Monday, September 30, 2019

Legalizing Same Sex Marriage

Damien. Lorden Unit 3 Individual Project There are many cause and effects to legalizing same-sex marriage, whether they are beneficial or not depends on the situation at hand. It’s becoming more common in today’s society to be homosexual. Most of the older generations think that it’s something that shouldn’t be legalized, weather it is has to deal with religion, someone’s way of life or whatever else the case may be.Although on the other hand, the younger generations now are becoming more accepting of the thought of same-sex couples. Most young adults/teenagers think that same-sex marriage is acceptable; that everyone should have the right to be happy and love is love no matter what they are. Even though there have been some good bad explanations to why same-sex marriage shouldn’t be legal; there are also many reasons why same-sex marriage should be legalized. There are many benefits to legalizing same-sex marriage that most neglect to realiz e.According to Ramesh Ponnuru in â€Å"Coming out Ahead,† Ponnuru states, â€Å"three causes that change the public’s attitude towards same-sex marriage are sexual revolution, gay activism in the 1990’s, and the disappointment of social conservative organizations† (Ponnuru, 2003). He continues to state â€Å"it’s time for conservatives to take their cue from the New Jersey Nets, or maybe from those hard-luck kids, the Boston Red Sox† (Ponnuru, 2003). He explains how it’s time to accept the revolution and stop trying to use other problems to avoid the difference in lifestyles of the old days and face the new upcoming eras.The times are changing and so should the way the government compares the new rules and regulations of today to previous eras and generations. The way people think and live today are similar, but not the same to how we thought and lived back then. The technology, economy, government, and even schools have changed throu ghout time. If inanimate objects can change throughout time with rules and regulations changing based on their evolution, why can’t rules and regulation change based on era changes/evolutions?In â€Å"What Century Is This Anyway† Edmund White states how â€Å"his generation watched their families marry and with that, 1 out of every 2 marriages ended with a divorce† (White, 1998). With White’s previous quote it could be used as a statement to help benefit legalizing same-sex marriage because: with legalizing same-sex marriage it could help by increasing marriage rates and help with lowering or at least maintaining the divorce rate. â€Å"The first state to legalize same-sex marriage was the state of Massachusetts in 2004† (ProCon. org, 2013).This had lead Massachusetts to have â€Å"their divorce rate lowered 21% between the years 2003 and 2008 also resulting in the lowest divorce rate in the country in 2008† (ProCon. org, 2013). On the other hand, â€Å"Alaska was the first state to alter its constitution to ban same-sex marriage in 1998 causing an increase of 17. 2% in its divorce rate† (ProCon. org, 2013). â€Å"Between the years 2003 to 2008, the seven states with the highest divorce rating all had constitutional prohibitions to same-sex marriage† (ProCon. org, 2013). Most would think that divorce rates count for at least something in the government and economy today.On the gaymarriage. procon. org website is a list of pros and cons for legalizing same-sex marriage. According to one of the many pros listed, â€Å"same-sex marriage could benefit everyone by financial gain to state and local governments† (ProCon. org). Between â€Å"marriage licenses, higher income taxes (the so-called â€Å"marriage penalty†), and the decreases in costs for state benefit programs. The Comptroller for New York City found that legalizing gay marriage would bring $142 million to the City’s economy and $184 million to the State’s economy over three years† (ProCon. org). Same-sex marriage will also make it easier for same-sex couples to adopt† (ProCon. org, 2013). This would benefit the â€Å"US with the 100,000 children are waiting to be adopted, a longitudinal study published in Pediatrics on June 7, 2010† (ProCon. org, 2013). This study â€Å"found that children of lesbian mothers were rated higher than children of heterosexual parents in social and academic competence. The children also had fewer social problems† (ProCon. org, 2013). â€Å"Another study on July 2010 found that children of gay fathers were â€Å"as well-adjusted as those adopted by heterosexual parents†Ã¢â‚¬  (ProCon. rg, 2013) In conclusion, legalizing same-sex marriage can be a very beneficial thing for our government as well as the economy. With the change of times, generations and eras, it’s time to change the ways and views of traditional values. â€Å"Two people of the same sex who love each other should be allowed to publicly celebrate their commitment and receive the same benefits of marriage as opposite sex couples† (ProCon. org). â€Å"There is no such thing as traditional marriage† (ProCon. org). It’s time to except the revolution!

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Information and Knowledge Management Essay

The group presented Xerox and NASA as case studies for Information and Knowledge Management concepts and processes. These two case studies are chosen for their unique experiences. It is not the focus of this material to compare and contrast the two cases. The objective of this material is to discuss how the key issues that were chosen by the group relate to the growing literature about Information and Knowledge Management. Along with this, efforts to differentiate Information Management and Knowledge Management provide a better grasp of these two concepts, their practices and their roles in organizations. Xerox’s case focused on its organizations efforts to arrive at accessing its knowledge by transforming tacit into explicit. Prior to the establishment of its knowledge base system, in the form of Eureka II, ethnographic work on Xerox employees provided an initiative for the company to grow an interest in managing its organizational learning. The key issues from this study were identified. Andrew Cox’s investigation of Xerox’s Eureka system and its inception seems to indicate that knowledge management is a re-packaged concept of information management. The employment of Orr’s ethnographic work implicates a possibility that the organization used this innovation as its own â€Å"rebranding tool†. (Suchman in Cox, 2007, p. 7). Furthermore, the group inquires about the concept of communities of practice (CoPs) as a more promising alternative to the technical approach implemented in Eureka’s construction as knowledge base system. The case study of Xerox provided an opportunity to glimpse how an organization behaves and transforms its practices to create innovations and, in turn, keep its stability and competitive edge in the market. The special case of NASA’s Challenger incident is an important specimen to investigate how an organization manages its security and safety practices. The nature of NASA as an organization can be understood by examining its vision, mission and goals. However, the group focused on a particular incident and its chronology. Risk analysis and risk management are some of the concepts that relate to this organization’s experience in information and knowledge management. Some of the key concerns for this case are identified as: (1) Should NASA have a Eureka-type system? ; (2) Do you think communities of practice would have helped NASA? ; and (3) How would NASA have benefited from going through the alignment process? This material attempts to clarify these inquiries and to provide direction by citing numerous studies and concepts in the field of knowledge management. Discussion NASA’s case, particularly of Challenger incident, can be examined by using the concept of risk assessment and management. Risk management is defined in NASA’s literature as â€Å" a management process by which the safety risks can be brought to levels or values that are acceptable to the final approval authority. † (ASEB, p. 79). Processes such as the establishment of acceptable risk levels, formalization of changes in system design or operational method to achieve such risk levels , system validation and certification and system quality assurance were enumerated as part of risk management. ASEB, p 79). After the Challenger incident, recommendations such as hierarchical tasks were cited: The Committee believes that risk management must be the responsibility of line management (i. e. , program manager and, ultimately, the Administrator of NASA). Only this program management, not the safety organizations, can make judicious use of means available to achieve the operational goals while reducing the safety risks to acceptable levels. Safety organizations cannot, however, assure safe operation; they can only assure that the safety risks have been properly evaluated, and that the system configuration and operation is being controlled to those risk levels which have been accepted by top management. (4. 1, 4. 3) (ASEB, p. 79) The passage above was one of the lessons learned, the identification of the elements of and responsibilities for risk assessment and risk management, as cited in the assessment document in 1988. Establishment of responsibility for program direction and integration, the need for quantitative measures of relative risk, the need for integrated review and overview in the assessment of risk and in independent evaluation of retention rationales, independence of the certification of flight hardware and of software validation and verification, and safety margins for flight structures were all cited as lessons learned following the Challenger accident. Clearly, risk management is an aspect of information management in this particular case. Aside from the initiatives for changes in the areas of risk assessment and management, examining NASA as a learning organization might helpfully illustrate the information processes within the organization. Organizational learning in NASA can be traced back to Apollo era when centralization of shuttle management structure was adopted. (Mahler & Casamayou, 2009, p. 164). But these lessons can be unlearned as what the case of the Challenger accident had shown. Prior to the Columbia accident that followed in 2003, unlearning in critical decision areas occurred. Mahler & Casamayou (2009) relates this event as follows: Similarly, there was initial evidence that NASA had learned to resist schedule pressures. The agency delayed launches to deal with ongoing technical problems and made the decision to rely on the shuttle only when absolutely needed, But these lessons from the Challenger faded in the 1990s under severe budget constraints and new schedule pressures created by our participation in the International Space Station. (2009, p. 164) This relates how outside forces can affect organizational learning. Public organizational learning, not unlike corporate organizational learning, is affected by its environment. Risk assessment and management, instead of context in market competence and capital gains in corporations, becomes the context of reliable goals and public stature in public organizations such as NASA. There are particulars of public organizational learning that should be brought to light to better understand the information processes and learning behaviors within NASA. Mahler & Casamayou (2009) enumerated a three-part process of organizational learning. One is problem recognition, another is analyzing the results to produce inferences about cause and effect in the hopes of arriving at an understanding how to achieve better results, and the last one is the institution of new knowledge that the organization will benefit from. (Mahler & Casamayou, 2009, p. 166). These processes summarizes the processes of public organizational learning on a macro-level. It is also important to examine the interactions of actors within the organization. During the group presentation, inquiries about how NASA should benefit from a Eureka-type system was mentioned. The concept of communities of practice (CoPs) within NASA, as a source of Andrew Cox’s (2004)non-canonical knowledge was explored. Before the establishment of any knowledge base systems, an eventful experience is treated as a learning source. As with NASA’s case, following the Apollo era, detection systems were installed and had been reliable ever since its inception. These quantitative measures of assessing risks and failures runs parallel with the practice of corporate organizations over-reliance on technology, as what the firs-generation knowledge management practice brought us its â€Å"IT trap†. (Huysman & Wulf, 2006). What should also be noted is the transformation of NASA into a complex system of actors, decision makers and diagnostic and technological tools. As a system becomes more complex, there could be a higher possibility for unexpected and undesirable outcomes. The concept of Charles Perrow’s (1999) normal accident theory is closely related to this inference. The nature of function and decision-making within NASA exemplifies Perrow’s concepts of coupling and interactions. Interactions can be tightly coupled or loosely coupled, as with NASA’s case it is of course tightly coupled. These tightly coupled interactions found within an organization cannot tolerate delay. Interactions can be linear or complex. (Perrow,1999). As with NASA’s case, it is undoubtedly complex. As mentioned earlier, the possible over-reliance on diagnostic systems and isolation of decision makers and pressure to launch are accountable for the incident. Judging and perceiving also play a role in learning. Decisions in NASA’s case are measure-based and as well as judgement-based which could be said, is more reliant on intuition and non-verbal experience. But in this case, NASA’s critical decision actors were not thoroughly immersed in the safety measure practice which in turn shows that organizational structure has a role in the incident. As Baumard (1999) related in his work on tacit knowledge in organizations, ‘puzzled organizations’ are manifest when accidents take place. The notion of ‘acceptability’ was, in effect, a social construction developed in the context of an organization in which the perception of risk thresholds had been modified by the routinization of the mastery of a complex technology. If the O-ring problem had been brought to the attention of an untrained public it would quite probably have provoked an animated reaction. In a different social context it would have been found entirely ‘unacceptable’ to launch space shuttles with joints that risked giving way, whatever the level of this risk. Despite the accuracy, the precision to categorize the risk associated with the joints as ‘acceptable’ seems to be based more on the common meaning of the word ‘acceptable’ than on any scientific definition. There is no equivalent to the ‘acceptable’ in other areas of exact science—it is a value judgement, not a measure. This suggests that, it ‘reality is hidden by measures’ (Berry, 1983), measures too may be sometime hidden by reality. The road to disaster in the Challenger shuttle case was clearly of social construction.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Visual Rhetoric Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Visual Rhetoric - Research Paper Example At the close of 1860, James Buchanan asked in his State of the Union address, â€Å"Why is it, then, that discontent now so extensively prevails, and the Union of the States, which is the source of all these blessings, is threatened with destruction? â€Å" By this time the Missouri Compromise had been put into place, prohibiting slavery in the western territories even if they were to become states later on. Buchanan saw the Southern states’ intolerance with the North’s interference in slavery as a direct infringement of their state’s rights to make decisions. Because slavery was an integral part of Southern agriculture by 1860, the prohibition of the practice was an immediate threat to both economy and culture there. Buchanan agreed with the South and forewarned that trouble would ensue. â€Å". .the people of the North are not more responsible and have no more fight than with similar institutions in Russia or Brazil†. He continued at length, though, to dissuade secession, both by individual Southern states and by the allowance of Congress. Enter Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln promised not to extend slavery, in accordance with the Missouri Compromise. Because the U.S. had added large amounts of territory as a result of the Mexican War and the Oregon territory up to the 49th parallel after signing a treaty with Great Britain, only the existing Southern states were allowed to maintain the practice. The Republican Party’s position on slavery led to its 1860 victory – most party members were not for abolishing slavery nationwide.

Friday, September 27, 2019

HULSE CHRISTMAS WAR LETTER ANALYSIS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

HULSE CHRISTMAS WAR LETTER ANALYSIS - Essay Example The bullet use of the regiment was fatal and meant to kill all the targets. However, the emissaries were excited about how hearing the plans of Hamilton and his military men. The army was informed that Russia had developed better artillery than they had, but they did not relinquish. The English men were defeated by Hamilton’s army. However, Hamilton men disobeyed his orders and pursued their goals concerning the war. This situation compromised the authority of Hamilton, who was their commander. This notwithstanding, Hamilton managed to convince his group to obey his orders and retreat to launch a comprehensive attack on the German and the French troops to the trench. He ensured that his troops did not constitute of French and Germans given that the two groups were the main foes of Hamilton troops. Hamilton had to gather information on the German and the French. In this regard, he puts under siege two nationals of the two nations. He sought all the information he required. The opposing group was also composed of the 37th and 158th regiments2. The weather favored Hamilton, and the environment was serene and peaceful. The weather enhances their attack. The Germans sent an emissary to remind the English army that the Christmas was a crucial day and that the two nations should not engage in animosities. In fact, the emissary brought some rum drink to share with the officials of the great army in order to call a truce. Hamilton and his team stayed in the trenches during the entire period of the war. The army took their meals in the trenches. There were demonstrations in front of the Coy, which made Hamilton and his men in keeping vigil of the place. According to Westrow Hulse, Hamilton and his men were engaged in a burial exercise of 29 people3. The belongings of the late military men were collected by Giles and kept safely. Hamilton’s me n ordered their foes to release the men they captured in order to consider ending the devastating war between t two

Thursday, September 26, 2019

EFFECT OF CHIROPRACTIC CARE ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY AND PAIN Article

EFFECT OF CHIROPRACTIC CARE ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY AND PAIN - Article Example This seems to be a study of the neurological system. The study is to look at interventions and their impact in two areas. First there is the cardiovascular system and the other is the sensation and intensity of pain in parts of the body. It will be compared with studies that gave results for the cardio vascular system. These two areas are controlled by two different pathways or mechanisms. The research says it seeks to show that the PNS and the SNS are working in an antagonistic relationship. There is already much established authority that considers them to be working in a complimentary relationship. That first position may be relevant in an allopathic mode. It should have no place in a holistic field like chiropractic. Chiropractic considers all the systems to be part of a whole working together. There is a comparison with other studies with results for HRV. There is an unnecessary complication to consider the pain facto in this study. The exception would be if the pain was considered in a specific area of the body. An example would be chest pain. The chest pain should be of a certain type and duration. The pain analysis should be further broken down between those with known conditions and those in the general population. The procedure for collection is reasonable. The results are problematic. First, the T-test is used when the data follows a normal distribution. There seem to be no normal distribution. 70 percent of the patients were taken from the general population. The other thirty percent were participants with known heart conditions. It would have been better to study known patient cases or a general population group. Second, the ANOVA is used to recognize differences in two variables. There are two different variables and two different types of variables. First there is the variable of the two patient groups. That is the regular patients and the patients with the heart

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Kupreskic et al., Trial Chamber, Judgment, 14 January 2000, Case no Research Paper

Kupreskic et al., Trial Chamber, Judgment, 14 January 2000, Case no. IT-95-16-T - Research Paper Example The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia was created in the context of the United Nations aiming to criticize the military activities developed in the greater area of Balkans during the 1990s. A particular decision of this Court is examined in this paper: the case Kupreskic et al. (no. IT-95-16-T); the justification of the Court’s decision on the above case is presented and explored. The role of this decision on the development of customary law is also examined; the involvement of humanitarian law in the establishment of customary law is criticized. One of the most important contributions of the above case seems to be its role in the expansion of customary law: it is held that principles of humanitarian law can be applied even when such case is not clearly stated in the national law – the customary law is expected to be used in order to develop such schemes; the relevant initiatives can be justified by referring to the humanity or the public interes t – an issue that is analytically explored through the case law developed in the specific field – in addition with the case under examination. In accordance with the Court’s decision – par. 531 – in the case under examination ‘a customary rule of the international law has emerged’; the existence of this rule is justified by referring to the ‘requirements of humanity and the dictates of public conscience’1; at this point, it would be necessary to identify the Chamber’s way of determining rules of customary law in the field of international humanitarian law. Of particular importance would be at this point the reference to the view of Kwakwa who mentioned that a reprisal action can be regarded as opposing the international customary law mostly because these initiatives are expected to have ‘injurious effects on a civilian population’;2 in other words,

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Article's summary in (international economic field) Essay

Article's summary in (international economic field) - Essay Example 2). However, using buildings as an example, it was evident that the economies of scale seem to become inapplicable up to a certain extent where the construction of higher buildings apparently becomes more costly and inefficient. In cases of large organizations, the article revealed that organizations that have continued to expand through mergers and acquisitions could only be evaluated in terms of viably realizing economies of scale through the concept of the cost function. As noted, the relationship requires the need â€Å"to estimate how output levels influence the costs of production in a competitive industry† (Land of the corporate giants par. 6). However, due to differences in inputs and outputs as determined by the kind of industry some organizations are categorized in, the cost function is a challenging way to gauge the applicability of economies of scale. Overall, large organizations have been reported to justify continued merger and acquisitions by the ability to limit and restrict competitors and to dictate market prices. The article â€Å"IMF warns of threat to global economies posed by austerity drives† written by Elliot and published online in The Guardian presented issues that have been recommended by 11 international leaders headed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) with a recommendation of boosting much needed global economic growth. As revealed, the current practices exemplified by different developed countries focus on protectionism and trade barriers which do not encourage international economic expansion. As indicated, after reviewing the economic indices and thrusts exhibited by various governments, it was evident that more focus was centered on â€Å"decelerating global growth and rising uncertainty; high unemployment, especially youth unemployment, with all its negative economic and social consequences; potential resort to inward-looking protectionist policies† (Elliot par.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Cultural diversity Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Cultural diversity - Coursework Example Social norm when inside the elevator dictates that you face the door and remain silent for the rest of the ride which is different from my current racial identity where we are allowed to discuss and even laugh inside the elevator. Other social norms of Americans include smoking cigarette among young adults of all sexes during parties. Compared to my racial identity, cigarette smoking is considered a taboo most especially to women who smoke. People raise their eyebrows and even avoid young adults who smoke as a sanction in going against the norm. Smoking is considered a deviant behavior. If partying is a part of American culture, in my culture it is considered a show off. To survive prejudice or discrimination and be harmonious with the society, tolerance towards others must be applied. Tolerance is an attitude of willingness and to consider without biases views opinions, and situations with which one is not in complete sympathy (Garcia, 1984). Being perceived as a desirable virtue, i t could be an answer to problems of the society including social discrimination. For instance, we need to endure diverse undesirable customs, beliefs and conditions under certain circumstances. In like manner, people who are tolerated must exercise tolerance to those who discriminate them.

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Gay Rights Essay Essay Example for Free

Gay Rights Essay Essay Aubri Lutz La/Lit Per. 4 Miss Gibbs 10/22/01 Should Homosexual Clubs Be Allowed On College Campus? Do you plan on attending college? College offers a plethora of opportunities to those who choose to attend. There is horseback riding club, chess club and even Pokemon club these days. However, if a person hopes to join a club based on his or her sexual preference, think again. They are not allowed on public school campuses. It is a good idea that homosexual clubs and organizations be censored. They are offensive and inappropriate. If people try to ban clubs in college based on homosexual preference, they will be closing out many other clubs to come. For example, according to the Bible study groups, The banning of homosexual clubs is a good idea, but not a logical one. It is a step backwards for our bible study clubs, it will only cause them to lash out and close down our groups, too (www.family.org). For every club out there based on sexual preference there are one hundred clubs that focus on bible study. Since bible study clubs are just as controversial as homosexual ones, they are worried that if the banning of those clubs happens, they will be next. To empower school officials to close down and ban clubs based on homosexual preference is a marvelous thought, but it empowers them to shut down appropriate clubs like the bible study groups. In addition, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgendered group, also the LGBT has said that, Any club/organization or school discrimination against homosexual clubs and organizations will lose funding, travel funds, meeting place and right to have a club on campus immediately (www.leaderu.com//marco). This is a comfort to the clubs of homosexuals because their rights on campuses are protected. Conversely, it is a discomfort to the clubs who do not support their ideas and ways of thinking because now they are forced to at least pretend to be supportive of those clubs. This is not sensitive to the idea that this may bring about even more tensions between organizations because of the forced pretend support. So, the organizations trying to rid college campuses of the clubs based on sexual preference need to stop and think about what other clubs they could be doing damage to first. Student-led pro homosexual groups, called gay alliances, are an on-growing  disturbance and are inappropriate to have in school. For example, gay extremists are pressuring the Trustees board to oppose other minority clubs since theirs are currently being targeted. They are threatening to, take matters into their own hands if no one steps into do anything about this. This is a dilemma because one clubs being targeted is no excuse for them to be able to discriminate against others. After all, they are upset at being discriminated against. By continuing to single out groups unlike them, they are only welcoming more upon themselves. In addition, students attending Iowa Colleges who are offended by homosexual clubs and their behaviors, have voiced their comments and been completely disregarded. One student went to the board of education and stated that, clubs that promote and praise homosexuality make me feel uncomfortable as a student in this college (www.leaderu.com/marco). His comment was totally disregarded and never brought up again. That is disturbing because the only voices being heard are those which belong to the gay groups and that is not fair. It is also a problem because students who are paying for school are not being listened to and need to be in a time of controversy like this one. People need to think long and hard about whether or not they want their college kids subjected to homosexual clubs and/or organizations. The Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgendered group is a rapidly growing group across the country. They are fighting for the rights of Lesbians Gays Bisexuals and Trangendered people. For example, the LGBT have voiced their opinions loud and clear, We are just like everyone else and deserve clubs to prove it. The struggle of the LGBT has moved to center stage since 1994, they are fighting for their individual rights on campus as well as in the classroom. Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgendered group have caused quite a stir on college campuses and that is affecting all other students learning. They need to quit. The affect it is having on bi-stander students is neither fair nor appropriate. Furthermore, We are no different than all the other student who wander this campus. Said by James Anderson, a student in Colorado. Another students first question was, Then why do you need your own club on campus? Its the LGBT population saying things like that that get other students confused. Students who do not attend homosexual clubs are forced to watch rallies in the union about things they dont  completely understand and that is not fair to them. People who choose to attend college do not need to be subjected to this whole ordeal, it should be fought somewhere besides school campuses. Clubs that applaud sexual preference and behavior are unnecessary on public school campuses. These sexual preference based organizations only cause strife and confusion for students. Since these clubs are only applicable to a small minority population of students, they are hard to support and condone; this causes tense situations.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Marketing of Liability Products of Bank Essay Example for Free

Marketing of Liability Products of Bank Essay There are number of Liabilty products, some of the liability products are listed below * Savings Account * Fixed Deposit Account * Recurring Deposit * Current Account * NRI Account Etc†¦. These products are the basic products of bank which are taking new dimensions in the banking world as the competition is tougher. The products which are mentioned above are the products of Retail Banking. Wholesale banking is another big segment of bank which deals with the SME and Corporate clients. WholeSale Banking Though Internet banking as a concept has not caught the fancy of a majority of customers as yet-even the small percentage that does use it, makes a difference to the overall cost. Almost all leading banks in India are hoping that just as ATMs saw a period of inaction before they were accepted by Indian masses, Internet banking too would be adopted once customers are comfortable with the technology. For instance, in 1998 India had just 500 ATMs today it has close to 7,500. Advertising Boards; According to the case study which we have done in the Bhubaneswar city from Rabi Talkies to Janapath. The Advertising Boards are very rarely used , we found only one Hoarding that belongs to Bank of Baroda in Bapuji Nagar and that too was removed after a week from our survey. The other advertisement which is given in the bus stand by HDFC in Lewis Road. Analysis; Bank’s believe less on this strategy of advertisement. The Case study was done in a very short distance so this might or might not be the actual situation. Social Media Marketing Strategy * Bank Adverts on certain Websites * Social media in business allows anyone and everyone to express and share * Social networking sites act as word of mouth. (For example Facebook, Twitter, Google+ etc†¦) * Professional Sites like Linkedin * â€Å"retweet† or â€Å"repost†-repeating the message * Sharing videos through â€Å"Youtube† They advertise the bank products through different finance related, business related etc websites. As we can see in the above screen shots from different websites we could understand that Banks rely on Social Media Marketing too to advertise and publicize their products. Conclusion We have analysed different strategies of the bank from Marketing Mix to Technology Based Marketing. From analysing in all aspects the only strategy which is helping and which will help the bank to be successful is Product Innovation. High Interest or discounts are not going to help the bank anymore because the customers are expecting the high quality service not the interest from the bank. People have become Quality conscious in the recent past so the new products and the service of that particular product in a appropriate way will help the banks to reach greater Heights.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Comparison of Sci-Fi Films: Avatar Vs. Skyline

Comparison of Sci-Fi Films: Avatar Vs. Skyline Since the 1960s, science fiction movies were becoming a burgeoning demand in the film industry and continues to grow till today. The touchstone for scientific fiction, then, is that it describes an imaginary invention or discovery in the natural sciences. The most serious pieces of this fiction arise from speculation about what may happen if science makes an extraordinary discovery. The romance is an attempt to anticipate this discovery and its impact upon society, and to foresee how mankind may adjust to this new condition (Bailey, 1947). Science fiction is a subdivision of fantastic literature which employs science or rationalism to create an appearance of plausibility. (Brians, 1996). Science fiction is the argument with the universe (Mendelsohn, 1982). In general, science fiction is a genre of fiction about imaginative fantasy and science technologies. The storyline of Avatar is about how human beings attack the aliens but vice versa of Skyline. In Avatar, human attacked the blue-skinned human-like aliens to mine for a valuable mineral, Unobtanium on Pandora as the Earths natural resources have been severely depleted. To explore Pandora, scientists used Avatars to infiltrate the indigenous people, the Navi of Pandora and advocate peaceful relations with them. Jake, the main character was given only 3 months to evacuate the Navi, however, he failed to do so and the human commenced attack to drive them away. Although the Navi had won the battle at last, humans are the one to initiate and declare war on the aliens, causing destructions and casualties of both sides. On the other hand, the storyline of skyline is about alien invasion on Earth, where humans are attacked and abducted. It all begins when Jarrod and his girlfriend Elaine flew to Los Angeles (LA) for Jarrods best friend, Terry birthday party. The next morning, blue rays desc end from the sky, fascinating anyone who looks straight into them. Immobilized humans would walk towards the light source and are sucked into the machines. Counter attack by launching aircrafts failed to destroy the mother ship as well. Even Jarrod and Elaine are sucked into the mother ship. After that, the world was overruled by aliens. The reason why the aliens attacked human beings are left to be unknown as it was not stated in the movie itself. The most important difference between Avatar and Skyline though, is the setting. The settings in Avatar covers mainly of on the planet Pandora, a treasure trove of both living and non-living natural resources and wildlife. Although the scenes and backgrounds in the movie were computer-generated, they are all in high definition with the use of animation software by professional designers and illustrators to make the scenes as look realistic. James Cameron, director of the movie Avatar said, Ideally at the end of the day audience has no idea which they are looking at. For instance, the floating Hallelujah Mountains, the Hometree where the Navi clans gathered for spiritual events, Iknimaya, Banshee Rookery and other places made up the whole settings and backgrounds in Pandora of the movie. However, the settings in the movie Skyline are mostly in the city, Los Angeles. The invasion of aliens happened when Jarrod, the main character arrived in LA. These robotic aliens descended from the s ky, abducting any living human beings in LA, vacuuming up humans into the giant alien. In conclusion, Avatar and Skyline differ in storyline, settings and ending. I really enjoyed watching both movies as their plots are very interesting and exciting with suitable and satisfying endings. The settings and animations of both movies are really great. References Langan, J. (2010). College Writing Skills, (8th edition) New York: McGraw Hill. Bailey, J. O. (1947). Pilgrims Through Space and Time, New York Brians, P. (1996, May 16). Posting to the mailing list SF-LIT, Retrieved from 27 September 2013, from About.com http://scifi.about.com/od/scififantasy101/a/SCIFI_defs.htm Mendelsohn, K. (1986). Trillion Year Spree: the History of Science Fiction. London Perrin, R. (2012) Pocket Guide to APA Style (4th ed) Boston: Wadsworth.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Essay --

Electronic game is a famous entertainment among human no matter in which ages, the transformation design of video games and computer games had gone through a lot of changes since the first ever invented. The difference between the video and computer games is not much but the physical appearance. Video game is built through devices with a console that require a television to be played with. Compare to computer game that required a computer to run the games and with features of online gaming which video game doesn’t support. Computer game allow players to interactive to each other when play online while video game only allow interaction between friends and family. Over the years, computer games become popular compare to video games because of the variety games supported by computer where video games only support by one system and only applicable on their own game creation. Video game is an electronic gaming that display on a video display or television screen or the latest devices such as PSP and Nintendo. In the early 40s, the world first video games called â€Å"Cathode-Ray Tube Amusement† had been invented by Thomas T. goldsmith Jr. and Estle R. Mann that made a starting point to video games. The evolution of video game had been transform from graphic paper till the 2D graphic and better 3D graphic such as Microsoft XBOX, Wii and Sony Play Station. On the other hand, computer game known as PC game had not much different than video game which computer game is design to be use on a computer but not a video display television screen with keyboard as the controller. The first computer game was invented on 1952 called â€Å"TicTacToe† by A.S. Douglas on an EDSAC vacuum-tube computer. Recently in the past few years, this gaming field had be... ...t game presence positive impact on students. They conduct the research with a computer based game call â€Å"Fire Captain† that allow student to comprehend the role as a fire fighter. The result had brought out a conclusion where students who played the game beneficially learned problem solving skills, increase critical thinking and better understanding as a role of fire fighter. In addition, educational gaming guide students to a better management skills and earlier age of leadership practice through the game. On the other hand, video and computer games powerfully changed the world trend where children nowadays cannot live without a technological devices or computers game. This issue had become concerned among parents and societies where games might consists potential harmful materials such as violence, aggressive and over fascinating towards games.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

All The Kings Men :: essays papers

All The Kings Men All The Kings Men by Robert Penn Warren is a novel of how Jack Burden finds himself. It was a long, political road for Jack and it was the letters of an old relative that gave him a new perspective of the world. It confused him at first, but in the passage I chose you can see what Jack’s burden really is. Cass Mastern was an old relative of Jack’s. Jack was doing his history dissertation on his life. During his life he spent time with a couple he was friends with. He slept with his friends wife and when he got word of this he killed himself. Cass Mastern felt terrible for what he had caused and enlisted in the confederate army. He made sure he stayed a private, and would not fight for he had killed his friend and must take punishment for his actions. He later was wounded and died from that wound. Jack was shocked at Cass’s life. This shock was because â€Å"Cass Mastern lived for a few years and in that time he learned the world is all one piece. He learned that the world is like an enormous spider web and if you touch it, however lightly, at any point, the vibration ripples to the remotest perimeter and the drowsy no more but springs out to fling the gossamer coils about you who have touched the web and then inject the black numbing poison under your hide. It does not matter whether or not you meant to brush the web of things. Your happy foot or your gay wing may have brushed it ever so lightly, but what happens always happens and there is the spider, bearded black and with his great faceted eyes glittering like mirrors in the sun, or like God’s eye, and the fangs dripping.† Jack couldn’t accept the truth that your actions effect everyone and everything around you not just yourself. Even when these actions are meant for good, but they may have a bad effect on someone else and things can come back to haunt you. Jack had a very pessimistic view of the world. He would not accept any responsibility for his actions. He left school with out a care, left his wife without a care, and was often very rude when he was back home.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Quiroga

rOscar Castorena Linda Saborio FLSP 322 15 de Noviembre de 2010 Horacio Quiroga y su vida en sus cuentos. Horacio Quiroga nacio en Salto, Uruguay en 1878 pero vivio gran parte de su vida en Argentina. Durante su vida fue cuentista, poeta, periodista, dramaturgo y novelista. Murio de cancer en una region tropical cerca de Buenos Aires, Argentina en 1937. Este lugar lo atraia por la vida primitiva que llevaba. Durante su vida sufrio enormemente por una serie de tragedias que se reflejan demasiado en sus obras literarias.La temprana muerte de su padre, el suicidio de su padrastro, mato accidentalmente a un amigo y el suicidio de su primera esposa. Estos acontecimientos reflejan en demasia la relacion de la muerte en sus cuentos, refleja el lenguaje cruel que utiliza en algunos de sus cuentos y probablemente asistieron de manera directa en su suicidio. Las obras de Quiroga llevan en si muchos temas repetitivos como la muerte, la locura la alucinacion, la tragedia y la naturaleza. Su leng uaje es muy directo y a veces muy ofensivo al referirse de sus personajes.En el cuento â€Å"El Hijo† Quiroga sigue su estilo al escribir acerca de la muerte, locura y la alucinacion. Quiroga menciona en varios de sus cuentos a grandes escritores como Edgar Allan Poe y Rudyard Kipling. En varios cuentos tomo varias caracteristicas de estos escritores como relatar terror con algunos motivos recurrentes como el amor, la muerte, lo anormal y hasta lo morbido. Incorpora tambien la admiracion de la selva, temas y personajes animales relacionados con la naturaleza. Durante su vida tambien destaco como periodista, poeta, escritor de teatro y novela, pero su fama literaria es como cuentista.Quiroga tiene varios temas recurrentes en sus obras literarias. La locura y la muerte son dos temas presentes en â€Å"El Hijo†. En este cuento se destaca el lenguaje seco y cruel de Quiroga al narrar los cuentos. El hijo es un cuento donde el tema principal es la muerte y la alucinacion. E n este cuento, como casi en todos los de Quiroga, los personajes estan marcados por la tragedia y la muerte violenta. En el cuento se caracterizan algunos temas recurrentes en los cuentos de Quiroga asi como la relacion que tiene entre la similitud con otros grandes escritores.El centro de la historia es el hombre y la naturaleza donde se realiza la tragedia, la muerte y la soledad. El cuento se basa en el padre y el hijo que estan en un monte y el hijo sale de caceria con una escopeta y varios cartuchos pensando que volvera a tiempo para el almuerzo. El padre esta confiado en que su hijo regresa a tiempo pero se percata que el hijo ya tiene tiempo fuera y no regresa. Tiempo despues el padre escucha un disparo pero no piensa nada al respecto. Transcurre mas tiempo cuando el padre decide ir en busca de su hijo.Al llegar al lugar donde esta su hijo se percata que su hijo estaba ahi, solo. Despues el padre habla con su hijo y deciden volver de regreso para almorzar. Lo que el padre no se percata es de que el hijo estaba muerto ya hace varias horas y el padre solo estaba alucinando con su hijo. El cuento nos muestra la relacion que hay entre el padre y el hijo donde claramente se ve carino y afecto entre ambos. La preocupacion del padre cuando el hijo sale de caceria nos da a entender que el amor del padre hacia el hijo era mas que una relacion familiar.Nos indica que la relacion era profunda y nos da a entender que el viaje al monte no era el primero. El relato del padre hacia el sentimiento que tiene hacia el hijo es unico porque un padre soltero tiene como a su unico hijo como guia y motivacion en la vida. Quiroga hace referencia al padre soltero dando relacion a sus fracasos matrimoniales tanto por divorcio o por el suicidio de su primera esposa. Quiroga relata que el hijo sabia el camino muy bien. Tambien relata que el hijo no era impuntual y siempre llegaba a tiempo para el almuerzo.El hijo nos da referencia del afecto que le tiene a su padre al decirle que no se preocupe por el y le da signos de confianza al tomar este riesgo de ir de caceria a pesar de su corta edad. En la historia hay varios simbolos que reflejan la vida tragica de Quiroga. El hijo lleva un arma y para acabar con la vida de un animal para que el y su padre pudieran alimentarse. Ironicamente el arma es la que acaba con su vida tras un descuido al tropezar con un alambre que estaba escondido entre la hierba del monte. Segun la critica de Acedera, la naturaleza selvatica casi siempre sale vendedora siguiendo la tragedia (p. ). El hijo, al cargar los cartuchos en su bolsillo, esta inconscientemente preparandose para la lucha con la muerte. La preocupacion por esta lucha no se manifiesta en el hijo si no en el padre. La soledad que entorna a los dos personajes despues de la partida del hijo es tambien una caracteristica del autor. El padre queda solo a la partida del hijo y se dispone de hacer cosas cotidianas y preparar lo necesario para el almuerzo. Esto refleja la sol edad que entorna a Quiroga a lo largo de su vida con las tragedias vividas.El padre tiene plena confianza en su hijo que cuando escucha el disparo piensa en nada mas que en lo normal. Su oido reconoce el arma que sigue con sus tareas. La soledad que entorna al hijo refleja la vida de Quiroga en una forma muy sutil. El hijo se encuentra solo en el monte, un lugar muy parecido al que Quiroga muere, y esta solo contra la naturaleza. El hijo es muy joven y esta separado de su padre. Quiroga tambien estaba separado de su padre a muy temprana edad, pero no por el hecho de ir de caceria sino por la muerte de su padre.El joven lleva un arma de fuego en sus manos y sufre un fatal accidente al tropezar con un alambre de puas. Segun Espinosa; â€Å"el alambre de puas es muy recurrente en sus cuentos† (p. 3). Tambien se puede tomar en cuenta que el arma de fuego se relaciona con la muerte de su padre y la muerte de su amigo que Quiroga causo tras un accidente. Quiroga relaciona estos dos tragicos momentos en su vida con la travesia del hijo y su viaje al monte. Aunque el padre e hijo son dos personajes con destinos muy distintos, las similitudes que los relacionan son muchas.Los dos personajes sufren mucho con la soledad. El padre sufre aun mas porque el ya ha sufrido la soledad con la muerte de su esposa. El padre ahora va a tener que sufrir con la soledad aun mas porque la muerte de su hijo lo toma de sorpresa y expresa su dolor con alucinaciones. Parece que el padre no toma la situacion muy bien e inconscientemente lo toma como un sueno y se hace de la idea que su hijo vive y juntos regresan a casa. El padre tiene que luchar contra estos obstaculos que la vida le da.Tal vez por su debilidad o por no querer aceptar sus problemas, la salida de los problemas del padre esta en su mente y sus alucinaciones. Por otro lado, el hijo tambien tiene que combatir con la soledad. El a temprana edad tiene que confrontar la soledad en medio de la naturaleza. Tambien sufre de l a soledad por no tener una madre que lo apoye y le de el amor materno que cualquier joven de su edad necesita. El hijo tambien tiene que luchar contra la vida de otra forma porque el se encuentra solo en medio del monte y tiene que luchar con la vida natural y los peligros que esta ofrece.El hijo tambien tiene una lucha personal consigo mismo al enfrentarse con su falta de experiencia al ir de caceria. Aunque parece que los dos estan muy unidos por el carino y afecto que se muestran en sus palabras, los dos estan muy distanciados a la hora de enfrentarse a la vida porque los dos tienen diferentes obstaculos que enfrentar, pero las situaciones o la idea de los obstaculos son muy similares. La alucinacion es lo que entorna el climax del cuento en una direccion opuesta a lo que el lector tenia en mente.El padre ya preocupado por su hijo sale a buscarlo y despues de un rato de buscarlo y ya muerto de cansancio y empapado de sudor encuentra a su hijo. El padre le empieza a hablar con pal abras en diminutivo, enfatizando una vez mas el carino y amor que tiene por su hijo. Cuando encuentra a su hijo el padre habla con el hijo y le reclama acerca de la hora. El hijo responde que se fijo en la hora pero fue en busca de unas garzas y las siguio pero no las mato. El padre, aunque muy cansado, sonrie de felicidad por haber encontrado a su hijo.Lo controversial es que el hijo esta muerto ya hace varias horas y el padre piensa que lo lleva en su hombro de regreso a casa. Lo que Quiroga quiere reflejar en esto es que la muerte ya no es una noticia tragica para el. Quiroga ve la muerte como un evento natural que no se puede controlar. Tal vez, la alucinacion del padre al ver a su hijo lleno de vida refleja la debilidad de Quiroga al enfrentar hechos muy tragicos alrededor de su vida y la a alucinacion es una forma muy inmadura y danina para lidiar con los problemas. El ambiente en el que â€Å"El Hijo† toma lugar es el ambiente preferido de Quiroga.En muchas de sus obra s usa la naturaleza y animales para reflejar el tipo de vida que a Quiroga le gustaba, una vida primitiva. El cuento es narrado por una voz neutral que simplifica la historia en demasia porque tiene un tono pasivo hacia los hechos. Tambien la voz del narrador nos da una pista que la muerte del hijo no le fue de mucho impacto emocional, como si supiera la historia y no fuese la primera vez que haya contado la historia. Los personajes son muy similares y tienen muchas cosas en comun. Tanto el padre como el hijo son muy descuidados y no ponen atencion al detalle.Los dos se quieren mutuamente como familia y llevan una buena relacion familiar, pero al transcurso del cuento, ironicamente no se pueden ayudar uno al otro porque uno esta muerto y el otro esta alucinando. Los dos quedan solos al transcurso del cuento sin saber la reaccion del otro al saber que los dos necesitan ayuda. Una ironia del cuento es que el padre se preocupa mucho por el bienestar del hijo y no se da cuenta del pelig ro que es mandar a un nino de trece anos de edad de caceria. Quiroga menciona que el hijo, aunque es muy alto para su edad, aun parece de menor edad por la pureza de sus ojos; frescos de sorpresa infantil.Quiroga relata que la mayor angustia de un padre viudo, una vez mas refleja su vida personal, es el cuidado y proteccion del hijo porque el hijo carece de fuerzas propias y hay inmensidad de ciertos peligros. Al no darse cuenta de sus propias palabras, el padre manda al hijo a cazar y despues viene la alucinacion al encontrar vivo a su hijo. Segun Victoria Eugenia Angel, Quiroga maneja sus cuentos en una forma lineal haciendolos caracteristicos de los cuentos cortos. Tambien emplea a sus personajes para dar muestra de un heroe de carne y hueso que enfrenta su destino y a las inclemencias que no puede controlar por sus propios medios.Lamentablemente, todos los heroes terminan con una muerte tragica por culpa de las adversidades que tiene, pero lo indudablemente los personajes luchan hasta el final. En el cuento â€Å"El hijo† el heroe que asumimos es el hijo, no lucha hasta el final contra la adversidad que encuentra. No se sabe si se desangra lentamente pasando por una larga y angustiosa muerte o muere en el instante al recibir el disparo. Angel hace buena referencia que los personajes llegan a su fin de una manera tragica luchando contra adversidades. Tanto el padre como el hijo tuvieron que luchar contra la naturaleza para poder sobrevivir.El padre tuvo que luchar contra el monte y a machetazos llegar hasta su hijo. El hijo por su parte lucho con un simple alambre de puas que estaba escondido entre la hierba. Angel tambien hace referencia que los cuentos de Quiroga tienen una clara conclusion y tienden a tener un final cerrado. Quiroga no da oportunidad al lector de interpretar e imaginar lo que pasa despues del cuento porque cierra el fin con una conclusion muy clara de los hechos. Segun Salvador Bueno, el final de â€Å"El hijo† le quita la explicacion final al cuento mismo.Las historias de Quiroga tienen un final cerrado para el lector dando poca o nada de imaginacion para el lector, pero una caracteristica mas de Quiroga es el elemento de sorpresa que se desarrolla al final de los cuentos en todos sus cuentos. Durante el cuento nos damos cuenta que la alucinacion del padre al encontrar a su hijo es muy caracteristica de Quiroga. Tambien podemos esperar la muerte tragica de uno de los personajes. Las alucinaciones del padre que se relatan durante el cuento nos da una idea y hace que el lector se incline por la muerte del adre porque el es el que parece enfermo o con un desequilibrio mental. El hijo es descrito como un muchacho que le falta edad para poder ser mejor aceptado como un buen cazador porque sus rastros fisicos le dilatan su corta edad y le dan una apariencia de un nino. El hijo tambien es descrito con buena apariencia fisica, una gran madurez y gran conocimiento en la caceria. Al analizar estas caracteristi cas el lector piensa que la logica de la muerte tragica sea para el padre dejando al hijo en una situacion tragica.El elemento de sorpresa aparece en el cuento y nos brinda una muerte tragica pero poco comun. El hijo se tropieza con un alambre en una zona donde conocia muy bien y la escopeta le dispara matandolo. El elemento de sorpresa crea una reaccion al lector causandole angustia y preguntandose por que el hijo tuvo que morir. Muchos criticos llaman a Horacio Quiroga como el perfecto cuentista. Los acontecimientos tragicos en su vida personal llevan a este escritor a crear obras de temas muy recurrentes, pero cada uno de sus cuentos son muy distintos que hace que el lector se encierre en sus cuentos.Quiroga usa la muerte y la lucha del ser humano contra la naturaleza como tema principal en muchas de sus obras. Tambien se caracteriza por usar la tragedia, la soledad y el sufrimiento en los personajes. Quiroga refleja sus tragedias, su sufrimiento y su tristeza en los personajes d e sus obras. Mucho cuentos reflejan en una forma u otra la vida muy tragica que este cuentista tuvo. Si tan solo Quiroga hubiera tenido una vida mas alegre y sin tragedias, el estilo de Quiroga hubiera sido muy diferente y los cuentos hubieran sido muy interesantes. El hijo† refleja muchas caracteristicas de las obras de Quiroga asi como tambien un poco de su vida personal.Bibliografia Acereda, Alberto. â€Å"Del criollismo a la urgencia existencial. Fatalidad y angustia en tres cuentos de Horacio Quiroga. † Castilla: Estudios de Literatura 26. (2001): 7-17. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. Angel, Victoria Eugenia. â€Å"La muerte alucinada como mito personal en la cuentistica de Horacio Quiroga. † Especulo: Revista de Estudios Literarios 40. (2008): MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. Espinosa Consejo, Elena. ‘El hijo' de Horacio Quiroga. † Especulo: Revista de Estudios Literarios 44. (2010): MLA Interna tional Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. Paoli, Roberto. â€Å"El perfecto cuentista: Comentario a tres textos de Horacio Quiroga. † Revista Iberoamericana 58. 160-161 (1992): 953-974. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. Salgado, Maria A. â€Å"Quiroga's ‘El Hijo': Prototype of His Art. † South Atlantic Bulletin: A Quarterly Journal Devoted to Research and Teaching in the Modern Languages and Literatures 36. 2 (1971): 24-31. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 25 Oct. 2010.

Monday, September 16, 2019

North Coast Town Essay

Robert Gray’s North Coast Town is a poem that shows how Australia is becoming more influenced by America and how the world is filled with artificiality. He presents us with a detailed description of the town which reflects his views on the changing nature of Australia. The poem takes on the persona of a hitchhiker without any money. The first stanza talks about how the persona gets up in the morning after sleeping on the beach. The use of descriptive language creates a visual image for the reader, â€Å"a Shell station (with their Men’s locked),† The symbol of that petrol station is of a shell yet it’s devoid of any authenticity towards a natural shell signifying an artificial world. The craze of rock n roll in America made it’s way to Australia and having the same â€Å"greasy Fifties pompadourâ€Å" hairstyle like Elvis Presley’s was considered popular. The use of imagery in the fourth stanza creates a visual image of the typical 50’s hairstyle for the reader. This represents the superficiality and America’s strong influence on Australia’s identity. The use of alliteration in the fifth stanza, â€Å"stucco†¦ sea shells† evokes a stronger sense of the town’s lack of depth through its exaggerated decorations. Gray suggests that the town has lost its individuality, everything is borrowed from foreign cultures. The use of metaphor, â€Å"They’re making California†, highlights the fact that Australia idolizes America and are therefore strongly influenced by them. As the persona hitches a ride, he comes to see various superficial sides of the place. The idea of Americanisation is incorporated through the visual image of the â€Å"pink ‘Tropicana motel†. It reveals the town’s pathetic attempt at imitating America. This represents the town people’s desperation to make money off of tourists. The â€Å"image flaps in shop fronts† also symbolizes the hopeless replicas everywhere. The town’s imitation of America is further enforced through use of verbs. â€Å"We pass bulldozed acres. † This signifies the increase of urbanization within the settlement as their way of â€Å"making California†. In this poem, Gray utilizes various poetic techniques to show perspective on the artificiality and the influences of America corrupting the town.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

A1 Steak Sauce

A1 Steak Sauce and Marinades| To:| Smith, Chuck | From:| | CC:| | Date:| | Re:| Lawry's Defense| Comments:| Issue Lawry is attempting to release a new steak sauce that should penetrate the market by early April. Obviously a new player in the market is not a major concern to A1/Kraft, having over 50 percent of the market share. The best case scenario for Lawry is that they will only gain ten percent of the market share. The direct threat for A1 lies with Lawry’s marketing tactics. Lawry is attempting to launch a Memorial Day advertisement with Publix, offering a two-for $5 promotion.The issue is that retailers generally support only one brand in a particular category in a given week. In recent years A1 has always locked in that spot. Aside from Lawry’s promotion dates, their promotion price is also a major concern. A1 sells over ten percent of their yearly volume each promotion during the summer holiday promotion weeks of Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. Generally A1 would run a fifty cent off promotion with the unit sale price lowered to $4. 49. As the category leader in the steak sauce, A1 has been able to continually increase sales revenue by relying on price increases.The price increase is the primary way that A1 is able to increase revenue since volume has been stagnant the past few years. [Appendix A is a SWOT analysis displaying the internal and external factors that contributes to A1’s current dilemma] Evaluating Alternatives A1 Steak Sauce has several alternatives to evaluate. A1 can be proactive or reactive. By taking the proactive approach, A1 can beat Lawry at its own game of strategic pricing. Option 1: A1 can directly price match and copy the promotions of Lawry. A1 Steak Sauce will considerably drop its prices, which will clutch all of Lawry’s forecasted sales.However, it will not only affect Lawry but it will decrease A1’s potential of future revenue too. Option 2: A1 can do a similar price match of a  "two-for† special. Rather than a two-for-$5, A1 could shoot for a more reasonable approach of two-for- $8. Although both scenarios will require the same amount of units sold (sold in pairs) in order to breakeven. [Appendix B shows Pro Forma for Option 1 and Appendix C shows a Pro Forma for Option 2] A1 can also take a reactive approach by increase its advertising while Lawry is running its two-for-$5 promotion.A1 Steak Sauce can pay for more efficient shelf spacing in the retail outlet. This will include end caps, more facings in the stores, larger and increase signage (bigger and better than what they have done in years past). A1 can also use their brand recognition to their advantage by ensuring more restaurants that publically use A1 display their products, rather it’s on the menu or tables. Currently A1 spends roughly 15% of total revenue on advertising. Option 3: A1 could simply increase their percentage of revenue to marketing and adverting from 15% to 20%.This ap proach will decrease A1’s net profit by roughly 7. 5million (with the worst case scenario that A1 will not increase sales at all) but it will allow A1 to increase its brand awareness and make it substantially harder for Lawry to penetrate the market with its new steak sauce. [Appendix D displays A1’s pro forma with the original 15% of revenue funding its marketing while Appendix E displays an increase to 20% of revenue funding marketing initiatives]Recommendation: Based on the financial analysis of each option, Option 2 would be the best approach for A1.Although each scenario is profitable, Option 2 has more incentives than the other options. Option 2 would be a better deal for A1 because it will generate over 17 million dollars more in profit than Option 1. It will take 38k units to breakeven or 19k pairs on sale for two-for-$8. The breakeven amount is not that far off from what A1 is already accustom to meeting. The price cut alone would be also be great incentive fo r the customers because they will save $2 ($1 per unit) rather than the normal fifty cent.That $2 reduction will be very favorable for A1 granted that it’s will go into effect during the holiday season when shoppers are looking for a bargain, especially while the cost of beef is going through inflation. Additionally, the amount of money spent on advertising will not increase compared to Option 3, so A1 can stick to their normal tactics and not have to focus on cutting cost elsewhere to cover the increase in advertising. | APPENDIX Appendix A: SWOT Analysis

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Being Fat a Big Issue

Being Fat a Big Issue Daniel Gutierrez English 1430, Fall 2010, Section 02 Professor A. Hepner October 14th, 2010 Daniel Gutierrez A. Hepner ENG 1300-01 October 14th, 2010 Being Fat a Big Issue Being fat is one of the biggest issues lately. Our society has created a stereotype of how people should look and it is not exactly a fat boy/girl. People who are fat have suffered every day for how they look and many times our society ignores fat people’s feelings.Obese people have been suffering depression and discrimination for being fat, even though sometimes it is a disease or compulsive eating (eating disorder) that makes them fat, there are also some irresponsible cases of eating unhealthily and it not working out. Obese people today tend to be discriminated for being fat in our society. Overweight people are not different to us; they are people like you and me, for that reason we should not judge them. They are part of our society and they deserve respect and understanding. Ms.C laudia Gomez said, â€Å"It is hard for us when I take the bus and everybody looking us like if we are different or if we are funny, they don’t know how painful it is. † In addition, there are some studies to show that depression can be responsible for overweight especially in women (Overweight and Depression). Moreover, some obese people have eating disorder like compulsive overeating. Compulsive overeating is an addiction to food in big quantities. People suffering compulsive overeating used to eat to hide their emotions, to avoid what they feel inside or their life problems.As Susie Orbach said in her essay, Fat as a Feminist Issue, â€Å"Women suffering from the problem of compulsive eating endure double anguish: feeling out of step with the rest of society, and believing that it is all their own fault†¦. (201)† Overweight people have a disease which means people having extra body weight from muscle, bone and fat (What are Overweight and Obesity). There are some options to lose weight such as: surgery, diets by a nutritionist, exercise and some medicines. According to Medline Plus one of the common options for very obese people is the Gastric by Pass Surgery.After this surgery the patients will not be capable of eating like they ate before. This is an alternative to lose weight faster but also the patients have to follow a diet and do exercise (Gastric Bypass Surgery). Furthermore, obese people have not been practicing healthy habits. The most common unhealthy habits among overweight people are: they do not do exercise, they eat too frequently, usually eat more than one time at the same meal, they stay away from lightest activities (like use the stairs or walk a little), and they eat when they are not truly hungry (Frisch).Likewise, overweight people might be more responsible. Everybody knows what we can do or what we can’t. If I know that I’m gaining weight, I also know that I have to take care of what I eat and do exercise. But many obese people know that they are fat and they still eat unhealthy food and also they do not do exercise. I think this is happening because we like to blame the circumstances (depression, divorce, childhood, etc). But at the same time they also know that being overweight may not be their fault but they are responsible to remain so, because what we do is our choice.Even though there are many advertisements that encourage us to eat unhealthy, nobody is forcing us to eat that food. Also you are the only one who can make the simple decision of taking the elevator or go up stairs. Being obese or overweight is an irresponsible act that makes people sick and this affects everybody because this is a public health problem that should not be. In his essay, What You Eat Is Your Business, Radley Balko maintains that, â€Å"the best way to alleviate the obesity â€Å"public health† crisis is to remove obesity from the realm of public health (157). As he said, here some p eople would probably say that people should be responsible with their own health because we are the only ones who make the choice of living healthy or not. On the other hand, some fat people are proud of how they are. Mr. Alvarado who is weighting around 310 pounds describes himself as a big man and he said, â€Å"I don’t feel bad because I’m fat, I am happy how I am, a big man. I’m comfortable with my weight, I am healthy and I don’t want to change because the society says that people should be thin. In my opinion, over the years and following the bad habits that he has, I am not sure if he is going to be healthy. He maybe is proud of how he is but if he does not start to eat healthy and do exercise, he is going to see the consequences in a few years. In conclusion, being obese or overweight is an issue but it is also a disease. Although, it is unhealthy and unsightly, the hardest is some of them feel like they cannot fit in our society. In my opinion, we should not judge them; we should help them to make the correct decision to have a healthy life and also we have to change the stereotype that the society has showed us.Also, I used to think all obese people were unhappy to be fat. But my recent researches show me that some obese people simply do not care what people say about them and they are happy how they are. Works Cited Pages: †¢ â€Å"Compulsive Overeating† Something Fishy, Website on Eating Disorders. Web. October 07. 2010. http://www. something-fishy. org/whatarethey/coe. php †¢ â€Å"Gastric Bypass Surgery. † Shabir Bhimji MD, PhD, Specializing in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Midland , TX Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A. D. A. M. Medine Plus, Trusted Healthy Information for You. Update Date, May 17. 2010. Web. October 07. 2010. http://www. nlm. nih. gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007199. htm †¢ â€Å"Overweight an d Depression. † Women’s Health Resource, Taking Care of Your Body. Web. October 07. 2010. http://www. wdxcyber. com/overweight-depression. html †¢ â€Å"What are Overweight and Obesity† Overweight and Obesity. Revised March. 2010. Web. October 07. 2010. http://www. nhlbi. nih. ov/health/dci/Diseases/obe/obe_whatare. html †¢ Balko, Radley. â€Å"What You Eat Is Your Business. † They Say / I say with Readings. Ed. Graff, Birkenstein, Durst. New York-London. 2009. 157-161. Print. †¢ Frisch, Louann. â€Å"7 Bad Habits of Overweight People. † Community and Resources. 24 Hours Fitness. Web. October 07. 2010. http://www. 24hourfitness. com/resources/weight_loss/articles/bad_habits. html †¢ Orbach, Susie. â€Å"Fat as a Feminist Issue. † They Say / I say with Readings. Ed. Graff, Birkenstein, Durst. New York-London. 2009. 200-205. Print.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Capital punishment is morally wrong

Capital punishment is morally wrong   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Among some of the most controversial issues of our lives today, no question pops up as frequently as the question of the ethics concerning the Death Penalty. Capital punishment according to the website legal-explanations.com is â€Å"the death sentence awarded for capital offences like crimes involving planned murder, multiple murders, repeated crimes, rape and murder etc where in the criminal provisions consider such persons as a gross danger to the existence of the society and provide death punishment.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With its origins in Latin ‘capitalis’ meaning ‘regarding the head’, a capital crime was originally punished by severing of the head. The first death penalty laws were established as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. It was also a part of the 14th century B.C.’s Hittie Code; in the Seventh Century B.C.’s Draconian Code of Athens, which made death the only punishment for all crimes; and in the Fifth Century B.C.’s Roman law of the Twelve Tablets. Death Sentences were carried out by such means as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement. (Deathpenaltyinfo.org Part I: History of the Death Penalty)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many arguments both for and against the application of the death penalty. Many people in favor of the death penalty would argue that it serves as a strong deterrent to potential recipients of such a punishment and therefore helps maintain a safer society. While numerous such arguments exist on both sides, I will be discussing why the death penalty is morally, ethically and fundamentally wrong, and try to present counter-arguments to claims made by the advocates of the death penalty.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One problem with the death penalty is that it is simply uncivilized. Most of Western Europe no longer retain s the death penalty. On top of that, when Turkey recently made an application for admission to the European Union, the Union’s committee made a recommendation against it, citing that â€Å"Turkey retains the barbaric practice of capital punishment.â€Å"American countries like Mexico and Canada have abandoned the death penalty. The parliament of Europe also passed a resolution ugring the United States to abandon the death penatly. A magazine, now in international circulation says, â€Å"Throughout Europe in particular, the death penalty is thought of as simply uncivilized.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"That its practice is said to be problematic for a leading nation. German Justice minister Herta Daeubler-Gmelin has argued, â€Å"The Americans do not hesitate, proud as they are of their democratic tradition, to reproach other countries over human rights violations.â€Å"I think that great cost is desensitizing us to death and to using violence as an instrument for civiliz ed society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another one of the biggest ethical problems associated with the use of capital punishment is its irreversibility. Death penalty, unlike conventional punishments is absolutely final. When a person, innocent of his charges is awarded the death penalty and after he/she is executed, there is no going back if advances in medical/forensic technology provide solid evidence in favor of the condemned’s innocence. The court or the executioner cannot give back a life, so why should they be able to take it? The researchers Radelet and Bedau (1992) affirm that, â€Å"no less than twenty-three people have been

BRAND MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

BRAND MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH - Essay Example This allows the company to cater to demands of all type customers. In this essay an attempt will be made to highlight the strengths and weaknesses on the brand of Toyota. The assessment of brand will be done with respect to the concepts of value, image and position of the brand. In the end recommendations will also be made on how brand can improve its performance. Strengths of Toyota Value of a brand can be explained as the net trade off received by the customer from all benefits and costs delivered by the product (Snoj, Korda, &, Mumel, 2004). In simpler words brand value is the utility (benefits minus costs) that a consumer derives from a product. Brand image can be defined as perceptions people have about a certain brand name (Rotfeld, H. 2008). The first thing that comes to peoples mind when seeing a brand is called the image of a brand. Positioning of a brand is the place of a brand in the market with respect to other products. Four components of brand positioning include brandà ¢â‚¬â„¢s overall reputation, product performance, customer portfolio, and networks (Knox, S. 2007). It usually is related to the target market of the brand. The value of Toyota brand is very high among the customers all over the world and this is evident from the sales of the company. The company is known for producing cars that provide comfort, and are at the same time affordable. The company has product line of Camry and Lexus that are aimed at higher target markets. The brand value of Toyota is high because it provides more benefits in less cost, thereby increasing the utility of the consumers. This is one of the most significant strengths of the brand. It can provide high quality of comfort, at a relatively lower cost. This is the reason why the brand is famous in both the developing and the developed world. Almost all consumers like to have luxury but most of them cannot afford Mercedes or Ferrari. They are cost effective and for them Toyota is the answer. It has toughness, and at the same time it does not burden the pockets of the consumer. Recently the company brand value has decreased due to massive recalls of vehicles (Kageyama, Y. 2011), but before that the company enjoyed a leading position in the automobile sector all over the world. This is because of the way Toyota caters to the demand of everyone. This loss in reputation is great but still chances are that Toyota will come out of this crisis. Still it is the world’s second largest automobile company according to the brand value (Cato, J. 2010). The global presence of the company also aids in its brand value because the brand is exposed to many people all over the world. Toyota innovates according to its customer demands and Toyota Hybrid is one of the examples in this regard. The recent focus of people on environment was accounted by the brand and a new product was introduced called Hybrid that was environmental friendly. In a line Toyota delivers to clientele according to their demand an d this is the reason of its high brand value. Brand image of Toyota has been positive for many years and only recently it was affected by the recall. Consumers regard the brand of Toyota not for luxury or style, but for reliability and predictability (Swanekamp, K. 2010). Toyota is a brand that is known for its affordable and tough cars. Affordability is also closely attached to the brand image of Toyota. The worldwide sales of Toyota would have been impossible if the company would not

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Statistics Final Exam Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Statistics Final Exam - Speech or Presentation Example In the case of work completed in Excel, copy and paste show the formula(s) used. No work = no credit. The problems on this exam pertain to the Malls of the Thump McDonald Property group. Thump McDonald, often referred to as â€Å"The McDonald†, commissioned his apprentices to look at various statistics to determine the efficiency of his operations. A supplier manufactures batteries for the emergency backup lights in the mall corridors. A random sample of 256 batteries is taken and the sample mean life is 6.5 years with a standard deviation of 0.65 years. The law requires 99% confidence of operation when scheduling of battery replacement. Mall security estimates that the average daily per-store theft is exactly $335, but wants to determine the accuracy of this statistic. The company researcher takes a sample of 81 clerks and finds that =$300 and s = $80. A confidence interval of 90% was used to estimate the proportion of customers who buy at least two items during their shopping mall experience. A random sample of 150 customers produced the following confidence interval: 32% +/- 4%. What is the best way to explain the results? z-test should be used when the sample size is greater than 30 (n>30) and when the mean and the standard deviation are known. T-test is best suites when the sample size is lesser than 30 (n

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Principles of Self Management_Wk4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Principles of Self Management_Wk4 - Essay Example The paper also lays emphasis on understanding relationships and the impact of preconceived notions on performance. This topic is very significant as it leads to better understanding of oneself and the environment. Myers and Briggs developed a mechanism for personality assessment. The elaborated on the distinctive traits developed by Jung and supplemented it with their own observations of psychometric procedures 9. MBTI incorporated a set of consistent but uncorrelated measures of: Extraversion-Introversion (EI), Sensing and intuition (SI), Thinking and Feeling (TF) also Judgment and Perception (JP) (McCrae & Costa, 1989). Each one of these indices is dichotomized to indicate a preference and a four letter code is provided to classify them. By means of numeric scores we can determine the strength of each of the preferences which lead to a type of classification upon computation of scores. My assessment of the MBTI self-scored personality assessment indicated that my personality type is ESTJ. An assessment of the â€Å"raw points† in the test indicated that I had a stranger preference for Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking and Judging. I also assessed my Preference Clarity Category which indicated the consistency with which I preferred one pole dichotomy over the other. Although my raw point ranges were moderate but my preference was SJET. Amongst the two types indicated at the end of the test, ESTJ falls in the â€Å"Sensing types†. The characteristics associated with the Sensing type show that I should be: practical, matter-of-fact, decisive and quick to implement decisions. I have a clear set of logical standards which I religiously follow and want other to do the same. I believe in reaching results efficiently and forceful in implementing my plans. The MBTI personality test has provided useful insights that will help me manage my personal and professional

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

The Capabilities of Leaders and Employees Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

The Capabilities of Leaders and Employees - Essay Example The organization has to extend the improved peripheral vision and must consider that all parts of the organization are connected directly or indirectly so disturbance with any one part exerts stress on other parts too. The investment must be done in training and performance coaching. A new information system must only be implemented by examining the human association with such changes, exploring whether the change is successful, supported or not (Alvesson, Bridgman & Willmott, 2009). Otherwise, the changes are incomplete and create tension and drag down the momentum suppress results. Â  2. The organization is greatly decentralized; furthermore, autonomy is permitted to member companies to large extent in terms of tactics and functions. The company’s approach to managing new acquisitions has been entirely hardheaded. The Tata corporate brand is the main tool for bringing together the group, which represents the standards which are common by almost all the conglomerates of the group. Creating partnerships with the providers and the consumers is the new stratagem of the company that modifies the market as well as alters the interference and communication with the consumers. They show care, respect, consideration and kindness for partners, customers, and providers around the world. They always appreciate a change and work only for the advantage and benefit of the group of people they serve. Â  3. The organization has been itself changed a lot with the passage of time. These changes help to make sure that all the people pull in the same direction. The organization has provided a safe workplace and demonstrates high ethical standards. It also respects the environment and cares for its entire people. This strengthens the peoples’ trusts, hence increases the potential and they work more willingly.

Monday, September 9, 2019

The Credit Crunch of 2007-2008 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Credit Crunch of 2007-2008 - Essay Example As shown in the diagram underneath, this led to rising housing prices since decades. In 2000, the rate of increase of house prices was rising at unsustainable levels, much faster than they had in the last decade. Sub-prime mortgages (mortgages to high risk customers) began to rise due to availability of cheap credit (Mizen). The low interest rate environment stimulated upsurges in mortgage backed financing and hence considerable increases in house prices. It encouraged investors (financial institutions, such as pension funds, hedge funds, investment banks) to design instruments that offer yield enhancement such as subprime mortgages. The bullish attitude of Wall Street led to creation of complex structured products such as collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and a lot of repackaging of high-risk mortgage backed securities. The credit and house price bubble led to a real-estate boom and eventually to a surplus of unsold homes, which triggered U.S. housing prices to peak and before declining and bursting in mid-2006. Subprime borrowers began to default on their loans as real estate prices decreased further. The default on a significant ratio of subprime toxic assets produced cascade effects in financial markets via the securitized mortgage derivatives into which these mortgages were bundled, to the balance sheets of investment banks and hedge funds. The vagueness about the value of the securities collateralized by these mortgages spread chaos and concern over the soundness of loans for leveraged buyouts. That led to the freezing of the interbank lending market in August 2007, collapse of key financial institutions such as Lehman Brothers and triggered the credit crunch crisis. 2. Economists classify macro-economic indicators as leading, lagging, or coincident. Define each classification and give two examples of each, relating them to the recession that began in 2007 and the recovery that is now under way. ? Economic indicators are periodical statements by the government and private institutions that describe the health of a country's economy. Economist classify these indicators into lea ding, lagging or coincident kind that are described below in detail: Leading Indicators: Leading indicators are economic indicators that predict future events. They are foreign exchange indicators that change beforehand the change in the market or economy has occurred. Examples of leading indicators may include bong yields, inventory variations, stock prices and insurance claims. Economic establishments and central banks study leading indicators in expectation to fluctuations in expected interest rates. A forex-leading indicator is a pointer that advises the trader to buy or sell before a new trend in the market commences. Leading indicators, however, are difficult to recognize and could lead to misleading results or interpretations if not analyzed by an experience trader. Two examples leading indicators for the financial crisis of 2007 are stock prices (500 common stocks) that reduced by 8% in 2007 (The Conference Board) and Building permits that reduced by 16% leading to a 40% dec line in US Home Construction Index. Lagging Indicators: Lagging indicators are indicators that follow an economic event. These indicators usually exist three to twelve months after the economy. Lagging economic indicators are the confirmation to outline the peaks and troughs that

Sunday, September 8, 2019

Information Systems Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Information Systems - Coursework Example 3. Firstly the patient submits a request for X-ray application which is denoted by the data flow â€Å"Submits X-Ray request form† to the process â€Å"Make X-Ray appointment† and subsequently makes an appointment denoted by â€Å"Makes an appointment†. The primary reasons for having an information system is to understand in detail the various cost drivers which make sure that a certain amount of money is drained in the process and an organization is benefited in the long run. For example, QuickShop Inc enveloped information system in the form of an ERP product which failed because of the lack of enough management belief in the system, lack of turnover ratio, not taking care of the system requirements and functions. The information system processes are the ones which are mentioned in the SRS document which needs to be adhered by the software vendor. Often the customer is not clear or confused about the ideas and the requirements. Total failure relates to either the concept has never been implemented or after implementation the system was abandoned. The concept building phase would have taken so much time that the very idea was quite complex at the end. The feasibility factors were studied in so detail that there was always some probability of not proceeding with the further implementation stages. The other case which was highlighted is that just after the system is implemented it was found to be not satisfying the business requirements or it did not envelope the business workflow and had to be abandoned so that the business does not suffer losses if it cannot make profit. The partial failure of the system can be attributed for either the system does not fulfill the system requirements or there are significant undesirable outcomes. If a particular set of requirements are not fulfilled or if a department is not aligned in sharing information then it may result in failure of the system. Other types

Saturday, September 7, 2019

American Popular Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

American Popular Culture - Essay Example 2. How have popular culture trends and electronic media formulated your views regarding the following topics: social responsibility and civility; family obligations; the human body; justice, law, and order; sexual identity; friendship and love Popular (pop) culture is literally defined as the vernacular culture that prevails on any given society. â€Å"The content of popular culture is determined by the daily interactions, needs and desires, and cultural ‘moments’ that make up the everyday lives of the mainstream.† (â€Å"Wikipedia†, 2006). Culture is a way of defining oneself, and is accepted or regarded by each person in their own way, and yet mass media and mass culture also lets people define themselves in relation to everyone else in mass society. How Have Popular Culture Trends and Electronic Media Formulated Your Views Regarding the Following Topics: Social Responsibility and Civility; Family Obligations; The Human Body; Justice, law and Order; Sexual Identity; Friendship and Love? Popular culture trends are a significant part of all of our lives, and greatly affect the way we feel about ourselves, and about each other, on a daily basis. Whether or regardless of if we recognize it or not, popular culture reflects on us all in way or another. In regards to social responsibility and civility, I believe that due to the heightened propaganda status, or in other words the fact that the media is such a huge part of all of our day to day lives, our assumption and beliefs of what our personal social responsibilities should be have dropped somewhat. In the past, there was a certain aura of politeness and classiness if you will; characteristics which do not seem to be as evident in today’s world. When discussing how pop culture trends have formulated my views regarding family obligations; this is another subject that I would say relates highly to social responsibility and civility in a way. If we take

Friday, September 6, 2019

Introduction to the Rajputs Essay Example for Free

Introduction to the Rajputs Essay A Rajput is a member of one of the landowning patrilineal clans of central and northern India. Rajputs consider themselves descendants of one of the major ruling warrior groups of the Hindu Kshatriya varna ( social order ) in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India. The Rajputs rose to prominence during the 6th to 12th centuries, and until the 20th century Rajputs ruled in the â€Å"overwhelming majority† of the princely states of Rajasthan and Saurashtra, where the largest number of princely states were found. They are divided into three major lineages. The Rajput empire spread in many countries: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Southeast Asia and some parts of Tibet. The four Agnivanshi clans namely the Pariharas (Pratihara), Solankis (Chalukya dynasty) Paramaras and Chahamanas rose to prominence first, establishing territories and creating kingdoms. The Rajputs were mainly feudal lords under the over-lordship of the rulers belonging to Pratiharas – a dynasty that ruled until the 10th century. Gradually, they attained the status of independent rulers. Their dominion spread over most parts of north India. In the north-west region known as Rajputana, which comprises the present day Rajasthan and parts of Pakistan. The Rajput community comprised of the Chauhans of East Punjab, Northern Rajasthan and Delhi, the Rathores of Uttar Pradesh, the Paramaras of Central India and the Tomars of Gwalior and later, Delhi. Of these the Chauhans and the Rathores were dominant clans. The Rajput though brave and chivalrous often succumbed to inter-clan rivalries, which proved advantageous for the Muslim rulers during the medieval period. The Rajputs being a dominant Hindu clan offered heavy resistance to the Muslim rulers who spread their rule over India during the medieval period. The Rajput princes maintained their own independent princely kingdoms. Some of the brave Rajput rulers who have been made their names eternal in Indian history are Prithviraj Chauhan, Rana Kumbha, Rana Sangram Singh, Rana Udai Singh and Maharana Pratap. Prithviraj Chauhan proved to be the last Rajput ruler of Delhi. The Chauhans, led by Govinda, grandson of Prithviraj, later established a small state centered around Rathambore in present-day Rajasthan. The Rajput lifestyle was designed to foster a martial spirit, with men even forging a bond with their sword. The double-edged scimitar known as the khanda was a popular weapon among the Rajputs of that era. On special occasions, primary chief would break up a meeting of his vassal chiefs with khanda nariyal, the distribution of daggers and coconuts. Many Rajputs are nostalgic about their past and keenly conscious of their genealogy, emphasizing a Rajput ethos that is martial in spirit, with a fierce pride in lineage and tradition. The Rajput rulers had a keen sense of beauty in art and architecture which is seen in the artistic excellence of their temples, forts and palaces. The Indo-Aryan style of architecture developed in North India and Upper Deccan and the Dravidian style in South India during the Rajput period. Both sculpture and architecture attained a high degree of excellence. e.g. The Rathas of Mahabalipuram or Mammallapuram, the Kailash temple at Ellora and the sculpture of Elephanta belonging to the early Rajput period ( 600 Ad to 900 AD ) The temple architecture of Orissa, Khajuraho, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and the Pallava, Chola and Hoysala temples in the South belong to the later Rajput period. ( 900 AD to 1200 AD )

Thursday, September 5, 2019

A Study On The Adkar Model Management Essay

A Study On The Adkar Model Management Essay The purpose of this report is to understand the change management and the models which the organisation faces now. The report will also provide the recommendations for the organisation that can makes the organisation become less destructive while carry out the change and provide the tools of change. The structure of the report will consist 3 parts which are literature review, case study, and recommendation. Literature Review: Kurt Lewin know its important to form an integrated approach to bring about change at the group or organizational levels and contribute a 3-step change models. Lewin (1947a) stated that change process involved three steps in order to change efficiency and they are stage 1 (unfreezing), stage 2 (moving), and stage 3 (refreezing) (Lewin, 1947). Unfreezing step means make the correct situation for change to happens (London Management Centre, n.d.). Lewin argued that the stability needs to be weakened which means unfrozen (take away the old behaviour can be that lead to a new behaviour successfully adopted). Schein (1996) argued that the key for unfreezing is to recognise the individual or group level change and it were a profound psychological dynamic process. Moving stage is to create inspiration to learn but does not essentially control or predict the direction (Schein, 1996). Organisation should find out all the forces at work and identify and evaluate in order to get all the available options from trial or error basis (Lewin, 1947a). However, Lewin (1947a) also recognized that, without reinforcement, change will not last forever. The last stage of the model is refreezing. This stage is to recreate a stable atmosphere and elevates comfort levels by reconnecting people back into their familiar place (London Management Centre, n.d.). This is important as changes to individual behaviour will not be sustained unless group norms and routines are also been transformed and set. Therefore, it often requires changes to organizational norms, culture, practices and policies (Cummings and Huse, 1989). 3 steps model gives manager a framework that how to implement a change efficient, which can make the change process carried out fluently. The Kurt Lewin model can help a leader do the following three steps that helps to minimize the disruption of the structures operations, make a radical change, and make sure that the changes is sustainable (Morrison, 2010). Many have is argued that Lewins planned approach is too simplistic and mechanistic as organizational change happens everyday and open-ended process nowadays (Dawson, 1994 e Garvin, 1993). Lewin is seen as advocating a top-down, management approach to change and ignore the situations that require bottom-up change (Dawson, 1994). Lewins 3 steps change model can be used if there is a short term goals to meet and celebrate (Kotter, 1996). This is because people will start to resist to change if there is no short term wins. Lewin stated that organisations should establishing the goals and objectives. Organisation should reward people that involved with recognition, promotion or money (Kanter, 1993). 3 steps change model is more construct than content driven, describing competence using language such as team working, problem solving, and effective communication (French, 1999). Prosci had published ADKAR change model in 1998. The ADKAR model is used to know the change at an individual level and this will helps the organisation increase the successful rate for the changes (Hiatt, 2006). The model consist five elements that makes the changes successful: Awareness of the necessarily for change. Desire to do the change. Knowledge on change. Ability to carry out new skills and behaviors. Reinforcement to maintain the change. (Warrilow, 2010) The ADKAR model can helps to find out why changes are not functioning and help the organisation take the essential steps to make the change successful. Organisation will be able to break down the change into parts that can understand where the change is not functioning and address that impact point (Change Management Learning Center, 2007). The limitation for ADKAR model is fails to see the macro level of programme management (Warrilow, 2010). The author points out that the business environment now the restructuring, refocusing and re-engineering is only the start. Business leaders have to face the equally as it will have more problems of getting the staff to deliver their new vision that achieve the revenue forecasts. The fact is that people are not similar in the ways they behave. In this case, I will use Proscis ADKAR model. This is because Lewins 3 step model is too simple as what Dawson and Garvin highlighted and its not suitable for a big organisation that has high innovation. Therefore, its important for the organisation to identify the change element in order to make the change become efficient. Case Study: The model that the organisation used is the Prosci ADKAR model. Stuart Young dare to make the big change while the other organisations do not. Stuart Young consist of the 5 elements of ADKAR models which are awareness, desire, knowledge, ability and reinforcement. The people within the organisation have the awareness of the need for change. Stuart makes the organisation struct become flatter. This helps the communication become more efficient. There are only less people beneath them. There is no foreman and supervisor. The team leaders will have the meeting with their group members and talk about the work that they done yesterday. People need to analyse it and then have the change. Commitment can be build easily by this way and make sure the people aware to change for better quality. The people within the organisation have the desire to change. For an example, the manager will not criticise their workers. This makes them have more responsible. They need to do well for motivate the people. The motivating will makes the employee have more desire to change when there is needed. The individuals of the organisation have the knowledge of how to change. Management personnel at Interlock are all expected to undertake re-training at least the course per year. The people will be trained and put at the right position. This will make the change become more efficient as the people have the knowledge and work at the place that are most suitable for them. The people must also have the ability to change and the employee have the ability. The employee has more responsible to do their job. This means that they need to deal with more problems. This makes them know how to do more things and have the ability to change when needed. The education systems also help to improve their ability. This is the reason Stuart Young believe in his employee. Lastly, there is a reinforcement to sustain the change. Stuart Young knows how to reinforce their employee although there are no incentive programs. Instead of the incentive programs, Stuart Young ensures the employees job security as job security is foremost in workers minds nowadays. This will make the employee willing to change while maintain the quality. A good leadership is needed in order to makes the changes become more efficient. This will also utilise the ADKAR model. Transformational leadership style should be used in order to make the changes efficient. Transformational leadership is leaders who encourage people to transcend their own self-interest and who are capable of having profound and extraordinary effect on their staff (Robbins, Millet, Waters-Marsh, 2004). According to Chemers (1997), transformational leadership have 4 factors: -Individualise consideration (degree to which the leaders treat each followers in a way that is equitable and satisfying, but differentiated from other followers). Inspiration motivation (reflect the quality and emotional appeal of the leaders vision rather than what public said). Intellectual stimulation (leader encourages the follower to question past ideas and supports subordinate to think independently and creatively). idealized influence / Charisma (reflects follower perceptions that the leader is trustworthy to achieve an important vision). Transformational leaders make the vision or mission of the group become clearer that will generate satisfied and innovative culture within workplace and personalise their interaction with others (Parry, 1996). Many people might like the transactional leadership style. The transactional leadership style has totally difference style compare to transformational leadership style. Transactional leadership style is to lead or stimulate people by clarifying the role and task requirement (Robbins et al., 2004). However, transformational is more towards the intangible factors while transactional leadership style is more tangible factors. Therefore, its better to have the transformational leadership style instead of the transactional leadership style as the people will always demand more. A research shows that transformational leadership style is better than transactional leadership style (Chemers Ayman, 1993). In this situation, the 4 factors of transformational leadership will improve the five elements (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement) and thus makes the changes become more effective. The organisation has the ability to change. If the organisation can implement the transformational leadership style well, the organisation will sure change efficiently as the leadership can lead the organisation to have the particular elements to change well. Recommendations: Every organisations need to change when needed. However, its impossible for the organisation closes their business and carries out the changes. Therefore, some actions need to be taking in order to become less destructive. Change is a messy business that filled with complexity, multiple factors and many things that can lead the organisation towards failure. There are 3 broad areas that need to be included in any successful change initiative and have less destructive to the organisation, which are: Leadership that directly addresses the different dimensions of those affected by the change, and the motivation. Address the multiple factors of the models which is ADKAR models. Action management that can helps people on the matter that is useable for the change. (Warrilow, 2010) In order to do well in this, the tools of change can be used to make the change become better. There is a tool that can managing meeting and collecting ideas is brainstorming. Brainstorming is a technique that enables a team to generate lots of ideas in only a few minutes without criticism and judgement (Queensland Health, 1999). Brainstorming encourages people in identifying the cause and solutions to the problems. This can get a large group to work constructively together and solve the problem during the change process. Total Quality Management (TQM) is other tool of change. TQM refers to a management process directed at establishing organised continuous improvement activities, involving everyone in an organisation in a totally integrated effort toward improving performance at every level (Almaraz, 1994: 9). This will makes organisation make the change with full force that makes the change become more efficient. The implementation of TQM involves: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ focus on work processes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ explicit identification and measurement of customer (both internal and external) requirements à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ analysis of variability à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ use of cross-functional teams à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ management by fact à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ learning and continuous improvement à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ use of process-management heuristics The other tool is organisatinal development. The term organisational development (or OD) is a set of behavioural science-based theories, values, strategies, and techniques aimed at the planned change of organisational work setting for the purpose of enhancing individual development and improving organisational performance, through the alteration of organisational members on-the-job behaviours that are definitely helps a lots for the change process. (Porras and Robertson, 1992: 722) OD interventions view different aspects of this setting as levers for change that are able to prompt desired behaviours. These include: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ organising arrangements which include goals, strategies, structure, policies and procedures, administrative systems à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ social factors which include culture, management style, interaction processes, individual attributes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ physical setting which include ambience, interior design, space configuration, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ technology which include IT, tools, equipment and machinery, job design, work flow design, technical expertise, technical systems and procedures. With enough development, the people will always have the sufficient skill that will helps them manage well in change process. Conclusion: The report had provides the 2 difference change models which are Lewins 3 step model and Proscis ADKAR model. The case shows that the organisation has the ability to change well. Its better for them to have transformational leadership to make the change become more efficient. The recommendations that provided are: Less Destructive ways Leadership that directly addresses the different dimensions of those affected by the change, and the motivation. Address the multiple factors of the models which is ADKAR models. Action management that can helps people on the matter that is useable for the change. Tools of change Brainstorming Total Quality Management (TQM) Organisational Development