Have you ever been in a situation where, because of the numbers in your group, you didn’t really give it your all? For example, maybe on an academic group project you weren’t as diligent as you would have been had you been solely responsible for the assignment. Or, maybe you’ve helped push a stalled car to safety with some other people but didn’t really push your hardest.
When we find ourselves in groups, there is a diffusion of responsibility. Sometimes we don’t know whether we should even involve ourselves in the first place, since there are so many other people who could take action. Have you ever seen someone pulled over on the side of the road, but you just kept driving along with all the other cars speeding by? When there are large numbers of people involved, we tend to assume someone else will respond and take action first, or we might conclude that our help is not really needed.
Numerous studies demonstrate that when someone is in trouble or in need of help, as the number of bystanders increases, the number of people who actually help decreases. Termed “Bystander Apathy,” this effect occurs because, in almost any situation, the more people that are present, the more we feel a diffusion of responsibility. Our sense of social pressure is lessened when we feel that there might be any number of people more capable of helping than we are.
Another experiment conducted in New York highlighted this tendency for “Bystander Apathy.” It determined that when a lone individual observed smoke leaking from under a door, 75 percent of those studied reported the smoke. In groups of three, however, reporting incidences dropped to 38 percent. If in that group two people encouraged the third person to do nothing, reporting of the smoke dropped to 10 percent.
Often we don’t know whether we are really witnessing an emergency or not. For example, if we see a man collapsed on the floor, we might waver between two conclusions: Did he just have a heart attack or did he pass out because he’d been drinking too much? So, bystanders may be “apathetic” more because of uncertainty than insensitivity. And if they are uncertain, then they often don’t help because they don’t know if they’re responsible for doing so.
Everybody else observing the event is also likely to be looking for social evidence. Because most people prefer to appear poised and levelheaded when in the presence of others, they are likely to search for that evidence with brief glances at those around them. Therefore, everyone sees everyone else looking unflustered and failing to act. When people clearly know their responsibilities in a recognized and obvious emergency, however, they are remarkably quick to respond.
Festinger, Pepitone, and coined the term “de-individuation” in 1952. De-individuation refers to how, when we find ourselves in a group, we become less self-aware and also less concerned with how others will evaluate us.19 Think of all the people you’ve heard yell obscenities at sporting events. Do you think they would do that if they were in a small, intimate group watching that same event? Basically, de-individuation means that when in a group, we feel more anonymous and therefore less individually responsible for our actions, often causing us to say or do things that we would not normally feel comfortable with.
Diener, Fraser, Beamnan, and Kelemn conducted a study that showed how de-individuation can lead to antisocial behavior. On halloween, researchers evaluated 1,352 trick-or-treaters–either alone or in groups–who had the chance to steal candy from twenty-seven Seattle homes. The researchers figured that Halloween would be the perfect occasion to conduct such a study because the children would be in costume, making them more anonymous. When the children came to doors where they were greeted by experimenters, they were told they could choose only one piece of candy. In some cases, the experimenter asked the children their names, while in other cases the children were allowed to remain anonymous. The experimenter would then leave the room, as though they had to go get something. Unseen observers took careful note of how the children responded: When alone, 7.5 percent took more than one piece of candy; when in groups, 20.8 percent took more than one piece! It was also interesting to observe that the children who remained anonymous stole more candy than did the children who gave out their names. De-individuation prompted many of the trick-or-treaters to go against what was socially acceptable and steal more candy.
One particular case in history stands out as a classic example of Bystander Apathy. Catherine Genovese, a young woman living in New York City, was murdered one night when returning home from work. The unfortunate truth of the matter was that, in a city like New York, her death was just another of countless murders. Consequently, the incident didn’t receive any more coverage than a few short lines in The New York Times. Genovese’s story would have remained an obscure and incidental case had it not been for the publicity given one additional fact of her killing.
A week later, A.M. Rosenthal, editor of the New York Times, went out to lunch with the city police commissioner. Rosenthal asked the commissioner about another homicide in the area, but the commissioner, mistakenly thinking he was being asked about the Genovese case, revealed a shocking piece of information that had been uncovered by the police. Genovese’s death had not been a silent, hidden, or secretive occurrence. Rather, it had been a loud, drawn-out, public event. As her attacker chased her down and stabbed her three separate times in a 35-minute period, thirty-eight neighbors watched from their apartment windows and didn’t even call the police! Rosenthal promptly assigned a team to investigate this incidence of “Bystander Apathy.” Soon after, the New York Times came out with a lengthy, front-page article detailing the incident and the alleged reactions of the neighbors:
For more than half an hour, 38 respectable, law-abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens. Twice the sound of their voices and the sudden glow of their bedroom lights interrupted him and frightened him off. Each time he returned, sought her out, and stabbed her again. Not one person telephoned the police during the assault; one witness called after the woman was dead.”
Everyone was completely stunned and baffled. How could people just witness such a scene and do absolutely nothing? Even the very neighbors alluded to in the article didn’t know how to explain their inaction. Responses included, “I don’t know,” “I was afraid,” and “I didn’t want to get involved.” These “explanations” didn’t really answer anything. Why couldn’t one of them have just made a quick, anonymous call to the police? Different branches of the media–newspapers, TV stations, magazines, radio stations–pursued their own studies and investigations to explain the incredible scenario, all o f them finally arriving at the same conclusion: The witnesses simply didn’t care. They concluded that there was just no other explanation, or so they thought.
Do you really think thirty-eight people did not care enough to make an anonymous phone call? Did the researchers not understand the diffusion of responsibility? The neighbors did not react, thinking someone else would help or someone else would call the police. Most of us are good people. If each individual neighbor knew it was up to them to phone the police and get help, I guarantee they would have made the call.
Kurt Mortensen
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/weakness-of-the-masses-115095.html
Elvis was so moved to bring a chandelier into his Graceland estate that he insisted on an impromptu late-night shopping spree at Memphis’ Belvedere Lighting in 1974. While Elvis may have left the building, the breathtaking Italian cut glass chandelier now resides in the dining room.
The impressive wrought iron chandelier that hangs above the Grand Staircase in the Vanderbilt family’s great Biltmore Estate requires 72 light bulbs.
The Winchester Mystery House in California, built by gun heiress Sarah Winchester to appease unhappy ghosts, contains an elegant, imported chandelier that originally contained 12 candles, but was refitted to hold the spirit-friendly number of 13.
The Blue Room, the White House’s reception room, boasts a chandelier 79 feet by 36 feet, with 19-foot 10-inch ceilings. It takes one person two entire days to clean the monstrous chandelier, but as big as it is, the lighting fixture must also be removed every year to accommodate an even bigger Christmas tree.
Outside of private residences, however, one must either go to church or gamble at the card tables to find the largest chandelier. While the title for biggest chandelier isn’t a clear winner, four of the world’s top casinos and a Spanish mosque currently vie for the bragging rights. However, reports say a British shopping center under reconstruction will feature the largest chandelier after remodeling is completed by the beginning of 2007.
Pat Fillman, the owner of Horns a Plenty, made the world’s largest antler chandelier. He displayed the chandelier in early 2005 wowing all that saw it. The chandelier is 10 feet in diameter, 12 feet tall, and is fixed with sixty-seven light sources. With a final weight of over 850 pounds, he estimates that it took the antlers of nearly 600 dear and elk to make the chandelier.
Perhaps the most famous chandelier of all belongs, not in a house, a casino or a church, but in the theatre. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s well-known chandelier crash scene from Phantom of the Opera strikes desperation in the hearts of lighting buffs everywhere.
For more information on famous chandeliers, visit http://www.chandelierblog.com
Kevin Chang
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/famous-chandeliers-from-around-the-world-85687.html
Edt Spray 3.4 Oz for Women Posesses a blend of: Blackcurrant, Peach, Sandalwood Freesia, Lily Of The Valley, Cedarwood, Cardamom, Pear, Lotus, Musk Launched in 2006
Marion announces the winners of the halloween kit give away and shares a quick tip for grunge roses, then closes the video with an update on her wonderful Christmas.
Duration : 0:4:27
This morning when I was still half asleep, my beloved cat bit me in the heel and woke me up.
I kicked him hard in the stomach, to my own surprise. But not his. Tim is probably better acquainted to my tempers than myself.
I would often act like an angel at night. I would lean my head towards him and he would lick my forehead and chew my hair. I call it love.
Sometimes we would play cat and dog, me chasing and Tim hiding and crawling back and biting at times. I call it love too.
But there are times when Tim’s bite is not opportune at all, like this morning. So he got a kick in the stomach.
Did he deserve it?
Maybe Tim didn’t even ask himself the question. Animal logic is very simple. “Human beings are always right”.
But human ethic is much more complicated. Was I to blame for kicking my cat and scaring him?
I’m now in the office and start working for the up-coming Halloween promotion. But I find myself regretting what I did to Tim.
Of course I love Tim. He’s much more than a cat. He’s a cat that’s as friendly and playful as a dog. Which makes him more than just my best friend. I admire his beauty. And how he unreservedly shows his emotions when he’s hungry.
Then why did I kick him in the stomach. Hard.
Maybe its because Halloween’s coming. Maybe I’m under some spell. Or maybe some spirit just possesses my mind at times.
Then I got a newsletter from www.audio4fun.com. I’ve subscribed to them for quite a while, since I got interested in a software called AV Voice Changer Software, which morphs your voice to extremes like “robot voice” or “fabulous creatures”.
Now they invite me to join a Phantom Voice Contest. They want me to sing the line “The phantom of the opera is there, inside your mind” and win prizes on the occasion of halloween.
This immediately has a positive effect on me. So I’m not that bad for kicking my poor Tim in the stomach.
I could have been worse. I could have been a haunting phantom voice that insists on seizing someone else soul.
I have to thank www.audio4fun.com for their “weird” products and events so I feel like I’m not alone on the evil side. And those who created Halloween so I have something to blame.
And Tim will get his compensation. I will buy him a live mouse this Halloween.
Maybe I will change my mind. Maybe this article is written under the spell of some “dark force”.
But I just want to drive this point: should you ever find yourself on the evil side, be happy with it.
That would make the matter much simpler.
About author:
Jimmy Tiep is a freelance journalist and copywriter. He writes about sports, ads, human insights, etc… He’s contactable at media@audio4fun.com
Media
http://www.articlesbase.com/information-technology-articles/happily-on-the-evil-side-62665.html
Man is not only the rightful heir of Almighty God but is a royal prince too. The individual soul is a part and parcel of the cosmic soul whom laymen call God. This royal prince (man) has all the qualities of his royal father (God) albeit in seed form. A small spark of a gigantic inferno has the same qualities of the inferno from where it emanated. Despite this it is very clear that man lives a very demeaned life today i.e. despite possessing divine qualities he lives a downfallen life. Why is this so? The answer is obvious and that is these divine powers are present in only their seed form. These latent powers have yet not been activated or awakened.
The Lord is Sat (eternal existence) but we human beings (God’s heir) undergo the vicious cycle of birth and death. God is Chit (divine light) and human beings swim in this terrible ocean of spiritual darkness/ignorance. God our Holy Father is divine bliss manifest and we wallow in the ocean of sorrow and pain. Hence a serious question arises in the mind of a deeply thinking person: Why this anomaly? God (King of this cosmos) sent his prince (mankind) in this world so as to live life royally and look upon it as a divine sport (Lila). And yet the bare reality is that man today is living a life of hell and strife. The little joy that he gets is transient and sure enough after a short time span hardships and anguish rule the roost. Why is it that that eternal (divine) bliss eludes mankind and thus forces him to wallow in pain and agony?
Fire by its very nature is full of heat and light. When this blazing fire slowly gets doused its upper region gets covered with a thick layer of ash. Thus the 2 qualities of fire viz. heat and light get covered by ash and cannot be seen or experienced by us. Fire covered by ash will not emit much heat nor light and lies listlessly. The burning fire full of brilliance can be demeaned to a lowly and useless state by a thick layer of as that covers its potential light and heat. Now suppose this thick layer of ash is removed totally the fire lying underneath will blaze forth terrifically and will also manifest its heat and light qualities fully.
Almighty God is Sat-Chit-Ananda or Existence-Consciousness-Bliss in nature. Hence his princely heir i.e. mankind too should be eternal bliss in nature. While living a life of divine sport (Lila) man should experience bliss and only bliss in this heavenly garden called world. And yet this divine bliss has been totally veiled by a lowly and vile intellect. A lowly intellect breeds nothing but strife and sorrow in life. Just as mentioned above when ash covers a blazing fire’s quality of heat and light so too a vile and tainted intellect covers man’s true nature which is eternal bliss oozing with divinity. It is a lowly intellect that perforce induces man to live a hell like life akin to penal servitude.
A tainted intellect is also called Maya, spiritual blindness/ignorance, demonic nature, Avidya etc. The thicker this veil of taints in our intellect and psyche greater are the hardships and dire situations faced by that individual. The more ones physical body is covered by a cake of filth the more one will feel itchy and emit a foul stench. If this dirt is reduced the itchiness and foul smell too will reduce correspondingly. If the body is devoid of dirt and filth it will remain in good health and less disease prone. But the more this filth attacks our body and settles on it the more one is prone to diseases that maybe fatalistic too. A tainted intellect and psyche can be compared to filth settling on the physical body. It induces unwholesome characteristics like fear, restlessness, agitation, stress, worry etc in our inner personality.
Today the world over, people are full of stress and tension. Some are unhappy because of illnesses, some face marital anguish, some are childless, some face business losses, some do not get job promotions, some are apprehensive of failure, some face false court cases, some fear their enemy, some face struggle due to injustice, some face disloyalty in friendship, some fear dowry problems, some are painfully separated from their dear ones etc. Thus as Lord Budha had declared: Everywhere there is sorrow and pain. Even our religious, financial, social, political and international aspects of life are full of tension and misery. Assuming that a person is more mentally alert even then at some point in time the widespread taints and misdeeds of others influence his psyche and thus his peace is destroyed. Thus his goal of attaining bliss remains unfulfilled.
Sorrow may be individual or at a macro level; their roots lie in a tainted intellect and psyche. Today this material world is so full of sense pleasures and comforts that it logically seems our entire lives should be full of joy and nothing but joy. Man possesses a priceless body, mind and intellect which logically should extract a lot of joy from these sense pleasures. In fact a gross viewpoint tells us that this joy should exceed even that present in heaven. And yet the bare reality experienced by world humanity says that everyone is in agony for some reason or the other, life seems dry and meaningless in the long run and virtually everyone experiences life to be burdensome and hence wait listlessly for death to take over. Our minds are bombarded with worry, tension, fears of future, taints and agitation. Is this not very similar to the description of hell described in ancient mythology like Puranas etc?
In reality this world indeed is beautiful and there is not an iota of ugliness in it. This world is a play ground of divine sports (Lilas) and has no place for worry, fear, tension etc. This precious human life is actually an eternal fount of the bliss of nectar and has no place for sorrow or anguish. “Swargaadapi gareeyasee”-this world is even more nectarine than heavenly pleasures because all those principles are present that pave the way for manifesting zest in our minds and hence daily lives. This rare and precious human body has been designed in such a manner that if it touches anything that object becomes beautiful and radiant. The Lord’s prince (humans) enters this world to revel in divine sports. He has been given a chariot called this rare body, servants in the form of sense organs and a minister in the form of an intellect so that he revels in this beautiful garden called the world. This prince is meant to taste and touch the nectarine beauty of this world. And yet if man is not experiencing nectar in this world it his vile and tainted intellect that is totally responsible for the pain and agony of worldly life faced by him.
Good health both mental and physical is our very true nature whereas mental and physical illness is not our nature. This is because physical and mental strife is the result of our own erroneous thinking and living. Birds and animals that live their lives in accordance with nature’s laws made for them do not fall sick day in and day out. Majority of the times they experience a fit and healthy body. As against this, man is actually inviting mental and physical agony by foolishly adhering to a lifestyle that goes against the very grain of natural laws laid down for world humanity. If only man sticks to nature’s laws while performing his daily activities he would be in a much better shape both physically and mentally. Similarly a sacred intellect is the very nature of all human beings. A pure and taintless intellect/psyche is God’s gift to mankind and hence is divine, our very birth right and nectar bestowing. When God sends every individual in this world he gives us a sacred mind and intellect so that it can in turn give us nothing but bliss while contacting this world of objects. And yet because spiritual ignorance and blindness take over our intellect it results in a psyche and intellect that thinks and acts erroneously and in an undesirable manner. In this manner at the mental level too we actually invite tension, agitation and turmoil simply because we harbor taints like lust, greed, avarice, criminal leanings, unethical thoughts etc in our psyche. Our psyche adheres to the law of “ALL OR NONE RESPONSE”. It means either our mind harbors wholesome thoughts or insists on foolishly thinking in an undesirable manner. In short both unwholesome and wholesome qualities cannot exist together. Thus it is for each individual to decide whether he/she wishes to nurture sacredness or lowliness in their minds and intellects. A vile intellect breeds sorrow and strife in abundance and a sacred mind, oozes with bliss and serenity that is devoid of even an iota of tension.
Gayatri verily is synonymous with a sacred intellect. In this Super Mantra a devotee prays to God for attaining a taintless and pure intellect. The 24 letters of Gayatri give us 24 priceless spiritual lessons and are direct manifestations of a sacred intellect. If these spiritual lessons are fully imbibed ones very viewpoint in life will be transformed in a sacred manner. Our previous tainted thinking, which was the root cause of our misery, now renounces these taints so as to attain purity. The Gayatri Super Mantra’s designing is so scientific that it helps activate innumerable latent powers in the psyche of a mature Gayatri devotee. Gayatri has that rare capacity to attract divine cosmic powers and store them in the psyche of its steadfast devotee. In this manner Gayatri definitely destroys ones tainted intellect from its very foundation so as to replace it with a pure and focused intellect. The more these taints (anger, lust, greed, fear, worry etc) are overcome greater is peace and bliss experienced by the aspirant. Gayatri is that eternal torch of divine light which destroys our spiritual ignorance that manifests as a tainted intellect. Thus man attains his true supremely divine state which was the reason why he took birth in this world of names and forms.
A person wearing spectacles with green colored lens will see all external objects as green. If the color used is yellow everything appears yellow. Similarly if we wear the spectacles of a vile intellect external circumstances will appear sorrowful and dire whereas these same circumstances will appear joyful for the one wearing spectacles of a sacred intellect. When a person’s brain experiences dizziness he/she visualizes external objects (house, trees, roads etc) as though they too are revolving when in reality they are not. A fearful man will ‘see’ ghosts while traveling in a dark alley where there are none in actuality. Know for sure that if our mind is tainted merely rectifying external situations will not diminish your woes. It is only when the psyche is cleansed and made focused that external situations, however dire will not destroy your inner serenity and mental balance. If a person wears yellow tinted sunglasses and wants to see external objects other than yellow in color you may keep changing external objects but they will continue to appear yellow in color. Some illnesses render a bitter taste in the patient’s taste buds and hence even if you give him delicious cakes, pizzas, mouth watering fruits etc he/she will get only a bitter taste. If a tainted intellect has induced lowly and unwholesome thinking in ones psyche it does not matter whether you live in palatial homes or for that matter heaven too, one will experience sorrow and nothing but sorrow even in such exotic surroundings.
Thus the chief task of Gayatri Super Mantra is to destroy ones taints present in the intellect and mind. A true Gayatri devotee is one who makes a firm resolve (Sankalpa) to overcome his inner taints and replace them with sacred qualities like love, compassion, integrity, values, ideals etc. Such devotion to Gayatri reaps success both materially and spiritually with greater ease and speed. Anyone who lays stress on imbibing purity of mind and intellect prospers both materially and spiritually. Thus infinite eternal bliss is at such a person’s beck and call for eternity.
Yuga Rishi Shriram Sharma Acharya
http://www.articlesbase.com/wellness-articles/super-mantra-gayatri-fulfills-our-spiritualmaterial-requirements-91929.html
I’m working on halloween invitations and announcements cards, and I’ll like to put babies halloween pictures, I searched on flickr and deviantart, but i think that i need a permission to use their pics
is there any website where can I get babies Halloween pics?
Thanks!
Party City website.
Barney, Baby Bop, and their pals plan a big bash for All Hallow’s Eve, with songs and costumes for all.
Babylon is of great interest to both religious and non-religious, and even secular journalists. For Bible students, the subject of Babylon remains of great interest due to its prevalence in Biblical history and prophecy. So, what is the Biblical History of Babylon? Let’s learn…
Duration : 7 min 51 sec
http://www.dizguise.com/c-10008-hat-wigs-masks.aspx Halloween Masks, halloween Wigs, Hats, Santa Hat, Beards and Facial Hair, TV & Movie Hats, Pirates, Famous, Historical, Holiday Hats, Scary Masks, Horror, Crowns, Tiaras, Cowboy Hats, Witch, Gangster, Occupational
Duration : 18 sec
