Introduction to Criminal Justice Essay Example for Free

Introduction to Criminal Justice Essay The federal criminal justice system comprise of federal courts, corrections, and law enforcement agencies. The United States Attorneys is the primary agency taking charge of cases involving the U. S. government as a party and in collecting debt owed to the federal government. The federal judiciary has a Supreme Court, appellate courts, and trial or district courts. Federal law enforcement agencies derive their authority from the U. S. Constitution and federal laws while the state law enforcement obtains authority from the state constitution and legislations. The difference in source of authority, which determines jurisdiction and role, determines whether a criminal case is a federal or state matter. Federal Criminal Justice System The criminal justice system in America today comprise of courts, corrections and law enforcement operating at the local, state and federal level (Samaha, 2006). These tiers of decision-making operate independently according to the scope of their jurisdictions. The discussion focuses on the federal level relative to the local and state levels. The U. S.  Department of Justice comprises the primary criminal investigative and law enforcement agency at the federal level. The Office of the United States Attorneys, which falls under the U. S. Department of Justice, comprise the principal litigators assigned to judicial districts, within which each Unite States Attorney exercise the role as the chief federal law enforcement officer for the United States. The United States Attorneys Office mainly prosecutes cases involving the United States as a party and collect debt owed to the U. S. ederal government as provided by Title 28, Section 547 of the U. S. Code. (United States Attorneys, 2009) The federal judiciary or court system emerged from Article III of U. S. Constitution. This has three tiers of decision-making. At the top is the U. S. Supreme Court comprised of the Chief Justice and eight associate justices handling cases involving important constitutional or federal questions of law that originated in the state or the feder al courts. In the middle is the appellate court, made-up of 94 judicial districts pooled into 12 regional circuits. The U. S. Court of Appeals in every circuit handles appealed cases coming from the district courts or federal administrative agencies as well as handles appeals of special cases. At the lower level is the trial court comprised of the district courts, with criminal and civil jurisdiction. The Court of International Trade and the U. S. Court of Federal Claims are special trial courts. (Samaha, 2006; â€Å"Understanding the federal courts,† 2009) Federal law enforcement agencies derive their authority from the U. S.  Constitution. Article 1, Section 8 provides the power of Congress to enact laws needed in executing governmental powers. The constitutional powers of Congress accords federal law enforcement agencies with the authority to operate. Whenever, Congress enacts a statute, it designates the federal agency responsible for enforcement of this law. The provisions of the enacted laws assigned for enforcement to federal agencies indicate the limit and scope of the authority of the federal agencies. (May et al. , 2008) The difference in the role of federal agents and state or local law enforcement officers lies in the jurisdiction and scope of authority. A federal agent has a wider jurisdiction but with a narrower scope of authority determined by federal statutes. Federal law emanates from the constitution that empowers the U. S. Congress to enact laws at the federal level. State or local law enforcement officers have narrower jurisdiction limited only to the boundaries of the state or locality but with broader scope of authority covering the enforcement of all laws applicable to the state or locality. State/local laws come from the state legislatures obtaining authority from the state constitution. (May et al. , 2008) Investigation or prosecution of a crime is a federal matter when the criminal act or issue are covered by federal law or the U. S. Constitution, the U. S. government is a party, special cases within the authority of the federal law justice system, and other cases within federal question jurisdiction. A crime is under state jurisdiction in cases violating the criminal laws of the state. The state holds broad jurisdiction of various cases but with the exception of those falling under the exclusive statutory jurisdiction of the federal courts. (May et al. , 2008) It makes sense to have dual criminal statutes in the federal and state systems covering the same offense. In case of common jurisdiction over an offense, such as discrimination in employment, the parties can opt to file in case in federal or state courts. There are also ways of distinguishing jurisdiction such as the diversity jurisdiction of the federal courts in cases involving residents of two different states over a controversy amounting to more than $75,000 dollars. (May et al. , 2008) The federal criminal justice system operates independently from state and local criminal justice by having its constitutional and federal statute determined jurisdiction. However, it has links with local and state criminal justice in hearing appeals of cases originating from the state courts on grounds of pertinent issues of law.

Cyrano the Bergerac Love in Cyrano de Bergerac :: Cyrano Bergerac

Cyrano the Bergerac     Love      When we think about the force that holds the world together and what makes humans different from animals, one answer comes to our minds - that humans can love.   Love is a state of mind that cannot be defined easily but can be experienced by everyone. Love is very complicated.   In fact it is so complicated that a person in love may be misunderstood to be acting in an extremely foolish manner by other people.   The complexity of love is displayed in Rostand’s masterpiece drama Cyrano de Bergerac.   This is accomplished by two characters that love the same woman and in the course neither one achieves love in utter perfection.        First of all the question rises what is love.   Love is having a sense of security in someone.   When we love someone we usually mean that we can turn to that person comfortably if all other doors of the world are shut to us.   This is the one person that we trust and like to be in company with.   In the novel Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano loves Roxane more than anyone else but he is shy to tell her so.   When he finds out of her feelings towards another character Christian, who she likes because of his looks, Cyrano finds a way to express his love to Roxane.   He decides that he would write to her in the name of Christian who comparatively is a poor writer and "wishes to make Christian his interpreter"(II,85).        Both Christian and Cyrano love Roxane but Roxane loves only the person that has been writing to her.   It was actually Cyrano, who was writing to her but she thinks it was Christian.   Cyrano had said, "..And we two make one hero of romance." (II,85)   Since Cyrano was suffering with an inferiority complex, as he had a gigantic nose, he was shy to ask Roxane whether she wanted him or not.   He had assumed that she would not like him because of his deformity.   He one said , "..I adore Beatrice Have I / The look of Dante?" (I,42)   What he had not considered was that Roxane loved him for what he was from the inside, not outside.   Once she had told Christian that , "If you were less charming - ugly even - I should love you still.

Creativity in Maths Essay

The purpose and value of creativity in primary mathematics education Within this essay I am going to discuss the complex notion of creativity, In specific relation to creative teaching within the subject of mathematics. I will define the Issues of Interpreting creativity and the debates surrounding these issues. Secondly I am going to look at theories of creativity and the different views which have been argued. In relation to pedagogy, I will examine if the amount of assessment that teachers are now required to do restricts how creative they can be within their delivery of the curriculum. Furthermore, I will analyse the difficulties of creative pedagogy and the implementation of creative learning across the curriculum, focusing on mathematics. Creative learning can be highly beneficial for children’s learning and development, I will highlight the reasons for this and look at key theories relating to the debate. Lastly, I will look at policies and reviews which suggest that creative teaching approaches should be used across the curriculum. Wlthln education there are complex Issues relating to creativity. Creativity Is defined by different people In many different ways. Duffy (1998 cited In Brock, Dodds, Jarvis nd Olusoga, 2009) defines creativity as a means of forming new connections in a way that is meaningful to the individual. In this way creativity can be very useful for learning, due to the fact that it can help individuals create new distinctions within their learning and gain a firmer understanding of what they are being taught. Similarly Kohl (2008) suggested that creative activities are about exploring exciting and advanced ideas in the hope of discovering something new. Through experimentation learners may stumble across knowledge that was previously unknown to them, which gives them the opportunity to expand on their nderstanding. By provldlng children with creative opportunities practitioners are giving them a chance to expand their knowledge through self-directed learning, In a way that Is of Interest to them as an Individual. Freud (1900 cited in Woolfolk, Hughes and Walkup, 2008) took a psychoanalytical approach to creativity. He believed that creativity is present in all individuals within their unconscious mind and that it is brought about due to a wish to fulfil that individuals desires. Freud argued that all individuals have a creative potential, they just do not always display the use of it. Within children he identified creativity as ideation, a process of creating new ideas. When engaging in certain activities children will be creative In order to gain more enjoyment from what they are doing. Maslow (1943), however took a humanistic approach to the Idea of creativity. He suggested that the drive to learn is intrinsic as Individuals strive to reach self- actualisation. Maslows hierarchy of needs depicts levels of needs which Individuals can meet, starting with very basic needs and moving up to more complex needs which individuals have to strive for in order to achieve. He argued that in order for an Inalvlaual to reacn selT-actuallsatlon at tne top 0T tne pyram10 tney neeaea to extend their thoughts and actions through problem solving, creativity and morality. There are a number of issues surrounding creativity as it can be interpreted differently when put into different contexts. The core areas of learning within education are now heavily assessment based and there is a strong emphasis on literacy and numeracy, which is having a negative effect on creative pedagogy (Eaude, 2011). Within the teaching of core subjects there is very little time allocated to creative activities, instead the pedagogical focus is more on the acquisition of nowledge and facts Cones and Wyse, 2004). It could be argued that if teachers look beyond this structured approach to learning there is plenty of scope for fostering creativity in children’s learning within all areas of the curriculum. In the area of mathematics, children are taught specific skills and knowledge which they will need in order to achieve the level that they are expected to in accordance with the National Curriculum (DfEE, 1999). However, certain areas of mathematics involve a large amount of problem solving, which requires an individual to adapt their thinking n order to develop and discover how best to solve the problem at hand. Problem solving is seen as a creative process (Piggott, 2007). According to Cropley (2003, cited in Jones and Wyse, 2004) problem solving is intrinsic to creativity therefore the learner can be encouraged to use their creative thinking skills within the area of mathematics. On the other hand, children are often still given boundaries to work within, which again will stifle their chance to be creative or explore further possibilities. Creativity has been highlighted to be highly beneficial for children’s learning. Using creative methods of teaching can help to keep children engaged and motivated in their learning. Steiner (1861 – 1925 cited in Wood and Attfield, 2005) stated that within creative activities children become more engaged in their learning and therefore are more likely to learn from the activity that they were participating in. If children are provided with activities that they find captivating and interesting, they are more likely to actively participate, and therefore will gain something from the experiences that they encounter. In order for children’s creativity to flourish, within heir learning they need to be given a chance to do things for themselves (Wilson, 2008). Nickerson (1998 cited in Adams, 2005) suggested that allowing children to have a choice in the task that they are given enhances their creativity. Also the fact that they have chosen the activity for themselves means they will have more motivation to work towards their goals. If children can direct their own learning, by being given their own choices, they will use their current knowledge in a creative way to decide how best to approach the given task. Teaching mathematics in a creative way is seen by many teachers as a challenge. Mathematics is often regarded as a subject with set rules and structure; with right and wrong answers (Wilson, 2005). However, mathematics is not always recognised in it’s full capacity and can be present in areas which are not always deemed to be mathematically inclined, therefore making it a difficult subject to approach in a creatlve capaclty. Most teacners Delleve tnat matnematlcs snou10 De taugnt In a conventional and structured manner, although it could be argued that the reason for this is that teachers may not be confident enough to teach it any other way Cones and Wyse, 2004). Cropley (2001) would argue that conventional methods of teaching can have a negative effect on attitudes and motivation towards individuality as children may be encouraged to work in a certain way in order to logically work out the answers. In order to be creative within their teaching of mathematics, teachers need to provide children with opportunities in which they can extend their thinking and build on previous knowledge. It is often argued that creative mathematics is only accessible to the more able pupils, however it is possible to include all abilities. Furthermore, children of all bilities will always be willing to engage in mathematics creatively if they are given the opportunity. The DfES/QCA (1999) stated that mathematics as a creative discipline can stimulate exciting new achievements for learners and therefore teachers should facilitate all children’s learning by giving them a chance to engage creatively within the subject area. Introducing creative pedagogy in the area of mathematics can have a substantially positive effect on children’s development. Children who previously had little confidence within the subject can be taught different ways of dealing with athematical knowledge. Introducing children to different teaching methods and expanding mathematics using a cross-curricular approach will give children the opportunity to make comparisons and links between mathematics and other curriculum subjects (Cropley, 2001). The use of cross-curricular teaching will give the children the opportunity to partake in learning which links to a subject area that is of interest to them. Mathematics can help develop children’s thinking skills and it is important for children to be able to think creatively within all areas of the curriculum (Cropley, 2001). Within mathematics in particular children sometimes may need to think outside the box in order to discover the answers to what they are looking for. Mathematics can also be a chance for the involvement of abstract thinking skills as children learn to calculate mathematical sums cognitively. Mental arithmetic may be seen as something children commonly engage in, however they need to be able to deal with numbers and mathematics in an abstract context before they can fully develop these skills. Overall, the subject area of mathematics is much more widespread than is always recognised. The use of mathematics can be applied across he curriculum and within children’s every day life. Therefore it is essential to children’s educational development. The National Curriculum (DfEE, 1999) highlights the importance of fostering creativity while still ensuring that pupils gain the essential numeracy skills that they require. The National Curriculum suggests that all areas of the curriculum can be taught creatively, even the core subjects such as mathematics. A number of schools work towards the development of key skills which are outlined in the National Curriculum Handbook, while also including opportunities to be creative within mathematics NCSL, 2005). I ne Natlonal curriculum ) InTormea teacners tnat wltnln mathematics children should be taught to develop thinking skills, problem solving and learn to communicate mathematically. However this document focused more on the attainment of the children rather than the approaches that teachers could take in order to build upon these aspects using creative pedagogy. In 2000, the National Numeracy Strategy (DfE, 2000) was published in order to look at the teaching of mathematics in depth and to suggest to teachers ways in which they could incorporate better pedagogy within the area of mathematics. In his review, Williams (2008 cited in DSCF, 2008) looked at pedagogy for primary mathematics in the curriculum. He argued that in order for the content of a curriculum to be effective it must be partnered with excellent standards of teaching. He talked about developing positive attitudes towards the subject through delivering mathematics in interesting ways which will engage the learner. Through the use of creative pedagogy teachers can provide positive experiences which captivate the learner and therefore help them develop good attitudes towards the subject of mathematics. Similarly to Williams (2008 cited in DSCF, 2008), Ofsted (2010) drew parallels between the National Curriculum and creative approaches to teaching. They reported that children are more motivated by creative ways of learning, suggesting that providing experiences linked to the subject material within the National Curriculum, in which children can develop their creative learning, will in turn have a positive effect on their attitudes towards the subject. In conclusion, creativity is highly important within all aspects of the curriculum. Although it can be interpreted in different ways, this could have a positive effect as it llows for even more originality and diversity within teaching methods.

Are Whales Fish or Mammals

Whales are a member of the cetacean family, and as such, despite being wholly water-resident, whales are mammals, not fish. There are only 83 species of cetaceans in the world organized into 14 families and two main subcategories: Toothed whales (Odontoceti, including killer whales, narwhals, dolphins, and porpoises) and baleen whales (Mysticeti, humpback whales, and rorquals). Toothed cetaceans have teeth and eat penguins, fish, and seals. Instead of teeth, Mysticeti have a shelf of bony material called baleen that filters tiny prey like zooplankton out of ocean water.  All cetaceans, toothed or baleen, are mammals. Key Takeaways: Why Whales Are Mammals Whales are cetaceans and fall into two categories: baleen (that eat plankton) and toothed (that eat penguins and fish).Mammals breathe air using lungs, bear live young and feed them using mammary glands, and regulate their own body temperature.  They evolved from a four-legged terrestrial during the Eocene, 34-50 million years ago.  Whales share a common ancestor with hippopotamuses. Whale Characteristics Whales and their cetacean relatives range enormously in size. The smallest cetacean is the Vaquita, a small porpoise living in the Gulf of California, about 5 ft (1.4 m) long and weighing less than 88 pounds (40 kilograms). It is close to extinction. The largest is the blue whale, in fact, the largest animal in the ocean, which can grow to more than 420,000 lbs (190,000 kg) and up to 80 ft (24 m) in length.   Cetacean bodies are streamlined and fusiform (tapering at both ends). They have small lateral eyes, no external ears, laterally flattened forelimbs lacking a flexible elbow and an indistinct neck. Whale bodies are sub-cylindrical except for their tails, which are flattened at the end.   What Are Mammals? There are four main characteristics that set mammals apart from fish and other animals. Mammals are endothermic (also called warm-blooded), which means they need to provide their own body heat through their metabolism. Mammals give birth to live young (as opposed to laying eggs) and nurse their young. They breathe oxygen from air and have hair—yes, even whales. Cetaceans vs. Fish Prince of Whales Whale Watching Tours To understand what makes a whale a mammal, compare it to an ocean-inhabiting fish of the same general size: a shark. The main differences between cetaceans like whales and fish such as sharks are: Cetaceans breathe oxygen. Whales have lungs, and they breathe through blowholes in their skulls, choosing when to come to the surface to breathe. Some species like sperm whales can stay underwater for as long as 90 minutes, although most average about 20 minutes between breaths. In contrast, sharks extract oxygen directly from the water using gills, specially built feathery slit structures located on the sides of their heads. Fish never need to come to the surface to breathe. Cetaceans are warm-blooded and are able to regulate their own body temperature internally. Whales have blubber, a layer of fat that helps to keep them warm, and they generate heat by swimming and digesting food. That means the same species of whale can thrive in a wide variety of environments from polar to tropical oceans, and many migrate back and forth during the year.  Every year, whales travel alone or in groups called pods, moving long distances between their cold-water feeding grounds to their warm-water breeding grounds. Sharks are cold-blooded and cannot regulate their body temperature, so they must stay in whatever environmental zone they evolved in, generally temperate or tropical waters. There are some cold water sharks, but they have to stay in the cold to survive.   Cetacean offspring are born live. Whale babies (called calves) take about 9–15 months to gestate, and are born from the mother one at a time.   Depending on their species, mother sharks lay up to about 100 eggs in egg cases hidden in seaweeds, or they keep eggs within their bodies (in ovipositors) until they hatch. Cetacean offspring are tended by the mothers. Female whales have mammary glands which produce milk, allowing the mother to feed her calves for a whole year, during which time she teaches them where the breeding and feeding grounds are located and how to protect themselves from predators. After newborn shark eggs are deposited, or the babies (called pups) hatch from the mothers ovipositor, they are on their own and must break out of the egg case and forage and learn to survive without help. Cetaceans have vestigial hair. Many of the species lose their hair before they are born, while others still have some hair on the top of their heads or near their mouths. Fish do not have hair at any time during their lives.   Cetacean skeletons are built of bone, a strong, relatively inflexible material that is kept healthy by blood flowing through it. Bony skeletons are good protection from predators. Sharks and other fish skeletons are primarily made of cartilage, a thin, flexible, light, and buoyant material that evolved from bone. Cartilage is resistant to compression forces and gives the shark the speed and agility to hunt effectively: Sharks are better predators because of their cartilaginous skeletons. Cetaceans swim differently. Whales arch their backs and move their tail flukes up and down to propel themselves through the water. Sharks propel themselves through the water by moving their tails from side-to-side. Evolution of Whales as Mammals Model of Eocene Ancestor of Whales, Indohyus. Museo di Storia Naturale di Calci - Pisa. Ghedoghedo Whales are mammals because they evolved from a four-legged, strictly terrestrial mammal known as a pakicetid beginning in the Eocene, about 50 million years ago. During the Eocene, different forms used various methods of locomotion and feeding. These animals are known as archaeocetes, and fossil archaeocetes body forms document the transition from land to water.   Six intermediate whale species in the archaeocetes group include semi-aquatic ambulocetids, which lived in the bays and estuaries of the Tethys Ocean in what is today Pakistan, and the remingtonocetids, which lived in shallow marine deposits in India and Pakistan. The next evolutionary step was the protocetids, the remains of which are found throughout South Asia, Africa, and North America. They were primarily aquatic-based but still retained hind limbs. By the late Eocene, dorudontids and basilosaurids were swimming in open marine environments and had lost nearly all vestiges of land life.   By the end of the Eocene, 34 million years ago, body forms for whales had evolved to their modern shape and size.   Are Whales Related to Hippos? Kraig Becker For well over a century, scientists debated whether hippopotamuses and whales were related: The relationship between cetaceans and land-based ungulates was first proposed in 1883. Before the breakthroughs in molecular science of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, scientists relied on morphology to understand evolution, and the differences between land-living hoofed animals and marine cetaceans made it difficult to believe how these two animals could be closely related. However, the molecular evidence is overwhelming, and scholars today agree that hippopotamids are a modern sister group to cetaceans. Their common ancestor lived at the beginning of the Eocene, and probably looked something like Indohyus, basically a small, stocky artiodactyl about the size of a raccoon, the fossils of which have been found in what is today Pakistan. Sources Fordyce, R. Ewan, and Lawrence G.  Barnes. The Evolutionary History of Whales and Dolphins. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences 22.1 (1994): 419-55. Print.Gingerich, Philip D. Evolution of Whales from Land to Sea. Great Transformations in Vertebrate Evolution. Eds. Dial, Kenneth P., Neil Shubin and Elizabeth L. Brainerd. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2015. Print.McGowen, Michael R., John Gatesy, and Derek E. Wildman. Molecular Evolution Tracks Macroevolutionary Transitions in Cetacea. Trends in Ecology Evolution 29.6 (2014): 336-46. Print.Romero, Aldemaro. When Whales Became Mammals: The Scientific Journey of Cetaceans from Fish to Mammals in the History of Science. New Approaches to the Study of Marine Mammals. Eds. Romero, Aldemaro and Edward O. Keith: InTech Open, 2012. 3-30. Print.Thewissen, J. G. M., et al. Whales Originated from Aquatic Artiodactyls in the Eocene Epoch of India. Nature 450 (2007): 1190. Print.Thewissen, J. G. M., and E. M. Williams. The Ear ly Radiations of Cetacea (Mammalia): Evolutionary Pattern and Developmental Correlations. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 33.1 (2002): 73-90. Print.