Study Theobald's question of 'mind-quake', find a real-life example and describe it
According to Theobald the term "mindquake" is formed as a parallel to "earthquake". He used the term describing a large and catastrophic shift in thinking. Theobald figured that it is better to learn all the time be open to new things and make small shifts in thinking instead of one large life changing shift.
While thinking about a real-life cases about mindquake, the first thing that comes to mind is the mindquake soon to happen in Estonia in 2011. From January 1st Estonia is going to change its currency from Estonian kroon to Euro. This will probably cause a lot of confusion and misunderstandings. Everyone will have to start calculating their salaries and everyday costs in Euros. The mind has to settle with the transition and create new associations in order to understand the value of the new currency.
It can be said that Theobald is correct by saying that it is better to make little shifts in thinking over time. For example if people consciously already in advance calculated their costs to Euros, it would be a lot easier to make the transition. Some people probably have taken it into consideration and are dealing with Euros already, but for most of the people, it will still definitely be a mindquake.
Pick one of Handy's paradoxes, find a good real-life illustrative case and describe it
Paradox of Justice
Paradox of justice is one of the most intriguing and at the same time most delicate subjects in Estonia recently. The contradictions between the laws and the punishments are being questioned daily in Estonia. Stories about people, who have committed crimes, but are walking free, can be read from the papers every day. The justice system, which is supposed to protect the innocent and punish the guilty, cannot work as black and white as the public expects it. There are other laws, which demand strict bureaucracy and definite order of steps to be taken before the person who committed the crime will be claimed guilty. Even if the fact that he did it is obvious to everyone. Every aspect of the crime has to be correctly investigated and documented in order to be accepted as a proof against the suspect in court.
Recently there was a case where a man, under the influence of the drug GHB killed two people by running them over with his car. He was drug tested afterwards, but as the clinic that tested him did not have a correct qualification to do the drug tests, the fact that he had used drugs could not be taken into consideration while he was trialed. Therefore he had a milder punishment. In one hand, the system is correct by stating that everyone should be treated the same. The rules must exist and everyone ought to stick by them. In the other hand, everyone knew about the fact that he had taken drugs, it had been medically proven, but there was nothing anyone could do about it.
Pick one of Castells' features of network society and write a short analysis
Changes in Work and Employment
Castell describes the features of Network Society. One of the relevant features in his opinion is the change in work an employment. As most of the work could be done online, there is no need for staying in the office from nine to five. The working time, place and regulations are flexible and allow the worker to manage his time himself.
This kind of work organization is becoming more and more popular. The emergence of wireless Internet and technology give a good possibility for the flexi-workers not to own an office at all. Basically one could manage a whole company from his living room or a cafeteria around the corner.
For an employer it is cheaper to buy in a service from a person who does not have to use the facilities, therefore does not need to have a desk, chair and a parking place. He does not have to be paid monthly or receive a huge compensation when being laid off.
This kind of work organization is comfortable for people who for example are not able to leave home for the whole day. Like mothers or fathers who have to take care of their babies at home or people who live too far away from their place of work, so it is more comfortable not to commute to work daily. This also gives an opportunity for physically disabled people to find work more easily, as the transportation issue is not a problem in this case.
In the other hand, working at home needs great time management skills. A flexi-worker has to establish a strict line between work and leisure time so that one would not interfere with the other. While working at home, it is at the same time possible to do too much work and get too little rest or the opposite, do not bother to do work in such a comfortable environment. As the computer is always open and notices of new e-mails pop up all day long, it is tempting to see who is writing and what is happening. It may lead to the fact that the family and leisure time could be forgotten. It just seems that there is so much work to do. But working from home could also be distracted by children running around, the dog wanting to go for a walk or a good show from TV. Therefore it is relevant to keep the working and leisure time apart to avoid burning out.
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