Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Social sciences

Understanding Political Systems and the State

State: A form of political organization of a society in which we speak of a system or political regime.

Democratic State: Political power belongs to the people.

Universal Suffrage: The right to vote for women and all adult people of the world.

Constitution: A document that outlines the rights of citizens and regulates the political organization.

Division of Powers in a Democracy

It is the division of democracy by 3 points:

• Legislation: Makes the laws.
• Executive: Exercised by the government, applying the laws and political decisions.
• Justice: Judges and resolves disputes in accordance with the law.

Political Parties: An association of persons intended to represent politics in one country.

Types of Democracies

Government: The organs of the state, comprising the executive (president, vice presidents, ministers, and other comparable bodies). Voting rules include: 1) Majority rule—the party with the most votes forms the government; other policy options are excluded. These governments tend to be more stable. 2) Proportional representation—the government is formed according to each party's vote share, often requiring coalitions.

Parliament and Political Parties: Three ways to influence government decisions:

• As a legislative body, preparing, discussing, and approving laws.
• Controlling the executive branch's actions.
• Using parliamentary debates to shape public opinion on economic policy (note that some economic policy instruments, due to the element of

Key Concepts: Expression and Content Levels

Understanding the relationship between the significant level of expression and the meaning or level of content is fundamental.

Levels of Linguistic Analysis

1. Phonics: Focuses on intonation and accents.
2. Morphology: Involves the study of morphemes and the various uses of nouns and adjectives.
3. Syntax: Concerns the use of simple and compound sentences.
4. Lexical-Semantics: Deals with polysemy (multiple meanings of words) embedded within the lexical level.

Understanding Paradigms

Paradigm: Refers to unanswered questions or a standard model that determines the functioning of a society and is established as correct; a model or example.

Linguistic Paradigm: A set of linguistic units or elements within a category that... Continue reading "Linguistic Analysis and Literary Interpretation Fundamentals" »

Access to Education and the Printing Press

Formerly, only certain privileged classes had access to education, culture, and knowledge. The circulation and distribution of hand-copied books were rather limited. After the invention of the printing press, literacy rates increased in most industrialized and developing countries. Through education, we could say we are more free. Universities and schools can be considered the backbone of education in our society today, although there are other spaces where knowledge is also provided.

The Rise of Distance Education

A few years ago, around the 1960s, what might be called the classic system was imposed. This involved a physical space, such as a college or university, where people (students) gathered, and... Continue reading "Evolution of Education: From Hand-Copied Books to Online Learning" »

Early 18th Century: Imported Fairy Tales

The early 18th century saw the import of fairy tales from France, mirroring the 19th-century trend with German tales. Louis XIV's court favored literary folk tales. Charles Perrault's collections, including Histories or Tales of Past Times (1729), introduced English readers to Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, and Cinderella.

Shifting Educational Goals

Children's reading objectives evolved from religious education to social education. By the 19th century, the focus shifted to social advancement through practical knowledge.

Key Changes in the 18th Century

Emphasis on Children's Education

The growing middle class recognized children's need for education and enjoyment.

Social Education

Adults prioritized a sheltered... Continue reading "Evolution of Children's Literature in the 18th Century" »

Socialist traditions aim to establish equality of material conditions. Socialists are especially concerned with freedom and believe responsibility lies in controlling the market. A market and individual freedom should align with actual conditions, addressing the absence of equality and the need for market intervention.

The goal of socialism involves controlling goods, means of economic production, and distribution. Property rights should be the responsibility of society and administered for the benefit of all. The State, therefore, should not be merely a guarantor of freedom but a representative of collective interests.

Social and Democratic State of Law

The social and democratic state of law, as seen in Spanish law, values freedom, justice, social... Continue reading "Understanding Socialism, Civil Society, and the State" »

Organization: A Key Phase in the Administrative Process

Defining Roles and Structure for Operational Success

Organization is the second phase of the administrative process. Through it, the system determines the division of labor and the structure necessary for its operation.

With its principles and tools, it establishes levels of authority and responsibility and defines the functions and duties of units, individuals, or groups of people.

Who will do what? How will they relate to others? By what authority? In what physical environment? The organization leads to the last detail what planning has pointed out regarding how a social organism should be.

Organization is continuous, as it is subject to constant change.

Benefits of Effective Organization

• Reduces

Rise of Factories and Early Industry

New factories meant a concentration of capital and labor. The first companies were textiles. Increased production and consumption were driven by population growth, changes in agriculture, and trade volumes. This also brought changes in the structure of production and the relationship between owners and workers.

All these processes developed mainly in the textile industry. Factories represented the union of capital and labor under one roof. Workers followed a schedule and received a wage, losing the autonomy they had in agriculture. Traditional manufacturing was centralized in factories under one roof, where spinning machines operated alongside workers in various trades.

Wool vs. Cotton: Industry Shifts

Traditional... Continue reading "Industrial Revolution Textile Transformation" »

Industrial Society: Classes Emerge

The old estate society gave way to class society, mainly structured into two main groups: the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.

The Rise of the Bourgeoisie

The bourgeoisie became the hegemonic group, owning the industries and businesses. There was a large middle class composed of bankers, investors, and owners. There was also a semi-liberal bourgeoisie made up of professionals, officials, and traders. Below this, a large number of employees and shopkeepers formed the petty bourgeoisie.

Sometimes mixing with the old nobility, the bourgeoisie became the center of social life. Richly decorating their homes with domestic servants, their dress, entertainment, and values were imposed as the social model to imitate.

The

Production Perspectives

The production and distribution of goods and services involve multiple tasks and functions, requiring an organizational instrument to coordinate the whole process. This is the company's role. There are several perspectives on the production of these services.

Economic Overview

Production is a process that meets families' needs by developing products based on factors of production (natural resources, labor, capital) employed by companies.

Functional-Utilitarian Perspective

Production practices add value to things by making them more useful than they were before. For example, in manufacturing a shirt, the components are fabric and yarn. Converting these materials into a shirt requires productive activity, utilizing a specific... Continue reading "Production Perspectives: Economic, Functional, and Technical" »