Monday, September 30, 2019

If You Can Have Dinner with Any People

There has been a time when I have always wondered what it would be like to have dinner with people who inspire me. I have thought long and hard about 3 people who give me motivation to be all I can be. Growing up as a Latin woman in NYC has made me want to be a successful woman. I want to see the world and help others in need. I have chosen to have dinner with Rata Moreno a Latin woman from Human, Puerco Rice. My Grandparent's are from Human, a small town about 45 miss from the capital.Human is full of land , nature, tall mountains and amazing culture. I also would love for Audrey Hepburn to Join us followed by Anita Rowdier. These three women are very influential in many ways and I can relate to them. The dinner I have chosen for us will be full of colorful foods. Salads, pastas, cheese, seafood and wine. Rata Moreno loves to dance and I am sure she will be the life of the party. I come from a big Puerco Rican family like Rata also from Human and we love to dance, cook and enjoy qua lity time.We can turn anything small into a festivity. Moreno has a similar background; she grew up very poor and was forced to move to the slums of NYC only to find herself a bit lost. Rite's mom made a living so that Rata can focus on school and her career. Like most Puerco Rican families from the ass's and ass's they work extremely hard to have a better life. Rata went on got an education and pursue her career. She found herself in Show business acting and playing roles as a minority. She landed her famous role as Anita from West side story.The first and only Latin woman in History and one of the few performers to have won an Emmy, a Grammar, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerco Rican to win an Academy Award. Rata is also involved in the Jack Robinson Foundation to give children a better schooling system. Audrey Hepburn is a classic woman of Hollywood who is also an immigrant from Belgium growing up it was not always easy but she came from a middle class family. Audrey grew up most of her life in boarding schools and nannies this was during the world war 2.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Absolute Thresholds and Differential Thresholds

Absolute thresholds are the minimum level of stimulus intensity needed for a stimulus to be perceived. In other words, the absolute threshold is the amount of intensity needed for a person to detect a difference between something and nothing. Differential thresholds refer to the intensity difference needed between two stimuli before people can perceive that stimuli are different. Thus, the differential threshold is a relative concept. Weber’s law (1834) states the positive relation between the first stimulus and the second stimulus. The greater the initial stimulus, the stronger the additional intensity need for the second stimulus to be perceived as different. Absolute thresholdDifferential threshold Amount of stimulusOne stimulusTwo stimuli MeasurementDistance between stimulus and nothingDistance between two stimuli Compare between absolute threshold and differential threshold, absolute threshold just include one stimulus while differential threshold include two. In measurement, absolute threshold measures the distance between stimulus and nothing while differential threshold measures the distance between two stimuli. As I am a marketing student, therefore, the first thing which comes to my mind when I am trying to start off with this piece of journal is that, do these differences between the two thresholds matter with marketers’ marketing strategies? And after I do some research on the internet and with my personal experience, I am quite sure that it does matter. The importance of two thresholds can be different to marketers under different situations. Absolute thresholdDifferential threshold Advertising ElementsExposure, Size, ColorAdvertising quality PeopleInvolvement, motivation, attention, attitude Concerning advertising elements, absolute threshold focuses on exposure, size, color, etc to attract target customers’ attention while differential threshold focuses on the advertising quality appear to customer in order for them to percept the different between those. These two thresholds are based on different people and are closely related to their involvement, motivation, attention, attitude on the particular good or service. So different people will have different threshold when percept the same object. When a firm launches a new product or a new brand emerges in the market, this is when the absolute threshold is more important to marketers. Because absolute threshold measures the minimum intensity that the customers can percept, as the new brand or product probably needs recognitions from them, otherwise poor sales arise. Therefore, the higher the exposures of advertising advance to gain consumers’ attention. On the other hand, the well use of five sensory techniques in the advertising can easier imprint in their mind. When a firm is modifying a product or service (positive improvement or negative change) that either willing or unwilling to let a customer in perceiving the difference, the differential threshold will be considered to be more important. Because differential threshold measure the intensity difference needed between two stimuli before people can perceive, the intensity modify of a product that cause the customer percept or not is what marketers’ concern. For instance, marketers want to know to what degree of a price cut or a bigger meal can be percept by customers, and thus affect their motivation to consume more. On the other hand, marketers want to know to what degree of raise in price or a smaller meal that can’t be precept by customers, or else it will increase the customer’s cost risk and decrease his or her motivation in purchasing. When taking in the consideration in such a negative change, it reminds me with one of my personal experience. As I am a fan of Coca-Cola, I used to drink at least three cans a week and I would save those cans up on my own desk in order to bring those cans for recycling once a week. One day when I was doing the same practice after washing the can and try to put it to the group of cans on my desk, I found out that the can was smaller than those cans that I bought before, and when I took a look on the volume of the Cola, the drink can was cut to 330 ml from 355 ml which indicates a 7 percent reduction in the size of the can. I was kind of shocking that how come a Coca-Cola fan could not recognize such a change in size. After attending the lecture, I know that there is another dimension of sensory discrimination what is known as the â€Å"just noticeable difference† (JND). Weber’s work was applied to marketing by Miller (1962) which states that a 7 percent change in other sizes of similar products is needed before a change is noticed. This implies and explains what I experienced and how the marketers try to apply this theory in their strategic moves.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Read the requirement carefully and finish on timethis is a group paper Essay

Read the requirement carefully and finish on timethis is a group paper with 3 members - Essay Example 201,000 in 2012. Since this profit is calculated before deducting interest and tax, so the company can plan for distribution of profits after deduction is done, i.e. on PAT (Profit after tax). On deduction of interest from the operating profit, there is a marked decrease in the Profit available before tax by ?94,000. This decrease in profit is due to increase in the amount of bank loan and bank overdraft in between September 2011 and September 2012 for the purpose of continuing operations of the business. As a result of decrease in profit after deduction of interest, the profit for the year has also decreased from ?107,000 in 2011 to ?64,000 in 2012. Reduction in profit would have an adverse effect on the business, such as, the company fail to pay the dues of its creditors, would not be able to pay appropriate dividends to its shareholders, as well the company would face problems in expansion as it would face shortage of funds. The ongoing activities of the business entity would also be affected with such decrease in profits. The financial position as per the balance sheet of TR Ltd. as at 30th September 2012, depicts the following- Though the value of non-current assets are shown in terms of written down value in the balance sheet, the market value of land and buildings as on 30th September 2012 in much more than its written down value. ... An increase in retained profit as on 30th September 2012 depicts that the business entity has retained a part of the profit earned. From the income statement it is found that the business has earned a profit of ?64,000 as on 30th September 2012. As the extra profit retained in the year 2012 amounts to ?34,000, so it can be concluded that the company has drawn an amount of ?34,000 from the profit of ?64,000 and added it to the balance of retained profit. The remaining ?30,000 out of the profit is declared as to be distributed as dividend for the year 2012. An increase in Bank Loan has increased the debt of the firm. Though bank loan is a long term debt but still the company would face problems in meeting its debt if the profit does not increase in the long run. As the profit has decreased in the year 2012 so the company would face problem in meeting its timely payments as agreed upon with the bank. The amount of current liabilities has in the year 2012 but as the profit in the year 20 12 has decreased the company would face problems in meeting the liabilities on time as it will face a shortage of funds. Though the current assets are more than the current liabilities to be met in the year 2012, but still the company would face problems in meeting its liabilities as because the balance of liquid cash available is not sufficient to meet the liabilities and Inventory is not a liquid asset and Trade receivables is yet to be realized. From the above, it can be concluded that the business is at a crucial stage in the year 2012. Though there has been improvement and increase in operations undertaken and performed for the growth and expansion of the business, still the marked decrease in profit

Nestle Safety Training Program Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nestle Safety Training Program - Assignment Example and upgrade their safety measures in such a way that employees along with contractors and others are protected, as they add value to the company (Nestle safety and health). They are further striving to accomplish one of their main goals and that is having zero injuries and accident in regard to their workers. Currently, there are two departments working in collaboration to adhere to the company’s law regarding safety and health of their employees. The two departments are The Safety and Health Functional Leadership Team and The Safety and Health Council. The former is a group of senior safety and health professionals from across the world who meets on daily basis to pinpoint priorities and convey challenges, learning, and good practices. Similarly, the latter council consists of senior fellows from various areas of the business who adjudicate the evolution and execution of programs and provide support and resources. Moreover, the organization believes that human behavior is also one of the factors which may lead towards the occurrence of accidents and injuries; therefore, Nestle implements programs that motivate employees to converse with the peers and management about safe and at-risk behavior. To emphasize on the seriousness of health and safety measure, all executive board meeting starts with an overview of the health and safety that is why the aforementioned council is held four times in a month, which is a quarterly meeting. In addition to this, these departments have installed Nestlà © Occupational Safety & Health Management (NSMS) which strive towards improving and upgrading health and safety procedures, policies, standards, and process. Now moving towards the safety training programs, Nestle has established a roadmap for this very own purpose. Following are some of these programs which include Personal Ownership and Engagement.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Visual Arts and Film Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Visual Arts and Film Studies - Essay Example Neoclassical Art, on the other hand, is more inclined to the more political and unemotional aspects. Delacroix’s ‘Sea of Galilee’ and Watteau’s ‘The Storm’ in comparison are two different paintings in the language of art. One of the paintings is clearly a Romantic period piece of art work while the other one comes from the Neo-classical period of art. The differences are not so difficult to spot; even from a mile away. ‘The Storm’ by Watteau is of the Neo-classical age. On the other hand, ‘The Sea of Galilee’ is a romantic era work of art. There are a lot reasons and differences to back this argument up. Each of the paintings holds the characteristics within them that reveal the characteristics of the different styles of painting. Let us first consider the characteristics of neo-classicism and romanticism Neoclassicists had the belief that man is the supreme power above all else and that the center of though and truth rests with man. As Alexander Pope put it, â€Å"the proper study of mankind is man.† Neoclassicists always aimed to attain perfection. They strictly believed in order and reason, also in intellect, in the quest for perfection. Romanticism is the era that opposed them. Romanticism followed the neoclassicism era. Romantics directly opposed neoclassicism; they passionately believed that neoclassicism was not it and turned to nature’s guiding forces in their paintings. ... This began in the middle 1700’s. Much of this was attributed to the need to break from the playful and whimsical art of the Rococo period. Believers and followers of the neoclassicism wanted art to be what it had been in ages gone by; they wanted the traditional ways and splendor of art from ancient Rome and Greece. Neoclassicists had the feeling that, the periods of Enlightenment and the Rococo period, were not expressing people’s discomfort that came about as a result of the nobility lifestyle and the increasing demand for a democratic society. Neo classical Art contain classical themes; the subjects are usually placed in archaeological settings and the people are normally dressed in costumes from classical times. Neoclassicists also had Roman and Greek elements integrated in their paintings and portraits. The paintings had mythological fabled beings and creatures in them. Neoclassicism was also designed in order to, please senses, to teach morals, and lessons in mora ls. They were inclined towards historical paintings. On the other hand, romantic art have beginnings that can be traced back to the 18th and the 19th centuries. Romanticism was a rejection and change-over from neoclassicism and the neo classical period. It began as some form of intellectual movement by artists; they hoped to divulge from the traditional art values of neoclassical art. Romantic Art was characterized by subjectivism, individualism, nature and emotions. These are the values in which they believed in and had a passion for over intellect. Romantic Art and paintings mainly consist of the dramatic and bold works of art. They featured exoticism, nationalism, heroism, and individualism. Nature was supreme during this period. Most artists painted

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Public Law - Ministerial Responsibilty and Coalition Governments Essay

Public Law - Ministerial Responsibilty and Coalition Governments - Essay Example ? Sociologists believe that this political phenomenon in most states in Britain could also happen in Westminster as officials have introduced â€Å"a semi-proportional electoral system which, it argued, would entail frequent, if not permanent, coalition† although electoral reform seems near to nil. 2 Anent to this phenomena is the recent move of the British parliament to publish a Cabinet Manual that will contain a collection of statutes, court judgments and treaties which they considered as â€Å"first ever written legal convention and precedent on how UK is run†Ã¢â‚¬â€an attempt toward codification. These developments in the political arena must be scrutinized by electorates to be abreast with government official’s plans. It is also in this context that we will explore issues relating to workability of coalition of government viz-a-viz its ministerial duties as well as the proposed codification of conventions, which is largely perceived as unnecessary. 1. Coal ition Government: Workable? That question has been raised by a British columnist at the height of electoral controversies in 2010. It seems that the question remained unsettled since hodge-podge of discourse revived the theme as election nears again. But what is a coalition government? Why does it attempt to question the competence and capacity of the single party’s governance especially in matters that relate to fairness and representation? 3 Coalition government is a composition of several political parties cooperating to â€Å"govern a country or a region.† 4 It removes an elite unitary system of political decision-makings and allowed democratization of political discourse by tolerating convergence and intra-party agreements. It is often a structural consequence whenever there are economic problems, unpeace, and political events such as merging of political parties during election. Practically, coalition government permeates sharing of executive powers and therefore changes the paradigms; broadens political party behaviors; widen operational methods in governance including internal rules of political engagements within the administration. 5 But these changes are neither worrisome nor irrelevant because all countries worldwide evolved from monarchical or unitary toward two or multi-party coalitions to democratize governance. 6 Nousiainen and Blondel (1993) have once asserted that â€Å"coalitions can be more or less extreme, more or less ideologically diverse, and composed of partners who are more or less equal.† The system espoused collective cabinet responsibility and legislated policies are credited to the government. 7 Policies will therefore be attributed to the government collectively and they expect stringent legislative discipline, unless they’d agree to exercise freely their respective votes during decision-making. Last year, UK officials formed a coalition  government after serious discussions between the Conservative Party  and the  Liberal Democrats. 8 Observers however thought that this coalition politics have â€Å"focused so much on selection instead of accountability† perceiving that its political survival is considerably dependent from electoral process. 9 Political critics argued that government coalition, for it to be workable, should be built on trust. Some political shenanigans however bared experiences of alleged serial infidelity of Liberal Democrats, hence it is likely that government will be riddled with mutual

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Managers & Organisations - Reflective Portfolio Assignment

Managers & Organisations - Reflective Portfolio - Assignment Example The objectives of this paper is to generate a clear understanding on critical issues an individual can face while performing those tasks. In addition, the paper also provides an insight about how to deal with the problems regarding management of clients, inventory and staffs. Summarising Learning Reflection During the work tenure in my profession, I had confronted with several issues which helped me to gain valuable experience. I had showed good performance on maintaining coordination with staffs along with other stakeholders in the company. My knowledge and expertise had helped me to deal with the clients and to manage other operations such as supervision, monitoring and analysis of documents among others. I always endeavour to provide rapid response to any kind of problems within the organisation so that it does not turn out to be much worse. I possess two major characteristics which influence my decision making which are activist and quick learning ability. The major gaps I had id entified during reflection were ineffective planning and communication. Due to this gap, I often faced difficulties in managing the clients and the staffs. Above all, I am a reflector in learning and can put theory and idea into practice and I always pursued for learning new things in my professional life. Reflection on Practices Scenario 1 The first workplace scenario of my work experience is related to management of client. In any business organisation, it is significant to manage the clients effectively. Client management is concerned with appealing to new clients as well as retaining the existing clients of the company. It is critical for every manager to maintain good associations with clients so that they... During the work tenure in my profession, I had confronted with several issues which helped me to gain valuable experience. I had showed good performance on maintaining coordination with staffs along with other stakeholders in the company. My knowledge and expertise had helped me to deal with the clients and to manage other operations such as supervision, monitoring and analysis of documents among others. I always endeavour to provide rapid response to any kind of problems within the organisation so that it does not turn out to be much worse. I possess two major characteristics which influence my decision making which are activist and quick learning ability. The major gaps I had identified during reflection were ineffective planning and communication. Due to this gap, I often faced difficulties in managing the clients and the staffs. Above all, I am a reflector in learning and can put theory and idea into practice and I always pursued for learning new things in my professional life. S cenario 1The first workplace scenario of my work experience is related to management of client. In any business organisation, it is significant to manage the clients effectively. Client management is concerned with appealing to new clients as well as retaining the existing clients of the company. It is critical for every manager to maintain good associations with clients so that they conduct business with the company regularly and for the long run. In present days competitive business environment, losing a valuable client can cost heavily on profitability.

Monday, September 23, 2019

International business activities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International business activities - Essay Example ic transaction processes and when they unfold on the international, cross-cultural level, they become even more challenging (Neslin and Greenhalgh, 1983; Gulbro and Herbig, 1994; Gilsdorf, 1997; Foroughi, 1998; Kumar, Markeset and Kumar, 2005). This is largely because, within the context of IB, negotiations move from the level of reaching an agreement between individuals who have comparable world views to reaching a compromise between cultures whose representatives may have divergent world views, including conflicting values (Bjerke, 2006). The implication here is that IB paradigms must be culturally sensitive and adaptable, on the one hand, and culturally-informed, on the other (Bjerke, 2006). Turning to TQM, one finds that it embrace cultural sensitivity as a direct outcome of its consumer focus (Collins, 2005). The paradigm itself is premised on the supposition that if corporations are to succeed in diverse cultural environments and to successfully engage in cross-cultural negotia tions, they have to embrace the culture of the environment in question, be it of their consumers or their business partners, and redefine themselves as insiders, rather than outsiders (Collins, 2005; Bjerke, 2006). Its embrace of sociology, therefore, marks TQM as highly well-suited to international businesses and, as a root discipline, is fundamental to the success of IB. As international business unfolds within the context of a global, as opposed to a national economy, international economics emerges as another fundamental root discipline. IB scholars acknowledge the presence of a synergetic and dynamic relationship between international economics and international business. On the one hand, IB is inextricably dependant on the health of the global economy for its own development,... International business activities International business, which has both been facilitated by and imposed upon firms by the advent of globalization, may be briefly defined as the global exchange of goods and services, or cross border economic transactions. As a number of scholars have quite rightly pointed out, international business is the internationalization and the concomitant expansion of the scope of traditional business activities. Within this context, it may also be defined as a natural evolution in the development of the scope of business activities, from the intra-tribal to the inter-tribal, from the intra-township to the inter-township and from the national to the international (Wiles and Wiles, 2005; Carbaugh, 2005; Marx, 2006; Sundaram and Black, 2007). The implication here is that while international business is founded upon the same precepts and principles of traditional/national business and, accordingly, withstands adherence to the same management paradigms, the significant expansion of its parameters and sphere of activities necessitates the embrace of sociology, international economics, politics and linguistics, to name but a few disciplines. On the basis of the foregoing discussion, TQM emerged as an ideal international business paradigm, largely because it embraces and addresses IB’s concerns. This was demonstrated through reference to three of its root disciplines, international economics, sociology and organizational theory.

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Report on Toyota Plant Visit Essay Example for Free

Report on Toyota Plant Visit Essay Three aspects about TPS witnessed during the plant visit: 1. Just-in-time production system: this concept is used in TPS where they produce only based on the order received and their level of inventory is limited. Once the inventory is over the next batch of stock is replaced simultaneously they order for the next stock. Every 2.36 minutes 1 unit is produced. The process is very fast and much organised. They have skilled employees who are very well trained which improve their quality and production. They have limited number of suppliers who deliver the stock on time whenever the order is placed. There is no lead time involved in this process. 2. Jidoka: This is improving their quality in the production system by empowering their employees. Proper training and trust among the employees are very much present in the plant. The employees are also rewarded for providing ideas which encourages them to perform better. They are various inspections after each process whenever there is defect it is rectified immediately and only then sent to the next process. There is final inspection before test drive if there is any fault it is sent for fixing the error. Every process is in order in the assembly line where different models follow similar line of production. 3. Kanban: since they follow a fixed inventory system once the inventory is withdrawn for further production from the container simultaneously production begins to fill the inventory. While the order is being filled the quantity in the second bin is used. The reorder point is determined so that demand can be met while an order for new material is being processed.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

President of the English Department Student Association Essay Example for Free

President of the English Department Student Association Essay â€Å"There is no student incapable of learning, only teachers incapable of instruction. † I became particularly enamored of this statement during my fourth year teaching. To raise the caliber of my instruction, to reside in a new cultural environment and broaden my horizons, and to facilitate a sincere desire to aid student development, I am laying down my comfortable and secure government position to apply for entrance to your Master’s program in TESOL for the Fall semester of 2001. I have always had an excellent academic performance at school, but unlike those who only have good grades, I also understood the significance of leading a well-rounded student life. Not only have I participated in many different kinds of activities and competitions, but I have also held various part-time jobs with the result my life experience is far richer than my peers. A particular benefit of this is that I am more tolerant and understanding of others and appreciative of the strengths peculiar to individuals. My parents are both secondary school teachers, and they place great emphasis on children’s reading development. Thus we siblings all cultivated good learning habits. Therefore, during my undergraduate years, I was in the habit of fully previewing reading material that professors assigned before giving lectures, in addition to the usual taking of notes. I also made full use of library services and materials to supplement my reading. As a result, in both linguistics and literature, I consistently earned good grades and tended to be a more creative student. I graduated from college as the number one government-sponsored student in my graduating class (there were 25 of us) and won a large number of scholarships in the process. Although I work hard at whatever I do, I have always been generous sharing the fruits of my efforts with others. Scholastic performance is naturally important, but the mutual learning process inspired by sharing one’s knowledge and experiences with others is even more important. Through my teaching, I hope to inculcate students with a similar attitude and inspire them to base their self-assurance on themselves and not look for it from others. In addition to strictly academic pursuits, I participated in many societies and organizations, playing many leading roles. I held several interesting part-time positions such as Stage Management Assistant for the Russian Sligo Ballet Dance Company, Campaign Assistant during the presidential election campaign for the now-ruling Democratic Progressive Party, and as Translator for the 1994 Taipei International Toy Show in World Trade Center. On campus I was the Editor for departmental publications and President of the English Department Student Association. Also, I was the stage lighting supervisor for my graduating year’s public drama performance. The most important event I worked on was as a school representative helping organize and setup the National Alumni Association of Senior High Schools in Hsinchu. Under our efforts, it became an official association recognized and sponsored by the Hsinchu City Government. Speaking of sports, I enjoy volleyball and badminton very much. Thus, I was assigned to be the school badminton club instructor as part of my teaching practice. Also worth mentioning is that I was a volunteer instructor at two orphanages, giving those in need love and care. At junior high school, I was an advanced science student but on reaching high school I became really attached to popular music in general and the heavy metal genre in particular. My interest in reading lyric sheets prompted the discovery that the underlying concepts and cultural background of foreign and domestic music are often very different. This inspired me to transfer from the university science preparatory track to the study of English. Continuing to earn high grades, I attended the Department of English at Chang Hua University of Education on scholarship. My abiding interest in English ensured I was highly motivated but the well-chosen course materials also naturally engendered interest. In 1997, because of my good performance, I was assigned to Taipei Municipal Fu-Hsing Senior High School to complete my teaching practice. A year later, I became a certified English teacher and have been teaching there until now. During the past three years, I have taken one class of students through an entire three-year cycle of studies ending in graduation, and from this have noted that the dry nature of language studies unnecessarily renders this subject less than captivating to most students. Here in Taiwan, there is intense pressure on students facing the national college entrance examination with the result that grade school instruction focuses on grammar, as this is the prime subject tested by the exam. Fortunately, in the last several years Taiwan has been going through a transition period of educational reform and the stress has changed from the dull ritual of grammar studies to the more colorful participatory style of community language learning. Furthermore, high schools are now given more latitude tailoring programs to their needs, all of which represents a paradigm change from the Japanese educational style to the American which emphasizes personal development and independent thought. To achieve my potential as a teacher operating within this new and still developing system, I wish to study and research a variety of general teaching methodologies, in addition to linguistics teaching methodologies. Reviewing your catalogue, I have been very impressed with your curriculum, faculty, facilities, and overall academic environment. I have discovered your curriculum and developmental style is in great accord with my needs and, because your school is located in one of the world’s economic and cultural center, I expect it to offer both an outstanding curriculum and an exceptional environment for cultural immersion. Recently, preparing for the TOEFL and TSE, I have taken a great interest in assessing second language acquisition. The CLOZE Test and Reading Comprehension Test and other related preparatory tests are relatively disorganized and less than ideally effective at present. Thus I hope to make a concrete contribution to the improvement of this aspect of English language instruction upon my return. I believe I possess the enthusiasm and determination to successfully enhance my skills teaching English as a second language, but I also believe that self-improvement is the most important thing in my life. Only by setting myself up as an example, knowing my own strengths and weaknesses, and trying to improve myself, can I have the confidence to step up to a platform and teach students. After all, teaching is not only about inculcating students with a body of practical skills, but also about investing them with moral courage and character education during the process. As such, I make a point of ensuring I have spare time for my students after school and I thus find the progress of my students to be very fulfilling. Highly motivated, resolute, and more than willing to devote the time and effort to complete your program, I sincerely hope you will accept my candidacy. In closing, I would like to express my gratitude for your review of my application materials, and I thank you for your time.

Friday, September 20, 2019

An entrepreneurial firm

An entrepreneurial firm Introduction A business that is privately owned and operated with a small number of employees and has relatively low volume of sales is called a small business. It can be started at a very low cost and on a part-time basis. Small Business Management refers to management of such small businesses. A firm which undertakes risky ventures and engages in product-market innovation is called an entrepreneurial firm. (www.highbeam.com) An Entrepreneur is a person responsible for setting up a new enterprise. He has the initiative, skill for innovation and ideas. He looks for high achievements and assumes significant accountability for risks taken and their outcome. Entrepreneurship involves taking risks, investing under uncertain conditions innovating, planning and taking decisions to increase productivity and profits. The purpose of this project is to understand and analyze the characteristics of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial firms by critically evaluating the entrepreneurial orientation of the Google Inc and entrepreneurial traits of its founders, critically evaluating the entrepreneurial orientation of a local small business and entrepreneurial traits of its founders and commenting on the differences/similarities between the two. The local small business chosen for this project is Layali al Asalah. It is an institution which encourages Omani women fashion designers to hone their skills to become more creative and innovative. Entrepreneurial Orientation Entrepreneurial Orientation refers to the processes, practices, and decision-making activities that lead to new entry(Lumpkin Dess, 1996, p. 136).It is a key ingredient for a firms success. Entrepreneurial Orientation is a strategic response to a complex set of institutional environment and firm factors. Entrepreneurial behaviour, behaviour that is more aggressive, innovative, proactive and risk taking, is significantly associated with specific attributes of the institutional environment of the firm. It is also associated with the perceptions that firm leaders have of that environment and the resources available to the firm for responding to environmental conditions. (www.freelibrary.com) Entrepreneurial Traits Entrepreneurial Traits, also known as entrepreneurial competencies refer to a mixture of knowledge, skills and personality required to successfully run a business with superior performance. Some of the most prominent traits possessed by successful Entrepreneurs are: Initiative: It is an inner urge in an individual to do or initiate something. Entrepreneur is an innovator who explores new ways of working to initiate and accelerate the process of economic development. He is always on the lookout for opportunities and is ready to exploit them in the best interests of the organization. Motivation Persistence: An entrepreneur is self motivated towards achievement, is never disheartened by failures and is dedicated to what he does. Commitment to efficiency: An entrepreneur is always keen to devise new methods aimed at promoting efficiency, making work easier, simpler, better and economical. Idea generation: An entrepreneur generates new ideas through vision, insight and observation and also through environmental scanning and market survey. Creativity: Creativity refers to richness of ideas and originality of thinking and ability to produce something new through imaginative skill. Innovation: Innovation means doing new things or doing things in a new way. It includes new processes of production, introduction of new products, creation of new markets, discovery of a new and better form of organization and the like that enable the organization to gain competitive advantage in the market. Introduction to Google Inc. Mission: To organize the worlds information and make it universally accessible and useful. (www.google.com) About Google Inc.: Google Inc. is a search engine, an entrepreneurial venture by Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Google, initially named Backrub, was started as a research project by Sergey Brin and Larry Page. In 1997 they registered the domain name google.com derived from the word googol, a mathematical term to representing one followed by 100 zeros. It was named so to reflect the immense volume of information that exists, and the scope of Googles mission. In 1998, it became a privately owned incorporate known as Google Inc. With use of state of the art technology and extensive research on search algorithms, Google successfully established its brand name in internet search engines. It now employs almost 20,000 employees world over with a management team which boasts of having some of the most experienced technology professionals in the industry. Google became successful because it was faster and better at finding the correct answer than other search engines at the time. Over the years Google has grown an d expanded offerings from a single service to dozens. Its dedication to its users and belief in the possibilities of the Internet remain unchanged. Products and Services offered: Online productivity software like the Gmail e-mail software, applications such as the web browser Google Chrome, social networking tools like Orkut and Google Buzz, the Picasa photo organization and editing software, Google Talk instant messaging and phone operating system like the Android mobile. Culture: Google is known for having an informal corporate culture. Google still maintains a small company feel even though it has grown a lot since its inception. Its commitment to innovation depends upon everyone feeling comfortable sharing ideas and opinions. No employee hesitates to directly pose questions to Larry or Sergey. When not at work, the employees pursue interests from wine tasting to flying Frisbee. Entrepreneurial Orientation of Google Inc. Risk taking: Embarking on new ventures like Google Green and Google Venture gives evidence that Google inc. is a risk taking firm as significant amount of resources were committed in these ventures without surety of their success. Google is the only company in the world which was bold enough to take the risky step of playing with the Companys logo by creating doodles. In 2011, Google will launch Google TV which is a combination of TV, applications, search and entire web on TV. This is a risky venture considering that it will be in direct competition to conventional TV. Innovation: Even after having successfully established a brand name, Google Inc. has continued to invest heavily in innovation and launched many new products and designs over the years. They have kept the element of imagination that transforms designs from simple to delightful alive and kept evolving products in new directions. Some of their innovative products are: Google Translate: It is the worlds largest machine translation engine having more than 50 language pairs. Google Translate mobile version can transcribe ones voice, translating the content into any other language of choice and then speaking it back to the User. Android: It is a mobile service which lets Users access information at will. Users can carry out various tasks like checking mail, online shopping etc from their mobile phones. Google Instant: It predicts Users search and shows results instantly even before typing is finished. Google Books: It allows users to manage a personal bookshelf, see what books friends are readings, share books etc. Google Chrome: It is a modern browser designed to handle complex dynamic web. Chrome was built based on three ideas: simplicity, speed and security. Its powerful JavaScript engine helps Chrome handle complex web applications at lightning speeds. It includes features designed for efficiency and ease of use. For example, one can search and navigate from the same box. It has built in features like translation, built-in malware, phishing protection and auto updates to ensure the browser is up-to-date with the latest security updates. Service consciousness: Google Inc. is committed to providing best quality of services to the Users. The company knows that time is valuable for Users and therefore it aims to provide fast, accurate and easy-to-use services. Googles search interface is offered in more than 110 languages and translation tools are available to translate web pages to address the needs of people around the globe. Competitive aggressiveness: Competition keeps Google Inc. on the toes. Google continuously invests in research technology to keep ahead of competition. Owing to cut throat competition from rivals like Microsofts Bing, Google has enhanced output potential of every internet search by introducing Google Instant which makes the search faster by almost 2 to 5 seconds. Autonomy: It refers to the independent actions taken by entrepreneurial leaders or teams to start a new venture and seeing it succeed. Google Inc. has started various new ventures like Google Org Google Green and worked hard to make them successful. Entrepreneurial traits of Googles Founders: Vision: Googles founders were very technology savvy and wanted masses world over to have access to the vast information available all over with the help of technology. They had the vision to make internet and power of search to help people use information to improve their lives and contribute to economic development. Passion: Googles founders are passionate about their business. Being one of the worlds largest research groups focused primarily on addressing search related problems, they know what they do well, and how they could do it better. Their dedication to improving search helps them apply what they have learned to new products. Creativity: From the beginning, Googles founders have been working on technology that can help improve existing ways of doing business. They have built an informal culture and a working environment where employees are encouraged to be creative and create innovative products that solve real-world problems. To motivate the employees, a Founders Award is presented to teams who create innovative products. Risk taking: Larry and Sergy saw an opportunity for search engines and took a risk by creating Google Inc. after heavily borrowing money. Opportunity seeking: They believed in the possibilities of internet and saw an opportunity in the market for search engines. Their idea was new and risky but they were determined to make it work. Even after its success they are always on the lookout for opportunities and ready to exploit them in the best interests of the organizations. They work with their teams to discover peoples actual needs, including needs they cant always articulate. Armed with that information, they create products that solve real-world problems. There was a need to be able to access information on the move, saw that as an opportunity and developed android. There was a need for Search results being faster, so developed Google instant. Small Business: Layali Al Asalah Vision: To promote fashion as a great medium to showcase the designers creativity as well as empower, teach women about business and entrepreneurial skills. (www.layalialasalah.com) About Layali Al Asalah: Layali Al Asalah which means Night of Culture is a small business entrepreneur venture in Oman started by three friends Samah al Wahaibi, Najla al Kindi and Nadia al Zakwani, It is a fashion institution which trains Omani women fashion designers to make it big in the fashion industry. It encourages Omani women interested in fashion designing to think creatively, improve their technical skills and discover the entrepreneur within them. The three friends realized that many Omani women were into fashion designing but lacked formal fashion know-how. They wanted to do something interesting and different for female fashion designers in Oman but had no formal plans of establishing any business. Samah got an opportunity to attend a seminar Breaking the Glass Ceiling in Salzburg which was about accomplishments of women from worldover. The success stories of the talented women inspired her to start a business venture of her own. Upon returning to Oman she got together with her two friends and in 2006 founded Layali Al Asalah Co. to provide formal training and education in fashion designing aimed at attracting emerging Omani women fashion designers. They started off the venture by organising a competition called When Authenticity Speaks, where the theme centred on the Omani embroidery. The competition categories included Omani outfits for women and handbag shoe designing. This competition is now an annual event. Scholarships to pursue courses in University of Milan are awarded to the winners to who then go on to create their own fashion brands. Products and Services offered: In addition to providing formal training and education, their offerings include arranging Concerts, Event Management, Fashion Shows and organizing Workshops and Exhibitions. In 2009, they created an Asalah villa, which rents space at reasonable rates to budding designers who are otherwise compelled to operate from home due to high market rental. Â  Building upon the success of Layali Al Asalah Asalah villa, they opened up a store called Layali Al Asalah Shoes. The strong selling point about their shoes is that all shoes have a strong Omani presence with glimpses of several other cultures in it. Entrepreneurial Orientation of Layali Al Asalah Innovation: Layali al Asalah is an innovative venture as there was no such fashion institution in Oman till this venture, which offered any training to Omani women in fashion designing. The competition When Authenticity Speaks also is one of a kind in Oman where themes include Omani embroideries and the designers get to show their creativity in Omani garments, handbags, shoes, etc. The winners are chosen through online voting which is also an innovative idea using latest technology. The competition is made more lucrative attractive to women by offering of Scholarships for further studies at University of Milan. The concept of Asalah villa helps budding designers promote their business, create a client base and participate in exhibitions. Layali Al Asalah Shoes churn out shoes with innovative designs. Each shoe is wrapped in Omani and various other cultures. For example authentic Omani silver jewellery is incorporated into rainbow hued shoes representing Omani culture. Annual bazaar under the name Asalah Bazaar is another innovative idea where the participants display their collections sell the products at discounted prices. Risk taking: Layali al Asalah is willing to accept business risks as is evident from their various new ventures like Layali Al Asalah Shoes Asalah villa started over the years since their establishment even though there was no surety of success. Funding for the new business ventures is a challenging task for the organisation due to limited availability of resources. Proactiveness: Layali al Asalah is an opportunity-seeking, forward-looking venture which has been proactive in introduction of new ideas like the Design competition, organisation of annual bazaar for display sale of products, etc. It has created new products like shoes with glimpses of Omani other cultures. It has stayed ahead of the competition and has been acting in anticipation of future demand of their offerings. Autonomy: Asalah villa and Layali Al Asalah Shoes were new ventures by Layali al Asalah where the founders took the necessary steps independently to ensure success. Service consciousness: The organisation is fully devoted to ensure that their services are of highest quality standard and it puts in its best for achieving these standards. The organisation believes in excellence which is reflected in everything it does. The workshops and exhibitions are held in line with the progress in world fashion industry. Scholarships to desiring candidates ensure that they can compete with the latest in fashion industry. Entrepreneurship traits of Layali Al Asalahs Founders: Risk taking: The founders were very young and inexperienced in the field of business management. Although they were highly motivated and enthusiastic, they were not familiar with the risks of the business. However, they took the risk of starting the business without worrying much about the consequences. Even after successfully establishing the organisation, they continued to venture into implementation of innovative ideas like Asalah villa and Layali Al Asalah Shoes. Self confidence: Though the founders lacked resources and knew it was a risky venture, they were determined to convert their idea into a reality and were not cowed down by difficulties as they believed in their abilities and strengths. Not only did they make the venture successful, they continued to grow it by opening more branches. Creativity: It refers to the phenomenon whereby a person or a group of persons create something new which may be a product, a solution, or an enterprise which has some kind of value for the society. The creativity of founders of Layali Al Asalah is evident from their ability to use their imagination, analytical approach and intelligence to convert their idea of fashion designing institute into a reality. They continued to explore new ideas like designing shoes with Omani jewellery and gluing Chinese embroidered silk fabric onto the shoes. The concept of Asalah Villa Bazaar to help budding fashion designers also depicts their creativity. The founders came up with I Read A Book a creative concept aimed at promoting reading of books amongst Omani people, through a fashion show with the theme of libraries, books and reading which brought to light the libraries available locally. Opportunity seekers: The 3 founders saw an opportunity for opening an organization that would encourage those interested in fashion designing to improve their technical skills and discover the entrepreneur within them. In Oman there were several shoemakers who made slippers for Omani men but hardly any for womens shoes. Hence an opportunity in shoe making market was discovered and Layali Al Asalah shoe was created. Rentals are considerably high in Oman and therefore budding entrepreneurs are compelled to limit their businesses to their homes. Capturing this as an opportunity, the founders launched Asalah villa, which rents space at reasonable rates to budding designers. Â   Conclusion The prime difference between a an entrepreneur and small business owner is that the small business owner remains contented with earning enough profits to live his life a comfortably and keep his business running, is not really interested in expanding his business and is more than likely to keep the business within the family. Another notable difference between the two is that a small business owner tends to need motivation; whereas, an entrepreneur is fuelled by ambition, drive and inspiration. Small business owners are not the ones to think out the box; whereas, entrepreneurs come up with new ideas, innovative products, as well as construct creative strategic marketing plans. In a competitive environment innovation provides the basis for sustainability of an organization. Entrepreneurs innovate and the instrument of entrepreneurship is innovation. Entrepreneurship is a creative activity and an innovative function. Innovation may be in the form of a new product or production process, opening a new market or a new form of organization. Economic growth depends on the rate of applied technical progress i.e. innovation which in turn depends on the supply of entrepreneurs in the society. Thus the entrepreneur is the agent of change in the society because he is the one who always searches for change, identifies needs, responds to them and exploits them as an opportunity and in turn generates employment opportunities for others. Upon analysis of the traits of Google Inc. Layali Al Asalah, it can be concluded that Google Inc. is an entrepreneurial firm while Layali Al Asalah is a small business with very strong entrepreneurial orientation and therefore can also be considered an entrepreneurial firm. Both the firms have similarities in certain prominent traits like risk taking, innovation, autonomy and service consciousness. Both firms had humble beginnings at a small scale and went on to grow and expand their operations. Important differences exist in the level of innovation and competitive aggressiveness. While Google Inc. is more innovative competitively aggressive, Layali Al Asalah is limited in its scope of innovation and competitive aggressiveness as it competes in a very small market compared to Google Inc. which has a global reach. Google Inc. has stronger impact on the economy due to its huge size, extensive reach to the world masses and available resources while Layali Al Asalahs impact is more at the local economy level as it addresses the needs of a smaller population of masses, is smaller in size and has limited resources. Google Inc.s business is largely dependent on innovation for growth and therefore it invests heavily in the employees thereby creating jobs all over the world further contributing to the economic development of many countries. Entrepreneurial firms like Google Inc and select small businesses with very strong entrepreneurial orientation like Layali Al Asalah contribute significantly to the strengthening of the economy by efficiently utilising resources and creating opportunities for people prevent the economy from stagnation as they continuously innovate and sustain competition. In comparison, the small businesses without any entrepreneurial orientation are unlikely to fuel the economic growth of any country. It is therefore better to have entrepreneurial firms instead of small businesses without any entrepreneurial orientation.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Lysistrata: A Comedy of Stereotypes Essays -- essays research papers

LYSISTRATA, a comedy of stereotypes   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The playwright Aristophanes wrote about an ancient Greece, Athens in particular, during a time of constant warfare. His play â€Å"Lysistrata† is an attempt to amuse while putting across an anti-war message. In fact even the naming of the play is an anti-war message of sorts. The word â€Å"lysistrata† means, â€Å"disband the army† (Jacobus 162). Aristophanes was a crafty writer; he creates a work of art that causes his audience to think about the current state of affairs in their city. He points out that there is a major threat to Athens when all the good, young fighters are sent off to war. Aristophanes acheives this aim by using stereotypical characterizations of women to show how utterly defenseless Athens is without their young men at home. His message is a bit subliminal in nature but still a heady one. Aristophanes realized that audiences don’t come to plays to be preached at but to be entertained. To this end, he uses comedy an d comical characterizations to delight the spectators/readers. The principal form of comical characterization he depended on was stereotyping. As the main theme of the play, the female stereotype of woman’s only power base being sex was strongly employed. The main character Lysistrata and all the women in Greece band together to essentially take over the city states to end the Peloponnesian war. They do this by exploiting their stereotypical power source, sexuality. This â€Å"power source† would...

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird :: Harper Lee Kill Mockingbird Essays

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is a highly regarded work of American fiction. The story of the novel teaches us many lessons that should last any reader for a lifetime. The messages that Harper Lee relays to the reader are exemplified throughout the book using various methods. One of the most important and significant methods was the use of symbols such as the mockingbird image. Another important method was showing the view through a growing child's (Scout Finch) mind, eyes, ears, and mouth. There is another very significant method that was used. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee utilizes the effects of irony, sarcasm, and hypocrisy to criticize a variety of elements in Southern life. Harper Lee employs the effects of irony in To Kill a Mockingbird as a way to criticize the deficiency of public education. "Now tell your father not to teach you any more. It's best to begin reading with a fresh mind." (pG. 22) Instead of praising Scout's ability to read at an advanced level, Miss Caroline discourages it. This ironic example set by Miss Caroline seems to demonstrate the inadequate training that she had received for her occupation. Miss Caroline seems to have been instructed upon a strict standard on how her students are expected to behave, but when she encounters something different, such as Scout's advanced ability to read, she advises Scout to stop being advanced, whereas a modern-day schoolteacher would capitalize on Scout's ability to read and encourage her to read more. "You won't learn to write until you're in the third grade." (pg. 23) The strict, recipe-style, rubric method of teaching that Miss Caroline uses is once again emphasized here. Miss Caroline once again discourages Scout's advanced abilities and regards Scout's ability with contempt. "The Dewey Decimal System consisted, in part, of Miss Caroline waving cards at us which were printed 'the,' 'cat,' 'rat,' 'man,' and 'you.'" (pg. 23) The Dewey Teaching Method was supposed to place an emphasis on "active" learning, yet the irony in Miss Caroline's "use" of it was that her teaching method wasn't "active" at all. It was, in fact, extremely passive. The students in the class didn't do anything. They became extremely bored and learned very little. As I have established, the use of irony clearly reveals the deficiency of the public education system in the 1930's. Teachers did not seem to be trained enough to handle the vast abilities of their students.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Resemblence Between Christ and Aslan Essay

In the first two books, Aslan is a clear-cut figure. Aslan is what Jesus would be like in Narnia. He acts as a parallel and inspires fear in his enemies and love and devotion in his friends. He makes the four children high kings and queens, and banishes evil from his kingdom. It is like a fairy tale. He undergoes development through the sequence of seven books though, becoming more distanced and formal. In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Aslan seems more distant; he appears in other forms, such as a lamb. In the New Testament, Christ is depicted as a lamb. Lewis deepens the spiritual experience of his characters by making Aslan harder to find. Faith now enters into the equation, belief without seeing. An example is the mouse Reepicheep, who is determined to find Aslan’s Country (symbolizing Heaven), even if he has to swim to the end of the world to do so. The last two Chronicles address the beginning and end of Narnia. The Magician’s Nephew gives us Narnia’s Genesis account. Here Aslan is established as the Creator and he sings Narnia into existence. It is very similar to the story in Genesis of God creating the world. Aslan tells the creatures, â€Å"I give to you forever this land of Narnia. I give you the woods, the fruits, the rivers†¦The Dumb Beasts whom I have not chosen are yours also†. Other examples of the similarities between Christ and Aslan include when Aslan says â€Å"I am the great Bridge-builder†. Christ in the New Testament too says, â€Å"I am the Way, the Door†: In The Horse and His Boy Aslan tells â€Å"‘Touch me. Smell me. Here are my paws, here is my tail, these are my whiskers'† which is like Jesus telling John to touch his hands and side when he doubts Him. Another resemblance is that the blood of both Jesus and Aslan can bring the dead to life. A drop of blood from Aslan’s pierced paw revives the dead Prince Caspian and brings him to a younger version of himself in The Silver Chair. Christ’s shed blood has the power to resurrect believers into new life too. In the same book, Aslan replies â€Å"I am† which parallels the reply God gave Moses, â€Å" I Am Who I Am†. There is a Stone Table in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe that is where the Witch slew Aslan. However, the Witch did not know of magic even older than the stone table â€Å"that when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitor’s stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backward†. This mimics the resurrection of Jesus after He dies on the cross. After the resurrection of both Christ and Aslan, it is first discovered by the female followers. In this case it being Susan and Lucy for Aslan and Mary Magdalene along with the other women for Christ. After Aslan returns to life, he goes to the White Witch’s castle and breaths life back into the creatures she had once turned into stone. Jesus creates life after death after he resurrects and holds the keys of death and Hell. The Bible and The Chronicles of Narnia have a shared likeness.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Art Imitates Life; Life Imitates Art Essay

Super Columbine Massacre RPG (SCMRPG) is a case of art imitates life. Danny Ledonne patterned his game after the infamous Columbine tragedy. He created characters and situations which are very similar to those that transpired on that fateful day. The question is, up to what extent does art start and stop imitating life? Are there any boundaries that should not be crossed? Are there any rules that should not be broken? These were some of the questions that Ledonne has been trying to answer regarding his game. He was criticized for being morally insensitive towards the feelings of those who were involved in Columbine. In this case, with regards to moral grounds, should a filmmaker or developer cease to create anything inspired by actual events? According to the one of the posts in Ledonne’s website, SCMRPG is one of the most important games in gaming history. It has discussed a significant awakening that no matter what anyone had done, in reference to the quote â€Å"we should have checked their rooms† voiced by one of the gunmen’s parents – there is nothing that could stop Harris and Klebold in their plan. It also showed how things started for the two boys and this sociological way of representing Harris and Klebold through SCMRPG might be a first step towards acceptance of video games as a legitimate medium for the expression of serious thoughts. SCMRPG also comprehensively dealt with the psychological profiles of both Harris and Klebold, which no one had ever done before (www. columbinegame. com). It has been said that the actions of Harris and Klebold were brought about by watching violent video games, which is an example of life imitates art. The pattern of execution and the detailed plan of going about the killing were blamed on the detailed video games as well as the music these boys listened to. But up to what extent can we blame art for the actions of a spectator? As Ledonne answered this question in relation the Dawson College shooting incident, he emphasized that merely playing a game that looks archaic does not encourage someone like Kimveer to go out and kill. In fact the game was devoid of all the gory details that gamers would typically want. Games do have effect on teenager violence but it’s not the only one to blame for it. The columbine massacre was a disaster waiting to happen. It just so happened that the 2 kids who committed the atrocious act were playing video games and that their favorite band was Marilyn Manson. The increasing incident of kids committing suicide due to bullying is alarming. As a coping mechanism for these 2 kids they wanted to hurt those people who hurt them but as kids, they made a very bad decision and very bad planning that they hurt other people as well. Klebold and Harris lost their direction in life and were not appropriately guided on how to overcome teenage emotions such as inadequacy and inferiority complex. Conclusion Super Columbine Massacre RPG was created to give gamers a feel of what Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold felt, with the intent of preventing another Harris or Klebold. However, moving aside artistic expression and the intent to save â€Å"potential† Harris or Klebold through human contact, looking at the game as an avid fan of computer games – there is not much to see actually. The 16-bit image that moves up and down and jumps from time to time gets a little bit boring. Nonetheless, the conversation between Klebold and Harris are a must-read. Ledonne had thoroughly researched the game that 80 percent of the dialogues were taken from Harris and Klebold’s own writings. The sounds used are a bit better than regular midi since it utilizes popular music which could actually make the â€Å"thinking† moments of the characters very effective. Too many literature have been written about the reasons why Harris and Klebold created such mayhem, but too little had been said about how these two boys were as much as a victim like those people they gunned down in Columbine. Almost as always, issues were being discussed in forums, articles were being published and documentaries were being aired. But, one media form that hasn’t been utilized till now was the gaming world. Ledonne wanted to change that by turning the silly world of gaming into a platform of more serious topics. He did so by creating SCMRPG. Ledonne on an interview by the Washington Post said that he would not create another game. SCMRPG was created with the intent of generating discussion and presenting a unique perspective on the events of Columbine. This may not be the future of gaming, but it is a step towards the future of how games will be treated and viewed in our culture–as artful, meaningful objects which represent the thoughts, ideas, dreams and nightmares of a unique creator (http://alt-games. com/? p=28). With regards to the objective of the game, I believe that it has amassed the intended attention and created an awareness regarding video games and violence. Ledonne had successfully generated a forum where families and loved ones of the Columbine incident could air their grievances (even though at the expense of the game). Works Cited Crecente, Brian (September 20, 2006). â€Å"Columbine RPG Creator Talks about Dawson Shooting†. Kotaku. http://www. kotaku. com/gaming/danny-ledonne/feature-columbine-rpg-creator-talks-about-dawson-shooting-201829. php. Retrieved on December 8, 2008. Dugan, Patrick (March 13, 2007). â€Å"Soapbox: Why You Owe the Columbine RPG (page 2)†. Gamasutra. http://www. gamasutra. com/features/20070313/dugan_02. shtml. Retrieved on May 8. , 2009. Holmes, T. J. ; Betty Nguyen (November 7, 2007). â€Å"Transcripts – CNN Sunday Morning†. CNN. http://edition. cnn. com/TRANSCRIPTS/0711/11/sm. 01. html. Retrieved on May 8, 2009. Stuart, Keith (January 11, 2007). â€Å"Gamesblog: Sorry, Boris, these ‘blasted gizmos’ are here to stay†. The Guardian: p. 3. Retrieved May 8, 2009. Thompson, Clive (January 15, 2007). â€Å"I, Columbine Killer†. Wired. http://www. wired. com/gaming/gamingreviews/commentary/games/2007/01/72491? currentPage=all. Retrieved on May 8, 2009. Vargas, Jose Antonio (May 20, 2006). â€Å"Shock, Anger Over Columbine Video Game†. The Washington Post: p. C6. http://www. washingtonpost. com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/19/AR2006051901979. html. Retrieved on May 8,2009

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Flexible work options Essay

With our personal lives busier than ever, offering flexible work options to your employees could be the best way to keep the good ones around. By offering flexible work options, such as flextime, it will allow employees more family time, go back to school, if desired, to further education, as well as decrease absenteeism at work. Now, who wouldn’t want a job that offered the time allowed to do those kind of things? I know I would. Flexible work hours allow employees more time with their family. It allows more time to spend with their children, and to attend all school programs and plays. It allows a parent the opportunity to be able to take their child to school, and go back to pick them up from school. This makes for happy children which makes for happy parents, which in turn, makes for a happy employee. Happy parents working flexible schedules, are more productive at work and produce better quality of care. Not only does it allow for family time, but employees working flexible work hours are able to return to school on their own, and pursue that college degree they have always wanted. Not only does it allow to obtain a college degree, it allows one to go back to school to further the degree they already obtain. Working flextime allows the time to go back to school without interrupting the work schedule at work. This allows a person to work full time and attend school. Flextime allows the ability for employers to retain key, dedicated employees whose personal needs conflict with traditional work hours. By offering flextime, you’ll gain increased productivity and worker satisfaction, along with decreased absenteeism and turnover; all great money-savers for the company. Flextime helps create a happier, more satisfying workplace, too. Because employees are often so glad that their employers are willing to allow for a work-life time adjustment, they tend to work harder and in a more dedicated fashion to hold on to their now-perfect schedule and re-balance their lives, and actually enjoy coming to work. This is why no one calls-in to work. They love it. To keep happy employees, employers, fathers, mothers, or the entire family, offering flextime is the way to go. It allows for so many benefits, neither one can go wrong with working flexible work hours. It will produce happy parents, happy children, and happy employers. Work progress will improve so much as well as the quality of work provided. With the busy lives of people and everything that is required of some of them, flextime is the best way to go. Going with flextime makes everyone happy. Yay for flextime.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Indians and Europeans shape the different colonies

It has been more than five centuries since Christopher Columbus reached the Americas. We know a great deal about Columbus, of course, and about the Europeans and Africans who crossed the Atlantic after him. We know much less about the â€Å"Indians. † as Columbus mistakenly called them?the people already living in America. But we are learning more all the time, so I want to talk about early contacts between Native Americans and newcomers.We now estimate that as many as seven million people were living in North America 500 years ago, and that their ancestors had been on this continent for at least thirteen thousand years. For all this time?hundreds of generations?they had remained isolated from Asia and Africa and Europe, building their own separate world. Over many centuries, these first North Americans developed diverse cultures that were as varied as the landscapes they lived in. And they developed hundreds of different languages.Looking back, what can we say about early enc ounters between these diverse Native Americans and the strange newcomers who arrived from across the ocean? Let me give you a few things to think about. Remember, first of all, that these Minimal contacts stretched over the entire continent and occurred over several centuries. The encounters were nearly as varied as the people involved. But key issues such as language, belief, technology, and disease arose regularly in different times and places. We may never know exactly about the first contacts from overseas.Long before Columbus, occasional boats may have arrived across the North Pacific from Asia, or across the Atlantic from Africa or Europe. They may have sailed intentionally or drifted by mistake. But such encounters were brief. So was the encounter with Norse Vikings. They visited Newfoundland in Canada about 1,000 years ago?nearly 500 years before Columbus. Their little colony of 160 people was short-lived. We know from sagas (family stories passed down orally across generati ons) that local Inhabitants attacked the Norse settlers, forcing them to retreat to Greenland after several years.In contrast, the newcomers who followed Columbus after 1492 proved far more numerous and more willing to stay. Though few In numbers at first, these European strangers brought supplies and then enforcements from across the sea. Now, imagine that you are one of those newcomers, approaching my small portion of North America for the first time. As Native American, I have diverse friends and enemies living all around me, and because I engage in trade I am used to encounters with strangers who do not speak my language.But you are different in various ways, and I have probably already heard rumors about you?some true and some false? from neighbors who have seen your ships. And believe me, your ships are a big surprise. My people live near the ocean, and we understand boats. But when we addle out to observe you, we are Impressed by the size of your ship, with Its tall masts. On the East Coast, I greet you from a birch-bark canoe or a dugout canoe. Indians are small. If you enter Upset Sound, the cypress canoes of the Northwest Coast Indians are much larger.Maybe you are Russian fur-hunters reaching Alaska. If so, you are amazed at my light, quick kayak. If you are the English explorer James Cook approaching Hawaii for the first time, you are struck to see our outrigger canoes and surf boards. One way or another, we can push off from the beach or the river mouth and visit your ocean-going vessel. But it is strange for us; you needed iron tools to create this ship, huge sheets of cloth to make it sail, and navigational charts to find your way. We have none of these.On the other hand, you are totally ignorant of our home waters. It is no secret that along Florist's coast and North Carolina's Outer Banks, Native Americans often found European shipwrecks. We Indians know ?and we may be willing to tell you?which anchoring spots give protection from storms. We k now the local streams and which house sites might flood in springtime. We know where there is fresh water?which you probably need after weeks at sea? ND we know sources of food for every time of year.The Indians in New England, watching the Pilgrims starve at Plymouth, showed them how to locate clams in the mudflats at low tide, how to trap fish, how to plant corn, and how to hunt strange, tasty birds called turkeys. But not all first encounters occurred near the coast. Before the middle of the sixteenth century, Spanish explorers were marching inland so far and so fast that rumors of their arrival scarcely had time to precede them. In the 1 sass, Native peoples living in the Carolinas, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas ere surprised by the fierce invasion of Despot and his army.At the same time, Indians further west on the Great Plains experienced the sudden arrival of Coronal's force, traveling from New Mexico on horseback in search of sudden wealth. In these two instances, and in many later confrontations, Europeans reacted at first with disappointment, frustration, and violence. The new environment seemed strange and dangerous; local people did not fit European hopes and expectations. For Native Americans, the most serious outcome of initial encounters, whether near he ocean or far inland, was the arrival of contagious diseases?unfamiliar sicknesses that they had never experienced.Again and again, foreign newcomers brought deadly illnesses with them. Three hundred years would elapse between the early Spanish explorations and the forced removal of Native Americans from much of the expanding United States in the asses. That is a huge stretch of time, and the encounters between Indians and non-landing varied widely across those three centuries. Gradually, especially in the East, Non-landing gained the upper hand in terms of sheer numbers. Some general estimates regarding the southeast, from Virginia to East Texas, illustrate this point.In 1700, four out of fi ve persons in the entire region were Indians. But by 1800, Indian numbers had declined and the European and African population had risen so fast that scarcely one person in thirty was a Native American. If sickness and death moved unevenly in one direction, from non-landing to Indian, Christianity moved in the same direction. Many of the earliest encounters involved missionaries, both Catholic and Protestant, who worked energetically to convert Native Americans to their Christian faith.In New England, the Reverend John Eliot spent years translating the Bible into the Massachusetts language, and in 1663 he printed 1000 copies to be used by converts known as efforts often met with fierce resistance. In the Southwest, Catholic priests and missionaries accompanied the earliest Spanish settlers in New Mexico, and efforts began around 1600 to suppress the Pueblo religion with harsh punishments. But Pueblo leaders fought back. In the successful â€Å"Pueblo Revolt† of 1680, Indian r ebels expelled the Spanish colonizers.The Pueblos attacked missionaries, burned churches, and punished Christian converts. While the Christian religion and the strange new diseases moved in one direction, education and trade moved in two directions. Let's take education first. Europeans were a literate society; many could write letters and read books. In America they began to share this powerful tool through schools. In the seventeenth century, Harvard build a separate Indian college on its campus. In the eighteenth century, Dartmouth College in New Hampshire emphasized Native American education, at least for a few.But at the same time, Indians who understood the American land and the natural world offered education to the newcomers. They were constantly explaining matters of geography, climate, and food. They knew when to plant and harvest crops, when fish were plentiful in certain streams, when the abundant oak trees dropped their acorns. Then knew which plants were edible, and ho w to track game. Gradually they shared their knowledge with newcomers. In Louisiana, white settlers often sent a young son to live among the local Indians to learn their language and pave the way for future trade.Trading, like education, was a two-way street. From the start, Europeans were scouring the land for items they could ship home and sell at a profit. Precious metals or spices would be best, but they saw few signs of these items. What they found instead was fur. In the Southeast, the soft hides of whitetail deer could be scraped and packed and shipped to Europe to make aprons and gloves. In New England and Canada, the pelts of beaver could be sent across the Atlantic to hat makers for the creation of fashionable beaver hats.Along the Northwest Coast, Russian traders obtained the valuable pelts of sea otters, which they could trade to the Chinese for spices and tea. More often than not, it was the Native Americans who hunted the animals and processed the pelts for shipment ab road. But if people in Europe and Asia were eager for North American furs of all sorts, Native Americans were equally eager for unfamiliar trade items from Europe. Indians exchanged hides and pelts for woolen blankets and coats, yards of cloth and ribbons, supplies of buttons, beads, and thread.Metal items of all kinds represented new and dramatic improvements in a world where utensils were shaped slowly from wood and rocks and clay. Metal knives and needles had obvious appeal. Metal pots, though heavy, were more durable and more versatile than clay pots. Besides, if they were poorly made and sprung leaks, they could be broken into pieces to be shaped into sharp arrowheads. When Dutch traders moved up the Hudson River to barter with the Indians for furs, the Mohawk called them â€Å"Kristin,† meaning â€Å"metal makers. Iron axes and hatchets were especially desirable. Native Americans knew how to kill trees by peeling off layers of bark. They could fell them by slowly burni ng away the base. But a durable metal axe made it possible to shape wood rapidly, whether building a house, carving a totem pole, or hollowing a dugout canoe. Various kinds of rum and spirits also figured early and often in the trade. Hard liquor gave European traders an person consuming alcohol also became less alert?more subject to an unfair trade or a robbery.Two other unfamiliar items?the gun and the horse?swept across North America during the seventeenth and eighteenth century as a result of trade between Indians and non-landing. Laws passed in Spain prohibited Spanish colonists in the Southwest from trading guns to Indians. So guns moved steadily westward instead, purchased from the French and Dutch and English in the East. Once a tribe acquired guns through the fur trade, neighboring tribes worked desperately to acquire similar weapons, or else they risked being defeated in war or outdone as hunters and fur traders.The horse, reintroduced into North America by the Spanish in the Southwest, moved in the opposite direction, After the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, horses spread north and east across the Great Plains?traded from one nation to another, or stolen in order to gain new mobility and power. A map shows clearly how the horse frontier and the gun frontier pushed in opposite directions. During the 18th century, tribes such as the Sioux on the Northern Plains and the Comanche on the Southern Plains gained access to both guns and horses, giving their cultures great power.For a long time, these complex exchanges proved mutually beneficial. Both Indians and non- Indians felt they were gaining valuable benefits from trade. But eventually, major changes undercut and ended this beneficial and agreeable trade. For one thing, the non-landing population continued to grow, while the Indian numbers declined sharply as a result of warfare and disease. But even more importantly, European newcomers sired Indian land even more than they wanted peaceful trade.Soon, land it self became an item of trade, and land that could not be bought was taken by force. Gradually, we are learning more about early contacts between Indians and non- Indians, and the way these relationships changed over time. The contacts were numerous and varied. They took a different shape in every part of the continent, depending upon which Indian cultures lived there and which foreigners first invaded their land. At first, these contacts were often mutually beneficial, as strangers learned from, and traded with, one another.But later, sickness, warfare, and crushing demands for land changed these connections. Contacts became more lopsided and destructive, through long chapters of our history. So, from now on, I hope that any time you see a horse or a rifle or a metal pot or a colorful ribbon you will think about these early contacts between Native Americans who had lived here for untold generations and newcomers who have been here scarcely five centuries. After all, these varied con nections are a rich and forgotten part of our shared heritage here in North America. Thanks for Joining me.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Advantages and Disadvantages of Building Restoration

Advantages and Disadvantages of Building Restoration Using examples explore the advantages and disadvantages of allowing redevelopment and reconstruction of historic buildings. For the purposes of this discussion it is primarily important to determine what is meant by historic and to rationalize the terms redevelopment and reconstruction. The terms will be used in the context of preserving and conserving buildings. This includes maintaining their predominant features and characteristics, whilst enhancing new features in keeping with the style and building constraints relating to traditional use of materials and resources. According to English Heritage buildings exist across the UK that span over a thousand years. They also work with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and local authorities to allocate buildings such as these according to their criteria for listing – or categorizing for the purposes of their historic importance. These are identified using the following criteria: Those having architectural interest: bu ildings which are nationally important for the interest of their architectural design, decoration and craftsmanship; also important examples of particular building types and techniques. Those deemed of historic interest: this includes buildings which illustrate important aspects of the nation’s social, economic, cultural or military history. A variety of places that have a close historical association with nationally important buildings or events. Places which have group value, especially where buildings are part of an important architectural or historic group or are a fine example of planning (such as squares, terraces and model villages) [1] English Heritage define historic in relation to a number of factors. All buildings constructed before 1700 are automatically listed. Similarly this is the case with most properties up to 1840. A number of post 1945 buildings are also included in these terms. A comprehensive breakdown of listed buildings statistics across the UK is illustrated below: 38% are domestic dwellings 15% date from before 1600 nearly 20% date from the 17th century 31% from the 18th century 32% from the 19th century 3% from 1900-1944 0.2% from 1945 or later [2] Introducing conventional features can have negative consequences on properties such as those defined above. Not only for cosmetic or domestic purposes but also in relation to implementing safety measures into a property. and accessibility by way of lifts and hand rails etc for the benefit of people with disabilities. There is also a trend for interpreting properties of historical interest into entertainment or ‘edutainment’ orientated experiences which can be argued devalues the historic importance and often encourages historical inaccuracy from the learning perspective. The final consideration to be made in relation to this essay question is the notion of whether old buildings should remain preserved exactly as they are without any enhancement, improvements, additions or restorations. That they should reflect the period they were constructed in and be immortalized as a historical or scientific study. This paper will seek to exemplify many of these issues relating to the redevelopment and reconstruction of historic buildings which covers a broad argument for discussion. The English Tourist Board published a paper in 1991 entitled ‘Maintaining the Balance’ which proposed new schemes designed to ensure that historic town environments worked in sync with their communities whilst providing the visitor with a traditional experience. Visitor Management Plans were adopted and Town Centre Managers were recruited as means of taking these initiatives forward. The conservation and preservation of built heritage often involves maintaining tight restrictions and limited planning opportunities which is not conducive to new housing projects or business opportunities which could generate enterprise and economic benefits. Inste ad many of the UK’s classified historic towns remain stagnant and non progressive. [3] Similarly there are currently plans to renovate and restore the city centre of Amsterdam in keeping with its cultural heritage. The city centre is divided by two groups of residents. One enjoys the aesthetic benefits of living in this area, while the second are simply living centrally for the purposes of work and being close to amenities. This second group is unconcerned with the historical importance of the city and is not prepared to invest in maintaining or developing it as such. Often when areas such as this are under preservation orders high costs are incurred for maintenance and renovation in the style accustomed to the period. This in turn raises the rents of properties which become too high for existing residents to afford, eventually forcing them out of their homes, as is feared in Amsterdam. [4]

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Marketing strategy in Nokia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing strategy in Nokia - Research Paper Example [Accessed 29 November 2011] 17 Appendix A: 20 Appendix B: 21 1. Introduction The aim of this report is to analyze, appraise and make recommendations on the marketing strategy of one of the leading Mobile manufacturing companies, Nokia. The paper will identify the company’s strengths and exploit the opportunities that it has in the competitive market today. The paper would further analyze the environment in terms of internal and external factors and make appropriate recommendations to its current marketing strategy to attain higher customer satisfaction, brand loyalty and market share. 1.1 Background and origin of Nokia: Nokia is world’s leading mobile phone manufacturer operating globally. It is the symbol of quality, ease and excellence. It is a Finnish multinational information technology manufacturing company with head office in Keilaniemi, Espoo, Finland. It has wide operations in 120 countries with more than 100,000 employees worldwide (Forbes). It is the second la rgest mobile manufacturer of the world following the Samsung Incorporation. It has 22.5% market share in mobile phone industry (Damian and Calvin, 2012). The products are mobile phones, handhelds, electronic gadgets and notebook computers. Till the year 2012, it had been a world largest mobile phone manufacturer but after emergence of Samsung and Apple iPhone 5, it got its sales down sufficiently. A lavish life of Nokia brand was observed as lesser popular after when people started adopting Samsung Galaxy smart phones and iPhones. A couple of years back, it faced a similar situation when Blackberry phones were on demand fashion (Kotler, 2012). To cater the needs, Nokia has jumped in to the competition while the competitors are enough substantial to moderate the competition. Since Nokia has lost the market leader position but still it is on priority for student, middle class man and quality seekers (Dibb and Simkin 2013). 1.2 Nokia’s Position in the Market Figure 1: Leading mo bile manufacturing Companies’ market share Source: Samsung, Nokia, and Apple dominate phone sales in spring 2012- August 2012 (Hill, 2012) Based on the 2012 results, Nokia is ranked as the second largest company in the competitive mobile industry. The further sections of the report shed light on Nokia’s current market status in the mobile industry. In order to achieve its aims, the paper uses tools like SWOT analysis and competitive analysis to understand the competitive edges that company stands on. After the careful analysis, Nokia’s marketing strategy is evaluated in terms of segmentation, targeting and positioning. Its marketing objectives are evaluated and strategies analyzed to identify any gaps between the marketing goals and strategies adopted. The paper reaches its conclusion after providing a number of recommendations to fill the gap in marketing strategies and suggests Nokia some efficient and effective strategic changes. 2. Situational Analysis 2.1 S WOT Analysis Strengths Nokia is ranked second largest distributer of mobile sets in the competitive mobile manufacturing industry (Figure 1). Nokia keeps its market share high by investing a considerable amount of capital in Research and Development strategies. It had spent 4.94 billion Euros on R&D in 2010 and was ranked 11th in the list of top R&D spending Multinational organizations globally (Sitkin & Bowen 2013).

Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 3

Case study - Essay Example That was the time when she realized that this bag can be popular product for people who loves innovative designing articles like cloths, umbrella, handbags, wallet, makeup bags, lamp shades etc. Clare, mother of Calypso also helped her with the business. Her first year turnover was ?180 000 and she became the London Business person of the year at the age of 22 (Burns, 2011). Calypso and her mother Clare chose to manufacture the bags from UK and use their house as the office. The reasons are: Working from home was advantageous cause their Calypso did not had to pay any rent for her office to anybody. Except that no extra electricity or internet bill there are flexible office time. She could able to work any time in a day and handle any matter whenever they arise without delay. And she got her mother’s help from home (Clippy London, 2013). She was worried that any big and established manufacturer in market can easily steal her idea or copy it so she had to make the sales fast an d regular, to do that she needed the supply unit and manufacturing unit to be close. If the supply unit is thousands of miles away somewhere in china and she had import everything from there it would took couple of valuable days. Instead of that if that if both the unit in UK the orders can be more quickly handled. And once the business start and run smoothly the payment terms for business chain will be regular and spontaneous and it will help the cash flow for her business. An online directory namely Kelly’s online directory (Kelly Search, n.d.) helped her to find out a manufacturer from UK (Smith, 2010). Calypso was a first timer in business field and she had no experience in that domain. Also her volume of business was not very big it was precisely 250 bags only. So for 250 bags going to foreign country to search supplier and renting a separate office would have been more fancy for her cause she was not sure the idea of transparent and graphics bag would hit in the market or not. Her initial customers were family, relatives, friends and those people who appreciated her idea earlier. The official launch of the product was on 2004 during Christmas Fair in Olympia’s Spirit (Stylist.co.uk, n.d.). These three were the main reason of choosing UK as the place of manufacturing for calypso for her fashionable see through bag with customised designs. During start ups and initial growth period manufacturing unit of Clippy was at UK, there were some advantages as well as some disadvantages also. Advantages can be: If supply and manufacturing unit are nearby then time cycle from order of raw materials –delivery of them –and making finished items and delivering them to market become fast and regular. Communication between various members in supply and delivery chain is become easy and effective. In that respective if we look at Clippy’s initial days (start up and initial growth) it was quite expectable for such an innovative product. It was an innovative product no such see through bags with pockets and photos of family and friends on it was available previously in any market. It was an experiment for her to launch it in small scale in UK market from where she also got couple of encouragements from various fashion lovers. So it was like a gamble for her. So it was better to choose her home market rather than foreign market for manufacturing (Department for Business Innovation and Skills, 2012). Calypso did not have any experience as a

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Report Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Report Plan - Essay Example 3. Identify the Purpose of the Report The purpose of the report will be twofold. First, it will help the company increase its market share in third-world countries where the demand for laptops is increasing with every passing day but people have no other choice than to buy economical brands, such as, Samsung, Acer, and Fujitsu. The aim of the report is to help Apple, Inc. increase its market share in such countries by providing people with low cost laptops. People like to buy Apple products more than the products of any other brand. However, a high percentage of consumers cannot buy Apple products because their buying power does not let them do so. Therefore, if Apple Inc. manufactures low cost laptops particularly for third-world countries, I believe that both Apple Inc. and the consumers will benefited as the company will increase its chances of gaining competitive edge even in third world countries and the consumers will have an access to the top quality brand of the world. The se cond purpose of the report will be to make Apple Inc. play its role in reducing the problem of obesity in America. I think it is the responsibility of every major brand of the world to show corporate social responsibility by putting some efforts for solving social issues. I think putting efforts for reducing obesity is also a social cause for which Apple Inc. should play some role as popular brand. People like the products of Apple Inc. and when the company will take steps to create awareness among people about the severity of the disease, people will definitely listen to the advice with interest. Obesity is a disease for which level of awareness really matters in order for it to be reduced. Apple Inc. can create awareness about it through television ads, magazine ads, and social events. 4. Identify Potential Resources that will be needed for Support The potential resources that will be needed for support include commitment of top management towards change, financial resources to de velop low cost products, and employee support. All of these factors will work together to make the above-mentioned recommendations feasible for the company. 5. Identify Methods to be used to Gather Information To gather information about feasibility of the recommendations, surveys and questionnaires can be used. Distribution of online survey to the users of internet, particularly from third-world countries, can be a suitable choice to gather relevant data. Users of the internet will fill the survey form through which the company will know whether the idea to develop low cost laptops for the population of third world countries is feasible or not. Information about the need to work on the second recommendation about obesity can be collected through the statistics given on published journals. 6. Identify Criteria to be used to evaluate the Information Collected The collected information will be evaluated considering the age, qualification, and profession of people. For example, age of 18 to 40 years, qualification level of at least high school graduate, and job experience of at least 6 months will be considered. If a person fulfils any of the three criterions mentioned above, his/her filled survey will be considered for evaluation. The