Abstract
The paper discusses the British philosopher Bernard Williams and the central role he played in 20th Century thought, by releasing ethics from rigid categories and returning morality to hand and heart.

From the Paper
"Bernard Williams wrote that whereas most moral philosophy at most times has been empty and boring, contemporary moral philosophy has found an original way of being boring, which is by not discussing issues at all. The study of morality, he argued, should be vital and compelling. He wanted to find a moral philosophy that was accountable to psychology and to history, to politics and to culture. In his rejection of morality as a peculiar..."

Tags:Philosophy Ethics Morals British Literature

Abstract
This paper argues, with reference to a number of different works and perspectives on the debate of international free trade and the environment, that in effect, these two are mutually exclusive. The paper argues that it is only through tough choices - which recognize that all parties have to "give" in this conflict - that the global human population can hope to reconcile development and protection of the biosphere in the long term.

From the Paper
"In the contemporary debate over globalization, free trade and the environment, one of the primary sites of conflict is the balancing of free trade with environmental concerns. A primary feature of this conflict is how these two areas - the promotion of international free trade and the promotion of environmental protection - seem to have become mutually exclusive absolutes. In this context, this essay will argue, with reference to a number of different works and perspectives on this debate, that in effect these two are mutually exclusive. In this analysis, it is only..."

Tags:economics, development, environment

Abstract
This paper discusses the weakness of Thai absolutism and looks at its rise and fall. The writer looks at the overthrow of Thai absolutism in 1932. The paper includes a narrative historical overview of the history of Thailand from the reign of King Chulalongkorn to the coup overthrowing the monarchy and putting an end to absolutism.

Tags:Thailand, history, absolutism, monarchy

Abstract
This is a personal paper about belief in absolute truth, emphasizing the difference between absolute and relative notions of truth.

From the Paper
"Noting that metaphysics is the philosophical study of the nature of reality, Blackburn states that a key question in metaphysics is whether reality contains any absolute truths. The phrase 'absolute truth' is said to refer to an unalterable, unchanging and permanent fact. An absolute truth is valid in all times and in all spaces. Absolute truth can be contrasted with a relativistic idea of truth in which truth is viewed as something that is relative to the individual or individuals believing it. In other words..."

Tags:metaphysics, absolute truth, relativism

Abstract
This paper argues that Putin's authority in Russia today draws upon the same wellspring of absolutism that fuelled the power and destructiveness of the Red Czar, Stalin. In this analysis, the Soviet absolutism of the 20th century is rooted in Russian traditions that stretch back for centuries under the Czarist empire. In this context the Soviet era desire for a strong absolutist leader who will fix things will be seen to have been a recurring element in Russian society for much of its history.

From the Paper
"Today, in the early 21st century, Soviet Russia of the 20th century and the Czarist empire of the centuries before that are shadows of history remembered - if at all - through Cold War spy thrillers and the memories of an older generation of Ukrainians, Russians, and East Europeans whose lives were shaped or destroyed by Soviet power. In the popular view, Russia is a westernized - if corrupt - no different from many authoritarian "democracies" around the world. This essay will argue, however, that this view of Russia is radically flawed."

Tags:russia, soviet, absolute

Abstract
This essay deals with all aspects of absolutism; the stormy political climate which incubated it after the Renaissance and then its reign as the most effective form of government in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

From the Paper
"Many different kinds of political systems have been used in Europe throughout history. One of the most popular forms during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were absolute monarchies in which monarchs with power and wealth governed nation-states such as Russia and France. The English, however, made attempts to protect individual rights and to limit royal power. There was now friction between the two types of government; with both advantages and disadvantages being found for both."

Tags:absolute, absolutism, despots, england, france, monarchies, monarchs, russia, tyrants

Abstract
This paper explains that the growth of the absolute monarchy, referred to as the Age of Absolutism, beginning during the reign of Louis XIV and ending with the French Revolution, was the origin of the modern state. The author points out that absolutism was largely motivated as a solution to the crises of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, such as the Reformation that led to a series of violent and cruel religious and civil wars, leaving thousands of innocents died. The paper relates that, during the seventeenth century, monarchs attained power and authority that were unprecedented, leading historians to use the term "absolutism" to describe these political systems; however, other historians argue that the term is misleading because neither the ambitions of the monarchs nor the results constituted political absolutism.

From the Paper
"From appearance of nation-states in Europe during the middle of the millennium until the latter half of the twentieth century is, it seemed probably that some form of absolutism would be the dominant pattern for the most powerful and successful of those states. The triumph of societies based upon limited forms of government over their absolutist rivals is one of the most surprising and significant developments of the millennium. By 1715, Paris had become one of the greatest cities in Europe, whereas a century before, it was still very much a medieval town."

Tags:wars, misleading, power, monarchy, privilege

Abstract
Extraordinary musical talent is very rare; however a more uncommon talent, even among musicians, is absolute pitch. The paper explains that absolute pitch, also known as perfect pitch, is the ability to accurately identify pitches by name or produce a particular pitch without musical context or reference to another tone. The origins of absolute pitch have not been fully explored, but it is certain that genetic, environmental and biological factors all play a part in the development of this ability. The paper argues that more research should be done to separate the components affecting absolute pitch, as it can give valuable insight to the nature versus nurture debate.

From the Paper
"Another study used PET scanning to compare the cerebral blood flow of absolute pitch possessors to control musicians without absolute pitch. During pitch labeling tests, absolute pitch possessors demonstrated activation of the left posterior dorsolateral frontal cortex, an area related to learning associations. During interval-judgment tests, control subjects showed activation in the left posterior dorsolateral cortex and right inferior frontal cortex, an area of the brain thought to be used as working memory."

Tags:biopsychology, neurology, psychology

Abstract
This paper examines the fall of Thai absolutism. The paper argues that absolutism came to an end in what was Siam and is now modern Thailand because of a fundamental, internal contradiction. The research method employed is narrative and historical, tracing the period of Siamese development from the reign of King Chulalongkorn to the 1932 coup, which ended absolutism.

From the Paper
"Ian Morson stated that when King Chulalongkorn came to the throne in what was then Siam as Rama V, he was only 15 years old and the country was ruled by a regent who ensured that the young king would travel, during which time the king became impressed by many European ideas. King Chulalongkorn, when he assumed full power, was determined to create a modern state in order to reap the advantages of modernity for his country, leading him to create a modern army, a central government bureaucracy, a modernized Western style judiciary, and the rule of law as observed in the West. Simultaneously, however, the king also was determined upon maintaining absolutism and the traditional social order of the country driven by privilege that was based on birth."

Tags:chulalongkorn, rama, vajiravudh

Abstract
This paper analyzes the book "Absolut : Biography of a Bottle" by Carl Hamilton and discusses the story of how Absolut Vodka emerged as an unknown product and with a unique marketing strategy managed to conquer the United States market.

From the Paper
"The first step in the story is the proposal Gunnar Broman, head of Sweden's top advertising agency, made to New York executives in 1978. At this time the belief was that all good vodka came from Russia. In reality, vodka had been being produced in Sweden for centuries, but the cultural belief in America was that vodka came from Russia."

Tags:sweden, russia, broman, alcohol, advertisements