Chris Armstrong on Global Equality and Special Claims to Resources

In ‘Justice and Natural Resources,’ Chris Armstrong offers a rich and sophisticated egalitarian theory of resource justice, according to which the benefits and burdens flowing from natural (and non-natural) resources are ideally distributed with a view to equalize people’s access to wellbeing, unless there are compelling reasons that justify departures from that egalitarian default. Armstrong discusses two such reasons: special claims from ‘improvement’ and ‘attachment.’ In this paper, I critically assess the account he gives of these potential constraints on global equality. I argue that his recognition of them has implications that Armstrong does not anticipate, and which challenge some important theses in his book. First, special claims from improvement will justify larger departures from the egalitarian default than Armstrong believes. Second, a consistent application of Armstrong’s life plan-foundation for special claims from attachment implies that nation-states may move closer to justify ‘permanent sovereignty’ over the resources within their territories than what his analysis suggests.

A Study of Life Internal Rate of Return

Life insurance, not included as a part of the legal obligation in some countries, is one of the investment approaches that might not stand high in the public favor for some people since this is a type of investments that the investor cannot know beforehand the exact return, and the returns completely depend on uncertainty of the policy specification in some circumstances. Similar to the other kinds of investment, investors in life insurance products have been seeking a tool for investment evaluation. However, currently there are no accurate tools that can provide the value of the investment in a life insurance product sensitive to the uncertainty. Internal rate of return is the basic tool that buyers or bankers may apply in order to find the rate of return of this type of investment. The investment decision tool is one of the most important keys that investors have utilized upon making their decisions on investments. Therefore, in this research, we propose a new mathematical model with applications for investment decision, being an extension of the internal rate of return by taking into account the life probability, considering different types of life insurance policies, and other factors specified on life insurance investments such as the premium, the death benefit, the maturity value, the sum insured, the lapse rate, the surrender value, the annuity certain, and the lapse rate with different genders and ages. This newly proposed model is named as the "Life Internal Rate of Return" or Life-IRR model. By using the sample data for both males and females aged 30 years old with expected benefit of 100,000 baht for different types of life insurance policies which are endowment plan, whole life plan and retirement plan, the results show that, for males, the highest life rate of returns is that obtained from the retirement plan (3.633692%), and the lowest life internal rates of returns is that obtained from the endowment plan (2.384443%), while the whole life plan offers moderate life rate of returns of 2.427941%. For females, the highest life rate of returns is that obtained from the retirement plan (3.335189%), and the lowest life internal rates of returns is that obtained from the whole life plan (2.104658%), while the endowment plan offers moderate life rate of returns of 2.308062%. The sensitivity analyses of the life internal rates of return perform the natural characteristics of life insurance.

LEO TOLSTOY’S DOCTRINE OF NON-RESISTANCE TO EVIL BY FORCE AS A «LIFE-TEACHING»

The reflection and transformation of philosophical ideas in the fiction and essays by Leo Tolstoy and in his life is demontrated in the discussion of the doctrine of non-resistance to evil by force. The spiritual growth of a person is not only a philosophical idea, but also a life plan and «life-teaching» of Leo Tolstoy presented in the works A Confession, The Gospel in Brief, My Religion, On Life, The Law of Love and the Law of Violence and in the novels War and Peace, Anna Karenina and Resurrection.

Technology of goal setting as a method of formation of creative lifestyle of the future teacher

The article is devoted to the problem of whole laying as a factor in the formation of the creative lifestyle of the future teacher. Scientific approaches to the study of the phenomenon of whole laying, and its impact on the development of future teachers, the formation of life meanings and style, personality development and the formation of professional self-awareness are considered. Lifestyle is the most general characteristic of the life of a given social group or individual, which highlights specific to this group or individual activities or life values. The time perspective of the future is a projection of the motivational sphere of a person and represents to some extent the hopes, plans, projects, aspirations realized by him, which are connected with the near and future. The formation of these plans takes place throughout childhood almost spontaneously, mainly as an internalization of parents' values, their expectations of a particular child and through the development of motivation. The time perspective of the future formed in this way acquires its own motivating force, which influences the further development of the child's personality. A life plan is not only a prediction of a possible future, but also a certain self-attribution, a definition of the tasks that a person sets for himself and which he must fulfill. From this point of view, the life plan is the most important means of self-education: a person creates the desired image of himself, the ideal self-model. Lifestyle is the most general characteristic of the life activity of a given social group or individual, in which specific for this group or individual activities or life values are highlighted [1, p. 41]. Since the specific features of the activity may be different, the classification of lifestyle may be different. It cannot be assumed that a person always lives life in only one style. There is a mixture of styles, and the transition from one to another. This is due to qualitative changes that occur with a person: the transition of age, social status, change of values. Thus, the development of their own lifestyle for the future teacher is one of the main creative tasks on the path of self-improvement.

DNA profiling and personalised medicine from Nationwide Laboratories

Research into the canine genome has made it possible to test and screen for inherited diseases occurring as a result of single-gene mutations with ease. Nationwide Laboratories have used developments in the availability of these tests to develop DNA profiling for cats and dogs, with the option to include a life plan for the patient alongside the results. The hope is that screening cats and dogs early in life would allow for lifestyle adaptations and treatment planning, to allow for better management of any potential genetic disease, improving the overall healthcare for the companion animal as a result.