Case 13.3 “Dear Mr. President—Please Cancel our Project!”: The Honolulu Elevated Rail ProjectThis case is a great current example of a very expensive project that was kicked off because of an assumed need—to relieve congestion in downtown Honolulu through an elevated urban rail system. Critics argue that in addition to having a ballooning cost, the actual planning was poorly conceived, leaving Honolulu with an intrusive and ugly rail system through the downtown area, ruining panoramic views, and impeding traffic. Additionally, advocates underestimated the power needs for the rail system, requiring the transport authority to renegotiate electricity fees for the system. Finally, the original costs that were assumed for the project were calculated during an economic downturn and with the economy booming again, the costs of the project have gone up dramatically. All of these elements points to a state Governor who is anxious to be rid of the project and hoping that President Trump will deny additional federal funding, in which case the project will likely be cancelled.QuestionsWhy are public works projects like the Honolulu Rail project nearly impossible to stop once they have been approved, even if later cost estimates skyrocket?Project Management researchers have charged that many large infrastructure projects, like this one, suffer from “delusion” and “deception” on the parts of their advocates. Explain how “delusion” might be a cause of ballooning budgets in this project. How does “deception” affect the final project budget overruns?

How
did cinéma vérite come about and what was its underlying philosophy? In
what ways and why, did this deviation from the norm influence mainstream
films and their use of music in the narrative?It
was said that John Williams was able to support the emotional core of
the film within his music. How did Williams’ approach differ from
modernist film composers in the 70’s? List examples of films and
important names in your response.Throughout
the 60’s to 80’s there were a considerable number of counter practices
against the classical film score. During this same period John Williams’
was involved in a number of different aspects of performing and
composing. How did the experiences of Williams through this period place
him in a unique position to embrace the post-modern approach in film
scoring?Please
view the film before answering the next question. Kalinak outlines 3
cues from The Empire Strikes Back: The Main Title, Darth Vader’s
leitmotif and the ice battle on the Planet Hoth.In what ways do these
cues exhibit 1.narrative connections by helping give structure to the
film (recall the statement that Williams; music guides the audience to
what they want to see), 2. late-romanticism and 3. connections between
leitmotif and orchestration.List
2 specific instances of how leitmotif, cinema vérite vs late
romanticism, the classical film score, and your understanding of
Williams’ unique compositional approach influenced your viewing and
understanding of the film as a film viewer. That is…how did these
concepts deepen your appreciation for the film?

submit a Theory Journal Entry based on the five steps outlined in the Syllabus, the Course Introduction video, and the . For this Entry, you must use the Age-Graded Informal Social Control Theory (see below for theory details)Current events (for Steps 4 & 5 only) must have occurred, OR been updated, within the last month or so (4-6 weeks). Events must have occurred within the United States. Please use only one article/website/video/audio source.Age-Graded Informal Social Control Theory (Attached Example Theory below)•Robert Sampson & John Laub (1993)•Students of Hirschi who built on his original theory –social bonding•Expanded on Hirschi’s social bonds to explain changes in crime over the life course•But, did not believe that criminality was permanently set like G&H argued that self-control was in their newer theory•Argued that key life events altered people’s social bonds•Key life events or “turning points” include:•Marriage/Divorce Children•Higher education Employment Employment•Military service Illness/Accident/DeathAge-Graded Informal Social Control Theory•Turning points can either strengthen or weaken social bonds•S&L argued that younger people have weak bonds and therefore commit more crime•Because they have not yet experienced marriage, children, higher education, careers, military service, etc.•But, as we age, turning points typically strengthen our bonds to conventional society and lead to desistance from the crime/delinquency of our youth•Because we don’t want to sacrifice/lose our attachments & commitments

Complete the assigned readings from Practical Skeptic – Core Concepts, and view all of the multimedia and other materials for this module.
Answer the following questions related to the assigned readings (about one paragraph per reading):

Reading 4 – More Damned Lies and Statistics (Preface, “People Count,”  pp. ix-xviii)What does Best mean by the statement “all statistics are products of social activity; the process sociologists call social construction” (p. xiii)? What are the steps that need to be taken to limit bias in how statistics are understood and used in sociology and other disciplines?
Reading 5 – The Consequences of Political InnumeracyWhat is meant by “political innumeracy”? What is the conclusion of the authors about the link between innumeracy and political attitudes? Do you think a more accurate understanding or greater “numeracy” would significantly impact people’s attitudes towards an understanding of policy?
Reading 6 – Internet research ethics and the policy gap for ethical practice in online research settingsThe use of the internet in social science research brings many new questions about how to maintain professional and ethical research. Describe the ethical gaps that are identified in this paper and discuss the efforts of stakeholders to bridge these gaps in new ethical policy.
Reading 7 – If Hitler Asked you to Electrocute a Stranger, Would You? ProbablyMilgram has been criticized for being unethical in his research. Why? How did he respond to these criticisms? Are you persuaded by his critics or by Milgram? Why?

ScenarioYou were recently promoted to the position of Director of the Medical Surgical unit at your local hospital. You just finished meeting with a group of Directors who were discussing the Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infection (CAUTI) rates. Your unit’s CAUTI rate has not decreased since the implementation of a new policy over a year ago. Financial repercussions of the high CAUTI rate cannot continue. You have been given the task of reviewing the policy and creating a SWOT Analysis, offering recommendations for change.In the SWOT Analysis, include the following:S: Strengths of policyChoose strengths/positive aspects of the policy, including regulatory guidelines.Support choice of strengths with current literature.W: Weaknesses of policyChoose weaknesses/concerns of the policy related to regulatory guidelines.Include weaknesses/concerns of the policy related to financial guidelines.Support choice of weaknesses with current literature.O: OpportunitiesInclude opportunities for growth or improvement of the policy.Include perceived opportunities for financial, legal, ethical, quality and safety.Support choice of opportunities with current literature.T: ThreatsInclude perceived threats to financial, legal, ethical, quality and safety.Support choice of threats with current literature.Propose clearly stated and concise recommendations for change.Include descriptions of necessary actions.Use evidence to support your recommendations.Be sure to use professional language and attribution for credible sources with correct APA citation, spelling, and grammar.