Monday, September 30, 2019

The Crucible- Compare and Contrast Reverend Hale and Reverend Parris

Taylor Orr Mrs. Blakley AP English III-3 16 November 2012 Reverend Hale vs Reverend Parris Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible is a compelling look at the witch hunts in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. In the play, Reverend Hale and Reverend Parris play major roles in the town and influence a shrewd of characters. They both have a number of job duties and responsibilities in common. As well as have a variation in personality, attitude, changes in the play and different roles at the end of the play.In the beginning of the play Reverend Parris is struggling with his daughter Betty – which has become â€Å"inert†. When asked if the cause of her behavior is due to witchery with Abigail in the forest, Parris refuses to have it as though it will stain his clean reputation, â€Å"But if you trafficked with spirits in the forest I must know now, for surely my enemies will, and they will ruin me with it. †(1038).Reverend Parris’s personality is too overcome with the thoughts of others, to be a leader of the town he acts more like a puppet , â€Å"I cannot go before the congregation when I know you have not opened with me. †(1038). Proctor says of Parris: â€Å". . . the last meeting I were at you spoke so long on deeds and mortgages I thought it were an auction† (841). Reverend Hale, on the other hand, is more of a strong leader. Hale is more compelled to find the truth and accept it, no matter positive or negative, â€Å"We shall need hard study if it comes to tracking down the Old Boy[Devil]. †

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Mla Sex Education

Sex Education is Necessary in High-School Does sex education encourage sex? According to Benjamin Spock the author of Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care, â€Å"Many parents are afraid that talking about sex with their teenagers will be taken as permission for the teen to have sex. Nothing could be further from the truth. If anything, the more children learn about sexuality from talking with their parents and teachers and reading accurate books, the less they feel compelled to find out for themselves. † Before 1910 there is no recollection of the history of sex education.We managed as people to â€Å"replicate† ourselves very well for decades and absolutely nowhere near our level of family disruption. In 1915 the first of anyone who introduced a significant change in all of this was Margaret Sanger [The founder of Planned Parenthood, the largest promoter of sex education and abortion in the U. S. and in the world. ] She wrote, What Every Boy And Girl Should Know. Sex Education should be taught in High-Schools because the research on sex education has shown that the prevention programs have a high affect on behaviors and they help achieve positive health impacts.It has helped reduce the frequency of sex, new number of sex partners, and also the unprotected sex mishaps which are increasing the use of condoms and contraception’s (â€Å"Sex Education†). About every year over 800,000 pregnancies and young adults under the age 25 experience about 9. 1 million sexually transmitted infections (STIs) (â€Å"Effective Sex Education†). Criticize that by age 18, 70 percent of U. S. females and about 62% of males have engaged in sexual intercourse.In the program no abstinence-only-until-marriage has shown results that they help teens to be able to delay in engaging in sexual intercourse or to at least protect themselves when they actually do engage in sex (â€Å"Effective Sex Education†). Sex education and HIV/STI prevention prog rams do not increase rates of sexual engagement, and do not lower the age at which youth engages them in sex, and they do not increase the number of sex partners and the frequency of sex among young adults.But do consider that between the 90s and 2004 the U. S teen birthrate fell from 62 to 41 per 1000 female teens. Experts say that 75 percent of the decline is due to increased contraceptives and 25 percent in to being abstinence of sexual intercourse. Others might say contraceptives and abstinence are very equal, but regardless contraceptives have been very critical to reducing the teenage pregnancy (â€Å"Abma et al†).Some might say that parents should teach their teenagers about sexual intercourse or to at least talk to them about it, but some will say that it is easier for someone who actually knows what they are talking about such as a sex education classes to give the reasons of why being abstinence is more important than being sexually active because teenagers tend not to listen to their parents they would rather listen to their peers and the society. Also consider that some teenagers don’t like to be embarrassed especially when talking about their gender based anatomy.But what they don’t know is that classes are gender exclusive, which saves the embarrassment amongst their peers and teaches them only what is necessary for their gender. If taught properly sex education could become a regular course such as the human anatomy and biological science are taught as high school credits that go towards their graduating credits. If students are taught the correct terms of reproductive systems, sexually transmitted diseases and birth contraceptives instead of the â€Å"street lingo† and the appropriate sexual education can have such an impact on preventing the sexual problems in adulthood.As for the Planned Parenthood issue it just â€Å"promotes comprehensive sex education in schools and for school-aged youth as an important way- al ong with parental guidance- to help young people lead sexually healthy and responsible lives†(â€Å"Sex Education in Schools†). Advise that parents and teachers do have doubts about the sexually education but Planned Parenthood just helps assist schools in developing and delivering medically accurate, age-appropriate sex education curriculum, so teens just don’t learn things beyond their age maturity.Although about 13% of U. S. teens have had sex by the age of 15, most of them initiate in sex in their late teen years. By their 19th birthday, 7 in 10 teen men and women have had intercourse (Abma et al). Between the years of 1988 and 2006-2010, the proportion of never-married teens aged 15-17 who had ever engaged in sexual intercourse declined from 37% to 27% among females and from 50% to 28% among males. Conclude that during the same period, among teens aged 8-19, declined from 73% to 63% among females and 77% to 64% among males (Martinez G et al).Experts at the G uttmatcher Institute say 86% of the decline in the teen pregnancy rate between 1995 and 2002 was the result of dramatic improvements in contraceptive use, including increases of teens using a single method of contraception’s and increase of using multiple methods simultaneously and a substantial decline in nonuse. But only 14% of the decline is attributable to the decrease in sexual activity (â€Å"Facts on American Teens’ Sources of Information About Sex†).Public school systems have been implementing sexual education into their classrooms as a regular part of instruction for decades. The controversy are very abundant and when dealing with such delicate issues and there are many pros and cons to the sexual education being taught in the public schools. It seems that most parents are either strongly against or strongly in favor of sexual education classes, but very few parents are in the middle ground. But in fact there are more parents that are actually in favor of sexual education classes.As the result of polls they have estimated that less than 7% of the population does not believe that sexual education should be requirement in schools (â€Å"Pros and Cons†). As of 93% who are actually in favor of the subject matter that are as part of the regular curriculum such as when teens take human anatomy and physiology or biology the classes are very similar to sexual education but as sexual education tends to be more based to the diseases, STD’s. But as the 7% of the parents/teachers that are disagreeing to the class are considering more of the cons aspect than what good it could possibly do.Such as being aware of his or her own family or religious beliefs and values and know their child’s intellect and maturity levels, or the myths surrounding the intercourse can be dispelled (such as not being able to get pregnant the first time) (â€Å"Pros and Cons†). But even when these such classes are available the sexual educat ion are taught as a brief interlude during a physical education or a health class which in reality is not long enough to relate such serious material.Also the teachers are not always trained how to properly teach sexual education courses and may transgress their own beliefs and morals into the subject matter rather than sticking with the facts. But what parents/teachers are ignorant to even just a class of appropriate sexual education can have an impact on preventing sexual problems in adulthood, studies show that many teenagers become sexually active before the inclusion of the educational classes.Early inclusion of classes has proven to help student remain either abstinent or to at least be responsible if they are active (Parker). Conclude that the idea of schools and the state have a responsibility to teach young people about sex is a peculiarly modern one. The rise of sex education to a regular place in the school curriculum in the United States and Western Europe is not, howeve r, simply a story of modern enlightenment breaking through a heritage of repression and ignorance.The movements of sex education can be understood through several related angles: as part of larger struggles in the modern era over who determines the sexual morality of the coming generation; as part of the persistent tendency to view adolescence especially adolescent sexuality (â€Å"Sex Education†). Sex education has always been shaped by its historical context. Much to the distress of sex educators, young people do not simply memorize their school lessons and apply them perfectly.But all in all sexual education to an understanding and despite the educators’ moralistic tone, sex education met immediate opposition. Sexual education has very well statistics being taught in school when relating it to the pregnancies and more teens being aware of the contraceptives and condom use has proven/ shown fewer percentages of sexual activity, and new numbers of sex partners and few er less mishaps of unprotected sex mishaps.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Huffman Trucking - Tools For Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Huffman Trucking - Tools For Business - Essay Example This essay stresses that the tracking and surveillance feature – this feature will allow the company to monitor truck movements real time. With this feature available, it will be easy to monitor trucks on every shipping activity. This will also allow the headquarters to determine consistency of data under which is stated on the communication log sheet. This paper makes a conclusion that location indicator – provides the company and drivers with the exact location of the delivery point and their actual location, the GPS can also provide alternate routes (in cases that original routes are not accessible due to unexpected situations). This supports the objective of the delivery schedule and itinerary sheet. Delivery schedule and itinerary sheet is a tool used to organize and plan the route of each truck that goes from departure point to destination point, depending on the schedules and destination of delivery, this tool can also help determine which orders can go out in one truck. The delivery schedule and itinerary sheet also helps maximize time and efficiency for deliveries and fuel. The communication log sheet is a tool which provides data on the status or condition of each truck. Accidents like engine breakdown, heavy traffic and bad weather condition may occur, in these cases drivers would radio condition to the nearest br anch or head quarters. All communication details are logged in the communication log sheet.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Personal Statement about international relations and politics

About international relations and politics - Personal Statement Example For this reason, I seek to undertake a pathway that despite being long enlightens me regarding the complex nature of human interactions and the associated issues. No action can be considered good if it fails to align with the benefits of the society as a whole. My choice of studying humanities along with social science is largely based on these beliefs and I hope to excel in my subjects due to my immense interest in the subjects. I intend to pursue a career in the international relations and politics at the University of Edinburgh, for which I intend to stay at the university for an extended period of time. My willingness to take on this course stems from my natural inclination towards the issues pertaining to human beings. I strongly believe that the pains and sufferings of humans can only be relieved by the actions of other humans. Those who are politically empowered to take actions are in a better position to serve humanity. Also, since the modern world is rapidly transforming into a global village; the actions and interactions of various countries directly or indirectly affect the lives of individuals on a global scale. This extreme interconnectedness and the consequences of this phenomenon are manifested in the lives of people in shorter periods of time; and this trend is increasingly becoming a norm. In the ‘jungle’ of globe, everyone is your friend and everyone is your enemy – the only thing that guides the behaviors of countries towards others is ‘interest’. Moral values are set aside in matters of international level and it is the mutual interest that guides and runs the international businesses. I strongly feel that an understanding of the relationships of different countries is essential to understand the expected and unexpected upcoming events. Knowledge about the international relationships of

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Personal Report for Financial Services Term Paper

Personal Report for Financial Services - Term Paper Example One of the services offered by Qatar National Bank is debit cards financial service through three client segments. Debit card is a service offered to the cardholders to access the financial services electronically in making purchase payments instead of using cash. Qatar National Bank has come up with a debit card that allows the cardholders to make purchases in 200 countries and over 24 million business outlets globally. In addition, the cardholders are able to access cash in all MasterCard ATMs worldwide (QNB, 2014). The debit cards are segmented into MasterCard titanium visa gold for clients with a maximum salary of 15,000 Qatari, MasterCard visa platinum for clients with a salary exceeding 15,000 Qatari but less than 35,000 Qatari and a MasterCard visa infinite for clients with a salary of 35,000 Qatari. Similarly, Qatar National Bank offers credit cards service to its clients through three platforms that include life reward credit card, Qatar Airways credit card and Qtel Nojoom credit card (QNB, 2014). The credit card service allows the clients to make purchases of goods and services through borrowed money from the bank on a promise to pay back. Consequently, Qatar National Bank has created an account that allows the credit card holders to borrow money in making payments and accessing cash advances. Current account is another financial service that is offered by Qatar National Bank. A current account allows the clients to deposit and withdraw money without limitations. The bank allows both residents and nonresidents of Qatar to open the account. To make the account attractive to investors, the account holders are issued with free check books, debit cards, transfer of internal funds, monthly statements, and SMS banking services (QNB, 2014). Business banking service is also a financial service that is offered by the bank. This involves providing innovative value added services and products, and business financial services that promote commercial

Connection Between the Fine Arts and the Sciences Scholarship Essay

Connection Between the Fine Arts and the Sciences - Scholarship Essay Example The essay "Connection Between the Fine Arts and the Sciences" talks about the distinction between the sciences and fine arts that have been widely regarded as being nothing short of polar opposites. The previous can be characterized as precise and scrupulous while the latter is geared more towards the flamboyant and the extreme. The fine arts have always been concerned with the concept of beauty and how it can be depicted through different media while science has continuously busied itself with the discovery of things and the invention of tools that could make life easier. But when I think of the most perceptible historical era that brought forth an understanding that these disciplines can be ventured into concurrently by any person then it would be the Renaissance. This era has been deeply regarded for producing not only numerous great artworks but also massive discoveries in the field of science. The Renaissance man is known to be not only creative but also erudite and this has been adopted over the years as the ideal holistic person. The epitome of the Renaissance man who has extended perpetually his influence in humankind is no less than Leonardo Da Vinci. Da Vinci once said that â€Å"The knowledge of all things is possible†. The man has lived to this principle. Starting out as an apprentice to t he highly regarded artist Verrocchio, he went to study with the Company of St. Luke to delve into understanding the human anatomy. This was considered by some as the time he rendered ‘Annunciation’.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Summary of the National Standard Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Summary of the National Standard Project - Essay Example Therefore, informed decisions are made based on researches that present logical evidences. In regards to ASD, currently, several educational or behavioral treatments are accessible. However, the major differences in these interventions include consistency, quality, and quantity. The objectives of the National Standard Project as part of the National Autism Center initiative are to define skills, diagnosis, and age targeted for improvement of treatment options. It seeks to explore the current body research limitations on autism treatment. Also, it is concerned with strengthening of behavioral and educational treatments evidences that focus on ASD characteristics. Moreover, it aims supporting ASD evidence-based performance. The standards outlined by NSP will benefit service providers, caregivers, parents, and educators because they deserver to get easily accessible, reliable, and current information in order top make informed decisions on treatment. Financial considerations are approxi mated at 3.2 million dollars for each ASD individual. NSP is expected to reduce by 65% upon use of correct treatment. The National Autism Center is primarily concerned with availing trustworthy information, and endorsing best practices. Also it offers inclusive family, community, and practitioners with resources. It conducts researches and helps in reformulating policies related to ASD. Thus, the quality of life for people suffering from ASD and their relatives are enhanced by the National Autism Center professional Advisory Board. History of clinical Guidelines Medicine, education, psychology, and allied health are currently guided by evidence-based practice. The extent at which a research supports purported treatment for ASD should be taken into account by Decision makers. In regards to the educational interventions report published by the National Research Council Committee, there exists several limitations in the present clinical guidelines. These limitations include overdue of previous guidelines due to completion of reviews before 21swt century onset. Also, the report pointed out that a variety or broad range all behavioral and educational studies for ASD treatment were not included in those reviews. Emergence of evidence-based practice overruled previous guidelines that presented shallow details about each ASD treatment option. However, these limitations are addressed by NSP. NSP had published a thoroughly reviewed literature of behavioral and educational treatment that focused on associated ASD symptoms and Core characteristics between 1957 and 2007. Also, the project has availed information concerning effective treatment based on treatment targets, age, and diagnostic groups. In order to increase transparency, NSR has sought feedbacks at international and national conferences from professional and parents. Overview of the National Standard Project NSP was established to serve three major purposes. This include identification of the extent of behaviora l and educational interventions evidence available presently applied to the study group mainly comprised of individuals with ASD and less than 22 years. NSR notes that the interventions explore the major features of the disorder thus, helps in effective treatment section. Also, it is focused at helping service providers, educators, caregivers, and parents to comprehend how to infuse critical thinking in

Monday, September 23, 2019

Music Appreciation ( classical) Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Music Appreciation ( classical) - Term Paper Example In the impressionism period, the artists used light and water themes in their artworks which used to give an abstract look to their paintings. Music composers of that period also liked to imitate the sounds of water. The two most popular mediums used by the impressionist composers were orchestra and piano. Claude Debussy, also known as one of the great pillars of musical modernism, is considered to be a very dominant personality in the field of composition and music. He was born in northwest Parisian commune in 1862. If we talk about his educational career, we come to know that Debussy was deprived of public education because the government of France took away all civil rights from his father due to his involvement in the Paris workers’ uprising. But when his parents found musical talent in Debussy, they sent him to his relatives to start his music education. Debussy did not have any regular schooling but he showed his extraordinary skills and abilities in composing. He was awarded with Prix de Rome in the year 1884. Here we must mention that he started his work in music industry as a pianist but he did not get much success as a pianist which made him divert his mind towards composing. If we talk about one of the major forces behind Debussy’s success, we can say that Ernest Guiraud, a quintessential French academic composer, played a great role in Debussy’s success as a composer. It was Debussy’s orchestral work La Mer and the opera production Pellà ©as ET Mà ©lisande which made him one of the most prominent and leading composers of the twentieth century. Printemps and the cantata La demoiselle à ©lue were very famous poems by Debussy which not only played a great role in Debussy’s success as a composer but also symbolized a far-fetched advance on Lenfant prodigue. Under the influence of poets and painters from Rome, Debussy fell under Wagner’s charm and attraction. This was the reason why Debussy’s style was found

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Compensation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Compensation - Case Study Example Majority of accountants are bachelor’s degree holders while product managers are masters graduates. Moreover, most managers have a higher experience of between 10-15 years while accountants have only an average experience of 2-5 and 5-10 years. Stock options are offered by firms as means of compensation for lower salaries. Given the above mentioned jobs, companies do not include stock options as benefits on top of the salaries offered. This is because the salaries offered by the organizations are high enough for the professions. The job descriptions vary for the different professions. Accountant III is responsible for preparation of balance sheets, profit and loss accounts and preparation of other financial reports in the organization. Other tasks include analysis of business trends for costs, revenues, obligations and commitments. The financial analyst is responsible for compiling necessary financial information for an organization. Some of the important information includes preparation of analyses of revenues and expenses projections, reports and presentations to the firm. He/she is also required to prepare financial reports of organizations including forecasting and reconciliation of internal accounts. Product manager in a bank is on the contrary responsible for marketing products of the bank and ensuring that the bank makes profits. These job descriptions are what I expected and once I attain the required credentials, I would apply for the job (Dundon & Rollinson, 2007). The comparison of the compensation at salary.com for the professions with local/regional compensation reveals that the compensation offered by the local career office are lower than the compensation offered by salary.com. The reason for this could be due to lower responsibilities for jobs at the regional level, demotions, working in small companies compared to large multinationals and jobs being offered at the

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Financial Planner Essay Example for Free

Financial Planner Essay Among the many career fields to choose from, Id like to pursue one in the financial planning industry. A financial planners job is diverse and could be in areas like management of cash flow, investment and retirement planning, tax and estate planning, insurance and risk management planning, among others. There are also job opportunities outside personal planning that provides more financial rewards. I believe this job to be interesting, challenging and beneficial to people. This isnt like other jobs wherein youre only there to perform a task sometimes without knowing the end result or the product of your efforts. As a financial planner, a person is able to help other people in more significantly, even in a life-changing manner. Its a fact that many people have great ideas and good intentions regarding their finances, but few have the willpower and the right know-how to execute their plans. Thats where I see myself helping. Id like to see people to be more financially stable and create for themselves a nest egg for their future. People should be aware of financial planning at an early age. The earlier a person starts setting aside part of his income for a financial plan, the more secure is his future going to be. Another reason why Id like to have a career in this field is because I get stimulated when dealing with numbers. Crafting plans after studying pages of figures and mathematical formulas is something that does not daunt me. According to journals and news articles that have been published regarding the financial planning field, the demand for financial planners are rising globally as more and more people are becoming aware of the importance of having tailored financial plans for themselves. Over the years, financial planners have gradually, but consistently, created a niche for themselves in the market. There are several factors that have contributed to the upswing of demand for financial planners. In the earlier years, people were happy with social security benefits and old age Planner 2 pensions provided by the government. But years later, peoples outlook has shifted and the idea of being more comfortable and secure in old age have dominated the minds not just of those who are near retirement but even those who are still relatively young. Awareness among young professionals is seen to continue within the next decade, making it reasonably safe to assume that demand for financial programs and financial planners will continue. Another reason why the financial planning business has risen is caused by uncertainties in the stock markets. People are now opting to seek professional advice, before investing in a particular bond or stock. There is also a growing demand for financial planners outside the personal planning arena. Financial planners have found themselves becoming more and more necessary in banks and other financial institutions. Their expertise is needed in determining risks involved in investment vehicles. The pay scale and benefits that a certified financial planner receives differ from company to company, experience, and type of certification. A person who holds a position in higher management, like a vice president or portfolio manager, will earn a six-digit figure. Likewise, a person whos been a financial planner for more than twenty years will also receive a six-digit salary. Entry-level compensation is often in the range of $30,000 to $40,000. The banking industry and other financial institutions salaries are often higher compared to other industries. For instance, a job posting for a financial advisor in Connecticut offers an annual income of $50,000 to $80,000. Another example is an ad for looking for financial planning director, which offers at least $150,000 annual income. But whats more attractive about being a financial planner is the opportunity to earn more than your basic salary. Commissions and incentives are given for every transaction. A persons overall income is often measured by how well he networks and sells financial products.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Potential Appraisal for Career Development

Potential Appraisal for Career Development Go to the library or search on internet and gather the information on following topics: Potential Appraisal Career Development Analyze the relationship between them, and explain how potential appraisal help employee in career development. Summarize all the points in writing and also prepare for group discussion in the class. The potential appraisal refers to the evaluation i.e. understanding of the hidden talents and skills of a person. The individual might or might not be aware of them. Potential appraisal is a future oriented appraisal whose main goal is to identify and evaluate the potential of the employees to achieve higher positions and responsibilities in the organizational hierarchy. On the other words, Potential appraisal helps to determine what can happen in the future so that it can be guided and directed towards the performance of individual and organizational development and goals. Therefore, many organizations assess and manage potential appraisal as a part of the performance appraisal processes. Moreover, the role of potential appraisal is to determine the potential of a given workers to occupy higher positions in the organizational hierarchy plus handle higher responsibilities. Potential appraisals are required to: Inform employees about their future prospects; Help the company check out of a appropriate succession plan; Update training efforts from time to time; Advisee employees about what they must learn to develop their career prospects. Potential appraisal can perform the following purposes: To advise employees about their overall career development and future prospects Help the company to chalk out succession plans Motivate the employees to further enhance their skills and competencies. To identify the training needs. Techniques of potential appraisal: Self appraisals Peer appraisals Superior appraisals Psychological and psychometric tests Management games like role playing Leadership exercises etc. Introducing a enormous Potential Appraisal System The following are some of the steps needed to be followed at the time introducing a potential appraisal system: Role Descriptions: Organizational functions along with functions should be defined simply. To this end, job descriptions should be prepared for each job. Qualities required completing the functions: Based on job descriptions, the functions to be played via individuals must be prepared (i.e., technical, managerial jobs as well as behavioral dimensions). Rating mechanisms: Besides listing the functions along with qualities, the potential appraisal process must provide mechanisms of judging the qualities of staffs as: Rating through others: The potential of a candidate might be rated by the current employer who is acquainted with the candidates work earlier, just his technical abilities. Tests: Managerial as well as behavioral dimensions can be measured via a battery of psychological tests. Games: Simulation games in addition to exercises (assessment centre, besides business games, in-basket, along with role play, etc.) could be used to display the potential of a nominated staff. Records: Performance records along with ratings of a nominated staff for his earlier jobs could be examined carefully on various dimensions such as motivation, creativity, besides risk taking ability, etc., which may play a vital concern in discharging his responsibilities in a new job. Organizing the system: After completing the earlier preliminaries, he should set up a way that will allow the introduction of the time quietly giving answers to specific puzzling questions: How much load time to assist in conditions of seniority in promotions? How much weight age to each of the performance dimensions; such as technical, besides managerial, in addition to behavioral qualities? What would be the mechanisms of assessing the body on different indicators of his potential and via what reliability? Feedback: The system should provide an option for every employee to see the works of his assessment. He might be assisted to understand the qualities most needed for performing the purpose for which he thinks he gets the potential, the mechanisms utilized through the companies to evaluate his potential along with the results of such an appraisal.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Old Man and the Sea :: essays research papers

Hemingway’s use of symbols and the metaphors beyond the symbols is phenomenal. Metaphors are an implied analogy that has an ideal that is being expressed and it also has an image by which that idea is conveyed. Establishing the similarities between the following dissimilarities is what helps to identify the metaphors behind the symbols in Hemingway’s writings. He uses things as symbols to help express the old man’s deep feelings in his journey through life. In The Old Man and the Sea the boy is brought to attention by the old man more than anything else in the story is. The old man, Santiago, thinks of the boy as the little boy that he used to take fishing and carefully watch over. Now that the boy, Manolin, has grown up, the old man still refuses to acknowledge his maturity. While the old man is on his lengthy fishing trip, looking for the greatest catch of all times, he finds himself delirious at times, wanting for the boy. On page 51, Aloud he said, â€Å"I wish I had the boy.† But you haven’t got the boy, he thought. You have only yourself and you had better work back to the last line now, in the dark or not in the dark, and cut it away and hook up the two reserve coils. That is one example of the symbol of the boy in this book. The boy is a symbol of youth, potency and hope to the old man in trial times. Santiago began to talk to the boy aloud at one point and he also wished several times that the boy could have been with him on his length search of the greatest catch of all. The fish withholds a great part in this book. The Old Man and the Sea is a book that’s about a small town where the residents revolve their lives around fishing. The fish is a symbol of beauty and it is a greatly admired creature to these people. An example from the book is on page 49. Santiago has been fishing for 84 days and decides not to return home without a fish on the 85th day. On the 85th day, alone in the boat, he manages to hook an enormous marlin, the biggest fish he's ever seen in all his life. The fish is larger and stronger than Santiago. Santiago's experienced fishing skills and his will to catch and survive push him to pursue the fish for many days and many miles out to sea.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Importance of the Night in William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet :: Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

Importance of the Night in Romeo and Juliet Night can be seen in two contrasting ways. The first can be summarized as a time for celebration and love. The second, and most commonly associated with night, is a time of darkness and horror. Two shining examples of the different emotions and reactions brought on by darkness are the books Night by Elie Wiesel and Romeo and Juliet by well-known author, William Shakespeare. In Romeo and Juliet night has a positive image, a welcomed time for love, protection and exchanging of covenants, while in Night the image is portrayed in a negative way, a time for fear, suffering, and death. Night in the great romances is a greeted time of romance and in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet a time to hide from the harsh reality of the outside world. Juliet greatly yearns for the coming of night. "And bring in cloudy night immediately. Spread thy close curtain..." (Shakespeare Act III Scene ii:4-5) Juliet is very eager for night to come as she uses the word "immediately," which is very strong and demanding. Her true love, Romeo, is also associated with night. "Come, night, come Romeo, come thou day in night." (Shakespeare Act III Scene ii:17) Shakespeare uses night also as a time for exchanging of vows. "Lady, by yonder, blessed moon I vow, That tips with silver all these fruit tree tops -- -". (Shakespeare Act II Scene ii:106-107) After Romeo's vow Juliet later promises during the welcomed night to be loyal to him throughout his life. Under the cloak of darkness she is unafraid to pledge, "And all my fortunes at thy foot I'll lay, And follow thee my lord throughout the world." (Shakespeare Act II Scene ii:146-147) Night has a third important role of protecting Romeo at first when he trespasses to the Capulet Mansion and later when Romeo, then banished, meets Juliet for the final time. "I have night's cloak to hide me from their eyes..." (Shakespeare Act II Scene ii:74) Night, although it can be a time of love and happiness, can also be the complete opposite --- fear, suffering, and death. Elie Wiesel uses stunning, vivid descriptions to show the readers the negative side of night,

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

CA.S.T.ing a Light on Talent :: Drama Journalism Acting Essays

CA.S.T.ing a Light on Talent As play auditions got under way in Hillsboro, NH, the director asked Chelsy Starkweather,13, the first and youngest of the night’s auditions, to repeat her monologue, twice. At first, she hid behind a baseball cap and sat on a chair, something most play directors would forbid. But Justin Scarelli, 22, who founded Community Arts as a Stage for Teens (C.A.S.T.), knew how to draw out Starkweather’s confidence. She repeated her monologue, standing and one last time without her baseball cap. After her very last line on her third performance, Scarelli and Chelsy’s peers broke out in applause. The smile on Starkweather’s face proved that, at C.A.S.T., something special is happening. â€Å"This is a great way to let kids have a chance to act and learn to direct because school drama programs can be limiting,† Tom Ellsworth, 17, the student Chair of C.A.S.T. said. That something special was what Scarelli had in mind in the summer of 2004 after he helped direct a documentary about media literacy for Project Genesis, a nonprofit teen center and in Hillsboro. After spending the summer with the teens, he saw their creativity grow; he also noted that their desire to learn more about directing and the arts grew as the weeks went on. By the time the documentary was finished, Scarelli spoke with Deborah Whitaker-Duncklee, a youth counselor who runs Project Genesis, about the possibility of extending the summer media project throughout the year. â€Å"During the summer everyone got to see creativity as something tangible,† Scarelli said. â€Å"We wanted to bring what we were doing into school drama programs.† Scarelli and Whitaker-Duncklee found that schools were not receptive to their ideas, so they decided to start a program through Project Genesis. The only problem was money. After speaking with Peter Brigham, the director of youth services in Hillsboro, Scarelli put together a proposal for his program and began to search for funding. â€Å"I didn’t have any [creative] guidance so I wanted to be able to give that to the kids,† Scarelli said. â€Å"But it’s very hard to get financial support.† As of December 4, 2004, Brigham’s budget for youth services in 2005 is $60,000 with counseling services, or $40,000 without. That money is distributed throughout Hillsboro and nearby Deering, NH, for all youth-oriented programs and is used up rather quickly. While the budget does not assign a specific amount of money to each service provided, this budget ultimately needs outside assistance.

Food Log Analysis Essay

5 day food analysis During the 5 day span I met the calorie requirement of 2850 in daily food intake due to my high activity level. I pretty much had a balanced diet in terms of having each food group represented in my daily intake. I plan on to keeping my muscle mass, so I pretty much had a diet plan before. But going through the calorie tracker in the website made me realize that I was eating too much junk food than intended. It really didn’t have any adverse on my physique due to my early mentioned level of activity but by cutting down on my junk food intake for the week I was recording this log I was able to enjoy good wholesome food, without spending a lot of money in college cafeteria. Not only was I able to do this I was able to feel the effect of having healthy food in my daily workouts. I was more energized to do work and felt the energy throughout the day. I did not need coffee or any other types of energy drink to keep me going through the day. I also was able to watch and track how much of what I was eating during this time period. I usually overeat on the food groups such as meat and fruits while skipping vegetable and grains that are needed for a balanced body. Now I made sure that everything was in proportion and also introduced new foods my daily routine. I plan on to implementing the above mentioned findings on to my diet from now on so that I could avoid the mistakes that I used to commit before.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Madame Bovary Analysis Essay

In Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary, the story predominately follows how Emma Bovary becomes disenchanted with her lifestyle as the wife of Charles Bovary and seeks to find the unobtainable life she so desperately dreams of from the books she reads. However, before all of that, Charles Bovary has a history of his own with a previous marriage and a dreary childhood. In the passage describing a request for his services and his journey to a distance farm, the descriptive imagery and juxtaposition of his thoughts convey how static his character is. Flaubert chooses to describe Charles Bovary’s demeanor and actions as easy going to illustrate to the audience how his personality is both average and carefree. When a man frantically comes to their home in the middle of the night with a letter requesting Charles to set a broken leg, he â€Å"lean[s] his elbow on the pillow to read it† (11). Disregarding the fact that the situation is considered to be an emergency to many, Charles leisurely takes his time in his own comfort. This goes back to his growing up when chose to not prepare for his examination, resulting in his failure. He does not understand the gravity of circumstances and does everything as he pleases. This is further exemplified when he decides to leave â€Å"three hours later,† all â€Å"well wrapped† and moving in a â€Å"peaceful trot† (11-12). Rather than trying to get there as fast as he can, he goes at a pace where he can even fall asleep. He has little to no concern for the patient that is urgently waiting for him to put him out of excruciating pain. He has to make an attempt to â€Å"recall the broken leg† along with any knowledge he has on how to fix it during the journey (12). His lack of ambition is prevalent in this scene as it brings up his past apathy towards his schoolwork, which is catching up with him now, along with his currently indifference towards his work. He has no desire to excel in his job; he is perfectly content being an average man doing average work. This insight to his character shows how for a good portion of his life already, he has little to no goals in life and will most likely never strive to go above the ordinary. The description of Charles lethargically treating his job reveals his unchanging dispirited outlook on life. Flaubert’s use of juxtaposition when Charles is confused between his memories from long ago and from now to elucidate the lack of development within his character. He becomes disoriented between his life as a â€Å"student and [a] married man† because of his similarities in them, leading back to the idea that he has not changed much within the past years (12). The way he goes about regarding any task, whether it be in school or in his current home, is very calm and passive. He is already a grown man with a job and a wife, yet his personality has remained unchanging. The reflection that he has unveils to us how, due to the stationary nature of his character, time has passed in a continuum such that he cannot distinguish when moments of his life have passed. Comparing his life in medical school with the â€Å"iron rings of the bed curtains running on their rods† to his present life in a home with â€Å"his wife sleeping,† though most would think them to be vastly differing, the way he approaches them is the same—laid back to the point where he cannot distinguish between them anymore (12). By placing these two scenarios next to each other, Flaubert signals to the readers that, similar to how Charles has not changed from his childhood to now, he will continue to remain this mediocre man even in the future. Although we do not know why yet, this mindset of his seems to have importance towards the rest of the story. Altogether, the juxtaposition of Charles’ former and current self highlights the importance of his ordinary persona. Flaubert’s use of language brings out Charles Bovary’s passive behavior, indicating a significance in his sedentary character for later chapters. Charles’ easy going demeanor, not laudable nor detrimental, seems to be a base off which other characters are compared to. Since he does not strive for much nor cause harm, he acts as a norm for people to relate to.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Exam. Finance Essay

Finance 415 Exam I Review Questions Suggestions 1) Read chapters 1 – 5 and review the PPTs we covered in class. 2) Expect 5 or 7 short-answer questions General Questions – 1. In class we reviewed three firms in three different countries. The M/S Milad Nor Company in Afghanistan, Caritex in Bulgaria, and Obod in Montenegro. Each company was faced with different problems and issues. Please briefly summarize the similarities between the firms and their individual issues. How do the problems faced by these firms compare to problems faced by similar firms in more developed countries? 2. Your stock market simulation calls for you to invest in securities with a significant presence outside the US – debt, equity, commodities, currencies, derivatives†¦ In researching equities trading on exchanges outside of the US what similarities/differences have you found compared to firms trading on exchanges in the US? Chapter 1 1.The term globalization has become very widely used in recent years. How would you define it? 2.What does an MNE need in order for it to create value through the globalization process? 3.How does the concept of capitalism actually apply to the globalization process of a business, as it moves from elemental to multinational stages of development? 4. Define and explain the theory of comparative advantage 5. Key to understanding most theories is what they say and they don’t. Name four or five key limitations to theory of comparative advantage. 6.Why have Eurocurrencies and LIBOR remained the centerpiece of the global financial marketplace for so long? * These are domestic currencies of one country on deposit in a second country * The Eurocurrency markets serve two valuable purposes: * Eurocurrency deposits are an efficient and convenient money market device for holding excess corporate liquidity * The Eurocurrency market is a major source of short-term bank loans to finance corporate working capital needs (including export and import financing) * LIBOR is the most widely accepted rate of interest used in standardized quotations, loan agreements, and financial derivatives transactions * 7. Which assets play the most critical role in linking the major institutions that make up the global financial marketplace? * The linkages are the interbank networks using currency. Without ready exchange of currencies the market is hard-pressed to operate efficiently. Chapter 2 1. How does ownership alter the goals and governance of a business? Public ownership may be wholly state-owned or partially publicly traded. State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) are created for business purposes rather than for regulation or civil activities. Private firms may be publicly traded (stock) or privately owned by partners or family. 2.Why is this separation so critical to the understanding of how businesses are structured and led? 3.Explain the assumptions and objectives of the shareholder wealth maximization model. 4.Explain the assumptions and objectives of the stakeholder wealth maximization model. 5.Define the following terms: a.Corporate governance b.Agency theory c.Stakeholder capitalism 6.In Germany and Scandinavia, among other countries, labor unions have representation on boards of directors or supervisory boards. How might such union representation be viewed under the shareholder wealth maximization model compared to the corporate wealth maximization model? 7.In many countries it is common for a firm to have two or more classes of common stock with differential voting rights. In the United States the norm is for a firm to have one class of common stock with one-share-one-vote. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each system? 8.What are the key differences in the goals and motivations of family ownership of the business as opposed to the widely held publicly traded business? 9.It has been claimed that failures in corporate governance have hampered the growth and profitability of some prominent firms located in emerging markets. What are some of the typical causes of these failures in corporate governance?p34 10. Do markets appear to be willing to pay for good governance?p36 Chapter 3 1.Under the gold standard all national governments promised to follow the â€Å"rules of the game.† This meant defending a fixed exchange rate. What did this promise imply about a country’s money supply? 2.If a country follows a fixed exchange rate regime, what macroeconomic variables could cause the fixed exchange rate to be devalued? 3.What are the advantages and disadvantages of fixed exchange rates? 4.Explain what is meant by the term impossible trinity and why it is true. 5.Fixed exchange rate regimes are sometimes implemented through a currency board (Hong Kong) or dollarization (Ecuador). What is the difference between the two approaches? 6.High capital mobility is forcing emerging market nations to choose between free-floating regimes and currency board or dollarization regimes. What are the main outcomes of each of these regimes from the perspective of emerging market nations? 7.On January 4, 1999, eleven member states of the European Union initiated the Europe an Monetary Union (EMU) and established a single currency, the euro, which replaced the individual currencies of participating member states. Describe three of the main ways that the euro affects the members of the EMU. 8.Why did the fixed exchange rate regime of 1945–1973 eventually fail? 9.How did the Argentine currency board function from 1991 to January 2002 and why did it collapse? DEAD Chapter 4 1. Business managers and investors need BOP data to anticipate changes in host country economic policies that might be driven by BOP events. 2. From the perspective of business managers and investors list three specific signals that a country’s BOP data can provide. 3. What are the two main types of economic activity measured by a country’s BOP? 4. Why does the BOP always â€Å"balance†? 5. If the BOP were viewed as an accounting statement, would it be a balance sheet of the country’s wealth, an income statement of the country’s earnings, or a funds flow statement of money into and out of the country? 6. What are the main component accounts of the current account? Give one debit and one credit example for each component account for the United States. adjust 7. The US dollar has maintained or increased its value over the past 20 years despite running a gradually increasing current account deficit. Why has this phenomenon occurred? Chapter 5 1. What were the three major forces behind the credit crisis of 2007 and 2008? 2. Why were LIBOR rates so much higher than Treasure yields in 2007 and 2008? What is needed to return LIBOR rates to the lower, more stable rates of the past? 3. What were the three key elements of the package used by the U.S. government to resolve the 2008-9 credit crisis? 4. Why are the sovereign debtors of the Eurozone considered to have a problem that is different from any other heavily indebted country, like the United States? 5. Why has the case of Portugal been termed a â€Å"case of contagion† rather than a sovereign debt crisis? 6. What are the three primary methods which might be used individually or in combination to resolve the European debt crisis?

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Tma01 K101

A carer is somebody who looks after a friend, relative or neighbour who needs support because of their sickness, age or disability (Direct Gov) although this is a very ‘loose’ definition giving that some carers do a lot more than others and their personal circumstances vary so it is sometimes difficult to label someone as such. I will cover the difficulties and rewards that come with being a carer for a family member using Ann and Angus as my main case study although will be drawing in on other examples covered in Unit One, including a personal statement from a family member (Robert Shire) who I covered in Activity 12 ’Your Family? in regards to his time caring for his terminally ill wife. In the beginning of Unit One it quickly becomes apparent that there are many difficulties involved in being a carer. The difficulty that stood out the most to me was the fact that many carers feel they have little choice when it comes to decision making in regards to who will ca re for the family member in question.We are made aware almost immediately that Ann was expected to take over the role of her deceased mother six years earlier, as the woman of the house and that a previous deathbed promise bound her to Angus. Ann, along with many other carers feel a strong sense of ‘Family Duty’ when it comes to caring for a relation, this is made clear to us later on in Unit One when we hear the views of other carers with ‘disabled’ children – clearly described to us during activity 11 by Tahir’s mother who says ‘They are your children and you have to look after them’.Moral standing isn’t the only difficulty with being a carer – physical and emotional exhaustion can often be seen in these care situations – reaching a peak called ‘Carers Overload’ as seen in Activity 6 – usually a crisis occurs which seems to make carers realise how much pressure they have been dealing with , it is typically not until this point that those carers seek help, if ever at all.Many carers, just like Ann, have to leave work to become full time carers for their parents/siblings/children/spouse which can cause huge financial worries for those families – a good example I have of this came from Activity 12 when I looked closely at a care situation which was ‘closer to home’ – Robert Shire, cared for his wife for 2 years while she battled terminal cancer, had they still lived within the UK their financial worries would have been considerably less, but 5 years previously hey had emigrated to the Philippines. Being out of work and under huge financial pressure including costs for medical care such as Chemotherapy and numerous operations caused Robert high amounts of anxiety and stress on top of the other feelings and emotions that come with being a carer, not only were the financial issues a burden for him – but he also became very isolated during this time, with nobody to help him apart from the Doctor who visited once a week and the staff at the hospital they regularly had to visit.Thankfully within the UK, if someone is willing to accept the ‘Label’ and meet the strict requirements they can claim Carers Allowance, which gives them ? 58. 45p/w (Direct Gov 2012) and can help towards any direct needs of the carer. When becoming a carer, many have experienced unprecedented stress, which, before having been a carer they would never have imagined – and when caring becomes harder than what was initially expected, those carers feel as if they are at a loss in regards to what to do or where to turn.We have seen during Unit One that caring is often frightening, especially when accidents happen like when Ann and Angus fell down the stairs whilst she was trying to help him alone, escaping injury Ann was seen to reflect on this incident when she told Angus later ‘it could’ve killed us both’. Alon g with accidents, carers are forced to recognise the fact that the person they are caring for are not of the capability they used to be and in a lot of situations – especially with the elderly, are likely to become worse meaning the responsibility put on them will become greater and the work they do, harder.In many family care situations there is a considerable amount of support lacking and many of these people aren’t made aware of the outside help that they are entitled to receive – when Ann visited the Doctor she was given anti-depressants yet no information about where she could go for help with her father. Support within the family unit can also be in short supply since the stresses put onto the carers themselves causes change within the family relationships altering the dynamics at which those families work.Bob, Ann’s husband is often seen leaving the family home due to arguments. In Activity 11 Sushma’s sister quoted that her family said â₠¬Ëœwhy did you bring her? Why did you bring her? ’ highlighting the lack of moral support within the family as a unit. Although we have picked up on many difficulties faced by carers, there are some rewards which many carers feel are worth the struggles. Although there isn’t much Angus can do in terms of helping Ann anymore – he is providing a house for her and her family to live in free of charge, removing at least one financial burden.Reciprocity isn’t always actively seen in care relationships – but when asked if his care was ever reciprocated Robert quoted ‘We both did what we signed up for when we married and looked after each other when care was needed, in the past Elizabeth has cared for me just as I did her’ this is very similar to Jessica’s account of her own family when she says that her sister used to reciprocate her brother in law, when she was well.There is also often a sense of closeness between the person caring a nd those being cared for – since many times Robert was thanked for all that he did and reminded he was loved and appreciated regularly – Angus also reminds Ann of this when he says about her being his favourite and about how he loves her smile.Reflecting back upon Unit One I think it is fair to say that from the outside there seems to be many more difficulties associated with being a carer than there are rewards but on a personal level these may not seem so obvious, in the grand scheme of things there does seem to be a lot of help available albeit that it may take a lot of perseverance to receive. It is difficult to know all the difficulties and rewards of being a carer as a whole when there are so many different families caring – with different circumstances, backgrounds and views.I hope this essay has helped to highlight just a few of the difficulties that come with being a carer – and reiterated that all isn’t as it seems to the outside eyes. Wo rd Count: 1200 References DirectGov (Online) (www. directgov. co. uk) K101 introduction to health and social care (Who cares? : 1) Activity 11 Page 44 Activity 6 Page 29 & DVD Material K101. Activity 12 ‘Your family’ Page 46 – Robert Shire. Activity 1 – DVD Material K101 – an incident on the stairs .

Friday, September 13, 2019

Close Relationships Sometimes Mask Poor Communication Essay

Close Relationships Sometimes Mask Poor Communication - Essay Example 3). One strongly believes that this phenomenon, the closeness-communication bias is significantly manifested in most close interpersonal relationships in contemporary times due to the preconceived notion that closeness is synonymous with understanding what the other person really intends to relate. In one’s personal experience, there is a feeling of complacency that closeness between spouses or friends is actually indicative of knowing what the other person needs or wants – even prior to communicating the message. However, one was surprised to find out from the study that this notion is untrue. When one searched further on the closeness-communication bias, the research study conducted by Savitsky, Keysar, Epley, Carter, and Swanson (2011) entitled â€Å"The closeness-communication bias: Increased egocentrism among friends versus strangers† and published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, the findings included the element of egocentrism, defined as â€Å"the philosophy or attitude of considering oneself the center of the universe† (The Free Dictionary, 2012, p. 1). The outcome of the study indicated that â€Å"egocentrism increases when one interacts with close friends—individuals who are assumed to be similar to oneself, and f or whom one may therefore relax efforts to correct an initial, egocentric default† (Savitsky, Keysar, Epley, Carter, & Swanson, 2011, p. 272). This is a surprising revelation because at it explains, taking one’s understanding that the other person knows more about oneself contributed to the perception that the other person actually understands more than what is actually being communicated. In response, therefore, to the following questions: (1) Have you ever had a miscommunication with someone close to you simply because you assumed that they understood you? What happened? The answer is yes. A close friend was usually assigned to do powerpoint presentations in academic projects. When

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Buddhist Ethics and Emotivism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Buddhist Ethics and Emotivism - Essay Example I was introduced to the dos and don’ts of the family at a very tender age and; by the time I went to grade one, I was aware of the acceptable forms of behaviour in the family and I had embraced my family’s ethical viewpoint. In the school, our teachers also orientated us to the school’s code of conduct which prohibited any form of indiscipline. So, throughout my primary school study years, I had never doubted the rationality of the ethics that I had been introduced to by my parents and my teachers. The turning point in the journey of the development of my ethical viewpoint came when I went to High School. In High school, I met students who had completely different moral view points from the one I had. For instance, while as a child I had been taught that stealing is unethical under all circumstances. In High School, however, I met some students who believed that stealing is morally justifiable under some circumstance. These students made me to rethink my moral worldview and to ask myself some hard questions. For instance, I asked myself whether stealing really is unethical under all circumstances. As I was reflecting on these questions, all my pens were stolen most probably by my fellow classmates who did not see anything wrong with stealing; I had carelessly left my pens on the table when they were stolen. This event presented a real moral dilemma to me. This is because before going to High School, my parents had strictly warned me against losing any of the stationery that they had bought me; my parents had warned me that if I lose the stationery, through carelessness, they wouldnâ €™t buy me any other. So, I was faced with the moral dilemma of whether to steal another pen from my classmates, or to lie to my parents that it was not through carelessness that I had lost the pens so that they could buy me other pens. Eventually, I chose the lesser evil, i.e. to lie to my parents so that they could buy

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Working Groups and Teams Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Working Groups and Teams - Essay Example Within that group, teams may be formed to achieve specific tasks in the way of achievement of the overall goal of the group. Group is a larger term as compared to a team. Another fundamental difference between a group and a team is that individual members of a group do not need to have concern with the achievement of the other members of the group whereas people forming part of a team have concern with and are affected by the performance of other members of the team. Challenges of communicating in a team are more than those in a group. Groups normally have a well-established and organized system of communication. There is a process through which message is conveyed and received, e.g. through emails or letters. The challenge of communication in a group is that it is more time consuming as compared to communication in a team. For example, let’s suppose the member of a political group writes a letter to the chairman of the party. The chairman might take long to reply. On the other hand, people working in a team are generally in constant connection with one another. Even if they are working separately at different places, they communicate through cell phones. Since the performance of one team-member affects that of all others, team-members are concerned to maintain constant contact with one another. However, communication in a team is very challenging since the team-members develop friction among one another while constantly working together. â€Å"Conflicting goals can quickly turn into personal dislike† (Mind Tools, 2012). Team members become agitated, develop attitude problems, and enter into dysfunctional conflicts. These team members avoid talking to one another and if they have to, there is always a risk that the conversation might end up in an argument. Effective collaboration within teams is more difficult to achieve as compared to the groups. The leader of the group can generate a

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Relaxation and Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Relaxation and Learning - Essay Example It is in these instances when learning a lesson or analyzing data from work necessitates the conditioning of a calm, open mind. There is thus nothing like getting one’s self into a relaxed, tranquil disposition in order to make the most out of a learning or thinking activity. Coming from a particularly taxing workday and before tackling the books for the next day’s lesson, I look forward to a warm soak in the tub. The lukewarm water and moisturizing suds not only wash off the day’s dirt and grime, but also its worries and consternations. A good 15 minute soak, coupled with measured deep breathing, feels like what a baby probably feels while it is in its mother’s womb; warm, secure, floating in perfect quietude. And maybe, some soft music and the scent of aromatic candles are welcome additions to soothe the other senses. At least three days in the week, I don running shoes and take a morning jog around the neighbourhood or in the park. There is nothing like the rhythmic pounding of concrete and a cool evening (or morning) breeze on your face as you savor the sights, sounds and smells of the neighbourhood/park. Running, for some reason or another, helps you sort your thoughts and think through problems, so that after a good run the world seems right again. At times when soaking in the tub or jogging in the park are not just practicable, I find that creating a mental picture or remembering an inspirational line helps put things in perspective and prepares me for heightened concentration. My favourite mental picture is that of gently rolling waves lapping the shore of a beach deserted but for a few people: white sand, blue sea, reclining chair, tall glass of iced tea in hand. This technique is useful for minute-long â€Å"mental vacations† to quickly get one into the proper mental frame for learning. Even during the process of learning, there is sometimes need to resort to quick calming techniques especially

Monday, September 9, 2019

Marketing Strategy and Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing Strategy and Planning - Essay Example Many organizations apply marketing concepts like customer focus, good value, quality service and efficient exchange mechanism for satisfying customer need and wants. Organizations based on management information about customers, products, prices, competitors, suppliers and every aspects of the marketing environment are bound to move ahead. 'Marketing' belongs to marketing specialists but 'going to market' is a process owned by everyone in the organization.Due to expansion of new technologies, organizations augmented their geographical reach and could share their information about philosophy, products, and prices to their consumers. Organizations could collect information about markets, customers, prospects and competitors etc., conduct market researches and identify their focus groups. Marketers can customize offerings, services and messages to individual customers due to Internet services. Organizations can significantly improve logistics and cost efficiency while improving accuracy and services quality through the online exchange of information's, orders, transaction, payments etc. So the present information revolution pushed every organization to remain accurate in levels of production, improve their quality, pricing their products properly. Products innovation takes a close look at customers' need and preferences and modify accordingly. Marketing takes a sweet spot in the present organizations." Marketing is too important to leave to the marketing department."(Bill Packard, Hewlett Packard, in Piercy, 1997) Marketing cannot be leave alone to marketing dept. only. Basically, Marketing deals with identifying and meeting human and social needs. Marketing is "meeting need profitably" (Kotler, 2003). Organizations must carefully monitor their customers and competitors, continuously, improve their value offerings, carefully define the target market and value proposition and take a long term view to satisfying customers, stockholders, employees, suppliers and channel partners. The most important marketing definition given by the American Marketing Association (1995) provide us the complete marketing management process i.e. "Marketing (Management) is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational goals". Marketing management is the conscious effort to achieve desired exchange outcomes with target markets. The ever changing situation of the market i.e. of buyers, suppliers, customers, employees or technological could change the equilibrium of any organization. Organizations normally adjust to these changes by changing their overall all-round policies and strategies. Any process cannot be successful without proper planning. Market oriented strategic planning provides, the managerial process of developing and maintaining a viable fit between organizations objectives, skills and resources and it changing market opportunities. The aim of strategic planning in to shape the company's business, products, services and messages so they achieve targeted profits and growth. Strategic marketing deals with the bigger picture in a market which links customers, competitors and organizations ability to meet demand. Strategic marketing plan covers the following key areas i.e. Aims and mission, Analysis, Goals, strategies, objectives timescales etc. To define mission, organization should address Peter D rucker's (1973) classical questions: What is our business Who are the customers What is of value to the customer What will our business be What should our business be Successful organizations continuously raise these questions and answer them thoughtfully and thoroughly. Strategic marketing planning could be based on different strategic models such as Boston Consulting Group (BCG) model and General Electric Model (Kerin, Mahajan, Varadrajan, 1990), PESTLE and SWOT analysis, Porters five forces model, Core Competency model, Porters

Sunday, September 8, 2019

Cloning in General and Ethics of Cloning Thesis

Cloning in General and Ethics of Cloning - Thesis Example Philosophers have a different point-of-views with regards to the practice of human cloning. In line with this, several philosophers such as the case of Julian Savulescu, Gregory E. Pence, and Nicholas Agar are in support of human cloning practices. On the other hand, philosophers like Leon Richard Kass strongly oppose the practice of biotechnology or human cloning. For instance, a Romania-Australian bioethicist and philosopher named Julian Savulescu published some of his writings in order to argue that the use of stem cell research should be highly promoted regardless of whether or not a person would consider an embryo as a human being. Savulescu argued that parents should be given the opportunity to choose the best child a married couple can have through the study of genetic information. Furthermore, Savulescu explained that the process of killing some embryos can be justifyiable given that the said action could benefit more people in the future (Wilkinson, Kahane and Horne; Kahane and Savulescu). Even though this particular biotechnology would mean killing an embryo or a fetus, Savulescu concludes that embryonic stem cell research should be justified because this process could eventually help the adults have more opportunity for tissue or organ transplantation whenever necessary.An expert in medical ethics and a philosophy professor at the University of Alabama in Birmingham named Gregory E. Pence is one of the few bioethicists who strongly supports the practice of human cloning (Pence).

Saturday, September 7, 2019

Anemia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Anemia - Research Paper Example This condition affects the amount of oxygen that is delivered to the body’s organs as hemoglobin is responsible for the aforementioned process and thus it is essential that individuals suffering from this disease attain medical care as soon as possible to avoid the onset of hypoxia. Anemia is one of the most common blood disorders found in individuals (WHO 2008). There are three main ways that an individual can end suffering from anemia as a result. They include excessive blood loss which can be caused by a hemorrhage (acute blood loss) or low volume loss (which occurs chronically). This will result in an individual not having enough red blood cells in their system and thus cause the onset of anemia. The second process through which the disease can manifest is via hemolysis (Kumar et. al 2007). This refers to the excessive destruction of the blood cells. This includes the red blood cells and therefore can cause anemia as a result (WHO 2008). The third process involves the lack of adequate production of red blood cells in the body also known as inadequate hematopoiesis. The body may not be able to produce enough red blood cells which could well lead to anemia as a result if this deficiency is not fixed (Aapro & Link, 2008). ... al 2007). As a result, the disease has gone undetected by many individuals who do not recognize the signs until their conditions worsen and the resulting symptoms get worse. Some of the symptoms that can be seen in an individual suffering from anemia include: Fatigue – This can be said to be one of the most common symptoms in individuals suffering from anemia and individuals may find themselves feeling weak on a regular basis despite the amount of rest they have had (WHO 2008). This feeling of malaise can be ignored by many as simple tiredness and can be referred to as one of the minor signs. Shortness of breath – An individual suffering from anemia may also find that they are always short of breath after brief moments of physical exertion that may not warrant such a reaction by the body (WHO 2008). This is as a result of the body not being able to carry sufficient amounts of oxygen to organs such as the lungs. Increased cardiac output – In the more severe cases of anemia the body may try to counteract the effects of reduced amounts of oxygen being transported through out the body through increasing its cardiac output. This means that the heart may work harder to deliver the required amounts of oxygen and as a result an individual may experience related symptoms as a result such as palpitations (WHO 2008). Medical Interventions There are a number of interventions that an individual can turn to in order to deal with this condition, some of these include: Iron supplementation – Those who may be suffering from anemia as a result of an iron deficiency can solve the condition through supplementing the iron lacking in

Justice for Lena Essay Example for Free

Justice for Lena Essay Lena Baker was a black woman who endured a horrendous ordeal during her life. Born in a small town in Georgia, Lena lived with her mother and three children. Accused of murdering her employer Ernest Knight, Lena Baker alleged that he verbally and physically abused her. Keeping her as a prisoner, Lena yearned for freedom and sought many avenues to obtain it. Ernest Knight was a white man, a local gristmill owner who was determined to keep Lena not only as an employee, but also as a sexual partner. Lena came to work for Knight originally hired by his son to help with chores as he recovered from a broken leg. However, from Knight’s point of view she was there to take care of all his needs. In this paper you will get the chance to walk in Lena’s shoes. I will attempt to tell her story through magazine articles, books, newspaper articles and other research. You will see that in the end Lena’s life no matter how terrible it was, it wasn’t all in vain, and still today she is remembered for her last heartfelt words and calm disposition. Ulysia Gayle Julie Warner English December 3, 2012 Justice for Lena Lena Baker was a black woman born with three strikes against her. The first was that she was born in the south. The second was that she was born black. The third was that she was born poor. She was a black woman born in a small town in Georgia. She lived with her mother and three children and later moved five miles southwest of Cuthbert Georgia. Lena was no stranger to crime nor was she a stranger to hard work. Looking for work she acquired a job for a local gristmill owner named Ernest Knight. Knight needed a caregiver due to a broken leg. He needed help with household chores and meals, and Lena needed money. She procured the job with intentions of a business relationship only. However, Knight had other things in mind. Their relationship eventually became sexual on many occasions without Lena’s consent. The introduction of verbal and physical abuse soon followed. Threats against her safety as well as her children and mother were used to keep Lena at bay. She complied with Kni ght sexually but during this time (1940) relationships of that nature between blacks and whites were prohibited. Making several escapes, Knight would find Lena, even going to her home during peak hours on numerous occasions to take her and do with her as pleased. Later during this forbidden relationship Ernest Knight’s son as well as the town learned of its meaning and taunted Lena for it, although Knight was the aggressor. Lena was eventually assaulted by Knight’s son, beaten so critically that she needed time to recover herself. Shortly afterwards she was jailed for the same relationship. Fed up with the abuse, Lena wanted desperately to return home, but Knight begged the differ. Imprisoned she knew she was fighting for her life, despite the threats she and Knight entered into battle over a gun which Knight was eventually shot. Panicked and afraid Lena fled the scene. She eventually turned herself in with hopes that all would work in her favor. Needless to say although the town knew of this relationship, no one said anything in Lena’s defense. No one came to Lena’s rescue. There was no justice for Lena. A black woman accused of murdering a white man didn’t stand a chance no matter the circumstances. Lena soon went on trial. The trial convened on August 14, 1944, at the courthouse in Randolph County under the jurisdiction of Judge Charles William Two Gun Worrill, who presided at court with two pistols on the bench. In her testimony, Baker described how Knight locked her in the mill house while he went to a church singing. When he returned, he brought her something to eat but refused to let her leave, she said. When she insisted on going home, the two began to argue, and Knight brandished an iron bar that was used to lock the door. Baker said she feared for her life and attempted to push past Knight to leave. As she did, Knight was shot through the head. Baker testified that she walked immediately to the house of J. A. Cox (the county coroner and a man for whom she had done fieldwork) and told him that she had killed Ernest Knight, (Lela Phillips, Andrew College, Published 12/09/2005). The jury consisted of twelve white men (not unusual for 1944), but many of the jurors were good friends who attended the same small churches, socialized with each other’s families at card parties, and shared morning coffee at a local cafe. (Justice Denied, THE MAGAZINE FOR THE WRONGLY ACCUSED, Issue 29 – Summer 2005, Page 8). Found guilty of murder in less than 6 hours, Lena received the death penalty as her sentence, earning Lena Baker a place in history as the first and only woman to be sentenced to death by electric chair in the state Georgia, (Netflix, lenabakerthemovie.com 2008). On March 5th 1945, after being held in a prison in Reidsville GA, she was executed but not before saying these last words calmly. â€Å"What I done, I did in self- defense, or I would have been killed myself. I am ready to meet my God.† She was pronounced dead after six minutes and several shocks as her family mourned. (Albany Herald, Closure for The Baker Family, August 30th 2012). In 2005 Baker was granted a full and unconditional pardon by the State of Georgia, 60 years after her execution. The movie â€Å"The Lena Baker Story,† is about her life. Her nephew, Roosevelt Curry, received the papers pardoning Baker posthumously. The pardon stated the 1945 decision to deny her clemency and execute her was â€Å"a grievous error†. Baker was buried in the Vernon Missionary Baptist Church cemetery in Coleman where she is currently resting in peace. Unfortunately, neither her mother nor her children lived to see that one day there would be Justice for Lena. (Albany Herald, Closure for The Baker Family, August 30th 2012). Work Cited Phillips, Lela. â€Å"The New Georgia Encyclopedia, History and Archaeology.† The Lena Baker Case. Andrew College, Published 12/09/2005. Phillips, Lela. â€Å"Justice Denied†: THE MAGAZINE OF THE WRONGLY ACCUSED. Issue 29- Summer 2005, Page 8. Wilcox, Ralph. â€Å"Netflix, thelenabakermovie.com.† Hope and Redemption. 2008. Phillips, Bond Lela. â€Å"The Black Commentator.† Execution In A Small Town. Andrew College Cuthbert GA. The Albany Herald, Closure For The Baker Family. Issue August 30th, 2012

Friday, September 6, 2019

Toyota Case Essay Example for Free

Toyota Case Essay 1) For a long time there has been an alignment of Toyota vision with both Japanese culture and national and international stakeholders. This alignment can be seen in our opinion according two different perspectives: from the innovation activity and from the social responsibility (attention for environment). Referring to the innovation of the product process, Toyota has always been one of the leader in creating high-level cars both from mechanical and electronic aspect as it is typical of Japanese economy. The Japanese business is traditionally known at a global level for its profitable performance concerning the management of electronic and mechanical activities. From this point of view there was a perfect alignment between internal and the external vision. In relation to social responsibilty, the Japanese culture shows a great concern on energy conservation and environment, that is the reason why Toyota has traditionally supported these aspects in the car production process. In 1998, Toyota received an important award for the production of Prius ( the world’s first passenger vehicle in mass production powered by a third power train system). The introduction of Prius in the market, allowed the company to make a clear statement on its commitment of environmental protection. During the following years, the company gained many awards and leader position in environmental technology field. Recently, in relation to these two perspectives of analysis, a misalignment can be verified for the following three reasons: 1) Toyota has focused too much on cost control and economies of scale, leaving out esthetic and design aspects, creating too much standardized cars ( a same kind of product all over the world). In this case we found the first gap because of the different expectations of the worldwide stakeholders in comparison with Japanese and Toyota culture , particularly talking about European customers who care about design much more than the others. 2) The strong attention on cost control and economies of scale policy , has created a lot of technical troubles that forced the company to recall a huge amount of cars from the market. As consequence the company lost a lot in term of reliability. Here we faced a gap between vision and image (In the vision they really support the safety part but the collective image is far from that). Considering the worldwide market and international stakeholders, we think that there has been a misalignment on American customers who are interested in technical aspects more than esthetics. The final point of the misalignment has been caused by the exaggerated focus on energetic conservation, so the company produced no high performing cars in order to satisfy international customer’s requirement. For instance, in 2009, Toyota had so poor performance in F1 that the company decided to withdraw from F1 with immediately effect. In order to address this GAP, we believe that Toyota should: first of all, adapt his products to international market, giving special consideration to esthetics and design. be more focused on customer’s requests, that consist in high performing and environmentally friendly cars at the same time. Moreover, since the break problem that obliged Toyota to recall a big amount of cars from the market. 2) We would change the communication strategy into the following two directions: a) A traditional way, based on incentive messages focused on energy conservation connected to the concept of safety and brightness cars, in order to retrieve the loss of company credibility. A lot of marketing activities can be organized such as: o planning amateur competitions that involve young people with their own cars at an international level; o planning events or competition characterized by the participation of sport champions (like F1 drivers) o arrange Visitor Centers, based in the regional headquarter country, in order to give customers the chance to drive cars and to understand the topic of energy conservation o promote â€Å"green days† o partnership with environmental friendly organization (like WWF) b) An innovative way, using guerrilla or tribal marketing techniques. In several ways such as: o Use social networks for empowering the costumers to decide on specific aspects as internal design, colors, extra services, [†¦] of their cars offer. Doing this thing, they will be available to focus on the costumer and not only on the product as they always did. o During holydays such as Easter or Christmas, make people drive specific cars by organizing spectacular race trucks, enriched by music and light effects. The event should be introduced by well-known personalities, as signers, actors, sportsmen. o Promote musical or sport-events for young people, such as concerts, championships and matches. o Create partnerships with tour-operators to promote specific cars during adventures trips, like safari. o Transform their headquarter in a tourist attraction, thanks to the partnership with local and international tour operator that promote day trip in the company. o using cars during appealing movies for young people (like Mini in ‘’The Italian Job’’) o Use amusement park as a stage for car shows, parades and games. 3) Most of the crisis response strategies applied in the report by Toyota, belong to reducing offensiveness category. Even if the company seems to be aware of its responsibility, it never used mortification quotations. In our opinion, the document we`ve analyzed, is characterized by the following strategies: MINIMIZATION: CORRECTIVE ACTION: GOOD INTENTIONS: 4) We can affirm Toyota acted in a good way in minimizing in order to not damage the company image more. Moreover they could have improved corrective actions and provide their customers with facilities, like substitutive-cars during the fixing period of the damaged ones. Even if they did well in minimizing the event, they could have shown more mortification, not only for the damage itself, but also for the waste of time and the other troubles related to it. They could also have adopted a denial strategy (shifting the blame) by giving responsibility to the specific divisions in charge of the production of defected components; consequently they could have renewed the responsible divisions or made an outsourcing agreement for that. Regarding the good intentions, they could have provided more detailed information about their future control and safety standards. Another good strategy, could have been ‘’attack the accusers’’, trying to focus on the main competitors that were taking advantage from their crisis. Finally, according to what we read in the case study, we`d have expected a more customer oriented behavior. ITALY According to Italy Toyota starter two different recall campaigns: the first one recalls 260. 000 cars with accelerator pedal problems and the second one 2500 Ibrid car with brake problem. In order to fix the first problem the company sent letters to the 26000 clients involved in this problem; the letters contained all the information regarding how to get the appointment with the car retailer in order to fix the problem (fixing time about 30 minutes). The second recall concerned the Prius models which had some ABS problems on 2500cars; they used the same technique and the time to fix took about 40 minutes. Toyota provided an assistance number(gratis): 800 869 682 available 24h/7d, useful to know if the car is involved in the problem and to know technical details. The A. D. of Toyota Motor Italy, Massimo Gargano, stated â€Å" Toyota as a world leader for sales volume and quality reputation has to accept to be criticize facing this problem. We have to underline that the company decide to recall all the car just to satisfy our costumers expectations and make them sure about the safety of the product†, he also underline that â€Å"regarding the accelerator pedal problem we chose to recall 1. 800. 000 cars even if only 26 really faced this problem† . CONTACTS: Edoardo Caccin Valentina Cruciani Carminia Lucariello Lucrezia Zambelli Marco Zavatta [emailprotected] com [emailprotected] com [emailprotected] it lucr3zia. [emailprotected] com dott. [emailprotected] com.

Thursday, September 5, 2019

The Coca Cola Company Marketing Essay

The Coca Cola Company Marketing Essay 1.1 An overview of the company: The Coca-Cola Company (TCCC) is the worlds largest manufacturer, licensor and distributor of non alcoholic beverages with over 500 brands worldwide. TCCC is a global behemoth and its presence spans over 200 countries with its head office based in Atlanta, USA. (thecoca-colacompany.com) The product portfolio covers over 3000 different beverages ranging from its flagship brand Coca-Cola, water, fruit juices, sport drinks to coffee including all types of non-alcoholic beverages (thecoca-colacompany.com). TCCC owns four out of the five biggest soft drink brands in the world namely Coca-cola, Diet coke, Sprite and Fanta.(Data Monitor,2009)According to the brand ranking by Interbrand, the company‘s brand value was worth USD $ 68,734 million in 2009. 1.2 TCCC in UK: Coca Cola entered UK in 1900 with its flagship brand, Coca-cola in late august when Charles Candler (owner of Coca-Cola then) brought a jug of syrup with him on a visit to London. TCCC has since then evolved into an international heavyweight backed by national partners. The companys presence in UK is represented by a management strategy that it calls the ‘Coca Cola System which is a combination of two separate companies-Coca-Cola Great Britain (CCGB) and the Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd (CCE). They serve different roles in the production-sales process of Coca-Cola and the other brands that fall under it. CCGB is a wholly owned subsidiary of TCCC responsible for marketing and development whereas CCE, an independent public company manufactures and distributes its products. CCEs product portfolio in 2007 included 20 brands and 100 products such as Coca-cola, Diet coke, Minute Maid, Powerade and so on. (Coca-cola.co.uk) 1.3 Diet Coke Diet Coke was introduced in USA for the very first time in 1982. Following its success, the brand then came to UK a year later. It was positioned as a lighter, sugar-free variant of Coca-Cola with a new advertising theme â€Å"just for the taste of it†. (dietcoke.com) Diet coke is now a international product available in over 173 countries and has a large loyal customer base who love the product. The success story continues till today. Diet Coke has various extensions in its product offerings such as Caffeine-free Diet Coke, Diet coke Lemon, Diet Coke Cherry etc. Diet coke celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2007 with the product accounting for a 40% share of the global diet sparkling beverage segment. (dietcoke.com) 2.0 Perception: 2.1 Semiotics in Advertising: When a consumer looks at an advert, he/she derives a certain meaning from it. To this purpose, marketers use a set of symbols or maybe even one that develops into a meaningful statement that the consumer relates to the product. And to achieve this meaning, the symbols have to precise, direct and should evoke a mental response to the imagery within. To understand how effectively symbols can be used is vital in marketing. For this, marketers turn to a field of study called semiotics which focuses on the co-relation between signs and symbols and their role in shaping a meaningful understanding by an observer. From a semiotic perspective, every marketing message has three components; An object; the product A symbol; the image/ statement that serves as an extension to the product. The interpretant; the message or the meaning derived from the advert. This relationship is described as the semiotic triangle. In relation to marketing activities, the advertising strategy incorporates semiotic symbolism by creating a relationship between the product and the desired attribute of the product. This strategy is usually long term as the message is constant and repetition helps to reinforce the meaning to the consumers. 2.2. Diet Coke Campaign-â€Å"Hello you†. Diet coke has changed its marketing focus to appeal to its female audience (FT, 2009). To this effect, the marketing team at CCE has been adapting its advertising approach and overall appeal to suit its target market appropriately. The latest campaign rolled out for Diet Coke is a multi-million push titled â€Å"hello you† featuring award winning Welsh singer Duffy, as a independent, confident woman who takes control of her life. As part of the campaign, outdoor publicity in the form of posters with the tagline Im no superwoman has also been advertised extensively (Image 2). The campaign on the whole â€Å"aims to represent confident young women taking a stand against the pressure of modern life†. (The Guardian 2009) The ads feature Duffy, 24 year old Welsh singing sensation who became a household name after clinching three Grammy awards including ‘Best British Female Solo Artist this year. The main advertisement is a 60-second TV advert. Duffy is seen taking a break during a live concert where the crowd asks her for an encore. But she gets onto to a bike cycles around for a bit whilst breaking into a cover of the hit song by Sammy Davis Juniors â€Å"I Gotta Be Me†. And yes, she takes a sip of diet coke before returning back to the stage to perform. This campaign marks a significant shift in Diet cokes marketing which in recent years saw the revival of the classic ‘Hunk advert in 2007. According to a company press release on the campaign, Catherin Sleight, Coca-Cola GBs marketing director, stated that the campaign aimed to show strong independent women taking control and saying no the pressures of modern day life.(coca-cola.co.uk) 2.3 Semiotic symbolism in the â€Å"hello you† TV advert: The semiotic symbolism is quite direct and tries to appeal to the ‘independent women that Diet coke wants to focus its marketing on. The campaign as a whole gives light to liberating women from pressures of modern- day life as explained by the marketing director for Coca-Cola GB ; Catherin Sleight. (18) The symbolism behind this advert can be represented with the semiotic triangle as given; Object/product Sign/Meaning: Message: 2.3.1. The Object/Product- Diet coke The product in itself is a global icon as it is one of the most recognizable brands in the world. It has been rated as the number one drink in the diet non-alcoholic beverage sector with a market share 0f 40% globally. The brand visibility is high globally being available in 173 countries as of 2007.The can and logo thus combines to produce brand recognition by any consumer viewing this advert. 2.3.2 Sign The message speaks for itself and is not rather complicated. There are two elements in the ‘sign leading to the creation of a meaning that the target consumer can relate to. The first element is the celebrity who endorses the product. Duffy has become a household name in Britain as well as internationally having won quite a few awards including three prestigious ‘Brit awards and a Grammy award (iamduffy.com). Cathryn Sleight, marketing director of Coca-Cola GB has reflected on the endorsement by saying that â€Å"Duffy as a young woman, who is in charge of her own destiny, perfectly embodies the independent attitude were championing† (coca-cola.co.uk). This could resonate well with their target market as she signifies independence and opportunism that women enjoy in todays world. The second element is the audio track used in the advert and its lyrics. It is a cover sung by Duffy of the old classic hit I gotta be me made famous by Sammy Davis Junior. It has a simple but moving depth to it that reflects well on a listener. It strongly reflects the new diet Coke campaign which celebrates womens right to express their individuality and take control. 2.3.3 The message: The advertisement gives out a strong message that tells the target consumer that Diet coke can you set free if you are an independent, ambitious young woman like Duffy. The advert along with the lyrics and the celebrity completes this meaning forming a symbolic message to the target female segment. 2.4 Evaluation: This television advert has a nice feminine touch to its portrayal and along with the lyrics drive the meaning home for consumers. Duffys voice is quite endearing and catchy adding to the recall value of this advert. Diet coke has used the study of semiotics to represent a deep meaning that most women can relate to. The product has successfully moved away from the ‘naughty girl staring at hunk to a more personal independent woman image. Diet cokes advertisement can further help the brand to establish a personal relationship with its consumers. 3. Reference Groups 3.1 Reference Groups A reference group is†an an actual or imaginary individual or group conceived of having significant relevance upon an individuals evaluations, aspirations or behaviour†. (Lessig Park1978) In terms of marketing, reference groups are relevant as they can provide important social cues that give insight into particular behavioral trends and associations with buying behavior. These cues extend to form an influence that is termed as ‘social power. Types of social power include information power, referent power, referent power, legitimate power, expert power, reward power and coercive power. Diet coke marketing utilizes the concept of social power in its new campaign using the referent power model. Referent power is the social power of a reference group that motivates a consumer to aspire to emulate the same behavioural patterns portrayed by the individual or group. This also leads to influencing the consumers purchase decisions. (Solomon 2008) 3.2 The Diet Coke Rebellion Diet coke has partnered with Company, a leading womens publication as part of its ‘Hello you campaign to motivate young women to join a rebellion against the pressures they face in a modern world. Company has a readership of 574,000 within the target segment. (NRS 2009) This partnership widens Diet cokes marketing to reach its target audience more effectively. The first issue of the ‘Rebel issue as it is called premiered in May and was designed exclusively keeping the target segments interests in mind. To maintain the campaigns visibility, two more issues were released in July and October. The magazine focused on topics of particular interest to women such as celebrity gossip, beauty tips, fashion etc with the rebel touch. This campaign was also supported by extensive online marketing through the cokezone website as well as getlippy.com. The campaign was designed as a follow-up to the Duffy advert encouraging independent women to break free of all the pressures they faced and to rebel against prejudices present in the modern day world in a positive manner. 3.3 The referent effect on Diet coke target market. Particular reference groups tend to have identifiable characteristics and unique forms of symbolic purchasing behavior, market segmentation in terms of such group characteristics as degree of exclusivity and formality is a useful means of pinpointing appropriate segment (Leigh et al 1992).Therefore the referent power of Diet Cokes target segment is further simplified as common behavioural characteristics are present in their target- female consumers. The cover story was the new face of Diet coke, Duffy the singing sensation and her rebellious ways helping women to identify with her as person more than a celebrity. Furthermore, the magazine established a common ground for the Diet cokes target segment to relate to their rebellious side. Diet coke thus engaged directly with its target audience reflecting its link with their lives with this tie-up. This encourages their consumers to relate to and emulate characteristics of the referent group- the modern women who wants to break free and be themselves. 3.4 Evaluation: In terms of referent power, the tie-up with Company magazine was an ideal choice. High readership of the magazine within Diet Cokes target segment would add to the success of this campaign. Diet cokes efforts to communicate it with its core target consumers will work provided that the PR activities support the marketing. Diet Coke has added value to its image with this partnership appealing to the hedonic side of young women. The cover story with Duffy is an excellent source of referent power especially with her star status as an award winning singer. 4. Motivation Involvement 4.1 Involvement Involvement is the degree of influence that a brand has over a consumer and how it motivates them to form a strong bond with the brand. It can be either cognitive or physical and the factors that affect it differ from one consumer to the other. The degree of involvement i.e. high or low, will determine the motivational drive of a consumer to connect with a brand and its marketing activities. It can be broadly classified into three classifications; Product Involvement, Message- Response Involvement, Purchase Situation Involvement. (Solomon 2008) Message- Response Involvement† refers to the consumers interest in processing marketing communications.† (Solomon: p168) It is also known as advertising involvement. Marketers try to involve consumers to participate in the exchange of marketing information and publicity through various media outlets utilizing this model of involvement. To this effect, they experiment with ways to increase consumer involvement by testing various approaches such as contests, reward schemes and so on. To appeal to the growing number of mobile phone users, marketers use mobile phones as a tool to get them to participate in the advertisement. This method of marketing is known as interactive mobile marketing. The content and method of advertising ranges from the simple text message format to a graphic website interface that consumers can access through internet on their mobile devices. Diet coke has utilized the message-response type of involvement through the use of interactive mobile marketing in its ‘Silver Room campaign. 4.2 Diet coke campaign- Silver Room The ‘Silver Room is an interactive mobile marketing campaign that was designed exclusively for Diet Cokes target segment of female consumers in the age group 16-24. Consumers logging onto the mobile website had access to content such as celebrity news, gossip, fashion, music, films, interactive games and more on their mobile phones. This campaign sought to involve the younger, tech-savvy female generation to connect with a brand whilst offering them content of value to them. The ‘diet Coke Silver Room is fronted by Australian singer Gabriella Cilmi, who is young and fits in well with the target audience.The campaigns content tries to appeal to young females who sought hedonic value in brands. It featured content and promotions born out of several key partnerships such as celebrity news from Heat magazine, fashion tips from Get Lippy, music with singer Gabriella Cilmi, film updates with Fox and Paramount, as well as environmental content from Green Thing. The highlight of its content was the Music Mobcast , a 2 minute voice call that covered music news and information in Gabriella Cilmis voice. The content is updated every three weeks. To access the ‘Mobcast consumers were asked to log onto the site, enter their number and receive a ‘Mobcast call. 4.3 Enhancing the level of Involvement : As Solomon (2008) suggests, marketers must enhance a consumers involvement in the marketing activity by using certain techniques such as appealing to hedonic needs, providing interesting stimuli, including celebrity endorsements or by building a personal relationship with the consumer. 4.4 Evaluation: The silver room campaign by Diet Coke has satisfied all the criteria with respect to enhancing the level of involvement of its target market. It appealed to the hedonic side of its young female consumers by its varied and value-added content. They also partnered with well known brands. The campaign prominently featured Gabriella Cilmi, a well-known female Australian singer who added value being a celebrity that young woman could relate to. This also adds to the image that Diet coke has built around music. Diet coke has also created a forum for their consumers to interact with each other and share their opinion as well as personal experiences thereby building a relationship with the consumers indirectly. The success of this campaign is yet to be seen as it was launched recently. Recommendations: Diet coke is one of the worlds top five best sellers in the non-alcoholic sparkling beverage sector. However, a news story published in the Financial Times has reported that the UK sales of Diet coke have fallen sharply despite their big budget advertising spend to reposition its offering to a female market(2009). It is recommended that Diet Coke must tackle a few issues that could be the problem behind this. A quick look at the figures comparing the number of unique visitors to cokezone- the UK website and dietcoke.com-its American counterpart has painted a dismal picture. It has been found that site traffic in to the cokezone website was considerably lesser than its American counterpart (refer appendix 2). It is recommended that an online portal designed for women in UK should be started to engage Diet cokes core consumer target. This would help them to relate better to the brands marketing activities. It would gradually enhance the involvement of the target market with the product. It is also recommended that brand should connect more personally with the consumer with the help of direct sales promotions, events for women. Diet coke in the US provides consumers with value added functions like cook shows, celebrity events on a regular basis on its website. It is recommended that a similar innovative campaign should be run in UK particularly appealing to the women here. An extension of the Silver room would be in the best interests of the brand. It has been noted in my research that silverroom.co.uk and dietcoke.co.uk still remains unofficial and unused. It is recommended that Diet Coke in UK must go beyond regular advertising and create another phenomenon like the ‘hunk advertisement. Conclusion: Coca-Cola is a global behemoth and the largest beverage company in the world (Interbrand 2009). This report has been directed towards analyzing and evaluating the aspects of consumer behaviour in relation to marketing. The report has scrutinized data with regard to Diet Coke, its main competitors such as Diet Pepsi, marketing activities and its response. Diet Coke spends extensively on its marketing and has created many a loyal fan amongst its consumer base worldwide. The new marketing strategy is sound but requires higher brand involvement from its chosen target consumers. Females consumers today are not entirely stereotypical, evolve continuously and not all women are lured by the idea of a rebellion. Diet Coke has to work on reworking its current marketing activities and attempt to connect to consumers more personally.