barnard College is a private womens college with an acceptance rate of 14%. Founded in 1889, and located on a four-acre urban campus in Manhattan, New York, Barnard College is one of the original  Seven Sisters  colleges. Barnard is affiliated with the adjacent  Columbia University, but maintains its own faculty, endowment, governance, and curriculum. However, Barnard and Columbia students can easily take classes at either school. Considering applying to this highly selective school? Here are the Barnard admissions statistics you should know. Acceptance Rate During the 2017-18 admissions cycle, Barnard College had an acceptance rate of 14%. This means that for every 100 students who applied, 14 students were admitted, making Barnards admissions process highly competitive. Admissions Statistics (2017-18) Number of Applicants 7,897 Percent Admitted 14% Percent Admitted Who Enrolled (Yield) 55% SAT Scores and Requirements Barnard College requires that all applicants submit either SAT or ACT scores. During the 2017-18 admissions cycle, 58% of admitted students submitted SAT scores. SAT Range (Admitted Students) Section 25th Percentile 75th Percentile ERW 670 740 Math 660 760 ERW=Evidence-Based Reading and Writing This admissions data tells us that most of Barnards admitted students fall within the top 20% nationally on the SAT. For the evidence-based reading and writing section, 50% of students admitted to Barnard scored between 670 and 740, while 25% scored below 670 and 25% scored above 740. On the math section, 50% of admitted students scored between 660 and 760, while 25% scored below 660 and 25% scored above 760. Applicants with a composite SAT score of 1500 or higher will have particularly competitive chances at Barnard. Requirements Barnard does not require the SAT writing section or SAT Subject tests. Note that while Barnard requires applicants to submit all scores and does not participate in the scorechoice program, the admissions office will consider your highest score from each individual section across all SAT test dates. ACT Scores and Requirements Barnard requires that all applicants submit either SAT or ACT scores. During the 2017-18 admissions cycle, 51% of admitted students submitted ACT scores. ACT Range (Admitted Students) Section 25th Percentile 75th Percentile English 32 35 Math 27 32 Composite 30 33 This admissions data tells us that most of Barnards admitted students fall within the top 7% nationally on the ACT. The middle 50% of students admitted to Barnard received a composite ACT score between 30 and 33, while 25% scored above 33 and 25% scored below 30. Requirements Note that Barnard does not superscore ACT results; your highest ACT score will be considered. Barnard College does not require the ACT writing section. GPA Barnard College does not provide data about admitted students high schoolGPAs. Self-Reported GPA/SAT/ACT Graph Barnard College Applicants Self-Reported GPA/SAT/ACT Graph. Data courtesy of Cappex. The admissions data in the graph is self-reported by applicants to Barnard College. GPAs are unweighted. Find out how you compare to accepted students, see the real-time graph, and calculate your chances of getting in  with a free Cappex account. Admissions Chances Barnard College has a highly competitive admissions pool with a low acceptance rate and high average SAT/ACT scores. However, Barnard has a  holistic admissions process involving other factors beyond your grades and test scores. A  strong application essay, short answer essay, and  glowing letters of recommendation  can strengthen your application, as can participation in meaningful  extracurricular activities  and a  rigorous course schedule. Students with particularly compelling stories or achievements can still receive serious consideration even if their test scores are outside of Barnards range. While not required, applicants can participate in an optional interview either on or off-campus. In the graph above, the blue and green dots represent accepted students. Youll notice that most admitted students had A averages, combined SAT scores over 1300 (ERWM), and ACT composite scores of 28 or better. Many applicants had 4.0 GPAs. If You Like Barnard College, You May Also Like These Schools Tufts UniversityVassar CollegeBoston CollegeSwarthmore CollegeNorthwestern UniversitySmith CollegeBryn Mawr CollegeMount Holyoke College All admissions data has been source from the National Center for Education Statistics and Barnard College Undergraduate Admissions Office.