All About Hardie Board and Fiber Cement Siding

Hardie Board is fiber cement siding manufactured by James Hardie Building Products, one of the first successful manufacturers of this material. Two of their most popular products are HardiePlank ® (horizontal lap siding, 0.312 inches thick) and HardiePanel ® (vertical siding, 0.312 inches thick). The fiber cement siding is made from Portland cement mixed with ground sand, cellulose fiber, and other additives. The product is also known as cement-fiber siding, concrete siding, and fiber cement cladding. Fiber cement siding can resemble stucco, wood clapboards, or cedar shingles (e.g., HardieShingle ® 0.25 inches thick), depending on how the panels are textured during the manufacturing process. Pulverized sand, cement, and wood pulp are mixed with water to make a slurry, which is rolled out and pressed together into sheets. The water is squeezed out, a pattern is pressed onto the surface, and the sheets are cut into boards. The product is baked in autoclaves under high-pressure steam, and then the individual boards are jostled apart, tested for strength, and painted. It may look like wood, but the boards are much heavier with properties associated more with cement than wood. The wood fiber is added to give the board flexibility so it doesnt crack. The material is more durable than most woods and stucco and resists insects and rot. It is also fire resistant, which explains its early popularity in Australia, an arid land plagued by wildfires throughout the bush. Fiber cement siding has become popular, because it requires little maintenance, will not melt, is non-combustible, and can have a natural, wood-like appearance. However, many people say it is much more difficult for a nonprofessional to install than other siding. Remember, when youre cutting it that its really cement, with the associated hardness and dust to prove it. Hardie Board should not be confused with hardboard, which is dense, pressed particleboard made from wood. Common misspellings include hardiboard, hardyboard, hardyplank, hardypanel, HardiPlank, and HardiPanel. Knowing the manufacturers name will help with accurate spelling. James Hardie Industries PLC is headquartered in Ireland. Expense Comparisons Although more expensive than vinyl, fiber cement siding is considerably less expensive than wood. Fiber cement board is generally less expensive than cedarwood, more expensive than vinyl, and less expensive than brick. It is equal or less expensive than composite siding and less expensive than synthetic stucco. As with any construction project, the materials are but one aspect of the expense. Installing fiber cement board incorrectly can be a priceless mistake. About James Hardie James Hardie Building Products has long been associated with Australia, ever since the Scottish-born son of master tanner Alexander Hardie emigrated there in the late 19th century. James Hardie became an importer of tannery chemicals and equipment until he came upon a new fire-resistant product being manufactured by the French Fibro-Ciment Co. The construction product became so popular so quickly that even the misspelled name Hardi Board became somewhat generic, like Kleenex means facial tissues and Bilco means any steel cellar doorway. HardieBoard has come to mean any fiber cement siding by any number of suppliers. The success of the  fibro-cement sheeting imported by Hardie allowed him to sell his company and his own name. Hardie Fibrolite Fibrolite is synonymous with asbestos in places like New Zealand and Australia. Asbestos cement sheets became popular in the 1950s as an alternative building material to wood and brick. Hardie manufactured a cement-asbestos product in Australia beginning in the early 20th century. The James Hardie company continues to settle claims with employees and customers who have been subject to asbestos-related cancers presumably from working closely with the building product. Since 1987, Hardie products have not contained asbestos; the fiber replacement is organic wood pulp. James Hardie building products installed before 1985 may contain asbestos. Fiber Cement Building Products James Hardie Building Products is a company that specializes in fiber cement building materials and has come to dominate the market, yet other providers carry products similar to Hardie Boards. For example, allura USA bought CertainTeed Corporation and also merged its manufacturing with Maxitile in order to be competitive. American Fiber Cement Corporation (AFCC) distributes in Europe under the name Cembrit. Nichiha has a formula that uses less silica and more fly ash. Wonderboard ® by Custom Building Products is a product similar to HardieBacker, ® a cement-based underlayment. Fiber cement cladding has a history of expanding, shrinking, and cracking. James Hardie has addressed these issues with the HardieZone ® system. In the U.S. a different formula is used to make siding for homes in the north subject to freezing temperatures as opposed to siding for homes in the south, subject to hot, wet climates. Many residential contractors cannot be convinced that cement siding is even worth changing their building processes. Next Generation Concrete Cladding Architects are using Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC), a very expensive, cement-based product for commercial cladding. Popularly known by their fabricators, such as Lafarges Ductal ® and TAKTL and Envel with Ductal, UHPC is a complex recipe that includes metal fibers of steel in the mix, making the product super strong but thin and shapeable. Its durability exceeds other cement mixtures, and its not subject to some of the fiber cement hazards such as expanding and shrinking. Building on UHPC, the next generation of composite technology is DUCON ® Micro-Reinforced Concrete Systems; stronger, thinner, and even more durable for structures in an age of terrorism and weather extremes. Concrete homes have long been considered a solution to building in climates of extremes. Like most new products for the homeowner, look to what architects are using to eventually be the product of choice, as long as you can find a contractor who keeps up with the skills and necessary equipment to install it. Sources Recent Updates at linkedin.com/company/james-hardie-building-products, LinkedIn [accessed June 8, 2015]Frequently Asked Questions, Our Company, and Performance Durability, James Hardie Building Products Inc. [accessed June 8, 2015; February 11, 2018]Case study: James Hardie and asbestos, lawgovpol.com [accessed June 8, 2015]Australian Dictionary of Biography, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/hardie-james-jim-12963 [accessed February 12, 2018]

Suicide Awareness Essay - 991 Words

Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death among the United States. (Roxanne Dryden-Edwards) By definition homicide is the killing of a human being by another human being, but suicide is the act of killing oneself intentionally. Suicide awareness needs to be raised by knowing what suicide is, teaching others about suicide, and the effects of suicide. Each year in the United States over 300,000 individuals will attempt suicide, with approximately 32,000 taking their own life. (Dana Lizardi) The most common causes of suicide are the breaking up of a romantic relationship, moving, loss (especially if by suicide) of a friend, loss of freedom, or the loss of other privileges. Normally when people hear that someone has committed suicide they†¦show more content†¦One method used by some individuals is by threatening police officers, sometimes even with an unloaded gun or a fake weapon. That is commonly referred to as suicide by cop. Firearms are by far the most common methods by wh ich people take their life, accounting for nearly 60% of suicide deaths per year. (Kendall Harmon) If the United States reduces the number of firearm ownership the overall suicide rate would decrease 2.5%, or about 800 fewer deaths per year. (Kendall Harmon) When a friend states that he or she wishes they could just die; take them seriously. Many reported suicide cases state that the suicide victim told the peers, but the peers didn’t realize their cry for help. If a friend going through a tough time in their life the best protective factors would be to listen, care, and make sure they have a strong social support system. An effective treatment for suicide is different types of therapy. There are three types of therapy: group, cognitive, and behavioral. The most common therapy for suicidal cases is group. This not only allows the person to interact with others who have the same problem as they do, but it also allows the person to create new friends. It also makes it easier f or them to open up. For example, a middle-aged guy only went to 5 group therapy sessions after attempting suicide, and to this day he has not attempted taking his own life again. (Dana Lizardi) Coping with the loss of a loved one do to suicide maybe the most difficult thingShow MoreRelatedA Research On Suicide Awareness Programs1456 Words   |  6 PagesSuicide-Awareness Programs Taylor Dixon Methodist College N342 Suicide-Awareness Programs In the nursing field, there are several nursing interventions that exist. Suicide-awareness programs are a specific nursing intervention that could be used in a specific situation. For a nursing intervention to be effective, it must be proven through scientific research, making the intervention evidence-based practice. 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I would like to discuss with you about Mental Illness Awareness and Suicide Prevention. This topic is quite dear to me, as I myself suffer with a mental illness. I feel that this is a extremely crucial time to address and act upon this issue, as it is coincedently mental awareness week and month. I understand the hesitancy towards mental illness, it is a sensitive topic, and haven’t told many about my mental illnessRead MoreCyberbullying And Its Effect On Society1254 Words   |  6 Pagesof a peer and spread it around through online social media, causing people to make fun of that person, or even bully them more, and overall resulting in signif icant negative effects on their daily life and reputation, and sometimes, in rare cases, suicide. While cyberbullying is less frequent than traditional bullying,3 it is still a major issue for people worldwide, especially youth. Studies have shown that over half of school students are bully victims, and about one in four are cyberbully victimsRead MoreCounseling993 Words   |  4 Pagescounselors. The personal qualities of effective counselors are self-awareness, interpersonal awareness, objectivity and personal integrity, open-minded and trustworthy. Self-awareness is a term utilized to describe the counselor’s understanding and acceptance of his feelings, attitudes, and values. It is the recognition and acceptance of his personal awareness and the impact in others. Interpersonal awareness, objectivity, and personal integrity refer to the counselor ability to understandRead MoreWhat significance do journeys have in The Kite Runner as a whole?820 Words   |  4 Pagesjourney in search of a final resting place. Amirs journeys are also linked with traumatic effects with each of his journeys being linked to major events. For example Amirs journey to Pakistan in the truck leads to the death of Kamal and the suicide of his father which has a profound effect on Amir as he realizes the true impact of the rape and how his reluctance to act is probably effecting Hassan in the same way as it had effected Kamal. His journey in the fuel tanker with Kamal is also relevantRead MoreSuicide Is A Serious Issue1679 Words   |  7 PagesSuicide is one of the largest social problems today affecting many lives in one way or another. It is a serious issue with multiple contributors that have been elusive in many cases as we try to understand why many younger people are choosing to end their lives instead of receive the help they need. Suicide is a serious issue that can have lasting results on individuals, families and communities. 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Business Case analysis Samples for Students †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the HRM Business Case analysis. Answer: Introduction For every business it is required that appropriate set of decisions should be taken so as to assure that it could move on the path of success and sustainability. The report is developed which will include information related with various aspects of business case. Information related with the importance of return on investment to the business and critical thinking at the workplace will be provided so as to ensure that appropriate set of information could be delivered to the business with the effect of which it could process the work process and could move on the path of success as well as sustainability. Business Case The reasoning so as to initiate the project is being captured in the project or the tasks. It is a well written as well as well structured written document which provides appropriate set of direction to the organization with the help of which effective set of decisions could be taken (Ainsworth, 2013). Business case is being used so as to analyze uses of various set of resources such as money or the effort which is being consumed in any kind of the business process and the help and support which will be provided to the business in sustaining and ensuring that the business could move on the path of success as well as sustainability (White and McLaughlin, 2011). Human Resource Initiatives Human resource provides an effective set of support in any business case because it avails proper set of support system to the business with the help of which it could sustain in the market. It is required that proper decisions should be taken by the business in choosing appropriate human resource which could help in processing the work process in an effective manner (Weathington, Cunningham and Pittenger, 2012). Human resource provides helps in implementing the business plans into real life so that business could fulfill the requirements of the market and avail effective set of services to the people available in the market. There are various set of initiatives which are being taken by the human resource management like it is required to be a proactive business leader with the help of which business could sustain in the market, proactive leaders ensures to take the initiative to manage the work in an appropriate manner and to provide an effective set of support system to the organization with the help of which business could sustain in the market (Volkmann, Tokarski and Ernst, 2012). Human resource management of the business focuses on the top and high potential performers and helps in delivering appropriate set of support for them with the help of which assurance could be made that these performers could remain motivated and provides effective set of support to the organization (Rouwendal, 2012). Rewards and recognitions are being availed to the top high performers which help them in remaining motivated and provide proper set of support to the same with the effect of which they avail quality services to the business which ensures that the business could process its work process in a smooth manner (Owings-Edwards and Herz, 2011). Human resource management uses the best practices as a guide not as a rule book (Nielsen, 2010). It is one of the good quality attached with the human resource management as it uses the best practices as the guide with the help of which it could ensure to provide an effective support to the organization and keeps track records of all the negative as well as positive aspects with the effect of which work could be processed with quality for the next time (Michalos, 2013). Taking such type of decisions a better as well as effective set of support system is being created for the organizations with the help of which risk of uncertainties gets minimized and organization could process all the business processes in a smooth and subtle manner (Ldeke-Freund, 2014). Understanding total compensation is another initiative which is being taken by the human resource management with the help of which various processes related with business case (Karmarkar and Mangal, 2013). It is required that the compensation of the entire workforce should be designed in an appropriate manner so that they could work properly at the workplace. It is required that proper compensation should be availed to the employees which could help them in managing their lifestyle and ensuring that they could remain motivated at the workplace (Hunt and Secor, 2013). There are various other initiatives also which are being taken by human resource management like various development programs are being initiated by the managers (Heynderickx, 2012). For example to perform the task with quality at the workplace it is required that the organization should work towards to build effective team. In this case manager of the business take the initiative and ensures that all the employees should get proper compensation according to the work I performed by them (Gil Lafuente, 2013). Human resource information system is another aspect which is being taken into consideration by the human resource management so s to ensure that all set of information should be shared by the employees. Managing the information system is a very crucial task which requires recording the information in an appropriate way (Doyle, Bell and Smith, 2011). It is more important that such type of information should be escalated in a proper manner to the employees working at the workplace, doing so helps in performing the tasks in an appropriate manner and helps in ensuring that the tasks could be completed in an effective way within the time limits which are being decided by the organization (Doing business in a more transparent world, 2012). Essential Elements of a Business Case Managing the business case is one of the most crucial aspect in which it is required that the business should critically evaluate all the things in a proper way (Daly and Les, 2012). Organizations should work towards to gather appropriate set of information related with various elements which could help in managing the business case in an appropriate manner. There are certain elements of business case which are being focused upon so as to manage the things (Cobb, Tworoger and Preziosi, 2011). These elements are as follows: It is required that a brief compelling service oriented problem statements should be developed by the organization so as to ensure that the business could sustain in the market (Cherneva, 2013). Developing the mission as well as vision statement for the future which will help in addressing the future problems will help in availing proper support system to the business case in which problems related with the same will be addressed in a proper manner (Bowden and Belfield, 2015). To manage the business case it is required that the description of the specific objectives of the work process should be achieved in an appropriate manner. Such type of description helps in managing the work process with the help of which proper support system is being created so as to perform the tasks in effective as well as appropriate manner (Appelbaum and Samaha, 2011). It is required that the description and the rationale for the preferred approach should be developed by the organization for the business case in such type of situation rationale for the work process should be developed with the effect of which organization could sustain and could ensure to manage all the work processes in a proper way (Ainsworth, 2013). The statement of the benefits which are concerned with the stakeholders should be developed by the organization so that in the business case stakeholders related with the business should work effectively and should provide an effective set of support system for the organization with the effect of which it could sustain in the market (White and McLaughlin, 2011). These are some of key elements which are attached with the business case which are required to be focused upon so as to ensure that the business could sustain in the long run and could ensure that the work process could be completed within the time limits required to perform the tasks related with the businesses (Weathington, Cunningham and Pittenger, 2012). Cost Benefit Analysis The systematic approach used by the organizations which helps in estimating the strengths and weaknesses of the alternatives like transactions related with the goods and services, key activities of the workplace, functional requirements of the business, investment done by the business on various projects is being done is known as Cost Benefit Analysis (Volkmann, Tokarski and Ernst, 2012). It is required that the cost benefit analysis of the business should be done in an appropriate manner so as to ensure its success in the market (Rouwendal, 2012). Cost benefit analysis helps the business in providing the direction with the effect of which it could analyze all the aspects with the effect of which the investments done by the business could provide various benefits and ensure to provide a proper set of support to the business with the effect of which its processes could be completed in an effective manner (Owings-Edwards and Herz, 2011). Principles of Cost Benefit Analysis There are various principles attached with the cost benefit analysis in which helps in providing a proper set of direction to the company with the effect of which various processes of the business will be managed in an appropriate manner (Nielsen, 2010). These principles of cost benefit analysis are: It is required that in a business case there should be a common units of measurements in which balance should be maintained by the organization with the effect of which work could be performed in a proper manner. It is required that the businesses should have proper set of idea of various measurements so that appropriate set of decisions could be taken by it (Michalos, 2013). To manage the business case in a proper way organization should work towards to do appropriate CBA valuation which should ensure to represent the valuation of consumer and the producers valuation. This valuation will help in the decision making aspects with the effect of which organization will get various set of benefits and will be able to move on the path of success as well as sustainability (Ldeke-Freund, 2014). For the cost benefit analysis business should ensure to measure all set of aspects by the market choices. Focusing upon the requirements as well as choices of the market will provide a set direction to the organization. It helps in making the decision of the type of products and services required by the market and helps in developing the same accordingly (Karmarkar and Mangal, 2013). These are some of the key principles which should be focused upon so that business case could be successfully implemented and all the processes related with the same could be performed in an effective manner (Hunt and Secor, 2013). These are the aspects which help in providing effective set of support to the business case with the effect of which business could move on the path of success as well as sustainability (Heynderickx, 2012). Return On Investment The performance measure which helps in the evaluation of the efficiency of the investment made by the organization in the business process is known as return on investment (Gil Lafuente, 2013). For an effective business case it is required that the business should do appropriate set of evaluations of the investments which are made by the organization (Doyle, Bell and Smith, 2011). When an organization gain profit after investing the money in business case then it is being that the business has received effective return on investment. A formula for return on investment is gain from investment minus cost of investment divided by cost of investment (Doing business in a more transparent world, 2012). ROI = (Gain from the investment Cost of Investment)/ Cost of investment. For Example: Joe invested $ 1000 in the corporation named as Slice Pizza Corp. in 2010. After some time Joe sold his shares for $1200. So as to calculate return on investment it is required that Joes should use the formula of ROI (Daly and Les, 2012). ROI = (1200 1000)/1000 = 20% Hence, it could be evaluated that the return on investment that is being gathered by Joe is 20% by investing his money in the shares (Cobb, Tworoger and Preziosi, 2011). In the same manner it is required that the businesses should work towards to invest the money in the right direction. Such type of activities will help in availing affective set of benefits to the organization with the effect of which it will be able to sustain in the market (Cherneva, 2013). It is required that appropriate set of investments should be made by the organizations which could help them in sustaining and will help in ensuring that the business could continue to remain in the competition and attain the competitive advantage in the market. Evaluation Business evaluation is one of the most important aspects attached with any business. It is required that the evaluations should be done in a proper manner with the effect of which work process could be managed and business could move on the path of success as well as sustainability (Bowden and Belfield, 2015). All the aspects like cost benefit analysis, human resource initiatives and developing understanding with return on investment will help the organization to sustain (Appelbaum and Samaha, 2011). To manage the short term goals it is required that the business should focus upon the human resource and to manage the long term goals it is required that the business should focus upon the technology as both the aspects will help in solving the purpose of the organization (Ainsworth, 2013). Business Case Summary (Conclusion) With the help of various aspects indulged in the business case it could be concluded that the business should focus upon the human resource initiatives, should understand the important of cost benefit analysis and the return on the investment that will get with the help of the business processes. Evaluating all the aspects will ensure to provide an appropriate direction to the business with the effect of which it will be able to move on the path of success and sustainability. It is required that the business should have the team of research and development which could help it the sustainability aspects and could avail proper set of support so that it could attain competitive advantage in the market. Critical Reflective Analysis According to me the information availed in this report is appropriate and will help in the decision making aspects of the business. It could be suggested by me that business in present scenario should focus upon the long term as well as short term goals with the effect of which they could sustain continue to provide effective set of services to the people available in the market. References Ainsworth, J. (2013). Business Languages for Intercultural and International Business Communication: A Canadian Case Study.Business Communication Quarterly, 76(1), pp.28-50. Appelbaum, S. and Samaha, A. (2011). Business Process Outsourcing: Lessons From Case Studies In India, Poland, And Canada.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 4(12), p.37. Bowden, A. and Belfield, C. (2015). Evaluating the Talent Search TRIO program: A Benefit-Cost Analysis and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, 6(03), pp.572-602. Cherneva, I. (n.d.).The business case for sustainable finance. Cobb, K., Tworoger, T. and Preziosi, R. (2011). Laundromax: An Entrepreneurial Business Case Study.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 3(1), p.15. Daly, S. and Les, M. (2012). Eastern European Business Case Study In Entrepreneurship.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 8(4), p.437. Doing business in a more transparent world. (2012). Washington: World Bank. Doyle, B., Bell, A. and Smith, D. (2011). Specialty Food And Beverage: A Case Study Of Small Business Management.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 6(1), pp.142-143. Gil Lafuente, A. (2013).Decision making systems in business administration. Singapore: World Scientific Pub. Co. Heynderickx, P. (2012).The language factor in international business. Bern, Switzerland: Peter Lang. Hunt, K. and Secor, W. (2013). A Business Case Analysis Of The Snowboarding Industry.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 9(2), p.111. Karmarkar, U. and Mangal, V. (2013).The UCLA Anderson Business and Information Technologies (BIT) Project. Hackensack, N.J.: World Scientific Pub. Ldeke-Freund, F. (2014). BP's Solar Business Model - A Case Study on BP's Solar Business Case and Its Drivers.SSRN Electronic Journal, 12(1), pp.156-158. Michalos, A. (2013). The Business Case for Asserting the Business Case for Business Ethics.Journal of Business Ethics, 114(4), pp.599-606. Nielsen, K. (2010). The Return to Direct Investment in Private Firms: New Evidence on the Private Equity Premium Puzzle*.European Financial Management, 17(3), pp.436-463. Owings-Edwards, S. and Herz, P. (2011). Childcare And Entrepreneurship: A Business Case Study.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 6(4), pp.200-204. Rouwendal, J. (2012). Indirect Effects in Cost-Benefit Analysis.Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, 3(1), pp.137-139. Volkmann, C., Tokarski, K. and Ernst, K. (2012).Social Entrepreneurship and Social Business. Wiesbaden: Gabler Verlag. Weathington, B., Cunningham, C. and Pittenger, D. (2012).Understanding business research. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley Sons. White, J. and McLaughlin, J. (2011). Building A Business Incubator: A Teaching Case Study.Journal of Business Case Studies (JBCS), 2(4), p.19.

Skepticism About a Refutation of Skepticism free essay sample

â€Å"Skepticism about a Refutation of Skepticism† In â€Å"The Refutation of Skepticism†, Jonathan Vogel establishes an â€Å"Inference to the Best Explanation† (hereafter, â€Å"IBE†) as a means to refute skepticism about the external world. In this refutation, Vogel acknowledges that skepticism about IBE still remains a possibility, but that this kind of skepticism would be rather outlandish in character and thus could be ignored. This paper shall both establish and evaluate Vogel’s reasoning as to why he confidently dismisses any skepticism pertaining to his IBE, and furthermore will illuminate some points as to why Vogel may have mischaracterized potential threats to his method, leaving his refutation of skepticism vulnerable to doubt that is not as unorthodox as he believes it to be. IBE is a method for promoting our ordinary, everyday beliefs about the external world (referred to as â€Å"mundane propositions†) into knowledge in the face of equally plausible skeptical competitors, which aim to deny that we have such knowledge. We will write a custom essay sample on Skepticism About a Refutation of Skepticism or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It is founded upon the underdetermination principle, which governs knowledge by evaluating competing hypotheses for whichever has the most epistemic merit compared to the alternatives. However, the question of â€Å"what factors add to or subtract from epistemic merit is a crucial, but controversial, matter† (Vogel, 73) that leaves the criteria for knowledge in a susceptible state. The issue that IBE sets out to solve is that both mundane propositions and their competing skeptical arguments have equal epistemic merit in virtue of the underdetermination principle – giving skeptics the ability to use a form of the deceiver argument to â€Å"show†¦by our own lights, we lack knowledge of the world we think we have† (Vogel, 73). Vogel identifies this position as â€Å"domestic skepticism† because it aims to challenge our ordinary knowledge claims by use of accepted epistemic principles (thus not challenging these principles as well) – and he targets this as the skepticism that is inimical to our knowledge of the world, in need of refutation by IBE. Vogel considers a belief of epistemic merit to be the hypothesis that achieves the most explanatory success for a relevant body of facts – so ccording to IBE, one has good reason to accept a belief that is able to provide the best explanation pertaining to our mental lives compared to any alternative views. Yet still we are faced with the same conundrum – both ordinary claims and those motivated by the deceiver argument could effectively explain our mental lives, and we have no means to assess which is better – leaving them equal in explanatory success. With this being so, IBE holds that simplicity follows as the next criterion. So when faced with two explanations that are equally as plausible, the simpler account would be considered the better one, and thereby justified as â€Å"known† courtesy of IBE. Why does Vogel consider simplicity to be the guide to truth for IBE? As previously mentioned, our mental lives are what need to be best explained by a belief. Vogel takes it that â€Å"we are committed to a body of epistemic principles that govern what we count as knowledge, justified belief, and the like† (Vogel, 73) and believes that inductive confirmation is an inherent part of how our mental lives function. For example, if we have experienced the sun rise every day and assume that it will rise again tomorrow, we are using induction to reach this conclusion. Induction is a generally accepted principle by philosophers and non-philosophers alike, which presupposes the observed serves as a guide to the unobserved; our knowledge of the past and present can guide our predictions for the future – giving us the impression that the world has a tendency to be simply â€Å"nice and neat†; that there is a general sense of order to things. Non-entailed beliefs are also justified by induction, which leaves us â€Å"room for error† in these mere assumptions we make by hypothesizing from what we know. Vogel claims that since IBE focuses on our mental lives, it goes hand-in-hand with inductive confirmation. Therefore it accepts â€Å"hypotheses that aren’t entailed by the evidence that supports them† (Vogel, 79) and also appeals to the notion of simplicity that induction implies that the world is â€Å"nice and neat† and straightforward in how it functions. So how is this supposed to serve as a successful refutation of skepticism? To make sense of this, it should first be understood exactly how IBE qualifies its requirement for simplicity, and also what Vogel understands both mundane propositions and skeptical arguments to be comprised of. The assumption that the world works in ways that are simple, implied from the principle of induction, is construed by Vogel to mean that the better explanation would be the belief involving the fewest complexities and least number of parts to argue. Vogel is under the impression that skeptical arguments involve much more complexity in order to make them parallel the ordinary beliefs they aim to compete with, and cites the example that for ordinary properties such as shape and location that could be involved in a mundane proposition, the skeptic would have to invoke a much more elaborate explanation for why we are experiencing pseudo-shapes and pseudo-locations. This leaves the skeptical argument at a major disadvantage when assessed by IBE’s requirement for simplicity, allowing for the mundane proposition to be deemed the better explanation because of its capability to explain things â€Å"as they are† instead of â€Å"why they appear to be as they are but really are not† – maintaining that ordinary beliefs shall always be what is to be justified by IBE, leaving their skeptical competitors consistently refuted. As mentioned earlier, IBE is solely a refutation of â€Å"domestic skepticism† – what Vogel sees as the only legitimate threat to our knowledge, because it utilizes our epistemic principles as a means to undermine our concept of what knowledge is and show that we truly lack knowledge of anything in our world. He acknowledges some potential skeptical criticisms that remain regarding the methodology of IBE, and admits that he is unable to provide any refutations for these – thus he does not argue directly for IBE’s validity, as much as entertain it as a plausible inference for best refuting skepticism. Yet he also discusses the existence of a broader form of skepticism which he terms â€Å"exotic skepticism†, that aims to challenge both our ordinary knowledge claims and the legitimacy of our epistemic principles used to make any of these judgments but quickly dismisses this type of doubt as anything worthy of our attention, due to its apparently outlandish, radical nature. With the intention of upholding IBE’s status as a successful refutation of skepticism (in theory, at least), Vogel concludes that any skepticism about IBE itself cannot be refuted, but also needn’t be. This is because of how he connects IBE with induction meaning that any kind of skepticism about IBE would also undoubtedly be skepticism about induction in general, which appears to be a significant part of our mental lives and is therefore considered a generally accepted epistemic principle. If one were to doubt a generally accepted principle such as this, it would be regarded as a form of â€Å"exotic skepticism† and consequently may be reasonably ignored, due to the radical position one would be forced to take against one’s mental life. Therefore, any skepticism about IBE would be â€Å"exotic† in character by Vogel’s definition and could be reasonably ignored. It seems apparent that Vogel’s methodology is flawed on multiple levels of consideration, allowing several opportunities for IBE to entirely collapse as a successful refutation of skepticism. A clear point for criticism is how Vogel draws the distinction between what he calls â€Å"domestic† and â€Å"exotic† skepticism, and the way he uses this distinction to give strength to his formulation of IBE. Vogel bases his division of skepticism into these two categories upon whether the doubt in question challenges our generally accepted epistemic principles or not – going on to claim that any skepticism that does contest these generally accepted principles may reasonably be ignored as anything worthy of consideration. Yet what exactly are the criteria for determining whether a principle is â€Å"generally accepted† or not, anyway? Is there even a concrete way to determine this? Let us assume, in Vogel’s favor, that a majority consensus is what gives rise to the â€Å"general acceptance† of something. Then indeed, induction would thereby qualify as a generally accepted principle. But even if so, it seems completely unreasonable for Vogel to promote the underlying idea here that the majority’s acceptance of something means that what is accepted is truer than any possible alternative, lesser-accepted options – thereby allowing us to summarily dismiss these alternatives altogether. Moreover, many qualified philosophers have reasonably doubted induction. Just because they do not comply with what has been accepted by the majority, does this make their arguments any less valid and worthy of being entirely ignored? Since we have no way of judging what is more or less true, it seems epistemically irresponsible to ignore doubts solely because they are not favored by a majority – for what if an alternative view does possess something closer to truth? This potential truth would then go entirely unnoticed; putting us at isk of straying further and further away from what is really true, in honor of an ignorant majority’s viewpoint instead. Even if we do grant the validity of how Vogel distinguishes â€Å"domestic† and â€Å"exotic† skepticism, IBE continues to beckon strong criticism in other ways that are just as crucial. Vogel places IBE and induction in a relationship he treats as inseparable, because of their mutual appeal to our mental li ves based upon the notion of simplicity. This connection alone seems to be a drastic overstatement, and the simplicity factor involved that Vogel strongly emphasizes is also quite faulty. Vogel claims that both induction and IBE are founded upon the idea that the world is â€Å"nice and neat† – thus rather than our experience with the external world being random and chaotic, instead we are able to use the observed as a reliable guide to the unobserved; our knowledge of the past and present to reasonably hypothesize about the future. From phenomena such as this, Vogel gleans that an assumption of â€Å"simplicity† is inherent to induction, and then transfers this idea to his evaluation for beliefs most relevant to our mental lives: IBE. There are several points of concern with this. Firstly, the assumption that the world is â€Å"nice and neat† given off from induction is something that is only implied by the principle, and in itself not actually justified. Additionally, the common forms of induction that support this assumption do not even rely upon the concept of â€Å"simplicity† as much as the concept of â€Å"continuity†. So not only does Vogel base his entire method off of something that is merely an unjustified assumption, but he also misinterprets a key factor of this assumption – his understanding of â€Å"continuity† to mean â€Å"simplicity† – and then makes this misinterpretation the essence of how IBE functions. Even if these errors were to be overlooked and it was upheld that simplicity is a justified factor for Vogel to work with in virtue of induction, a critical issue still remains: despite the features induction and IBE being presumably inseparable, the notion of simplicity Vogel derives from the nature of induction is of a drastically different character than how he qualifies the simplicity requirement of IBE – which is based strictly on the number and complexity of parts of an argument. For any and all of these reasons, IBE’s reliance upon the factor of simplicity appears to be a very illegitimate method of reasoning. Another challenge to IBE arises, even if all of the aforementioned problems went overlooked. Vogel is under the impression that skeptical competitors to beliefs must undoubtedly invoke more parts that require more complex explanations compared to the mundane propositions they rival, which is why he believes IBE’s simplicity requirement plays a significant role in refuting skepticism. However, is this really a valid assumption? Vogel seems to ignore the idea that skeptical doubts to our ordinary claims may involve explanations that are actually simpler than the ways in which we directly perceive the external world. Take it from a holist point of view, where everything is considered made up of one unified thing – whether it be God, energy, matter, whatever. This type of viewpoint is just as legitimate as the rest, and if IBE held, would surpass any other belief as the best explanation – which is not what Vogel intends at all. Lastly, let us not forget the initial â€Å"problem† that IBE sets out to combat – that skeptical arguments do indeed have the same epistemic merit as our mundane propositions, and are just as successful at explaining our mental lives because we truly do not have the capability of discerning which is better. Wouldn’t devising a method for justifying what we prefer to believe opposed to the alternatives be cheating ourselves out of potential truths that are not known to us, preventing us from having the expansive knowledge that we could, just so we could feel more comfortable? And wouldn’t the justification of our ordinary beliefs be pointless unless they really did have a greater tendency to be true? We truly don’t know if our mundane propositions are true, and if we settled for just validating all of them as knowledge and refuting any forms of doubt though IBE, it seems as if it would be impossible to ever make any advancements in what we even take to be ordinary knowledge. A proposition such as â€Å"the world is flat† could easily be justified by IBE over a proposition that the world is a sphere – and despite the latter being correct, it could be entirely dismissed. Perhaps a good amount of doubt may be healthy for our knowledge, rather than â€Å"dangerous†, as Vogel puts it – because by use of doubt in the face of what we take to have â€Å"ordinary† knowledge of, this could motivate us to further investigate our ordinary claims. Upon this further investigation, we then have the ability to advance our ordinary knowledge by realizing initial faults in our beliefs and replacing these with newer, decidedly more accurate beliefs that we discover; or by realizing that our previously held eliefs are still just as accurate as we’d initially understood them to be, we could confirm them with far more confidence than we’ve ever had – depending on the scenario. This seems much more progressive than refuting skepticism altogether. Vogel’s IBE as a method of refuting skepticism about the external world does not appear to be very successful. It should be kept in mind that even Vogel himself acknowledges some of the criticisms mentioned above as plausible threats to his argument, and admits that he is unable to provide successful refutations for them. Aside from this, his argument nevertheless includes several unreasonable and illegitimate methods of reasoning that cannot be ignored by any means. The criticisms of these issues of IBE would supposedly be forms of â€Å"exotic† skepticism, according to how Vogel believes he formulated his method but none of them seem to fit the description of being outlandish, radical, or unworthy of our attention – and most do not contest the legitimacy of the principles Vogel considers â€Å"generally accepted†, either. This further confirms the inadequacy of IBE to amount to anything successful, leaving skepticism to remain just as viable as our mundane propositions in our understanding of knowledge. Works Cited. Vogel, Jonathan. The Refutation of Skepticism. Contemporary Debates in Epistemology. Ed. Matthias Steup and Ernest Sosa. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2005. 72-84. Print. [ 1 ]. If q is a competitor to p, then a subject S can know p only if p has more epistemic merit (for S) than q (Vogel, 73) [ 2 ]. . g. â€Å"I am currently looking at a piece of paper† [ 3 ]. e. g. â€Å"My brain is in a laboratory vat that is simulating the experience that I am looking at a piece of paper† [ 4 ]. (1) In order to know any mundane proposition about the world m, my belief that m must not be underdetermined. (2) My belief that m is underdetermined. (3) Therefore, I don’t know that m. (Vogel, 73) [ 5 ]. Our mental lives are the most relevant body of facts in any of these cases [ 6 ]. i. e. ur knowledge of the past and present cannot directly apply to the future, we can only hypothesize about it – it is impossible to have knowledge of the unknown so this uncertainty must be accounted for [ 7 ]. Of a â€Å"domestic† form that goes along with our generally accepted epistemic principles [ 8 ]. Holding the assumption that induction is one of these accepted epistemic principles due to how our mental lives generally function [ 9 ]. This is how Vogel views â€Å"exotic skepticism† [ 10 ]. These are common forms of inductive confirmation [ 11 ]. Reasoning from observed to unobserved, past and present to future, etc.