Ajith

Positivism & Post-Positivism Let's start our very brief discussion of philosophy of science with a simple distinction between epistemology and methodology . The term epistemology comes from the Greek word epistêmê, their term for knowledge. In simple terms, epistemology is the philosophy of knowledge or of how we come to know. Methodology is also concerned with how we come to know, but is much more practical in nature. Methodology is focused on the specific ways -- the methods -- that we can use to try to understand our world better. Epistemology and methodology are intimately related: the former involves the philosophy of how we come to know the world and the latter involves the practice . When most people in our society think about science, they think about some guy in a white lab coat working at a lab bench mixing up chemicals. They think of science as boring, cut-and-dry, and they think of the scientist as narrow-minded and esoteric (the ultimate nerd -- thi...

THE APOSTLE IN TRIUMPH (General article based on the cultural conflict and criticism) Losing Culture to Coca-Cola: an Examination of the Influence from the West in India and Latin America The introduction of western corporations in less-developed regions often times causes these regions to become alienated from their native cultures. In particular, in India and Latin America, when western companies came, and especially when they flourished in the 20th century, it created a loss of native culture and introduction of certain aspects of western cultures in those regions. This isolation from their native cultures caused mixed feelings in the people of these regions, shown particularly in the writings of Anita Desai of India, and Pablo Neruda of Chile, in Latin America. Anita Desai was barely ten years old when India received its independence from British colonial rule. This independence was not regarded as a joyous occasion, however. Among others, Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi and Lord Wavell,...

FEMINISM Feminism is a diverse collection of social theories, political movements, and moral philosophies, largely motivated by or concerning the experiences of women, especially in terms of their social, political, and economic situation. As a social movement, feminism largely focuses on limiting or eradicating gender inequality and promoting women's rights, interests, and issues in society. Within academia, some feminists focus on documenting gender inequalities that oppress women and on changes in the social position and representation of women. Others argue that gender, and even sex, are social constructs, and research the construction of gender and sexuality, and develop alternate models for studying social relations. Some feminist scholars have posited that the hierarchies in businesses and government and all organizations need to be replaced with a decentralized ultra-democracy. Some argue that having any central leader in any organization is derived from the andocentric fam...

WOMEN IN ACHEBE'S WORLD Rose Ure Mezu When literary activities marking the sixtieth birthday of Chinua Achebe reached fever-pitch in 1990, the greatest accolade given him was summed up in one metaphor: the eagle on the iroko. Now, anybody familiar with the African landscape knows that the iroko is the tallest, strongest tree in the forest and that the eagle is, of course, the king of the birds. It is not an easy feat to scale the tree; that is why the Igbo proverb insists: "One does not climb the iroko twice." Having succeeded in climbing the iroko, the climber should appropriate all that he finds there: he may not be able to do so again. The eagle, however, can both scale and soar above the tree over and over. In this metaphor the iroko then represents the field of African literature; the eagle, Chinua Achebe. Achebe has, of course, literarily climbed and soared above the iroko several times. More than those of any other African writer, his writings have helped to develo...