Are The Brains Of Reckless Teens More Mature Than Those Of...

Overview of the Main Topic In the article, â€Å"Are the Brains of Reckless Teens More Mature Than Those of Their Prudent Peers?†, Epstein and Ong (2009) investigated the relationship between brain maturity and adolescent risk-taking. They challenged the traditional view that adolescent risk-takers had underdeveloped brains. Contrary to the traditional view, recent brain-imaging data showed white matter that resembled those of adults. This provided support for the new claim that adolescent risk-takers exhibited mature brains. This paper will review the traditional view, current research findings, and will analyze criticisms and support for the research question. Review of Key Findings The authors explored the traditional view, focusing on structural and functional studies of grey matter and developmental differences in frontal lobe and emotion-related brain areas. They provided two explanations that weakened this view. First, biological factors were primarily responsible for predisposing risk tendencies. This made it difficult to account for cross-cultural differences. Second, because the brain was responsive to environmental stressors and was able to change accordingly, it was not known whether structural changes reflected those stressors. Subsequent research conducted by neuroscientists at Emory University suggested an association between adolescent risk-taking and mature brain development. Ninety-one adolescents were assessed using the Adolescent Risk-Taking QuestionnaireShow MoreRelatedEffects of Juveniles Prosecuted as an Adult Essay2500 Words   |  10 Pagescriminal acts committed by juveniles. Juvenile records are sometimes sealed f or public records or dismissed. The theory that juveniles are not mature enough to intentionally commit a crime has been around since the development of psychology as a science. In the 18th century, the authors of the English criminal code concluded that children, younger than seven had not acquired the mental ability to commit a crime such as murder, rape, burglary, etc. These experts used the following acts to determineRead MoreWhy Do We Get Married7407 Words   |  30 Pagesdrinking. It is only in the movies that bachelors look young and carefree. If you see men who are single, after the age of 28 or so, you will find that they look older and more worn out than married persons of the same age. Scores of studies done in North America and Western Europe shows that married people enjoy better health than singles. They also live longer. Take mental health for instance. Singles outnumber married individuals by three to one in mental hospitals. Outnumbering the singles howeverRead MoreMarketing Mistakes and Successes175322 Words   |  702 Pagesgeneration of entrepreneurs. A fair number of the older cases have faced significant changes in the last few years, for better or for worse, and these we have captured to add to learning insights. After so many years of investigating mistakes, and more recently successes also, it might seem a challenge to keep these new editions fresh and interesting. The joy of the chase has made this an intriguing endeavor through the decades. Still, it is always difficult to abandon interesting cases that haveRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 Pages1. New Management for Business Growth in a Demanding Economy Text  © The McGraw−Hill Companies, 2004 3 the strong business growth of pacesetter companies in the United States and throughout the world? How can companies renew and sustain those factors in the face of the business slowdowns and major fluctuations that challenge the longterm continuation of profitable earnings? As we continue to experience the twenty-first century’s economic, social, and political churning, how will these driving

Affirmative Action Doesn’t Work Free Essays

Introduction I. As once stated by John Kasich, â€Å"Affirmative action has a negative effect on our society when it means counting us like so many beans and dividing us into separate piles. † II. We will write a custom essay sample on Affirmative Action Doesn’t Work or any similar topic only for you Order Now My partner and I stand against the resolution which states: â€Å"Resolved: Affirmative action to promote equal opportunity in the United States is justified. † III. We will show you that Affirmative action to promote opportunity in the United States is justified because Affirmative Action Doesn’t Work, Affirmative Action Stigmatizes Beneficiaries, Affirmative Action is not needed. Body I. Affirmative Action Doesn’t Work A. Affirmative action creates issues in college. Sander, Richard H. â€Å"Affirmative Action Hurts Those It’s Supposed to Help. † Triblivenews. com. 2 Jan. 2005. Web. 02 Mar. 2010. . According to Richard Sander, (law professor at the University of California at Los Angeles) â€Å"Traditionally, critics of affirmative action have focused either on its unfairness to those groups that don’t receive preferences (usually whites and Asians) or on the inherent conflict between racial preferences and the legal ideal of colorblindness. Over the last few years, however, a new and potentially even more damaging line of inquiry has emerged — the idea that racial preferences may materially harm the very people they intended to benefit†¦ My research over the last two years, using recent data that track more than 30,000 law students and lawyers, has documented even more serious and pervasive mismatch effects in legal education. Elite law schools offer very substantial racial preferences for blacks, Hispanics and American Indians in order to create student bodies that are as racially diverse as their applicant pools. Because these elite schools admit the black students that second-tier law schools would normally admit, second-tier schools, to keep up their minority numbers, also offer big racial preferences. The result is a cascade effect down the law school hierarchy, leaving 80 percent to 90 percent of black students at significantly more selective schools than they would get into strictly on their academic credentials. † B. II. Affirmative Action Stigmatizes Beneficiaries. A. B. Affirmative Action programs stigmatize minorities – studies prove Michelle Wu, senior writer, April 2, 2009, â€Å"Affirmative Action stigmatizes minority students,† Daily Princetonian, http://www. dailyprincetonian. om/2009/04/02/23248/ According to Michelle Wu, senior writer â€Å"Affirmative action may increase academic pressure and stigmatize minority students, according to a study conducted by sociology professor Douglas Massey GS ’78, â€Å"If white students believe that many of their black peers would not be at a college were it not for affirmative action and, more important, if black students perceive whites to believe that, then affirmation action may indeed undermine mino rity-group members’ academic performance by heightening the social stigma they already experience because of race or ethnicity,† Massey and his three collaborators wrote in The Chronicle of Higher Education on March 27. The researchers also presented another detriment of the controversial policy: â€Å"that affirmative action exacerbates the psychological burdens that minority students must carry on campuses. † III. Affirmative Action is not a need A. B. Obama proves affirmative action is no longer necessary Joseph Williams and Matt Negrin, March 18, 2008, â€Å"Affirmative Action foes point to Obama,† Boston Globe, http://www. boston. om/news/nation/articles/2008/03/18/affirmative_action_foes_point_to_obama/ According to Joseph Williams and Matt Negrin, March 18, 2008, staff writers of Boston Globe â€Å"Leading opponents of affirmative action are increasingly seizing on Illinois Senator Barack Obama’s historic run for the presidency as proof that race-based remedies for past discrimination are no longer necessary. Influential Republicans and a growing number of policy specialists at conservative organizations, including the Goldwater Institute, Project 21, and the Manhattan Institute, are citing the fact that large numbers of white voters are supporting Obama, who leads in the race for Democratic delegates, as evidence that affirmative action has run its course. Ward Connelly, a black conservative who is leading a national effort to ban racial preferences, vowed to use Obama’s How to cite Affirmative Action Doesn’t Work, Papers

Film Studies Polanski and Perception

Questions: 1. What aspect(s) of the film/ topic does the author focus on?2. What arguments does the author make?3. What kind of theoretical and methodological approach does the author employ? Answers: 1.According to Orr and Elzbieta, Cul-de-Sac was shot in Yugoslavia, which had Alexandra Stewart in the protagonist role. The film shows the gangsters approaching Lindisfarne where one is seen pushing and the other inside the car, which was stolen. Albie, who is seriously injured when the car hits the post, he is seen lying on the ground while Dickie goes to get some help. It is seen that Dickie enters a castle, which is bought by a wealthy man for his unfaithful wife. At the end it is seen that when Dickie displaces his jacket, it gives Teresa enough time to take the gun from his pocket, which George uses to shoot him. According to Pieterse, the author compares surrealism with that of absurdism because the context in which Polanski made this film was abstract in nature. The body language of George and the facial expression showed signs of wealth, class and snobbishness. The sexuality in the movie shows there is no affection between George and Teresa as it is present between the gangs ters being of the same gender. The name of the human, which is closest to the main character, is identified through the masochistic dreams. 2. The author argues that Polanski has two characters where the first one shows him as the author of the film, which he directs that is auteur in short. The other Polanski is more of an auteur in the real sense where the director rises to the position of a superstar. The second Polanski takes professionalism on a serious note (Greenberg). According to Orr and Elzbieta, for example, in Chinatown when Polanski tries to rip the nose of Jack Nicholson, it shows the professional part of Polanski that is associated with him in Hollywood. The split between the Polanskis paved the way to the fusion of auteur and entertainer in the Hitchcock era of 1960. It helped to bridge the gaps between Godard and Antonioni with that of the modernism in the films of Polanski. This fusion turned out to be futile in the future. The director and the actor Polanski helps in differentiating the art and the professional one. The sadistic part in the films of Polanski shows the knife as the phallic element in th e movie Knife in the Water. 3. The approach taken by the author is the chicken and egg concept to identify the activities in Lindisfarne. These elements function in a way that calls for responses in multiple levels. As chickens cannot fly, it is seen that Teresa who cannot tender her own chickens brings many men to cater to the service. The concept of chicken and eggs going together only says that she does not care for her husband the way she does for the chickens. This brings out the absurd irony in the film. The isolation in the castle bought by George for his wife is visible because the fridge only contains eggs that are the food, which is from the chickens that Teresa tenders in the castle (Stokes, Melvyn and Matthew). Reference List Greenberg, James.Roman Polanski. ditions de La Martinire, 2013. Orr, John, and El?bieta Ostrowska.The cinema of Roman Polanski: dark spaces of the world. Wallflower Press, 2006. Pieterse, Annel. "Polanski and perception: the psychology of seeing and the cinema of Roman Polanski." (2014): 151-155. Stokes, Melvyn, and Matthew Jones. "Windows on the world: Memories of European cinema in 1960s Britain."Memory Studies10.1 (2017): 78-90.

Marge Piercy Essays - Barbie Doll, Feminism In The United States

Marge Piercy Young versus old. Death versus eternal life. The positive effects of society's pressure versus the negative. Marge Piercy's "Barbie Doll" and Dick Schneider's "Youth's Progress" are a study in the themes mentioned above. There are many obvious similarities in the chronological structure and irony of the two works. However, the reader will find that there are more thought-provoking contrasts than initially meet the eye. Not surprisingly, the poems follow the natural course of chronological time: beginning to end, young to old. Both poems unfold with birth, continue through the "growing up" years, but do not surpass adulthood. The separation of stanzas in both works indicates a new stage of life, though Piercy leaves the reader to guess the actual age of the "girlchild" in "Barbie Doll." The reader will note that a major theme of both poems is the long-term effect of outside pressure on the subjects from birth. Piercy employs the stylistic device of irony throughout the entirety of her poem. It required the "magic" of puberty for a child to point out the negative aspects of a physical body. A healthy, intelligent and strong woman is compelled by society to bustle "to and fro apologizing," apologizing for failing to mirror the image of the Barbie-like woman the world seems to want. Though she attempts to defy these expectations by cutting off her"great big nose" and "fat legs," in her death the woman is displayed in her casket, cosmetics painted on and a beautiful turned-up putty nose. Finally, she fits the mold cut for her by society. "Our way of life has hardly changed since a wheel first whetted a knife." While "Youth's Progress" chronicles the growth of the subject with specific years and ages, "Barbie Doll" simply accounts for the passing of time in a story-teller's fashion of memories. "Barbie Doll" ends with the tragedy of a woman who, because she didn't live up to the unrealistic standard created for her, resorts to suicide. "Youth's Progress" concludes with the exhortation of public approval and the sense of eternal life in exchange for submitting to the unofficial rules of social acceptance, eager to fit the mold. To some, the immortalized life of Schneider is preferable to the tragic death of Piercy's girlchild Young versus old. Death versus eternal life. The positive effects of society's pressure versus the negative. The course a life will take is ultimately decided by the individual, the sum of his choices and reactions to the cards dealt to him by Life. The choice is yours. Bibliography Bowland, Eavan. "It's a Woman's World," 1982.

Damped Harmonic Motion Lab Report Essay Example

Damped Harmonic Motion Lab Report Essay Example Damped Harmonic Motion Lab Report Paper Damped Harmonic Motion Lab Report Paper The graphs created were transferred into Igor Pro, where a non-linear fit was created. From this fit, the damping constant of the objects motion was given, and the effect of air resistance on the object was determined. A relationship was discovered between the objects area and the effect air resistance had. The results showed that with a greater area of the object, there was more air resistance on the object. Introduction The goal of this experiment was to observe the effect that the size of an object ad on the air resistance shown when the object was in motion. In order to do this, a damping coefficient was determined through non-linear fits of position graphs produced during its motion. The damping coefficient shows the effect that the damping†air resistance†has on the object, shown by a gradual decrease in the size of the amplitude of its oscillations. The damping coefficient is represented by the variable b. Equation 1 shows the non-linear fit used to retrieve the damping coefficient. Equation 1: Where: A = Amplitude b = damping coefficient m = mass (held constant) frequency = objects initial displacement = objects equilibrium position Experimental Description For this experiment, a spring was suspended in the air, and objects of different area were placed on the end of the spring. A sonic ranger motion sensor was positioned on the ground directly below the object, and after the object was pulled and allowed to rise and fall, the motion sensor graphed the its position. Four trials were conducted, and before each trial, the object was replaced with that of a larger area. The graphs produced were transferred into Igor Pro, and hen, using Equation 1, a non-linear fit was produced, which yielded the value of the damping coefficient needed to make observations about the effect the size of an object had on air resistance. Data and Analysis For each trial, the position of the object was recorded and graphed, and then transferred into Igor Pro. In Igor Pro, a line of best fit was created. The specific radius of the object was recorded for each trial as well, in order to calculate its area. Graph 1 shows the original graph for Trial 1, shown by the black markers, long with the line of best fit produced, which is shown in red. The radius of the object in Trial 1 was 0. 07 m. Graph 1: Trial 1 initial graph with line of best fit Graph 2 shows the graphs produced in Trial 2, where an object with a radius of 0. 086 m was used. Graph 2: Trial 2 initial graph with line of best fit Graph 3 shows the graphs produced in Trial 3, where an object with a radius of 0. 1 m was used. Graph 3: Trial 3 initial graph with line of best fit Graph 4 shows the graphs produced in Trial 4, where an object with a radius of 0. 115 m was used. Graph 4: Trial 4 initial graph with line of best fit For each of the graphs shown above, a line of best fit equation was also given. In this equation, the value of b, the damping coefficient, was shown.

The Early Bird Gets the Worm... and Early Risers Get Better Grades

The Early Bird Gets the Worm... and Early Risers Get Better Grades A New York Times article on September 9, 2011, To Earn an ‘A,’ Set the Alarm Clock Early, reported that early morning classes, at least at one college in New York, correlate to higher grades. The professors who conducted the study found a direct relationship between later morning classes and higher incidence of alcohol use. The article did not make it clear whether the morning classes were the cause of the tame nights, or whether students already inclined not to drink were the ones who chose early classes. What was clear is that students with later classes drank more and slept more poorly, albeit for more hours, than did their early bird counterparts.   Apparently their grades suffered. Could an early schedule actually be a cause of sobriety and overall responsibility?   If so, it seems that registering for early morning classes is a good idea for any college student.   Why tempt fate? And perhaps the same rule applies to people in the workforce.   Certainly people who get up at 5am for work every day are unlikely to spend their weeknights pounding shots until 2am. So what about business owners and job seekers?   Those early morning BNI and other networking events might be keeping us on the straight and narrow. I am not a drinker myself, but I do know that when I don’t have early morning appointments I tend to stay up later – working, not playing, but perhaps I would be more productive if I were to go to bed by 10pm and get up at 5am each day, rather than slide into a 1am to 8am sleeping pattern.   Am I hurting my â€Å"grades† by doing that?   I’m starting to wonder. If you are someone who does not have an external force keeping you to a schedule, perhaps it is a good idea to create an early morning appointment of some kind to train you to go to bed at a decent hour.   Some people I know have a mini coaching call with a friend each morning.   Some go to the gym religiously at 7am.   If you knew you would perform better overall by starting early, would you do it? One of my friends and informal coaches keeps telling me I should stop working at night.   I generally haven’t listened to his advice (note:   I wrote this blog at 10pm on a Saturday night).   But I’m going to try an experiment.   This week I am going to go to bed by 11pm every night, and get up at 6am. Will I see a difference in how much I get done, or in how well I do it?   I’ll keep you posted on the results. 😉 Log in to Reply The Essay Expert says: September 20, 2011 at 12:45 pm Thanks for your comment Brian! I wonder if there is a societal listening of people who get up early and go to bed early that they are more productive? Clearly some people, like BeeGee, have a different experience of life! One of my challenges is that some of the people I work with send me things to do late at night, and some are in time zones where if I do not respond I lose an entire day of potential communications. Despite my promise to go to bed at 11pm last night, I was up until 11:45 and got up at 6:45. Hey, at least the times started with my promised numbers! And I did get a LOT done this morning from 7-9am. Log in to Reply Karla says: September 20, 2011 at 7:55 pm I agree. I get the most accomplished during the day if I get up early. I dont necessarily love getting up early, but I feel much better about my productivity when I rise early. I also took early morning classes during college and I earned As and Bs. I feel like once I woke up, I was much more alert for my morning classes than in the late afternoon or evening when my energy was dragging. Great post! Log in to Reply

Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Film - Essay Example However, in the later part, which is The Trip to Italy, the scenario is a bit different and these two men are again sent to Italy on a road trip to six different places starting from Pompei and ending at Capri, Amalfi Coast. Both Brydon and Coogan has started liking each other and their relationship has grew stronger. They travel across Italy in search of the finest food and beautiful scenery. the film also tells about the weak and crucial relationship of Coogan with his ex-wife and his teenage son. Coogan is now more accepting and happy then before. He is now accepting and forgiving Brydon’s enthusiastic and happy attitude. The film also offers strong humor as the duo imagines a scene from ‘Batman’ makes their voices as the character of Bane and others. In short, the film offers great fun and enthusiasm for the viewers. From some very fine and expensive foods from around Italy to the beautiful sceneries of Tuscany and Amalfi Coast, The Trip to Italy is a must watch. 52 Tuesday (2013) is family drama film directed by Sophie Hyde. The film begins when the sixteen years old Billie discovers that her mother’s gender transition. Bellie enjoys being with he mother a day back from school she discovers that her mother is now transited to a man and from now on called James. Bellie is asked to go to his father Tom. James, the transited mother promises Bellie that she will spend every Tuesday together. The film captures 52 consecutive Tuesdays and only Tuesdays to capture the year on the screen of this family. Bellie in the school gets attracted to a couple Josh and Jasmine and finds herself sexually drawn to the couple, on the other hand James begin with the testosterone shot and makes a sexual relation with his co worker Lisa and keeps this relationship secret from her daughter. After few weeks Bellie refuses to meet James, still have

Leadership Factors that are Needed to Deliver Organizational Success Research Paper

Leadership Factors that are Needed to Deliver Organizational Success - Research Paper Example Several qualities of the leaders like participatory nature, communicating ability and transparency make them front runners of the developmental process and they help the organization in keeping the efforts of the total team united and coherent which in turn would lead to highest quality output. Several theories also explain the way in which leaders aid in organizational success by dealing with odd situations and by providing contingency planning and strategic management. The successful leadership examples like Bill Gates of Microsoft Corporation and Donald John Trump of Trump illustrate that the leadership is an integrated process of leading from the front, dynamism, motivation, confidence, risk-bearing ability and participatory teamwork and hence they could make their organizations superior in the World and they become inspiring persons for the young people who would become leaders of the organizations in the future. Leadership is a vital component that decides the success of any organization. Leadership is nothing but the process of making a forward leap in decision making and guiding the other members of the team towards fulfilling the objectives of the organization or mission (Grey, 2009). The main factor that helps the organization through leadership is the infusion of the element of motivation in the minds of the team members because of which all the members would work with the highest level of energy and enthusiasm leading to the higher level of organizational efficiency. Leadership, in general, contributes to the success of an organization by making the team members more confident about the tasks performed in their jobs (Malphurs, 2006). This makes them more understandable with a higher level of clarity about the direction of operation of work for attaining the maximum productivity of the goods and services. Leadership also ensures a higher level of quality in the final products as it allows more free flow of information among the members and tries to minimize the element of error (Thompson and McHugh, 2009).

Experience hyperthermia Essay Example for Free

Experience hyperthermia Essay Marian suffered from a heat stroke causing her body to experience hyperthermia. Marian body went through the process of homeostasis from experiencing hyperthermia. â€Å"Homeostasis is a state of body equilibrium or stable internal environment of the body.†(Marieb 8) Homeostasis protects the body by allowing it to adapt to the environment. Marian homeostasis tried to cool the body but failed. Though Marian was lucky her daughter found her in time. When a heat stroke occurs the body’s homeostasis shuts down where the temperature can reach high enough to cause brain damage to where you die. Heat strokes can cause damage internally well as externally. Hyperthermia causes a positive feedback mechanism within the body. â€Å"A positive feedback mechanism is a feedback that tends to cause the level of variable to change in the same direction as an initial change.†( Marieb 9) When the body stimulus rises the hypothalamus’s thermoreceptors start to work as the body’s thermostat. The thermoreceptors send messages allowing the hypothalamus to make temperature changes in the core. When the core starts to raise the heat loss mechanism starts one or two things: â€Å"dilation of cutaneous blood vessels or enhanced sweating.†(Marieb 833) â€Å"Dilation of cutaneous blood vessels is where the vessels swell with warm blood, heat is lost from the radiation, conduction, and convection† (Marieb 833) Some symptoms for a heat stroke are â€Å"throbbing headache, dizziness and light-headedness, lack of sweating despite the heat, red hot skin, muscle weakness or cramps, nausea and vomiting, rapid heartbeat, which may either strong or weak, rapid shallow breathing, behavioral changes such as confusion, disorientation or staggering, seizures, and unconsciousness.†( http://firstaid.webmd.com/heat-stroke-symptoms-and-treatment) The treatments of methodologies for hyperthermia that were used in this case study was to apply cold wash cloth to forehead and face, position in front of a fan while using a spray bottle with water on her skin. Applying a cold wash cloth to face and forehead allows the body to drop in temperature. Positioning the body in front of a fan allows cooling. Spraying water allows hydration to the dehydrated skin. Hyperthermia is, also, used for cancer patients. â€Å"Hyperthermia treatment heats body tissues to 113 degrees Fahrenheit to damage and destroy cancer cells while leaving healthy tissue unharmed.†( http://www.ehow.com/about_6470647_new-hyperthermia-cancer-treatment.html)Hyperthermia can happen very easily. People need to wear sun screen, lose fitting of clothing to cover the skin. Eat small portions; drink plenty of fluids but not alcohol. Alcohol dehydrates the body. Watch the weather to see if a heat advisory is in effect. Make sure not to do hard exercise work out during hot days. Talk to your primary doctor to see if your medications or your disease(s) can be effected by the sun. In this case though, Marian suffered from a heat stroke due to being in a house with no windows open. Hyperthermia is more harmful to infants or small children, elderly, overweight, people who are ill or medications. Small children or infants depend on others to protect them. They are defenseless in the sense when it comes to staying out of the sun, sunscreen, and hydration. The elderly may not feel heat stress. Elderly for the most part don’t response or sense to the change in climate. People who have diabetes tend to have poor circulation. Poor circulation is dangerous during heat waves because the blood needs to flow throughout the body to cool itself. So having poor circulation already would mean the body would trouble pumping blood faster to cool the body, thus, causing a heat stroke. People who are overweight retain more body heat than skinny people. When having more body heat it causes heat stress. Heat stress leads to a heat stroke. People who work out can over do it and experience dehydration. Dehydration can cause heat stress. People who have heart disease or high blood pressure are at risk because when the body is trying to the cool its self the heart has to pump in a faster pace causing the heart rate and blood pressure to go up. This is not good because it causes these people more stress on the heart. People on other medications have to be careful because the sun can cause increase or decreases in the function of the body which the medications are already trying to control without the factor of the sun. How a medical personal treat hyperthermia is very carefully. The body can be damage either by the tissue, brain, and /or body organs or maybe all three are damaged. The first thing is to check the people’s vitals to see if they are stable. Second, a physical assessment can be done to look over the skin.

Contact Essay -- essays research papers

b) Why are astronomers using radio telescopes looking for far stars instead of a telescope? First of all, what is a radio telescope? The first non-visual spectral region that was used extensively for astronomical observations was the radio frequency band. Telescopes observing at these wavelengths are commonly called radio telescopes. Radio telescopes may be made much larger than optical/infrared telescopes because the wavelengths of radio waves are much longer than wavelengths of optical light. A rule of thumb is that the reflecting surface must not have irregularities larger than about 1/5 the wavelength of light that is being focused. By that criterion a radio telescope is several hundred thousand times easier to figure than an optical telescope of the same size In the movie "Contact," astronomer Ellie Arroway, played by actress Jodie Foster, searches for signs of extraterrestrial life using massive, Earth-bound radio telescopes. Much of Contact's scientific intrigue, based on Carl Sagan's 1985 bestseller, unfolds at two National Science Foundation-supported radio astronomy facilities where real-life astronomical mysteries continue to be probed. Scientists use the government-supported telescopes to detect radio waves not from distant civilizations but from planets, stars, galaxies and other objects in space. Radio observations extend astronomers' reach into space and time, letting them "see" through gas and dust in space to detect celestial objects whose visible light cannot be seen from Earth. In "Contact," Foster hears the first guttural, throbbing message transmitted by other-worldly life using the world's most powerful radio telescope, the Very Large Array in Socorro, New Mexico, a collection of 27 antennas spread in a three-armed configuration across the desert. NSF’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory runs the huge dishes, which Foster manipulates in the film from her laptop computer like a high-tech, movable Stonehenge, in reality. Electronically linked to simulate a single radio telescope up to 20 miles in diameter, the antennas can be bunched together or moved apart along railroad tracks into different configurations. About 700 astronomers visit the VLA each year to observe the universe. In "Contact," Foster gets her scientific start at another NSF-supported facility, the... ... fastest moving man made objects in the process. If those same probes were to be launched to the stars, however, they would take thousands of years to reach them! The distances to the stars are huge So huge, in fact, that the light from the nearest star to the Sun, a triple star system known as Alpha, Beta and Proxima Centauri, takes over four and a quarter years to get here. Since, according to special relativity, nothing in the universe can travel faster than the speed of light, it would seem that travel times with even the most advanced starships are going to be extremely long indeed. There are also highly exotic ideas, which lie on the tantalizing fringes of modern theoretical physics. If the universe is a multidimensional place with human beings only able to perceive three dimensions, perhaps a way can be found to shortcut through the 'higher' dimensions. These so-called wormholes are currently having their mathematics calculated by the theorists but if they can be utilized for travel then perhaps the entire universe will become accessible to us. Traveling to different planets may take no more time than traveling to different countries does now!

Advantages of Verbal communication Essay

Verbal communication- The sharing of information between individuals by using speech. Individuals working within a business need to effectively use verbal communication that employs readily understood spoken words, as well as ensuring that the enunciation, stress and tone of voice with which the words are expressed is appropriate. Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/verbal-communication.html#ixzz2PT6EzJTZ We all communicate on a daily basis either with others or ourselves. Verbal communication is one approach for individuals to communicate in a straight forward manner. There are multiple basic components of verbal communication such as audio, words, dialog, and language. Whatever technique of interaction is used, written, body language, or verbal, each is considered a form of communication and is needed for us to communicate. In order to be a success in the world we live in today, possessing clear communication skills are essential for an individual to have strong comprehension skills and an aptitude for communicating effectively. Lacking these, abilities can be a great setback and may create concerns contingent given the situation. When communicating verbally, one of the most essential things not to forget it that our voice itself can communicate more about us than our actual message. Some superlative mechanisms exist while engaged in verbal communication, which are sound, language, and vocalizations. Throughout dialogues we often attempt to exclude any likely chance of misunderstanding and instead be specific and to the point. However, many times that is quite arduous to those who are not as skilled in communication as others are. Mostly, we hope and presume that the message we conveyed has been fully accepted by our speaking audience, since to us the information being transmitted may be important and so we assume that this information is be seen as important to those who receives it. While words only account for approximately 7% of the meaning people ascribe to your communication, tone of voice accounts for 38% of the m eaning. So, it’s obvious that to be a successful communicator, you need to be aware of your verbal cues and clues (e.g., everything from words to sighs, moans, grunts). Inflection refers to ups and downs in talking. Inflection helps you signal to your partner what’s important and may even indicate your emotional state (especially combined with volume and pitch). Volume indicates the degree of loudness to your voice. Again, volume can indicate your energetic involvement with a topic and gives your spouse clues about your temperament and mood. Pacing deals with your rate of speech or the speed of your talking. Matching your rate of speech and your intensity to that of your partner creates rapport and connection. Word choice of course means what words you use to convey your message. Though words may have specific definitions, our lifetime of experience with a word means that our meaning for the word and someone else’s meaning might be quite different. Silence refers to those gaps in our conversations. (Though silence is â€Å"non-verbal† it’s the absence of verbal communication, that’s why I’ve included it in this list.) Allow room for your partner to absorb what you’ve said and give yourself the space to take in what he/she is communicating to you. Advantages: Some of the advantages of the oral communication are: 1. Its easy and simple and saves a lot of money because oral communication is the less expensive way to communicate with each other. 2. It allows feedback on the spot so if the receiver is not 100 percent sure what the message meant, then that feedback will be answered right away. 3. Because the message is instantly, it helps in avoiding time wasted. 4. It brings personal warmth and friendliness and develops a sense of bonding because of these contact between the people. Disadvantages: Some of the disadvantages of the oral communication are: 1. There is no instant feedback between the messenger and the receiver and that the messages could be misunderstood. 2.Long and wordy type of communication cannot be as effectively as verbal messages. 3.The receiver might understand the message differently. 4. responses on the spot might not be carefully thought of. 5. More or less or a different meaning might be conveyed by manner of speaking,tone of voice and facial expressions. Verbal communication refers to the use of sounds and language to relay a message. It serves as a vehicle for expressing desires, ideas and concepts and is vital to the processes of learning and teaching. In combination with nonverbal forms of communication, verbal communication acts as the primary tool for expression between two or more people. Types Interpersonal communication and public speaking are the two basic types of verbal communication. Whereas public speaking involves one or more people delivering a message to a group, interpersonal communication generally refers to a two-way exchange that involves both talking and listening. According to Robert M. Krauss, professor of psychology at Columbia University, signs and symbols are the major signals that make up verbal communication. Words act as symbols, and signs are secondary products of the

Midsouth Chamber of Commerce Essay

Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) Wednesday August 24, 2010 Brian Putallaz Midsouth Chamber of Commerce, a nonprofit, member driven, business advocacy group is in the processes of upgrading their current information system. Midsouth has decided they need to upgrade their information system to a more currently system, in order to increase revenue producing opportunities. Their original IS system was built by an outside consultant (who is no longer in business) on a departmental need base, rather than a company wide need. The original system was put into place in 1987, with modifications done in 1993, and 1995. During this time all IS decision were made by outside consultants, since there were no in house IT personnel. During the spring of 1996 the decision was made to hire Simon Kovecki as a systems analysis. Simon came to MSCC straight out of college and without every working with a membership organization or working with accounting software. He was placed in a difficult position since the company which originally built the system, was out of usiness so he had no ‘road map† on how the software was built. In 1998 there was reorganization and all computer system was put under Jeff Hedges domain. This again placed Simon in difficult position because Mr. Hedges was as Vice President of Public Finance. Mr. Hedges lacked a technology background and often found himself wrapped up in other projects and too busy to attend to the technology side of his duties. The reorganization would have been a perfect opportunity to add a IS manager to the ranks of upper management, but MSCC declined to do so. Later in 1998 a decision was made to move to a complete new system, an AS 400 system called UNITRAK. This particular company was chosen by Leon Lassiter and was poorly vetted. The software was in its infancy, they had only sold 1 copy, and changes were still being made to the software. During the selection process the MSCC IS analysis Mr. Kovecki, was largely ignored, as well as end users of the system. In early 1999 the decision was made by the board to move forward with purchasing and implementing the UNITRAK system. Thing did not go well, Kovecki lacked project anagement skills and proper guidance from above. Due to the lack of an IS manager in the ranks of upper management there was no one to keep the project on track. This resulted in a poor migration that was months to late, data was corrupted and os an the new system NITRAK was inoperable. Jack Wallingford: President of Midsouth Chamber of Commerce Ed Wilson: Vice President Public Affairs Did not seem to be interested in IS side of organization. Later was key in pulling away the lone IS employee during a key time of the implementation. Leon Lassiter: Vice President of Marketing/ Membership Wore many hats for the organization. While he seemed to have a vision as to what he wanted in an IS system, he was unclear on how to go there. He made decision to go with UNITRAK and made some key mistakes during his decision making process. Ted Vassici: Initial information systems person for MSCC, as an outside consultant He built and made all IS recommendation for MSCC until 1996. His company later went out of business and he was not available for questions on his custom developed oftware. Simon Kovecki: Information Systems Analysis Kovecki was the lone IS employee, though his concerns with UNITRAK were largely ignored, he was tasked with the migration to the new system. Jeff Hedges: Vice President of Public Finance Though he lacked a technology background, during the reorganization in 1998 was placed in control for all computer systems within the organization. He had a very lackluster interested in the new UNITRAK system. Greg Grinder: President UNITRAK Perhaps his software was to new and not quite ready to be used. Out of all of these roles I believe the biggest mistake the company made was placing computers systems under Jeff Hedges. He lacked the background for it and did not have the proper vision for it. Although he was in charge of information systems, he was not involved in choosing a new system, and seemed mostly concerned with keeping their old accounting system intact. Even went as far as calling the system â€Å"Lassiter’s system†, although he was in charge of IS. Hedges did not buy into the UNITRAK system and he was not a champion of it. However he is tasked to implemented for the organization. UNITRAK was a software company in their infancy and had only sold and implemented their software once prior to MSCC. Although they were new, they seemed excited at the chance to work with organization such as MSCC and seemed very willing to adjust their software fit the end user. A big win for them, a chance to see and learn how their software would work in the field. One issue was Lassiter acting as the primary contact for UNITRAK, although the employees in charge of the

Joseph Gonzales Essays

Joseph Gonzales Essays Joseph Gonzales Essay Joseph Gonzales Essay Using the article you discussed in your first reading response, document the following:1) Introduce a direct quote from the text, and provide the authors name in parentheses or in a signal phrase. Place the page number in parentheses.On the issue of the two similar photographs with different captions taken after Hurricane Katrina that has ignited protests from the Black community, Chris Graythen, the man who took one of the snapshots and a photographer for Getty Images said that â€Å"Now is no time to pass judgment on those trying to stay alive. Now is no time to argue semantics about finding versus looting. Now is no time to argue if this is a white versus black issue† (Ralli).2) Paraphrase a sentence or two from the text, and provide the authors name in parentheses or in a signal phrase. Place the page number in parentheses.The two similar photographs with two opposite text captions were perceived by the public as a double standard for racial orienta tion wherein it produced fury against media practitioners as well as website administrators (Ralli).3) Summarize a paragraph from the text, and provide the authors name in parentheses or in a signal phrase. Place the page number(s) in parentheses.The image captured by Dave Martin of the Associated Press in New Orleans displays a black man traversing flood water in New Orleans holding tightly a soda pack and big plastic bag. Under this image is a controversial caption stating â€Å"looting a grocery store† (Ralli).4) Make a works cited entry for the articleRalli, Tania. â€Å"Whos a Looter? In Storms Aftermath, Pictures Kick Up a Different Kind of Tempest.† The New York Times. 5 September 2005. 2 March 2009.

PhD Thesis Writing

PhD Thesis Writing PhD Thesis Writing PhD Thesis Writing: The Way to Ease Your Job Some students set the precise objects during the education course in the university. The majority of students prefer to graduate successfully and obtain the solid and well-paid job position in the future. It is absolutely normal, but the role of universities could be underestimated. For instance, to prepare the perspective and competent researcher the students have to write the appropriate PhD thesis. For the university it would be a good chance to check the skills of student, his/her predisposition to qualitative and objective research, and his/her ability to conduct the solid research work independently. PhD thesis is a serious, probably, decisive work for the student who intend to build the career of successful researcher. PhD Thesis: Preparation and Key Factors. PhD thesis is a type of work that requires a competence and deep understanding of the subject. The good and thorough preparation will put basis for possible success. Firs t of all, as a researcher, you have to select to area of research try to choose the most appropriate sphere, where you could unlock your analyzing potential. Do not underestimate the option of good adviser the responsible adviser can give some tips and necessary recommendation. Think about possible sources of information beforehand. Make a PhD thesis outline and define the PhD thesis proposals. It will be your detailed plan of actions. When the stage of preparation is over, we get into the next level. PhD Thesis: Tips For the Working Process Here we can mark out the following points:During your work under PhD thesis use general knowledge and the questions you are going to answer. Carefully think about the answers, remember about the regular technical progress in our life, back your words with a facts and real arguments. Do not forget about the thesis proposals and follow only by the points of your plan; point the importance of your researchs purpose; Use the approved informational sources, scientific conferences, highly-rated scientific books; When you are writing, do not forget to defense your information. Sometimes, it is useful to include the general comments of some scientific authorities; Show the reader that you approve and exploit your knowledge in practice; Do not go too far in your description speak laconically and logically. Do not be afraid to show your wide thinking, but stay away from the areas that have indirect sense in relation to your topic. Of course, you must seriously look at this task: prove you are diligent and responsible person, be argumentative and follow the instructions. Good luck, folks!

What evidence is there of application of the materiality concept in Research Paper

What evidence is there of application of the materiality concept in the report - Research Paper Example The most conspicuous evidence of the materiality principle in the preparation of JB Hi Fi’s financial report is minimal disclosure overload. According to the International Accounting Standards (IAS), most of the listed companies are expected to follow the structure as presented in paragraph 114 of IAS 1. However, JB Hi Fi is a conglomerate and deals with large volumes of financial information. Therefore, the company deals with complex financial information that requires sophisticated and alternative structures of presenting financial information. The company’s structure is different from the one proposed by international accounting standards, and better communicates the links between different pieces of information. Consequently, the company has enhanced its reflection of the financial position as well as the risks associated with the operation of the business. IAS proposes that listed companies should list intangible assets followed by trade and other receivables and finally trade and other payables when preparing the balance sheet. However, JB Hi Fi has a different order of items when preparing its balance sheet. The company lists trade and other receivables, intangible assets and trade and other receivables in an ascending order. JB Hi Fi bases its list of the balance sheet items on the importance of information presented in the financial report. Furthermore, the company cautions users of financial information not to read the financial statements in isolation. Rather, the company suggests that users of financial information should analyze financial statements in additional to reading notes to financial statements. The company’s statement of financial position has the three standard categories including assets, liabilities and equity. Each of these categories contains information about items related to each other for the sake of

Eminent Domain Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Eminent Domain - Assignment Example Therefore, in this book, Epstein answers four questions: What constitutes a taking of private property? When is the taking not compensated? When is the taking for public use? And when is the taking compensated in cash or in kind? Ryskamp John. The Eminent Domain Revolt: Changing Perceptions in a New Constitutional Epoch. New York: Algora Publishing. 2007. This book gives an explanation on the anger against the eminent domain. It provides an in depth analysis of the profound legal issues and proposed changes that are far a head of seizing of property and regulations of land use. Ryskamp gives a report on the law and politics of eminent domain after the decision of the Supreme Court on the case of Kelo versus the city of New London on June 2005. The book also explains the need for all states to start debating on how to reform their eminent domain laws for it is unconstitutional. Although some legal scholars may not agree with Ryskamp on this issue, this book convinces many readers that they must begin to understand the legal principles involved in this controversy surrounding the eminent domain. Aspen Publishers. ... Among the cases or legal briefs covered in this book is the case of Kelo versus the city of New London. The book provides a comprehensive analysis of the case and how the Supreme Court ruled on the same. The book is keyed to particular casebooks by title or author for greater student accessibility. Scaros E. Constantinos. Understanding the Constitution. Massachusetts: Jones and Bartlett Learning. 2010. The constitution of United States of America was created so many years ago but its historical importance and value still impact the lives of many significantly. Constantinos’ book, Understanding the Constitution, enables the readers to understand and appreciate the United States constitution and its significance on individuals’ daily lives. The book also gives analysis on the relevant topics, such as the controversial eminent domain, that are hotly debated. It provides a good understanding of the eminent domain, the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment and their provisio ns. Without making assumption on previous knowledge of the law, Constantions’ book is an ideal reader friendly introduction to constitutional law. Malloy Paul Robin. Private Property, Community Development, and Eminent Domain (Law, Property and Society). Publishing, Ltd. 2008. This book discusses the fundamental relationship between the government and its citizens and among the citizens themselves. The discussion is centered on the recent ruling of the US Supreme Court on the case of Kelov versus the city of New London (2005). The case involved the use of eminent domain power by the state to transfer private property from Kelov to another private party who would economically make better use of the land. Although the Supreme

Taxation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 8

Taxation - Essay Example Lastly, for individuals, the taxation of savings affects the decision on savings and when to allocate their assets. This system of taxation has a lot of impacts to the communities involved and has numerous recommendations. Generally, the whole issue is tied on people’s general saving behavior. Every time a taxation system surfaces people tend to adjust their saving behaviors. This is just normal because taxes play an important role is asset finance. Widely, we tend to save less when our incomes are low and needs are high (Buguignon 2005, 39). Therefore to save one cannot rely on an income to save. We save or run down our existing wealth when the amount for consumption differs from the amount of income they receive in a particular time period. The present paper addresses precisely these issues and suggests a normative framework to analyze tax policy in which social preferences are concerned by individual utilities instead of the ambiguous concept of ‘household welfare’. Individual level data are rare and even more difficult is the measure of individual welfare so that we resort to the use of a structural multi-utility model with minimalist assumptions regarding preferences. Moreover, social evaluation of welfare - at individual or household level – requires the formal framework of the optimal taxation theory. This way, the paper suggests one of the very first attempts to reconcile two branches of the economic literature which are usually dissociated. On the one hand, we benefit from the collective model of labor supply (Chiappori, 1988, 12) which acknowledges explicitly the presence in the household of several deciders whose preferences may differ. The decision making process - the incentive constraint of the social planner - relies on the sole Assumption that household decisions are Pareto-efficient. This setting allows

Repurposing as a Future Strategy for Pharmaceutical Research

Repurposing as a Future Strategy for Pharmaceutical Research With the urgent need for new treatments for serious diseases and concerns about other existing unmet patient needs as well as the cost of traditional drug discovery and other productivity issues on the constant increase, drug repurposing has become an attractive alternative. Drug repurposing is defined as the process of discovering new indications for existing drug compounds (Tari and Patel, 2014). Tari Patel (2014) further explain that the concept behind drug repurposing is â€Å"that novel drug indications can be identified based on the principle that a primary drug target can be associated with diseases other than its original drug indication.† Various systematic approaches have been proposed for finding new indications for drugs; some of this include discovering drugs hat share a significant number of side effects as they may have similar actions and those with similar chemical compounds. The most cited success for drug repositioning is sildenafil, a drug developed by Pfi zer and originally indicated for the treatment of angina but was discovered to show an improvement in patients suffering from erectile dysfunction as well (Pantziarka et al, 2014) [online] Drug repurposing is becoming the surest way to both provide treatment for both new and old diseases, as well as reducing greatly the cost of production of these treatments. Persidis (2011) [online] lists a couple of advantages crediting this, some of which include that pre-existing drugs or those which have been proven to be safe at late-stage trials greatly reduce development risk even when repurposed for potentially new indications. The article continues to add that there is a massive money saving advantage when comparing launching a repurposed drug into the market with launching a completely new formulation to pharmaceutical companies owning original use rights to the drug. On the other hand, NCBI suggests that as drugs are only approved for specific therapeutic indications within clear safety boundaries and after intense investigation, finding new drug-target interactions is most often hampered by safety issues regarding dosage and delivery capability as discovery of a repurposed drug working within the approved therapeutic window is a rare occurrence; suggesting also that even in a case where appropriate formulations and delivery devices were available to eliminate the problems associated with dosage and delivery within the narrow therapeutic window, the issue of lack of integration with pharmaceutical and toxicological sciences still persists. These go without including the problems associated with protection of intellectual property as various new drug-target-disease triplets are often disclosed by various online databases. Repositioned drugs have been a huge success in providing effective remedies for a large number of patients suffering from a wide range of diseases, have promised to deliver new treatments for even more diseases including some of the most perverse diseases the plague the central nervous system, cardio-vascular system, many metabolic disorders and cancer. Precisely, the scope of drug repurposing can be widened in future to cater for the development of drugs with multiple targets as in the area of oncology and those which target disease in various ways as in obesity. It can even more importantly create opportunities for the development of second-generation drugs (Sehkon, 2013) Therefore, despite any disadvantages that may arise in the process of repositioning drugs, the process remains the most effective of its kind in recent times and hence plays a very important role in pharmaceutical research concerning future drug discovery. It is important to note that though most repurposed drugs have desirable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics properties especially those that have passed various clinical trial stages about 2000 of these drugs lie dormant of various companies’ shelves and Barratt and Frail (2012) suggest that this number grows at the rate of 150-200 drugs every year. Sequentially, this number creates more than adequate substrate on which a repurposing strategy can be developed and as discontinued compounds are a by-product of carrying out business in the pharmaceutical environment, there will never be a shortage of them. Hence, learning from these failures and applying the ever evolving science behind human biology and diseases will not only salvage efforts made in the research and development environment but also lead to the development of a very viable business model while significantly decreasing the risk of failure, cost of production and cycle time. Bibliography Sehkon, BS 2013, ‘Repositioning drugs and biologics: Retargeting old/existing drugs for potential new therapeutic applications’, Journal Of Pharmaceutical Education Research, 4, 1, pp. 1-15, Academic Search Index, EBSCOhost, viewed 18 November 2014. Tari, L. B. and Patel J. H. (2014) [online] ‘Systematic Drug Repurposing Through Text Mining’ Biomedical Literature Mining vol. 1159, pp. 253-267 Available at: http://www.springerprotocols.com/Abstract/doi/10.1007/978-1-4939-0709-0_14 [Accessed: 18th November, 2014] Barratt, M. J. and Frail, D. E. (2012) Drug repositioning: Bringing New Life to Shelved Assets and Existing Drugs John Wiley Sons, Inc. Pantziarka, P., Bouche, G., Meheus, L.., Sukhatme, V., Sukhatme, V. P. (2014) [online] ‘The Repurposing Drugs in Oncology (ReDO) Project’ ecancermedicalscience pp. 3 Available at: http://ecancer.org/journal/8/full/442-the-repurposing-drugs-in-oncology-redo-project.php [Accessed: 17th November, 2014] Persidis, A. (2011) [online] ‘The benefits of drug repositioning’ Drug Discovery World Available at: http://www.ddw-online.com/business/p142737-the-benefits-of-drug-repositioning-spring-11.html [Accessed: 17th November, 2014] Tudor I. Oprea, Julie E. Bauman,Cristian G. Bologa, Tione Buranda, Alexandre Chigaev, Bruce S. Edwards, Jonathan W. Jarvik, Hattie D. Gresham,Mark K. Haynes,Brian Hjelle,Robert Hromas,Laurie Hudson,Debra A. Mackenzie,Carolyn Y. Muller,John C. Reed,Peter C. Simons,Yelena Smagley,Juan Strouse, Zurab Surviladze,Todd Thompson,Oleg Ursu,Anna Waller,Angela Wandinger-Ness,Stuart S. Winter,Yang Wu,Susan M. Young,Richard S. Larson,Cheryl Willman,andLarry A. Sklar (2012) [online] ‘Drug repurposing from an academic perspective’

Ways To Fight The Drug War Essay -- essays research papers

Drug use has risen sharply in the United States in the past 40 years, with an estimated 23.6 million teenagers using illegal drugs within the past year. Preventing drug use has been a major issue in the area of politics, schools, or within families. Drug abuse occurs whenever the use of a drug causes physical or mental harm to the user. So far, society has been abusing drugs since the later nineteenth century, a time when the sale, purchase, possession, and use of drugs was not regulated. Dangerous drugs such as morphine, opium, and cocaine were used mainly for medical purposes including cures for depression, nervousness, alcoholism, and menstrual cramps. Because of the availability of these powerful drugs, people became addicts. In 1900, there were actually more narcotic addicts in the US than there are today; however, most of the users who became addicts were medical addicts. Very few users took drugs for recreational use only. In 1914 as an effort to curb drug abuse in the United States, the government passed the Harrison Act, which made illegal to obtain a narcotic drug without a doctor’s prescription. There were nearly half a million addicts at the beginning of 1920 and by 1945 there were only 30,000 to 40,000 addicts. The demand for drugs began to rise again in the 1960’s and continues to rise today. With this scary thought in mind, the United States needs find a solution to the rising drug problem, and fast.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Every year, more drugs are di...

Descriptive Essay Final Copy

I grab my bag and a hair-tie from the vanity on my way Out the door, tying my waist-length brown hair in a knot as I hurry down the stairs. My nana stands at the stove, stirring the pot of gravy she is making for breakfast. Behind her stands my papaw, playfully yanking her ponytail every time she turns around. At first glance one would think that they make an odd couple, with my nana being only five feet tall, with fox-red hair and hazel green eyes, in near perfect contrast to my papaw who is a large man, standing nearly six foot four, with eyes the color of the sky and white air that was once jet black.But as they laugh and play standing there in the kitchen, I know this place would mean nothing if they were any different. I slip on my boots at the door, and run across the field to the old wooden barn, its red has long faded, and the metal door handles are covered with rust. Reach out and grab the rusty handle and pull, hearing the ancient hinges creak and groan as the door opens. W alking into the barn can smell the fresh hay, and the lingering smell of the old moonshine still that sits in the corner, unattended for years, but left for the antique look.I climb the ladder to the loft, and wade through the piles of hay until reach the little door that opens onto the roof. Climb out onto the roof and walk to the end of the barn. There sit down, my leg hanging over the edge of the black shingled roof. I sit and watch as the deer run across the field, and as the train go by down next to the river. Reach in my bag and pull out my sketch pad and charcoals. I draw everything I see, the river, the birds, and the mountains. After I finish, climb down and run to the house; pause at the door, leaning own to pull off my boots.I open the door, and step into the kitchen, the floor is warm from the heat of the old white stove, causing tiny droplets of condensation to form on the speckled blue wallpaper. Nana has already set the table, her faded blue and white china resting in front of three chairs on the blue table cloth that covers the deep brown oak table. On each plate sit two biscuits, golden and gleaming with butter, accompanied by sausage and fried eggs. Grab the pot from the Stove and ladle the thick, creamy gravy onto everyone's plates.The steam rises from each plate like a plume of smoke from a tiny fire, taking with it the wonderful smell of my nana's cooking. As we sit down to eat, we join hands and my papaw gives the blessing; thanking God for the food he has provided on this day, and for forty years h?s had with the wonderful woman who cooked it. See my nana smile with love for my papaw, her head still bowed in prayer as we say ‘amen. ‘ As we raise our heads, I smile too, knowing that this place is filled with love and laughter and always will be.

The Cultural Revolution in China essays

The Cultural Revolution in China essays The Cultural Revolution that took place in China can be considered to be one of the most important experiences of the 20th century. It represented the result of a series of contextual events that marked the emergence of the phenomenon, and in its turn, it influenced the future evolution of events, to this day. In order to proper understand the complexity of the issue, it is important to analyze the event from a historical perspective. At the same time however, although the approach is chronological, there are essential issues that must be stressed out. Therefore, the events that took place in the late 1960s and the first half of the 1970s had important internal and external causes that should be pointed out for a comprehensive perception of the historical context. Next, the logical evolution of the paper focuses on the actual manifestations of what became known as the Great Cultural Revolution. Finally, aiming to offer a complex image of the entire political, economic, social and cultural of this phenomenon, the focus is on the actual effects of the revolution on all walks of life. As a conclusion, it is important to point out the necessity of an overview from multiple perspectives. The historical context of the revolution had in fact deep rooted components that defined the historical atmosphere both after the end of the war, and prior to the May16th 1966 manifesto. There are two different perspectives that must be taken into account. On the one hand there is the matter of internal factors, and on the other, the elements that determined the phenomenon to emerge and develop from the exterior. According to some scholars, the totalitarian regime in China emerged as a reaction against the countrys political disintegration during the early part of the twentieth century. This response followed the failure of the Nationalists to build up a unified party and a reintegrated polity soon enough to withstand t...

Century Family Trends Essays

Century Family Trends Essays Century Family Trends Essay Century Family Trends Essay I noticed that there are more single parent households than there were in the seventeen hundreds. Families are no longer a father and a mother raising their shared kin under one roof. Mothers of young children are working outside their home and providing for their family, rather than having a man providing for them. Today we have much more diversity, we have, adoptions, single parent households, gay and lesbians raising families and single people living on their own. Husbands and wives no longer feel the need to stay together from, death do us part, since we now have the option of getting a divorce. Parents these days are a lot less strict with their children and have much less control over them, due to technology and lack of authority. Some major differences I have noticed between today and the 18th century families are: women no longer feel less significant than the men, children are no longer under such strict rules and a hawks eye, and women have become more independent. In the 18th century, women relied solely on the men in their lives to provide security and stability for them and their family, men were their heads, which means that they were above them and were to be treated with utmost respect. Today we have working women who are more than capable of providing for themselves and their family all on their own. Children today have so much freedom, often times they dont know what to do with themselves. Children waste days playing video games, or getting high in the basement while their parents are away, not considering what the consequences might be for not finishing homework, or skipping school. As a punishment, parent today may ground their children, which usually results in the compensation of their phones. In the 18th century not only did children to have the option of playing video games, but they had very strict rules to follow and if they were to disobey, or lie, they were to be beaten. Children had six laws to abide by. If a parent were to beat their child today, said parent would be facing Jail time. Women today are much more independent, and hold equal rights to that of a man. Women today are owners of companies and their own houses. In the 18th century women had few rights and were unable to work, unless they were a servant. There are many differences between todays families and families in the 18th century. 18th Century Family Trends By primordial

Are our zoos cruel to wild animals Essay Example for Free

Are our zoos cruel to wild animals Essay Zoos are places that often visited by the people for recreation, moreover for the family who has child. They can find many kinds of animal, without going to the wild forest. Zoos can make the visitors happy, but it might not be the same condition as the wild animal’s feeling. I trust that zoos are cruel to the faunas. Numeruous people think that zoos are good for the wild animals. Keeping animals in the zoos can save the animals from extinction than let them free in their habitat. In their wild habitat, the animal might be killed by their enemies. If they live in the zoo, they could not be killed by their predators because they live in each cage. In addition, they also think that not all of the zoo are cruel to the wild animal because some of them have standart operational procedures how to protect animal in the zoos, for example is Safari Park Zoos, the biggest zoos in Indonesia. On the other hand, there are some reasons that can explain why zoos are cruel to the animals. First of all, zoos are not condusive for wild animal’s life. They should live in their free habitat. They could feel bored with the limited place that is available in the zoo. Also they cannot interact with the other animals. It can make them feel depressed. If the faunas feel uncomfortable with their habitat, they cannot reproduce well. So, their offspring will be stopped and the wild animals will be extinct. Except that, the zookeepers also make some mistakes. The zookeepers usually does not take care of the animals. They does not give the suitable food for the animals, does not keep the animals clean, and does not give the good treatment for the animals which are getting sick. The zookeeper sometimes exploitate the animals for their commercial aims. They do not care with their condition. Perhaps the wild animal is already tired, but the zookeeper still force them to entertain the visitors. The examples are elephant and dolphin which work hard for entertainment events in the zoo. All in all, it requires the zoos management to improve their ability in managing the zoos. They can decorate the zoos as similar as possible to their natural habitat. They also should make training for the zookepers. So, they can give the better treatment for the animals. Are our zoos cruel to wild animals. (2016, Apr 02).

Compare and contrast types of feedback Research Paper

Compare and contrast types of feedback - Research Paper Example The primary aim of providing formative feedback is to update the employees about their work and performance in a timely basis so as to ensure proper completion of the assigned tasks and duties by the employees (Judson & Harrison, 2009). Formative feedback can help an employee to focus on his/her on their weaknesses and further provides platform to work upon this limitations to enhance and improve their performance. This type of feedback can be implemented to all levels of the organisation. On the other hand summative feedback is also widely used in the organizations as a tool for improving the performance of employees. Summative feedback reflects the level of excellence that the employees demonstrative while meeting with the requirements of the organizations. It also helps the employees to understand their level of performance and also helps them in analyzing those areas where they can improve (White, 2009). As per the learning, it is identified that formative feedback offers timely update about the employee’s performances and is generally concern with identifying weaknesses whereas summative feedback primarily emphasise s on the level of excellency demonstrated by employees while they meet with the organizational goals and objectives. Nonetheless, it can be argued that both the types of feedback are delivered for the sole purpose of educating the employees and thereby intending to improve their individual

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome - Essay Example According to D'Amico and Barbarito (2012), health history is a way of obtaining information about patients’ health based on their own words and perceptions. P.W’s case requires a health history assessment that would help in evaluating the cause of her health condition. In evaluating her health history, interviewing her about the family’s past and present health history would help to understand the nature of her condition and diagnose effective lifestyle measures. In addition, the physical examination would help in studying underlying physical symptoms presented by the patient and enhance accurate diagnosis (Brashers, 2006).  According to D'Amico and Barbarito (2012), health history is a way of obtaining information about patients’ health based on their own words and perceptions. P.W’s case requires a health history assessment that would help in evaluating the cause of her health condition. In evaluating her health history, interviewing her about t he family’s past and present health history would help to understand the nature of her condition and diagnose effective lifestyle measures. In addition, the physical examination would help in studying underlying physical symptoms presented by the patient and enhance accurate diagnosis (Brashers, 2006).  For effective diagnosis, I would:†¢ Ask P.W questions about her past health and take the history specifically for patterns associated with menstruation, obesity, breast development and hirsutism.  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Conduct a physical examination through inspection methods. This would involve conducting gynecologic ultrasonography that would help in identifying small ovarian follicles that disturb ovarian functions with failed ovulation.  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Measure blood pressure level, waist size, and body mass index. I would also inspect the skin for any increased hair growth. This would help in determining the effects on hormonal imbalances on hair growth or changes of the skin textur e.  For P.W to manage her condition, I would recommend the following:†¢ Birth control pills would help in controlling menstrual cycles, clearing acne as well as reducing hormone levels.  

Demonstrative Communication Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Demonstrative Communication Paper - Essay Example It also reveals how people relate to each other. Nonverbal or demonstrative communication accounts for about 93 percent of people’s communication. Types of demonstrative communication Demonstrative communication involves different types of communication. Facial expressions contribute a large portion to people’s communication. For instance, a smile or a frown can communicate a lot of information to the receiver. People throughout the world use facial expressions to express happiness, sadness, anger, and fear. Gestures also contribute to non-verbal communication. These are movements and signals that that provide meaning during communication. Their meanings can be more important than words. Paralinguistic can also convey a lot of information during communication. These mainly involve the use of vocal communication such as tone of voice, loudness, and pitch. The type of vocal variation in a particular conveyance of information can bring out a different meaning depending on the context. Body language and posture can also convey a lot of information. Such nonverbal behaviors can indicate feelings and other communication cues. Demonstrative communication may start at an early stage in human development when people start to point at things. The making of gestures by small kids may be a start point for learning demonstrative communication in life. ... 470). Effective and ineffective demonstrative communication Depending on the context, demonstrative communication can be effective or ineffective. The effectiveness of demonstrative communication varies differently between the sender and the receiver. Demonstrative communication involves understanding the feeling of each stakeholder in the communication. There has to be an understanding between the sender and the receiver. Demonstrative communication can be very effective especially for teachers. Their line of work dictates that the teacher has to make the students understand whatever he/she is teaching. The best method to increase students understanding is the use of demonstrative communication in addition to verbal communication while teaching. Demonstrative communication can be very effective depending on the context at hand. For example, facial expressions can be very effective in warning kids. Whenever a kid does something wrong, it is common for parents to give the kids an angr y kind of look. Instantly, the kid stops doing the wrong thing. Such a scenario demonstrates the effectiveness of facial expressions in communicating to kids. Ineffective communication occurs when the speaker uses the wrong nonverbal message to deliver certain information. For instance, using hand gesture to point to a certain direction when the intention was to point to the opposite direction. Wrong choice of nonverbal message can send a different message to the audience. This may make the audience to perceive a different message from the intended Positive and negative effects of demonstrative communication The perception of demonstrative communication can be positive or negative depending on how the receiver. For instance, picture a company meeting where everyone is

Interview on ethical dilemma part 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Interview on ethical dilemma part 2 - Essay Example She asserts that the Bible does not allow any form of human interference with human life. As such, death should not be voluntary or induced. The autonomy of a patient to choose his or her destiny as far as health is concerned fails to consider other interested factions. Thus, patients cannot decide to end their lives since repercussion run deep within the society. Euthanasia leads to wider social problems and introduces discomfort within a society. Families break due to differences in opinions regarding euthanasia. Family members of patients are required to consent to the move before it is done. In many instances, there is hardly consensus and only the decision of the patient and the majority of family members prevails. As such, the decisions leave a broken family. She further claims that different views in a family may result in depression and other health related problems. Parker accepts that patients have autonomy over their lives. She also accepts that there are many complex situations where patients suffer and have little chance of survival. However, there is no clear method to determine when to die, and whether a patient has the right to decide to stay alive or die. Some patients, especially parents or older siblings, are relied upon by children and other dependents for survival. As such, their decisions and actions directly affect others. It is important to stay alive since it gives hope to the dependents of possible healing. Ending the life of such individuals makes people lose focus and hope in life. Allowing people to decide their fate erodes the societal perception towards life. Society regards life as precious and supposed to be preserved at all times. Assisting people to take life communicates a wrong message to the society. Thus, it is imperative to treat the patient until he or she dies out of the severity of illness rather than assisting them to take their life. Doing so would

Childhood leukemia development and correlation with traffic air Article

Childhood leukemia development and correlation with traffic air pollution - Article Example The study shows that children are more likely to develop leukemia if they live in urban centers. The reason for this is the high levels of pollution in cities. The research goes to show the problems that high pollution levels can create especially with regard to children. This link was established when the researchers found that children living in urban centers with relatively high levels of pollution were at a significantly higher risk for developing cancer. The study has values adjusted for factors which could tamper with the results. However, even after the adjustment, the risks remained high for children living in areas where there was a high level of pollution. This study is certainly a revelation since we often discuss global warming in the context of animals and rising sea levels but there is also a visible and immediate impact of the pollution spread by human activity on the planet. That impact is the negative effect pollution has on our health and the health of our children who are defenseless against it. The government and our civil authorities should do a lot more to stop the situation. They need to ensure that we do not have to suffer the negative consequences of the progress we have made. If we do not do anything about it, the problem would only multiply. At the present, we have little choice in how we can reduce air pollution levels. Of course, we can have Individual actions or even drives coming from small groups aimed at reducing pollution. However, these may never have the impact that government policy changes can. In addition to trying and reducing air pollution levels, more research on the topic is also required. Without the proper scientific data, we may make the wrong conclusions. This was suggested in the research study itself. Additional information and research on the topic is necessary. That would gives us better tools with which we can handle pollution and its impact on our lives. Even now,

The Financial Times reported on 18 April 2005 that William Hill is in Essay

The Financial Times reported on 18 April 2005 that William Hill is in talks with Stanley - Essay Example On William Hill portfolio diligence, I will discuss the working capital management for acquisition of Stanley Leisure. In this report, I analyse the due diligence guidelines that are predisposed to assist William Hill in capital evaluation of Stanley Leisure, with statistical precision and performance reports. According to Horne and Wachowicz (2000), working capital management is an important component of corporate finance; it directly affects the liquidity and profitability of William Hill in acquisition of Stanley Leisure. Purpose, findings, and research questions that will guide the study are generated from the shareholders’ effects and the motives for acquisition. The data for this study will be the secondary data from Journal of Financial Economics. In the background study, I analyse the reasons for William Hill’s takeover and stipulate the post-takeover performance of the company. Motives for acquisition of Stanley Leisure and shareholders’ value are critiq ued in the following project. In this project, I have used the capital assets pricing model (CAPM) in methodological analysis and OLS Regression for data sources. I can resolve if William’s merger was worthwhile through liquidity-based explanations. Introduction Mergers and acquisitions involve the amalgamation of two or more firms or the purchase directed to current firm within the foreign country. This was established by Whiting (1976) that acquisitions are effected through capital transfer, use of marketing skills, and presence of skill for management to increase the efficiency of the companies concerned. The development of better information systems in the global trade can enable a company increase its level of performance and meet its customer needs better. I will discuss in detail the research questions that will assist William Hill in acquisition of Stanley Leisure; due diligence need by William Hill is to enable the shareholders with adequate concept of underlying Wil liam acquisition portfolio than the prevailing market allocation of betting services. This gives the company sufficient evidence and confidence to leverage the funding of the acquisition of Stanley Leisure. (Christen 2009). According to Robert (2009), due diligence gives a comprehensive analysis of appraisal techniques and interpretation of acquisition results for both the firms involved. William Hill has to identify the risks associated with acquisition portfolio and formulate dynamics to make up for the loss that might come along. Research Questions In this, research William Hill has to investigate various pieces of information and statistics. It has to: 1. Evaluate how working capital management will assist in the profitability of its firm. 2. Analyze how working capital management affects its profitability. 3. Find areas where investments activities need to be implemented. 4. Are the components of working capital of high importance in

Childhood leukemia development and correlation with traffic air Article

Childhood leukemia development and correlation with traffic air pollution - Article Example The study shows that children are more likely to develop leukemia if they live in urban centers. The reason for this is the high levels of pollution in cities. The research goes to show the problems that high pollution levels can create especially with regard to children. This link was established when the researchers found that children living in urban centers with relatively high levels of pollution were at a significantly higher risk for developing cancer. The study has values adjusted for factors which could tamper with the results. However, even after the adjustment, the risks remained high for children living in areas where there was a high level of pollution. This study is certainly a revelation since we often discuss global warming in the context of animals and rising sea levels but there is also a visible and immediate impact of the pollution spread by human activity on the planet. That impact is the negative effect pollution has on our health and the health of our children who are defenseless against it. The government and our civil authorities should do a lot more to stop the situation. They need to ensure that we do not have to suffer the negative consequences of the progress we have made. If we do not do anything about it, the problem would only multiply. At the present, we have little choice in how we can reduce air pollution levels. Of course, we can have Individual actions or even drives coming from small groups aimed at reducing pollution. However, these may never have the impact that government policy changes can. In addition to trying and reducing air pollution levels, more research on the topic is also required. Without the proper scientific data, we may make the wrong conclusions. This was suggested in the research study itself. Additional information and research on the topic is necessary. That would gives us better tools with which we can handle pollution and its impact on our lives. Even now,

Trust Builders in a Sales Person Essay Example for Free

Trust Builders in a Sales Person Essay Trust is the binding force of great relationships. This leads to greater cooperation and better solutions, especially in sales and customer service situations. When trust increases, communication is more effective and understanding in enhanced. Since most people won’t buy from someone they don’t trust, building and maintaining a strong bond of trust is essential for developing long term customer satisfaction and loyalty. Customers believe in getting the best and feeling comfortable with what they have received. Having a long term customer takes more than good customer service. Sales representatives of any company need to have the â€Å"trust-builders† characteristics to help them build strong relationships with clients. In the end this will help the overall profitability of the company. The first characteristic is expertise; this is the extent to which a salesperson possesses relevant knowledge and capability to get the job done right. An example is Digicel, their sales persons are well trained and equipped with relevant information and knowledge of their prices and sale promotions. Customers can ask a salesperson about a promotion and when the customer research for themselves, it is accurate. This builds trust, when a salesperson shows competence and knowledge. This has pushed Digicel to be the top efficient service provider of telecommunication in Jamaica. Second characteristic is dependability; this is the extent to which a salesperson consistently and predictably follows through on commitments he/she makes to others. Digicel sales practices indicates this when they offer free nights promotion to customers. This promotion was always offered once a customer puts on two hundred dollars before 9pm. This allows customers to depend on what Digicel said they would deliver. Candor is the third characteristic of a trust-builder type; it is the extent to which a salesperson is honest and upfront with others, especially with regard to issues/factors that may impact those others. Digicel portraits this by allowing their sales personnel or customer care agent to tell customer the truth when they are having technical problems, they even go as far as sending out texts to inform and apologise for the disruptions. The fourth trust-builder type is customer orientation; this is the extent to which a salesperson values and protects the interests of his/her customers. Digicel trained their salespersons to show empathy while adding value and giving back to the customer’s community and even their lives. Encouraging rebuilding of schools, community centers and developing public areas push customers to trust and build long term relationship with Digicel. The fifth trust-builder is likeability; this is the affection customers have towards you. There are many factors that contribute to how likeable you are as a person, but in the context of relationships with your customers, these factors encompass courtesy, respect, remembering names and key facts, treating each customer as special, and being interested in them and their lives. Digicel depicts this in their advertisements and when a sale agent is speaking to you. They ensured Jamaican culture and people are portrayed in their ads. They also ensure high quality service by asking for your name and throughout the conversation they refer to you by your name.

Operations Management Analysis of Asda

Operations Management Analysis of Asda Introduction: Every function of the business has its significance, importance and place in the business organizations. Not a single department, function or activity can be declared as sole vital for the life of a company. It is the combined effort of all the departments and joint work of function involved, which brings success, revenues and business development. However, the key factor of the business, are divided in some shapes; to get a clear and visible picture of the overall business activities, being carried out by the organization. Operations management, financial management, marketing, sales, customer service, quality assurance, information technology and research and development are largely the main functions of a business entity in 21st century. No one can declare any of these functions as the sole guaranteer for the corporate success of the company, every function has its competitive and comparative advantages and also everyone has some unique characteristics which help in making that particular function more important. However, there is a function which is quite visible in all of these functions, or we can say that it is a facilitator of all the departments and functions in any organization. That particular function is called operations. Whatever may be the department or function, there will be a process and procedure involved in the work flow of that particular unit. Operations are everywhere, whichever department we select; we will see a line of operations and standard operating procedure. This indicates how important and integral it is, to have a transparent and effective operations management system. Operations management not only gives insight about the efficient and effective workflow of a particular department but also helps in getting a smooth workflow all over the organization. The process and strategic planning is quite imperative for the success of the business, but the effective execution of that particular plan is far more important than that. Effective operations management can help in achieving the group, departmental and organizational goals achievement in an effective, efficient and less costly way. So we can declare that, operations management ensures the life of the company. This report is a case study of ASDAs operations management mechanism and is purely dedicated to find out the rights and wrongs in the operations of ASDA. Operations Management: Operations management is a management function and subject, which is largely concerned with supervision, design, and redesigning of the business operations in the making of goods and services.  [1]  It has two dimensions, one is company dimension and the other one is customers dimension. The company dimension of the operation management is dealing with the operations in a cost effective, efficient and less costly ways, while the customer requires the greater quality of the product and service. So in business operations, an organization has to ensure, not only its own circumstances and financial position but also the customers demand. In simple words, the operations management is an organizational function, aimed a smooth flow of the processes to convert the input into the required output, in an efficient and cost effective way. So the quality assurance of the product offerings and their cost, are the key points of studying the operations management. Operations management usually refers to the production of goods and services independently, even though the difference between these two central types of operations is ever more difficult to make as producer convinced to combine product and service offerings. More commonly, operations management targets to increase the satisfaction level of value-added actions in any of the given processes.  [2]   The fundamental objective of the operations management departments attempt to create the desired balance between the costs and revenue to  get the maximum net operational profit, but at the same time to ensure the quality of the product and service. Operations management includes the activities that are involved in the process of production and distribution of the goods and services. Normally, the small companies do not involve in the operations management processes but major businesses stress upon properly keeping up with the operations management processes and normally they do not change the processes rapidly. Company Overview: ASDA is a British superstore chain which retails food, clothing, toys and general commodities. It also has a mobile telephone network, ASDA Mobile. It has its head office in the ASDA House in Leeds, West Yorkshire.  [3]  ASDA became a subsidiary of the American retail giant Wal-Mart, the worlds largest retailer, in 1999. And today, it is the third largest chain in the UK after Tesco and Sainsburys. In December 2010, 16.5% of UK grocery stores used ASDA for their major shop, with special offers the most bragged motive for its reputation.  [4]   Asda Stores Limited was established with the name of Associated Dairies Farm Stores Limited in year 1949. However, the approval of the Asda name occurred in 1965 with the merger of the Asquith chain of three supermarkets and Associated Dairies; Asda is an abbreviation of Asquith and Dairies, often capitalised. As Asda is subsidiary of Wall-Mart, so the focus of its marketing promotions have frequently been centred only on price, with Asda kept on promoting itself under the slogan of Britains Lowest Priced Supermarket, 13 Years Running. Because it is a wholly owned division of Wal-Mart, so, is not necessary for Asda to announce quarterly or half-yearly earnings. ASDA employs more than 150000, working on its more than 375 locations. The operating income of the company has been declared around  £638 millions last year. Andy Clarke is the chief executive officer of ASDA and Andy Bond is chairman. Asda helped wall-mart getting success and market share in British market.  [5]   Under the leadership of strong people, ASDA has been pretty successful in competing with its rivals in the last many years. Today, although it is ranked on 3rd in terms of market share after Tesco and Sainsbury, still its reputation and public relations have been out standing. Objective: The objective of this study is to analyse the central operational functions of Asda and their associated factors, problems and deficiencies. In this regard, we will discuss the fundamental operations management theories and their application at Asda. We will also try to focus on the operational problems being faced by Asda currently because of increasing competition and financial crisis as well. In this regard, the key operational and functional matter of the company will also come under discussion. Problems and Issues: We have been observing a very sharp decline in the sales of the grocery store and shrinking growth for the last 3years or so, due to the financial crisis. In this scenario, the major problem for the companies is to sustain. For surviving and sustaining in this environment, there are two ways to be adopted. The first one is of increasing the revenues and the other one is of cutting the cost of doing business. In both of matters, the operational management capacity of the organization is challenged and the team is under strict pressure. Competition has also increased and the competitors are trying very hard to gain the market share, in order to retain Asdas market share, so here the company needs to have implemented effective operation management system and tools so that the production of goods and services will be maintained smoothly and customers demand is fulfilled quickly So the focus of this report will not only be on the operations management of the company but also be on the dealing with the aftermaths of financial crisis with the help of operations management theories and practices. Operations Management and Value Chain: The concept of value chain is very important from the perspective of operations management. It is the fundamental concept on the basis of which all the operations building, is erected. Michael Porter is considered as the father of the value chain philosophy. He coined the idea of value chain in his book Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance (1985). This idea brought about a very positive change in modern day strategic management and marketing. Nowadays all successful companies give due importance to the concept of value in service delivery. Value means a mental perception of a product/service by the customer for which he is paying the price. A person estimates the value by a simple equation; Value = Benefit/cost.  [6]  The concept of value is understood to be a core idea in marketing and strategic management. Many theories revolve around this concept of value; like value chain analysis and profit value chain etc. The concept of service value chain is pretty similar to the Porters value chain idea. There is just a slight difference between them in terms of their practical implementation. For getting the true insight about these two models; fist we should understand the Porters value chain model. Porter argued that the customer; when he pays the price for the product or service, he is not basically paying for the product or services. He is paying the price of the perceived value which is delivered to him by the provider. If his benefits estimation exceeds the cost of the product or service, he will be satisfied and vice versa. So the core area of concentration in marketing must be to enhance the value so that the customer may be satisfied and come back again for the same value.  [7]   Value is not added on the corporate level. It is added from the operational level and with the efficient interlinks of the various functions. An organization is involved in two sorts of functions; the primary and core functions and the support functions. With the proper integration of the functions it can achieve the superior value. This diagram will further elaborate the Porters value chain model. The primary functions include inbound logistics (Warehousing raw material), operations (Process of converting raw material into finished goods), outbound logistics (finished goods inventory packaging), marketing and service (selecting a target market and fulfilling its demand and after sales service provision etc.) While the support functions include the firm infrastructure, (its design, polices and procedures) HRM (hiring people, firing and training them etc.) Technology (technology enabled management to deliver quality and value), and procurement (purchase and warehousing). Now we look at these main operations management functions separately, along with their complete reference to the organization of our concern. The Value Chain of ASDA: Inbound Logistics: The Inbound logistics operations of Asda are presented in its totally inclined and agile form and also show the commitment of the overall low price strategic management o. As the company is among the major market players so it has the place and economies of scope which are considered as the key bargaining powers, it helps to achieve low costs through the suppliers of the company. The up-gradation of the IT and other functions of the company is a routine matter and with the improved order-taking system, the company has made it among leaders. Out bound Logistics: Asda is also working with all retail segments, physical ones, online and offline ones. As it is a subsidiary of Wall-mart, so it has to operate directly with all of the operations included in outbound logistics. The companies is always keen to of develop processes and tools to produce and distribute the goods and services effectively and efficiently. Asda has designed a variety of formats and types related to the stores, it will be implemented strategically with the aim of maximum exposure of the customer. The formats include the Express, Superstores, Metro, Extra and Homeplus, these ranges are divided and segmented according to the target customers  [8]  . Marketing and Sales Programs: Asda has also introduced incentives and various schemes for the benefit of the customers. Issues related to the environment, climate changes, public awareness, reduction of waste and the carbon footprint involved in the preparation of the meals. The company is always striving to satisfy the customers and makes them happy. This indeed has helped it gain greater respect in the eyes of the customers. Services: Asda is following what wall-mart is doing; the price leadership. The famous slogan of always low price depicts the philosophy of wall-mart. It is also implementing the strategies related to cost leadership and differentiation, the aim is to improve the customer service. The focal point of the value chain here is, is to create a valuable service which may result in a high degree of value as compared to the other service providers. Asda has some very efficient strategies that are streamlined to apply the useful services in order to keep the customers. The main focus here is to reduce the cost of production and operations and hence gain a leadership position. There are some problems in the system, but can be resolved with the proper research and development. Technological Factors: In todays globalized world, the leadership in the business can only be achieved through leadership in technology. Technology is an effective way to make the business more efficient, effective. It may happen that sometimes extra efficient use of technology may produce negativity, however this can be minimized. Asda has to take into consideration lots of matters related to technology, but as the technology is among major macro-environmental variable and it has influenced development of the Asdas products and services. Few years back when Wall-mart invested around $6 billion in its IT function to introduce RFID, they also introduce the same in Asda as well. This has increased service orientation of the business and customers are delighted. So we can say that technology is very important ingredient in gaining advantage over competitor in the operations management. Information Technology and Integration: Innovative technology has helped companies and the customers, in various functions and ultimately the rate of customer satisfaction has increased. Now the desired products and goods are available easily. Companies have individualized their services to make the customer happy, and hence the grocery shopping has become pretty suitable with easy access. Asda works on the Customer is Always Right policy to improve its service orientation and has installed various IT gadgets to make the system more efficient. Here is a list of those technology gadgets, which are being used by Asda in its business operations to make the customer more satisfied. Self Check-out machines. Wireless Devices. Electronic Shelf and Labeling Electronic Tracker Electronic Fund Transfer System Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). These technologies have increased the value of these activities being performed in stores and making it more efficient. Now you have all kinds of solutions available under one roof of Asda. I.T. Integration: In this challenging time, the corporations are facing a rapidly increasing rivalry with changing environment and business tendencies. For long term survival in the business, the companies have to predict the change and adopt it as well. To endure and compete in this modern world it is compulsory to innovate in the technology, operational processes and improvement in the products and services. When you are in the business of retailing, you have to keep these things in your mind. You have to ensure; Proper Implementation of the systems to control and record all the stock. Arranged record of all the previously delivered products. Analysis of every business transactions properly. The above mentioned are some factors that should be analyzed properly, as IT has many solutions that are beyond the traditional support role. Asda should also have adequate execution of extranet service it will be beneficial for the company. Here the internet will help to create customers circle and flow of customized information among the business partners and the company. Asda has taken an initiative to introduce the extranet system. The system can provide connection with the business partners online and provides the opportunity to build relationships with the partners and delivering the easiest way of accessing the retailing services of Asda. There are many technological advances and systems that can support business operations. Asda has implemented some which includes like wireless devices, intelligent scale, electronic shelf labeling, self checkout machine and radio frequency identification systems. These systems can help the company in achieving its long term and short term goals and also the target to control the cost of operational processes and provide proper control upon the volume of the products and services. Store and Inventory Management: The inside store inventory management system of Asda is very effective because of the RFID technology used to store the information of the inventory and dealers information is also available with them which helps in making the process much reliable. Channels management system: The way it deals with its suppliers and other business partners that is really recommendable. As we discussed early that, value chain means to take care of not only your own value but he value chain of your network partner. Asda is working with a vast variety of suppliers across the world, being a major retailer with a diverse range of products and employed employees from very different ethnic groups and cultures. It is included in the policy of the company that it should maintain very healthy relationships with the suppliers and work with mutual concerns. The addition of technology in controlling the work pattern with the suppliers can improve the communication of the company with the suppliers. Asda has a good network of communication with the suppliers because of Wall-mart but still it need to improve and add a technology that will be easily accessible by the suppliers and understandable also at the same time. The communication network should be very clear and effective between the supplier and the company. The record of all the required products should be clearly mentioned by the company to the supplier it will help in building a long term business. The contractors in the loop will be able to promote the orders and it will improve the conditions and steps included in the supply chain. However, we see some loop holes in trade union relationship. In August 2005, the manager of a depot in Wakefield spoke out what were called foreign-sounding names over the communal address system ordering them to report instantaneously to the managers office. At least one was threatened with the sack unless he produced his passport the next day. The highly public initiative by management, which came within weeks of the 7 July bombings in London was followed by a flurry contempt for Muslims and their religion.  [9]   Loop Holes in the System: In December 2007 Asda, Sainsburys and other retailers admitted to price fixing dairy products between 2002 and 2003. Asda commented, Everyone at Asda regrets what happened, particularly as we are passionate about lowering prices. Our intention was to provide more money for dairy farmers, who were under severe financial pressure at the time. So far in total these retailers have been fined  £116  million. Apart from this, we can see some of these problems Asda is leader brand and has massive business around the world. The strategies to control the business and increase the customer satisfaction and maximize the revenues are the ultimate goal of the company. There are some issues that are found within the company that are follows: Lack of expertise. No record maintenance of the stock. Slow delivery to the customers Logistics deficiency No proper control of distribution channels. Recommendations: On the basis of the secondary data it has been proved that Flexibility in the work place is required because than the change will be adopted easily. The cost structure is varied at multiple places. In order to implement some efficient functions following steps should be taken: Customer Service Strategic Procurement Supplier Connectivity and Order Fulfilment Manufacturing Flow Portfolio Management Sales Cycle Efficiency Reduction in unproductive time Long term plans should be made related to technology The above mentioned factors are at the initial level in the Asda company and can be handled very easily as Asda has many excellent and efficient ways to solve major problems. Asda also always takes care of its systems and processes but the only problem is the adoption of change which is very slow. Asda is a very large company which includes a large number of technological systems that are developed for the benefit of the company. Company also believes in fast transactions but the delivery process is still very slow in many areas, the customer order is sometimes ignored also due to lack of a communication tool. Approach to Operations Improvement Effective operations and processes allow a business to maximize its efficiency as well as revenues. It is necessary to understand the optimizing and streamlining the business activities and processes so that the output can be maximized. The processes should be built purely for the purpose of maximizing the customer satisfaction, profitability and increase effectiveness in the output. To deliver the right good at the right place on the right time is the ultimate goal of the company but deeply requires the integration of the supply chain management and business processes and the contribution of buyers and suppliers, also joint product development, common systems within the company franchises and frequently shared information with the customers, suppliers and vendors.