Japanese Animation and Identity Essay - 3705 Words

Japanese Animation and Identity In Orientalism, Edward Said claims that, â€Å"as much as the West itself, the Orient is an idea that has a history and a tradition of thought, imagery, and vocabulary that have given it reality and presence in and for the West† (5). The complex network of political, economical, academic, cultural, or geographical realities of the Orient called â€Å"Orientalism† is a way of coming to terms with the Orient, or to be less geographically specific, the Other. Although Said defines Orientalism to be specifically Franco-British experience in the Arab world, his basic arguments can be applied to the process of Othering in a more general sense. Especially his idea of â€Å"representation† plays a central role in the†¦show more content†¦In other words, not only construction but deconstruction of the dubious entity â€Å"Orient† require the West (the Orient’s agent) to speak for the Orient. Another problem is what Said calls â€Å"a triumph of Orientalism† (323) today, the major source of which is no longer Britain or France, but the United States, the democratically totalizing economy power. It means cultural domination on the one hand (â€Å"Orientals† educated in the United States repeat the Orientalist clichà ©), and economic absorption of poor nations on the other (consumerism in the Orient). A simple example Said takes up is â€Å"the paradox of an Arab regarding himself as an ‘Arab’ of the sort put out by Hollywood† (325). The Orient, in short, playacts its image as imagined by the West. This is far more problematic than the former form of Orientalism because the subject position of an â€Å"Oriental† is now realized only as the subject that (re-)presents itself as the Other before the Western eyes, as imagined by the West: and this Western gaze is what the Oriental subject identifies her/himself. It is disappointing in a sense that Said does not develop his arguments more than the idea that this phenomenon of cultural domination is only the Orient’sShow MoreRelatedBackground and Global Influence of Japanese animation1540 Words   |  7 Pagesthe biggest animation industry in the world. As an animation superpower, Japan has surpassed the United States in animation export and become the world’s largest exporter of animation (Guo, 2013). The globalization of Japanese animation has huge development in recent two decades. Animation brings huge economic benefits to Japan. This essay will research various aspects of Japanese animation, including background, global influences, differences between American and Japanese animation and cross-culturalRead MoreSouth Asian Popular Culture : A Cultural Phenomenon, And A Sphere Of Capitalist Activities892 Words   |  4 Pages T Over the past decades, an increasing amount of cultural products such as television dramas, movies, animations and pop music have gained immense popularity among Asian countries, especially in Mainland China since the Chinese economic reform in the early 1980s.   E Popular culture is often referred to as a ‘mass culture’, ‘a cultural phenomenon’ and ‘a sphere of capitalist activities’ (Fung, 2007; Chua, 2007), with the capacity to transcend national boundaries and delimitate political tensionsRead MoreWalt Disney Company Vs. Studio Ghibli1298 Words   |  6 PagesMarina Klimova Professor Stacy English 111 1 October 2017 The Walt Disney Company vs. Studio Ghibli What does a whistling mouse and a catlike bunny creature have in common? They are both the logos of two leading animation companies: the Walt Disney Company and Studio Ghibli. While Disney and Studio Ghibli vary in their style, production, and overall themes, they both produce award winning and adventurous movies for Western and Non-Western audiences alike. In 1928, the whistling Mickey Mouse in theRead MoreTranscultural Literature And Contemporary World Literature827 Words   |  4 Pagespressure to find new arrangements of form and content to adapt to a changed cultural and social paradigm. In other words, a mutation is under way within the global acumen of letters where new notions of belonging, as well as definitions of selfhood and identity are externalized through new creative artistic and literary processes. Within this emerging social, cultural, and literary scenario, scholars feel the urge to identify new relevant literary paradigms, especially when dealing with the so-called NewRead MoreAnalysis Of Howl s Moving Castle 1492 Words   |  6 PagesThe practice of animation has progressed substantially from its early days as simple parlour tricks to where it stands today. Now, capable of communicating complex themes and messages to their audiences, animated films have become one of the most popular forms of media to discuss soc ietal issues. Undoubtedly, one of the current masters of the craft is Hayao Miyazaki, of Studio Ghibli. Miyazaki’s films, while child-like in their appeal, are capable of touching upon greater social messages and themesRead MoreSocial, Economic And Political Doldrums1317 Words   |  6 PagesIdentity presence topic had been popular in the 90s when the Japanese had lost their identity and responsibility in the post-war. Finding out what represent oneself became the most important in the society so that people would not undeserved in the abstract, the utopia which they should not put their hope on the ideal. Satoshi Kon’s works were all released in the context of a Japan in the social, economic and political doldrums: a discursive situation that provides a point of reference for his civicRead MoreThe History of Art951 Words   |  4 PagesThe uniqueness of Japanese art, especially in terms of Chinese art, depends on the historical era. As Lee (1962) points out, There a re periods in Japanese art where the artist is either copying, or is heavily influenced by, Chinese art. At such times it can be said that Japanese art is a strong reflection of Chinese art, (p. 3). At other times, though, small differences between the arts of China and Japan are magnified to such an extent that they become fully developed and original styles, (LeeRead MoreMy Experience At My Life1620 Words   |  7 Pages When thinking about the next type of food I wanted to cook, I started to enjoy a different type of animation. I started watching a lot of Hayao Miyazaki as well as Bob Kuwahara and Makoto Shinkai. With this in mind, I wanted to know everything about authentic Japanese dishes. I wanted to recreate and relate my food to a new hobby and a new interest in my life. When researching different Japanese dishes I found it a tad difficult to find authentic dishes. It wasn’t until I researched a whole lotRead MoreDefining Value Added Animation to Promote Positive Liv ing Environment: a Critical Study of Upin and Ipin4134 Words   |  17 PagesDEFINING VALUE ADDED ANIMATION TO PROMOTE POSITIVE LIVING ENVIRONMENT: A CRITICAL STUDY OF UPIN AND IPIN Introduction The global animation industry is growing very fast, as practitioners, we are all caught up in the excitement of producing our own animated creations to keep abreast of trends and take advantage of the â€Å"hype†. However, there is a tendency to blindly follow animation styles that are already well established in popular culture. Located in Southeast Asia, Malaysia is strategically situatedRead MoreThe Globalization of Animated Features and the Merging of Cultures1030 Words   |  5 Pagesproducts in 112 countries† that held approximately â€Å"87 percent of the world’s population† (Anonymous). Additionally, in 2010, the anime-related market in North America region made around $2 billion, though this so-called anime is not a hundred percent Japanese. It was influenced by the western styles of animated features while diffusing around the world through glocalization. Since then, it has not only changed in appearances, but anime appearance has been adopted to genres like western novels and movies

Chapter 9 of the Constitution Bankrupcy - 1358 Words

In order to fully understand the complex issues underlying a Chapter 9 bankruptcy, it is necessary to comprehend the unique United States constitutional challenges to municipal bankruptcy. The main constitutional issue can be boiled down to a clash between State sovereignty over its municipal entities as protected by the Tenth Amendment, and the necessity of a federal bankruptcy system. Any power asserted by a federal bankruptcy court over a State municipality can, if taken too far, interfere with the State’s constitutional right to control its municipality. It is this clash of State sovereignty and federal bankruptcy power that is the essence of Chapter 9’s unique construction. Under the United States Constitution, any valid bankruptcy system must be federally enacted. Two separate provisions of Article I necessitate this conclusion. Article I, Section 10, Clause 1 of the Constitution prohibits any state from passing, â€Å". . . any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto L aw, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, . . . .† No bankruptcy system can realistically exist without the ability to impair the obligations of contracts. The entire purpose of a bankruptcy proceeding is to allow a financially distressed debtor to discharge its debt obligations after paying off as much of its debt as possible. A large majority of a municipal debtor’s debt will come from some contractual obligation that the States are explicitly prohibited from impairing. Therefore, Article I, Section

Robotics Essay Example For Students

Robotics Essay Two years ago, the Chrysler corporation completely gutted its Windsor, Ontario, car assembly plant and within six weeks had installed an entirely new factory inside the building. It was a marvel of engineering. When it came time to go to work, a whole new work force marched onto the assembly line. There on opening day was a crew of 150 industrial robots. Industrial robots dont look anything like the androids from sci-fi books and movies. They dont act like the evil Daleks or a fusspot C-3P0. If anything, the industrial robots toiling on the Chrysler line resemble elegant swans or baby brontosauruses with their fat, squat bodies, long arched necks and small heads. An industrial robot is essentially a long manipulator arm that holds tools such as welding guns or motorized screwdrivers or grippers for picking up objects. The robots working at Chrysler and in numerous other modern factories are extremely adept at performing highly specialized tasks one robot may spray paint car parts wh ile another does spots welds while another pours radioactive chemicals. Robots are ideal workers: they never get bored and they work around the clock. Whats even more important, theyre flexible. By altering its programming you can instruct a robot to take on different tasks. This is largely what sets robots apart from other machines; try as you might you cant make your washing machine do the dishes. Although some critics complain that robots are stealing much-needed jobs away from people, so far theyve been given only the dreariest, dirtiest, most soul-destroying work. The word robot is Slav in origin and is related to the words for work and worker. Robots first appeared in a play, Rossums Universal Robots, written in 1920 by the Czech playwright, Karel Capek. The play tells of an engineer who designs man-like machines that have no human weakness and become immensely popular. However, when the robots are used for war they rebel against their human masters. Though industrial robots d o dull, dehumanizing work, they are nevertheless a delight to watch as they crane their long necks, swivel their heads and poke about the area where they work. They satisfy that vague longing to see the human body reflected in a machine, to see a living function translated into mechanical parts, as one writer has said. Just as much fun are the numerous personal robots now on the market, the most popular of which is HERO, manufactured by Heathkit. Looking like a plastic step-stool on wheels, HERO can lift objects with its one clawed arm and utter computer-synthesized speech. Theres Hubot, too, which comes with a television screen face, flashing lights and a computer keyboard that pulls out from its stomach. Hubot moves at a pace of 30 cm per second and can function as a burglar alarm and a wake up service. Several years ago, the swank department store Neiman-Marcus sold a robot pet, named Wires. When you boil all the feathers out of the hype, HERO, Hubot, Wires et. al. are really jus t super toys. You may dream of living like a slothful sultan surrounded by a coterie of metal maids, but any further automation in your home will instead include things like lights that switch on automatically when the natural light dims or carpets with permanent suction systems built into them. One of the earliest attempts at a robot design was a machine, nicknamed Shakey by its inventor because it was so wobbly on its feet. Today, poor Shakey is a rusting pile of metal sitting in the corner of a California laboratory. Robot engineers have since realized that the greater challenge is not in putting together the nuts and bolts, but rather in devising the lists of instructions the software that tell robots what to do.Software has indeed become increasingly sophisticated year by year. The Canadian weather service now employs a program called METEO which translates weather reports from English to French. There are computer programs that diagnose medical ailments and locate valuable o re deposits. Still other computer programs play and win at chess, checkers and go.As a results, robots are undoubtedly getting smarter. The Diffracto company in Windsor is one of the worlds leading designers and makers of machine vision. A robot outfitted with Diffracto eyes can find a part, distinguish it from another part and even examine it for flaws. Diffracto is now working on a tomato sorter which examines colour, looking for no-red i.e.unripe tomatoes as they roll past its TV camera eye. When an unripe tomato is spotted, a computer directs a robot arm to pick out the pale fruit.Another Diffracto system helps the space shuttles Canadarm pick up satellites from space. This sensor looks for reflections on a satellites gleaming surface and can determine the position and speed of the satellite as it whirls through the sky. It tells the astronaut when the satellite is in the right position to be snatched up by the space arm.The biggest challenge in robotics today is making softwa re that can help robots find their way around a complex and chaotic world. Seemingly sophisticated tasks such as robots do in the factories can often be relatively easy to program, while the ordinary, everyday things people do walking, reading a letter, planning a trip to the grocery store turn out to be incredibly difficult. The day has still to come when a computer program can do anything more than a highly specialized and very orderly task. The trouble with having a robot in the house for example, is that life there is so unpredictable, as it is everywhere else outside the assembly line. In a house, chairs get moved around, there is invariably some clutter on the floor, kids and pets are always running around. Robots work efficiently on the assembly line where there is no variation, but they are not good at improvisation. Robots are disco, not jazz. The irony in having a robot housekeeper is that you would have to keep your house perfectly tidy with every item in the same place all the time so that your metal maid could get around. Many of the computer scientists who are attempting to make robots brighter are said to working in the field of Artificial Intelligence, or AI. These researchers face a huge dilemma because there is no real consensus as to what intelligence is. Many in AI hold the view that the human mind works according to a set of formal rules. They believe that the mind is a clockwork mechanism and that human judgement is simply calculation. Once these formal rules of thought can be discovered, they will simply be applied to machines. On the other hand, there are those critics of AI who contend that thought is intuition, insight, inspiration. Human consciousness is a stream in which ideas bubble up from the bottom or jump into the air like fish.This debate over intelligence and mind is, of course, one that has gone on for thousands of years. Perhaps the outcome of the robolution will be to make us that much wiser. .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .postImageUrl , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:hover , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:visited , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:active { border:0!important; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:active , .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46 .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u6da2dbb48facb1596eb6ce315ac90e46:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Hurricane Ivan and its Effects on Grenada Essay

This case study describes the transformation of Essays -

This case study describes the transformation of the Androscoggin Mill from an object of public opprobrium and conflict to a showcase for environmental management. the late 1980s, an 18- month strike had embittered workers and townspeople and left the mill 's reputation in tatters compliance was expanded to include aggressive pollution prevention efforts that led to cooperative projects with theMaineDepartment of Environmental Protection, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and stakeholder groups. Themill's approach in the 1990s evolved further to essentially follow principles of industrial ecology. From 1965, when it was built, until 1986, International Paper's (IP's) Androscoggin Mill, lo- cated on the Androscoggin River in Jay, Maine, was a typical large pulp and paper operation. expansion. Against this backdrop, the next decade saw a profound change in how the mill was managed; its relationship to its workers, the Jay community, regulators, and other stakeholders; and its environmental performance. the company's efforts matured in the 1990s on into the 2000s. environmental quality team" in 1992 to identify pollution prevention opportunitie

Alzheimers Essays - Cognitive Disorders, Learning Disabilities

Alzheimers Essays - Cognitive Disorders, Learning Disabilities Alzheimers Recent Memory Loss That Affects Job Performance It's normal to occasionally forget assignments, colleagues' names or a business associate's telephone number, but generally remember them later. Those with a dementia like Alzheimer's disease, may forget things more often, and not remember them later. They may repeatedly ask the same question, not remembering either the answer, or that they already asked the question. Difficulty Performing Familiar Tasks Busy people can be distracted from time to time and leave the carrots on the stove, only remembering to serve them at the end of the meal. People with Alzheimer's disease could prepare a meal, forget to serve it, and even forget they made it. Problems with Language Everyone has trouble finding the right word sometimes, but can finish the sentence with another appropriate word. A person with Alzheimer's disease may forget simple words, or substitute inappropriate words, making their sentence incomprehensible. Disorientation of Time and Place It's normal to forget the day of the week or your destination for a moment. But people with Alzheimer's disease can become lost on their own street or in a familiar shopping mall, not knowing where they are, how they got there or how to get home. Poor or Decreased Judgment People can become so immersed in an activity or telephone conversation they temporarily forget the child they're watching. A person with Alzheimer's disease could entirely forget the child under their care and leave the house to visit a neighbor. Problems with Abstract Thinking People who normally balance their checkbooks may be momentarily disconcerted when the task is more complicated than usual, but will eventually figure out the solution. Someone with Alzheimer's disease could forget completely what the numbers are and what needs to be done with them. Misplacing Things Anyone can misplace their wallet or keys, but eventually find them by reconstructing where they could have left them. A person with Alzheimer's disease may put things down in inappropriate places an iron in the freezer, or a wristwatch in the sugar bowl and not be able to retrieve them. Changes in Mood or Behavior Everyone has a bad day once in a while, or may become sad or moody from time to time. Someone with Alzheimer's disease can exhibit rapid mood swings for no apparent reason: e.g. from calm to tears to anger to calm in a few minutes. Changes in Personality People's personalities ordinarily change somewhat at different ages, as character traits strengthen or mellow. But a person with Alzheimer's disease can change drastically, becoming extremely irritable, suspicious or fearful. Loss of Initiative It's normal to tire of housework, business activities or social obligations, but most people regain their initiative. The person with Alzheimer's disease may become very passive and require cues and prompting to get them involved in activities. These ten warning signs also may apply to dementias other than Alzheimer's disease. People concerned about these warning signs should see a physician for a complete examination. The Is It Alzheimer's? Ten Warning Signs campaign has been funded through an educational grant from Parke-Davis. Home | Contribute | Volunteer | Membership | What's New | Calendar of Events | Links | About Alzheimer's | Programs & Services | Search Last updated: June 17, 1997 Please return to alz-nova.org or call 800-207-8679 or (703) 359-4440 for more information about services in Northern Virginia. 1997 - 2000 Alzheimer's Association, Northern Virginia Chapter. All rights reserved.

Nonstandard Usage Detracts from Novel

Nonstandard Usage Detracts from Novel Nonstandard Usage Detracts from Novel Nonstandard Usage Detracts from Novel By Maeve Maddox The English language can certainly be said to be in flux when college professors write such stuff as: 1. She reached into her carpetbag to her side and found her ever-present notepad. 2. This was the first unsolicited compliment her figure had ever gotten by a young man 3. Pneumonia, thought Lucy calmly, and at the very least, flu 4. I weary of hearing about John and his sentinel at the cross and a press as prestigious as St Martins publishes it. I recorded four single-spaced typed pages of notes on unidiomatic English and misused words while reading the 776-page Gospel by Wilton Barnhardt. At first I imagined that the author, who has a German surname, was writing in English as a second language and I was favorably impressed with his fluency. Then I googled him and discovered that not only is he a native-born American, he has a degree from the University of Oxford (England), and teaches creative writing at an American university. Now Im asking, is it just me? Am I so out of touch as all that? Where was I when such strange usages as these became acceptable for educated writers? Mind you, the novel was meticulously researched. I know that the author has done his homework because the subject of the novel is one with which I am familiar. He has even provided footnotes and an index! It is an impressive work. But the odd, unidiomatic English distracts the reader and detracts from the scholarship. And where was the editor? Shouldnt an editor have noticed this kind of thing: The jewels of Meroe, like its gold, was a legend with a source in truth for once. (jewels were) The gig is up, thought Lucy. (jig) she met himall rearing to go (raring) In case its not obvious, Ill explain what I mean about the examples quoted above: 1. She reached into her carpetbag to her side and found her ever-present notepad. The preposition to should be at and the two hers do not work. Better: She reached into the carpetbag at her side 2. This was the first unsolicited compliment her figure had ever gotten by a young man This was the first unsolicited compliment her figure had ever gotten from a young man. The by would work if the prepositional phrase stood next to compliment: This was the first unsolicited compliment by a young man that her figure had ever gotten. 3. Pneumonia, thought Lucy calmly, and at the very least, flu. The character thinks she has contracted either pneumonia or the flu. Pneumonia is more serious than the flu so the sentence should read: Pneumonia, thought Lucy calmly, or at the very least, flu. 4. I weary of hearing about John and his sentinel at the cross. The word sentinel means someone who watches or guards. The author uses this word more than once as if it meant the watching. (In another place he writes: Taxi, Signore? asked the cabdriver from his sentinel before the hotel.) The word wanted is vigil. On the one hand, reading this novel has left me feeling very depressed. St. Martins Press is a publisher I associate with quality. If they can let such problematic writing pass into print, why am I beating my chops writing these articles about correct English usage? On the other hand, Ive got four pages of notes to draw on for future articles. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Classes and Types of PhrasesEnglish Grammar 101: Verb MoodInspiring vs. Inspirational

CEO Project-EXXON Mobil Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

CEO Project-EXXON Mobil - Research Paper Example anagement strategic positioning or decision will be single handedly implemented to ensure the petroleum company to continue to shine and outperform in the oil sector. The four implementation programs will be aligned to protect the vast shareholders’ interests by ensuring profitability in its subsequent financial years, meet the ever changing customer preference in an innovative and responsive manner that continuously meets target market customers’ needs, bud an aggressive high qualified employee workforce that conforms to the global standards and finally run environmentally safe business that protects community interest. Financial program implementation will take the initiative of finance department restructuring to create financial policies that are able to cater for the per barrel cost that eat into the annual profits, increase the company’s liquidity and mitigate any financial risks that are associated with poor disaster relief methods. The major activity will entail the financial management and team is effectively trained to embrace the newer technology in management of the financial systems that provide good results. Exxon Mobil has the funds to facilitate technological systems that streamline the processing of the oil to meet customers’ specifications and hence make more profit for the company (Rea, 2015). The financial strategy will be communicated to the shareholders for purposes of accountability. Customer programs main objective is to meet customer needs. This is outright from the Exxon Mobil mission and objective which is to be the preferred world’s premier petroleum and petrochemical company. This particular clause envisions a company that has its priority in developing products that satisfies the diversified customer base, for instance, the introduction of SCAN fining process that eliminates sulfur which is deadly to automobile engines. ExxonMobil has adopted an implementation strategy that makes use of its existing employee base of

Business and Economic Forecasting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Business and Economic Forecasting - Essay Example The appropriate model is estimated and a one to four step forecasting is undertaken to determine the appropriateness of the model. We consider the price index of the Rio Tinto, the 5 day weekly stock price for the period 31st December 1999 to 31st December 2007 is used and the following chart summarizes the price index for the period. From the above table it is evident that for the period 2000 to 2004 the price remained relatively stable deviating by small margins, however for the period 2005 to 2007 there was an increase in prices by larger margins. The following is an analysis of the Rio Tinto returns. According to Woodridge (2006) dynamic heteroskedasticity can appear in regressions with no dynamic, in a regression if the Gauss Markov assumption holds then the estimators are BLUE (best linear unbiased estimator). However even when the homoskedasticity assumption that the error terms variance is constant across observations holds there could be still other forms of heteroskedasticity that may arise, heteroskedasticity can be tested using the white test or the Breusch pagan test. The following chart shows a case of homoskedasticity and heteroskedasticity: From the above diagrams assuming that the 45 degree line is the fitted regression model, then the first diagram shows a case where as x increases the mean of y increases but the variance of y around its mean remains constant over time, for the second diagram a case where as x increases the mean of y increases and the variance of y around its mean does not remain constant and this shows heteroskedasticity. There are a number of consequences of heteroskedasticity and they include the fact that: Estimators are still linear functions of the independent variable The estimators are not biased Estimators no longer have minimum variance therefore are not efficient The estimated variance of the estimators is biased because the formula to estimate them could over state or under state the true variance The hypothesis test of the significance is unreliable given that the estimated variance is biased. As a result Engel (1982) suggested the ARCH model that would consider a conditional error term variance that takes into consideration past error terms and this was the ARCH model. The ARCH and GARSH model are appropriate models that can be used in modeling financial data that exhibit volatility clustering, volatility clustering refers to a trend that shows that small increases or declines are followed by small increases or declines and that large increases or declines are followed by large increases or declines. From our price data chart it is evident that for the period 2000 to 2004 small increases and declines are followed by small increases or declines, however for the period 2005 and 2007 large increases are followed by large increases. This means that the ARCH and GARSH model are appropriate in estimating an appropriate model. The following chart summarizes the returns mean, kurtosis and

Tourism Industry Essay Example for Free

Tourism Industry Essay Tourism has become one of the worlds main industries; both developing and extremely developed countries are now taking closer look. Tourism give a lot of foreign exchange to the country, its provides jobs directly in the same field (Tourism Industry) and indirectly in supporting industries for example, agriculture industry, guide to the development of main and important services, for example, roads, airports , and in the same time its opens the country to the outside world. Tourism In Oman Oman one of the tourism country, that have all possibilities to make tourism industry one of the major income to the country, all this due to some reasons. In order to take the advantages of tourism co field completely, its very important to develop it, and to do the same a huge and proper development plane are needed, this is the main role of Ministry of Tourism in the sultanate (Ministry of Tourism 2010). Oman to be a tourism country there many reasons behind that, the first reason Oman has special and popular destination between the countries because of its natural attractions such as its deserts, mountains, wadis, and beaches. The second reason is its clean and green. The third reason is its nice festivals in Muscat and Salalah, Muscat Festival has different activities for example sports, music, dance, exhibitions, stage performances and childrens activities and different participants from different countries around the world. Salalah is the forth reason, because it wonderful place especially in the uotom season, this season is a unique season. Oman is also popular for its wide range of special tourist activities such as water sports, rock climbing, sand skiing in the desert, walking, cave exploration, bull fighting, dolphin shows, fishing charters and camel races. The country also features hundreds of forts and castles, which are among several cultural landmarks that give the country its unique character and age-old attraction ( Ministry of Information 2010). Important of tourism for the country due to different and great reasons , tourism industry is the spine of any countrys economic position , It provides foreign exchange earning to that particular country, It generates new employment chances to the people, in the other hand tourism raises the living conditions of the nation of that particular country, the infrastructure development is the very important and the main advantage of tourism industry, the Cultural exchange is also possible only through tourism, protection of our heritage also one of these reason that makes tourism important for each county. From other side, important of tourism are very deep in many issues it have influence on tourists religious viewpoint, Seeing place which is some religious root (Al Shaqsi 2008) Importance of tourism doesn’t stop in any point its larger than what we expect, Perhaps the most important reason is the fact of the multiplier effect, which is: How many times money spent by a tourist circulate through the economy of the country. An example for the above could be as follows: A tourist spends his money in the hotel by dry-cleaning his cloths, eating in the restaurant †¦ etc. This money spent will increase revenues of the dry-cleaner and the restaurant owner, both will spend more on their supplies for their shop and for personal needs, which means that other businesses are going to benefit due to their increased profits by the tourist †¦and so on. the whole above reasons that shows the importance of tourisum for any devlopment country, it can be sumaraize in three main reasons that tourisum important for the sultanate : 1. the development of the countys infrastructure; 2. attract visitors and to provide them with a memorable visit that will lead to a positive word of mouth and a chance of re-visiting the country again. This also could be thought of from an employment angle, as the infrastructure needs buildings, services, and transportation means and ways, all which means increase in the number of jobs for the locals. 3. Another important factor for the importance of tourism is attracting foreign investors to invest in the country by showing them high potentials and an acceptable infrastructure to their businesses, all of the above which will lead to the increase of countrys GDP which means the development of the country as a whole (Ministry of Tourism 2010). Conclusion Oman a tourism place that attract huge number of visitors that affect different main aspects in the country, in the other hand tourism industry become one of the most important industries in the world. There are lots of reasons behind the important of tourism for the sultanate. Ministry of Tourism participating in all important events related to tourism in the world this effect positively to the devlopment of tourism in Oman and in the other hand its define Oman in other side of the world so, it will be known by the other countries.

Recycling Laws: Eco-Unfriendly? Essay -- Environmental Issues

Out of all the growing problems in the world, the massive accumulation of garbage seems to be the least of the people’s worries. Countless landfills are being satiated by trash of all shapes, sizes and composition; many now being paved over to serve as foundation for housing, airports, businesses, etc. If the situation were as simple to resolve as paving over the putrescent landfills, then there wouldn’t be debates or research about the environmental effects of pollution associated with improper discarding of waste materials. A majority of the types of waste can be recycled, but at what cost? Many will argue that recycling is the only way to eliminate such landfills and protect the environment from further damage. Several environmentalists groups and politicians seek to make recycling a legal responsibility, while the technology for recycling has progressed in recent years, the ratio of cost to practicality has remained essentially the same. If recycling were to be man dated, then there would have to be a paradigm shift in the circulation of products, from creation to redistribution, in order to make regulations practical. In previous generations, recycling was very limited in its capabilities and effectiveness. Several studies from the time period actually support the claim that more trash was produced than salvaged. The collection of a stack of papers left behind mounds of gloves, trash bags, food wrappers and water bottles that couldn’t be used. With that in mind, it is completely understandable as to why groups of people in the past were against salvaging materials. Since then, the ability to process raw or reused materials has increased tenfold. Now, almost everything from wastewater to the toughest polymers can be recycl... ...law wrapped around them. Without the combined contributions of all three of these major groups, the system will continue to be flawed, while money, resources and time, shall continue to be wasted trying to salvage from an ever growing junk pile. If any laws need to be emplaced then they should be limited to an initiating push, much like the ignition on a vehicle. Once the trifecta begins to pick up speed, any regulations used to propel the movement should be immediately relinquished and replaced with maintenance and education in order to promote a self-perpetuating behavior. Works Cited Esterl, Mike. â€Å"Plastic Recycling Falls Short as Too Few Do It.† Wall Street Journal. 19 Aug 2011: B.1. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 01 Apr 2012. Koch, Wendy. â€Å"Cities Turn Deeper Shades of Green.† USA TODAY. 30 Jun 2011: A.3. SIRS Issue Researcher. Web. 06 Mar 2012.

Washington Mutual Bank: Case for Consumer Rights

McKell v. Washington Mutual Bank (2006) is a case for consumer rights highlighting the prerogative of the consumers to ‘buy at the right price.’   In this case, the consumers were not buying goods and services.   Rather, the market consisted of real property; and one of the stakeholders – Washington Mutual, Inc. – was overstating the prices of â€Å"underwriting, tax services, and wire transfer fees in conjunction with home loans.† [1]   Washington Mutual Bank had overcharged the buyers for these services – alleged the plaintiffs (few of the buyers) – when the actual prices that the bank had paid to service providers for the self same services were less. The defendants (Washington Mutual) were simply making a profit on the services they had bought off different providers and selling to other members of society that needed them at the time.   Is this kind of profit making unlawful? – From the viewpoint of consumers, it may very well be unlawful, seeing that all consumers want to pay the ‘best prices.’   However, if the consumers were to stop using the services of Washington Mutual Bank, they would possibly have to visit various service providers for underwriting, tax services, and wire transfers, and still come to the defendants for home loans. In the integrative business of Washington Mutual, everything is taken care of.   In view of this, it was decided by a trial court in California that the complaint made by the plaintiffs must be dismissed on the grounds that there had been no written agreement between the parties to state that Washington Mutual, Inc. cannot charge in excess of the prices that it pays to the service providers.   The case went into appeal.   It is going to continue being considered; in fact, the California Court of Appeal has agreed with a part of the plaintiff’s complaint and agreed to review this consumer case further.[2] The main reason why the McKell v. Washington Mutual Bank case has still not been shut is that consumers feel deceived when they are told that they are being charged simply the prices of the services bought, when in fact the sellers have overcharged.   Although profit making is not considered illegal, in this case the consumers feel cheated because they had been informed by Washington Mutual that they were being charged the prices of certain services that cost a certain amount. As it turned out, the prices charged included a huge markup, while the consumers continued to believe that they were paying the ‘right prices.’   The plaintiffs failed to produce all necessary documents to support their allegations.   Nevertheless, the fact that Washington Mutual had failed to mention to the consumers that a service fee was being added for the services in question – has landed the bank in hot water.   Moreover, by charging a price that is higher than the market price, the bank is responsible for going against â€Å"Congress’s stated intent to protect consumers from unnecessarily high settlement charges.†[3]   Indeed, this is the strongest argument to keep the McKell v. Washington Mutual case going in the near future. Washington Mutual Bank may be charged with near-monopolistic practices in the coming days, although it has not been determined whether the bank’s competitors are charging markups that are vastly dissimilar.   Assuming that the competitors of the bank are charging much less than Washington Mutual, the justice system may very well decide that Washington Mutual must pay the legal charges of unfair competition. Seeing that both federal and state laws demur near-monopolistic practices, that is, charging prices that are much higher than those at the market equilibrium – the Californian courts may eventually end up with a strong hand protecting the interests of the consumer and charging Washington Mutual Bank much more than it charged its consumers through allegedly â€Å"unfair† practices.[4] Works Cited McKell v. Washington Mutual: IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, SECOND APPELLATE COURT, DIVISION ONE. 2006. 4 June 2007. . McKell v. Washington Mutual-Class Action Defense Cases: Defense Motion To Dismiss Class Action Improperly Granted As To Breach of Contract And UCL Claims Based On Federal RESPA Violations California Court Holds. Class Action Defense Blog. 2007. 4 June 2007 . [1] â€Å"McKell v. Washington Mutual-Class Action Defense Cases: Defense Motion To Dismiss Class Action Improperly Granted As To Breach of Contract And UCL Claims Based On Federal RESPA Violations California Court Holds,† Class Action Defense Blog, 2007, 4 June 2007 . [2] â€Å"McKell v. Washington Mutual: IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, SECOND APPELLATE COURT, DIVISION ONE,† 2006, 4 June 2007, . [3] â€Å"McKell v. Washington Mutual-Class Action Defense Cases.† [4] Ibid.

Definition of Goals and Objectives Essay

Goals and Objectives Goals and objectives are statements that describe what your Vision Document will accomplish, or the results that will be achieve. Goals are high level statements that provide overall context for what the Vision Document is trying to achieve, and should align to its components. Objectives are lower level statements that describe the specific, tangible products, deliverables and fruits that will be delivered. The definition of goals and objectives is more of an art than a science, and it can be difficult to define them and align them correctly. Goals Because the goal is at a high-level, it may take more than one objective to achieve. It may take many objectives over a long period of time to achieve the goal. Generally, non-measurable: If you can measure the achievement of your goal, it is probably at too low a level and is probably more of an objective. If your goal is not achievable through any combination of objectives, it is probably written at too high a level. It may instead be a vision statement, which is a higher level statement showing direction and aspiration, but which may never actually be achieved. Objectives Objectives are concrete statements describing what the project is trying to achieve. The objective should be written at a lower level, so that it can be evaluated at the conclusion of a goal to see whether it was achieved or not. Goal statements are designed to be vague. Objectives should not be vague. A well-worded objective will be Specific, Measurable, Attainable/Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound (SMART). Note that the objective is much more concrete and specific than the goal statement. The objective is measurable in terms cost, speed, quantity and / or quality. We must assume that the objective is achievable and realistic. The objective is time-bound, and should be completed by a specific date. Objectives should refer to the deliverables of the goal. If you cannot determine what deliverables are being created to achieve the objective, then the objective may be written at too high a level. On the other hand, if an objective describes the  characteristics of the deliverables, they are written at too low a level. If they describe the features and functions, they are requirements, not objectives.

Religion in Public Schools essays

Religion in Public Schools essays The question Should prayer be allowed in public schools is one of the biggest debates in the minds and lips of Americans today. The open practice of religion in publicly funded schools is not a new debate, nor a simple one. Americans have been fighting about the separation of church and state issue longer than there have been Americans. These arguments have played out everywhere from the local football field to the halls of The United States Supreme Court. I believe that prayer and other forms of religious practice are best left at home and church under the guidance of parents and priests. I think this will prevent all of the problems that are associated with a non-secular approach to public education before they occur. I also believe that the Constitution of the United States has already provided its citizens with enough civil liberties in this area already. One cannot begin to support or contradict an opinion without first learning the background information and history of the issue. As James Fraser, Professor of History and Education Director of the Center for Innovation in Urban Education at Northwestern University, put it: Gods place within the public schools of the United States has been debatable, and subject to controversy, for as long as there have been public schools. In colonial America, religion played a central role in the schools of every colony, but the understanding of religion differed substantially from colony to colony. With the coming of nationhood and the separation of church and state on the federal level, the public school was pressed into service as a new kind of national church. (3) In summary, religion has always been there, right at the surface of the public school system and has been a source of morality for Americas children. Not until the past century has the population become so diverse, that the thought of challenging the old ways of thinking became pos...

Using Accents on French Capitals

Using Accents on French Capitals You may have heard that capital letters are not supposed to be accented. This may be good advice, but, really, whether to use  accents  on French capital letters is entirely up to you. Most of the time they are not essential, and so most French speakers do not add them. In publishing, they have not been added either ever since Vogue magazine decided about 20 years ago that they were too small to be read in print and detracted from clarity and good design; much of the publishing world agreed and followed suit. That said, there are actually two instances when you should always use accents on capital letters: Avoid Embarrassing Misunderstandings or Mistakes Look at what happens when  an advertisement for  biscuits salà ©s (salted crackers) is written in all caps:  BISCUITS SALES, a LOL-worthy mistake that means dirty crackers. Yum!  Its so much clearer to write BISCUITS SALÉS, nest-ce pas? There are plenty of  examples of French homographs like the case above, words that are spelled alike (or almost alike) but mean different things, where failing to add an accent or accents could lead  to embarrassing results. Consider haler (to haul in) versus hà ¢ler (to tan); arrià ©rà © (backward) versus arrià ¨re (backlog); and interne (internal) versus internà © (an inmate in a mental hospital), to name a few. Proper Nouns: The Name of a Company or a Person. Its important to show respect to organizations and people by spelling their names correctly, as well as to make sure that the person who reads the name knows how it should be spelled. If you dont write the accent when the name is in all caps, your reader may not realize that there is an accent when that individual sits down later to write a letter to the person or organization in question. What the  Acadà ©mie Franà §aise Says Some people argue that it just makes more sense  to always use  accents on capital letters in French. And the august  Acadà ©mie franà §aise  agrees: On ne peut que dà ©plorer que lusage des accents sur les majuscules soit flottant. On observe dans les textes manuscrits une tendance certaine lomission des accents. En typographie, parfois, certains suppriment tous les accents sur les capitales sous prà ©texte de modernisme, en fait pour rà ©duire les frais de composition. Il convient cependant dobserver quen franà §ais, laccent a pleine valeur orthographique. Son absence ralentit la lecture, fait hà ©siter sur la prononciation, et peut mà ªme induire en erreur. Il en va de mà ªme pour le trà ©ma et la cà ©dille. On veille donc, en bonne typographie, utiliser systà ©matiquement les capitales accentuà ©es, y compris la prà ©position  ,  comme le font bien sà »r tous les dictionnaires, commencer par le  Dictionnaire de lAcadà ©mie franà §aise, ou les grammaires, comme  Le  Bon Usage  de Grevisse, mais aussi lImprimerie nationale, la Bibliothà ¨que de la Plà ©iade, etc. Quant aux textes manuscrits ou dactylographià ©s, il est à ©vident que leurs auteurs, dans un souci de clartà © et de correction, auraient tout intà ©rà ªt suivre à ©galement cette rà ¨gle.

Corporate Social Responsibility (Business Ethics) Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility (Business Ethics) - Essay Example Barnard (1938) had similar argument in mind when he said: "It seems to me inevitable that the struggle to maintain co-operation among men should as surely destroy some men morally as battle destroys them physically." (p.278) Such moral beliefs and values gave birth to the organized concept of CSR. Interestingly not everyone feels the same way. While many support the concept of CSR, there are some thinkers including the well-known economist, Milton Friedman who did not agree with the idea of investing in community work. We shall discuss Friedman later in the paper with greater detail. Ethics has always been an integral part of the way human beings are expected to think and behave. For this reason, it has entered the field of business and commerce as well. Many philosophers have posed the question: "why does a person behave ethically". In the same vein, we can ask, why must a firm behave ethically The answer can come from religious, moral as well as purely capitalist sources. It is believed that man is expected to behave ethically because it is the "divine command", one's duty, or in the words of Kant, an action is considered right only when it is based on a sense of duty. Hence there can be many reasons for explaining the expectation of ethical approach. People like Benjamin Franklin who were more morally inclined felt that "business is the pursuit of virtue". That is however a very simplistic way of explaining the expectation of ethics and may not be easily accepted by capitalistic circles. Jackall (1988) on the other hand feels that there is no real morality ex isting in the firm. The morality we find in a modern firm is based on "that right thing" which people above you want from you. Corporate social responsibility, while it may be immensely critical, doesn't always come with a serious concern for better image in the country. It is usually connected with a desire to perform better in the financial area. In other words, financial gains are an important concern when CSR is being adopted. In many cases, it has been expected to lead to higher market share. We must make it clear here that these are expectations and actual effects may differ from firm to firm. Some studies have some that in many firms, managers are more likely to adopt and integrate CSR in company's motto and policies if this investment is likely to result in monetary benefits. Managers are willing to invest in CSR related projects because it is expected to result in better financial health and greater monetary situation for the firm. Lydenberg et al. (1986) maintain that "Companies fight hard for even a small percentage gain in market share for their products. If and when corporate managers become con vinced that their company's social record affects market share, they will be forced to take social initiatives seriously." Social responsibility has also become a buzzword because of the availability of large variety of similar goods. When a product comes into the market, it has to fight very hard for consumer's attention because there are several other rival goods competing for the same. A marketing and design consultant (Neuborne, 1991) states: "There was a time when you bought a product just for its price or performance...but with the number of products

Financial Information for CRODA International Plc Essay

Financial Information for CRODA International Plc - Essay Example Industrial specialties- which includes base chemicals, home care, polymers and coatings, additives for polymers, lubricant additives, lubricants and processed vegetable oils. (www. investing.businessweek.com). Consumer care division which includes international business in health care, personal care, and crop care – engaged in all markets throughout the world with a thumbing need for sustainable ingredients and innovations. Further, Croda has an enterprise technology division (R&D) which recognizes and assimilates new technology into Croda’s international business set up. (www.croda.com). Croda was able to post pre-tax profits of 10.5% during the year 2008 in spite of the serious international economic recession. However, due to stable focus on new markets, product innovation and recession mingled with the instant reduction in cost have facilitated Croda to accomplish one more year of pre-tax revenue growth in spite of the worst scenario in the international economy. (Chairman speech, AR 2009). The salient feature of the business model of Croda is the capacity to offer a variety of products to a variety of customers all over the globe. Croda’s persistent focus on originality in specialties has offered them the capacity to derive the true value for their products. (CEO Speech AR 2009). Croda is in a true sense a really global company as it is having only just 7% sales in the homeland of U.K. All of its subsidiary company around the world has targeted sales, operating margin, profit growth targets that form fundamental to their strategic plans and budgets. Croda’s report their progress annually against five major financial performance parameters. According to Croda’s annual report 2009, Croda International Plc has prepared its financial reports as demanded by the Companies Act, 2006 of U.K and as provided by the U.K accounting.

Hi Tech Programs Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Hi Tech Programs - Research Paper Example The role of government is a hope for the success of the EHR in the forms of mandates, subsidies and policy directives (Wulsin and Dougherty, 2008). The use of electronic health record is more common in USA as compared to other countries. National Coordinator office in USA published the regulation related with HER’s objectives. These standards stated purpose of the HER system in terms of objectives like the list of patients for medication, and incentive payments. Governments’ standards are same for the hospital management and physicians. There are 20 standards for hospitals and 21 standards for the physicians (Gray et al., 2011). Physicians, clinicians and hospital management can earn more money if they treat the patients on Medicaid or Medicare. The Electronic Health Record provides the forum to all players in health management sharing the medications, problems, allergies and their test results. Responsibilities include as the security of individual patients’ data in terms of the test results’ codification (Halamka,

Stages In The Selling Process Marketing Essay

Stages In The Selling Process Marketing Essay A popular approach to understanding the stages of the selling process consists of the six steps diagrammed in Exhibit 2.8: (1) prospecting for customers, (2) opening the relation ­ship, (3) qualifying the prospect, (4) presenting the sales message, (5) closing the sale, and (6) servicing the account. Although the selling process involves only a few distinct steps, the specific activities in-volved at each step-and the way those activities are carried out-can vary greatly de-pending on the type of sales position, such as missionary versus trade salesperson, and on the firms overall selling and customer relationship strategy. Consequently, a firms sales program should incorporate account management policies to guide each salesperson and ensure that all selling efforts are consistent with the firms marketing and relationship strategy. We will examine the raÃ…Â £ionale and content of account management policies in more detail in Chapter 4. The following discussion of the stages in the selling process also mentions some of the more common account management policies used to direct sales representatives. Prospecting for Customers In many types of selling, prospecting for new customers is criticai. It can also be one of the most disheartening aspects of selling, especially for beginning salespeople. Prospecting ef ­forts are often met with rejection, and immediate payoffs are usually minimal. Neverthe-less, the ability to uncover potenÃ…Â £ial new customers often separates the successful from the unsuccessful salesperson. In some consumer goods businesses, prospecting for new customers simply involves cold canvassing-going from house to house knocking on doors. In most cases, though, the target market is more narrowly defined, and the salesperson must identify prospects within that target segment. Salespeople use a variety of information sources to identify relevant prospects, including trade association and industry directories, telephone directories, other salespeople, other customers, suppliers, nonsales employees of the firm, and social and professional contacts. Telemarketing is used by many firms to find prospects. Outbound telemarketing in ­volves calling potenÃ…Â £ial customers at their home or office, either to make a sale or to make an appointment for a field representative. Inbound telemarketing, where prospective cus-tomers call a toll-free number for more information, is also used to identify and qualify prospects. When prospects call for more information about a product or service, a repre ­sentative attempts to determine the extent of interest and whether the prospect meets the companys qualifications for new customers. If so, information about the caller is passed on to the appropriate salesperson or regional office. The Internet is also proving a useful technology for generating leads to potenÃ…Â £ial new customers. While an increasing number of firms are soliciting orders directly via a home page on the Internet, many-particularly those selling relatively complex goods or services-use their Internet sites primarily to provide technical product information to cus ­tomers or potenÃ…Â £ial customers. These firms can have their salespeople follow up on techni ­cal inquiries from potenÃ…Â £ial new accounts with a more tradiÃ…Â £ional sales call.15 A firms account management policies should address how much emphasis salespeople should give to prospecting for new customers versus prospecting and servicing existing ac ­counts. The appropriate policy depends on the selling and customer relationship strategy selected, the nature of its product, and the firms customers. If the firms strategy is trans-actional, if the product is in the introductory stage of its life cycle, if it is an infrequently purchased durable good, or if the typical customer does not require much service after the sale, sales reps should devote substanÃ…Â £ial time to prospecting for new customers. This is the case in industries such as insurance and residential construction. Such firms may design their compensation systems to reward their salespeople more heavily for making sales to new customers than for servicing old ones, as we shall see in Chapter 11. A company that desires strategic partnerships will assign a specific salesperson to each ac ­count. Firms with large market shares or those that sell frequently purchased nondurable products or products that require substanÃ…Â £ial service after the sale to guarantee customer sat-isfaction should adopt a policy that encourages sales reps to devote most of their efforts to ser ­vicing existing customers. Food manufacturers that sell products to retail supermarkets and firms that produce component parts and supplies for other manufacturers fall into this cate-gory. Some very large customers may require so much servicing that a sales rep is assigned to do nothing but cater to that customers needs. In such circumstances, firms have special-ized their sales positions so that some representatives service only existing accounts, while others spend all their time prospecting for and opening relationships with new customers. Opening the Relationship In the iniÃ…Â £ial approach to a prospective customer, the sales representative should try to open the relationship by accomplishing two things: (1) determine who within the organization is likely to have the greatest influence or authority to iniÃ…Â £iate the purchase process and who will ultimately purchase the product, and (2) generate enough interest within the firm to ob-tain the information needed to qualify the prospect as a worthwhile potenÃ…Â £ial customer. An organizational buying center often consists of individuals who play different roles in mak ­ing the purchase decision. Thus, it is important for the salesperson to identify the key deci-sion makers, their desires, and their relative influence. Selling organizations can formulate policies to guide sales reps in approaching prospec ­tive customers. When the firms product is inexpensive and routinely purchased, salespeo ­ple might be instructed to deal entirely with the purchasing department. For more technically complex and expensive products, the sales representative might be urged to identify and seek appointments with influencers and decision makers in various funcÃ…Â £ional departments and at several managerial levels. When the purchase decision is likely to be very complex, involving many people within the customers organization, the seller might adopt a policy of multilevel or team selling. Qualifying the Prospect Before salespeople attempt to set up an appointment for a major sales presentation or spend much time trying to establish a relationship with a prospective account, they should first qualify the prospect to determine if he or she qualifies as a worthwhile potenÃ…Â £ial customer. If the account does not qualify, the sales rep can spend the time better elsewhere. Qualification is difficult for some salespeople. It requires them to put aside their etemal optimism and make an objective, realistic judgment about the probability of making a prof-itable sale. As one authority points out, the qualification process involves finding the an-swers to three important questions: Does the prospect have a need for my product or service? Can I make the people responsible for buying so aware of that need that I can make a sale? Will the sale be profitable to my company?16 To answer such questions, the sales rep must learn about the prospects operations, the types of products it makes, its customers, its competitors, and the likely future demand for its products. Information also must be obtained concerning who the customers present sup-pliers are and whether any special relationships exist with those firms that would make it difficult for the prospect to change suppliers. Finally, the financial health and the credit rat-ing of the prospect should be checked. Because so many different types of information are needed, nonselling departments within the company-such as the credit and collections department-often are involved in the qualification process when large purchases are made. Frequently, however, credit de ­partments do not get involved until after the prospect has agreed to buy and filled out a credit application. In these situations, company policies should be formulated to guide the salespersons judgment concerning whether a specific prospect qualifies as a customer. These policies might speli out minimum acceptable standards for such things as the prospects annual dollar value of purchases in the product category or credit rating. Simi-larly, some firms specify a minimum order size to avoid dealing with very small customers and to improve the efficiency of their order-processing and shipping operations. Issues re-lated to prioritizing customers are discussed in Chapter 3. Presenting the Sales Message The sales presentation is the core of the selling process. The salesperson transmits informa ­tion about a product or service and attempts to persuade the prospect to become a customer. Making good presentations is a criticai aspect of the sales job. Unfortunately, many sales ­people do not perform this activity very well. Past studies have discovered that 40 percent of purchasing agents perceive the presentations they witness as less than good. In a recent sur-vey of purchasing executives, the following five presentation-related complaints were among the top 10 complaints the managers had about the salespeople with whom they deal: Running down competitors. Being too aggressive or abrasive. Having inadequate knowledge of competitors products or services. Having inadequate knowledge of the clients business or organization. Delivering poor presentations.17 One decision that must be made in preparing for an effective sales presentation concerns how many members of the buying firm should attend. Since more than one person is typically involved in making a purchase decision, should a sales presentation be given to all of them as a group? The answer depends on whether the members of the buying center have divergent attitudes and concerns, and whether those concerns can all be addressed effec-tively in a single presentation. If not, scheduling a series of one-to-one presentations with different members of the buying group might be more effective. In many cases, the best way to convince prospects of a products advantage is to demon ­strate it, particularly if the product is technically complex. Two rules should be followed in preparing an effective product demonstration. First, the demonstration should be carefully re-hearsed to reduce the possibility of even a minor malfunction. Second, the demonstration should be designed to give members of the buying center hands-on experience with the prod ­uct. For example, Xeroxs salespeople learn about their clients office operations so they can demonstrate their products actually doing the tasks they would do after they are purchased. Different firms have widely varying policies concerning how sales presentations should be organized, what selling points should be stressed, and how forcefully the presentation should be made. Door-to-door salespeople and telephone salespeople are often trained to deliver the same memorized, forceful presentation to every prospect. A person selling com ­puter systems may be trained in low-key selling, in which the salesperson primarily acts as a source of technical information and advice and does little pushing of the companys par ­ticular computers. The section later in this chapter on alternative selling approaches pro-vides additional insight on presentational approaches. Today, the proliferation of relationship selling has resulted in salespeople being called on to give more formal presentations to multiple members of a client organization. For ex ­ample, often selling firms may give quarterly or annual account review presentations to clients. These presentations typically involve the buying team and selling team as well as members of management from both sides. A firms policy on sales presentations should be consistent with its other policies for managing accounts. To formulate intelligent sales pre ­sentation policies, a sales manager must know about alternative presentation methods and their relative advantages and limitations. Space limitations of this chapter make it difficult to present a lengthy discussion of such issues. The interested student is urged to examine a personal selling textbook where a variety of sales presentation methods are discussed and evaluated in more detail. Closing the Sale Closing the sale refers to obtaining a final agreement to purchase. All the salespersons efforts are wasted unless the client signs on the dotted line; yet this is where many salespeople fail. It is natural for buyers to try to delay making purchase decisions. But as the time it takes the salesperson to close the sale increases, the profit to be made from the sale may go down, and the risk of losing the sale increases. Consequently, the salespersons task is to facilitate the client making a timely final decision. Often, this may best be accomplished by simply asking for an order. May I write that order up for you? and When do you want it delivered? are common closings. Another closing tactic is to ask the client to choose between two alterna ­tive decisions, such as, Will that be cash or charge? or Did you want the blue one or the red one? In B2B buying and selling, organizational buyers and other decision makers have had extensive training in buying and selling techniques and can identify manipulative closing techniques, so care should be used in selecting a natural way to ask for the sale. Servicing the Account The salespersons job is not finished when the sale is made. Many types of service and as-sistance must be provided to customers after a sale to ensure their satisfaction and repeat business. Excellent service after the sale bolsters customer loyalty and fosters long-term relationships with customers. But this is another area in which some salespeople do not perform well. One consultant estimates that when a customer stops buying from a com-pany, about 60 percent of the time its because the customer thinks the selling firms sales ­people developed an indifferent attitude after the product was delivered.18 The salesperson should follow up each sale to make sure no problems exist with delivery schedules, quality of goods, or customer billing. In addition, often the salesperson or members of a sales team supervise the installation of equipment, train the customers employees in its use, and ensure proper maintenance in order to reduce problems that may lead to customer dissatisfaction. This kind of postsale service can pay great dividends for both the salesperson and the selling firm, leading to the sale of other, related products and services.19 For instance, in many capital equipment lines, service contracts, along with supplies and replacement parts, account for greater dollar sales revenue and higher profit margins than the original equip ­ment. A firms selling and customer relationship strategy should dictate what type of postsale or ongoing service should occur. To truly understand the selling process, why successful salespeople do what they do, and how to most effectively manage their efforts, it is important to also understand how B2B customers make purchase decisions. After all, in relationship selling, the focus by the sales ­person and his or her entire organization is aimed at fulfilling customer needs and solving customer problems. Therefore, the next sections shift the focus of our discussion from the selling side to the buying side to examine the participants in the B2B buying process, the stages of this buying process exhibited by many organizations, and finally the nature of organizational buying situations.

Shaping Identity Essay -- essays research papers

Shaping Identity Identity. What is identity? One will say that it is the distinct personality of an individual. Others will say that identity is the behavior of a person in response to their surrounding environment. At certain points of time, some people search for their identity in order to understand their existence in life. In regards, identity is shaped into an individual through the social trials of life that involve family and peers, the religious beliefs by the practice of certain faiths, and cultural awareness through family history and traditions. These are what shape the identity of an individual.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In today's world, society creates an impact on human life. More of an impact can be seen among family and peers. They can be found at home, work, and school. At home with family, identity can be created on the difference of having one parent, divorced or separated parents, no parents, abusive parents, or even negligent parents. For example, children who grow up without a father or mother figure tend to become more independent at an early stage. Another example is where certain experiences within the family such as constantly witnessing parents argue can cause one's identity to be confined and distant. But, some people shape their identity similar to their parents. Such as a son became a soldier in the army because his father was in the army. Siblings, if any, are also an influence on the social identity of a person. They either become your friend, mentor, or you...

Fiction and Monkey House Essay

The Irony of the Kurt Vonnegut’s Works that Can be Seen in the Welcome in the Monkey House and Who I am this Time. Kurt Vonnegut is one the best writers in the world. He is one of the post modernism’s writers. He is best known as the author of Slaughter-Five. Kurt Vonnegut wrote of satirical novels whose central theme is life’s cosmic joke on humanity. Vonnegut also a science fiction author and he is known as a dystopian writer’s. Some of his famous works is the collection of ‘Welcome to the Monkey House’ and ‘Who am I this Time’. Both of the stories tell about life’s cosmic joke on humanity. Now, I will describe about the irony of the Kurt Vonnegut’s works that can be seen in the Welcome in the Monkey House and Who I am this Time. Welcome to the monkey house is the collection of the short works by Kurt Vonnegut. And Who am I this Time is one of the collections among the short story in the welcome of the monkey house. Who am I this time is told about some one who can play many characters in the drama. The narrator is good actor; and he is a director too he can play many characters that expected to him and he is a director too, and Harry Nash is the biggest actor that the club has. Firstly, he got a character as a salesman of storm windows and doors, and he said that the highest rank that he ever held on stage was either butler or policeman. After that, the narrator meets with a pretty girl that is Helene Shaw and asks her to play the Stella’s character. Harry Nash is good actor too, even somebody said that harry ought to go a psychiatrist so he could be some thing important and colorful in real life. He like lost anything, and one time he said that â€Å"who am I this time? †. When the play of this story, Helena Shaw cannot plays Stella’s the character as well as expected to her. And the director searched a new one to play Stella’s character. But in the end, she can find the character and can play it well. The narrator said that â€Å"the part of Stella is yours†. And Harry and Helena play the character together. Finally, they married and said one thing to the narrator â€Å"Who are we this time? †. In the Who am I this time, the author made us think to differentiate the real life and the acting. The author can separate the two worlds but it is like allied. It is the irony that, the character of this story, that is Harry Nash and Helena Shaw can play the character in the play, but they can play their character in the real life. It can be seen when Harry Nash plays the character of Abraham Lincoln, he can make his spouse fall in love with him, as a Harry Nash and as Abraham Lincoln. And in the end of the story, there is another irony that is when Harry Nash and Helena Shaw get married. They said that â€Å"who are we this time†, it means that they will play many character in their life until they die. There is another story of Kurt Vonnegut that contain of Irony element in the work that is Welcome to the monkey House. Welcome to the monkey house is containing of irony element too. In this story, sex which is the natural behavior of human is forbidden by the government. Welcome to the monkey house told about the condition in the future which is the world has over population. This is the time when the population of the earth is 17 billion human beings. That is too many mammals that big for a planet that small. The people were virtually packed together like drupelets . And Billy the Poet who is a person who refused the ethical birth-control pill, so, he will got the penalty for that that is $10. 000 and ten years in jail. The world government makes a two-pronged to attack on overpopulation. One pronging is the encouragement of ethical suicide, which consist of going to the nearest suicide parlor and asking a hostess to kill us painlessly while we lay on Barcalounger. The other pronging was compulsory ethical birth control. Billy the Poet does not like to do it, because he think that, sex is the natural desire of human, and it cannot forbidden by government. One day Pete Crocker, the sheriff of Barnstable County, comes to the Ethical Suicide Parlor in Hyannis and announces to the two hostesses working there that Billy the Poet, a nothing head, was about to come to Cape Cod. Billy the Poet is known to be eager to deflowering hostesses, who are all virgins, and to send them smutty poems before he violates them, and one of the hostesses is Nancy McLuhan who is works in Barcalounger. After that, Billy the Port comes to Nancy to do a dirty thing. Nancy is repulsed by the whole action and insults Billy the poet. In the end, Billy the poet leaves her alone handing her a bottle of ancient birth control pills which prevent pregnancy but allow sexual intercourse. The label on the bottle says: Welcome to the Monkey House. So, the irony in this story is when government forbids their people to having sex, and gives them pills that made them like dying. Whereas, sex is the natural desire of human that cannot forbids by the government. It is according with Billy the Port statement to Nancy McLuhan that is one day he will make her understand that sexuality is a part of human nature and must not be suppressed by the Government. In the conclusion, I see that Kurt Vonnegut is the postmodernist writers that give the irony in his works that can be seen in the both of this story.

Deception Point Page 47

Arriving now at the doorway of the Communications Office, Tench felt alive with the thrill of the fight. Politics was war. She took a deep breath and checked her watch. 6:15 P.M. The first shot was about to be fired. She entered. The Communications Office was small not for lack of room, but for lack of necessity. It was one of the most efficient mass communications stations in the world and employed a staff of only five people. At the moment, all five employees stood over their banks of electronic gear looking like swimmers poised for the starting gun. They are ready, Tench saw in their eager gazes. It always amazed her that this tiny office, given only two hours head start, could contact more than one third of the world's civilized population. With electronic connections to literally tens of thousands of global news sources-from the largest television conglomerates to the smallest hometown newspapers-the White House Communications Office could, at the touch of a few buttons, reach out and touch the world. Fax-broadcast computers churned press releases into the in-boxes of radio, television, print, and Internet media outlets from Maine to Moscow. Bulk e-mail programs blanketed on-line news wires. Telephone autodialers phoned thousands of media content managers and played recorded voice announcements. A breaking news Web page provided constant updates and preformatted content. The â€Å"live-feed-capable† news sources-CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, foreign syndicates-would be assaulted from all angles and promised free, live television feeds. Whatever else these networks were airing would come to a screeching halt for an emergency presidential address. Full penetration. Like a general inspecting her troops, Tench strode in silence over to the copy desk and picked up the printout of the â€Å"flash release† that now sat loaded in all the transmission machines like cartridges in a shotgun. When Tench read it, she had to laugh quietly to herself. By usual standards, the release loaded for broadcast was heavy-handed-more of an advertisement than an announcement-but the President had ordered the Communications Office to pull out all the stops. And that they had. This text was perfect-keyword-rich and content light. A deadly combination. Even the news wires that used automated â€Å"keyword-sniffer† programs to sort their incoming mail would see multiple flags on this one: From: White House Communications Office Subject: Urgent Presidential Address The President of the United States will be holding an urgent press conference tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time from the White House briefing room. The topic of his announcement is currently classified. Live A/V feeds will be available via customary outlets. Laying the paper back down on the desk, Marjorie Tench looked around the Communications Office and gave the staff an impressed nod. They looked eager. Lighting a cigarette, she puffed a moment, letting the anticipation build. Finally, she grinned. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen. Start your engines.† 53 All logical reasoning had evaporated from Rachel Sexton's mind. She held no thoughts for the meteorite, the mysterious GPR printout in her pocket, Ming, the horrific attack on the ice sheet. There was one matter at hand. Survival. The ice skimmed by in a blur beneath her like an endless, sleek highway. Whether her body was numb with fear or simply cocooned by her protective suit, Rachel did not know, but she felt no pain. She felt nothing. Yet. Lying on her side, attached to Tolland at the waist, Rachel lay face-to-face with him in an awkward embrace. Somewhere ahead of them, the balloon billowed, fat with wind, like a parachute on the back of a dragster. Corky trailed behind, swerving wildly like a tractor trailer out of control. The flare marking the spot where they had been attacked had all but disappeared in the distance. The hissing of their nylon Mark IX suits on the ice grew higher and higher in pitch as they continued to accelerate. She had no idea how fast they were going now, but the wind was at least sixty miles an hour, and the frictionless runway beneath them seemed to be racing by faster and faster with every passing second. The impervious Mylar balloon apparently had no intentions of tearing or relinquishing its hold. We need to release, she thought. They were racing away from one deadly force-directly toward another. The ocean is probably less than a mile ahead now! The thought of icy water brought back terrifying memories. The wind gusted harder, and their speed increased. Somewhere behind them Corky let out a scream of terror. At this speed, Rachel knew they had only a few minutes before they were dragged out over the cliff into the frigid ocean. Tolland was apparently having similar thoughts because he was now fighting with the payload clasp attached to their bodies. â€Å"I can't unhook us!† he yelled. â€Å"There's too much tension!† Rachel hoped a momentary lull in the wind might give Tolland some slack, but the katabatic pulled on with relentless uniformity. Trying to help, Rachel twisted her body and rammed the toe cleat of one of her crampons into the ice, sending a rooster tail of ice shards into the air. Their velocity slowed ever so slightly. â€Å"Now!† she yelled, lifting her foot. For an instant the payload line on the balloon slackened slightly. Tolland yanked down, trying to take advantage of the loose line to maneuver the payload clip out of their carabiners. Not even close. â€Å"Again!† he yelled. This time they both twisted against one another and rammed their toe prongs into the ice, sending a double plume of ice into the air. This slowed the contraption more perceptibly. â€Å"Now!† On Tolland's cue, they both let up. As the balloon surged forward again, Tolland rammed his thumb into the carabiner latch and twisted the hook, trying to release the clasp. Although closer this time, he still needed more slack. The carabiners, Norah had bragged, were first-rate, Joker safety clips, specifically crafted with an extra loop in the metal so they would never release if there were any tension on them at all. Killed by safety clips, Rachel thought, not finding the irony the least bit amusing. â€Å"One more time!† Tolland yelled. Mustering all her energy and hope, Rachel twisted as far as she could and rammed both of her toes into the ice. Arching her back, she tried to lift all her weight onto her toes. Tolland followed her lead until they were both angled roughly on their stomachs, the connection at their belt straining their harnesses. Tolland rammed his toes down and Rachel arched farther. The vibrations sent shock waves up her legs. She felt like her ankles were going to break. â€Å"Hold it†¦ hold it†¦ † Tolland contorted himself to release the Joker clip as their speed decreased. â€Å"Almost†¦ â€Å" Rachel's crampons snapped. The metal cleats tore off of her boots and went tumbling backward into the night, bouncing over Corky. The balloon immediately lurched forward, sending Rachel and Tolland fishtailing to one side. Tolland lost his grasp on the clip. â€Å"Shit!† The Mylar balloon, as if angered at having been momentarily restrained, lurched forward now, pulling even harder, dragging them down the glacier toward the sea. Rachel knew they were closing fast on the cliff, although they faced danger even before the hundred-foot drop into the Arctic Ocean. Three huge snow berms stood in their path. Even protected by the padding in the Mark IX suits, the experience of launching at high speed up and over the snow mounds filled her with terror. Fighting in desperation with their harnesses, Rachel tried to find a way to release the balloon. It was then that she heard the rhythmic ticking on the ice-the rapid-fire staccato of lightweight metal on the sheet of bare ice.