Assessment and identification Essay

Assessment and identification are key elements in education, in particular, special education. Assessing students is essential to knowing where to begin with a student. No matter what the student’s ability is or is being, they all need to be assessed. After the assessments are done and evaluated, a teacher should have a better understanding of what level of performance the students are in the classroom. More than likely not all students will perform equally. The child needs further identification, a teacher needs to initiate a meeting with that diagnostician and get the students started in the Response To Intervention (RTI) process. The child is identified and then an IEP (Individualized Educational Plan) is created at and ARD(Annual Review and Dismissal) meeting. For Emotional or behavioral disturbed students, a BIP (Behavior Intervention Plan) is usually utilized to assist the child and teacher to â€Å"pinpoint† troubled times of the day or particular settings that are not productive for that child and their learning process. Once the ARD meeting has taken place and the modifications have been approved and relayed to the teacher, the learning can begin. Learning can either be successful or not, depending on the approach and strategies used by the teacher. In order for the teacher to accommodate for students with learning disabilities, here she must use differentiated instruction and multilevel assessments. Not all students can learn or perform at the same level. One might suggest strategies or approaches, such as creating a syllabus allowing the students to know what will be covered and assignments that will be expected of them throughout the course. A calendar should accompany the syllabus to assist the visual learners. Technology could be used to present information, and to assess students. This method is especially helpful for a kinesthetic learner or one that has dyslexia. Visual learners could also benefit from the use of technology. Assessments need to be multidimensional with all learners in mind. Of course, the modification and accommodations should align with the student’s IEP. Teachers must know how to create an assessment that is tailored for all learners and remember both the high and low scoring students. In all areas of instruction, whether it be the first time information is being presented or not, the assessment must be given in a way that is effective and efficient. They must always remember to† go as quickly as you can, but as slowly as you must. †

Mass Media and Popular Culture

Mass Media and Popular Culture March, 2009 Let us face the facts, mass media and popular culture need each other to coexist. Furthermore, in today's society the mass media serves the interest of popular culture. Moreover, it is the vehicle of free speech in a diverse, multicultural society. In addition, mass media refers to communication via radio, televisions, movie theaters, television, newspapers, magazines, and, etc; thereby, reaching out to the larger audience. On the contrary, popular culture can refer broadly to common aesthetic or life practices, in both the statistical and qualitative senses. However, therapists have used the term more precisely to designate a particular form of common culture that arises only in the modern period. Therefore, popular culture in this account is distinct from both folk culture and high culture: unlike the former, it is mass-produced; unlike the latter, it is mass consumed. As a result, both have played a vital role in the development of Popular American Culture. In this paper, Learning Team D will examine the relationships among the media; address the impact of the mass media on advertising, and enculturation, as well as the impact of the Internet and globalization on popular culture, and the interpersonal communication and formation of normative cultural values. The description of the definition of mass media on enculturation is defined as â€Å"the process by which an individual learns the traditional content of a culture and assimilates its practices and values†. (Merriam-Webster, 2009). The media is part of our day to day lives enculturation. In which the population is used to the culture of TV, radio, Internet and any other forms that we use in viewing of the popular media of our culture. The mass media can have a great impact on the enculturation in which according to Paul A. Herbig â€Å"The average American is exposed to 61,556 words from the mass media each day which works out to just under 4,000 words per waking hour, about 60 words per waking minute per person per day. † (Herbig & Kramer, 1994). As also data changes so mass media can keep changing he way the population views the different culture and change things on their own. Media and advertising work together because of their interdependent relationship. Popular culture bombards society by billboards, television, advertisements, radio, Internet, and any other imaginable form. Advertisements drawl a large amount of attention because of the persuasive nature of the context. Advertising serves as a wa y to interact with the audience, but more specifically targets people who are preoccupied with the values of consumerism. These people purchase commodity goods in large amounts. The advertisements may be shown on television (Home Shopping Network, info-ads, or commercials), heard on the radio, or published in an ad in the newspaper, a magazine, newsletter, or another form of publication. Advertising fabricates cultural values and downgrade the normative cultural values. The formation of normative cultural values influence the way people think, act, and live their lives upon. The relationship between the media, advertising, and formation of normative cultural values is how advertisements affect the media, the media affects society, and society affects the market. This relationship works in a circle, and also cause and effect. Each has an influence on one another. Television has probably the biggest influence because society can see what is being advertised, what celebrities are wearing, what the seasons fashion trends are, and then hear everything. For instance, Paris Hilton’s saying â€Å"that’s hot. † That saying was everywhere because Paris Hilton said â€Å"that’s hot† on her reality TV show The Simple Life. Society mimics what is seen and heard through the media. (Rigel) The tendency to aggression is an innate, independent, instinctual disposition in man†¦ it constitutes the powerful obstacle to culture† Sigmund Freud. American popular culture is largely impacted by mass media in every sense. Popular culture in American is influenced by the internet and globalized because of the various was to communicate quickly around the world. American popular culture is what each person makes of it in th eir own terms based on the perception of the information received through mass media. The many forms of relaying the mass media information such as television, radio and Internet to name a few have sculpted the way Americans feel, believe, act and react to various situations. A person cannot avoid mass media unless he or she had no form of electronics nor did he or she walk outside or read the newspaper. Therefore, each decision and thought created in the minds of Americans is somehow affected by American popular culture. The decisions do not always follow the crowd but move against it, either way a person can make the decision to follow or drift alone. These decisions, methods of thinking, actions and reactions have all developed into cultural values of the American people. Cultural values revolve around popular culture because they create the ideals that people live by. For example, the way a family dresses the children of the family or allows the teenagers to dress in a family is determined by the reactions of popular culture. Additionally, religion is another area of culture that can be dominated by popular culture. â€Å"A nation's culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people† Mohandas Gandhi. References Herbig, P. A. , & Kramer, H. (1994). The effect of information overload on the innovation choice process. Journal of Consumer marketing, 11(2), 45. 54. Retrieved February 19, 2010, from http://web. ebscohost. com/ehost/detail? vid=4&hid=112&sid=63a6ab34-57d5-423b-956c-e5543b814d08%40sessionmgr108. Merriam-Webster. (2009). Retrieved February 19, 2010, from http://www. search. eb. com. ezproxy. apollolibrary. com/dictionary? va=enculturation&query=enculturation.

Brief summary abput a case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Brief summary abput a case - Essay Example Therefore, interstate commercial and economic trend can be affected if this ruling failed to be upheld. The congressional federal law had the rationale to regulate any activity that affects interstate economic activity. In this case, the constitutional federal law preempted California state law. SDI, Kaplan and Brunk had filed a case in a district federal court arguing that they had stood to challenge the legality of the search and that their right as stipulated in the fourth Amendments had been violated, (Reilly, 1983, p141). They requested that since the search warrant was vague and overboard then the evidence presented by the IRS agents was inadmissible and should be suppressed, (Reilly, 1983, p141). The district federal court ruled in their favor. The government appealed through the court of Appeal Ninth Circuit. This decision was reversed by the court of appeal. The judges said that there was no evidence that SDI, Kaplan and Brunk made steps maintain the privacy of the items, they had no direct control over the property that was seized as evidence, and they did not have a strong connection with the seized items, (Reilly, 1983, p143). All these were vital requirements for the items to be perceived as private. However, the court acknowledged that they had direct control over both the premises and the entire building. Therefore, there was a certain extent of privacy accorded to them by that virtue alone. However, with regard to their standing to challenge the search, further proceedings were necessary and the decision by the district federal court stood reversed. It was noted that some evidence was admissible while other was not, (Reilly, 1983,

EVOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

EVOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM - Case Study Example However, studies show that the percentage of Americans covered under such Insurance has declined significantly in three years, and it hit a new low with only 44.5 per cent of people covered by under this scheme (USNews, 2011). Thus, due to a steady decline in employment (Bloomberg, 2011), along with various other factors the number of people covered under health insurance has declined simultaneously, rendering access to healthcare limited to a certain section of population. Furthermore, health care costs have risen considerably over the years. Such rise in healthcare costs can be attributed to several factors such as technological developments, rise in cost of prescription drugs, rise in chronic illnesses, ageing of the population, rise in administrative costs, rise in charges by healthcare providers, inflation etc. The healthcare costs in the U.S. have currently exceeded 17% of the total GDP and continue to rise (HBR, 2011). One of the major causes of such a rise is the rise in tech nological developments, which has significantly increased the odds of treating long-term chronic illnesses. Furthermore, the cost of setting up new and advanced technological tools for treatment is relatively higher than the conventional methods of ailing (FDA, 2003). Also, there has been a drastic rise in the costs of prescription drugs, thus pushing the healthcare costs further. According to reports chronic illnesses such as obesity and diabetes is causing a serious upward shift in the cost of branded and prescription drugs in the U.S. Furthermore, other factors such as the rise in ageing population, increase in drug use and increase in reliance on new branded and specialty drugs are also responsible for driving the costs of healthcare services, thus making it inaccessible to a large percentage of population (AMA, 2011). Another significant problem faced with regard to access to healthcare is the differential access to healthcare services, especially as it pertains to a certain se ction of the population. This includes, the minority communities such as people belonging to culturally and ethnically diverse backgrounds, as well as expats. The key causes of such racial disparity in healthcare delivery include: difference in economic backgrounds, difference in health status, and access to healthcare insurance etc. According to Wang (2006) there are significant differences in health status of minority communities and the white population. Studies have shown that Blacks have a shorter life expectancy and higher infant mortality rates as compared to Whites. Furthermore factors such as racial stereotyping, prejudice, and clinical uncertainty on the part of care givers also account to health disparities among the minority communities. Strategies to overcome the problems: In order to curtail the rising number of uninsured and underinsured individuals, healthcare organizations can develop adaptive strategies; seek increased federal funding; or development of a nation-wi de health insurance program, which may lend credible support to the

Ethics Report + Sustainability Report Assignment

Ethics Report + Sustainability Report - Assignment Example In addition, there are no clear and explicit policies regarding RFID usage. This raises ethical concerns about people’s privacy. In this regard, by implementing the RFID system, the following ethical concerns should be considered by the company. Stakeholders The four main stakeholders in the case are the operations manager, employees of the organization, customers or clients, IS policy makers. The operations manager will be affected in case ethical issues arise as he is in charge of the implementation of the RFID system. He will have to make the decision, based on the analysis, whether the system should be implemented or not. Employees will be affected as their movement will be restricted because they will be monitored by the system. Clients or customers will be affected as their information will be collected without their knowledge. Lastly, IS policy makers will have to develop policies that strike a balance between ethical dilemma. Analysis Based on PAPA Framework The four p rinciples of Mansion, Property, Access, Privacy, and Accuracy overlap with the use of RIFD. Property involves the owner of information and how it should be distributed or sold to other entities. Unlike traditional times where information in hard forms and their hard nature made them easy to own, the advancement in technology has made information to be in soft form, which has brought a lot of challenges regarding ownership. Organizations use the RFID and collect a lot of information of employees without their knowledge and use the information for their own benefits. In this regard, some organizations sell the information they gather from employees or even customers to third party organizations (Balkovich, Bikson & Bitko 2005). For example, it is likely that many retail traders sell customers personal information regarding their behavior of buying. This will make third party organizations to practice targeted and direct marketing. The information gathered by RFID will enable the organ izations to know the frequency of shopping of a customer, the store he or she shops, the products she likes, and many other attributes that encourage direct and targeted marketing (Huber, Houck & Vinogradov n.d.). Collecting and using customers’ personal information is unethical. The information is considered her property and she should be informed when it is collected and how it is used. According to Mason framework (1986), Access involves the kind of information that can be collected from a person and how it can be used and accessed. Organizations use RFID to collect personal information from clients. While employees can be told the kind of information collected by RIFD systems, they are not always allowed to access, inspect, and correct such information. This is unethical as it is the right of employees and clients to access their personal information collected by RFID, inspect, and correct them. However, it is normally not practical to allow employees or clients to access systems and correct such information even if the information collected about them is wrong. Privacy involves protection from private intrusion. Employees and clients have the right to privacy where they can do their things at will in a manner they like without interference from third party. Organizations use RFID tags to monitor and observe the movement of employees in the building or work

The faulty logic behind race boundaries elucidated in literature Essay

The faulty logic behind race boundaries elucidated in literature - Essay Example Weinbaum's analysis of race treats ideologies of nationalism and racism within the American. Basically, Weinbaum's analyzes the connection between race and reproduction. Her ideas find that slavery as an institution validated by 'difference of the races' cannot continue to exist if reproduction does not occur separately inside and outside that institution. The basic statement offered in Wayward Reproductions is that America, as a racially divided nation, is in crisis. Social order is compromised because reproduction is not an orderly process. Weinbaum states that problems are grounded in "the failure of the social order, particularly the modern racial nation, to continually produce itself without a glitch" (p. 14). The basic concept to apply to the literary works by Chopin, Jacobs, and Brown, is that the idea of racial supremacy is faulty. Classification by race cannot exist in society as our reproduction isn't based nor does it occur within clear-cut racially-segregated boundaries. Weinbaum analyses Chopin's Dsire's Baby within her book and points out problems of identification and power struggle within the relationship between Dsire and her husband. Because the baby is not adequately and unquestionably Caucasian, onlookers to the child question which of the two parents have African ancestry. The thought is 'Who's guilty' Dsire is blamed for the physical appearance of the child and returns to the family home. "She disappeared among the reeds and willows that grew along the banks of the deep, sluggish bayou; and she did not come back again" (247). This is to say that Dsire, on behalf of her race being disclosed and African, is not welcome among the elite. However, in truth, Dsire's husband, who still resides in L'Abri, is the one, who due to 'racial inferiority' has been misappropriated his place. Kate Chopin expertly crafts her short story, Dsire's Baby, so that the reader will see the mockery of the premise of 'racial integrity.' Meanwhile, even the main characters are oblivious to the unfair hoax of racial divisions and the injustice those racial divisions cause, just as society cannot see the hoax that occurs among us. Via critique of Chopin's piece, Weinbaum also addresses Nationalism. Just as Desiree's household was interrupted, and Desiree returned to her family home, society is interrupted by assumptions based on race. This occurs and proves that social order is not stable. Models for classification, social control, and oppression (Weinbaum 3) of the races cannot function when those systems of classification have to be maintained through reproduction, which cannot be controlled. Both Harriet Jacobs and William Wells Brown include illustrations of autobiographical/biographical characters with mixed bloodlines who were born as slaves. Through them, race issues are addressed - issues such as racially-mixed reproduction, favorable treatment to those more Anglo-Saxon looking slaves, and the ever-present status of 'slave' or negro that contradicts the value of an individual. Constantly in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl and Clotel, Anglo-Saxon features of slaves are referred to as more attractive or more valuable. Degree of color is important to those telling these stories. Degree of color was of importance to the slaves themselves. Harriet Jacobs

MBA -International Business- Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

MBA -International Business- - Essay Example Production can now be done within different nations as well as distant geographical regions by companies through the process of internationalization. This has probed the multinational corporations or individuals who intend to venture into the international trade to learn about international business. However, countries differ in institutional frameworks, social cultural as well as the political orientation. It is thus very important to learn and understand the different cultures, institutional frameworks as well as the political scope of the other countries for the sake of any beneficial interaction. They are critical determinants of the performance of the introduced business as wholesomely they form the business environment t in which the business will be operating. Differing perspectives within countries as regards to these institutional as structural set-ups would differently affect the business. The success of an industry within one country does not therefore automatically ascert ain success to the same business within another country. For instance, the United States and Brazil are nations that regularly interact in business relations. In the United States, the first impression matters a lot and is basic to the success of every business relationship. The Americans appreciate eye contacts and a firm handshake with business partners (Bowie, n.d p.1-12). In regard to understanding the intrigues surrounding the expansion of a manufacturing industry from the Western country into a member country to the BRIC block, we shall take an analysis case of a textile firm based in the U.S.A intending to expand her operations into Brazil. Brazil is a member country to the BRIC group together with the Russian republic, India as well as China (Pedro et al, 2012, p.4). This research intends to study the opportunities and challenges, associated with the cultural and political environment in Brazil and which are likely to affect a foreign textile industry there. We also intend t o study other appropriate business forms for the manufacturing plant. Lastly, we intend to survey the business environment in Brazil, through which we shall explore the opportunities available as well as the challenges that this manufacturing industry is likely to face while exploring the market within Brazil and thus have dependable conclusions and recommendations. Discussion: Administrative duties within Brazil are carried out in Brasils as it is where the elected federal officials reside, she is the 6th largest economy after she over did UK in 20111 (Lara, 2010, p.6). She has a population of approximately 180 million people with majority of the people living in urban centers. She has a modern economy with agriculture servicing about 9 percent, industry and manufacturing servicing about 37 percent and service industry servicing about 53 percent of the total GDP. Over a long time, her largest business partner has been the United States though greater trends are emerging with China and the middle-east countries taking shape in the international business scene with her. Between 1930s and 1960s Brazilian economy was dominated by import substituting industrialization. She has however, undergone through a great ideological reversal since then (Cardoso, 2009, p.5). She is now a major global participant within the global market with

Marketing Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Marketing - Article Example According to their article, there is a market - finance interface that exists in the operational sphere of every organization. This helps the organization interact with its external environment so as to create ample scope for the creation of market assets as well as cash flows. In this article, the writers have taken the focus away from mere sales growth and profit figures in order to show how the various aspects of marketing can contribute to the overall brand image and thus create a better environment for garnering of financial inputs as well as outputs. (Srivastava et al, 1998) In this regard the various aspects that have been dealt with are discussed in this paper as follows. According to the article by Srivastava et al, (1998), the basic theme of market research revolves around providing the means for an organization to broaden its horizons in terms of its goal achievement plan and its strategic positioning in the market. The implication of this theory revolves around the fact that the modern day organization needs to follow various steps in the research and examination of its various levels of operations and scope in the dynamic business environment that surrounds it. These steps include the following: Development of a goal or a mission in keeping with the basic capabilities of an organization. This includes knowing what the organization's basic output is in terms of its human resource base. A study of the market forces. This will help the organization realize the potential of the product in lieu of similar products that are being sold in the market through an emphasis on the demand and supply of the same. Grouping and organization of resources. This is a crucial element that can make or break an organization. Through the grouping of resources, an organization manages it finances in a better way so as to garner funds that will be circulated in the marketing activities. Through this process there is also a focus on creating a better market standing for the organization. The basic implications for these broad and age old principles in lieu of the article by Srivastava et al, demonstrates that the writers have shown an affinity for the broad spectrum of marketing research in the development of their market - finance interface. Market research is a primary function that gives rise to findings regarding the organization as well as its standing in the external environment. According to Srivastava et al, this has major implication for the market based assets. (Srivastava et al, 1998) The tools of market research help an organization create an identity in the following arenas: Change and knowledge management: The ability of an organization to cater for change and go along with the flow helps it earn more market based assets. The modern day economy is one that is changing with each passing day. The state of commerce is not what it used to be, say, a few decades ago. This is basically due to the fact that the new rule of thumb is that the only constant is change. The face of politics has greatly shaped the way the economy of a country and therefore, that of an organization, operates. In this way, there is a sense of constant interaction with the

Summary chapter 7 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Summary chapter 7 - Essay Example Schloss and Schmidt (2006) stress that special education is a collaborative process and the consultant teacher plays a crucial role in it. The consulting teacher provides services to both secondary teachers as well as their students. Key elements of effective collaboration are willing participants, understanding roles of the two teachers, agreement on goals, sharing responsibility for the student’s problem, sharing responsibility for success (failure) of the intervention developed. The authors identify a number of advantages of using the consulting teacher and some of these benefits include increased level of students, efficient teamwork, reduction of costs of special education. Exposing nondisabled students to collaborating with disabled learners has a positive impact on both parties as students acquire the necessary communicative skills. Schloss and Schmidt (2006) note that it is possible to develop an effective consultant teacher program by considering characteristics of the consultant teacher, responsibilities of consultants, gaining acceptance. The consultant teacher’s responsibilities include identification of the problem behavior, establishing objectives, designing the program, developing an evaluation plan, provision of in-service training, implementation and monitoring of the program, termination of the program, dissemination of results. It is also noted that resource rooms may be a good alternative to the secondary setting. Schloss, M.A., & Schmidt, R.J. (2006). Collaboration and the role of the consultant teacher. In P.J. Schloss, M.A. Schloss, & C.N. Schloss (Eds.), Instructional methods for secondary students with learning behaviour problems (pp. 176-193). New York, NY:

An inspector calls Essay Example for Free

An inspector calls Essay How does Priestley use the Inspector to create a sense of impending doom for the Birling family in act one of An Inspector calls? There are several themes portrayed by certain characters including responsibility, community, guilt, egocentricity and denial. They are key ideas in Priestleys play An Inspector calls, and contribute to the general sense of imminent trouble. There is a great deal of contrast with regards to social events and historical context between the time the play is set in, 1912 Pre World Wars, and the first staging of the place, post World war 2, 1945-46 (disputed). This difference is what fuels many ironic statements throughout Act one, mainly by Mr Birling (one example of this is his speech on page 4). The class Hierarchy also plays an important part in the play, as the Birlings are upper-middle class, and Act One conveys this impression of the stereotypes of class very well. The Impact of the staging suggests a money-orientated posh lifestyle surrounding the family, which the audience would generally disapprove of because of the economic slump and more lower classes present post World War 2. The Birlings are an almost aristocratic family and they look down on any one who is below them in the social hierarchy. Priestley uses the inspector as a key dramatic device and moral conscience to teach the Birlings moral values and the themes discussed earlier. There are many emotive metaphors one can link to the idea of war in the play, such as fire blood and anguish. Furthermore Priestley may have written this detective thriller play set in Edwardian England in an industrial city to convey the message Learn from your mistakes so it doesnt happen again referring to the world wars. Who is the inspector? No real person of interest, more something like a personified bad conscience of guilt and internal voice. The play opens with an intimate celebration of Gerald and Sheilas engagement. Priestley presents the audience with a calm, family and celebratory mood at the beginning of Act Ones first scene. This is clearly shown in the stage directions the lighting should be pink and intimate. The adjective intimate may suggest a mood of relaxation, cosiness and self-involvement. This contrasts to the set as being described as not cosy and homelike implying something is out of place in the atmosphere, which may suggest presage to looming mess and confusion. It also contributes to the foreshadowing of the inspectors entrance (as one would expect contrast later in a play) when the lighting is described as brighter and harder. The comparative adjectives brighter and harder both suggest the mood turns focused and may imply an intensification of the already tense atmosphere caused by the dramatic effect of the inspectors entrance. Moreover this use of lighting hints at the foreshadowing of the trouble that the Birlings will come to turns with. Priestley presents Mr Birling in a very arrogant and negative light to the viewers. An example of this is Mr Birlings toast on page 4, when he talks about his view regarding the engagement of his daughter. Perhaps we may look forward to a time when Crofts and Birlings are no longer competing For lower costs and higher prices. This shows Mr Birlings possible key objective and may suggest Mr Birling is materialistic, as that is how he finished his speech, pressing more emphasis on money and profit. This is an example of his totalitarian obsession with money, and is likely what caused the idea of Eva Smiths loss of job, and eventual death, exposed by the inspector. In addition, the focus on reputation and honour are key factors in presenting Mr Birling as a corrupt, self-obsessed, and acquisitive businessman, obsessed with his image. I gather there is a very good chance of a knighthood so dont get into police court or start a scandal his suggestion of a knighthood may indicate his need of representation within his social class; as a righteous citizen, showing the Birlings have high hopes within their society. Mr Birling appears to use his social status to acquire respect and nobility from Gerald. It is also ironic that he asks his family not to get into police court or start a scandal since that is exactly what appears happens in the play, and this can ironically foreshadow the future events. His obsession in keeping his image, and his attitude toward lower classes is what makes him reluctant to disclose details concerning and regarding his company, Birlings and Company, to the inspector. This defensive attitude, this wall is what he inspector expects and retaliates against. By doing so he makes the family feel uncomfortable as if there is something worse to be revealed, adding to the sense imminent disaster in this Act. Furthermore, Mr Birlings strict view on life is another probable cause for the unfolding of the events. The fact that Mr Birling says that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own and- shows his self-obsessed and uncaring side, which makes the audience feel uneasy. At this point, at the pinnacle and point of Mr Birlings speech, the doorbell sharply rings interrupting him. This has a substantial dramatic impact as Mr Birling was likely to say family and, ironically, the inspectors supposed aim is to teach him and his family community responsibly, as if the inspector wants to say community by ringing the doorbell, and, by using hindsight, one may assume this foreshadows the inspectors intentions. Also, the inspectors entrance is considerably significant, as it adjusts the mood and alters the atmosphere. His entrance invokes a sense of apprehension which is built on later on in the play, starting the sense of impending doom of the inspectors interrogation because no one would expect anyone to come to the house this late, unless it concerned something very important, urgent or a combination of the two. His first words are Mr Birling? simply inquiring to if it is Mr Birling he is talking to. This may imply the inspector wants to cut to the chase and start the inquiry, to the annoyance of Mr Birling, as he wants to butter him up and get it over with. It may also show that the main reason the inspector is here is Mr Birling, and he may directly implicate Mr Birling just by asking a simple question, even though we know that is not true later on in the Act, the audience is still unaware. This adds to the uneasy, nervous atmosphere caused by his entrance. The stage directions clearly intensifies the mentality and superiority of the Inspector, as he creates at once an impression of massiveness, solidity, and purposefulness. The sense of anxiety, interest and uneasiness rises at the sudden impact of a police inspectors entrance, just spelling trouble, and the fact that it is late at night implies deep trouble for the Birlings and Gerald. Moreover, the inspector makes the family ask him questions rather than the other way around (as one might expect with an inspector, as that is his job, to ask questions) and he intentionally withholds details and information from the family to use their curiosity to implicate themselves. For example when Eric tries to get out of the interrogation as he says he feels uneasy, the Inspector tells him he should stay there, and waits for Eric to ask Why should I? and replies with It might be less trouble. If you turn in, you might have to turn out again soon. This answer could simply state the impracticality of Eric turning in yet his answer may also be ironic because he will implicate Eric in a number of ways, revealing Eric is in more trouble than he previously thought, possibly because he stayed. This may be because the inspector is trying to teach them a lesson, and he does so by Inspecting the family and he gathers and uses the information he derives from the reactions of the characters, in this case Eric. By telling Eric to stay he makes not only the characters but also the audience feel uncomfortable, and this further builds on the apprehension and mystery surrounding the inspector, adding to the sense of impending doom in the Act. Moreover, Mr Birling is trying to get the interrogation over with and refuses to believe he is involved. For example, Mr Birlings reaction when he realises hes not the only one involved, but also his family, is quite significant. He said If id known that earlier, I wouldnt have called you officious and talked about reporting you and may imply that Mr Birling is relieved that he isnt involved, but the fact that its any better for him that his family is involved, is quite disconcerting for the audience because it shows he is more self-involved and egocentric, as he cares more about himself than his wife and children. The statement may also imply that, in the point of view of Mr Birling, his temper got out of hand when he talked about calling him officious, and he now regrets what he said either because he was just worried about himself and looked for an excuse to show his remorse to show himself in a more positive light, or because he feels he needs to protect his family, and that his calling the inspector officious he may have offended him and this could negatively change the inspectors view of the family, which may lead the inspector do or act unsympathetically towards them, and by explaining his actions he could avoid impending trouble. In addition, Priestley presents Sheila as being part of the audience. He does this by using her as a dramatic device, as the inspector. But in contrast to the use of the inspector as a dramatic device to be the voice of moral value, Sheila may be used to represent the ear, or audience to absorb Priestleys lessons. For example the inspector talks about Eva Smith not exactly going on the streets, Sheila enters, as if her entrance represented the audiences curiosity toward Eva. Sheila immediately inquires whats this about streets? Leading into her involvement in the supposed suicide of the character Eva Smith by making her ask the questions and him using emotive language. Finally he shows a photograph, which may or may not be the character Eva Smith, to Sheila and she instantly exposed herself with the person on the photographs involvement. The inspector feeds on this and uses it to implicate her further. This gives an impression of the inspectors superior knowledge To the Birlings and builds on the sense of impending doom in the Act. Adding to that, the family, especially Sheila, feel there is no point in lying because the inspector knows the truth. The family, and event he audience, might wander why the inspector asks the questions if he already knows the answers? The answer to that may simply be he wants to find out he credibility and honesty of the family but I think its deeper than that. It could be Priestleys intention of teaching audience, through the play, moral responsibilities and values by showing the social flaws at the time. An example of this is the discussion of the inspector between Gerald and Sheila at the end of Act 1 revealing Geralds connection with Eva Smith (Daisy Renton) and Sheilas reluctance to lie to the inspector. This shows how deep the dramatic impact of the inspector really is, as was foreshadowed earlier in the Act concluded by the entrance of the inspector right before the curtain falls leaving a dramatic cliff-hanger at the fall of the curtain. Finally, Priestley was a soldier in the First World War, experienced many of the harsh realities of war; which may have motivated him to write this play. He wanted to express his beliefs through a character. So he created the inspector as his image to convey his scepticism and criticism toward anti-socialist upper-class arrogance represented by the Birlings. Priestleys use of the inspector as a dramatic device and Sheilas representation of the audience promoted and got across his views throughout the play and especially in Act One. He created the sense of doom for the Birlings to show what happens to such attitudes represented by the family, because as we know, the war would have had a devastating impact on them. The mood of the act started out intimate and casual and slowly evolved to tense and disquieting because of the inspectors interrogation and even by him simply being there. What J. B. Priestley wanted to tell the audience through the play and through the inspector was One Eva Smith has gone but there are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smith still left with us We dont live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other. I didnt much like the play, but I did enjoy the subtleties and casual metaphors that made me think. To conclude, I think it is a piece of literature that was significant at the time, though I think a different piece which wouldve evoked more interest wouldve been a better choice to analyze. I hope you enjoyed reading it more than Ive enjoyed writing it.

Developing Successful Strategic Alliances

Developing Successful Strategic Alliances The traditional relationship between the client, consultants, main contractor, subcontractors and suppliers within the construction industry using a traditional contract is in most cases but not all very contractual and adversarial one Blame Culture which is not productive in a business as it about relationships, where the client and consultants puts all of the risk on to the main contractor who in turn passes it down the line to their supplier chain i.e. Suppliers Subcontractors, due to the nature of the construction industry i.e. large and complex projects that need to be completed to unrealistic time frames, budget, quality, safety expectations, this is the direct opposite and goes against the grain of Strategic Alliances. Gomes-Casseres 2003 p.1213 combines elements of item 1 2 above Alliances are agreements between two or more separate firms that involve ongoing resource contributions from each to create joint value, are incomplete contracts where the terms of the agreement cannot be completely specified and agreed at the outset and joint decision making to manage the business and share value We will be adopting the characteristics of item 3 above in our business plan. Alliances (large and small) have been around in one form or another since the early 1990s, they are used in all different industries across the world and the construction and engineering industry is no exception some notable projects that have been completed around the world using alliances are: Burj Khalifa, Dubai UAE, the worlds tallest building was built by a Joint Venture (type of strategic alliance) by Samsung Engineering Construction (South Korea), Besix (Belgium) and Arabtec from UAE; The Dubai Mall, Dubai, UAE, the worlds largest retail development was built by a Joint Venture Partnership (type of strategic alliance) by Dutco Balfour Beatty (the author used to work for this company) Al Ghandi and Consolidated Contractors International Company (DBB/AG and CCC); and Gateway Bridge Duplication Upgrade Project, Brisbane, Australia, was built by Leighton Contractors Abigroup Joint Venture at a cost of AUS$1.88b it consisted of the duplication of Gateway Bridge and 20km upgrading of Gateway Motorway, including the Gateway Deviation. This business plan has be developed using the principles of leading alliances academics, experts practitioners in their field in particular Gomes-Casseres work to develop best practices that work, while recognising that each alliance is unique and there is no one size fits all approach. This document is a work in progress and we would be working with the potential partners after the business alliance strategy has been established by MCS Constructions, to jointly develop the alliance operating plan, this will construct a solid foundation for a mutually beneficial relationship. The topic of this report is Defining a Business Plan for a Potential Strategic Alliance, there are many possible interpretations of this topic as strategic alliances have been in existence since the early 90s, are used in across a variety of different industries, companies both large and small, on a domestic and international level which can range from very simple to the complex. Drawing upon my own life/work experiences, knowledge, skills and qualifications in the construction and engineering industry both local and international over the last 10 years plus (refer CV in Appendix ?), and considering I do not have access to relevant information on an existing alliance, I will be looking at the feasibility of developing a potential strategic alliance and defining a business plan which will include but not limited to the following areas as outlined in the elective assignment specification (refer appendix ?): This is drawn on the extensive life/work experiences, knowledge, skills and qualifications gained by the owner/director Mr. Matthew C. Smith in the construction and engineering industry both local and international over the last 10 years plus (refer CV in Appendix ?), which is evident in the business today. We are exploring the feasibility of setting up a Strategic Alliance with other trusted companies within the industry, to provide its clients (Public Private) with single-source of responsibility, a one-stop shop to complete its projects of various sizes and complexity on time, to budget, quality and safety that exceeds the clients expectations and objectives. In order to do this a strategic alliance would provide a vehicle with capital/finance, additional knowledge, skills, experiences, expertise from the potential partner companies (Consultants, Major Preferred Suppliers and Major Preferred Subcontractors) both local international, resources, connections, capabilities and competencies, where the clients projects require a broad range of expertise, some of which we may not have in-house. We would be looking at developing this alliance capability to enter the overseas and remote projects in developing and third world countries in particular Middle East / Africa / Asia etc. We would also welcome alliances closer to home (Australia) when needed and depending on our clients requirements. Is to provide its clients (Public Private) with a single-source of responsibility, a one-stop shop to complete its projects of various sizes and complexity on time, to budget, quality and safety that exceeds the clients expectations and objectives in an economic, efficient, ethical, environmental sustainable way. At this stage of the business plan we have not identified any particular companies as potential partner organisations but MCS Constructions would be looking to undertake a strategic alliance that consists of both local and international firms (large or small) within the construction and engineering industry supply chain both up and down the line. The rationale for MCS Constructions to partner with the supply chain (as outlined above) both up and down the line (forward and backward integration) for it to deliver the alliances clients within the construction and engineering industry, projects that are on time, to budget, quality and safety and exceeds the clients expectations and objectives. We offer our potential partners our core competency of Technological Know-How and Management Know-How within our chosen area of knowledge, skills, experiences and expertise in commercial construction i.e. new build, fit-out, refurbishment and heritage listed work. We would be looking for a potential partner with which would complement us and provide capital/financing, additional resources, capabilities, competences, skills, experiences, knowledge, connections, expertise etc. The anticipated benefits would be that MCS Constructions would be able to grow and expand its business overseas into new markets with the additional capital/financing, resources, capabilities, skills, experiences and expertise in their chosen area i.e. Consultancy, Major Preferred Suppliers and Major Preferred Subcontractors, to share risk/reward (Gain/Pain Share) and am opportunity to learn. Now we have made the decision to enter a strategic alliance, we have many choices to be made that relate to the design of the alliance, scope, goals, management processes including legal, tax, insurances, financing, structure etc. This will be outlined in a formal alliance agreement (refer to appendix ? for a sample copy). In relation to legal, tax and insurances, performance bonds/guarantees, profit etc. (for the purposes of this report is outside its scope) this will depend on the local jurisdiction that the strategic alliance is under i.e. Country that the alliance is operating in for example Dubai, UAE it is a requirement that international companies setup a joint venture to partner with a local company sponsor where 51% will been owned by the local company and 49% by the international company. The author used to work for Dutco Balfour Beatty LLC in Dubai, UAE which was 51% owned by the local company Dutco and 49% owned by Balfour Beatty the international company. On a separate note the author used to work for Balfour Beatty in the UK. There are three major forms of strategic alliances Joint Venture, Equity Strategic Alliance and Non-Equity Strategic Alliances, the final decision on the form will be negotiated between all parties to their mutual benefit, but it is envisaged that we will use a Non-Equity Strategic Alliance (refer to definitions section) which over time may develop into a Joint Venture. Stage 1: Utilise the alliance partners specialty in their chosen area, we will allocate tasks and responsibilities to each partner on the basis of what they do best, we will tender and bid for constructions and engineering projects in various target markets/segments, tendering and bidding for projects requires capital, resources, time, etc., if we are not successful at winning work we will continue to look for other opportunities, if we are successful at winning work then we will move into Stage 2; Stage 2: Once we have successfully won and been awarded the project/contract from the client we will enter the Project Stage where we will utilise the alliance partners specialty in their chosen area, we will allocate tasks and responsibilities to each partner on the basis of what they do best, the project stage will depending on the type, size, complexity of the project be broken down into various stages which will typically following a traditional matrix: Alliances Specific Strategy and Alliances Analysis Selection this will be undertaken be the Senior Management of MCS Constructions championed by the owner / director Mr. Matthew C. Smith but will including other internal resources HRM, Accounting / Finance / Legal and Operational Managers, as well as external consultants when required and needed such as Facilitator, Lawyer, Investment Bank, Strategic Alliance Management Consultants i.e. Vantage Partners to provide their expertise as this is the first strategic alliance for MCS Constructions. Alliance Value-Creating Negotiations, Operational Planning and Structuring this will be continued by the owner / director Mr. Matthew C. Smith and the senior management of the preferred potential partner once a MOUP has been enacted by all parties including a non-disclosure confidentiality agreement, this is to continue to build the relational capital and trust between the parties moving forward. According to (Gomes-Casseres 2003 p. 120 64% of poor or damaged relationships between firms are the foremost cause of alliance failure.

Analysis of Shakespeares The Tempest - Caliban and Trinculo :: Shakespeare The Tempest

Psychoanalytic Analysis of Caliban and Trinculo of The Tempest  Ã‚  Ã‚   From a psychoanalytic perspective, both Caliban and Trinculo of Shakespeare’s The Tempest are interesting characters. Caliban is very sexual and bitter, while Trinculo is at odds with everything: his situation of being washed ashore and wrongly accused of saying things when he did not utter a word, as well as Caliban’s worship of an unkingly man, his drunken friend Stephano. Caliban has obviously not had all of his desires trained to stay within him, despite Prospero’s punishments and Miranda’s schooling. Trinculo, on the other hand, wastes his emotions in a bottle of liquor and knows better than Caliban who is and is not fit to worship. Caliban is rude, crude, ugly and lazy. Speaking in a psychoanalytic manner, Caliban is going to be remembered as bitter and obsessed with sex. This sexual desire is going to be coincided first with thoughts of his mutation-- a feeling of inadequacy-- and then more significantly with the absence of his mother. That he had no parents on which to form an Oedipal complex and knows only who his mother was (nothing is mentioned of his father) makes for interesting observations on how he deals with sexuality. We learn that he does not deny that Prospero is the only barrier between him and the rape of Miranda. It is clear that he has developed only so far as Freud’s theory of id, with small touches of the superego. Caliban’s development of the superego is evident only when he does not wish to receive Prospero’s pinches and cramps. He is otherwise all for anything that will bring him pleasure. Being free of Prospero, fulfilling his sexual desires with Miranda and drinking liquor are all on his menu. Trinculo is unable to forget, as the butler Stephano does, all of his woes into the bottom of a bottle. He is upset by the way that Stephano allows himself to be carried away by the worship and praise of Caliban. He is also dismayed in the unjust treatment Stephano dispenses on Caliban’s behalf as Ariel plays Puckish tricks. Clearly, there is no problem with this jester’s ego. He wants himself to be taken care of. He does not appreciate the way he is treated on the monster’s behalf, because he knows he has done no wrong. Later, Trinculo’s id takes over somewhat as he becomes more intoxicated and no longer has the will to let his ego control his id.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I read A tree grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. The story takes place in the summer of 1912 in Brooklyn New York. Johnny and Katie Nolan met very young in 1900. Soon, after six months of meeting, and getting married they have their first child, Francie Nolan who is eleven when the book begins. Later they have their second and last child Neely Nolan. As Francie grows up she begins to lose her innocence through a tree-throwing ritual and an encounter with a sex offender who was shot by Katie. Her father drinks more and more and becomes worthless. Katie then becomes pregnant with a third child, Annie Laurie. Johnny dies on Christmas day, which was five moths before his daughter was born. Francie stops believing in God the Christian faith and begins to do poorly in school. Francie and her brother work after finishing middle school in order to help out Katie. She can only afford to send one of he kids to school so she decides to send Neely, and Francie continues to wor k which allows them to live a little easier.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  World War I begins in America and this causes the world to change. Francie finds her first love, however he leaves to marry his Fiancà © before going to war. Francie is left with a broken heart but soon she meets a another boy. Then, Sergeant McShane asks Katie to marry him and she accepts. He has enough money to support them fully without hardship, and allowing Francie and Neely to go to college. They move out of their apartment the day before the wedding while Francie gets ready to leave for college.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I feel that Betty Smith relates to many other early 1900 writers in America. She brings forward the realities and struggles of poverty that many other writers have written about. In almost every chapter and character, Smith addresses the hardship of poverty, which gives the reader a feeling of how life was in the early 1900s. I feel that Scott F. Fitzgerald’s writing in his book The Great Gatsby is similar to Betty Smith’s writing because this book is all about the tragedies that are associated with excess money. This gives two sides of two different worlds in America around the same time. However, both writers write about the positive aspects of the two different money backgrounds and the negative aspects.

Gender Inequality Essay -- Sexual Inequality

It is only recently that sociology has begun to explore the topic of gender. Before this, inequalities within society were based primarily on factors such as social class and status. This paper will discuss gender itself: what makes us who we are and how we are represented. It will also explore discrimination towards women throughout history, focusing mainly on women and the right to vote, inequalities between males and females in the work place and how gender is represented in the media. The term ‘gender’ was coined by John Money in 1955: â€Å"Gender is used to signify all those things that a person says or does to disclose himself/herself as having the status of a boy or man, girl or woman, respectively† (Coleman and Money, 1991, 13). In sociological terms, gender is a division between men and women which is clear in society throughout the past - for example, in Ancient Egypt with the idea that there was little point in teaching women to read and write. Gender inequalities can be seen throughout many different aspects of our daily lives – from the gender pay gap, to gender discrimination in television adverts. These inequalities are accepted readily in today’s society and most fail to see that direct gender discrimination is still very much a problem in society today. In 1988, Bretl and Cantor conducted a study into gender representation in television programs and advertisements. It was found that women were more likely to be filmed in a domestic situation and portrayed as being unemployed, working part-time or in low paying jobs such as catering and sales. It was also found that 90% of the time a narrator would be male, and women were more likely than men to be seen advertising household goods (Furnham, A. Mak, T. 1999, 414). It... ...eadmin/DU/Academics/course_material/hrge_04.pdf (Accessed 19/10/11) Wright, O (2011). ‘Princesses to be given equality of succession’, I newspaper. OECD (2002) ‘Women at work: who are they and how are they faring?’ http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/28/58/18960381.pdf (Accessed 18/10/11) Arnst, C. (2007) ‘Women and the Pay Gap’ Bloomberg Businessweek http://www.businessweek.com/careers/workingparents/blog/archives/2007/04/working_women_a.html (Accessed 17/10/11) Carmen, D. (2007) ‘Why do men earn more? Just because’ Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_5735341 (Accessed 17/10/11) Barclay, A. Clarke, G. Drew, A. Morrison, I. (2007) Higher Modern Studies Course Notes. Leckie and Leckie. Allen, K. (2010) ‘Equal pay for women not likely till 2067, says research’ The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/aug/19/equal-pay-women-2057 (Accessed 23/10/11)

High School Dropouts Essay

Dropping out of optional school is an issue defied by various teenagers today. It happens in view of several essential standard reasons. One is normally an unlucky deficiency of companionship in extracurricular activities. An exchange turns around the people not being capable in asking for that their youths keep tabs on staying in school. A third cause is the nonattendance of effort pushed by learners to be productive in their studies. Why do young people lose their venture in school? The focus when individuals are not extraordinary with their studies it as often as possible starts a critical plunging winding in their devotion to class. When they feel less positive about school they all things considered are less fascinated by extracurricular activities – recreations, music, and clubs. For various learners, it is their accomplishment in extracurricular activities that fills their aching to stay in school. Accepting that individuals have no attainment in either academic or extracurricular activities they have no inspiring strengths to take off to class Consequently, they have no connection to their school. An overabundance of people is not firm enough with their children and their direction. People disregard to urge their children the centrality of staying in school and that dropping-out is contrary to their future. All over there high scholars drop-out as a consequence of an unlucky deficiency of trepidation instilled into them by their people. Various young people have for all intents and purpose zero parental supervision. Coupled with a nonappearance of social capacities between people and youths, the impact could be an unlucky deficiency of commitment with school. There is a nonattendance of exertion set forth by a significant number of today’s people. They appear to be truly languid and have no order regarding the matter of their studies. Constant disappointment is regularly a solution for colossal over-burden and anxiety. It has a tendency to measure to the satisfying toward oneself prediction of dropping-out. Dropping-out is their just escape. Dropping-out could be counteracted. Offering youngsters on the profits of staying in school requires consistent exertion and an extraordinary use of time. Folks must be the entire more in tune with their youngsters’ needs and cravings and be ready to help them adapt to their inconveniences. Folks must be stronger in swaying their youngsters to stay in school. In any case teenagers themselves must take the activity to acknowledge obligation regarding their future and they must set forth more exertion into their studies. Learners’ fruitful association in additional curricular exercises is useful in raising their regard toward oneself. These strategies for aversion may appear intemperate however the effects exceed the introductory battle.

Osmosis in Quails’ Egg Essay

Title:Osmosis in quails’ egg Aim: To observe the effect of different concentrations of sodium chloride on a de-shelled quail’s egg To explain the effects in terms of osmosis Research Questions: Does the different concentrations of sodium chloride on a de-shelled quail’s egg effect the final mass of quail’s eggs that is measured by using electronic weighing balance? Introduction: â€Å"If a cell is to perform its functions, it must maintain a steady state in the midst of an ever-changing environment. This constancy is maintained by the regulation of movement of materials into and out of the shell. To achieve this control, cells are bounded by a delicate membrane that differentiates between different substances, slowing down the movement of some while allowing others to pass through. Since not all substances penetrate the membrane equally well, the membrane is said to be differentially permeable. The external and internal environment of cells is an aqueous solution of dissolved inorganic and organic molecules. Movement of these molecules, both in the solution and through the cell membrane, involves a physical process called diffusion – a spontaneous process by which molecules move from a region in which they are highly concentrated to a region in which their concentration is lower. A special kind of diffusion is the phenomenon of osmosis. Simply defined in biological systems, osmosis is the diffusion of water through a differentially permeable membrane from a region in which it is highly concentrated to a region in which its concentration is lower. ;

Following directions Essay

â€Å"BOOM! â€Å"sounded off as a little red car hit an 18 wheeler. The owner of the little red car was devastated when he noticed the damage done to his car. He was lost for words. The police officer at the scene said â€Å"Sir calm down †¦ you should have stopped at the stop sign.† The owner of the little red car learned to pay attention & follow directions. It is important to follow directions at all times especially when you’re pregnant, preparing food, and doing an autopsy. Following instructions is very vital when it comes to pregnancy because there’s a life at risk. If you don’t take proper precautions, you may have a miscarriage. If you drink or smoke while pregnant, your baby may have life threatening problems. No mother should have to go through this & it’d occur less often if they would follow directions. When preparing food, it is extra crucial to follow the directions on the recipe. Because if you don’t, your food wont taste right. And if you don’t cook anything that is defrosted all the way through then you might get food poisoning. But if you would have follow directions, you wouldn’t have to worry about those consequences & you can enjoy your food. Following instructions is also very vital when building a house. If you mess up one measurement, the whole house won’t have a solid foundation. If you measure something inaccurately, your house may fall in. If you don’t use tape to paint your house then your lines won’t be straight & they’ll be all over the place. Now had you followed directions, there would be no reason to worry about these consequences. To sum it all up, following directions is very important so you won’t have to worry about the consequences. It is very important to follow directions in life, because without directions, and the ability to obey the given instructions, many unnecessary or unwarranted side effects may occur. This is a basic tenant of not only professional and school life, but everyday life as well.

Susan Steward Essay

Susan McKinney Steward was the first African-American physician in the state of New York and the third in the entire nation. Not only was she a stunningly intelligent doctor, but was also a passionate musician and an accomplished author. She was able to balance her demanding career but still manage to be a caring wife and mother as well as be very involved in her church. Although she faced much ridicule for entering what was considered to be a â€Å"man’s work†, she never stopped proving that she was very qualified and entitled to every accomplishment that she had.Susan was born in Brooklyn to Sylvanus and Anne Smith on March 18th, 1847. She was the seventh out of ten children and was of European, Shinnecock Indian, and African heritage. Her parents were successful porn merchants and were considered to be elite in their black community. As a child she learned how to plan the organ from Henry and John Zundel and preformed at Bridge Street African Methodist Episcopal Chur ch and Brooklyn's Siloam Presbyterian Church. Susan was not the only success story in her family however because her sister, Sarah J.Garrett was the first African-American female principal in the New York City public school system. After finishing high school Susan moved to Washington D. C. to teach so she could save money to pay for medical school. It is believed that her inspiration to enter the medical field was when she nursed her sick niece back to health after the cholera struck New York in 1866 that cause over a thousand people to die. Once she has a sufficient amount of money she enrolled at New York Medical College for Women in 1867.Susan was known for always being one to study assiduously and vigorously even though male medical students from the Bellevue Hospital often harassed her. After specializing in homeopathic medicine she graduated three years later as the class valedictorian. Later she completed grad school Long Island College School. After her graduation in Long I sland, Susan returned to Brooklyn and began accepting clients in her home. She slowly became more popular due to her great skill and once she had a big enough clientele, she opened an office in Manhattan.Susan married William McKinney, a minister, and gave birth to two children soon after. She then wrote two medical papers about a sick pregnant woman and infected infants. Before long, Susan began specializing in children disease. After the death of her husband William in 1892, Susan remarried a soldier named Theophilus Steward two years later and moved around the country with him to different military bases. While at the bases, Susan would treat injured soldiers until Theophilus retired in 1907.Susan began writing many medical papers and reduced her amount of clients as she began to age. She died on March 7th, 1918 and was buried in the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. After he death, a Brooklyn school was renamed the Dr. Susan Smith McKinney Junior High School  after he grandson insister in 1975 and in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York, the Susan Smith McKinney Steward Medical Society  was founded in her honor. Susan Steward was and always will be once of the most inspirational women in history due to her perseverance and remarkable intelligence.During a time when women, especially those of African-American descent, had little importance in society other than serving as wives and mothers, she rose above the prejudice and stereotypes and proved that it matters not where you came from, but where you end up. Her legacy lives not only in New York where she was the first woman physician but also to women all over the world. Bliography â€Å"Susan M. Steward, Pioneer in Medicine. †Ã‚  The Black Box. African American Registry, n. d. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. . â€Å"Susan McKinney Steward Biography. †Ã‚  Susan McKinney Steward Biography. Lakewood Public Library, n. d. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. .

History, development, and use of color in digital media Research Paper

History, development, and use of color in digital media - Research Paper Example 116). By combining two primary colors, it is possible for us to produce a secondary color. For instance: Mixing blue and yellow will create green whereas red and yellow will create orange. By mixing side-by-side colors that are presented in the color wheel, we create another color that is ‘in-between’ colors (Golombisky and Hagen, p.117). For example: Mixing red and orange will create reddish orange whereas blue and green will create bluish green. Color presented on the screen is totally different from the color that may come out in prints when using multimedia. Reddish color in screen may turn pink in prints because the screen color adopts â€Å"additive process† whereas printers use â€Å"subtractive process† (Golombisky and Hagen, p. 121). To produce high quality commercial printing, cyan has to be combined with magenta, yellow and black (CYMK) (Golombisky and Hagen, p. 123). For colors viewed electronically, light has to be added in order to produce color on electronic screens to create more attractive color output. (See Appendix I – Sample Image on page 4) Based on Hering’s opponent-process theory of color vision, the human eyes have three types of color receptors including red, green, and blue-violet. Since each type of color receptors has opposing receptors like black and white, some people may be sensitive to color red and/or green whereas others may be sensitive to blue and/or yellow (Nevid, pp. 96 – 97). Therefore, balancing of color is needed to avoid eyes sensitivity to a particular color. Light and color are two interrelated subjects in the sense that the presence of light is necessary to enable the human eyes see the different shades of color which is then perceived by the brain. In the absence of light, the human eyes will not be able to perceive any color but darkness. Among the different kinds of light includes: natural light, LED, fluorescent light, carbon

Developing Professional Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Developing Professional Practice - Essay Example But in order to become professional accountants or future business leaders, it is very important for the academic students to maintain the ethics and codes of conduct. Several researchers have made researches in order to find out the impact of ethics standards on the accounting students. It has been found that the ethics and standards could not change the overall moral capability of these students to a great extent. It is an important factor associated with the ethical codes and standards set for the accounting students. It has also been stated that the lack of awareness of the term ‘plagiarism’ is another serious educational misconduct, which additionally contributes to student plagiarism. The third factor was related to excessive pressure, which influences the students in conducting plagiarism. However, research on this ground suggested that students who are above 25 years of age have less pressure as compared to the younger ones. It has been recommended that the educa tors must have a supportive approach for motivating the students in acting consistently throughout their academic life. Critique The purpose of the paper is to critically analyze the reason behind conducting plagiarism. The paper has developed several hypothesis based on the factors associated with plagiarism and done research on such hypothesis. It has helped in evaluating the reason mainly responsible for this plagiaristic behaviour of the students. This would help in reducing the scope of occurrence of this activity in future by eliminating or reducing the associated factors. This can be counted as the strength of the research paper. The paper failed to find a conclusion related to the hypothesized factor- new technology. This factor has been removed from the paper totally as it failed to relate with the other factors. This can be counted as the weakness of the research paper. The methodology that was adopted for conducting the research included questionnaire survey and other dat a analytical techniques. The method have been appropriate for finding out the key issues as well as recommending that how the issues related to plagiarism can be resolved. It has accurately drawn the correlation between the associated factors and plagiarism. However, the study still needs to advance its methodology portion in order to reach to a conclusion related to the hypothesized factor ‘new technology’. There have been several researches made on the topic of plagiarism and its associated factors. It has been found that there are various factors which are responsible for conducting activities such as plagiarism. Among them moral capability is one of the factor. The major reason behind the non conduct of plagiarism was that it is a dishonest and immortal activity. It is a common scenario that the students doing any project in a group often copy small portion of text from the others in the group, without having appropriate acknowledgement. Another factor was the aware ness of plagiarism. Reduced knowledge of plagiarism is the reason behind conducting plagiarism even if the students do not intend to do so in reality. According to several researchers, the students having poor integration to the academic environment possess higher chances of performing plagiarism. Moreover, it has been stated that the pressure created on the students also influence them in conducting such activities. The students who rely on their family for continuing their studies have high chance of conducting

Corporate law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Corporate law - Essay Example (d) To what extent, if any, could Peter or Amanda or both incur personal liability for the company`s debts if the business fails? (e) Assume that there is one additional member of the board of directors, John, to whom the actual day-to-day running of the business has been left and who simply reports back to the board on the business he had transacted. John refers to himself as the managing director of Kent Cars Ltd, although he has never been officially appointed as such. A month ago John entered into a contract on Kent Cars Ltd behalf with James to create a company website, however, Kent Cars Ltd did not wish to order the actual website produced by James. The board of directors had refused to pay James, claiming that John did not have the necessary authority to enter into the contract with him. Analyse the situation with regard to the authority of John to make contracts on behalf of Kent Cars Ltd and in particular advise whether or not Kent Cars Ltd is liable to James. Answers a. In accordance with the section 18 of Companies Act 2006, in order for a company to exist, as a legal entity, it needs to have articles of association, which will ‘prescribe regulations for the company,’ (18.1 Companies Act 2006). Peter and Amanda are free to regulate the terms under which their partnership will be developed – with the restrictions set by the specific Act; this means that Amanda and Peter can add any term in the articles of association but this term should not be in clear opposition with the rules of Companies Act 2006. If either of the partners leaves the business, then the partnership would be eliminated; the business would have to be terminated, unless an arrangement has been made in advance, with relevant terms included in the articles of association, that in such case the company will continue to exist being transformed to a single member company – in the context of the article 123 (part 2 of Companies Act 2006). However, the shareholdin g of the leaving partner should be secured; this target can be achieved through specific terms in the articles of association, as for example the following ones: (part 2, part 9): a) a term defining that the leaving member would have the right to exit the firm anytime after a relevant notice, without his right to ask for his share on the company’s property to be influenced, b) a term defining that the leaving member would ask for his share from the firm’s profits within the particular financial year – referring to the period beginning in the first day of the current year and ending the day when the particular member decides to leave the company, c) a term defining that the share of the particular member would not be affected (reduced) by potential limitations in the company’s wealth because of the decisions of the other member – referring to the period beginning the day that the leaving member leaves the firm up to the day that his share is given t o him, d) a term should be also included stated that any right of the members/ shareholders on the company’s assets would be kept – in case that the assets will be not sold or, in other way, distributed between the

Decision Making with Managerial Accounting Case Study

Decision Making with Managerial Accounting - Case Study Example In other words, managerial accounting is referred to as the internal business-developing role of finance and accounting professionals who plan, implement and manage the internal systems, which encourage effective decisions, thereby supporting and controlling the value creating activities of an organization (Ioana-Diana, 2014). Managerial accounting is aimed at providing financial and non-financial information to managers, so as to help them make the best decisions. It facilitates effective internal decision making that is primarily focused on planning and controlling purposes. The type of decisions taken by managers depends heavily on the accounting information available to them. Given the fact that financial accounting data does not provide sufficient detail for internal decisions, it must be broken down to further details, regarding individual services and products offered by the company. Not only do managers need to be aware of the cost of a service or product, but they also need the cost information to be broken into intricate details of smaller components, that will enable them to conduct ‘what if’ analysis and thus, predict the future. The types of decisions that managers more often than not are supposed to make are regarding pricing a particular or a group of products, dropping a produ ct or product line, purchase of new resources by replacing the old ones, assessing the performance of managers and divisions of an organization and sometimes, making instead of purchasing a product. Therefore, this suggests that the two fundamental utilities of managerial accounting are planning and controlling. Both the factors mentioned in the statement above help managers to accomplish fluent decision making (UNF, n.d. ). The principal role of managerial accountant is to record financial information within the financial statements of a company, which is utilized by the management team of the organization to

Cheapchip Cooke Project Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Cheapchip Cooke Project Business Plan - Essay Example Next, fixed overhead costs must also be managed with much care because here electricity and gas costs might rise even without the knowledge of the management. A significant percentage of businesses are faced with the threat oc closure nowadays because of the rising energy costs. Finally, cost centers or cost drivers as they are known in accounting jargon, must be identified before costs are allocated to them. Failure to do so will lead to confusion as to which area of the business has higher costs and which less. * Operating Leverage may be defined as the ability of a firm to use its fixed operating costs (rent etc.) to magnify the effect of changes in sales on its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT). The formula for Degree of Operating Leverage (DOL) is: 3. Number of cookies of various categories that can be baked during 180 days are: 1792 x 180 = 3,22,560 while my budgeted annual sales stand at 3,87,082 (the margin of safety output). I assume that the difference of 64,522 cookies can be baked with some overtime work assigned to full-time workers. My calculations of the break-even points or output levels are based on a realistic assumption of what is desirable and achievable given the capacity constraint imposed by the 112 batch of cookies per 30 minutes. Working hours per day cannot be stretched beyond 8 unless overtime payment is given to those workers who willingly work after the 8-hour shift during the night. My calculations of costs both fixed and overhead are based on realistic estimates that included the additional costs of selling cookies such as the cost of 0.25 cents per cookie sold. Also I have taken into consideration the total fixed cost as equivalent to $ 40,000 per year excluding the depreciation charge. I have assumed a breakeven point of 70,000 cookies per annum of type C1 which is priced at $ 0.50. Even if the

Critically analyse the trend towards incorporating nurse practitioners Essay

Critically analyse the trend towards incorporating nurse practitioners into healthcare systems has been evolving over the past several decades in Australia - Essay Example This evolution in advanced nursing practice in Australia and other countries is because of increasing demands on the health care system and changes in the delivery of health care which include the growing cost of acute health care; the increasing number of specializations in health care; the greater avoidance by medical practitioners of particular client groups such as people in rural and remote communities, those with chronic illness, and low socio-economic groups; and the extensive upgrade of nursing education and training. These factors fuel the development and extension of the scope of nursing practice and the consequent increase in the allocation of clinical discretion, responsibility and autonomy to nurse practitioners (Pearson & Peels, 2002). The value of nurse practitioners will be fully realized only when they also focus on advocating for changes to the social and economic conditions that are at the root of many of the medical conditions they will be required to manage. This paper proposes to analyze the development of the role of the nurse practitioner in Australia from a socio-political perspective. The nurse practitioner is defined as â€Å"a registered nurse with appropriate accreditation who practices within the professional role. The nurse practitioner has autonomy in the work setting and has freedom to make decisions consistent with his/ her scope of practice, and the freedom to act on those decisions† (NSW Health Department, 1998). By the turn of the century after several years of struggle and conflict with the medical profession to crystallize the importance of the nursing role in health care, legal recognition was proclaimed for nurse practitioners in New South Wales, Ausrtralia. This brought about legislation, authorization, acceptance and implementation of the advanced professional role and status of nurse practitioners (N.P.), practice privileges, and protection of the N.P. title in five states: New South Wales,

Employee Relations & Reward Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Employee Relations & Reward - Essay Example Decline in trade union membership and activities is the most obvious change occurred in workforce. In addition, employers are trying to make their workforce increasingly qualified by employing university and college educated fresh candidates. A particular focus is also given to part-time and other flexible forms of labour. In the view of a scholar, â€Å"intellectual capital - not natural resources, machinery, or even financial capital - has become the one indispensable asset of corporations† (Crainer 2006, p. 269). In order to keep pace with the changing economic environment, marketers give prime focus to their workforce and hence they promote employee participation. This paper will evaluate how employee involvement/participation influences the workplace and management strategies to enhance employee participation. Under the concept of employee participation/involvement, each employee is considered as a unique human being involved in achieving the organisation’s short term as well as long term goals. In other words, each employee’s contribution is separately valued by his/her management. According to Secord, â€Å"employee involvement is commonly defined as a range of processes designed to engage the support, understanding, and optimum contribution of all employees in an organisation and their commitment of its objectives† (Secord 2003, p. 231). The term employee involvement is a broad term, and it embraces several processes and arrangements performed between employers and employees. The term employee participation is interchangeably used with the term employee involvement. However, there is a slight difference between these two terms. As Secord (p. 231) says, the term employee participation represents an employee’s involvement in management decision making whereas the practice of employee involvement barely affects organisational decision making. As Jackson et al.

Dead and Breakfast Essay Example for Free

Dead and Breakfast Essay The person who killed dusty could have been anyone of these people, they all had motive but only one of them was desperate enough to kill one of his closest friends. (7:20)The murderer must have been wearing gloves when he set the table again because he left traces of sodium, carbon, iron, and gold. When the Murderer saw his chance, he took it. 7:25)Right when the table had been set and no one was around he slipped the Potassium cyanide into Dustys cup. Now potassium cyanide is a hard thing to come by and only someone who had worked with it for many years would have known the right amount to give to Dusty to make him drop dead. (7:35) Dusty returns down stairs to finish his breakfast. (7:40) Dusty takes one drink then five minutes later he drops dead. Now let me fill you in on how all this evidence plays into this. Mr. Horace Throat had been experiencing some money problems with the mob and really need this auction to go well. Horace was counting on Dusty to help him out but when he let him down, he snapped. Horace had been working in metal finishing for many years and he used the same gloves as he did to work as he did to place the cyanide in the drink, which is how the traces of gold ended up on the table. Second Dusty was the only one of that group of people who had already had potassium cyanide on him because he was already doing work for Dusty. Horace Throat killed one of his closest friends and best buyers of many years just for money to pay off the mob.

Ethics in International Environments Essay Example for Free

Ethics in International Environments Essay The different changes that are happening in the society greatly affect the norms and practices of people, especially those that are involved in the business sector. The existence of globalization has paved the way for business organization to expand their marketing operations outside their local countries and try targeting new consumers that are situated in foreign nations. However, in doing so, business organizations have to take into consideration the differences among nations, especially when it comes to values, beliefs, culture, legal system, and many others. In line with this, respecting and properly addressing the differences among countries also entails properly applying the decisions and business strategy of the company in such a way that it upholds business ethics. Business ethics refers to the applied or professional ethics that is used in order to identify the morality or rightness of a decision or action in ethical issues that arise in business organizations (Crane Matten, 2007). In line with this, the case study of the British American Tobacco Australia (BATA) in marketing their Winfield brand in Asia should carefully consider the ethical implications of their market expansion to the welfare of the consumers in that part of the world and also the overall effects of it in the robustness of the company. Brief Summary of the Case Study The British American Tobacco Australia (BATA) is maker of Winfield, an Australian brand of cigarette. Winfield is available in countries such as: Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, UK, and Europe. The main competitive advantage of Winfield as compared with other brands is the reputation that it has wherein it boost quality along with the concept of ‘more for less’, without being regarded as a ‘cheap’ brand. The brand has showed strong financial growth starting from its launch in Australia and other international market place. However, the stricter tobacco advertising restrictions has made it difficult for the organization to market and communicate to the consumers in order to sell Winfield. Due to this, the organization decided to enter the Asian market because their tobacco laws are not as strict as compared with the United States and Australia. BATA wants to maximize the potential of the Asian market before it begins banning cigarette advertising and tobacco smoking. In order to expand in the Asian market, BATA has to practice the multi-domestic marketing strategy. The multi-domestic marketing strategy entails that business organizations have to tailor made a marketing standard that adheres to the culture and personal preference of the target foreign market of the company (Kurtz, 2008). In relation to this, business organizations also have the ability to maintain the standard quality of the product by making sure that despite the differences in the marketing strategy, it still adheres to the core value and objective of the brand (Kitchen Schultz, 2001). Ethical Issues BATA has to address different issues when it comes to entering the Asian market. First, the organization has to identify as to what degree standardize policy on cigarette advertising and promotion has to be applied across borders. Second, BATA needs to find ways in order to establish a balance between ensuring ethical marketing activities and still gaining from the freedom of communication in some international market places. BATA has to reconcile whether a global marketing strategy or multi-domestic marketing strategy is the most effective marketing model that will benefit the organization (Kurtz, 2008). The organization has to face the ethical issue that comes with marketing and selling their cigarettes in the Asian market. BATA has to deal with the ethical dilemma that marketing Winfield in Asia might place the lives of people in danger because of ill effects of tobacco smoking. In addition, the organization also has to take into consideration the exposure of the marketing of Winfield to minors. Moreover, the reputation of the company should also be given utmost consideration because their image of giving quality products with a desire to give satisfaction to customers might be threatened by a wrong marketing move. Formulation of Alternative or Possible Solution In order to properly address the ethical issues that exist and others more that might arise, BATA has to analyze their decisions and actions through the Social Contract Theory (SCT). The Social Contract Theory pertains to a wide range of theories that try to explain the idea of how people willingly give a part of their right in order to form the state with the main purpose of ensuring social order. Every individual has their own respective rights, which they freely surrender a portion of to a higher authority usually the government, in order to prevent chaos and preserve order in the society (Crane Matten, 2007). In the context of international business ethics, the Social Contract Theory allows the establishment of a framework that will help address the ethical issues in relation with Winfield. The Social Contract Theory solves ethical issue by means of the following: (1) establish core principles that are related to the organization; (2) provides recommendations for various communities; (3) examine the appropriateness of marketing practices; (4) enables the theoretical foundation of norms and values (Crane Matten, 2007). Based on the Social Contract Theory, the possible solution entails BATA should identify specific and effective core value system for the organization. In order to properly identify the decisions and actions that the organization recognizes as ethical or unethical an outline of the core value system of the organization is necessary. Another important step is for the organization to implement the multi-domestic marketing strategy that will give importance to the specific preferences of different foreign markets. The organization has to tailor-made their marketing strategy to the needs of respective foreign countries. The appropriateness of the marketing practices of the organization should also be assured by means of establishing a separate department in the organization that will oversee that the marketing of Winfield adheres to the culture, preferences, and law of the foreign market it is being catered. Moreover, the norms and values of the company should be uphold by means of making marketing ads and other promotional materials that targets adults rather than minors. In addition, BATA should place warnings about the ill effects of smoking to the health of people in the very packaging of Winfield and also, in their marketing campaigns even if the law of the foreign country does not require such. BATA has to protect the reputation of the organization and one effective way of doing so is by effectively practicing corporate responsibility (Blownfield Murray, 2008). The organization has to be mindful of their duties and responsibilities to their consumers and the society as a whole. Recommendation The Utilitarian approach to ethics is a kind of normative ethics that assesses the morality or rightness of action based on its outcome. In utilitarianism, a decision or action is ethical when it yields the greatest benefit for the greatest number of people (Crane Matten, 2007). Based on utilitarianism, BATA has to give importance to the welfare of their consumers and not only the organization’s profit in order to make their business processes ethical. By means of establishing the core value system of the organization and also by making sure that the promotion of Winfield is focus on adults together with the corresponding health warning, BATA can be able to give the greatest benefit or happiness to almost all stakeholders that are involve. The organization will gain more profit and further develop their company by means of entering the Asian market. In addition, BATA’s greater corporate responsibility will further boost the reputation of the company. In the side of the consumers, they will have more variation when it comes to cigarette choices. The consumers are also properly informed by the company of the health risks of smoking, which will give them informed-consent on deciding whether they will smoke or not. References Blowfield, M. , Murray A. (2008). Corporate Responsibility: A Critical Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press. Crane, A. Matten, D. (2007). Business Ethics: Managing Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability in the Age of Globalization. New York: Oxford University Press. Kitchen, P. J. , Schultz, D. E. (2001). Raising the Corporate Umbrella: Corporate Communication in the 21st Century. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Kurtz, D. L. (2008). Contemporary Marketing. New York: Cengage Learning.

Customer Satisfaction iPhone

Customer Satisfaction iPhone The Apple iPhone brought a whole new level on interface and features such as incorporating the iPod technology as well as multi-touch technology which let users to control everything using only their fingers. The research on the level of customer satisfaction on buying an iPhone has been done across the world as it was one of the first handphone that was release by Apple. Customer satisfaction is a vague and abstract concept and the actual expression of the state of satisfaction will vary depending on individuals needs and it also depends on the product or service. The level of satisfaction can also vary depending on other options the customer may have and other products against which the customer can compare the organizations products. It also distinguishes six qualities of attributes such as basic factors, excitement factors, performance factors, indifferent attributes, questionable attributes and reverse attributes. (Kano, 1984) The objective of this research is to analyze the level of satisfaction of having an iPhone based on certain factors. This research will look into factors such as price and quality where each factors has its respective advantages or disadvantages to affect the customers level of satisfaction. This is because every distinct consumer has their own priority of need before even getting a new handphone. The research will be focusing on the capability of the iPhone and what it has to offer to the customers that makes it different and better than its competitors. These capabilities refer back to the factors which were mentioned earlier in the paragraph earlier. Technology for hand phones has been developing endlessly with new features offered as time past. Apples new range of products, especially the iPhone shows such vast improvement. The research first looks at the background of the company which is Apple and what they have offered to their customers before launching the iPhone. Next, the research will provide detailed explanation and information on each factor that will affect the customers satisfaction. The research will use only secondary data such as online journals and articles, blogs and newspapers so that the latest information can be obtained for the research. In the conclusion, the research will show which factor would be of most importance before considering on getting an iPhone. Price Price would be the basic factor where it doesnt only affect potential customers but also customers who already purchased the product. This basic factor does not cause customer satisfaction if it is fulfilled but it does cause dissatisfaction it is not fulfilled (Kano 1984). This explains the curve for basic factor in Figure 2.0 where the curve is below the graph and not above. Apple has started selling the 8GB iPhone at US $599 at its released before implementing a promotional price of US $399 for the festive season. The original pricing was a market-skimming pricing strategy where the iPhone was set a high price as it is a whole new product in the hand phone industry to cover development cost (Philip Kotler et. al. 2005, p. 302). The expensive price tag on the iPhone can also to relate to the product life cycle of the particular product. Product life cycle shows the whole process of the products life, from the beginning of it till the possible end of it where it consists of four stages which is introduction, growth, maturity and decline. It maybe a matter of a few hours like the newspaper, months for fashion and style, years (VCD, DVD) or decades (Volkswagen Beetle) (Heizer Render 2007, p. 157). The price reduction for the festive season is a promotional pricing strategy to get more customers to buy the iPhone (Philip Kotler et. al. 2005, p. 308). The cut of US $200 has stirred up early buyers and caused dissatisfaction. But as mentioned by Job (2007), the price reduction was supposed to benefit both Apple and every iPhone user to get as many new customers as possible in the iPhone ‘tent. Having said that, Apple issued the $100 credit to the early buyers for them to use on their next purchase at Apple stores. Besides that, buying the iPhone is not just bout getting the hand phone because iPhone only allows ATT line, therefore the customer would need to pay a minimum of US $1939.75 which includes ($599.99 x 24months. and 499.99 4GB iPhone) (ATT iPhone Rate Plans, Prices, Costs, and What You Get 2007). Having said that, the iPhone is only tied with ATT, it still attracted many customers. The downside of getting the iPhone is that the user has to comply with the ATT contract that he or she has signed up with. If the user wants to carry on, he or she has to pay a $175 termination fee though the phones cost isnt subsidized under the long term agreement. This termination fee which is quoted at a high price dissatisfy customers it is a big investment where most customers would go for the 8GB model rather than the 4GB model which will land up causing them to spend more the USD $ 2000. Quality From this factor, the research will look more in depth in quality where total quality management systems are driven by identifying and satisfying customer needs. The key dimensions of qualities include durability, interface and functionality. It is believed that the trade-off between the cost of improving quality and the cost of poor quality, the cost of poor quality is understated (Heizer Render 2007, p. 194). Providing good quality product does not only glorify the companys name but also create loyal customers that will keep buying the products and become brand loyal to it. Durability The first factor in quality that will look at is the durability of the iPhone. It would be a shame to lose a $500 to $600 iPhone to a minor mishap therefore many customers such as bloggers and even product reviewer always put new technology gadgets for a stress test. PC World conducted one of the many stress tests for the iPhone around the world. Firstly, the iPhone was as stuffed in a plastic bag full of keys and small pebbles. Then the iPhone screen was rubbed against the keys and pebble with a fair amount of force as if like the user was leaning against the counter with his iPhone and keys in the jeans pocket. The result was outstanding as the screen of the iPhone was as pristine as when it went it but there are scratches on the back of it. To take the test to another level, a key was taken and scratched across the glass screen of the iPhone, but it still fail to scratch it. Next, the iPhone went trough a drop test where it started of on a carpeted floor to a concrete sidewalk and from the height of the waist line to the head level. The same hand phone was dropped repeatedly but it still worked normally and the glass display survived without a scratch after the drop test. Overall, the iPhone still looks impressively good but however the only obvious damage would be a few gouges along its metal edge from the drops onto the concrete. Interface The excitement factors are where it increases customers satisfaction if fulfilled but it doesnt cause dissatisfaction if it is not achieved. These factors of surprise are to generate delight among the consumers and it is used by the company to distinguish itself from the competitors in a positive way (Kano, 1984). This is why the excitement factor curve is above the graph of the Kano Model in Figure 2.0. The iPhone /a>features the most revolutionary user interface since the mouse which came from the iPod. The multi-touch screen technology is an entirely new interface based on a large multi-touch display and innovative new software that lets the user control everything using only the fingers. Therefore the user can glide through albums with ‘Cover Flow option, flip through photos and email them with a touch, or zoom in and out on a section of a web page just by using pinch in or pinch out motion; all by simply using iPhones multi-touch display. Jeff Hans multi touch system uses a technique called Frustrated Total Internal Reflection (FTIR). It involves the use of a transparent screen with the images rear-projected onto it. For touch-sensing, a camera is placed behind the screen to detect the user interaction. On the human-computer interaction, it is a discipline concerned with the design, evaluation and implementation of interactive computing systems for human use and with the study of major phenomena surrounding them. The basic goal of human-computer interaction is to improve interaction between users and computers by making computers more user-friendly to the users needs. The iPhone has brought human-computer interaction to a whole new level with the multi-touch screen interface. Though it has its flaws, but if the iPhone is to be compared to hand-phones such as the Nokia N95, the iPhone is not only more stylish but its easier to use (refer to Figure 1.0). Ergonomics or in the words which is human factors is the application of scientific information concerning humans to the design of objects, systems and environment for human use. Usually when the word ergonomics is brought up, it focuses more on office environment where the right office furniture and the right computers system can maximizes work efficiency because there will be comfort when the employees to carry out their task in the office. But looking at the iPhones multi-touch screen interface, it does have its own distinct pros and cons. Though browsing through pictures and music can be such a breeze, but typing a SMS or any activity that requires typing on the iPhone would be a little more difficult because there is no physical keyboard on the iPhone as the iPhone is completely a touch screen handphone except for the power button and the home button. Adding to that, the iPhone does not include a touch screen pen and the on-the-screen keyboard is rather cramp, making hard for use rs with big thumbs. Functionality Technical Specification Technical specification of a handphone is the most basic and the most important part to look at before buying a handphone. This is where the performance factor comes in where every attribute of the product is being analyzed. Basically, satisfaction can be gain when the performance of the product is good or high and it causes dissatisfaction if the performance is low or bad. Therefore, the line for performance factors is linear line that cuts across the graph as shown in Figure 2.0. Firstly, the flash memory capacity which comes in 4GB or 8GB which is a lot for a handphone but there will be no memory expansion for the iPhone. With no memory expansion and with a maximum capacity of 8GB, it defies the iPod feature in the iPhone because the maximum capacity of 8GB comes in second compared to the 16GB iPod Touch which looks exactly like the iPhone. The iPhone also includes a 2 mega pixel camera but it is without flash which is quite disappointing for a hand-phone which costs a lot and has a nice 3.5 inch diagonal display. Besides that, the battery life for the iPhone is quite lasting compared to the competitors as how it is displayed in Figure 1.0 under the ‘talk-time column. The audio option in the iPhone is actually a build in iPod where with just a touch on the menu, users can listen to their music on the go. Adding to that, the audio support supports common files such as MP3, AAC and WAV, therefore there is no need to convert files before transferring it i nto the iPhone. The video support for iPhone has not opened up just like all iPods where it only allows limited video formats H.264, mp4 and M-PEG 4 video. This makes the iPhone quite an unreliable video player compared to other hand phones and mp4 players such as CREATIVE ZEN mp4 which can play common video format such as (.avi). On the contrary, Apple has another feature can cover this flaw which is easy access to YouTube on the iPhone which allows users to watch YouTube videos on the go, as long there is WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) connection present. This brings us to the WiFi feature which allows users to surf not only for YouTube, but also to surf the internet with the embedded Safari internet browser. Safari is a web browser just like Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox where it allow users to surf the web on the iPhone just like how they surf the internet on their computer. Users can also purchase songs instantly on the go or songs that they listen at Starbucks through the iTunes Music Store. This requires WiFi and an iTunes account in order to proceed. A short sample of each song can be heard on iTunes before choosing to purchase it for only USD $ 0.99 per song. Conclusion Having stated all the factors above such as price, durability, interface, human-computer interaction, ergonomics and technical specification, all this contributes to customer satisfaction where it was divided into 3 which are basic factors, excitement factors and performance factors. Each of these factors has it pros and cons where it depends in the consumers preference on which would be of great importance. To summarize it, the iPhone does comes with a very nice appearance and nice touch screen interface but the expensive price tag that comes along with it makes customers take a step back to reevaluate whether is it really worth to invest in an iPhone With the Customer Satisfaction Model by N. Kano, consumer can use this model to place all the iPhones attributes according to their perception on to the model and see how the iPhone fairs out in the outcome. Ultimately, the basic factor which is price would be the most important factor because of the ATT line subscription which will last for two years and will cost a lot even for a working customer. Reference: Heizer, Render 2007, Operations Management, Pearson International Edition Kotler, Amstrong, SH Ang, SM Leong, CT Tan, K.Tse, Principles of Marketing, Pearson Prentice Hall Multi-touch screen interface Retrieved 14 November, 2007, from http://multi-touchscreen.com/iphone.html iPhone Competitive Data [Image] 2007 Retrieved 15 November, 2007, from http://www.apple.com/iphone/pr/20070618iphone.html Customer Satisfaction Model [Image] 1984 Retrieved 15 November, 2007, from http://www.12manage.com/methods_kano_customer_satisfaction_model.html