Urbanization and Urban Issues
Micro order
Order - suggests a straightening out so as to eliminate confusion.
Order can be easily found in physics or mathematics or any other science
where basics are precisely defined, but it becomes much harder task to
identify any order in a science where basics are blurry. History suggests
that there were greater number scientists discovering laws of nature as
oppose to laws of social behavior. It is probably coming from a notion that
people tend to discover more obvious stuff in stead of theoretical. If we
look at the way of living at the beginning of science we can surely say
that it was more rural type of living than urban. It means simple fact that
people did not interact with one another as much as we do in modern life
and therefore science of nature was more obvious and had more practical use
than just some theoretical study of hypothetical society that did not even
exist at that time in the way we mean and study today. Modern economy has
changed the way we live, interact with one another and behave under certain
circumstances. It has even changed the way in which science is being
practiced. In the past only wealthy people could afford to practice
science, they were discovering things without any bios or any expectations
from their discoveries, they were doing it just to satisfy their curiosity.
Now days science became a profession and we see more and more individuals
who are in to science for only financial satisfaction. Big corporations as
well as small business mainly interested in that science, outcome of which
can improve their performance in achieving certain goals. Scientists are
being told that do and what to study. Modern technology together with
economical forces has changed our way of living. Sophisticated tools and
chemicals yield to higher crops from the same soil. We are becoming less
concerned with quality of the food we consume and only think of a price we
pay. Farming is expensive in a sense where we can buy food from overseas
for less. This is one of the main factors that forced farmers to move and
settle in cities. Recent statistical data suggests that 60 % of the entire
population will be living in cities by the year of 2030 oppose to 14% in
1950. These changes force us to find science that will be dealing with
human behavior and/or interactions among the society, science that will
help us understand what makes us choose one place over another. This might
help us solve many questions in our life that have reputations of being
unsolved. Throughout this essay I will be raising questions that I think
have the greatest importance and will try to answer them in the best way
possible.
There is one generic rule that will help solve many questions from the very
beginning when start exploring properties of different things. For example
when in physics teacher start talking about velocity, the very first
sentence is definition. I think that definition is essential to any science
and social science should not be any different. If so then what is Micro
order and where doe it exist.
Order is a set of rules that will end confusion. We can observe elements of
order everywhere we look. A street sign helping people find their ways
around, a set of laws defining math, the periodic table of Mendeleyev
helping scientist end chaos in chemistry at least on the lower level.
Everything that serves its purpose is a part of the order. If this is true
than what is it that creates opposite to any order or chaos, is it stuff
that does not match existing rules or is it stuff that does not serve its
purpose or maybe just combination of both?
I would like to look at the organization that I am familiar with, York
University. The main purpose of York University as well as any other
university is to provide knowledge to people who qualify to be students.
The process that filters individuals by certain parameters such as GPA from
other schools or personal achievements is an example of the order that
serves its purpose of filtering within York University.
What would it be if York did not have these rules and would accept
individuals on a first come first served basis just like in McDonalds does.
This still would be an example of an order but designed for different
purpose. What would York look like and what would McDonalds look like if
they switched their rules of admittance. Would it create a chaos at York
and perfect order in McDonalds? It shows that set of rules must be applied
then and only then when it serves its purpose other wise it creates chaos.
We all understand that when we have a set of rules everything is so much
easier.
What makes us creating order when disorder is so much easier?
Who would not agree with me if I said that is so much easier to use one
garbage can and throw everything in there in stead of having number of
different containers for disposal separation? What is it that makes us
obeying rules, is it severe punishment for not obeying, is it conciseness
that makes us behave in a certain way that we think serves its best for
needs of community and environment, or is it just because we are expected
to separate garbage and we usually do what we are asked to do? We obviously
do not enforce rules of garbage separation, and not always concerned with
the needs of community or environment on larger scale so it would not be
logical to assume that we would be concerned with garbage separation, or is
it because we do what we are expected to do. I believe that last hypostasis
describes our behavior in the best way. We tend to do what are being told
sometimes even with out understanding why we are being told so. For example
we were all told that we have to read books, by the time we were told so
first time we probably had no idea what it was for, or we were told what
courses we have to take in order to graduate from a certain school.
Who is the part of an order?
As I defined before order is a set of relevant rules what must be obeyed.
But question is; who are these individuals that must obey this set of
rules. By looking at the York University we can segregate people in
different groups guided by degree of their involvement to York’s life. For
example students from other schools would not have to obey rues of York
University unless they are interacting or planning on interacting with
York. They might be students who just visit York’s library to study for
their own classes or these who are current students. Another example would
be that in order to get into faculty of science at York prospective
students have to take Calculus and English OAC level in order to meet
academic requirements. They are not really at York yet and their admittance
is uncertain but they already have started obeying rules. Another group of
people that is at York is obviously professors. They are one the most
important group of people, they teach students. How many times we hear
students saying that this professor is good, he knows what he is doing and
makes classes interesting, or simply he is following the book and therefore
it make so much easier to study for exam, or we hear this professor is
horrible, he is confusing, whatever he says does not make any sense. We
discourage ourselves from attending classes and try studying from the book
or witch to a different section. The third group of people I would define
as support. They help students interact with professors on a certain level.
My opinion is that in order to create a perfect order at York University
administration has to introduce a set of prescience rules that will be
defining all possible interactions between and/or among all groups without
any ambiguity leaving room freedom or for creativity. Look at the first law
of Newton, it shows that there is no room for ambiguity in the nature. “For
any action there is an opposite reaction.” We can say that this is very
obvious statement and it can not really help us understand society and its
behavior.
I was born in Ukraine and came to Canada at the age of nineteen. I went to
school and University at Ukraine. The system that was adopted for
educational purposes is very different. For example it York University
there is a choice between program you can graduate from, you can go to
Administrative studies and graduate with bachelor in administrative studies
or go to computer science or something else. In order to graduate from BAS
all students have to take certain coerces. For example we have to choose
among 20 offered courses in social science and choose one. It seems to be
logical to have system designed in the way that would allow students to
choose courses they are mainly interested in since it is just a general
education level and does not really affect skills required for being an
accountant. There is no rule that precisely defines the course but the
there is one that deals with it on more generic level. As an example of a
contrast in Ukrainian university I had no freedom in choosing courses. I
was told exactly what to take and how many courses at a time. Which system
is the better one? People will argue that since it is all general education
and has little or no affect on skills essential for chosen major it does
not really matter what to take. Or it might happen what a student decided
to go to a law school and works towards the highest grade score possible
and therefore chooses the easiest course available or courses where level
of proficiency is the highest. Obviously freedom that this system gives
mainly benefits these students who know exactly what their goals are and
/or these who can decide on their own how to achieve these defined goals.
But in the same time this system confuses these who have not decided yet
what their goals are, and attend York just because this is something what
is expected from them by someone else for example parents. Is it chaos or
is it order? Probably what would be more of an order if admittance to York
depended upon whether individuals have decided what to work towards or not.
If York had only these who know exactly what they are doing this system
would work in the best way. As mentioned before Ukrainians have adopted
system that tells you what to do and makes chose for you. It definitely
benefits these who have not decided that they want or these who know that
they want but do not the way who to get there.
